Book Review | "Sadie" by Courtney Summers

“And Sadie, if you’re out there, please let me know. Because I can’t take another dead girl.”

Sadie is alone. No mother. And now no sister. Only a burning desire and knowledge no one else has. West, with an assignment he doesn’t want, answers the pleading cry - ‘Sadie is gone.’ All they have to go on is her abandoned car and a dead little sister. Can West discover what’s happened to Sadie, or will she be able to tell us herself? Together, their stories collide, one in the past and one in the present, revealing more than either thought possible.

Today, books are becoming less like stories and more like windows into stark realities. Haunting stories. I’ve been talking about this a lot on the blog recently. It could be the books I’ve picked up, or it could be that authors are using their craft to tell more. Do more. Show more. Stories are meant to take us on a quest, to open our minds to concepts that we may never have thought of before. Sadie fits right in.

Sadie begins right in the middle. Immediately readers are given the information that a 13-year-old girl was brutally murdered and now her sister is missing. Not a delightful start to a story, but Summers just drops the reader in, laying the groundwork. She establishes where Sadie is from and what her background is right off the bat. Readers are left without any questions.

“It was a terrible thing, sure, but we live in a world that has no shortage of terrible things. You can't stop for all of them.”

Summers also makes it clear that the format is going to be a little different. Mixing in first person POV and Podcast style scripts, she weaves the two together. And personally, I loved it. Normally, I want a good old fashion story, but Illuminae convinced me changing things up can be good, and Summers falls right in with the greats.

The Podcast added elements I’m not sure could have been pulled off otherwise. It would have been a completely different story. Told not through a detective per usual, readers are instead given a character off the streets. A man hosting his first podcast with a wife and family of his own. Not some cop with a hard record of seeing the bad things. West instead, is seeing this dark side of the world for the first time, mixing his own emotions into the story by the end. Even battling with his desire to see the mystery out. The Podcast also lets readers see what’s happening back at homebase without slowing down the script.

Well… most of the time.

Here’s where it didn’t work. Since the Podcast is discovering things after the fact, because Summers shows them through Sadie’s eyes first, the Podcast tended to repeat some facts. I don’t think it could have been helped, but hearing the same old knowledge of what happened tended to bore me.

Sadie

By Courtney Summers

Buy on Amazon

“Or maybe you get so used to the mess of home, you convince yourself over time everything's exactly where it belongs.”

But let’s not leave the fact, that here Summers did something different. She gave a different perspective, a different format, a downright different style to break the normal humdrum offered to readers. She pushed the boundaries. Something writers should take note of. Don’t be afraid to be different.

My last negative comment is with Sadie. Her character profile was fine. In fact, all the characters were so well done, they played to the old adage of write each person as if they are the protagonist of the story. But, I struggled connecting with Sadie on an emotional level. Which ultimately made me feel horrible. Here is this story, a sister on a mission of revenge, that lacked Sadie’s emotional turmoil coming through. There was just a disconnect that didn’t allow me, as the reader, to be fully immersed in the pain and suffering.

“Paul taught me a person committed to silence can suggest importance, strength. So long as they’re a man, I mean. It’s not an option when you’re a girl, not unless you want people to think you’re a bitch.”

But that’s it guys. The rest of the story is pure magic. I’m even going to give Sadie a whooping 4.5 stars.

Full cast of characters that each played a role to the overall story. Realistic storyline, without the crazy magic coincidences that can happen in mystery novels. Perfectly established backstories and settings. Excellent prose that made me cry as a writer. And dark in all the right places.

Just downright masterful. Summers shows readers a world that many of us don’t see. Drugs, poverty, abuse, it’s all there. Painted to show a sister and how far someone will go in the end. I highly recommend this read. I mean, the list of things you can learn as a writer reading Sadie is staggering. I personally plan on grabbing my own copy and studying it from cover to cover. But if you need an idea of each point, pay attention to the following when reading:

• Prose

• Characters

• Style

• Background

• Plot

• Timeline

• Reveals

• Foreshadowing

• Etc...etc...etc…

Happy Reading.

