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Title: And One Rode West
Author: Heather Graham
ISBN: 0440211484
Publisher: Dell Books/1992
Pages: 465
Title: Riley in the Morning
Title: The Tenderness of Wolves
Author: Stef Penney
ISBN-10: 1847240674
Publisher: Quercus/2008
Pages: 450
Rating: 4/5
I had bought this book to be read for the 2nd Canadian Challenge. I had started it but for no apparent reason set it aside. I picked it up again a few days back and was thinking why did I leave it in the first place. It is suspenseful and is very gripping after 50 pages. One just needs to go one.
It is set in 1867, Canada in a settlement of Dove River. A man, Laurent Jammet, a trapper, trader and loner, is brutally murdered and Mrs. Ross finds him. She also finds that her seventeen year old son is missing. She has no way of knowing if he is involved in the killing. Parker who is an old friend of Jammet, arrives into the settlement and is taken to be a suspect of the murder and jailed. Mrs Ross, after helping Parker escape the jail, sets about tracking down the killer as well her son. It is harsh winters but that does not deter her from her goal.
We find many other characters setting about in journey to catch the killers. No one knows who truly killed Jammet, who had no real friends except perhaps Francis, Mrs Ross' son. The past and present both intermingle at some point. The story being told from the perspective of its characters, although Mrs Ross is the main one. We get glimpses of her relationship with Francis and her husband, Angus, who somehow is resentful of the boy.
This is a very atmospheric book, told from the point of view of immigrants, Indians and others. It very suspenseful too, which continues till the end. Mrs Ross and Parker are bonded in subtle ways although both keep away from each other as much as they can.
The short chapters help us keep going. After the second half, one can't put the book away. The journey by the various characters is the search of one's inner self. Thats how I saw it, felt it. At the end of it, it gets the families closer to each other.
This is a somewhat sad book, with complex characters and has that underlying message that wolves attack only when they are threatened. Unlike human beings. Maybe the animal world does have something to teach us. It is not a book for everyone but for those who like serious reading, I say go for it. I am glad I read it in 2008!
Title: The Witch's Trinity
Author: Erika Mailman
ISBN: 978030735153
Publisher: Three Rivers Press/2007
Pages: 257
As soon as I received this book, I started reading it. I couldn't put it down until I finished it. Long after finishing the novel, it stays in mind. I would call it one of the best reads of 2008.
The novel is based in a small town in mediaval Germany, which is suffering from severe famine. Food is scarce on the table. And it is severe winters too. Meanwhile a Friar arrives into the town carrying with him a book called Malleus Malefaction, which is supposed to be a guide for identifying witchcraft. He implies that the town is under the spell of witches which are conniving with the Devil.
The narrator, Gude Muller is an old woman living with her son, daughter in law and their two children. She knows that due to the food shortage, her daughter in law wants her out of their life and thus is afraid what she might tell the friar to gain favours.
When Gude's friend, Kunne is taken for a witch and burnt at the stake, Gude knows it is her turn now. Despite her son's support and faith in her, she is very scared. Gude has hallucinations, which seem very real to her. She is filled with guilt because of those and half believes that she is a witch herself. That is most scary part of this book.
This book only emphasises the madness of witch hunting, which kind of spread to all parts of the world like an epidemic. It needed only a few words out of the mouth to condemn someone as a witch. The very poor or the very outspoken were targeted and burnt at the stake without any trial or hearing. Believe me, it still happens in a few parts of India. What has really changed?
It is a very well written novel, which keeps one totally engrossed. After reading The HERetic's Daughter by Kathleen Kent, I am very glad I read it. I recommend both to be read one after the other. They are written in entirely different styles with a common thread of witch hunting.
Title: Lost and Found
Title: Sarah's Key
Author: Tatiana de Rosnay
ISBN: 9780312370848
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin/2007
Pages: 293/Trade Paperback
Sarah's Key too interested me via the blogging world. The publicist of the book was kind enough to send me a copy of it. I am very glad I requested and received this book. This book opened up facts I had not known before. That the French police being responsible for rounding up thousands of Jews in Paris and sending them to Auschwitz to die. Those included more than 4000 children between the age of 2 to 12. Those children were citizens of France. But it did not matter a fig for the police. And the people too turned a blind eye. It seems that France has kept it well hidden from the world.
It is July 1942, Paris. Sarah is a ten year old girl, who is taken away from her home along with her parents, in the middle of the night. Meanwhile, she hides her 4 year old brother in a cubboard which is not visible. She promises to come back for him. Her parents are taken away from her and unknown to her, sent to their death.
After 60 years, Julia Jarmond, an American journalist settled in Paris investigates the roundup. She stumbles upon certain secrets which almost rips apart her life. But she knows she has to find out what happened to Sarah Starzynski. And she keeps doing it no matter what. The past and present run in parallel. It keeps the reader rivetted till the end. It stays in mind long after reading the book. We cry with Sarah, for Sarah. We need to know what happened to her. Where did she go? Did she survive at all?
