fiction

Beloved Book Settings: Scotland

~ SamanthaWho ~ 19 Comments

Edinburgh CastleOne reason why fictional stories are so powerful is because they transport the reader to another place or time. I have found myself drawn to books set in certain locations over and over again, the settings coming alive in my head. One of my very favorite fictional book settings is Scotland.

Some of the books that have brought the countryside of Scotland alive for me have been:

  • The Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon
  • At The Water’s Edge by Sara Gruen
  • The Winter Sea by Susanna Kearsley

The wild greenery and the rolling hills of the countryside hold a certain draw for me. Maybe it’s the sense of adventure that comes with wide-open spaces, like a scene in Harry Potter or Lord of The Rings. Maybe it’s the rocky coastal beaches and windswept seashores that pull me in. It could also be the Scottish characters. A lively bunch the scots are, a proud and generous people. I also really enjoy reading the phrases of Gaelic mixed in with heavily accented English.

I was lucky enough to travel to Edinburgh last year, where I fell in love with cobble stone streets of the old town lined with pipers and pubs. Now that I’ve seen a piece of Scotland for myself, I can feel these stories even more vividly than before.

Whatever the reason, when I read a book description that is set in Scotland, I am much more likely to pick the book up and take it home with me.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

~ SamanthaWho ~ 14 Comments

The Night CircusThe Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern is an enchanting story centered on a young girl and boy, Celia and Marco, who are unknowingly bound together. Their mentors have each entered these “special” children into a magical challenge that plays out over the course of their lives. The arena for this challenge is none other than a night circus, a traveling group that shows up unannounced across the globe.

The circus becomes completely intertwined with the challenge, filled with tents full of magic and fantastical illusions. Morgenstern did a good job of illustrating the challenge with stunning descriptions that help the reader imagine the unknown.

Along with these magical enchantments, I was drawn into this story because of the wacky characters with their bizarre, and sometimes stunning, acts. For me, this wasn’t a page gripping book, but it was very well written and I was intrigued all the same.

Another twist to the story comes when these challengers start developing feelings for each other…Will they fight to the finish or will love triumph all? You’ll just have to pick up The Night Circus to find out!

I’ll Give You The Sun by Jandy Nelson

~ SamanthaWho ~ 11 Comments

I'll Give You The Sun by Jandy NelsonA few pages into I’ll Give You The Sun by Jandy Nelson, I was feeling a bit skeptical about the story. While my attention was instantly caught by all of the imagery and colorful descriptions, I wasn’t sure how an entire book like that would go. I had no reason to worry though because this story was pretty fantastic.

Through I’ll Give You The Sun, a YA novel focused on twin siblings, we witness the very complex relationship between Jude and Noah. While the pair is obviously deeply connected, the siblings simultaneously harbor aggressively competitive feelings that cause them to do awful things to one another. The book switches between loving interactions and vicious fights, an interesting aspect that kept me completely enthralled.

The heartfelt characters and their wild imaginations were what really pulled me into the story. Their stories made me feel for them, for their pain, their passion, their lies and their loves.

Are YA novels only for teens? Definitely not when it comes to I’ll Give You The Sun.

 

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

~ SamanthaWho ~ 11 Comments

Ready Player One by Ernest ClineWhat does it mean when you’re flight’s delayed? This past weekend it meant that I had more time to read! With the extra time, I was able to dive into Ready Player One by Ernest Cline, a sci-fi novel set in the year 2044.

USA Today describes the story pretty perfectly:

“Enchanting…Willy Wonka meets The Matrix.” – USA Today

In this story, Earth has plummeted into decay and Cline paints a horrifying picture through his “stacks”, trailers that are stacked up on top of each other and are only stabilized by weak metal pipe structures.

