Blog Tour: Q&A, My Last Continent by Midge Raymond

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As you know already, I have reviewed and adored My Last Continent by Midge Raymond. So for her blog tour: 

1) How were Deb and Keller born? I was thinking from Jack and Kate in Titanic. But these characters had more substance than an overprivileged girl and one underprivileged boy.
Deb was created when I wrote a short story called “The Ecstatic Cry” shortly after returning from my own visit to Antarctica. I was so in love with the continent and the penguins—and also worried about tourism, climate change, and other issues affecting Antarctica—and I channeled all this into the character of Deb. Of course, she’s not like me in that she’s a scientist and loves the cold—as a writer and native Californian, I’m quite opposite in these respects. I enjoyed developing her further as I began writing the novel, and I knew that for her to fall in love, it had to be with someone who is as passionate about Antarctica as she is. So this is where I began with Keller—figuring out what brought him there and why he felt such a strong a connection to the continent.

2) All the research that went into this…what actually entailed the research of this novel?
Much of my research was firsthand—from my visit to Antarctica and all that I learned while I was there, as well as a stint as a penguin researcher in Argentina, at the Punta Tombo colony in Chubut Province. However, I’ve never been to McMurdo and so I had to research what life is like at the station (through books, documentaries, and the U.S. Antarctic Program’s newspaper, The Antarctic Sun). And reading about the explorers also provided a wonderful sense of history as well as setting.

3) I loved your writing so much. Any strong influences to your style?
My writing background is in journalism, and so I love details. My photos and journals were a big source of inspiration for writing the novel. I love the austerity of writers like Ernest Hemingway and Amy Hempel, and they’ve both been big influences for me.

4) Because everyone reading this would want a standard published-author question: How did you get your agent? Had it been a tough process?
I feel very fortunate to have such a fantastic agent. I had no special connections or anything like that — I simply sent a query via her website. I think it’s wonderful that there are agents out there who are still open to reading everything, even if it’s a debut novel from an unknown writer.

5) You chose to leave your readers reeling from heartbreak after turning the final page. What influenced this decision? That same tragic ending of the Titanic? 
As readers know from the early pages of My Last Continent, the Australis does meet the same fate as the Titanic. I didn’t know, however, what would happen to the characters, and this was a process of discovery as I wrote the novel. And the ending actually changed a couple of times before I felt I got it right. I had a lot of tough decisions to make, but in the end I feel as though the story went where it was meant to go.

6) I was telling some friends on Instagram how much this book has not received the praise it deserves. And one of them suggested people are bound to make more fuss about a book if it’s the author’s debut and it’s this great. What do you think? (And by praise, I mean reader popularity on Goodreads.)
I certainly hope that readers enjoy the novel and share it with other readers! As an author, you have to accept what readers feel about your book because there’s nothing you can do about this aspect of it — all you can do is write the very best book you can. I’m grateful to all those who have embraced the book so far, and I hope it continues to find more and more readers.

7) Your book talks about strong themes. Global warming. Saving Antarctica. Women in science. What one, important lesson do you want readers to take from it?
Most of all, I hope readers enjoy the story. But I do also hope that it makes people think about the continent and how important it is that we protect it.

8) What are you working on next? And when is it due?
I’ve got a new novel in mind, but so far that’s exactly where it is — still in my head. I look forward to having more time later this year to start writing. I have no deadline, so I’ll need to come up with one to keep myself on track. 


MIDGE RAYMOND TOOK A TRIP TO ANTARCTICA, AND BELOW ARE THE LOVELY PENGUINS SHE FELL IN LOVE WITH:

MY LAST

CONTINENT

 MIDGE

RAYMOND

Published on 28th July 2016 by Text Publishing in TPB, priced at £10.99

‘Midge Raymond has an extraordinary gift for description that puts the reader bang in the middle of the action, bang in the middle of its dangerous and endangered world. She is clearly a writer in command of her craft.’  ML Stedman, author of The Light Between the Oceans

Blurb: It is only at the end of the world – among the glacier mountains and frigid waters of Antarctica – where Deb Gardner and Keller Sullivan feel at home. For the few blissful weeks they spend each year studying the habits of penguins, Deb and Keller can escape the frustrations and sorrows of their separate lives and find solace in each other. But Antarctica, like their fleeting romance, is tenuous, imperiled by the world to the north.

A new travel and research season has just begun, and Deb and Keller are ready to play tour guide to the passengers on the small expedition ship that ferries them to their research destination. Except that this year, Keller fails to appear on board. Shortly into the trip, Deb’s ship receives an emergency signal from the Australis, a cruise liner that has hit desperate trouble in the ice-choked waters. And among the crew of the sinking ship is Keller…

An unforgettable debut love story, set against the dramatic landscape of Antarctica. Lyrical, page-turning and emotionally intelligent, My Last Continent is a stunning novel of love and loss in one of the most remote places on earth.



