Before I Go to Sleep by S. J. Watson

20 Mar 2017 Leave a comment

by Amy in 5 Stars, Thriller Tags: , ,

Published: 14th June 2011 Goodreads badge
Publisher: Harper Collins
Pages: 359
Format: Hardcover
Genre: Thriller
★   ★   ★   ★   ★  – 5 Stars

As I sleep, my mind will erase everything I did today. I will wake up tomorrow as I did this morning. Thinking I’m still a child, thinking I have a whole lifetime of choice ahead of me… 

Memories define us. So what if you lost yours every time you went to sleep? Your name, your identity, your past, even the people you love–all forgotten overnight. And the one person you trust may only be telling you half the story. 

Welcome to Christine’s life. 

I have wanted to read this for years and I’m so glad I finally picked it up. THIS BOOK IS AMAZING! Again, I have seen it compared to 50 First Dates (like all memory books are these days it seems), but it is much better than that and totally not even the same thing.

Christine’s memory resets every morning and she reverts back to thinking she is in her twenties. It’s a phenomenal read seeing how she adjusts and copes with this realisation every morning. Her husband’s patience, their coping mechanisms are all wonderful.

The routine Christine and her husband had is changed when she starts to see a doctor without her husband knowing. Christine starts keeping a diary which she reads each day, but she still only knows what she is told every morning and what she’s learnt from herself the day before. The emotions you experience are similar to Christine’s – can you trust the doctor? Is the husband keeping secrets? Who is telling the truth? It’s an intense and incredible reading experience.

There were so many little things I loved about this book. I loved that Christine was middle aged and not younger. I loved that she is able to do what she does even when she has no idea about what she has done in the past. I love that Watson lulls me into a false security and then shatters my expectations. I love that when you think you know what is happening you could not be more wrong. I also love the structure of the novel. The before, the after, the fact we get to see her daily diary and it becomes part of the story.

Having a character who needs to be reintroduced to herself each morning has to possibility of being repetitive, but Watson never makes the repetition annoying or ironically, too repetitive. The exploration of Christine’s day to day life, her discoveries, and her conversations with her husband are approached slightly differently each day. And as Christine knows more, is shapes her conversations. And her mind focuses on different things each day.
The underlying mystery of Christine’s memory loss is always there and as it grows and takes hold your own suspense and tension and excitement builds. But without ruining anything, Watson plays with you remarkably well with this. There are twists upon surprises with secrets and things unsaid. It’s a roller coaster ride and when you think you know what is about the happen, something even better happens instead.

I implore that if you love thrillers, and love to be surprised and enthralled, that you should read this book.  And, I will say, that there is a film adaptation of this and it is actually very close to the book so if you were uncertain about checking it out, you totally should. But of course, the book is a more fulfilling experience on all fronts and you should read it first.

You can purchase Before I Go to Sleep via the following

Booktopia | Dymocks | Angus & Robertson Bookworld

Book Depository | Fishpond | QBD | Wordery

 

The Golden Child by Wendy James

05 Mar 2017 Leave a comment

by Amy in 5 Stars, Australian Women Writers, Thriller Tags: , , , , ,

Published: 1st February 2017Goodreads badge
Publisher: Harper Collins
Pages: 352
Format: Paperback
Genre: Thriller
★   ★   ★   ★   ★  – 5 Stars

Blogger Lizzy’s life is buzzing, happy, normal. Two gorgeous children, a handsome husband, destiny under control. For her real-life alter-ego Beth, things are unravelling. Tensions are simmering with her husband, mother-in-law and even her own mother. Her teenage daughters, once the objects of her existence, have moved beyond her grasp and one of them has shown signs of, well, thoughtlessness …

Then a classmate of one daughter is callously bullied and the finger of blame is pointed at Beth’s clever, beautiful child. Shattered, shamed and frightened, two families must negotiate worlds of cruelty they are totally ill-equipped for.
This is a novel that grapples with modern-day spectres of selfies, selfishness and cyberbullying. It plays with our fears of parenting, social media and Queen Bees, and it asks the question: just how well do you know your child?

From the very early pages I was hooked on this story, so much so I sat down in the morning to read it and was finished by the afternoon. I was enamoured by James’ ability to write such a seemingly ordinary story while still giving off the unsettling feeling that everything isn’t as it should be. That unsettling hidden something that makes you wonder about motives and who is telling the whole truth and who are we supposed to believe. Especially when you can’t find a reason for these feelings right away.