Love Kait.

Reading Challenge: 93/100

Book Review | "Give Me Your Hand" by Megan Abbott

“The fear all men have that there’s something inside us that shifts, and turns. A living thing, once dormant, stirring now, and filled with rage.”

Let me tell you a secret…

Good reveals in a book come with a touch of beauty, finesse, and excellent timing. So when you allude to something at the beginning of a book, and then reveal it half way in…. It better be good.

Kit is in line for a prestigious grant position, only three of a handful are set to receive it. All her hard work since high school, and the infamous Diane Fleming coming into her life, might finally pay off. Before any announcements can be made, Kit’s worst nightmare comes true when Diane appears in the very same lab, bringing the past back to haunt Kit as she remembers Diane’s haunting confession in high school that changed both their lives. Can Kit trust Diane again or will her dreams come crashing down?

“In some animal part of my brain, I guess I thought looking her up might somehow summon her. So I never did. And she came anyway.”

I will start with the good things about Give Me Your Hand. Abbott’s research into chemistry and biology felt spot on. I’ve worked in a few labs, biology and physics, and her overall feeling as a woman in the lab rang true. I’ve had some of the same gender attacks that Kit experienced at times in the lab. Abbott also sprinkled in the perfect amount of technical terms without making the reader confused or bogged down. Just enough to paint the reader a picture.

A lot of times writers want to throw in everything they learned because they spent all the time researching and don’t want the work to go for not. It’s another iceberg. Show only the tiniest portion, and leave the rest for yourself.

Abbott’s overall story was a bust though.

Yup…. that’s all the good stuff I have for you today. I won’t even hide my rating. (1.5 stars)

Attempting a thriller, Abbott’s build up and reveal were the biggest let downs.

“My mom always says, you don’t have a self until you have a secret.”

Give Me Your Hand

By Megan Abbott

Buy on Amazon

Most of the story is based around a secret. It’s mentioned early on, and has a lot of suspense around it. Reading along, Abbott keeps alluding to how grand the secret is, building up more anticipation. What didn’t work, was that the secret was staring the reader right in the face. Paying even the tiniest of attention, one can easily figure out this grand secret. By the time it’s finally revealed, 50% in, there’s a huge let down.

The whole first half of the story felt built around this moment, the big reveal. Abbott spent a very long time working on the backstory, flipping from present to past. Bleeding the two times into one. Though they both played into one another, the struggle of seeing past Kit and present Kit together left a huge gap in Kit’s personality. Young Kit felt more fearless. She did and said things that no longer matched future Kit, leaving future Kit to feel lost and altogether a different person. Ten years did pass, I guess change could happen, but as a writer it’s important to pay attention. Readers will sit there comparing and finding all the flaws.

And, sticking with the character problems, Abbott’s characters were not true to themselves. Many times I questioned the motives and actions some of the side characters took. Seriously, they led the suspense of the story along, dragging out some unbelievable twists. But that’s the point. They were unbelievable because the characters never would have done those things. Especially with the break down at the end. Added in dramatics.

“When you get away with something it’s yours only, forever. Heavy and irremediable.”

Abbott wanted to explain why Diane was who she was. She wanted to spell out the story word for word. Which led to the final reveal at the end. Ok, I didn’t see that one coming, but looking back it was a little obvious. It was another let down. It gave me a bad taste in my mouth.

In all, I’m surprised I actually finished this book. I put it down always questioning if I should pick it up again. Knowing that I could count this towards my reading goal kept me going.

My next book is the great Britt-Marie Was Here and it’s another book club read. I loved A Man Called Ove and Backman’s style of storying telling. I can’t wait to share it with you all on here. If you want to remotely join in with my book club, visit the book club page. I’ll be updating the books every month. When you see the book review pop up, start a discussion below and we can all join in.

Happy reading.

Love Kait

Reading Challenge: 89/100

Book Review | "The Butterfly Garden" by Dot Hutchison

“If you expect to be overlooked or forgotten, you’re always at least a little surprised when someone remembers you. You’re always outside understanding those strange creatures who actually expect people to remember and come back.”

*Warning* The Butterfly Garden is a dark story with a lot of disturbing imagery. Not meant for younger readers.

Why is humanity drawn to the dark? Why do we subject ourselves to the stories of death and torture? Does it make us feel human?

Part of me wasn’t even sure I wanted to write a review for The Butterfly Garden. The story is so dark and disturbing that I was afraid younger readers would be drawn to it. But the other side of me realized that art comes in many forms and I needed to share this piece of it.

“Some people stay broken. Some pick up the pieces and put them back together with all the sharp edges showing.”

The Butterfly Garden is about a girl captured by a man dubbed the gardener. He captures beauty as butterflies and preserves them forever in his garden. With an expiration date, the girl lives with the other butterflies, till one day hope comes and they’re all set free.

The story begins with Maya after rescue. Thank goodness… an excellent artistic choice. Because the story is so dark, it’s nice knowing there’s a happy ending, and helped me stick with it. After all the pain I’ll know everyone is ok. Some might think this detracts from the suspense, but I think there was plenty to make you turn the page. Sometimes nonlinear storylines really work in your favor.

The Butterfly Garden (The Collector)

By Dot Hutchison

Buy on Amazon

Besides excellent writing, this book was just a combination of really good choices. It felt like Hutchinson sat down and thought about her readers. I know they say write what you want to read (I really don’t want to see inside this girl’s mind) but you also need to create a story that others can get through. Case in point, showing the readers immediately that there is a happy ending.

Another excellent choice were the two POVs. We have third person from the FBI agent’s perspective. Then, the story flips to first person when Maya tells the agents her story. This give the readers a feeling of really being interviewed. Would it have worked as all third person? I don’t think so. The story could have turned dull and lost the vibrant in your face imagery that led to the overall compelling narrative.

“Not making a choice is a choice. Neutrality is a concept, not a fact. No one actually gets to live their lives that way.”

Here is a book with amazing characterization - not the overly stylized classroom checklist version produced in One of Us is Lying. Fictional my butt, these people are real. Such fine detail into their personalities. We get hobbies, coping, ethnicities, anger management, goals, in essence an entire psych analysis. And for a wide cast of characters too. We don’t just get an in depth picture of the front runners, but each butterfly, even down to Maya’s parents. If you need a lesson in developing characters, get through this one - I personally learned a whole lot.

Timing is another important skill as a writer. Linear stories do not work for every plot. In Hutchison’s case, she was able to use the FBI interrogation to weave through a timeline hopping story. This let her pose a ton of questions to answer along the whole journey. We have Maya’s backstory, as well as everything that happens in the garden. Even when we think all the questions have been answered, Hutchison drops one more answer on the last page. Timing is key. You can’t drop a boatload of twists at the end, and you can’t give the story away from the beginning.

“You’re comparing the FBI to Hitler?”

“No, I’m engaging in a discussion about perspective and moral relativity.”

Final point, I swear, even though I think I could go on and on about this book. Stay true to your characters. Hutchison does a superb job. As a writer you may want things to be different, but characters are characters and they’re the rulers of this joint. I think if Hutchison had done things outside their scope, the story would have fallen flat. Instead, she kept them true. Another reason they read as real people. They make real people choices.

Ok that’s all for now. I really hope you give The Butterfly Garden a chance. I would love to say I’m reading something lighter after this one but…. Ugh book club read. I guess it’s my fault since I suggested the dystopian read. Anyways - 5 stars all the way. I’ll be trying to find time to squeeze in the next book in the series.

Happy Reading

Love Kait

Reading Challenge: 82/100

Book Review | "One Of Us Is Lying" by Karen M. McManus

“Like we're some kind of hip high school murder club without a care in the world.”

