Sunday, November 14, 2021

3 brief Book Reviews - The Invisible Husband of Frick Island; Colleen Oakley - The Last Guests; J.P. Pomare and The Writer's Cats; Muriel Barbery

 (2) quick catch up reviews

Berkley - 2021
(eGalley-Edelweiss)

I was hoping to read this one in the first half of the year but, I decided to save it for when I was in the the mood for lighter feel good read - this was it.

In this story we meet twenty-something Piper Parrish who lives on a tiny island with fewer than 100 people on Chesapeake Bay.  Her life had been nearly perfect and the her husband Tom went out one morning on his crab boat and never returned home.  His boat had capsized and his body never found.  How does one move on from such a tragic event? Well, maybe you just don't.  Piper unable to accept the idea that Tom is dead continues to go on with life as if he is right by her side. Before long much of the townspeople are right there with Piper pretending that nothing has happened when she is around.

When Anders Caldwell a columnist and podcaster arrives on the island to cover a story, what was to be a short stay turns into something else entirely.  (There is a funny scene where Piper is at a table for two at a restaurant and Anders notices Piper her. He thinks she is beautiful and gets the courage to ask if he can join her.  She says, "can't you see I am having dinner with my husband?" 

This story wasn't perfect but I liked that it had some fun scenes and had a bit of mystery to it. If you are in the mood for a feel good story with quirky characters add this to your list.

(eGalley received from Edelweiss)

The Last Guests; J.P. Pomare
Mulholland Books - 2021
(eGalley - NetGalley)

Auckland, New Zealand is the setting for this creepy thriller where we meet Lina and Caine, they are a newlywed couple with secrets.  Lina is an overworked paramedic and Cain, a former SAS officer who was stationed in Afghanistan has dark past.  Lina has inherited a vacation home that had been in her family and since they don't get a chance to use it very often, Cain gets Lina to agree to rent it out on weekends for extra income.  The rental process used is similar to AirbNb and, it turns out their rental becomes quite popular.  So what seemed like a good idea turns into a nightmare when it's clear hidden spy cameras are in place and someone is interested in watching someone.

An extremely creepy page turner with a terrific setting as well.  This turned out to be one of those books that was hard to put down despite some implausible moments and a bit too much going on at times, I found creepy thriller totally engrossing.

The Writer's Cats; Muriel Barbery
Europa - November - 2021

I'm a reader not a writer but have always been curious by what inspires an author and what makes their creative juices flow. For French writer, Muriel Barbery, it appears to be all things Japanese, flowers, and her (4) Chartreux cats (gray fur with amber eyes). There is Kirin, graceful and charming, brothers Petrus and Ocha and sister Mizu.  The story narrated by Kirin with humor and a cat's insight gives us a look at the author's day to day life and her writing process.  How does the author know when something needs to be revised?  A clue is when a particular page gets swished to floor by a cats tail or, maybe it's when a cat sits on a page way too long that tips her off.

Cat lovers will recognize the things cats do to get our attention both to annoy us and endear us - often.  at the very same time. Quirky, fun and peppered with charming illustrations, this 80 page book is easy to read in one sitting and would be a fun gift for the cat lover in your life.

28 comments:

  1. A diversity of books for sure. They are sound interesting.

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  2. Those do sound good but I'd lean towards the creepy one!

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  3. The Invisible Husband sounds great and a little quirky (which is a good thing)!!

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  4. The cat book with illustrations is my pick! How cool of Muriel Barbery ... to put this out.

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  5. Oh I need The Writer's Cats. That sounds wonderful. I'm not sure I could read The Last Guests. It sounds really really good but I'm not sure I could ever travel comfortably again! I wasn't sure about The Invisible Husband but your thoughts have convinved me to give a try. Sounds like a great bit of reading!

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  6. I've seen Chesapeake Bay and crossed the bridge, oh my goodness, just wonderful. So that first book might be for me. I shall sneak off to look it up... yes, I've added it to my GR tbr shelf but will wait until the Kindle price comes down a bit before I grab it.

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    1. I'm sure the Kindle price will drop soon. It was fun and kinda quirky.

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  7. I liked the sound of The Invisible Husband, but it just never really engaged me. The Last Guests and The Writer's Cats both sound great and in such different ways!

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  8. I absolutely loved The Invisible Husband, and now I want to read The Writer's Cats.

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    1. It was a good read but, I thought a bit too quirky for my taste at times.

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  9. I've got The Invisible Husband of Frick Island on my list for a light, feel good read. There are times when that's exactly what I'm looking for!

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    1. It was a fun read but a bit a bit over the top at times as well.

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  10. I like the sound of The Last Guests. That whole idea of someone spying on others via tiny, hidden cameras, etc. is always creepy...and nowadays easier than ever for sophisticated hackers who use people's own home cameras against them.

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    1. I know! I would never stay at and AirbNb anyways but, now even more reason--not that I'm into anything illegal or kinky LOL

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  11. All of these sound like books I would enjoy. :D

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  12. I've got The Invisible Husband on my shelves and hope to read it before the end of the year.

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  13. All these books sound good to me! Will keep them in mind.

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    1. They were so different but that is what made the reading week interesting.

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  14. I feel like I need to read all of these! The cats one, especially, looks fun for light holiday reading.

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    1. I liked the insight into Barbery's writing from her cats POV.

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  15. There were some funny scenes in The Invisible Husband book! I will definitely be on the look out for more of her books. Really curious about the Pomare book and love that the setting is not one I'm used to! The Barbery book does sound like a perfect gift book.

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