book review

The Last Anniversary – Liane Moriarty

AngelaLeave a comment

I really enjoyed this book by Liane, and I believe it is her third story I have read. The first one I did not care for, the second one I loved, and I definitely liked this one.

The Last Anniversary Cover Image

I am still trying to get a feel for her style of writing, and it is not something I have been able to pinpoint yet. I do not get that familiar feeling I have from other authors who have multiple books that I have read. Her style of writing seems to change with each book, but I do not think it is done intentionally to help set the tone of the story.

So after all of that complaining, I really did like this story. I promise! I did have the initial problem of keeping all of the characters straight, because there were several, and they all seemed to be introduced very quickly, and very briefly. This does seem to be her method-of-operation when it comes to writing.

A small island with a small population and a big mystery seem to be the only thing keeping some of the characters going. Introduce a new person to the mix, and see what begins to happen. It seems that everyone knows everybody else, and there are some long-stretched ties connecting basically every single resident to everyone else. It can make things familiar, and also very interesting. You would think in this type of environment there would be no secrets. It seems as if every resident has secrets falling out of their ears, they have so many.

Without giving away any spoilers, this is definitely a book full of suspense, mystery, laughs, and some romance. It is a page turner, and I think you will be glad to have read it!

This Certainly Deserves a Second Read…

AngelaLeave a comment

…or a first read, if you have not experienced it yet.

THe Antichrist Book Cover

I reviewed this book a while ago, but since I have changed my theme on my blog, I can no longer search for previous blog posts.

I found this review very interesting, as the author seemed to think I did not enjoy the book as much as I really did. Online communications, yes?

I was skeptical when I began the story, but as I kept reading, and saw the amount of research that went into this story, and how everything just added up…

Truly a great read; whether you are a Christian, Atheist, Agnostic, Catholic, formerly any of the above, or any in between. Yes, even Hindu, Muslim, or a Jehovah’s Witness…

If you like facts, and math (I hate math; still a brilliant read), research, facts, astronomy, and history, this is certainly a story worthy of your time.

You can find it on Amazon here: The AntiChrist 2016:2019

 

Big Little Lies – Liane Moriarty

Angela4 Comments

Wow! Just wow! I absolutely loved this story, and was much happier with this one than I was with “The Husband’s Secret”.

Big Little Lies Cover Image

I read it every available moment I could. When I wasn’t reading it, I was thinking about when the next time would be that I could read it. At first I was a bit put-off by the way the story was constructed; going back 6 months prior to the main event that the story was revolved around. I could see very quickly, though, that it worked brilliantly for this story. I do not think it would have read as well as it did if it was written from a different viewpoint.

You quickly become attached to the main characters here, and there are a few of them.

Jane is new to the small town and a single mother to her son, Ziggy. One to move every 6 months, Jane is hoping she has found a place where she can stay on a more permanent basis.

Celeste and her husband Perry are extremely wealthy, but Celeste seems to be embarrassed by it as much as Perry is proud of it. He does not flaunt it, and he is generous, almost to a fault.

Madeline and Ed have a great marriage and the usual issues of raising her teenage daughter from her previous marriage. Her ex-husband Nathan is now married to Bonnie, and they have a young daughter together. The fact that her youngest will be in kindergarten with Nathan and Bonnie’s youngest seems to only be an issue with Madeline.

I try to not give away spoilers, so you will have to read this book yourself to find out what happens to all of these fascinating people. You will not be disappointed!

Sherlock – Martin Fido

AngelaLeave a comment

The full title is Sherlock: The Facts and Fiction Behind the World’s Most Famous Detective.

Sherlock

I really wanted to love this book. I tried so hard to love this. But I could not. I am still up-in-the-air on if I even liked it. I liked the pictures from the original books, and the images from the movies and television shows from past to present.

I liked the back story on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and even some history about each of the major players in Sherlock’s life.

I cannot describe exactly what it was that made this story so difficult to read. It was almost written as if Mr. Doyle never existed; everyone talked about were real people; and I really could not distinguish the real Sherlock stories from the fiction that was added.

I know I am tired; but I will never be that tired…

The husband’s Secret – Liane Moriarty

Angela6 Comments

This is one of the two Liane Moriarty books I purchased recently at Barnes and Noble. I had never read her stories before, so I was taking a chance buying two.

from lianemoriarty.com
from lianemoriarty.com

It certainly did not disappoint, but I have to say, it took several chapters into the story before I really felt a vested interest in the characters and what was going on with them. I think the thing I disliked the most is that each chapter focused on one family, of many that were intertwined. And it rotated as such. Chapter 1 was about family A, chapter 2 was family B, and chapter 3 was family C. Then chapter 4 went back to family A, and the entire story was plotted out in this manner.

Cecilia discovers a letter her husband wrote with instructions to only be opened upon his death. It took her a few chapters to get there, but she did indeed read it. What that letter contained was something that affected more than just her husband and herself. Cecilia does not know if she can bear the weight of carrying this secret.

