I think Headhunter is one of my top CSI novels. It is one of the longest – if not the longest – in the series so far. Again it is a new author for the series as well as being the first of the novels not to feature Sara Sidle. I am rather glad that Headhunter does not further confuse the series timeline. One slight odd thing I noticed with the book is that on the rear cover art Warrick’s picture has been replaced by Hodges while Sara still has her place.
The storyline in Headhunter is quite addictive. It has twists and turns which keep you guessing throughout. I did have some suspicions about the killer although I was easily thrown off the scent. I don’t think having Grissom in peril was an all that effective plot twist nor was the bit with Catherine because the reader knows full well that the CSIs cannot be killed off in the book series without it having happened in the television series. Not that I particularly want any of the characters killed off.
I found the killer herself to be very interesting. I liked how once the CSIs had solved the crime we saw things, in a sense, from the point of view of the killer as she stalked Grissom.
Headhunter to me felt like a return to the previous standard of books. Yes the characterisations weren’t as dead on as those from Max Allan Collins but they were pretty close. A slight error saw Catherine described as being blonde rather than a redhead but that is a very minor quibble.
I did find myself missing Sara but that cannot be helped and it is just something I am going to have to get used to.
Saturday, 31 July 2010
Tuesday, 27 July 2010
CSI: Nevada Rose - Jerome Preisler
Oh dear the CSI novel timeline is once again shifted. Although in the novels publishing order Nevada Rose follows In Extremis it is in the written world seemingly placed between In Extremis and Snake Eyes (or very possibly even before Snake Eyes). But even then it doesn’t quite fit.
In Nevada Rose the CSI teams are once again split in to being Graveyard Shift and Swing Shift whereas in the novel In Extremis they are once again one team. If we are to follow the timeline mentioned at the beginning of Snake Eyes that novel takes place just prior to the time when the CSI teams merge back together. Which follows with In Extremis taking place afterwards. Snake Eyes also mentions Warrick’s impending marriage although his soon to be wife is not actually seen in the novel whereas in Nevada Rose he is sad to be divorced from his wife. Which means he has either married and divorced in a very short space of time (placing Nevada Rose between Snake Eyes and In Extremis) or he got divorced prior to even being married (placing Nevada Rose before Snake Eyes). Of course having different authors is going to skew the timeline slightly but keeping it cannon would have been nice just because it makes it easier to read and follow the action without constantly trying to readjust your mindset to a different period of CSI history.
The storylines and characterisations are alright. They are not the same as the Max Allan Collins books (which I am currently believing to be the best minus a few hiccups) where the standard was very high but at least it isn’t as bad as In Extremis.
I liked how there was some development to Sara and Grissom – with their relationship being more obvious in this novel whereas it was only hinted at in others. Although it does make the timeline a bit difficult again. It was interesting to hear a little about one of Sara’s foster homes and her reaction to the Belcher case.
The Rose Demille case was also interesting and I didn’t actually guess who the killer was so that at least was interesting. I did like the twist with Matt Baker and wasn’t really expecting it.
Definitely not the worst CSI book but not the best either.
In Nevada Rose the CSI teams are once again split in to being Graveyard Shift and Swing Shift whereas in the novel In Extremis they are once again one team. If we are to follow the timeline mentioned at the beginning of Snake Eyes that novel takes place just prior to the time when the CSI teams merge back together. Which follows with In Extremis taking place afterwards. Snake Eyes also mentions Warrick’s impending marriage although his soon to be wife is not actually seen in the novel whereas in Nevada Rose he is sad to be divorced from his wife. Which means he has either married and divorced in a very short space of time (placing Nevada Rose between Snake Eyes and In Extremis) or he got divorced prior to even being married (placing Nevada Rose before Snake Eyes). Of course having different authors is going to skew the timeline slightly but keeping it cannon would have been nice just because it makes it easier to read and follow the action without constantly trying to readjust your mindset to a different period of CSI history.
The storylines and characterisations are alright. They are not the same as the Max Allan Collins books (which I am currently believing to be the best minus a few hiccups) where the standard was very high but at least it isn’t as bad as In Extremis.
