I know I've said before that I tend to avoid American historical fiction when I'm choosing my reading materials, but I had no problem with picking up The Uninvited by Cat Winters because I enjoyed her writing in her debut, In the Shadow of Blackbirds. The writing in The Uninvited was just as good, if not better, because putting the book down and doing other things (like work) made me pretty angry.
The Uninvited is a very character-driven novel, as it follows Ivy Rowan adjusting to her new life away from her family in Buchanan, Illinois. Everything is in an upheaval from World War I and the flu epidemic, so nothing is easy for her. Since Ivy feels so enormously guilty about the murder her father and brother committed, she keeps going back to the Schendel furniture in hopes of making amends with Daniel. The development of that relationship was slow, but worth it in the end.
When I saw that The Uninvited was about ghosts, I expected them to be a lot more present throughout the novel. It is not at all what I would necessarily consider a ghost story. Ivy caught glances of various dead friends and relatives, and she knew that foretold some death in the coming days.
I do want to bring it up, though I cannot say much about it, but there are certain turns of the plot that I did not see coming from a mile away. I had an idea in my mind of what The Uninvited was going to be about, and it was not THAT at all. Having said that, it made the experience of reading the book so much better.
If you're a reader of historical fiction or a fan of Winters' YA, you need to go out and find you a copy of The Uninvited. Being as it was released in trade paperback, it shouldn't be too expensive. I can almost guarantee that it'll be a reread, or you'll at least be sharing it with friends.
To satisfy FTC guidelines, I am disclosing that I received an advance copy of the novel from the publisher through TLC Book Tours in exchange for an unbiased review. It has in no way affected the outcome. All expressed opinions are awesome, honest, and courtesy of me....more
Haunted by Lynn Carthage is just the kind of young adult novel that I like to read. My only experience with YA as a young person was reading R.L. Stine, Lois Duncan, and Christopher Pike, and Haunted is definitely in their league. It was a very nostalgic read.
Because I read so many paranormal, slightly horror YA novels back in the 90s, Haunted was very predictable. I called Phoebe's secret almost immediately, but that took nothing away from the novel. The point and fun of it is the creepy/chilly ghosts and other characters and trying to figure out what is really going on in that old house. (Phoebe's secret is given away at 55% in your Kindle copy if you're like me and want to peak, though I didn't this time. I mean, I didn't have to.)
Another awesome thing going for the book is that I never wanted to skip ahead. I'm really back about doing that with any sort of mystery. I don't like a lot of tension, and Haunted was at my happy medium. There were twists and turns (some that I even missed), but the tension was never palpable enough that I had to find out what was going on. I couldn't put the book down, and I was happy to read it in order. That is quite rare.
Even though I had Phoebe figured out, I liked her a lot as a character. I'm obviously not a teen since I was reading these books in the 90s, but she really brought out my motherly instincts. I think that's part of why I was able to figure her out so quickly, but my heart absolutely broke for her. She loves her family so much and felt so ostracized for what she did back home in California prior to the events of the novel, that I just wanted to hug her. I think a lot of teen readers will be able to relate to her because who doesn't feel like their parents are blowing them off if they have younger siblings? I also really dug her relationship with Tabby. I guess there was enough of an age difference between the sisters that she felt so protective of her. I think it may have been the best part of the book.
If you like stories about hauntings and a good, mild mystery, Haunted is well worth reading. Though it lacked some surprises for me, I'll definitely still continue the series. It's a fantastic debut.
- 3.5/5 Stars -
To satisfy FTC guidelines, I am disclosing that I received a copy of the novel from the publisher through Book Junkie Promotions in exchange for an unbiased review. It has in no way affected the outcome. All expressed opinions are awesome, honest, and courtesy of me....more
I really enjoy short story anthologies, but I had no idea what a fucking treat The Thing About Great White Sharks would be. (I'm using coarse language to convey feeling, not my trashiness, by the way.) This is literary fiction just the way I like it - with a little bit of magical realism, a touch of sci-fi, and a mix of something else. It's shocking, horrible, and wonderful, all rolled into one.
My favorite two stories in the collection are "The Thing About Great White Sharks" and "Sheila". "Sheila", the first story in the collection, broke my heart into a million pieces and blew me away. Sheila, the titular character, is John's, the protagonist, Brittany spaniel, who also happens to be a robot. He's had her for 25+ years, bought when his wife was dying, and has become illegal to own because of the Ginger Creek incident. "Sheila" made me stop and consider the way breeds are treated and how responsible pet owners are usually the ones who suffer the most from bans. "The Thing About Great White Sharks" left me wanting more than I got, in the very best way possible. Jennifer, the main character, is a government test subject after an unknown disease causes all living things to attack and try to kill Homo sapiens. She is forced to battle various creatures so the results can be studied as the government searches for a cure. I think we need an entire book about her, mmkay?
