Tag: reading

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books and reading

Bird Box

I read a book today. Yes, the whole book. This doesn’t happen very often. I rarely have time to read an entire book in one day. And this one was short, so that helped a bit. But, MY GOSH. My heart is still pounding after this one. Never have I been so terrified over an unknown entity.

I just don’t even know where to begin. A friend recommended this book to me ages ago. And I just never made it a priority. But I added it to my “must read in 2016” list and got it from the library. And I nicely fits into my “book you can read in a day” category without being a lame novella, which feels like cheating. Anyway, aforementioned friend and I have similar tastes, and she has yet to lead me astray in a book. Well, that’s not true. Her favorite book is The Poisonwood Bible. Ugh. What a downer. That one aside, she has done well in her recommendations. And this one takes the cake.

Told in past vs present alternating(ish) chapters, you learn about the epidemic/apocalypse/terror that has swept the world. No one knows exactly what it is because anyone who sees it is immediately driven mad and kills himself. Is is even a visible being? Is it foreign? Is it a creature? Does it even matter?

The growing tenseness of this book is what makes it great. Because seeing this entity is what makes you insane, the characters must remain blind. Blackout curtains taped to the walls, doors locked tight, and blindfolds outside. Both past and present stories parallel in their intensity. The heart pounding moments blur together from both plots. As a brand new author, Josh Malerman weaves this frenzy perfectly. You think you’ll get a small break from your nerves when you switch from past to present to past, etc, but no. Each chapter provides its own set of terrors.

I cannot recommend this book highly enough. One of the best I’ve read in a long time. It will be awhile before I can get to sleep tonight. I will keep thinking about that scene in the attic. Oh. My.

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books and reading

2015 review

100 books in 2015. With a day to spare.
32,990 pages. Avg length 333.

Recommendations:
authors: Rainbow Rowell, Gillian Flynn, Patrick Ness
books: Book of Ivy and Revolution of Ivy (2 book series)
Odd Thomas series by Dean Koontz
Mr. Mercedes series (last book comes out in June) by Stephen King
Love in the Time of Cholera (seriously)
Every Day by David Levithan
All the Light We Cannot See (won the Pulitzer)
the Wayward Pines series
And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini (all his books, really)
the Verhoeven trilogy by Pierre Lemaitre
The Leftovers (yes, it’s season 1 of the HBO show)
Siddhartha
The Red Rising books by Pierce Brown (last book comes out soon. CANNOT WAIT!!)
We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

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Dark Places

I now have read everything Gillian Flynn has written. Funny, because she is the polar opposite of Rainbow Rowell and I really love them both! As expected, this one is equally as insane as her others.

Nothing will top Gone Girl, because it was the first I read and so memorable. But once you understand what kind of writer she is, you see patterns. Mostly in dysfunctional families. This one was just is nuts. Told partly in present day, partly in flashbacks, you meet a few members of the Day family and follow them around a bit. Only the present day story is told in 1st person, which I thought was an interesting writing choice.

As the story progresses, there is a mystery to solve, like all Flynn’s other books, and I really got caught up in trying to figure it out. Flynn is a great writer. She isn’t subtle with her subject matter, but manages to weave seemingly insignificant details into the greater picture. And I’ll leave it at that, to avoid spoilers.

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Attachments (and Rainbow Rowell in general)

I have now read everything Rainbow Rowell has written. And I only started in May. My first book was Eleanor and Park. I loved it. Love doesn’t even begin to explain. I giggled and blushed and cheered for my favorite couple to get together.

Then came Fangirl. I just can’t even explain how much I loved this book. It was my favorite book of 2015. The main character, Cath, spoke to me. I could be her, albeit a much older version of her, but I get her. And Levi. Levi. Levi. Levi. Best male character I’ve read in a long time. I listened to this book. Whoever does the audio version is fantastic. But I mostly listened early in the morning while I was walking in my neighborhood. Again, giggling and blushing. I hate mornings, but I couldn’t wait to get up every day just to listen to Cath, emergency Kanye dance parties, Simon and Baz, and Levi. Oh, Levi.

Next was Landline. Again, an audio book with the same reader. Her voice is mesmerizing. Again, I loved it, however, it is my least favorite of the RR books, if I have to rank them. I just was so sad for most of the book while Georgie and Neil (or is it Neal…one of the benefits of having the book in front of you…character names are spelled) were apart. I was ecstatic when Cath and Levi made a surprise appearance at the end, and overall the book was great, but it stressed me out a bit with the separation.

Next was Carry On. I couldn’t wait for this book to come out. The concept was so fabulous. I’m not one for fanfic, but how could I not spend several hundred pages with Simon and Baz. And this book was perfectly written. It’s nearly impossible to enter a series with the last book, but we did. And it was spectacular. I really want a Simon and Baz tshirt. Alas, I’ve never seen one.

My goal for 2016 is to finish up authors and series that I started. So, I had to get to Attachments. And once again, LOVE LOVE. The format was unique and kept me hooked. The characters, even though we don’t really meet two of them personally, have so much spirit they jump off the page. And Lincoln. My gosh. RR can write a leading man. And her books are just so damn sweet. They aren’t gushy stupid romance books. But they are sweet and loving and gentle. And I love them. I’m hooked. I will read every book she published. Can’t wait for the next one!

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Saint Odd

I’m going to miss Odd Thomas. He was a wonderful character. And, oddly enough (pun intended), you know his fate from day one. And even having this advanced knowledge, I was still sad to say goodbye to such a great guy.

Odd is respectful, honest, and just wants to be happy with his love, Stormy. He meets some fantastic supporting characters along the way, some human, some not quite human, but everyone Odd meets appreciates and loves him for being who he is. Odd is at odds (pun intended, again) with himself. He doesn’t take any pride in killing people, but makes sure every life he takes is one who is preventing him from helping the innocent.

This 8 book series is a pretty quick read, honestly. None of them are ridiculously long and they are pretty simply plotted out. But, the characters make the stories more interesting. Odd’s speaking pattern is to the point. He doesn’t mince words, which I appreciated. He is always ready with a “yes ma’am” and a “thank you.” Even though his predicaments are unique, he faces them with bravery. He’s a character worth admiring.

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Deeply Odd

Plowing through these Odd books, one right after the other. I am enjoying each, but I gave 5 stars to the first, and either 3 or 4 to the rest, depending on how interesting the plot was. Deeply Odd was a 4 star one for sure. I really liked this story line quite a bit, and we meet a great new minorish character, Edie Fischer. She’s 86, but a spitfire for sure.

More mysteries surround Odd, which I am hoping are resolved in the next book. Who is Annamaria? What organization does Edie worth with? What does it mean to be fully smooth and blue? I’m going to miss Odd when all is said and done. He has proven to be a wholly likable and memorable narrator. How do you dislike anyone who believe in true love and destiny?

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Odd Apocalypse

I’m not really a fan of Dean Koontz. I would certainly pick him over, say, a romance author, but I am just ‘meh’ about him overall. However, his Odd Thomas series is one I particularly enjoy. Odd is a lovely narrator with a singular voice, and I have burned through the series quickly. I call these “fly books,” meaning I can fly through them in a couple days.

This one is no different than other others. Poor Odd has left Elvis and Pico Mundo behind (a couple books ago), gained a mysterious woman he feels he has to protect, but let’s be honest, she protects him more than he could ever protect her. And he is in yet another pickle. Each book get a little more supernatural than the previous, so I’m curious what happens in the next, and final, two books. These are fairly quick reads, and my favorite is the first book where we meet Odd and his world.

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books and reading

More Than This

After reading this book, I am adding Patrick Ness to the list of authors who I will read everything they write. This is a small list. Just a handful of authors have proven to be tried and true. But this is his 5th book I’ve read, and I have yet to be let down. I liked some better than others, but the worlds he creates are unique and ones I want to revisit.

The protagonist of this book dies at the beginning, so you know something odd is happening. He “wakes up” and has no idea where he is or what is happening. This isn’t your normal afterlife book, though. I had no idea where this book was headed and never saw the ending coming. The revelation wasn’t earth shattering, but I was surprised and pleased by it nonetheless.

Ness wrote the magnificent Chaos Walking trilogy that I cannot recommend highly enough. I’ve also read A Monster Calls, which I cannot even begin to describe. A very odd, lovely, heartbreaking book.

If you haven’t heard of Ness, please, I beg you, find something of his. This one was a great solitary book, but the Chaos Walking trilogy might be his masterpiece.

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Pretty Girls

My online book club selected this for our December book. I have never read anything by Karin Slaughter before, so I had no idea what to expect. I enjoy a good thriller, but this one fell short.

I felt like the main character was able to solve all the problems and put all the pieces together too easily. She wasn’t particularly intelligent given her inability to see people for who they really are, so giving her almost magical powers to fix every mess was a little too miraculous to me.

There were a few pretty awful red herrings as well. I like a good solid red herring, but there has to be character or plot motivation behind it. One in particular in this book just was thrown in for no reason. About halfway through the book, there was a fantastic plot twist that I didn’t see coming at all, which was a pleasant surprise, and I expected more out of the second half of the book, but it went downhill after that. The main character’s mother was just the worst of all. She obviously cared about her children, but not enough to ever be honest with them, and when she is needed the most, she arrives with no questions about the most hairbrained plan of all time. She reminded me of Lucille Bluth.

I gave this one 3 stars, because I did want to keep reading, but I just rolled my eyes too many times at how far fetched the entire book was.

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The Grownup

I am cheap when it comes to buying books. If I love it, I will buy it for full price. But I usually wait for Kindle sales or use the library. Part of the problem is that I read SO MANY BOOKS that I just can’t afford to buy them all, as much as I would like to. And, although, Gillian Flynn has yet to disappoint me, I couldn’t spend $3 for a 60 page story. However, my library actually has 11 copies of this in hardback, so I requested one.

After an hour, I had finished and what a fun little treat. There are no chapters or stopping points, but you don’t need them. The story is quick and easy, but definitely makes you think about what you just read. And it all comes down to perspective. Whose story do you believe? I honestly have no idea who to believe in this story, and I really don’t care. Not because I didn’t enjoy it, but because that’s the entire point. We are left wondering, and I really appreciated what she did as a writer. I only have one Flynn book left to read and I can’t wait. She has proven to be tried and true.