I liked how there was some development to Sara and Grissom – with their relationship being more obvious in this novel whereas it was only hinted at in others. Although it does make the timeline a bit difficult again. It was interesting to hear a little about one of Sara’s foster homes and her reaction to the Belcher case.
The Rose Demille case was also interesting and I didn’t actually guess who the killer was so that at least was interesting. I did like the twist with Matt Baker and wasn’t really expecting it.
Definitely not the worst CSI book but not the best either.
CSI: In Extremis - Ken Goddard
I’m really not sure what to make of this novel. The storyline was complex but it just ended up seeming far too confusing and making me struggle to get through it. One of the biggest problems I found with the novel was the timeline. Everything that happens in the novel supposedly happens over a very short space of time (I would guess around 24 hours) but at times this seemed almost impossible to grasp because so much was going on that when you realised that only maybe an hour or two had passed you couldn’t help but wonder how much had been done in that time. At times I found this to be quite jarring because I had believed myself to be days ahead of the previous acting and yet when we returned to Mialkovsky it turned out to have only be a little bit of time.
I think one of the things I also found a little boring was the fact there was no real mystery. Yes the CSIs had to work out the killer and how everything ‘went down’ but the reader already knew. That said the initial crime scene was rather complicated to work out and I found myself getting muddled between the UCs and all the different cars which seemed to go around.
I don’t think Ken Goddard had the same understanding of the characters which Max Allan Collins showed in the previous CSI novels. The characters just didn’t seem to flow as well as they had done in the previous books. Some of the dialogue didn’t really seem to ring true to the characters.
The science in the book is also a little over the top. As much as I like CSI I don’t tend to view it as a lesson in forensic science and field investigations – this novel however seemed to want to give me that. There was far too much technical jargon which ultimately brought me out of the storyline and left me feeling rather confused and disorientated. I can understand the author (previously a CSI himself) wanting to give a realistic portrayal of the career but it just didn’t seem to work. The tests, processes and analysis are covered thoroughly and in detail (so much detail on the placing of stickers before being photographed left me feeling more than a little bored).
But for all the slogging through the novel there was not even a worthwhile conclusion. Yes I understand that in real life CSI cases there will not always be a satisfactory end to a case but this isn’t the real world. It is almost as if this was supposed to be a two parter – although I am not entirely sure I could face another book like this.
What could have been a very interesting story very sadly wasn’t.
I think one of the things I also found a little boring was the fact there was no real mystery. Yes the CSIs had to work out the killer and how everything ‘went down’ but the reader already knew. That said the initial crime scene was rather complicated to work out and I found myself getting muddled between the UCs and all the different cars which seemed to go around.
I don’t think Ken Goddard had the same understanding of the characters which Max Allan Collins showed in the previous CSI novels. The characters just didn’t seem to flow as well as they had done in the previous books. Some of the dialogue didn’t really seem to ring true to the characters.
The science in the book is also a little over the top. As much as I like CSI I don’t tend to view it as a lesson in forensic science and field investigations – this novel however seemed to want to give me that. There was far too much technical jargon which ultimately brought me out of the storyline and left me feeling rather confused and disorientated. I can understand the author (previously a CSI himself) wanting to give a realistic portrayal of the career but it just didn’t seem to work. The tests, processes and analysis are covered thoroughly and in detail (so much detail on the placing of stickers before being photographed left me feeling more than a little bored).
But for all the slogging through the novel there was not even a worthwhile conclusion. Yes I understand that in real life CSI cases there will not always be a satisfactory end to a case but this isn’t the real world. It is almost as if this was supposed to be a two parter – although I am not entirely sure I could face another book like this.
What could have been a very interesting story very sadly wasn’t.
CSI: Snake Eyes - Max Allan Collins
As of July 2010 this is the final CSI novel to be written by Max Allan Collins. I’m quite disappointed by this as I have very much enjoyed reading the CSI books he has written although I am looking forward to seeing how the other author tackle the series.
Thankfully this book comes with a little note at the beginning to help the reader to get in the correct time frame which the novel takes place in. I am very grateful for this piece of information as it is often difficult to place yourself in to correct period of time. Especially given the books tend to follow quite far behind the television air dates which can make the time leap quite jarring.
