Fiction

Review – Enchantments

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Masha Rasputin, and her younger sister Varya, became the wards of deposed Tsar Nickolay Romanov in 1917 shortly after her father’s mutilated body is pulled from the river. The daughter of Grigory Yefimovich Rasputin, known better as the Mad Monk Rasputin, she understands the only safe place for them is with the tsar and his family even though she would rather leave St. Petersburg to be with her mother back in Siberia. Masha and Varya leave for the imperial palace and soon find themselves under arrest with the royal family.

Hoping that Masha has inherited some of her father’s mythical healing powers, Tsarina Alexandra asks Masha to attend her son Alyosha, the tsarevich and next in line to carry on the Romanov dynasty. Sick since birth — his hemophilia is unspoken of and he is never seen in public unless healthy — Alyosha suffers from extreme loneliness and is burdened with the knowledge that he will die earlier than expected. Terrified of the slightest bump causing unseen, and unstoppable bleeding, the tsarina prays constantly for his health and will do anything she can to keep him safe, including bringing in Rasputin to heal him when necessary. While she never directly says it, she wants the same thing from Masha, who knows she cannot provide the same reassurance, or healing powers, the tsarina is looking for.

What Masha can do is tell stories and she spends her days with Alyosha telling him about her family, every detail of her father’s life, their home in Siberia, her love of horses, and they discuss what they would do if they were to escape. Alyosha knows their lives will end but doesn’t speak of this to anyone but Masha who fears he may be correct but doesn’t want to believe too strongly in his convictions. Their stories and time together become an escape, not only the loneliness they both suffer from, but from daily reminders of what little life holds for them at the moment.

If you know anything about the Romonovs, it’s a sad time for this once powerful family. The tsar no longer holds any power and the tsarina has lost herself in her religion spending her days praying for the safety of her son almost oblivious to the fact there is nothing left of their former life. The four Romanov daughters are not spoken of much but are mostly just background players filling out the tableau of characters. It’s all about Masha and Alyosha and the stories she’s telling him — her own form of healing therapy. While she doesn’t have the healing powers of her father, she can distract Alyosha and take him away from the horror that has become their lives.

Each chapter in this book is a small story tied together by the people involved. You can’t really think of this book as traditional with a beginning, middle, and end but if you take each chapter as a story of its own, it’s an intriguing book. No, things won’t tie up nice and neat but you will get the thread of story as if someone were telling you about their time with a dear friend and what they spoke about and did during their time together. It’s also a very sweet love story of two teenagers who know they have no future together but spend each day trying to forget what they can’t change. They’re in an untenable situation but they manage to seek out the only the joy they can find.

This book is aptly named. The story, while in no way linear, is a tale of love and hardship that spans years. Harrison doesn’t ignore the ghost of death hanging over everyone but manages to make the situation one of hope and a life dreamed of outside of palace walls.

In addition to this blog, I also do reviews for The Book Reporter website. The above review was done for the Book Reporter which can be found here. The book was provided to me by the publisher.

Enchantments

Kathryn Harrison

Random House

ISBN: 9781400063475

4 stars

Review – The Technologists

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Boston, 1868, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology is about to graduate its first class. Founded four years before, the school has endured the mocking of its neighboring and well-known school, Harvard University, but is coming into its own.

On a foggy night at the harbor, a terrible accident takes place resulting in the wreckage of several ships. The accident is blamed on faulty compasses, which were reported to spin wildly at the time several of the ships were pulling into port causing the catastrophe. Some individuals believe it might be the work of some strange phenomenon and others a madman. The police aren’t sure who to turn to for answers — Harvard with its gravitas or the new upstart school with the means for experimentation. When a second odd event, glass melting spontaneously in an area in downtown Boston, causes the death of a popular actress, the police turn to an esteemed Harvard professor to find the answer. However, students from the Institute of Technology also decide to investigate knowing their means of experimentation will result in a faster answer and hopefully bring calm to the city.

