Big Adventure!
Hour of the Red God
I
learned of Hour of the Red God from NPR. I was drawn to the location, Nairobi, Kenya and
the protagonist, a former Maasai warrior, Detective Mollel knowing both would
create an interesting, different type of mystery. Also having traveled to
Nairobi, I was curious how Richard Crompton would depict the city and its
people. Crompton
uses descriptive prose to bring Nairobi alive. The city is more than a simple
setting for a brutal murder of a prostitute. It is a textured part of the
story line exposing the gritty yet modern Africa during the turbulent
elections of 2007.
The Secret Keeper
The Twisted Thread
The Hiding Place
And the Mountains Echoed
Beautiful Ruins
The Garden of Evening Mists
The Garden of Evening Mists
takes the reader on a beautiful, haunting, painful, turbulent journey. Tan Twan
Eng demands that the reader pay close attention, as instead of crudely
spelling everything out she slowly reveals importance aspects of the plot.
The book is filled with
intertwining themes. A central theme is the role of memory in human
existence. She connects memory with guilt, particularly survivor guilt.
Eng also focuses on the relationship between memory and forgetting. She
illustrates brilliantly how memories are tenuous. Often one's grasp of the past
is severely limited.
Art is shown as a powerful
medium. Art heals, soothes, frustrates, manipulates, excites, challenges. Eng
illustrates through her different characters varying attitudes towards
colonialism. Yun Ling downplays the importance of nationality. Tatsuji carries
post-colonial guilt. Magnus has strong memories of his home country under
British rule. Finally, war is analyzed. War creates inconceivable circumstances. In
a war there is no logic or reasoning.
Eng has carefully constructed her characters. This is a character driven novel. None of the characters are perfect. They have flaws and
vulnerabilities.
Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?
The Boy in the Suitcase
Best Kept Secret
Best Kept
Secret was another
disappointment. The struggles and achievements of the characters are not developed
and far too predictable. Harry needed to be on the New York Times Bestseller
List. A few pages later the goal is accomplished. Emma wants to locate her late
father’s child. Walla, it’s done. Now she wants to adopt her. Check. Sebastian
is having problems socially in school. An incident occurs and abracadabra he is
the hero. These examples are endless.
Characters unknown to me but probably
previously introduced in story lines created in book one are just now
resurfacing in book three. So annoying! The politics were boring. Who cares
about Giles, the election or the parties? There are far too many characters and
many of them are insubstantial. Again, Archer’s characters are unsophisticated,
unsurprising and lacking complexity. For example, an Archer villain is a
diabolical scoundrel with not one redeeming characteristic.
Jeffrey Archer has
created a soap opera. The dead woman’s letter written in case the will is
contested is presented in the nick of time. One hundred pages to the books end
a ridiculous caper emerges. And of course, at the books completion, Archer leaves the reader with yet
another cliffhanger, which is notorious technique of a good soap opera. Best
Kept Secret is overly
dramatic, poorly constructed, unbelievable and sadly lacking depth. I will not be continuing with the Harry Clifton Chronicles.
The Sins of the Father
The Sins
of the Father is part of
the Harry Clifton Chronicles. I read the second story first. It really must be read in chronological
order, as Jeffrey Archer does not summarize the first book, Only Time Will Tell. I was handicapped by not knowing what occurred as well as who
was whom.
I started the
third book, but am contemplating continuing, as the writing in the second book
was full of faults. The
coincidences were preposterous. The characters are one-dimensional and clichéd. (I could care less if Harry was Hugo’s son.)
Predictably Archer depicts
the good people as brave, resourceful and courageous whereas the bad ones are
class-conscious, vile, inept, arrogant jerks. The separate
stories were disjointed. Overall
the story was boring.
Archer has proclaimed he will create "at least" five books in this series. I can’t imagine
there will be many readers left by the fifth; especially since I am unconvinced
I should brave the third in the chronicles.
Alone
Alone featured Bobby Dodge and
only briefly
included D.D. Warren, the tough detective for which the series is based. This
is Lisa Gardner’s first book in the series. It is quite interesting that she
developed D.D. as her writing progressed versus concentrating on Bobby who was
the prominent character in this book. At first I was concerned I would not
connect to Bobby, but the story like all Gardner's was extremely absorbing. I
really related to Bobby and his families dysfunction, which he further unravels
in therapy. He struggles to accept just like I have struggled to accept a loved
one's inability or in Bobby’s case lack of desire to connect or rebuild.
