CROSS BONES by KATHY REICHS

CROSS BONES

BY KATHY REICHS

THE BLURB:-

An orthodox Jew is found shot dead in Montreal, the mutilated body barely recognizable.

Extreme heat has accelerated decomposition, and made it virtually impossible to determine the bullet trajectory.

But just as forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan is attempting to make sense of the fracture patterning, a mysterious stranger slips her a photograph of a skeleton, assuring her it holds the key to the victim's death.

The trail of clues leads all the way to the Holy Land where, together with detective Andrew Ryan, Tempe makes a startling discovery- but the further Tempe probes into the identity of the ancient skeleton, the more she seems to be putting herself in danger...

THE REALITY:-

This was The-One-That-Got-Away... It was the only Kathy Reichs Temperance Brennan novel that I hadn't read the whole way through and that's because when I first gave it a go, about eleven years ago, I had to put it down as it started to drag and, although the hardback remained in my collection for some time, I could never bring myself to pick it up again. It actually put me off the Temperance Brennan series- after being given Deja Dead, the first of its ilk, I then couldn't wait to read the novels and bought them in hardback fresh after their release. But it was some four years before I resumed reading the paperback versions of the series. I wanted to give this one another try, though, so when I saw it sitting in a charity shop...

I'm glad I did! I remembered the jist of the story but not the finer points and found this gripping and easy to read, if a bit heavy with technical details- at times you do have to concentrate on the text. I found the part where I had previously given up and it's around chapter 34, 388 pages in. The talk of the occupants of the Jesus tomb just got too damn confusing and a bit dreary. But this time I ploughed through and it led to a cracker of an end. Inconclusive? A bit, but not disappointing. It was possibly the only way this novel could have ended.

The characters were a good mix and well described and I loved the locations of Montreal and the Holy Land. Reichs really made the culture, customs and everyday lives of the latters' occupants come to life.

I'm very glad that Tempe's relationship with Andrew Ryan is in full swing in this book. I love the details surrounding her private life and think that she and Ryan are meant for each other. This book has been likened to The Da Vinci Code and called a “lukewarm” version.  Now there's another book I put down and gave away. My ex-partner found it on a skip (lots of good things can be found in skips!) and gave it to me, but I read about half a dozen pages then left it alone, despite its absolutely fantastic reviews. It's another novel I will look out for on my charity shop trawls...

AFFINITY by SARAH WATERS

AFFINITY

BY SARAH WATERS

THE BLURB:-

'Now you know why you are drawn to me- why your flesh comes creeping to mine and what it comes for. Let it creep.'

From the dark heart of a Victorian prison, disgraced spiritualist Selina Dawes waves an enigmatic spell. Is she a fraud or a prodigy? By the time it all begins to matter, you'll find yourself desperately wanting to believe in magic.

THE REALITY:-

Yawn.. This novel really knew how to draw itself out. After 30 pages I put it to one side and read another book from start to finish. I picked up the thread quite easily, but I could not really get into this story until about page 100.  Even then, I found myself surreptitiously looking to check what page I was on- and therefore how many I had left to go!

I've read Tipping The Velvet (very good), Fingersmith (very good), The Nightwatch (good but drawn out and tedious) and The Little Stranger (okay) by the same author and have seen the television adaptations of the first three. I have to say that these stories come across a lot better on TV than on paper. I'm all for descriptiveness and getting into the minds of the characters but this author can certainly make things drag a bit.

I loved the subject matter and have always believed in ghosts. Why? Not just because I have seen one (a very well-documented grey lady in a haunted hotel in Norfolk) but because I like to keep an open mind about such things and there are too many recorded sightings of ghosts to dismiss the matter completely. I know the Victorians found the supernatural fascinating and I also know that there were a lot of fraudsters about who took advantage of such things. The London location of a grim female prison was enthralling and the characters interesting; Selina being one hell of an enigmatic, talented actress...

I could see the fact that (spoiler alert!) Margaret was going to be defrauded coming and that would have been true had I not previously read a review of this book that revealed one of the protagonists. I suspected that this villain (or maybe villain's puppet?) of the piece was in cahoots with someone in Margaret's house but I didn't work out that these two people were actually one and the same, and now I've read the novel it seems so obvious.

It wasn't until page 329 (23 pages from the end!) that the book started to get really enthralling, which was, unfortunately a bit too long a wait. I also felt very daft in missing the fact that not all the prison officers were going to be as white as snow and as honest as the day is long- in retrospect it is something stupidly obvious to overlook!

A word to the author- find another adjective other than queer. I saw it used so many times that I was tempted to highlight the “queers” and count them later. Fortunately, a search online revealed that that task had already been done and forty uses of queer in one novel is way too much. We know that you're a lesbian and we don't care, so please give the double-entendre references a rest.

WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN by LIONEL SHRIVER

WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN

BY LIONEL SHRIVER

THE BLURB:-

Shortly before his sixteenth birthday, Kevin Khatchadourian kills seven of his fellow high-school students, a cafeteria worker and a teacher. He is visited in prison by his mother, Eva, who narrates in a series of letters to her estranged husband, Franklin, the story of Kevin's upbringing. For this powerful, shocking novel, Lionel Shriver was awarded the Orange Prize for fiction.

THE REALITY:-

Uurrgghh!! I was so glad when I finished this novel! Why? Was it awful? No, it was bloody brilliant but the subject matter was too horrific for words.

I must confess, I have already seen the film of the same name, so I knew the story, so certain aspects that are meant to come as a surprise at the end, things regarding Franklin and Celia, did not. I described the film as “powerful and disturbing” (incidentally, great acting performances across the board) and the book is also the same. In places, I did find it almost too detailed (I'm a hypocrite, I know, as my work is also very in-depth and I tend to prefer this approach to heavily edited work) and too much about psycho-babble, but I suppose that is the whole point of the novel- to try to get inside Eva's and Kevin's heads.

Nature or nurture? I think at least 90-95% nature, if not more. As one of the other mothers of an incarcerated teen put it (affect a southern USA accent), 'Some kids just damned mean.' Was Eva's failure to bond with her son from day one her fault? No. I don't think so. In many ways, even as a newborn, Kevin seemed to repel her rather than the other way round and it must be difficult to continually have to try and express love to someone who doesn't seem to want it and who rejects you quite nastily. In any other relationship a human being will walk (though to be honest, I'm surprised Eva didn't- she must have been tempted to have this little shit thrown into the care system.)

A very, very exemplary novel. Worth a read but be warned- it will give you nightmares.

CORAL COTTON COAT...

The weather turned from warm(ish) and sunny to cool and cloudy whilst I was in Great Yarmouth recently, and I was wandering around the town centre wearing just a skimpy top and a light cardi...

So I was pleased to see this lovely coral cotton coat, standing outside a charity shop, on a dummy...

It was a bit big for me but belted at the waist so it was very easy to make it fit and I love the pleated rever detail.  And for £6, who's complaining?!

I bought it and wore it there and then- although I usually like to wash second hand finds, it had been outside airing and beggers can't be choosers.

I think the shop was called Great Yarmouth Against Animal Cruelty and when I stepped inside it was packed to the rafters with stuff, including some very nice gowns, a couple of them quite gothic.

But I'm soooo glad the coat was standing outside the shop- the inside smelled of mangy wet dogs foisting on damp nylon carpets.  Yuk! 

THE SILENT TIDE by RACHEL HORE

THE SILENT TIDE

BY RACHEL HORE

THE BLURB:-

London, the present day: Emily Gordon has found her dream job, as an editor at a small publishing house. When the biography of a late great English novelist crosses her desk, she discovers, buried beneath the history, a story that simply has to be told...

London, 1948: Isabel Barber has barely arrived in the city when a chance meeting leads to a job offer, and a fascinating career beckons. But as she develops a close working relationship with a charismatic young debut novelist the professional soon becomes personal, and she finds herself fighting for her very survival...

THE REALITY:-

This book was totally un-putdownable and it was a real race for me to get to the end, to find out how Isabel's story unfolded.

I don't suppose it was that uncommon for a young woman to feel thwarted when it came to her professional ambitions- after all, the 1950s were a man's world and a woman was supposed to give up any chance of a (hard won) career and devote her life to her husband and children after her marriage. Domestic life is not for everyone and it was interesting to read of Isabel's post-natal depression and her inability to adapt to her new role as a mother. The end result, though (I shan't spoil the surprise!) was totally unexpected and made for a couple of great final chapters.

The modern day story of Emily was also interesting, although it didn't touch me like Isabel's tale- but then I suppose that's exactly what the author wanted.

It's with hindsight that I wished that I'd worked in the field of publishing and had learnt a lot about the business before embarking on my own novel. I feel I would have fitted in there (although this is only a thought based upon speculation, not fact) in a way that I did not in the fashion industry. I was unlucky. It was partly my fault, as I did not choose my undergraduate course with care but even with the benefit of hindsight, I do not see what else I could have done. Although I like designing dresses, I noticed that the industry was made up of wall-to-wall idiot, and it was the tutors that were offending me rather than the students. My first job in fashion, at a semi-bankrupt company with very low morale, did not do anything to change my opinion, rather instead enhancing it. I saw how people took themselves and the making of garments too seriously and I cannot get my tits in a knot over a few shitty little dresses!!!!  End of. But had I have worked with the written word, I do believe that I'd have been motivated to do such things as overtime and actually enjoy it, as so much of the work involves reading- one of the great loves of my life, along with writing. Ah well, hindsight is twenty twenty vision, so they say.  Let's hope I find some joy with my first novel. SOON.

This book was a pure dream to read and enchanted me from the very beginning. Its main locations of London and Suffolk during the stark, post-war years came alive, personally helped along by my own passion about the choices of professions of the main characters. All of the other characters were well thought out, especially Jacqueline. You start off by hating her, this cuckoo in the nest, but you end up feeling quite sorry for her. Even a tough old boot like her couldn't control the workings of other people's heartstrings. Like Emily, I kind of agree with Isabel's gut instinct regarding her suspicions of Jacqueline's too-close involvement with her husband, but it was quite clever that this fact was never confirmed- instead the reader is left to make his or her own decision  I also warmed towards Penenlope, a woman who did things her way (although she was far from perfect) and on her terms and was lucky enough to have the financial back-up to be able to do so.  There were many little twists and turns in this book and they all came together and interlaced very easily indeed.  From a historical point of view I liked how the floods of 1953 were documented in a way personal to Isabel. Extremely likeable and readable.  

THE MEMORY GARDEN by RACHEL HORE

THE MEMORY GARDEN

BY RACHEL HORE

THE BLURB:-

Magical Cornwall, a lost garden, a love story from long ago...

Lamorna Cove- a tiny bay in Cornwall, picturesque, unspoilt. A hundred years ago it was the haunt of a colony of artists. Today, Mel Pentreath hopes it is a place where she can escape the pain of her mother's death and a broken love affair, and gradually put her life back together.

Renting a cottage in the enchanting but overgrown grounds of Merryn Hall, Mel embraces her new surroundings and offers to help her landlord, Patrick Winterton, restore the garden. Soon she is daring to believe her life can be rebuilt. Then Patrick finds some old paintings in an attic, and as he and Mel investigate the identity of the artist, they are drawn into an extraordinary tale of illicit passion and thwarted ambition from a century ago, a tale that resonates in their own lives. But how long can Mel's idyll last before reality breaks in and everything is devastated?

THE REALITY:-

Rachel Hore is a novelist whose works I can't resist reading. She is one of a distinguished group of only a few, for me. That group also includes Kate Morton (I've read all but one of hers), Judith Lennox (I've read most of hers) and the Kathy Reichs Temperance Brennan series (I've read all but one of those.) Katherine Webb is another author who will also, at some point, reach that distinction, as will Lisa Jewell and Maggie O' Farrell.

I have always longed to visit Cornwall, this almost ethereal, haunted part of England, which is often referred to as, “the oldest part of Britain.” I might just do so, later in the year (I have a holiday in Norfolk to get through first!)

This novel takes you out into a dream world of relaxed bucolic life and historical, abandoned buildings and gardens. The descriptives regarding the characters and the interest involving the time-slip element of the novel, and the way the characters entwine together is really magical. I also like that Rachel Hore offers up a variety of persona types in her novels and, generally speaking, a feel-good happy ending. The Memory Garden certainly evoked pathos... of school holidays and lazy summer days (although the book starts in Spring and the main characters all have work to do!)

The one thing that grated was the fact that the majority of the characters are all middle class with well paid jobs. In these difficult times where myself (and many others) are struggling, this distance from the realities of life does tend to get annoying but it's me who's got the problem, not the author.

I'm glad that the identity of the artist P.T. was discovered but I sometimes wanted to shake Mel and Patrick, both of whom seemed way too absorbed with their miserable recent pasts. They needed to move on, and much faster (or am I being too harsh? You read the book and tell me for yourselves.) I also hated Patrick's ex fiancée, the manipulative cow that was Bella- another middle class twit who appeared to have spent her life living on Easy Street. This little bitch wanted to have her cake and eat it and I'm glad the author gave her the sheep's face that she deserved.

A great read, showing England at its nicest- it would be fantastic to take on a British summer holiday.

THE UGLY SISTER by JANE FALLON

THE UGLY SISTER

BY JANE FALLON

THE BLURB:-

Beauty can be a blessing or a curse. As Abi would be the first to know. She has spent her life in the shadow of her stunningly beautiful, glamorous older sister Cleo.

Headhunted as a model when she was sixteen, Cleo has been all but lost to Abi for the last twenty years, with only a fleeting visit or brief email to connect them. So when Abi is invited to spend the summer with her sister's perfect family, she can't bring herself to say no. Maybe Cleo is finally as keen as Abi to regain the closeness they shared in their youth?

But Abi is in for a shock. Soon she is left caring for her two young, bored and very spoilt nieces and handsome, unhappy brother-in-law Jon...while Cleo plainly has other things on her mind. As Abi moves into her sister's life, a cuckoo in the nest, she wrestles with uncomfortable feelings.

Could having beauty, wealth and fame lead to more unhappiness than not having them? Who in the family really is the ugly sister?

THE REALITY:-

Drab. Drear. A mission to finish. "Skeletons" by the same author, was great, but this story did not really do it for me and seemed to run on....and on....and on....

It did, however, bring up some interesting and personal dilemmas. Is blood thicker than water? No, no, fucking NO! In my experience it most certainly is not, although there are many in that small, shitty fucking town that I grew up in who would disagree, as family values and unity seemed to stand way above everything else in importance there. I suppose you could say that I empathized with this book as I wasn't the favourite child in my family either (or so it seemed) although I take that as a compliment. I personally had a brother with a learning disability (not diagnosed until AFTER my parents' deaths) and I kind of got the impression that it was my responsibility to befriend him, deal with him and bring him out of his shell, even though he was over ten years older than me. Note to my parents from this side of the grave:- bring up your children yourself, and stop trying to palm those you can't be bothered with off onto other people.

Rant over. At school I studied drama at O level and we had to keep drama diaries about the lesson, and I always used them as an excuse to go in depth on a related, personal subject, as I am doing now. But this is my blog, so I can!

Cleo is definitely the ugly sister in this book and will sadly end up very alone. She's used and rejected her sister and, in general, uses people. And not very nicely either. She will meet all of those she abused on the way up, on the way down, and that's something she's currently finding out. The characters were all very believable, but being the devil that I am, I would have loved to have seen Abi get together with Jon. The story gave a good descriptive with regard to the Primrose Hill area of London and there was the odd twist in the tale with- spoiler alert- Jon and Abi's infatuation with each other and also the discovery that Richard was indeed very shallow. I also loved Abi's down-to-earth daughter, Phoebe, who found Cleo very transparent and saw her for what she really was.  I'm also glad that Cleo's spoilt children developed as better human beings under Abi's coaxing.  But the story dragged and dragged towards a very insignificant and nondescript ending. Hardly blockbuster material.