Membaca

Nonfiction Typhoid Mary and pungent stew THE PRISONER OF HELL GATE By Dana I. Wolff 212 pp. Picador Reviewed by Dennis C. Rizzo Dana Wolff is a pseudonym; something adopted to hide a real identity. The Prisoner of Hell Gate might also be considered a pseudonym. The book's eerie premise is well-conceived and then hidden in an undergrowth of information dump and affected events. At 212 pages this really should be a novella and might work better as a short story or expanded to a full-length piece. I read it in about two hours. That said, The Prisoner of Hell Gate has hidden merits. The East River in New York City is a place long associated with the disposition of unwanted members of society, whether via prisons, asylums, or mob hits. It is on North Brother Island that Wolff strands her characters. The now-abandoned island hosted one of New York's most notorious asylums and was also the scene of one of the most atrocious cruise ship disasters of the early 20 th Century. It is to...

Is it a break? Or is it a blip?  ‘You’ve just had a holiday,’ I pointed out, trying not to yawn. ‘Wasn’t that enough of a break?’ ‘I don’t mean that kind of break.’  There’s nothing worse than the last day of holiday. Oh wait, there is. When what should have been a proposal turns into a break, Liv and Adam find themselves on opposite sides of the life they had mapped out.  Friends and family all think they’re crazy; Liv throws herself into work – animals are so much simpler than humans – and Adam tries to get himself out of the hole he’s dug.  But as the short break becomes a chasm, can they find a way back to each other? Most importantly, do they want to? You can always rely on a belly laugh novel from Lindsey Kelk and that was just the kind of book I needed so I was over the moon when We Were on a Break arrived through the post. Liv and Adam embark on the holiday of their dreams in Mexico and Liv is sure she will come back with something sparkly on her finger! Thin...

Sometimes the end is just the beginning . . . Russell Green has it all: a loving family, a successful career and a beautiful house. But underneath his seemingly perfect world, cracks are beginning to appear . . . and no one is more surprised than Russ when the life he took for granted is turned upside down.  Finding himself single-handedly caring for his young daughter, while trying to launch his own business, the only thing Russ knows is that he must shelter his little girl from the consequences of these changes.  As Russ embarks on this daunting and unexpected new chapter of his life, a chance encounter will challenge him to find a happiness beyond anything he could ever have imagined. Nicholas Sparks is an author who I only came across last year ( I know I must have been hiding under a rock!) I have loved each of his books that I have read so far with See Me being my favourite so I was looking forward to reading his latest release Two by Two. When the book begins we are int...

Josie and Finn are happily married, with promising careers, and a gorgeous young son, George. But despite their apparently enviable lives, George's hyperactivity disorder means the days aren't always easy. Josie's best friend Clarky has always been there for her, and when she finds out she's pregnant again she turns to him for support. She loves George, but it's just such hard work, especially as Josie takes much of the strain. Finn is suspicious.  What does Clarky want in return for his help?  And just how close are they really? You, Me and Him by Alice Peterson focuses on that age old question, can men and women really just be friends without other feelings being involved? Josie and Clarky have been best friends since childhood and years later they are still as close as ever. Sarah is now married and has an adorable and yet challenging son George but Josie struggles with caring for George and rather than getting support from husband Finn, Josie always relies on C...

Fiction Beautiful woman, tempted man MANHATTAN NIGHT By Colin Harrison 358 pp. Picador Reviewed by Sue Ellis Colin Harrison’s Manhattan Night , a New York Times Notable Book of the Year originally named Manhattan Nocturne , is the gripping story of a smart guy who got reckless. His name is Porter Wren, a Manhattan tabloid writer trying to backpedal after a lapse in judgment. It’s an old premise: Beautiful woman, tempted man, and his frantic attempts to hide the indiscretion from his wife. When he’s blackmailed by the richest man in the city (who happens to be the owner of the newspaper he works for), his only option, if he wants to hold onto his family, is to out-think a couple of psychologically twisted people. He seems to be the perfect man for the job. Here’s an excerpt from the first page of the book, an effective hook that reveals the main character’s self image and sets the tone for what’s to come: I SELL MAYHEM, scandal, murder, and doom. Oh, Jesus I do, I sell tragedy, vengeanc...

THE DAY I LOST YOU WAS THE DAY I DISCOVERED I NEVER REALLY KNEW YOU When Jess’s daughter, Anna, is reported lost in an avalanche, everything changes. Jess’s first instinct is to protect Rose, Anna’s five-year-old daughter. But then she starts to uncover Anna’s other life - unearthing a secret that alters their whole world irrevocably . . . THE DAY I LOST YOU WAS THE DAY YOU TORE OUR FAMILY APART. The Day I Lost You by Fionnuala Kearney follows the story of Jess who has received the worse news any mother can, her daughter Anna has been reported missing after an avalanche. As Jess is trying to cling on to the hope that her daughter is found she is desperately trying to cling onto her granddaughter Rose and attempting to keep life as stable as possible for her. As days past Jess begins to uncover things about her daughter’s life she had no idea about, did she really know her daughter at all? This book took a few chapters before I could settle into the storyline but before long I was fami...

Today it is my stop on The Perfect Girl blog tour and I will be sharing my review of this slow burning, gripping book. Check out the other blogs taking part on the tour. To everyone who knows her now, Zoe Maisey - child genius, musical sensation - is perfect. Yet several years ago Zoe caused the death of three teenagers. She served her time, and now she's free. Her story begins with her giving the performance of her life. By midnight, her mother is dead. One of my top 10 books in 2015 was Burnt Paper Sky so I have been eagerly awaiting the release of The Perfect Girl. Zoe Maisey has paid for her involvement in the tragic event that left 3 teenagers dead. Several years later Zoe has created a new life and is focusing on her piano playing but when she performs one evening in The Holy Trinity Church she would never expect the events that unfold that evening and by midnight her mother is dead. The storyline is told in the form of short sharp chapters each told from various characters p...