Alone had some
missteps. The recap of the story while the deranged killer was on the loose in
the penthouse suite was ridiculous. Gardner timing of summarizing the story for
the reader was poorly executed and unbelievable considering what was suppose to
be occurring. Additionally the connection between a number of characters or how
characters deduced their next actions were convoluted.
Kindle Baby!
I
did it! I purchased the Kindle Paperwhite. Although I am in the middle of The
Sins of the Father I switched to a book via the e-reader. As you all know, I very
much enjoy Lisa Gardner's detective thrillers. I figured I should purchase one
of her books for my first Kindle reading experience as I know I would enjoy the
story and hence may get use to e-reading. If I hated the first book on my new
toy, my Kindle experience could have been tainted. I finished Alone last night. Reading on the
Kindle isn't terrible. There are both pros and cons.
I
prefer the feel of an old fashion book. I am not fond of reading from a
computerized screen. I like knowing exactly how much you have left to read by visually seeing and paging through rather than a percentage of the book completed. I enjoy going to a bookstore to browse versus reading about books on-line. However, the ease of purchasing books
from Amazon with a quick search and click is a luxury. I love the dictionary
feature, although this first read was not comprised of challenging, foreign words.
Finally for my upcoming travel adventure or possible jury duty in late August,
carrying one very light machine opposed to numerous books is extraordinarily
convenient.
Marrying the Mistress
I reluctantly picked up Marrying the Mistress from the
lending library at work. I quickly hid this trashy book in my bag. I figured it
would be a quick, fun weekend pool read. Yet,I did not want to
publicly promote this book pick.
The Divide
The
Divide was an enjoyable, easy read, yet far from groundbreaking. Nicholas Evans
use of many voices was a good technique providing a glimmer into each key
character's unique perspective and feelings. I'm at a bit of a loss on what
else to write about this book. The eco-terrorism angle was different. The
writing was mediocre. The characters were run of the mill. The book was nothing
spectacular.
The Secret Scripture
The Secret Scriptures focuses on Roseanne McNulty, a centenarian and
long-time resident of the Roscommon mental hospital. The institution, her home
is to close. Roseanne’s life spans a turbulent era in Ireland’s
history, from the Irish civil war to the German bombing of Belfast during World
War II. The destructive history shapes the experiences of this intriguing
protagonist. Roseanne relays here story taking on the task of writing her
personal narrative or the "secret scripture." Her voice is sad,
strange, strong and often confused. Her account interweaves with that of her
psychiatrist, Dr. Grene who is charged with assessing whether she can finally be
released.
Sebastian Barry
writes about love, loss, broken promises, failed hopes, morality, religious
prejudice, archaic beliefs. Barry's style is poetic. He creates
beautiful prose out of the wreckage of horrendous circumstances, diving into
the complexity of human emotions while illustrating that destructive actions
are in our nature.
Barry faltered
tremendously with the twist at the very end. The twist was too coincidental,
unbelievable and completely unnecessary. Luckily this mishap did not diminish
the books overall quality.
Deceptive Intentions
Deceptive
Intentions is listed
under two different titles. Heart of Deception is the other listed title. The prequel
also has two different names. I’m not entirely sure why M.L. Malcolm has taken
this approach. Any thoughts or known reasons please let me know.
I am surprised
how much I enjoyed the genre. It’s my first spy novel, although this book can
also be characterized as a family saga, loosely historical and perhaps even a
coming of age story. I think I may like Secret Lies or Heart of Lies even better as one of the primary
characters Leo Hoffman’s early life as a spy is explored. In Deceptive
Intentions I wanted to
learn more of Leo’s clandestine identity. I was fascinated by the colorful,
foreign landscapes of Tangier and Egypt. Unfortunately the spy story line was
vague and underdeveloped in this book.
The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry
The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry is a
journey of insight, new friends, loss, love, growth and the ability to change.
I love how Rachel Joyce highlights that there are always opportunities for new
beginnings even when for so long things have been stuck. Joyce’s characters are
varied, intricate and very unique. The premise of walking across England with
no supplies, yachting shoes or truly clear intention is absolutely absurd.