Five people walk into a room for detention. Four people walk out. Which one of them did it?

With the premise of Pretty Little Liars mixed with The Breakfast Club, I was ready for a cool murder mystery mixed with a little grit and a little high school drama - you literally can’t trust the guy next to you. Untrustworthy narrator, crazy plot twists… what could be better? Maybe me not guessing the ending 10 pages in. Oh well. It’s all my fault to be honest. I can’t stop myself even if I tried.

One of Us is Lying plays out the story of ‘who done it’ when four students are murder suspects in the death of the most hated kid in school. They all plead not guilty, but can you trust the girl always controlled by her boyfriend, the girl who might be hiding a huge academic secret, the juicing athlete, or the drug dealer? Told in the voice of all four, join the wild ride of discovery.

First, I want to congratulate McManus on her characters. They are so well done, her book could be used in schools. We have back story, character arcs, developments, distinct voice, diversity, and those little traits that almost make them real people. It felt like she went through a checklist - which is probably true since this is her debut book. Ok, they aren’t meant to be perfect, and they were each amazing, I guess I just wanted a little less cookie cutter perfect.

Choosing to do four viewpoints is crazy and what a feat to tackle your first time around. I get it though. It wouldn’t have been the same story without hearing from all four. A large portion of the suspense comes from the untrustworthy narrator aspect. This leaves the reader unsure of who the real killer is. One Of Us Is Lying is a great example of listening to your story and making the decision that works. So many authors may pick multiple viewpoints - cough War Storm - for the wrong reasons and end up mudding the story. Sit back and listen to your work people.

One of Us Is Lying

By Karen M. McManus

Buy on Amazon

And even though McManus picks four viewpoints, there is one POV that stands out. Not a bad thing, but something to be aware of if you decide to do the same. There is a reason you decided to give a voice to more than one character and you need to stay true to your choice. Even the great Leigh Bardugo let Kaz lead her story more than the other characters. Are great example of a perfectly even narrative would be Furyborn, a book I highly recommend reading.

“We could be surrounded by walking dead in the zombie apocalypse and she’d look for the bright side.”

Here I go reading another contemporary, and guess what… I loved it. But here is why it works - McManus puts depth into the story. What makes a book YA is its relationships. The characters will be below 18, mostly in high school, coming of age, and their love relationships will be in the exploratory stage. Chances are, the book isn’t going to be dealing with broken marriages or raising kids. Yes, there are exceptions, but YA books don’t have to be written down just because a younger generation will be reading them. So remember, keep it real and full of depth. Another great thing about contemporaries is you can put in some current issues. Mcmanus does a great job of asking some question that we can take away and contemplate. Books give readers a chance to think over what they’ve been handed before they’re forced to voice what they think.

“I guess we're almost friends now, or as friendly as you can get when you're not one hundred percent sure the other person isn't framing you for murder.”

Now all the problems. Tropes litter the book. I won’t list them… some are used as plot twists. Some tropes aren’t too bad, we can’t always hate the girl falling for the bad boy, but this entire book was built on them. Very unoriginal. I’m hoping that now the first book jitters are over, McManus can get a little more creative in her choices.

And that ending. Seriously. I don’t think I’ll be the only one guessing it way too early. It brings up a topic fitting our current events, but that’s all. Ugh….

So I’ll just be taking a half a star back for the ending and giving 4 stars. I think everything else was well done and I honestly enjoyed reading the entire thing. She’s got to earn some enjoyment stars. Enough enjoyment that I’ll be anticipating her next book coming out in January.

Public Service Announcement - There won’t be a review next week. Sorry guys. Time for a much need break. Actually, I’ll just be pounding through my own book. Until then… happy reading.

Love Kait

Reading Challenge: 77/100

"The Wildling Sisters" by Eve Chase Book Review

Have you read a book before where the sound of the words draws you in? Each one a carefully constructed symphony of prose, ending in a musical crescendo that lulls you into a poetic dreamland.