About the Author:  Midge Raymond is an award-winning short-story writer who worked in publishing in New York before moving to Boston, where she taught creative writing. She has published two books for writers, Everyday Writing and Everyday Book Marketing. Midge lives in the Pacific Northwest, where she is co-founder of the boutique publisher Ashland Creek Press. My Last Continent is her first novel.

Book Review: My Last Continent by Midge Raymond

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My Synopsis 

Imagine This: You are a natural scientist. Specializing in the conservation of birds in Antarctica. Penguins.

You love the Continent so much that every time you're departing you feel like you're leaving a great deal of yourself behind. But you'll come again. You're sure of it. Even though these days, your willingness to return, may be because of a little added incentive. A man. A good man. A kind man. Who loves you back. With whom your relationship begins and ends every time you depart. A cozy arrangement in a place so cold, warmth, company, body heat is very essential. 

But this year, your love affair would face its biggest trial ever. When the continent attacks. After all the harm done to it by tourists, by cruise ships. In Titanic proportions.

Deb and Keller's impending disaster summed for your delight. 

My Review. 

I loved, loved this book!

Frankly, honestly, I only decided to read this book because I found it was set 'at the bottom of the world'. You don't get to read books like this all the time. So I snapped it up. Thinking, I really hope this author is going to make Antarctica like a third main character in this book. Except I hadn't expected to enjoy it so much! Everything I asked for was here in this book:

Amazing storyline with lots of info about penguins, and the planet (made like a main character!). I love highly informative fiction about different animal specie. And this book never lacked info. Well-researched. You will learn so much—★

Great writing. I didn't expect the writing to be that seamless and easy to read and enjoy, and still possessed a literary quality.—★★


Two main characters. DEB, was amazing. I loved reading from her point of view. A woman scientist made a loner because of her job. It's always nice to read titles about women with fascinating careers. Keller, was also quite the charmer. Except by the end, I found myself seething because of decisions he made. Stunning romance between the pair. And I said these days, I hate romance... pah!—★★★

Other characters were amazing as well. None lacking in development. Thom, Deb's research partner. Glenn, the cruise coordinator who's really a pain in the arse. Richard and Kate, a married couple on the cruise who are having more fights—there's a note that most marriages brought to the Antarctica never return the same.—★★★★


First, I found this book a lazy read. Something to sit back, relax and enjoy. But then it dawned on me that something disastrous was about to happen. And I could no longer read it like I would a lazy afternoon read. I was on the edge of my seat. Panting. And when it was all over, I was so down. A heartbreaking tale I would recommend to anyone who wants a tear-jerker. And more.—★★★★★

My rating: 5 stars.

Book Review: The Paris Secret by Karen Swan

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Blurb: Not every door should be opened . . .

With stunning locations and page-turning tension, The Paris Secret is an intense and gripping tale from bestselling author Karen Swan.

Somewhere along the cobbled streets of Paris, an apartment lies thick with dust and secrets: full of priceless artworks hidden away for decades.

High-flying fine art agent Flora from London, more comfortable with the tension of a million-pound auction than a cosy candlelit dinner for two, is called in to assess these suddenly discovered treasures. As an expert in her field, she must trace the history of each painting and discover who has concealed them for so long.

Thrown in amongst the glamorous Vermeil family as they move between Paris and Antibes, Flora begins to discover that things aren't all that they seem, while back at home her own family is recoiling from a seismic shock. The terse and brooding Xavier Vermeil seems intent on forcing Flora out of his family's affairs - but just what is he hiding?

My Review 

This year debut authors are taking over the publishing scene than established authors. For me. Why? Every established author's book I read hasn't been as memorable as their previous title. A disappointment! Winter 2014 Karen Swan released Christmas in the Snow. And since then she's released two other books that were good. But they couldn't make me forget Christmas in the Snow. This year, the Paris Secret has made me forget how thrilling Christmas in the Snow was. Finally! Evidence that authors can write books so much better than their previous title if they put extreme effort! A fucking star to this!—★

The storyline of this book is amazing! I watched Woman in Gold last year(?) and I was so intrigued by the art world and the looting of art by Nazis during the second world war! Now a book that can be compared to Woman in Gold! I can see this book with its edge-of-seat suspense being adapted into a movie!—★★

You'd also love the main character Flora Sykes. I don't need to tell you how great Karen Swan is good with developing sophisticated females in high-flying careers!—★★★

I must also add that books written in third-person do not draw my interest as much. But always, always, Karen Swan writes in third-person and makes me feel as though I'm not being locked out of the character. She's about one of the few authors that make third-person very personal and fun to read.—★★★★

Setting, suspense, romance! Vienna, Paris, London, Antibes. The mystery behind the secret apartment with lots of art by notable artists. The taut, tension-filled romance between Vermeil and Flora. God, I said I hate romance, but try as I did, I couldn't hate Flora and Vermeil! A remarkable, magnetic duo! Karen Swan's romances are worth reading for readers who've fallen out of love with the genre. Since I read Christmas in the Snow I asked Swan to give me mystery, suspense that isn't tied with the romantic plot, and finally, she has and I have enjoyed it! So much! I wouldn't naturally enjoy anything about WWII or anything historical, but the vibrancy Swan injected into this book made me sit up rather than read with one-eye closed.—★★★★★★

My rating is definitely six out of five stars!!

