Secrets, Sabotage, and Scandal or Oh the things muggles get up to...
Casual Vacancy tells the story of a small community in the aftermath of the unexpe...more Secrets, Sabotage, and Scandal or Oh the things muggles get up to...
Casual Vacancy tells the story of a small community in the aftermath of the unexpected death of one of its community leaders and council members, Barry Fairbrother. Several of Fairbrother's peers are ready and willing to fill his empty council seat but not everyone is happy with the nominees. Suddenly this small town is like an episode of Gossip Girl as somebody claiming to be Barry Fairbrother's ghost begins posting on the council's website and outing all of the member's dirty little secrets (XoXo) And while all of the adults are plotting, planning, and pointing fingers, who is watching their kids? These parents may have underestimated their teens' resentments as they focus all of their energy on their position in the community.
I listened to the Audible audio version of this and the narration was brilliant. The narrator, Tom Hollander, didn't really change his voice for the characters much, he simply told the story but his voice and tone was so pleasant that I was able to lose myself completely in the story. I would absolutely recommend listening to this on audio.
What's great about Casual Vacancy is the authenticity of the characters and the way Rowling so insightfully exposes the uglier side of human nature, the fears and insecurities that sometimes motivate people to do the things they do. While Casual Vacancy is about an empty council seat, the real essence of the story is in the interactions between these characters and the complexities of those relationships. Of all the many personalities in this story, I thought that the teenagers were written exceptionally well, not surprisingly. And although the plot revolves around the empty council seat, the children definitely play a big role in this story.
There were a lot of characters with a lot of interaction between all of them which sometimes made it difficult for me to remember who was married to who and which kid belonged to which parent but I can see that cutting even one of the many personalities would have taken something significant away from the story. The only negative about the charcaters being so genuine and familiar is that it felt a bit like spying on your neighbors. It's all deliciously scandalous what they get up to, but only if you know them personally. Otherwise, no one really cares because they're just like everyone else's' neighbors.
Where Casual Vacancy didn't work for me was in the plot. It's almost as if she created these complex, multi-faceted characters and then threw together these unexceptional circumstances so they could interact. For most of the book, I was honestly pretty bored with the storyline. But about 2/3s of the way through, I began to really enjoy the story. Just getting there as a bit slow. The complex characters and wonderful writing might be enough to pull a reader through a plot that is like slogging through quicksand. The question is, was the payoff at the end enough to make that tedious journey worth it. Ultimately, for me it was.
It's JK Rowling so it is no surprise that the writing was stellar. At one point, when I complained about how slow moving the story was, a friend asked me if I would have even kept reading if it would have been any other author. My reply was, if it had been any other author, I would have never picked this book up. I had to keep this fact in mind when listening to Casual Vacancy because I thought maybe that is why many people are having such an issue with this book. A book like this might not appeal to many of Rowling's fan base being so far from what they enjoyed about the Harry Potter series.
There were several laugh out loud moments and I especially enjoyed some of the eccentricities of the characters. The pacing of the story was slow and steady, with emphasis on the "slow". I did like that Casual Vacancy wrapped up all the loose ends by the end even though some of those loose ends seemed like they were tied up a little too conveniently to feel genuine. Overall, it was a lot darker than I expected which certainly increased my enjoyment of it. I wouldn't necessarily recommend it for fans of Harry Potter, but perhaps for fans of General fiction. (less)
I definitely recommend listening to the audio of Cloud Atlas. Not only is this performance audio narrated beautifully, it also accentuates the outstan...moreI definitely recommend listening to the audio of Cloud Atlas. Not only is this performance audio narrated beautifully, it also accentuates the outstanding writing. I can't express enough how brilliant I found the writing to be, but I think that had I been reading this in print, I may have found it to be a bit overwhelming at times and I may have even lost the thread of the story in focusing so much on the phrasing. I cannot wait to see this movie, the trailer I watched looked amazing. (less)
Ever since reading Feed by Mira Grant I have been strangely drawn to zombie fiction. (Thank you Wendy, Maja, and Michelle) This is especially strange...moreEver since reading Feed by Mira Grant I have been strangely drawn to zombie fiction. (Thank you Wendy, Maja, and Michelle) This is especially strange considering that I'm usually pretty squeamish and blood and guts fiction has never been my thing. While I'm still not a fan of the gore, for some reason, I seem to enjoy stories about how people survive in a world gone completely insane. The First Days certainly fits in that category with a sizable helping of the gory bits included.
