Audiobook | Lost in a Good Book

The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton

30 Oct 2017 Leave a comment

by Amy in 2 Stars, Audiobook, Historical Tags: Audiobook, historical fiction, jessie burton, magical realism, two stars

Published: 3rd July 2014 (print)/26th August 2014 (audio)
Publisher: Ecco/HarperAudio
Pages: 416/1 disc
Narrator: Jessie Burton
Format: Audiobook
Genre: Historical Fiction/ Magical Realism
★ ★ – 2 Stars

On a brisk autumn day in 1686, eighteen-year-old Nella Oortman arrives in Amsterdam to begin a new life as the wife of illustrious merchant trader Johannes Brandt. But her new home, while splendorous, is not welcoming. Johannes is kind yet distant, always locked in his study or at his warehouse office–leaving Nella alone with his sister, the sharp-tongued and forbidding Marin.

But Nella’s life changes when Johannes presents her with an extraordinary wedding gift: a cabinet-sized replica of their home. To furnish her gift, Nella engages the services of a miniaturist–an elusive and enigmatic artist whose tiny creations mirror their real-life counterparts in eerie and unexpected ways…

Johannes’s gift helps Nella pierce the closed world of the Brandt household. But as she uncovers its unusual secrets, she begins to understand–and fear–the escalating dangers that await them all. In this repressively pious society where gold is worshipped second only to God, to be different is a threat to the moral fabric of society, and not even a man as rich as Johannes is safe. Only one person seems to see the fate that awaits them. Is the miniaturist the key to their salvation…or the architect of their destruction?

I’ve given it two stars, but by the end of it I wanted to give it 1.5. I was told this was a brilliant read, I did not find this. I persevered and hoped for something to come of it. And not only did I get no real answers, the ending was unsatisfactory and I feel a bit cheated. I don’t know whether this has to do with the magical realism side of the story, but I wasn’t a fan.

The beginning started out ok, after a prologue from an unknown voice we’re introduced to Nella and her arrival at her new life. We’re thrust into Amsterdam in the 1600s and all its glory. Burton makes it easy to understand while still having the gravitas it needed and the seriousness to understand Nella’s predicament, and her style of writing feels like it suits the era and is easy to comprehend.

I settled into the story and got used to Nella and the other characters. I was intrigued, I was curious. It does start to go a bit stale and as part two hit I was weary but something finally seemed to be happening. This didn’t last though and the story dragged on. I think Burton tried to include too much. There’s the historical story happening with sugar, plus a lot of religious elements and political components. On top of that is Nella’s place and the mystery of the miniaturist. It makes for a heavy story and one that takes a lot of pages to tell.

Some parts were predictable and it was a case of waiting for the book to catch up with what you already suspected. Other times it felt like every second chapter had a typical twist of some kind and it got to the point it was just “Oh, another twist, sure, why not’. I will give Burton some credit, she actually followed through on a few things I thought she wouldn’t, that impressed me. But in doing that she also added to the unsatisfactory feeling and the sense that while some things appeared to be resolved, nothing felt like it was. We’re left hanging, not even with a sense that we understand how things would keep going, an abrupt finish that doesn’t answer anything.

I found that I wanted to get to the end without reading the middle. I figured I could ignore this middle part and just see what happens and get the answers to the big questions that Burton keeps raising. I wanted to get to the end to find out what the whole point of it was and found nothing but disappointment. It was anticlimactic after the [supposed] build up and it felt flat.

I’d been looking forward to reading this for months and had it praised and recommended to me by a few people so I was eager to see what it was like. Not to mention the beautiful cover. To come out the other end with meagre enthusiasm is a sorry state to be in.

