![A Quiet Kind of Thunder by Sara Barnard: A Book Review]()
Romance |
It has been a while since a book made me laugh, cry and then root for the characters so hard that you forget they are fictitious. But then, if we get that book every time I read it won’t as special right? So A Quiet Kind of Thunder will be one of those special books.
About A Quiet Kind of Thunder
Book Name: A Quiet Kind of Thunder
Author: Sara Barnard
Genre: Fiction – Romance, YA
Characters: Steffi Brons, Rhys Gold, September “Tem”
Setting: Bedfordshire, England, The United Kingdom
Plot Summary of A Quiet Kind of Thunder
Steffi has been a selective mute since her childhood. But when her parents assume she may not be able to pursue her studies in a University, she decides things has to change. With her best friend, Tem moving off to another school she realizes she has to do this alone.
Or so she thought.
Rhys is deaf and entirely relies on the sign language to communicate. Since Steffi knows a bit of British Sign Language (BSL) she is introduced to him to help him out. She is mute and he is deaf and her rusty BSL is all they have to communicate and it also means they have an entire language just for them, more or less.
But when her parents decide college would be too much for her, she rebels and she rebels with Rhys. You need to read A Quiet Kind of Thunder to know how that goes.
Book review of A Quiet Kind of Thunder
As I might have already mentioned I loved A Quiet Kind of Thunder.
The romance didn’t make me roll eyes. Yes there were cutesy moments but they fit so perfectly into the story. Even when they do the typical teenage-y things it worked.
But again, they were typical teenagers who had physical disabilities and that is a point that A Quiet Kind of Thunder never failed to remind us. They can’t be much different from the other teens, can they? Well almost. And that is where the author and her research shine through.
What worked for me
- A Quiet Kind of Thunder has a great diverse representation with people of color, mental illness and physical disabilities, and none of them felt forced.
- Not everything is pink. There are people who do not understand them, there are ones who behave around them like they walk on egg shells. But I loved how real that made the story.
- Of late I have been ranting a lot about how much I dislike the ‘love solves everything’ trope. And I am happy to say this one defies that.
- The YA parents are THERE the whole time and they are protective as they should be and even too much at times.
What could have been better
- It is a typical teenage romance without a stronger conflict.
Bottom-line
I would recommend this to anyone who loves YA romance and want to read books with great diverse representation.
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Drama, Romance |
Once in a while we read a book that will make you excited and some might even make you cry. While The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society made me feel me both, the one feeling that I can associate with it more than the above is warm fuzzy.
I can remember the times that I just stopped reading the book just to hold those warm feeling to myself a little longer. Can we get on with the review shall we?
About The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
Book Name: The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
Author: Mary Ann Shaffer, Annie Barrows
Genre: Fiction – Drama, romance, Historical
Characters: Juliet Ashton, Dawsey Adams, Markham V. Reynolds, Jr., Susan Scott, Sidney Stark, Sophie Evans,, Elizabeth McKenna, Isola Pribby, Kit McKenna, Adelaide Addison, Eben Ramsey, Amelia Maugery
Setting: London and Guernsey, The United Kingdom
Plot Summary of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
Set in the post World War II London, we meet Juliet Ashton, an aspiring author who receives a letter from Dawsey Adams. Dawsey a resident of Guernsey chances upon her address on a book by Charles Lamb, that she had previously owned and requests her help in securing more of Lamb’s books from The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society.
As any bookworm should do for a fellow bookworm, Juliet helps him with those books and in return asks more about their book club’s odd name. Thus begins a series of correspondence between them and slowly she begins talking to and about the other residents of the little island. We also hear about Juliet’s past and her loyal friends Sidney and Sophie.
Juliet is looking for a story for her second book and fancies the idea of writing about the residents of Guernsey, a town that was German occupied during the war. But how would the residents react to her digging into their pasts that they are trying to move on from? Would all this heart ache for a book be worthy?
You will have to read on The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society to find out more.
Book review of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society written in the form of a letters deals with several heavy subjects like German occupation and their control over the residents, slavery and concentration camps, poverty and hunger. Despite these strong and depressive backdrops, the residents’ love for reading and for each other kept me hooked.
