Category Archives: Mystery

The Messenger of Athens – Anne Zouroudi

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It’s present day on the remote Greek Island of Thiminos, where time is nearly at a standstill unaffected by anything going on in the modern world, where everyday is the same.

Until that is, a woman’s body is found and recovered at the foot of a cliff.  She is one of the residents on the island.

When an investigator arrives from the mainland, who is mostly uninvited to investigate.  He stays regardless of what the residents think to find out what actually happened to her any the reasons behind it.

At first, It’s been deemed a suicide, but the new investigator thinks differently.

His methods seem unorthodox at first, the residents recall the woman, who was married to one of the islands fisherman, who takes long journeys out to the sea to make a living, to come back to find his wife dead.  Devastating isn’t the word for such a thing, but, the residents and a few key people know differently, but they aren’t talking.  The rumours fly back and forth, changing all the time.

Getting through to the residents will be as hard as trying to cut through the toughest of shells.

This novel will have you in its clutches and won’t let you go until it decides to.  The story of the woman, the residents of the island who want their past and present kept secret, the investigator who also has a mysterious past as well all come into play as the cunning, seductive, secretive way writing the author envelopes you amid the beauty of one of the many Greek Islands.

I simply adored this book. As well as the conclusion.

Hachette / Reagan Arthur

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Do Not Open – An Encyclopedia of The World’s Best Kept Secrets – DK Publishing

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Does the cover dare you not to open this book?

But, really, you know you want to, don’t you, yes, I am talking to you, I know you do, so why not open and take a quick peek? No one will know…

All of the secret stuff you have ever wanted to know such as -

  • weird history
  • strange science
  • mysterious places
  • strange happenings
  • how to even join a secret society
  • can it really rain frogs ?

Just one page now…

Right…

Yep, I knew it as soon as I got your attention, you would be hooked!

Shhh, don’t tell anyone else now, ok?!? That’s what my son said, it was sitting on the coffee table  literally begging him not to open the book.  He was dying to know what was inside of it, now aren’t you as well??

My job here is done… GOTCHA !!

DK Publishing

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The Passage – Justin Cronin

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Absolutely Spectacular !!

Don’t be daunted in the least at the size of the book.  At a hefty 784 pages, this book will have you reading long into the night while flying through the book so much you won’t be able to put it down.  I know I had a really hard time doing that… putting it down.

It wouldn’t hurt either that Stephen King calls you in the middle of a nationwide interview on Good Morning America to gush about how good it is right?

A unique book that brings together some old and new concepts that are effortlessly welded together.

The Government is doing an experiment that intends to lengthen soldiers lives while in battle becomes the Andromeda Strain meets The Stand.

In this futuristic tale, a young girl is in the middle of a virus that has infected 12 men no one else would have paid attention to, given their circumstances.  But once the experiment goes terribly and horribly wrong, the American population starts to become infected by these “Vitals”, and it seems that the country is doomed forever.

The Vitals feed on human blood, they use it to survive, but then those people come back to life as these blood hunting, evil, daunting “Vitals” that only hunt at night.

As time goes on, civilization is crumbling, there are fewer and fewer humans to be found.  Amy, the young child travels across the country having these visions of where she needs to be at a certain time.  Along the way, in a different place, there are some humans that have fought against the Vitals for years, slowly becoming less and less.  Then comes the time that they have to leave their security zone to forage for more supplies.

All in all there are maybe 13 in the group.  Becoming smarter than the Vitals can pose to be a challenge, but as they find their way, they find there are actually more out there.

Amy needs to be at a certain place at a certain time, will she be able to get there? will the others still be alive? Is this the end of the world as everyone knows it to be?  Can Amy complete what she needs to do, before becoming one of “them”?

Now, I came across something interesting, this is not the only book.  There will be TWO MORE BOOKS ! One is being published sometime in 2012 – entitled The Twelve, and the third book entitled The City of Mirrors  in 2014.

Random House / Doubleday

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The Passage Website

The Double Comfort Safari Club – Alexander McCall Smith

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Oh, how I absolutely LOVE these books !  Mma Ramotswe and her Assistant Mme Makutsi are on a few cases again in this lovely, lovely series the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency.

This time, Mme Ramotswe is enjoying her new marriage, raising their foster children.  Her husband remarks at how clever his wife actually is one day while trying to help one of their friends and neighbours when her car has died on her way to another town.

Precious Ramotswe is contacted by an American lawyer who has a very precarious case for her – she must find a guide that helped an American woman many years ago when she spent time st a safari.  She is now late, and part of her remaining wishes was that she wanted to bestow the guide that answered all of her questions and showed her different things while on Safari a gift.  Of money to show her appreciation.