Nevertheless our protagonist Harold moves forward emotionally, spiritually and
physically. Joyce has developed a character to emulate, as it is honorable, dedicated and exciting to take on a challenge and then succeed beyond
everyone’s, including your own, wildest expectations. Joyce does a great job of
creating a complicated, rich, sad yet happy tale.
Lunch in Paris
Lunch
in Paris is
a predictable, pretentious, uninteresting memoir of
an American woman who falls in love with a Frenchman and moves to Paris. The
author’s story is not at all gripping or poignant. Moving from the States to
another first world country is not brave or automatically interesting to compel
the creation of a memoir. Moving to Pakistan, Iraq or Ghana, well that’s a
different matter. Elizabeth Bard self-portrayal is obnoxious and bratty.
Additionally she takes a formulaic approach of comparing the States to France.
Americans are portrayed as uncultured and greedy while the French are
sophisticated, higher beings. This book’s saving grace was the recipes. To
start I want to try the quick and dirty chocolate soufflé cake, trout with
cherry tomatoes baked in foil and yogurt cake. There are many more recipes that
peaked my interest and did not appear super challenging to accomplish. The recipes were more interesting then Bard's story.
Live to Tell
Live to
Tell is haunting. Lisa
Gardner combines children with severe mental health issues, a pediatric psyche
unit and alternative treatment practices that involve communicating with the
spirit world to create a seriously disturbing but engrossing suspense thriller.
Of all the Gardner books I have read thus far, (I’m at number three), Live
to Tell is the best but
creepiest. The psychotic children are the most extreme and unsettling element
to this story. I know I have written this before, but what in the world is
going on in Gardner’s head to create such horrendous plots?
Life at the Marmont
The Wonder Bread Summer
Broken Harbor
Broken
Harbor was such a slow
read. It has taken me half of June to complete and two days to write the
review. The first hundred and fifty pages take place in the murder victim’s
home with the detectives slowly, tediously reviewing the scene. I began to
wonder if the entire story was going to take place in the home. Sadly the story
continued to disappoint. The motive for the murders seemed unlikely. The
creature in the attic was the most interesting element. However, the obsession
with capturing it would never have been tolerated. The perspective of
Scorcher’s green partner was just ridiculous. I would have rather seen this
detective succeed and be an asset to Scorcher. Finally, the case sparks tragic
family memories, which impacts Scorcher and his sisters. This story line is
poorly executed. I adored Tana French’s first book, Into the Woods. Unfortunately, her last two have not
thrilled me.
Catch Me
Lisa
Gardner creates addictive, satisfying crime thrillers. My eyes hurt from
hungrily devouring the pages. Catch Me is my third Gardner read. Her stories unfold
well and she creates dynamic characters. Gardner often uses the prologue to
depict part of a murder or in Catch Me exposing a critical interaction with
characters. The prologue influences the rest of the story. The reader can’t
help but refer back to this introductory passage to try to uncover the villain.
Gardner is not perfect. Many aspects of her books are too convenient or far-fetched.
Nevertheless the three books I have read have been very enjoyable. Gardner is
my go to for a solid mystery that will keep me entertained. For my next trip, I
plan to fill my suitcase with all the Gardner books I have not read.
Orphan Train
Orphan Train provides a glimpse into a little-known period of American history
where between 1854 and 1929 more than two hundred thousand homeless children
were transported by train from the east coast to the mid-west to be adopted.
Often instead of being embraced as part of the family, the child would be
forced into indentured servitude. Christina Baker Kline creates a fast moving story of
two woman living similar circumstances nearly a century apart. Kline employs a
double narrative to expose the parallels between the character’s stories.
Orphan
Train is a story that broaches themes such as
unwanted children, social services in the past and present, cultural identity,
belonging and fate. The present day social services picture did not seem very
accurate, however, I have not had much experience with the Department of
Children and Family Services (DCFS). My experience is primarily with Adult
Protective Services (APS). From what I do know of DCFS it seems that they would
be aware of a foster family receiving funds but not actually caring for the
child. Perhaps Kline was taking creative license. Regardless of this small
criticism Orphan Train was an interesting,
good read.
