Book Review: A Cry in the Night

Author: Mary Higgins Clark
Genre: Mystery, Thriller
Type:  Fiction

I find Mary Higgins Clark’s works quite engaging and I need not say this is a suspense thriller and set in the 1980’s.

The plot starts with Jenny, a divorcee and a mother of 2 kids, who works in an art gallery. Her ex-husband Kevin is a struggling actor and often leeches off on Jenny for money. She meets Erich the painting artist during his art exhibition and he sweeps her off her feet with his charm and warmth. Within a month they get married and she moves from New York to his mansion in Minnesota. He is rich and has people working for him to cater to his every whim. Jenny slowly realizes that Erich is a perfectionist and very possessive. Slowly her life turns into a nightmare when weird incidents begins happening. At one point, Jenny feels she is entrapped in the mansion. Does she escape her nightmare and the answers to why strange events keep happening.

The author takes her time to set the premise before the creepy events unfold. At one point the book feels like a horror story. The pace is quick and there are so many unsolved questions which are answered at the end. There are several other characters attributing to suspicious circumstances and make us shift our doubts to every other person. The final reveal is a good one.

The primary point by which Erich is besotted by Jenny is that she is almost a replica of his dead mother Caroline. Jenny realizes that she and Caroline have more than physical similarities. But one question that bothers me is how does any woman, let alone a mother of two, decide to marry a person she knows only for a month and knows basically nothing of his life. I even thought that Jenny has some psychological issues. Also, she invariably tolerates Erich’s annoying acts and felt maybe she should not be this naïve.

Verdict: Overall the book an engaging easy read and is a mix of romance, thriller and horror. It keeps you hooked till the end.

Book Review: A Stranger in the House

Author: Shari Lapena

Genre: Mystery, Crime, Thriller

Type: Fiction

I picked this book as I liked the previous book 'The couple next door' by the same author. 

The plot is about a murder that drags a couple Tom and Karen into it. The wife Karen gets in an accident in a troublesome neighbourhood right around the same time when a murder takes place very close to accident spot. As a result of the injury, Karen doesn't remember anything from the day of the accident. Evidence makes the detectives suspect that Karen was at the murder scene. Adding fuel to the fire is the over-indulgent neighbour Brigid who has nothing but to watch the couple from across the street but seems to be the close friend of Karen. The couple become paranoid when the detectives start drilling with questions.The whole story revolves around who, what and how. Any further details would be a spoiler. So I am curtailing myself there.

The characters are very few. Karen is secretive, smart and is guarded in her thoughts and actions whereas Brigid is manipulative and nosy. I was a bit disappointed with Tom's character. For a person who's wife is in a grave circumstance of being charged for a murder, he is so indecisive and meek. I felt most of the time he was rolling in self-pity and was immature. The plot started off interestingly but after a few chapters the story fell flat. There was too much of redundant question of 'what happened that night' passing though everyone's mind. I felt a few pages could have been reduced to avoid the redundancy. The author maintains the 'whodunnit' suspense throughout which makes us keep going. 

I did not expect the double twist at the end. The hint of a subtle cliffhanger is good and maybe there could be a sequel. I The premise was promising but writing was not as good as I expected. In fact, a few places were predictable which is a bummer for mystery genre.

Verdict: I would recommend it as a one-time read if you don't want a serious or intelligent mystery story.

Book Review: The Murder at the Vicarage

Author: Agatha Christie

Genre: Mystery, Thriller

Type: Fiction

This is the first book on the famous fictional detective Miss Marple. Being an ardent fan of mystery and thriller plots, I cannot believe I haven’t read the Agatha Christie books ever. I chose this for the Popsugar prompt No. 30 - a book featuring an amateur detective

Colonel Protheroe is murdered at the Vicarage while waiting to meet the Vicar and almost everyone in the village is a suspect including the vicar. He is not a person loved by all in the quiet neighbourhood of St Mary Mead and everyone thinks the world is better place without him. The inquisitive old Miss Marple tries to find the missing pieces of the murder mystery.

