The Memory of Things by Gae Polisner

 

 "Sometimes never being ready is the best kind of ready to be." - The Memory of Things by Gae  Polisner

September 11, 2001 --- Kyle Donohue is only 16 years old when he watches the first twin tower fall from the window of his High School classroom. He flees to safety and while crossing the Brooklyn Bridge he comes across a young girl covered in ash and wearing wings. He pulls her out of the chaos and takes her to the safety of his home.

She is mute  and non-responsive and as a result Kyle is not able to find out her name and help her find her family. Kyle's mom and sister might be on a plane heading back to NY, his father is an NYPD detective and is more than likely at ground zero. He can't reach anyone and
the phone lines are not making connections. He is left to take care of mystery girl, his paralyzed uncle and himself.

As the story unravels you are left on an edge wondering if his father has survived, what trauma has mystery girl undergone and can Kyle keep it all together? During the chaos of the following hours, Kyle finds that he is a much stronger person than he thought.

This book is about love, humanity and one owns strength in times of adversity. Polisner has written a haunting novel that will resonate with generations.

Every Last Word by Tamara Ireland Stone

“I’m going to show you something that will change your whole life.”
― Tamara Ireland Stone, Every Last Word

  Samantha McAllister is popular but she has a secret --- She has OCD. She second guesses everything. She takes medication to curb her impulses. focus and sleep.  She has weekly visited to a psychiatrist.

Despite being popular she struggles to fit in and find her place but a chance meeting with "Caroline"  introduces her to a secluded, secret club that meets in a hidden space behind the school theater.

She slowly becomes a part of this group, called "Poet's Corner" and uses her talent with words to express herself, while forging friendships with other members of this secret group. She is drawn a guitar wielding guy uses music and verse to express himself. Things appear to be looking up but a revelation makes her question her sanity.

Stone has developed a great group of characters, even the popular "mean" girls are intriguing. I could relate to, Sam's obsession and second guessing tendencies. Stone has obviously researched what it's like to live with OCD.

The climax is intense and rather surprising. My favorite part of the novel is the relationship the character has with her mom. "Every Last Word" has left an impression on me and I think it will leave one on you too.

The Night Voyage: A Magical Adventure and Coloring Book by Daria Song

 

Publish Date - Tuesday, August 30th, 2016

 

 

The Night Voyage is a sweet, sweet coloring book.

The drawing are delightful and quite lovely.

I am not sharing pictures because this book has not been released yet

 but I've had it for weeks (Thanks, NetGalley) and couldn't be more enchanted with it.

The details are precious and since I had only have a electronic version,

I plan to go out and purchase my own copy!

I am looking forward to spending many hours coloring this and you will too!

 

Songs of the Humpback Whale by Jodi Picoult

I first read, "Songs of the Humpback Whale" in, July of 2008.
You can see my blog post on it HERE.


Jane and Oliver get into physical fight and Jane and her daughter jump into the car and leave. They embark on a journey from California to Massachusetts to visit Jane's brother, Joley.  Jane and Rebecca follow clues that, Joley has mailed to different cities.

Oliver determined to get them back, decides to "track" them and bring them back home.

A life altering event and tragedy strikes, changing lives.

The story is told in 5 different perspectives and at times can be a tad confusing since Rebecca's story is told backwards but once you get the hang of it, it all makes sense.

This was, Picoult's debut novel and while it took me a while to get into it. it was worth the read.

The Last One by Alexandra Oliva

 

 

It was all "fun and games" for these reality T.V. contestants until unbeknownst to them --- the world ends.

It all started with 12 contestants who partake in a reality T.V. show with no set end date -- It is last man standing wins situation. They are to work missions together and then be sent off on a solo one.

The contestants participate in a few missions, personalities are revealed and a few make the choice to be sent home. The solo mission embarks and the story is mainly told through the eyes of Zoo. After 3 days of being sick, Zoo sets off to finish her solo mission. She runs across many peculiar "sets" and continues to play the reality TV game.

Zoo stumbles across devastation but naturally assumes it is part of the show. She is completely cut of from society and pushes forward to the end game.

I am not a fan of reality T.V -- I don't watch "Survival" (is it still on?) or any shows similar to it, so I was hesitant to read this novel but I am glad that I did.

Zoo is an unlikable but well written character who you find yourself rooting for. The premise is intriguing and while my attention wasn't always 100% it was more than enough to keep me interesting in finding out what happens. Then end was predictable but didn't take away from the story.

Nine Women, One Dress by Jane L. Rosen

This is a delightful book. It is warm, witty and fun.

The title pretty much covers if. Nine women, one dress --- of course each of them have their own story.

 Each chapter is told in first person by various characters. There are quite a bit of characters but Rosen does an excellent job of giving them distinct voices. I was able to easily keep track of all of them. Each character is important to the story.

I quite enjoyed the various storylines but some left me wanting more!

If you are looking for a fast, sweet read this book is for you.

Before the Fall by Noah Hawley

 
 

“Life is a series of decisions and reactions. It is the things you do and the things that are done to you.
And then it's over.”
― Noah Hawley, Before the Fall

Within 18 minutes of take off a private jet crashes into the ocean. Two will survive, an artist and the sole heir to a fortune.

