Amalia Gkavea

‘'All this information was to be taken with a grain of salt, of course, because in the world of espionage nothing was as it seemed and nobody could swear to knowing the whole truth.''

This was quite an unusual and extremely entertaining reading choice. Part spy-novel, part Historical Fiction, it proved to be an excellent novel built in layers that may have looked simple and light-hearted but, in my opinion, were anything but. The tragedy of war, the loss of human lives, the annihilation of everything one may consider as granted provide a bleak background with a colourful cast of characters and an atmosphere lascivious, decadent, almost surreal.

We are in Estoril, a town on the Portuguese Riviera, during the culmination of the Second World War. Estoril was a centre of diplomacy and espionage battle. Its beaches, hotels and the Grande Casino Internacional created a destination of luxury, adventure and ‘'elegant'' political games. It is here that we find an eclectic group of exiles during the darkest period in History. They come from everywhere, armed with their own motives and expectations, their distinctive personalities and the strong influence and beliefs of their homelands. How can one handle these ‘'customers'' who resemble a living, breathing nuclear bomb? This was my initial thought. And yet, they coexist and cooperate, bound together by a common desire. A desire for the war to end, for the madness to seize, for a life that will not be ruled by fear and loss.

‘'The fellow is English. His name is Fleming. Ian Fleming.''

The cast is a wonderful mix of historical figures and complex fictional characters. Mr Black is the one who runs the Palacio and has been appointed the Herculean task to keep all these people who have found refuge there satisfied and safe. In the midst of the almost surreal madness, where everyone spies on everyone, we meet Gaby. A clever, Jewish 10-year-old boy whose parents are away and who seems to hold as many secrets as the adult members of our company. His questions and the way he thinks and acts are absolutely fascinating.

And now, if you're not prepared for major fangirling of epic proportions, fasten your seatbelts. Duško was my absolute favourite character. Call me over-enthusiastic but he is so interesting, so masterfully written. And what's more important? He is a historical figure. Duško Popov was a Serbian double agent, recruited by the British, who fed the Nazis with false information. He is said to be a major inspiration for the character of James Bond and his risky bet in a baccarat table provided Ian Fleming (who appears in the novel) with the basis for ‘'Casino Royale''. I fell in love with him instantly. Underneath his suave, dashing demeanor lies the familiar, tragic story of a person who knows exactly where his allegiance is placed. A person whose homeland has been cut into pieces. Beyond the facade, he is far more loyal to his nation than everyone believes him to be. His family happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. They were turned into refugees, exiled from their own hometown because of Hitler's lunacy. The writer describes a situation faced by a terrifying number of people during the Balkan conflicts and an ordeal that Stanković himself had to face.

‘'You'll see one day. Other words are bad. Poverty, war, death, these are bad words.''

Underneath the cosmopolitan, seductive atmosphere, the brilliant interactions and the beguiling prose, we can find the horror of war, the mind games of victory and defeat. There is a marvelous section that echoes Exupery's (another famous cameo in the novel) masterpiece ‘'The Little Prince'', there are the first hints concerning the Japanese attack in Pearl Harbor, and the most powerful passage describing the Operation Retribution bombing of Belgrade by the Luftwaffe in 1941 and, particularly, the collapse of the Church of the Ascension during a liturgy. And then, the breaking of civil war between residents of different religions. And History continues on and on and on...

I cannot recommend this book enough. The writing style, the characters, the lively atmosphere. A novel that brings forth crucial issues of the past and the present in a calm, balanced, artistic manner. A unique read for one of the darkest and most fascinating eras.

‘'Volcanic islands in the polar north visit me in my dreams, my beloved homeland, Paris, my dead friends, cherries in China. Night after night I dream about Belgrade, more beautiful and splendid than it is. In my dreams, I see images of my youth, of the village, the occasional butterfly, field poppies, wheat. Sometimes, I hear footsteps; I look only to discover that it is not her, because her voice is full of laughter, it's not like this. What I hear is some kind of inarticulate screeching. Instead of her, I see a bird with wild, black wings.''

Many thanks to Head of Zeus and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange of an honest review.

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com

As always, any political comments will promptly receive the axe.

‘'Martial law was for our own good, the government said. They said we all had to make sacrifices. And we would all be safer as a result.''

One of the few certain things my 32 years on Earth have taught me is that I should never trust someone who says a) that something is for my own good, and b) that everyone has to make sacrifices. Especially when the aforementioned ‘'someone'' is a man (or a woman) in power. Mainly, politicians and army officers. My next stop in a bizarre string of depressing, yet highly powerful, reads reaffirmed this view.

The story is set in Poland and specifically in Wroclaw. Wroclaw is a beautiful city I intended to visit in 2009 but life decided otherwise...Anyway...We follow Ania, a young sculptor, who decides to leave her village behind and move to the big city to pursue her dreams. There, she meets a small but fervent community of aspiring artists. Painters, writers, directors who have to cope with their demanding studies and fight against oppression and totalitarianism by foreign and domestic forces alike.

The way the story is told is extremely interesting and powerful. The novel opens in December 1981 and the night Martial law is declared in the country. Then, we are briefly transported in 1980, as Ania makes the transition from a rural community to Wroclaw and her meeting with Dominik, a young writer who introduces her to his circle of bohemians. The background is incredibly vivid and McGuire waves quite a few symbolisms into the plot. What looks like a simple story becomes an intricate journey to a woman's progress in life and to a country's ordeal. Wroclaw is a city built in a mix of Gothic architecture and Art Nouveau style, a city of variety and character, just like Ania's new social circle. Ania's father makes headstones, he is a kind of sculptor of the macabre, a man whose art is connected to loss and remembrance, both themes that permeate the narration.

‘'We want our dignity.''

The political situation in Poland is paramount in the course of the story, although Ania's feeling and problematizations lie at its heart. I deeply appreciated the fact that McGuire succeeds in creating a very balanced depiction avoiding melodramatization and hysterics, using raw, powerful language when necessary. She writes with honesty, bravery and sensitivity. I was very interested in the way she inserted the crucial issue of censorship in the story. How can someone work when expression isn't allowed? When we are unable to express ourselves the way we wish to, how can we hope to understand the others? This is a world of constant surveillance. You are forced to attend ‘'parades'' and sign a paper that proves you were there. Telephone calls are monitored. If the operators decide that you speak in imaginary codes, you will be persecuted despite your age or social status. And, in truth, what status can ever exist in such circumstances? What kind of dignity?

McGuire fully transports the reader to Poland. The customs, the food, the language, the culture of a fascinating, tormented country, the way of thinking. The cultural and historical tidbits of the 80s make the reading experience even more lively. From the horrifying attempted assassination of Pope John Paul II and Lech Wałęsa's rise in the political scene of the country to the cinematic release of Coppola's ‘'Apocalypse Now'', the jazz clubs and the rising of the punk music scene. These scenes provided balanced distractions because the days following the declaration of martial law create a dark background. They reminded me of the events my parents often describe to me about the dictatorship imposed on Greece in 1967 when the country faced a similar nightmare that lasted 7 years until the return of Democracy in 1974.

‘'Art from behind the Iron Curtain.''

I felt that McGuire presented her characters through the themes of Art and Resistance. In a totalitarian state, Art becomes a form of resistance, a way to remain alert. Love can be seen as a form of survival, a source of hope and light. However, there are times when love can turn into an equally oppressing force and this is apparent here. I cannot begin to describe my admiration for Ania. She is a complex, realistic character whose fears and doubts are shared by any 20-year old who tries to find a calling and a place in the world. She is a beautiful character and I truly admired the way McGuire made her stand on her own two feet and get rid of the garbage-people in her life. Malgorzata is the other strong female character of the novel. Free-spirited, unafraid of her sexuality, unwilling to conform. Dominik, on the other hand, is completely unlikeable. He deserves no love or admiration. A pompous megalomaniac who poses as a rebel by playing it safe. A man who wants to manipulate everyone and everything. An utterly disgusting creature.

Not much more to add. This is a novel that deeply resonated with me through the scenery, the themes, the marvellous main character, even if the dialogue was a little choppy at times. A beautiful, intricate debut, an important story in an exciting city.

‘'A fish transformed into a bear by the shadow of a black sun. Nearby, a goblin wrenched weeds from the earth and a hunter watched from behind an oak, his arrow pulled back on his bow. Around them I painted flowers, their petals and stems more ostentatious than any I'd seen in real life.''

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com

‘'Bones and shadows and dust. I am the last. The others have slipped away into darkness. Around me now, at the end of my days, only an echo in the still air of the memory of those who once I loved. Solitude, silence.''