With so many suspects on the list, the plot is engaging and we are not given any hints on who might be the killer. Most characters have a backstory. Entwined with the murder are 2 separate crimes which come to light as the story proceeds. The story is told from the Vicar’s point of view and though a central character we do not have heavy doses of Miss Marple’s appearance. And when she does appear, she just throws in simple statements and questions. The old lady is a relief from the conventional formula for detective characterisations.

When I started this book I noted down the characters, their movements during the murder. At one point I even stopped reading and reflected on who could be the murderer. But all in vain. I could never guess what happened. This is not a story where the answer was right there but we didn’t see it.  I don’t know if this is Agatha Christie’s style. So if you read this book, do not try to solve it by yourself.

Verdict: After reading this I am yearning to read more of Agatha Christie’s novels and this is a great read for all 'whodunnit' fans.

Book Review: Remember Me?

Author: Sophie Kinsella
Genre: Romance, Chick-lit

Type: Fiction

I reread this book after 8 years and still love it as much as I did the first time. Thanks to POPsugar prompt 7 - A reread of a favourite book.

Sophie Kinsella is one of my regular authors and I find her works equivalent to a comfort food. If I am not in mood for any heavy book Sophie Kinsella is my go-to author.

The plot is simple.What sort of twisted position would it be if you wake up one day to find 3 years of your life is missing from your memory. The same happens to Lexie Smart where she wakes up in a hospital and remembers nothing of her past 3 years. She is perplexed at how rich, good looking and career driven she is. And she is married to a handsome real-estate businessman. She concludes that she has got a perfect life and tries to fit in. Slowly she realises her life is mechanical and she has lost her close friends in the journey up the career ladder. Then comes a blow in the form of an architect. So the plot swivels around if Lexie gets back her memory and returns to her new lifestyle or stays the old self and resolves her issues. 

This is one of the typical Sophie Kinsella templates where a young woman is struggling with personal life and career ends up in a mess. The writing is simple and I did not find it anywhere boring. I did find the Porsche element in the end a bit unconvincing. Eric the husband, Jon the architect, Lexie’s friends, her mom and sister share some space in the story. 

The plot is from Lexi’s point of view and there is humour and romance like all her books. I had loved it when I had read it for the first time. But when I started it again now I knew only the plot but the scenes seemed to be entirely new. I think along with Lexie even I got amnesia. So it was more of reading a new book rather than a re-read. I like how there aren’t many incidents in the book that projects Lexie reacting stupidly to crisis. The characters are a bit mature than what I have read in other chick-lit novels. Overall it was a good read for me.

Verdict: I recommend this for all the chick-lit fans and those who enjoy reading mild dose of romance and humour. This will always be in my reread list of books.

Book review: A Little Something Different

Author: Sandy Hall

Genre: YA Romance
Type: Fiction

I read this book for POPSugar prompt 17 A book set on a college or university campus.

It is a pure college so-called romance story between Gabe and Lea. Lea is a new student enrolled for creative writing class and Gabe is enrolled in the same class. He is a shy guy and is back to college after a sabbatical. Both of them are attracted to each other but are held back by a few apprehensions. Gabe has a secret that only his brother and his friend know. Lea is confused whether he is interested in her or not. Do Gabe and Lea cross their hurdles and get together forms the remaining story.

The story is told from multiple POVs though none from Lea and Gabe. Every other character in Lea and Gabe’s universe roots for them to be a couple. Not just their friends, but their teacher, coffee shop baristas, food delivery guy, bus driver. Everyone!! So it felt completely surreal and the romance element did not work for me. Stereotypical awkward conversations, shy glances, let the other person approach scenes are being used here. Nowhere could I see the spark of romance that says they are meant to be with each other. May be if Lea and Gabe were allowed to say their perspective of the story, it would have worked.

A little something different was different only in using the bench and a squirrel as characters. I wish I was able to root for the couple as the characters did. I love romance and tried to find that something to hook me into the story but this book was not for me.

Verdict: This was an easy read with no fluctuations on the emotions and will recommend only if you like mild YA romance.

Counting My Blessings!!

I moved to a new home last year where the real estate is still developing. There are a whole lot of houses under construction nearby. The people who work there have been setting up their homes beside the construction site in a makeshift tent. So there is this family just opposite to my house and they have made themselves comfortable in the tent they made. That family has a couple, 2 children and sometimes an old lady too. One of the kids is school going and the other is just a toddler.

Hyderabad weather has been quite cruel this season and the temperatures have gone lower than the lowest. The other day my husband pointed me to the lady of that family chopping wood from the dried branches of the trees in an empty plot. We both understood that it was for their stove to cook food and to keep themselves warm. It was then it struck my mind that how simple their life is. They don’t have a concrete roof above their heads. The children just have mud and stones to play with. They aren't running behind targets or goals for the year, EMIs, bills, etc. Probably farthest plans for their future would be to find a better paying job at a new construction project. I can only guess.

Their life seems very simple to me. Just to approach one day at a time.  They don’t have to worry about the gas connection or electricity or petrol prices. If they don’t have any comfort, then so it is. Maybe could have actually opted for a permanent residence. But they chose this life like nomads. They work, earn, eat and rest. We also do something synonymous to that. But we are amidst a complicated system. Yes, they might be wondering about the life that we have - comfortable home, vehicles to go about to places, machines that make life less tiring, healthcare facilities during sickness. The grass is always greener on the other side.This is not pity. I do not feel sympathy for them. I am just amused to see them living life on their terms. I keep coming back to a thought that we need to reduce our addictions on mundane things and enjoy the life as it comes, rather whining and complaining on what we don’t have. Sometimes this seems impractical as we run to secure our life as much as possible from unforeseen circumstances.

I have begun to appreciate that we are blessed with many things in life and need to show more gratitude by being better than what I was yesterday. Less whining and more smiling!!

2018 - My Year in Books

Another year has come to an end.  My year in books has been great when it comes to number. 64 is a good number. But its sad when I realise that I don't remember any book that actually wow'ed me.

'The Handmaid's Tale' had been the most intense and I almost cried when I was done with 'Marley Me: Life and Love with the World's Worst Dog'. The Clifton Chronicles was good enough for me to finish the series, except for the last instalment. That was quite slow.  After the Floods was an interesting anthology on the 'Chennai Floods 2015' .  'Come Sundown', 'The Couple Next Door' and 'Echo Park'  were thrilling and intriguing. Surprisingly, Chetan Bhagat's 'The Girl in Room 105' was not bad.

Here are my top 3 books for this year.

1. Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell - Its the usual boy-meets-girl-falls-n in-love high school love story but the unconventional start and end is that feels good. Boy and Girl from different family and financial setting get together and how fate drives their lives. Do they stay together to tell the story. The book fits the standard romance template with cheesy conversations. Comics play the key role as the common interest between the couple which brings them together in-spite of differences and the end definitely will want you to have a sequel.

2. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee - The most popular book of my reads this year, speaks of racial inequality, prejudice, accusations, rumours from the point of a kid in the 1930's. This is one of the bold books published in 1950's feared to be rejected. The writing was simple and it took time for me to understand the social setting of the period. You tend to sympathise with the prejudices going on and realise how perspectives vary between a kid and an adult.

3. Every Breath by Nicholas Sparks - This one from my favourite author was a delight to read. Two protagonists meet unexpectedly and fall in love but the lady cannot be pursued by the guy as she is engaged. The part their ways and after decades how fate brings them back together is the remaining plot. Before the actual novel begins, the author gives us a detail on how he happened to stumble upon this story at a postbox called 'Kindred Spirit'. After reading it, I couldn't stop myself from diving into it. A best read for cold day with a warm drink and a corner of a house to snuggle into.

  

I have some interesting books lined up for 2019 and most of them are out of my usual reading genre and many with raving reviews and suggestions from reading clubs. I have also included the POPSUGAR prompts in addition to the reading challenge from Goodreads. Let's see how I fare next year in books.