A Tale of Two Suspense Novels

Hello and apologies for my silence over the last months. I promise I have been reading and talking books and writing, just not here. That last one really hurt. I'll work on a summary of some of those from The Great Silence, but today I'm tackling the most recent titles.

One of my girlfriends kind of got me on a suspense kick with Blood Sisters, which I enjoyed and texted her more than once with "wtf?" I requested a few from some library sources I have and surprise! two became available the exact same day. It's hard not to compare them, so I'm going to.

Both of these were enjoyable, interesting, fast-paced, twisty- all the things you want in a thriller. But I have to say, A.J. Finn did a better job in crafting the story.

The Woman In the Window is the Hitchcockian-noir story of an agoraphobic psychologist who spies on her neighbors and witnesses something terrible. It leans on the unreliable narrator structure in a way that doesn't make me hate Anna, the protagonist. Yes, she drinks too much and mixes it with her meds (tsk, tsk, Dr. Fox), but I found it less annoying than the same ploy in The Girl On the Train. Some of the twists were predictable, some I expected but not from whom.

The Couple Next Door follows a couple and a detective in the days after the couple's infant daughter is abducted while the parents are at a party next door. It's definitely a unique premise that could spawn some thought-provoking conversations among parents (and probably lead to a bunch of pearl-clutching and sanctimommying, but let's stay positive for a few minutes). The title suggests much more interaction with the couple hosting the party, but they barely register. The husband is literally only in the first scene. And their big secret adds almost nothing to the plot. Although, with a cliffhanger ending, perhaps Shari Lapena intends to delve more into their lives. It's a page-turner, but in my opinion, falls short of its counterpart today.

- Finn's characters are more engaging. We experience enough of Dr. Fox's interior life to get a feel for who she really is. We are told what Marco and Anne Conti and Detective Rasback are thinking, not shown.
- Finn's crime is the focus of the story, the conflict we want to be resolved. The missing baby is almost secondary to Lapena's story. More time is spent on the possible reasons Cora is gone than dealing with the aftermath of a baby vanishing. More time is spent watching the least sympathetic parent, which makes it hard to find someone to like.
- Finn propels the story from the first-person point of view. This, to me, makes all the biggest difference. The reader gets caught inside the fragile mind of one woman. You feel trapped in her obsession because she is the only one revealing the plot. I kept thinking how much more suspenseful the Contis' story would have been if only one of them had been telling it. Instead, we bounce around and have an omniscient third person telling us how everyone is feeling but never revealing intimate thoughts through action or inner dialogue.

Lest it sound like I hated Couple, I admit I will share it with friends. If you like suspense, it's a good, quick read. It's a good story poorly told. It's a rough draft that still needs editing.

So, those are the two books I read this week. I've got one more suspense novel in my queue before I switch things up.

Others that I won't be reviewing now but finished:
Charlie Bone series by Jenny Nimmo- decent. Not the world-building and complexity of Harry Potter, but an enjoyable child-discovers hidden talent/family secret arc.
Plantagenet series by Phillippa Gregory- reliably good. I enjoy Gregory's research-based imaginings of the lives of women in history. Particularly, I love that different women recounting the same events as friends and as enemies all have my sympathy. These books are the precursors to the wildly popular Tudor books from a few years back.
The Road to Jonestown about the history of Jim Jones' Peoples Temple. Though I took a course in college that focused on Jonestown, I learned so much from this. Warning- the back pages are full of very graphic images.
Hell's Princess- a disappointing offering from a well-respected true crime researcher. Belle Gunness lived on her murder farm in the small town where I grew up. While I did learn more from the book than I picked up at the county museum display, I was put off by the reliance on "yellow journalism" for research while also talking about how unreliable media was at the time.
The Light of Fireflies by Paul Pen. Wow. I should actually write a whole review of it. I wasn't expecting the thriller aspect of this one because it starts out more like book club lit. It's just a really compelling read. The translation to English is skilled and poetic. I highly recommend it.

