Review: The Toll, by Cherie Priest

The Toll, by Cherie Priest

MacMillan-Tor/Forge
Horror
E-book

336 Pages

* I received this digital ARC courtesy of MacMillan-Tor/Forge, 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

The Toll is a creepy jaunt into the swamplands of the deep south. 

Titus and his new wife Melanie are heading into Okefenokee swamp for a canoe trip while on their honeymoon. Just before they enter, they come across an ancient, narrow, single lane bridge. The next thing Titus knows, he is waking up outside the car, in the middle of nowhere, and Melanie is missing.  He can't even see the bridge which was his last memory before waking up. When he calls the police to help find her, they tell him there is no such bridge on that route. 

The locals have grown used to people disappearing into the swamp - especially Clair and Daisy - it seems to happen regularly...almost like clockwork They do what they can to protect their godson Cameron, but when he goes into the swamp, they have to pull out all the stops to try and get him back out. 

Priest does an excellent job of creating the right mood for this book.  Dark, oppressive, and creepy, you can almost feel the mood the way a person will feel the atmosphere before a thunderstorm. 

One thing that didn't really work for me, was the concept of anybody choosing to honeymoon in a swamp - for any reason. This sort of got the story started on the wrong foot for me, and it took me a while to get past it. Once I was able to get over that initial hiccup,  and immerse myself in the tale, the rest of the story was really quite good. If Titus and Melanie had entered the swamplands for any other reason than a honeymoon this story would have easily been at least a 4-star read for me.

Overall, a good, solid horror story with an almost tangible mood to it.

Happy Reading,

Christine

Review: All Is Not Forgotten, by Wendy walker

All Is Not Forgotten, by Wendy Walker

MacMillan Audio - 2016
Thriller
Audiobook
Narrated by Dylan Baker

11 Hourrs, 30 Minutes

My Rating (out of 5)

⭐⭐⭐⭐

While primarily a thriller, All Is Not Forgotten is written with strong emotional components woven through it. 

Trigger warning: Rape, sexual assault. 

Jenny Kramer lives in one of those affluent little town where the residents feel that their economic and social status will insulate them from the bad things that happen in other places. One night all that changes.

The book starts with the brutal rape of Jenny. It is the rape that results in her meeting the narrator of this  story - her psychiatrist. 

After surgery to repair the physical damage to Jenny's body a decision has to be made - to administer a developmental/experimental drug protocol that will remove Jenny's memory of that horrible night, basically sparing her the PTSD that she would have likely suffered from if she did remember the rape. Mental recall is just one part of memory though, and in some ways her body remembers what her mind forgets. In the end it is the conflict of knowing she was raped but not having any actual recall of it that proves to be too difficult for her. 

During all if this Jenny's parents struggle too. Both Jenny's mother and father have her best interests at heart, but that doesn't mean they agree with each other on how to protect those interests.  Jenny's father Tom has an unquenchable desire for justice, while Jenny's mother Charlotte has an equally strong need to pretend that the rape never happened and move on.  This difference of opinion opens a rift in the marriage as both feel strongly about what they think Jenny needs in order to heal. Their difference in approach strains their marriage.

While all this is going on, a rapist is still at large in community, and he might be closer than Jenny and her parents think. 

This psychological thriller treads some dangerous emotional waters. Though the subject matter is dark and uncomfortable,  Walker spins her tale with wisdom and compassion. Other than the story's narrator Dr. Forrester - who is a bit of an arrogant prick, the characters are mostly likable, if imperfect. While the rape of Jenny is brutal, I don't think it is gratuitous in nature. The only way for this story to work, is for the protagonist to experience to experience something truly horrible. I think Walker does a good job in trying to balance the need in the story for this event to be devastatingly horrific to the character, with trying not to be any more graphic than the story requires to make that point. 

This audiobook was narrated by Dylan Baker. His voice was clear and pleasant, sufficiently varied by character, and portrayed with appropriate range of emotion.

Happy Reading,

Christine

Ramblings: Bookish Pet Peeves Post #1 Unfinished Or Abandoned Series.

Bookish Pet Peeves #1 Unfinished or Abandoned Series

We all have pet peeves.  I have decided to keep track of my bookish ones here on The Last Page Turned. The number refers to the chronological order of the posts, not the degree of my peevedness...is that a word? If not, I just made it up and it is now 😉

Unfinished And Abandoned Series - The Itch You Can't Scratch

One of my pet peeves is starting to read a series of books, only to be let down when the conclusion is never written. 

I came across an audiobook that looked interesting - part of an older series. So I decide to give it a go...If I like it, I can follow through with the rest of the series. I listen, and I like it.

YAY! Right?

Not so fast there bucko!!...