Kate Mosse is one those writers that I trust completely. I'd choose one of her books without reading the blurb or a single review without reservations. Although I've never read the Languedoc trilogy because I've been spoiled to the degree of knowing every single detail, ‘'The Taxidermist's Daughter'' is a novel very close to my heart. Choosing ‘'The Winter Ghosts'' as one of my wintry reads was a no-brainer and what a journey it proved to be!

The story is simple but fascinating. We find ourselves in 1933 when our hero, Freddie, visits a special bookseller. Through his narration, we are transported in 1928, the year when Freddie visits the French Pyrenees in an attempt to spend some time with his thoughts while he's still trying to recover from his brother's fall during the Great War. One night, he decides to attend the feast of St. Etienne, a day that carries special connotations for the residents of the village, and he meets an alluring young woman. The events that follow are stunning and exciting.

‘'Sunshine and shadows''

Where to begin? How to contain in a single, inadequate review the wealth that is hidden in this beautiful, haunting tale? Mosse uses so many ingredients to create a marvellous novel. First of all, the richness of the natural environment that becomes a character in itself. The Spanish slopes become a symbol of light while the French side of the legendary mountains symbolize the darkness that has fallen over the lives of the residents. Even the shops and the streets are tokens of a weird, heavy feeling of sadness. The snow, the wind that carries voices through the storm, the caves, the fire, the sound of laughter and weeping. Beautiful, haunting real-life photos make the reading experience even more immediate and realistic.

‘'I do not fear death. But I fear the forgetting.''

Through the frozen landscape, we have the people. The living and the dead. Mosse writes about suffering and memory with the focus on the male character. I found this extremely refreshing since we have been used to experience similar stories through the eyes of female characters. Here, she decides to place a young man at the centre of the action and this is masterfully done. The primary question that is asked is what happens when we are faced with an untimely, tragic death? How do we go on? We remember our loved ones with fondness but what happens when we feel inadequate compared to them? What are the consequences when the shadows of the dead oppress the living? How does one feel when the possibility of death becomes an immediate certainty? There are questions that cannot be easily answered (if at all) and Mosse communicates her themes through History. She returns to France and the persecutions of the Cathars to create a haunting tale through clear, immediate, poetic writing. Beautiful descriptions, rounded characters and interactions that should be taught on every Creative Writing class.

Freddie and Fabrissa are the main characters. Freddie is a deeply engaging, sympathetic character. His dilemmas, his thoughts and fears can be related to our war-mongering society of today. He is a dreamer because the reality his parents created for him is deeply unjust. Fabrissa is the jewel of the story. We see her briefly but her mark is evident throughout the novel, bringing the aura of an era lost in time, of people who suffered because their beliefs didn't bow down to the ones in power. The story of the Cathars has always been one of my favourite moments in Medieval History and the way Mosse brings it to focus in this novel is exceptional. I want to add a quote by Freddie here ‘'We remember so that such slaughter is never allowed to happen again.'' Such sad words because a few years later the Second World War broke out after Hitler's rise to power in Germany. One of the major beliefs of the Cathars was the duality of the nature and life as an eternal rebirth and transformation. Everything is repeated, a conviction similar to the Gnostic beliefs. Think of the image of a snake that bites its own tail. What evidence could be more tragic than the two Worlds Wars that reaped mankind apart?

This is a ghost story, a love story, a Historical Fiction novel of the finest kind. It rises up through the mists of the ages, through the bloody traces of History and enters the reader's soul. You definitely want to read it...

‘'But in truth, I felt nothing. And my thoughts insisted on spiralling back to the dead sleeping in the cold earth. Shattered bones and mud and blood. The headstones and the graves, the wild and untended places between.''

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com

‘'The bones were gone. Only the outline of fur remined. Even the dislodged claws had been collected. Julie looked around as though the culprit might be right there.''

The sea is like a dream. It's said that life began there and our course on the Earth starts in the water. It's only natural that this is a place where tales are born. Tales of the past and stories of our present times dedicated to the sea that gives life but also has the power to take it away. This novel blurs the lines between life and death, between the present and the past but the execution leaves a lot to be desired.

Julie returns to her hometown to support Marty, her father, who fought in the Gulf War and whose memories haunt his every step.When a strange woman arrives claiming to have a past that connects her to Marty, Julie begins to struggle with the truth and the secrets of her father. Meanwhile, death makes his presence known in the form of dead animals, believed to have committed suicide. So, this is a dark story that may sound weird- and it is- but the premise is very interesting.

Neale decides to tackle a number of themes in her work. From the deep bond between a man and a dog to the intense presence of the past in our daily lives and the slow but certain surrender to grief as a result of PTSD. It is a story that wants to appear heavy in symbolisms, to become a part of the tradition of Literary Fiction but, in my opinion, it just tries too hard. The themes of suicide and PTSD are closely linked but I am not sure whether the writer managed to insert them successfully into the plot.

The writing is too restrained, almost lukewarm, given the premise. The plot is engaging but the dialogue isn't equally satisfying. I don't think that the constant cursing can be considered ‘Literary'. Not when there are two F-bombs every other paragraph, not when we intentionally missing auxiliaries, subjects and pronouns. And no, this isn't the teacher talking, it's the truth. The plot deserved a more constructed, thoughtful, poetic language. On the bright side, there isn't any hint of melodrama and cheap sensationalism in sight, which is always something I appreciate. Magical Realism is present but it feels forced, even misplaced. For example, the information regarding urban legends about animals were very interesting but they felt insignificant. An excuse for surreal snippets that offered little to the narration.

The characters gave me a bit of trouble, to be honest. I couldn't bring myself to care for their fortune all that much. Marty is an interesting man and his struggles bring the novel a whole level up. Julie is also sympathetic and I liked her straightforward manner, although her development over the course of the action was subpar. However, this JLL creature is such a despicable, foul-mouthed, disgusting figure that completely and utterly destroyed the story for me. Call me overreacting but low quality situations and, most importantly, low quality people is something I cannot stand.

This is a dark read that had every potential to be memorable but fell short in the end. The writing couldn't make the premise attractive. In my opinion, the writer lacked the kind of language that elevates sad, haunting stories into greatness. I recommend the novel, though. I tend to overanalyze certain things and you may find significance where I couldn't. It is not a bad book per se but it had every potential to be exceptional and ended up being just average.

Many thanks to ECW Press and Edelweiss for the ARC in exchange of an honest review.

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com

“Bridgetonne was not without other misfits: old maids who, in an earlier time, might have been mistaken for witches, and bachelors who, likewise, would have been called out as warlocks. But by no means was the village haunted.”

It seems that books set during the Great War or a few years later have become really fashionable recently. Not that I am complaining because this is a very interesting era but there are many examples of such novels that are more melodramatic than meaningful. Magical Realism is also a trending genre and one of my literary obsessions so “The Hawkman” ticked quite a few right boxes. And although it wasn't perfect, it was really, really good. And look at this beautiful cover....

The plot is inspired by a reading of the Grimm Brothers'fairy tale “The Bearskin” and by recorded experiences of POWs in German prison camps during the First World War. The action is set in a sleepy county and we follow Eva and Michael, two characters with many demons to defeat. It sounds simple enough but trust me (if you want, that is...) when I tell you that there is much to be discovered and much to think about in the course of the novel.

Jane Rosenberg LaFarge certainly has a way with words because the prose is beautiful, mystical and yet accessible. She chooses to start the story with a powerful, peculiar scene of a death on a wedding night, reminiscent of Victorian fables. What seems initially a mystery novel with elegant touches of Magical Realism (more felt than seen, though), quickly becomes a story about courage and acceptance, about society and the stupidity that rules over it. The writer decides to compose a story out of a number of themes and she succeeds, in my opinion. An interesting point is the conflict between the English and the Irish which causes major implications in Michael's life. His own compatriots prove to be worse than the German soldiers in a society that is eager to ostracize the ones who “fail” to meet its criteria of “acceptable” behaviour. So Michael is easily brandished as a “turncoat” and Eva becomes the “naive woman from the other side of the Atlantic”.

Through the snippets of Eva and Michael's lives with their families, we come to understand them as characters and care for them. Eva loves stories as a means to escape and Michael sacrifices his voice and identity to protect his life. But what kind of life can he lead under these circumstances? And then there is Christopher and his father, Lord Thornton, a horrible creature blinded by the stereotypes of the English upper class during the early 20th century. If you allow me a personal note here, I must confess I fully identified with Eva. She shows to everyone that there are limits to one's kindness, understanding, patience and respect. “Respect”. Such a violated word...She accepts different people, different opinions but to everything there is a limit. When the others offend her principles, when they refuse to respect her as an equal, she stops “respecting” and returns the favour. She is straightforward and avoids conflict but when she sees that they try to play her for a fool, she strikes. So, I saw myself in her. In my experience, when patient people witness the other's hypocrisy and double-faced words, they become ruthless and send the parasites out of their lives.

