Posted October 20, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Young Adult / 0 Comments
Title: This Dark Endeavour (Goodreads)
Author: Kenneth Oppel
Series: The Apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein #1
Published: Simon & Schuster, 2011
Pages: 304
Genres: Young Adult
My Copy: Audiobook
Buy: Amazon, Book Depository (or visit your local Indie bookstore)
Most people know my obsession with Frankenstein so I wanted to give This Dark Endeavour a go; since the author Kenneth Oppel calls this a prequel. Victor’s brother, Konrad, has fallen ill and no doctor has been able to cure him. Victor’s determination to save his brother has turned to alchemy to find the forbidden Elixir of Life and save his twin brother. With the help of his beautiful cousin Elizabeth and best friend Henry, Victor pushes the boundaries of nature and science in a treacherous search for the ingredients to help Konrad.
This is book one in The Apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein series which I believe is being made into a trilogy. My first thoughts were that a YA novel about Victor Frankenstein was never going to work, but then after a bit of a look at the book I decided to give it a go anyway. I thought maybe if his research of Frankenstein is in-depth enough and he keeps to the dark and gothic elements of the original classic it might work. I really should have stuck to my first thoughts because from the very start I hated this book.
First of all this book follows the same old paranormal young adult formula which means not so much dark and gothic elements but lots and lots to do with a love triangle. I really hate love triangles in books and this novel felt like the entire plot was centred around the love triangle. Sure, they search for the Elixir of Life but there was more to do with Victor’s feelings toward Elizabeth than the actual alchemy.
Personally I wish I never read this book, it really did nothing for the Frankenstein story and love triangles are always annoying. There is a small steampunk element in this book but that felt like the author was jumping on the bandwagon to help market this book to the readers that want Steampunk, Paranormal, Love Triangle filled Young Adult romance. If you want gothic and dark YA like I do, then this book is not for you. But if you like the idea of a romance with paranormal elements in it, then maybe give this book a go.
Posted October 18, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Literary Fiction, Science Fiction / 0 Comments
Title: Cloud Atlas (Goodreads)
Author: David Mitchell
Published: Random House, 2004
Pages: 529
Genres: Literary Fiction, Science Fiction
My Copy: Personal Copy
Buy: Amazon, Book Depository, Kindle (or visit your local Indie bookstore)
Cloud Atlas is a really difficult book to review; it starts off as a Journal circa 1850 documenting a voyage home from the Chatham Islands, then it’s a series of letters from a 1930’s English musician to a Belgian composer, then a journalist from 1975 investigating for a novel that will blow the whistle on a new nuclear power plant , a 21st century publisher is fleeing from gangsters in a movie dramatization, a dystopian future story told from genetically-engineered clone’s perspective and finally the post-apocalyptic future where technology is all wiped out. Confusing? Well this book does all come together to make Cloud Atlas a truly interesting book to read but I don’t think it worked as intended.
I think author David Mitchell is too clever for his own good in this book. The stories do all come together and he really shows off by writing each section in the best genre style to suit what is happening but he is just doing too much in this book. I feel like I’m just starting to get invested in the story of one protagonist and then Mitchell jumps to the next one without any sense of resolution. Sure he does return to each story a second time around but by then I feel like it’s too late for me.
David Mitchell really flexes his literary muscles in the book and he is a wonderful writer but there is so much happening and I never felt like he achieved what he was hoping for. I’m not sure cutting from six to three or four story arcs would have helped the book but it might have helped the reader become more invested. I particularly liked the thriller style of the investigative journalist and that gangster story line of the publisher but when their story is just getting exciting it’s all over and we have to move on to the next one.
Cloud Atlas is an interesting, clever book but this doesn’t make it a good book; I enjoyed parts of it and other parts infuriated me. I will say I’m glad to have read it before the movie adaptation is released but it’s not something I ever want to revisit again. I get that he is trying to do a novel about evolution or reincarnation; as each protagonist bares the same birth mark but that element of the book never really went anywhere. I know some people really love this book but I felt like it was too much of a show off. I’d like to read a David Mitchell book where he sticks to one genre instead of all of them.
