David
A beautiful, disturbing and heart-wrenching story about two teenage boys from the working class streets of Glasgow, who fall in love and must keep their relationship hidden from the world around them.
While similar to the award winning Shuggie Bain (“write what you know!”), Young Mungo elevates the work of Douglas Stuart to a new level. Fully formed, dimensional characters that practically leap off the page alongside beautiful prose and a story that will have you riveted to the very end.
Vern, a pregnant 15 year old, escapes from a cult leaving her family behind. She gives birth, survives in the woods and then...things start to get really weird. To say anymore, would spoil the story.
While I didn't love this book as much as I was hoping to, I was was drawn into Vern's journey of self-discovery and the utterly bizarre world in which she inhabits.
“If we don't tell our own stories, we'll never take control of the narrative.”
Two women, each trying to escape their lives for their own reasons, switch identities at an airport.
What could possibly go wrong? Well, a plane crash for one. (not a spoiler).
A fun, twisty & suspenseful page turner about women speaking their truth in a world where they aren't always believed.
Based around the real-life political climate of 1970's Mexico, in particular, an event called El Halconazo, where the corrupt Mexican government injured or killed hundreds of protestors in an effort to squash Communism and rising dissent.
While this setting proved interesting, the rest of the story took some effort for me to finish.
A tad cliche...An innocent woman (secretary by day and lover of romantic comics by night) becomes entangled in a search for her neighbor and some missing rolls of film that are highly coveted by various government factions.
In short, a somewhat predictable tale where not a lot happens.
I loved Mexican Gothic. This? It was ok.
At one point in the story, a review of the book The Anomaly (written by one of the characters) is described as such: “Its a strange book, thrillingly fast-paced, unputdownable.”
While opinion seems to be split here in the real world, that fictional meta-like review sums up my feelings for the actual book itself.
Plus, how can I not love a book that features a couple cameos by Elton John?
A fun page turner that will have you trying to solve the various mysteries that lie within. Jess, a young Brit, escapes London to join her estranged brother in Paris. Only when she arrives at his apartment, he seems to have vanished in thin air. To say anymore would ruin this twisty and suspenseful tale!
Currently in development at Sony Pictures.
I've enjoyed other works by Matheson, but this one not so much. You definitely get the haunted house vibe, especially in the beginning where a sense of dread clearly hangs in the air. But then it devolves into some kind of male sexual fantasy involving rape and other sexual abuse. So, trigger warning for that. One's sexual orientation is also something that one should be ashamed and punished for as depicted in this book which is definitely a product of its time.
My eyes rolled every time Dr. Barrett's “ghost machine” was mentioned. It was called “The Reversor”, whose preposterous function was only outdone by its ridiculous name.
A modern update of “Rear Window”, a young man confined to a wheel chair due to having SMA (spinal muscular atrophy) witnesses a kidnapping and then engages in a cat and mouse game with the kidnapper.
But more than that, this book is about friendship, kindness, empathy and living one's life to the fullest.
Sadly, I can't remember the last time I read a book where the main protagonist is physically challenged. This was a refreshing and insightful look from the perspective of someone who overcomes great challenges with optimism, hope, courage and humor.
This 800 page epic has put me 4 books behind in my 2022 Reading Challenge, but it was worth every page! In a world not so different from our own, a mysterious group of unstoppable sleepwalkers along with their family members and a group of scientists, embark on a journey across a post-apocalyptic landscape to discover the cause and a cure. Throw in some Artificial Intelligence, a right wing militia group and a highly infectious and deadly disease, and you're in for a gut-busting laugh riot.
Kidding.
This book is dark AF.
In the aftermath of January 6th, Anthem takes us to a world where hopeless teens are killing themselves and our nation is in the midst of a civil war. So begins this bleak, dark AF, post-apocalyptic tale from Noah Hawley.
I loved “Before The Fall” so I was excited to read his latest. I found the first 100 or so pages to be gripping. But then all the teenagers, which this book follows, started to all sound alike. I had to stop and think who was who. When you couple that with the author breaking the 4th wall and speaking directly to the reader, it took me out of the story. We are also left hanging with regard to what happened to TWO pivotal characters, which really bothered me.
4.5 stars!
It's hard to talk about this story without giving anything away.
I will say my emotions ran the gamut from worried, scared, to what-the-hell just happened. I even audibly gasped at one point! The blurb by Stephen King says it best: “A true nerve-shredder that keeps its mind-blowing secrets to the very end.”
This took me a month and a half to read.
Not because of its 600+ pages but because I knew this was the conclusion of this remarkable series and I wasn't ready to say goodbye. So I Took. My. Time.
With an out of this world ending I did not see coming, Bancroft, with his talent for prose and propulsive storytelling, knocks it out of the park. At 600+ pages, not an easy feat.
While not my favorite of the series, it's still a 5 star read for me and an excellent conclusion to a wonderful and thrilling saga.
Well here's another book I can add to my “Reasons I Don't Camp” collection.
3 women go camping in the Grand Canyon.
What could possibly go wrong?
First 100 pages were a bit of a slog and I had to suspend my disbelief at the actions this group decided to undertake once warning signs started to appear.
Yet, once they finally did, I was hooked although it felt like not a lot was happening and at times a bit repetitive.
That's not to take away anything from the author or her talents.
She managed to write wonderful characters that you care about (well most of them) which held my interest to the very end.
Down a hard to find maze-like alley is a small iron door built into the wall. Beyond that door lies a mysterious garden where, from the perspective of 5 individuals, we experience the tension, thrills and terror that is Slade House. To say anything more would spoil the story.
One of the joys of reading is discovering authors I've never read before and loving their work. That is the case for me when it comes to David Mitchell.
Stay awake! Don't go to sleep or else the pod people will get you!
It's difficult to predict the future and this book which was written in the 1950s during the Red Scare takes place in Mill Valley, CA in the 1970s.
That said, the hysterical and helpless female protagonist does not fit into the Women's Lib movement of the 1970s. She is definitely written as a product of her time.
For me, everything was moving along great until the last 3rd of the book where the exposition was endless and made the story much longer than it needed to be.
Otherwise, this book is a classic for a reason and definitely worth the read.
I saw the movie several years ago and I still haven't recovered. So it makes perfect sense for me to revisit that trauma and read the book. While not as unsettling as the film, Murakami does an excellent job of creating a sense of impending dread that will have you quickly turning the pages until the very end. A quick, fun and suspenseful read.
Love Richard Matheson (and if you're a fan of Twilight Zone, you know his stories) and this one, while not my favorite, was excellent.
Some parts were problematic (ogling a 16 year old girl) and some of the physical descriptions of our main character traversing his new giant sized landscape were, for me, difficult to envision.
That aside, a thrilling and exiting story told by one of the greats.
Now to watch the movie!....
Love the movie (the 1940 Best Picture winner directed by Hitchcock...not that Netflix version) and now that I've read the book, I can say that I love it as well.
Beautifully written and engaging gothic mystery that stands the test of time.
For a tale set in 1938, du Maurier has a lot to say about women's roles, their acquiescence to dominating males and the inevitable rebellion against the patriarchy that comes as a direct result of that dominance.
There were definitely some differences between the film and book that caught me off guard along with an incredibly abrupt ending. But then one recalls that the story begins where it ends, thus the abrupt ending brings us full circle and makes for a completely satisfying conclusion.
“The baby kicked like a demon. Rosemary told it to stop or she would start kicking back.”
Another instance of being very familiar with the movie, but still being utterly drawn into the story despite knowing the outcome. The sense of paranoia, claustrophobia and dread leapt right off the page and just added to what was already a chilling and disturbing read.