ishari's bookshelf
  • home.
  • review archive.
  • rating system.
  • about.
  • contact me.

ishari's bookshelf

The Lying Game by Ruth Ware

2/12/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture
From the instant New York Times bestselling author of blockbuster thrillers In a Dark, Dark Wood and The Woman in Cabin 10 comes Ruth Ware’s chilling new novel.

On a cool June morning, a woman is walking her dog in the idyllic coastal village of Salten along a tidal estuary known as the Reach. Before she can stop him, the dog charges into the water to retrieve what first appears to be a wayward stick, but to her horror, turns out to be something much more sinister...

The next morning, three women in and around London—Fatima, Thea, and Isabel—receive the text they had always hoped would NEVER come, from the fourth in their formerly inseparable clique, Kate, that says only, “I need you.”

The four girls were best friends at Salten, a second rate boarding school set near the cliffs of the English Channel. Each different in their own way, the four became inseparable and were notorious for playing the Lying Game, telling lies at every turn to both fellow boarders and faculty, with varying states of serious and flippant nature that were disturbing enough to ensure that everyone steered clear of them. The myriad and complicated rules of the game are strict: no lying to each other—ever. Bail on the lie when it becomes clear it is about to be found out. But their little game had consequences, and the girls were all expelled in their final year of school under mysterious circumstances surrounding the death of the school’s eccentric art teacher, Ambrose (who also happens to be Kate’s father).
I don't read much in the mystery/thriller genre...but I do enjoy Ruth Ware's novels.  The Woman in Cabin 10 was one of my favorite reads of 2016 so I naturally moved on to the other books in her repertoire.  The Lying Game is her latest release and it doesn't disappoint.  

Imogen Church is the actor of choice to perform Ware's work in audiobooks and she did a solid job on this one.  The story was engaging and mysterious and, for the most part, kept me guessing.  I did find some of the characters to be a bit annoying or not developed enough to my liking.  I understand, though, that in the interest of a suspenseful plot a character may not be developed fully in order to make them more "mysterious".  That said, one of my biggest issues with the mystery/thriller genre is that I always wonder how much of the story would be a non-issue if the characters just communicated with each other.  The Lying Game is no different.  I found myself growing frustrated with some of their characters for their absolute refusal to communicate with those they loved.  

It would be too easy to spoil the plot if I discussed the story any further so to make a long story short -- this was an entertaining read that scratched the mystery/thriller itch.  

Rating:

Picture
0 Comments

The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski

2/9/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture
Goodreads Blurb:

Geralt de Rivia is a witcher. A cunning sorcerer. A merciless assassin. And a cold-blooded killer. His sole purpose: to destroy the monsters that plague the world. But not everything monstrous-looking is evil and not everything fair is good...and in every fairy tale there is a grain of truth.


A collection of short stories introducing de Rivia, to be followed by the first novel in the actual series, The Blood of Elves. Note that, while The Last Wish was published after The Sword of Destiny, the stories contained in The Last Wish take place first chronologically, and many of the individual stories were published before The Sword of Destiny.
The witcher books are ones I've seen on my bookstore's shelves for a while now -- their distinctive red spines grouped together make them easy to spot.  I've always passed by them because I often don't read spin-off books from tv shows or video games -- I prefer to watch/play the originating media rather than read the spin offs.

But then I learned --- the books came before the witcher games?!

So, yeah.  I'm late to that party.  I picked up the first one a week or two ago and was surprised to find that The Last Wish was a collection of short stories rather than a cohesive novel.  It's no secret that I don't much care for short fiction...but I had already purchased it.  Plus, if I was going to dive into the witcher world, I was going to do it in chronological reading order.  So...I read it.

And loved it!  Granted, my opinion of short fiction remains the same -- not a big fan.  And it did take me longer to read The Last Wish than a typical fantasy novel of that size.  Sapkowski provides the reader tantalizing glimpses into Geralt's world and gives you just enough character development to string you along from story to story.  

So...that said, I've already purchased the next book -- Sword of Destiny -- which is also a collection of short stories...and the first three novels.  The Last Wish was a fascinating blend of original fantasy with fairy tale retellings at the very core.  It was fantastic.  I can't wait to dive back in to Geralt of Rivia's world!

Picture
0 Comments

Silence Fallen by Patricia Briggs

2/7/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture
Goodreads Blurb:

Attacked and abducted in her home territory, Mercy finds herself in the clutches of the most powerful vampire in the world, taken as a weapon to use against alpha werewolf Adam and the ruler of the Tri-Cities vampires. In coyote form, Mercy escapes only to find herself without money, without clothing, and alone in the heart of Europe...


Unable to contact Adam and the rest of the pack, Mercy has allies to find and enemies to fight, and she needs to figure out which is which. Ancient powers stir, and Mercy must be her agile best to avoid causing a war between vampires and werewolves, and between werewolves and werewolves. And in the heart of the ancient city of Prague, old ghosts rise...
The Mercy Thompson books are on my "auto buy" list. I've stuck with this series for a long time (I mean, Silence Fallen is book #10 of this series and it's still going strong) and don't plan on quitting any time soon.  I went out and bought this one when it was released in March of last year...and yet I only JUST finished it.  And, to add insult to injury, I listened to the audiobook from my library rather than read the hardcover I purchased almost a year ago.  Whoops.

So why the delay?  Well, to be fair, I did try to read my hardback copy when it first came out.  I was surprised to find that Silence Fallen is written from both Mercy's and Adam's POVs.  I don't much care for alternating chapters of different POVs...so that coupled with the fact that I probably wasn't in the mood for an urban fantasy made me put this one down last year.

Cue 2018 and the husband and I are getting ready to move house to a couple of states away and I don't really want to move books I don't plan on keeping.  Yet, rather than pick up my hardback, I decided to listen to it.  As an audiobook it was ok -- two voice actors read the story which was a nice way of differentiating between Mercy and Adam.  I managed to finish it this time via the audiobook so I guess it was good for that purpose (even if I found it hard to listen to voices interpret the stories I've voiced on my own for years).

I was really wavering on what to rate Silence Fallen.  The two POVs threw me off because Briggs hasn't used that device (that I can remember) in any of the earlier books.  Also, the timeline is not linear either so it was a bit confusing keeping Mercy's timeline location and Adam's timeline location straight in my head.  Add to that a ton of backstabbing and a variety of characters and Silence Fallen just seemed too busy.  Based on the story alone I'd probably lean more towards a 3.0 or a 3.5 star rating for this installment of the Mercy Thompson books.  The fact that it's characters I love (more Stefan, though, please) and a world that I love bumps it up to a 4.0 rating.

Rating:

Picture
0 Comments

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

2/5/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture
Goodreads Blurb:

Offred is a Handmaid in the Republic of Gilead. She may leave the home of the Commander and his wife once a day to walk to food markets whose signs are now pictures instead of words because women are no longer allowed to read. She must lie on her back once a month and pray that the Commander makes her pregnant, because in an age of declining births, Offred and the other Handmaids are valued only if their ovaries are viable. Offred can remember the years before, when she lived and made love with her husband, Luke; when she played with and protected her daughter; when she had a job, money of her own, and access to knowledge. But all of that is gone now...
 
Disclaimer: I read this solely because I wanted to watch the Hulu series.

I'm conflicted about The Handmaid's Tale... Was it interesting? Yes, very.  Was it horrifying?  Yes, extremely.  Did I enjoy it?  No, not really.  Is it an important book?  Yes.

A lot has been said about this book in the past year due to certain political events.  The modern resurgence aside, this book presents an eerie look into the "what if?" of a theocratic government that completely reverses women's rights and strives to put women in their place - as a wife or as a womb or as a servant.  Any woman not fitting within one of those roles is classified as an "unwoman" and sent into exile to die while cleaning nuclear waste. 