Posted October 16, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Literary Fiction / 0 Comments
Title: Swimming Home (Goodreads)
Author: Deborah Levy
Published: Bloomsbury, 2012
Pages: 178
Genres: Literary Fiction
My Copy: ARC from Publisher
Buy: Amazon, Book Depository (or visit your local Indie bookstore)
A group of tourists holidaying in the French Riviera arrive at their summer villa only to find something floating in the swimming pool. One of them thinks it’s a bear, but it turns out to be a very naked stranger. The woman Kitty, having nowhere else to go, joins the group and ends up being a big disruption to the group in this deeply psychology dark novel.
Ok, I’ll admit that the main reason I decided to read this book was because it was short listed for the Man Booker award but let’s face it, after reading what the book was about, I thought it was my type of book. These characters are rich and the addition of a very explosive character made for a fascinating read. At times during the book I felt reminded of that 90’s psychological thriller Wild Things; there was so many unanswered questions that really helped drive this story along. Sure, it is not as twisted as that movie but the psychological aspects are there; at times there are even shades of noir coming through.
Deborah Levy does so much with such a small book; the joy of reading the book is seeing what she doesn’t say. In this aspect I think I would compare her to someone like Kafka, where what she says has so much depth and meaning that it’s really what makes this book so great. Womanising and depression maybe the catalyst but my joy came from the dark and witty elements found throughout this writing.
I’ve not read any of the other books shortlisted for this year Man Booker but I’m hoping this book wins; it has so much in it and I think winning this award would give it the exposure that this book deserves. I’m sure there are many elements of this book I might have missed but I enjoyed the book so much that I’ve already started reading through it again. A literary highlight for my reading journey this year; Swimming Home is well worth picking up.
Posted October 14, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Crime / 0 Comments
Title: Mercy (Goodreads)
Author: Jussi Adler-Olsen
Translator: Lisa Hartford
Series: Department Q #1
Published: Penguin, 2011
Pages: 512
Genres: Crime
My Copy: Personal Copy
Buy: Amazon, Book Depository (or visit your local Indie bookstore)
I often get worried when I pick up this Scandinavian crime novel but I recently read The Dinner and I thought I might try another Dutch author; turns out this was a Danish novel. Mercy is the first book in the series by Jussi Adler-Olsen which has been marketed for people that enjoy the show The Killing as well as Scandinavian Crime. I love this show so I wanted to give this book ago; well actually I picked up Disgrace and realised it was book two in the series so I thought I better read them in order. Mercy is the story of detective Mørck who has been put in charge of new department dedicated to trying to solve cold cases; one final attempt before they give up on the case completely. His first case is a missing person’s case; Merete Lynggaard vanished five years ago and everyone assumes she’s dead but will Mørck be able to solve this case?
It’s interesting to note that this book is also called The Keeper of Lost Causes in most countries, which is a subtle attempt at humour, to reflect what type of book you are getting into here. I’m not sure why Australia are marketing this book as Mercy but it works better for their marketing campaign to just draw on the success of the TV show The Killing. You have the usual elements that you’d find in a Scandinavian crime in this book; cold climate and dark disturbing themes but I think Adler-Olsen’s attempt at adding some light heartedness in to the mix really worked in his favour. It’s almost like a cross between a Scandinavian crime and a buddy cop movie; because Mørck’s assistant Assad really stole the show.
Department Q is a mixture of a hard-boiled style detective in Mørck and the light hearted, carefree assistant that oversteps his role and does whatever he thinks would be the most fun; Assad. Not only do the two characters have personality differences but the cultural differences as well lead to some entertaining reading. While Mørck is an interesting character without Assad this book would just be another boring, generic Scandinavian crime novel (no offense to those who like these novels, they are just not for me).
The crime and police procedural elements of this book are pretty standard, you have the typical hard-boiled character and the dark and twisted crime they are solving but it really was refreshing to read a book that takes the same style and puts a new spin on it. It has really worked well for Jussi Adler-Olsen and I truly can’t wait to read the next in the series. If it wasn’t for these characters this book would be a two star read; luckily I was really entertained with this one.
Posted October 12, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Classic, Western / 0 Comments
Title: True Grit (Goodreads)
Author: Charles Portis
Published: Overlook, 1968
Pages: 224
Genres: Classic, Western
My Copy: Personal Copy
Buy: Amazon, Book Depository, Kindle (or visit your local Indie bookstore)
True Grit is a classic Western novel that seems to have stood the test of time. True Grit follows fourteen-year-old Mattie Ross who sets out to avenge the shooting of her father. She hires Marshall Officer Rooster Cogburn to help her track down the killer Tom Chaney. However, most people will know this story from the John Wayne movie or the recent adaptation directed by the Coen brothers.
This book would be nothing if it wasn’t for narrator and protagonist Mattie Ross. She is a thrifty, strong minded girl that doesn’t let any of the men walk all over her. Her wit and strong personality is the driving force of this novel and you can’t help but root for her when she outsmarts or stands her ground throughout the book. This is a typical western, which means it is a tough environment and the men expect women to know their place, so when a loud mouth, bratty little girl decides to take charge then expect some personality clashes and an enjoyable read.
While Cogburn and Texas Ranger LaBoeuf are two interesting characters with very different styles of tracking down Tom Chaney, their personalities don’t really come through as well as Mattie and while she seems to like Rooster Cogburn for helping her, both men are outshined. This is a very short novel that surprisingly jams everything it needs to in fewer than two hundred pages.
Charles Portis’ writes the book masterfully; the pages are jammed pack with this adventure and this doesn’t detract from the fabulous prose. While this book sometimes feels very blunt and straightforward, I had so much fun reading about Mattie’s adventures and her commentary. I’m not much for westerns but I really did enjoy every minute of reading this book.
Posted October 11, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Historical Fiction / 0 Comments
Title: Tigers in Red Weather (Goodreads)
Author: Liza Klaussman
Published: Picador, 2012
Pages: 353
Genres: Historical Fiction
My Copy: Paperback
Buy: Amazon, Book Depository, Kindle (or visit your local Indie bookstore)
Tigers in Red Weather is a unforgettable novel of life with all its complexity and mystery. Nick and her cousin Helena grow up together in Tiger house an old family estate on an island. As they grew the world changed with them; World War II has ended and it felt like a world of possibilities. Helena leaves for Hollywood and Nick reunites with her husband after serving in the war, but everything has changed and on their trips back to Tiger house they find out just how complex life can be.
This is no ordinary story of family and growing up; apart from the emotions of life and family there is a sense of dark and sinister secrets. With the back drop of the forties to the sixties you can watch the family grow and the hidden be revealed. Brilliantly told from five perspectives, Tigers in Red Weather slowly shows you the true colours of every member of this family, building a beautiful but fragile picture of these characters.
I really loved the characters in this book; all of them had their own secrets and flaws and while they may not have the best intentions they all felt very real and oddly portrayed. The dark and underlying secrets of this family is what really stood out for me in the book; it made the characters come alive but kept a sense of mystery as I continued reading. I am reminded in part of The Great Gatsby as the characters all feel shallow and selfish but there is so much depth and beauty in each of them as the story progresses.
While on the surface this feels very much like a typical novel of family, the dark secrets really kept me engrossed and the reveal of the darkest secret was both surprising and pleasing; that little curve ball at the end really cemented my feelings towards this book. This is a debut novel by Liza Klaussman but she really shows that she is a master at her craft; especially with the literary idea of ‘show don’t tell’. Klaussman is the great-great-great granddaughter of Herman Melville but I hope that doesn’t become a label for her, because I expect to see great things from the author in the future.
Posted October 10, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Historical Fiction / 0 Comments
Title: The Colour of Milk (Goodreads)
Author: Nell Leyshon
Published: Fig Tree, 2012
Pages: 176
Genres: Historical Fiction
My Copy: eBook
Buy: Amazon, Book Depository (or visit your local Indie bookstore)
Mary is a sharp tongued fifteen year old farm girl who has a strong desire to learn how to read and write. “In this year of lord eighteen hundred and thirty one” you follow the journal of a poor and disabled girl who should have no rights going against the odds to achieve what she always wanted; the ability to read and write.
The Colour of Milk is written in a personal journal over the four seasons of a year. Mary is the youngest of four daughters living in the house of a man who really wanted sons; she cops the worst from him; his anger and frustration finds her being given to the local vicar to act as his domestic servant and care for his invalid wife. It is the vicar that she pesters to teach her to read and write and eventually he does. This book follows the growing relationship between the two as she begins to learn.
Mary is a spirited girl and her natural honesty often gets her into trouble but she is a wonderful character and the relationships with her family and the vicar, along with battling against her sex and class makes this an eccentric little book. There is a simplification and beauty to the prose of this book, and with the quirky character of the narrative, makes this pure joy to read.
I will admit it did take me a little bit to get used to, the lack of punctuation really though me off but the fact that it’s a journal of a girl learning to write I had to accept the fact that I shouldn’t expect perfection in the writing styles of a girl still learning to write. I have to say this is an adorable little book that gave me great pleasure in reading. Elegant and beautiful in a very simple way.
Posted October 8, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Science Fiction, Young Adult / 0 Comments
Title: The Age of Miracles (Goodreads)
Author: Karen Thompson Walker
Published: Simon & Schuster, 2012
Pages: 373
Genres: Science Fiction, Young Adult
My Copy: Paperback
Buy: Amazon, Book Depository (or visit your local Indie bookstore)
I know everyone seems to be reading this novel and I try not to follow the crowd, but this book sounded too good to pass up. The Age of Miracles tells the story of eleven year old Julia and her experience in a drastic change to the world that could be the start of the apocalypse. The world is slowing down and the days are getting longer, first by a few minutes and then by hours. Julia is trying to recount the events of this difficult time; both the end of the world and being a teenager.
This is a wonderful blend of a coming of age story with a back drop of a speculative novel. Amongst the chaos and people not knowing what to do, you have a Julia talking about her journey into adulthood. But does it work? Personally I would have liked to know more about the world slowing and the speculative fiction elements, but I think the blend between young adult and genre fiction was masterfully done.
My biggest problem with this book and it’s one of my literary bête noires in post apocalypse and dystopian fiction is that Karen Thompson Walker writes this book in first person past tense. This gives me a sense of knowing what will happen in the end and there is no way to build tension. But this is only a minor issue in a book like this because this more a beautiful novel of self discovery and growing up.
Karen Thompson Walker writes with such elegance and beauty that I was surprised to find this was a debut novel. Her skill of mixing YA with speculative fiction and then making it into something that I would consider literature was just done brilliantly. She has such skill of not overshadowing the coming of age elements with the chaos of the world around her. I was surprised at how fast I read this book, I was fully immersed in this book and the beauty of what I was reading I was a little sad to see it end.
I can’t recommend this book enough; Julia was a wonderful protagonist and her journey was delightful. The Age of Miracle doesn’t give you any answers but cleverly revels what is going on without forcing anything on the reader. It’s a fascination novel with really needs to be experienced firsthand. Sure the science of the slowing would be interesting to read about but it would never work in a book like this. I must admit I look forward to see what Karen Thompson Walker does next and would be interested to find a book similar to this gem.
Posted October 6, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Horror / 0 Comments
Title: The Twelve (Goodreads)
Author: Justin Cronin
Series: The Passage #2
Published: Hachette, 2012
Pages: 75
Genres: Horror
My Copy: ARC from Publisher
Buy: Amazon, Book Depository (or visit your local Indie bookstore)
I recently read The Passage this year so I was lucky I didn’t have to wait as long as everyone else for book two; The Twelve. I was privileged to win an advanced review copy so I need to be careful in reviewing this book without any spoilers. As many people would already know The Twelve continues on with the epic tale that The Passage built. This time we have a whole lot of new characters to read about as they struggle to survive in this nightmarish world of virals.
One of my biggest issues with The Passage is the same issue I’ve had with this book; which is the fact that I really struggled to keep the characters in order. Granted all the characters had a wonderful amount of depth to them but because there are so many characters, it sometimes becomes a struggle keeping up with them. I had to write a list of each character and a bit of information about them just to refer back to and remember key aspects of their story arcs. While in The Twelve the characters seem to travel more as a big group so I didn’t feel like I needed a map and little figures to move around like a war map just to keep track of everyone.
I love the post apocalyptic world the Justin Cronin has created and I found so much joy in returning to the world. He has created this wonderful world full of great characters, tension and action. But he has written these books in such literary way, which sets it apart from most Post-Apocalyptic survival novels. Although these books are bricks and too heavy to hold; they are still well worth reading.
I’m a little worried that I now have to wait till 2014 for the final book in the trilogy, The City of Mirrors. Fans of The Passage, you are in for a treat with The Twelve; just for the joy of going back to the world and continuing the story but also because there are new characters to meet. While I think this book will stand out as a standalone read, I highly recommend you start this book from the beginning. But maybe wait till 2014 so you don’t have to suffer with waiting two years for the next instalment. I hope I haven’t given anything away about the plot away, but if you have read this book already I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.
Posted October 4, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Fantasy / 0 Comments
Title: Geekomancy (Goodreads)
Author: Michael R. Underwood
Series: Geekomancy #1
Published: Pocket Stars, 2012
Pages: 255
Genres: Fantasy
My Copy: eBook
Buy: Amazon (or visit your local Indie bookstore)
I’ve never really been able to get into Fantasy too well but occasionally I find an urban fantasy novel that I really enjoy. Geekomancy tells the story of Ree who discovers that she is a Geekomancer; a human that derives supernatural powers from pop culture. One day she is a struggling screen writer work as a barista at a comic shop, the next she is discovering the town’s magical flip-side as well as her own abilities. Ree needs to help Eastwood in solving the mysterious increase of teen suicides while discovering who she is.
While this is a typical urban fanstasy novel this offers so much more; I would say a must read for any geeks out; there are many references to The Princess Bride, Buffy, Firefly, Star Wars, Dungeons & Dragons, Doctor Who, Sherlock and the list goes on and on. Many people talk about this book as a book that Kevin Smith would write if he wrote urban fantasy; while I see the homage towards Kevin Smith, I also feel like this is homage to Joss Whedon as well.
In some parts I think Michael R. Underwood did step into the realm of the cliché but overall I think this book was a fast pace geek-out and any predictability was overshadowed by the millions of pop culture references. This is the kind of book I would recommend to anyone looking for another nerdfest after finishing Ready Player One by Ernest Cline. This book would have been so much fun researching and Michael R. Underwood said he has been researching this book his whole life but let’s face it; it would be a good excuse to watch the entire series of Buffy or Sherlock again or to play some more video games like Crimson Skies.
Geekomancy had a nice balance between pop culture and urban fantasy to satisfy a reader like myself who is a little wary of reading fantasy novels. This novel is the beginning of what seems like a great series and I’m looking forward to reading the sequel. While the plot is fairly standard, what Michael R. Underwood has done with the pop culture references and blending humour and fantasy elements into this book has resulted in a fast paced enjoyable nerdfest.
