RIP V Challenge

Stupidly busy again so I haven't had the chance to finish my reviews, but here is my brief round up of Carl's fabulous RIP V Challenge.

I managed to get through more books than I hoped, but didn't get round to reading Dracula...maybe next year.

Books read:
The Hound of the Baskervilles - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Lonely Werewolf Girl - Martin Millar
Curse of the Wolf Girf - Martin Millar
White Crow - Marcus Sedgewick
The Collector - John Fowles

Looking forward to RIP VI!

White Crow - Marcus Sedgwick

Read for: RIP V Challenge, my love for Marcus Sedgwick!

Somehow I didn't even realise this had been published until reading Rhinoa's 5-star review. I ordered it immediately from my local library and was not disappointed. White Crow is a teen gothic fantasy, written by the incomparable Marcus Sedgwick.

Rebecca and her father move to the small countryside village of Winterfold, taking her away from a busy and far more exciting life in London. There, bitter at her father for the move, Rebecca wanders around the village, where she meets the strange, elfin girl, Ferelith. The two girls explore the history of the village and slowly uncover the terrifying secrets about experiments conducted by a mysterious seventeenth century doctor.

White Crow is a slow burn, gently introducing details about our two main characters, and the secrets and lies then uncover. The story slowly edges towards its creepy conclusion, as Rebecca's life unravels and the truth of her presence in Winterfold is revealed. Ferelith is indeed a strange creature. Her mannerisms and attitude to Rebecca is unsettling to say the least. And the unanswered question...what really lies beyond death.

Although aimed at teens, this is certainly more adult material. The atmosphere is deftly crafted, the uncomfortably hot summer against the chilly tale.

Fantastic stuff.

Other blog reviews:
Rhinoa's Ramblings
Books and other thoughts

The Collector - John Fowles

Read for: RIP V Challenge

Far ahead of his time, John Fowles wrote this dark classic in 1963, when I can only imagine it shocked readers as much as it can today. This is the disturbing tale of Frederick, a butterfly collector, who decides to 'collect' the object of his fantasies, a beautiful art student, Miranda.

After winning a large sum of money, Frederick meticulously plans the kidnapping, buying a house deep in the country with an outside basement, building a place to keep the captive Miranda. The plan goes flawlessly, and Frederick spends his days in the hope that Miranda will fall in love with him.

The Frederick we see is not a monster, but a lonely man, hopelessly in love with an otherwise unobtainable woman. Miranda sees this in him, and part of her understands this and even begins to sympathise with him. However, Miranda soon learns that she has underestimated Frederick and what he is capable of, as the story takes an even darker turn.

With the first half of this tale revolving around Frederick and the unfolding of his plan, I found myself enjoying the second half more, as we journey Miranda's experiences in the basement through reading her diary. There is also a thread of Shakespeare's The Tempest running through the novel, with Frederick identifying with Ferdinand and his love for Miranda, however she refers to him as Caliban throughout her diary.

Though perhaps a little overly long, I thoroughly enjoyed (and was creeped out by) this trip into the minds of an obsessive collector, and the object of his desire.

The Hound of the Baskervilles - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Read for: RIP V Challenge, Our Mutual Read Challenge

Despite never being particularly interested in the tales of Sherlock Holmes, I found myself gripped by the latest television adaptation of the famous sleuth's adventures. The BBC dramatisation was modern and inventive and persuaded me to try taste the source.

The Hound of the Baskervilles is perhaps the best known of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's famous detective's cases. However, what I did not expect was that despite being Sherlock Holmes' case, this particular novel focuses far more on his loyal assistant and narrator, Dr John Watson.

Based on the legend of a ghost dog from my neck of the woods, the Hound of the Baskervilles is the tale of Sir Charles Baskerville who is found dead of a heartattack in the grounds of his home in the centre of Dartmoor. Fearing for the life of Sir Charles' successor, Henry, a family friend Dr Mortimer contacts Sherlock Holmes about the curse of the Baskervilles and invites him to investigate the mysterious death. While Holmes remains in London, Watson accompanies Henry to Dartmoor and thus the mystery unravels.

