Having previously enjoyed Garth Stein’s work The Art of Racing in the Rain back in March, I thought I would give another of his works a try. So here it is.
Title: Raven Stole the Moon
Author: Garth Stein
Publisher: Harper
Date: Originally 1998 (by Simon & Schuster), rereleased in 2010
My start date: 6/18/10
My finish date: 6/19/10
I had some mixed feelings about this novel. The most important thing I want to mention is that Garth Stein is a talented story teller. He mentions in his afterward that, “My objective in writing this book was to tell a compelling story, like those I heard when I was a kid at the campfire with my extended family.” I didn’t read this quote until the end (it was, after all, in the AFTERward), but when I got to this line it matched my mood exactly. This story feels like something you would tell camping, filled with magic and woven as only an expert storyteller can do. The novel starts off innocently and traditionally enough, but then the spirit world starts to creep in and the next thing I knew I was starting to get those excited, yet creepy chills that go along with good fireside stories. It was very well told.
Another aspect of this storytelling rests with Stein’s own personal heritage. Part Tlingit himself, he has brilliantly woven this culture into his story in a way that really enhances the mystery and the beauty of it. Although Stein indicates that he did not grow up with this part of his heritage playing an active role in his life and had to do tons of online research about the culture in order to portray it in the correct way, I think the result is the successful seamless weaving of religion, culture and fantasy.
That being said, there were a couple of hitches in the novel for me. When Stein gave us The Art of Racing in the Rain and wrote from the perspective of a dog I found it surprisingly believable. However when he attempts here to write from the perspective of a female, I didn’t buy it as much. Despite the protagonist being a female, both the character and the novel as a whole carried too much of an indefinable masculinity. I couldn’t quite put my finger on what made the difference, but I just didn’t feel like Jenna, the main character, was believable from a female’s perspective. Sometimes guys just can’t think like girls. However, it should be noted as well that this was Stein’s first novel attempt, well before he later voiced a dog, and it is possible, if not likely, that he has grown tremendously as a writer since then.
My other quip is nitpicky, but what can I say? I mentioned in my write-up of The Art of Racing in the Rain that Stein’s auto-racing and car references were a little too frequent for my liking, but that it was understandable in that context as the lead character was a racecar driver. Well, it can’t be excused in that way here. Clearly Stein really loves this sport, but once again I found the excessive racing and auto references in this novel a little irritating. In this case, they were in no way related to the novel. They just felt random and in connection to what I was saying above, I didn't at all believe that Jenna would think like that. But that is just me.
Finally, the ending didn’t sit well with me. I didn’t feel like there was much resolution at all. Now, I must admit that I am the world’s worst conclusion writer. I am one of those people who, when writing academic papers gets to the end and is sorely tempted to just write “abadee, abadee, that’s all folks!” and hit print. So, no judgment here. But for such a great storyteller, and Stein really is a great storyteller, it truly felt like the ending was a situation in which he pored his heart into the first four hundred pages and then just got bored and ended it. But again, this was his first novel, so we can excuse that.
Overall, a great storyteller for us to be watching out for and a great campfire type read that will have you fascinated while simultaneously checking over your shoulder for shadows that could be kushtaka, but a few hang-ups that might be overlookable.
Keep reading!
Sarah
Monday, June 21, 2010
Plotting in Dialect
Well, I picked up a book I had never heard of in the grocery store the other day simply because it mentioned taking place in the 18th century (which is my favorite of the centuries) and seemed interesting. What I got was surprising and something else entirely. Let’s check it out.
Title: The Book of Night Women
Author: Marlon James
Publisher: Riverhead Books
Date: 2009
My start date: 6/13/10
My finish date: 6/18/10
James’ recent novel, The Book of Night Women is absolutely stunning. I am not even sure where to begin. So I will just try the beginning. Like I said, I picked the book up on a whim without really even completely reading the back cover. All I really knew was that it was the story of Lilith, a slave on a 18th century Jamaican plantation. I started reading the novel and, honestly, after the first couple of pages I had to pause and consider what I had gotten myself into. The entire novel is written in period Jamaican slave dialect, which, needless to say, I don’t speak. I panicked. Could I even finish this?? But I was intrigued. The writing was blunt, to the point and violent. I didn’t understand a quarter of the words and none of the grammar was what I was used to. But I was curious about Lilith. So I kept reading. I am so glad I did.
