Review: Dreamland: A Magical Ghost Story, by Nick Clausen

Dreamland: A Magical Ghost Story, by Nick Clausen

Independent* - 2019
Fiction - YA/Paranormal
E-book
160 Pages

- I received this digital Review copy courtesy of the author - Nick Clausen, in exchange of an honest review. This does not influence the following opinions which are my own.

    
* Nick Clausen is an author from Denmark who has traditionally published books in his native language of Danish. He is currently working on translating his works into English. 

Dreamland is an entertaining tale that satisfied my craving for ghost story. Despite being a short story, Clausen was able to create an eerie atmosphere to send a shudder down your spine. 

Twelve year old Louie lives alone with his mother. His father died when he was still a baby ,and it has been just the two of them since. His dreams had always been vivid, but lately they have been different. His dreams have become more like chapters in a book, continuing from one night to the next. He is also sleeping more and more, and becoming harder to wake. 

In his dreams he there is a man who seems to know him well. Very well. He tells Louie that he is Louie's father. Soon, the influence of this man is causing problems for Louie in his real life, and Louie is struggling to wake from his dreams. There is something sinister going on and Louie realizes too late that his dreams might actually be nightmares.

This story packs a lot into a short read.  While the book has a definite creep factor, there are other, deeper themes as well.  The grieving single mother, a boy who never really knew his father trying to make sense of his own place in the world without him. The ability of a child to miss something they never even really had, and the never ending love of parents. 

A ghastly good read. 

Happy Reading,

Christine

Review: The Family Upstairs, by Lisa Jewell

The Family Upstairs, by Lisa Jewell

Atria Books - Available November 5, 2019
Thriller - Psychological
E-book
352 Pages

* I received this digital ARC courtesy of Atria Books, via NetGalley in exchange of an honest review. This does not influence the following opinions which are my own.

Lisa Jewell delivers another taut and twisted thriller in The Family Upstairs.

Twenty-four years ago, a baby about 10 months old was found in a house with three dead adults, their identical dark tunics and leggings marking them as suspected cult members, and the other four children known to be living in the house vanished without a trace. 

Almost twenty-five years later, that baby - Libby, opens a letter that will change her life. The letter detailing the inheritance from her birth parents that has been held in trust for her. She has been waiting for this birthday, and the expected letter from the solicitors that comes with it, for as long as she can remember.  Libby is shocked to learn that she has inherited a house in the swanky Chelsea district on the banks of the Thames. A house valued in the millions. With the help of a local reporter, Libby hopes to open the secrets of her past,

But Libby is not the only person who has been waiting for her twenty-fifth birthday.  Other people have been waiting for it too. And while she is looking for answers, they are looking for her.

Jewell's latest offering is a real page turner! The story is filled with all the things that make a psychological thriller great. Lies, scandal, sex, deception, secrets...(well you get the idea), all carefully woven into one twisted, stunning, page turning tale.

The story is told in alternating time lines of past and present, and through multiple points of view, which may take a little getting used to early on, but  thanks to good writing, it does not present a problem, and in my opinion was a great way to tease out this twisted tale.  The plot is well thought out, and each detail was carefully considered. Even when I thought I had a vague sense of what was going on, new details would be revealed raising more questions.  Anticipate some late night reading once you start this book, you won't want to put it down!

Happy Reading,

Christine

Review: Labyrinth Lost, by Zoraida Cordova

Labyrinth Lost, by Zoraida Cordova

Recorded Books - 2016
Fantasy, Paranormal, YA
Brooklyn Brujas - Book 1
Audiobook
Narrated by Almarie Guerra

9 Hours, 27 Minutes

Alex lives in Brooklyn with her mother and sisters. While Alex just wants to be a normal teenager, her life is anything but normal. 

Alex is a Bruja (a type of witch), coming from a long line of Brujas, and she is a powerful one at that. During a celebration attended by her family, both living and dead, there is to be a ceremony in which she is to perform the rites to  accept her powers in full, and to become the great Bruja she is destined to be. But Alex doesn't want to be a Bruja. 

During the ceremony, instead of performing the rites to accept the full power of her magical gifts, she performs a different spell in an attempt to banish her gifts. The spell does not work as Alex had expected, and instead of her magic, it is her family that is banished, vanishing into thin air right before her eyes.

