Book Review: The Serial Killers Club

From Goodreads: When our hero finds himself in the path of a serial killer, he somehow manages to defend himself, and give the blood-thirsty madman a taste of his own medicine. But when he goes through the dead man's wallet, he finds a mysterious personal ad inviting him to join a party hosted by Errol Flynn. What begins with passing curiosity soon becomes uncontrollable obsession, as our hero becomes acquainted with 18 killers. Their game: to share the thrill of the hunt and to make sure no two members choose the same two victims. To protect their identities, they have all chosen names of old Hollywood stars, and before long, our hero becomes Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. But he has no intention of following the rules. With a government special agent on his trail who will soon become his partner in crim, "Dougie" plans to knock off the killers one by one, from Carole Lombard to Chuck Norris, to Laurence Olivier and Cher. But what happens when the "stars" notice their numbers dropping?

Thoughts: At the library where I work, our customers can use an app called Overdrive to download ebooks and audio books. Occasionally I have to help someone access the items they want so I figured I better work out how to use it myself! So I downloaded a couple of talking books - this being one of them. It sounded good, sounded light and funny. It even had promise to start with, but by the end I just wanted it to be over! I think part of the problem is Dougie is just an incredibly stupid man. Painfully stupid. He is completely oblivious to anything going on around him that doesn't pertain to him. Every slight by a person, every comment made is reaction to him and if it's negative, he will spin it around to some explanation that strokes his belief in himself as this perfect human specimen. Of course what this means is he is extremely easy to manipulate and completely clueless to it. While it had comic value to start with, by the end it just became plain annoying and repetitive. 
It most probably didn't help that I wasn't enthralled by the narrator either. His voice lacked expression and possibly made a dull book even duller. If you were going to give this one a go, I'd suggest reading it, not listening. It is this that convinces me to give it 2 stars instead of 1.

The Serial Killers Club gets 2 stars

*        Did not like it
**       It was OK
***      Liked it
****    Really liked it

*****   It was amazing

Book Review: Inside The O'Briens

From Goodreads: From award-winning, New York Times bestselling author and neuroscientist Lisa Genova comes a powerful new novel that does for Huntington’s Disease what her debut Still Alice did for Alzheimer’s.
Joe O’Brien is a forty-four-year-old police officer from the Irish Catholic neighborhood of Charlestown, Massachusetts. A devoted husband, proud father of four children in their twenties, and respected officer, Joe begins experiencing bouts of disorganized thinking, uncharacteristic temper outbursts, and strange, involuntary movements. He initially attributes these episodes to the stress of his job, but as these symptoms worsen, he agrees to see a neurologist and is handed a diagnosis that will change his and his family’s lives forever: Huntington’s Disease.
Huntington’s is a lethal neurodegenerative disease with no treatment and no cure. Each of Joe’s four children has a 50 percent chance of inheriting their father’s disease, and a simple blood test can reveal their genetic fate. While watching her potential future in her father’s escalating symptoms, twenty-one-year-old daughter Katie struggles with the questions this test imposes on her young adult life. Does she want to know? What if she’s gene positive? Can she live with the constant anxiety of not knowing?
As Joe’s symptoms worsen and he’s eventually stripped of his badge and more, Joe struggles to maintain hope and a sense of purpose, while Katie and her siblings must find the courage to either live a life “at risk” or learn their fate.
Praised for writing that “explores the resilience of the human spirit” (The San Francisco Chronicle), Lisa Genova has once again delivered a novel as powerful and unforgettable as the human insights at its core.

Thoughts: I must admit I was wondering how indepth Lisa Genova's research for this book had been. It appeared to be fairly detailed and she came across as being pretty knowledgeable about Huntington's Disease - so really not that surprised to find out she's a neuroscientist.
I listened to this as an audio book and loved it. A bit slow to start with, I found it really picked up once Joe received his diagnosis and Katie's story came more into play. I liked how Genova concentrated on Joe and Katie rather than trying to tell the story of all four of the kids. While I'm sure the other three, JJ, Meghan and Patrick, all have interesting stories in their own right, but by limiting it to just Katie you didn't feel overwhelmed.
This book raises so many questions for the reader about their own life. If you could know the approximate timing of your death, would you find out? Is there a point to finding out if there is no treatment? How would knowing or not knowing change the way you live your life?
Genova takes an ordinary family dealing with ordinary things - grown kids, work, money concerns,  - the same stuff we all deal with day to day. Into this family she drops a bombshell and then follows the shockwaves as they radiate out and touch others around them. The strength of this book for me lies in her ability to paint a family I can believe in. I can identify with how Joe's kids feel, how his wife feels, even with how he feels. I get frustrated with things they do or say, just like I would with my own family. I cried at their heart breaks and cheered at their triumphs. In short, the O'Briens became my friends and despite the fact they are fictional characters, I found myself sending them love to help them through their journey. Regardless of the outcome, I know those who survive will be ok.

Inside the O'Briens gets 4 stars

 *        Did not like it
**       It was OK
***      Liked it
****    Really liked it

*****   It was amazing

 

Book Review: Skullduggery Pleasant

From Goodreads: Stephanie's uncle Gordon is a writer of horror fiction. But when he dies and leaves her his estate, Stephanie learns that while he may have written horror, it certainly wasn't fiction. Pursued by evil forces intent on recovering a mysterious key, Stephanie finds help from an unusual source - the wisecracking skeleton of a dead wizard.

Thoughts: The kids and I have been listening to this in the car. For various reasons, I haven't had all 3 children as frequently this term, with an almost 3 week break it became a bit fractured. I decided to go back and listen to the whole thing again, partly because after Anna Karenina I was struggling to settle to anything and partly because I wanted a clean run at it. The kids haven't finished it, but I have
I'm so glad I did. How bloody brilliant is this book! Intelligent, funny, amazing characters, fast paced story and fantastic dialogue - just like this:

"So you won't keep anything from me again?" 
He put his hand to his chest. "Cross my heart and hope to die." 
"Okay then. Though you don't actually have a heart," she said. 
"I know." 
"And technically, you've already died." 
"I know that too." 
"Just so we're clear."

I also think the narrator had a lot to do with how enjoyable this was. Rupert Degas has apparently received critical acclaim for his narration of Skullduggery Pleasant, and he truly deserves it. Just listen.

Although when I Googled him, he looks nothing like what I thought he would!

Skullduggery Pleasant is in the league of Harry Potter. It's a book that will get non readers reading and engage kids in some good quality writing.

The kids have just over an hour of audio left to listen to. I'm holding off downloading book two until they finish in the hope they are as eager as I am to continue the Skullduggery adventure. If not, I will go it alone!

Skullduggery Pleasant gets a well deserved 5 stars!

 *        Did not like it
**       It was OK
***      Liked it
****    Really liked it
*****   It was amazing

Book Review: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe

From Goodreads: When Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy took their first steps into the world behind the magic wardrobe, little do they realise what adventures are about to unfold. And as the story of Narnia begins to unfold, so to does a classic tale that has enchanted readers of all ages for over half a century.

Thoughts:  For me, one of the marks of a good book is one that can survive time. I don't think there will ever be a time when The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe goes out of circulation - at least not in my lifetime. I downloaded this as an audio book after we finished The Series of Unfortunate Events series and I'm thrilled to say the kids seem to have loved it as much as I did. It's one of those books that you get a whole different view of as a adult. As a child I never saw the religious connotations of the book and even now with a few weeks between finishing it and writing this review, all of the things I went "oh" at have vanished from my memory. All that is left is the knowledge that I enjoyed revisiting this book immensely and I don't think any childhood would be truly complete without it.