While composing my review, I started to look into the other books in the series so I could mention them by name in the review I was working on. To my horror, I found a list of unhappy GoodReads members who had enjoyed the first two books, who had then been waiting patiently, then impatiently, and finally abandoning the series and all hope of conclusion - some even declaring they were unwilling to follow the author anymore for fear of being left hanging again. It has been 5 years since the second book was published, and there is still nary an announcement, an ARC, a cover reveal - Nothing to indicate that a conclusion is actually on its way. I wish I had realized that before I got into the story - I never would have bothered. Lesson learned - when choosing an older series to start, make sure the series is complete, or at least active.

With no hope of a satisfying ending, I have chosen to abandon the series after the first book. Reading the second will only add fuel to a fire that has no hope of being extinguished. How sad. Besides, I really don't feel like supporting the author in general, or the "series" in particular at this point. 

So this led me to thinking about series books, and more specifically unfinished series.  There is something to be said about a good stand alone because one can expect a satisfying ending most of the time. But like many avid readers, I do enjoy a good series sometimes, and some stories just need more time to tell. But when the author leaves you dangling off an emotional cliff, by your fingernails, do they owe it to you the reader to provide a prompt instalment or conclusion? 

I put out a few polls on twitter about the subject - more on that later. I do however have my own opinion and it only seems fair that I share that opinion.  I have some seriously conflicted feelings on the issue, but for me the short answer is...

No. 

The author does not "owe" me anything. Like many things in life though, the short answer doesn't really tell the whole story; does it? 

Unless the book was pirated or stolen, the obligations of both side have been met. The author wrote a book, and received payment for that copy of that book.  If there is a contract with the publisher, that is between the author and the publisher, not me.

But I like to support authors who entertain me, and make me feel like I matter as a reader. The author may not owe me another book, but providing a conclusion in a reasonably timely manner really would be the nice and polite thing to do. An author who abandons a series on a cliffhanger disappoints readers; and never once admitting that series has been abandoned, while within the author's rights, is adding insult to literary injury. To an avid reader, an unfinished story is like an itch you can't scratch. While it is true that the author does not owe it to me to write the next book in a timely fashion, I do not owe it to the writer to read their next book either. A series that is left for too long, becomes a dead series in my opinion.

My personal M.O. is that an author who leaves me hanging without darn good reason will only do so once.  I will not read nor recommend any of their other books. In the case of the book that sparked this post, I found out while writing my review of the first book in a "series" that the author's last instalment was 5 years ago, so it even affected my star rating, because to me, if there was any real desire to publish a conclusion/instalment, 5 years should be enough time to at least have an official announcement. There was no conclusion to the story, and no real indication there ever will be.

How long is too long between series books? 

In a perfect world, series books would be released soon enough after the last one, that the reader retains enough memory of the characters and events to re-submerse themselves into the story with little or no feelings of being lost. That is not always possible. Writers have lives beyond their computers. They have partners, kids, parents, and friends who are as important to them as ours are to us. They have hobbies, they get ill, they need to shop and eat and do all the things we do outside of our jobs. Life is not any more simple for them than it is for us as readers. There are a myriad of reasons why an instalment in a series could be delayed.

One of the best known unfinished series - G. R. R. Martin's Game Of Thrones was way-sided largely (but not completely) due to his work on the the television adaptation. In theory, the next instalment was available by a different media format (T.V.).  Not sure how I feel about that to be honest. I think guess I am inclined to give that a "soft" pass.  There has been much said about the forthcoming Winds Of Winter, but at this point I will believe it when I see it, and not sure how much I will still care if/when I do. I loved the books, I enjoyed the show (even if the last season seemed a little rushed and was plagued with continuity errors - *cough*Starbucks*cough*. A reader's memory can only last so long, and at least I was able to see a conclusion to the story albeit on television.

Let us not forget also, that Writing is an art. Good art does take time - sometimes less, and sometimes more. But certainly, once the first books are written, the characters are already developed, and the story is well into its story arc, within a few years the author can at least point to a rough date for completion, you know - "early next year", or "late 2020".  

There is a juxtaposition with this topic. I hate reading comments from readers acting like spoiled, entitled children all but demanding authors work on the project they want instead of what the author is feeling inspired to work on; But I would never want an unfinished painting on my wall, or listen to a music that ends on an abrupt note and unfinished lyrics,  or watch a play/movie that that ends right at the climax - and I don't want to read a story that never sees a conclusion.

Writer Sarah Kozloff responded to my Tweet, telling me that she often loses interest if she has to wait too long, and chose to complete writing her upcoming series first, and then release the books in monthly instalments. The Nine Realms will be available from Tor books starting in January. There will be no danger in forgetting characters, or story lines, or being left hanging without conclusion there! I LOVE this idea.  I know it is not always possible to do it this way, but what a treat for readers when it can be done!

Of course for every "rule" there are exceptions.  Many novels work well as stand alone books even though they are part of a bigger series. They have a beginning, a middle and a clear end. I can be far more accepting of this. 

Some books are actually written as stand alone novels, only to have a sequel that was not initially planned for, considered well after the fact. Neil Gaiman's novel Neverwhere was published as a stand alone, but he has been talking of writing a sequel for many years.  To me, this is totally acceptable.  It is not "unfinished business", but rather business that is in "expansion planning". I had been provided with an ending to the  original story that left me satisfied, and at the time that I first read it, I was not even expecting to be given the gift of a sequel.

So what do other readers think?

One of my book-twitter friends and fellow bookblogger @kellywellread responded to my questions with a few points. She has the same sentiment as I do about books that are unplanned sequels. She also  points out that epic fantasies may take more time to write than some other genres, but, like many, she finds frustrating if too much time passes and she forgets what happened in the earlier book(s). She does say however, that for the right series, she would be willing to wait as long as it takes for the author to write another book.

Another Instagram/Twitter friend @LisaBReads says that while she may need a refresher, she too is just happy that there is another book. 


My Twitter poll results are as such:

Do writers who create a series owe it to their readers to provide a "next book" and/or conclusion in a reasonable time frame?

• Heck Ya! Ending needed! - 38%
• Don't owe me anything - 63%

What is a reasonable time frame for the "next book" in a series to be available?

• 1 year - 56%
• 2 years - 44%
• 5 years - 0%   

Have you ever abandoned a series you were enjoying because of a long wait for the next book? 

• Yes - 36%
• No - 64% 

 

What can author's take away from all this?

Dear writers - You can write or not write as you see fit, that is your right - but leaving your fans hanging for years and years will cost you readers. Despite a majority readers feeling that they are not owed new books in a series from writers, support for the series seems to fall after just one year, and over a third of readers who feel they are waiting too long will abandon the series. Granted, this is a very tiny group of respondents, but even so, I think it paints a rough picture.

One of the most wonderful things about books, is their ability to evoke emotion. We attach the emotions the author's name too. The emotion associated with an unfinished story is one of disappointment. In the case of the book I referred to, the author has written much since, but I no longer have any desire to read their work, and I dare say that I am not alone in that.

What can other readers take away from this?

Start a series at your own risk, yes, but as most avid readers know, a little knowledge goes a long way.  Older series can and possibly should be researched to ensure the are either complete or active.  New series may be a bit more of a gamble, especially if the author hasn't been around long enough to evaluate by reputation. 

I personally will still give the benefit of the doubt to newer authors and first time series writers, but I will never again start an older series without looking into whether it is complete or active first. 

Happy Reading, 
Christine

Sunday Summary - Catch-up Edition - June 23 to July 13, 2019

Welcome to my Sunday Summary.  A look back on my bookish adventures for the past week - or so it is supposed to be. This is a catch-up edition. Sometimes life just gets in the way.

My mother fell I'll, and concerned for her overall appearance I took her to hospital. As it turns out she had had a heart attack. 4 days after I brought her in I was able to drive her home. Fortunately she will be fine, but she requires a little more help than usual as she recovers. 

Less than a week later, my son's daycare calls to say he hit is head quite hard and was tired. While both I and the daycare felt he was probably fine, out of an abundance of caution I spent the evening at the local children's hospital getting him checked. 

After all is said and done, everyone is doing fine now, and while a little stressed, I am extremely grateful. 

Books Reviewed:

The Assassination of Brangwain Spurge, by M. T. Anderson - My review of this quirky fun fantasy can be found in THIS POST. 

Tempests and Slaughter, by Tamora Pierce. You can read my review of this captivating tale of friendship and magic HERE.

The Need, by Helen Phillips. Creepy and dark! I really wanted to say more in MY REVIEW, but what I really liked about this book was difficult to discuss without spoilers.  

Unbreakable, by Kami Garcia. Read my post on this book HERE

Ramblings and Miscellany:

Canada Day fell during this period. I settled for a quick visual on social media. 

I had planned on doing proper Canada Day postings here and on social media,  but it was way sided by my mother's heart attack. I will say, that living somewhere where good medical care is readily available, and will not bankrupt you is something to celebrate! 

Advance Reading Copy (ARC) Books Previously Reviewed and Released this Week:

The need by Helen Phillips - link is above under "books Reviewed.

The Toll by Cherie Priest. A southern Gothic horror. My review is pending. 

Currently Reading and Notable Titles on Deck:

I have several reviews pending, and hope to slowly catch up. 

I am currently reading an ARC of Chances Are, by Pulitzer Prize winning author Richard Russo. This book will be available on the 27th of July. I am in-between Audiobooks at the moment. 

Next on deck is The Arrangement, by Robin Harding which will also go on sale July 27th.