Then as always, there are a few more situations that happen along the way as well.  I am so impressed with Mme. Ramotswe and her ability to ascertain information just like that.  She has this uncanny ability to get to the meat and bones of the dilemma that is hampering her clients or friends or even just close acquaintances and give eloquent answers.  I miss the show so dearly that they had on HBO, that I can still picture the actors and actresses that portrayed the characters with such authenticity that I hope that there are new episodes soon !!

I love the this particular part in the book -

Having the right approach to life was a great gift in this life.  Her father, the late Obed Ramotswe, had always had the right approach to life — she was sure of that.  And for a moment, as she sat there with her friend, with the late afternoon sun slanting in through the window, she thought about how she owed her father so much.  He had taught her almost everything she knew about how to lead a good life, and the lessons she had learned from him were as fresh today as they ever had been.  Do not complain about your life.  Do not blame others for things that you have brought upon yourself.  Be content with who you are and where you are. and do whatever you can do to bring others such contentment, and joy, and understanding that you have managed to find yourself.

Then there is this –

You can do that in the company of an old friend–you can close your eyes and think of the land that gave you life and breath, and all of the reasons why you are glad that you are there, with the people you know, with the people you love.

Just eloquent, true, genuine feelings.  That is why I love these books so much …

Random House

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Truth – Peter Temple

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Truth is the sequel to The Broken Shore.

Inspector Villani is head of the Victoria Police Squad.  His work is his life, and his life is his work.  Although, he does have a family, they take the back seat in his life.  Well, everything does.

The sorrow he sees in his job amid the blood and chaos of finding the guilty follow him on those long summer days.

The politicians who scheme add to his plate.

As a woman is found dead in the cities newest and most posh building that also houses a casino, hotel and luxury apartments.  Since the security within the building wasn’t working properly, Villani and his crew of detectives must start from the beginning, working from scratch to find out who killed her and why.

Finding the person responsible is a minefield of politics, the filthy rich, and bad cops all rolled into one.

Villani’s quest to do a good job, one without mistakes, do the right thing has his life coming apart at the seams all at once.  As tragedy seeks him out in his personal life-like the wildfires burn across the state that threaten his own forest in the countryside.

If this is the first that you have read of Peter’s work, you may not find it engrossing as you think.  First of all, the Aussie vernacular is quite different from what we here in Canada / US hear.  Secondly, this is the 2nd book of a sequel, so it may be best to read the first to get a better background on the characters / plotlines before reading this one.

But, it was terrifically written, full of action not only solving the case, but in Villani’s personal life as well.  It examines how a man who dedicates his life to his work and everything else falls by the wayside – his marriage, his kids, his family members to be able what he does and does it well, skirting the line between what is right and wrong all the while skirting the political line.

Random House

The Janus Stone – Elly Griffiths

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Ruth Galloway is on a new case.

She knows old bones like the back of her hand.  As an old mansion is torn down to make way for a new condo development, bones are found beneath the opening of a doorway.  Funnily enough excavation finds symbols look as if they came from an ancient worship of Janus – Two faced God of beginning and awakenings, who is also known as Hecate and the Queen of the night.

Harry Nelson is called in to his dismay, but as the case develops, he finds out more than he bargained for.

As the bones are being analyzed, more things happen that throw Ruth further into the mix as well.  Even the secret she that she is keeping herself.

I was expecting a wild ride of sorts, considering this was the 2nd installment in a series.  It fell a bit flat for me in the end.  Don’t get me wrong it was good, but not as promising as I thought it would be.  Interesting, but at times it was feeling as it was too drawn out.

If you are a fan of Elly’s work, as this was the first book I have read of her work, then you should enjoy this one.  Certain things are revealed, and I am sure that you wouldn’t want to miss what is happening in Ruth’s world.

Random House / McCelland and Stewart

Chapter Excerpt

American Gods – Neil Gaiman

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This book was chosen by a group on twitter (1book1twitter – #1b1t).

Shadow has been waiting for this moment for the last three years.

He is being released from prison in a few days.  Little does he know that he will be released in a few hours following the deaths of his wife and his best friend, amid compromising circumstances.

As he is on his way home, he comes across a man who is named Mr. Wednesday.  He is propositioning him a job, one that will require little, but in the end may require more than the average job entails.  Shadow at first refuses, but, as the trip ensues, he accepts, which brings him into this fantastical world – hallucinations at first he thinks, but as Shadow goes deeper and deeper into the work, the people he meets it is more than he ever imagined that it would be.

The travelling across America and beyond, Shadow becomes aware of what his presence is really there for, what the meaning of life is for him, what it means to others.