 

Book Review: The End

From Goodreads: Dear Reader, You are presumably looking at the back of this book, or the end of THE END. The end of THE END is the best place to begin THE END, because if you read THE END from the beginning of the beginning of THE END to the end of the end of THE END, you will arrive at the end of the end of your rope.
This book is the last in A Series of Unfortunate Events, and even if you braved the previous twelve volumes, you probably can't stand such unpleasantries as a fearsome storm, a suspicious beverage, a herd of wild sheep, an enormous bird cage, and a truly haunting secret about the Baudelaire parents.
It has been my solemn occupation to complete the history of the Baudelaire orphans, and at last I am finished. You likely have some other occupation, so if I were you I would drop this book at once, so THE END does not finish you.
With all due respect,
Lemony Snicket
Thoughts: And thus, we come to The End - the final book in a Series of Unfortunate Events. We almost didn't make it - in fact, we reorganised our car pool arrangements to ensure we finished before the school holidays. The End does not explain everything - in fact it most probably explains very little and raises a few more questions. Many reviews I have read of it take umbrage at this but for me it was the only way it could end. As the series went, things became murkier and murkier. The children started to realise that not everything is black or white, good people can do bad things and bad people can do good things. Questions can get answered, but quite often those answers simply throw up more questions. If this book wrapped everything up neatly it would have been so out of line with the rest of the series I would have been offended. To follow this whole series through to the end takes commitment but I think it was well worth the effort.

Book Review: The Distant Hours

From Goodreads: A long lost letter arrives in the post and Edie Burchill finds herself on a journey to Milderhurst Castle, a great but moldering old house, where the Blythe spinsters live and where her mother was billeted 50 years before as a 13 year old child during WWII. The elder Blythe sisters are twins and have spent most of their lives looking after the third and youngest sister, Juniper, who hasn’t been the same since her fiance jilted her in 1941.
Inside the decaying castle, Edie begins to unravel her mother’s past. But there are other secrets hidden in the stones of Milderhurst, and Edie is about to learn more than she expected. The truth of what happened in ‘the distant hours’ of the past has been waiting a long time for someone to find it.
Morton once again enthralls readers with an atmospheric story featuring unforgettable characters beset by love and circumstance and haunted by memory, that reminds us of the rich power of storytelling.

Thoughts: I listened to this as an audio book and must say  the narrator, Caroline Lee was a fantastic choice. 
The Distant Hours is a book about secrets - those we keep from others, those we keep from ourselves and the effect those secrets have on those surrounding it. Kate Morton takes the reader into the lives of the Blythe sisters - thick with secrets - and slowly unravels their tale and the tragedy of lives not lived to the fullest. Enslaved by a controlling, dead father and the legacy of a book he wrote - The True History of the Mud Man - Percy, Saffy and Juniper all have their roles to play, whether they want to or not.
For me, Morton's great strength is in her characters and her ability to make you invest in them. She is very good at leading you down a certain path, only to suddenly change direction and make you question everything you thought. The person you detested, thinking they were horrible and really not very nice, turns out to be one you admire most by the end.
A trait of Morton's is the story jumping back and forth in time. However, the distance between the time lines (in this case, WWII and 1992) makes it fairly easy to follow the story. Another thing I like about Morton is the fact that the reader is told everything, even if the characters are still in the dark. In this way, the reader is privy to all the secrets without feeling like the characters have come across the information in a contrived and unnatural way. The reality is a lot of secrets are taken to the grave, those left behind to never know the full truth of the matter. As a reader, that frustrates the hell out of me! If I've taken the time to follow the story, invest in the characters then I want to know what happened! Morton is more than happy to let the reader in, but is also happy to keep the characters in the story in the dark.In this way she ties up all loose ends without ruining the feel of the book. 
There is now only one Kate Morton book I haven't read and I'm caught between diving back into one of her wonderfully rich worlds or putting it off so it doesn't pass to fast! My next audio is Tim Winton's Eyrie, so maybe after that... 

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The Distant Hours

Book Review: The Penultimate Peril

From Goodreads: Dear Reader, If this is the first book you found while searching for a book to read next, then the first thing you should know is that this next-to-last book is what you should put down first. Sadly, this book presents the next-to-last chronicle of the lives of the Baudelaire orphans, and it is next-to-first in its supply of misery, despair, and unpleasantness.
Probably the next-to-last thing you would like to read about are a harpoon gun, a rooftop sunbathing alon, two mysterious initials, three unidentified triplets, a notorious villain, and an unsavory curry.
Next-to-last things are the first thing to be avoided, and so allow me to recommend that you put this next-to-last book down first, and find something else to read next at last, such a s the next-to-last book in another chronicle, or a chronicle containing other next-to-last things, so that this next-to-last book does not become the last book you will read.
With all due respect,
Lemony Snicket

