Review of "The Miniaturist"

I find that great books are all about questioning your perspective, Whether it's developing ideas on race, culture, sex, relationships, or merely altering what you focus on in a novel, I love learning new ways to think about things and interpret our world. The Miniaturist questions what it is to be part of an arranged European marriage, and to lose faith in the idea of love within marriage when such a thing is forced upon you. Moreover, it tackles difficult issues facing puritanical society whilst keeping a realistic stance - i.e. whether or not one lives in a purtianical society, people always have and always will "sin", bucking against the norm.

Petronella is excited to finally become a wife to a wealthy merchant, and discover what it is to love and be loved by a man. Nervous about what a connubial bed might hold, at first Nella is relieved by the fact that Johannes, her husband, allows her to sleep alone. But soon she gets anxious: why is he so disinterested that he makes no attempt to seduce her? Does he not like her? Or is there a darker issue somewhere at the heart of their marriage?

In order to appease his new wife, Johannes buys her a dollhouse that is an exact replica of the house they live in. When Nella approaches a merchant in the city in order to gain furniture for the house as Johannes has asked her to do, she realises that the person behind the creation of the miniatures for the house knows a lot more than she should do. How else would she be able to make exact replicas of all the members of the household, and even predict the future? In the end, does it matter more than what is going on in the house itself. Perhaps Nella's insistence on looking into what the miniaturist is doing is simply deviating her attention away from the issues that are about to destroy her house entirely ....

Have you read it? What did you think?

Steph x

Review of "I Let You Go"

(Image taken from Amazon)

After falling a little in lvoe with Gillian Flynn's writing, I decided that perhaps thrillers are the way forward in terms of my reading bucket list for this summer. I'm usually all about the chick flicks: whilst doing my degree I wanted something easy to flick through whilst studying the likes of Stein, Shakespeare and other tricky reads. This book was really intriguing, and led me through the process of realising that you never know someone as well as you think you do. So, if you want your beliefs challenged and judgement parameters widened, pick up this beauty.

What do you do when your world falls apart? A hit and run on a dark rainy night leaves a mother of a five year old boy childless. Despite DI Stevens' and Kate's best efforts, the killer remains at large, Upset with the lack of progress in the case, the child's mother leaves town in an attempt to move on from the past.

Arriving in Penfach, Wales, Jennifer seeks to move away from her traumatic old life. Packing up her sculptor ways, she begins a love affair with photography. But what happens when your past catches up with you? And what if the new life you have created cannot merge with the old?

Ever forcing your opinions awry, this mystery keeps you guessing, forcing you to realise that things are never as they seem on the surface.

Have you read it? What did you think?

Steph x

Review of "Dark Places"

If you've read my review of Gone Girl (here), you will know tat I've fallen a little bit in love with Gillian Flynn's writing, As soon as I finished Gone Girl I immediately downloaded this to my kindle. Although in the end I didn't like it quite as much as Gone Girl, I found the entire plot utterly alluring. I needed to know what happened that night, and why Libby survived the massacre which saw the end of the rest of her family. This was a book that I managed to whip through in a couple of days, and ended up making my boyfriend a tad irate with me on our holiday because I was simply so engrossed in it that I didn't want to do anything else! Finally, after I read it, I discovered that the film is currently in the process of being made, and so I cannot wait for that to come out!

Libby Day needs money, and fast, Having lived off of her survivor's fund since that night when she was seven, 30-something year-old Libby needs a new income. And when she's contacted by a member of a "Kill Club" who's offering her money in return for information about her family and mementos from them that she's kept, she sees a way out of her troubles.

On the night in question, Libby's mother and two sisters were brutally murdered, and her brother Ben has been in jail ever since for the crime. Libby's declaration of his guilt put him there. But when she meets the Day fanatics at the Kill Club, she realises that not everybody thinks that Ben is guilty, and the very people she's relying upon to secure her income want er to question everything she's ever believed in ...

Have you read it? What did you think?

Steph x

Review of "The Shock of the Fall"

This suspense novella from Nathan Filer ensures that you're kept at arm's length from the protagonist Matthew. At least, Matthew is what the protagonist calls himself. When Matthew's older brother Simon dies in his presence - something that causes a whole host of psychical traumas for young Matthew - Matthew blames himself. At nineteen he commences writing his story for us, something which is at times more confused than others, depending on his mental stability. This was a truly touching story about the implications of mental illness, specifically schizophrenia, on both an individual and the people surrounding him.