“It’s just easier to just do the time.”  He paused.  Then, “You got to understand the god thing.  It’s not magic.  It’s about being you, but the you that people believe in.  It’s about becoming the concentrated, magnified, essence of you.  It’s about becoming the thunder, or the power of a running horse, or wisdom.  You take all the belief and become bigger, cooler, more than human.  You crystallize.”  He Paused.  “And then one day they forget about you, and they don’t believe in you, and they don’t sacrifice, and they don’t care, and the next thing you know you’re running a three-card monte game on the corner of Broadway and Forty-third.”

Futuristic, yet goes to the heart of a man’s sense of who he is, how he is changing, and what he will become.

One Book One Twitter or stop on by Crowd Sourcing

Neil Gaiman is on twitter @neilhimself – he may even answer you back

HarperCollins

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Black Water Rising – Attica Locke

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I started this book shortly after I finished Wolf Hall as part of an Orange Prize Shortlist reading challenge.  Since Wolf Hall took me almost forever, I waited to see how long this book would take me to read..less than 24 hours ! Wow!

Jay and his pregnant wife are on a semi romantic cruise ( or at least that is what Jay was aiming for) along the river in Houston, Texas., when all of a sudden they hear shots and a woman screaming, a splash in the water that looks like thick oil.  Jay gets the owner of the boat to go closer to where they heard the sounds, where Jay suddenly jumps into the water to find a small skinny woman wearing designer clothes, wet, scared, and not saying a word.

They drop her off at the police station.  But, Jay begins to think since he is a personal lawyer (not a rich one) what was it that made that woman jump into the water, was anyone else hurt, but Jay’s wife who is heavily pregnant tells him to forget about it and move on with their lives.  But something keeps nagging at him, until he starts unravelling the whole truth about it all.

But, then, his own past comes up as well – being a demonstrator, being charged for a crime during one of the most tumultuous times in American History – getting racial equality.

This book had me glued to it from the beginning to the end, and even then I wanted to know more about Jay, his life, what would happen next.  I was so engrossed in this book, I brought it with me to the store, reading as I walked it was that good.  The narrative combined many important and life changing events worldwide which was interesting.

HarperCollins


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White Cat – Holly Black

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From the Publisher’s Website:

Cassel comes from a family of curse workers — people who have the power to change your emotions, your memories, your luck, by the slightest touch of their hands. And since curse work is illegal, they’re all mobsters, or con artists. Except for Cassel. He hasn’t got the magic touch, so he’s an outsider, the straight kid in a crooked family. You just have to ignore one small detail — he killed his best friend, Lila, three years ago.

Ever since, Cassel has carefully built up a façade of normalcy, blending into the crowd. But his façade starts crumbling when he starts sleepwalking, propelled into the night by terrifying dreams about a white cat that wants to tell him something. He’s noticing other disturbing things, too, including the strange behavior of his two brothers. They are keeping secrets from him, caught up in a mysterious plot. As Cassel begins to suspect he’s part of a huge con game, he also wonders what really happened to Lila. Could she still be alive? To find that out, Cassel will have to out-con the conmen.

My Thoughts: I read the book up until page 104-105 and decided that this wasn’t going to be a book for me.  It did sound good, but for me the whole premise of having so-called “workers” that had magical powers who in reality were just a bunch of “con artists” didn’t really make sense to me.  I felt the book was tiring, it wasn’t keeping me interested, but decided to give it that best chance I could.  In the end I gave it the good fight, I wanted to like it, but, I didn’t.  Maybe it will be different for you.

Simon and Schuster – McElderry Books

Heresy – S. J. Parris

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Giordano Bruno,  is a monk.  After being caught reading forbidden books, he is  chased by the inquisitor, so he flees Italy.

Bruno resurfaces in England many years later.  He is on the hunt for a book that was thought destroyed, but, information that Bruno has come across is said to be the opposite and possibly hiding in a college library at Oxford.

As a close personal friend of the French Ambassador, he is welcomed to Oxford for debating at the behest of the head of the college.  As soon as he arrives, the faculty as well as the students are weary.  Just about as soon as he is retired to his room, the unthinkable happens, one of the professors has been murdered.

Between the  murder, the students and faculty, Bruno is thrust into the middle of a historical thriller that will have you turning the pages as fast as you can read them sousing out who could have done this, as well of course the reasons why. – The people of the small town outside the college, to the very inside of the college itself, to people who live around the edges, to another religious sect in another country.  The twists and turns of who is accused, who isn’t, but who are  in the background along with their own secrets will have you engrossed in this engaging thriller from long ago.

It was a rather interesting time to read about a thriller/murder/ mystery.  The way they used to find the suspects are nothing like they are today with everything high-tech and gadgetry like it is now.  Not only was the time period for me intriguing, it was the way the author stepped out with all of the double and triple crossing that was happening along with the main plot, waiting to be all tied together when at last the finale is revealed.  Interesting time period as I had mentioned before for people believing in what they wanted to believe in and not what they were told to believe in, what was forbidden and if you were caught you were either burned at the stake or killed.

