Melanie

Too tired to write a review tonight. I really enjoyed this book. Enough that I am going to look up others by these authors. Thank goodness for book club..I would NOT have chosen this myself.

I find this series to always be a page turner late into the night!

I have decided to challenge myself to read books which I own. This is frugal. This is a logical plan. The only problem...there are many “series”of books that I own some but not all of. For this reason I made an adjustment to my plan. I chose several owned books from different genres and series and decided to read those series in order until finished filling in the gaps with free library loans.

This book falls into my Mystery Series Category as I work my way through the Temperance Brennan Series. It also falls into the category of a Library Loaned “filler”.

I tell you all this because as you can see from my low star rating I did not love this book. I myself am baffled by how Luke warm my reaction was to this particular story. Whenever I react this way to a series/author that I enjoy I find myself trying to solve my own mystery. It's almost like the autopsy of a break up.

You know..the age old question...WHY?

I wondered if I rushed through the read watching my “holds” timer on other books tick down, concerned I couldn't read all my loans before the books were magically returned via the internet?

I wondered if I didn't enjoy it because the further I got into the novel the clearer it became that I had in fact read it many years ago...so maybe that's why it was predictable?

I wondered if I was just too tired, or too hot (it has been the most hot and humid summer on record where I live), or too distracted....

It couldn't possibly be that Kathy Reichs had failed me.

Alas however, I have come to a decision.

This book was not my favourite because Tempe is in danger (again) warned off by a mysterious villain (again). She accidentally falls into a mystery (again) with so many convoluted threads and connections that at times they are hard to follow (again) but ultimately forgivable because you enjoy the book (not so much this time). Then Tempe is in a truly dangerous conundrum near the end of the book (again) because she has headed off to confront a villain (again) and is miraculously rescued by a law enforcement tough guy (again) who somehow manages to save her despite herself (again)...

sigh

It pains me to say this one was redundant for me...maybe it's not Kathy it's me.

The books were not released 2 weeks apart and if I had not read them all back to back I may not have noticed or been bothered by these structural similarities.

Just an interesting read. The Documentary version (which I think I watched on Netflix) was a fun bit of rainy day TV. Easy read for interest and fun. Not a meaty book that stays with you. It is what it is.

I really enjoyed this book. It was a page turner for me. Even though there were aspects that I absolutely saw coming I remained intrigued by character development and minor plot lines. Fast paced and fun! ( As much as a crime novel can be noted as fun) I believe the main character could easily transfer well onto film or TV.

Well this wasn't my favourite novel. The first half was slow to gain momentum. I believe that the first section was a vehicle to introduce all the characters and solidify their relationships with each other. Once this section ended there was a moment of storytelling which caught my attention and I was looking forward to continuing. Unfortunately this moment was short lived and quickly followed by a back and forth description of wins and losses of battles between the Duke of York's Supporters and the crowned and mentally frail King. This became boring as these battles and skirmishes simply continued over and over along with repetitive descriptions of the kings addled state continued writings about the great love of The Duchess of Bedford and her husband Richard.
Simply too repetitive, I understand this is based on true events which cannot be changed. It was difficult subject matter to portray in an interesting fashion.

Dry, dry, dry! I wanted to like this book I really really did want to. I guess I am a history nerd but I have loved anything ancient history, Greece, Rome, Egypt etc since I was only around 8 years old. I just couldn't enjoy this novel. I tried to think of it as a text book and still...could not force myself through excruciatingly detailed accounts of minutia with no apparent reason for their inclusion. Below is a quote from another GoodReads review by Elizabeth:

...“I also found boring the detailed accounts of the Ptolemies' intermarriages, of the ruthless executions of family members in line of succession, and of the conflict brought on by the Macedonia ancestry of the Ptolemies, including Cleopatra, simply because there are other sources for this.”...

You are correct Elizabeth. Such accounts had me studying the backs of my eyelids instead of the written page.

I need to give this one some thought. I may bump it up to 4 stars. This novel was like an elegant meal from a new culture while on vacation....enjoyable, interesting, different .... But you walk away not sure if you would like to try that again...it needs some time to settle.

Fun read. Great for summer

Sorry, wanted to like this one but just could not get into it. In truth I so disliked this particular read that I did not finish it. There are just too many good books out there that I want to get my hands on.

Sorry just didn't love this book. Dark for darkness sake. Seemed contrived and unbelievable to me.

This was much better than I expected. I have listened to a few of these audible originals and not been impressed. I am actually interested in listening to future “winter” stories if they are written. Give this one a chance.

A fun quick read that I truly enjoyed. I have been looking for something like the Oh so popular “One for the Money” Series by Janet Evanovich. This is not exactly that but does remind me a bit of that style of writing. Something that needs to be solved along with quirky family dynamics and maybe a touch of light romcom. Enjoyable from page to page. Good book for fun while learning a bit about a culture you may know very little about too.

Just arrived home after seeing this book come to life at the Stratford Theatre.
Extremely moving story, timeless and heart wrenching.
Anne would have been 86 this year had she survived the war.
Seeing this as an adult I was stunned at how well written her diary is.
She would most certainly have become a prolific author.

Call this series a guilty pleasure perhaps, but I really enjoyed this book. Granted it was a summer read. However, the book captivated my attention and was a quick page turner. Put this one in the fun category for mystery lovers with paranormal twists.

This is a Norton Anthology. As such I suppose I should mark it as a 5 star read. Well of course in accuracy and information and organization a 5 star rating would clearlyapply. The question I ask myself is did I enjoy the read? Well on my “enjoy-ability” scale I can think of many other books. For that reason only a 4 star. As a text book....5 star all the way. Please understand the fun factor I placed within this review.

This classic novel is full of imagery and themes for discussion. I think one reason it continues to endure as a school literature staple is that for students just entering the analytical world of literature the connections and themes painted within this novel are rich and easily identified. The author is a master of painting a visual picture. I was a sucker for the Robert Redford Film and it is one of the few novels I read as a student that came to life on the screen in a way that was much as I had imagined.
I lowered my rating to 3 stars because at the same time I felt like I wanted more. It felt like the characters were almost caricatures of the era, or perhaps props used as vessels to tell the store of the themes of class and privilege and money and power and appearance upon the glitzy backdrop of a by gone era. Lessons to learn within this novel I understand but I would rather have been taught them by more deeply developed characters.

Thank you to the GR Giveaway organizers for a copy of the book. I really wanted to read this novel. I'm left with the sense that it is truly a NOVEL. a piece of literature. There were things about the story that made me feel uncomfortable and at times I didn't “enjoy” the read, however it is not a summer beach novel. It is a book which is extremely well written and the author spent great time pacing out the ebb and flow of information and description. His descriptions paint the cove and isolation of Eastern Canada in your minds eye brilliantly. As you read the novel it is easy to imagine this tine and place. You are capable through the writing to envision how this novel would look in visual format. For that alone perhaps I should rate it 5 stars. Perhaps in tome I will up my rating. Today I will leave it at 4 stars based solely on my personal bias that I felt the pacing a bit too slow and I was not always driven to pick it up and finish. In truth however I wonder if that has more to do with my coming recently from summer reading where action and pace are the driving narrative of quickly inhaled paperbacks.
I believe this book will stand the test of time and I will return to it again for a second reading.

I liked the concept. Kept me intrigued, enjoyed reading with my pre-teens..but didn't leave me desperate for more pages. So...3✨

It was so wonderful to have won a copy of this book. Thank you for the opportunity to read and review a book I may otherwise have not known about. What a fast paced and interesting read. They say sometimes truth is stranger than fiction, well I guess in the case of this authors tale some people may believe that statement wholly true. In the end it is a story of triumph. The author was forced into this situation and it has shaped her life path. An interesting read.

Well I love this author. I believe this may be his first book but I'm far too tired right now to double check. Throughout the novel I could envision everything. What a talent to have the ability to paint such detailed pictures, characters and intricate storylines with words. My criticism comes from this strength. At times the momentum was bogged down by lengthy antidotes and descriptors. Some areas of the book needed this for reference of importance later and some areas could have been shortened. The overall product became a bit too long and began to drag. We get it...the ex girlfriend is a tortured soul with complicated motives. As readers we did not need that point belaboured.
But despite those negatives what a tale Mr. Ile's weaves. I cannot believe a movie about Natchez and Penn Cage has yet to be written and I look forward to picking up the next book in this series.

One of those books from “childhood”. How can I not rate the whole series of books at least 4 stars? As a young teen this was the series that followed Judy Blumes “Are you there God? It's me Margaret”. It was a scandalous thriller of a read that was covertly read under the covers with a flashlight. These tattered books were passed between my group of friends on early mornings at furtive meetings in the school yard. Ah, contraband! It made the thrill of the read that much more delicious. Shakespeare it is not., however VC Andrews represented a certain phenomenon of our generation. For nostalgia alone it ranks high. The series sparked my love of the thriller and certainly had us all reading.

Very insightful with new information that gives hope. Although I do understand that perhaps it is not a “wide market” sale item and therefore supply and demand may require a higher price than the average book. The price still appeared restrictive and a bit baffling to me.

I read this book when I was in University. I do not remember it as a favourite. I remember being very upset with the ending (which I won't share here). I see that it is being read in one of my GR books which led me to write this review. For now I will leave my review at 3 stars, it was a ponderous read, with so many side stories and too much pathos...(now that was my 19 y.o. Stressed out Uni self review)....sometime this year I hope to read this again with 20 more years of life under my belt....I think my opinions of this classic will change. I'm looking forward to reading this with older eyes.

I will possibly write a thoughtful review at a later date. For now I am torn regarding how the novel concludes. I don't know what I wanted exactly in an ending, but I'm not sure it was this. For this reason I drop a 5 star novel to a 4 star review. I am likely to change my mind. I read this book ravenously, hungering for the next page..the next tidbit of information. At times I empathized with the parents and then equally with the nanny. In due measure also angered by all three. There are layers to this book. Cultural, social, historical layers which I felt I saw whizzing past like landscapes seen from the passengers viewpoint of a speeding train. The speeding train was of course my own pace of reading as I flew through the story. I need to really think about this book. I am glad I have read it and feel sure I will read this author again. For now it is a novel I know I must ponder. I must take time to settle my thoughts and emotions, however I feel sure it is a book I will be telling others to read as my emotional response to it cannot be denied.