My one complaint is the length of the novel. I found it too short, I felt that the relationship between the characters wasn't fully developed and the implications of certain actions weren't explored to the end. The protagonists were excellent and I wanted to see more of them. Still, I'm not one to complain about “distant” narrations (...let us be serious....) so my final conclusion is that I enjoyed it, right until its beautiful, bittersweet end. I just wanted it to be more powerful and memorable hence the 4 stars.

Many thanks to Amberjack Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange of an honest review.

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com

‘'And then He is gone. She stands alone, high up above the settlement, which is enshrouded by fog. It is the middle of the night, yet light. A pair of ravens rumble in the air and caw.''

This novel was an absolute impulse buy. I'm ashamed to admit that I wasn't aware of its existence, I don't know how this came to be.So, while I was browsing in the bookshop, I noticed the word ‘'fjord''. I took the beautiful paperback in my hands and after reading the words ‘'Greenland'' and ‘'18th century'', I decided that it was coming home with me. I read a number of the reviews here and they were lower than low. And I didn't mind because I know that ‘'gritty'' and ‘'dark'' meant that this novel was right up my alley. And it was. I loved it, I consider it one of the most memorable additions in my collection but I think that this is not a novel for everyone. Its reality is so harsh and cruel and vulgar and difficult to stomach.

Morten is a man with an army of demons glued on his back. A physician and a doctor, a scholar and a servant of the Crown, he is sent to the colony to catechize the Greenlanders.There he finds much more than he has bargained for. He faces issues related to religion, politics, power, relationships, class and sexual implications in an era and a land that are as fascinating as they are unforgiving. As haunting as they are violent. Through his eyes, we see the changes of a population that struggles to retain its identity, standing on religious crossroads.

‘'They come here with their guns and their warrants and their chains and their stories of children drowning. But we are not children, we are grown men and women and this is our country! We shall do as we please in our own country!'

In my opinion, amidst the ocean of themes, the focal point is the difference between freedom and isolation. Habakkuk and Mary Magdalene preach for a life close to God but on the people's conditions and their need to preserve some parts of their heathen past. They want to be christened because of their love for God not because they are in need of a priest or a mad king to dictate their life. And if they don't do it, they may call themselves ‘'free'' but they are isolated, expelled. The Danish men in power are unable to understand this and they cause misery and pain, brandishing their laws of injustice. The conquerors have little respect for those who consider weak and unworthy of their care and attention.The natives, the poor, even their own wives who try to retain their last scraps of self-dignity.

The writing is captivating, in my opinion. Naturally, this is a highly subjective view but I deeply appreciate the fact that the novel doesn't shy away from depicting the vile times in all their horrible, muddy colours. Yes, there are descriptions of daily bodily functions, scenes of violent sexual nature that may make you feel uncomfortable and this is why I said that this isn't a book suitable to every reader's taste. This is a dark world and there are people who wish to make it darker to suit their purposes.

Speaking of characters, the cast is fascinating if obviously twisted. Morten is such an interesting character. He struggles to do the right thing-according to his principles, at least- but there are always obstacles. He is neither bad nor good, neither innocent nor guilty. He is a human being. Habakuk plays the role of the self-appointed religious leader well and the Trader is quite the despicable villain of the story. However, I think that the ones that truly shine are the female characters. Mary is considerate, calm, her dreams make the community of Eternal Fjord grow and prosper. Sofie is the mother, the woman of the people, the wife and the observer. Madame Kragstedt is the one who has been wronged, who has been craving love and trust and yet, her true motives remain ambiguous and controversial. And then, we have Lydia, the ‘'widow'', who has suffered terribly in body and in spirit. A quiet, fascinating, tormented shadow, a human being who belongs nowhere.

This is a very particular novel. Leine's writing is raw and dark but there are moments of beauty and a light hidden in heavy clouds. You will feel transported to an era of dark deeds and dark souls, to a land of wild, primitive beauty that is coveted for its wealth and hated for its different beliefs. My idea of Historical Fiction is to be faithful to the time depicted, to be realistic, to break boundaries and rules. I don't want a story of beautified, heroic deeds. History isn't made like this. I don't want white-washed motives and boring characters dressed in pretty dresses and powdered wigs. Historical Fiction isn't about tenderness and romanticism. The way I see it, it is about avoiding the faults of the past. And Leine's novel provided a thoroughly satisfying result. You just have to proceed with caution...

‘'I dreamt that we are to live in peace and tolerance with one another'', she says. He seems disappointed. ‘'Is that all?'' ‘'It is the greatest of all dreams'', she says.

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com

“There isn't anything quite like holding love in your bare hands.”

I don't know....I don't know how to describe the feelings I've experienced while reading each page of this book. I am not easily carried away by anything but when such a creation comes your way you cannot help but ending up staring in awe. And for now, I will let the stories speak for themselves....

“Animals”: A story that left me speechless with each passing paragraph. A dark, cruel, violently haunting world where hearts can be bought and stolen. Where a man experiments on his wife, performing transplantation with animal hearts. This is one of the weirdest texts I've ever read and it almost makes me uncomfortable to say how much I was mesmerized by it.
“Jacob” :A sensitive young boy sends a letter to a journalist narrating his troubled life. Very sad, very powerful.
“Plum Pie.Zombie Green.Yellow Bee.Purple Monster.” :Jasmine, Lily, Ivy, Roses....and Jack (of the Giant Bean tale) somewhere in the middle. An absurd, crazy, beautiful story about colours, loss, power, remembrance.
“In the Dark”::A strange, inexplicable encounter between a woman and a soldier in a kitchen, in the middle of the night.
“Margaret and Mary and the End of the World” : :A remarkably beautiful and sad story centered around Rossetti's masterpiece Ecce Ancilla Domini. A young woman, named Margaret, tries to find some comfort through Art and Religion, through fairy tales and attempts to imagine how the Virgin Mary must have felt in the moment of the Annunciation. She needs to escape harassment and cruelty caused by her own heartless mother. This story is constructed like a patchwork quilt except it doesn't provide warmth. It makes you shiver. Possibly the best story in this perfect collection.
“Little Deaths” :This a world where ghosts are hunted, caught, put into jars to be bought. A world where you can steal a ghost, collect a ghost, name it, use it as a remedy for all maladies. This is a world where school homework such as this exists :“English:How would you like to die? Please number your preferences 1–10, with 1 being the most preferable. You have a 1000 word limit. You will be marked on your ability to persuade.Maths:How much should your family and friends cry at your funeral? You have a limit of 1000 tears. Please share these out among those you expect to attend. Show your working.”I know I'd definitely enjoy answering these questions...

“Somewhere, underground, there should be a massive row of filing cabinets, winding and branching out across the country. And each of them should contain everyone's – and everything's – beginnings.

“The Beginning of the World in the Middle of the Night” : The title story in the collection. A tree becomes the symbol of a marriage and the search for a common beginning through misconduct and disorder. In the middle of the night, a woman tries to come to terms with everything that has been pressing her soul for quite a long time but the answers are practically unattainable. A story that reads like a wonderful one-act play.
“Pebbles” :Can we even dare to look on war in a romantic light? The Northern Ireland conflict, the 2011 disaster in Fukushima, the troubles of youth become a metaphor for a deep, innocent love.
“Aunt Libby's Coffin Hotel” : :A family tosses coins with Death and the desire of the ones who are left behind. A story that has references to the Isla de las Muñecas, the haunting island whose only residents are creepy dolls hanging from the trees. We also learn about Keres, the spirits of revenge in Greek Mythology, the Moroaica from Romania, the Asian Krasue and, of course, the greatest myth of despair in the form of Pandora's Box.

“And did you know that, in China, shades of blue are called shallow or deep, not light or dark?”

“Sea Devils”:What do we get when we mix witches, crabs and Hollywood? Mayhem. I promise you, this is much better than it sounds.
“Human Satellites”: What could be more dividing than the discovery of a planet suitable to accommodate us all...
“Bright White Hearts” :A narrator who was born with the Sirenomelia syndrome takes us on a journey in the colours, the creatures of the water and the origin of life through a modern aquarium. A brilliant epilogue to the collection.

If you are still with me after this longer than long section, you'll certainly realise the beauty and uniqueness of Campbell's writing. I don't need to say anything more. The stories will make you sad, uncomfortable, nervous. You will possibly smile at certain parts but not for long. There is a well-covered darkness than never becomes suffocating. It just lingers in the sidewalk to remind us of all those things that make our lives what they are, occupying our thoughts, forming our past, present and future. A series of twisted fairy tales that speak to the heart, comprising a book that I cannot praise enough....

“Once upon a time, there were four horsemen of the apocalypse.God breathed them into the world with his fisted right hand.‘I have a bow,' said the white horse. ‘I represent Evil.'‘I am War,' said the red horse. ‘Mark my sword.'‘I am Famine,' said the black horse. ‘And all that comes with it.'‘I am Death,' said the pale horse, who was carrying Hades. ‘And this is the end of the whole wide world.'”