People escape this harsh reality through Oasis, a virtual world where people can be whoever, or whatever, they want. The creator of Oasis, James Halliday, has passed away and left behind the challenge of a lifetime. Whoever can solve his highly complex scavenger hunt filled with puzzles, video game challenges, and 80’s pop culture trivia, will win Halliday’s fortune and control of Oasis. Wade Watts, an anti-social teenager, finds himself catapulted into fame when he finds the first piece of Halliday’s puzzle.

As someone who is not very savvy in video game jargon, I thought Cline did a pretty good job of keeping technical descriptions straightforward. Despite a few scenes where my mind wandered in the face of ultra-detailed descriptions, I was able to keep up for the most part.

I don’t read a lot of sci-fi books, but I enjoyed Ready Player One. The story was interesting, the dialogue was entertaining and the topics were relatable. Cline brought depth to the story by touching on issues that the world is dealing with today, including global warming, pollution, monopoly power, and the risks that technology presents to overpower our lives so much so that we forget to live in reality.

The Keeper of Lost Causes by Jussi Adler-Olsen

~ SamanthaWho ~ 4 Comments

The Keeper of Lost CausesWhen a friend of mine asked for a mystery book recommendation before heading out on a road trip this weekend, one story instantly popped into mind. I told her that she needed to read (or in this case, listen to on audiotape) The Keeper of Lost Causes by Jussi Adler-Olsen right away. Despite reading this novel a couple years ago, I still find myself recommending it to many friends asking for recommendations because it is a story that has stuck with me.

For a haunting page-turner, choose The Keeper of Lost Causes. Jussi Adler-Olsen has written a seriously excellent page-gripping story here. This is the first book in the Department Q series centered around Carl Morck, a Copenhagen homicide detective whose life had been shattered when two of his fellow cops were shot on the job.

After finally coming back to his career, he gets to work on a series of old case files before becoming stuck on one in particular. A politician, who has all but disappeared into thin air and is thought to be dead, lingers on Carl’s mind. By following a hunch he finds something that has haunted me to this day. I don’t want to give anything away, but there is such a TWISTING finish here!

An incredibly thrilling mystery novel, The Keeper of Lost Causes is fantastic!

The Winter Sea by Susanna Kearsley

~ SamanthaWho ~ 4 Comments

The Winter Sea by Susanna KearsleyWhere to start on this one? First of all, The Winter Sea by Susanna Kearsley had me bursting into tears with a sudden plot twist that I DID NOT expect. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not uncommon for me to get emotional when reading, but I usually see it coming. You know a book is good when you are so invested in the story that you feel for the characters and their hardships and that’s what happened to me with this one.

The Winter Sea is a great book and I’m excited to have found it, it being the first novel I’ve read of Kearsley’s. This is an interesting story, the narrative switching between author Carrie, who is writing a historical fiction novel focusing on the 1708 Jacobite invasion into Scotland, and Sophia, the woman Carrie is writing about. In a twist of fate, it turns out that Carrie is more deeply entangled in Sophia’s story than she could have imagined. Carrie and Sophia’s lives seem to mysteriously mirror each other, both making a life for themselves and finding love along the way.

Kearsley has written a beautifully sculpted novel that portrays the passion an author has for her characters and how their story becomes engrained in her own life.

I really recommend this one, especially to all those historical fiction lovers out there!

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

~ SamanthaWho ~ 4 Comments

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay AsherI haven’t been reading many young adult books these days, but I’m glad I started again with Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher. Hannah Baker, a high school junior, has just committed suicide and classmate Clay Jensen is sent reeling when a box of anonymous cassette tapes show up on his doorstep. Hannah has left behind 13 haunting tapes that explain her story and the events that led to her depression. The tapes are passed from one person to the next, each having a role in Hannah’s tapes and her life.

Through her tapes, Hannah explains how seemingly small events spiraled out of control to create a snowball effect on her life. It was quite sad to hear how alone she felt and the impact a rumor had on her life as it grew and changed how her peers viewed and treated her.

This book brings light to suicide and shows us how much our actions, no matter how small, can affect those around us. While a rumor can hurt, a seemingly small gesture of kindness can make a world of difference as well.

