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proseamongstthorns
I've been meaning to read more Stephen King for a while now, so when I saw The Institute for only £3 I had to grab it - and I'm so glad I did! This book was gripping, heartbreaking and eerie. I buddy read this book with the wonderful @ebbiereadsinbarcelona from Instagram and loved being able to rant between chapters. It certainly made the read more enjoyable, even if it was incredibly difficult to put the book down.
Children across the US are being kidnapped and taken to a secret government facility where they're experimented on. The cruel experiments are used to heighten latent abilities in telekinesis and telepathy. When child-genius Luke Ellis is kidnapped, the Institute may have bitten off more than they can chew.
King certainly is the master of suspense; the first section of the novel focus' on Tim Jamieson's random wanderings. At this point, not much is happening and the novel hasn't really begun yet. But for some reason, you're completely enraptured by it. I got completely hooked from the beginning and really struggled putting the book down.
At the heart of this novel is the importance of friendship. The bonds made between the children, who are united in their suffering, makes them stronger than they ever thought possible. Its only through working together that they have a chance to survive. Luke Ellis has the brains to piece everything together, but its only with the help of the others that he stands a chance of saving them.
The characters are one of the best parts of this novel. You genuinely care about what happens to them and its this attachment which makes the experiments they're put through all the more difficult to read. Despite Luke being insanely smart, he's still a lovable and believable teenage boy. And don't get me started on Avery - he is just too pure. There's so much woven into this, little tidbits that play no role in the plot, that helps make the characters into tangible personalities.
King also raises an important question: what are you willing to do for the greater good? What sacrifices are justifiable? I don't want to give too much of the plot away here, but you may want to skip this paragraph to be on the safe side. For me, you should never bargain with human lives, especially humans unaware of their fate/position as bargaining chips. I'm not sure if that makes me short-sighted or selfish for only caring about the world now and not what may happen in the future.
I am a fully-converted King fan now (please recommend your favourite King novels!) and can't wait to read more of his work. The Institute was a wonderfully quick read, it builds tension perfectly and the characters jump off the page. There's action, humour and heartbreak. It is also uplifting and hopeful. I can't recommend this one enough really - it truly was a brilliant read and is right up there with my favourite reads of the year.
Review on my blog: https://proseamongstthorns.wordpress.com/2020/10/14/the-institute-by-stephen-king-book-review/
Children across the US are being kidnapped and taken to a secret government facility where they're experimented on. The cruel experiments are used to heighten latent abilities in telekinesis and telepathy. When child-genius Luke Ellis is kidnapped, the Institute may have bitten off more than they can chew.
King certainly is the master of suspense; the first section of the novel focus' on Tim Jamieson's random wanderings. At this point, not much is happening and the novel hasn't really begun yet. But for some reason, you're completely enraptured by it. I got completely hooked from the beginning and really struggled putting the book down.
At the heart of this novel is the importance of friendship. The bonds made between the children, who are united in their suffering, makes them stronger than they ever thought possible. Its only through working together that they have a chance to survive. Luke Ellis has the brains to piece everything together, but its only with the help of the others that he stands a chance of saving them.
The characters are one of the best parts of this novel. You genuinely care about what happens to them and its this attachment which makes the experiments they're put through all the more difficult to read. Despite Luke being insanely smart, he's still a lovable and believable teenage boy. And don't get me started on Avery - he is just too pure. There's so much woven into this, little tidbits that play no role in the plot, that helps make the characters into tangible personalities.
King also raises an important question: what are you willing to do for the greater good? What sacrifices are justifiable? I don't want to give too much of the plot away here, but you may want to skip this paragraph to be on the safe side. For me, you should never bargain with human lives, especially humans unaware of their fate/position as bargaining chips. I'm not sure if that makes me short-sighted or selfish for only caring about the world now and not what may happen in the future.