Thoughts: Things are getting exciting now!! This is the second last book in the wonderful Series of Unfortunate Events that have followed the terribly sad tale of the Baudelaire orphans from that fateful day when their parents perished in a dreadful fire.
As with the previous books, more questions are raised and very few are answered. The Baudelaire's continue to wrestle with the question of their own nobility or villainy - is it ok to do something villainous for noble causes? Do the ends always justify the means? Characters from previous books resurface as everything starts to draw to a conclusion. In fact, I think half of the enjoyment of this installment for the kids was recalling who came from what book and what role they played in it. As always as this book drew to a close, the kids were begging me to download the last book - aptly titled The End. I will admit, they didn't have to beg too hard! Now all I hope is that we can make it through the last book before the school holidays start - not sure we could wait two weeks to find out what ultimately happens!
 

Book Review: The Fault in Our Stars

From Goodreads: Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel's story is about to be completely rewritten.

Thoughts: I listened to this as an audio book. It was narrated by Kate Rudd, who is not someone I had every heard of before. I mention this because I have come to realise how important a narrator is to an audio book. Kate Rudd is a good narrator. I didn't find myself distracted by her voice, it didn't sound "put on", she made the book enjoyable.
It's easy to see why this book has done so well. I found it to be a strong story that dealt with the tough topic of teenage cancer sufferers without becoming condescending or clichéd. It became apparent to me what was going to happen fairly quickly, but I think anyone with half a brain would have seen it. I don't think John Green set out to put in a big twist that no one would see coming, instead I think he wanted a book with emotion and thoughtfulness and I think he achieved it.
The book made me cry, but I don't think I cried where most YA readers would have. The parts that had me almost sobbing as I sat in the car park at Woolworths (handy hint - emotion laden books while driving, not such a good idea!) was the conversation Hazel had with her parents towards the end of the book. Hazel is living on borrowed time - you know it the whole way through. As a parent, I cannot and do not want to imagine what that feels like. Hazel's fears for her parents took my breath away and had me wanting to reach out and grab her, hold her close and promise her they would be ok and then I wanted to tell her parents that when it came, I would support them too.
One of the thing Green is a master of is producing quotes you just know teens are scrawling down all over the place because those words touched them. Google A Fault in our Stars quotes and you'll see what I mean. Here's a taste:

The thing is, I remember just about every scene where those words were spoken. I could put them in chronological order for you. John Green writes words that have power. The problem may be believing those words come from teens.
After a short FB discussion with a friend about AFioS I started to think about the portrayal of teens in young adult books. I know I have often thought that the characters are unbelievable, wise beyond their years - and this holds true for AFioS. The insights and reactions of Hazel, Gus and even Issac is way beyond what I think most teenagers would display. But here's the thing, I don't remember ever thinking that when I was a young adult reading such books - and I don't think the characters in the books have changed that much. What has changed, obviously, is me. I'm older, I have more experience and I am now (far) distant from being a young adult and therefore the direct target audience for these books. So here's my conclusion on teens wise beyond their years in YA books - they have to be. If the characters in YA books were your typical teens, you wouldn't get the stories you do. I think it's also a way of showing YA readers what they can become, presents a model of maybe who they'd like to be. This slightly unrealistic presentation of their age group doesn't worry them because they can imagine that's what they could be like. If adults truly want to get the best out of YA books, they need to stop expecting them to be books for adults and accept they are books for young adults - teens.

Book Review: Delirum

From Goodreads: Ninety-five days, and then I'll be safe. I wonder whether the procedure will hurt. I want to get it over with. It's hard to be patient. It's hard not to be afraid while I'm still uncured, though so far the deliria hasn't touched me yet. Still, I worry. They say that in the old days, love drove people to madness. The deadliest of all deadly things: It kills you both when you have it and when you don't.