I recommend this novel to anyone who wants glamourous-lit with writing that isn't shallow but well-written! Some authors can do glamorous-lit and make you feel as though you're reading something you could have written at 12 or lower. (Won't give names but you mostly find this with old, established authors) Karen Swan is certainly not one of them! If you've always been looking for a book that injects the contemporary into WWII narratives, this book is so up your lane!

Book Review: Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

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Blurb: Two half sisters, Effia and Esi, unknown to each other, are born into different villages in eighteenth-century Ghana. Effia is married off to an Englishman and will live in comfort in the palatial rooms of Cape Coast Castle, raising children who will be sent abroad to be educated before returning to the Gold Coast to serve as administrators of the empire. Esi, imprisoned beneath Effia in the Castle's women's dungeon and then shipped off on a boat bound for America, will be sold into slavery.

Stretching from the wars of Ghana to slavery and the Civil War in America, from the coal mines in the American South to the Great Migration to twentieth-century Harlem, Yaa Gyasi's novel moves through histories and geographies.

Claudia's Review 

This book didn't feel like fiction at all, it felt like I was reading biographies of different people. I had to keep reminding myself it wasn't .
Homegoing talks about the slave trade in a way rarely seen  and the story telling is so perfect that I found myself reliving an escursion I once embarked to the slave dungeons.

It spuns on centuries over centuries telling stories of different characters and their generations giving it a feel of a book made up of of short stories
This book would have received a 5 star from me since it's about my home country but I give it a four because the characters became too many and I had to go back to see which character was which and getting to the end it got boring. But you can't take this fact away: this book is a must-read for all you fans of African Literature and Literary Fiction. 

Book Review: Someone New by Zoe Miller

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My Synopsis. 

Imagine This: You broke up with your long-term boyfriend a few weeks before Christmas. Because deep down, no matter how perfect your sister who hooked you two up thinks he is, no matter how perfect your parents think he is, no matter how perfect YOU think he is, you know he's not the one for you.

Then a leather-wearing, jean-clad, biker walks into your life. He teaches you a lot about life—living in the moment, pursuing your dreams—that he feels so right than the boyfriend you've spent the longest time with. Even though, he tells you nothing. You know nothing about him. You let him into your life, your apartment, give him access to way more than your heart.

Then he dies.

You're in so much shock you can't believe he's gone. But what if, really, he isn't? What's the explanation for the bike that keeps following you around, the threatening mails you've been receiving? And why do the police and your family not believe that someone's on your tail?

My Review. 

I liked this book. Good storyline. The blurb, a summary of all the above. Just reeled me in. A star to the storyline—★
Relatable characters. The characters in this title are the kind you'll find next-door, in your circle of friends, in you even.—★★

There's also the suspense. The questions you keep asking yourself about the strange Danny. Why is he hiding things, what's going on here?—★★★

And as always, Zoe Miller's good writing. Something about it. She makes the abstract take on the body of concrete. How she's so good at explaining emotions, personifying them, making them take the shape of people themselves! Another of the features of her writing that keeps me coming back.—★★★★

But sadly, my praises for this title ends here. I liked it. But it wasn't as good as he previous titles. A Husband's Confession and a Question of Betrayal. I just wanted so much more. Enough to make me forget how great her other unforgettable titles were.

I recommend this novel to fans of women's fiction with mystery elements. If you also want something with characters that are so true-to-life, pick this.

Killer Review: I'm Thinking of Ending Things by Iain Reid

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Claudia's Review 

"We can't do whatever we want. There are ways we have to act. There are things we have to say. But we can think whatever we want. Thoughts are the only reality. It's true. I'm sure of it now. Thoughts are never faked or bluffed."—★

How does one describe a book like this? It's frustratingly confusing in a good way. If there was a what-the- hell-did-I-just-read genre, this book will fit perfectly. This is one of the shortest novels you'll ever read yet one that will stay on your mind the longest, no wonder there is a whole website dedicated to discussing it. (I did a bit of stal—ahem, 'research' on this) Might be the year's most outstanding Bookclub Fiction—★★

I'm Thinking Of Ending Things tells a story of a man and his girlfriend who go on a road trip to visit his weird parents. Most of the story centers around the road trip and the use of flashback was employed to give readers information about the characters. The whole story was told in first person-narrative so brilliant that you felt the main character was sitting across from you.—★★★

In between chapters, there were two nameless people having a conversation about someone who commited suicide.—★★★★

I give this book a five star because it had good writing style, unnervingly perfect story line and a cover that made you want to drop everything and read it (talk about judging a book by its cover).

I never read a book twice but this is a book I'll read over and over again if it will help me understand the ending. Recovery, what I needed after reading this piece of awesome literature!

Killer Review: Daisy in Chains by Sharon Bolton

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My Synopsis 

Imagine This: You're the author of true-crime novels, and a lawyer. Every case you take on, a convicted murder is released from jail. This makes the public, as the police force, very antsy about you stepping up to lawyer a convicted serial killer who specializes in women-of-size.

The thing about this serial killer is he's suave, as most of them are. He's also handsome. Very handsome. So handsome he can get away with anything. 

You have firm belief if there's anyone he could use his handsomeness on, it wouldn't be you. You are so immune to his charms. But of course, you have no idea what Hamish Wolfe is capable of.

Maggie Rose's brush with a serial killer 
with his own fan club summarized for your delight. 

My Review.

OK! I love, love this novel! Great storyline! On the cover of the book there's a note: 'In her ninth mesmerizing Thriller, Sharon Bolton shines a light on the world of convicted killers—and the women who adore them.' How fascinating! A star to the storyline.—★

You'd love Maggie Rose, the female lawyer talked about in my synopsis. She's amazing! I almost wanted not to like her from the beginning, because Sharon Bolton wrote the book in third-person and it is really rare for me to enjoy a book in third-person, but from her blue hair, her unusual fashion sense, her perpetual coldness, what was not to like?—★★

Other characters who also acted as main characters and got their point-of-views are Hamish (which auto-correct adventurously spells 'HAMPSHIRE')  Wolfe, the serial killer who's very unnervingly good-looking and charming. And Pete Weston, the detective who hates Hamish with passion and may have a thing for Maggie. I really took a liking to Pete because he was not a recurrence of the cliche running around in thrillers as detectives with their equally cliche 'past demons' to contend with.—★★★ 

This book is suspenseful! So! Leaps from the start! Find yourself vested in the world of fast-talking lawyers, tricky serial killers, their crazy fan clubs and suspicious detectives!—★★★★

Giving this book five stars because of the twist in the end. But it's nowhere as good as Sharon Bolton's previous Little Black Lies.

Daisy in Chains is available on Amazon. 

I recommend this book to anyone who wants a Psychological Thriller based on fascinating subjects (cold serial killers and their fan clubs). If you also need something to keep you awake, you should get this too.

Book Review: The Swimming Pool by Louise Candlish

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My Synopsis 

Imagine This: There's an opening of a new lido in your suburban neighborhood. And it's the place to be this summer. You have always loved to swim. But there's your 13year old daughter who wouldn't want to be anywhere near the pool. 

You'll do anything to make her deal with her phobia. But as a teacher, you've made plans this year—with an unshakable resolve—to live this summer like a normal citizen! So you go to the pool, partly with a hidden agenda in mind:

To see Lara Channing, the woman who single-handedly recommissioned the lido for the neighborhood. 

A little brush with Lara Channing, neighborhood celebrity, and you're spending more time with her gatsby-like crowd, drinking, toasting and partying your summer away. By and by you're getting estranged from your husband who doesn't want you to hang out with Lara. But who cares? There's something about Lara that you can't just opt out of. And not surprisingly, Lara, the schemer that she is, has something under her belt of tricks for you.

Before the summer is over, you'll regret ever knowing Lara Channing. 

My Review. 

As always, I love Louise Candlish's storylines! She puts the 'Domestic' into the Domestic Thriller by writing about suburban neighbourhoods in which disasters have happened and one character has suddenly fallen from all-high grace, to all-low scandals. In this story played around the opening of a new lidobin a neighborhood, you wouldn't be able to have enough! A star to the storyline!—★ 

Her writing! I would always keep saying this! And sadly, only my Desperate Housewives junkies would get this reference! Imagine Mary Alice Young narrating a tragedy that had happened in Wisteria Lane with her intonation and her use of 'You see...', 'I remember...', 'I should have known...' depicting how irreversible the situation was...? That's how Candlish writes! You'll find your inner Mary Alice Young reading along with you! Extreme pleasur(e)! A star! Plus you know this sort of writing can only create suspense and too much of it! So two stars for Candlish here—★★★

The characters in this novel! I spent my nights dreaming about them. What will happen next? I should have probably woken up and quenched my curiousity. But I'm sure if I did, I wouldn't be able to get enough of intriguing Lara Channing! And her sultry tones! In Candlish's novels there's always that character that sticks and is mostly the neighbourhood queen bee, but how she manages to make new characters out of this stereotype, who are actually different and all the more intoxicating... it must take such excellence to pull this off!—★★★★

Now my praises end here. Because while I feel this book is a must-read... it hurts me to think I can't give it five stars because I feel Candlish's previous title (The Sudden Departure of the Frasers) which I urge you all to read too, is better than this! Of course, had I not read her previous title, I would have given this a five star!

So my rating: 4.5 stars.

Find The Swimming Pool on Amazon. 

I recommend it to anyone who still craves a Desperate Housewives binge. Anyone who wants a Thriller about suburbia life they can and must relate to should also go get this! A perfect summer read!

