Book Review: The Clarity (Keith Thomas)

I don’t often read science fiction but I am a sucker for a medical thriller so when #cjsreads decided to read Clarity, by Keith Thomas, I was on board. Experimentation, conspiracies, past lives and “night doctors” collide to create a fast paced, action packed novel. Truly, I loved the concept but, in the end, I struggled with the execution.

Let me explain.

The novel opens with the introduction of several different characters including Matilda, a psychologist who specializes in memories and Ashanique, an eleven-year-old girl who has violent and traumatic memories of being in WWI. Right away, I was hooked. The “past lives phenomenon” thread moving throughout the plot was extremely interesting. I don’t know how I feel about this issue, or if I believe in it, but reading about it was fascinating! Especially the little bits of medical jargon and lectures that Matilda’s character brings to the plot.

However, what started to irk me with this novel was the delivery. For starters, several things had me a little bit confused. It took me a long time to figure out who each character was (once I understood the role of everyone it was fine) but it took about 30% of the plot for me to be able to identify the main character and the sub characters and acknowledge their roles. And, for me, after about 30% of the book completed, I wanted to be able to settle in and enjoy the story instead of trying to navigate characters.

Overall, an interesting and compelling read for conspiracy and sci-fi fans; perhaps I wasn’t the right reader!

2.5/5 stars.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for a digital copy of this novel; it was my pleasure to provide an honest review.

We read The Clarity for a #cjsreads pick; want to see what Jessica and Chandra thought of this one?  Keep reading to see!

Book Review: Rolling in the Deep/Into the Drowning Deep (Mira Grant)

I am a creature of habit, what can I say? I am continuously drawn to the same types of books with the same types of antagonists. I read serial killer thrillers and psychological thrillers by the bagful and relish in their twisty plots and realistic horror. So, imagine my surprise when one of the knockout books of the year for me came from Mira Grant and featured killer mermaids.

That’s right people. Killer. Mermaids.

Who knew?!

Chelsea (from The Suspense Is Thrilling Me) actually recommended this book and, I have to admit, I was a little hesitant to pick it up. I don’t generally read a lot of fantasy or science fiction and the premise of the book sort of seemed like a happy marriage of the two. As per Chelsea’s suggestions, I started with the novella prequel, Rolling in the Deep (am I the only one who reads this book title and instantly starts singing the song by Adele?) and, after a crazy time, I was finally able to obtain a copy (Thanks, Chandra!).

The prequel, Rolling in the Deep, opens with the introduction of Imagine Film Company, known for their “mockumentary” style films, as they head out into the great blue sea to create a film about mermaids.   As the ship sets out to create their “found footage” and “eyewitness accounts” for their film, the cast and crew find themselves in grave danger when they actually do discover something in the water. This only took me about an hour to read and I was completely hooked, I continuously messaged Chelsea as I was reading to comment on how REAL it felt. Although I knew I was reading a work of fiction, Grant does an amazing job with her narrative style of making you question your own logic. By the time I was finished, I was more than ready to jump into the first, full novel in the series.

Enter, Into the Drowning Deep. This novel can absolutely be read without having read the prequel (but I do think the prequel does an amazing job at setting the tone). The story opens seven years after the Atargatis was lost at sea and a new crew has been assembled to head back to the Marianas Trench to get to the bottom of the maritime tragedy (or hoax, to others).  This book was just as brilliant as its prequel. Fast-paced, intricately written and filled with chilling prose, I was on the edge of my seat and recommending this book to everyone who would listen!

I will not go into any true details because I do feel like you’d have to read it to appreciate it, but, I am pleased with the open-ended finale that leads me to believe that Grant will be providing me with another book in the series (please!!).

If you are looking for something different to add to your TBR pile, do not be turned off by the randomness of the plot, just trust Mira Grant and dive on it. You will not be disappointed.

5/5 stars.

Thanks to the publisher, the author and Netgalley for a digital copy of this novel.  It was my pleasure to provide an honest review.

Book Review: Gather the Daughters (Jennie Melamed)

When I first read the synopsis for Gather the Daughters, the debut novel by Jennie Melamed, I was instantly intrigued. I am a sucker for anything that surrounds a cult or had any cult vibes, so, based on other reviews, I figured this would be right up my alley. Although this novel ended up being quite different from what I was expecting when I began, I ended up really enjoying Gather the Daughters.

Set on an isolated island, where ten men and their families built a society of controlled breeding and domination. Taking part in ritualistic behaviour, the daughters of the island take part in scenarios that drag them from adolescence into adulthood before their teenage years are over. However, after one daughter sees something she cannot forget, she must share it with the others and suffer the consequences. Told in alternating chapters between different daughters of the island, this dark debut will leave you disturbed and bewildered.

The first thing that stuck out to me was the tone of the novel. This one read like a mix between Lord of the Flies and the Handmaid’s Tale. I thought this was really interesting. The language choice of Melamed makes it feel like a classic and, due to the content of the novel, I felt like this was a really smart choice. It made the time period of the novel feel ambiguous and, I feel, it added another layer of unrest and eeriness to the text.

Book Review: The Dark Net (Benjamin Percy) @Benjamin_Percy @HMHbooks

When I first stumbled across The Dark Net by Benjamin Percy on a list of summer releases, it jumped right up to the top of my TBR pile and became one of my most anticipated reads for August. After reading a few other novels that discussed the dark net and the secret underbelly of the web, I couldn’t wait to dive into this one and creep myself out reading about this anonymous and criminal arena.

This book ended up being 100% completely different from what I was expecting.

The novel follows several characters: a young girl, Hannah, who is blind. She is being fitted for a high-tech visual prosthetic that is supposed to help her see. There is a journalist, Lela, who stumbles across a dark story that should have been kept hidden. There is Mike Juniper, a man who runs a homeless shelter to try and make up for the sins of his past and Derek, a hacker.   This random array of people comes together to try and fight literal demons that are hiding within the web. 

Book Review: Area 62 (Michael R. Martin) @MRMartin_Author

When Colin purchases an abandoned building near his home to expand his business, he is excited at his new venture. However, after speaking to those around him, he begins to hear stories of strange occurrences that happened there years before.   As he digs deeper and deeper into the past, he begins to uncover and awaken the darkest of government secrets. Area 62 by Michael R. Martin is dark, intricate and forces the reader to throw out anything they have been told.

The general plot of the book I loved. A man entering an abandoned space, creepy things begin to happen, and he uncovers a conspiracy.  As soon as the storyline became clear, I was intrigued. UFOs creep me out. I am not sure if I believe in them but I’m not taking any chances ya know?   However, as much as I loved the UFO aspect, there was a lot that was right over my head. There were several parts that were saturated with physics and technical sci-fi elements that I found myself skimming over until I could back to the actual plot.   

Book Review: Humans Bow Down (James Patterson) @JP_Books @HBGCanada

 

In a world run by machines, humans are the endangered species. After a devastating war, the robots (known as Hu-bots) have won. Surviving humans have two options; submit or be banished. Six, a young woman, chooses the ladder and soon is a fiery rebel on the run.  With nothing to lose, and a secret weapon that could save humankind, can she unlock the secret that can save her life? Or will she be forced to bow down…forever?

Book Outside My Genre: Book Review- All Our Wrong Todays (@elanmastai @DuttonBooks)

The future that people figured in the 1950s that we’d have? It happened. In Tom Barren’s 2016, people ride around in flying cars and walk on moving sidewalks. Everyone works in laboratories and food never goes bad. Even though Tom lives in a utopia, he feels as if he cannot find his way. Through a hasty decision, Tom ends up in a time travel mishap and ends up in our 2016: the world that we know. Here, his career is different, his family is different and from his utopian background, this new reality feels like a dystopian wasteland. Torn between his desire to forge a new life in this new reality and fixing the flow of history, Tom finds himself on a search for answers to figure out what the future is truly supposed to be….