Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, The: Book review

Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, The: Book review

Do you ever give a book a second chance? I mean quite literally – like you read the first time and you don’t like it, but then you give it another chance and ending up appreciating it more? Well, that is what happened with The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon.

Have you ever given a book a second chance and then ended up appreciating it more? Well, that is what happened with The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon. Read my review here Click To Tweet

About the Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

Book Name: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

Author: Mark Haddon

Genre: Fiction – Drama, Young adult

Characters: Christopher John Francis Boone, Toby, Wellington, Siobhan, Mr. Jeavons, Mrs. Alexander, Ed Boone, Judy Boone, Mr. and Mrs. Eileen Shears

Setting: England, The UK

Plot summary of the Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

Christopher John Francis Boone, a fifteen year old kid on the Autism/Asperger’s spectrum, is on a mission to find out who murdered his neighbour’s dog, Sherlock Holmes’ style. While he has a gift for math, he has difficulty reading other people’s emotion and hates being touched. 

His father finds it difficult to understand his needs. His mother did it all for him until she died suddenly and now they are left to fend for themselves. Did he find the murderer? What happened to his mother? Read the rest of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time to know more.

Book review of the Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

I rarely give books that I DNF-ed a second chance and I decided to read it because the Classics N Christie book club chose it as the BOTM. And I really wanted to know what happened in the book after I gave up and why everyone goes gaga over it. 

Even though it plays the stereotypical high functioning autistic kid, this book helped me take a look at what happens inside the head of an autistic teen.

If I had to wonder what the difference was between the first time I read it and now, it is that I am more educated about the autistic spectrum, thanks to mainstream media and other books. 

Things that worked for me

  • While I found it hard to get into the first time I read it, I liked the non linear writing style now.
  • I was genuinely surprised when the big reveal came up and I hadn’t guessed it at all.
  • Christopher is a classic example of unreliable narrators, whom I love in general.

Things that didn’t work for me

Christopher falls straight into the holes of the stereotypes of autism in the mainstream media.

Bottom-line

I am glad I gave The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time a second chance and I wish that I liked it more. Sure I didn’t love it, but I didn’t dislike it as much I did the first time.

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Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, The: Book review

The Big Four by Agatha Christie: A book review

It has been a while since I posted a review of a book as soon as I finished reading it. But today is one of those days! I finished reading The Big Four by Agatha Christie just yesterday and I spent more than half a day today talking about it and here I am ready to write a review.

Is that a good thing or not? Read ahead to know more. 

I finished reading #TheBigFour by #AgathaChristie just yesterday and here I am ready to write a review.Is that a good thing or not? Read ahead. #ClassicsNChristieClub #ReadChristie19 #Spythriller Click To Tweet

About the Big Four

The big four

Book Name: The Big Four

Author: Agatha Christie

Genre: Fiction – Thriller

Characters: Hercule Poirot, Arthur Hastings,  Li Chang Yen,  Madame Olivier,  Abe Ryland, Number four

Setting: England, The UK

Plot summary of the Big Four

We are used to reading and loving the various murder mysteries set in London or other British cities and suburban towns. But with The Big Four, Christie sets us for a crime thriller with not one but four international super villains aiming at world domination against the grey cells of our Poirot and his dear friend Hastings.

A random guy dies in Poirot’s apartment, which ends to be a foul play. This sets the duo on wild goose chase against The Big Four – A Chinese mastermind, a French woman, an American and a mysterious number four, who always seem to be a step ahead of our dear detective. 

How does he stop them from reaching their evil goal forms the rest of the story in The Big Four!

Book review of the Big Four

The Classics N Christie has been reading Agatha Christie’s books based on the publication dates. This has been very helpful for me to understand the different writing and story telling styles that the author has been trying. I wish I could The Big Four is one of those attempts, that kinda bombed for me. 

Earlier in the Murder on the Links, Dame Christie tried her hand at romance in mystery novels which I didn’t enjoy much. I enjoyed her take on spy thriller even lesser. I just can’t wait to get back to cozy little town mysteries from her. 