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com

“Closer together,tiny groups of twinkling lights, glowing like star clusters,appeared as night fell.Dozens of villages seemed to hang in the moonlight itself.I didn't know their names but like Riwar, and like Katarshnong,I knew that each one was its own world, with its own history and myths,own its own joys and sorrows, its own heroes and villains.They looked like such little places, yet no one person knew everything they contained.”

India. The mention of the name brings to mind countless pictures. Colourful, mysterious, sacred and strange. One of the countries that have always fascinated me . Its mysticism, the wealth of myths and legends, the weirdly haunting combination of different religions. In this beautiful book by Patrick Roger, we are transported to a different part of the country, to a corner of the Earth that is not well-known but hides immense natural and cultural beauty.

Patrick travelled to the northeast state of Meghalaya, in search of the living root bridges, a natural wonder that remains relatively obscure, fighting for the future of its existence. He takes the readers on a fascinating journey that doesn't only aim to familiarize us with this wonderful creation of nature but most importantly, he is our guide to the communities, the people, their beliefs, customs and behaviour amidst this unknown part of our planet.There is a vast richness in this book and a tranquil beauty in Patrick's writing. From the rich descriptions of the Khasi hills to the influence of old beliefs in the daily life of the residents. The food, the “invasion” of the Western world into their houses through television, the rain, the hospitality and the differences between the people who have kept to their pagan past and the ones who have converted to Christianity. There is not one aspect of life that is left neglected and we come to know the region as best as we possibly can without visiting it.

Patrick Rogers writes in a direct, eloquent, extremely engaging manner. Calm and composed when describing the dangers he faced and certain unfortunate incidents and with the right amount of humour and always appropriate to the circumstances. I was particularly drawn to the amusing “kwai” chapter and, naturally, to the section dedicated to the supernatural beliefs of the people. Some of these myths were almost funny and others were eerie and terrifying.The description of the night when the different name songs were heard is a moment of incredible, tranquil beauty. It transported me there immediately as did the beautiful, vivid pictures that enrich each chapter.

This book isn't just a travel memoir. It is an homage to the beauty of nature, to the diversity of the people, the variety of convictions and customs. And it is also a warning bell for the preservation of the natural wonders.

“From the village issued the sound of many female voices singing out into the evening a sweet medley that drifted softly over into the heart of the Khasi hills.To this, from every direction, came answering songs from husbands,fathers, and sons singing back different tenderly composed songs to their loved ones.”

Many thanks to Patrick Rogers for the opportunity to experience a tiny proportion of his fascinating journey to a land full of mystery and wonders.

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com

“It had been during the Autumn Awakening, a yearly festival when the town sets out candles and candy corn, filling the air with the scents of burning leaves and pumpkin-spiced everything. A festival meant to awaken the slumbering gods of autumn and bring good tidings for the season.”

We all have read books and watched films about haunted houses. They provide an endless source of exciting, eerie, frightening stories and when done correctly, they may make us turn on every single light in our house. When done badly,though, they are a chore. Uninspiring and dull. Thankfully, this collection is anything but dull. These aren't our average, playing-it-safe stories. Think about that: Many of us may remember a house of our neighborhood that looked mysterious and full of secrets. A house above which the sky was always grey. A house that made us take a longer route to avoid it. Perhaps, it was just old, its owners unwilling or unable to take care of it. Or......

The stories in this collection are developed over different themes, set in different periods. The characters are wonderful varied, the cities in which the stories take place change. There are only two common denominators: each story has features of the Southern Gothic genre and the setting is an old, dark house with an even darker past. So, the readers begin a journey to the hypnotic, sensual, haunting land of the Southern states, from the Mississippi Delta to the Appalachians.

A house provides the setting for an old family feud that carries on undiminished. Women avenging the ones who had assaulted them in a post a apocalyptic world. Horrors of the past that cannot be forgotten. A wronged young woman seeks revenge....All stories included in the collection are strong, but some are more memorable and unique. “The Death Doula” was my favourite. So haunting and frightening and moving... And then, “Stone Angels”, a terrifying story echoing “The Turn of the Screw”, “The Woman in Black” and “Burnt Offerings”.

Even those of us who are experienced readers of the genre will find something to love in the collection. A gathering of tales for the autumn nights of Halloween, the sultry summer nights, the freezing, blackened evenings of winter....

“But be sure to lock the doors and windows first...you never know what the road ahead might bring.”

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com/

“At festivals such as Bealtaine, Lughnasa and Samhain, people gathered at hilltop assemblies, lit fires and offered gifts to Donn, the Lord of the Dead, in the hope that, by observing these rituals, a welcome would await when their time came.”

Cork is one of the most famous counties of the Emerald Island and one of the most beautiful. Beauty is synonymous to Ireland but Cork provides breathtaking landscapes, full of variety and character. Said to have been founded by St Finbarr, Cork acquired a strategic role as a commercial and cultural centre when the Vikings expanded the territory after their invasions during the 10th century. It's only natural that such a land will be “crowded” with myths and legends,stories of the Old Gods, stories of the coming of Christianity, fables of kings, princesses, wise women, brave people, fairies and banshees.

A man is punished because he has no stories to tell. A magic wave has trapped a royal family that continues the feast night after night, through the aeons to come. A mermaid curses a family.A bean feasa, Máire Ni Mhurchú, echoes Hannah Kent's masterpiece “The Good People”. The horror of being buried alive during the Great Famine due to temporary asphyxia caused by starvation. Clever women defy the ones who try to bend them to their will, even the Devil himself.

Tales of Tuatha Dé Danann and the demonic Fomorian come alive.Manannán Mac Lir, the god of the sea, Balor the Evil one, Lugh, the sun god, Clíona, the goddess of Love and Beauty who wronged her sister Aoibheall because of a man, the legendary warriors of the Fianna, The Cailleach Bhéarra who symbolizes all aspects of the female soul. The saints of our religion, St Patrick, St Ciaran and St Finbarr, the patron saint of Cork.

This volume contains one of the most beautiful interactions of the series. Corkery has divided the stories in such a way so as to resemble a journey in the haunting nature of the county. My favourite part was the traditions and tales of Eibhlís De Barra and I was impressed by the fact that Corkery inserts information about the natural history and the locals within the stories. It was refreshing and I felt I was reading an excellent combination of Fiction and Non-Fiction, a travel account combined with a Folklore guide. Her voice is kind, clever, vivid and respectful. She allows the stories to shine and doesn't force herself into the main role, which is more than can be said for other authors of the series. This is definitely a highlight. And now on to a new destination....

“Maybe we can't outwit the hour of our death, but we can ensure that our stories live on after us.”

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com

“A wolf howled, holding a single lonely note in the distance. The scent of spruce and mud and sea kept dredging up the imagined hint of smoke. Even in the summer, a fire burned in the wood stove.”

Wanderlust is one of the things that characterizes us readers. The urge to experience new places, customs. Books are magic carpets that can transfer us to lands we most probably won't see and allow us to know them as best as we can. My wanderlust always brings me to cold, mystical, dusky landscapes. No heat, no noise, and as less people as possible. The nightly sky and the snowy pines are enough. Alaska has always been one of the many territories whose impact on my mind grows stronger with each related book. This novel by Sere Prince Halverson has Alaska at its heart, along with a very special heroine and a few problems.

Kache returns to Alaska years after an incident that sealed his life forever. There, he funds the home of his parents occupied by a strange young woman, Nadia, and her dog, Lio. The begin to develop a deep appreciation for each other and discover that their lives are much more similar than they thought. However, their ways to react in front of obstacles couldn't be more different. Make no mistake, this isn't a simple love story. I don't read those. This is a struggle for rebirth through ashes and as such it is s powerful, meaningful novel. The heart of the plot doesn't focus on romance but on dark, brutal deeds and false ideas.

“Alaska does not forgive mistakes.”

Halverson weaves descriptions of pure beauty combining tranquility with the raw, unforgiving, mystical landscape. Her story has its foundations on the human soul. People have been keeping secrets for far too long. They are isolated. They know it, they seek it to be so. The story is built on isolation and the awful weight of the wounds of the past. And then, we have religion. Religion in the form of fundamentalism, providing an excuse for oppression and violence. I found the inclusion of the Old Believers storyline extremely interesting and I am intrigued to read more on the subject when time allows. Naturally, family and love make the plot more humane and approachable.

This is where the problems begin, in my opinion. Although the relationship between Nadia and Kache developed in the proper pace, there were times when it seemed unbalanced as Kache came across as controlling and overreacting. No, scratch that. He was the epitome of drama queen. Moreover, there were a few “twists” that were too predictable, albeit adequately executed, and a certain plot line was ultimately ridiculous with unnecessary melodrama.

