Review: Horrorstor

Horrorstor

By Grady Hendrix

Quirk Books September 2014

243 pages

Sent from the publisher for review 

Bizarre things have been happening at night at the Cleveland Orsk. The superstore can supply everything you need to furnish your home with Nordic charm. But when the employees come in for the morning shift, pieces have been moved and broken. Security cameras reveal nothing. The manager, Basil, is desperate and enlists two employees to join him in an overnight shift so they can discover what is going on. Ruth Anne seems happy to help because she loves her job. Amy, on the other hand, is not thrilled about working another shift. Her need to make rent forces her to join in. The Orsk employees could not possibly imagine what is about to happen during their overnight shift, but their lives (and the infrastructure of that store) will never be the same again...

The first thing that must be mentioned about Horrorstor is the attention paid to the book's design. The book looks like an Ikea catalog, complete with coupons, pictures and descriptions of items for purchase, and an order form to have your purchases delivered to your home. Each chapter features a dining set, sofa, or cabinet that will play a part in that section of the story.

The story itself moves at a breakneck pace. You know things can only go badly when the employees lock themselves in for the night and decide that the best course of action is to have a seance. Rest assured that this book does scary just right. There are things that go bump in the night and lots of running and escaping. On the other hand, I haven't been suffering from nightmares every night since reading it.

At the beginning, the characters seem a bit like broadly written types. Amy is belligerent and unhappy to be working a job she sees as beneath her. Basil is an uptight manager, worried about looking good to his superiors above all else. Ruth Anne is the oh-so-sweet and committed older woman. But as the night goes on, their defenses start to fall away and we see just who these people are and what lengths they will go to in order to save themselves and each other.

I read this one during daylight hours, actually before noon, because I am a big scaredy cat. If you are a braver soul than I am, you might even think about reading it after dinner! This one will definitely bring on some creepy crawly feelings. Since today is Halloween, it seems that this is the perfect night to read Horrorstor if you already have a copy. If not, pick one up and wait for a cold evening when the wind is blowing things around outside. You might want to make sure that you're not reading on a couch from Ikea though....

Happy Halloween, readers!

I read Horrorstor as a part of Readers in Peril. You can see all of the spooky books here!

Review: Divergent

Divergent

By Veronica Roth

Katherine Tegen Books February 2014

496 pages

From the library 

Beatrice Prior is a member of the Abnegation faction, which prides itself on selflessly governing their community and caring for others. Since she is sixteen, she and her peers must choose whether they stay in their own faction or join another. Tris chooses to join Dauntless, the faction charged with protecting the city. The members of Dauntless are brave and daring, traveling by jumping on and off of moving trains, climbing the tallest towers of the city, and learning to fight. Tris must pass several tests to become a full member of the Dauntless faction. She is mentally and physically stretched to the limit. But Tris has to deal with more than just the normal gauntlet of testing: she is hiding a secret. 

I did that bizarre thing where I saw the movie and then read the book. When the book and then the movie first came out, I didn't think it would be something I would like. My husband put the movie on one night and I expected to sort of half watch the movie. Instead, I found myself engaged and watched the whole thing.

Divergent looks pretty long but it is always moving. The action is consistent as Tris decides which faction to join, fights to make it through initiation, and discovers the dark side of her society. There is real fear for Tris that she could get cut from Dauntless since she is small and weak compared to many of the other initiates. While all of the action makes for some compelling reading, it also leaves a lot of holes in the reader's knowledge. We get limited information about why the society became the way that it did and it makes sense because Tris wouldn't know. A society divided into factions is the only life she has ever known. But I wonder if Tris and the reader get some more information in later books about when and why the world changed.

This book is fast-paced and has equal parts action and coming-of-age as Tris decides where she belongs and who she can trust. It can't seem to escape comparison to The Hunger Games as both series become major hits in both the bookstore and at the movie theaters. It's difficult for me to judge one book against an entire series, but I will say that Veronica Roth had an intriguing idea and I will be interested to see how it plays out in the rest of the series. 

Review: Land of Love and Drowning

Land of Love and Drowning

By Tiphanie Yanique

Riverhead July 2014

368 pages

From the library 

Sisters Anette and Eeona Bradshaw find themselves caught up in a great wave of change, both for their nation and for their family. The Virgin Islands have just been transferred to American rule and the Bradshaw family is about to change forever, as their father's closely-held secrets come to light. Land of Love and Drowning follows these two beautiful and very different sisters as they seek love, discover the power of magic, and try to outwit fate. 

If I have to summarize this book, I will say that is unlike anything I have ever read before. There were parts of the book when I felt distinctly uncomfortable and sections when I shook my head in frustration at the stubbornness or selfishness of these characters. But I couldn't stop reading.  