I found the storylines in this book to be very interesting reads. I especially enjoyed the relationship between Greg and Warrick and having the pair of them separated from the others and working together back in Vegas. It was also nice to be able to see just how Greg is adjusting from being a lab rat to a CSI. The Greg and Warrick stuff though is very much a background storyline playing second fiddle to the larger storyline which takes place in Boot Hill.
I was quite surprised with the direction the Boot Hill storyline took and was very much surprised by who the killer actually was. The bits that occurred in the police station, were very edge of your seat and definitely had me reading frantically to find out just what was going to happen. Of course I knew to an extent what wasn’t going to happen (i.e. the main CSI’s getting killed) because obviously that doesn’t happen in the TV show and nothing in the books changes the TV cannon. So in that respect there is sometimes a lack of suspense but it’s still pretty good reading.
I think Max Allan Collins has done well with the CSI books he has written. Again Tomas appears but I doubt we’ll hear any more from him in the future novels. The author has captured the characters in a way to keep them true to their television counterparts while still giving little bits of extra information here and there.
One little thing I did like was a possible reference to the television show Friends and the couple Ross and Rachel. On page 180 a breakfast cook called Mr Ross is mentioned at a place called Rachel’s. I thought that was kind of cute.
Thankfully this book comes with a little note at the beginning to help the reader to get in the correct time frame which the novel takes place in. I am very grateful for this piece of information as it is often difficult to place yourself in to correct period of time. Especially given the books tend to follow quite far behind the television air dates which can make the time leap quite jarring.
I found the storylines in this book to be very interesting reads. I especially enjoyed the relationship between Greg and Warrick and having the pair of them separated from the others and working together back in Vegas. It was also nice to be able to see just how Greg is adjusting from being a lab rat to a CSI. The Greg and Warrick stuff though is very much a background storyline playing second fiddle to the larger storyline which takes place in Boot Hill.
I was quite surprised with the direction the Boot Hill storyline took and was very much surprised by who the killer actually was. The bits that occurred in the police station, were very edge of your seat and definitely had me reading frantically to find out just what was going to happen. Of course I knew to an extent what wasn’t going to happen (i.e. the main CSI’s getting killed) because obviously that doesn’t happen in the TV show and nothing in the books changes the TV cannon. So in that respect there is sometimes a lack of suspense but it’s still pretty good reading.
I think Max Allan Collins has done well with the CSI books he has written. Again Tomas appears but I doubt we’ll hear any more from him in the future novels. The author has captured the characters in a way to keep them true to their television counterparts while still giving little bits of extra information here and there.
One little thing I did like was a possible reference to the television show Friends and the couple Ross and Rachel. On page 180 a breakfast cook called Mr Ross is mentioned at a place called Rachel’s. I thought that was kind of cute.
CSI: Killing Game - Max Allan Collins
Although this book features the change in the CSI dynamic - with Catherine, Nick and Warrick becoming swingshift, the introduction of Sofia Curtis and Greg become a CSI rather than a lab rat this book doesn’t feel all that different due to the two teams having to come together when two separate cases become one.
I enjoyed the fact that this novel offered some insight in to Grissom’s past through the rather interesting relationship that he is shown to have with Templeton. I also like the fact that this novel does focus a lot on the characters themselves allowing more of an insight in to them. I find that the author is able to capture the essence of the characters perfectly.
One thing I do find a little annoying in a sense is the fact that, rather than using to a greater degree the lab rat already in the CSI world, the author always seems to find a place for a computer tech he himself has invented. Tomas is ok and his relationship with Catherine can be amusing but I am getting a little bored of him now.
The actual case in this book was a little bit obvious from the beginning and didn’t really leave much guess work. I think as it follows on from the very strong Binding Ties its weaknesses show up in a bigger way. The plot was a bit slow to get going and was almost blindingly obvious from very early in the book which I found disappointing. I suppose this book was more about the character development and the changes which came with the team being separated.
Also not so much related to the story but my copy of the book has several pages which are printed far lighter than the rest of the text for no reason what so ever. This made reading the novel quite difficult as the lighter text hurt my eyes.
