Categories
books and reading

After the Cure

I get free books daily. Some aren’t really worth reading, but I download them anyway, because maybe someday someone in my house will read them. But ones that sound mildly interesting, I keep on my Kindle to read at some point. If you remember, I’m using a lottery system to pick my books right now since I have so many that I’ve been meaning to read for years. And the lottery selected this one.

I really liked the premise. Most zombie books are about the initial outbreak and how people survive. But this one takes place after the Infected are cured. The world is divided into two halves, the Cured and the Immune. The fun twist is that the Cured remember what they did while they were Infected. And many can’t live with their actions, even though they couldn’t control themselves. Many of the Immune shun the Cured and refuse to interact with them.

The main plot line involves a trial involving the scientists who created the virus and are now being held responsible for the aftermath. Our main characters are an attorney (a Cure) and a psychologist (an Immune) and their relationship, the discovery of some secret information, and how to handle said info. The story was a bit disjointed (at one point a character is near death and in the next scene the character is up and chatting), but overall, the premise was worth the lack of cohesion. Some of the dialogue was a bit cheesy for my taste, but that’s just my personal preference.

There are 5 books in this series, but only the first is free on Amazon. The others are reasonably priced, though, and I plan on reading the rest at some point. I enjoyed this book and its unique premise.

Categories
books and reading

Revolutionary Suicide

I was dreading having to read a political memoir for the 2016 book challenge. I just had no idea where to begin and I really didn’t want to read anything presidential. It just doesn’t interest me at all. I debated on reading The Motorcycle Diaries by Che, but that was mostly because it was short. However, a friend recommended this one, and given the times, I was willing to give it a chance.

This book is really half political and half memoir. Written by Huey P. Newton, the founder of the Black Panthers, we learn a lot of his history. His childhood, family, upbringing, educational experiences, and his troubles. His first 16 or so years was very formative and shaped his political beliefs. He graduates high school not being able to read, but knew that he needed to teach himself. He used Plato’s Republic as a guide, asking his brother for help, looking words up in the dictionary, and learning all he could. Republic was the first book he ever read. And once most people today have never read. This should tell you quite a bit about the kind of man Newton was.

While in college, he began to speak out of the injustices facing Black people in our nation. He, along with a few friends, began to gather and discuss what they could do about it. They created the 10 point platform which was the foundation for the Black Panther Party. And, much to many people’s surprise, they weren’t a violent group at all. They obeyed the letter of the law because they knew the police were targeting them (and they were…the sheer number of times Newton was pulled over is staggering). They learned the law and what their rights were.

At one point, Newton was pulled over and shot by police, for (as he states) no reason. He was falsely accused of murder and, through a jury of 11 white people and 1 black man, he was sentenced for the crime. He was not given the death penalty, however, he fully expected to spend the rest of his life in prison. He had been in and out of jail for various minor offenses, and because of his fame and reputation with authority figures, he was kept in near solitary confinement. While most people broke down, Newton never did. He kept his mind, his focus, and never lost his soul.

Newton was murdered in 1989. At this point, the Black Panther Party had lost its focus (according to the brief research I have done. This isn’t in the book, of course). It was being targeted as a hate group. However, Newton still worked to help Black communities. His last words were “You can kill my body, and you can take my life, but you can never kill my soul. My soul will live forever!” And this is absolutely the truth. Newton saw real problems facing the Black community in the 1960s. And, you know what, they are the exact same problems facing Blacks today, which leaves me wondering when will we ever learn from our past mistakes?

Categories
books and reading

Ink and Bone

Thank you Netgalley for another great title! I have been a bit discouraged with the thrillers I’ve read lately. They seem to be lacking some unique quality, jump the shark at some point in a very unsuccessful way, or are just plain boring. Thankfully, Ink and Bone was one worth reading!

When doing a little background research, I discovered that the setting of this story, The Hollows, NY is a fictional town, but there is a town called the Hollow (formerly named Allentown) that was founded by two families that has only recently become slightly modernized, think indoor plumbing a few years ago, but no telephones, and the residents live in near isolation. Here’s a link the Hollow to a NY Times article about the town. In the book, however, the town is a tourist trap with abandoned mines nearby, and the mountain folk aren’t as isolated as you would think. Interesting tie to real life, however.

The main character, Finley, can see and communicate with the dead. A little girl goes missing and, as a last resort, Finley is asked to help find her. The police have no leads, the parents are desperate, and Finley has been hearing a mysterious noise that leads her to the grieving family. I’m not one who believe in this kind of stuff, however, that didn’t really matter in this novel. I took it as a work of fiction from beginning to end and the author did a great job of creating a character to relate to. Finley struggles with her ability. She wants to help families, but she wants to be a normal person, too. She is a college student, with a tumultuous relationship with her boyfriend, a mother who doesn’t understand her, and a grandmother who shares her abilities.

The story is told in multiple perspectives, which is interesting, but a bit hard to follow at times because it takes a few sentences of a new chapter to realize who the narrator is. However, because this is from Netgalley and isn’t an official published copy, maybe some clarification was added to the final version. It’s certainly not a reason to avoid this book, though.

Overall, really great thriller. Goodreads has it listed as horror, but it’s really not. It’s more of a mystery/thriller, and a great one at that!

Categories
books and reading

All Involved

I have so many ebooks on my Kindle that I’ve had to resort to a lottery system to select my books. There are so many that I’ve bought when they went to $1.99 on Amazon and I just add them to my Kindle and then never read them. I’m trying to clear all these books out. So, I literally draw numbers to select my next book. My only rule is that if I select a book that is the middle of a series, I go to the first book instead. So far, that hasn’t happened. But I’m sure it will at some point, given the number of series I have.

So, when the lottery selected All Involved, my first thought was “oh, yay!” because I’ve heard some great things about this one. Written from multiple perspectives, told in the days following the Rodney King LA Riots, the reader sees events unfolding from a variety races. The stories are mostly told from Mexican gang members, but there are some Koreans who are simply trying to protect their property, a nurse in a hospital treating victims, a fireman trying to keep the city from burning down, and some people trying to keep their heads above the water of crime.

The best part about this book is when one person dies (spoilers, but really, it’s pretty clear this will happen considering the people “All Involved” in the gangs) the next perspective picks up with the friend of the victim or even the killer. You never lose the path of the narrative, even after death. I don’t know much about the author, Ryan Gattis, but he crafted an excellent book that felt very in the moment of the few days it covers. I really enjoyed this book. The race relations presented are still a part of our society today, so it has a double impact on the reader.

Categories
books and reading

Unclean Jobs for Women and Girls

I read Tampa, by Alissa Nutting, some time ago. And as hard as the story was to read, I was absolutely blown away by it. In Tampa, the main character is a middle school teacher who is obsessed with one of her students. She begins a sexual relationship with him. She is clearly a pedophile, preying on young men, but Nutting writes her so vividly and thoroughly, that even though you know what she is doing is beyond reprehensible, you feel badly for her because she lives such a miserable life. Tampa is a book that has stayed with me ever since I first read it.

Because I enjoyed Tampa so much, I wanted to read more of Nutting’s work, so I grabbed this short story collection, which (according to Goodreads) appears to be her only other published work. One is forthcoming in 2017, though. I admit that I’m not a huge short story fan. I can handle one here or there, but overall, I enjoy novels much more. That said, I really liked this collection a lot. The stories are all very adult oriented, namely sex in space, injecting ants into your body in the future, watching garden gnomes have sex (I loved this one, actually), going to Hell, and confronting the ghost of your mother.

I look forward to reading more from Nutting. I’ve been very impressed with how she handles taboo and unpleasant topics with care and, oftentimes, humor. To write such a varied collection of short stories shows her creativity and imagination knows no bounds. I highly recommend both of her books.

Categories
books and reading

Murder in Missoula

Here’s another book I got from Netgalley. I tend to select thrillers because I really do enjoy a good mystery, but this one left me wanting a bit more.

This story isn’t exactly a mystery, because you know who the killer is almost from the beginning. Instead, you are trying to see if the killer will be caught, who will figure out the killer’s identity, are there others involved, will an innocent person be arrested, and so on. I won’t tell you if any of the above questions are answered, though, but I will say the book does have a resolution. Whether it was an appealing one is left up to the reader.

My biggest issue with this book was the lack of emotion from any characters. A woman is murdered and her best friend just drinks a lot of wine as a result. I understand trying to drown your sorrows, but no tears? No sadness? It just seemed really strange to me. The main character, who is involved with the murdered woman, just needs to find the killer. He doesn’t show much sadness for the death, either. This was just really bizarre to me. Maybe I’m being too particular, but the characters just seemed really flat.

Overall, this was a pretty easy read, but not one that left me with tingles or anything. It was just a mediocre story.

Categories
books and reading

Boy’s Life

Last year, I read Swan Song and absolutely loved it. I then recommended it to a friend, who also loved it. Swan Song is a wonderful book of horror, suspense, dystopia mixed with heart, character, and love. And even though it’s long and daunting, I read it quickly and vowed to read more by the author.