Happy Reading, 

Christine

Review: Unbreakable, by Kami Garcia

Unbreakable, by Kami Garcia

Hachette Audio - 2013
Paranormal - YA
Legion Series - Book 1
Audiobook
Narrated by Candice Accola

6 hours, 46 Minutes

My Rating (out of 5)

⭐⭐

A paranormal thriller with a high action feel.

Kennedy, for the most part is a typical teen girl. She loves her mom, and her cat Elvis. She doesn't believe in ghosts of course, until one day looking for Elvis she sees one.  

She is still trying to explain away what she actually saw, when shortly after that, Kennedy finds her mother dead. Heartbroken and forced to choose between living with an aunt who is a stranger and boarding school, she packs up her room and settles in for the last night in her home, only to be wakened by a spirit trying to kill her, followed immediately by twins Jared and Lukas breaking into her house and room to save her. 

This is how Kennedy learns that ghosts are real, her mother might not have died of heart failure, and there are dark and powerful forces at work. Is she really destined to be part of a secret society whose mission is to contain those forces? Her survival and that of the world as we know it, might depend on it.

This was a good YA paranormal fantasy.  A little dark, a little twisted, some ghosts, some heroes, a sprinkling of teen angst and romance, and a good deal of action. The story itself is imaginative, and original. 

Alas, in looking into the remainder of the series, I have learned that it remains unfinished - there are a number of former fans of this series on Goodreads bemoaning the fact that there has been no movement on completing the series since the second book - Unmarked was published in 2014. Since I feel there is no conclusion to be had at this point, regardless of whether I stop now or after the second book, I will not be making an effort to continue a series that remains unfinished after 5 years. I wish I had realized that before I got into this story - I honestly would not have bothered. Since there is no actual conclusion to be had and no further instalments in 5 years time, my star rating was adjusted somewhat to reflect the lack of conclusion. A shame really because the writing and the story had potential to entertain. 

The audiobook was narrated by Candice Accola, who performed with a pleasant tone and cadence and portrayed the characters with appropriate emotional response.

Happy Reading,

Christine

Review: The Need, by Helen Phillips

The Need, by Helen Phillips

Simon & Schuster - Available July 9th, 2019
Horror
Print

272 Pages

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

My Rating (out of 5)

⭐⭐⭐⭐

I have to say, it took me some time to write my review of this book. This was one of those books I needed to sit with and digest after finishing. The more I thought about it, the more I liked it.

Molly is a mother of two young children. Her husband travels for his work, leaving Molly to juggle the demands of motherhood and her own career as a paleobotanist. 

When Molly hears footsteps in the house she initially dismisses it as the workings of her fatigued mind, but then she catches a glimpse of movement out of the corner of her eye and she knows she is not alone in the house with her children.

Molly is desperate to protect her children from the intruder, but can you defend against someone who seems to know absolutely everything about you?

The story was unique and imaginative. Phillip's has created a story that spoke to the mother in me and really gave her the creeps. 

Happy Reading, 
Christine 

Review: Tempests And Slaughter, by Tamora Pierce

Tempests And Slaughter, by Tamora Pierce

Listening Library / Penguin Random House - 2018
Fantasy
Numair Chronicles, Book 1
Audiobook
Narrated by Ari Meyers
15 Hours, 55 Minutes

My Rating (out of 5)

⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2

A captivating tale of magic and friendship.

Arrum Draper has the gift of magic. Destined to become one of the most powerful mages in the realm, his gift is growing in power faster than he is learning to control it. He attends the Imperial University of Carthak, and as both the youngest and most powerful in his class, he often finds himself getting into trouble. One day his "gift" gets away from him wreaking havoc in his classroom and attracting the attention of upper academy masters. Arrum doesn't go looking for trouble, but it always seems to find him

As he rapidly advances through the upper classes, he meets two other students who are to become his dearest friends. Ozorne a young prince who is seemingly far down the line for succession to the throne, and the bright and lovely Varice.

As time goes on, Arrum seems to be attracting the attention of certain gods and goddesses. Ozorne gets closer to the throne and the three see their plans for the future evolving while their friendships grow stronger.  But the the royal court and Arrum are at odds on certain subjects, and defining where his loyalties should lie may not be so easy anymore.

What a wonderful story of friendship, loyalty and staying true to yourself. The characters were immensely likeable, and the story engaging. This is a long book at almost 16 hours of audio or 496 pages of print, but the story never seems to drag. I am looking forward to the next instalment in the Numair series, no release date as of yet, but expected sometime in 2020.

Narration was performed superbly by Ari Meyers.  Pleasant tone and cadence along with an excellent range of character and emotion made this audiobook a real pleasure to listen to.

This book is set in Pierce's Tortall universe in which she has written several series; but one does not need to have read the previous books/series in order to enjoy it.  This is my first book by Pierce and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I did not feel at all like I was missing anything integral to the story.  


An engaging and exciting series for both fans and new readers of Tamora Pierce.

Happy Reading,

Christine