Sister Assassin

Sister Assassin by Kiersten White

Series: Mind Games #1

Genre: Fantasy, Mystery, Romance, Young-Adult

Expected Publication: February 19th 2013 by HarperTeen

The Background.

Some of you may know Sister Assassin more commonly as Mind Games, the American version of the book with an entirely different cover.

However on with the book, I felt like none of the synopsis really captured the book for me or they have away too much. Sister Assassin is undoubtedly full of mystery (and unfortunately for me it was full of confusion). I went into reading the book without really reading the synopsis and in a way I am glad, because for me it told you everything that I didn’t expect in the novel and that would have detracted from my enjoyment.

Sister Assassin focuses on the relationship between two sisters, Sofia and Annie (Annie being the older) and how they have abilities (not the only people in the world) and how these are used to help them survived. They are trapped in a vicious circle of heart-break, betrayal, pain, hurting and this is all confined within a school that is designed to “mould” the girls and ultimately use them. There’s lots of subterfuge and excitement along the way and a little bit of romance. However the novel is driven by the two sisters and their relationship and the extent in which having these powers will mean they have to go to.

The Review.

Sister Assassin unfortunately is not a novel I enjoyed, and I am sure I will be one of the rare few and it is not often that I feel that way. For me, the problem with Sister Assassin lay not with the structure of the narrative which switches between Annie and Sofia, the two protagonists and sisters and jumping from present to past. This did discombobulate me, but I learned to deal and pay close attention to the time frame, it was the characters themselves that truly grated on me. Despite this, I think Sister Assassin has an awful lot to offer as a novel and that is its true selling point, I have not read any of Kiersten White’s other novels, but this one contains, fantasy elements, mystery, romance and lots of thrills and action. My brain was constantly ticking over to try and find out what was happening and it wasn’t so overly complicated that I couldn’t figure out things.

Sofia and Annie are two sisters who supposedly love each other and care very deeply. Annie is the older sister and this took me a while to figure out, since it didn’t seem to be entirely clear for me (or I likely skipped this part for some unknown reason). Still, this confused me as to the real dynamic of their relationship as sisters for the first half of the novel because the time jumping failed to lay the foundations for their relationship and I couldn’t get a connection to the two. I thought Sofia was the older sister purely because of the way she acted and then it took me by surprise since Annie appeared to be the child. Unfortunately for me, first impressions count and it’s hard to remove them after that. I didn’t like the sisters in all honesty. I felt that they were both destructive towards each other and despite all this caring and their environment  being destructive they were not healthy for each other. There seemed to be little vindictive digs between the two and a hatred that made reading sour for me. Whether this was Kiersten’s intention to rebuild something between the two of them, I felt that it was too far gone to truly be fixed and that the girls were so damaged that it twisted my stomach.

“Why? And thanks to Keane’s rules, I can’t visit her or even call her without being spied on. How could she do this to me? To us? She used me.”

When the novel is called Sister Assassin I fear that the title is slightly misleading because it creates the idea of a duo. This is not to be seen because the title Mind Games I feel is infinitely more applicable to the novel and that the characters within the novel play mind games upon the girls because Sofia and Annie are far from being equals. They are used against each other and manipulated and this is what I didn’t like because it slowly disintegrated their relationship and left a sour feeling in my gut. I hated how the siblings who had to rely solely on one and other were dragged apart and how they both got the idea they were of lesser value to the other. I liked the initiative of White to take on this dynamic, but to use the girls to abuse one another so emotionally that they became even more frayed grated on me. I don’t think I’d have minded so much if I felt that something positive came of this, but it just felt pointless.

Even without liking the destructive relationship between the girls, I neither liked their personalities. I felt that both of them were self-absorbed and choosing to blame themselves too much for every problem. Everything was me, me, me, and they didn’t look for each other.  They failed to communicate. This may all seem to be part of the dark, twisted novel that definitely gets points for being gritty and full of hardship, I just couldn’t connect with these whiny, characters that seemed to emphasise so much about not doing it that they eventually would. Not everything fails though because they do both have redeeming moments in the fact that they eventually seem to reach a point of resolution that doesn’t fully give an ending to their relationship just represents their intelligence and bond. It didn’t leave me satisfied enough to give this book a higher rating, however I believe that a lot of people will truly appreciate the novel and its ending for its subtle cleverness.