Which brings me to Boy’s Life by Robert McCammon. Just hearing a synopsis, I wasn’t moved to read this one. The premise, a year in one boy’s life, just didn’t appeal to me. However, I was completely wrong. I loved this book so much. Yes, it is one year in the life of Cory, a 12 year old living in Zephyr, Alabama in the 1960s, but it is much more than this.

The book starts with Cory and his father witnessing a murder, and the “whodunit” lasts through the entire novel, but it’s not a heavy storyline. Most of the book is told in vignettes about Cory, his friends, his family, and the people of the town. I laughed out loud a few times, namely at a monkey who terrorizes a Wed evening church service. I almost teared up at the end when Cory goes back to his town after having left for a number of years. Cory spends his year mourning losses, reveling in simple joys, discovering who he is, and becoming a man, whether he realizes it or not.

I grew up in a small town in the south, so Cory’s story resonated with me. Even though it wasn’t the 1960, the small town feel was still pervasive. Cory is a good kid from page one, and it was refreshing to read a book that was not only beautifully written, but one that captured life as a kid so perfectly.

Categories
books and reading

The Brothers Karamazov

My gosh. I can’t believe I finished this book. It took me months! I’ve been reading off and on since the spring, and today, I sat down, knocked out the last 25 pages, and completed this beast!

Crime and Punishment is one of my favorite books. I’ve read it several times. I’ve taught it several times. I truly think it is a masterpiece. That said, it doesn’t even begin to hold a candle to this one. These brothers are something on an entirely different level.

The book is over twice as long as Crime and Punishment, with good reason. There is a lot of religious commentary in it, but none of that drags. It’s fascinating, honestly, and I would love to do some research into Dostoevsky to see what his religious beliefs were. This book is also a reflection of Russian politics and criminal world. About halfway through the book, a murder is committed. The second half is dedicated solely to finding the killer, the confession, the trial, and the sentencing and aftermath on all the parties involved. Learning about the Russian jury system, prosecution, and trial procedure of the time was really interesting.

If you are new to Russian literature, get your feet wet with C&P. It’s a lot more reader friendly. And once you are hooked, grab this monster and enjoy.

Categories
books and reading

No One Knows

I managed to get a lot of thrillers from Netgalley, including this one. I like a good mystery, especially one that is unique, has a great plot twist, or leaves me thinking. And up until the last few pages, I was ready to give this book four stars. However, the forced plot twist at the end dropped it to two stars. I was really disappointed by the time the book was over.

Without giving too much away, the main character, Aubrey, is mourning the death of her husband. He went missing five years ago and, since so much time has passed, he has been declared dead. Aubrey has spent much of this time either incarcerated, drunk, or barely hanging on. She was suspected of her husband’s murder, given the amount of blood found in their home, but was found not guilty due to the lack of evidence. She drank a lot just to numb the pain. But after hitting rock bottom, she cleaned herself up, got a teaching job, and is putting her life back together. Until a man, looking much like her husband, enters her life.

I really was okay with the majority of this book. Is he dead? Did she do it? Did his mother, due to inherit a lot of money? Did his jailbird father? What about his mystery man who seems to know a lot about Aubrey? All of this, thankfully, is resolved by the end of the book, and there are a few plot twists along the way, but the final one just did me in. It was so unbelievable completely out of the realm of possibility given the rest of the book, that it just infuriated me. I have pretty high standards when it comes to plot twists. Even if I see them coming, that’s fine, but it has to be plausible. That’s my one requirement, and this book failed it, miserably.

 

Categories
books and reading

The Moon Dwellers

I might have hit the wall with YA dystopian. Not necessarily because of this book in particular, but I just don’t really enjoy it anymore. Stuff is too watered down and predictable. The two of the three series (Harry Potter, Twilight, The Hunger Games) that revolutionized YA and opened new doors for writers are worth reading. I hated Twilight, but I admit that it did shake things up in the paranormal romance dept. And each series just has so many spin offs (some worth reading, most worth skipping) and I feel like I’m done with this particular one. Maybe because I’m not a young adult.

The Moon Dwellers isn’t anything new. Set in the future, a young girl doesn’t know what has come of her family, but she has an electric connection with a young man who is the president’s son, but the son doesn’t want to be like his dad, so he runs away to find this mystery girl, so on and so forth.

A few YA dystopian books come to mind that *are* worth reading: The Legend series, The Chaos Walking series, and the Red Rising series. Other than that, the rest are just mediocre spin offs that are good for quick mindless reads. There is a place for these kinds of books. Sometimes I just want something simple to escape into. And, again, I’m not a young adult, so maybe the appeal of this kind of book is different for the target audience.

I have the rest of this series on my Kindle, as well a few other YA books, but for the most part, I think I’m on a YA break for awhile.