Wilkie Collins A brief Life
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As good as Mr. Ackroyd is at Collins life he really shines when discussing his art. He not only points out Collins artistic skills, which were prodigious, but his compassion for the underdogs and afflicted of Victorian society, and how the author went out of his way to shine a light upon them, and often featured them in his works in a way that was realistic and fair. In the end, where Wilkie Collins: A Brief Life succeeds best is in doing what literary biographies should do; make you want to experience the work if you have not before, and make you want to re-read it if you have. Now I am going to go dig up my copy of The Moonstone, if you don’t mind. You should do the same.
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Knight Moves
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***** 5 out of 5 stars
Review by: Stacy Palm Let's be honest, sometimes it is the greatest fun to get completely lost in a fictional fantasy that is a quick and easy romp into our imagination. These books don't have to be great works of literature. They are here for our pleasure and enjoyment, and I'm honestly a bit tired of people suggesting that you can't give a "best book" label to a romance. Well, guess what? I once more, fell in love with a time-traveling romance, and I'm not ashamed to admit it. The second installment to the Merriweather Sisters Time Travel Romance, Knight Moves, was even better than the first! I loved this book, and I loved the first book. This is a short and sweet novel that I was able to finish in a couple of hours, and I think that is awesome. Some times you need a sweet short read for the middle for a lazy Sunday afternoon and you don't want to be trapped in a slogging tomb of literary precision that requires more brainpower than an average work day (I'm looking at you Fates and Furies.) |
Knight Moves doesn't require a lot of information, a woman travels back in time to find her sister and true love. Sounds simple enough, but I enjoyed this book so much that I did not set it down once. The author has a true talent and gift for telling a story that keeps you riveted to the page. At no time did I want to leave my imaginary blissfully happy bubble, and that tells me that this was as perfect of a book as it could be. I highly recommend this book if you are a true romantic at heart.
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Salvage
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**** 4 out of 5 stars
Review by: Mark Palm I knew someone who died in a diving accident. They were exploring a sunken ship and got lost and ran out of air. Personally I cannot imagine a scarier way to go, so Salvage by Duncan Ralston gave me the heebie-jeebies from the beginning. Thirty years before the rural Canadian town of Peace Falls has been flooded to build a hydroelectric dam, and remains beneath Chapel Lake. The mysterious disappearance of the town’s Pastor, along with many of the church’s parishioners is still haunting the new community of Chapel Lake. The novel opens with Owen Sadler attending his younger sister Lori’s funeral, who drowned while scuba diving in Chapel Lake. Needless to say he is upset and depressed, and begins to question his sanity after seeing his sister’s ghost. So he decides to go to Chapel Lake and look into her death. He stays at the cabin where she did, and discovers a series of journal entries that she seemingly left for him, hinting that she was there trying to solve the mystery of Owen’s early life. It turns out that Owen’s father, about whom his mother never spoke, was from Chapel Lake, and Owen was born there. Owen decides to begin looking into his past, which includes diving into the same lake that took his sister’s life. He meets several townsfolk, and begins to piece together his life and his sister’s death. |
The only complaint I had with Salvage is a small one, and it is with Owen. In the beginning of the novel he is depressed, and Mr. Ralston shows us a very accurate portrait of someone suffering from this malady, but it makes the beginning of the book somewhat slow and ponderous. As the story unfolds Owen’s character begins to change and open up, and the pace picks up quite a bit. By the end of the story the revelations come quicker and quicker, and for me, the pages turned in the same way. There are a lot of mysteries to be solve, and Mr. Ralston does it in a way that is believable yet scary. So if you like good horror novels, (and who doesn't by the way) then read Salvage. You won’t be sorry. You may not want to go scuba diving again, however.
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Now that She's Gone
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*** 3 out of 5 stars
Review by: Mark Palm To paraphrase none other than myself, if there were as many serial killers as there are writers writing about them, I would probably rarely leave the house. I guess that I should be glad that not all of them are as scary as Hannibal Lecter, but in the case of this book, Now That She’s Gone, by Gregg Olsen, I would have liked a bit more terror than I got. Notorious serial killer Brenda Nevins seduces Warden Jamie Thomas, then uses her to escape from prison, then, unsurprisingly, abuses the crap out of her while pondering how to get revenge on our main characters Forensic Pathologist Birdy Waterman and Detective Kendall Stark. Stark is busy with this case, and worried about her marriage when a cable television show called “Spirit Hunters”, featuring a vindictive psychic, Pandora, and a washed-up macho detective, Wyatt Ogilvie, are filming an episode about the girl’s case, and the Sheriff’s department wants Kendall to appear on it. Naturally everything that can go wrong does, as Pandora and Wyatt manage to annoy everyone in sight, except Katy’s mother, who finds them believable, and Kendall finds herself working on the girl’s case as well. Before long, lives and reputations are ruined and bodies begin dropping like flies. |
Now I appreciate Mr.Olson’s effort in using a cast that is mainly women, but not too much is done with that. Brenda just does not have what it takes to be a compelling villain, (maybe because there has never really been a female serial killer), and Kendall and Birdy are such neutral characters that they really didn’t hold my interest. Most of the other characters are fairly one-dimensional and unsurprising, so the fact that they are women doesn't make a palpable difference.
Mr. Olsen’s prose was solid and transparent, which is a good thing, as I have said before, and the plot had enough twists and turns to keep me off balance, but the uninspiring characters muffled the shock factor. Now That She’s Gone is the second book in a series but I had no problem in keeping up as Mr. Olsen knows how to deliver information without devolving into digressions. The ending to this book came a little quickly, and in another sense, didn’t come at all. The story didn't end so much as it just stopped, which is not so surprising because a sequel is planned. So I guess I am stuck on a cliff for a little while longer.
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An Evil Mind
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*** 3 out of 5 Stars
Review by: Mark Palm Current FBI statistics state that there is somewhere between 35 to 50 serial killers active at any given time in the United States. You can believe these stats or not, but if you were to judge by thriller novels there is a whole lot more than that. I have read several excellent novels the past few years featuring serial killers, so it can be done, but their very ubiquity of the concept means that writers have to have a fresh take if they want to go down that road. An Evil Mind by Chris Carter is a good thriller, but it isn’t quite original enough to be considered a real standout. A traffic accident leads to the discovery of two severed heads in the trunk of a car. Robert Hunter, a detective for the Los Angeles Ultra Violent Crime Group, and a excellent criminal profiler, is asked by the FBI to aid them in this case, because the accused will only speak with Robert Hunter. It turns out that the man, named Lucien Folter, was Hunter’s room-mate at college. After this revelation most of the rest of the book is a series of interrogations between Hunter and Folter, with Agent Courtney Taylor along for the ride. There are plenty of twists and turns in Folter’s story, but for long stretches all we get are conversations between the three, with Hunter determinedly not reacting. |
About half way through the pace picks up a bit when Folter reveals that he has a live hostage hidden away who will die unless they acquiesce to his his demands. It adds a bit more tension to the story but it’s a device that has been used a lot before. There’s a lot of quid pro quo going on, and Folter spends an inordinate amount of time trying to get under everyone’s skin as his stories of his murders becomes more and more monstrous and gruesome. There are some genuine thrills and chills along the way but Folter’s explanation of his “mission” an attempt to create an “encyclopedia of evil”, strains credulity. Still, the plot picks up speed when the action does, and the characters start to do more than sit around and talk. Near the end he manages to get the investigators to accede to a ton of his demands, and they make some big mistakes, but the finale is satisfying and surprising.
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Wolf Winter
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**** 4 out of 5 stars
Review by: Mark Palm Some books are made for summer, and some for winter. If there was ever a novel that was made for a cold, snowy night it is Wolf Winter, by Cecilia Ekback. I live in Texas, and even down here you could feel chills coming off of this book. In 1717 Maija, her husband Paavo, and her daughters Frederika and Dorotea have recently arrived in Swedish Lapland after leaving Finland. They have a farm at the base of a foreboding mountain, Blackasen. While herding goats Fredericka discovers the mutilated body of one of their neighbors, Eriksson. The authorities attribute his death to wolves, but Maija is certain his injuries were caused by a man with a sword. Slowly Maija is drawn into the mystery of the man’s death, the fate of his widow, and a series of tragedies that have occurred on the mountain. Meanwhile Fredericka is drawn to the mountain by a spirit that no-one else can see. As the “wolf winter” (the most harsh that anyone can remember) begins, Paavo leaves to look for work. Majia must keep her family safe in harrowing conditions while trying to solve the mysteries that threaten to turn her neighbors against her. She receives assistance from Olaus, the local priest, and some nearby Lapps, but for the most part it is Maija and her daughters who have to fight for their very lives. |
The plot takes a while to gain some traction, but once it did, I was hooked. Maija is a wonderful character, strong and smart and compassionate, and her relationship with Olaus is surprising and touching. Both her daughters are well-drawn, as are most of the characters in the book. I particularly enjoy the roles of the women in Wolf Winter. Against the tide of the times they are the backbone of the story, along with the weather.
In a modern world we often forget what a potent force nature is, but in this book every aspect of the character’s lives are affected by it, and and Ms. Ekback is at her formidable best in describing it. if you had told me that I would be reading a really good thriller about a Female Finnish farmer is the 1700’s I would have thought that you were crazy, but Ms Ekback pulls it off. If you give it sometime this story will get to you, so I would suggest hot chocolate, or some good strong coffee while you read this powerful novel. It might almost make you warm.
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worlds of Ink & Shadow:
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2016 TOP PICK SELECTION
Release Date: January 5, 2016 ***** 5 out of 5 stars Review by: Stacy Palm I did not intend to start the new year off with a TOP PICK SELECTION, but when you pick up a book and do not put it down until it is finished...Well, that's a clear sign that the book is a good one. Worlds of Ink and Shadow: A Novel of the Brontes by Lena Coakley is a truly captivating romp through the mind of a writer. This is labeled a Young Adult Novel, but I would argue that this book is quite appropriate for readers of all ages. This is the fictional tale of the Bronte siblings, and before you ask, no you do not need to be familiar with any of the books written by Anne, Emily, Charlotte, or their brother Branwell. The book also features in context their sisters Maria and Elizabeth who passed away at a very young age, and their father. This is a brilliant story about imagination. The children have discovered a way of entering the worlds they create in their writing, but not all of the children know how to enter. While young Charlotte and Branwell spend their hours building their worlds and acting out scenes with their created characters, Emily and Anne are left at home and only brought along occasionally. As you can imagine this spawns some jealousy and Emily sets out to find her own way in to her imagined world. |
This story was so delightful in that the lives these children are living both in the real world and in their creations is beautifully etched out in detail for us by the author. What could be a very simple parson's home is actually rather filled with life and discovery; questions of morality and honesty, friendship and sibling rivalry. I was as wrapped up in this story as if I had been transported into the children's world along with them.
It was a breath-taking fictional, but emotional journey through the imagined childhood of these literary classical writers. |
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Undertow
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**** 4 out of 5 stars
Review by: Stacy Palm I really do enjoy reading "Young Adult" books. I'm not sure if it is because the drama of that age, the heightened emotion, or simply the art of characters finding their footing in the world. Because I enjoy them I tend to not only read them, but find myself at the library's YA section frequently and may even eves drop from time to time on the conversations of bookish teens surrounding me. I try not to think so much about their point of view while reading these books, as I enjoy getting lost in my own mind, but I consider their perspective once I've finished a book. Undertow is a considerably readable book. It has a pace that draws you in at the beginning and keeps you riveted to the story without giving away too much too soon. This is an important quality in a book for me because no one wants to know what's going on right from the get-go. I like to ponder options, question where the writer is taking us, and get excited by the possibility of going somewhere new. The author does a fantastic job of making the unbelievable, believable. She weaves together a story about a young girl who moves to Cape Cod under mysterious circumstances, and in no time at all she is surrounded by a few good friends and a troubling undercurrent of things lying under the surface that start to become part of her new reality. |
I liked the cast of characters, particularly MJ and Ann, who add a bit of sullen humor to this book. Raef as the leading love interest was a bit of a throw-away for me. He didn't seem to have as much depth as I wanted him to for the history that his character provides to the story. The one thing I can truly say that I was slightly disappointed in by this book was that the whole time that the mystery at the center was being developed I was intrigued and mystified as to what was going on. I started thinking maybe mermaids were involved or something a bit less commercialized in a mountain of other books. So when I did find out what creatures lie beneath, I was a bit disappointed in the familiarity. However, I still thought this was a really good book and one that will be enjoyed by many.
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