Penguin

The Forgotten Garden – Kate Morton

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It is 1913 where a 5-year-old girl is abandoned on a ship travelling from England to Australia.  Her small suitcase is the only piece of her past that she has left.  That, and a beautiful book of fairy tales.

The dock master takes her home with him thinking that she will be claimed.  As the years go by, she is taken in by the dock master and his family.  As time goes on, she is part of the family, not knowing that she has a past that no one even herself knows about.  Until she turns 21, her father tells her the story of how she was found, she is none the less shocked, having the feeling she doesn’t know who she is, or thought she was rebels against her family, friends, and fiancée to find who she is and most importantly where she came from.

Years later, her quest to find her real identity brings her to the Cornish coast of England.  A manor that holds many secrets, yields more questions than answers.  Determined to find out, she must return to Australia first.  But plans are dashed, her daughter leaves her grand-daughter with her as she goes on her own quest.  The questions still remain, the urge subsides, then it is too late to return to England – she is ill with cancer.

After Nell’s death, her granddaughter comes across a notebook which she reads and realizes that she must continue the search to find out who her grandmother really was.  She feels as thought she needs to do it, not only for herself, but her grandmother as well.

This is not only a journey of self, one of mystery, one of long-lost secrets, intriguing secrets that once would ruin a families reputation, and of stance in the community.  A cabin by the sea, a mysterious garden that will hold more than just secrets…

I found that this was the perfect book for those who used to read fairy tales as a young child.   it is one of those books if you liked fairy tales as a youngster, this one has many twists and turns.   The mysteriousness of the plot, what is hidden, what is revealed.  I loved the intrigue behind the story, the characters ( I really despised one of them, you will see what I mean in the book if you read it) what will come of the secrets when revealed, will it change how people feel, will it change them forever?

Simon and Shuster – Atria

Reading Group Guide

Kate’s Website

Stolen – Lesley Pearse

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Lotte, a 20 something year old is found half-drowned on a Sussex beach by a gentleman who was walking along the shore.  Once at the hospital and stabilized, she is found to have amnesia.  Absolutely no memory of who she is or how she become to be on the beach.

When her picture is published in the local newspapers, one of the people she had befriended in the past recognizes her – they had worked together on a cruise ship and were bunk mates for a year.  As they travelled the seas of South America, they become close friends and vowed to keep their friendship alive.

This not only marks a reunion of sorts, her friend had wondered why Lotte had literally disappeared and not kept contact like they both said they would.  She did try to text, but, no response.

There is a deep, dark story behind Lotte’s disappearance.  Just before the girls went their separate ways, Lotte was viciously raped at one of the ships ports in South America.  The questions are many, but the most important ones were – Where has she been? What happened to her that she was found on the beach? Why can’t she remember what happened? When will her memory return?

I really enjoyed this novel.  The bond that friendship endures, what lengths people will go to when getting what they want, as Lotte’s past friends rally around her as she comes to terms what did happen, the revelations or nothing short of shocking once the whole story is told is nothing short of a miracle that she has survived.  It is relevant to today’s news as well.  The stories that are in newspapers, on the radio, and so forth make this novel genuine, and like I had said relevent.

Penguin – Michael Joseph

Lesley’s Website

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Black Hills – Dan Simmons

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In 1876 on the fields of the Little Big Horn battlefield, native Indians and General Custer’s army are battling it out between one another.

As Custer breathes his last breath, a young Indian approaches him, lays a hand on him.  Little does he know that Custer’s ghost has entered his body.  Not only scaring him, Paha Sapa will have him talking inside his mind for decades to come as he grows into a man while the events and his way of life shapes him and his outlook on life.

I was really looking forward to this book after reading Dan’s previous book Drood.  I was quickly entranced by the seamless narration, the action, the adventure, the storyline as delicate and fierce as it could be to solve the mystery of Dickens and Wilkie Collins’ experiences.

I have to admit, I was quickly becoming this way again, until I got further into the book.  There were a few things that turned me off.

Firstly, the names of the native people that he portrayed in the book.  Some of the names he used in the book we really quite ridiculous.  As a person that lives in Canada where we have quite a large population of Native people, as well as knowing a bit about their culture and practices, I found the names to be ridiculous as they take such pride in their culture and the names they are given.  Not only pride but feel blessed that they have been named what they have been.  The culture is one of awe, and graciousness.