A Spool of Blue Thread by Anne Tyler

~ SamanthaWho ~ 3 Comments

A Spool of Blue Thread by Anne TylerA Spool of Blue Thread by Anne Tyler is a well-written novel, but I couldn’t really see the point. What’s the punch line? What is Tyler trying to tell us? Why did she write down this story in particular? I’m still not quite sure.

In this story, Tyler brings us the Whitshank family, in a novel spanning four generations who have lived in the same well-loved Baltimore home. Through these characters we experience the emotional ups and downs that come with life.

I enjoyed the interactions between the family, the good, the bad and the ugly. On the other hand though, there were sections of the book during which I caught myself glazing over. It seemed like Tyler was building up to some major event but then the “huge” event didn’t happen.

In the end, the Whitshanks learn that no matter what happens, they can always go home.

Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

~ SamanthaWho ~ 4 Comments

Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi AdichieAmericanah, written by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, is an excellent read and I hope to do it justice with this review.

Americanah brings light to issues of race and self-discovery through the story of Ifemelu and Obinze. Growing up in military-ruled Nigeria, Ifemelu and Obinze were raised looking towards futures abroad, moving to America or Europe to study and begin a career.

 

One of my favorite quotes from the book explains this mentality of searching outside their native country for opportunities:

“…the need to escape from the oppressive lethargy of choicelessness. They would not understand why people like him, who were raised well fed and watered but mired in dissatisfaction, conditioned from birth to look towards somewhere else, eternally convinced that real lives happened in that somewhere else, were now resolved to do dangerous things, illegal things, so as to leave, none of them starving, or raped, or from burned villages, but merely hungry for choice and certainty,” (pg. 341).

This is a smart novel that really made me think. I was engaged and eager to see where both Ifemelu and Obinze’s journeys would lead them. The frustration and helplessness of their experiences starting out in new countries had me gripping the book. Despite working incredibly hard, they seemed unable to get their footing.

One particularly interesting aspect of this book is the blog that Ifemelu creates to discuss issues of race and life as an immigrant in America. She has always had a problem containing her opinion, especially in inappropriate situations, but that’s what makes her so great- her ability to speak up when others won’t.

Americanah is a love story, a story of self-discovery, and a story of speaking honestly and openly.

Sunday Spotlight: Kate Morton

~ SamanthaWho ~ 8 Comments

I’m really excited today because it’s the first post of my Sunday Spotlight series! Through these posts, I want to showcase incredible authors and spread their stories.

First up: Kate MortonKate Morton

Kate Morton is a wonder, her stories transporting readers into other worlds and times. I have read two of her historical fiction novels and was very impressed by her ability to sweep me away with the story. An incredibly talented author, Morton brings us stories set across the globe including settings in both England and Australia.

Morton’s books are not short, but she gives them the space needed to develop and creates twisting plotlines that keep you hooked.

The Secret Keeper by Kate MortonThe Secret Keeper by Kate Morton was an incredible read with shocking plot twists. The story focuses on Laurel, a modern day woman attempting to trace her mother’s mysterious past after remembering a crime she witnessed as a child in her family home. The story switches between Laurel in the present and flashbacks of England during the chaotic aftermath of World War II. I was completely STUNNED by a twist at the end of the story, a jaw dropping finish that left me with my mouth hanging open.

That fact that I couldn’t put The Secret Keeper down while studying abroad in Italy, only goes to show how great this story is.

The Forgotten Garden By Kate MortonThe Forgotten Garden is another great story of Morton’s with a woven plot split between narratives of 3 women, Cassandra, her grandmother Nell and a mysterious woman from Nell’s past.

The death of her grandmother sends Cassandra on a journey to trace Nell’s past, who was found abandoned on a dock at four years old. Not only does Cassandra find the truth about her ancestry, she finds a way to heal after a heartbreaking accident that left her alone in the world.

I highly recommend reading Kate Morton’s novels and I would love to hear whether any of you have read her work!