That's about all the summarizing I can handle today. I downloaded several new titles on World Book Day and put in requests for 13 new books at the library, so there's more material to come. In case you missed it, I did a roundup of titles for the summer over at the Destin 30A Moms Blog.

Chapter 40: A Play

A Midsummer Night's Dream, William Shakespeare
No Fear Shakespeare Edition

I have never used Cliff Notes, Spark Notes, etc. Ever. Because when I was in school, they were seen as an excuse to know enough to pass a test without reading a book instead of as a study guide. But this was the only version of MSND that was available at my library, so I checked it out.

We've been doing this thing in our homeschool where we spend some time in the mornings doing something with the arts. We've memorized Jabberwocky and watched OK Go videos. Soon we will begin reading some Shakespeare. Before I try to teach my kids something, I probably should have a grasp for it. So this kills two birds with one stone.

I'm not going to go much into the actual play. It's Shakespeare. He's great. It's great. Blah, blah, blah. But I would like to talk about this side-by-side edition. I think it's a great way to make complicated language accessible to more people. I still read the original text, but it was easy to find a modern translation if I was unsure of my own. For the most part, I got it. But there were times that a minor change affected the story. Now, I'm not going to pretend that I caught all the subtleties of the Bard's writing- far from it. But having the translation *right there* gave me more confidence as I read the lines. It took a lot of the intimidation out- which is just awesome. If I worry and struggle- and we all know how much I love to read- then imagine someone who doesn't. Imagine a student whose family speaks another language at home. Imagine a person who thinks very logically and has difficulty understanding flowery or figurative language. This little book could make a world of difference for them. How cool is that?!?

When I was in high school, I had an English teacher who loved to teach Shakespeare. She was a very prim and proper woman, one might even accuse her of being dour. But she got a sparkle in her eye when talking about ol' Bill. She led a field trip to Canada every year so students could see multiple plays in a weekend. She had a gift for making Shakespeare relatable to many teenagers, including explaining the dirty jokes. This edition was like having Mrs. Burns reading beside me and telling me the secrets. I like to think she would approve of a study guide.

I'm not really sure how to rate this one. It's a different kind of review. I'll definitely use this series of guides to help my kids and myself with literature, but I wouldn't just recommend it to anyone looking for something to read. I'll leave Maria out of this one lest I sound like an advertisement.

Chapter 37: A Book Set in the Future

The Giver, Lois Lowry

Newberry winner, turned into a movie, people name their child after one of the characters- maybe my expectations were high for this one. After that insomnia-destroying violin book, I thought this might be a tense enough story to keep me awake. Mostly it did, but was it worth it?

First, let me state for the record that Child #3 did not get his middle name because of this story. I won't ever pretend at some point in the future that it had any influence on the choice. But when I read the author's introduction in which she claims many fans have sent her letters saying they have named their child for one in the novel, well, I expected something original, thought-provoking, and amazing. What I got was ... meh.

The premise of the story has potential- after generations, a community has achieved sameness. Sameness is probably not even the right word, though. People have different abilities and interests, but almost every person has the same life-trajectory. Born > placed with a family unit until adulthood > productive member of society > retirement to the home for old persons > release. Anything other than that is an anomaly and people avoid discussing it because being polite is really, really important. Sounds like things could get pretty interesting, right? You'd think.

Enter Jonas. At Level 12, he gets skipped over in the ceremony that announces what his future job will be. After his peer group gets their assignments, Jonas is called to the center of the room and told he has been chosen for a high honor. He will be Receiver of Memory. His training begins the next day and we are assured it will be painful. Ok, let's see where this is going.

Oh, nevermind. There's snow and a sled and the Civil War and then boom! it's been a year and Jonas is almost done with his training. One of the special things he can do, that no one else can do because it isn't polite, is ask prying questions. Jonas learns what release really involves (I won't spoil it, but it's no surprise. At all.) and decides to run away with the collective memories from generations past. And he takes a baby with him.

Ah! So the journey is going to be a big part of the plot! We're going to see Jonas and Gabriel bond and experience new things now? Nope. It's going to take a single chapter to get through what is a very long journey (I assume). And that's the end. No revolution. No conflict wherein the Elders try to change Jonas' mind. No word at all of what becomes of the Community members Jonas once cared for- his parents, sister, and friends. Just ... The End.