Having said that, Sister Assassin takes on a unique, brave approach in the young-adult world and it is quick read at just over 200 pages, pushes forward an action packed and thrilling novel that will tick an awful lot of boxes for people with a desire for heroines that push themselves into the thick of things and still manage to show vulnerabilities, I just couldn’t connect with the characters or appreciate them.

The romance in Sister Assassin frustrated me beyond belief because I was rooting for all the wrong things. I think this left me disappointed and I couldn’t understand the characters and their actions. I’m not for happily ever afters in every novels because this isn’t what Sister Assassin delivers and with such a title it’s not really what I expected, but neither am I for entire paths of destruction or stupidity. I just felt like wringing the characters necks. Having said that, the love interests that we gain and note the word “interests” however this is used with the utmost care and it does not really create a love triangle, it much more becomes a pinnacle of direction of choice for Sofia who is the focus of this novel much more. Despite this, I couldn’t connect to either boy that she has in her life nor truly like them. There was always undercurrents that left me unsettled from all the characters and this book.

“I wish she were my dog and I had an alcoholic father and I was the type of girl that Adam could date and rescue and fall in love with. I wish my left arm didn’t hurt so much I wanted to die…”

The one element of Sister Assassin I wish had been focused upon much more was the school and the whole dynamic surrounding this. I feel like we’ve only just begun to scratch the surface and White eluded to so much more and she left me rather disappointed if I’m honest with her eventual unveiling in Sister Assassin and this is the sole reason to my contemplation to pick up the next novel when I didn’t truly connect with this one. However I feel like there is lots of potential on a mystery and political front that can be dragged from the school and the direction White is taking her novel in. Maybe if she’d allowed herself to continue this one I may have been able to engage more with her direction. However at the moment I feel isolated from the characters and her direction.

The other point to note is the narrative. We split between both Annie and Sofia and then from past to present and you have to pay close attention to the changing time frame. It can certainly draw you away from the novel, but eventually I managed to get into the narrative after a while and looking out for the specific changes and I think the time frame added to the subplots of the novel and the complexity to slowly unveil the events and different elements that are contained in Sister Assassin to make it so dynamic.

Overall, I don’t suggest you ignore Sister Assassin, but I suggest an air of caution. I know plenty of people who have adored this novel and I feel I will be a black sheep in not liking this, but I found it hard to change my mind by the end of the novel despite its improvement. For me, White has lots of lost potential here in Sister Assassin that I don’t think she used in the right way for her characters to work in a believable, damaged way without everything seeming to be one abuse after another between every relationship that led to a breakdown. I’ve found it hard to truly put all my feelings into Sister Assassin because I really felt rather ambivalent by the end and whilst I appreciate the ending I still couldn’t find myself to like it more. However just to show you that there are people who loved it, check out  Rebekah’s review at The Reflections of a Bookworm here and Tonya’s from The Midnight Garden’s review here, both who gave the book four stars.

*Quotes taken from an uncorrected e-arc copy provided through NetGalley thanks to HarperCollinsUK

The use of a different title and cover is largely due to the HarperCollins UK buying the publishing rights for Mind Games and choosing to take a different marketing approach to the UK market, nothing exciting really. I think whilst the title is less apt, the tagline fits perfectly to the novel. This is the American cover that some of you may be more familiar with. 

This year both Mind Games and Sister Assassin will be released to America and the UK, Australia etc on the same date, because of HaperCollins UK buying the rights, so all those UK buddies will not have to wait to get their hands on this!

A Thousand Bayonets

A Thousand Bayonets by Joel Mark Harris

Genre: Thriller, Mystery, Adult

Publication: August 18th 2011 by iUniverse.com

Upon returning from Afghanistan, journalist John Webster discovers a gang war in his backyard. Now he must find a way to survive in this Canadian warzone-or die in the crossfire.

John Webster has seen the terrible things human beings can do. He’s an experienced investigative journalist, recently returned from the war in Afghanistan. John saw hell over there; he looked death straight in the face. He is glad to be back to the normalcy of his Canadian home-that is, until he realizes there is a war brewing in his own backyard, and “peace” is a word no longer spoken.

