Book #16: Terms & Conditions

Terms & Conditions by Robert Glancy

This is a book that I'm pretty sure I got for free on a Kindle deal a long time ago and then it sat dormant for a really long time before I got around to reading it. I'm glad I decided to give it a go, because I was pleasantly surprised.  

The story begins as the main character, Frank, wakes up in the hospital after what he is told was a serious car accident. He's banged up, but aside from losing his spleen, he's expected to make a full recovery. Unfortunately, he has no memory of who he is or what he did or who anyone he knows might actually be. 

He slowly returns to his mundane life as a lawyer who specializes in legal small print, and desperately tries to remember his former life. As his memory slowly creeps back, he begins to feel a growing certainty that the people around him are not telling the truth about the circumstances of his accident and that perhaps his life wasn't quite as rosy as they'd have him believe.

The first-person narrative is told in quick vignettes based on the legal terms and conditions that make up Frank's life, and I found it extremely amusing and easy to read. I love books with lots of short chapters, and I finished it in one or two sittings. I'm mentally bookmarking Robert Glancy for future book purchases.

Book #15: The Beautiful Mystery

The Beautiful Mystery by Louise Penny

I've written before about how much I love Louise Penny's Inspector Gamache series, and this one is no exception. I was surprised by just how tense and uncomfortable a lot of this story was, however.

In this installment, Inspector Gamache and his right-hand-man, Jean-Guy, are called to a the Saint-Gilbert-Entre-les-Loups, a notoriously private monastery, to investigate the murder of a monk. When they arrive, they realize this monastery is home to a famous choir known for their gorgeous chants known as "the beautiful mystery," and the murdered monk was the esteemed choir director. 

I'm not Catholic, but I found the descriptions of the services wonderfully captivating. There's something so intriguing to me about the quiet nature of  Catholicism - the introspection and sacred rituals, the reverence for what (and Who) is holy.

For the first time, I felt like the actual murder mystery in the novel wasn't really the focus of the story. Over the course of the last couple of novels, a story-within-the-story has been woven throughout, and this brings it almost to its conclusion. Jean-Guy's portion of the book was particularly hard to read, even though readers have known his emotional breakdown was imminent. The ending was so unsettling that I immediately bought the next book so I could just feel better about where the characters ended up. 

I've yet to read a Louise Penny novel I haven't thoroughly enjoyed, and I hope she keeps cranking them out.

Book #14: The Night Sister

The Night Sister by Jennifer McMahon

I love a good thriller. I love a good ghost story. I had hoped this would be both, but it just wasn't.

I've read several of Jennifer McMahon's books, and I usually enjoy them. They remind me of those spooky, yellow-tinted movies from the 70's - you know, the ones where someone is enjoying a picnic beside a lake and out of nowhere, a vacant-faced dead woman just pops up out of the water and starts gliding towards the picnic basket. Most of her books give me the same creepily nostalgic feel.

This story, about two sets of sisters years apart and a shared dark secret, had all the makings of a good shudder-y read, but it just fell flat. The dialogue was unbelievable, and the ending made me roll my eyes. No spoilers here, but if you've seen "Sleepwalkers," you'll understand how stupid it got.

I've heard really good things about the book she came out with just before this one - The Winter People - and I'm hoping it will be a return to McMahon's earlier style.

Book #13: The Golden Ball and Other Stories

 

The Golden Ball and Other Stories by Agatha Christie

 

It's no secret that I love Agatha Christie. I think I was in 9th or 10th grade when I first read And Then There Were None, and I was hooked. She is a master of the red herring, and even though I've since read about a jillion murder mysteries, she still manages to keep me guessing to the end. Speaking of a jillion murder mysteries, I was listening to a podcast about books yesterday (I know, so surprising), and they mentioned that Agatha Christie had written like 80-something books and she is considered the expert on "murder by poison." I love geeky facts like that.

 

This book is a collection of Christie's short stories, and I found this collection to be super interesting, not because of the stories themselves, but because of the way in which they were arranged. The book starts off with fluff mysteries - no one actually gets hurt, usually a funny misunderstanding, etc. - but by the end, the stories transition to serious and somewhat heartbreaking. The last story in particular, "Next to a Dog," made me so sad and uncomfortable that I almost wish I hadn't read it. It's almost like the editors tried to soften the blow by starting the compilation off lukewarm and slowly heating the pot until it was scalding.

 

I still enjoy her novels more, but this assemblage is enjoyable for all Christie fans.

Book #12: All the Light We Cannot See

 

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

 

Some books are fun to read. I breeze through them and enjoy them. They make the perfect addition to my purse or travel bag, and they're basically the literary equivalent of "You've Got Mail" or "The Holiday" (my personal favorite movie).

 

But some books are important to read. They're harder to get through, not because the story isn't good or the writing is less-than-stellar, but because the subject matter is uncomfortable.