The First Days begins by traumatizing the reader into a state of frozen terror by describing how a woman is watching her 3 year old's bloody fingers scrabbling under the door in an attempt to get to her and goes on to explain how the woman had earlier walked in on her husband consuming the child in his crib and she wonders how there was enough left of him to make it downstairs since her husband has always been known to have a big appetite. With such an insane beginning, I was repulsed by the story and also intrigued with where this author could possibly go from there.
While I don't believe The First Days had the emotional impact of Feed, it definitely held my interest from start to finish. The rest of the book didn't exactly fulfill the promise of that first chapter, but there was no shortage of zombie action either. The fast moving plot and well written female characters made up for the fact that the male characters, other than Jenni's stepson Jason, were pretty meh. I also felt like there were a lot of unnecessary explanations about Katie's sexuality. Jenni and Katie's weird bond was fascinating but the stand-out character for me was Narit, who fascinated me for some reason.
The First Days is a blood soaked crazy look at how chaotic a zombie apocalypse can be. I absolutely enjoyed this from beginning to end and am looking forward to reading the second in the series. (less)
The Forest of Hands and Teeth is reminiscent of the movie The Village, a group of people are living in a small isolated village surrounded by a high f...moreThe Forest of Hands and Teeth is reminiscent of the movie The Village, a group of people are living in a small isolated village surrounded by a high fence which separates them from the undead, or as the book calls them, the unconsecrated. The main character, Mary, is out doing her daily chores as the zombies claw at the fence trying desperately to get inside, when suddenly the sirens blare signalling an emergency, possibly a breach. This emergency begins a series of events which dramatically alter Mary and the rest of the villager's day to day existence. While the villagers look to the Sister's to answer their questions and explain god's will, the Sister's may be hiding some secrets that could endanger their very existence. Meanwhile, Mary's main concern is that the brother that she is crushing on has chosen her best friend to marry and she might be stuck with the other brother instead.
I listened to the audio of this and I would not recommend it to anyone considering reading this. You should read it in either print or ebook format. The narrator was very lifeless and monotone and frequently used odd pronunciation. She also, for some unknown reason, used a spanish-like accent for some of the characters which just didn't fit in a story where the characters had all lived in the same isolated village for generations. I felt like either ALL of the characters should have an accent, or NONE of the characters should have an accent.
I have such a mixed opinion about The Forest of Hands and Teeth. I really enjoyed the story but found Mary, the main character, to be absolutely insufferable. I would say that she is one of the most well written godawful characters I've ever read. I don't know that I've ever read a more frustratingly selfish main character. I can't even call her a "heroine" because all she really manages to do is put people in a lot of really bad situations. Apparently, throughout Mary's life her mother had told her stories about life before the zombies and many stories in particular about the ocean. So now Mary's only obsession, other than which brother she loves that day, is making her way to the ocean regardless of who she puts in danger to do it, even though she's not completely sure if it even exists.
I actually found most of the players to be rather 2 dimensional and spiritless and I spent most of my time hoping one of them would be eaten by a zombie. Mary's brother was the only one who showed a bit of personality sometimes, unfortunately it wasn't exactly a winning personality. He was a bit of an asshat. The two brothers were equally insufferable as they constantly made long winded angst filled declarations of their devotion to Mary who couldn't make up her mind which one she loved. I was hoping zombies would eat them too.
"He's so tender, so eager to make me happy in ways that no one else has. Tears start to crowd in my eyes and my body begins to respond to this man as if it were his brother whispering into my ear. As if my body can't tell the difference between the two, between their whispers and the feel of their breath on my flesh."
The fact that she basically admitted that she was just a run of the mill ho almost made her character a little more interesting than she had been up to this point. I was still hoping a zombie would eat her though....