John gets caught up in the battle between two of the most powerful and murderous criminal gangs in the city. Using what he learned on the foreign battlefields, he stays alive, despite the price on his head. The only way to save his own life is to find the man responsible for the brutal neighborhood bloodshed. When the police slap a subpoena on him, though, John finds his only solace on the streets.

Suddenly, John is back in a warzone, fighting for his life. Will he be able to stop the bloodthirsty crime lords? The flashbacks to Afghanistan threaten to pull John into darkness. Soon, the past and present collide, and he can’t tell which way is up or down. The need for redemption may be stronger than the need for survival as John Webster finds himself on his most dangerous assignment yet.

My Review:

This book was a pleasant surprise. From the first moment I was immersed in the suspense, action and heart-clenching pace of this novel really excelled. I have to admit I was a little wary when I got asked to review this novel because I thought “Is this going to be my thing?” and it might not be my usual genre, but it was brilliant! Unpredictable and engaging; I literally couldn’t put this book down even on my holiday. Not really a cheery holiday read, but certainly a realistic and emotive book.

John Webster was a very strange character. I never fully got to grips with him as a character and his personality. He seemed rather withdrawn from society and whilst I didn’t connect with him entirely I think it wasn’t needed for this type of story. From the outside you could take him in and really find frustration with his situation and character and get carried along with the direction of the story without the need for the connection. His character was flawed and he was frustrating and you wanted to knock his head against a brick wall, but that kept the suspense and anticipation throughout the novel that made ‘A Thousand Bayonets’ thrilling.

We had some really nice descriptions that weren’t over the top and they really helped to build the background and create some nice visuals for reading. I liked this one in particular because of it’s references to books.

“He had a wall-to-wall bookcase behind his desk. The bookcase was filled with classics written by Dickens, Tolstoy, and Dostoevsky, and textbooks he used to teach his Friday morning class at the University of British Columbia.”

There was even a little bit of romance in this book which was bizarre and I didn’t know entirely which direction I was going with it because there was so many different routes, but I think that makes the reality of this novel so stark because it wasn’t perfect and it was riddled with imperfections. I mean, Webster had a shot at two women and his ex-wife was muddled into things with constant appearances and I’m not really sure how I felt about her. The romance was unconventional and ultimately it just highlighted a futility to John’s life because of how it didn’t seem to work and it never truly evolved, but it played an interesting aspect to the novel.

Sometimes I think reading is great for escapism, but sometimes to contrast this delving into the darkest pits of reality and really uncovering something that potentially exists and we are ignorant to is so horrific that it’s thrilling is something  this novel gives you.

Webster focuses a lot on his past and he’s certainly messed up individual from his time as a journalist in Afghanistan. Harris really does a brilliant job of showing the horror and psychological impact of it all and its not nice to read, but it’s engrossing in a horrible kind of way.

“Suddenly the boy burst into flames. He dropped to his knees, writhing in pain, unable to extinguish the fire. And John was still unable to move, unable to help the boy. The only thing he could do was watch as the boy burned to death.”

I think my only issue was at the start when I didn’t know John Weber very well was converting from Weber to John to describe him as the protagonist and this confused me because I thought they were two different people and the consistency of one title could have been done with to start with, especially when I didn’t realise his full name.

‘A Thousand Bayonets’ for me is hard to summarise because on the most basic level it’s a brutal novel about the destructive nature of mankind and how cruel people can be when sinking to gain personally and manipulation and deceit that occurs in the world. Ultimately it becomes an intricately told novel with different threads weaving through it about characters motives, police corruption, relationships, family and the mystery and suspense that are built from this is definitely superb. A cracking novel.

So you don’t miss your chance to read this novel, enter HERE to win a chance of getting 1 of 10 signed copies of ‘A Thousand Bayonets’ from the author and open internationally because I promise you it won’t let you down! I’m hosting this giveaway along with Matt from Genius Book Reviews who introduced me to Joel, so I have to give him a big shout out and suggest you hop over to check out his world of fantastic, fantasy reviews!