James’ storytelling ability is amazing. The level of tension and suspense it balanced wonderfully by the mystery of what is happening alongside the everyday. I am of course not going to mention anything about the plot. This is the kind of book you need to experience for yourself and have everything revealed to you as it’s intended.

I will say that on top of James’ excellent writing, the characters are really what make this story shine. The different and often clashing personalities mix together to create the perfect storm and propel this story into its brilliance.

There are so many things to praise and so much to digest as you read. You’re enthralled by these characters and their lives, and James’ uses emotions, motherhood, love, and friendship to bring this to life. Despite the constant feeling of unease I had while reading it, it remains a chilling and fantastic story.

One thing I loved was the clear differences between Beth and alter ego Lizzy. Beth deals with the real life of everyday; she has a family who have needs of their own and life decisions and adjustments to make. But what makes Lizzy such a great contrast is that there are elements of those same problems in her blog posts, but on such a different tone and level. Lizzy lets her vague words tell a story to her readers, she doesn’t give specifics and her commentary can be interpreted in multiple ways.

I thought James did a wonderful job with the blogging side of the novel. She captures the voice well and it reads quite realistically. I also loved that the comments were included too because not only are they another reflection on what commenting on blogs is often like, but they also help show the comparisons between Beth and Lizzy’s lives.

If you haven’t read anything of James’ before then this is a perfect time to start. It is the kind of book that is not only on topic in terms of issues with social media, but should be read by parents, teens, grandparents; everybody can get something out of this novel. You will be turning the pages none stop and will remember a story like this long after you’ve read that final page.

You can purchase The Golden Child via the following

Publisher | Booktopia

Kobo | Dymocks

 QBD | Angus & Robertson’s Bookworld

aww2017-badge

The Exclusion Wars by Sheila Agnew

28 Jul 2016 Leave a comment

by Amy in 4 Stars, Thriller, Young Adult Tags: , , , ,

Published: 21st December 2015 Goodreads badge
Publisher: Oxiana Road Publishing
Pages: 204
Format: ebook
Genre: Young Adult/ Thriller
★   ★   ★   ★  – 4 Stars

A thriller set in 2025, in which teenager, Mateo Rivera, is in hiding as “Matt” in New York City where he must avoid capture by Mr. Rienham, the new chief of the Deportation of Latinos Agency, hand-picked for the job by President Trent himself. 

But Matt isn’t alone; he’s got the Underground, an organisation which advocates peaceful resistance. He’s been trained by the mysterious Underground leader, Polaris; harboured by reluctant shepherd and drop-out lawyer, Steve; and he has the not always helpful but well-intentioned support of his best friend, fifteen year-old, wannabe Navy Seal, Danni Singh. 

Rienham, the DLA and its roving pack of DepoDogs aren’t Matt’s only problems. There’s a new enemy on the horizon, and it calls itself The Latino Alliance. 

Note: I was provided with a copy of this book by the author for review.

I really liked this book; it is every bit the thriller it claims to be while still balancing the storyline, drama, emotion, and all the other wonderful elements as well. With the Latinos being sent into exile or worse, those who haven’t fled are in hiding, and those who can pass are constantly worrying about being found out.

It’s a fascinating story with a wonderful insight into what fear and hatred can do to a country if the right voice is convincing enough. It also shows how laws and views of the few can shape the opinions of the many, influencing them in how they see others. What’s great about Agnew’s writing is that this can all be read into it, it doesn’t come across on the page as a blatant message about acceptance and about prejudice, Agnew uses the writing to subtly say things through the story rather than shoving it down our throats.

Agnew has created a story that is slightly prophetic in a way, because Agnew based Trent on a Trump like figure but wrote it years before Trump decided to run which makes it even eerier. It depicts a future that, honestly, is on the closer side to believable than not, the explanations are there about how this came about, gradually, and with the right set of circumstances, snowballing before it could be stopped, all really quite plausible. The dictator style of Trent and the control he and his lackeys have created bring this future to life with detail and well roundedness that makes it real.