This book strikes the perfect balance between magic and reality. Magic permeates every aspect of this story, of their Caribbean culture, and of the family's history. The beauty of the sisters is both protection and a sign to the people around them that this family is not like everyone else. Simultaneously, the characters are dealing with the joys and sorrows of life. The men in Anette and Eeona's lives leave them behind to defend their countries, to chase their dreams, and to run from their mistakes. The sisters struggle to care for themselves and their family as the world around them changes rapidly. There is a sense of unease that runs through the novel as the Islands change from forces that its inhabitants can't fight. 

Tiphanie Yanique has written an incredible debut novel that will open your eyes to the struggles of those with power and those with none. It will make you question whether we can escape the things that have been planned for us or are destined to make the mistakes of our ancestors all over again. Yanique's writing itself seems to have something of Carribean magic itself as she deftly pulls you into the story of the Bradshaw family and the beautiful, magical Virgin Islands. 

It's Monday and Halloween is coming!

It's time to get ready for Halloween! We picked up costumes for the kids. So now we have to pick up some candy and prepare for a fun weekend. David has a parade at school on Halloween and then we will be trick or treating that night. There is one street in our town that goes all out with opulently decorated houses, complete with spider webs and strobe lights. People come from all over the county to trick or treat there.

Are you dressing up for Halloween? Do you have any great plans?


Read This Week:

How We Learn
By Benedict Carey


Little Bee
By Chris Cleave


Bedtime Reading This Week:
    
Star Wars Decide Your Destiny: The Way of the Jedi for D
Little Pirates Goes To Bed for BG


Posts from this Past Week:
It's Monday
Reviews of Bittersweet and Goodnight June


Reading Now:

The Book of Strange New Things
By Michel Faber


Up Next:

Everything Beautiful Began After
By Simon Van Booy


What are you reading this week?

Review: Bittersweet

Bittersweet

By Miranda Beverly-Whittemore

Crown May 2014

400 pages

From the library 

Mabel Dagmar and her roommate Genevra Winslow couldn't be more different. Mabel is a poor scholarship student and Genevra is a beautiful heiress. Mabel is shocked when Genevra invites her to spend the summer at Bittersweet, the stunning summer estate that has been in her family for generations. Mabel falls in love with the ease of wealth and having everything you could ever want. For the first time in a long time, she feels like she belongs somewhere and that Genevra and her handsome brother Galway actually care about her. But all of the beauty is not without a price. As dark secrets emerge, Mabel will have to decide just what she is willing to sacrifice for security and the chance at happiness.

Mabel, of course, has her own secrets and she is thrilled to be able to leave her expected summer working at the family business behind in order to spend lazy weeks with the Winslows. Mabel, like many people, equate goodness with wealth and beauty. The Winslows may have more money and stunning cheekbones than they know what to do with, but Mabel will discover that there are many shades of grey within the generations of Winslows. Is covering for someone as bad as committing a wrong itself? What does it mean if you know someone has done horrible things but you love them anyway?

Stories about uber-wealthy people often make me frustrated. I want to read about people with actual problems, not the ennui of being oh so rich and oh so privileged. But this story feels a little different. Instead of glossing over the sins of the wealthy, they are each brought into the light. The characters must examine what it means to be a good person and choose between being good and being comfortable.

This is the sort of book you speed through in one glorious weekend. Bittersweet has the perfection combination of story elements - forbidden romance, murder, and mystery. The beautiful photograph of the Winslow family in their crisp white clothes on the family estate that Genevra keeps up in her dorm room suggests none of the skeletons hiding in the family closets. But discovering each one is an enthralling ride that will keep you flipping pages late into the night. 

Review: Goodnight June

Goodnight June

By Sarah Jio

Plume May 2014

320 pages

From the library 

June Anderson has to leave her successful banking job in NYC to settle her aunt Ruby's estate in Seattle. When she arrives, she finds that her beloved Bluebird Books is in some serious financial trouble. Her first inclination is to quickly sell off the building, but her memories and those of the many people who loved the store make her pause. When June finds letters inside beloved children's books from her aunt to Margaret Wise Brown, the author of Goodnight Moon, she embarks on a treasure hunt through the book store. The correspondence between friends gives June some ideas about her own relationships and maybe even one that can save Bluebird Books.

Sarah Jio utilizes two beloved storylines in Goodnight June. June is the executor of her aunt's will and arrives to find the bookstore in disarray. She works in banking and has little idea about the things her Aunt Ruby did to keep the store running. Readers love to vicariously experience owning and running a bookstore and they won't be disappointed by those sections. This book also explores the friendship between two literary people - Ruby and Margaret Wise Brown. We see how people who love books can inspire each other and remember that friends don't need to live close to each other to have an incredible impact on each other's lives. 