On the other hand, the writing and world building was wonderful and the flow of the plot was evenly paced and enjoyable. I honestly don't understand how I liked a book so much when I didn't like any of the people in it. Some of the instances when the villagers were going about their day to day existence and the author would describe the scene with zombies just feet away literally breaking their fingers off in the fence trying to get in and a constant cacophony of undead moans was the background noise to the point that only its absence was notable. This world was so creepy and written in such a matter of fact way that I could really feel the hopelessness of this kind of existence. This book definitely left me with some haunting images of what unthinkable things could happen in such a world.
I don't know if I'm going to continue to the next book. As much as I loved the writing and story, the ending left me hating the main character even more than I had through the story and I really don't care what happens to her unless it includes being eaten by a zombie. (less)
The Kingmaker's Daughter is probably my favorite of the Cousin's War series to date. It is written from the perspective of Anne Neville and gives yet...moreThe Kingmaker's Daughter is probably my favorite of the Cousin's War series to date. It is written from the perspective of Anne Neville and gives yet another interesting point of view from this volatile period of history. One of the things I enjoy so much about Philippa Gregory's novels is that she somehow manages to turn what could have been tedious political maneuvering into exciting intrigue that keeps me riveted from the first moment. I am not a historian so I have no idea how historically accurate this series is, but I can say that they certainly paint a vivid picture of what living in that time period might have been like. From the court customs, to the fashions, the scandals, the betrayals, and executions, each aspect was brought to life in such a way that I almost felt myself a part of the story.
Each character was shown from Anne's point of view so was colored by her own biases and was a bit different from how these same characters were presented in the previous books. The story was focused so much on Anne, and to a lesser extent Isabelle, that many of the other characters, at times, felt a bit flat. Anne's relationship with her sister Isabelle was reminiscent of the rivalry between Mary and Anne Boleyn in Gregory's popular novel, The Other Boleyn Girl. While there was always that undercurrent of love, each sister didn't hesitate to betray the other in order to further their own cause or that of their husband. I didn't find either sister to be particularly likable, and sometimes thought that their personalities were a bit contradictory. For example, Anne seems to have grown from a bright, practical, inquisitive child into a fearful woman ruled by her superstitions and unwilling to even consider any point of view than that which painted her family in a positive light. I guess that the struggles she was faced with could account for such a drastic change in character but it was still a bit odd.
One of the things about this series, including The Kingmaker's Daughter that I was not a fan of was the witchery and spells and magic that were included. However, after discussing this with a friend who is also reading the series, I can see how it may have been presented this way because of how the players so wholeheartedly believed that witchcraft was responsible for many things such as storms, sicknesses, and death. Curses were taken very seriously in 1400's England and so reading from Anne's perspective, I can see why an unexpected storm would be believed to have been whistled up by the witch who hated her. I guess this was a realistic danger in this time period, that any misfortune could be laid at the feet of someone believed to be a witch. This would have been a very effective way to discredit a powerful woman, as it seems to have done in the case of Elizabeth Woodville.
While The Kingmaker's Daughter can be read on it's own as a stand-alone novel, I would definitely recommend reading the entire series in order simply because it is a beautifully written thrilling story. Despite the fact that I found many of the characters to be a bit flat, the fast paced plot was such that I found the book hard to put down. I know many people, after reading Philippa Gregory's historical fiction have been inspired to find out more about this violent era and these fascinating people. I would absolutely recommend this and any and every other book written by this author to any fans of this genre.
Raziel By Kristina Douglas was much better than I had expected. I usually don't have much luck with books about angels, with the exception of Angelfal...moreRaziel By Kristina Douglas was much better than I had expected. I usually don't have much luck with books about angels, with the exception of Angelfall and now Raziel, apparently winged hotties are just not my thing. There were some elements of this book that reminded me of Angelfall which I LOVED, and which initially drew my interest in reading this book. Raziel is definitely for adults and has some pretty detailed erotic scenes which I was so happy to find were not overdone and cheesy as in so many adult books (I thought they were actually quite well done).