I enjoyed the fact that this novel offered some insight in to Grissom’s past through the rather interesting relationship that he is shown to have with Templeton. I also like the fact that this novel does focus a lot on the characters themselves allowing more of an insight in to them. I find that the author is able to capture the essence of the characters perfectly.
One thing I do find a little annoying in a sense is the fact that, rather than using to a greater degree the lab rat already in the CSI world, the author always seems to find a place for a computer tech he himself has invented. Tomas is ok and his relationship with Catherine can be amusing but I am getting a little bored of him now.
The actual case in this book was a little bit obvious from the beginning and didn’t really leave much guess work. I think as it follows on from the very strong Binding Ties its weaknesses show up in a bigger way. The plot was a bit slow to get going and was almost blindingly obvious from very early in the book which I found disappointing. I suppose this book was more about the character development and the changes which came with the team being separated.
Also not so much related to the story but my copy of the book has several pages which are printed far lighter than the rest of the text for no reason what so ever. This made reading the novel quite difficult as the lighter text hurt my eyes.
Wednesday, 14 July 2010
CSI: Binding Ties - Max Allan Collins
I think this was one of the better CSI novels that I have read. I would have said it was enjoyable but that seems quite inappropriate given the content of the novel. It was nice to see all of the graveyard shift team working together on a case rather than being split into different teams and working different cases. I do wish they would sometimes vary who works with who as even though this case was a team effort the characters still worked in smaller groups doing different things. The way it is written Warrick is usually paired off with Catherine while Sara and Nick go with Grissom. Sometimes it would be nice to see this varied although I do like the beginnings of hints about Grissom and Sara’s relationship - early in the book there is mention of Grissom having feelings towards Sara.
The case (or cases) in this book are very interesting to read and quite addictive. I like how CASt has a prior history with Brass – it’s nice to see more of his character. I do wish however, that Greg had more of a role in the books. I suppose that because he is still a ‘lab rat’ in the book world (as far as I have gotten) and not working in the field it is somewhat understandable that his role is not all that great. I hope he will have more of a role in future books.
I think the CASt killer is one of the more interesting of the killers. The scene at the end between him and Brass was great to read and I almost felt sorry for him. There was something nice about the way Brass said he would never shake his finger at him.
I also found some of the lines in the book very amusing which is nice light relief from the intensity of the storyline. One of my particular favourites is on page 190 – “Too bad this isn’t a tv show,” she said. “We could have the results after commercial....” - that really did make me smile because obviously CSI is a television show and they do, on screen at least, get there results back quite quickly.
The case (or cases) in this book are very interesting to read and quite addictive. I like how CASt has a prior history with Brass – it’s nice to see more of his character. I do wish however, that Greg had more of a role in the books. I suppose that because he is still a ‘lab rat’ in the book world (as far as I have gotten) and not working in the field it is somewhat understandable that his role is not all that great. I hope he will have more of a role in future books.
I think the CASt killer is one of the more interesting of the killers. The scene at the end between him and Brass was great to read and I almost felt sorry for him. There was something nice about the way Brass said he would never shake his finger at him.
I also found some of the lines in the book very amusing which is nice light relief from the intensity of the storyline. One of my particular favourites is on page 190 – “Too bad this isn’t a tv show,” she said. “We could have the results after commercial....” - that really did make me smile because obviously CSI is a television show and they do, on screen at least, get there results back quite quickly.
What Alice Forgot - Liane Moriarty
This is one of those books where I am not sure if I really loved it or if I really disliked it. It’s fair to say I enjoyed it for the most part but I found it very difficult keeping a lot of things straight in my mind – especially the timeframe. The novel takes place over quite a short space of time but because of the amount of stuff that takes places it often feels longer and therefore keeping track of just where in time you are supposed to be is quite difficult. In addition to this the fact that most of the novel feels rather dragged out makes the ending feel quite sudden – the bits at the end where her memory comes back all at once does seem to happen to quickly almost as if the author realised the book was running long and had to quickly get to her conclusion. I was also more than a little shocked by the man that Alice actually chose - because after getting her memory back it seemed, to me, pretty obvious that she wasn’t going to go that way.
I also found myself rather disappointed with the whole Gina reveal. From the early information relating to her character I suspected that Gina had tried to change Alice and manipulate her – in a sort of abusive relationship. So it was a surprise to find that the reality was rather different from that.
I found the scenes with Alice and the children to be some of the most interesting although I did find the Olivia character rather trying. She was just too perfect and so I found Madison to be far more interesting. The beach scenes were a great read although I think even an amnesiac parent would know that isn’t the greatest of punishments (or even a punishment at all).
This book did make me think though about how I would feel in Alice’s position – to forget 10 years of your life. This is a rather scary prospect and it is a great idea for a book but I think maybe the timeframe should have been a little longer to make things feel less dragged out.
I also found it a little bizarre how Alice’s stuff was written in the third person while Elisabeth and Franny were given first person dialogue in the form of their ‘homework’ and blog respectively. These bits were sometimes a bit distracting and sometimes confused me more than was needed – such as making the relationship between Alice and Elisabeth seem worse when Elisabeth wrote about it.
One interesting thing I did learn though is that the author, Liane Moriarty, is the sister of Jaclyn Moriarty who wrote the Ashbury / Brookfield books (Feeling Sorry for Celia, Finding Cassie Crazy etc.).
I also found myself rather disappointed with the whole Gina reveal. From the early information relating to her character I suspected that Gina had tried to change Alice and manipulate her – in a sort of abusive relationship. So it was a surprise to find that the reality was rather different from that.
I found the scenes with Alice and the children to be some of the most interesting although I did find the Olivia character rather trying. She was just too perfect and so I found Madison to be far more interesting. The beach scenes were a great read although I think even an amnesiac parent would know that isn’t the greatest of punishments (or even a punishment at all).
This book did make me think though about how I would feel in Alice’s position – to forget 10 years of your life. This is a rather scary prospect and it is a great idea for a book but I think maybe the timeframe should have been a little longer to make things feel less dragged out.
I also found it a little bizarre how Alice’s stuff was written in the third person while Elisabeth and Franny were given first person dialogue in the form of their ‘homework’ and blog respectively. These bits were sometimes a bit distracting and sometimes confused me more than was needed – such as making the relationship between Alice and Elisabeth seem worse when Elisabeth wrote about it.
One interesting thing I did learn though is that the author, Liane Moriarty, is the sister of Jaclyn Moriarty who wrote the Ashbury / Brookfield books (Feeling Sorry for Celia, Finding Cassie Crazy etc.).
Saturday, 10 July 2010
CSI: Grave Matters - Max Allan Collins
I love the CSI television series and have already read the first four of the novels based on the Las Vegas series so was really looking forward to reading this – the fifth in the series.
The writing in these books is incredible and it is almost like watching an episode unfold on the screen. Having finishing the other books I found myself almost forgetting which cases had been in episodes and which had come from the book and this book is no different. The characterisations are perfect. With book adaptations I am always worried that the characters will change personalities or be too different but Max Allan Collins completely gets rid of these worries.
The two cases in this book Rita Bennett / Kathy Dean and Vivien Elliot are well crafted and addictive reading. The twists and turns particularly in the Rita / Kathy case had me on the edge of my seat. This was less so with the Vivien Elliot case but it was still a very enjoyable read as I wanted to see how Catherine, Warrick and Sam Vega would be able to trap the killer. And I wasn’t disappointed. The scenes in the hospital between Catherine and the killer were great reading. I was however shocked by the killer in the other case. I just didn’t expect it to go the way it did.
I like how despite the serious elements of the murder mysteries the book has comic bits as well in the banter between the main characters. You can almost hear the actors voices and it’s hard not to at least give a little smile at one of the witty one liners.
I also enjoyed how despite the fact that the cases get quite complicated I didn’t find it difficult to keep track of everything in my mind. I really dislike it when things get all muddled up and I can’t remember which character is which and why they are acting the way they are.
Grave Matters is a very descriptive book. Sometimes the description is a bit much but overall I think it adds a lot to the plot and makes it easier to see things in your mind’s eye. I’m looking forward to reading the next books in the series!