The characters are fantastic and definitely a highlight of the story. They are all so unique, fully fledged, each with a passion of their own and not just there to play a role around Matt’s story.  Matt is a great kid and an excellent narrator. He tells his story well and Agnew uses his voice and conversations to inform the reader without needing to include large amounts of back story. Matt never forgets where he’s come from or who he is, but he is smart enough to keep the thoughts to himself, and always remember his training. He is adult in some ways, having to keep secrets about his heritage, knowing delicate information and constantly having to check his behaviour and actions so as not to get caught, but at the same time he is also very much the 14-year-old as well. He has an attitude, he has crushes on girls, he has friends to hang out with and get in trouble with, and he misses his mum immensely.

There is a continual sense of thrill and suspense, but all for different reasons. It’s the suspense of Matt thinking he’s about to be found out at school, the anticipation about whether someone knows his secret, tension when he is trapped and unable to send for help, the constant feeling you’ve developed that something is about to go wrong at any given moment. Agnew definitely makes you become involved with the varying levels of thrill and suspense she’s created and when there’s actual drama and action is brings it to a whole other level entirely.

You can’t ignore the similarities to the current situation in America when reading this story, but it is a fascinating read and doesn’t read like a response to current events, it remains in the futuristic realm, even if it is barely ten years in the future. Agnew begins and concludes this story wonderfully and it’s the right balances of everything in the middle. I would definitely love to read a second book so I can keep reading about these characters and this strange yet familiar world they live in.

You can purchase The Exclusion Wars via the following

Amazon

Amazon Aust

A Plum Job by Cenarth Fox

10 Mar 2016 Leave a comment

by Amy in 4 Stars, Historical, Thriller Tags: , , , , ,

Published: 4th August 2015Goodreads badge
Publisher: Fox Plays
Pages: 249
Format: ebook
Genre: Historical Thriller
★   ★   ★   ★  – 4 Stars

It’s 1940. Germany’s military might is smashing through the Low Countries and the British, Belgian and French forces are trapped at Dunkirk. The Nazis will soon be in Gay Paree. 

Louise Wellesley is a gorgeous and aristocratic young Englishwoman desperate to become an actress. But her upbringing demands that young women of her class go to finishing school, the Buckingham Palace debutante ball and then remain at home until the right chap comes along. Such young ladies most definitely do not cavort semi-naked upon the wicked stage. 

But war brings change. People tell lies. Rules are broken. So when you’re in a foreign country and living by your wits while facing arrest, torture and death from the French police, Resistance, Gestapo and a double-agent, you bloody well better remember your lines, act out of your skin and never ever bump into the furniture. 

Oh and it helps if your new best friend is Edith Piaf. 

Note: I was provided with a copy of this book from the author for review.

This is a great story that has been slotted into the folds of history. From innocent beginnings into the throws of World War Two Fox tells a captivating story about young Louise Wellesley.

The narrative perspectives of Louise plus cousins Max and Kurt Hartmann provide different sides of the events and opens up new perspectives. Fox connects the trio’s stories creatively and with style, and brings their humble origins into the dangers of a world war. Louise is not innocent nor is she entirely naive. She is determined and brave, and is quick thinking. Kurt and Max also have their own agenda’s and ambitions, their differences coming to light on the page and through their actions.

Louise is a character to admire even before her assistance to the war. She is fiercely loyal and a wonderful friend, she adores her family and wants to do right by them. But she is also ambitious, something she’s not supposed to be, but with her determination she gets what she wants and becomes who she wants to be. There is still a hint of that young inexperienced girl inside her, but that doesn’t stop her from doing what needs to be done.

The more you read of Louise’s time in Paris it’s hard to imagine her as the simple actress from England, but Louise has not forgotten her acting roots, nor those who guided her, and as she finds herself in times of trouble she reflects on what she’s been taught, faking confidence, suave, and bravery she keeps herself alive and out of danger for the most part.

Knowing a little but not a lot about the early days in Paris, I enjoyed the references to historical events and figures. The reactions and responses by those close to Hitler and those who suffered because of distant orders was interesting and it told of the gradual yet seemingly well organised invasion by Hitler’s forces.

A Plum Job is about passion and perseverance, about missed opportunities and great losses. Against the backdrop of a fresh world war and suspicion on both sides it is more than just a tale of a wannabe actress. The fictional tale Fox has woven through historical events is captivating and filled with drama and excitement, it’s even a little bit heartbreaking to be honest.