As I have repeatedly talked about in this blog, I love reading books with strong sub plots and interesting side characters and The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society turned out to be a jackpot in this regard. I loved the quirky characters, even those who were not physically in Guernsey (hint: I adored her).
Bonus fact: The author Mary Ann Shaffer wrote about 80% of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society until she was too ill with cancer to continue. She then enlisted her niece Annie Barrows to complete the project.
Things that worked for me
- I liked the well written sub plots and characters.
- The writing was easy and filled with many humorous situations.
- While romance is a part of the story, it did not end being the sole theme, which was positive for me.
Aside from all these reasons I felt I had a kinship with the characters who were readers, accidental or not, like us and I think there should be lot more books about bookworms. Don’t you agree?
Things that didn’t work for me
- The letter format worked mostly but it kinda didn’t do justice when it comes to romance.
- I wanted to read more about the relationship between Elizabeth and Christian.
- I felt the book was a tad bit long winded and it could have been reduced by at least 50 pages.
Bottom – line
Did I say I loved the movie version as well? If you are interested in a drama or historical fiction with the world war II as the main backdrop then The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society might be the one for you.
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review, Thriller |
When I love a book, I give myself some time to let my thoughts brew and write my review in a day or two. Sometimes, that day comes never. That is what happens to my favorite books and I never get around to write those amazing 5 star reviews. But here I am, finally attempting to talk about one of such books – Agatha Christie’s And then there were none.
About And Then There Were None
Book Name: And then there were none
Author: Agatha Christie
Genre: Fiction – Thriller
Characters: Justice Lawrence John Wargrave, Vera Elizabeth Claythorne, Philip Lombard, General John Gordon Macarthur, Dr Edward George Armstrong, Anthony James Marston, William Henry Blore, Mr Thomas Rogers, Mrs Ethel Rogers, Emily Caroline Brent, Isaac Morris, Fred Narracott.
Setting: Devon, England, The UK
Plot summary of And then there were none
Eight strangers are invited to a private island near the coast of Devon, England by an eccentric millionaire, Mr Owen. The guests are welcomed by a cook and a butler. But their host is nowhere to be seen and they realize none of them know him well.
All they find is a framed copy of an old nursery rhyme with the tale of ten soldiers who one by one leave, disappear or die until none of them are alive. Everyone is intrigued to find ten figurines depicting the ten soldiers in their dining room.
At dinner, a voice booms that every one of them was guilty of murder and they will all be dead soon. Immediately one of them chokes on their drink and dies. And then they find that one of the figurine is broken. Soon one by one each of the guests begin dying, following theme of the childhood rhyme.
Each of them starts suspecting the other, as they are all stranded in secluded island. Who is the murderer and who survives their stay forms the rest of the book ‘And then there were none’ by Agatha Christie.
And then there were none Book review
For me, And then there were none would be one of the best mystery ever written. I read this for the first time when I was around 13 years old and it was not a surprise that I was not able to solve the whodunnit.
Incidentally, I forgot about this book for about another five years until I gave it another read in my late teens. I still didn’t solve it but that’s when I realized how much I loved it. I keep reading it once in a while and it has never lost its charm on me.
And to make matter worse (or better) it has become a sort of benchmark to compare the other mystery novels and ‘whodunnits‘. There have been numerous adaptations based on And then there were none by Agatha Christie, and frankly none of them are closer to the book.
Things that worked for me
- There are so many mini plots within the story that makes it hard to guess the murderer.
- The murders get more and more exciting as it follows an old rhyme and everyone has a theory that someone else’s involved.
- I liked the strong emphasis on ‘fair’ justice system, even if it meant eye for an eye. I understand it is a fantasy but it sounds so good.
Things that didn’t work for me
- I don’t think anyone could guess the murderer on their first read. I mean there are literally no clues, but many many red herrings, you have been warned!.
- There are so many characters that you stop feeling related to them, in a while. There are, more or less, no descriptions for any of the characters.
- Unfortunately, there is a huge plot hole which is a part of the solution. But it is kinda easy to ignore it (at least it was for me).
- The book obviously feels dated but the casual racism and sexism
might should turn you off.
Content warning
Casual racism, Sexism.