Thoughts: I chose to listen to this because I needed a new audio and I had enjoyed listening to Panic. The premise also sounded interesting - a world where love is seen as a disease and a cure has been found. Once you reach 18 you can be cured and live a life of blissful happiness, never bothered by those pesky, overwhelming emotions again. Except of course, there are people who get infected before 18 and those for who the cure doesn't work. Given the whole outline of the world it's not hard to see where this book is going.
I mentioned in a recent review that I have some trouble with the current batch of YA dystopian novels. I gave this one a go because I liked the author. My problem now is I'm not sure if I have issues with this because of the book or the person who narrated it. When I think about the story I can't complain about it too much. Yes there was a little too much teenage angst, but it's a novel aimed at teenagers specifically about love - I can't be surprised by the angst! The world created is believable, the characters genuine. The narrators voice though was grating. Narrated by Sarah Drew, I just found her voice annoying. The best I can come up with is was it wasn't old enough, and not even that is right. Her voice for the female teenage characters was fine, but for any male or grown up character it just didn't work for me.
Any way, I'm going to read the second one rather than listen to it and see if that's the issue. I hope so, I really do want to like it.

Book Review: Panic

From Goodreads: Panic began as so many things do in Carp, a dead-end town of 12,000 people in the middle of nowhere: because it was summer, and there was nothing else to do.
Heather never thought she would compete in Panic, a legendary game played by graduating seniors, where the stakes are high and the payoff is even higher. She’d never thought of herself as fearless, the kind of person who would fight to stand out. But when she finds something, and someone, to fight for, she will discover that she is braver than she ever thought.
Dodge has never been afraid of Panic. His secret will fuel him, and get him all the way through the game, he’s sure of it. But what he doesn't know is that he’s not the only one with a secret. Everyone has something to play for.
For Heather and Dodge, the game will bring new alliances, unexpected revelations, and the possibility of first love for each of them—and the knowledge that sometimes the very things we fear are those we need the most.

Thoughts: I was looking for a new audio and I remembered this one from Shelia's blog, so I took a chance, signed up at audible.com and downloaded it. Glad I did.
Panic is about so much more than the game. Each player has their reasons for entering - for some it's the glory, for some it's the money, for some it's their only ticket out of town.The town is small, dying and almost everyone wants to get out. There is a hint of desperation to the town and it's younger inhabitants - escape now or end up stuck here forever.
As well as Dodge and Heather, there is Natalie, Heather's best friend and Dodge's crush and Bishop, another close friend of Heather's. As supporting characters, Nat and Bishop are incredibly well formed. They are three dimensional and have their own little stories going on. I picked Bishop's secret fairly early on, but it in no way detracted from the story for me.
The adult characters were mostly in the background (as they often are in YA books), but were a lot more fleshed out that a lot of adults in YA fiction.
As the game progresses, the stakes become higher and the challenges more dangerous. Oliver cleverly reflects the tension in the disintegrating relationships of the characters. Like the games highs and lows of completing a challenge and then having to wait nervously for the next note, the relationships in the book between friends and family ebb and flow as the tension builds and releases. Panic is not just about the game, it's about testing friendships, loyalty, value and courage in all part of your life. You could read it just for the game, but you would be missing out on so much more.
Most probably one of the most appealing aspects of Panic is the fact it's a stand alone YA book written by an author who has a proven track record with a series (Oliver also wrote the popular Delirium series). I haven't read the series (but am more likely to now) but it seems to me that these days it's rare for a series author to also write stand alone stories. It also appears that Delirium is more of a dystopian where I would class Panic as a contemporary novel - again nice to see an author able to write in more than one genre.
If I had one criticism of Panic it is how the rest of the town seems fairly oblivious or indifferent to a game which places the contestants in constant and real danger. The collection of the pot is also hard to swallow. (all students in the high school pay $1 every school day into the pot - no exceptions, collection will be made.) To Oliver's credit though, she spends very little time on this, preferring instead to immerse you in the competition so you really don't care too much about the discrepancies. 
In short, Panic is the best YA (not including the CBC short list) I've read since the Hunger Games. (and while we're on the Hunger Games, I have heard comparisons between it and Panic. I don't understand why. Apart from the game aspect, completely different!)