The 2nd issue was that the letters that Custer writes to his wife as he is a ghost and doesn’t realize that he is dead and living in someone else’s body was quite sexually explicit for my liking.  What also added to the distaste, was the continual use of italics throughout the book when something was happening, or when these letters were being written.

Although I wasn’t a fan of this book, I will be looking forward to his future work.

Hachette / Reagan Arthur

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Angelology – Danielle Trussoni

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I was quite looking forward to reading this book.  It nearly had me in its clutches, in the end I was disappointed.

In the beginning, Sister Evangeline is a nun in a quiet part of New York State.  She has been at the convent since she was 12.  Being there since that age makes her a long timer, saying her vows, the calm yet structured atmosphere of the convent – the prayer times, the work, the adoration.

One day, she is shocked to find a letter asking for admittance to the archives that are the most extensive about angels in the world.  The answer is always no of course.  They do not like others just rifling through the books and articles without the proper assistance.  Even then, the visits are few and far between.  This one feels different to Evangeline, and for good reason.

Evangeline’s Grandmother she does not know this until later is that she is a famous Angelologist that studied in France at the beginning of WW II.  With the war upon them, more and more attacks have been laid at their feet during this time, more than before.  They must find the secret cave that jails the bad Nephelium and rescue a prized musical piece that has been there for hundreds of years to save the world.

Percival Grigaine is the person that wants the information that will lead to the recovery of the musical instrument.  He is one of the Nephelium that wants to use it for the worse.  His once glorious wings are diseased, ugly, a fate that only some of the Nephelium encounter, like a human that will contract a debilitating disease, not knowing how to overcome to become healthy once again.  He has been searching for the Angelologists for hundreds of years along with his family that live in opulent New York style and grace.

Will Evangeline. her grandmother, and the leagues of other people entrusted with the information that everyone is looking for go to the ones that want to save the world from the Nephelium?

I have to say the cover is absolutely gorgeous.  Look at those wings!  I was enthralled until about halfway, until it turned course to the past and a sizeable amount of historical information was given.  I love historical facts, but it just seemed wrong at that time to talk about it.  From there it was stop and go for me.  Others that have read the book just adored it, loving it all the way through.  Even at the end of the book, I was disappointed that it ended the way it did.  I am not going to say what exactly happened, but, you will know what I mean when you choose to read it.

The atmosphere glorious, I mean, how can you not wonder what happens in those old convents behind closed eyes….right?

Random House

Danielle’s Website

The Temptation of The Night Jasmine – Lauren Willig

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In this 5th installment of the Pink Carnation series, The Duke of Dovedale has returned from India unexpectedly.  He doesn’t want to be back, however, the main reason he is back is to avenge the murder of his mentor.  He has a feeling who it is, but he needs to track him down, found out where he is hiding, and get business done.

Before he left for India many years ago, Charlotte was a young, precocious young girl, who is one of those girls where her daydreams are more real then her life is.  Mostly ignored by her relatives when she is brought to the Dovedale estate, the now Duke took a liking to her, engaged her when no one else did.

Now, that Charlotte is all grown so to speak, her feelings when the Duke arrives haven’t abated, just stuck in the back of her mind of when they were younger.  The Duke sets off treating her as he did in the past, but his feelings for her have changed, making her something he wants to protect at all costs from the other men who would want to court her.  Charlotte is confused – at one instance the Duke is flattering her with his attention, the next he is cold and distant. Making her feel unsure of herself and the feelings she possess for him.

As the Duke is on the trail of the killer, him and Charlotte meet at one point where they both had tried to hide what they were looking for when the two meet up.  The person’s identity leads them into the cold streets of town, to an acquintances cold outdoor maze which leads to a cave beyond the maze.

With the bits of thrill, suspense, as well as bits of intrigue as well as the chick lit (how could you ever forget about the chick lit) as well as the setting of historical england will have you turning the pages wanting to know what happens next, how everything turns out.  Will the Duke and Charlotte finally admit their true feelings for one another?

With the authentic detailing – houses, court, scenes, language, makes this a most beliveable as well as intriguing novel.  The characters who are all interesting, except for maybe the eccentric and dry sounding grandmother was a delightful change who are caught up in espionage.

I enjoyed it very much.

Penguin – New American Library

Lauren’s Website

Reading Group Guide

The Kitchen House – Kathleen Grissom

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19th Century America, where slavery is still as big as ever.  A small irish girl recently orphaned comes off a boat destined to live as a slave on a tobacco plantation.

Taken in by a well to do family, the small irish girl lives with the black people who serve the owners.  She lives between 2 worlds – the big house where she works, the owner often away and his wife addicted to laudanum, who spends her days in her room despondent.

As the days turn into months and years; Lavinia grows to love her adopted family – working together, eating and sharing their lives.  With Belle teaching her the ropes, she knows there are secrets, things that aren’t talked about openly, but may know the past, and the actions of the owner; but say nothing.

