Tuesday 27 October 2015

Book Review: The Titanic Enigma by Tom West

The Titanic EnigmaThe Titanic Enigma by Tom West
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This kind of novel is something I might have written in my late teens. It's full of conspiracy, vaguely ridiculous and the characters are all young and beautiful.
I love the idea and the action is interesting and fast paced. There are plenty of twists and turns, although not completely unpredictable.
The characters are a bit one dimensional but not unlikeable. Overall a decent, entertaining read which I will forget in a few weeks.

View all my reviews

Tuesday 20 October 2015

Book Review: Us by David Nicholls

UsUs by David Nicholls
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

David Nicholls is brilliant at creating living and breathing characters.
The story of Us follows Doug, a scientist with a quirky sense of humour; his wife, Connie, the artiste; and their son Albie, a grumpy and surly teenager.
One day in their twenty year relationship, Connie wakes up and out of the blue asks Doug for a divorce. They decide as a family to continue with their summer trip around Europe.
Nicholls describes Paris and Amsterdam with poetic detail. It's a great advertisement for inter-railing and makes me want to pack my bag and jet off for a city break.
Doug is the perfect protagonist. He's got a 'dad' sense of humour and completely adores Connie.
Connie, unfortunately, was a character I could not warm too. I'm not sure if Nicholls intended for the reader to like her, but she came across as pretentious and 'above' Doug.
Albie, is the character who develops most over the course of the novel. He transforms from the introverted teen to realising he has responsibility.
The events that unfold in the story left me angry, in love and moved. But I was always on Doug's side. Connie's decisions seemed selfish and ungrateful. She always took Albie's side even when his behaviour was unreasonable.
I've never been more emotionally invested in a book, particularly the anger I felt at Connie and the way she treated Doug. But it was a compelling read and I felt like the characters could walk out the book. I'll definitely read more David Nicholls in the future!!

View all my reviews

Tuesday 13 October 2015

Book Review: The Surgeon by Tess Gerritsen (Rizzoli & Isles #1)

The Surgeon (Jane Rizzoli & Maura Isles, #1)The Surgeon by Tess Gerritsen
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Having been familiar with the Rizolli and Isles series, I already had characters in the head when I started reading this. This is the first of the books, but I'm glad I didn't start with it otherwise I may not have read any others!!
It has a good pace, a sadistic murderer and suspects a-plenty. But it was all a bit too procedural for me. Not to mention that Isles wasn't even in it!! It was exactly the kind of story you'd expect on Criminal Minds or Law & Order, nothing that made me sit up or take notice. Plus Rizolli goes on and on about 'the job being a way of life', and I'm sure that is the case, but it just got dull!!
I'm sure I will read more in the future, but I'll get my mum to read them for me first!!

View all my reviews

Thursday 8 October 2015

Book Review: Cape Fear by John D. MacDonald

Cape FearCape Fear by John D. MacDonald
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Considering the size of this book, it felt like it took an AGE to read! I'm not familiar with the film, other than the fact that it's a thriller, so I went in with a blank mind.
The book is very dated. It's odd that I can read Sherlock Holmes and that not seem dated, yet reading this seemed out of touch. The main couple did not share a bed and some of the terminology and language used was strange.
Although I recognise that MacDonald writes well, I wasn't particularly enthralled by the novel. Not a lot happened until the final third of the novel, which was exciting and made by pulse race. I felt Sam's injuries with every step he took and needed to know what had happened.
The other characters were a bit confusing, apart from Sam's daughter Nancy who I related to the most. I couldn't remember how old each of the children were and there were lots of people that were mentioned once (given a name) that we never met again.
Nevertheless, this novel really highlighted that one single man can be very scary. A threat does not need to be a bomb, or a warlord. I felt that MacDonald portrayed the feelings of the family well, especially Sam's wife Carol and how she coped with the strain put on their family.
I'm really intrigued to watch both versions of the film to see how well the terror translates to the movies.

View all my reviews