Nicholette Anand
This thriller was excellent. One of the best I've read in recent years! It was really well written, probablyLisa Jewell's best work, and the audio version was superbly narrated. I completed this book in record time, and it kept me guessing. Although I did figure out a few basic elements of the plot, I certainly wasn't able to guess how they were used by the characters, and my theories kept changing every few chapters. The characters were really well developed, the various settings were well described, multiple timelines and points of view were handled with apparent ease, and the book was wholly absorbing. I'm a sucker for protagonists who are writers, so I enjoyed that aspect with of the novel, as well as the themes it explored: controlling people, friendship, family, classism, narcissism, etc.
There was only one very tiny thing that didn't seem plausible and that was the protagonist not recognizing an element from one of her own books. While it is believable that a writer would perhaps forget plot details, I just couldn't accept that she would've forgotten this particular thing, and it's still not clear to me why she even needed to temporarily forget. Perhaps someone out there can enlighten me...?
I loved this book! I don't read a lot of comedy or humour, but this one was great. The narrator of the audiobook made it even more funny by bringing grants lisp to life. But the thing that made this book great is Rowley's exploration of the serious themes beneath the superficial wit and humor. His exploration of grief, and how we can use humour as a coping mechanism to deal with it, is insightful and heartwarming. The writing is excellent. I thought this book was really well structured, with nothing extraneous, and some of the turns of phrase were so good that I had to rewind and listen to them again. I have recommended this book to several people, who have also enjoyed it, and it has motivated me to now begin reading The Editor, also by Stephen Rowley.
What a wonderful book. I was fully transported not only to South Africa but to the lives of the three main characters. The multiple points of view in this novel were handled with deft skill, and every sentence was well crafted and to the point. The writing and tight plot propelled me through this book in record time, and I kept thinking about it for weeks after finishing. Bianca Marais‘ exploration of the themes of race, sexual abuse, grief, and family was both insightful and fascinating. I originally discovered this book after binge-listening to the authors podcast, The Shit No One Tells You About Writing, and I was very happy that her writing did not let me down. If there weren't so many other books on my To Read list, I would be tempted to re-read this book just to take notes on the craft of writing and book structure. I will definitely be reading her previous book. Hum If You Don't Know the Words, as soon as possible.
I am already a big fan of Liane Moriarty, but I think this is one of her best accomplishments! After listening to me going on about it forever, my husband also read it and loved it. He is a huge tennis fan and was convinced that Liane Moriarty must play a lot of tennis to have the insights about the game that she put in this book. He was very impressed when he researched it afterwards and discovered that she is not in fact a tennis player. I myself am not a tennis fan, but that didn't matter at all. This is a book about a family and the interrelationship of all the complex characters within it. Moriarty stats her writing chops by handling the multiple points of view with clarity and skill. Each character is interesting and compelling, and the way she brings them all together is genius. The red herrings that Moriarty threw into this book created a lot of suspense, which I really enjoyed, and as usual I was impressed by her insights into human psychology and what makes people do the things that they do.
This is the second Lisa Jewell book I have read, and it only made me more enthusiastic to keep reading her. This atmospheric story is filled with suspense and interesting characters. Even the characters I did not like were intriguing, and I was curious to learn what made them the way they were and what they would do. I was truly transported to the Hampstead Heath area of London, and I was immersed in the lives of everyone who populated this book. The plot was tight and suspenseful. It kept me guessing through the whole book, and the research that Jewel obviously did on in-cells and misogynistic culture was woven seamlessly into the narrative.
One of the best books I've read this year. I can't recommend this one highly enough! The characters are so well-developed and unique, they will be undoubtedly stay with me for years, and the descriptions of place are extremely well-written. I dog-eared many pages just so I could return to the descriptions and savor the writing. This book has a little bit of everything: drama, friendship, adventure, and mystery.
This book was a fun read. A plot-driven page-turner that definitely kept me engaged and wanting to see what happened next. The plot is somewhat complicated, so I really applaud the author for planning it so carefully and figuring it all out. Also, her level of legal knowledge and research is impressive! My only criticism is that sometimes it felt a little bit tedious wading through all the legal wording and intricacies, and I didn't necessarily feel like I cared all that much about the characters because they felt kind of secondary, especially in the second half.
I finished this book 5 months ago, and I am writing a review now because it has stayed at the forefront of my mind during that whole time. If that's not the mark of a good book, I don't know what is! The premise of the story, that someone could live undetected in a family's home and be privy to all their secrets, was absolutely chilling and fascinating to me. And then the stowaway involves her self in the families life! The way that Fisher takes this premise and then develops it into such a twisty plot was excellent. She develops her characters in a very compelling way and rates so atmospheric Lea and seamlessly, that I was reading late into the night and recommended this book to lots of people.
Fans of Liane Moriarty and The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion will really enjoy this book. It's funny, it's poignant, features well-developed characters, is well written, and it's also a really good mystery. The audiobook is very well narrated too! I particularly enjoyed the deal points of view at slowly developed each character and played with the idea of an unreliable narrator. It really sucked me in, and for the first half of the book I was convinced I understood both characters, only to realize that I did not. The themes of dysfunctional family and neuro diversity were developed with humor, insight, and suspense. I will definitely be reading more books by this author!
I have to say, after all the hype about this book I was pretty disappointed. I read upwards of 50 books a year, both fiction and nonfiction, and I almost never quit, and I can appreciate lots of different kinds of literature. But I quit this one after about two hours of reading because I was bored. The first chapter was really well written and was quite a good hook to bring one enthusiastically into the book, and I had high hopes. But the more it went on the more it was just kind of repetitions of the same theme, and I lost interest. it just didn't really speak to me. Maybe I wasn't in the right mood or at the right time of my life to read this, but that's the way it is. If you want to read memoirs about women discovering their purpose and true identity, I would highly recommend Between Two Kingdoms by Suleika Jaouad and My Own Blood by Ashley Bristowe.
I was fortunate enough to win an advanced copy of this book from a contest on Jennifer Robinson's Facebook page. It arrived just before my Christmas break, and I got up early every day to read it before my family was awake. I could not put it down! It had a little bit of everything: suspense, romance, history. The narrative is beautifully written and confidently dropped me deep into the plot within the first few pages. All the historical research the author brought to bear on this novel felt very natural and made it both realistic and vivid. The characters are well developed and memorable, and I don't think I will ever forget this moving story that is a tribute to the remarkable people who survived World War II in Italy. I have read Jennifer Robinson's previous novels, and this one did not disappoint. I highly recommend it! I
Wow, what an amazing book! Definitely the best book I have read in a while. It has unusual emotional depth and insight. Beautifully written and a powerful, moving story. I can completely understand why this has been called “the great American novel of our time.” But really it's just a great novel of our time because it tells a story that is international in nature and could probably be representative of the struggles people are facing in many places around the globe.
I absolutely adored this book and forced my family to listen to many excerpts. The unconventional family is utterly charming and their adventures with each other and with the animals of course you are absolutely hilarious. The poetic and evocative descriptions of Corfu were magical. Incredibly well written and a delight to read. The fact that I had already watched the TV show did not detract from the book at all.
A riveting and thought-provoking book. Very well written! It makes the reader think about history, politics, human nature, and how much our assumptions inform the way we think. The concept and plot are quite unique and original.
Having said that, I did find some parts very disturbing to read. To be fair, I suppose that was part of the point, but it did make me want to rush through the last eighth of the book so it would be done.
Disheartened by the current state of the world? Feeling pessimistic about all the climate change doom and gloom? Maybe you feel helpless to make any change yourself and wonder aimlessly if anybody out there is doing anything to improve the situation? Then this book is for you!!
Bill Nye provides tons of interesting information about current scientific developments and examples of people who are working on solutions to a whole host of our problems. He also provides lots of his own ideas to improve not only our environment but our society. One thing I particularly like is the way he shows how a lot of these developments are economically viable and make financial sense as well. He is humorous, inspiring, optimistic, and always informative. I am an English major with no scientific background but I have now developed an interest in both science and engineering – go figure. I can't recommend this book enough! If you listen to the audio version, he narrates it himself and doesn't excellent job.
I had high hopes for this book, as I loved the author's previous book, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry. This book also starts with an unlikely event that sets the whole plot in motion. But that is where the similarity ends. Although Perfect is very well-written, I wasn't drawn into it or particularly motivated to keep reading. Some of the characters were undeveloped, some characters and events didn't really seem necessary to the plot, and I felt that some editing would have been in order. Overall, it was OK. There were parts I enjoyed but it was a bit of a letdown compared the Harold Fry.
Because of the author's reputation and the cover art, I initially thought this book was intended for children. But it is an action-packed account of an incredibly adventurous life that can be read by anybody. Roald Dahl battled snakes and lions in Africa in the 1930s and struggled not to be killed by the incompetence of the British military in World War II. He truly had nine lives!
I love this book. I've only recently started reading nonfiction, and I am now inspired to read both his other books and Neil Degrasse Tyson's latest book. Bill Nye provides a lot of information about a fascinating and diverse array of topics, yet manages to bring them together in an inspiring and well thought out manner. I learned about solar power, GMO crops, why puns are good (!), what ice core samples in Greenland tell us about air pollution, astronomy (which never previously interested me in the least), physics, artificial intelligence, driverless cars, the ongoing conflict between religion and science, etc. It was also quite synchronous that I was concurrently reading Origins by Dan Brown, because he also addresses some of these topics. I have an arts, not a science background, but I thoroughly enjoyed Bill Nye's book. He provides a wonderful antidote to the anti-science rhetoric so popular in much of the media and politics at the moment. Nye provides lots of concrete and empowering solutions that everyone can get behind. And if you listen to the audio version, he is a very entertaining narrator!
