Book Review - Should We Stay or Should We Go? Lionel Shriver

 

Should We Stay or Should We Go; Lionel Shriver

Harper Collins - June - 2021

In 1991 when Kay Wilkerson's father dies in his 90s, Kay feels nothing but relief.   Kay felt that Alzheimers, in reality,  took her father from her some ten years earlier.  Kay and her husband Cyril are medical professionals for the NHS. Kay is a (National Health Services Nurse) and Cyril a NHS doctor.  Both of them realize that living a long life does not mean living a quality life.  After some discussion, Kay, now 51 and Cyril just slightly older, make a pact.  They decide that when Kay turns 80 the two of them will end their life with a lethal cocktail so that they won't be a burden to anyone.  Sound simple?

Fast forward and it's 2020 and Cyril has turned 80 and Kay will be there soon. They are both in pretty good health. What about the pact? Over the next (12) chapters some very different scenarios play out - some are quite funny and downright cynical, while other scenarios fell flat. Topics like Brexit, the NHS, the pandemic / lockdown, immigration and other sometimes controversial issues arise.

I'm not sure what I was expecting when I began this book somewhat blind.  I did think it was about an elderly couple deciding to end their life at the same time.  I really thought I would enjoy it but, I ended up being disappointed. My biggest complaint about this book, was not the story itself but the writing.  I found her literary style rather pretentious and after a while just plain frustrating.  It was like she chose to use a version of a word that had the least frequently used synonym.  Here are just a few of those unusual word choices: Wherewithal - tautology - horlicks - ebullience - propinquities - foetal and that was just some of them in the first 100 pages or so.

It's been a long while since I read a Lionel Shriver book. In fact, I checked it was the summer of 2013 when I read both: We Need to Talk About Kevin and Big Brother.  While I liked both of those well enough (especially Kevin), I'm wondering whether her writing style has changed drastically over the years?  Have you read this author recently, if so, what did you think?

Rating - 2.5/5 stars

eGalley provided by Edelweiss and Harper Collins in exchange for my unbiased review.

Book Review - Cold Caller; Jason Starr

 

TITLE/AUTHOR: Cold Caller; Jason Starr

PUBLISHER:  WW Norton

YEAR PUBLISHED: 1998 

GENRE: Fiction / Noir Crime

FORMAT:  eBook LENGTH:  292 pp

SOURCE:  purchased

SETTING(s):  New York City

ONE SENTENCE SUMMARY:  A dark, twisted roller coaster ride and certainly a story you will not easily forget.

BRIEF REVIEW:   Bill Moss was once a VP of an ad agency but, now he works as a telemarketer at ACA, a call center in New York City.  It's a horrible company that engages in racially discriminatory practices by paying larger commissions to white employees and wrongly laying off a higher percentage of black employees to avoid paying out their commissions. Bill hates his job and feels under appreciated and has plans of quitting his job. He has convinced his weak, gullible, girlfriend Julie to move back to Seattle with him where he's convinced he can get a top level management job.  The very next day, after Julie reluctantly resigns from her high level position,  Bill gets promoted to Assistant to the President at ACA.  Of course, his promotion is built on a lie he told because, that's what Bill does but, that lie will come back to bite him. Bill lies a lot, he cheats a lot and he makes his girlfriend believe that she is paranoid and has an explosive temper at times as well.  Bill is a sociopath, Bill is delusional, Bill may be a psychopath and as the story progresses, Bill can add murderer to the list. 

Bill is a character that is easy to detest but, he's like a car wreck that once you start reading about him and all of his antics and just how his warped mind works you won't be able to turn away or stop reading.   

This is the author's first novel and although the writing isn't exceptional, the story is very addictive, shocking and easily readable and, it very much satisfied my warped sense of humor.  The story is dark but you will find it hard to resist chuckling or at least scratching your head in amazement at times and,  I also loved the ending as well.  I got the idea to try this one as it was mentioned in Peter Swanson's book, Eight Perfect Murders, a book that I loved.  Touted as one of the top 10 noir crime novels of all time and an international best seller,  the Kindle version is available for just $1.99, in case I've made you curious.  I'm definitely planning on checking out what else the author has out.