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The Rook

The Rook by Daniel O’Malley

Genre: Fantasy, Mystery, Adult

Publication: January 11th 2012 by Little, Brown and Company

The body you are wearing used to be mine.
So begins the letter Myfanwy Thomas is holding when she awakes in a London park surrounded by bodies all wearing latex gloves. With no recollection of who she is, Myfanwy must follow the instructions her former self left behind to discover her identity and track down the agents who want to destroy her.
She soon learns that she is a Rook, a high-ranking member of a secret organization called the Chequy that battles the many supernatural forces at work in Britain. She also discovers that she possesses a rare, potentially deadly supernatural ability of her own.
In her quest to uncover which member of the Chequy betrayed her and why, Myfanwy encounters a person with four bodies, an aristocratic woman who can enter her dreams, a secret training facility where children are transformed into deadly fighters, and a conspiracy more vast than she ever could have imagined.

My Review:

This book kicks off with a bang! When your first line starts with this, you know it’s got to be good!

“Dear You,

The body you are wearing used to be mine. The scar on the inner left thigh is there because I fell out of a tree and impaled my leg at the age of nine.”

My thought pattern was along the lines of “HOLY SHIT” when I first started this book. It sounds dramatic, it is dramatic! However, my big but comes here, it took me an awfully long time to get into the story. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed every moment of reading, but it felt like a long time before I really got drawn into the real grit of the story.

I’m going to start with Myfanwy because I loved her so much. For me she seemed a little bit of a pushover from her letters of “Dear You”. However, the new Myfanwy is anything but and I absolutely adored her hands down. She was kick-butt, smart, sassy and she was guaranteed to make me laugh. My favourite quote from her has to be, without a doubt this one.

“And where is he going to lick me?

“In the examination room,” said Ingrid.

“What? no, what I mean is, whereabouts on my body will they be licking me?” demanded Myfanwy.”

How much more could I ask from her? Whilst being a really strong leading female protagonist, she managed to inflict great humour into everything for me! I think the dynamic of her relationship with Ingrid and in addition to her amnesia she made a really quirky character who could pull of moments of stupidity because of her lack of knowledge. It was pretty brilliant!

I have to say following Myfawny learning and adapting to her role within the Chequy and growing and developing as a person in all fields was utterly endearing. Not only had she changed from the person we are first led to know is Myfawny, but she matures across “The Rook” into an actual person and not just the work-a-holic.

In addition to our fantastic main character, we had some really well thought secondary characters that had a full history and we really got to engage with. My favourite being Bishop Alrich and Ingrid. Not only does O’Malley take the time to really write up the background to the story, but he sets the scene, describes it and really immerses you into everything. I could really visualise every moment of the story. His descriptions were top-notch and they didn’t take a moment away from the thrills and heart-pumping moments, they only added to the speed of the novel and it’s intensity.

“The gangly youth was covered in flesh-colored scales that glittered in the light. Long scars sliced up his face from the corners of his mouth. The little girl had massive talons coming out of her fingers.”

So whilst this book is labelled as “Fantasy” I wouldn’t put it with the whole medieval sword-fighting she-bang, it’s very much a modern world technological front. Even though I love the medieval side of fantasy more, I equally adored this one because we got a really different style. The members of the Chequy are registered as different pieces of a check board, which is a fantastic idea. We have Rooks, Bishops, Pawns and then the Lord and Lady since they would step onto King and Queen territory otherwise which was not quite favoured. O’Mally certainly builds a highly descriptive, absorbing world around these titles and world. It’s obvious he spent a great deal of time planning the regimented ranks and the admission criteria.  Thus being why the title is “The Rook”  which Myfawny is. This all sets out for a very rigid, strict and secret government department that functions to take in those with the supernatural abilities that really range to all kinds of things, vampires, four bodies to one mind, humans turning into metal. O’Malley creates so many unique powers and possibilities that evolve within the Chequy and thrive under their control whilst the Chequy also works to cover up all secrete outbreaks of the ‘supernatural’ across the country. It sometimes makes you wonder if we really do have a secret division in our country like this.

Not only that, but I labelled this mystery. It is very much leading you on a tale of twists and complex turns where you have no clue to what is about to happen. There is certainly a lot to be discovered and very little given away. I think it’s always refreshing to read a truly unpredictable novel and the whole reasoning of why’s and where’s is certainly enough to keep you on your toes if you aren’t cringing away from the gore, or lapping it up like me. I do suggest if you are easily queasy or faint-heartened to gore this might not be the best book for you since when a limb gets torn off or a liquid monster is throwing gooey gunk all around it’s not the most settling of things. However it does make for a read with no holding back and a race neck speed finish.