The main character, Allie's new and uncomfortable shoes distract her to the point that she doesn't notice the huge bus bearing down on her until it is too late and she finds herself standing next to what must be an angel? demon? vampire? He informs her that she is dead and he is there to escort her to heaven. This doesn't work out exactly the way Raziel, her fallen angel escort, has planned, however, and now he has to explain to the other Fallen why he has brought this human woman to Sheol to live among them. Allie would like an explanation about this as well because she's not really sure what she's doing living among these terrifying, grumpy, gorgeous creatures but she's fairly certain she doesn't quite fit in. Meanwhile, the Nephilim are at the gates and if they break through, it will certainly be a bloodbath.
While there were some parts that were almost painfully slow, Raziel was still an satisfyingly entertaining read. I guess I like my angels to be more the dark, apocalyptic, dangerous type instead of all goodness and light. The background of the Fallen and their ongoing conflict with Uriel and search for Lucifer was original and one of the most interesting parts of the story. I'm looking forward to learning where the author takes it in the sequel because the ending left a lot of unanswered questions. This is certainly a series I'd recommend for fans of the genre. (less)
When I first saw the title a while back, I had first thought it would be some ridiculously campy, cheesy vampire book. But then the movie previews cau...moreWhen I first saw the title a while back, I had first thought it would be some ridiculously campy, cheesy vampire book. But then the movie previews caught my attention and made me reconsider. And since I've decided to watch the movie, I of course, had to first read the book.
AL:VH was so much more than I was expecting; rich in detail, the story quickly drew me in and I was hooked. The story was interspersed with newspaper articles and speeches that I assume are actual historical fact that gave it all a bit of frightening plausibility and also had me pausing the audio to google random details to learn a little more.
While I loved Abe's character, the vampires were one of the biggest surprises for me. These are not your run of the mill, bite your neck and drink your blood kind of vamps. These were some of the most frighteningly vicious vampires I've encountered in fiction. This book was certainly a lot more bloody and violent than I anticipated, even after watching the movie previews. Also, the authors ideas of how slavery was affected by vampires was horrifyingly brilliant, the stuff of nightmares, but effective.
There were areas where it got a bit slow and tedious but never to the point where I was ready to walk away from the book. I'm glad I decided to read this and I'm really looking forward to the movie and hope that it lives up to the book. (less)
This series was such a light and entertaining read and I absolutely fell in love with it. I thought Jane's sarcastic wit was smartly done and more oft...moreThis series was such a light and entertaining read and I absolutely fell in love with it. I thought Jane's sarcastic wit was smartly done and more often had me laughing out loud instead of cringing and skipping ahead which I find myself doing with most "humorous" dialog in similar books. I had to remove a star because it violated one of my book pet peeves, at the end, the villains spill all their nefarious plans in a Scooby-ish "And I would have gotten away with it if it weren't for you meddling kids" kind of info-dumping, loose end tying rant. Other than that, this series was uninterrupted fun. Definitely one of my favorite vampire reads! (less)
This was a quick read and mildly interesting. I liked some of the random thoughts of the obviously mentally ill main character, like him wanting to co...moreThis was a quick read and mildly interesting. I liked some of the random thoughts of the obviously mentally ill main character, like him wanting to count to 180,000 by 17s, things like that kept the book entertaining and gave it a bit more personality. Outside of that, the story itself was kind of ho hum with a plot twist that was very obvious from the beginning and when revealed, it was done so matter of factly that it was almost as if the author was saying "of course you saw this coming, I meant for you to" (which I actually kind of enjoyed). I also almost liked the way it ended until it went just that one step too far and became almost cartoonish. Grab it from the library for something quick and painless to read. (less)
I am rating this a 3, but I have to say that I was so annoyed with the ending that I almost wanted to rate this a 1. I usually stay away from anything...moreI am rating this a 3, but I have to say that I was so annoyed with the ending that I almost wanted to rate this a 1. I usually stay away from anything labeled as "chick lit" and unfortunately, much of this book was exactly what I automatically mentally think about when I hear the words "chick lit". It took a perfectly good plot and then ruined it with unnecessary sub-plots and an over the top, soap opera worthy ending that was beyond absurd. Throughout this incredibly long 21 hour audio, I thought several times that this should have been two separate stories, one revolving around Peter and the school shooting, and to a lesser extent, Josie. And another story entirely about the Judge and her issues. It was just too much to put all of them together. As a reader of fantasy, I think that I can suspend disbelief and give the benefit of the doubt possibly even more than some other readers, but the coincidences in Nineteen Minutes pushed far beyond my bounds of believability and into the realms of absurd and by the end I no longer even cared about these characters.
