19th - 23rd October.
Reading this at the same time as Never let me go, dipping in and out of both. Am almost sure I have already read this and as it was published this year if I have it must have been at some point in the last 10 months and yet I can't remember - the main reason for this blog existing! LOVE Simon Kernick's books he has some really original ideas and writes pacy action and great dialogue and its not a reflection on this book that I am not sure if I have read it or not, I do tend to speed read! Will come back to this one too when I have finished it, or come to the conclusion that I am re-reading and let you know, but basically if its by Simon Kernick and you like a gripping plot and lots of gritty realism in your read you'll love it!
19th - 23rd October.
Not my usual sort of thing at all, described by one reviewer on Amazon as "Haunting dystopia of ultimate utilitarianism".
And I am sure they thought they were very clever too! It is a difficult one to categorise, definitely not sci-fi in the accepted sense but based on the sort of premise that makes it sci-fi, this isn't helping at all is it? Basically bunch of clones, raised in a boarding school called Hailsham, who will become organ donors when they are adults, but not organ donors that get thank you cards and a box of chocs, organ donors that get buried! It is a very visual book, hence no doubt it being made into a film which has just been released, and although slow compared to my usual slash and grab type of thing it is thought provoking. Will come back when I have finished it and finish this, frankly, brilliant attempt at a review! Finished it, I think the thing I found most irritating was the way most chapters began with "so then such and such a thing happened, but before I can tell you about that I have to go back to two days/6 weeks/half a century to tell you why it happened" I just wanted to scream I don't give a crap, cut to the chase tell me what happened. More annoying was that after all the big build up as a rule nothing, or any great interest, had happened. Yes it was all very futuristic and then at the same time weirdly not - mention of Sony Walkmans, which are no longer being made! - and a warning about what might happen if we dabble in genetics I guess but not as thought provoking as I had hoped.
15th - 18th October
Had forgotten just how good the mother and daughter combo or PJ Tracy really is, the prologue sets the tone nicely. If I say that the author comments on the back cover include Harlan Coben and Mo Hayder that should tip you off to the quality of their writing. Bloody brilliant in short! Love Grace and the whole monkeewrench crew of cyber geeks, off to hit a sofa with a pot of tea and this for a couple of hours now. Finished it - the whole thing crackles with brilliance, you will not be disappointed and as ever a killer twist in the tale, like a swift stiletto to the kidneys, I was left open mouthed!
12th - 13th October
Got me, hook, line and sinker pretty much from the off. Raced through the first 150 pages last night and cant wait to start reading again this evening. The characters are brilliantly drawn, the subject matter is pretty terrifying and the whole thing is pulled together in a way that makes for compelling reading. Am a bit worried I have sussed something out already, am hoping I am wrong - it surely can't be that easy?!
Bloody hell!! This one finally did it, I got myself lost in it and all the crap in my head went silent. Haven't read a book in 2 sittings in quite a while but this one made it impossible not to. This was way more unnerving that the usual crime/pyscho type thing I read, probably because it revolved around mental illness in kids. Loved it, highly recommended. Oh and if you get the hard backed version of it check out the photo of Lisa Gardner on the back, heavily photoshopped but it looks ok the right way up, turn it upside down and I swear her eyes will scare the bejaysus out of you! Off to the library for next pile today.
1st - 12th OctoberAnother in the Sara Linton series of books. Am about half way through, so far so good. As it is ages since I read the last one I am struggling to piece together some elements of this and whether the characters are portrayed in this as I remember them from previous books. It has got me hooked though. I did enjoy this but wasn't as riveted as I have been by some of her other books, although still blaming a lack of head space for reading for my lack of enjoyment of pretty much everything at the moment.
19th - 23rd October.
