What if when you woke up every morning, you could not remember anything of the day before or the day before that. You wake up beside a man. A strangerWhat if when you woke up every morning, you could not remember anything of the day before or the day before that. You wake up beside a man. A stranger, who says he is Ben, your husband. He becomes your only sense of belonging by gently, lovingly explaining everything, as much as he seems able, each and every day.
A Dr. calls, on a phone you did not even know you had and convinces you to see him in an effort to try and remember something, anything. He suggests you keep a journal and then calls back daily to remind you to look at it. You begin to remember snatches of things past, some of them link you to Ben, your husband. Good things! Others seem to contradict things that Ben has told you. Not little things either, but huge, life changing events.
This is Christine’s story. I found it to be plausible, horrifying and brutally day to day. Full of every day, common, relatable events that slowly begin to unravel the real truth of Christine’s life.
With a telling ending, that I just loved, Before I Go To Sleep, is definitely well worth the read. ...more
There was so much hype surrounding this book that I could not wait to get my hands on it.
A monster comes to call on Conor O'Malley, just after midnigThere was so much hype surrounding this book that I could not wait to get my hands on it.
A monster comes to call on Conor O'Malley, just after midnight, but it is not the monster that Conor has been expecting. What he has been expecting is the monster from his nightmare the one that comes nearly every night ever since his Mom began her cancer treatments.
The premise of this story is certainly good and the illustrations are phenomenal, but in the end it just did not resonate with me. Perhaps my expectations were too high....more
I went into this already familiar with Hitchcock’s film version of the same story. The opening premise of the film and HighSmith’s novel are the same.I went into this already familiar with Hitchcock’s film version of the same story. The opening premise of the film and HighSmith’s novel are the same. Two strangers meet on the train and discuss among other things, people in their lives: a Wife, a Father, who they would be better off without. One of these strangers, Charles Bruno, is an extremely well imagined sociopath, while the other, Guy, is a mild mannered architect whose role in this story I never entirely accept. (view spoiler)[Bruno murders Guy’s wife, (hide spoiler)] even though Guy never agreed to this plan. Now he is pressuring Guy to do his part and eliminate Bruno’s Father.
After this setup the film and the book are very different. The book delves into the conscience of Bruno and Guy and takes you into their heads. While at first interesting this became quite tedious.
Then again it could be that I simply preferred Hitchcock’s adaptation. ...more
I have spent the last two weeks in Roberts's seductive, chaotic, slum filled, audacious Bombay, full of vibrant, wonderful, charismatic characters. ThI have spent the last two weeks in Roberts's seductive, chaotic, slum filled, audacious Bombay, full of vibrant, wonderful, charismatic characters. This is a grand, sprawling, intelligent, autobiographical novel, elegantly written and splendidly evocative of an India I would otherwise never know. As I sit here trying to decide how to best sum up just what this novel is about I realize that it is about everthing. All of life's many lessons are here in this huge, sweeping, monumental story; but mostly it is about love and forgiveness and one man's searing search for redemption. Above all, perhaps, as Pat Conroy says "it is a grand work of extraordinary art, a thing of exceptional beauty". Do not let the size deter you, I was hooked from the very first sentence and stayed that way through to the final word. Simply one of the most thrilling and touching novels I have ever read. ...more
This is a beautiful book, full of beautiful stories that center around four Chinese women (pre 1949) and their lives in China before they come to AmerThis is a beautiful book, full of beautiful stories that center around four Chinese women (pre 1949) and their lives in China before they come to America, settle in California and have daughters of their own. Now their daughters are grown Chinese-American women, each with their own story to tell.
Seperately each of these tales is powerful and moving in it's own right but woven together they form a rich, evocative tapestry that gently, gracefully illuminates the bond, often threadbare, that exists between generations and vastly different cultures.
I love the way the author allows the reader to find their own connection, their own enlightenment in this narrative of fierce love and misunderstanding.
