My Book Reviews

The Hunt by Tim Lebbon
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This was so disappointing.
I bought this book because the description at the back caught my attention. The part that got me was (as written on the book):

"Chris returns from his morning run to find his wife and children missing and a stranger in his kitchen.
He's told to run.
If he's caught and killed, his family go free. If he escapes, they die."

It had so much potential, but the whole thing was a little too Hunger Games for my liking.
There were several repititions in terms of describing the landmarks, and several grammatical and sentence structure errors that I had to re-read twice before understanding.

I took a few months off from reading this book because I just had no interest in it whatsoever, but didn't want to chuck it aside (just a habit/trait I have) if I could help it. Thankfully, more than halfway through, the story managed to catch my attention enough for me to actually finish it.

And then the ending...
It was almost.. meh. All that supposed buildup only for it to end just like that. If I hadn't known, I wouldn't have guessed that that was it; and thought that there had to be more than this.

Bottom line, not my cup of tea at all.

View all my reviews

More Than This by Patrick Ness
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book is one hell of a ride. I started off not knowing anything, and I finished it knowing some things but having more questions.

I like how Ness left some things unexplained, so there’s that little bit of mystery left in the midst of the conclusion.

The story as a whole is a good thing to ponder; what if everything came to that? What would happen to us as a human race?

Long story short, there’s not much I can say about the book without spoiling it, other than what the synopsis says. But I can tell you that the story grabs your attention from the beginning right till the end.

Oh, and I’ll leave you with this little earworm: coffins. But not in the way you’d think though. 😉

View all my reviews

A Cold Legacy by Megan Shepherd
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Let me start off by saying that I never knew this book was the third in a trilogy until I got to the acknowledgements at the end. No wonder the story seemed to have started off a bit 'in-the-middle-of-something'. Though, if I'm being completely and utterly honest, it wouldn't have made a difference. Nothing too important is lost by not reading the previous two books beforehand.

As I mentioned, the first chapter itself has already introduced all the main characters, and they seemed to already be in the middle of something. Immediately sticking out like a bit of a sore thumb to me though, had been their names. Montgomery James? Juliet Moreau? (Really? Might as well have gone all the way and made her a Montague) BALTHAZAR?? Personally, I admit that I cringed when I first read it. Although the reason of naming had been mentioned later on in the book, naming them after Shakespeare's characters (although I hadn't realised it at the time that I was reading) seemed to make it a bit... unreal to me, as if the author had wanted them to sound fancy, and failing. (Because who names their kid 'Montgomery' anymore?)

Initially, the little synopsis at the back of the book caught my attention. But about a quarter of the way through, I started doubting if I had been wrong about the book and if I would actually finish it. I pushed through more due to the fact that I hadn't wanted to start reading it and then abandon it so quickly (if I could help it) rather than because the story had intrigued me.
Halfway through, it felt as if I could almost guess how it ends. It seemed too predictable.

BUT THEN IT WASN'T.

I found myself being pleasantly surprised at the turn of events, and from then on, it was gripping. It took me several weeks to even reach a little more than half the book, and then 2 days to finish the rest.

All in all, it was okay. I wouldn't say it was bad, nor will I say it was great. I'm glad I finished it, though I know for a fact that it's not something I would re-read either. It keeps you entertained if you're bored, is what I'm saying.

View all my reviews

Grave Sight by Charlaine Harris
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I really liked this book. The plot is not complicated, and the storyline is not too confusing; though I did have some trouble with connecting the names and what their roles were in the story, for some reason.

Since getting struck by lightning, Harper Connelly has been making use of her newfound ability to make a living.
What is this ability of hers?
Finding dead bodies and knowing how they died. Along for the ride is her half-brother Tolliver Lang, who also plays a huge part in relieving Harper’s severe separation anxiety.

But when things begin to happen to Harper and Tolliver after taking a job in Sarne, they begin to suspect that they may have uncovered and disclosed more than they were welcome to.

View all my reviews

Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I admit that the first quarter of the book was a bit boring to me, and I fell asleep while reading it on a few occasions.

But when it got good, IT WAS BLOODY GOOD

The moment you think you know what’s going on, it’s almost as if Lehane does a detour and fucks you over. I definitely did NOT expect the twist, and when that happened, I had to re-read that part for it to actually sink in.

The only reason this is not 5 stars is because it bore me at the start.

But definitely pick this up if/when you can!


View all my reviews

So Cold the River by Michael Koryta
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Eric Shaw, a former filmmaker down and out on his luck and confined to making videos for events, is paid a hefty amount to go to French Lick/West Baden to do a documentary on billionaire Campbell Bradford. While there, Eric had been tempted to drink from a bottle of what looks like unnaturally cold water. He decides to take a sip out of the bottle of Pluto Water; an old brand of mineral water that had been hugely renowned for curing almost all ailments.

That's when shit slowly starts hitting the fan, because let's face it: what do you expect from drinking out of a bottle of water that old??

The progression of events is very gradual; Eric's slow addiction and his increasing symptoms made for a very interesting read. The way Koryta connected the flow of events leading to the buildup was great. After everything, it definitely piqued my interest when Koryta mentioned in the Author's Notes in the end how the places (the West Baden Hotel & French Lick) are in fact very real places. I looked the hotel up and there it was on Booking.com, and HOLY SHIT THE PLACE IS FREAKING GORGEOUS! Go look it up and tell me it isn't impressive!
All the details I read about in the story made more sense then, and quite honestly, it is grander than I ever imagined it to be. (Then again, you can't say much about my imagination... Also, my geography is horrible)

The climax is intense, and I find myself almost skimming through the pages in a hurry (as I often do when reading interesting/intense scenes) in a bid to find out what happens next. All in all, I would definitely pick up Koryta's other works and give them a go.

View all my reviews