Well….

That was the Wildling Sisters for me.

Set between two worlds, same house, the stories collide 50 years apart where the mystery of a missing 12-year-old plague an English country manor. A new family moves in the house unaware of its dark past yet still bringing their own mystery. Fifty years previous, four sisters, abandoned by their mother one summer, are forced to reside with their aunt and uncle who five years earlier lost their own daughter when she went missing. Eventually, the mystery of it all unfolds, past and present, till both worlds must meet.

Dark stories unfold until the end when everything comes delivered with a nice red bow. All questions get answered. There is no air of mystery leaving us hanging. Though I enjoyed finding out everything, it was a little rushed and I could have lived without it. Others agreed, some saying that it was just all too nice. And with a book that is set a little darker, maybe a light ending wasn’t the best option.

The Wildling Sisters

By Eve Chase

Buy on Amazon

But the main theme throughout was motherhood. We have the absent mother of the girls, the mother who lost her child, and the mother stepping in for a dead mother. I hope that was the focus. If you remove the theme and the fact that they are in the same house, it would feel like two stories thrown together because they were too short to stand alone. Even the point of views - there are two total - are so very distinct that when they switch, you can easily read the difference.

I think Chase’s writing is the reason that I enjoyed myself. Most of my peers thought the story was dull. Nothing surprising comes out in the end - it was more of a dud - and many may give up once the excitement wears off. This isn’t a murder mystery, isn’t advertised as one, yet that is exactly what Chase wants you to believe within the first few pages as girls drag a lifeless limp body through the garden. Maybe if the beginning had been a little less dramatic, readers would have been prepared for the slower storyline. Instead, we spend the entire story wondering where the body fits into the mix.

Yet don’t give up. This story has a great gothic undertone. It doesn’t go super dark but poses a few more questions about missing girls and sex. Darker themes are my jam now and I think it’s because I’m getting older. But these moments in the story are what give it life. They breathe a realness into the story. That mixed with Chase’s prose is why I’ve ultimately given this book 4 stars.

Overall, a quick and easy read. I was able to finish it in three days with a very hectic schedule. I would place this on your summer beach list. You might just enjoy the transport back to the English countryside.

Love Kait

"Every Last Lie" by Mary Kubica Book Review

OMG…..

Like really?!?!?

That ending…..

Am I mad? Not in the least. In a day when thrillers are the game, I loved her twist with the ending. I guess it isn’t a twist in the traditional sense but, when you sit through the entire book wondering how this is all going to end, Kubica’s ending is a diversion from the traditional thriller storyline. I want to start a long discussion, see how the rest of the world feels. I can tell you that my book club wasn’t down for it. They thought it was stupid and a letdown, all feelings that are opposite from mine. I found it refreshing. But I must stop here. If I say more than I will give it all away. Darn my policy on no spoilers.

My warning with this story is if you have a significant other, do not read this book when there is bad weather. The timing for me was horrible. We had a stretch of snowy, icy conditions here in Seattle, something very rare, and my husband must leave every morning at 4:45 am to catch the bus. And every morning I worried, waiting in anticipation for his text saying that he arrived safely at the bus stop. I figured the bus driver would get him safely through the rest of the commute. Now the sun is shining more and the weather has warmed to its typical 40s and 50s.

If you’ve read my other review for Mary Kubica, you will know that I am not a fan of her work. Good Girl was poorly executed in my opinion with Kubica’s choice of point of view to be its only saving grace. So in picking this one up, it was the February pick for my book club, I was anticipating a long drawn out struggle. Boy was I wrong.

I’m not saying this is some Hemingway of thrillers. There are countless problems throughout, moments when you take a sideways glance at Kubica and ask “why”. One being the twist at the end with the caretaker. The other being *cough* I can’t say more. But Clare was compelling to me. Someone that I could relate to - I mean, if I too lost my husband. Here she was left with a newborn, a small child, and a long list of questions. What would we all do in her place? Kubica provided a believable storyline in that regard, though maybe not with the other characters. Sometimes her husband did seem far-fetched. Oh well.  