But I can't help but feel that Sarah Jio sometimes takes the easy route in crafting her stories. There were a few scenes that felt like they hadn't been fully thought through. I also wished that we had spent more time with some characters and their relationships had been better fleshed out. June meets the owner of a nearby restaurant soon after she gets to Seattle and it seems that they have only spent a few hours together before he professes his feelings for her. We are also told by June that she and her sister have had an irreparable break in their relationship. The details of this falling out come so late in the story that it is difficult for the reader to care for her sister or that part of the story. 

Goodnight June is quick and enjoyable read. Readers can immerse themselves in the dream of loving and running a bookstore or having a part in the origins of a beloved story. June's quest to save Bluebird Books and discover what is important to her is a lovely, if somewhat predictable, story.

It's Monday and I'm going to sleep!

Hello.
Much readathon.
Many books.
Much tired.


Read This Week:

Land of Love and Drowning
By Tiphanie Yanique


Persepolis
By Marjane Satrapi


Horrorstor
By Grady Hendrix


Divergent
By Veronica Roth


Bedtime Reading This Week:
      
Lego Hero Factory: Makuro's Secret Guidebook for D
Just Go to Bed for BG



Posts from this Past Week:
It's Monday
Review of Broken Monsters
All of the Readathon posts!


Reading Now:

How We Learn
By Benedict Carey


Little Bee
By Chris Cleave


Up Next:

The Book of Strange New Things
By Michel Faber


What are you reading this week?

24 Hour Readathon: The End

We did it, friends. Another 24 Hour Readathon has come and gone in bookish glory!

Here are the books I completed:

                                                                       

Here are the books I read in part:

    

Total pages read: 1,010

Which hour was most daunting for you?

I think I hit a wall around 11 p.m., or hour 15. I found a new place and some new reads and kept going for two more hours!

Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year?

Horrorstor was great, although probably better for an October Readathon than an April one!

Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year?

Nope. I am in awe of everything that Andi and Heather and everyone else do and I think they do a fantastic job.

What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon?

I feel like everyone was really enthusiastic and supportive this year and it made the event even better!

How many books did you read?

Three!

What were the names of the books you read?

Horrorstor, Divergent, Persepolis

Which book did you enjoy most?

Hmm...I enjoyed all of them.

Which did you enjoy least?

I think I may have to rethink my reading for next year, I thought both Little Bee and Persepolis were very powerful, but I needed some lighter and happier reading that far into the game!

If you were a Cheerleader, do you have any advice for next year’s Cheerleaders?

I was not a cheerleader this year, but thank you to everyone who was! You are wonderful.

How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? What role would you be likely to take next time?

I will be here next year for sure. I really enjoyed taking one readathon to just read, but I think I may alternate - one Readathon just for reading and one for reading/cheering. 

This has been so much fun. I can't wait for April!

24 Hour Readathon: The Night

Hey friends. It's about 1 a.m. here and I am calling it a night. I have to play with babies during our morning church service and we all know that we need some energy to deal with little people! Otherwise, I will be the one wanting to curl up under the table with a blanket and take a nap.

Here is what I have been reading tonight:


How We Learn: The Surprising Truth About When, Where, and Why It Happens
By Benedict Carey
Chapters 7 and 8; 43 pages read



Little Bee by Chris Cleave
Read 84 pages



Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
153 pages; finished!


If you are staying with it for the full 24 hours, you are amazing. Read on! I will check in again in the morning to wrap up this Readathon.

24 Hour Readathon: The Afternoon and Evening

Hi wonderful bibliophiles!

It's 8 p.m. here on the East Coast, so the kiddos are up in bed and we have been at this Readathon thing for 12 hours. How are you doing? What have you been reading?

Since I last checked in, I have read another 382 pages of Divergent and now I am done with that one!


487 pages
Finished!

It's time to embark on the Mid-Event Survey.

1. What are you reading right now?
I just finished a book so I am debating starting Little Bee or reading some more of How We Learn.

2. How many books have you read so far?
Two!

3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Read-a-thon?
I'm excited to read Persepolis but I think I'm going to save it for later in the night when need to mix things up. 

4. Have you had many interruptions? How did you deal with those?
Well, I have two small children, so there's that. But my hubby has been home all day and has been pretty wonderful about keeping them entertained for a big chunk of time.

5. What surprises you most about the Read-a-thon, so far?
Um...no surprises here. I'm having a blast and getting all of the books read!

24 Hour Readathon: The Morning

Hi readers! How is everyone doing? What are you reading?

I feel so accomplished today, since it isn't even 1:00 and I've read one whole book and started another!


Horrorstor by Grady Hendrix
243 pages
Finished!