The plot is a classic, elements of which will be very familar to readers of more modern mysteries. It is the characters however that make Conan Doyle's work so entertaining. Watson is engaging and likeable, his intelligent everyman the perfect foil for Holmes' astonishing yet somewhat egotistical genius.

According to all-knowing Wikipedia, there have been 24 film adaptations of Hound of the Baskervilles prior to 2006, which goes to show the durability of Conan Doyle's work. I thoroughly enjoyed my first Sherlock novel and will seriously consider another!

RIP V Challenge

I'm a bit slow on joining this years Readers. Imbibing. Peril. Challenge, hosted as ever by the fabulous Carl of Stainless Steel Droppings. The challenge runs from 1st September to 31st October and involves reading books that fall into several categories:

Mystery
Suspense
Thriller
Dark Fantasy
Gothic
Horror
Supernatural

I will be participating in Peril the First, reading four books that fit into these categories.


My pool of potential reads include:
Dracula - Bram Stoker
The Hound of the Baskervilles - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Lonely Werewolf Girl - Martin Millar
The Invisible Ring - Anne Bishop
The Historian - Elizabeth Kostova
White Crow - Marcus Sedgewick
A Game of Thrones - George RR Martin

Also on my bookshelf:
An Instance of the Fingerpost - Ian Pears
The Girl Who Played With Fire - Stieg Larsson
The Collector - John Fowles
Fingersmith - Sarah Waters

For more information, take a look at Carl's challenge post, and above all enjoy reading!

Frankenstein - Mary Shelley

Read for: RIP IV Challenge

Few people need an introduction to Mary Shelley's classic monster novel, Frankenstein. Although I am very familar with the film adaptations of the novel, I had yet to read it.

Frankenstein is not what I expected. Far from the mad scientist films that have become popular myth, the novel begins by following Dr Frankenstein to the Arctic, in order to gain justice, to right a wrong. The story then returns to his youth, following Frankenstein's progression from young man to a university student, and ultimately to his foolish, arrogant experiments in cheating death. The being Frankenstein then creates follows him, causing him despair and pain as it tries to understand its place in the world and what has been done to it.

Sadly, because I was already familar with the premise, the novel held little shock value for me. Way ahead of its time, and controversially written by a very young woman, Frankenstein is still a ground-breaking work and deliciously gothic in its prose and atmosphere. However, several sections felt overly elaborate, with Shelley spending far too much time on building scenes, dialogue and describing her protagonist's state of mind. It felt to me like a young inexperienced author, with a wealth of imagination, but still growing into her skill as a novelist. I am not familar with Shelley's later work, but am curious as to how much she improved as an author!

Other blog reviews:
Becky's Book Reviews

The Road - Cormac McCarthy

Read for: RIP IV Challenge

Yet another relatively brief review, not just for lack of time, but because I am truly not sure that I can do this book justice, and because I was truly lost for words upon reading it.

The bleak opening of McCarthy's The Road, introduces us to a man and his son walking through a post-apocalyptic wasteland, along the titular road, in the hope of finding...what? Nothing is left, the world is barren, dark and cold. Fear permeates everything. Fear of starvation, fear of injury and disease, fear of the cold, fear of the unknown, and fear of what is known. McCarthy's world includes that most terrifying of post-apocalyptic ideas, the loss of humanity. And I don't mean the human race being wiped out, but the survivors losing what it is that makes them human. The world he describes is truly dog-eat-dog, and forces his characters (and his readers) to face the stark reality of their existance.

The only word I can think of that really encompasses the world that McCarthy has created, the challenges and events that his characters experience, and the feeling that they evoke is...devastating. The cause of this devastation is never unveiled, it is unimportant. McCarthy is not preaching about what we are doing to the Earth or our fellow man. The story is solely the survival of these two people. Not just their physical survival but their desire to survive. More than once the son expresses to his father than perhaps it would be better if they died, and in the circumstances, completely understandable. It is the father's strength, his love for his son and his hope, his inexplicable, all-encompassing, sometimes unbearable hope that I found most devastating. More than once, I felt hollow, as if all hope and joy and desire had been sucked out of me. And I was merely reading this book.

The Road is emotionally draining. I defy even the most hard hearted to not be moved by it. I am not however suggesting you will be blubbing over the book, mopping your eyes with endless tissues. Quite the opposite. I could not cry, it was too devastating, and that hollowness stayed with me long after I finished reading. In fact it was several days before I could consider reading another book.