I enjoyed most of the stories, but I will say that "What to Expect When You're Expecting an Alien Parasite", "Melville Loves Hawthorne", and "The Other Husband" went right over my head. If there was an underlying theme in any of them, they were beyond me. (I think "What to Expect When You're Expecting an Alien Parasite" may have just been humorous, but I'm making no guesses.) Other than those three, I have no other issues with The Thing About Great White Sharks. It is glorious.
If you're not a reader of short stories, I highly recommend that you start with this one. There is a little bit of something for everyone, and with each story being only a few pages long, The Thing About Great White Sharks is a great book to pick up and set down (good luck with that!) as time allows. I will guarantee that you'll find something you like here. (I bet you're a fan of "Orchids", just you see.)
- 4.5/5 Stars -
To satisfy FTC guidelines, I am disclosing that I received a copy of the novel from the publisher through TLC Book Tours in exchange for an unbiased review. It has in no way affected the outcome. All expressed opinions are awesome, honest, and courtesy of me....more
I love love love to read short stories (the literary ones from college are my favorites!), but I don't think that I've ever reviewed an anthology. Since I was so intrigued by the authors and the premise of Beyond the Pale, I figured that I would give it a shot.
I have to be honest and say that I skipped some of the stories for various reasons. I know that Jim Butcher is everyone else's favorite here at Bibliophilia, Please, but I am yet to read The Dresden Files. (Before you string me, I bought them on Kindle and Audible, so Storm Front will be happening soon.) I also skipped Frost Child by Gillian Philip because I wasn't in the mood for fairies at the time. Jan Yolen's A Knot of Toads and Nancy & Belle Holder's The Adventures of Lightning Merriemouse-Jones were both passed over, as I could get into them. That being said, these stories will not factor into my overall rating of the book.
Hooves and the Hovel of Abdel Jameela Saladin Ahmed
When I took classes on Middle Eastern history, I had to read One Thousand and One Nights because a culture's fairy tales are important to their history. (If you want an in depth conversation on this, I'm down for it later.) Hooves and the Hovel of Abdel Jameela is very like the stories that Scheherazade told.
Hooves and the Hovel of Abdel Jameela was a fairy tale without a true villain, and I never felt any danger for the main character. However, I was engaged and creeped out through the end and will happily read more stories from Ahmed. 3.5/5 Stars
The Children of the Shark God Peter S. Beagle
I was a die hard fan of The Last Unicorn growing up, so I had the highest expectations of this story in regard to the rest of the collection. Thankfully, The Children of the Shark God is a story that I could walk away from and return to later because I got distracted despite the story's brevity.
The Children of the Shark God a typical "god" story where no mortal can know or understand his/her ways. What struck me as funny is that the Shark God was not the character in the story that loved unconditionally. That's not really a spoiler as gods tend to act like assholes in mythology, but it was something interesting to read.
I'm impatient, so I did get a little bored because nothing really happened except the exploration of the family dynamics between the Shark God's mortal wife, children, and himself. Of course their are supernatural/paranormal elements because, hello? God? The writing was good and I persevered. 3/5 Stars
Misery Heather Brewer
Misery was my favorite story in Beyond the Pale and resonated most strongly with me. Misery reminded me so much of depression. You can't remember life before it or how you got there, much like the characters living in the town of Misery. The eyes of the neighbors have the only colors in a world of black, white, and gray. That was pretty fucking profound. If that's not misery, nothing is. And, of course, Misery loves company.
After reading the story, I looked up the author to see what she says about the story, and I was right. I mean, there really wasn't anything else that it could've been about. 4/5 Stars
Shadow Children Heather Brewer
I was unable to sleep one night, so I pulled out the anthology and read Shadow Children
Big mistake.
It's about the scary shadows that creep in the dark, and needless to say, there was no going back to sleep for me. 3.5/5 Stars
Red Run Kami Garcia
Red Run is the prefect example of what a short story should be like. I was on the edge of my seat, anxious to see what would happen next. Excellent ghost story! 4/5 Stars
Pale Rider Nancy Holder
Pale Rider is a bit more dystopian than paranormal at first. The world has pretty much ended, and Dana is scrambling to survive with her friends. Then Alex shows up and changes everything.