Nadia is a fascinating character. She is a survivor who dared to resist her family's idiotic ideas. Her bravery kept her alive and her love for Literature helped her escape. She retained a mind of her own and let no one dictate her life. I loved her in an instant. I didn't appreciate Kache, I'm afraid. Self-absorbed, preoccupied, nonsensical, at times, and manipulative in a sickly-sweet way. It was Nadia that made him a better person and even then I couldn't warm up to him. Lettie is a gem but Snag? She lowered the quality of the whole story, in my opinion. I wasn't interested in her melancholy and I couldn't care less about her sexual problems and her “true” self. She was boring, unlikable and very, very badly-written. I omitted most of her chapters, to be honest. There's only so much trash I can handle....

Snag(s) aside, this is a haunting, beautiful novel. Harsh but with an underlying tenderness and sadness. Laced with atmospheric descriptions, with an extremely memorable heroine but with an unfortunate choice of characters that varied from average to indifferent. However, the story alone deserves your attention.

“These books, they are my friends, my teachers, my family, my everyone. They keep me alive.”

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com

‘'You're not supposed to cry when someone gives you a present.''

Although I'm not actually a reader of what I call ‘'Family Conflict'' novels, I cannot say ‘'no'' to stories whose protagonists are single parents. I consider the women and men who decide to raise their children without a partner's help, overcoming any social or financial obstacles, to be the bravest of the brave. When the novel is also set in New York, I'm bound to read it eagerly. And I was not disappointed.

The story centers around Laura, a bright, bookish young woman, who decides to let her defences down for a single night. The result is a baby girl, Emma. Laura decides to raise her daughter alone, since the father is a no-no case and from 1980 until 1995, we follow her development as a woman and a mother, we witness how the relationship with Emma evolves, we are a part of her dilemmas, hopes and frustrations. And let me tell you, ‘'frustration'' isn't an adequate word to describe the amount of idiocy of the people around poor Laura. Through her eyes, we also observe the changes not only of New York but of a whole era.

While the focus is on the mother-daughter relationship, Greathead enriches her story with a number of issues, controversial and thought-provoking. New York is always a character in very novel set in this fascinating city, but I was very intrigued by the writer's choice to place her plot in the special, turbulent decades of the 80s and the 90s. The HIV nightmare and the witch-hunt against certain groups of people. The impact of the World Trade Center, the various stereotypes and discriminations concerning the upper and middle classes and the diversity of the people who populate New York. In my opinion, Greathead succeeded in presenting a well-written, balanced social commentary, especially on the social conventions that dictate how a single mother is basically an incomplete person and the difficulty of a large number of people to accept that not all of us need a partner or a husband. That some of us don't consider romance and sex as necessary in order to live a meaningful, useful life. More often than not, life provides many advantages to those who refuse to place themselves under the yoke.

...Can you tell I am frightfully against the idea of marriage? But anyway...The dialogue is vivid, the narration flows as we are given snippets of daily life, with an array of colourful (but highly unsympathetic people) and even more colourful incidents. Those who claim that this is a WASP novel of New York elite? Well, they probably watch too many bad TV series. Projecting our own bias into our understanding of a story is simplistic and juvenile. The problem is we never bother to look deeper into a situation and we think that placing labels on everyone is enough to get it over with. This is a major theme in this novel.

I fully sympathised with Laura. She doesn't accept the social restrictions and the etiquette of the so-called upper class. However, she doesn't quite fit anywhere and her courage to stand up to her family's questionable values is limited. But she tries, at least. She is a very good mother than noone seems to appreciate and I admit I wanted her stronger. I wanted her to punch all of her kin on their turned-up noses and tell them what's what. Including her daughter who is one of the most revolting children I've seen on page. And believe me, I've had my full share of spoiled tiny humans over the years. Despite Laura's efforts, Emma is selfish, spoiled, ungrateful, mean and never recognises her mother's sacrifices for her. Much like her grandmother, actually.

This is a finely written novel on the notion of motherhood, the sacrifices, the joy and the fear, the unique bond between a mother and a daughter with all the ups and downs. A novel of character, elegance, of sadness, yet hopeful and vaguely optimistic. The only weakness? The lack of compelling characters with the exception of Laura. Definitely a recommended read and bound to be one of the most beautiful debuts of 2018.

Many thanks to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange of an honest review.

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com

“When you see a broad village street by moonlight, with its huts, haystacks and slumbering willow trees, peace descends on your soul.”

Anton Chekhov. Among the greatest of the great Russian writers who created a plethora of the finest novels, plays and memoirs in World Literature. From a land that has captured the imagination of the brightest pens with her beauty, her mysticism and a multitude of antitheses and fables. Chekhov's plays are sought after by directors and actors. His short stories are considered classics and rightfully so. “The Beauties” contains some of the most tender, lyrical and picturesque texts created by an immortal pen.

“The Beauties” is such an interesting title. Beauty...what is beauty? Chekhov depicts the ambiguity of the term quite clearly. Beauty of appearance, of manners. The beauty to dictate your own rules in life and the ugliness that we want to think of as “beauty” because we are either too afraid or too unwilling to admit otherwise. Beauty and love are as intertwined as they are feeble. The sorrows of love is a central theme in these stories juxtaposed with issues concerning class and an underlying, elegant but very much present critique on the political and social stare of the nation. Apart from these themes, there is an almost oneiric, at times, imagery of Russia, the countryside and the cities of this vast, mystical, beautiful country. Moscow, Petersburg, Yalta, Siberia....

I would be delighted to read these stories in Russian if I had the chance, since there is a certain haunting rhythm in this language but I believe that the translator did an excellent job. The dialogue flows nicely, the descriptive passages are beautifully composed. The stories that I consider the finest in this collection are “The Lady with the Little Dog”, one of the most well-known stories by Chekhov and quite scandalous for the time, “The Privy Councillor” , “The Kiss” and “The Man in the Box”.

There are creations that are immortal, sacred. There is a squad of selected writers that gave us wonders to make our grey world a finer, elegant, beautiful place. Anton Chekhov is undoubtedly among them. His works are not the epic, grandiose monuments of Tolstoy nor the bleak, haunting studies of Dostoevsky or the pessimistic masterpieces of Gogol. However, like Pushkin, Chekhov realised a more humane, milder, everyday way of living and thinking, but no less accurate or powerful than his peers.

“You take lies for truth and ugliness for beauty.”

Many thanks to Pushkin Press and Edelweiss for the ARC in exchange of an honest review.

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com

‘'All the sweat and pain. All the lying and pretending, the rethinking, the revising into ruin. A signature move. It's only natural. If we could control life, it wouldn't be life. If we could control our likeness of it, it wouldn't be a likeness.''

One of my favourite moments as a reader is the joy of reading a play. I know that many people believe that plays are meant to be performed, not read and this is correct, obviously. However, I've always thought that there is a special kind of mysticism and self-indulgence in reading a play because this is the moment when we put on the robes of the director and we become responsible for the casting, the staging, every detail of a production, as the story unfolds in our mind, as the lines are spoken the way we want them to be spoken. Therefore, if each reader's opinion on a novel is highly subjective (and it is...), our perception of a play is even more ambiguous. Reading these three plays by Will Eno, I was reminded of the raw beauty of the demanding existentialist American Theatre.

‘'The Flu Season'': This is a fascinating, strange, bleak play set in a mental health institution. It breaks the Fourth Wall as the Prologue and the Epilogue comment on the events unfolding on the stage, expressing opinions that are completely contradictory. A difficult play that leaves a mark in your mind. It is as harsh as it is tender, with commentary on a number of themes. The torment of Life's ‘'what if'', the desire for communication, for love, for the smallest sign of acceptance, for the need to see some sense in the world around us. Death, despair, loneliness, loyalty...There are many moments of immense beauty and sadness in this play.

‘'Intermission'': Two couples find themselves in the audience of a play. During intermission, a delicate balance seems on the verge of collapse and an elegant but intense arguments starts. A battleground, mainly between two men, which shows the difficulties of communication between the old and the new generation.

‘'Tragedy'' : This play is set during a live television broadcast of a terrible incident. Four journalists react to the inexplicable phenomenon in different ways, from restrained anger to utter panic, before they collapse under the weight of obligation and misery. Again, the lack of communication between the characters is evident. A very interesting play, open to many interpretations.

These plays are extremely interesting and attractive on page in a quite weird way. I can only imagine how they flourish in the hands of a carefully organized production, as Will Eno verifies that the long tradition of American Drama is still going strong.

‘'We're all on thin ice, but for some of us, it's even thinner.''