I listened to the audiobook version of this narrated by Clare Danes - she was fantastic.   

Rating:

Picture
0 Comments

Binti by Nnedi Okorafor

2/2/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture
Goodreads Blurb:

Her name is Binti, and she is the first of the Himba people ever to be offered a place at Oomza University, the finest institution of higher learning in the galaxy. But to accept the offer will mean giving up her place in her family to travel between the stars among strangers who do not share her ways or respect her customs.


Knowledge comes at a cost, one that Binti is willing to pay, but her journey will not be easy. The world she seeks to enter has long warred with the Meduse, an alien race that has become the stuff of nightmares. Oomza University has wronged the Meduse, and Binti's stellar travel will bring her within their deadly reach.

If Binti hopes to survive the legacy of a war not of her making, she will need both the gifts of her people and the wisdom enshrined within the University, itself - but first she has to make it there, alive.
I was conflicted about Binti.  Let me preface this by saying that I am not a fan of short fiction (But wait - am I currently reading The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapowski which is just a collection of short stories? Yes, yes I am.  BUT the difference between the first Witcher book and Binti is that the stories in The Last Wish do not truly stand alone - they fit in a larger universe which does have full length novels in them.  Ok, so it doesn't make sense...).  

BUT, as short fiction goes, I kind of enjoyed Binti.  I LOVED that the Himba people are represented through Binti and the cover image is just absolutely gorgeous.  The story itself was pretty interesting and there were a few parts that truly took me by surprise.  That said, I didn't really feel like it fit well into the science fiction realm -- as far as science fiction goes I actually thought it was kind of weak.  I wanted more science...more explanation. I understand with short fiction one only has a small window in which to do the world building...but when I think of "science fiction" I think of something a bit more explanatory as far as the science and world building goes.

What knocked this down from a four-star read to a three-star read was one major point -- the lack of consequences.  I don't want to post any spoilers, but the short of it is (and stop reading here if you don't want any spoilers) that the Meduse commit an atrocity on board Binti's ship and they suffer literally zero consequences for that atrocity.  The people on the receiving planet see what the Meduse have done and nothing is said about it.  The level of the atrocity committed would have (should have) warranted some kind of consequence but...nope.

An enjoyable read...but I am not sure if I'll continue on with the short stories which follow it.

Rating:

Picture
0 Comments
    Subscribe in a reader
    Follow on Bloglovin

    Currently Reading:
    (Updated 2/13/19)

    Here's what's currently on my TBR list:

    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture

    Professional Reader 80%
    Picture

    What I've Read Lately

    The Winner's Curse
    McClairen's Isle: The Passionate One
    Flashfall
    A Promise of Fire
    The Serpent King
    Warcross
    Diana: Her True Story in Her Own Words
    Tell No One
    The White Queen
    The Shocking Secret of a Guest at the Wedding
    The Lady of the Rivers
    Sleeping Giants
    Because of Miss Bridgerton
    The Warded Man
    The Forbidden Wish
    Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI
    Roar
    Dusk or Dark or Dawn or Day
    The Final Empire
    The Road to Jonestown: Jim Jones and Peoples Temple


    Sharon's favorite books »

    Archives

    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    October 2015
    October 2014
    September 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013


    Categories

    All
    Arc Copy
    Audiobook
    Cotton Candy
    Didn't Finish
    Dystopian
    Ebook
    Fantasy
    Graphic Novel
    Historical Fiction
    History
    Memoir
    My Own Musings
    Newbie
    Nonfiction
    Paranormal
    Religious Fiction
    Romantical
    Scifi
    Shifter
    Short Story
    TBT
    Time Travel
    Vampires
    Young Adult


Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
  • home.
  • review archive.
  • rating system.
  • about.
  • contact me.