It’s not 100% historically accurate but it is hard to put down all the same with a story that’s filled with drama, excitement, and suspense. There are numerous surprises and unexpected things that keep you interested and engaged and it’s a compelling story, you’re never quite sure where it is heading but you don’t mind the journey getting there.

You can purchase A Plum Job via the following

Amazon

Amazon Au

Amazon UK

CLUB MEDicine by Jack Kinsley

12 Jun 2015 Leave a comment

by Amy in 3 Stars, Thriller Tags: , , ,

Published: 13th February 2015Goodreads badge
Publisher: RANE Books
Pages: 309
Format: Ebook
Genre: Thriller
★   ★   ★  – 3 Stars

What drives a reasonable man to commit murder?

Travis Martin was the great American success story. A former addict who started the premiere private rehab in the hills of Malibu, California, he had it all: a thriving business, a beautiful wife, and a daughter who was the center of his universe. Unfortunately, when his recovery took a nosedive, everything he built went right along with it. Now, he has a rehab filled with eccentric clients he’s expected to keep sane, a dark secret he’s desperate to keep hidden, and forces from his past that are determined to strip him of anything that remains.
What’s a self-made man to do? Backed into a corner, Travis finds himself stuck on one moral question: Can he commit murder in order to keep it all from slipping away? How far down the rabbit hole will he go? And, perhaps more importantly, how does he come back from it after that life is gone?

Part thriller and part redemption tale, CLUB MEDicine explores the heart of darkness within us all as one man balances on the razor’s edge between self-actualization and self-destruction. 

Note: I was provided with a copy of this book from the author for review.

This was a hard story to pin down, even rate. It has good moments that piqued my interest, but there were also mundane moments that I didn’t see a need for. But Kinsley connects it together well and depending how you look at it, everything plays a part in telling Travis’ story.

The characters are eccentric and have a range of problems, and some characters grow on you much more than others, but Kinsley keeps it interesting with various aspects and dramas of rehab life. The centre is the focus and connects characters, secrets, and plot development, and contains most of the drama that unfolds. Travis is also a closet drug addict himself which brings in a nice sense of the blind leading the blind and a nice case of irony, and it is a key part of the unfolding events, consequence, cause, or otherwise.

For a thriller I felt there wasn’t as much of a focus on that element. It came and went, but there was a lot more time given on the events, ordinary and otherwise, in the rehab. Granted it is connected, and seeing Travis operate in the centre and his drug addiction on top of that was a key part, but I felt the thriller aspect didn’t shine through until the very end.

There is a steady pace to the story that has rises of suspense throughout but instead of a solid thriller with a sense of gaining momentum to something bigger, Kinsley has focused on the psychological unravelling and desperations of a man trying to hold onto his reality, but in a self-focused and inner dilemma rather than have it constantly play out on the page.

It was more watching a man’s life be on the brink of crumbling and seeing him fall further into despair before finally reaching desperation. Having said that though, I didn’t feel the intense desperation I think Kinsley was aiming for. It read as a huge leap to planning murder but at the same time I understood it, which was weird. Even though Travis runs through his options and realising he is being backed into a corner, I didn’t catch a sense of urgency in the tone of the narrative despite the words telling me there was.

There are some great and surprising moments though. The story is actually unexpected and Kinsley keeps it going with a few surprises and hints at secrets and dark pasts that are withheld until the right moments. This unexpected nature makes the intermittent moments of suspense work because it does just suddenly happen, but it’s the rapid resettling into routine that is unsatisfying.

It is hard to judge a novel before finishing it which is where most of my notes came from, and I think the end is where the story finds its footing, everything falls into place and the story unites into an unexpected, thrilling conclusion. The final moments allow you to see the clues placed throughout that had gone unnoticed, and with everything linking up it shifts your perspective and opinion on how you saw the story, but while it solves some mysteries and shows off creative writing, other issues remain.

I liked the ending in as much I think Travis got what he deserved. There are consequences and lessons, and having not had much sympathy or real care for him through most of the novel I liked that he didn’t get off scot-free but got a chance at redemption, and being on shaky ground with those around him is a good solution. Condemning him entirely would not have felt satisfactory and Kinsley balances adequate punishment, the right thing, and hope nicely.

You can purchase CLUB MEDicine via the following

Amazon

Amazon Aust

Previous Older Entries Next Newer Entries