There are quite a few things that I found to be inconsistent with the story, and I was scratching my head in confusion by the end. 2.5/5 Stars
South Gillian Philip
South was a bit confusing to me at first because of the narration of the story. However, I knew exactly what the story would essentially be about as soon as I read about the water, ice, and penguins. That's how you know I read far too much urban fantasy. 3.5/5 Stars
***
I know my reviews were very short, but so were the stories. I did the best I could to avoid spoiling your enjoyment. That being said, I liked what I did read in Beyond the Pale, and I found some new (to me) authors that I'll be reading. If an author can successfully execute a short story, then I am very interested in seeing what they can do with a novel.
- 3.5/5 Stars -
To satisfy FTC guidelines, I am disclosing that I received an advance digital copy of the book from the editor in exchange for an honest review. ...more
When I was given the opportunity to review Vienna's Last Jihad, I jumped on it because it is the kind of book that I miss reading. You see, I spent many years studying history, focusing on the conflict between Christianity and Islam, so finding a piece of historical fiction along the lines of my studies was very exciting. Since the majority of what I know about the conflicts between Europe and the Middle East comes from the Crusades, so the history surrounding the events of the story was mostly new to me.
Though Vienna's Last Jihad is set in the 1600s, it really reads like a modern book. Mathis Zieglar was like an acrobatic Chuck Norris who could leap, kick, spin, and jump his way out of everything. Okay, that's not completely it because it helped that he was fluent in Tartar. It helped that Mathis Zieglar was not a real person (as far as I could tell) because I'm a stickler for details when it comes to my historical figures. (Unless I'm reading about the Tudors, which this is not.) It's also important for you to note that this book reads more like fiction for historians than historical fiction, if that makes sense. That is not to say that book is bad at all.
If you're a fan of fiction from time periods that don't pop up very often in mainstream novels and/or books about the historical interaction of Christians and Muslims, I recommend Vienna's Last Jihad. Dawson wrote a very interesting novel about a military event that I hope you will enjoy as much as I have.
I was so excited to be given the opportunity to review Curses and Smoke by Vicky Alvear Shecter because I'm always on the lookout for YA historical fiction. I loved studying Roman history in college (yes, I was lucky enough to have a class through two semesters devoted to the rise and fall of the Roman Empire), so I squeed a bit when this book popped onto my Kindle. I never once worried about the historical accuracy of Curses and Smoke - Scholastic puts out stellar books - but I did worry about how much my recent watching of the movie, Pompeii, would have on my reading. In actuality, it wasn't much except that Lucia looked like Emily Browning and Tages looked like Kit Harington. Yummy!
The only similarities that Curses and Smoke had to Pompeii was slave boy falls in love with the citizen girl who didn't want to marry who she was betrothed to. Curses and Smoke was also loads better because I was so distracted from Pompeii that I couldn't tell you the character's names if my life depended on it. Where they were dull and two dimensional, Lucia and Tag were interesting and well-constructed. I enjoyed getting to know them and watching their story unfold.
The love story itself in Curses and Smoke was sweet, but I didn't really "ship" Lucia and Tag. Yes, they were adorable and there was lots of kissing, but I wasn't really feeling it with them. Now there is another person that factors into the story later for an interesting love triangle. I'll just leave it at that so as to not spoil anything. You're welcome.
I could tell you all about what happens in Curses and Smoke, but the synopsis gives you the general idea of the novel's storyline, and we all know the history. If you like ancient history or stories with a surprising twist, I know you'll enjoy this book. I personally cannot wait to read more by Shecter.
- 4/5 Stars -
To satisfy FTC guidelines, I am disclosing that I received a copy of the novel from the publisher through Historical Fiction Blog Tours in exchange for an unbiased review. It has in no way affected the outcome. All expressed opinions are awesome, honest, and courtesy of me....more
I don't a lot of "how-to" books or non-fiction in general when I'm not in school, but there was something about My Boyfriend Barfed in My Handbag... and Other Things You Can't Ask Martha that I couldn't pass up. (Probably the tackily awesome title.) I'm glad that I didn't because the book is as disgustingly funny as the title, yet full of helpful hints that can actually be used in everyday life.
Keeping house is not my thing, and I only do it because no one else at my house will. Kerr's My Boyfriend Barfed in My Handbag explains how and why to clean house on the most basic level, and I found the prospect of following her tips much less intimidating than listening to my neat freak family members. I was never really taught how to clean (my neat freak family members emerged from the womb knowing how), and light bulbs went off over my head as I read Kerr's advice. In addition to the process of where to start and what to do, there are also a lot of handy lists of what cleaning products should be used on various surfaces, fabrics, etc.
While the book mainly focuses on how to clean, My Boyfriend Barfed in My Handbag still manages to be funny and addictive. (I know, right?! A hard to put down cleaning guide!) Kerr's witty writing is a lot of why I found the book to be so accessible. Even if someone picking the book up doesn't want to learn how to clean, s/he could definitely have a blast reading stories Kerr shares about her friends and the Q&A she has done with her readers.