The writing in these books is incredible and it is almost like watching an episode unfold on the screen. Having finishing the other books I found myself almost forgetting which cases had been in episodes and which had come from the book and this book is no different. The characterisations are perfect. With book adaptations I am always worried that the characters will change personalities or be too different but Max Allan Collins completely gets rid of these worries.
The two cases in this book Rita Bennett / Kathy Dean and Vivien Elliot are well crafted and addictive reading. The twists and turns particularly in the Rita / Kathy case had me on the edge of my seat. This was less so with the Vivien Elliot case but it was still a very enjoyable read as I wanted to see how Catherine, Warrick and Sam Vega would be able to trap the killer. And I wasn’t disappointed. The scenes in the hospital between Catherine and the killer were great reading. I was however shocked by the killer in the other case. I just didn’t expect it to go the way it did.
I like how despite the serious elements of the murder mysteries the book has comic bits as well in the banter between the main characters. You can almost hear the actors voices and it’s hard not to at least give a little smile at one of the witty one liners.
I also enjoyed how despite the fact that the cases get quite complicated I didn’t find it difficult to keep track of everything in my mind. I really dislike it when things get all muddled up and I can’t remember which character is which and why they are acting the way they are.
Grave Matters is a very descriptive book. Sometimes the description is a bit much but overall I think it adds a lot to the plot and makes it easier to see things in your mind’s eye. I’m looking forward to reading the next books in the series!
Sunday, 4 July 2010
Getting Over Mr Right - Chrissie Manby
I'm really not sure what to say about this book. It was one of those that I probably wouldn't have picked up had I not needed a second book to get free (by one get one free / 1/2 price / 3 for 2 offers are my downfall). I'm not all that familiar with the author so I didn't have any preconceived ideas about it in that way.
I suppose I could say the book was easy to read. There wasn’t really much in there to tax my brain and it’s one of those books that you can easily put down and pick up at will. I did like that fact that it is mostly comprised of very short chapters meaning that I didn’t have to stop in the middle of a block of text. However, some of the chapter stops seemed a little random as each chapter followed on exactly from the last and did not really change much – just boosting it to an impressive looking 53 chapters total.
The characters were alright. I can’t say I am overly attached to any of them and doubt they will stick in my brain now that I have finished the book. Ashleigh was very naive character and at times I just wanted to grab her by her shoulders and literally shake her. She seemed very immature and it didn’t exactly endear her to me. What she did at the wedding just seemed unnecessarily cruel given that Becky had been doing her best for Ashleigh.
Would I reread this book? Probably not and I probably wouldn’t recommend it either. Maybe I would think more of it if I had been through my own tough break up but somehow I’m not convinced. Yes it was somewhat amusing to see what Ashleigh was going to try next but ultimately it just didn’t come off as well as I had hoped it would.
Friday, 2 July 2010
Before The Storm - Diane Chamberlain
Before the Storm is the second book I have read by the author Diane Chamberlain. The previous book I read by her was The Lost Daughter and I have to say I really enjoyed it so I had high hopes for this book.
One thing that really strikes me about the two books I have read by Diane Chamberlain is the fact they are very similar in style to the books by Jodi Picoult. It is highlighted on both books that they are likely to be enjoyed by fans of Jodi Picoult but usually I take things like that with a pinch of salt. But having read both they are fairly similar – even down to the covers. Both authors seem to have covers which highlight the moral dilemma that the book features and the general style just seems so similar. I suppose it’s a good way of hooking Picoult fans in to reading Diane Chamberlain’s books or vice versa.
I did enjoy Before the Storm. I like books which make me think and which have me interested. However, very early in reading the book I did make a mistake which lead to me finding out the main plot twists way before I should have. I had casually turned to the back pages not to read the final page of the novel (because why would I want to do that) but rather to look at the adverts for her other novels along with seeing the books ‘special features’ – sometimes it seems like they are trying to make books like DVDs. Anyway one of the adverts was for Before the Storm’s sequel – I didn’t even realise there was a sequel – anyway in the little blurb about the book it basically gave away two of the biggest plot points of the novel so when I read it in the novel there was absolutely no element of surprise. I wish I had had that though because the twists are fairly good.
