Musings of a Bookish Kitty

Thursday, August 29, 2013

Bookish Thoughts: Mini Review of Short Reads

What better time to fit in three novellas then when I cannot quite decide what to read next?

Ring in the Dead by J.A. Jance

William Morrow, 2013

Crime Fiction; 114 pgs

I have long been a fan of J.A. Jance's J.P. Beaumont, and so when I was offered the chance to read and review a novella that takes the reader back to one of Beau's earliest cases, I could not resist. The daughter of Beau's first partner, Pickles Gurkey, as a Seattle P.D. Homicide Detective surprises Beau one evening with part of an entry to a book Pickles Gurkey had been writing. It takes Beau back in time to their first case, and Pickles involvement in another murder investigation that almost landed him in jail.

The story is told from two viewpoints, that of Pickles and that of Beau. I thought the two perspectives fit nicely together. Pickles wasn't particularly excited about taking on a new partner, especially one was inexperienced as Beau. This was a perfect story for a novella--giving the reader a taste of what Beau had been like in his younger years both on a personal and professional level while at the same time telling an entertaining mystery.

You can learn more about J.A. Jance and her books on the author's website.

Source: I received an e-copy of this novella from the publisher through Edelweiss.

Bitter Disenchantment by Shawntelle Madison

2013

Fantasy; 156 pgs

Having read and enjoyed Shawntelle Madison's other books, I jumped at the chance to read Bitter Disenchantment. This novella features werewolf Agatha McClure, a character we've met before in the author's series featuring heroine Natalya Stravinksy. I love that Madison's characters tend to have anxiety type disorders, and Agatha's is one I can relate all too well with. She's an over eater. I know all too well what it's like to be a comfort eater, and how difficult it can be to stop. This story isn't about that though. Bitter Disenchantment is the story of how Agatha ended up on Natalya's doorstep. About her controlling father, an arranged marriage and taking drastic measures to get out of an unwanted relationship.

This was a good story and I enjoyed catching up on Aggie's history. She's one of my favorite characters in Madison's series. I think the only fault I found with the novel is that I would have ended it sooner. Although I do understand why the author took the novel to the point she did. It leads nicely into the series and offers a peak into what is to come.

You can learn more about Shawntelle Madison and her books on the author's website.

Source: I received an e-copy of this novella from the publisher for review via NetGalley.

The Wanderer in Unknown Realms by John Connolly

Atria, 2013

Horror, 96 pgs

“Books alter men, and men, in their turn, alter worlds.”

A World War I veteran, Soter, is doing investigative work now and then for an attorney is asked to look into the disappearance of a wealthy man, Lionel Maulding. Mr. Maulding is a bit of a recluse, not having many friends and mostly keeping to himself. His house is full of books varying in subject matter. Soter discovers Mr. Maulding's most recent interest in the occult, and what follows is the stuff of nightmares.

I fell in love with John Connolly's writing the moment I began this short novella. The author's words easily set the tone of the novel and his descriptions of the characters and setting took me right into the pages of the book. Soter is surviving rather than living, after having lost his family and seeing the horrors he saw during the war. It makes this story all the more compelling--are the horrors Soter encounters real or a dissent into madness? I am not so easily frightened by horror novels, but this one got under my skin. I won't be so quick to get into a bubble bath any time soon.

You can learn more about John Connolly and his books on the author's website.

Source: I bought an e-copy of this novella for my own reading pleasure.

© 2013, Wendy Runyon of Musings of a Bookish Kitty. All Rights Reserved. If you're reading this on a site other than Musings of a Bookish Kitty or Wendy's feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Where is Your Bookmark? (08/27/2013)

Our family was hit hard by the summer flu recently. Mouse caught a bad case of Conjunctivitis and I was laid up for a week, unable to do much more than move around the house like a zombie. Other than a lingering cough, both Mouse and I are feeling much better. Somehow, Anjin has managed to stay on the healthy side, and hopefully it stays that way.

You would think a week of being sick would be the perfect time for reading. Unfortunately, that was not the case. I did watch a lot of HGTV though. Love it or List it became a favorite. And I got a few ideas for my own house.

I managed to get to the book City of Bones, the first book in Cassandra Clare's Mortal Instruments series, just in time for the release of the movie. I finished listening to Joseph Finder's Paranoia, which ended on a high note. I have yet to see the movie, which has not gotten the highest of ratings. I have been spending much of my reading time on novellas of late, reading ones by John Connolly, J.A. Jance, and Shawntelle Madison.