As time goes on, the family changes – the owner dies, the mistress is not herself, even with frequent doses of opium.  Set off for Williamsburg, Lavinia begins her new adventure, she only wants to be back at Tall Oakes, be with her family, the ones that she loves and who love her back.

She ends up marrying the Colonel’s son Marshall.  As he takes over the plantation, he beings to drink, things start to fall apart, changing for the worse.

As Lavinia finds herself with child, she senses a changes in Marshall for the worse.  Drinking and raping women servants.

Outraged, but not being able to do or say anything about it, she herself takes to opium as a way to be able to deal with all that is going on around her.  Not realizing that by doing this, she becomes addicted, and is just as out of it as her mother in law is.

With all the situations that come to play in the novel, The Kitchen House is one of those stories you need to read, even though the situations may have very well happened in that time, it talks about the struggles on both sides whether you were white or black.  The sacrifices that were made, the amount of love these people had for one another, tells the true tale of the human heart no matter the colour of your skin.

The terrifying situations that happened, show us how determined that they were, of the human spirit, how much we can endure, if we only set our mind to it.

Simon and Schuster / Touchstone

Kathleen’s Website

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Nikolski – Nicholas Dickner Translated By Lazar Lederhendler

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What a neat book!

Nikolski is the story of three people from three different places in Canada who all move to Montreal.

The unknown narrator works in a used book shop.  His mother has just died and is clearing out her house to be sold.  He comes across many old mementos – old journals, but his favorite was an old compass that his father gave him as a child.  Funnily enough, the compass points to 34 degrees – a place called Nikolski.

Noah and his mother drive across Canada, sleep in a trailer hitched behind the car.  When Noah turns 18, accepted to university in Montreal, heads there to study archeology.

Joyce is from the east coast.  Her mother died shortly after she was born, since then her father has raised her in a predominately fishing community.  Her grandfather before he died used to tell her stories of their ancestors being pirates sailing the seas, stealing treasure from their efforts.  They settled in the area after pirating had slowed to a crawl.  She has dreams of becoming a female pirate.

There is the fact that the books is  cover less, tattered book.  Quite unique, it is known as the three-headed book.

With all the stories being intertwined as one, the lush descriptions of the past experiences of the three are like you are there yourself, feeling the wind on your face coming across the prairie fields in Saskatchewan.

Humerous incidents, how their live move with the times, as time passes in Montreal.  They all seemingly live in the same neighbourhood, living their lives separately, one not knowing without the other.  But then again, there is this hint that they are all connected in life.  They just aren’t aware of it.

Well written and translated, it flows effortlessly as the stories tales are told.

They left where they lived to find themselves, as well as answers to their past.  It was quirky, but funny and engaging.

This is the THIRD book I have read on the Canada Reads 2010 list.

Read an Excerpt

Random House / A A Knopf

The Unnamed – Joshua Ferris

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Tim, his wife Jan and their daughter have it all.  Tim working as a partner in a law firm, Jane as a real estate agent, they have that idyllic full life where everything is within grasp – exotic vacations, large home filled with lovely things, absolutely no worries about money.

There is one thing…

Time suffers from these bizarre events.  They have come and gone, he hasn’t had one in a long time.  One thing he has noticed is that when they do return; they last longer then the last episode.  They always turn his life upside down, drives him and his family out of their present-day existence to one that is not only odd, but no one can figure out the cause of these bizarre instances that seem to grip him for no reason at all.

One day while at work, he realizes that it has returned, he returns home to have his wife go immediately into prepare mode – packing the back pack, making sure that his warm clothing is out and many layers are ready for the instant he has the urge.

They have tried everything  from Tim being tied to the bed with rope, handcuffs, and shackled. Nothing seems to work.

The instances which are lasting longer and longer each time they happen now, with increasingly severity.  As he is defending a long time client of the firm this particular instance grips him with such veracity that he is demoted in his job as he can only follow it from home.  He loses his position as a partner.  His whole life now, is a mess with no end in sight.

This novel of lifelong love, bizarre events, the losing of oneself and one’s purpose for living, the compulsion to  doing only one thing without being able to stop was one of wonderment, courage, as well as being able to let a loved one go while not having any kind of control over them, hoping that they come back.  The example of letting go of something you love, believe in, keeping you grounded was a brilliant example so that they won’t suffer because of it.

Hachette

The Unnamed Website

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Red Snow – Michael Slade

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Based on the Olympics that are actually coming to Vancouver in February it features  mercenaries, members of the RCMP Special X team,so,  this book isn’t for the faint of heart.