Killer Review: Crow Girl by Erik Axl Sund

*Claudia's reviews are tailored for you US fans (with distinct tastes in fiction) for books sold in your territories* 

 

Purchase|Goodreads 

Claudia (@rocksclaudia)'s Review 

Crazy.....crazy....crazy....that's what this book made me.I had such an unusual emotional connection to this book. So that when I wasn't reading it, I was thinking about it,when I wasn't thinking about it, I was dreaming about it.

This book gave me nightmares to the point that I was convinced  I had psychological problems. To all the books out there so believable it puts your sanity on the line—★

Crow girl tells a story of  a detective  (Jeanette Kihlberg)who joins forces with a psychologist (Sofia Zetterlund) to solve the unexplained rampant murders of illegal immigrant children. Brilliant Storyline—★★

This book spirals mainly between the perspectives of Jeanette, Sofia, an unknown psychopath and a character who identifies herself as crowgirl. I guess it was for books like this that the term plot twist was coined because there is going to be a huge one that will make you question everything you've read.—★★★        

Crow girl also touches on the subject of child abuse and its gory details probably making it the most disturbing book you'll read this year. Don't you just love a Thriller with a cause!—★★★★ 

This is probably the easiest 5 star I have given and I would have given it more if 
I could because this book was everything-it had a little bit of murder, mystery, romance and tons and tons of thrilling darkness.—★★★★★

Crow Girl available for purchase at Amazon. Just go get it you fans of unsettling books!

Killer Review: Distress Signals by Catherine Ryan Howard

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My Synopsis 

Imagine This: Your girlfriend took a business trip. Then She never returned. 

You're distraught. You're wondering why she's not even answering your calls!

But then news pop up, pop up, pop up. And you explode. Your girlfriend. The one you've spent your days planning your future together. The one who's been waiting for you to get that big break. The one your friends no more of than you did. Did she leave? Or was she taken? 

Your search for her leads you to a cruise ship, trudging through parties, fun and lots of unanswered questions that keep you up late at night when everyone is asleep. And murder.

Adam's distressful life summarized for your delight. 

My Review.

You'd love this storyline! Great premise! A Thriller set on a cruise ship! You'll never look at cruise ships the same way again!—★

The writing is very easy to read. Flows. Adam's point-of-view, first-person, is a great way for you to relate to him, understand his plight, root for him. Cat Ryan Howard has made reading about male leads, enjoyable! A star to Adam—★★

The extra characters: Sarah, the mysterious girlfriend who you'd keep flipping the front-cover to take a look of and worry if Adam is just on a goose-chase for someone who isn't worth it. Rose, the annoying best friend to Sarah, who can be such a bitch you wonder why Adam keeps talking to her. There's Moorsey, Adam's patient friend who's been by his side, since, well, they were young. A star to these characters—★★★

Suspense! Every chapter drops a bomb. Bomb so huge you would keep gasping at the opening pages. This Thriller is never a slow burner! Fast from start!—★★★★

My only problem with this thriller will be the villain (—I didn't say the killer, mind you). I wish he was fleshed out more. His point-of-view and his motivation, and all the people in his life, his mum, his dad. I wished they were done more work on. I love my villains.

Otherwise, this book was a great something to keep you up at night if you want to be late for work the next day. And that last, final OMG moment! Almost gave this book four stars.

My rating: 4.5 stars.

Distress Signals is available on Amazon.

I recommend it to you if you love your thrillers taking off from the first page and leaving you with shocks, after shocks, after shocks, till you exclaim, God, this book is fucking not good for my heart!

Book Review: The Versions of Us by Laura Barnett

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Imagine This: On your Final year in college, you meet the love of your life. But you don't know this yet. You ride in his path with your bicycle as you try to swerve hitting a dog. 

You take up his invite to fix the puncture on your bike and go to a pub for drinks. Then the romance buds...
But lately you've been thinking. What if you hadn't met him? What if you'd even met him and decided not to take him up on his offer? Will you two still be together? 

This is the story of Eva and Jim and the many roads of life they could have taken but didn't or did to face the future.

My review. 

Amazing storyline! On an interview conducted by, well, I do not know. Laura Barnett was asked this question. 'Did you intend the novel as an argument for the inevitable power of fate?' She answered negative. But I do believe this novel speaks strongly on fate. And sometimes no matter the roads we take, how we take it, we're still bound to meet that person who'd be the light in our lives. This is what this novel communicated to me, and I took it! Took it hard! A star to the storyline.—★

Also, well, I loved this book for it's organization. It's actually the aspect that makes this book literary and shine! So a star to the organization! You'd find yourself trying to choose between the versions of Eva and Jim (Version 3!) that you love. Although you'd be urged not to do this because that version may end up going awry.  All the versions beautifully weaved together and not written separately. Story flowed!—★★

The main characters, Eva and Jim are well-developed! It's one of my fears picking up books written in third-person. That I may not love the characters well enough as I feel it's not a point-of-view that gives room enough to make a character jump off the page. Oh, but Eva and Jim (—to my disappointment... and then relief!) were so very done well! Solely told in their points of views, none of the characters get this privilege (—fantastic as I hate narrators that just can slip into any character's mind)!—★★★

You'd also love the other characters though. From David Katz, the handsome actor who loves himself more than he'd ever love any woman. There's Penelope, Eva's best friend. There's Juliet, Eva's rival. And the many other characters peculiar in all the versions of Eva and Jim's life together or life apart. I found no character stunted and cliched (—again, to my disappointment. What can I say? Some authors have mastered the art of character-plurality in third-person narrative).—★★★

Settings, New York, London, Paris, Los Angeles. All pulled off beautifully.—★★★★

My rating: Four stars! (Only giving it four instead of five because like the organization I wanted the writing to go very Literary and peculiar to the author only)

My review is glowing. And you need to get this book! Possibly before it goes on TV! Yes, TV rights have been bought!