And as true to form, I was the complete opposite in regards to the feelings in my book club. I was the only one to like it. Maybe the shock got to me - I expected the worse so I overrated it. But then again, shouldn’t our ratings be partly based on our enjoyment? If that is the case, then my enjoyment was very high and I gladly give this book 4 stars. I’m curious what you think. Let me know in the comments below. Maybe I finally fell off my rocker and my gauge is all screwed up now.

Love Kait

"The Good Girl" Book Review

With the awards this book has been nominated for, and the constant mentions to Gone Girl, I thought hey, this might actually be a good thriller. I’ve read a few thrillers lately - this is a new genre for me - so I was excited to try another one out. The problem for me, because I can’t just go along for the ride, I tend to guess the ending way too early. Sometimes I don’t mind this because I end up going on a whirlwind trip trying to see if my guess is correct. But most of the time, the story is poorly done, or the writing is off, or the characters are just downright boring that the rest of the read is the same. Well, queue The Good Girl.

Let me start by saying that this ending was given away too early. I mean seriously, leave us in suspense a little bit longer. Even the big reveal in the epilogue, the only time that we hear from Mia herself, comes as no surprise. I was not taken on a joyride. And I hate to sound so mean, but the writing itself was boring. At about 50 pages in, I already wanted to put the book down. Sadly, I have this thing where I must finish every book that I start. And I don’t know what is worse, the fact that I had to finish the book or that my book club is reading a different Mary Kubica book next month.

There was one thing that I found interesting and I want to give it kudos. I recently took a writing class. One week, the professor had us sit down and write a short synopsis of our three main characters, their wants and ultimately, what might change about them during the story. We then sat in groups, reading aloud and the other students would vote for the character they wanted to tell the story. I feel this was a huge high-five to Kubica. Most authors probably would have told the story from Mia’s point of view. There is plenty of great stuff to work with there. But instead, she decided to tell it through the eyes of Mia’s captor, mother, and the detective searching for her. Excellent decision and I think the only reason that saved this book from getting a 1 star on Goodreads.

With the amount of time I have, and the fact that I have a lot of books to get through this year, I really regret wasting my time with this one. Ugh, those impulse grabs in the library. I should know not to grab one from that front display unless it’s on my list. I think that I have officially learned my lesson with this one.

Happy reading everyone!

"The Chemist" Book Review

*Enter Sarcasm*    

Stephanie Meyer did it again. She created a love story where an abnormally talented creature/human falls in love with an average damsel in distress. This time she just switched the sexes and tied it up with a spy novel bow.

*Exit Sarcasm*

Ok, but seriously. I had such hope, showing this book off at my book club, claiming that at 130 or so pages in, there was yet a love interest. This isn’t a love story guys. She is branching out. Boy was I wrong, as I sit hanging my head in same. Nope, it was all a lie. Again, Meyers fell back on what she does best except that this time, it was really poorly executed.

I was hoping for something different, or at least well executed. Twilight was great and I can ignore the less to be desired writing skill. Meyers was new to the scene, first novel jitters. Well, that card was played and is gone. For the number of books to her name, the skill needs to be upped. Instead, my belief is that this is the worse one she has written to date.

A basic item, characters felt flat. I couldn’t really get behind Alex and I hate to admit that the dog was the best one of the lot. After the 130 pages, when the love interest came in, I got bored. There was nothing holding my attention. I ended up reading two others books before I eventually put my adult pants on and got down to finishing this book. It was a real struggle.

Honestly, the only thing that saved this book was the fact that it was a spy novel, though I’m not one to actually say whether it hit the mark there either. I don’t read a lot of spy novels, so for me, it was new and fresh. I did want to find out what would happen.

So in the end, girl loves the boy. The boy loves the girl. Some crazy special events happen and the end. No vampires included this time. My vote is a 2 out of 5 stars.