RATING:  4.5/5  

Book Review - The Midnight Library; Matt Haig

TITLE/AUTHOR: The Midnight Library; Matt Haig

PUBLISHER:  Viking

YEAR PUBLISHED: 2020

GENRE: Fiction 

FORMAT:  eBook PP/LENGTH: 288 pp.

SOURCE: library download

SETTING(s): England

ONE SENTENCE SUMMARY:  Life is too short to live with regrets.

BRIEF REVIEW:  Nora Seed, 35 is a young woman who is unhappy with her life and the choices she has made.  She begins to think that ending her life may be her best option.  The real truth is that Nora has not lived up to her full potential. It is only when Nora wakes up and finds herself inside of the library, speaking with Mrs. Elm, her former school librarian, does she get a chance to see her missed opportunities.  The Book of Regrets gives Nora an opportunity to go back in time to see the path she chose versus what would have happened had she made another choice. Nora once was a champion swimmer with Olympic potential, she was once engaged to get married as well. We learn what then happened to her relationship with her brother and what caused a rift with her best friend and also what really happened to her cat. 

This book does have a happy ending even though it starts out a bit of a downer.  The moral of the story: life is too short to live with regrets and, the time to find happiness is in the here and now. Although I'm happy I read this one, I was a little disappointed in it as well. There are quite a few characters in this story that were not well explored IMO; I wanted to know more.  The flow of this story seem too simplistic as well, I wished it was deeper. I thought it felt as if it had been written for a YA audience even though Nora was 35.  Overall, there was very little that will stick with me about this story long term except for maybe Nora's cat and, no, I wouldn't want an do-overs. 

RATING:  3/5 stars

MEMORABLE QUOTES:  "If you aim to be something you are not, you will always fail. Aim to be you. Aim to look and act and think like you. Aim to be the truest version of you. Embrace that you-ness. Endorse it. Love it. Work hard at it......"

First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros - The Midnight Library, Matt Haig

 

Welcome to First Chapter/Intros, now hosted by Yvonne @ Socrates Book Reviews. Each week readers post the first paragraph (or 2) of a book they are reading or that they plan to read soon.

                                                          The Midnight Library, Matt Haig

                                                                        Viking - 2020

The Man at the Door

"Twenty-seven hours before she decided to die,  Nora Seed sat on her dilapidated sofa scrolling through other people's happy lives, waiting for something to happen.  And then,  out of nowhere something did.

Someone, for whatever peculiar reason, rang her doorbell."

I was planning on passing on this one but,  then my daughter mentioned she wanted to read it so I decided to download it. What do you think about the intro, read more or pass?  Have you read this one?

Book Review - A Christmas Carol Mystery; Heather Redmond

 

A Christmas Carol Murder; Heather Redmond

Kensington - 2020

This Christmas mystery is actually Book #3 in "A Dickens of a Crime Series."  Although I never read the other two books, this one can definitely be enjoyed as a standalone mystery.

Set in 1835 London, this one had the feeling of a retelling of the original Christmas Carol many of us have read and enjoyed.  There are actually a couple of mysteries going on here. Charles is working as a journalist and amateur detective. As he is covering the story of a fire in which a woman has lost her life, her sister claims that Charles is the father of the newborn baby boy. He is mystified and since he works for his soon to be father-in-law and doesn't want to upset his fiancee Kate, he must find someone to care for the baby while he gets to the bottom of this potential scandal.  

The second mystery happens when Charles and fiancee Kate are out for a walk and they witness the body of Jacob Harley tumbling out of a second floor window.  He is also wrapped in chains.  Harley, has a "counting house business" (think loan and mortgage company) with his partner Mr. Screws in the same building. Their relationship has been strained but, Harley had some enemies as well. But, when the body seems to vanish and the ghost of Harley visits Charles or is he just seeing things?

I really thought this was well done, an old fashioned story with a somewhat modern feel as well.  Although I liked this one, the modern feel at times felt off. I liked the Charles character, he was a good journalist and detective who had a way of getting to the truth in a nice sort of way. The descriptions of old London's Victorian era was also great. I thought this was a nice change from Christmas romance fiction.