In order to get her family back, she enlists the aid of Nova, a Brujo with strange dark markings and tattoos that she has only recently met, and cannot trust. They travel to the darkly magical realm of Los Lagos, where they embark on an epic and dangerous journey and must get past many darkly strange creatures and spirits in an attempt to find and free her mother and sisters.

The basic story line was intriguing and really caught my interest. I loved the Latin American mythology that is at the roots of this story. I enjoy exploring other cultures through books steeped in that culture's mythology.

I felt like the book could have used some additional minor polishing. Without dropping spoilers, I will say that there was an element of this story that felt forced for me. As if it were added to adhere to a certain formula, but  did not feel like it fit tightly into the story.  I would have like to have seen it snugged into the story a little better, or failing that, removed completely. I'm sure that is an unpopular opinion, but it is mine.  To be fair, there is another book in the series, and perhaps that part of the story will create the shape needed for that part to fit better for my tastes.

Narration was skillfully performed by Almarie Guerra. Guerra told the story in a clear and pleasant voice, her tone and cadence were good, and she performed with good range of emotion and character. She easily switched between a Brooklyn accent, and a Latin American Accent and back again.  She made the audiobook a pleasure to listen to. 

At the end of the day, I felt it was a good book, that was well performed and I plan to continue the story with the next in the series, Bruja Born.

Happy Reading,

Christine

Review: The Nest, by Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney

The Nest, by Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney

HarperAudio - 2016
Fiction - Literary
Audiobook
Narrated by Mia Barron

11 Hours, 6 Minutes

The Nest is an enjoyable book, but for me, not a particularly memorable story. 

The book centers around the clearly dysfunctional Plumb family, particularly the four siblings Leo, Jack, Melody and Bea. 

Their father had created what he planned to be a small trust fund for the siblings to split in their mid-lives, to be paid when Melody - the youngest, turned forty. He meant the amount to be a modest mid-life boost, but that tidy trust fund, through good investments and good luck, turned into much more than than the modest amount he had planned.

Each of the siblings is counting on their share of "the nest" to solve problems created by their own poor decisions. Months shy of the trust fund payout, Leo gets in an accident while behind the wheel of his car, drunk and in the company of a 19 year old waitress. The nest is drastically depleted in order to pay for the fallout of the accident and now the siblings are dealing with their own emotional and financial fallout as their expectations may not be met. 

While the story is good, it is somewhat predictable as it follows the typical formula of "counting chickens before the eggs hatch" followed by a journey self-discovery when forced to face the possibility of fewer chickens. The characters aren't particularly likable, they generally come off as spoiled and difficult to sympathize with. When you don't really like any of the characters, you might like the book, but it's hard to love the book. 

Narration was performed by Mia Barron with a clear voice and  pleasant cadence and tone, as well as good range of character and emotion.

Happy Reading,

Christine

Review: Fishnet, by Kirsten Innes

Fishnet, by Kirsten Innes

Simon & Schuster Canada - 2019
General Fiction - Contemporary - Women's
Print
351 Pages

* I received this ARC courtesy of Simon & Schuster Canada in exchange of an honest review. This does not influence the following opinions which are my own.

One woman's mystery and a peek into the world of modern sex-trade. 

Six years ago, Fiona's sister Rona calls her in a panic. When Fiona goes to pick her up she finds Rona now has a baby and isn't coping well. She brings her sister and the baby back to her home, but come morning her sister is gone and she is now left alone with the baby.  Rona has vanished and is not seen or heard from again, leaving Fiona to raise the baby as her own. 

Fiona's search for her sister takes a turn when she learns her sister was trading sex for money at the time of her disappearance, Her search now takes her into the world of the sex trade and she soon learns it is not necessarily quite what she thought it was. 

I had some conflicting feelings about this book. 

What I really liked was the general story line - the devoted sister in search of her long lost sibling, and more importantly, the way it examines the world of sex trade workers with compassion and without prejudice. Innes is effective in showing that not all sex workers are strung-out, abused, or broken victims. While society debates the merits of criminalization vs decriminalization, Innes has created a book that is both a provocative and poignant window to the issues of those workers today. 