Once you get into the rhythm of the story, the language becomes much easier. I had to look up several words, but most of them could be found on the internet, so that wasn’t really a problem. Sometimes it helped and even added to the reading if I read it out loud. Once having acclimated to the dialect, I found it stunningly beautiful and it added a richness and depth to the novel that couldn’t have been achieved any other way. The characters, the setting, none of it would have been as full without using that language. It opened the characters up in a way that allows the reading to feel more able to intimately understand the thought process. That being said, don’t be like me and just rush out and throw this novel in your shopping basket. Take the time to read the first couple of pages there in the store. If you don’t feel like you can get through a whole novel like that and enjoy it, you may want to rethink buying it. I think it was great, but it can certainly add time to your reading, if it doesn’t prevent you from having access to the novel entirely. Reading in dialect might not be for everybody.
This book is very violent and profane. But how could it be any other way? Slavery wasn’t exactly pretty. The novel is breathtakingly dark, filled with intrigue, mystery, plotting, conspiring, evil spirits, curses, you name it. At times I thought I might hate Lilith, but at others I absolutely loved her. Sometimes the bad guys turned out to be good guys, sometimes the good ones turned bad. The plot was very full. This isn’t the type of novel with a single plotline running from beginning to end. Side stories were followed, lesser characters were developed to wonderful depth, and I found myself falling headfirst into this world.
I want to note another aspect of James’ writing technique beyond just the dialect. His written technique is beautifully constructed, almost formally perfect. He weaves his constructions around and around, frequently repeating the line, “Every negro walk in a circle. Take that and make of it what you will.” He has put a lot of thought into what he is writing and where it goes. You don’t always see that and it doesn’t necessarily require such thoughtful form to make a great novel, but it does add a great degree of aesthetic pleasure to the reading when such a beautiful form exists.
By the time I had worked my way through the novel, I loved it. Really loved it. I loved Lilith. I would read this again and maybe even again still. I will reiterate the warnings one more time, however, to be aware of the potential challenges in reading 430 pages in dialect and also in the very brutal imagery this novel contains, but if you can get past those things, read this novel! Great stuff.
Keep reading!
Sarah
Title: The Book of Night Women
Author: Marlon James
Publisher: Riverhead Books
Date: 2009
My start date: 6/13/10
My finish date: 6/18/10
James’ recent novel, The Book of Night Women is absolutely stunning. I am not even sure where to begin. So I will just try the beginning. Like I said, I picked the book up on a whim without really even completely reading the back cover. All I really knew was that it was the story of Lilith, a slave on a 18th century Jamaican plantation. I started reading the novel and, honestly, after the first couple of pages I had to pause and consider what I had gotten myself into. The entire novel is written in period Jamaican slave dialect, which, needless to say, I don’t speak. I panicked. Could I even finish this?? But I was intrigued. The writing was blunt, to the point and violent. I didn’t understand a quarter of the words and none of the grammar was what I was used to. But I was curious about Lilith. So I kept reading. I am so glad I did.
Once you get into the rhythm of the story, the language becomes much easier. I had to look up several words, but most of them could be found on the internet, so that wasn’t really a problem. Sometimes it helped and even added to the reading if I read it out loud. Once having acclimated to the dialect, I found it stunningly beautiful and it added a richness and depth to the novel that couldn’t have been achieved any other way. The characters, the setting, none of it would have been as full without using that language. It opened the characters up in a way that allows the reading to feel more able to intimately understand the thought process. That being said, don’t be like me and just rush out and throw this novel in your shopping basket. Take the time to read the first couple of pages there in the store. If you don’t feel like you can get through a whole novel like that and enjoy it, you may want to rethink buying it. I think it was great, but it can certainly add time to your reading, if it doesn’t prevent you from having access to the novel entirely. Reading in dialect might not be for everybody.
This book is very violent and profane. But how could it be any other way? Slavery wasn’t exactly pretty. The novel is breathtakingly dark, filled with intrigue, mystery, plotting, conspiring, evil spirits, curses, you name it. At times I thought I might hate Lilith, but at others I absolutely loved her. Sometimes the bad guys turned out to be good guys, sometimes the good ones turned bad. The plot was very full. This isn’t the type of novel with a single plotline running from beginning to end. Side stories were followed, lesser characters were developed to wonderful depth, and I found myself falling headfirst into this world.
I want to note another aspect of James’ writing technique beyond just the dialect. His written technique is beautifully constructed, almost formally perfect. He weaves his constructions around and around, frequently repeating the line, “Every negro walk in a circle. Take that and make of it what you will.” He has put a lot of thought into what he is writing and where it goes. You don’t always see that and it doesn’t necessarily require such thoughtful form to make a great novel, but it does add a great degree of aesthetic pleasure to the reading when such a beautiful form exists.
By the time I had worked my way through the novel, I loved it. Really loved it. I loved Lilith. I would read this again and maybe even again still. I will reiterate the warnings one more time, however, to be aware of the potential challenges in reading 430 pages in dialect and also in the very brutal imagery this novel contains, but if you can get past those things, read this novel! Great stuff.
Keep reading!
Sarah
Ancient Intrigue
Ok, add Michelle Moran to my list of favorite authors! I loved these books! I read two of her books back-to-back, and since they are related, I am going to treat them together in this post. Here they are:
Titles: Nefertiti
The Heretic Queen
Author: Michelle Moran
Publisher: Three Rivers Press
Dates: 2007, 2008 respectively
My reading dates (Nefertiti): 6/7/10-6/11/10
My reading dates (The Heretic Queen): 6/12/10-6/13/10
Moran has great talent in taking the skeleton of a true story and fleshing it out into something really special. While not much is known for certain about the great pharaohs and their families in ancient Eqypt, Moran made sure that what was available to know, she knew it. These facts made for a strong foundation and she built well upon that. If you have ever had any curiosity about ancient Egypt, Moran’s writing will take you there. Her stories are addictive, literally. From the first page I was sucked into their world and only painfully extracted again, and even that did not happen until I turned the last page and realized with what bordered on devastation that there were no more pages to read. Her writing is utterly engrossing.
One aspect of Moran’s brilliance rests with her extraordinary use of characters. Every character in both novels was stunning, however I am especially pleased with her use of Mutnodjmet as the lead in Nefertiti. I would have anticipated it to be told by Nefertiti herself, but shifting the voice to that of her sister added so much richness and depth. I adored “Mutny”. I believed her completely, cheered her on throughout the novel and actually find myself checking for the green eyed cat in real paintings from the era. All of Moran's characters, or at least the vast majority, are in fact real, historical figures. So looking for them in paintings is only a little crazy. :-) Equally strong was Moran’s lead character of Nefertari in the second novel. Although Moran connects the two in that Nefertari is depicted here as Mutny’s daughter, a thought which is possible and even probable, but impossible to know for sure, this relationship in no ways leads to characters that are overly similar. The two are sufficiently different and in fact, they could theoretically be read independently without affecting the reading of the second, although I strongly recommend reading them in proper order for a richer reading.
Not only are the characters independent, but the stories are unique and completely full unto themselves as well. In fact, I really shouldn’t be bunching them into one blog, but this way I get to talk about how much I like Moran’s work as a whole. While the first novel takes one on a thrilling ride of intrigue and jealousy, while putting emphasis on the special bond between sisters and family, the second novel’s lead character is an orphan and has no family on which to focus. The second reminded me strongly in its early chapters of Arthur Golden’s Memoirs of a Geisha, actually.
Anyway, I can’t say enough good things about these two books and I have absolutely no bad things to say, so I will just stop here. I will add though that I have an incredible urge now to watch The Mummy. Hmm, maybe I will. :-)
Keep reading!
Sarah
Titles: Nefertiti
The Heretic Queen
Author: Michelle Moran
Publisher: Three Rivers Press
Dates: 2007, 2008 respectively
My reading dates (Nefertiti): 6/7/10-6/11/10
My reading dates (The Heretic Queen): 6/12/10-6/13/10
Moran has great talent in taking the skeleton of a true story and fleshing it out into something really special. While not much is known for certain about the great pharaohs and their families in ancient Eqypt, Moran made sure that what was available to know, she knew it. These facts made for a strong foundation and she built well upon that. If you have ever had any curiosity about ancient Egypt, Moran’s writing will take you there. Her stories are addictive, literally. From the first page I was sucked into their world and only painfully extracted again, and even that did not happen until I turned the last page and realized with what bordered on devastation that there were no more pages to read. Her writing is utterly engrossing.
One aspect of Moran’s brilliance rests with her extraordinary use of characters. Every character in both novels was stunning, however I am especially pleased with her use of Mutnodjmet as the lead in Nefertiti. I would have anticipated it to be told by Nefertiti herself, but shifting the voice to that of her sister added so much richness and depth. I adored “Mutny”. I believed her completely, cheered her on throughout the novel and actually find myself checking for the green eyed cat in real paintings from the era. All of Moran's characters, or at least the vast majority, are in fact real, historical figures. So looking for them in paintings is only a little crazy. :-) Equally strong was Moran’s lead character of Nefertari in the second novel. Although Moran connects the two in that Nefertari is depicted here as Mutny’s daughter, a thought which is possible and even probable, but impossible to know for sure, this relationship in no ways leads to characters that are overly similar. The two are sufficiently different and in fact, they could theoretically be read independently without affecting the reading of the second, although I strongly recommend reading them in proper order for a richer reading.
Not only are the characters independent, but the stories are unique and completely full unto themselves as well. In fact, I really shouldn’t be bunching them into one blog, but this way I get to talk about how much I like Moran’s work as a whole. While the first novel takes one on a thrilling ride of intrigue and jealousy, while putting emphasis on the special bond between sisters and family, the second novel’s lead character is an orphan and has no family on which to focus. The second reminded me strongly in its early chapters of Arthur Golden’s Memoirs of a Geisha, actually.
Anyway, I can’t say enough good things about these two books and I have absolutely no bad things to say, so I will just stop here. I will add though that I have an incredible urge now to watch The Mummy. Hmm, maybe I will. :-)
Keep reading!
Sarah
Monday, June 14, 2010
Future Development?
Being proud of my Seattle local, I once again grabbed a book based on a Seattle location. So let’s see what I can say about it. Stats:
Title: Good Things
Author: Mia King
Publisher: Berkley Books
Date: 2006
My start date: 6/3/10
My finish date: 6/7/10
Honestly, I am not sure how I feel about this novel. In some ways I loved it. In others… Hmmm. Well, to start with, much like my experience with Patterson’s Alex Cross series, I don’t know that I would really fall into the target audience. The things I didn’t like were subtle and could easily be attributed to that. But let me see if I can put a more exact finger on what I did and didn’t like.
I had a hard time liking the main character. We had very little in common. Beyond that, I just didn’t like her for some reason. She was high-maintenance, a serious neat freak (which I am NOT) and overall pretty selfish. Her development was only minimal it seemed. So it is hard to really get into a novel when you don’t love the character. However, this problem in particular could be connected to what I mentioned above about perhaps not being the author’s intended audience.
The other thing I should mention is a little trickier. The book is classified as straight up a fiction novel. At parts, however, it borders on needing to be re-categorized as romance. Now, there is nothing wrong with romance novels, but generally you should know that you are reading one. While her plot is far more developed and present than a lot of traditional romance novels would be, at times she, umm, shifts into that genre. Traditional mainstream novels will approach a sex scene and then subtly “cut to morning” or otherwise give you a couple of minimal details about the encounter. Of course, I am generalizing here, but obviously, I have read a few novels, and trust me, this is generally the case. King, however, prefers to give you the whole scene. In vivid detail. Every. Move. This kind of scene is much more common in a romance novel than in a mainstream novel. As I said, there is certainly a place in the market for romance novels, it is simply that usually, when you read a romance novel you know what you are getting. These scenes seemed out of place. As I said, the rest of the novel would not necessarily fit in the romance genre, so I think my problem is mostly with the feeling of disconnect. This book doesn’t really fit comfortably in either genre.
Now having mentioned those things, I have to admit that I really did enjoy the book. There was a good plot there that with a few tweaks could have been really great. To my knowledge, this was King’s debut novel and I think she has good growth potential. I feel like I will probably try her works again. She has a sequel this novel out, as well as another novel set in Hawaii, where she lives. Having gotten her feet wet with this novel, I think she might have grown into her next works and am curious to check it out. We shall see.
Ok, I must admit one other feature that I loved in this book. Since her main character is supposed to be a culinary whiz and food plays a rather large role in the books, King has a tradition of including recipes in the back of each book. All of the dishes and drinks mentioned significantly in the story can be made in your own home from the recipes provided. I am a sucker for books with recipes. I don’t know why, considering I can’t and generally don’t cook, but nevertheless, I get excited about the presence of recipes every time. Maybe I think that one day one of these books will prove to be the key to a sudden shift to culinary brilliance. Who knows. Whatever the reason, I like it.
So we will just have to wait and see what else King has in store for us.
In the meantime,
Keep reading!
Sarah
Title: Good Things
Author: Mia King
Publisher: Berkley Books
Date: 2006
My start date: 6/3/10
My finish date: 6/7/10
Honestly, I am not sure how I feel about this novel. In some ways I loved it. In others… Hmmm. Well, to start with, much like my experience with Patterson’s Alex Cross series, I don’t know that I would really fall into the target audience. The things I didn’t like were subtle and could easily be attributed to that. But let me see if I can put a more exact finger on what I did and didn’t like.
I had a hard time liking the main character. We had very little in common. Beyond that, I just didn’t like her for some reason. She was high-maintenance, a serious neat freak (which I am NOT) and overall pretty selfish. Her development was only minimal it seemed. So it is hard to really get into a novel when you don’t love the character. However, this problem in particular could be connected to what I mentioned above about perhaps not being the author’s intended audience.
The other thing I should mention is a little trickier. The book is classified as straight up a fiction novel. At parts, however, it borders on needing to be re-categorized as romance. Now, there is nothing wrong with romance novels, but generally you should know that you are reading one. While her plot is far more developed and present than a lot of traditional romance novels would be, at times she, umm, shifts into that genre. Traditional mainstream novels will approach a sex scene and then subtly “cut to morning” or otherwise give you a couple of minimal details about the encounter. Of course, I am generalizing here, but obviously, I have read a few novels, and trust me, this is generally the case. King, however, prefers to give you the whole scene. In vivid detail. Every. Move. This kind of scene is much more common in a romance novel than in a mainstream novel. As I said, there is certainly a place in the market for romance novels, it is simply that usually, when you read a romance novel you know what you are getting. These scenes seemed out of place. As I said, the rest of the novel would not necessarily fit in the romance genre, so I think my problem is mostly with the feeling of disconnect. This book doesn’t really fit comfortably in either genre.
Now having mentioned those things, I have to admit that I really did enjoy the book. There was a good plot there that with a few tweaks could have been really great. To my knowledge, this was King’s debut novel and I think she has good growth potential. I feel like I will probably try her works again. She has a sequel this novel out, as well as another novel set in Hawaii, where she lives. Having gotten her feet wet with this novel, I think she might have grown into her next works and am curious to check it out. We shall see.
Ok, I must admit one other feature that I loved in this book. Since her main character is supposed to be a culinary whiz and food plays a rather large role in the books, King has a tradition of including recipes in the back of each book. All of the dishes and drinks mentioned significantly in the story can be made in your own home from the recipes provided. I am a sucker for books with recipes. I don’t know why, considering I can’t and generally don’t cook, but nevertheless, I get excited about the presence of recipes every time. Maybe I think that one day one of these books will prove to be the key to a sudden shift to culinary brilliance. Who knows. Whatever the reason, I like it.
So we will just have to wait and see what else King has in store for us.
In the meantime,
Keep reading!
Sarah
The First Lady. No, seriously!
As you already know from my post about Marek Halter’s excellent novel, Sarah, I enjoy fictional depictions of the lives of well-known biblical (or historical, for that matter) figures. So I have returned to that category for my next read and was, once again, not let down. Here are the stats:
Title: Eve
Author: Elissa Elliott
Publisher: Bantam Books
Date: 2009
My start date: 5/5/10
My finish date: 5/30/10
So, you might be looking at those dates, noticing that this is the longest I have ever taken on a book, and wondering what is going on here. Don’t read anything into it. As I mentioned in my opening post, sometimes things just get really busy and I can’t read when I would like. This was honestly an excellent debut novel for Elliott and I would gladly read more by her.
Now, that being said, there were some challenges with this novel. Elliott took on a huge task when deciding to fictionalize the life of someone whom many around the world believe to be the very first woman ever. How can we, as modern readers, even comprehend how that would work? Elliott handles these challenges beautifully for the most part. However, if you are one of those types who will get easily offended when an author has to take a little bit of authorial license that might not jive with your reading of the religious texts, then move along to something else. I, however, think she does a great job handling questions that we all have if we really think about it. For example, when Cain is banished in the religious texts, he mentions fear that other people might hunt him. Yet if these were the first and only people created yet, which people is he fearing? Elliott handles this by speculating that, while they may have been the first creations, perhaps they weren’t they only creations and moves a village of “others” in down the street. This is just one of many examples of skillfully filling out a story that has a lot of holes, but if this offends you, like I said, it might not be your cup of tea.
There were a couple of aspects that I found uncomfortable, some which are inevitable and my fault, others which might have been smoother. In her story, in addition to Cain and Able, Adam and Eve have several other children of varying ages. The older children are constantly vying for the attentions of their siblings of the opposite sex, trying to decide with whom they will settle as mates. I often blanched at this aspect of the novel because they were siblings! However, if you are the only people as far as you know…of course you are going to marry your sister. This is no reflection on something Elliott could or should have done differently, but I did feel weird every time the siblings flirted. Just my modern day mentality at play!
Also, the story is told from several perspectives. At times the story is told by Eve, at others it is told by each of her three daughters. Eve and her middle daughter, Aya, tell their stories in the first person, while the other two daughters’ stories are told in third person. Despite the fact that each chapter is labeled with the name of who is telling that chapter, at times it got confusing. Perhaps there were too many perspectives or perhaps I was just tired. This was complicated by big shifts in time. One chapter would be in the “present” time of the story and then suddenly the story jumped into various points in the past, ranging from the times in The Garden through to times well into the future. When combined with the shifting perspectives, sometimes I got confused about what is when and where they are. Having finished the novel, I am not sure I would change the approach, but do be aware that it can get confusing.
Overall, I found the novel fascinating. Who hasn’t wondered what life would have been like in Eden or what it might have been like being the first family? Religious texts don’t give us much to go on and history leaves a lot of blanks. Elliott uses rich, descriptive writing to move a treasured origins legend from the distant and mythological realm into a place where we can understand and even identify with these mysterious figures. For a debut novel, I am impressed and look forward to seeing what else Elliott can do.
That’s it for now!
Keep Reading!
Sarah
Title: Eve
Author: Elissa Elliott
Publisher: Bantam Books
Date: 2009
My start date: 5/5/10
My finish date: 5/30/10
So, you might be looking at those dates, noticing that this is the longest I have ever taken on a book, and wondering what is going on here. Don’t read anything into it. As I mentioned in my opening post, sometimes things just get really busy and I can’t read when I would like. This was honestly an excellent debut novel for Elliott and I would gladly read more by her.
Now, that being said, there were some challenges with this novel. Elliott took on a huge task when deciding to fictionalize the life of someone whom many around the world believe to be the very first woman ever. How can we, as modern readers, even comprehend how that would work? Elliott handles these challenges beautifully for the most part. However, if you are one of those types who will get easily offended when an author has to take a little bit of authorial license that might not jive with your reading of the religious texts, then move along to something else. I, however, think she does a great job handling questions that we all have if we really think about it. For example, when Cain is banished in the religious texts, he mentions fear that other people might hunt him. Yet if these were the first and only people created yet, which people is he fearing? Elliott handles this by speculating that, while they may have been the first creations, perhaps they weren’t they only creations and moves a village of “others” in down the street. This is just one of many examples of skillfully filling out a story that has a lot of holes, but if this offends you, like I said, it might not be your cup of tea.
There were a couple of aspects that I found uncomfortable, some which are inevitable and my fault, others which might have been smoother. In her story, in addition to Cain and Able, Adam and Eve have several other children of varying ages. The older children are constantly vying for the attentions of their siblings of the opposite sex, trying to decide with whom they will settle as mates. I often blanched at this aspect of the novel because they were siblings! However, if you are the only people as far as you know…of course you are going to marry your sister. This is no reflection on something Elliott could or should have done differently, but I did feel weird every time the siblings flirted. Just my modern day mentality at play!
Also, the story is told from several perspectives. At times the story is told by Eve, at others it is told by each of her three daughters. Eve and her middle daughter, Aya, tell their stories in the first person, while the other two daughters’ stories are told in third person. Despite the fact that each chapter is labeled with the name of who is telling that chapter, at times it got confusing. Perhaps there were too many perspectives or perhaps I was just tired. This was complicated by big shifts in time. One chapter would be in the “present” time of the story and then suddenly the story jumped into various points in the past, ranging from the times in The Garden through to times well into the future. When combined with the shifting perspectives, sometimes I got confused about what is when and where they are. Having finished the novel, I am not sure I would change the approach, but do be aware that it can get confusing.
Overall, I found the novel fascinating. Who hasn’t wondered what life would have been like in Eden or what it might have been like being the first family? Religious texts don’t give us much to go on and history leaves a lot of blanks. Elliott uses rich, descriptive writing to move a treasured origins legend from the distant and mythological realm into a place where we can understand and even identify with these mysterious figures. For a debut novel, I am impressed and look forward to seeing what else Elliott can do.
That’s it for now!
Keep Reading!
Sarah
Modern Mystery
Don’t you just love it when a favorite author puts out a new book and you had no idea there was even one coming? I got that pleasure this spring. A couple of years back I picked up a fun looking book by a new author, C.A. Belmond. I was mostly attracted to the book because it looked light-hearted and took place in Europe. I was pleasantly surprised with what I got. Belmond takes the romance of the 1920s and the classical mystery novel and wraps them delightfully in tasteful modern chicklit. A year later I was surprised and delighted to see a sequel. Belmond had another winner. So you can imagine my happiness when I stumbled upon yet another in this series. Let’s see the stats:
Title: A Rather Charming Invitation
Author: C.A. Belmond
Publisher: New American Library
Date: 2010
My start date: 5/1/10
My finish date: 5/5/10
So, while this post is specifically addressing the most recent addition to this series, a lot of the characteristics about which I want to talk are standard to the series and are what make the whole series worth reading. Getting too much into the specifics of this one will bring me dangerously close to plot giveaways, which we know I try to avoid.
Now, no matter if you are a fan of history or not, there is no denying that certain eras in history had a certain elegance that simply doesn’t exist anymore. Belmond recaptures this. Her setting is modern day Europe. However, thanks to an inheritance from a beloved great-aunt, the series’ main character, Penny Nichols (yep, you heard right, Penny Nichols, and yes, the character does realize the irony of her name) spends a lot of her time wrapped up in the remnants of her aunt’s jazzy 20s and 30s life. This series is filled with elegant beach villas, old classic cars and wood-lined yachts from a bygone era. You can’t help but find this period romance fun.
In regards to the genre title of “mystery”, I will admit, that is not my usual style. And that is not really what is going on in this series. Not in the true sense anyway. This is much more whimsical and light. There is a mystery in each novel, usually involving something that has been stolen. Penny and the series’ other main character, Jeremy, must track down the item and are inevitably swept up in a glamorous world in the process. However, these are a far cry from the cheesy thriller mysteries that usually populate the genre. I would consider this more playful suspense. With a twist of light romance and a side of great characters.
In that line of thought, Belmond must be complimented on her characters. I love Penny and Jeremy. And while some of the extended characters can border on cartoonish stereotypes, that is actually what makes it so fun. It almost gives the series its old-fashioned feel perhaps. Further, Belmond can set a scene like no other. Her details are impeccable and her settings make you wish you could steal Penny’s life and live it yourself. Basically, it is good, clean fun all around.
One final note. They say you should never judge a book by its cover. And I concur. Authors have little or no control over what goes onto the cover of novels, so often the cover can have nothing to do with what is inside. However, in this case, I love these covers! They clearly put thought into them and coordinate them well, because each novel in the series features a cover with a fun little painting of one of the novel’s settings that is pretty accurate to the author’s descriptions. They are light, pastel, and just invite you right in.
Anyway, this is a perfect read for anytime in the year, but for those of you looking for a perfect beach read, look no further. I will, however, request or suggest that you read them in order. They do build on each other and you really need the background from each of the previous novels to really appreciate the next one.
So, go enjoy and in the meantime, keep reading!
Sarah
Title: A Rather Charming Invitation
Author: C.A. Belmond
Publisher: New American Library
Date: 2010
My start date: 5/1/10
My finish date: 5/5/10
So, while this post is specifically addressing the most recent addition to this series, a lot of the characteristics about which I want to talk are standard to the series and are what make the whole series worth reading. Getting too much into the specifics of this one will bring me dangerously close to plot giveaways, which we know I try to avoid.
Now, no matter if you are a fan of history or not, there is no denying that certain eras in history had a certain elegance that simply doesn’t exist anymore. Belmond recaptures this. Her setting is modern day Europe. However, thanks to an inheritance from a beloved great-aunt, the series’ main character, Penny Nichols (yep, you heard right, Penny Nichols, and yes, the character does realize the irony of her name) spends a lot of her time wrapped up in the remnants of her aunt’s jazzy 20s and 30s life. This series is filled with elegant beach villas, old classic cars and wood-lined yachts from a bygone era. You can’t help but find this period romance fun.
In regards to the genre title of “mystery”, I will admit, that is not my usual style. And that is not really what is going on in this series. Not in the true sense anyway. This is much more whimsical and light. There is a mystery in each novel, usually involving something that has been stolen. Penny and the series’ other main character, Jeremy, must track down the item and are inevitably swept up in a glamorous world in the process. However, these are a far cry from the cheesy thriller mysteries that usually populate the genre. I would consider this more playful suspense. With a twist of light romance and a side of great characters.
In that line of thought, Belmond must be complimented on her characters. I love Penny and Jeremy. And while some of the extended characters can border on cartoonish stereotypes, that is actually what makes it so fun. It almost gives the series its old-fashioned feel perhaps. Further, Belmond can set a scene like no other. Her details are impeccable and her settings make you wish you could steal Penny’s life and live it yourself. Basically, it is good, clean fun all around.
One final note. They say you should never judge a book by its cover. And I concur. Authors have little or no control over what goes onto the cover of novels, so often the cover can have nothing to do with what is inside. However, in this case, I love these covers! They clearly put thought into them and coordinate them well, because each novel in the series features a cover with a fun little painting of one of the novel’s settings that is pretty accurate to the author’s descriptions. They are light, pastel, and just invite you right in.
Anyway, this is a perfect read for anytime in the year, but for those of you looking for a perfect beach read, look no further. I will, however, request or suggest that you read them in order. They do build on each other and you really need the background from each of the previous novels to really appreciate the next one.
So, go enjoy and in the meantime, keep reading!
Sarah
Summer is Here!!
Well, the papers are behind me, the classes are over, and none of the reading is required. Nothing but blissful, fun reading as far as the eye can see. I do have a few actual obligations, but now is the time to check back often for new postings. Look for about five really quickly here as I post what I didn’t get too during the end of the quarter and the end of the school year. Bring on the beach reads!
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