Divergent by Veronica Roth
105 pages read


Here are some pictures from our morning:

My mug says "Shh...I'm reading. I thought it was a good choice for today!

Pumpkin Banana Oatmeal to start off our day!

The books that David has read so far

Before I take off to get the kids some lunch and read some more, here is my entry for Book Staging challenge. Although that owl looks a bit friendlier than most of the characters in this book....

24 Hour Readathon: It Begins!

The Readathon is here. Hooray!

I'm starting off with Grady Hendrix's Horrorstor because I don't want to be reading anything scary when it gets dark! I know, I'm a big wimp.

Here is the opening meme from the wonderful people who run the readathon!

1) What fine part of the world are you reading from today?

Hello from New Jersey, USA! It's a bit cloudy here but I promise it looks nothing like the factories you see flying into the airport. Also, we are nothing like those miscreants from New York that you see on that "Jersey Shore" show.

2) Which book in your stack are you most looking forward to?

Persepolis! I'm finally joining in the comic/graphic novel love and I am so excited. 

3) Which snack are you most looking forward to?

Probably the banana and pumpkin oatmeal that is happily cooking in my oven, although the peanut butter cookies coming up later are no slouches either.

4) Tell us a little something about yourself!

When I was in elementary school, I got in trouble for hiding a chapter book inside of our easy readers.

I used to walk down the street to the library by myself. I didn't know that my mom called the librarian and announced my trip, so she could let Mom know if I didn't make it in a timely manner.

I will probably be joined at some point today by the most wonderful little readers, aged 6 and 1 respectively.

5) If you participated in the last read-a-thon, what’s one thing you’ll do different today? If this is your first read-a-thon, what are you most looking forward to?

I decided not to cheer this year because my hubby will be home this year (for the first time, I think) and I want to just focus on lots of reading!


Those are all the starting questions, my friends. Have an amazing time and I will check in with you soon!

Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon Preview

Tomorrow is the Readathon, tomorrow is the Readathon! If you don't know, Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon is an event held twice each year where readers sign up to...well, read for 24 hours or as many as they can! There is lots of encouragement from fellow readers and cheerleaders, challenges to try, and prizes to win. Sound like fun? You can still sign up here! 

So here are the books I will try and tackle tomorrow:

                               

Horrorstor by Grady Hendrix

Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

Divergent by Veronica Roth

Little Bee by Chris Cleave 

I still have some of How We Learn to finish, so we will see how much reading I can accomplish.  I will be blogging throughout the day, so check back for lots of fun and reading!

Review: Broken Monsters

Broken Monsters

By Lauren Beukes

Mulholland Books September 2014

448 pages

Read via Netgalley

Gabriella Versado is surprised by few things. She is a mother and a detective for the Detroit police department. But even she is shocked by the body of a young boy that is found mutilated and attached to the body of a deer. As Gabriella tries to figure out this bizarre case, other people are drawn into the mystery. TK is a homeless man trying to help others, Jonno is a journalist trying to find the real story about what is going on in the city of Detroit, and Layla is a teen vigilante looking to catch and punish an online predator. She also happens to be Garbriella's daughter. Each of them will play a role in discovering the evil lurking in the dark corners of Detroit's abandoned buildings. But can they stop it? 

Beukes excels at characterization - both of the people in her stories and of non-living entities. In her book The Shining Girls, she brought a time-traveling house to vivid and terrifying life. In Broken Monsters, the starring character may actually be Detroit itself. In a city full of deserted buildings and desperate people, it's difficult to tell where the monsters are hiding. The supernatural aspects of the story are indeed terrifying and we get just enough information to frighten while still being able to wonder about what all of this means. But there is also the feeling here that the terror is man-made, that we need no magic to commit truly depraved acts. The human heart and mind may be the darkest places of all. 

It's difficult to shock people in the modern world. We hold screens all day long that can show us horrible images with just the click of a button. But Beukes is still able to surprise the reader by showing darkness in surprising places. While the idea of a serial killer on the loose who maims and bizarrely displays bodies is a terrifying one, it is more frightening to discover just what people will do at their most frightened or desperate. A good deal of the book deals with our digital age and our eagerness to share the horrors around us. By sharing them, are we participating in them? 

Lauren Beukes is an incredibly talented writer who is able to do so many things at once and make it seem effortless. It's easy to classify Broken Monsters as a horror novel, and that is true. Most readers are going to have some truly bizarre dreams after reading this one. But this book is so much more than that - the characters beg to be seen, by the people in their lives and by the world that finds it so easy to ignore the abject poverty and despair that envelop the broken city of Detroit. 

Check out these rejected cover designs for Broken Monsters!

I read Broken Monsters as a part of Readers In Peril.