 

All the Light We Cannot See lands on the "Important" list for me. I'm sure you've seen it blowing up the "Best Books of..." categories all over the place, and I've had several people recommend it. I'd put off reading it for a long time because frankly, anything to do with World War II is usually just so sad. This book is all about the war. It's one of the main characters of the book. I knew I would feel melancholy while I read it, and I just didn't want to.

 

But I finally caved and started reading it about two weeks ago. Admittedly, it took me a while to get into the story. The book centers on two different children: Marie-Laure, a blind French girl, and Werner, a reluctant German recruit into Hitler's Youth. Their stories don't intersect until the very end, and by the time I finally got there, I cared. I cared a lot.

 

I don't want to give away too much of the plot, because I think it's better to slowly warm up to the story as you read, but the prose is absolutely gorgeous. I re-read several passages aloud just to hear them spoken.

 

Is it sad? Absolutely.

 

Does it end on a depressing note? Hmm. Yes and no. It's very true-to-life and the war didn't end well for anyone, really.

 

Will you regret reading it? Not one bit.

 

Go pick up a copy. Tell me what you think.

 

 

Book #11: I've Got Your Number

 

I've Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella

 

Confession: Sometimes I love Sophie Kinsella books, and sometimes they are the worst.

 

I used to really enjoy her Shopaholic series, but then I began to feel like every story was exactly the same. Becky (the main character) would do something stupid. Then she'd almost tell the truth about what she'd done, but of course, she wouldn't. And then things would get awkward and the lies would pile up, and then she'd get caught. And then everyone would forgive her, because isn't she just a precious, scatter-brained cutie?

 

Um, no. She was annoying and whiny. So I gave up reading any of the books.

 

This stand-alone novel popped up in my "if you like this, you might like this" feed on Amazon, and I thought, why not? I was completely prepared for disappointment, but wonder of wonders, I really liked this story.

 

Now, it is total chick-lit. No doubt. But it's chick-lit written in the smartest and most believable way, and I found myself really getting into the plot:

 

Poppy, a twenty-something Londonite, has lost her engagement ring the week before her wedding. As if that isn't bad enough, it's a family heirloom ring, and her to-be in-laws are arriving any minute. In a terrible twist of fate, her phone is stolen and she has no way of being reached by anyone who might find her ring. Just before she's overcome with despair, she spots a cell phone in a trash can (ok, I know. This part sounds unbelievable, but it works. Trust me.), and she snatches it. Finders keepers. Unfortunately, it belongs to a businessman named Sam, and he would really like it back.

 

I'm sure you're asking yourself, "Oh, what could possibly happen between Poppy and Sam?" Yes, yes. I get it. The plot is predictable, but it's so enjoyable. And unlike the Shopaholic books, no one is a big fat liar, so the tension between characters never gets uncomfortable. I'm crossing my fingers and hoping Kinsella can publish some more books like this one soon.

Book #10: A Trick of the Light

 

A Trick of the Light by Louise Penny

 

I love Agatha Christie. I discovered her in high school with And Then There Were None (which is brilliant, by the way), and I was hooked. I typically can't figure out who the murderer is - and there's always a murderer - and I think Mrs. Marple and Hercule Poirot are equally as well-written as Sherlock Holmes. But that isn't the only reason I love her books. Looking back, I've realized what really grabs me and keeps me reading is just how cozy they are.

 

People are forever drinking tea in front of fireplaces. They're walking down cobbled lanes or country roads while the sun is setting. There are a lot of discussions about doilies and biscuits and lovable dogs curled up by the kitchen tables.

 

Her books transport me.

 

I read Louise Penny's first book about Quebec's Inspector Gamache, Still Life, a few years ago, and totally by accident. I think it was a Kindle daily deal or something. But I was delighted to discover her books gave me exactly the same feeling as Agatha Christie's. Coziness. It doesn't matter if it's five zillion degrees outside (and it totally is at the moment I'm writing this), all I want to do is grab a huge cup of fancy espresso-based coffee with a ton of cream, a flaky croissant, and curl up with a fleece blanket on my couch. I'm even tempted to light my fireplace, but I don't because I've never actually used it, and I'm terrified there might be a family of bats or something camped out in my chimney.

 

Each Gamache book centers on a different citizen of the fictional Quebec town of Three Pines, and this book is about the town's resident eccentric artist, Clara Morrow. Clara has finally landed a huge art show, and everyone is thrilled, until a dead body turns up in her garden the morning after the show. It turns out that Clara knew the murder victim when they were younger, and she becomes the main suspect. Inspector Gamache and his second-in-command, Jean-Guy, set out to prove Clara's innocence.

 

As with each of her books, while there is a light-heartedness about much of the story, there's also a tinge of melancholy buried inside - much like an actual trick of the light.