What I didn't like as much was they style in which it was delivered.  Too many jumps in time lines and points of view. For myself it just didn't have a smooth flow, I also had a little trouble in the areas where a local Scottish dialect figured prominently in a phonetic way.  Words like "fer", "Somewan", "dinnay", etc. Certainly not a deal breaker, but something that did detract from the overall enjoyment for me. 

Overall, Fishnet is a good example of women's fiction that explores the many facets of sex trade workers and society's views on them. 

Happy Reading,

Christine

Review: Crisis In The Red Zone, by Richard Preston

Crisis in The Red Zone, by Richard Preston

Penguin Random House - 2019
Non-Fiction - Documentary
Audiobook 
Narrated by Ray Porter

13 Hours, 2 Minutes

My Rating (out of 5)

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Crisis In The Red Zone is a non-fiction, documentary style book that examines the worst Ebola outbreak in history as told through the stories of some of the people who fought against it.  

The book starts with a brief look at the 1976 outbreak which is the first outbreak of Ebola on record, and when it was named after the nearby Ebola river. 

The book then follows the 2014-2016 outbreak - the worst outbreak ever, from its index case - a 2 year old boy near Méliandou, Guinea late 2013, and its rapid progression within the surrounding areas, until the outbreak is considered over, nearly 2 years and over 28,600 infections and 11,300 deaths later. 

The reader is introduced to a local team of local medical providers, and it is primarily through their stories that we learn about the challenges that were faced as the outbreak spreads. As the scope of the outbreak reaches staggering proportions, we are introduced to some international health care providers, researchers, and charitable health organizations who fought along with the local people until the outbreak ends in 2016. 

Preston has written a book to educate people without a medical/scientific background on not only Ebola, but the types of viruses that threaten us with pandemics. Remember SARS?  H1N1?  How far it spread? How panicked we were? Now imagine a deadlier virus.  What if the Ebola cases that made it to Europe and America were not so effectively contained? In this age of air travel and global business, it probably is only a matter of time before a serious virus does start a global pandemic. This book is not written in a way that should scare people, but rather a way that educates those of us without a medical background on the nature of these viruses and what it takes to fight them. Knowledge being the best offence. 

There are two reasons I think that the writing of this documentary style book was especially good. 

First off, the technical aspect of the book was very well presented for the average person - that is the jargon was kept to a minimum and what was necessary was well explained. I really appreciated the fact that everything was described in a way that I could understand it. 

Secondly, was the way that Preston chose to deliver this information by creating an emotional connection between the reader and the people who he chose to write about in telling the history of the West African outbreak.  By introducing the reader to the personalities of the individuals being followed by the story, I felt engaged  and interested in their outcomes.  I felt a full range of emotions during this book. While it is a non-fiction documentary, this book is as engaging as a well written novel. 

Narration was provided by Ray Porter.  Often for non-fiction books, a narrator with acting skill is not necessary, but in this case it was a perfect choice.  As I said, this true story reads like a novel, and having a skilled voice artist to tell it preserved that effect and kept the audiobook engaging.  

Crisis In The Red Zone a documentary that is not only educational, but every bit as engaging as a novel. It is an excellent and touching tribute to all those who fought in the worst Ebola outbreak in history - many of whom did not survive, and to those who continue to fight against this disease as outbreaks are still being occasionally recorded to this day (as of this writing, the second largest outbreak of Ebola is ongoing in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Currently the toll is over 3,600 cases with over 2,100 deaths).  But there is hope. Lessons learned from the 2014-2016 outbreak are being used to educate people living where Ebola outbreaks occur, thereby reducing transmission; and scientific information developed during that time is being used to increase survival rates for those infected and develop treatments and vaccines. 

Happy Reading,

Christine

The Storm Crow, by Kalyn Josephson

The Storm Crow, by Kalynn Josephson

Recorded Books 2019
Fantasy - YA
Audiobook 
Narrated by Robin Miles

10 Hours, 54 Minutes

My Rating (out of 5)

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Storm Crow is a thrilling fantasy that is a perfect example of why fantasy targeted as Ya, is worth reading even if you are far from the YA demographic

Anthia is a princess in the kingdom of Rhodaire. As the kingdom prepares for the festival in honor of the magical crows integral to the daily life in Rhodaire, Anthia is looking forward to getting her own crow and training as a crow-rider. But on the day of the festival Rhodaire is attacked by the Illucian empire. The crows are wiped out, and Anthia's mother and her much loved mentor are also killed. The physical scars inflicted on Anthia that night are nothing compared to the pain and internal scars she suffers every day afterward.

