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What Are You Reading - Part Deux
message 2901:
by
Karen M
(new)
Apr 22, 2016 01:47PM
Finished Never Cry Wolf today and I started a re-read of Interview with the Vampire. I first read it in 1976. Still love vampires.
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Atticus by Ron Hansen – 4**** While there is certainly a mystery at its core, the novel is more about the father-son relationship, and the failure of both of them to openly communicate and understand one another. In many ways this story echoes the parable of the Prodigal Son from the bible. The plot has several twists and turns that kept me intrigued and turning pages, but the star of the novel, to me, was the writing and the exploration of these characters and their motivations.
Full Review HERE
I'm part of the way through Spring Snow. I really enjoyed Mishima's Patriotism but so far Spring Snow is disappointing.
I'm going to start reading Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey today.
A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick – 3.5*** Talk about your gothic mystery! Betrayal, an abandoned mansion, a long-lost son, and the isolation of a Wisconsin winter are just the beginning. The characters employ duplicity, obfuscation, coercion, prevarication, and downright lies. I was completely caught up in the story and surprised by more than one twist.
Full Review HERE
I have finished The House at Riverton which was not bad but probably would be better appreciated by a Downton Abbey fan.I also finished Station Eleven which was 5 stars. IT didn't 'rock my world' but it was so well crafted and such a pleasure to read that it felt like a massage for my mind. And there was the added bonus of the mention of several Shakespeare plays in Shakespeare week.
A Passage to India by E M Forster – 3.5*** This classic explores class differences and the clash of cultures. Every character seems to have a preconceived notion of how “the others” should behave (or have always acted), and each reacts based on these preconceived notions. Even the “good” characters fall victim to their own prejudices, frequently without realizing it. Friendships are broken, and even when a character realizes his/her mistake there seems no way to undo the damage. Sam Dastor is merely adequate voicing the audio book; 2** for his narration.
Full Review HERE
The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom – 3*** A young Irish orphan is indentured to pay her parents’ debt, living and working alongside the slaves in the kitchen house of a Virginia plantation. I can certainly see why this has become so popular with book clubs. It has an interesting basic story line, some tension-filled scenes, and complex relationships between characters. However, it’s not the best-written book. Still, it held my attention and was a fairly quick read. Orlagh Cassidy (voicing Lavinia’s chapters) and Bahni Turpin (performing Belle’s) do a fine job on the audio book.
Full Review HERE
I am reading Never Die Alone. I love this series however this book is a little creepier than the earlier books. That doesn't bother me - it makes for interesting reading.
The Sound of Glass by Karen White – 2** This is pretty typical Southern chick lit, with family secrets, damaged psyches, scenes intended to produce tears and an unexpected romance. I certainly understand the popularity of this kind of beach read, but it’s just not my cup of tea. Oh well, it was a quick read.
Full Review HERE
I temporarily put aside Interview with the Vampire so I could read as quickly as possible Wild Tales: A Rock & Roll Life but I am back to my vampires again and I also started a memoir Code Name Pauline: Memoirs of a World War II Special Agent since I love WWII stories.
Deep Down Dark by Hector Tobar – 4**** Subtitle: The Untold Stories of 33 Men Buried in a Chilean Mine. What a gripping tale of survival, faith, team work and perseverance. In addition to the harrowing tale of their experiences underground, waiting for a rescue that might or might not happen, the book also relates the difficulties many of the miners had coping with their instant fame, and the aftereffects of the trauma they suffered. Henry Leyva does an excellent job performing the audio book. His pacing is good, and his Spanish pronunciation is excellent.
Full Review HERE
Eric Jerome dickey's sleeping with strangers.
Blood Daughters by Marcos M Villatoro – 3*** This is a hard-boiled crime novel with an interesting female lead. It’s number four in the Romilia Chacon series. It’s a gripping mystery, with many twists and turns, a violent sicko serial killer, and a psychologically damaged yet still strong female lead detective. There’s plenty of action to keep the reader turning pages, but I’m left somewhat dissatisfied.
Full Review HERE
Zeitoun by Dave Eggers – 5***** This is a true story of what happened to one family in Post-Katrina New Orleans. I was shocked, stunned, angry, heartbroken, dismayed and completely riveted by the tale. Eggers does a great job putting the reader into the setting – the peace and quiet of no electronics, the heat and humidity, the stench of rotting vegetation, and the unsettling sight of armed men patrolling (?) your once-peaceful neighborhood. Firdous Bamji does a marvelous job narrating the audio book. He has good pacing and his performance enhances the reader’s impressions of Zeitoun and Kathy.
Full Review HERE
Moving right along with my vampires. I'm reading The Vampire Armand. I usually try to have two books going but I don't seem drawn to anything else right now.
The Invoice by Jonas Karlsson 2 stars.Preface to review: Before you discard this book due to my 2 star rating, bear in mind that I normally give satires only one star because I don't like satire, so this book fared quite well.
the rest of my review here
The Elusive Mrs Pollifax by Dorothy Gillman – 3*** In book three of the series, the CIA’s least likely courier is sent on a mission to Bulgaria. I love this series. Mrs Pollifax is charming, smart, resourceful and calm in a crisis. If the situations she finds herself in stretch credulity, who cares? The books are fun to read and pure entertainment.
Full Review HERE
Karin wrote: "
Henrietta's War: News from the Home Front, 1939-1942 by Joyce Dennys 4 starsKarin ... the link to your review does not work.
I'm reading A Spool of Blue Thread by Anne Tyler.
The Road to Little Dribbling by Bill Bryson – 3*** Bryson clearly loves this landscape, these people, the lovely views, the crazy laws or regulations, and even the food. There were some aspects not to my liking, but on the whole, it’s an entertaining read. Nathan Osgood does a fine job with the narration on the audio book. He has good pacing and an expressive voice.
Full Review HERE
Book Concierge wrote: " A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick – 3.5*** Talk about your gothic mystery! Betrayal, an abandoned mansion, a long-lost son, and the isolation of a Wisconsin wi..."
I agree, Book Concierge! What a wild ride that book was!
Just looking over some of the other books that you've recently read — looks like a page out of my "read" lists!
Book I`m reading now is
Breakfast at Tiffany's by Capote. Funny I never knew this was a book. I always thought this was just a movie. Year ago in high school I was dating a girl and it seemed every time we were in the car, on the radio "Breakfast at Tiffany's" by Deep Blue Something would play. So it became our song and of course we rented the movie (for the young'ns that's when you go to a movie rental store and rent out a movie for an evening).Anyway I was in chapters the other day and I've never read a Capote book so I searched him and found this book and I'm like what the? So I bought it and wow, great book and Capote is a masterful writer. Like he spent weeks just writing one sentence. Likely did from what I hear about his perfectionist writing style.
I'm going to start reading City of Women by David Gillham today.
Currently reading The Return of the Soldier by Rebecca West for a classic group read. Am about 1-1/5 chapters from the end, so there is no doubt I will finish it tonight.
Half way through
. It's been interesting to read about the first class people.
Glory Over Everything by Kathleen Grissom – 3*** Grissom’s debut - The Kitchen House - became a best seller; this book follows one of the characters in the first book over several decades. There is a good story idea here, a runaway slave who passes for white and builds a successful life. There are a number of twists and turn in the plot and I was caught up in the story and wanted to know how the characters would fare. However, Grissom uses multiple narrators and the result is that there is less cohesion in the story-telling. In summary, it’s a good story and kept me turning pages, but the writing fell short.
Full Review HERE
Just getting ready to start First Women. Loved The Residence!
Mod
If anyone runs a blog and wants to help out by reviewing the book for us or hosting a guest post during the week of the tour, please message me here on Goodreads.
It's a mystery-slash-literary-fiction novel that takes place in Death Valley during the big bloom period in 2006 (though there's some stage-setting that takes place in the late 1800's) and it revolves around the legendary Mystery House, which is the last known hiding place of the legendary Juliet stone...
Mod
Hey Melissa! Did you read that in anticipation of our group read along next month?
I read Girl On The Train and LOVED it.
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark – 4**** Miss Jean Brodie is a teacher at conservative girls’ school in 1930s Edinburgh, Scotland. Rather than follow the school curriculum, Miss Brodie prefers to inspire “her girls” with stories of her trips abroad, favorable remarks about Mussolini, comments about sex, and field trips. She is, after all, “in her prime,” and she wants to instill in them passion, independence and ambition. I’ve had this on my tbr since the movie came out in 1969. I have to wonder what my reaction would have been had I read it back then. Nadia May does a fine job performing the audio version. She has good pacing and is able to differentiate the characters, though Spark’s non-linear style is more difficult in audio than on the page.
Full Review HERE
The True and Outstanding Adventures of the Hunt Sisters by Elisabeth Robinson – 3***
The Hunt sisters couldn’t be more different. Olivia is a Hollywood producer; Maddie is happily married to her high-school sweetheart and still lives in the small town where they grew up. The novel is comprised of a series of letters, emails, faxes, and telegrams from Olivia to her sister, parents, brother, best friend, ex-boyfriend, and a variety of professionals. I was pretty irritated with Olivia through much of the first half of the novel, but over time I began to admire her spirit, her tireless efforts to rekindle her career, to try to set things right with her friends, parents, siblings, ex-boyfriend, colleagues, etc.
Full Review HERE
I'm going to start reading A Song for Issy Bradley by Carys Bray today.
Am a little over 100 pages into In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin
by Erik Larson.I've really enjoyed all his books and while this one is not as thrilling as some of the others — yet — still a good read.
Keeps changing. Now that I've finished Skin and Other Stories I'm about halfway through The Dancer Upstairs, and after doing a few indie book reviews and perhaps killing another chapter in Better Angels, then moving on to The Road and The Plot Against America.
Currently enjoying The Givenness of Things: Essays and Essays After Eighty. Trudging through, The Opposite of Loneliness: Essays and Stories
Currently reading Modern Girls, slow to get into but now Im enjoying it.
Today I finally started Bag of Bones. Only 10 per cent in and nothing very scary yet but I know it's coming.
Going to start reading The Girl in the Spider's Web by David Lagercrantz today.
Finished In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin
and have now begun a book lent to me by an acquaintance of my husband (from his fitness club -- I think he asks every one what they may be reading and if they say they don't have time to read something, he actually comes home and has me 'pick' a book for them from my finished bag --those that are going to the library or a used book store). This time the women sent me three books back!So Now I'm reading Nevada Barr's
Hunting Season.
Dead Wake by Eric Larson – 4**** The subtitle is all the synopsis you need: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania. Larson uses tidbits found in research materials from a variety of sources to flesh out a narrative tale of a great disaster. Larson shifts perspective from the Lusitania, to the German submarine U-20, to Room 40 (the British Intelligence headquarters). It’s a compelling story, which completely captured my interest despite my knowing how it would turn out. Scott Brick does a good job reading the audiobook. His delivery is rather dry, but this is fine for a work of nonfiction.
Full Review HERE
Just started
I was unaware of this little book, found on a pile in an independent book store in DC, even though it had won a Pulitzer. It was, "Tinkers is truly remarkable." - Marilynne Robinson Set on the top cover that got my attention.
I'm reading Bag of Bones and wow is it good! Perfect summer read for me (I know it's not summer but it's been hot enough for summer in NJ). The last King I read was a re-read of Needful Things which has long been my favorite but this book is completely different and equally holding my attention.
Reading The Witness. Good read so far. There were several twists that kept me on the edge of my seat.
Guy wrote: "Currently enjoying The Givenness of Things: Essays and Essays After Eighty. Trudging through, The Opposite of Loneliness: Essays and Stories[bookco..."
Guy, what do you mean by "trudging through"? I've heard positive things about this book, and I have it on my to-read list. Is it tedious?
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