You can purchase The Miniaturist via the following

QBD | Booktopia

Amazon | Wordery

Book Depository | Dymocks

Forever in Blue: The Fourth Summer of the Sisterhood by Ann Brashares

18 Oct 2017 Leave a comment

by Amy in 3 Stars, Audiobook, Young Adult Tags: ann brashares, Audiobook, sisterhood of the travelling pants, three stars, young adult

Published: 9th January 2007 (print)/2008 (audio)
Publisher: Delacorte Press/Bolinda audiobooks
Pages: 384 pages/7 discs
Narrator: Angela Goethals
Format: Audiobook
Genre: Young Adult
★ ★ ★ – 3 Stars

With unravelled embroidery and fraying hems, the Traveling Pants are back for one last, glorious summer.
Lena: Immerses herself in her painting and an intoxicating summer fling, fearing that the moment she forgets about Kostos will be the moment she sees him again.
Carmen: Falls under the spell of a sophisticated college friend for whom a theatrical role means everything and the heritage of the Pants means nothing.
Bridget: Joins a dig for an ancient city on the coast of Turkey and discovers that her archaeology professor is available in every way except one.
Tibby: Leaves behind someone she loves, wrongly believing he will stay where she has left him.
It’s a summer that will forever change the lives of Lena, Carmen, Bee, and Tibby, here and now, past and future, together and apart.

The first year of university for the girls and with it comes all sorts of drama and life lessons. Brashares did a good job bringing us into this world of separated friends who are trying to find their place in the big wide world and still struggling to hold onto their former lives. The distance of college and being forced to grow up and be independent challenges the girls and makes them assess who they are and what they want from life.

And, again, Pants that still fit and don’t smell and apparently still look wearable after having pond water, dirt, sweat, and who knows what else on them make the rounds. At least this time doesn’t seem to be focused as much on the Pants. They make their appearance and are shown to be worn a few times, but they mainly just sit nearby, so much so I had moments forgetting they were even in the story until they were mentioned. They have definitely become more of a symbol than requiring any real wear from them.

After seeing some improvement in Bee after the first two summers, her storyline is strange and annoying. I’ve figured out I’m just not going to like her character. I will accept her for who she is and just not like her that much. Why Brashares needs Bee to have these older guy relationships, 15 and 19, now 19 and 30. Can’t she stop falling for older guys who are now not only married but also her teacher? The fact she’s even on a dig in Turkey is a complete surprise, has she been harbouring this archaeological love for three books without us knowing? This plotline came from out of the blue as far as I know. Full credit to her though, she treats her family storyline with care and brings to light the struggle she has had over the years.

One thing Brashares doesn’t seem to have realised that book four means the girls are practically 20, and while they do 20 year old things, they still act like they’re children at times. Her language is telling us these adult things are happening, but the petulance and childishness still remain from her characters.

Having said that, some of the girls are better than others. Carmen, who also has picked up a theatre hobby from nowhere, was much less spoilt than before. I actually sympathised with her a lot in this, Brashares develops her like a proper person and makes us understand her emotional neglect and absence from her friends. Lena also is a bit more focused and adult, she is being the 19 year old she is meant to be, working out who she is and what she wants in her life.

I will admit, while I have been a fan of Tibby’s for the series, I think Brashares drew out her storyline for a lot more drama and length than needed. I liked the drama, but I disliked the overdramatic reactions. Though four books deep into this I really so think it’s the writing that keeps bugging me. I think Brashares just needed to tell the same story better and it wouldn’t feel as melodramatic and sickly sweet and charming sometimes. She writes really well sometimes and then other times it just doesn’t work.

Where Brashares shines is in the final chapters. The summation of this story and these girls’ journey is the best part. It is about friendship, about memories, about love and good times. I remembered why I enjoyed reading these stories in the beginning; it highlights the growth of the friendship over the years and gives you a sense of satisfaction as it ends. It remains the sweet and charming book it’s always been, but Brashares ends the fourth book with respect and a promise for the girls’ futures.

