Everything I Never Told You; Celeste Ng

Everything I Never Told You; Celeste Ng

Blackstone Audio - 2014

"Lydia is dead. But they don’t know this yet." is how this story begins.  As the Lee family sits together for breakfast mother, Marilyn, father, James, oldest child and brother Nathan, and youngest child, Hannah, Lydia is absent, but they expect Lydia to be down any minute. When she doesn't join them, they discover her bed has not been slept in and Lydia isn't around.  It isn't until two days later that her body is discovered in a nearby lake. So what happened to sixteen year-old Lydia and why?

The year is 1977 and the Lee's live in a college town in Ohio. The father, James is a Chinese American and teaches History at the college in town, and his wife, Marilyn is a white stay at home mom. Lydia and her siblings are the only children in their school of Chinese descent, and have been the subject of taunts and slanted-eye gestures from some unkind classmates over the years.  Both parents have different wants for their daughter Lydia, andthey pressure her in different ways to become what they what their daughter to be. Brother Nathan will be heading off to Harvard in the fall, and he believes a neighbor may have been involved in Lydia's disappearance and drowning.

The story is told in the third person, and from that we learn a great deal about the family background, a short separation of the parents, and the way the children handled that. And, although this story is certainly part mystery (what happened to Lydia -- murder, suicide or accidental drowning), it is much more a story about the Lee family dynamics and how that impacted not just Lydia, but the other two children as well. What happens when parents try to see their unrealized dreams materialize through their offspring?

The audio version was read by Cassandra Campbell and so well done.  This is an impressive debut novel that will appeal to readers who enjoy well written stories about family dysfunction, while mystery fans might be a little disappointed.

4.5/5 stars

(library audiobook)

World Gone By; Dennis Lehane

World Gone By; Dennis Lehane

William Morrow - 2015

World Gone By is the final book of a trilogy that began with The Given Day (2008), followed by Live By Night (2012).

Now in World Gone By, the story picks up some 10 years later with protagonist, Joe Coughlin, who once held a top level spot with the Bartolo crime family, is now a "consigliere" to a Tampa crime boss. He is trying to stay out of the limelight and away from violence for the sake of his young son, Tomas. When Tomas was just 2, Joe's Cuban wife was killed in the wake of a mob related attack. Tomas is a quiet, gentle boy and Joe is trying to protect him.

When a woman in prison for murdering her husband get's a guard to summon Joe, telling him she has some important information for him, he's curious. It seems she has heard from a good source that Joe is the mob's next target. Joe is not sure what to think.

This is a story that has a great hook early on and held my interest. However, there are several different threads running through. Lots of characters, and locales of Tampa and Cuba, plus back stories to keep track of. It's mostly a dark story, extremely well written with plenty of action, politics, corruption,violence, scandal and sex. There was a surprising wrap up as well.

I wouldn't recommend reading this as a stand alone, as you'd be missing the back stories about Joe's dad and brother as Boston cops when Joe was just a child, as well as Joe's days at the top of his game as a crime Boss. Overall a busy but enjoyable read. Recommend for readers who enjoy historical crime fiction.

4/5 stars
(review copy)

First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros ~ A Little Life; Hanya Yanagihara

Every Tuesday I host First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros, where I share the first paragraph or (a few) of a book I am reading or thinking about reading soon.

 A Little Life; Hanya  Yanagihara

Doubleday - March - 2015

Lispenard Street

"THE ELEVENTH APARTMENT had only one closet, but it did have a sliding glass door that opened onto a small balcony, from which he could see a man sitting across the way, outdoors in only a T-shirt and shorts even though it was October, smoking.  Willem held up a hand in greeting to him, but the man didn't wave back."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What do you think? Woud you read more?

Glamourpuss; Sarah Weeks and David Small

Glamourpuss; Sarah Weeks and David Small

Scholastic Press

Pampered white cat "Glamourpuss" loves being the center of attention. She lives with her wealthy family, the Highhorsens in the big mansion. Glamourpuss has her servants, her own roon and even her own pace at the dinner table complete with special goblet. She's used to being showered with expensive gifts, so the fact that she has a diamond collar seems proper for such a special cat.

One day whe Mrs. Highhorsen's sister Eugenia comes for an extended visit from Houston, she brings he pampered pooch, Bluebell. Bluebelll has a fancy wardrobe, does entertaining tricks, and suddenly, Glamourpuss is no longer the center of attention. She does, however, learn a much more important lesson about the importance of friendship.

The is was a fun book to read to my granddaughter. It is much longer than most kids books I've read for this particular age group, but the story goes quickly. Ink and watercolor drawings are creative and fun. The pages are a bit busy, but this just adds to the conversation while I read the story.There is silver glitter on the jacket of the book which seemed fitting for a pampered cat like "Glamourpuss."

4/5 stars

Etta and Otto and Russell and James; Emma Hooper

Etta and Otto and Russell and James; Emma Hooper
Simon & Schuster - 2015

I like books that are a bit quirky and, it's a bonus when I come across stories with senior citizens as characters as well. So for me this novel got bonus points early on.