Book Review: Breath

From Goodreads:Tim Winton is Australia’s best-loved novelist. His new work,Breath, is an extraordinary evocation of an adolescence spent resisting complacency, testing one’s limits against nature, finding like-minded souls, and discovering just how far one breath will take you. It’s a story of extremes—extreme sports and extreme emotions.
On the wild, lonely coast of Western Australia, two thrillseeking and barely adolescent boys fall into the enigmatic thrall of veteran big-wave surfer Sando. Together they form an odd but elite trio. The grown man initiates the boys into a kind of Spartan ethos, a regimen of risk and challenge, where they test themselves in storm swells on remote and shark-infested reefs, pushing each other to the edges of endurance, courage, and sanity. But where is all this heading? Why is their mentor’s past such forbidden territory? And what can explain his American wife’s peculiar behaviour? Venturing beyond all limits—in relationships, in physical challenge, and in sexual behaviour—there is a point where oblivion is the only outcome. Full of Winton’s lyrical genius for conveying physical sensation, Breath is a rich and atmospheric coming-of-age tale from one of world literature’s finest storytellers.

Thoughts: In Breath, Tim Winton tells a breathtaking coming of age story. It's a story of testing yourself against nature, against your own fears, against the expectation of others. It's about living a life less ordinary , taking risks and accepting that sometimes, those risks aren't worth the reward.
Breath for me shows a new maturity for Winton. He's usual fluid writing style is there,. His seemingly simple descriptions deceptively complex. However, his main protagonist for once seems to have overcome the traumas of youth to some degree. The main character, Bruce "Piklet" Pike is tell the reader the story of his adolescence from the  wiser, more experienced stand point of middle age. While acknowledging the effect of events on his life, he doesn't seem to be running away from them or blaming them. Instead he accepts their role in making him who is in today and doesn't lurch from disaster to disaster.
Be warned though, Breath does take a rather startling and dark turn at some stage - a turn that unsettles many and may make you uncomfortable. The brilliance of Winton is that you may very well be deep in the darkness before you realise, and you continue to read, hoping he will eventually lead you out again.

Book Review: The Hostile Hospital

From Goodreads: As you might expect, nothing but woe befalls the unlucky Baudelaire orphans in the eighth grim tale in Lemony Snicket's Series of Unfortunate Events that began with The Bad Beginning. Ever since the orphans' photographs were plastered across the front page of The Daily Punctilio in an article falsely accusing them of murder, they have been on the run. Only when they disguise themselves as cheerful hospital volunteers (Volunteers Fighting Disease, to be exact), do they see a possible refuge. Of course, this backfires hideously. Where is their ineffectual guardian, Mr. Poe, when they need him most? Will the evil, greedy Count Olaf be successful in giving poor Violet a cranioectomy at the Heimlich Hospital? Is a heart-shaped balloon really better than water for a thirsty patient? Is no news really good news? As ever, Snicket refuses to comfort young readers with cozy answers and satisfying escapes. And, as ever, there are plenty of rusty blades and horrible plot twists to make us shudder and shameless-but-hilarious wordplay to make us grimace happily. Bring on the next one! 

Thoughts: Tim Curry (as in Frankenfurter from the Rocky Horror Picture Show) narrates this audio book version - and brilliantly!

Yep, that's your narrator!

 

 

 

 

I've been listening to this series in the car with my kids and another couple of boys who car pool with us. while not only being a highly entertaining story, it has the added bonus of keeping the kids quiet!
The premise of the series is the Baudelaires - Violet, Klaus and Sunny - have been left orphaned after a house fire killed their parents. In the first book they are placed in the care of their uncle, Count Olaf who the proceeds to try and get his hands on their sizeable fortune. They escape and subsequent books continue to chronicle their unfortunate events as Olaf continues to try and capture them.
One of the best thinks about this series is how well it is written. The situations the orphans find themselves in are so ridiculous you can quite happily suspend all disbelief and just enjoy the ride. However, along the way many themes are explored and discussed. In this, the eighth book in the series, the children suddenly realise the thin line between victim and villain and question which side they are on. Is doing something bad (like lying to someone you don't want to lie to) justifiable if it ultimately leads to a good outcome - even if it's only good for you?
A Series of Unfortunate Events is a funny, intelligent and exciting series, perfect for 8-12 year olds.
 