Mephisto is back and wants vengeance.  Between all of the killing, the blood on the snow isn’t the only thing that is running in this novel.  A deep seeded annihilation is also on the books.  Not just your average run of the mill annihilation either – a large portion of the world’s population, where it all hinges on the winter olympic games in Vancouver.

Mephisto, along with a few people he has picked up along the way, are ready to begin the task that which he has paid them to do – shut down Whistler so that no one can get in or out,  kill a few people who thwarted a previous attack, exacting his revenge, and killing a large population of the world using a new gas he has invented.

From chasing down Mephisto, to protecting the unsuspecting public from global death,  protecting the remaining members of the RCMP’s Special X team they will certainly have their hands full.

From the intimate lives, private experiences with Mephisto, to the actual real life threat of someone actually doing this at function of this magnitude isn’t so far-fetched as once it may have seemed.  This is a fast paced novel, with how Mephisto came to be how he is – his past and present wanting to exact revenge on the people who want to catch him and put him behind bars where he deserves to be.  I did not want to put down this novel, it was fast paced, filled with images of Whistler, the mountains, the scenery, as well as the drudgery and miserable pain that one can cause other people in a short amount of time.

Psychologically true to history &  mental illnesses, this is a must read for any thriller addict.

Penguin

Michael’s Website

The 13th Hour – Richard Doetsch

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Nick Quinn and his wife Julia have been soul mates since high school.  In love from the day they met, their love grows stronger by the day, until the unspeakable happens – Julia is murdered in the garage where they live.

As Nick is brought down to the police station for questioning, he then learns that he is the primary suspect when something strange happens – a gentleman who is thought to be his attorney enters the room, hands him a watch that he is instructed to never lose, as well as a letter explaining what will happen.  What Nick doesn’t know is that the watch enables him to go back into time to change the events that surround his wife’s death, and whatever he does do, will change the time lines of many if not hundreds in the next 13 hours.

The twist of the whole thing is that he is going back in time, changing events as he knows it already happened. which, may have it own repercussions – changing the future, the events that happen, their lives forever.

I was so engrossed in this plot.  The idea of taking back and changing what has already happened is quite the novel idea.  I couldn’t put it down for a moment – even as my eyes closed while I laid in bed reading ( I have to admit, I had to go back in the  book to see what happened the next day to see what I skimmed over).

An original thinking on the premise of how a crime/thriller/adventure novel is written at least in my mind, he pulls it off with flair, intelligence, the plot twists and turns, the double crosses, as well as the cliff hangers, ultimately the cliffhanger of all cliffhanger that come to the end of the novel for the first time.

I really loved it and the concept he used.

Simon and Schuster

Richard’s Website

Hollywood Moon – Joseph Wambaugh

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When it is getting close or very near to a full moon, do you notice things that wouldn’t usually happen?

Well in the Hollywood, things sure do happen.  The Hollywood station says it happens more and more.  The population being transgendered, aspiring actors, addicts, and other forms of life is to say that the earth really isn’t round.  The hollywood area always has a thing for being in the news as well, not all of the time good news either.

From the inhabitants of the area to the police officers who are just as quirky and interesting themselves, they talk about all of their expericences as they encounter the people of their district as they take calls from the public – a prowler who is attacking women, which will bring them a more sinister plot of one trying to thrown each other under the bus, to be able to get what they want, before the others realize what has happened.

I really enjoyed this book, from the eccentric characters, the stories behind the stories, to the theory of the wackiest that happens in Hollywood Division on a full moon.

Joseph Wambaugh is surely a master of combining the odd, the violent, and the stories that make it all a well-rounded and sometimes laugh out loud funny theories from the characters themselves as if it is just another day on the beat while the bad guys are meeting their demise in the midst of carrying out their bad deeds.

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I, Alex Cross – James Patterson

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Alex is at home one night celebrating his birthday with his family when he receives a call from work, and it isn’t a good one either.

His niece Caroline has been murdered.

This sets off a Washington wide search for who killed her, and why they did it in the first place.  Alex is surprised to find out that his niece has some hidden skeletons in her closet, not in his mind that he could have ever imagined, since he hasn’t seen her in years after they moved away from the Washington area.

A high-priced escort…

As the investigation continues with all of its plot twists and turns, there have been similar murders happening not only in the past, but continue to happen as well.  That and the high society Alex goes into investigate the murders, where people have more to lose then being caught in a compromising situation – their lives and social status.

But until a cryptic call from a person that Alex doesn’t know in another state with some surprising information, they may not have revealed the killer; trust me it is a BIG one, someone you would have never imagined.

With all of the protection this killer has, you would think that they may not have ever found the killer responsible, but then again Alex Cross is on the case.