I just can't believe with this much material, this is all we get. And that people love it so much. It's not terrible. It's written well enough. It just lacks so much- character development, continuity, conflict. I guess I could be generous and call it a Revolution of One, but without more information I can't even do that. This story is like a Slim Fast shake instead of one of those insane buffets in Vegas. Overall, I'm underwhelmed. I won't read it again or expect my kids to (but they can if they want). The Giver gets a disappointing 2.5 Marias.

Chapter 32: A Book Set at Christmas (Thanksgiving)

A Swiftly Tilting Planet, Madeline L'Engle

I'm fudging this one a little. The challenge says Christmas, but I read one that takes place Thanksgiving Day instead. Sue me.

Planet is the third in L'Engle's Time Trilogy, which became a Quartet then Quintet. But the central characters of the first three are the same, those of the following two are not.

It's been years since we last met Meg, Calvin, and Charles Wallace. Meg and Calvin are now married and Charles Wallace, a teenager, is constructing models of a tesseract. The whole Murray family has convened for a traditional holiday dinner together, when father gets a disturbing call from the president.

Thus begins Charles Wallace's journey through time to see if it is possible to change one moment to affect change in the future. Unlike butterfly effect theories, Charles Wallace, with the help of Meg via kything, seek to pinpoint and alter one tiny moment to save the future without changing everything else.

Through their mental and spiritual connection, Meg watches as Charles Wallace travels through the genealogy of Mad Dog Branzillo, looking for the right moment to rescue the future. For now I will ignore the moral and ethical criticisms of the novel and just focus on what I specifically liked and disliked.

Well, of course, there is Meg. She's not the same kickass teenager that I love. She's become pretty and content and lacks all the angsty fire I used to love. She's no longer blazing, just some glowing embers. Which, you know, is actually a fine way for a woman to grow. I just don't find much to cheer her for now that she's all mature.

I like that L'Engle blends science and religion without putting them at odds. In this episode, she adds some Paganism to the mix, which is like seasoning an already delicious dish. So many times, I think we get caught in a fallacy of mutual exclusivity, that we miss the duality in nature of the world around us. (There will be more discussion of this at a later date because it ties in to another theme of a different novel.)

I like the family histories. Even when the oft repeated names became confusing. The mystery of which branch the final antagonist will come from is an interesting exercise in word play.

As someone with vertigo, I love the title. It perfectly describes those moments.

It's not my favorite in the series, but I'm sure I'll read it again (and again). Meg's transformation and weak role don't help this one earn any extra Marias. Planet ties up this trilogy with just 3 Marias.

Chapter 30: A Book You Own But Have Never Read

A Wind In the Door, Madeline L'Engle

This is one of those books that I can't believe I never read before. I mean, I've read Wrinkle so many times that I forget other people have not. But for some reason, I've never finished the trilogy/quartet until now.

A Wind In the Door brings us back to Meg, Charles Wallace, and Calvin together in the backyard trying to solve another major dilemma that no one outside their sphere knows about or understands. Charles Wallace is sick and having trouble adapting to school. This time, Meg's love alone will not save her brother. She'll have to control her temper and ask from help from the one man she believes incapable of caring.

The dragons in the twins' garden are a new fantastical creature that will pair up with Meg and the others to solve, not only the mystery of Charles Wallace's health, but provide proof of the hypothetical farandolae- if only to those who already believe.

L'Engle is a masterful storyteller. Unlike many series, she does not get bogged down in repetition. Each journey is completely new, yet related to earlier adventures. They build on one another in a way that makes theoretical science accessible and entertaining. At the same time, she leaves you believing in a little bit of magic with a dash of generic religion. The three co-exist seamlessly in her skillful hands.

Meg continues to be one of my all-time favorite heroes. She's a real adolescent girl- confused, emotional, unsure. And when she's done saving the planet from doom, she keeps the secret to herself and goes about a normal life with cocoa and tomato sandwiches. I will definitely come back and reads these books again when my own daughter is in this stage.