I found the method of telling the story and narrative to be equally engaging. We switched from letters written by the “old” Myfawny in first person detailing her life, into a third person narrative from the “new” Myfawny. This really enables her to feel like a new toddler stumbling with it’s first steps and she has to fit into a lifestyle that isn’t hers. It adds to the outsider effect and really draws you in. Adding to the letters we have the purple binder that Myfawny has detailed ever aspect of her life in that surrounds the Chequy. I really liked O’Malley’s thought into this and the great details he went into. Not only that, but we saw some wit and humour touched into that too.

“With this reformation of the Estate and its methods, there were some kinks that needed to be worked out, and, in my opinion, Norman Goblet stands out as one of the kinkiest.”

I never would have picked up O’Malley’s “The Rook” without it being selected as group read and I’m very glad I did because whilst it took me a while to get into, once I actually settled down to read, I found it nearly impossible to stop reading. “The Rook” is a unique fantasy novel, with a brilliant premise, a strong protagonist and lots of wit, humour and excitement tossed in amongst the mix of supernatural. I advise you all to flock and by “The Rook” now because it surely will not disappoint! Especially since it’s actually one of those novels where you find everything answered and tidly swept away.

My Rating:

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Killing Me Softly

Killing Me Softly by Nicci French Genre: Thriller, Adult, Mystery Publication: January 1st 1999 by Grand Central Publishing Alice Loudon has a devoted boyfriend and a challenging job as a research scientist. Then one morning, on her way to work, she exchanges a lingering look with a devastatingly attractive man. As a lover, Adam Tallis is more passionate than Alice’s wildest imaginings. Soon, there isn’t anything or anyone she wouldn’t give up to stay by his side.

Review:

This was part of my library loot from a couple of weeks ago. I haven’t read too many thrillers, but I do enjoy reading them. The premise for this book sounded very intense and brooding and we really hit these moments at times and then others I felt the book flopped a little. However this does not mean to say I didn’t find this book a page turner because it certainly was. I devoured it happily in a couple of sittings throughout one day. It’s not a long read at around 360 pages so that made it easier to read too.

The story happens to be a little slow to start because we are setting the scene for Alice Loudon’s very boring and plain life with her devoted boyfriend where everything seems “hunky dory” until she sees some illusive stranger on the street. This happens to be Adam Tallis and things kick off from there where events start to spiral very quickly out of control for Alice. It’s possible to find their sudden and strange connection a little far out, but I suppose this is all part of the mystery and tension of the book.

The beginning of their relationship happens to be my favourite part of the book because where she first meets Adam Tallis, we begin a game of cat and mouse. It’s all very intense and exciting and the suspense builds throughout and these are the moments that we really witness a brooding intensity I desired.

I found the energy throughout the first half of the middle of the story was very high and tense. We were always expecting something new and there was a lot of emotional strain being placed on Alice. Alongside that we were desperate to learn about Adam Tallis and this really drew me into the novel and allowed my imagination to thrive.

Nevertheless when we hit the second half of the middle I found my interest lacking slightly because Alice became a whiny, obsessed character over Adam’s past and at times this became tedious. I understood the reasoning for this with all the mystery and suspicion around  Adam’s character, but Alice did grate on my nerves. For the first half of the novel I’d appreciated her and enjoyed following her, but then she began to annoy me. Whilst it’s all part of the plot and interesting, I felt at times French overdid Alice’s obsession and it became silly enough that I wanted to hurl the book across the room and kill Alice myself.

However, I feel like French redeemed herself and Alice by the end of the novel because she certainly gave us lots of twists and turns that got the heart pacing and left us desperate to finish the story. She also fitted the whole mystery nicely together to make an ending that didn’t leave a lot or even any real loose ends hanging around. If you don’t like loose ends, I think this book is a perfect one for you.

Alice by the end was a rather dismal character, but she was on the road to recovery and I certainly appreciated her strengths and lengths in which she strived to. She probably wasn’t the weak character I’d first seen and she was incredibly perceptive and intelligent across the novel, which I appreciated.