I have settled finally into another full length novel and am reading my first Karin Slaughter mystery thriller, Unseen, which got off to a strong start. It is a real page turner. In audio, I am listening to the popular and much raved about Ready Player One by Ernest Cline, narrated by Wil Wheaton. The novel is set in the future and is full of 1980's nostalgia. Two chapters in and I am already loving it.

What are you reading right now? Is it something you would recommend?

Every Tuesday Diane from Bibliophile By the Sea hosts

First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros, where

participants share the first paragraph (or a few) of a

book they are reading or thinking about reading soon.

One of my most recent reads was a novella by John Connolly called The Wanderer of Unknown Realms. I really had no idea what to expect going in. It has an air of a mystery novel about it, but is definitely more a horror story. The opening does not give anything about the story away really, but it does set the tone.

Through Chancery, pausing only to wipe the dung from my boots.

To the Chancery, to the chambers of the lawyer Quayle.

There are men of wealth and power who wish others to know of their position in society. They eat at the best restaurants and stay in the finest hotels; they revel in ostentation. Even those who serve the interests of others more important than themselves are not immune from grand gestures, and so it is that the Harley Street physicians who tend to the ailments of the great will acquire suites of rooms fitted with antique furnishings, as if to say, "See! I am as good as you. I can demean myself in displays of wealth just as readily as you can." It should be said, of course, that it is somehow less noble to have bought one's possessions with money earned than it is simply to inherit, and arrivistes who try to compete will always be looked down upon by those whose wealth was acquired so long ago that the effort of its acquisition, the filth and sin of it, have since been erased from memory.

Then there are those who understand that wealth and power are weapons and should be used carefully and not without forethought. They disdain ostentation in themselves and in other men. In a way, they may even be ashamed of their privileged position. They have learned, too, that if those who look after their affairs--the physicians, the lawyers, the bankers--work in lavish surroundings, then someone, somewhere is paying more than a shilling extra on his bill in order to provide such comforts. The man who looks after one's money should know its value and be parsimonious with his particular funds as he is with one's own.

Would you continue reading?

Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Wordless Wednesday: Soccer

Hosted by Wordless Wednesday

Thursday, August 15, 2013

Bookish Thoughts: Defending Jacob by William Landay

Defending Jacob by William Landay, narrated by Grover Gardner

Blackstone Audio; 2012

Fiction; 12 hrs, 25 min

From the Publisher:

Award-winning author William Landay has written the consummate novel of an embattled family in crisis--a suspenseful, character-driven mystery that is also a spellbinding tale of guilt, betrayal, and the terrifying speed at which our lives can spin out of control.

Andy Barber has been an assistant district attorney in his suburban Massachusetts county for more than twenty years. He is respected in his community, tenacious in the courtroom, and happy at home with his wife, Laurie, and son, Jacob. But when a shocking crime shatters their New England town, Andy is blindsided by what happens next: his fourteen-year-old son is charged with the murder of a fellow student.

Every parental instinct Andy has rallies to protect his boy. Jacob insists that he is innocent, and Andy believes him. Andy must. He's his father. But as damning facts and shocking revelations surface, as a marriage threatens to crumble and the trial intensifies, and as the crisis reveals how little a father knows about his son, Andy will face a trial of his own--between loyalty and justice, between truth and allegation, between a past he's tried to bury and a future he cannot conceive.

My thoughts: Oh my G-d. Read. This. Now. That is all.

What I liked (because my husband wants more):

The narrator was spot on in his narration as Andy Barber. Spot. On. Annoying and all.
The way the author touched upon the impact a murder charge would have on the family, particularly as a parent.
What was said.
What wasn't said.
The level of attention to detail in terms of the court process, particularly the defense.
Defending Jacob is the very definition of suspense.
How heartbreaking this book was.
How discussion worthy this book is, and how I still can't stop thinking of it or talking about it.

The title says it all. This really isn't a book about Jacob so much as it is about defending Jacob. Jacob is a big part of the story, but it really is the story of his father and how his father--and the family--deals with the charges against his son. There were a couple of moments in which the story could be seen as going off the rails, but I felt, in both instances, it worked for the book. I bought it. I could see it happening the way William Landay describes.

And a final note: I didn't particularly like anybody in this book. Maybe the mom. I felt sorry for her most of the time. It didn't matter though. This book was that good.

Rating: