April 2013 - Wrap Up!

April is gone, May is almost half way through - where is the time going? This month wasn't my best of reading months. I didn't read a lot of good books and I've been having trouble find something to really grab me. I really hope May is a better month for the quality of books.

The Books

This month, I seemed to be in a bit of a reading rut. There wasn't anything that grabbed my attention or impressed me. Most of what I read was average or worse. A couple of books shone through, but most didn't. To make things worse, because of this little rut I seem to be in, I've been finding it difficult to pick my next read - slightly unsure exactly what it will take to get me back on track. My favourite books this month were Winter Well and River of Stars. My least favourite was Tales From Firozsha Baag.

1. River of Stars - Guy Gavriel Kay (Review Book) - 7.75/10
2. The Other Sister - Lola Lemire Tostevin - 4/10
3. Four Dragons - Diana Dru Botsford - 7/10
4. Tales From Firozsha Baag - Rohinton Minstry - 3/10
5. King Leary - Paul Quarrington - 4/10
6. Winter Well: Speculative Novellas About Older Women - Various (Review Book) - 8.25/10
7. The Perfect Circle - Pascale Quiviger - 4/10
8. Gold Mountain Blues - Ling Zhang - 5.5/10
9. Quentins - Maeve Binchy - 6.75/10
10. Forgotten Country - Catherine Chung - 7.25/10
11. The Black Cloister - Melanie Dobson - 6.5/10


The Challenges

I'm still fairly happy with my progress on the challenges. I do need to focus more on certain categories in the category challenge - or I'll be in some trouble at the end of the year. The same goes with the Series Challenge. Otherwise, everything is right on track.

1. 100 Books in 2013 Challenge - 43/100 -43%
2. 2013 Category Challenge - 40/131 - 30%
3. 777 Challenge - 3/7 - 43%
4. Alphabet Challenge 2013 - 25/52 - 48%
5. E-Book Challenge 2013 - 20/50 - 40%
6. Finish That Series Challenge 2013 - 0/4 (Series), 1/7 (Books) - 0%
7. Ireland Reading Challenge 2013 - 4/10 - 40%
8. Mental Illness Advocacy Challenge - 3/12 - 25%
9. Mount TBR Reading Challenge 2013 - 23/75 - 31%
10. Mystery/Crime Reading Challenge 2013 - 3/5 - 60%
11. New Author Challenge 2013 - 27/50 - 54%
12. Sookie Stackhouse Reading Challenge 2013 - 1/5 - 20%
13. War Through the Generations Challenge 2013 (American Revolutionary War) - 1/3 - 33%
14. 50 Book Pledge - 43/100 - 43%


Countries Visited

This month on my reading adventures, I visited. Germany, North Korea, India, China, Canada, Ireland

Create your own travel map - TravBuddy


Books That Followed Me Home

The Odds: A Love Story - Peter O'Nan
The River - Cheryl Kay Tardif
Beautiful Days: Two Novellas - Teng Xiaolan
Winter Well: Speculative Novellas About Older Women (Anthology)


Have a Happy May!

Book Review: The Black Cloister

Title: The Black Cloister

Author: Melanie Dobson

Pages: 285

Summary: On Elise Friedman's eighth birthday, she lost her mother and any connection to her mysterious past. Raised by her loving stepfather, Elise has spent years trying to learn the truth about her mother, Catrina, and her birth family in Germany, but still knows very little. Now a young woman in college, Elise is travelling to her homeland of Germany to uncover her family's past, but what she finds is much more harrowing than she ever suspected.

My Rating: 6.5/10

What I liked/disliked about the book: There were aspects I enjoyed about the book, and others I didn't think worked out at all, but for a book I randomly picked off the shelves at the library, it did surprise me on how much I enjoyed it.

The parts on the cult, and the story behind it were done very well. The author created a very intense setting, as well as constructing a very good story, which was well thought out and planned - and for the most part it connected to the other parts of the story fairly well. But, what didn't work was Elise I felt that for most of the book, she as a character wasn't fully fledged out, she was rather stupid as a character and a lot of her dialogue and interactions with the other characters was rather forced. In fact, most of the parts of the book that wasn't in direct involvement with the cult wasn't executed as smoothly as it could have been - and a lot of it felt forced.

The plot itself was slightly predictable, but I did find myself wanting to read on to find out the results of the book. The ending was okay, a little to picture perfect for me - the epilogue (involving Michael and Sara) made me want to chuck the book across the room and rip it to shreds. I hated despised it with a passion. It really bothered me when I read that, and it did changed how I felt the book as a whole.

Overall, not a bad book - not my usual genre, or even book that would ever be on my radar, but it was better than I thought, even with the issue I had with it, and it was worth the chance.

Would I recommend it to read: I suppose I would. It wasn't my normal type/genre compared to what I normally read so I don't have much to go by. While I did have a lot of issues with the book, it wasn't bad in the end - and I think those who enjoy the genre, would like it.

What to read next: Our Daily Bread

Challenges: 100 Books Challenge, Alphabet Challenge, New Author Challenge

Book Review: Forgotten Country

Title: Forgotten Country

Author: Catherine Chung

Pages: EBook - 227

Summary: On the night Janie waits for her sister, Hannah, to be born, her grandmother tells her a story: Since the Japanese occupation of Korea, their family has lost a daughter in every generation, so Janie is charged with keeping Hannah safe. As time passes, Janie hears more stories, while facts remain unspoken. Her father tells tales about numbers, and in his stories everything works out. In her mother's stories, deer explode in fields, frogs bury their loved ones in the ocean, and girls jump from cliffs and fall like flowers into the sea. Within all these stories are warnings.

Years later, when Hannah inexplicably cuts all ties and disappears, Janie embarks on a mission to find her sister and finally uncover the truth beneath her family's silence. To do so, she must confront their history, the reason for her parents' sudden move to America twenty years earlier, and ultimately her conflicted feelings toward her sister and her own role in the betrayal behind their estrangement.

Weaving Korean folklore within a modern narrative of immigration and identity, Forgotten Country is a fierce exploration of the inevitability of loss, the conflict between obligation and freedom, and a family struggling to find its way out of silence and back to one another.

My Rating: 7/10

What I liked/disliked about the book: There were aspects of the book I did enjoy and others I didn't, but for the most part, it was a well written and enjoyable read.

The characters were okay, they weren't likable, but they were unlikeable either. I think that if I had been able to connect to the characters a little better, the story would have had a different impact on me. Janie was a character who was difficult to like and because the story revolves through her perspective, it definitely influenced how I felt about the book. Her character was difficult to want to know more and I her to be an unreliable narrator.

The plot was slow moving, but it worked well with the book. It slowly explored the family and story and I appreciated the time the author took to develop things. I did find there were a lot of plot devices that were mentioned and hinted at, that never went anywhere. Sometimes issues were brought up, but never mentioned or explored again, and I think that was one of the biggest issues I had with the book. There was a lot of positional for development of both plot and characters but nothing ever came from it, because it seemed to be dropped off.

Despite some of my issue with it, it was a good book.

Would I recommend it to read: I would - even though it's a slow moving book, I think a lot of readers would enjoy the overall message behind it.

What to read next: Thread of Sky

Challenges: 100 Books Challenge, 2013 Category Challenge, EBook Challenge, Mount TBR Challenge, New Author Challenge

Book Review: Quentins

Title: Quentins

Author: Maeve Binchy

Pages: 440

Summary: There is Monica, the ever-cheerful Australian waitress; the enigmatic Signora; an Patrick and Brenda Brennan, who have made Quentins such a legend. But even their life is not all it seems.

Now Ella Brady wants to make a documentary about the renowned restaurant but, as she uncovers more of what has gone on, she questions the wisdom of bringing it to the screen. And when she is forced to confront a devastating dilemma in her own life, Ella wonders if some stories should not be told. . .

My Rating: 6.75/10

What I liked/disliked about the book: Compared to the other books by the author I've read this one just didn't live up to the same standard as the others. In fact, it was a bit of a flop compared to the others.

The main storyline involving Ella was almost cringe worthy, I hated the entire plot line with her and everything to do with her. The story behind the restaurant and the characters wrapped in it, would have been a lot stronger if Ella had never appeared. Even the character herself was bad compared to what I've read by the author in the past, she was underdeveloped and lacked any real likeable qualities. But just the whole concept of her storyline, her affair and the fall back of it, not to mention her reaction, was poorly executed. I had no sympathy for her as a character, and thought she was rather stupid.

I did like the glimpses of some of the other characters I've read in other books, and although some books I haven't read yet, it was nice to see that they are mentioned again, without spoiling to much of what happened in their original storylines. Quentins, the restaurant was almost a character itself, and I wish the main focus was more on that, and none on Ella - the book would have been a lot stronger without her.

In the end, I'm glad I read the book, but it is definitely one of my least favourites by the author.

Would I recommend it to read: This particular book just didn't do the author justice. I'd recommend all her books to read, this one would just be lower on the totem pole of what to read by her.

What to read next: Tara Road, Evening Class

Challenges: 100 Books Challenge, 2013 Category Challenge, Ireland Reading Challenge, Mount TBR Challenge

Book Review: Gold Mountain Blues

Title: Gold Mountain Blues

Author: Ling Zhang

Pages: 464

Summary: Gold Mountain Blues, a rich saga chronicling the lives of five generations of a Chinese family from Guandong Province transformed by the promise of a better life in Gold Mountain, the Chinese name for Canada’s majestic West Coast. In 1879, 16-year-old Fong Tak-Fat boards a ship to Canada determined to make a life for himself and support his family back home. He will blast rocks for the Pacific Railway, launder linens for his countrymen, and save every penny he makes to reunite his family—because his heart remains in China.

Spanning from the 1860s to the present day, Gold Mountain Blues relates the struggles and sacrifices of the labourers who built the Canadian Pacific Railway and who laid the groundwork for the evolution of the modern Chinese-Canadian identity.

My Rating: 5.5/10

What I liked/disliked about the book: There were times I did enjoy the book - the story was interesting, and the author did do a good job at showing the struggles of immigration and the effects on those who go and those who are left behind. Unfortunately, I found that because of all the different storylines, the generational aspects of the book never came together properly. In the end, it was a book that just missed the mark and it didn't exactly work out for me.

The characters were a bit of an issue throughout the book. There were a lot of them, over a large span of time and there wasn't one I could really connect to. Although the author did do a good job at connecting them all together, giving them a good solid storyline and their own place in the story as a whole, I found there was too much going on, and they all took away from each other's individual stories, and the impact it should have had on the reader.

While I did appreciate the long journey over a long stretch of time, it lacked fine tuning to create a solid story and one that would have kept my interest. I found there was a lot of emptiness to connect everything together, and it was easy to lose interest.

In end, there was a lot of elements that didn't work out in this book. While it had the potential to be an excellent read, it just fell short of that.

Would I recommend it to read: I think this one is one that's on the fence. It definitely wouldn't be very high on the list. But I do think there are some readers who would enjoy the book.

What to read next: Under This Unbroken Sky

Challenges: 100 Books Challenge, 777 Challenge, 2013 Category Challenge, Alphabet Challenge, Canadian Book Challenge VI, EBook Challenge, Mount TBR Challenge, New Author Challenge

Book Review: The Perfect Circle

Title: The Perfect Circle

Author: Pascale Quiviger

Pages: 224

Summary: Marianne, a young Montrealer, has come to live in Tuscany to draw and write and examine her life. Here she meets Marco, a temptingly seductive man who still lives in his mother's house in the village and who's not prepared to commit himself to anything resembling a shared life. Though he breaks her heart, again and again, Marianne can only avoid him by returning to Canada. This first novel by Pascale Quiviger is marked by its luminous language and its unstinting look at what makes Marianne, and Marco, and, indeed, an entire village and the world beyond it, tick.

My Rating: 4/10

What I liked/disliked about the book: Initially the writing style pulled me, but the rest of the book just fell flat, making it a book that I struggled to finish.

The main plot didn't do much for me. In fact most of time it felt like it was at a standstill and I was waiting for something to happen with it, for it to progress more or for something to happen to make that one grab and keep me interested in the book. Unfortunately, that never happened.

The characterization also didn't work for me, from the lack of development to the fact none of them had any kind of likeable characteristic, it was yet another reason the book didn't work out for me, and a book that had me slogging through it.

The writing was fairly good and it was my main reason for carrying on with the book. It doesn't hold up its own against the plot, but the writing has an almost lyrical feel to it. Some of that lyrical style is lost due to the fact the book has been translated, but it was the one thing that kept me reading the book.

It was another randomly picked book of the library shelves, and another book that didn't work for me.

Would I recommend it to read: I don't think I would. There just wasn't much there to recommend.

What to read next: To be honest I'm not sure, the closet thing I can think of, based off the movie version is Under the Tuscan Sun.

Challenges: 100 Books Challenge, 2013 Category Challenge, Alphabet Challenge, Canadian Book Challenge VI, New Author Challenge

Book Review: Winter Well: Speculative Novellas About Older Women

Title: Winter Well: Speculative Novellas About Older Women

Author: Edited by Kay T. Holt

To The Edges by M. Fenn
Copper by Minerva Zimmerman
This Other World by Anna Caro
The Second Wife by Marissa James

Summary: Disaster upon catastrophe forces an unlucky engineer to become someone more adventuresome. (To the Edges)

A tech-savvy private investigator stalks organ traffickers across a toxic cityscape. (Copper)

International hostilities on an alien planet turn a human architect into a dogged emissary for peace. (The Other World)

Enslaved by a monstrous lord, a sage seeks answers in the stars and finds more… desirable problems. (The Second Wife)

Older women take center stage in these four novellas. They may be wives, mothers, wise women or healers, but those archetypes are not their defining characteristics. Their motivations are their own, and they’re not interested in living in the background of someone else’s epic yarn

My Rating: 8.25/10

What I liked/disliked about the book: I enjoyed all of the novellas quite a lot while I liked some more than others, overall it was a very interesting and engaging collection.

Although The Second Wife was my least favourite, it did have an interesting and well throughout plot. Unfortunately, it didn't leave me with the feeling of me wanting to know more about the setting and history behind the society it was set in. When I was done the story, I didn't have that feeling of wanting more and compared to the others in the collection, it just didn't have the same appeal and pleasing factor to it I had with the others.

It's hard to say which is my favourite from the collection. As it was a fairly odd collection and the novellas range on vast range of speculative stories - including a mystery of a missing uterus (Copper). Which is incredibly odd, but it did have me reading it intently as I learned more about what was happening . It had some interesting twists and turns and a lot of interesting elements to the speculative setting, many which left more questions than answers, but all of which had me wanting more. If I had to pick one novella that stood out the most, it would have to be the first, To the Edges. Out of the three, that would be the one I'd want to see in a full fleshed out novel, and it was the one I found to be the most developed in plot, characterization and just kept me wanting more.

An excellent collection of novellas, and one I'd highly recommend.

Would I recommend it to read: I would, very well done collection, and a perfect fit for anyone who enjoys speculative fiction and short stories.

What to read next: I'd say check all of the authors other work.

Challenges: 100 Books Challenge, 2013 Category Challenge, EBook Challenge

I received this book as a part of LibraryThings early reviewer program. I received a copy of the ebook in exchanged for a review.

Book Review: King Leary

Title: King Leary

Author: Paul Quarrington

Pages: 232

Summary: Percival Leary was once the King of the Ice, one of hockey's greatest heroes. Now, in the South Grouse Nursing Home, where he shares a room with Edmund "Blue" Hermann, the antagonistic and alcoholic reporter who once chronicled his career, Leary looks back on his tumultuous life and times: his days at the boys' reformatory when he burned down a house; the four mad monks who first taught him to play hockey; and the time he executed the perfect "St. Louis Whirlygig" to score the winning goal in the 1919 Stanley Cup final.

Now all but forgotten, Leary is only a legend in his own mind until a high-powered advertising agency decides to feature him in a series of ginger ale commercials. With his male nurse, his son, and the irrepressible Blue, Leary sets off for Toronto on one last adventure as he revisits the scenes of his glorious life as King of the Ice.

My Rating: 4/10

What I liked/disliked about the book: Another book, that didn't work out well for me. While it wasn't a bad book by any stretch, this one failed to grab my attention, keeping my attention and nor did it make me want to read more or read anything else by the author.

I just couldn't get into the book. I didn't find the main plot to be one I wanted to read about, and felt that it didn't exactly come together well. While it worked at showing an old man rambling on about his glory days, I felt that it just didn't get executed well enough to make it a good read. I also failed to see the humour in this book. There was the odd part, but mostly I found it to be a very dry read.

The main protagonist, Leary, wasn't enjoyable to read about, he was a character that lacked a lot of likeable qualities and didn't stand out from other characters in similar books. None of the character really came out, they were rather one-sided and dull, making the character driven novel, rather difficult to get through.

In the end, this book didn't work out for me.

Would I recommend it to read: I'm not sure I would. It's different than what I normally read, and others seem to enjoy it, but it's not a book I'd tell others to read.

What to read next: The Best Laid Plans (for the "humour" element), And the four other nominees for the 2008 Canada Reads: Brown Girl in the Ring by Nalo Hopkinson, From the Fifteenth District by Mavis Gallant, Icefields by Thomas Wharton Not Wanted on the Voyage by Timothy Findley

Challenges: 100 Books Challenge, 2013 Category Challenge, Alphabet Challenge, Canadian Book Challenge VI