I will say that this book did spark an entertaining debate between myself and my best friend about my apparent strong opinions concerning parental responsibility and culpability for their children's actions in extreme incidents like a school shooting. I didn't agree with much of the book's stance that a perfectly good parent can raise a school shooter, although I didn't see Peter's parents in the book as being particularly good parents. And regardless how well meaning a parent is, if your kid takes a duffel bag full of weapons to school and starts shooting people, you fucked up. Period. And in my opinion, you should be held criminally responsible for that. One of the things I enjoyed about Nineteen Minutes is that it did generate that gut response from me and cause me to examine how strongly I feel about those issues. This is why I cannot rate it lower than a 3 even though there were so many things I didn't like about the length, unnecessary sub-plots, lack of subtlety, etc. Even despite all of this, the book kept me engaged right up until that ridiculous ending.
Ultimately, I wouldn't recommend Nineteen Minutes, I'm sure there has to be a better, less over-dramatized book with this subject matter. I feel like the topic of school shooting is sufficiently dramatic and emotional without needing to add more to it. It ended up feeling forced, fake, and was in the end, disappointing. (less)
This was an incredible read. The writing was absolutely beautiful, the story was dark, creepy, and so compelling. The lyrical writing drew me in and t...moreThis was an incredible read. The writing was absolutely beautiful, the story was dark, creepy, and so compelling. The lyrical writing drew me in and the haunting tale kept me hooked. (less)
This was such a great audio. I so loved the two narrators that switched back and forth from past to present. And the story itself was simply breathtak...moreThis was such a great audio. I so loved the two narrators that switched back and forth from past to present. And the story itself was simply breathtaking, poignant, and altogether wonderful. It makes me want to learn more about those circuses from long ago and the people that were a part of them. Definitely one of my favorite reads this year. (less)
Crewel takes place in a futuristic society where people and events are woven with strands of time by Spinsters. Spinsters are generally girls chosen b...moreCrewel takes place in a futuristic society where people and events are woven with strands of time by Spinsters. Spinsters are generally girls chosen by their talent at weaving by the Guild in Arras. These girls are taken from their homes and families and then reside within the Guild where they practice weaving time with matter. Everything in Arras is controlled by the Guild through the spinsters such as harvesting food, childbirth, and even when and how someone dies.
Adelice is unique in Arras society in that she is able to weave the strands of time without a loom. From when, as a child, she first discovers this ability, Adelice’s parents work fervently to teach her how to cover it up so that she is not selected by the Guild who they do not trust. When, at her testing, she is among those chosen to be come a spinster, and is singled out among the others at the Guild, Adelice finds herself not knowing who she can trust.
The audio was read by Amanda Dolan who does a fairly good job narrating this rather tedious story. At times I thought she may have went a little overboard making some of the characters sound patronizing and condescending, but for the most part I enjoyed her narration.
While Crewel certainly has an original storyline even for a dystopian, there was far too much of the society that simply pushed the bounds of believability to far for me. For example, if Adelice and the other spinsters were controlled by this sinister Guild, why didn’t they just weave things differently? It was made very clear in the story that the spinsters were the only ones powerful enough to control their reality, I don’t understand the power this Guild had over the spinsters. Also, Adelice experiences some traumatic events very early on in the story, but she seems to just kind of accept them without much emotional impact and goes about her business. She put much more thought and energy into the awkwardly contrived love triangle than she did into events that would have devastated the average teen. But then Adelice is also exceptional in EVERY way, which was yet another issue I had with the book.