On its own, Wind would earn a solid four Marias. It's not my favorite in this series, but as part of the series and because it stars Meg, A Wind In the Door earns five Marias.

Chapter 29: A Book of Short Stories

Fictitious Dishes, Dinah Fried

Technically not a collection of short stories, this book still belongs somewhere on the list. I received a copy for my birthday last month. It is so me! It's paragraphs from famous novels, plus design and photography, plus a list of facts pertaining to the food, the novel, or otherwise related to the selection.

Charlie enjoyed going through the pages to see if I had read all the books mentioned in Dishes. Apparently I need to add some to my list. It was fun to see how many were captured well enough to know the title before seeing it.

You won't get in depth in any of the stories, but if you enjoy food writing, this one might just capture enough of your imagination to make it worth perusing. I'm keeping it out so visitors can drop in on Melville and Alcott and McCloskey. Ms. Fried has certainly crafted a conversation starter, earning her 4.5 Mariass (only losing half a Maria because so little text is original).

   

Chapter 21: A Book With Nonhuman Characters

The Ocean at the End of the Lane, Neil Gaiman

You might have picked up that I don't read reviews or even dust jackets when selecting books. This was one of those. I had a few hours to spend at a bookstore, so I selected a large stack of interesting looking titles and began on page one. If, by page three I was still interested, I bought it. I spent a lot of money that day. Ocean, written by the same man who gave us Coraline, the creepiest kid movie ever, was definitely a good choice. Had I realized it was the same guy, I might not have picked it up. Teri Hatcher's voice still gives me the heebie-jeebies, and every time I see a LaLaLoopsy doll with button eyes I shiver. So I'm glad I didn't read the flap.

It's hard to describe this short novel without either giving away too much or relegating the fantasy to normal, boring, earthbound language. It reminded me of A Wrinkle In Time, one of my all-time favorite stories but is still very different. Gaiman crafted a fast-paced, character driven novel with immense creativity and enough magic to believe it might all be true. It's gross and engrossing, terribly tragic, and somehow still a children's story on some level. I would not let my seven year old read it just yet, but I will probably introduce him to it after her reads Wrinkle.

There is nothing here for me to critique. When you pull off an entire novel in 178 pages, without leaving a bunch of unresolved threads, you've managed a bit of magic for real. It's neither a short story with fluff padding it, nor a novel with chunks missing. It is, instead, a perfectly satisfactory piece of writing that I am pleased to give four Marias.

Foreward and Chapter 1

I like to read. A lot. I often have a few books going at once. But I am terrible at remembering what I've read or remembering details of books. So, while searching for a list for the new year, I came across the advice to start a blog, which will also function as a reading journal. So, here it is.

My friend, Raven, shared this reading challenge from POPSUGAR on facebook the other day. It looks interesting and will, hopefully, expand my horizons a little. Come along as I attempt to tackle the whole thing in 2015.



Oh, and since I just finished a book, I'm cheating and starting early.

A book you can finish in a day
The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry, Gabrielle Zevin

Fikry is not a lovable main character. He's moody and kind of a jerk. And yet, I found myself hoping for good things to happen to him. Some do. Some don't.

A little "feely" for my tastes, it manages to have complex human relationships without getting overly mushy. It won't give you the ugly cries, nor will you walk away feeling like the world is a wonderful place.

Things I liked: the pace, the references to other works, the small-town charms (What? I'm watching Gilmore Girls, too.) and Amelia.

Things I didn't like: Maya's origin story is weak. So much could be done here. Instead, it turns out to be a pretty simple, and straightforward explanation that left me a little bored. The name Ismay. Character development- even though I enjoyed being able to read it in one day, having more complex characters over more pages would have been more interesting.

Overall: it's a good book. Nothing life-changing, but worth the time.

If you have suggestions for my booklist, please feel free to comment with why I should read it. Also, if you are looking for good children's books, go see my friend Joy at The Book Children.

*I get nothing from the recommendations made here. No free copies of books. No kickbacks on sales. I just want to share my thoughts on what's in print these days.