In a very strange way, I found myself caught up in Adam’s magic too and whilst it seemed the perfect example of an abusive relationship at times, his behaviour was bizarre and loving. I found that I could never hate Adam at any point and I think this was what made the reading so strange. Adam is a man with many problems, but ultimately I felt he was vulnerable and desperate for love and despite his problems he touched my heart. That might make me a little psychotic, but I couldn’t condemn him in the end because French gave me nothing to condemn him with. He seemed like the ‘perfect’ character at times, but I think this thriller reminds you of a depth to a facade that is incredibly chilling.

Another aspect I loved about this thriller was the realism that we got because it’s something we could very much witness in the real world. At times I believe some thrillers and mysteries can be a little bit far fetched, this slotted easily into a society we witness today. A very scary thought for one to ponder.

On the other hand, I don’t think the mystery was all that mysterious because at times I found it as I’d expect and ultimately a little predictable. I think at times it’s hard to really surprise a reader when there is so much similar literature out there, but that’s not to say it’s impossible and so I found the mystery aspect a tad disappointing.

The writing was pacey and imaginative and I never found myself really lagging to read. Whilst Alice’s character may have become tedious, French always found a way to engage my interest to be sure I kept on reading which I salute her for. I think whilst she didn’t really expand my learning, she left a well-written thriller that will keep you turning pages.

Another thing I did whilst reading this book was compare it to the storyline of ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ and whilst I haven’t read that book, I found myself thinking that the storyline is almost a mirror in effect. Whilst this may be a thriller we witness an abusive boyfriend, because that what he is, and that maybe people should recognise this about the Fifty series too. Whilst the character may be loving, the style of their relationship is unhealthy and wrong. Just a little thought that rattled around my head whilst reading.

Whilst this story might not be the most amazing thriller or mystery I have ever read, it was a good way to spend an afternoon, curled up in a chair and I’ll be on the lookout for more books by French because I think she has some real talent. Pick it up because I don’t think it’ll disappoint you.

My Rating:

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One Hundred Years of Vicissitude

Title: One Hundred Years of Vicissitude

Author: Andrez Bergen

Genre: Mystery, Historical-fiction

Expected Publication: Late 2012 by Perfect Edge Books

Plot:

“First up, a disclaimer. I suspect I am a dead man. I have meagre proof, no framed‐ up certification, nothing to toss in a court of law as evidence of a rapid departure from the mortal coil. I recall a gun was involved, pressed up against my skull, and a loud explosion followed.”

Thus begins our narrator in a purgatorial tour through twentieth-century Japanese history, with a ghostly geisha who has seen it all as a guide and a corrupt millionaire as her reluctant companion.

Review:

This book is unique. I think that’s where I need to start, it’s like nothing I have ever read before. I originally agreed to review this book per author request and I felt a little apprehensive about what would come because my knowledge of Japanese history is limited. However I found the book thrilling, exciting, tear jerking at moments and really bizarre! Bergen has a very unique style of writing and he adds a touch of humour into his work that I thoroughly appreciated. It was a rather dry, sarcastic tone which worked well with the tone of the book.

There is little to discern from the actual plot, but the story follows the footsteps of a man who meets a very strange Japanese woman, who crept into my heart along with him and I found myself flipping through the pages to find out where their journey would end. Ultimately this story has a sense of surrealism because it ventures into the realm beyond death and trips into ‘memories’ that is rather confounding at time and you may at times struggle to keep up. However we seem to develop into a full cycle and end on a rather poignant note and I’m glad to say it wasn’t the ending of pointlessness I almost expected from this type of book, but thoroughly rounded.

Bergen seems to enjoy discombobulating us by thrusting us into a new situation at every turn. The fact that he does this adds to the thrill of the story and is certainly enough to pique my interest.

The style of writing is unique, but it certainly adept and stretches my knowledge of vocabulary to its limits. To be truthful, I’d never heard of the word “vicissitude” before reading and the first thing I did was look through a dictionary before reading the book. For those of you who are unawares of the term like me, it means change or variation in the course of something or just change. It fits perfectly to the tale of the story and I find that this is ultimately one of those reads where the title actually integrates with the storyline.

