Theresa Smith's Blog, page 86
January 8, 2020
Book Review: The Glorious Heresies by Lisa McInerney
About the Book:
A big, bold debut from a true new Irish talent.
WINNER OF THE BAILEYS’ WOMEN’S PRIZE FOR FICTION 2016
WINNER OF THE DESMOND ELLIOT PRIZE 2016
We all do stupid things when we’re kids.
Ryan Cusack’s grown up faster than most – being the oldest of six with a dead mum and an alcoholic dad will do that for you.
And nobody says Ryan’s stupid. Not even behind his back.
It’s the people around him who are the problem. The gangland boss using his dad as a ‘cleaner’. The neighbour who says she’s trying to help but maybe wants something more than that. The prostitute searching for the man she never knew she’d miss until he disappeared without trace one night . . .
The only one on Ryan’s side is his girlfriend Karine. If he blows that, he’s all alone.
But the truth is, you don’t know your own strength till you need it.
My Thoughts:
It begins with a death. A body that needs to be taken care of. A clean up job. And from there, it’s six degrees of separation in action.
“The frame around which one builds one’s life is a brittle thing, and in a city of souls connected one snapped beam can threaten the spikes and shadows of the skyline.”
The Glorious Heresies is so very Irish, so much so, that in my head, the narration and dialogue was all fully done from start to finish with Irish accents. I have heard that the audio book is fabulous – I can believe it. The story itself is utterly brilliant and wickedly hilarious.
“He watched his father’s pallor wash out against the smudged eggshell blue of the kitchen walls, and couldn’t decide whether it was the right tone at last that had done it, or the right words or the right height or the right criminal trajectory. Or the right emergency. What the name of the magic trick was that turned Tony Cusack from one kind of man to no man at all.”
This is not a book though that would suit everyone. It’s brutal, violent, seedy, and full of swearing. It depicts a world that many want to turn away from, pretending that it doesn’t exist, that those people don’t exist. But for all this, it’s not gratuitous, and the author makes some very salient points throughout this story about the state of Ireland, its criminal underbelly, the fate of its youth, and the legacy of its own history.
“‘I’m probably not what you expected in a mother.’ He shrugged. ‘I’m probably not what you expected in a son,’ he said, but only because he felt he had to. That he wasn’t what anyone would expect in a son was not a revelation. She was right, though. Maybe you get the mother you deserve.”
This is a story that demonstrates how blood is almost always thicker than water, even in the direst of circumstances and even when you wish you weren’t related to who you’re needing to protect. It’s also a story about how people get caught up in something, the cycle of living in a certain way that becomes near on impossible to break. There is a sequel and I will be reading it. Thanks to Kate from booksaremyfavouriteandbest for hustling me to get this off my shelf with her books of the decade list. I can see why it had a place on there! If you loved Boy Swallows Universe and Trainspotting, then grab a copy of this one. Brilliant reading.
“‘I did it for you. For the very same reason you did what you did: you do what you have to for family. How can I be sorry, then? How can I be sorry when I did it for you?’”
About the Author:
Lisa McInerney’s work has featured in Winter Papers, Stinging Fly, Granta and on BBC Radio 4, and in the anthologies Beyond The Centre, The Long Gaze Back and Town and Country. Her debut novel, The Glorious Heresies, won the Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction 2016 and the Desmond Elliott Prize. Her second novel, The Blood Miracles, was published by John Murray in April 2017.
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The Glorious Heresies
Published by Hachette Australia – Imprint John Murray
Released April 2016
January 7, 2020
Book Review: Maggie’s Going Nowhere by Rose Hartley
About the Book:
Maggie’s Going Nowhere is a fierce and funny debut introducing a thoroughly relatable and offbeat heroine. If you enjoy Fleabag, you’ll adore Maggie!
‘A compulsive and hilarious read. In Maggie, Hartley has created one of those indelible characters of whom we must thoroughly disapprove and yet cannot help but love.’ Karen Joy Fowler
Maggie Cotton’s life is a hot mess.
In one day, she’s dumped by her boyfriend, disinherited by her mum, and kicked off the three-year degree course she’d stretched to a decade. And that was before she received the letter saying she owed the government $70,000.
But that’s no reason to grow up, is it?
With a decrepit 1960s caravan to call home, Maggie has to prove to her mother she can survive without a safety net, stop her loyal best friend Jen from marrying a scumbag, and convince her sexy workmate Rueben that she’s not a walking disaster. For someone who’s spent her life avoiding hard work, she sure can move mountains when she’s got a little motivation – just don’t ask her to move the caravan.