Book Review - The Shifting Fog

From Goodreads: Summer 1924: On the eve of a glittering society party, by the lake of a grand English country house, a young poet takes his life. The only witnesses, sisters Hannah and Emmeline Hartford, will never speak to each other again.
Winter 1999: Grace Bradley, 98, one-time housemaid of Riverton Manor, is visited by a young director making a film about the poet's suicide. Ghosts awaken and memories, long consigned to the dark reaches of Grace's mind, begin to sneak back through the cracks. A shocking secret threatens to emerge; something history has forgotten but Grace never could.
Thoughts:  This has also been published as The House at Riverton.
As the end of her life draws near, Grace Bradley looks back at her life as a housemaid at the grand house, Riverton, and the tragic events that happened there.
This is the second Kate Morton I've read and I wonder why I left it so long! I actually listened to this as an audio book. While it took a little while to get into, it ended up being very engaging.
Morton shifted back and forth between 1999 and 1924 with ease. Using Grace as the connection, her recollection of earlier events opened the door onto the past. There was a twist at the end, which had been hinted it through the book, but you were never really sure what had happened and it still managed to surprise me. I can only hope I don't leave it this long before enjoying Kate Morton again!

Book Review: BlueBack

From Goodreads: Abel Jackson loves to dive. He's a natural in the water. He can't remember a time when he couldn't use a mask and snorkel to glide down into the clear deep. Life is tough out at Longboat Bay. Every day the boy helps his mother earn their living from the sea and the land. It's hard work but Abel has the bush and the sky and the bay to himself. Until the day he meets Blueback, the fish that changes his life. Blueback is about people learning from nature.

Thoughts: Yep, another Tim Winton audio. Blueback is one of those beautiful cross over books written fro children, but with so much to offer adults as well. On the surface it's the story about a boy and a fish, while deeper down it's about respect for our environment, the importance of keeping what matters in sight and the love of family.
I listened to this in car with my kids (aged 11 and 7) and love the fact they protested every time we had to stop. Winton's writing loses none of it's eloquence when he writes for children. His descriptions are as rich, his characters as accessible. Seriously, with Winton, you cannot lose.

Challenges:  Aussie Author Challenge

Book Review: The Riders

From Goodreads: Fred Scully has decided to leave Australia to carve a new life for himself and his young family in Ireland. He labours alone to make their dilapidated cottage habitable, but when he arrives at the airport to pick up his wife and child, only his small daughter steps off the plane. So begins Scully's desperate odyssey across Europe, searching for the one person he thought he'd never lose.

Thoughts: Tim Winton writes to be read aloud. I listened to this as an audio book and I frequently found myself sitting in the car in the carpark, not willing to get out, mesmerized by the prose.
 I know I read The Riders many years ago. I remember being confused by it, struggling to follow the story. However, with a bit of time (and I dare say maturity!) it's completely different.
Winton evokes so many emotions - humour, joy, fear, anger, sadness - often within sentences of each other. I started off feeling sorry for Scully, angry at his wife, concerned for their daughter Billie. As the novel progresses and Scully's search for Jennifer becomes more frantic, more out of control I became angry with him. His concern for Billie becomes patchy, unfocused and she is forced, at the age of 7, to take control. Although I see the reason behind this (the book is about obsession after all) as a parent it just made me want to shout at him. Who the hell drags their 7 year old across Europe looking for a woman who doesn't want to be found? But then again, who abandons her husband and 7 year old without a word of explanation?
In true Winton fashion the "problem" is not resolved. However, the journey is complete. The decent into sanity testing obsession and the scramble out of it again is richly described. It's truly a book where the destination doesn't matter, but the journey does - and maybe that's what I missed when I was younger.
If I do have a complaint about this particular version (the audio book), it was that the narrator was terrible at female voices! Luckily there weren't too many and in the end the story carried the day!

 Challenges: Aussie Authors