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com

‘'Drive by the house you're interested in at night, I say. Watch the windows. See if anybody's watching for you there. And then drive home with the dome light on, and check that back seat as often as you can.It won't be often enough.'' Stephen Graham Jones

I will readily admit that one of the things that bring me to the highest levels of anxiety is visiting a house I've never stepped foot into before. I'm 100% certain that I'll sound like a superstitious ignorant, but bear with me:) Being quite the introvert type, it's always a toil to find myself in ‘'unexplored'' grounds but I wasn't always such a lunatic over houses. Four-five years ago, we visited some friends in their new house, in a quaint seaside village, relatively close to Athens. The house was beautifully decorated, in an old-fashioned but nostalgic and inspired way, the family has been friends of ours for years, so no worries there. Yet, not long after we had comfortably placed ourselves in the lovely living room, I wanted to leave. I mean, an urgent open-the-door- or I'll pass out kind of feeling. Just like that. I remember the headache and the feeling of heaviness as intensely as if I'm experiencing it right now. And the weird thing is that my parents felt it as well. There was nothing dark in the history of the house and the family still lives there happily and yet, I've never experienced such an unpleasant (to put it mildly) feeling in an indoors space since that day. It seemed to drain out every bit of energy in us...

In this exquisite thriller by Robert Marasco, the vast mansion becomes a summer refuge for the Rolfe family. At least, this is what Marian wants it to be. Fed up with their noisy New York apartment and the draining city life, she convinces Ben to spend two months in an estate beyond her wildest dream. The elderly siblings, the owners of the house, ask for a miniscule price and the only obligation the family has is to prepare a tray for the ‘'darling'' mother who lives in the remotest part of the local floor, unseen by all who have rented the estate throughout the years. ‘'What could be more perfect?'' is the only thought in Marian's empty head....

It's possible that you know all about the heart of the plot of this brilliant thriller. You may have watched the film version. It won't matter, I assure you, The way the book is s written will definitely absorb you. It made my heart pounding as I was approaching the conclusion, I was appalled and fascinated and under the grip of the tense influence of watching everything falling apart. The descriptions are razor sharp, building the story and the feeling of a foreboding darkness grows page by page. The dialogue could want for more, but let us not forget that the novel was written in the 70s, a decade that was fascinating and exciting but with colloquations that make us cringe now. And it seemed to me that the main theme was obsession. The craving for a different life, for what we perceive as mirrors of our identity and how far can we go in order to satisfy it. What if we have to make the most impossible choice? Would we succumb to an obsession or rise up against it? It all comes down to choices or at least, the illusion that we have a choice and this is exactly what attracted me to this finely woven plot.

The characters are overshadowed by the House which is the undoubtable protagonist of Marasco's novel. Marian is highly unsympathetic. Self-centered, manipulative, an all-around bad mother. I never felt sorry for her. Not even for a moment...Ben starts out as a bit indifferent, verging on irritating but I found that he was quite complex as the story progressed and in truth? He was the only one who had a passable percentage of common sense and logical thinking in his mind. Aunt Elizabeth was sympathetic enough, quirky and compassionate. But this isn't the kind of story where the characters have to be complex and sympathetic and what not. It is the setting, the ambiance of the writing that matters and this is as exceptional as we'll ever find in the genre.

This is a psychological, paranormal thriller that does absolute justice to the genre that is being relentlessly tortured in our current times. There are no gore, no ghosts or jumpscares. But there is something far more frightening than any of these. Human obsession. The root for most evils in our lives. The way we choose to blind ourselves to sustain our illusions, the price we sometimes have to pay for not listening to our instinct and run.....

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com

‘'You see, my dear ice witch, I have had the love of children from all over the world because of my stories. A child's love is the perfect love, for it is given with a whole heart.”

After The Night Circus and its success, books that contain this word have multiplied by the dozen. Naturally, this one attracted my attention immediately as short stories appeal to me immensely and I was very curious to see how the retellings of old folklore tales and popular children's stories would be handled by a writer whose pedigree is quite extensive. I had no knowledge of her work prior to this, but the way she talks about it in her Notes speaks for itself....Putting this observation aside, I can say that the overall experience was quite interesting but not completely satisfying.

“Andersen's Witch” : A beautiful, bittersweet tale about the greatest storyteller, his Ice Maiden and the stories that would be cherished by millions of children and adults throughout the centuries. This story is the jewel of the collection.

“Lost Girls”: A modern addition to Barrie's Peter Pan with a pseudo-feminist touch. I didn't like this one. I found it as silly and blunt as its original source.

“Tough Alice”:Alice finds the strength to laugh in the face of danger.This story has a beautiful message for young girls.

“Blown Away”: A weird version of “The Wizard of Oz” about the years Dorothy was missing from Kansas. I can't say I liked it. I didn't see the point in certain changes and I couldn't take the narrator seriously.

“A Knot of Toads”:An eerie Scottish tale of scholars, fishermen and witches. Inspired by the Witch Trials during the reign of James V and a highlight in the collection.

“The Quiet Monk”: A beautiful, sad, haunting imaginings of the grave in Glastonbury, once thought to belong to Arthur and Guinevere. You're definitely in for a surprise with this one.

“The Bird” : A very short but very special story about two lovers and a raven. Yes, THAT raven....

“Belle Bloody Merciless Dame” : A contemporary story of a mysterious girl in the night of the Summer Solstice.

“The Jewel in the Toad Queen's Crown”: The wonderful banter between Victoria and Disraeli as they try to forge the British Empire. It goes without saying that the iconic PM is the Jewel of the story.

“The Gift of the Magicians, With Apologies to You Know Who”: A silly story imagining the marital life of Beauty and the Beast. Thank God this was very short because it was awful.

“Rabbit Hole” : An elderly Alice longs to return to the magic world.

“Our Lady of the Greenwood”: A story about the birth and christening of a boy who would become a legend for all time to come. And his name was Robin...

“The Confession of Brother Blaise”: A story for Brother Blaise and Geoffrey of Monmouth. But it has nothing to do with the history of Britain. I found it a mediocre -at best- attempt to insert some supernatural, devilish horror in the collection. Disappointing..

“Wonder Land” : This didn't make any sense. And not in a good way.....

“Evian Steel”: This was an attempt to give voice to a key character in the Arthurian Cycle. An imagining of the childhood of Elaine, Lancelot's doomed wife, and her strange initiation in Avalon. The writer dropped the ball with this one, in epic proportions. I fear she tried to follow the tropes of Fantasy, throwing the Old Ways symbolism, the Goddess belief, Morgan, Merlin, Bedevere and what not in the mix, and the result was disastrous, in my opinion.

“Sister Emily's Lightship”: The final story, a tribute to Emily Dickinson and her spirit. This was extremely successful, written in beautiful, poetic, tragic language and invoking the feelings of the doomed artist to perfection.

I will not comment on the Story Notes and Poems. The only thing I'd feel dishonest with myself not to mention is that an acknowledged writer doesn't need pompous remarks about her achievements or her religious background...

I admit I am divided over how to rate this collection properly. In my opinion, there was much that was pretentious and pseudo-feminist, but many of the stories were some of the best I've read. I think that Yolen treated every story with respect on the original source but her attempts to bring certain themes into focus weren't very successful. Making something “modern”in order to be more relevant to a contemporary audience doesn't equal positive results. So, I rate this with 4 stars, because out of the 16 stories of the collection, 10 were really well-written. And yet, the rest were frightfully bad...I don't believe that the writer is the “Hans Christian Andersen of the United States” but I recommend this. Still, I'd advise you proceed with caution and perhaps you will enjoy it more than my nitpicking, exhaustively scrutinizing self. And perhaps the time is ripe for half-stars to finally arrive.

“You live in fairy tales. We have to live in the real world.”

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com

I find this installement to be an adequate continuation of the series but there was nothing new or innovative, in my opinion. The mystery seemed interesting, at first, but the way the plot unfolded left me with an indifferent impression. At times, I found it detrimental, predictable.

I think that this is a series that definitely garners points and attention due to its Finnish setting that appeals to those of us who enjoy bleak, wintry, atmospheric settings. However, in my humble opinion, the constant weaknesses of the series are repetition, blant characters and average dialogue that is probably the result of a failed translation. Maria is interesting enough, unlike her husband and her co-workers and the focus on her family issues didn't really help ‘‘Below the Surface''. I don't think I will continue with the series, although I can see that this installment will appeal to many people just like its predecessors.

Many thanks to AmazonCrossing and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange of an honest review.

‘'Are you a person in my story, or am I a person in yours?''