Bottom-line
I consider And then there were none as a masterpiece and I am sure everyone would love it. I can’t recommend it enough. If you are going to read only one Christie’s in your life, choose And then there were none.
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Romance |
A real long time ago, I found Hester Browne out of nowhere and I could not get enough of her books. I read the Little Browne Agency and hunted down (after considerable difficulties) the rest of the books in the trilogy and completed all of them in less than a week’s time. So it was a no brainer when I saw The Finishing Touches by Hester Browne on the shelves that I made a grab for it ASAP.
Book Name: The Finishing Touches
Author: Hester Browne
Genre: Fiction – Romance
Characters: Betsy Phillimore, Lord Phelam and Lady Frances (Franny) Phillimore, Liv and Jamie O’Hare, Nancy, Kathleen
Setting: London, The UK
Plot
Returning home to attend her adoptive mother’s funeral, Betsy Phillimore learns that her mother’s beloved finishing school is on the brink of being shut down. Saving the Finishing touches means having to fight the unfriendly headmistress, indifferent students and a former nemesis who is interested in her recently widowed father.
While she attempts to reconstruct their archaic syllabus and teaching methods, she realizes she is closer to finding her biological mother than ever before. Does she even want to open that can of worms?
Betsy has taken it upon herself to make a financially responsible adult out of her rich and spoilt BFF, Liv when her father absconds from the scene. Enter Liv’s brother and Betsy’s long time crush Jamie, who seems smitten by Betsy as well. Does the boy get the girl? Or will the entry of another handsome bursar distract her? Read The Finishing Touches to find out more.
Hester Browne’s books are usually straight forward love story with a strong female lead and an interesting back story. She didn’t fail this time as well, the plot was new and interesting.
Characters
While I liked Betsy’s feisty and complicated self, I loved Liv and Jamie more. They were witty and charming. The younger students didn’t make a mark but the cook and the housekeeper, Nancy and Kathleen did. Though there were lots of adorable characters none of them had an interesting sub plot except maybe for Liv.
Writing
I love Hester Browne’s writing that ensured The Finishing Touches stayed as a feel good, light hearted chick-lit just like her other novels. Her witty dialogues and funny scenes had me entertained throughout. The pace slacked at times and there were times that I was kinda distracted, as the sub plots didn’t hold my interest.
Bottom line
If you are looking for a light hearted chick lit set in the UK, you might try The Finishing Touches. Though it is no way as good as the Little Browne Agency trilogy, The Finishing Touches is worth a read.
Have you read anything from this author? Are you curious like me about a school that teaches etiquette and manners? Or do you find it sexist? Let us chat.
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YA |
I remember staying up all through the night reading the author’s earlier work (The Statistical Probability Of Love At First Sight) few years ago and I hoped The Geography of You and Me would help me repeat the experience. Did it fulfill the promise? Read on to know more.
Book Name: The Geography of You and Me
Author: Jennifer E. Smith
Genre: Fiction – Romance, Young Adult
Characters: Lucy, Owen
Setting: New York, The USA, London, England, The UK
The story starts with Owen and Lucy stuck in an elevator when the whole city plunges into darkness. It is instant chemistry and once they are rescued they roam around the city and end up chatting for hours. They end up spending their night gazing at stars from their rooftop. As fate intervenes, they both leave New York City soon and part ways.
Owen and his father are trying to get over their loss of their mother and go on a road trip across America. Lucy joins her parents in London who are avid travelers and trots all over the globe. They keep in touch with each other through postcards and email. Do they get to meet each other? Or does the distance change them?
The Geography of You and Me opened with a great promise of an unusual set up but failed to sustain the interest. I am not a big fan of love at first sight (gasp) and the lead characters spent less than a day together to have had time to fall for each other.
I love reading the lovey dovey portion of any romance, as any person would. I was almost looking forward to it just to get out of the monotonous chapters that consisted of ‘he went there’ ‘she went there’. But The Geography of You and Me was a disappointment even on that front.
The story alternates between two POVs but the voice ended up being the same which didn’t work for me at all. I have heard so much of this book and opened it with great expectations and sadly The Geography of You and Me didn’t live upto it.
Is there any book that failed to live up to the hype? Or is it just me? Let us chat.