You can purchase Forever in Blue via the following

Dymocks | Book Depository

Booktopia | Fishpond

BookWorld | Amazon Aust

The Second Summer of the Sisterhood by Ann Brashares

02 Oct 2017 Leave a comment

by Amy in 3 Stars, Audiobook, Young Adult Tags: ann brashares, Audiobook, sisterhood of the travelling pants, three stars, young adult

Published: December 2004 (print)/14th May 2010 (audio)
Publisher: Delacorte Books/Bolinda audiobooks
Pages: 373 pages/1 disc
Narrator: Angela Goethals
Format: Audiobook
Genre: Young Adult
★ ★ ★ – 3 Stars

With a bit of last summer’s sand in the pockets, the Traveling Pants and the Sisterhood that wears them embark on their 16th summer.
Bridget: Impulsively sets off for Alabama, wanting to both confront her demons about her family and avoid them all at once.
Lena: Spends a blissful week with Kostos, making the unexplainable silence that follows his visit even more painful.
Carmen: Is concerned that her mother is making a fool of herself over a man. When she discovers that her mother borrowed the Pants to wear on a date, she’s certain of it.
Tibby: Not about to spend another summer working at Wallman’s, she takes a film course only to find it’s what happens off-camera that teaches her the most.

The second summer, the second adventure of the girls and their magic pants. The jeans are out doing their thing and the girls are having adventures. This time around they aren’t as separated, Bridgette does go to Alabama, but the other three stay close by for most of the summer. Now that the Pants have been established, this book was more a continuation of their own journeys, not so much about keeping them together and close. They do all have their own problems in their lives so the Pants do act as a connection, and each girl still uses its magic for guidance.

I liked this one a little bit better than the first one. Bridgette still annoyed me at times, but she seems to have subdued and maybe growing up emotionally. She finds peace of sorts away from her suffocatingly absent family and goes on an emotional discovery which I think she needed.

Carmen is an absolute brat in this book. I can see Brashares was going for the only child/single mum whole world combo and I get it, but my goodness she was intolerable. When her world is disrupted and she is put out in the smallest way she overreacts. I feel like Carmen was meant to have learnt from the events in book one, but she hasn’t seemed to learnt anything. She mistreats people and sabotages things and for someone meant to be almost 17 it was a bit ridiculous.

The other girls had minor improvements. Tibby tries to continue her film career and seems to gain some understanding of herself and her family. Lena too has some hard lessons to face. I feel Brashares cheated with some of Lena’s story, it fell into predictability. Actually, a lot of the book felt predictable. That’s why I was surprised that Bee’s storyline was actually probably the better of the three.

It was a good story, it wasn’t amazing, it was just four little adventures that kind of overlapped at times. The format is there, the jeans, the letters, the drama. As I say, some ridiculous moments and silly things, but I’ve come to expect that from these books.

You can purchase The Second Summer of the Sisterhood via the following

Book Depository | Dymocks

Publisher | Wordery

Booktopia | Amazon Aust

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel or These Foolish Things by Deborah Moggach

25 Aug 2017 2 Comments

by Amy in 2 Stars, Bookish Bites, Fiction Tags: Audiobook, Bookish Bites, contemporary fiction, deborah moggach, india, movie, two stars

Published: 15th April 2005 (print)/ 1st April 2013 (audio)
Publisher: Vintage/Clipper audiobooks
Pages: 288 pages/1 disc
Narrator: Nina Wadia
Format: Audiobook
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
★ ★ – 2 Stars

When Ravi Kapoor, an overworked London doctor, reaches the breaking point with his difficult father-in-law, he asks his wife: “Can’t we just send him away somewhere? Somewhere far, far away.” His prayer is seemingly answered when Ravi’s entrepreneurial cousin sets up a retirement home in India, hoping to re-create in Bangalore an elegant lost corner of England. Several retirees are enticed by the promise of indulgent living at a bargain price, but upon arriving, they are dismayed to find that restoration of the once sophisiticated hotel has stalled, and that such amenities as water and electricity are . . . infrequent. But what their new life lacks in luxury, they come to find, it’s plentiful in adventure, stunning beauty, and unexpected love.

I think the best summation of this book is ‘eh’. I didn’t hate it, I didn’t love it. I’m not even 100% I liked it. I felt like it had the potential to be so much better. I think I liked 1 maybe 2 characters, the rest I felt I could have if they hadn’t’ve been so…themselves. The writing is at times cringeworthy, the characters are certainly racist and sexist, whether or not this is just their character “charm” as it is sometimes portrayed, but it’s gross to listen to. And India is turned into some mystical place that is romanticised by these white British while subsequently criticised by them on the next page.