Rating - 4/5 stars

Book Review - The Last Flight; Julie Clark

 

                                                 The Last Flight; Julie Clark

                                                               Sourcebooks - 2020 

The Last Flight was one of the better thrillers that I've read in 2020. It's the story of two women, strangers to each other, from different ends of the US, each is trying to escape from bad situation.

Claire, from Manhattan, appears to have an enviable life on the outside. But, privately,  her politically connected husband is controlling and abusive.  She has tried to leave him previously, this time she hopes she will succeed with her well thought out plan that includes a new identity.  Eva, from Berkeley, CA, is a bright, single woman who has gotten herself into a bad situation that she is desperately trying to flee from.  The women meet at JFK airport where Eva overhears a bit of Claire's frantic conversation. Eva follows her to a bar area and strikes up a conversation and, before long they come up with a plan that might work for for both women.

This was very well written and I loved how each woman's story unfolded in alternating chapters.  There was often a cliff hanger that made you want to just keep reading a bit more.  The characters were smart women who just ended up in bad situations.  I highly recommend this one for readers who enjoy a good thriller.

Rating - 4.5/5 stars

Book Review - When I Hit You; Meena Kandasamy

 

                                                     When I Hit You; Meena Kandasamy

                                                                   Europa - 2020

The title alone tells the reader that this book is not going to be an upbeat read, yet, for some reason I've always been drawn towards darker stories. This is is dark, raw and not an easy read but, it isn't a very long book either thank goodness - just over 200 pages. It's also somewhat autobiographical.

The story opens up with an unnamed narrator recovering from an abusive marriage at the home of her parents, so we know early on she has escaped her terrible situation.

Set in a small coastal town in India, the narrator is an aspiring writer, talented poet and feminist who was on the rebound from a recent and unexpected breakup.  She marries a college lecturer who professes Marxism. The new husband's outside persona is nothing like the way he behaves when alone with his new wife.  Their home is far removed from friends and family. She's forced to spend all her time at home and he does not allow her to dress in a way that would make her attractive to the opposite sex. Bit by bit he removes all means of communication the wife has to the outside world leaving her a virtual prisoner in the home. He controls everything about her life and their relationship and, she is physically abused as well.  

We known she does escape but, the most difficult thing was watching this brute create an environment which allowed him to manipulate this well-educated woman. It was hard to see the wife quickly loses her confidence and self-respect.  The author did a good job helping someone like me who has never experienced abuse see just how difficult and complicated removing oneself from the abusive situation can be. This is definitely not a book for everyone but, I thought it was well done overall.

Rating - 4/5 stars

(purchased as an eBook on Amazon - just 66 cents)

Book Review - The Christmas Table; Donna VanLiere

 

The Christmas Table; Donna VanLiere

St. Martin's Press - 2020 - Macmillan Audio

Even though I don't consider myself a religious person, every year I am drawn to Donna VanLiere's Christmas offering. Her "Hope series" offers hopeful stories about faith and believing in miracles; a few of her books have been made into Hallmark movies as well.  Each of the books can be read as a stand alone but, this years story does have a few characters from an earlier story. This year's story is told in (2) timelines (1972) and (2012).

In this story (1972) John Creighton is determined to build a holiday table for his wife Joan. The only problem is that he has only done small woodworking problems in the past. The family has (2) young children and Joan has been busy learning to cook, using recipes passed down from her own mother.  Joan has also found out she has breast cancer which has spread and she is undergoing treatments.

(2012) Lauren and Travis Mabrey are a young couple who are expecting their first child. Lauren grew up in foster homes and longs for a real home and family.  Lauren buys a used table and in the drawer of the table she finds recipes, each has a special message written on them.  Lauren is certain the person who originally owned the table did not intend to part with these recipes. She is determined to find the family and return the recipes.

The story alternates between these stories and made for a mostly uplifting read. I loved seeing how Lauren was able to form a beautiful family and home. She had a community of people willing to make sure that happen for her. At the end of the book and peppered throughout are the recipes, many of which seem worth trying.  I thought this was a nice holiday story for believers and non-believers alike.

I started this one on audio (very good) but, I also supplemented it with the eBook to see the recipes in print.

Rating - 4/5 stars