I recommend this book to all lovers of historical fiction with a contemporary touch. If you love ingenuity in storytelling, this book is also for you.

Killer Review: All Things Cease To Appear by Elizabeth Brundage

*Claudia's reviews are tailored for you US fans (with distinct tastes in fiction) for books sold in your territories* 

Purchase|Goodreads 

Blurb: Late one winter afternoon in upstate New York, George Clare comes home to find his wife murdered and their three-year-old daughter alone--for how many hours?--in her room down the hall. He had recently, begrudgingly, taken a position at the private college nearby teaching art history, and moved his family into this tight-knit, impoverished town. And he is the immediate suspect--the question of his guilt echoing in a story shot through with secrets both personal and professional. While his parents rescue him from suspicion, a persistent cop is stymied at every turn in proving Clare a heartless murderer. The pall of death is ongoing, and relentless; behind one crime are others, and more than twenty years will pass before a hard kind of justice is finally served. At once a classic "who-dun-it" that morphs into a "why-and-how-dun-it," this is also a rich and complex portrait of a psychopath and a marriage, and an astute study of the various taints that can scar very different families, and even an entire community.

CLAUDIA'S (@RocksClaudia) REVIEW 

"Are you happy?"
"I don't know." She said, "What's happy?"
"You're asking the wrong person" He said. "I'm no expert on happy"

The book starts with a bang..a gruelling murder of a housewife(Catherine), her suspicious husband(George) and their bubbly three year old daughter(Franny). All this in the prologue. Thus I prepared myself for a nerve wracking thriller.

However the focal point changed in the next chapter and we were introduced to a sweet little boy and his family who lived in the house before George and his wife. This book talks about two very different  families (the Hales and the Clares) who lived in a farmhouse at different points in time and the shocking similar tragedies that befell them. It touches on the ties that bind women in marriages so that they won't leave no matter how abusive it becomes. All Things Cease to Appear takes you on a journey of over two decades into the lives of the psychopathic George and his unhappy wife. And throughout my reading of this book I wondered who killed Catherine. A curiosity propelling me towards the end of this novel.

My Rating: Four-out-of-five stars (4/5)

The only reason I give this book four stars instead of five is the lengthy backstories each character had which in a way disrupted the flow of the story. However for the first time ever it was difficult for me to have a favorite character—I loved them all... well, apart from George who was the textbook description of a psychopath.
So here goes my review with as little 
spoilers as possible.

All Things Cease To Appear is available on Amazon. 

Book Review: The Bucket-List To Mend A Broken Heart by Anna Bell

Purchase|Goodreads 

My Synopsis 

Imagine This: Your boyfriend doesn't think you're the one for him. So he makes you one of his many exes he was on the verge of marrying but didn't.

You want to win him back! You want to do anything to prove to him HE'S the one for YOU. And you're for him.  But going up to his apartment and bawling your eyes out so he takes you back isn't going to solve the problem. 

You need to stop moping. You need to take charge. You also need to complete the ten items on his bucket list to show him you guys are perfect for each other! 

But there's a little big issue: You are afraid of heights, you don't have the thighs for cycling and you don't possibly consider windsurfing something safe for any girl in their sane minds trying to win their ex back!

My Review.

A good storyline. Ever imagined a Bucket-List with items to tick that would help you win your ex back? A star for ingenuity!—★ 

You'd love Abi. Funny. A go-getter in some other departments of her life. Who thinks listening to Shakira would help her acquire Conversational Spanish. It was lovely, and refreshing reading in her point of view. A star to her.—★★

The supporting cast are also a fun bunch. From Abi's best-friend who's such a feminist she can't wrap her head around why Abi is doing this list, really. You'd also love Ben, the guy helping Abi with this list. There's also Gilles a co-worker who's on Abi's camp as a new rival employee, Linz, struts into the picture possibly to take away Abi's job. Other characters you'd love and adore—★★★

This books is Funny. Not LOL all the time. But, there are a few LOL moments and lots of chuckling in between.—★★★★

Don't get me wrong. This book is a fun summer read! But there's something I've noticed about Anna Bell's books, they are not memorable enough for me. I want more 'memorable' from her. Full of twists, surprises, very unusual OMG moments (that you'd have to close the book and get over), lots and lots of LOL-moments. I want to read her chicklit and sit on tenterhooks waiting for her next release. 

My rating: 4/5 stars. 