I am glad that I read it. I am glad I got to know about the French connection. It is fiction but it is totally based on facts. And this has made me look up more material on that period of time. What I want to know why did the French keep it all hidden? Even now not much is known about it.
As it is said in the book. Remember. Never forget.
Such books should be read by ALL of us.
Title: The Triumph of Deborah
Author: Eva Etzioni-Halevy
ISBN: 9780452289062
Publisher: A Plume Book/2008
Pages: 355
Book Blurb:
In ancient Israel, war is looming. Deborah, a highly respected leader, has coerced the warrior Barak into launching a strike against the neighboring Canaanites. Against all odds he succeeds, returning triumphantly with Asherah and Nogah, daughters of the Canaanite King, as his prisoners. But military victory is only the beginning of the turmoil, as a complex love triangle develops between Barak and the two princesses.
Deborah, recently cast off by her husband, develops a surprising affinity for Barak. Yet she struggles to rebuild her existence on her own terms, while also groping her way toward the greatest triumph of her life.
What led you to pick up this book?
It was doing the rounds of book blogging world. The storyline pulled me in. I asked Eva for a copy and she was kind enough to send me one.
What did you like most about the book?
I like the strong character of Deborah. In those times when women had no say, she was widely respected for her wisdom. I also learnt a lot about Israel's history. Many a things might have changed but some remain the same way. Our culture is embedded in us. I felt so is the Israel culture. I found many a similarities between Hindu and Canaanite weddings.
What did you like least?
I think the sex scenes could have been toned down a bit. At a few points I felt Barak was only ruled by his desires of the flesh. So that kind of detracts from the storyline.
What did you think of the writing style?
Etzioni-Halevy's writing is simple. It does help the reader to be engrossed in the novel.
Which of your readers are most likely to enjoy this book? Why?
Those who like history and wish to know more about religion will like it. It clearly depicts geography and makes a socio-political statement for that period of time.
What did you think of the main character? What is the central character’s biggest problem?
Deborah is a wonderful woman, strong-willed and very objective in her views. She can forsee the future, abhors war yet knows that it is needed too. Her biggest problem is that at one point of time she listens to her heart than her mind. This affects her relationship with her husband.
What did you think of the ending?
I liked it. With the help of Deborah, Asherah and Nogah, peace finally prevails. War is given up for good.
Do you recommend this book? If you use a rating system, what’s your rating?
Yes, I do recommend it for all those who like historical fiction and I rate it 3.5/5. In other words, I liked it.
I don't know how I got to know Dewey. But after I landed up on her blog, I never looked back. Her blog simply drew us all in. Her reading was vast and varied. I looked up at what she had to say about a particular book. As I said before on my blog, I was in awe of her. She had so much enthusiasm that it kind of attracted us to her. She kept the book blogging spirit alive by doing 24 hour read-a-thon, which I loved. Out of three, I participated in two. This time I also won 5 bookmooch points, which I forgot to redeem. She wrote me to remind me of that.
I liked to do the Weekly Geeks. It kept the book blogging community alive. She made sure we visited each other. Her giveaways were generous. I for one, won three books from her.
I had some inkling of her illness but did not know the seriousness of it. Yes, I will miss her. I am missing her. Hope she is looking at all of us from up there. Dewey, we will keep the community feeling alive. We have to. You started it, we got to make it grow.
Love you Dewey, wherever you are. It hardly matters that I never met you.
Title: Any Given Doomsday
Author: Lori Handel
ISBN: 9780312949198
Publisher: St. Martin's Paperback/2008
Pages: 343
I had seen this book make the rounds of book blogging world and requested a copy from the author. She was kind enough to send me one. This book is pegged as urban fantasy. I usually do not go in for paranormal fiction. This time I thought to read one or two books on that.
Elizabeth Phoenix is a psychic who helps the police to fight against injustice. She is good at it too, although she does not know how she got the psychic skills. Her foster mother is found murdered and she becomes unconscious while she is there. She has this strange memory of seeing weird creatures. Her former lover, Jimmy Sanducci is presumed to be involved in the murder.
Jimmy knows the truth and makes it known the evil has been there from the beginning of time and she is the chosen one to lead and destroy it. Elizabeth has no inkling what to do other than her instincts to follow.
So far so good. As a start this sounds good. But it fizzles out in the middle. Too many creatures, to many things happening, which somehow do not connect. And there is excess of sex. I felt those were not needed. Not with Jimmy or with Sawyer. The sex is kind of demeaning, to control her. That completely put me off. I think I should better stay away from paranormal fiction, if it is one. For those who like that genre, it might interest them a lot. I kept waiting for the climax and I was disappointed.