Once in a while, we choose a book attracted by its cryptic blurb. There is a certain ‘'something'' in a vague description that entices us to take a small leap of faith and dedicate our precious reading time to it. This was the case with Robert Bluck's novel. I was intrigued, but I didn't expect much. Frankly, I thought this would be the same old- in a good way, though- story of a girl who is transported to a fairytale world. And I began reading it during the first days of Christmas because this is the best time for fairytales. I couldn't be more wrong, my friends. This is no YA fairytale fantasy. Not even remotely close. It is a magical and yet strangely realistic and tangible contemporary novel of a sweet family and a mysterious stranger, of wonders and daily sorrows that can be mended. And the reading year of Our Lord 2018 couldn't have started in a better way.

A close-knit family of four lives in Newcastle. Helen and Keith and their three children, the twins Jonathan and Ben and Emma, a bright, bookish, sensitive teenager. A very sympathetic, balanced and ordinary family with its own ups and downs. Keith has work-related problems, Emma is fully absorbed with her exams, boys are boys and Helen is the tie that keeps everything and everyone in order. After a sudden misfortune, they decide to spend some peaceful summertime in a forest lodge close to Hexham, in rural Northumberland and there they meet a kind, mysterious elderly man who introduces himself as Matthew the Woodreeve. The rest you'll have to discover by reading the book:)

Well, where to begin? It may sound as a simple story, but it is so layered and rich. I thought I knew the direction of the plot -and I did guess a key part of it- but there are quite a few twists, given the premise. There are images from Art in the form of a Cézanne painting that has a major position in the story and a plethora of bookish references with a focus on Thomas Hardy whose novels are full of nature and tortured characters. Instances related to the 2012 Olympics held in London brought a sweet sense of nostalgia. In fact, I felt that nostalgia is a core theme in the novel. The bittersweet thoughts for a simple, more innocent, albeit more naive and unforgiving, era.

The environment and its influence on the human soul are crucially integrated in the story. Without becoming didactic, we are shown that the respect for what is freely and generously given to us and th close contact with our natural surroundings have the power to change our lives. It may sound detrimental, clichéd, preachy. However, consider how we feel after a week spent in a mountain lodge or a quaint seaside village, away from our metropolis stress. This is why I didn't find any of the messages of the story far-fetched or scholarly. The way I see it when things beyond our control make our lives bleak, we need a source of help, courage to continue and as much peace of mind as we can find. What better place to find them than nature, the way God has created it, even if we do our best to wound her irreversibly on a daily basis?

I found the characters and the writing engaging and very satisfying. They are everyday people we can relate to, with problems and aspirations we all experience. Emma and Matthew are the central figures that drive the story forward, the old and the new generation that have much more in common than we believe. The technique of the Story Within the Story is delightful and exceptionally done. I appreciated the fact that the writer didn't shy away from focusing on the various aspects of mental illness set in a time when it was considered a terrible stigma. The short chapters fly by, the dialogue is well-composed and the descriptive passages are written in a way that is quietly beautiful, almost soothing. Perhaps, I could say that there are certain repetitions and coincidences that are predictable but the notion of the characters who decide to dare and change their lives and the well-placed Magical Realism hints here and there more than make up for the technicalities.

So, what started as an unambitious, light read (as ‘'light'' as I can do, in any case...) became a very memorable reading experience and a book that I can wholeheartedly recommend. A beautiful reading start to 2018. May it be happy for all of us, full of beautiful, weird, bleak (come on, you knew I'd say this:) ) exciting reads and interesting discussions. And with less stupidity and mean comments all around us....

‘'You cannot go where I have been, you cannot see what I have seen.''

Many thanks to Unbound Digital and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange of an honest review.

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com

‘'Once I had a dream and in the dream I went to bed and fell asleep and was dreaming. And I knew I was dreaming inside a dream. Do you think it's like that? Do you?''

I've always thought that the winter landscape mirrored purity, tranquility, beauty. The white of the snow, the complete silence, the moon casting its beams creating a scenery that is otherworldly, almost unnaturally beautiful and mystifying. I feel more at peace with our universe when I find myself in the ‘'white'' nature up in the mountains, where the coziness of the lodge competes with the primal beauty outside. The feelings that this unique novel by Graham Joyce created in me will be my company there from now on...

Zoe and Jake find themselves trapped when an avalanche comes their way in the French Pyrenees. When they return to the resort, they find it devoid of any human presence. All the objects are there but the hotel and the village seem to have frozen in time. Uninhabited and hostile...The candles don't burn out, the food remains fresh even though it's exposed, unprotected in the kitchen. Each time the couple attempts to leave, they find themselves back where they started. And the spiral of event and unexplained phenomena has merely started...

This is one of the most difficult books to review, because even the most innocent commentary may be enough to spoil the end. It is marvelously written, extremely well-composed and consistent from beginning to end. It may be placed under the paranormal genre but it would be wrong to look upon it under this light exclusively. This novel is an exploration of love, togetherness, companionship. The kind of love that is deep,mature and independent. It is also an exploration of the need and instinct to survive, to doubt and fight against what seems invincible, incomprehensible and terminate. All wrapped in a language that is poetic, strong, even razor sharp. Haunting, cold and above all, realistic.

Jake and Zoe are the only characters in this journey and my God, what a company they are! Extremely sympathetic, engaging and realistic. I could connect with them immediately and in their development lies the success and effect of the novel. I could feel their fear, their agony, the deep love for each other, their struggle to hold onto the moment. They were the driving force and in them I found two very memorable characters.

I shall have to leave you here, because I'm getting too close to the slope of spoilers. All I can say is that when you have a fairly unsentimental reader-that is, me:)- and after tons and tons of books, a novel manages to make this reader feel the warmth and the freezing of hearts in equal proportions, then you know that the writer did something right...A definite highlight of my reading year.

‘'But what was a moment? Spindrift on the back of a sunlit wave? A fox's tail as it disappears through the hedgerow? A meteorite as it flares in the August night sky? Everything is ending or becoming. Zoe didn't believe you could freeze a moment, or hold on to one.''

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com

If repetition, poor attempts of sounding geeky, imaginative and funny and all-around boredom is the writer's vision of a well-composed book, then I'm sorry but I was clearly the wrong reader for...this. The way I see it, this doesn't even deserve a full review, sorry:(

‘'Where are you heading when nothing is moving and time is still?''

Ambrosius Moerk's profession has everything to do with time. And nothing. He is a grave-digger, responsible for the most permanent place of residence- in fact, the only permanent place of residence- where time and movement and change seize to exist. Living alone in a remote cabin, he has plenty of time to contemplate. An enigmatic man who preferred to work with the dead instead of a life spent on a fishing boat in his beautiful homeland, Denmark. When he is handed a series of nine letters written in Danish and addressed to his predecessor's wife back home, a peculiar journey begins and its end is all but certain.

The beautiful, mysterious, haunting story takes place somewhere in New England, probably during the late 19th century. Time and place is far from clear and rightly so. Nothing is clear in this novel and there lies its bleak, unique, utterly perplexing beauty. Apart from Ambrosius, a deeply sympathetic man, we come to meet a fascinating array of characters and the queen among them is Victoria, a young lady with an otherworldly mind and beauty. She is alluring, wise, mysterious and ethereal, like a woodland spirit. A cryptic, mystical monk, cats, crows and other birds become characters in their own merit.

Lars writes in an elegant, eloquent, fascinating manner. His prose and dialogue faithfully depict the era, choosing words that may sound ‘difficult' but are striking, adding a haunting musicality in the writing. There are quite a few symbols, each one with its own significance. The crows, the antithesis between the earth and the sea, the snow, the lanterns and the spades. The wilderness, the remote cabin and the cemetery. One of my favourite moments was the description of the gravedigger's duties. Lars paints images images from the burial preparations that are grimm, haunting and extremely interesting in terms of technicalities.

Poe and Coleridge seem to be major influences. ‘'The Rime of the Ancient Mariner'', one of the most enigmatic poems ever written, is heavily echoed in the vital presence of the albatross. Like the sailor in the poem, the letters describe weird encounters, visions and dreams where the supernatural, the attraction experienced by a restless mind, the fear of facing the unexplainable and the struggle to balance the longing for love and the unquenched desire for adventure. The albatross becomes the mouth of conscience (although, ‘'conscience'' is fairly subjective...) and stands for innocence, purity and sin. Everything is abstract, dual and fluid in this striking novel.

I've had the fortune to read ‘'The Somnambulist's Dreams'' and it became one of the most unique reading experiences. ‘When All the Days Have Gone' can be seen as a continuation since there are motifs and themes similar to its predecessor. However, I loved it even more due to its bleak, dark, mystic, foreboding nature. And like my good friend, Thomas, has already stated, the end is marvellous. Utterly brilliant!

My most sincere thanks to Lars for giving me the opportunity to read his beautiful novel.

‘'Many of your dreams have beenOf spirits that plagued you so.Seven feet deep they'll follow youTo the land of mist and snow.''

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com

Glasgow, December, Christmas is approaching.Course of the action, a single day when four very different people decide to fulfill their resolutions.