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Whiskey Gulf – Clyde Ford

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Whiskey GulfCharlie Noble, retired from the Coast Guard is living a serene life on his boat on the waters in the Pacific Northwest.

Switching gears from working full time to retiring / investigations brings him the case of a unusual sort – a couple literally disappears off the grid on their boat near a section of water that is known as “Whiskey Gulf” where the military test fires torpedoes and other weapons.  Much advertisement is given to when these tests are being done, but in this instance they were well clear of the area, and all of a sudden just disappear off the face of the earth.
They radioed in for help, but no one was able to help them before radio contact could determine where exactly they were and how to get to them in dense fog.

As the boat club nearby wants to know what happened to their sailing friends, Charlie is asked to take a look into what he can find out, and give their friends some measure of relief in knowing any kind of information he can find.

As Charlie starts to take a look around and make inquiries he reveals a possible torpedoing to their boat, which was way off in another section of the water where they were and where the testing was taking place.  Now the Canadian and American military officials aren’t saying a word, Charlie thinks there is more to this then just a stray torpedo; He was right.
Will Charlie and his friend Raven be able to find the couple in such difficult circumstances?

In the twists and turns and absolute stop dead in your tracks adventure or terrorists, past alliances, and broken friendships, Charlie takes you the reader off on a water adventure full of descriptive narratives that will have you wanting to take a trip to the Pacific Northwest to experience the wild forests, the water, the beauty and most of all a different lifestyle that I have had the opportunity to experience when I lived in British Columbia.

It was for me a visit back to a place that I have experienced for myself and was missing it so much as I was reading the book.  I will definitely have to take a trip back out west to be able to experience it all again even if, for a short time.

Author’s Website

Vanguard Press

The Shimmer – David Morrell

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The ShimmerOne Day, Dan Page is at work as a pilot for the police force.  He returns home one evening to find his wife not home and walking around the house some of her items are missing.  While in the kitchen, he finds a note short but sweet from his wife saying she went to her mother’s for a bit of a breather.

Feeling a bit worried, he calls his mother in law to find out she hasn’t arrived yet.  Calling airlines and such he finds out she is driving the 7 hr leg to her mothers by car.  He instantly gets more worried learning about this.

On her trail, he contacts the police in the area that he is flying into and finds that she is there in a small town that no one really knows a whole lot about, except for one thing – the lights at night.  It has been a strange phenomenon for many many years.  People come to just look at the lights, but no one really knows what or who is causing it and why people are so mesmerized by them.  People are drawn to them, excited by them; others cannot see them at all.

On the night he finds his wife, she is sitting looking at the magical power the lights have by just watching.  A man who is also there is angry and starts yelling, as he does this he starts shooting into the crowd not caring who or what he hits.  As a bus just stopped moments before, he has killed many people screaming that the lights are nothing.  There are now more questions then answers given for the lights.  No one seems to know the answers.

There used to be a military installation outside of the small town that is now deserted.  The fences and signs all say to stay away and not to enter the premises.  No one knows that there is a secret to the land and what the government doesn’t want to be known about what is there still.  Will their plan be to deny as they do from time to time, or will it be time to let the cat out of the bag so to speak, and let everyone know what it is, and how dangerous it is?

I am kind of on the fence with this book.  I liked the action and the intrigue, but felt it was a bit long winded for my taste.  The action storyline seemed to take longer them expected to take place, and them it did I wasn’t satisfied.  To be totally honest, it lagged in the parts that it should have been making me turn the pages.  For me, it just failed to keep me entertained for any amount of time.

David’s Website

Locked In – Marcia Muller

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Locked InSharon was walking back to her offices to retrieve her cell phone when at the same time someone was breaking into her offices to take whatever information she had on a case her team was working on when the intruder finds her and shoots her in the head.

Later on at the hospital, she is diagnosed as being “locked in”.  Locked in syndrome is a rare phenomenon where the person is completely paralyzed but yet can still understand and interpret the world around them without being able to communicate.
Her staff wonders if it is connected to one of their cases that they have worked in the past or if it is an active case.  As they comb their case files for clues, the thought in the back of the minds of everyone is will Sharon survive? Is she alive? Will her husband survive himself after being such a hardened and angry person before he met her? Will he have what it takes to find what and who ever did this to his wife and get the justice that they deserve?

As the case continues on, more clues are uncovered; Sharon is recovering more and more as more clues come to surface.  Will she be in this state for ever and live out her life communicating with only her eyes or will she rebound and come back to the self she once was and live her life with her husband and live happily ever after?

Filled with action, intrigue, and a bit of personal loss and suffering in San Francisco between many classes of people it was a fast paced thriller/ action/ adventure book that will be a great book to read on a rainy / snowy Saturday or Sunday covered with a blanket drinking a cup of tea or hot chocolate.

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