Etta Kinnick is in her early 80's and her memory isn't as sharp as it once was. She's a former school teacher from Saskatchewan and is married to Otto. One day when Otto wakes up he finds Etta gone. She's left him a note though, telling him that she has always wanted to -- "see the ocean", which is thousands of miles away. Her note further states that she will "try to remember to come back." She's evidently still concerned about Otto, and to ensure that he remembers to eat, she leaves him her recipe cards line up on the counter.

So begins Etta's unusual journey with only a few essential in tow: chocolate, a few changes of clothes, and the skull of a fish that she's had for years. Along the way she sends occasional notes to Otto. Through this exchange the reader gets a picture of the couple's early beginnings, backstory about their closet friend, Russell, who still lives next door. He is a man who has always been secretly in love with Etta. As for the "quirky" in this story, the "James" from the title, is actually a talking coyote that Etta supposedly meets along her journey.

I found this story hard to review. The set up and storyline is different. It slips back and forth in time, with a good portion devoted to Otto and Russell in the present, and what they should do about Etta out on her own. The writing is different, the story has it's touching moments, and there is a blend of fantasy mixed with reality as well. It is not a story that is going to appeal to all readers, but with themes like friendship, love, loneliness and loss, it will be a story that will stick with most readers longer than other novels. Overall a pretty impressive debut novel.

4/5 stars
(review copy)

In Wilderness; Diane Thomas

In Wilderness; Diane Thomas

Bantam - 2015

In Wilderness is a very different story from anything I've read recently.  The story begins in 1966, with Katherine (Kate) Reid, 38, the owner of a high powered ad-agency in Atlanta, Georgia.  As a woman in the 1960's who has risen to this position, she certainly has a lot going for her, but we all know how life can change in the blink of an eye.

Kate loses a baby and then is told that she hasn't much time to live.  She keeps losing weight and is quickly nothing but skin and bones. She's been to several doctors with no specific diagnosis.  Figuring she has little time left, she decides to leave her present life behind an buys a remote cabin in the woods in the Blue Ridge mountains of Appalachia.  She wants to live out what time she has left in solitude.  However, the solitude she seeks is short-lived.

Danny McClean is a Vietnam Vet suffering from PSTD. Danny has lost all of the significant people in his life, and has escaped to the same woods where Kate is.  He's been living off the grid, and he is now watching Kate.  In her new surroundings, Kate's condition seems to be improving, and when the two do meet there is after a time that need for both individuals for human connection. What happens when two damaged people connect?

This is one of those stories that's a bit hard to rate.  The writing is very descriptive, but very dark as well.  The first half of the book moved way too slow for me, but on the other hand, it is also a story which transported me and stuck with me as well.  It's ultimately a story about two damaged people needing someone to ease their emotional pain. However, madness and passion aren't a good combination when one is looking for happiness.  There is a good dose of explicit sexual content in this story which might not appeal to all readers, and one blood-related depiction that I could have done without.  Despite the few negatives for me, overall, I was still glad I tried this one. It's a debut book that took the author 30 years to complete.

3.5/5 stars

(review copy)

Edge of Eternity (Book 3) Century Trilogy; Ken Follett

Edge of Eternity; Ken Follett

Book Three of the Century Trilogy

Dutton - 2014

Ken Follet is truly a master at historical fiction. In 2010 he published the first book in his Century Trilogy with Fall of Giants, (2012) Winter of the World and in (2014), the final trilogy, Edge of Eternity.  Although, I really enjoyed the previously (2) books, I hadn't felt like tackling the final book. In part because of it's size, once again over 1,000 pages, but because, I knew it was the end of a wonderful reading experience. I actually finished this one in February, but held off writing the review to think about it a bit.

This installment spans the period of 1961-1989 and covers such history making events as the Cuban Missile Crisis, Civil Rights Movement. JFK Assassination, Nixon and Watergate, and even has a epilogue of president Obama's victory speech.  The same significant families are featured, but this time it's a different generation (grandchildren) involved. Fortunately there are family trees provided which were very helpful given the two-plus year lapse since I read the previous book.

The Edge of Eternity and the trilogy as a whole is no ordinary historical work; the recent that most have been involved is impressive.  As a work of fiction, I had to keep reminding myself of that, when historically something seems a bit off. The characters are fascinating, American families, Germans, Russians and English are represented.  All of the characters are very well developed and seemed authentic throughout.

The story took me back to my school days for some of these history making events. The Cuban Missile crisis, JFK's assassination, although I was a child and at an age when the issues were not really understood, it was still scary for me and other children when observing the reactions of older adults.

This book has so much to offer readers, even though it's not perfect. There's a lot of sex and politics that some readers will take issue with, but personally I felt that it added to the story and did not distract.  I think you could read this as a stand alone, but in my opinion, you'd be missing the opportunity to really appreciate the all that the entire trilogy has to offer.

4.5/5 stars

(eGalley)