Things are not so good these days for David Harwood. He cannot seem to nail down a solid lead on a corrupt, privately operated, for- profit prison stoThings are not so good these days for David Harwood. He cannot seem to nail down a solid lead on a corrupt, privately operated, for- profit prison story that he has been chasing for his local paper in Promise Falls, New York. His wife Jan has recently been struggling with seriously, severe bouts of depression and has admitted to David that she has even considered suicide.
They definitely could use a break, so spending the day with their four year old son Ethan at a local amusement park, taking time to relax and focus on the good stuff, while enjoying a day of fun and frolic seems to be just the ticket.
They have barely made it through the gates though, when things really begin to spin out of control, starting with the disappearance of their son. David and Jan seperate, each of them frantically looking for Ethan, who they had taken their eyes off of for only a split second. Thank God, David soon finds him, unharmed and still asleep in his stroller. As soon as he is certain that Ethan is okay he begins to backtrack to find Jan and let her know......except Jan is not answering her cell and after much searching, waiting, and calling her repeatedly, it begins to dawn on David that she has simply disappeared, vanished into thin air!
Let me tell you, I have barely scratched the surface of all the twists, turns and sub-plots in this story of murder and deceipt, corruption and betrayal; that simply roars out of the station at break neck speed and never loses pace, hurtling faster, forward to it's mind-numbing conclusion.
This is the second book I have read of Linwood Barclay's and it blew me away! He is absolutely brilliant at writing what I would call, domestic thrillers, with a genuinely, believable cast of characters and unnerving,relatable circumstances that keep you on the edge of your seat.
No doubt about it, I am definitley looking for another Linwood Barclay novel. ...more
WOW! What to say, this really is just a great story, one that you can sink right into. As the cover suggests it grabs hold and does not let go!
AlmostWOW! What to say, this really is just a great story, one that you can sink right into. As the cover suggests it grabs hold and does not let go!
Almost from the beginning I became invested in this grand masterpiece of modern fantasy and in all the many people that populate it's pages. Early on... this feeling came over me, that I was about to be swept away into a long, magical and wondrous adventure that would take me deep into the histories of these people, exploring their lands; their pain and pride and love riding rough shod over my own emotions.
These characters are so well written and their peronalities so deftly revealed through their unique perspectives that it is easy to forget that I have come to know them only through the hand of the author himself. The writing is absolutely brilliant, so much so, that it is almost completely transparent, allowing you to feel as though you are actually there, living and feeling and feeding, vicariously through it's cast of characters. Truly all of my senses have been awakened, stimulated and satiated simultaneously, leaving me breathless, shaking and thirsting for more.
I suggest you drop whatever you are doing and run, quickly mind you, to get this book. No doubt it is destined to stand as a masterwork. ...more
The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it, no paper notices on downtown posts and billboards, no mentions or advertisements in lThe circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it, no paper notices on downtown posts and billboards, no mentions or advertisements in local newspapers. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. The towering tents are striped in white and black, no gold and crimsons to be seen. No color at all, save for the neighboring trees and the grass of the surrounding fields. Black- and- white stripes on grey sky; countless tents of varying shapes and sizes, with an elaborate wrought- iron fence encasing them in a colorless world. Even what little ground is visible from outside is black or white, painted or powdered, or treated with some other circus trick. But it is not open for business. Not just yet.
If I could use but one word to describe The Night Circus that word would be ENCHANTING. From its dark depths and mysterious secrets to its breathtaking illusions this story will awaken and astonish all of your senses. Come on in folks, and experience Le Cirque des Reves for yourselves! I have no doubt that you will be exquisitely entertained.
Morgenstern’s circus is the undisputed star of this story. Full of magic and wonder; dreamlike and dazzling, the circus pulls you in and holds you in awe of it’s many spectacles; from sparkling ice gardens, acrobatic kittens and complicated clocks to dark forests of softly glowing, poem covered trees, this circus is sure to engulf you in abundant, richly layered, mystic atmosphere.
Add to this magical place, two young illusionists caught up in a duel, each with the other, neither fully comprehending the rules. A duel spawned by their own maleficent masters in an ancient game between age old sorcerers. A duel that impacts all of those, tied in any way, to this circus.