My Thoughts:
I’m not usually one to like a character who typifies the very definition of a no-hoper, much less one who is an over-entitled bludger with zero tact and no ambition whatsoever to improve their lot in life, preferring instead to blame others for her problems whilst holding out a hand for a spare fifty. Nevertheless, every now and again, I am utterly surprised and delighted by a book and enjoy every single sentence of it, as was the case with Maggie’s Going Nowhere.
In essence, this novel is about Maggie’s coming of age – very late coming of age – but it also touches on some Australian contemporary themes of importance: homelessness, the struggle to find work if you have no skills or a prison record, and the utter ridiculousness of dealing with Centrelink – Maggie’s experiences sure brought back some memories from my own student days of dealing with that organisation. Maggie’s Going Nowhere is addictive and entertaining, I read it in a day, laughing and shaking my head all the way through. Who would have thought that this would end up a five star read for me? Highly recommended and I sincerely hope this one gets adapted for film or TV.
Thanks is extended to Penguin Random House Australia for providing me with a copy of Maggie’s Going Nowhere.
About the Author:
Rose Hartley is a graduate of the Clarion Writers’ Workshop. She lives in Adelaide with her cat, Doris, and her 1962 caravan, Cecil. Maggie’s Going Nowhere is her first novel.
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Maggie’s Going Nowhere
Published by Penguin Random House Australia – Michael Joseph
Released on 7th January 2020
January 5, 2020
Book Review: The Storm Beyond the Tides by Jonathan Cullen
About the Book:
July 1939. War is on the horizon but on Monk Island, Maine life goes on as usual. As the daughter of a lobsterman, Ellie Ames’ future seems limited until a mysterious German couple comes off the ferry with their nineteen-year-old son. From the moment she meets Karl Brink, the two become inseparable and not everyone approves because locals are suspicious of outsiders. Ellie ignores their scorn, however, and the secret she learns about Karl’s family makes her even more determined to be with him.
The magical summer ends when the Brinks suddenly have to go home. And although Karl promises to return in the fall, by then Europe is at war. Two years pass and Ellie has all but given up hope when she gets a letter in the mail that will change her life forever.
The Storm Beyond The Tides is the story of the unlikely romance between a small-town girl and a German on the eve of the Second World War and explores a frightening time in America’s past—when U-Boats prowled the East Coast and put small, coastal communities on the frontline of a global conflict.
My Thoughts:
More and more when I read novels set during the era of WWII, I am seeking ones that explore life on the home front, rather than in the occupied territories. Mainly because I’ve read a lot of WWII fiction and as with any topic, I like a bit of variation. The Storm Beyond the Tides is set on an island off the coast of Maine, USA.
Surprisingly (to me), there are actually quite a few islands off the coast of Maine (about a dozen). I find that lifestyle quite interesting to read about, employment obviously dominated by fishing and lobster catches, as well as tourism. But I expect the lifestyle is fraught with economic concerns, being both small in community size and isolated on account of being islands. Jonathan Cullen recreates this atmosphere and taps into island life quite comprehensively throughout this novel and I enjoyed this rich sense of atmosphere immensely. It was like I was not only stepping back through time, but also visiting a place I knew very little about.
Prior to reading this, I had no idea that these Maine Islands were so involved in WWII. Not only were there military bases there, but German U-Boats within range. And this is what home front WWII fiction can bring to readers – a whole new perspective on the ‘world’ part of WWII. It was all quite fascinating but equally as grave and the sacrifice that communities within these small islands made cannot be overstated and nor should it be forgotten.
“Ellie Ames,” he said bitterly. “The only girl on Monk Island who would go with a Kraut, but not a local.”
Whilst romance provides the catalyst for many events throughout the novel, I wouldn’t pin this story down as a mere war time romantic tale. It has a lot more substance than that and explores many themes around discrimination and tolerance, socioeconomic imbalances, and family obligation. Karl’s story also offers a perspective on German resistance to the rise of Nazism.
‘A few weeks before she had cursed God and she now found herself thanking him. Someone had been taken from her, but someone was returned and in an instant, her faith in the world was restored.’
Anyone with a interest in historical fiction set in the WWII era will appreciate this novel and if you’re looking for a fresh perspective, a view on the era from a new location, then The Storm Beyond the Tides would be an ideal read for you. It has wide appeal and is a very engaging read.
Thanks is extended to the author for providing me with a copy of The Storm Beyond the Tides for review.
About the Author:
Jonathan Cullen was raised in Boston and attended public schools. After a brief career as a bicycle messenger, he attended Boston College and graduated with a B.A. in English Literature (1995). During his twenties, he wrote two unpublished novels, taught high-school in Ireland, lived in Mexico, worked as a prison librarian and spent a month in Kenya, Africa before finally settling down three blocks from where he grew up.
He currently lives in Boston (West Roxbury) with his wife Heidi and daughter Maeve.
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The Storm Beyond the Tides
Released August 2019
Available from Amazon
January 3, 2020
#6degrees of separation: From Daisy Jones and The Six to Commonwealth…
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It’s the first Saturday of the month so that means it’s #6degrees of separation time! This month’s starting book is Daisy Jones and The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid.
You can find the details and rules of the #6degrees meme at booksaremyfavouriteandbest, but in a nutshell, on the first Saturday of every month, everyone has the same starting book and from there, you connect in a variety of ways to other books. Some of the connections made are so impressive, it’s a lot of fun to follow.
I’m aiming to read each month’s title and so far, I’m off to a good start. This book was never on my radar when it first released so I did need to read it specially for this, but it’s doubled up as my local book club pick for this month as well. I do like a book that can be read for multiple challenges/purposes.
Daisy Jones and The Six uses a different format for its narrative, and it’s on this basis that I’m making my first leap. Half Wild by Pip Smith played around with format too, offering it’s narrative in a variety of ways, from newspaper articles through to court transcripts, and this one is probably my favourite novel to date for utilising alternate formats to tell its story. From here, I’m leaping across via surname to Dominic Smith, one of my favourite authors. He’s written several books, each of which that I’ve read coming up five stars. But, one of his has been on my #tbr for ages, The Mercury Visions of Louis Daguerre, and I intend on reading that one this year. Another book which is clamouring to get off my #tbr is Life After Life by Kate Atkinson, which I can’t believe I’ve never read. Speaking of Kates, Kate’s ‘Ten years, ten top books’ post
alerted me to a few other titles I needed to pull off of my shelves. In particular, Foal’s Bread by Gillian Mears, The Glorious Heresies by Lisa McInerney and Commonwealth by Ann Patchett.
Oh, that’s six books already! See you next month…
January 2, 2020
The Week That Was…
It’s been more than a week since I last conversed like this, but with pre-Christmas preparations, Christmas itself, and the New Year…well, the time has gotten away from me. I hope everyone is well and safe and wish the same for your friends and family.
My top festive dish, in both appearance and taste, was the mint ice-cream pudding, which was shaped like a cake because the pudding tin wasn’t big enough for all of us. Cold desserts really are the best when your Christmas day is 46 degrees.
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Joke of the week:
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What I’ve been watching:
It’s holidays and it’s hot out, so that means TV watching when I’m not reading. I’ve whipped through The Crown, which I really enjoyed with the new cast. I’ve also watched Virgin River, which was surprisingly engrossing, given it’s based on a Mills and Boon published book series, which really isn’t my sort of usual read, but it has been long established that my viewing habits often differ vastly from my reading ones. One thing I have sitting ready to watch but am yet to press play on is The Goldfinch. It never aired in my local cinema, much to my disgust, so I’ve had it on a digital pre-order and it hit my movie library on Christmas day! Just need to settle in with it now. I have also finally been able to buy a copy of My Brilliant Friend and Sanditon is on my watch list as well.
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Book(s) of the week:
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What I read last year:
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My son saw this pop up on Instagram and wouldn’t let me get away with my usual conservative 100 book reading goal on Goodreads. He had some rather outlandish figures he was trying to get me to aim for but we met in the middle with 130 books. I really should consider blocking my children on social media, the little busy-bodies.
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What I’m reading right now:
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Until next week…
January 1, 2020
#TBT 2019 in Books…
Today’s #TBT is taking a look at my 2019 in books. I love the stats that Goodreads make up for you. Here’s what mine looks like:
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144 books! I must say, that has surprised me! I set a target of 100, knowing I would likely nudge over, but this has exceeded my expectations. 
December 31, 2019
Book Review: In the Clearing by J.P. Pomare
About the Book:
HOW FAR WOULD YOU GO TO PROTECT YOUR FAMILY?
Amy has only ever known life in the Clearing. She knows what’s expected of her. She knows what to do to please her elders, and how to make sure the community remains happy and calm. That is, until a new young girl joins the group. She isn’t fitting in; she doesn’t want to stay. What happens next will turn life as Amy knows it on its head.
Freya has gone to great lengths to feel like a ‘normal person’. In fact, if you saw her go about her day with her young son, you’d think she was an everyday mum. That is, until a young girl goes missing and someone from her past, someone she hasn’t seen for a very long time, arrives in town.
As secrets of the past bubble up to the surface, this small town’s dark underbelly will be exposed and lives will be destroyed.
My Thoughts:
I don’t read an awful lot of thrillers as I tend to quickly begin to suffer from ‘thriller fatigue’. As a consequence, I’m fairly selective on which thrillers I read and the timing of them. All of the stars seem to have aligned with this one though. In the Clearing turned out to be a book I couldn’t put down.
‘You never escape a cult.’
Often after having read a thriller, the most common thing you’ll hear is: ‘That twist!’ I can’t say that with this one though, because In the Clearing has as many twists as a wizened old oak tree. It’s imaginatively clever, laying down pavers to walk you in one direction only to explosively change direction – again and again.
‘The past, I realised, was a parasite. It could lie dormant inside for years and eventually flare up and kill you.’
Thematically, In the Clearing offers readers much to think on. It raises those age old questions about nature versus nurture, but it does so within a fairly horrific framework, so be forewarned: there is both implied and depicted child abuse within this story. What alarmed me the most was the absolute conditioning that takes place within a cult, specifically though, the lasting effect of this long after the cult has collapsed. It made me wonder at the susceptibility of some people over others and if once you’ve been conditioned from such a young age, does this mean you can no longer be ‘re-programmed’? I must admit, I find the power of cults over their members rather terrifying, so this is one thriller that literally grabbed me around the throat and held on until the very end.
‘I’ve been played by someone who knows my habits, can predict my every move. Someone who can ensure that all the evidence points to my guilt.’
In terms of plot and predictability, the plot was brilliantly executed and I predicted nothing! Character development was likewise executed with precision. Freya kept me guessing, as did Amy, and there were enough shades of grey within everyone to ensure that I had no idea who was good, who was bad, and who was otherwise. So, all in all, this was good value reading for me! I do think that this novel will appeal widely. It’s clever, gripping, thought provoking, and realistic enough to raise the hairs on the back of your neck. Highly recommended.
Thanks is extended to Hachette Australia for providing me with a copy of In the Clearing for review.
About the Author:
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J.P. Pomare is an award winning writer who has had work published in journals including Meanjin, Kill Your Darlings, Takahe and Mascara Literary Review. He has hosted the On Writing podcast since 2015 featuring bestselling authors from around the globe. His first novel, Call Me Evie, was critically acclaimed and longlisted for the Ngaio Marsh Award.
He was born in New Zealand and resides in Melbourne with his wife. In the Clearing is his second novel.
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In the Clearing
Published by Hachette Australia
Released on 31st December 2019
December 30, 2019
Ready, Set, Go! Reading Challenges for 2020
For 2020, I’m planning on four challenges and one regular meme.
I’m continuing with my personal creation, #TheClassicsEight, in which I aim to read eight classics from my own shelves over the course of the year.
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#AWW2020 is a given. For those who aren’t aware, I coordinate the challenge and editorial team, while also functioning as Historical Fiction Editor. I am, however, lowering my target for this year. I’ve been going with 80 books for the last few years but I’ve decided to drop it back to 52, which of course equates to one book a week. I like the neatness of that.
#BookBingo2020 with Mrs B’s Book Reviews and The Book Muse has already been launched, but just to refresh, here’s our card:
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#2020ReadNonFic is a new challenge created by Book’d Out. I have signed as a up as a Nonfiction Nibbler to read 6 books over the course of the year. Each book needs to fit one of the following themes:
1. Memoir
2. Disaster Event
3. Social Science
4. Related to an Occupation
5. History
6. Feminism
7. Psychology
8. Medical Issue (incl. Mental Health)
9. Nature
10. True Crime
11. Science
12. Published in 2020
You then share your review with other challenge participants by posting your name/blog name and title of the book with a direct link to your review in the monthly Linky over at Book’d Out, which will be posted on the first Saturday of every month.
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My last commitment is to the #6degrees of separation meme hosted by booksaremyfavouriteandbest and it too is a first Saturday of the month post. I started this one part way through this year and have really loved it.
In addition to these challenges, I hope to throw in a few buddy reads with my Page by Page Book Club which lives over at Facebook.
So, there you have it. Challenge plans laid. Each month I’ll aim to check in with my progress.
Happy New Year!
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December 29, 2019
Book Review: Bone China by Laura Purcell
About the Book:
Consumption has ravaged Louise Pinecroft’s family, leaving her and her father alone and heartbroken.