Covers are certainly attractive to the eye and I think this one is interesting enough to make you stop and take a look. I don’t think until you begin to read do you understand the ultimate significance and along with the title, I loved the enlightenment I gained from that experience.

The narration is from the perspective of the man we meet with the most effective introduction of “First up, a disclaimer. I suspect I am a dead man.” after the prologue. The first person narrative is not a reason to avoid this story because it’s the core strength of the story with the idea of ‘memories’ and falling into them, we wouldn’t quite gain the confusion and upheaval if we were to view the tale from a third person narrative.

The characters are realistic people with secrets and problems that uncover across the tale of the story. I found myself falling just a little bit in love with Wolram and his nature. He seemed to gain a redemption throughout the story from his troubled life that was inferred and I enjoyed that experience. Kohana was a deceptive character until the very end. She was not somebody you could judge to act in a particular way and was rather a strange woman, although by the end of the story I came to feel rather sad for her.

Throughout reading I came across some interesting references to other pieces of literature and film which Bergen placed in, but my personal favourites had to be from Lewis Carroll. They did particularly make me smile along with The Wizard of Oz references as two children’s classics.

At times this story did confuse me with certain directions and I struggled to find my way, but I don’t think this took too much away from the overall experience of the book. It was largely in the set-up in the beginning and some of the constant changes in Kohana’s life which were rather fast that led to confusion. Along with that, the books doesn’t seem to fall solidly into one particular genre because it covers a large range of things, from a tad science-fiction style to romance along with the history and mystery aspects. I enjoyed that aspect of the book whilst struggling to place an exact label on the genre, so definitely pick up this book for a little of everything!

Overall I feel like this book is a fantastic addition to the fiction genre and you’d be stupid to overlook it on the fact that it covers Japanese history. The real undercurrent of the story is the developing relation between Kohana and Wolram and the direction of their past life. Pick up this book when it comes out later this year because otherwise you’ll be missing out!

*I received this from the author Andrez Bergen in exchange for a review, prior to its release.*

My Rating:

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The Grim Grotto

Title: The Grim Grotto

Author: Lemony Snicket

Series: Series of Unfortunate Events #11

Genre: Young-Adult, Adventure, Mystery

Published: September 21st 2004 by HarperCollins Publishers

Plot:

Dear Reader,
Unless you are a slug, a sea anemone, or mildew, you probably prefer not to be damp. You might also prefer not to read this book, in which the Baudelaire siblings encounter an unpleasant amount of dampness as they descend into the depths of despair, underwater.
In fact, the horrors they encounter are too numerous to list, and you wouldn’t want me even to mention the worst of it, which includes mushrooms, a desperate search for something lost, a mechanical monster, a distressing message from a lost friend, and tap dancing.
As a dedicated author who has pledged to keep recording the depressing story of the Baudelaires, I must continue to delve deep into the cavernous depths of the orphans’ lives. You, on the other hand, may delve into some happier book in order to keep your eyes and your spirits from being dampened.
With all due respect,
Lemony Snicket

Review:

It’s been a long time since I read the first ten books of this series, and I easily fell back into reading this one. Snicket creates a tragic event in three young children’s life into an exciting, extraordinary and unique tale of mystery, adventure and despair.

He continually tells you not to read on and relates the story around a theme. For this instalment our central focus was upon the water cycle which was related to the underwater adventure. It’s interesting how he manages to pair this with the nature of the three children and their journey and he continually reminds us throughout the book of this!

We have still yet to have our questions answered and if not got more than we originally started with, but Snicket’s really holds the attention of the reader and makes the pages turn!

The children are as intuitive as ever, and they make up an interesting and intelligent set of characters. It’s nice to watch the progression of Sunny from a baby into a more able and talking toddler and Violet seems to always be beyond her 15 years in my view.

I found there was real suspense, excitement and with in this story. However some of his continual repetition that created the characters began to annoy me at times, and I found myself wishing they’d shut up. Despite this, I think the book has some very engaging moments, a good mystery that doesn’t really give away the ending and a continual need to carry on and read the series.

The Grim Grotto is without a doubt a fantastic addition to the young adult genre. I think Snicket makes the Series of Unfortunate Events appealable to both the young generation and the adults who like to indulge in the young-adult genre.

My Rating:

More stalking available here:

• Goodreads
• Author’s Website

Let me know what you think!