But do not for one second think that I am suggesting you do not read this book. Powerful and difficult it may be, but it is also one of the most beautiful and haunting books I have ever read.
Proof entirely that Cormac McCarthy is an extremely talented author. And a perfect introspective winter read, assuming you are in the right frame of mind.

I believe the film is finally being released in January...anyone think they are interested in seeing it?

(Ok that apparently wasn't as brief as I thought!)

Other blog reviews:
Bold.Blue.Adventure
Fluttering Butterflies
Becky's Book Reviews
Leafing Through Life
Things mean a lot
The Written Word
Stella Matutina

(have i missed yours?)

Dead Until Dark - Charlaine Harris

Read for: RIP IV Challenge

Set in Bon Temps, Louisiana, Dead Until Dark is the first in the incredibly popular Southern Vampire Series. The heroine, Sookie Stackhouse, is a small town waitress with a gift (or disability as she sees it) of being able to read people's thoughts. She is a sweet natured and naive girl, who keeps people at arm's length and her psychic problem makes it hard for her to conduct a normal relationship. So all her prayers seem to have been answered when a vampire walks into her bar, and she can't hear a peep from his mind. Soon she becomes drawn to the mysterious vampire, though many people disapprove, perhaps one in particular. Women are being murdered in the local area, and all have one thing in common...their relationships or such with vampires.

What I haven't mentioned of course, though most people need no such explanation...is that in this series, vampires have "come out of the coffin" so to speak. This is the idea that appealed to me most for this series, as I love the idea of vampires wandering into a 7-11 to buy a four pack of synthetic blood! And these vampires are by no means the good, we're going to save the world a la Buffy/Angel type vampires. They are just the same as any other person, they have the ability to be good and the ability to be truly evil. Although they also have far superior strength, the ability to glamour and a thirst for your blood...

I really wanted to love this book. I enjoyed watching the first series of True Blood, which is perhaps the only reason I picked up the book in the first place, but I felt mightily underwhelmed by it. Sookie's character is indeed sweet and generally not one would expect for a heroine in a vampire series, and Bill is as expected every bit the Southern gentleman (for a vampire). But I could not bring myself to care particularly much for either character, and there was certainly no chemistry between them that leapt out at me from the page. Its's a shame, as I really enjoyed the series, which may have given me different expectations and thus ruined the book for me. Bill in particular, I fell for on the screen, but his character ironically comes across as quite 2-dimensional on the page. I am certainly in the minority here, as these books appear to be very popular, and I know I shouldn't judge a series solely by its first installment (look at potter), but let's just say I have a hunch that they won't grow on me.

Pre-Twilight, I have never particularly been into fictional vampire-romance series like this, so I very much doubt I will be reading more, though I am tempted to watch series 2 of True Blood and see how that goes...

Other blog reviews:
the bookworm
Books & other thoughts
Melody's Reading Corner
Stella Matutina
Medieval Bookworm

(let me know if I have missed yours)

The Thirteenth Tale - Diane Setterfield

Read for: RIP IV Challenge, Herding Cats II

I cannot imagine there are many bloggers out there who have not yet read this book, but if there are, I heartily recommend you push it to the top of your lists!

The Thirteenth Tale is the story of Vida Winter, a best-selling novelist who in her old age has finally decided to tell her life story. Her real life story that is, not the countless fictional stories she has told journalists in the past. To do this, she decides to hire Margaret Lea, a bookseller and obscure part-time biographer, and invites her to the crumbling Gothic mansion of Angelfield, reminiscent of Daphne Du Maurier's Manderley. Margaret agrees to undertake the task and soon becomes captivated by the mysterious Vida Winter and the truths and lies that are so intricately woven into her life. Slowly, the true story of Winter and Angelfield unfolds, with twists and turns worthy of the greatest Gothic novels. Parallels with Margaret's life become apparent, and both women eventually have to confront the ghosts of their pasts.