Caro is a teacher in a primary school and I couldn't help but liking her immediately, after reading her thoughts on the upcoming Christmas holidays and the children ‘s excitement. She wants to discover the truth about her father's escapades, his “secret” life. Cammy is planning a wedding proposal to an utterly unsuitable woman.Bernadette, married to a despicable man, finally decides to wave him goodbye. Lila ,the second despicable person in the novel having an affair with the aforementioned one. Too much of the stereotype of the idiotic, manipulative, sex-crazed blonde. She was the big minus of the novel, lowered the quality and potential of the story. I've got absolutely zero patience for flighty, dumb people who rule amidst the social media frenzy and I hardly read her chapters.

I went into this believing that it would be a contemporary novel, dealing with family issues, insecurities and themes. What I discovered was a melodramatic mixture of questionable quality. I'm sure many readers will be satisfied by this novel. Speaking strictly for myself, the various issues of romantic nature, the family drama coming straight out of a soap opera, the stereotypical characters and the poor quality dialogue do not consist an interesting read. I managed to finish it due to my sympathy for Caro and the glimpses of actual good writing that were very few and far between.

This is a case where the book may be good but the reader is wrong. And I should have known better and avoided it. Feel free to try it and form your opinion. However, the family drama and paperback romance don't call my name...

Many thanks to Aria and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange of an honest review.

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com

‘'Once you've been out here for a while,you can see them.You can see them all.We have been out here for a long, long while.''

The fir tree is a symbol in a distinctive array of cultures. In Celtic Mythology, it is one of the nine sacred trees, a symbol of honesty, truth and strength. Its evergreen nature is a reminder of the continuation of life amidst the stillness of winter. In Native American culture, the fir tree is associated with protection and spirituality. And of course, we should not forget that the fir tree is the king of Christmas. In this exciting, mystifying novel by Sharon Gosling, the proud, eternal tree acquires a much more sinister role...

The young narrator and his/her parents (although I strongly believe we're talking about a boy) abandon Stockholm for a mansion in Norrbotten, in the northernmost part of Sweden, an area of harsh climate and influenced by different ethnicities. Our narrator hardly cares for the symbolism of the new home, though. The family is warned by a young teacher that should they ever attempt to alter the environment, the forest will exact revenge. Add a rather terrifying maid in the mixture, along with strange sightings of children, accidents, disconcerting photos lying around and a constant humming resembling a lament that seems to come from the fir trees and you have one of the eeriest, most haunting thrillers I've ever read.

Gosling knows her subject and themes well. She uses the mystical, wintry nature of Sweden to full extent and creates superb atmosphere, where crime-noir blends with myths and supernatural tropes seamlessly. The trees become a character, they are singing, speaking in rhymes and cryptic manifestations. They acquire a voice and a focal part in the course of the story. The snow, the wood, the northern wind, the darkness and silence of the remotest of places compose the perfect background. The writer centers the story around the myth of the varulv, a forest spirit of wolf-like appearance. A protector of the northern forests, created when a human is bitter by the creature. The myth originates in the ancient traditions of offering a sacrifice to the heathen gods and is considered the basis for the werewolf tale.

The writing is excellent. The fact that the story is told in the voice of a teenager helps the flow of the action as we have short, clear-cut, always on point sentences without being dry or abrupt. This is a child who is very bright and logical but has the unfortunate lot of living with two extremely irrational, selfish, incompetent and all-around stupid parents. The father of the family takes the award for Best Idiot of the Year...The ending can only be described in a very cultured, eloquent way. Bang! It's wonderful. It came out of nowhere and made me jump from my seat.

This is an eco-thriller, Scandinavian noir, paranormal novel of the finest kind. It reminded me of the films ‘'Edge of Winter'' with Joel Kinnaman and ‘'The Village'' by M. Night Shyamalan and the novel ‘'The Grip of It'' by Jac Jemc. It is exquisitely written, building suspense and sustaining the eerie, haunting atmosphere, the constant feeling of dread until the fantastic finale.

....and please, read the appendices!

‘'Yes, say the trees.You are not lost.You are ours.You are us.And we will not forgive.''

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com

‘'A path into the forest, from a long-forgotten place.Find the path and follow, its ribbon yours to trace.Past trees and hillocks wander, to a splendid castle old,In whose halls three ladies fine you shall at last behold.The prince they there await, if ever he should come.A song they sing to pass the time, a lonely, plaintive hum.''

Once in a while, there comes a book that takes you by surprise. An unassuming, low-key, seemingly ordinary novel which turns into an experience that makes you fully understand why you love reading so much. That gives a whole new meaning to Literary Fiction. That has you thinking for days after the last page is turnt. The feelings that ‘'Love'' caused in me surprised me. What didn't surprise me was the fact that this novel comes from one of the most haunting places God has created. Norway, the land of the Midnight Sun. But in our story, the sun is nowhere to be found...

Vibeke and Jon have recently moved to a new town, in Norway. The story unfolds over a single wintry night when Vibeke and Jon follow their own separate ways, each for their own reasons. Through this peculiar evening, Vibeke will have to face the results of her questionable behaviour and Jon will come across his own fears and isolation.

The two characters consist the driving force of the story. Vibeke is a bookworm, a woman who wants to succeed in her career, to look beautiful, to fall in love and have some time to herself. She is a modern mother, but more often than not, she comes across as vain, almost narcissistic, cold and clueless and not quite the kind of mother that a nine year old child needs. Jon is a boy with a tender heart and an almost terrifying imagination, not unlike his mother. The two share the most unbreakable bond God has created, the one between a mother and her child. However, the relationship depicted in this novel is troubled and troubling. Vibeke and Jon trust strangers too easily and their minds create images, expectations and assumptions that have little or no connection to reality. The two other characters are Tom, a young man working in a funfair, and an unnamed driver whom Jon meets on his way home.

Ørstavik's writing is impeccable, perfect, as haunting as the beauty of her homeland. There are beautiful scenes from the daily life of the two characters. You can feel the warmth of their home, smell the cooked food, see the cozy corners. You can see the dimly lit streets of the neighbourhood, hear the crunching snow, smell the freezing wind and wander in the centre of the town, visit the library and the funfair. The writer's ability to paint pictures with words and communicate so many themes through minimal dialogue is outstanding. The eerie feeling, the sense of impending doom that permeates the novel doesn't allow you to look away and I am happy to see that the translator did a marvelous job in transfering images and feelings to perfection.The end is striking. As I'm writing, I try to process it and I can't. It will leave you speechless, the way a well-written novella has to do.

This is an appropriate read for a cold winter's night, ideally in Norway. Or Denmark, or Sweden and Finland. But if this isn't possible, any place becomes ideal when there is a beautiful book to keep us company. And this is one of the most beautiful books I've read this year. Yes, it is dark, sad, it cuts like a knife and freezes the blood, and yet, in all this darkness, there is a kind of pure beauty. I'm not a mother, but I work with children and books like this one makes you want to hold them close and shut out the darkness of the world.

Many thanks to Archipelago Books and Edelweiss for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com

‘'Essex is a place of dark secrets and haunting tales. It is a romantic county for those who have the determination to plunge into its rural heart.''

Essex is one of the most notable and most recognizable county of the UK. Still, there is an aura of mystery around it, around its mills, its estate houses, the halls and the castles. Colchester, the Epping Forest, Maldon, Rochford are among the places loaded with myths, heroic deeds and otherworldly visitors. The tales included in this volume are among the most interesting in the wonderful series of the Folk Tales from the British Isles.

The writer has broken the stories into eight themes. Dragons/Battles/Heroes (or rather, Antiheroes)/ Witches/ Love Stories/ Ghosts and supernatural creatures/ Curiosities/ Spirituality. This was cleverly done and helps the reader to compare the tales centered on a specific theme and understand each era's take on it. In these pages we meets Kings of Old, Christians and Pagans, pirates, smugglers, knights, witches and elves, saints and wise women. The War of the Flags incident was very interesting, along with the famous Dunmow Flitch Trials, a historic celebration of marriage where companionship, love and trust are awarded with a piece of bacon. And of course, everyone knows about the deep bond between Essex and its witches...

However, I didn't enjoy this volume as much as the others. There was too much emphasis on the stereotype of the ‘'evil'' Viking which is old-fashioned, uneducated and frankly? Boring. The writing doesn't have the fairy tale, dreamy, tell-by-the-fire quality I've been used to and isn't up to par with the majority of the Folk Tales volumes. The writer tries too hard to appear smart and funny and in the end, she comes across as condescending of the tales she has chosen to include. Still, the effort is saved by the interesting, haunting stories. It's a pity that Williams seems to be a rather average writer, lacking the ‘'touch'' that turns the reading of a tales into a magical experience.

And now, where shall we travel next?

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com