Matt just wants to have his brother back: pretty reasonable request, right? But why does everyone try to control his contact with him, and why will no one accept that he killed him? Simon is a happy, loving young boy, and his death leaves a gaping hole in the family life of Matthew and his parents. When Matthew begins to deteriorate, it is his Nanny Noo whom he confides in, and who is the only one he will see. The real question is: how do you move past the death of a sibling? Can you ever? And what if your reality still includes spending time with them?

Have you read it? What did you think?

Steph x

Review of "Too Charming"*

I have to say, I was a bit disappointed by this read. I'm not sure if it's simply because I've read so many amazing novels recently (check out my recent posts for more details!), or whether this book was not that great; likely a mixture of the two. I really enjoy actually liking - or occasionally hating - the protagonists in a book, but this time I found both Megan and Scott utterly tedious. Whether it was her insistence on not dating him because of something that happened in the past, and her incessant need to be a bit of a bitch to him as a result, or his misunderstanding of everything she wanted, this book really missed the mark with me. Perhaps fewer descriptions of what the pair think about each other's bodies, and more of a plot, would have made this a great read, as it was well written and captivating at times.

Megan and her three-year-old daughter, Sally, have learnt not to trust all men after what Sally's father did to them. When a lawyer starts flirting with Megan she can't help but hate him: despite hoe gorgeous he is, his arrogance still reminds her of her past flame. As a Detective Sergeant, moreover, why would Megan want to hang out with a defense lawyer who tries his best to set free the criminals she racks up evidence against. But, can he charm his way into her good books, and more importantly her pants, despite his profession?

Have you read it? What did you think?

Steph x

Review of "Gone Girl"

Let's face it, I'm a big fan of any book that keeps me guessing, forcing me to question my initial value judgements of characters. To say that this book did is a massive understatement. I've heard so much hype about it from other book bloggers, and it definitely lived up to the rumours about just how good it is! Just one hint: don't let anyone spoiler this for you because you really don't want to miss out on this thriller. Speaking of which, sorry for the minor spoiler above, but hey I've gotta give something away about it, right?!

Amy and Nick are supposed to be celebrating their 5th wedding anniversary, but when he returns home to spend time with her he finds her gone, and the house in a state of disrepair. Immediately calling the police, he is terrified about what could have happened to her, despite the rocky state of their marriage. 

Every year on their wedding anniversary, Amy leaves a series of clues for a treasure hunt based on inside jokes between her and Nick, Every year however, Nick's inability to listen to her means that he can't complete all of the clues, and never reaches the end of the hunt of his own accord. 

But what if this year's clues hold the answer to Amy's mysterious disappearance? Has she been taken? Or is there something far more sinister going on ...

Have you read it? What did you think?

Steph x

Review of "Us"

It took me about four years after "One Day" was published to actually get around to reading it despite the hype ... and that might have been because I wanted to watch the film (pretty much a crime, I know!). I've been similarly slow with this book by David Nicholls, but not quite to the same extent! Despite the raving reviews that I've seen scattered over the interwebs, I was actually a little disappointed. Reading is a chance to escape things, and this book pretty much felt like I was being endlessly slapped around the face with a chipping away of hope over and over again. Now, I can't speak for anyone else, but I usually want to like my protagonists, but let's face it, Douglas is a bit of a dick. I have to say though, this kind of worked in the book's favour - I think we need to be reminded sometimes that we all have a bit of an asshole inside of us that always seems to come out at the worst of times. We all make mistakes, and unlike what the majority of novels suggest, a multitude of "sorrys" and a romantic gesture can't always fix something that's broken.

Douglas Petersen is woken in the middle of the night by his wife of almost twenty years, Connie, stating that she wants a divorce. Not only is Douglas unaware of anything being wrong with their relationship (whoops), the timing is unfortunate as they're about to take their 17-year-old son Albie on a Grand Tour of Europe - something which Connie doesn't want to put off despite their marital dilemma. Douglas is left to consider exactly what he's done wrong, or rather not done right, in the twenty years they've been together, and as they move across Europe he realises that he's perhaps not been the most perfect husband and father. Despite this slow epiphany (oxymoron much, sorry!), he aggressively publicly denounces Albie as an embarrasment, causing Albie to run away across Europe alone. Now Douglas is left with a slightly larger conundrum: how does he get both his wife and son back?!

Author: David Nicholls

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton

Published: 2014

Rating: