Reinventing Jane

 

The Death of Jane Lawrence by Caitlin Starling

My rating: 3.75 out of 5 stars.

My Review on Goodreads

This is the kind of book where you wonder what the heck you're reading. If you don't like those kinds of books, don't read this one. If you like books where the book is a journey as much inside of the character's mind as they are about plot progression, you might like this one. I really enjoy gothic horror, so that's why I picked this up. It definitely has a gothic feel. I feel like the focus on the house really nails that, and the atmosphere the author built was so effective. But is this predictable in any way? No. It was completely unlike what I expected. For some reason, I was thinking it was going in previously tread paths of classic gothic books I've read. No, it's not at all. It's hard to say what the book is about without spoiling the experience. Honestly, I'm not sure I can explain it.

While this is far from the best book I've ever read, and there was more than one moment when I asked myself why I was still reading, I got to a point where I didn't want to put it down because I felt I had gone too far to abandon the journey. Also I became emotionally attached to Jane. She went through so much in this book, and her refusal to give up on the important goal she held made me not want to give up on the story.

I'd give it an A for atmosphere. However, I think other than Jane, the characterization is a little thin, so probably more like a B- in that area. I feel that other characters seem like game pieces that are moved around, and are in service of Jane's journey of self-discovery. The concept is really high, but I do question how well it's executed, so that gets me into a dither of how to rate this novel. I feel that as a reader, being treated to something different, and being taken on a journey is something I definitely appreciate. Lastly, was my level of overall satisfaction to consider. The narrator was good, but her way of telling the story was a bit dry. There are parts that are pretty eerie, but I think with a different delivery, I feel they could have been more scary than the were. I was so glad to finish the book because I felt worn out by trying to figure out what was going on, so that's probably not ideal I feel like you should enjoy a book and be kind of sad when it's over. Having said that, I was satisfied with the ending, and I feel rewarded that I did finish the book. So, you can see why I had trouble rating this. Ultimately, this comes down to a 3.75 star rating for me. Despite my misgivings about pacing and characterization, I really appreciate what Starling accomplished here. It takes a gothic set piece to a different arena and explores the dimensions of what a gothic horror novel can deliver.

Trigger Warnings: Body horror, medical/surgical procedure descriptions

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True Crime

The Southern Bookclub's Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix

My Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5 stars.

My Review on Goodreads

I have been hearing good things about this book for going on a year, and I made a note to read it. I had it on hold at my library for a while. I was thrilled that the audiobook became available in time for my annual October Scare Fest. Let me tell you, it was worth the read. I lived in Texas for a long time, so I am acquainted with the South. Also my mother and father's families are from the South. Growing up in Illinois, we always went "Down South" to visit relatives for vacations. While I am African American and the majority of the lead characters are not, these women felt very familiar to me. At times, it's hard to believe the author is male. He did a very good job of writing from the viewpoint of women and showing the authenticity of what it's like to be married to men who have compartmentalized their wives into very small boxes, and the ways in which these women compromise on a lot to fit into those pre-defined roles.

I think this book is a very layered story. It's a vampire story, obviously, but it also feels like a thriller as well as women's fiction. I really dislike women's fiction for the most part, but that part of the story really spoke to me. Maybe it's because I've gotten to the point as a reader that characterization is the major focus for me as a reader. I love a good action-packed, plot driven story, but if I don't care about the characters, if I don't know them or see their motivations or their journey, I don't get invested in this story. With this novel, we spend about ten years with the characters, and you get to know them so well, they feel like real people, good and bad.

Our main viewpoint is Patricia, a woman with pre-teen (maybe a little younger) children when this story begins. Patricia was a nurse who gave up her career to marry and have a family. That part of her is still an ember inside, and she feels unactualized to some degree in her current role. When the Not Quite a Bookclub comes into her life, a door opens. That's shortly before a dark force also comes into her world and brings destruction with it. Patricia finds herself in a situation that challenges her in a way she's never experienced before.

I liked Patricia a lot. Sometimes she did frustrate me and make me want to pull my hair out. But she gained my loyalty as she is a kind, decent person, who underestimates just how capable she is. While Patricia is entrenched into a world underpinned by white male patriarchy and supremacy, she has not given up her moral compass or her desire to in some way be more than that. When forced to conform, it takes something truly tragic to almost break her. But she finds she was never broken deep down. She is driven the powerful force of love.

As far as her friends, I liked them mostly, but at the same time, I did give them the side-eye as they come off as very self-serving in many ways. Their entire focus is on their family and their lives. They don't look too much outside of that and how others are suffering while they maintain their own lives. It reminded me a lot of the 2016 election. A lot of other things did too. I don't want that to take over this review, so I'll keep most of those thoughts out of this review. I may do a post on my reading blog to go more into that. Ultimately, her book club friends really show their solidarity at the crucial moment, and Patricia gains an unlikely comrade who encourages her to think outside of her own narrow experiences. It's really harrowing to think of these seemingly frail women taking on the threat they face.

Now to the supernatural aspects. Hendrix did something quite interesting here. This reads mostly as a natural story, and when the supernatural rears its head, it's enough to make your hair stand on end. There are moments that are really chilling in this book. The narrator reads so well, and builds tension beautifully. At times I had to pause the book because the tension got so high and I literally couldn't stand it and didn't feel prepared for what was next. Even though Patricia didn't quite know what was going on, she is really brave for all that. I can't believe some of the situations she's in this book and that despite all the obstacles, she was able to maintain her sanity. I honestly don't know how she got out of bed after some of these events.

The book reminded me a bit of Fright Night if it was from the perspective of a matron instead of a teenaged boy. But, it's also really distinct feeling. The time and place is so thoughtful and intricately developed. Anyone who has spent time in the South will feel familiarity as they read.

The villain is and will always be a timely one. The book touches on the way that evil can insinuate itself into the world with a smiling face and lots of money and power. It entrenches itself and plants roots to the degree that others feel they cannot divorce themselves from it, without losing everything. And it's most often the outsiders that see the truth and are able to sound the alarm. Again, reminded me of the past several years in the United States political sphere.

Wow, I am rambling with this review. I can't say this book is like any other that I've read. It felt different and in some ways, I was a little exhausted when it ended, because so much happens, and the sustained threat was a lot to deal with. The enormity of the evil that was being faced, but also how mundane it might have seemed on the surface. Oh my gosh, there are some creepy crawling scenes that really got under my skin, along with the fact that the villain preys on the most helpless of people. It's a lot to deal with. There are great humorous moments, but by the end, there is so much emotional weight to the story that it's not quite as funny. But at that point, it's not supposed to be.

I can't quite give this five stars, because there were a few things I wasn't quite fully satisfied, but it's pretty close. I'd give it 4.5 stars easily. I hope to read more from this author.

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There Was Once a Girl Who Became An Evil Queen...

 

The Evil Queen by Gena Showalter

My Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars.

My Review on Goodreads

This was an epic read. I believe this is some of Gena Showalter's best writing. I don't look down on young adult books. I just want to preface what I'm about to write by saying that. However, I feel that while there is a bit of a YA tone to the story and it's about young adults, the emotional beats and complexity of the story speak to a mature story with a very epic scope.

I have a bee in my bonnet about the movie Frozen. I think it was poorly written and has some very implausible aspects. I feel that this novel represents the potential that Frozen has. It's a villainess origin story, but it's much more than that. It's about a villainness who was never the villain, but has been cast into a roll by circumstances beyond her control.

Readers who love fairy tales and their retellings should really enjoy this book. It gives so much depth to the characters that are cast in the negative light in those tried and true tales.

Everly is such a good character. She is very layered and complex. She never comes off as evil, and in fact, my heart hurts for her because of the terrible way she's treated by others. There were points in the novel I really wanted her to go nuclear. I wanted her to make those who tormented her suffer. My heart absolutely shattered for her as she suffers loss after loss. It's completely awful what they do to her. After everything, she's the one you want to win. There's only one other person in this book that I truly valued on the same level as her, and I cannot talk about that right now. Everly was such a standout character, the others faded in comparison. I wasn't feeling her love interest at all. Through Everly's gaze, he's super hot and studly, but I hated some of the things he did to Everly. As a result, I didn't care about the romance. I just loved Everly. Of course, I want her to be happy and if that's with her love interest, great.

The worldbuilding was quite interesting. Honestly, I feel like the names of the different kingdoms were a bit silly, but it's forgivable. That aside, the different creatures/beings/species were really cool.

I listened to the audiobook and let me tell you, there were moments where this woman was too stunned to speak. This became one of those audiobooks that I couldn't turn off. I love that feeling, especially recently, when it's harder for a book to hold my interest. The narrator was really good. I appreciate when the narrator is able to capture both masculine and feminine voices in a believable fashion.

I've been a fan of Gena Showalter going on twenty years. I love her books. Like any other author, she has her high points and low points. For me, this book is one of her highest points. She put Everly through so much, but it was such a journey, and I was deeply invested the whole time. She wrote the hell out of this book. Even with the things I didn't care as much for with this story, none that takes away from the experience enough that I can't give it a richly deserved five stars. I don't know how the other books in this series will measure up.

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An Inauspicious Beginning

 

The Lions of Lucerne (Scot Harvath #1) by Brad Thor

My Rating: 2 stars out of 5 stars

My Review on Goodreads

It looks like I am in the minority on this book. I did not like it. Unfortunately, this is going to be gripe review. Sad thing is, I've had this on my list for several years, as I do love the kickass heroes. It started out okay. I actually liked the beginning, but the book got increasingly bad as it went along. I thought that Scot's decision-making was terrible. He basically bumbled his way through the whole book. While I liked that he didn't give up, I wanted him to be more thoughtful about what he did and to, I don't know, make plans, and think things through. Lord, the collateral damage in this book, whew! I really hate when the lead character's dumb decisions get other people killed. I think the only part of this book that I liked was when he dressed up in disguise.

A huge problem I had with the book was the characterization, both lead and secondary. I already mentioned my problems with Scot. He's supposed to be this super-elite Secret Service agent who was a Navy SEAL, but it's like his brain stopped working. Shouldn't he have more tactical decision-making skills than he showed in this book. I feel like Claudia was barely fleshed out, although she was definitely more intelligent than any of the other characters. She basically saved Scot's bacon multiple times in this book, which I'm here for. I feel like that and her being beautiful and constantly being hit on were her major character traits in this book. Even so, there was a sexist undertone to the book that I didn't care. You could tell that most of the characters were misogynists (I'm not including Scot).

I hated the villains. They were basically uber-violent neanderthals, and we were supposed to think they were elite and super-smart. The puppetmaster was a bit more intelligent, I suppose, but he didn't work for me as a villain either. The more I think about it, the more this reminds me of 80s action films. Don't get me wrong, I love action movies. But there were a few that were just so roided out and extremely violent, they made the whole genre look bad.

I see how highly rated this book is, and I'm sorry. I don't agree at all. By the end of this book, I was almost ready to give it 1.5 stars. I rounded up to 2. Will I continue this series? It's not at the top of my list. I think my standards are too high after Orphan X, Scarecrow and Court Gentry.

Normally, I don't rant about books this much. Once in a blue moon, I'll read a book that brings that out in me, and this one's it. Sadly, this was the first book I read this year.
Overall Rating: 2.0/5.0 stars.

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Disaster in Shining Armor

 

  The Darkest Craving (Lords of the Underworld #10) by Gena Showalter

My Rating: Five out of Five Stars

My Review on Goodreads

Oh I really liked this one. My heart wants to give it five stars, even though logically I know it's not perfect. I rated it highly because I loved Kane and Josephina together and I rooted intensely for them both. I'm a sucker for down on their luck lead characters. Kane is played as kind of a joke from the moment he's introduced into the Lord of the Underworld storyline. He's possessed by the Demon of Disaster, and every thing that could go wrong does to him. And let's just say you don't want to be too close because his bad mojo will catch you in its crosshairs. He's kind of like a walking Final Destination movie. But in this book, you really get to see how tragic his story is. My heart really hurt for Kane. I think that's why I loved him with Josephina, because she's introduced as an equally downtrodden, tragic heroine. Her family literally wants her dead and she's been on the run. She's literally begging for her death at this point because she's been taught by her family that she doesn't deserve to live. It's just awful. My heart gets sad just thinking about it. I knew I was really going to like them as a couple.

However, some truly awful, crappy stuff happens to Kane in this book. This one comes with trigger warnings. I was really shocked as a matter of fact. It goes to quite a dark place for Kane. I have a feeling that won't work for some people and I respect why. The trauma he goes through would really be a source of discomfort for some who would read this book. I would recommend avoiding it if you haven't read it and you have some issues with that content. Although Showalter doesn't go into great detail, the idea of what happens to him is very distressing, and the reader has to go through his journey of recovering from it. I definitely felt for him and wanted him to have some peace, and I wanted Disaster to leave him alone.

Josephina is like a fairy tale heroine, and that's probably why I gravitated towards her. She is a really sweet soul and anyone who wishes ill for her is a terrible person. I was really glad that she had Kane in her corner protecting her. She needed a protective knight and she found one. I loved the direction that Showalter went in this story that was quite different from the other books, and it really fit the story.

Showalter sometimes does this thing where stuff happens in her books, and it's so glossed over, I'm like 'huh?' There was a moment like that about another ongoing subplot in the story, and I didn't like it that much. It was kind of random and should have been more impactful than the way she wrote it. That's probably the main thing I didn't like about this book. Otherwise, despite the fact that this book has some really dark themes that might be distressing for some readers, I really enjoyed this book. While some might think this was a filler book in the series, I really loved this story for Kane and Josephina.

While Torin is my all-time favorite, Aeron is my second favorite, Cameo is number three, Kane is my fourth favorite of the Lords of the Underworld.

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Once Upon a Time

 

Nettle and Bone by T. Kingfisher

My Rating: Five out of Five Stars

My Review on Goodreads

This is my first book by T. Kingfisher and it won't be my last.

I love fairy tales and fairy tale retellings. I also love stories that reference fairy tales and seem to exist in that world where the logic and the happenings of fairy tales are real and exist. This book falls in that arena. While there are aspects that are very familiar from different stories I've read from the myriad of fairy tale collections I've gotten my grubby hands on, this book feels unique and distinctive.

I listened to the audiobook and I'm glad I did. The narrator is excellent. It starts out very dark and grim, and it's one of those books that you have a knot in your stomach when you read it. Then there is a shift where the humor becomes more apparent. Now, some may find such a shift in tone jarring. There are books where I have felt exactly that way, but with this book, I found it very welcoming. I think in a way, it reflects Mara's mindset. She goes from a place of unending worry and despair to a situation where hope is just there within arms reach. She goes from feeling lonely and helpless to having others who she can rely on, that care about you. I love the concept of found family in fiction, and I'm glad that in a very strange way, she found hers.

I think this book is definitely for fantasy lovers, as Kingfisher has integrated different elements, themes and tropes from the fantasy genre into this story, but it feels like a novel creation. There are so many great aspects to this book that, in the words of my grandmother, tickled me. The author has a gift for writing vivid descriptions that made reading this novel like watching a movie. I felt that same fascination I felt when I watched The Storyteller or The Arabian Nights miniseries or even Hellboy: The Golden Army and The Lord of the Rings movies. I was in an uncertain, scary but beautiful place, going on the journey with its characters. Mara is a worthy companion. She is fearful but hopeful, under-powered, but capable, naive, but knowledgeable, all the contradictions that make her a fully realized character.

I was so pleasantly surprised at the ending. I was bracing for a certain kind of conclusion, but instead, I had a smile on my face when it ended. I needed this book in my life when I read it. I can't recommend it more highly.

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Just Like in the Stories

 

Velvet Was The Night by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

My Rating: Four out of Five Stars.

My Review on Goodreads

I will admit that this one threw me a little, after reading Mexican Gothic and Gods of Jade and Shadow. Not that I want to pigeonhole an artist or writer, but this had a very different feel. This was described as a noir thriller. I struggled to find the noir aspects, but I agree it is more of a thriller than anything related to the fantastical, horrific and magical realism of the other two books. I feel like it's closer to being like a soap opera. I haven't watched telenovelas since I was young, but maybe even having a telenovela feel. Regardless, the more I listened, the more immersed in the story I became.

What I enjoy about Moreno-Garcia so much is her layered characterization. Honestly, she's not afraid to make her characters borderline unlikeable in a hyperreal way. What I mean is those ordinary traits that you see in others you know (and often in yourself) that are frankly irritating. Maite is like that. She is neurotic, self-absorbed (in a reflexive way as she's been ignored by her family), and makes a lot of poor choices. She lies very casually, and instead of doing things to better her situation, she relies on unhelpful self-defense mechanisms. She immerses herself in fantasy and what could be instead of working toward what can be. Having said that, I couldn't help rooting for her in some way. She wasn't a bad person. She just a regular person. Her POV is so essential to the story because a woman who is trying to not be bored by her life, soon realizes how safe her life was and the uncertainty that comes along with a little adventure.

Elvis, I found more likable, although some of his actions were cringeworthy. He has an underdog kind of feel that gained my positive feelings towards him. Like Maite, morally speaking, he's very gray, and he has an uneasy relationship with violence that makes him the right guy for this particular story.

It's really interesting how initially it seems so unbelievable that Elvis and Maite's paths will cross. They seem so different from each other. But they have a shared interest in music that makes them feel somewhat like kindred souls.

Going back to my thoughts about this being a telenovela, I would also add that it's historical fiction, telling the story of a turbulent time in Mexico that many would be completely unaware of it. I learned a lot about what was happening in Mexico in the 70s, and it's very fascinating and quite distressing. Although there's a fair amount of violence inherent to the story, it's not described in a graphic or lurid way. I was afraid that it would go in that direction, but fortunately it did not.

It's really hard to write this review without going into great detail, because that detail is integral to the story and it's part of the journey. While this story probably won't work for a lot of fans who are looking for the kind of speculative fiction that Moreno-Garcia excels in, it will work for those who are attracted to her rich exploration of Mexican culture and history. I absolutely appreciated that about this story. I found that with her other words, it was richly grounded in the period in which it takes place, and as such, I felt like I was observing everything as if I was part of the story.

The imagery doesn't have the same lushness of the other two books, but this is a different time and a different story. Instead, this feels like the early 70s in everyway, both the good parts, and the bad parts. The turmoil of a time of great change in which old systems are giving way to new ways of thinking and expression, and where violence is used as a tool for power to be retained.

Honestly, I don't think I would have reached for this book at all if it wasn't for the author. And at times, I wondered where it was going. But I reached a turning point where I couldn't stop listening to it. I was sucked in. While it wasn't the most thrilling book, for the most part, there was an air of low level tension that builds very nicely to the climax. Honestly, I think I'd like to see this as a movie.

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