It is hard to believe that this is Setterfield's first novel. The depth and quality of her writing belies a far more experienced novelist. Angelfield is itself a character in the story, silent and haunting, concealing the true events of the past, revealing them only in part as Margaret's investigation continues. It is the house that intrigued me most, this house that had seen so much, contained so many secrets, with no voice to betray them. And Setterfield's use of language is fabulous, the story rolling off the page in a deliciously rich and classic style, yet without pretension. The house becomes alive and with it, the stories of the wilful Isabelle, and most importantly, the strange twins, Adeline and Emmeline.

It was recommended by several bloggers that I wait until I had read Rebecca and Jane Eyre before picking up The Thirteenth Tale, and I am so glad that I did. Although the stories are quite different, and the protagonist connected with the story and the house through far different circumstances than Mrs de Winter and Jane, the books have a similar feel to them, and TTT is clearly an homage to the other classics. However, I did not expect to be so drawn into this mystery and so captivated by its characters and the missing titular Thirteenth Tale. A truly enjoyable read.

I read a description somewhere that The Thirteeth Tale was "a love letter to books and reading". I couldn't agree more.

Other blog reviews:
Becky's Book Reviews
Bold.Blue.Adventure
Melody's Reading Corner
Stainless Steel Droppings
Valentina's Room

(let me know if I have missed yours)

RIP IV Challenge completed

Although a little behind on my reviews, I did indeed complete the Readers. Imbibing. Peril. IV Challenge, and thoroughly enjoyed it as always! I undertook Peril the Second, to read at least two books from my pool. I managed three, and an extra two titles not in my pool. I shall hopefully review them soon. Another great year for this challenge, rapidly becoming one of my favourites. Thanks must go to Carl for hosting the challenge, introducing us to new artists and setting some great giveaways.

Books read:
The Thirteenth Tale - Diane Setterfield
Dead Until Dark - Charlaine Harris
The Road - Cormac McCarthy
Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
Her Fearful Symmetry - Audrey Niffenegger

RIP IV Challenge

Although I am steering clear of new challenges and focussing on my ever-growing TBR pile, how can I resist Carl's RIP IV Challenge. The R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril challenge is designed to get us reading many subgenres:

Mystery.
Suspense.
Thriller.
Dark Fantasy.
Gothic.
Horror.
Supernatural.

RIP IV runs from September 1st to October 31st, but you can't start any time from now. Sign up at Carl's blog and post your reviews here.

There are many levels of participation available. I shall be joining Peril the Second and reading two books of any length from any subgenre.


There is no commitment to a pre-selected list, but my reading pool to choose from includes:

The Thirteenth Tale - Diane Setterfield
The Road - Cormac McCarthy
American Gods - Neil Gaiman
Dead Until Dark - Charlaine Harris
We Never Talk About My Brother - Peter S. Beagle
Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruis Zafon
The Collector - John Fowles

Enjoy!

The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger - Stephen King

Rating: 2 1/2
Read for: TBR Challenge 2008, RIP Challenge (and a birthday gift!)

A friend of mine is a huge fan of the Dark Tower series and bought the first installment, The Gunslinger, for my birthday last year, and I finally got around to reading it. The Gunslinger is the short introduction to Stephen King's series, described by many as his epic masterpiece. I had high hopes, despite not being a great fan of King, perhaps because my friend had raved about the book so much, and because this series does break away from the author's usual horror genre.

The story revolves around Roland of Gilead, the titular Gunslinger, and his journey to find The Dark Tower, and what it might mean for him and the world. A cross between fantasy and apocalyptic fiction, the story is in a western setting, with gunslingers, deserts, saloons and crazy preachers. We meet the Gunslinger as he is travelling through the desert, hunting the Man in Black, his reasons for this becoming apparent as the story progresses. As Roland's journey continues, the mystery slowly unfolds, as the story and its events get darker and darker. As our Gunslinger catches up with his quarry, he is left with a terrible decision, and though he discovers some answers, he is left with yet more questions.

To my disappointment, I found The Gunslinger quite a struggle. I found the story slow and laborious, with King taking far too much time with his descriptions of the landscape. Even Roland's dreams and memories weren't enough to capture my imagination. I have not read any of King's work since my teenage years, and though I am perhaps more patient now, I am also more critical, and found myself bored very easily. If the story were not so short, I may not have finished it. The ending was beautifully written and the philosophical musings were a welcome touch, and are probably what saved my review from being only 2/5! I am glad that I finished it, though it left me (along with Roland) with a lot more questions. However, I for one did not enjoy this journey enough to read the next chapter in the series, so mystery of The Dark Tower will remain just that.