The Leopard
Fly Away Home
Clara and Mr. Tiffany
I usually
enjoy historical novels, yet I found Clara and Mr. Tiffany slow, even a bit boring at times with far
too much emphasis placed on the artistic process and creation. The story gets
too bogged down by long descriptive passages that painfully detail the entire
process of creating artistic pieces. These descriptions are repeated over and
over each time Clara becomes obsessed with a new idea or project. It became
tiresome to read.
Mason's Retreat
Mason’s Retreat was a
bland and depressing novel in which Christopher Tilghman tries to create a
historical epic peppered with what if done well are meaty issues. Unfortunately
Tilghman falls terribly shorts. The story takes place on a family estate on the
Eastern shore of the Chesapeake. The pre-WWII time-period and themes should
have led to a more dynamic tale. Sadly ideas such as a woman’s needs versus
what is best for her family, the legacy of slavery in Maryland and the
complicated relationship between agriculture and industrialization were
introduced yet not fully developed. Another disappointing element is that
Tilghman promises to reveal some great wrong in the Mason family past that
has cursed the family in the present. This tainted history is never truly
exposed which left me questioning why this was even introduced? Finally, the overarching
sense of doom makes for a depressing read. None of the characters are happy,
even when doing something of their choosing. The family from the books’ onset
is dysfunctional and fractured. They all experience disappointment,
frustration, resentment, lack of commonality and connection with one another.
The tension as well as overall feeling of malaise is miserable. I could not
wait to be done with Mason’s Retreat. My next book is Clara and Mr. Tiffany.
The Neighbor
Lisa Gardner Detective D.D.
Warren series are very entertaining, fulfilling my need for escapism. She
creates mysteries that are imaginative and intricately woven. The Neighbor does contain some flaws. I could do without the details of
the Detective’s desire for an intimate relationship. It’s unnecessary and her
manner is overly crude. The back-stories are lacking for some of the most critical
characters. Finally, the ending is wrapped up to quickly; leaving ends loose
causing me to want more. Nevertheless, similar to my last Gardner read The
Neighbor was hard to put down. I read
until 10pm last night. Today, between meetings, waiting in my car because I am
always early, I was happy for the extra free moments to read. Although I am not
thrilled that her paperbacks are commonly found in supermarkets or pharmacies I
am going to read Gardner’s mysteries freely and try to change my book snob
demeanor. One should never judge a book by its cover, especially when so much
enjoyment is gained. As a pre-teen I ate up every Agatha Christie novel
available. Gardner may be my new Christie.
Honolulu
Honolulu is quite different from
Alan Brennert’s Moloka’i. In Brennert’s second book he is able to explore more of the
Hawaii’s rich as well as seedy history, introduce a range of fascinating
characters and intertwine historical events and real people. He could not do
this in Moloka’i as the main character was held in isolation. Honolulu summarizes the life a
picture bride, detailing the turbulence of the early 20th century.
Brennert did an example job of portraying the Korean experience in Hawaii
illustrating the extreme challenges and the opportunities. Honolulu had me pining for a
holiday!
Home Front
This
is chic lit at it’s finest. I am a tad embarrassed to report how much I enjoy
Kristin Hannah’s books. I was secretly overjoyed when I found that one of our
volunteers had left me this read. Hannah writes heart-touching page-turners.
They always provide a healthy dose of needed escapism. However, be prepared. Home
Front was
much sadder and deeper then most of Hannah’s works. She took a somber,
challenging subject and did not gloss over its seriousness, which is often the case in chic literature. She made all the character suffer. Although we have a
positive ending, getting there takes real work from each of the characters.
The Small Hours of the Morning
The
Small Hours of the Morning reminded me of Patricia Highsmith’s The Cry of the Owl. The approaches to story
telling and eventual reveal are old fashion. Perhaps this is because both
authors were born in the 1920’s hence as they developed as writers their styles
represented the time, which was gentler. You will not find the gory imagery
depicted in present day mysteries. The writing is quaint and slow. All the
characters are overly exaggerated. The smarmy ladies man, dense detective and
clueless husband are all ridiculous characterures. I prefer modern day authors
that entrance the readers were their truly terrifying, twisted tales.
Dark Places
Sharp Objects
The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared
The One I Left Behind
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