Marcus Mansfield, and several of his colleagues including the first female student of the Institute, re-form The Technologists, a defunct club at the school, and begin their investigation in a secret basement laboratory experimenting with every known compound to find the answers they need. Racing to put an end to the madness now griping the city, they search for a madman using technology to prey on the fears of everyone.

Rivaling investigations take place between the two schools — old Harvard with an eminent scholar at the helm ready to explain how man has brought about the accidents and the Institute of Technology ready with chemicals and formulas to counter the out of date arguments of the old university. The police aren’t sure who to turn to and finally decide on the tried and true Harvard University but find the arguments put forth aren’t stopping the bizarre occurrences. When Marcus and his friends are able to find explanations for the events, the police aren’t willing to listen. When they finally begin to understand, it may be too late to save everyone and the city from total destruction.

The geek in me loved the science in this book. The Technologists is true to its name in that regard. Marcus Mansfield, a former soldier and factory man, is an example of the old world meeting the new. He understands technology and the fears of the men who work in the shops. The idea that man has brought down the wrath of God on himself with his experimentation adds some nice tension but unfortunately, isn’t explored in much detail as the real culprit starts to come into focus.

One of the more interesting characters in the book, Ellen Swallow the first female student at the school, adds to the outdated thoughts that man with his new experiments is testing the limits of his creator by allowing a woman to study, not only among men, but science. Her steadfast mind proves she can more than hold her own among her peers though. She might take a minute to grow on you as a character but she’s definitely one of the more notable ones.

I became a fan of Pearl’s with The Dante Club. I enjoyed the way he married technology and fear in this book and think fans of his earlier works will find The Technologists an enjoyable read as well.

In addition to this blog, I also do reviews for The Book Reporter website. The above review was done for the Book Reporter which can be found here. The book was provided to me by the publisher.

The Technologists

By Matthew Pearl

Random House

ISBN: 978140006657-5

3.5 stars

Review – Lady Susan

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Lady Susan is told through letters, and through those letters, oh does Lady Susan ever get a dousing.

Lady Susan is a woman in need of a place to stay after deciding it was time for her to quit her current residence which of course was some else’s home. She finds herself a place with her in-laws, the Vernons. A recent widow looking for a new husband, she is willing and able to manipulate to get what she wants. She also needs a husband for her daughter, Fredericka, whom she describes as stubborn and unruly and who she talks badly about at every opportunity. She wants to marry off her daughter and be done with her and find herself a handsome, rich man to take care of her without the worry of an unwanted, and uncared for, daughter.

There are essentially seven characters in this book and in some way these people are all related or know each other intimately which makes the barbs being thrown all the more sharp. Yes, Lady Susan deserves every snide remark and sideways evil eye thrown her way but that, for me, is what is so fun about this book. Lady Susan goes around flirting with men, while keeping a married one on the hook, hoping to snag a good one along the way. She’s able to convince people of her virtues, and more than enough people describe her willingly as beautiful and smart. I think all the backbiting and hastily sent letters is wonderful though. Yes, you can say it’s slightly preachy on the morals side but the letters flying between family members is really entertaining.

This was an early unpublished work of Austen’s. I think I may have known that at some point but forgot it. It does have an unfinished feel about it and maybe an unedited feel as well. If you’ve read a lot of Austin, it’s easy to pick up on some of that but it was still good for me. It was included in my The Complete Works of Jane Austen which I’ve had on my Nook forever and love because when I’m feeling the need for Austen, it’s right there.

I have one book left to go and I will have officially read all of Austen’s books. It’s taken me longer than anticipated to complete this little challenge. As the number on the list of not read gets smaller, I get slower and now I’m down to one — Emma. I’ve tried to read Emma before and have never made it all the way through as she’s a character I really find annoying. After Lady Susan, I’m hoping I look at Emma as more the silly matchmaker and not the annoying, coddled child I think of her as. We shall see. We shall see.

Lady Susan from The Complete Works of Jane Austen

By Jane Austen

Douglas Editions

BN ID: 2940000816981

4 stars

Review – Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus

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There are books that make me feel very sad; Frankenstein is one of those books. It was a strangely profound sadness that for whatever reason, made me wish the book wouldn’t end because I wanted to find a morsel of light in this dark, lonely tale. It was not to happen.

Having been encouraged early on by loving, generous parents, Victor Frankenstein grows up in a happy household in Geneva surrounded by the comforts of home and family. While as a child he was mildly obsessed with old scientific theories, his father encourages him to broaden his thoughts. Right before he is to leave for school in Germany, the first of his life’s tragedies happen — his mother, a beloved figure to him, passes away after nursing his much loved adopted sister, Elizabeth, back to health. He leaves for Germany with a heavy heart. While there, he throws himself into the sciences, exceeds all his expectation with his interest in chemistry and like sciences. It’s this interest though that causes his second tragedy — the creation of a monster with parts culled from places unmentioned. When the monster escapes, his fears all become real and death follows wherever he goes. He falls into a deep depression knowing that whatever he has to do to stop the monster of his creation, he will never be happy and there will never be any solace.

This is not my first time reading this book but parts felt completely new to me. I love when this happens to me while re-reading. It’s like discovering something that you want to share with everyone. That said, Frankenstein is not an easy read. The words flow easily enough but it’s the emotional toll that got me this time. I really, truly, felt so sad while reading that at one point I burst out crying for no reason. To be affected like this by a book I’ve experienced before surprised me.

There is so much to this book but for the sake of those that don’t like spoilers, I won’t mention all that happens. There are moments when reading though that you wonder how much one person can take and if it’s fair for Frankenstein to heap all the blame on himself. While, yes, he created a monster that has crossed the line and taken life, and has held over him another life if he didn’t comply with his wishes, sometimes things in life are not meant to be. The monster is a physical manifestation for everything that has gone wrong for him. The loneliness that comes with the realization for Frankenstein made me want to put the book down. I couldn’t though because I was waiting for some kind of resolution. When it happens, it’s not satisfying at all. There is remorse, for Frankenstein, and in some way for the monster as well, but it didn’t make me feel any better. It only brings on more grief.

Now that I’ve sufficiently depressed you, let’s talk about something else. The monster has no name; he is simply the monster. Frankenstein is the scientist. Why did I need a reminder of that? Huh, the things we forget. I didn’t remember much from the first reading of this (it may well have been shortly after high school) and my memory faded. I was happy to renew it though. Of course, now each time I see a movie based on the book I’m going to be looking for mistakes.

I read this book for the Gender in SFF challenge. Glad I finally found an excuse to pick this one up again. If you like horror, fantasy, and science fiction, read this one. If you shy away from this one because you think I might be gruesome, it’s not. It’s worth a read.

Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus

By Mary Shelley

Signet Classic

ISBN: 0451527712

4.5 stars

Books & Movies – Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter

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I saw this trailer yesterday and it made me think that some books do make better movies. I read Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter last year and it was okay. My review is here if you’re interested. Oddly, this book was bought by my husband who may have been thrown off by Abraham Lincoln in the title because, as far as I know, he doesn’t read anything with vampires in it.

Here’s the trailer. Planning to see it? Have you read the book or are you planning to read the book because of the movie?

Review – The Little Stranger

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Ghost stories are wonderful things. I’ll clarify this — for the people that love them. I am one of those people. The tension, build up, agony of long held secrets finally revealed; I love it all. The promise of a ghost, or something akin to one, was the reason I read The Little Stranger. Unfortunately, for me, it was not to be a long lasting love.

Dr. Faraday once visited Hundreds Hall, a now crumbling mansion and estate, as a child. His mother, a former servant at the Hall, took him inside and he has always held on to this one shining memory. Now a country doctor, he passes by the Hall frequently on patient calls. One day he is called to the Hall to treat a sick maid and quickly becomes infatuated with the place and its owners, the Ayres. Roderick, wounded in the War, is struggling to keep Hundreds Hall afloat, his sister Caroline, a spinster proud of her current unmarried state, helps with the running of the estate but mostly entertains her mother, Mrs. Ayres. Faraday becomes obsessed not only with Hundreds Hall but with Caroline. When an incident occurs during a cocktail party and a young girl is injured, rumors about the old house and its owners start swirling. Faraday, deep in his obsession, is unable to walk away for the place or the people that inhabit it.

Creepy old house. Check. Eccentric people. Check. Unreliable narrator. Check again. All the elements were there. All the elements failed me. The malcontent that seeps from the pages was just that boring. When the events, creepy I suppose they were supposed to be, began, I didn’t look for other explanations. I sighed. It wasn’t there for me.

*Warning: this is spoilery.* I really want to talk about the narrator, Faraday. I said he was unreliable and I expect that in a ghost story. You want someone who is not quite sure what is going on. She/he doesn’t understand the history, the people, etc. That was true here too — while Faraday really wants to be one of the Ayres, he’s not — but he tries to sneak his way in. Usually I would be all right with this but he became the obsessed person content to diagnose everyone else as mentally unstable when I think he was the one to watch. Bait and switch is fine but I began to dislike Faraday intensely for what he was doing to this family. To me, he seemed to believe that his one trip there as a child qualified him to tell its owners and inhabitants what they should think and feel. One by one he sends them away. When his engagement to Caroline falls apart, he, who had been picturing himself as the new manager of Hundreds Hall, attempts to find a doctor and lawyer who will counteract him and say that Caroline is in fact not in her right mind. Really, he was just a bastard. By the end of the book I was disgusted for him and that he spent the rest of his sad days drowning in an alcohol induced sleep didn’t bother me one bit. This doesn’t happen by the way, I just wanted it to.

Now, I feel I’ve been harsh and I’m sure there are many of you out there that loved this book. Found it atmospheric. Found it a good read. I didn’t. Not that I need to state that now but my disappointment stems from the fact that I really wanted to enjoy this book and I didn’t. Unfortunately, I couldn’t accept it as anything other than a ghost story and I couldn’t appreciate the nuance.

As readers, we come across books that don’t stand up to our expectations. There was nothing wrong with this book other than my not enjoying it. It happens and it makes me wonder if I missed something in the reading but then I remind myself that I don’t need to, and will not, love every book I read. That was the case here.

Did you read it? What are your thoughts? I know there are many people out there that loved/enjoyed this book hence the adding it my list. I still plan to read Tipping the Velvet, Fingersmith or maybe Affinity. I think she does decaying aristocracy well and I want to make sure I give a fair shot to her other works.

The Little Stranger

By Sarah Waters

Riverhead Books

ISBN: 9781594484469

2.75 stars

Review – The Lantern

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I wanted to read this book the moment I heard about it. It was supposedly a take on Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca and I fully adored that book. Love, love, loved it. I waited though but read every review of it I could, spoilers and all. When I finally gave it, I read it in almost one sitting. I couldn’t put it down.

Eve, a translator working in Switzerland, falls for a man named Dom. Their whirlwind relationship lands them in Provence at a small abandoned house called St. Genévriers in the south of France. They’re in love with each other and with the little house they bought. Dom, having sold a successful business, has money and it makes for a quiet, easy life. They get lost in restoring the now run-down little hamlet to its former glory. What they didn’t count on was a devastating secret coming back to haunt them.

This book moves between the past and the present but never falters in atmosphere. The setting, strewn with lavender fields and dark secrets, is wonderfully evocative. Lawrenson drops you in those fields, describing each and every petal almost. I worried in the beginning that I would tire of her descriptions but I didn’t. Every setting comes with a tactile feeling — gritty, dust falling from a ceiling, a rough wall, the soft petals of a flower. I fell in love with it and I have a thing for French settings which I know made this an easy sell for me.

The relationship between Eve and Dom isn’t so open and easy though. Dom has a secret he refuses to share for all of Eve’s prodding. It casts a pall on their happy life which Dom seems fine with. Eve begins to harp on it and can’t let go. When everything is finally revealed, the secret, while devastating, doesn’t destroy them even if the life they thought they had has now disappeared.

An enchanting, gothic tale it is but it’s not Rebecca. I don’t think anything will live up to that book for me, and in a way, I think it’s unfair to position this book as a re-telling of that story. While a few elements will remind you of du Maurier, this isn’t the same story. When I started this book, I did remind myself on almost every page not to compare it to Rebecca and that didn’t happen past the first few chapters. The comparisons didn’t change my opinion of this book either. It was good. It stood on its own. Comparisons be damned.

The Lantern is a story of people looking to be loved and finding happiness and fulfillment in lives full of sadness. It moves at a slow pace but feels as though it has an ending and will come to some sort of resolution, happy or not. Everything is solved and the explanations are not always simple ones, but they have meaning and purpose for the characters which I can appreciate even if I felt some things were left too easily.

This was my first book of 2012 and I have to say it started my year off pretty well.

The Lantern

By Deborah Lawrenson

Harper

ISBN: 9780062049698

4 stars

Review – A Feast for Crows

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This being the fourth book in a series, there may be unintentional spoilers. I’ve done my best to keep it neutral, but you’ve been warned.

I’ve loved everything about the Song of Fire and Ice series I’ve read so far. I repeat, everything. Until I got to book four, A Feast for Crows, and my love sort of cooled. I didn’t dislike anything about this book; in fact, you’ll notice I rated it a 4 out of 5 so obviously I didn’t have any negative feelings toward it either. What I found was that I missed many of the characters which weren’t in this book and I started to feel like I wanted to push Cersei out a moon door of her own.

The Lannisters are still ruling King’s Landing but with Tyrion’s escape and Tywin’s death, their once golden grasp is now hanging by threadbare ropes.  Cersei’s son Tommen is now king and married to Margarey Tyrell, and Cersei is having a hard time dealing with the fact that’s she being run out of her own palace. Jaime, now a one-handed man, is falling into a strange despair wondering how he will retain anyone’s respect and hating his once-loved sister for her cruel words. The Iron Islands are preparing a war run, the Riverlands are war-torn, devastated, and full of outlaws, and the Eyrie is now under the rule of a sick boy. Sansa Stark, now Alayne, is still in fear for her life, but Brienne — the maid of Barth — is hoping to fulfill a promise to Lady Catleyn Stark to find her daughters. Arya Stark is learning to be no one to her own detriment, and Samwell Tarley, a rather soft and scared man of the Night’s Watch, is the only man of the Black to still act like one, terrified as he is of the prospects.

As readers of this series know, each chapter is told from the perspective of a particular character. Many of the characters I adored perished in A Storm of Swords and I felt slightly disconnected to the ones that were left, namely Cersei. She’s spiraling at full speed fueled by alcohol, desperation, and denial. It’s interesting but she’s never been a character I related to so I find her drama filled days just that boring. Jaime on the other hand (no pun intended) is on his own road to an epiphany and seems to be realizing just what a crazy witch his sister is. It’s interesting to see him show feelings for and refer to Tommen as his son, even if it is only to himself and a man with no tongue and no writing abilities. Jon Snowe is now Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch and I wanted very much to know what was going on there, especially with Stannis sequestered at the Wall with him, but we hear none of it. The most interesting story line, in my opinion, is Daenerys and we don’t see her at all.

Being the type of reader that is more attached to characters than plot, it normally doesn’t bother me when something rambles, as long as I feel it’s rambling toward some close. What A Feast for Crows rambles toward is A Dance with Dragons. This series is a sweeping epic so there will need to be filler like this — and by filler I mean stories other than the ones I want to hear will need to be told for the whole thing to come together.

While there is nothing wrong with this installment — Martin still frustrates, overwhelms, and makes you wonder — it was a slow book for me.  There is plotting and scheming to be had in abundance and no quiet moments. I know my favorites return in A Dance with Dragons which I’m looking forward to very much. I will be giving it time before I take on the fifth book though. It’s the last one for a long while.

A Feast for Crows

By George RR Martin

Random House

ISBN: 9780553900323

4 stars