I really liked the characters and found myself actually caring a great deal about them and what was going to happen to them. I suppose it is a credit to Diane Chamberlain’s writing that, despite knowing the answers, I still found myself worrying about the characters. I found learning about Laurel’s history really interesting and seeing how she got to where she was and became the person she was. Her relationship with her children was also very interesting – the way in which she treats them differently. I also loved how the beginning and ending – her two short pieces in italics before the prologue and after the epilogue – were really interesting. The way it came almost in full circle – having to fight for Andy and for Maggie.
Part of me wishes we had been able to learn a little more of Sara and of Keith because both characters are pretty important and yet we do not really know much about them bar their financial situation and the fact that Sara’s husband left many years previously. I was also really interested in Emily – Andy’s friend – but she too was in very little of the book. The character of Layla also seemed a bit useless given she appears for such a short part of the book and does not really serve much purpose. There were so many characters to keep track of that maybe it all just became a bit to tangled with two main secondary characters.
I also found the books timeline to be a bit complicated especially the bits in Laurel’s past. The time between Maggie’s birth and Andy’s just seems very difficult to keep track of especially once Laurel became pregnant with Andy. I just found myself unable to work out just where I was timewise.
I do think I will read the sequel ‘Secrets She Left Behind’ when it comes out in August. I’d like to know what becomes of Andy, Maggie, Laurel and Marcus along with Keith, Sara and Emily.
One thing that really strikes me about the two books I have read by Diane Chamberlain is the fact they are very similar in style to the books by Jodi Picoult. It is highlighted on both books that they are likely to be enjoyed by fans of Jodi Picoult but usually I take things like that with a pinch of salt. But having read both they are fairly similar – even down to the covers. Both authors seem to have covers which highlight the moral dilemma that the book features and the general style just seems so similar. I suppose it’s a good way of hooking Picoult fans in to reading Diane Chamberlain’s books or vice versa.
I did enjoy Before the Storm. I like books which make me think and which have me interested. However, very early in reading the book I did make a mistake which lead to me finding out the main plot twists way before I should have. I had casually turned to the back pages not to read the final page of the novel (because why would I want to do that) but rather to look at the adverts for her other novels along with seeing the books ‘special features’ – sometimes it seems like they are trying to make books like DVDs. Anyway one of the adverts was for Before the Storm’s sequel – I didn’t even realise there was a sequel – anyway in the little blurb about the book it basically gave away two of the biggest plot points of the novel so when I read it in the novel there was absolutely no element of surprise. I wish I had had that though because the twists are fairly good.
I really liked the characters and found myself actually caring a great deal about them and what was going to happen to them. I suppose it is a credit to Diane Chamberlain’s writing that, despite knowing the answers, I still found myself worrying about the characters. I found learning about Laurel’s history really interesting and seeing how she got to where she was and became the person she was. Her relationship with her children was also very interesting – the way in which she treats them differently. I also loved how the beginning and ending – her two short pieces in italics before the prologue and after the epilogue – were really interesting. The way it came almost in full circle – having to fight for Andy and for Maggie.
Part of me wishes we had been able to learn a little more of Sara and of Keith because both characters are pretty important and yet we do not really know much about them bar their financial situation and the fact that Sara’s husband left many years previously. I was also really interested in Emily – Andy’s friend – but she too was in very little of the book. The character of Layla also seemed a bit useless given she appears for such a short part of the book and does not really serve much purpose. There were so many characters to keep track of that maybe it all just became a bit to tangled with two main secondary characters.
I also found the books timeline to be a bit complicated especially the bits in Laurel’s past. The time between Maggie’s birth and Andy’s just seems very difficult to keep track of especially once Laurel became pregnant with Andy. I just found myself unable to work out just where I was timewise.
I do think I will read the sequel ‘Secrets She Left Behind’ when it comes out in August. I’d like to know what becomes of Andy, Maggie, Laurel and Marcus along with Keith, Sara and Emily.
Thursday, 1 July 2010
The Ruby In The Smoke - Philip Pullman
Quite honestly I am not sure what to make of this book. I didn’t completely adore it but I didn’t hate it either. I have read Philip Pullman books before in the form of the Northern Lights trilogy but I don’t think I really let that colour my opinion of the first Sally Lockhart book.