Scott and four year old JJ float in the ocean, full of plane debris and fuel. Scott quickly realizes that he is their only hope for survival. He determines which way is to the shore and with little JJ on tow, sets off swimming, hoping that he has chosen the correct direction.

The mystery surrounding the crash is heightened by a variety of circumstances.  Is it an accident, terrorism or sabotage?

The story is told in multiple point of views. The chapters are relatively short and provide enough background characters to give insight to the story and wrap up the conclusion.

The book starts off strong and interesting. Holding ones attention and then is falters for a bit and picks back up. I was engrossed with this page turner. I loved the end but I can see how many will despite it.

I recommend this to those of you looking for a good mystery thriller.

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

I was lucky enough to get an ARC (advanced readers copy) of Gone Girl back in 2012, I felt it was time to revisit it and I found that I enjoyed it now just as much as I did then! You can read my review from 2012 by clicking HERE.


‘You two are the most fucked-up people I have ever met, and I specialize in fucked-up people.”
― Gillian Flynn, Gone Girl    

Gone Girl is a fast paced, exciting read! It's about a young married couple named Nick and Amy who are down on their luck and move away from Amy's beloved New York to a Nick's small hometown in Missouri to care for his ailing mother and open up a bar on what is left of Amy's trust fund monies.

The bar allows for the Dunne's to leave a comfortable life but Amy is terribly unhappy, hates the home they are living in and their once romantic, loving marriage had turned. On the day of their wedding anniversary, Amy disappears. The crime scene appears staged and Nick is the number one suspect.

Nick pleads his innocence and go on the annual anniversary scavenge hunt that Amy has set up. The hunt and solving the too easy clues puts Nick in situations that make him more suspect to investigators. Amy is quite clever and is setting, Nick up to take the fall.

Amy is a sociopath, plain and simple. She is on crazy b***h but Nick, has weaved his own tight web of misdeeds. It's difficult to talk about the plot without revealing it but it is dark, twisted and ugly.


This is by far my favorite book by Flynn.

The Year We Turned Forty by Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke

I didn't read the synopsis of, "The Year We Turned Forty" and it ended up being completely different than I anticipated and as a result of this, I was loss for a bit until I figured out what was going on!

The book starts off with our main characters about to turn 50 (see why I was lost?!?) 
Jessie, Gabriela, and Claire are best friends and have made it a tradition to celebrate their birthday's that are close in date to one another.  For their 50th birthday they have chosen Vegas as their party destination. 

A drift and secrets between the friends have changed the dynamics of their friendship in the past 10 years and they are all distinctly aware of this. The past ten years have been met with many ups and downs and some life altering experiences. There has been death, divorce, birth and career highs but when they are given the opportunity by a magician to travel back to the year their turned 40 they take it.

They are given exactly one year to relive their 40th year before deciding if the want to stay on that timeline continuum or return to their 50s. The journey they embark gives them an opportunity to fix past mistakes but new unexpected problems arise making their choice to stay or leave more difficult than the ever though possible.

This book is filled with great characters and the multiple timelines are easily identifiable. This is a perfect beach read and leaves you wondering if you'd ever redo a time period of your life. I wouldn't, would you?

Still Alice by Lisa Genova

" I miss myself." 

"I miss you, too, Ali, so much."

" I never planned to get like this."

"I know." 

-Still Alice by Lisa  Genova

 

I read, Still Alice in March of 2009 and decided it was time to revisit this story. I remain moved and heartbroken. Alice has been diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's disease and this is her story. It is unique in that the story is told from Alice's perspective. We usually read/hear about how, Alzheimer impacts the family and not the individual.

Genova has written Alice's story so that you live if with her, through her mind. You feel her anguish, frustrations, fear and doubts. As a reader you lose your "mind" right along with, Alice. You experience the horror of watching yourself forget who you are and who those around you are. Simple, tasks that we take for granted become nearly impossible feats. 

Alice is resilient, high intelligent, fiercely educated and independent but Alzheimer's slowly eats away at those traits, turning her into a former version of herself. Imagine for a moment that you can no longer participate in your favorite activity, for example: You can no longer read a novel because you can't recall what happened 5 pages ago or you reread the same passage over and over and can't keep it in your memory. That is life with Alzheimer's in every capacity.

It is a disease with no cure. I imagine it to be a cruel disease that leave you in a perpetual state of confusion and fear. I have witnessed it. My great-grandmother was diagnosed and the last few years of her life were brutal. She couldn't remember eating, moments after you took away her plate. She couldn't remember that a glass/cup could be placed on a table, so she threw it wherever it would land instead (sometimes aiming at you).

Be prepared to self-analyze yourself while reading this. I know I did!

 

The Way I Used to Be by Amber Smith

Eden is only 14 years old when her innocence is ripped away from her. She is left broken and in a tangle of bloody sheets after her brothers bestfriend, Kevin rapes her.

He sneaks into her room like a thief and robs her of everything that made, Eden who she was. Threats force her to keep his secret and she is faced with seeing him over and over again.

This one night changes the face of, Eden, her very being. She is left broken, angry, empty and forever altered. She uses her own sexuality in an attempt to take back control of what she lost.

Eden destroys relationships with those she treasures the most to mask her own fears and to avoid making herself vulnerable.

This is an emotionally driven novel is told in four parts. It is the most realistic written fiction I have read this year.