Things that worked for me

  • The Big Four reminded me a lot of Sherlock vs Moriarty (I love that).
  • It may work better if you pick the book when you are in the mood to read a spy thriller. 

Things that didn’t work for me

  • The Big Four seemed like a bundle of short mysteries badly woven together, which I found out to be true later. The Big Four was indeed published as a twelve short mysteries during a particularly bad time of Christie personally.
  • There are too many named characters and most of them do not even reappear after a scene or two.
  • I don’t like how Poirot somehow turned into James Bond at the end of the book. That is so not our Belgian detective. 

Bottom-line

If you are looking to read a typical Christie or Poirot’s mystery you will be disappointed. I never thought I would read Christie’s book that would disappoint me as much, but here it is. 

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Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, The: Book review

Review shots: Christie’s murder mysteries

It is a brand new month and that means it is time for mini reviews AKA review shots. And this week am gonna bring in three books from one author, who is one of  my all time favorites, Dame Agatha Christie. Don’t we all need some mystery thriller every month?

These are our monthly picks for the ClassicsNChristieClub and I thought I can club them up together for our review shots. So shall we get on with it?

Read my thoughts on three #AgathaChristie #murdermystery that we read in our #ClassicsNChristieClub in this month's edition of #reviewshots Click To Tweet

The Murder on the Links

Christie murder

Hercule Poirot and Arthur Hastings have been invited to  Merlinville-sur-Mer, France, to help Paul Renauld, a millionaire. Upon arriving to the Villa Genevieve, they find him dead. He is stabbed in the back with a letter opener and pushed into a newly dug grave near their golf club. His widow claims that two masked men tied her up around 2 AM and took her husband away.

As the duo proceeds to investigate the case, Poirot gets a competitor in the form of Monsieur Giraud from the French Sûreté who has a history with Poirot. Who murdered the millionaire and why forms the rest of The Murder on the Links. 

My thoughts

I am not a big fan of Poirot – Hastings combo, but I couldn’t help rooting for them here. I couldn’t guess the culprit right until the end which makes the book a win for me. The only thing that didn’t work for me is the romance story for Hastings and making him a besotted fool till the end. 

Bottom line

If you like the usual Poirot novels, you are in for a treat reading The Murder on the Links. 

The Man in the Brown Suit

Christie murder

In The Man in the Brown Suit we have a new lead detective Anne Beddingfeld. Anne leaves the country in search of a new adventure after her famous father dies. Soon enough she witnesses an accidental death and she finds a clue that might have something to do with death. She throws caution to the wind and decides to chase the clues that may prove it was not just another accident.

Her journey takes her to Africa and further on the trail of the murderer. Anne forms new friends, saves a stranger and makes stronger enemies. But does she make friends with the right person? How far will her sense of adventure take? You need to read The Man in the Brown Suit to know if the murderer was caught and who was the mastermind behind it all.

My thoughts

Christie has a bunch of recurring detective characters but Anne Beddingfeld appears only in The Man in the Brown Suit. I didn’t like her at all, and I can say she was too naive and annoying for my taste. Of course others might find her lively and perky compared to Tommy and Tuppence or even Poirot.

Bottom line

I definitely didn’t solve the case, so that is a positive thing I guess. But it bored me during some parts and I was wishing it would end soon.

The Secret of Chimneys

Christie murder

The story begins when James McGrath gives a manuscript to Anthony Cade and asks him to hand it over to the publishers in London. Cade doesn’t realize it to be arduous task with men threatening for it and a political troop trying to steal it away from him. He is also requested to return a few personal letters to a lady he has only a name of. 

There are quite a few characters who assemble to have a political and business agreement at the Chimneys, where Cade is also invited to discuss about the manuscript. Unfortunately that is where a murder takes place and Inspector Battle is called upon to investigate. Soon enough we are suspecting everyone present at Chimneys that night. Who committed the murder and what is the story behind it follows in The Secret of Chimneys.

