Title: City on Fire
Author: Garth Risk Hallberg
Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
Summary: Manhattan, 1976. Regan and William Hamilton-Sweeney are estranged siblings and heirs to one of the city's great fortunes. Keith and Mercer are the mean who love Regan and William. Charlie and Samantha are two suburban teenagers enthralled with the up and coming Manhattan punk scene. Then there's the magazine reporter and his idealistic neighbor. Finally, the detective that's trying to figure out the link between all of them and what they have to do with a shooting on New Year's Eve.
Review: This book is too freaking long (944 pages). This book needed a better editor. It just too long to develop and get all of the various back stories and everything jumped back and forth in time. The characters were interesting enough, everything was dragged out too long. Eventually I was so far in that I had put in the time, I might as well see it through, but save yourself and don't bother.
Time to write: 1:40
Showing posts with label relationships. Show all posts
Showing posts with label relationships. Show all posts
Saturday, April 30, 2016
Book review: The Rocks
Title: The Rocks
Author: Peter Nichols
Format: Audiobook
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Summary: Set against beautiful Mediterranean Sea views and lush olive groves, this book opens with a confrontation and a secret: what was the mysterious and catastrophic event that drove apart newlyweds Lulu and Gerald in 1948 and resulted in them never speaking again, despite living on the same small island for the next sixty years? And how did their history shape the friendship of their unrelated children decades later? The Rocks is a double love story that begins with a mystery then moves backward in time to unravel what really happened so many years ago. (Source: Amazon).
Review: To be fair this book should probably be given four stars but I don't recommend the audiobook format. This book starts in the present time and then continues to move back in time. I kept wanting to re-read the beginning once I became more familiar with the characters. I enjoyed the characters and the story, but the number of peripheral characters made it too hard for me to remember who they were without the luxury of being able to go back and read. Still, I would recommend this as a good beach read for the summer.
Time to write: 5:33
Author: Peter Nichols
Format: Audiobook
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Summary: Set against beautiful Mediterranean Sea views and lush olive groves, this book opens with a confrontation and a secret: what was the mysterious and catastrophic event that drove apart newlyweds Lulu and Gerald in 1948 and resulted in them never speaking again, despite living on the same small island for the next sixty years? And how did their history shape the friendship of their unrelated children decades later? The Rocks is a double love story that begins with a mystery then moves backward in time to unravel what really happened so many years ago. (Source: Amazon).
Review: To be fair this book should probably be given four stars but I don't recommend the audiobook format. This book starts in the present time and then continues to move back in time. I kept wanting to re-read the beginning once I became more familiar with the characters. I enjoyed the characters and the story, but the number of peripheral characters made it too hard for me to remember who they were without the luxury of being able to go back and read. Still, I would recommend this as a good beach read for the summer.
Time to write: 5:33
Wednesday, December 23, 2015
Book review: World Made by Hand
Title: World Made by Hand
Author: James Howard Kunstler
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Summary: The world as we know it has ended. Washington DC was blown up and there might be a new President, but nobody's really sure. Everybody has had to start over because there isn't any access to oil, gas or electricity is intermittent at best. In the town of Union Grove, New York, the residents have created their own society. When a pack of religious extremists come to town, they bring their own brand of law and order.
Review: If you read this blog often you know I'm a sucker for a good post-apocalypse tale. Reading books like this one where everybody that survives has to start over reminds me how screwed I'd be in an actual apocalypse and that deep down I really am quite a princess. I might enjoy becoming a farmer though I suspect I'd become a vegetarian because I don't think I could handle killing and taking care of my own meat/chicken/game. Anyway, the book. The book is good and apparently part of a series. I'm not sure if there's a prequel to this. It seems like there might be because the book glosses over what led to the apocolaypse, implying that one already knew. Or it really wasn't that important. Reading about the book on Amazon it apparently started when the world's oil supply ran out. I didn't really pick up on this at all. I thought it was about an epidemic. Regardless, I look forward to reading the next one in the series.
Time to write: 4:32
Author: James Howard Kunstler
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Summary: The world as we know it has ended. Washington DC was blown up and there might be a new President, but nobody's really sure. Everybody has had to start over because there isn't any access to oil, gas or electricity is intermittent at best. In the town of Union Grove, New York, the residents have created their own society. When a pack of religious extremists come to town, they bring their own brand of law and order.