Tess and Will have the marriage everyone admires, and she is comfortable in her life. Until she gets told something that damages the life she thought she had.

Rachel cannot let go of the fact that whomever murdered her 17 year-old daughter, so many years ago, has never been caught. She finds what she feels is evidence enough to convict the person she has suspected for the past 28 years.

As the characters deal with their own families and issues, the story comes together in a way you do not expect, and you will not want to put this one down until you have it finished!

Have you read this already?

What did you think of it?

You can read more about Liane and her stories here: Liane Moriarty Website

Catacomb: An Asylum Novel – Madeleine Roux

Angela1 Comment

Book 3 in the Asylum series, this installment was as enjoyable as the first two. You can find my review of Asylum here: https://booksandopinions.com/2015/03/01/asylum-madeleine-roux/

My review of Sanctum can be seen here: https://booksandopinions.com/2015/03/10/sanctum-madeleine-roux/

I apologize for the links not working as they normally do; I need to investigate why my website is having a bad day.

Catacomb cover image

This story picked up with Dan, Abby, and Jordan making one last summer trip before they all head their separate ways for college. It seems as if once again, the troubles they found at Brookline are still following them and not ready to let them live in peace.

If you haven’t read these stories yet, I think they are a great story that is easy to read with lots of action, suspense, and some pretty creepy photographs scattered throughout.

I would love to hear what you thought of any (or all) of them if you have had the chance to read them!

Unlucky 13: The Women’s Murder Club – James Patterson & Maxine Paetro

Angela4 Comments

Another great installment in The Women’s Murder Club Series, I had this read in a day. And was at Barnes and Noble today to get #14, which was nowhere to be found… 😦

Unlucky 13 Cover Image

Lindsey Boxer is enjoying life as a new wife and mother, but a person from her recent past is determined to put an end to that. Yuki and Brady find themselves experiencing their own nightmare on their honeymoon cruise, and Cindy is set on getting the breaking story of her career. Claire has a smaller role in this story, but the suspense is there, and you will not want to put it down!

Up next, I am reading Catacomb, by Madeleine Roux, book 3 in the Asylum series.

ZOO – James Patterson

Angela1 Comment

For having 3 bookshelves full of Mr. Patterson’s books, I can say I liked this, but I did not love it.

I loved the premise of it, and I loved the fact that at some point, all of these animals we have been “taming and training”, could someday turn on us.

I had a quick flash of my favorite man eating me to the bone…. Thanks James Patterson 🙂

this is what I image Bare-Bottom-Benjamin doing after he scraped my bones clean!
this is what I image Bare-Bottom-Benjamin doing after he scraped my bones clean!

So is this possible? Likely. This is also a new television series that Debuted on CBS in June. I have not seen it. Yet. I may watch it. But I probably won’t have the time to.

The White Princess – Philippa Gregory

Angela2 Comments

Although this is normally not the type of story I would pick up and read, once again the sale shelves at Barnes and Noble had me stacking random books into my arms. Now that I have read this one, I need to go find the rest of the stories in “The Cousins’ War” novels.

The White Princess Cover Image

This story is fiction, but it does revolve around facts, and several rumors, about the British Monarchy and how it operated in the very early years. 1400’s early.

Henry Tudor comes to the crown by killing the King, and therefore gets to marry the Princess of York. Because he won the Monarchy through violence, and not being a rightful heir, he begins a life of fear, doubt, and mistrust of everyone around him.

The Queen stands by him through all of this, vowing to always be on his side defending him, whether or not she believes he deserves the crown he stole.

This is a great period drama, and although it took me a bit to get it finished (a week to read a book for me is a long time!), it was well worth the read.

From a Buick 8 – Stephen King

Angela3 Comments

Yes, this is what I was finishing up yesterday. I am not positive on the number, but this has to be at least the 8th time I have read this story. I still pulls me in now the same way it did when I first read it.

From a Buick 8 cover image

I consider this “classic” Stephen King. We tend to hear that a lot, and say it often. We compare stories we read now to the first stories Mr. King wrote. We even try to find the timeline of his “drunk” writing, and his “sober” writing. We want him to explain to us how he dare to write something we did not like.

Have I read stories he wrote that I did not like? Absolutely. But it does not mean it is time to put the pen down and do something else. I read a story that he wrote that literally made me cry, it was romantic and horror all at once. I cannot remember the name of the book, and I do not own it. I just remember a man being in love with a younger woman and she was killed in the end…

From a Buick 8 is intense, supernatural, and all about family and friends. A young man is struggling with the death of his father, and it seems like no one can give him the answers he needs. The answers that will allow him to accept what happened, and move on with his life.

No spoilers here, as usual, but we are talking about a car that showed up out of nowhere, with a driver that disappeared, and became the unfortunate property of Pennsylvania State Police Troop D.

It spit out horrors, and tried to pull them each in. And friendships lasted, friends died, and life moved on, with or without answers that one young man so desperately needed.

If you have read this story, I would love to hear what you thought of it!