My thoughts

Yes I am saved the best for the last. The Secret of Chimneys was our March BOTM and I should say I liked this the best among these three. I loved the array of characters especially Bundle and her father Lord Caterham provided the much needed comic relief.

Everytime I zeroed in on someone to be the blacksheep I was proved wrong, which made it all the more interesting. There is a bit of romance in this one too but it was not a hinder like in the other two. 

Bottom line

The Secret of Chimneys is definitely worth a read, pick it right away. 

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Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, The: Book review

Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine: Book review

Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine is one of those books that have been on my TBR for a long time and when Evalinah and Simant asked me for a buddy read I just jumped at the chance. So shall we get on with it?

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About the book

Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine

Book Name: Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine

Author: Gail Honeyman

Genre: Fiction – Drama

Characters: Eleanor Oliphant, Raymond Gibbons, Laura, Sammy

Setting:  GlasgowScotlandThe UK

Plot Summary of Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine

Eleanor Oliphant is a twenty nine year old  blunt and has not mastered the social etiquette yet. She has been living alone for a long time and barely speaks to people. She has had a difficult relationship with her mother, her only relative always but now she sees a light in the form of a guy, a musician apparently. 

She has it all planned. All she had to meet him, he will realize she is the one for him, they will fall in love and a happily ever after was destined. But she was not ready to bump into Raymond, a office coworker nor meeting his mother. 

What happened in her past that affected her so much? How did Raymond’s presence alter her path? You will have to read Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine to know more.

Book review of Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine

I am nowhere like Eleanor in real life but somehow I could relate to her thoughts. And that is where the author shines. She has written a character who is full of flaws and is annoying, unlikable, yet believable and relatable. 

Things that worked for me

  • I think the strength of the book was its well developed characters.
  • I liked how the tension and suspense about Eleanor’s past was maintained till the end. 
  • There are lots of funny moments that had me chuckling loud in the public.

Things that didn’t work for me

The plot is character driven so if you are waiting for that plot twist, it isn’t coming.

As part of our buddy-reading, Evalinah, Simant and I exchanged some questions for each of us to answer. You can hop to their blogs and check out their answers.

Evalinah’s questions

Eleanor Oliphant is completely fine has some bigger than life concepts and ideas. What’s the biggest lesson you took away from it? Has it affected how you view things in life at least a little bit?

I loved how Eleanor was a go-getter and was never afraid to push her limits. Be it the makeover or the bikini wax, she was ready to try them because she needed to. She is a strong woman not because of her circumstances but despite them.

If you liked Don Tillman from the Rosie Project, #EleanorOliphantIsCompletelyFine is right up your alley. Read my #review here #bookblogger Click To Tweet

Since Eleanor is a very unreliable narrator, the first things we hear about Raymond are somewhat repulsive because she sees him very negatively at first. But then we indirectly learn that he basically has a heart of gold. What was your “reader’s journey” in regards to Raymond? Did you start seeing him as a “book boyfriend” eventually, or..?

Raymond reminded me of Roy from the IT crowd, right from the beginning. I loved how he wasn’t portrayed as just another guy and we all fell in love with him directly. 

What did you think of the writing style? Namely, the way we were always given Eleanor’s sometimes ridiculous opinions first, and only then learned the truth indirectly through actual events? What do you think this gave to the story, especially when it comes to how we see Eleanor and her changes?

I remember us updating each other (while reading) about the mystery about the ‘past’. She had us hooked right where we wanted and even though we were able to kinda predict we stuck through it to see how it panned out. 
And I think that is where the author won as a writer.

Check out her post here

Simant’s questions

Eleanor is an unlikable character in the beginning. It’s not that we generally meet such people in daily life. She is one of the oddest characters I’ve ever read. But as the story progresses, we start connecting with her and understanding her better. 

Why do you think it is so? Why we felt connected to her though we don’t relate to her on so many levels? Or if you do resemble her in some way, share your experience may be? 

I think at some level we all relate to her because she says aloud things that we all think. I think those rough edges helped Eleanor win us over. 

Throughout the book, there is a mystery about Eleanor’s mother. Off course, in the end, the mystery is resolved. Do you think this twist was necessary for the overall growth of the story? The ending we expected for Eleanor arrives eventually, so don’t you think this mystery angle was tiresome to stretch out till the very end? 

I kinda guessed what it have been (more or less) but I think without that mystery I don’t think I would have enjoyed the book as much.

It made us (the reader) keep thinking about it even though Eleanor was not ready to deal with it yet. I Like I said before, this book is not about the plot twist, it is more about the characters. 

This novel is a mix of humour and a darker plot. There were some thought-provoking sections, like Eleanor’s relationship with money. She was always highly conscious about how much she spends and is not willing to pay for social occasions etc. But since she had no one else to take care, I think it made sense that she was keen on safeguarding her personal finances.

What do you think about this? Also, do you think Raymond’s introduction in her life changed her views on lots of things?

I think Raymond opened up Eleanor to a whole lot of things and emotions that she didn’t understand earlier. She obviously didn’t have a normal childhood nor adult life, and she definitely needed someone to guide her through these social etiquette. 

Bottom-line

As someone who avoids series, I rarely say this but I wish there was a sequel coming up to Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine. I have not got enough of Eleanor Oliphant.

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Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, The: Book review

Book review: Radio Silence

Radio Silence is one of my top picks from the books I read in 2019. Every one of my friends who have read this already is in love with this book. And every blog that talks about this one raves about it.

Did I tell I am already looking forward to reading more from this author? Aren’t you interested to know why is Radio Silence so fabulous? Read ahead.

About the book

Radio silence book review

Book Name: Radio Silence

Author:  Alice Oseman

Genre: Fiction – Drama

Characters: Frances Janvier, Aled Last, Daniel Jun, Carys and Carol Last, Raine Sengupta

Setting: Kent County, England, The UK

Plot

Frances Janvier is the boring, nerdy school head girl, at least to her class mates. She is a topper and so obsessed with getting into Cambridge that she gets panic attacks over just thinking about not going there. She is a typical high strung, anxious, perfectionist millennial teen who is trying to do the correct things to achieve her goals. 

Unbeknownst to her schoolmates, she is a fantastic artist who is absolutely besotted with a Youtube podcast Univserse City and podcaster’s voice. She draws fan arts for the show which is quite popular among the fanworld. Her two worlds collide when she meets her class nemesis Daniel’s best friend Aled Last, who as she gets to know later is the mind behind Universe City. 

Aled Last is a shy neighbor to Frances and his sister used to be friends with Frances until a while ago. When he finds out about her fan art, he asks Frances to collaborate with him on his show. How they help each other to learn to love themselves and find a family of their own forms the rest of the story.

(Do not get fooled by this plot. I am trying to be as mysterious and spoiler free as I can get to make you pick Radio Silence.)

My initial thoughts

I think I made my feelings about the book very clear when I started the review. I loved the diverse representation and that there wasn’t a forced romance. And more than everything, I loved the character arcs and how strongly they were developed.

The theme of mysterious history of Frances and Carys and the mysterious present between Daniel and Aled’s friendship kept me hooked. Read my #bookreview of #RadioSilence

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The theme of mysterious history of Frances and Carys and the mysterious present between Daniel and Aled’s friendship kept me hooked. While the writing quintessentially represents a millennial teenager’s POV, it was not angst-y and irksome, even when it was bit longer.

Things that worked for me

  • Every character is fully developed and has a strong storyline.
  • Great use of diverse representation, which didn’t feel forced or eclipsing the main plot.
  • It talks about the pressure about higher education, which was so relatable to me.
  • There is no romance and a lot of friendship. 

Things that didn’t work for me

  • It felt a longer than it needs to be.
  • I liked Aled and Daniel’s part of the story more than Frances. I know it is not a negative thing. Still she is the narrator but I didn’t care for her as much. Maybe.

Bottom-line

Just go pick a copy of this one already please, while I am hunting for Alice Oseman’s other books.

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