I was completely mesmerized by this fantastical creation of Erin Morgenstern’s, with an opening line not soon forgotten. The circus arrives without warning.
This is a very dark, horrific story that ranks high in creepiness. Seriously it left me feeling like I needed to take a shower and wash the creep awayThis is a very dark, horrific story that ranks high in creepiness. Seriously it left me feeling like I needed to take a shower and wash the creep away. The cover would have you beleive that it is comparable to Silence of the Lambs or Stieg Larsson's Millenium series but I have to disagree with that. Now I love a good mystery, better still if it happens to be a thriller where life and death hang in the balance as they race to find and stop the villian. The Hypnotist certainly contains all of these elements and more, so you might wonder why only 3 stars. There are a number of reasons but chief among them:
The crimes are incredibly brutal and way too graphically detailed.....so much so that I felt as though the authors were trying real hard for the shock value. Some of these vicious, brutal acts really have nothing to do with the story, which brings me to....
There are too many unexplained little events, some of which are quite gruesome, that remain completely unexplained and unresolved and left this reader wondering what they were doing in the story in the first place.
Even what starts out as being the crime of focus in this story is left unattended and for me at least, unresolved part way through the book.
I could not relate in any way to the relationship between the hypnotist and his wife.
I figured out the mystery well before I should have.
The story felt choppy and events did not flow very well, especially between the past and the present
Despite all of the above the story was a good one and at least one of the characters was wrought well enough to remember. Unfortunately this was not the character that should have tied the whole tale together. ...more
I started this story with a gentle yet persistent trepidation. It took me a while to adjust to robospeak and slowly, familiarize myself with (on a verI started this story with a gentle yet persistent trepidation. It took me a while to adjust to robospeak and slowly, familiarize myself with (on a very shallow level, toes dipped so to speak) the technical terminology.
Somewhere along the way, somewhat surprisingly, I became invested in this story and it's many occupants, human and well, not. Suddenly the outcome of this war mattered, the story mattered, it mattered a lot.
It's somewhat eerie, I think, that the storyteller holds a PHD in robotics......
Holy Raptors Reader, what next...... Dinosaurs ...more
Glenn Garber is beside himself. His wife Sheila, mother of his eight year old daughter Kelly, is dead, the result of a horrific car accident. Worse stGlenn Garber is beside himself. His wife Sheila, mother of his eight year old daughter Kelly, is dead, the result of a horrific car accident. Worse still the officer at the scene believes that Sheila is responsible for the accident that claimed the lives of two others. He wants Glenn to accept that his wife was driving under the influence, with an overwhelming amount of vodka in her system. This simply makes no sense. Sheila would never do something that stupid! As the coroner's report confirms the officer's initial assessment of Sheila's condition Glenn's disbelief and grief morphs into rage and an all consuming anger aimed at his dead wife. How could she have done something that stupid, that thoughtless, that final? How can he possibly explain this to Kelly?
After the funeral, life resumes it's new, normal rhythms. His daughter Kelly is having trouble at school, being ostracized by her fellow students where one of the other victims of the accident was also a student. Fortunately she still has one loyal friend and Glenn has agreed to let her attend a sleepover there. His anger has subsided now and what remains is an unyielding reluctance to accept the apparent facts surrounding Sheila's death. But now Kelly is on the phone begging her father to come and get her immediately! What she tells him when he picks her up becomes the first link in a series of troubling events that propell Glenn forward into a vortex of seething corruption. Secret after dangerous secret emerges in his small, home town in Conneticut, complete with threats from neighbours and friends alike and now, well now he is being hunted by total strangers! As he digs deeper to understand and uncover the real truth Glenn must find a terrifying place within himself in order to protect his daughter and avenge his wife's death.
The Accident roars forward at a breathless, pulsating pace that brings this domestic thriller to a chilling climax you won't see coming!...more
Arah-Lynda
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Books:
2011
(42)
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