For the most part, I enjoyed the writing style. I didn’t have to struggle through the audio and finished fairly quickly for a 10 hour audio. But for me, the characters were flat and lacked authenticity and the world building was confusing and left more questions than answers. The sudden ending left me feeling a bit perplexed. It just sort of cut off without any resolution at all. It wasn’t so much a cliffhanger as it simply felt unfinished.
I have read so many glowing reviews of The Reapers are the Angels that I simply had to see what all the fuss was about and even though I was warned ah...moreI have read so many glowing reviews of The Reapers are the Angels that I simply had to see what all the fuss was about and even though I was warned ahead of time about the bloody bits, I still wanted to read this. I decided to listen to this on audio and I think the narrator did an amazing job giving voice to the conflicted and unique character that was Temple. I would certainly recommend this audio to anyone who is planning to read this.
Temple was an intriguing character, so full of contrasts, she was kind and considerate but with the capacity to become extremely violent if provoked which made sense considering the dangerous world she grew up in. She was also extremely intelligent, logical, and self-aware but at the same time illiterate and simplistic in many ways. Her character fascinated me and reminded me, in a lot of ways, of Saba from Blood Red Road except Temple was much more complex. I was fascinated with the way she accepted the world for what it was and did her best to work within it instead of fight against what she could not control. I have to say, Temple is one of the most interesting characters I’ve read.
The writing was vividly descriptive and unapologetically raw. It brought to life a bleak and desolate world overrun by the undead who were themselves more pathetic and sad than scary. The pockets of survivors that Temple came upon showed the best and worst of humanity. It was interesting to see the many ways that desperation and hopelessness may cause people to react. There were some people and situations that pushed the boundaries of believability, even for a zombie book but for the most part, I could realistically imagine that this is what the aftermath of a zombie apocalypse would look like.
For some reason, I felt really disconnected from the story. I’m not sure whether it was the third person narration or the philosophical and highly allegorical way this was written, but while I could pick out a hundred beautifully phrased quotes, I was never truly engaged in the story. At times I felt that the writing was almost a bit pretentious and that it tried so hard to be literature as opposed to genre fiction that it overreached and ended up just being absurd. Or it could simply be that I am more interested in being entertained by a story than in trying to ponder life’s mysteries or decipher allegory.
I definitely enjoyed listening to The Reapers are the Angels and, while it wasn’t really my thing, I can certainly see where other people would appreciate the writing style and depth. (less)
Kate Rudd did a phenomenal, outstanding job narrating this highly emotional read. Considering the subject matter and the emotionally charged nature of...moreKate Rudd did a phenomenal, outstanding job narrating this highly emotional read. Considering the subject matter and the emotionally charged nature of this book, it would have been so easy to overdo the narration. But Kate Rudd’s performance was perfection, bringing to life these amazing characters and telling this heart-wrenching story so naturally that it was as if I was listening to Hazels private thoughts. And yes, I could still recognize a great narration even when I don’t know how I heard anything over the sobbing mess I was reduced to throughout this book. I highly recommend this audiobook experience to anyone that is interested in reading this book.
The story itself, well, I mean its John Green so of course it was amazing. I love this man’s writing. It’s like he effortlessly creates these wonderfully realistic characters; characters that I’d want to know, that I’d want to become friends with. And by the end of the book, I feel like I DO know them and that we’ve been friends forever and I’m so emotionally entwined in the story that its actually difficult to move on to another book when it is over. I felt like that with Will Grayson, Will Grayson, and I certainly feel like that with this incredible book.
I don’t know that there are many of us whose lives have not been touched in some way by cancer, but even if it hasn’t, almost everybody has lost a loved one too early and has felt the utter unfairness of that loss. The Fault in Our Stars is the story of several kids suffering from cancer and is told from their perspective. It is unapologetically and brutally honest, morbidly humorous, simply just real. This book was so filled with unfiltered truth that it was almost uncomfortable to read in some places. But I still recommend that you do.
By the end of this book, I had cried so many tears that the front of my shirt was wet, and days later I’m still tearing up as I recall the story while I write this review. The Fault in Our stars was a powerful, emotionally intense, and incredibly important read. I highly recommend it to anyone regardless of genre. (less)
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