Smoke and Mirrors - Neil Gaiman

Rating: 3 1/2
Read for: The RIP Challenge, TBR Challenge 2008 and read as an additional book for The Short Story Reading Challenge

First published ten years ago, Smoke and Mirrors is Neil Gaiman’s first full collection of short stories, spanning a good portion of his career. Overall, it is a very dark and compelling collection of stories, many adapted from old fairy tales and classic myths, including Beowulf and the Holy Grail. Gaiman’s writing style is unique, drawing on his experiences as a novelist, graphic novelist, poet and screenwriter. Some of his stories are magical, enticing and very thought-provoking, however, I will be honest, I did zone out for some of them! Smoke and Mirrors is a dark collection, and certainly for adults, as there are some very graphic moments of sex and violence, which may be unsuitable for some readers.

And now for some of my favourite stories:

Chivalry is the tale of an old woman who finds the Holy Grail in a charity shop, only to have a young knight come looking for it. A wonderful start to the collection with this unusual, imaginative but amusing story.

The Price is the story of an ordinary family adopted by a stray cat who is found each and every morning with the most terrible wounds and injuries. Is he fighting another cat, or a fox? Or perhaps his battles are against something far more terrifying..

The Case of the Departure of Miss Finch is an amusing tale of Gaiman and two friends entertaining one of their friends at the circus. There they discover it is important to be careful what you wish for. I loved the imagery at the end of this story, like being transported to another time.

The Daughter of Owls is a short story that reminded me beautifully of the writing of one of my favourite authors, Susanna Clarke and her world of Faerie. Wonderfully creepy.

Babycakes is a short, amusing tale, questioning what humans would do if all the animals one day disappeared. What would we find to eat, to farm, and to test our chemicals on?

Murder Mysteries is perhaps my favourite story. The angels are busy with the creation of the world, in order to complete His vision, when one of their own in found dead. Raguel, the Angel of Vengeance, is called upon to investigate the death and bring vengeance upon those responsible. But nothing is that simple. This is a heartbreaking tale of the angels' destiny, to create our world, but not to understand it or its purpose, and not to be part of it. He has a plan, and it is not for them to know or understand. I am not a religious person, nor do I believe in a God like this, but I was very moved by this tale.

And the final story, Snow, Glass, Apples, the dark and twisted tale of the classic fairy tale Snow White. Written from the point of view of the stepmother, Snow White is far from the innocent young girl I remember from my childhood. Instead she is an evil, sadistic murderess, responsible for the death of her own father. You'll never think of her the same ever again!

An entertaining collection of stories, though sometimes hit and miss, but well worth a read. A fabulous introduction to the writings of Neil Gaiman.

Other blog reviews:
Bold.Blue.Adventure

Have I missed yours?

R.I.P. III Challenge

I've only been blogging a few months, and thus have not had the pleasure of participating in one of Carl V's R.I.P. Challenges. This years challenge will have various related activities, so keep an eye on Stainless Steel Droppings as the challenge progresses. R.I.P. III runs from September 1st through October 31st, 2008, and there are three possible variations. There are three perils to choose from, and the challenge is to read between 1 and 4 books from the following subgenres:

Mystery.
Suspense.
Thriller.
Dark Fantasy.
Gothic.
Horror.
Supernatural.

Instead of a fixed list of books, each participant should create a pool of books that they would like to select from. This pool can be books they already want to read and you can get ideas from other participants' pools. Reviews should be posted on the R.I.P.ing Yarns website.


I have chosen Peril the Second, and will be reading two (or more!) of the following books in the subgenres:

The Master and the Margarita - Mikhail Bulgakov
The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruis Zafon
Smoke and Mirrors - Neil Gaiman
Nocturnes - John Connolly
The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger - Stephen King
The Thirteenth Tale - Diane Setterfield
The Collector - John Fowles
Fragile Things - Neil Gaiman
Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
The Bloody Chamber - Angela Carter

So whatever you choose, enjoy!!