The Bucket List To Mend A Broken Heart is available on Amazon.  

I recommend this book to anyone who is looking for something light, cheery, fun this summer!

Man Booker Nominees Review: Mend The Living by Maylis De Kerangal

PURCHASE~GOODREADS

Imagine This: Your heart. Beating out of your chest. Slowly being carried into someone else’s body.

All your life, you’ve loved to surf, loved to welcome adrenalin-junkie fun. Except one day you go out to surf with friends to catch a wave. And you never return alive.

Your body. Your parents have to decide if you would have wanted them to loan out your organs to people who’ll be needing them badly when you never talked of this event, because well, you’re a nineteen year old, and who in their right adult minds have even contemplated that possibility?

Meanwhile, somewhere on the other side of the country, someone needs a heart. 

Someone who’s led a risk-free life, who’s not caught a wave before or might not even have seen one needs your heart to live a few more years.

Simon Limbeau’s heart under discussion here.

MY REVIEW

Well, I think if you’ve not read this book go get it because when I start talking lengthily about it I might be showering spittle onto your face as well.

Great book! Amazing storyline! A heart transplant surgery captured so dramatically with excellence you shouldn’t find on an author who’s up to their sophomore novel, but Maylis De Kerangal gets this. A star to the storyline.—★

Literary Fiction at its finest. It’s one of the reasons I love this genre. Every author attacks it with their own style, deviating against norms, creating new trends, setting paces for new writers to follow. Again, Maylis De Kerangal gets this! Her writing is nothing short of beautiful, and shines with literary excellence.—★★

You’ll love the cast of characters in this. Surprisingly, the main character you’ll find, is not a person, but a heart! How genius! So, yes, you’d be awed by the innings and outings of Simon Limbeau’s heart. But of course, you’d find Simon Limbeau a bit of a tragic hero. You’ll love his mother, Marianne and his father Sean, watching them break down is like watching a beautiful flower being disintegrated petal by petal. There’s also Juliette, Simon Limbeau’s girlfriend. There’s Thomas Remige, the doctor who can sing his lungs out and has a thing for goldfinches. You’ll love Cordelia Owl, the nurse who is waiting patiently for her on-and-off ex to contact after a ‘last night’s incident’. There’s also Renol, something off the ICU doctor who takes care of bodies in a coma. Claire, the woman in need of Simon Limbeau’s heart would be much loved too. And the intriguing Harfangs who make up that dynasty with an awesome pedigree in medicine. A star to all these characters. How Maylis captured all their lives beautifully in relation to Simon Limbeau’s heart! So many other characters I can’t mention.—★★★

Suspense. I never thought heart-transplant surgeries could be portrayed to read like some kind of thriller.—★★★★

I feel for Kenragal, I really do. It’s easy to write a well-researched book and have your audience feel you’re rather throwing your knowledge in medicine at them rather than weaving it beautifully into your story. So Kerangal deserves a star for a well-researched novel that bleeds with information that isn’t forced down the throat of the reader.—★★★★★

My rating is definitely a five out of five stars for this long-listed Man Booker International Prize title. Surprised it didn’t win. But grateful it went on that list so I find out how wonderful Maylis De Kerangal writes, and how I can naturally be head of her fan club! Get this title on Amazon

I recommend this book to anyone who wants a title that reads like a thriller but it isn’t a thriller. If you’ve become a literature snob like I have become and can’t stand anything that’s not Literary Fiction and excellent, you’d find this book hard to hate! It’s Heart-Transplant Surgery made enjoyable, what more are you waiting for to get it?

My work not done here. Off to post my review on Goodreads and Amazon.

Book Review: Outstanding by Kathryn Flett

Goodreads| Amazon 

Blurb: Eve Sturridge, a high-flying divorcee and mother of two girls, is head teacher of Ivy House, an Ofsted 'Outstanding' prep school in Sussex. Eve is passionate about her school and its pupils. When Danish power couple, Stefan and Anette Sorenson, jet in and choose Ivy House over other schools, Eve is justifiably proud. The Sorensons are A-listers who bring an aura of style and power to Ivy House. Zoe is Eve's pretty seventeen-year-old daughter. 

Unlike her mother, Zoe's not so keen on school. She prefers sending nude selfies to her boyfriend. When glamorous Stefan Sorenson proposes that Zoe interns at his company and invites her to accompany him to New York, Zoe is over the moon with excitement, while Eve is too focused on her job to smell danger . . . 

 My Review 

 A good storyline! It's a nice read into how sometimes, no matter how tried, mother's have no full control over their children in this digital/millenial age. This book takes you into worlds of UK's educational system through the eyes of a school Head.—★ 

 You'd love Eve! Her point of view is very refreshing and motherly with a tint of sophistication. She's that forty year old who's got it all (beauty and success) without even considering anti-ageing procedures.—★★ 

 But Eve's perfect life may be deceptive when her Flirty, clever teen daughter, Zoe comes into the picture. She's offered her own point of view so you'd like her very much till you have to deal with her attitude and her silly mistakes. Other characters you would take a shine too are Simon, Eve's ex husband recently in a serious relationship with a gay. Stefan and his wife Anette would also be much loved. Gail Prince, Eve's P.A and single mom who has the hots for the head of her son's school! Other brilliant cast of characters present you'd adore.—★★★

 If you're also looking for a title with a heart-warming ending, you'd find this not lacking in said regard.—★★★★ 

My rating: Four out of five stars. 