The book’s title has been changed to coincide with the movie, it was originally These Foolish Things, but I think most physical books are retitled now too. Very rarely is this the case, but I have to say, the movie is so much better. Just watch that. This isn’t even really like it at all, it’s not overly enjoyable, there’s more parts that are offensive in some way or another, and there isn’t a grand plot to keep you interested. I listened to the audiobook and to her credit, the narrator was quite good, she used distinctive voices and emphasis as she told the story, and she brought to life each character’s individuality. It was just a shame that that what she brought to life wasn’t very enjoyable.

You can purchase The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel via the following

Book Depository | Dymocks

Amazon | Amazon Au

Booktopia | Wordery | Barnes & Noble

The Natural Way of Things by Charlotte Wood

22 Aug 2017 Leave a comment

by Amy in 1 Star, Audiobook, Australian Women Writers, Fiction Tags: #aww17, Audiobook, australian women writers challenge, aww 2017, charlotte wood

Published: 1st October 2015 (print)/2nd June 2016 (audio)
Publisher: Allen & Unwin/Wavesound Audio
Pages: 320/1 disc – 7hrs (MP3)
Narrator: Ailsa Piper
Format: Audiobook
Genre: Fiction
★ – 1 Star

The Natural Way of Things is at once lucid and illusory, a brilliantly plotted novel of ideas that reminds us of mankind’s own vast contradictions—the capacity for savagery, selfishness, resilience, and redemption all contained by a single, vulnerable body.

Drugged, dressed in old-fashioned rags, and fiending for a cigarette, Yolanda wakes up in a barren room. Verla, a young woman who seems vaguely familiar, sits nearby. Down a hallway echoing loudly with the voices of mysterious men, in a stark compound deep in the Australian outback, other captive women are just coming to. Starved, sedated, the girls can’t be sure of anything—except the painful episodes in their pasts that link them.

Drawing strength from the animal instincts they’re forced to rely on, the women go from hunted to hunters, along the way becoming unforgettable and boldly original literary heroines that readers will both relate to and root for.

Potential spoilers ahead.

I am learning the hard way that acclaimed and well awarded books are often the least enjoyable. People raved about this and it won The Stella Prize and so I finally got hold of a copy and read it. Well, I listened to the audiobook which I think actually made it worse.

It starts off with mystery which is fair enough, but Wood builds it up like there is going to be an answer. I was curious about how these girls had gotten into this situation, who it was that had placed them in the middle of nowhere and for what purpose. What happened was I put up with so much boring nothingness, and instead read an extreme version of big brother where no one gets voted off but instead sit around in their glib new life doing nothing whatsoever and do it with no food.

There are many girls who have been taken but the story is mainly told by two women, both who have different reactions to their circumstances, one becomes stronger and wants to fight back, the other becomes more animalistic as time goes on. There is a little mentioned about the other girls, as well as the “guards”, but none of these characters are that remarkable, it’s a bit unbelievable they even were there running the place in the first place. I kept going through the non-events and the general dull day to day nothing that was probably meant to show just how terrible these girls’ lives had been reduced to, but after a few chapters of it I was over it. I needed something to happen, something more interesting than illness and the ongoing mental reclusiveness of the characters.

I get that it is meant to be profound, and not having answers is ok. We don’t need everything wrapped up in a neat bow. Normally I don’t need answers, and I’m happy to have a bit of mystery or whatever, I think the reason I wanted it this time is because I disliked this book so early on I kept going in the hope I could at least get some answer for why I had to sit through such a boring and, frankly, gross book. A fair warning it is a bit graphic. Wood doesn’t hold back in her descriptions of trapping/cooking rabbits, again, in context I get, and for the emotional and mental state of characters it does fit. But I will say listening to it as an audio was very hard. There’s also some graphic detail about what people do and look like in terms of injuries etc just in case that isn’t your cup of tea.

It was a pain to keep going but I did and not only did it not get better, I feel cheated. In hindsight, I respect the absence of answers. I think not having answers gives it some power that these things could happen, but the fact we’re given almost no reason why any of it is happen irks me. I needed the answers as a reward for putting up with such a boring book.

You can purchase The Natural Way of Things via the following