But Dr Pinecroft has plans for a revolutionary experiment: convinced that sea air will prove to be the cure his wife and children needed, he arranges to house a group of prisoners suffering from the same disease in the cliffs beneath his new Cornish home.
Forty years later, Hester Why arrives at Morvoren House to take up a position as nurse to the now partially paralysed and almost entirely mute Miss Pinecroft. Hester has fled to Cornwall to try and escape her past, but surrounded by superstitious staff enacting bizarre rituals, she soon discovers that her new home may be just as dangerous as her last…
My Thoughts:
Truly creepy gothic historical fiction is as rare as hen’s teeth. I had high expectations of Bone China and I was thrilled to see those expectations met, and if I’m honest – which is of course the whole point of a review – exceeded. And in the spirit of this honesty I’m going to confess: after reading this, I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to look at my Spode bone china plates without feeling a frisson of unease. You’ll have to read the book to find out why!
‘Dawn is a crimson slash on the horizon. Morvoren House appears innocent and beautiful. Snow on the rooftop, ice laced around the pebbles. A mansion cradled like a jewel between the bare branches of the ash trees. You would never dream of what goes on behind those walls.’
Steeped in atmosphere, Laura Purcell brings a windswept, superstitious, 18th century Cornwall to life. Hester Why is a splendidly unreliable narrator, drunk and high for the most part, tormented by guilt and self-loathing, yet still possessed with enough inner nurturing to care for her new mistress. The mischief of fairies blends with a horror that is so brilliantly balanced. There were times throughout this novel where I found myself gripping my armchair in suspense and terror – it was terrific.
‘Waves slap against the cliff face. I close my eyes briefly, picturing them rushing headlong to the place where they break and scatter. What we desire and what we have lost. Are they not always the same?’
But it’s not all chills and thrills. Bone China has some truly beautiful passages of prose. Laura Purcell has a wonderful way with words, lyrical and atmospheric, she makes you feel so much on so many levels. She also has a knack at creating well fleshed out characters, who are neither good nor evil, but rather possessed with a human frailty that comes from suffering, pain, loss, and in some cases, grave injustice against them.
‘The beach wore a different aspect that morning. Louise felt she was seeing it for the first time. The grey rocks, hazed with moss and the droppings of birds, were ancient, unyielding as death. How arrogant it was for a mortal to strive against nature’s order. How utterly hopeless. The sick would die; the tide would come in.’
Comparisons to Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca are justified, but don’t for a second think that Bone China is an attempt at shadowing the fame of this classic. Far from it. Bone China is a worthy addition to a shelf that contains very few novels of excellence. Gothic historical fiction is not an easy genre and form to pin down, but Laura Purcell has nailed it. I highly recommend Bone China and will be fast tracking to read her previous releases.
Thanks is extended to Bloomsbury for providing me with a copy of Bone China for review.
About the Author:
Laura Purcell is a former bookseller, she lives in Colchester with her husband and pet guinea pigs. Her first novel for Bloomsbury, The Silent Companions, was a Radio 2 Book Club pick, was selected for the Zoe Ball ITV Book Club and was the winner of the Thumping Good Read Award.
laurapurcell.com
@spookypurcell
Author of : Bone China, The Corset, The Silent Companions
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Bone China
Published by Bloomsbury – Raven Books
Released October 2019
December 26, 2019
The Classics Eight Challenge Wrap Up
A personal challenge I set for myself this year was to read eight classics. I have a bit of a habit of collecting pretty editions of classics, but I don’t necessarily end up reading them, so this challenge was a way for me to actively change that. I picked eight because in the past when I’ve picked ten, I’ve never gotten close to achieving it. Five seemed like too little – no challenge in the challenge.
So, how did I go?
I read seven!
I’m pretty pleased with this. I thought I might have been able to squeeze in the eighth between Christmas and New Year but I have a few other books I’m keen to get to so I thought I’d call this one at seven.
What I read:
The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne – read to fill the classics square for book bingo
Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier – read for a buddy read with members of my Page by Page Book Club and co-hosted with Carpe Librum
Macbeth by William Shakespeare – read to help my daughter out with her year 12 Shakespeare assessment
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott – read with my local book club
Good Wives by Louisa May Alcott – as above
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll – read for #6degrees of separation
Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll – as above
I’m setting this challenge for myself again next year. One thing I discovered with classics is that they make for a terrific buddy read experience. My aim is to read two classics next year as buddy reads. Hopefully Tracey from Carpe Librum will be on board for that with me!