 This title is available on Amazon.

Mother's Day Review Special: After Birth by Elisa Albert

PURCHASE/GOODREADS

MY SYNOPSIS

Imagine This: You are the mother of a bouncing baby boy. Except you are not all so happy and really thrilled about this motherhood thing because it’s not happening the way they sold it out to be. Because

a)      You had him under a knife.

b)      You are going through the world’s worst Post-partum disorder.

Your husband cannot help because, he has no clue as always. He rather expects you to bounce back and go on living like you didn’t go through any mean feat, like your life could ever be the same with a baby yelling you up awake and screeching before your alarm clock goes.

You are really pissed at the world, the co-op of mothers for not voicing how they really feel and pretending all is roses and soft cheeks. Fuck them all! While at cussing at them, let’s begin to hate TV Commercials, Doctors that speak against breast-feeding the child and opting for formula. Let’s talk about how medical practitioners prescribe unhealthy ‘miracle’ fertility drugs to aid fecundation. Let’s fucking talk about how women are just supposed to pretend all is well, and never fathom any thoughts this could all go wrong. And while at that too, let’s talk about all the fucked up things that have happened in your childhood, your mum who’s moods were unpredictable, all the female friends in your life who’ve been nothing but friends and a lot like females.

Let’s talk about Mina who’s moved a couple of blocks nearby, who’s had a rough past and is as femininely-opinionated as you. Mina you plan to help get around the ropes of this new birth thing. Mina who happens to be strong and made out of the fire she’s experienced throughout her life. Mina who offers some silver-lining in the hostile terrain called motherhood.

There’s also that dissertation you have to write for you doctorate degree in women studies. And the hot carpenter who if your stupid, ancient house doesn’t stop falling apart you might just have to fuck…

Ari’s hellish life summarized for your delight…

MY REVIEW

What a book!

Elisa Alberts has moved into my ranks of authors who do not give a fuck the sensitivity of her topic and isn’t afraid to lay it bare as it is. A beautiful book about giving birth and c-sections, breastfeeding and respecting your body as a pregnant woman, Post-partum depression, and all the other insides about birth you are never, ever told. A star to this amazing storyline.—★

I love the language. It’s literary fiction at its finest. I’ve decided when I begin writing anything (serious) I want to write like Elisa Albert! She doesn’t quite consider the huge barrier separating poetry from prose  (much like how she doesn’t care about laying on her subject matter and her themes easily). She criscrosses between the two to achieve this rhythmic, pulsating composition that astounds and is very highly literary. Yet she infuses a commercial spin to this writing by injecting blasts of humour. What amazing writing!—★★

The main character, Ari, is fucking adorable! She’s smart, she’s feminist, she’s strong, she’s peculiar. She’s well-developed! Her voice is breath-taking. A character to contend with. Her opinions are enlightening and very… controversial! She’s the embodiment of a true feminist, although in this book she states what kind of feminist she is (the smart one who’s not an activist in a group of women that are going to breakdown anyway because you can’t have all such toxicity in one group). A star.—★★★

Other characters I loved are Mina, the ex-drummer of a band that didn’t quite make it who’s been a prostitute, a writer and everything in between. There’s Paul, Ari’s husband who does tolerate her too much. There’s Wil, the hot carpenter who listens and understands our lead. There’s Molly, there’s Jess, there’s a whole cast of all Ari’s old friends who are fascinating because our lead wouldn’t go for the ordinary. There’s Sheryl, our lead’s stepmother who she blanks out most of the time because of her stern Jewish values (“You really have to circumcise this child!”). A star to all these characters.—★★★★

(I FEEL I NEED TO ADD THIS :) I had this book since last year, and I was afraid to dive into it because of the reviews on Goodreads. But come on, which reader who actually loved a book ever had time to go put up their reviews on Goodreads. I’ve come to realize Goodreads is the biggest anti-feminist review-site out there so please if you’d go get a brilliant feminism book like this, don’t you dare be influenced by all that happens on that site. It would be nice to form your own opinions. (If you don’t believe me, see Courting Trouble by Kathy Lette, see Dietland by Sarai Walker, all great books really). I’m really learning, thanks to Elisa Albert, to say fuck you Goodreads, never ever would you influence my choice of reading!

My rating is definitely a five out of five stars.

Elisa Albert’s After Birth is available on Amazon. 

I recommend this book to anybody who wants to think as well as laugh. Anyone who wants something on the subject of feminism. You want something literary? Well, this is high, high form of literary. This book is highly recommended to all (young) mothers and all plain adults. Books like this mould!

My work not done here. Off to post my review on Amazon as well as Goodreads.