My Boyfriend Barfed in My Handbag... and Other Things You Can't Ask Martha will be kept in my kitchen for whenever I need advice on how to handle a mess. It is an entertaining and enlightening read that anyone could enjoy and would make a great gift for all sorts of occasions for men and women alike.
To satisfy FTC guidelines, I am disclosing that I received a copy of the novel from the publisher through TLC Book Tours in exchange for an unbiased review. It has in no way affected the outcome. All expressed opinions are awesome, honest, and courtesy of me....more
Oh dear Bob, The Heiresses... What can I say? I've never read anything by Shepard before, but I was sold on the premise alone. (I found out the author's bio and stuff later.) Was it what I expected? Oh yes, and so much more. Drama, betrayal, mystery, and hot mess fills this book as well as any daytime soap opera or copy of Star. The Heiresses is delicious, delicious trash, and I loved every second of it.
Okay, I don't know if this is on purpose, but this family shares the last name as one of the main characters on the one-time soap opera, One Life to Live. (It's not important why I know this, so don't judge me.) That was on the forefront of my mind when I started reading The Heiresses because I knew a "Saybrooke" that had some drama going on, too!
I knew going into the book that Poppy was going to die. However, I found myself really getting attached to her as her character was developed. She seemed to be the glue that was holding the family and her cousins together, despite all of the family drama. I loved the way she made Rowan, Aster, Corinne, and Natasha feel special despite all of the crappy stuff going on in their lives. And then she dies. I was wondering why it was so important to have so much of her in the book at first, and then... BUMBUMBUM! Maybe there was more to Poppy going on than meets the eye. *raises eyebrow*
The other Saybrook girls that are important to the story are: Rowan, a lawyer for her family's business and tomboy who is secretly in lurve with someone she shouldn't be; Corinne, the perfectionist, foreign rights (or whatever) contact for Saybrook Diamonds, and the token non-strikingly beautiful person; Natasha, the person who gave everything up to get out of the family; and Aster, the poor little rich girl who has to get a job since daddy cut off her allowance for partying too much. I liked Rowan and Aster a lot, even though they both did some pretty wretched things. But what heiress doesn't have their scandal?
The world-building in The Heiresses consists of fancy houses in New York City and "the Vineyard", the swanky company building on Fifth Avenue, and really really awesome clothes that I would like to borrow, please and thank you. There are also some restaurants that are mentioned in showing how rich the Saybrooks are that I would like to eat at. It's fun fluff to go around the delicious trash that I mentioned earlier.
Yes, I've called The Heiresses "trash", but only in the very best way. It's a guilty pleasure that I enjoyed immensely and possessed the same spark of something special that kept soap operas on the air for so many years. If you're a lover of chick lit, gossip magazines, or celebrity watching, I have a feeling that you'll love The Heiresses.
- 3.5/5 Stars -
To satisfy FTC guidelines, I am disclosing that I received a copy of the novel from the publisher through TLC Book Tours in exchange for an unbiased review. It has in no way affected the outcome. All expressed opinions are awesome, honest, and courtesy of me....more
Sometimes, I wish I wasn't a blogger so I would have more time to devote to books like Lauren Owen's debut, The Quick. I love books set in Victorian England, and this one was right up my alley. The book is beautifully written and the characters are well imagined, but it is also very, very long.
I started reading The Quick a few weeks ago, and I fell in love with Owen's writing. Aiskew Hall and the children, Charlotte and James, were described in such a way that I felt like I could close my eyes and see it all as it happens. Because of C.S. Lewis, I have a special fondness for children running all over large, dusty manor houses, so this part of the novel did not last nearly long enough. When the characters grew up, I found myself drifting away from the book more and more.
The Quick reminded me a lot of Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell with its magical realism. As with the latter book, The Quick requires a lot of time to read it. It is not a book you can rush through because of the twists and turns and throwing you about. As Tana French says in praise of the book, it is indeed one to savor. Unfortunately, my reading schedule at present does not allow for such novels. I finally had to give up and move on to my other reading obligations.
Just because I was unable to finish The Quick, it is most certainly a book I will go back to when I have the time to just sit and enjoy Owen's writing and world-building. Giving anything less to such a book would be a great disservice.
- DNF -
To satisfy FTC guidelines, I am disclosing that I received a copy of the novel from the publisher through TLC Book Tours in exchange for an unbiased review. It has in no way affected the outcome. All expressed opinions are awesome, honest, and courtesy of me....more
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