Review: If you read this blog often you know I'm a sucker for a good post-apocalypse tale. Reading books like this one where everybody that survives has to start over reminds me how screwed I'd be in an actual apocalypse and that deep down I really am quite a princess. I might enjoy becoming a farmer though I suspect I'd become a vegetarian because I don't think I could handle killing and taking care of my own meat/chicken/game. Anyway, the book. The book is good and apparently part of a series. I'm not sure if there's a prequel to this. It seems like there might be because the book glosses over what led to the apocolaypse, implying that one already knew. Or it really wasn't that important. Reading about the book on Amazon it apparently started when the world's oil supply ran out. I didn't really pick up on this at all. I thought it was about an epidemic. Regardless, I look forward to reading the next one in the series.
Time to write: 4:32
Saturday, July 11, 2015
Book review: The Last Time We Say Goodbye
Title: The Last Time We Say Goodbye
Author: Cynthia Hand
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Summary: Lex and her family have been a mess since her younger brother Tyler committed suicide. Lex's mom spends a lot of time in bed and/or drinking and Lex has pushed her boyfriend and friends out of her life. Lex is in therapy somewhat against her will and rolls her eyes at her therapist. Lex starts to feel haunted by her brother's ghost, which forces her to face her own guilt and unresolved issues. Heading to college next year, Lex needs to decide if she can leave her mom, who is now truly alone since her parents' divorce.
Review: I am lucky enough that I've never had somebody close to me commit suicide. So I can't imagine the feelings that this would bring up and I hope that I never have to. I read this more through the lens of a parent rather than Lex's point of view. I can't imagine how difficult it would be to deal with losing a child or a sibling to suicide. This was a pretty raw book. I could appreciate Lex's reaction as well as her mom's reaction. Why didn't I give it more stars? Because it wasn't one of those books that I couldn't wait to pick up when I finally found time to read.
Time to write: way too long
Time to write: way too long
Sunday, April 19, 2015
Book review: Before I Go
Title: Before I Go
Author: Colleen Oakley
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Summary: Daisy Richmond is 27 and married to Jack, the love of her life. In her early 20s she battled breast cancer and she's just found it's back. And this time it's terminal in a "6-months to live" terminal. What's going to happen to Jack when she's gone? Daisy wants to be sure that Jack is left in good hands after she dies, so she makes it her mission to find Jack a new wife before she goes. Except that when Jack ends up getting close to a woman that Daisy perceives to be the perfect fit for Jack, Daisy worries that she's lost Jack even before she's actually passed away.
Review: This is one of those books that when I picked it up from the library and the jacket I thought, "this might not be the best book for me." But I loved it. I'd call this sort of "heavy chick lit." I mean, Daisy's terminal. But there are funny parts too. And Jack is a great guy, but terminal cancer can tax even the strongest of marriages. I don't want to give the ending away, but did I mention her cancer is terminal? It doesn't end well. Make no mistake--this is a tearjerker of a book. I realized it's been a while since I read a tearjerker. They're pretty cathartic. I finished this book last night and I was hoping that my sobbing wasn't waking up Aaron. If you're in the mood for a tearjerker, check this one out.
Time spent on review: 3:39
Author: Colleen Oakley
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Summary: Daisy Richmond is 27 and married to Jack, the love of her life. In her early 20s she battled breast cancer and she's just found it's back. And this time it's terminal in a "6-months to live" terminal. What's going to happen to Jack when she's gone? Daisy wants to be sure that Jack is left in good hands after she dies, so she makes it her mission to find Jack a new wife before she goes. Except that when Jack ends up getting close to a woman that Daisy perceives to be the perfect fit for Jack, Daisy worries that she's lost Jack even before she's actually passed away.
Review: This is one of those books that when I picked it up from the library and the jacket I thought, "this might not be the best book for me." But I loved it. I'd call this sort of "heavy chick lit." I mean, Daisy's terminal. But there are funny parts too. And Jack is a great guy, but terminal cancer can tax even the strongest of marriages. I don't want to give the ending away, but did I mention her cancer is terminal? It doesn't end well. Make no mistake--this is a tearjerker of a book. I realized it's been a while since I read a tearjerker. They're pretty cathartic. I finished this book last night and I was hoping that my sobbing wasn't waking up Aaron. If you're in the mood for a tearjerker, check this one out.
Time spent on review: 3:39
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