Anthia is thrown into a devastating depression.  She is further struck when her older sister Caliza - now the queen, tells her that in order to placate the war-hungry Illucian queen, and stave off further attacks, she has been forced to agree to the marriage of Anthia to the Illucian queen's son, the crown prince. 

Before Anthia leaves for Illucia, she visits the burned out royal rookery that once housed the beloved magical crows, and finds an egg - still viable and thrumming with magic! With this, Anthia and Caliza find hope to re-take their kingdom and its future from the cruel Illucian queen. But to fight back they need time. To succeed they must pull off a dangerous plan, with Anthia in the heart of enemy territory. 

There is a lot to like about this book.  A powerful female lead despite the fact she is fighting depression,  rich, multi-faceted characters and interpersonal relationships, great world building and an evil queen you just love to hate...I mean this lady could sip tea with Cersei Lannister and hold her own. 

Narration was performed by Robin Miles, and I can not imagine anyone else doing a better job.  A great voice with the acting skills to portray the many characters and powerful emotions they go through. 

While targeted to and suitable for a YA audience, The Storm Crow is a story that can be enjoyed by all who love a good fantasy. 

Book two The Crow Rider, is expected summer 2020.  Looking forward to it!

Happy Reading,

Christine

Review:Right After The Weather, by Carol Anshaw

Right After The Weather, by Carol Anshaw

Atria - 2019
General Fiction
Print
288 Pages

* I received this ARC courtesy of Simon & Schuster Canada, in exchange of an honest review. This does not influence the following opinions which are my own.

My Rating (out of 5)

⭐⭐⭐

This book is very slow to start, but redeems itself in the second half with thoughtful and insightful prose.   

Cate is a theater set designer in her early 40's, barely earning a living.  She is struggling to make ends meet and is still accepting money from her parents.  Her personal life is not in better shape. Her ex-husband is staying in her spare room while he sorts out his most recent marriage failure. She is seeing someone new, but not completely emotionally detached from a previous relationship. Her best friend Neale - a single mother and yoga instructor, lives nearby and is Cate's most stable and meaningful relationship, and a role model for the more adult life she wishes to lead. 

As the story is told, we get brief glimpses of troubled couple Nathan and Irene who have criminal and sociopathic tendencies.  One day they invade Neale's home and attack her.  Cate walks in on the attack and in a split second and a flash of violence Cate takes action. While she saves Neale, the violence imprinted on each of them that day has a profound and lasting impact on them both. 

Right After The Weather had a rough start for me.  I admit, I am the kind of reader that doesn't do well with long, slow lead-ins.  I need a book to hit me with some action or a character I can really connect to, or something else substantial reasonably early on in a story. I struggled with this book for the first half, as it passed without capturing my attention and I found myself putting it down easily. In fact I almost put it down and gave up on it.

But there was redemption in the second half.  At about the half-way point in the book the attack happens, and after that point I found the book interesting and with depth and insight into the human condition - especially as it is after suffering a violent and traumatic event. Not only the direct effects on those who were there that day, but also the effects on their interpersonal relationships with other friends, and family and even the other friends and family themselves.  

This was a good book with beautiful prose and great insight into the ways violence can affect people. Unfortunately for me, it was somewhat burdened by its slow beginning. 

Happy Reading,

Christine

Sunday Summary - September 8 to October 5, 2019 NEW SUMMARY SCHEDULE

Welcome to my Sunday Summary.  A look back on my bookish adventures for the past week month.

In the past, I have tried to post a Sunday Summary on a weekly basis. Often times that worked, but equally often it did not. When something isn't working well, it is time to consider trying something new and making a change.  

Going forward I am switching to a monthly summary to be posted on the first Sunday of the month. 

Hopefully this will give the summaries more substance and free up a little of my time that I can devote to keeping up with my reading, reviews, and posts. 

So here we go!

Click on cover images to read the reviews

The Ten Thousand Doors Of January, by Alix E. Harrow

29 Seconds, by T. M. Logan 

The Butterfly Girl, by Rene Denfeld 

The Night Tiger, by Yangsze Choo  - Read my review

Siege And Sacrifice, by Charlie N. Holmberg  

The World That We Knew, by Alice Hoffman  - Read my review

Wherever She Goes, by K. L. Armstsrong  - Read my review

The Chain, by Adrian McKinty  - Read my review

Under The Water, by Paul Pen 

Translators And Wonderful Books They Bring Us. 

A post in praise of the literary translators and the books they bring us.  Includes a few of my favorite translated books. To read the post click HERE

My current read is Right After The Weather, by Carol Anshaw, and i am currently listening to Storm Crow, by Kalyn Josephson

Notable titles on deck include; Fishnet, by Kirsten Innes, being published on October 15th. and The Family Upstairs, by Lisa Jewell, being published November 5th.

Happy Reading, 

Christine

Review: Under The Water, by Paul Pen

Under The Water, by Paul Pen

Amazon Crossing - 2019
General Fiction/Thriller
E-book
314 Pages

* I received this digital ARC courtesy of Amazon Crossing, via NetGalley in exchange of an honest review. This does not influence the following opinions which are my own.

My Rating (out of 5)

⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2

I can always count on Paul Pen to deliver a thriller I am going to enjoy. 

In Under The Water, we meet Frank and Grace and their two children Audrey and Simon.  Reeling after a period of bad luck plagued by strange events, illness, and life altering accidents, Frank has taken a job transfer and is moving the family across country in search of a fresh start and better luck. With their belongings sent ahead with movers, they start their new adventures by taking their new RV sightseeing along the way to their new home.

On a sparsely traveled road their bad luck resumes when they nearly collide with a woman who suddenly appears in the middle of the road.  The R.V. is disabled after the near miss so Grace invites the woman, named Mara, to stay with them until morning. Frank is not being the most welcoming, and tensions are rising.  For all the problems the family is trying to leave behind, the worst is yet to come.

Pen knows how to write a book with a slow creepy chill. He tells his stories through the characters that are multi-faceted, and well developed. It is always a pleasure to dive into one of his novels. I would love to say so much more about Under The Water, but to do so would reveal the secrets that make this book an experience to savor.

Paul Pen writes his novels in Spanish, and for Under The Water, he once again relies on the talented Simon Bruni to translate into English. Bruni has a gift for translating not only the words, but the nuances of the work as well.  This is the third book that I have read from this writer and translator team (along with The Light Of The Fireflies, and Desert Flowers), and I can assure you that as long as they continue to work together I will continue to read their books. I am looking forward to their next collaboration - The Warning, scheduled for release February 4, 2020.

Happy Reading,

Christine

Review: The Chain, by Adrian McKinty

The Chain, by Adrian McKinty

Hachette Audio - 2019
Thriller
Audiobook
Narrated by, January LaVoy

10 Hours, 9 Minutes

My Rating (out of 5)

⭐⭐⭐1/2

Bold and frightening. A good story that fell a little short of its great potential.

Imagine your child is kidnapped. Like any parent, your first thought on this is "I would do anything to get my child back safely". Now imagine that the kidnappers demands to release your child includes you having to kidnap another, and your own child won't be released until until your victim's family kidnaps another. This is The Chain.  You aren't the first, and you wont be the last. 

The idea behind this story is absolutely sinister.  Cold, calculating, and cruel.  

The first part of this story is spine-chilling and gripping.  A keep-you-up-late - can't-put-it-down kind of read.  Original and meticulously thought out.  This book started on a 5-star track.

But alas, for me the story fell off that track and lost it's edge towards the end.  The twists became a little predictable and the "big finish" seemed a bit overdone.  The story that started out great ended on lackluster notes.  Overall, for me it was still a good thriller, but not great.

The narration for this audiobook was performed by the talented and skilled January LaVoy - one of my favorite audiobook narrators. I can always count on an excellent performance by LaVoy, with her clear and pleasant voice and wonderful acting skills to provide a wide range of characters and emotions - from a frustrated and scared mother, to a man trying to maintain control, and right down to a scared little girl. 

The Chain is a good read with a powerful start, but coasts somewhat to the end.