I found this book somewhat difficult to get in to. It seemed to be pretty slow in it’s pacing and at times was almost dragging along. I found myself looking at the page numbers and wondering how I had only advanced maybe 1 or 2 even though it seemed to be many more. That said the last couple of chapters really picked up and I found myself getting more drawn in to the story.
I didn’t really find the characters to be that easy to relate to. I quite liked Adelaide – the young girl – and Jim. The scenes following Adelaide being taken off by Mrs Holland were some of the most interesting to me. I found myself desperately wanting Adelaide to be able to go back with them and to be ok. I hope that Adelaide’s story is not forgotten in the three later books in the series.
I did like that Sally was perhaps an unconventional female from the time period that the book is set in. Her talents in some areas such as bookkeeping and shooting but her lack of skill in things such as literature make her different from the females that do little more than look pretty and faint but it doesn’t exactly make her interesting either. I suppose I was just waiting for her to do something. Maybe part of me was expecting her to be another Lyra from the Northern Lights.
I wasn’t overly surprised by the revelation that Matthew Lockhart was not Sally’s biological father. This was something that I sensed very early in the book and it was just a waiting game for it to be revealed really. I was a little surprised by who her biological father was – I had been expecting it to be the maharajah.
I feel almost a little disappointed that I was not left shocked by the book. Everything seemed laid out from the beginning and it was just a case of waiting for things to unfold in an almost ‘by numbers’ scenario.
I have the remaining books in the series waiting for me to read but there is something about the Ruby in the Smoke that is not exactly making me rush to read them. I will do eventually because I don’t like having books I have bought lying forever unread but their position on the book pile is creeping lower down. Maybe if the second one is more enthralling the others will move up.
I found this book somewhat difficult to get in to. It seemed to be pretty slow in it’s pacing and at times was almost dragging along. I found myself looking at the page numbers and wondering how I had only advanced maybe 1 or 2 even though it seemed to be many more. That said the last couple of chapters really picked up and I found myself getting more drawn in to the story.
I didn’t really find the characters to be that easy to relate to. I quite liked Adelaide – the young girl – and Jim. The scenes following Adelaide being taken off by Mrs Holland were some of the most interesting to me. I found myself desperately wanting Adelaide to be able to go back with them and to be ok. I hope that Adelaide’s story is not forgotten in the three later books in the series.
I did like that Sally was perhaps an unconventional female from the time period that the book is set in. Her talents in some areas such as bookkeeping and shooting but her lack of skill in things such as literature make her different from the females that do little more than look pretty and faint but it doesn’t exactly make her interesting either. I suppose I was just waiting for her to do something. Maybe part of me was expecting her to be another Lyra from the Northern Lights.
I wasn’t overly surprised by the revelation that Matthew Lockhart was not Sally’s biological father. This was something that I sensed very early in the book and it was just a waiting game for it to be revealed really. I was a little surprised by who her biological father was – I had been expecting it to be the maharajah.
I feel almost a little disappointed that I was not left shocked by the book. Everything seemed laid out from the beginning and it was just a case of waiting for things to unfold in an almost ‘by numbers’ scenario.
I have the remaining books in the series waiting for me to read but there is something about the Ruby in the Smoke that is not exactly making me rush to read them. I will do eventually because I don’t like having books I have bought lying forever unread but their position on the book pile is creeping lower down. Maybe if the second one is more enthralling the others will move up.
Welcome
So this is my blog for review the books I am going to read. Whether or not I review every book I read remains to be seen but that is my goal!
My name is Katrina Louise, I am 19 years old and live in Devon, England. I am soon to be working with children. I am a book worm and hav been for as long as I can remember. My bedroom is absolutely filled to the brim with books - I have 4 bookcases, trays of books under my bed, 3 bookcases outside of my bedroom and some in rather unusual places.
I also enjoy writing so this should be fun for me.
My name is Katrina Louise, I am 19 years old and live in Devon, England. I am soon to be working with children. I am a book worm and hav been for as long as I can remember. My bedroom is absolutely filled to the brim with books - I have 4 bookcases, trays of books under my bed, 3 bookcases outside of my bedroom and some in rather unusual places.
I also enjoy writing so this should be fun for me.
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