I am a fully-converted King fan now (please recommend your favourite King novels!) and can't wait to read more of his work. The Institute was a wonderfully quick read, it builds tension perfectly and the characters jump off the page. There's action, humour and heartbreak. It is also uplifting and hopeful. I can't recommend this one enough really - it truly was a brilliant read and is right up there with my favourite reads of the year.
Review on my blog: https://proseamongstthorns.wordpress.com/2020/10/14/the-institute-by-stephen-king-book-review/
I struggled with this one. I studied two of Amis' texts at Uni and when I saw the chance for an advanced copy of his latest book I jumped for it. Unfortunately, it just wasn't for me. Having only read 2 of his novels, I feel like I just don't know his prose well enough to fall in love. Many of the reviews I have come across have been glowing reports; for me however, the tell-all book fell flat.
Time means absolutely nothing in this book or names or narration. We jump around in time in a way that is thoroughly disorientating, people's names change intermittently and for a period Amis refers to himself in 3rd person before returning to 1st. This style of writing is entirely new to me and as someone who has very little experience with Amis I felt a little lost at sea.
By the time I reached the half-way point I had eased into it more. The final third of the book was much more engaging and emotional. His accounts of dealing with so much loss were very raw and honest and seemed to be one of the few points in the novel where I felt I was truly seeing the real Martin Amis. His insights into writing were also fascinating and as an aspiring author (aren't we all) I found these section particularly useful.
All in all, I'd say this book has an intended audience and I wasn't it. I feel like Inside Story requires a reader who is familiar with Amis, both in literature and in his life, so that this novel's enlightening anecdotes have an impact. Towards the end of the novel, as I got more of a sense of Amis' character and his circle of friends and family, I was certainly invested and got much more pleasure from his writing.
Thank you to NetGalley, Vintage and Martin Amis for supplying an ARC in return for an honest review. Inside Story is available now.
Time means absolutely nothing in this book or names or narration. We jump around in time in a way that is thoroughly disorientating, people's names change intermittently and for a period Amis refers to himself in 3rd person before returning to 1st. This style of writing is entirely new to me and as someone who has very little experience with Amis I felt a little lost at sea.
By the time I reached the half-way point I had eased into it more. The final third of the book was much more engaging and emotional. His accounts of dealing with so much loss were very raw and honest and seemed to be one of the few points in the novel where I felt I was truly seeing the real Martin Amis. His insights into writing were also fascinating and as an aspiring author (aren't we all) I found these section particularly useful.
All in all, I'd say this book has an intended audience and I wasn't it. I feel like Inside Story requires a reader who is familiar with Amis, both in literature and in his life, so that this novel's enlightening anecdotes have an impact. Towards the end of the novel, as I got more of a sense of Amis' character and his circle of friends and family, I was certainly invested and got much more pleasure from his writing.
Thank you to NetGalley, Vintage and Martin Amis for supplying an ARC in return for an honest review. Inside Story is available now.
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Despite not being a fan of Victorian literature, this classic gothic text by Mary Shelley fully captured my attention. Frankenstein is truly gripping and is underpinned by deep philosophical questions. There is something here to capture every type of reader: from the casual peruser, to the tabber and analyser.
I don't think I need to go into too much detail about the plot because I feel like its a book that everyone knows, but I'll briefly sum it up. In a time ripe with scientific advancement, Shelley begs the question: does the ability to do something mean we should do it? Frankenstein succeeds in creating life, a fantastic scientific achievement, but his creation is not what he intended. Less beautiful creature, more horrifying monster.
And yet, Shelley presents Frankenstein's monster as an extremely eloquent being who finds comfort in the beauty of nature and feels the isolation of his horrendous features. What he wants most is a companion to spend his life with, away from the cruelty and hatred of humanity who fail to see past his exterior. His creator, Frankenstein, denies him this honour and tragedy follows him. There's a mirroring effect between humans/God and the monster/Frankenstein, which itself raises more questions about the nature of evil.
This novel awoke my desire to explore and analyse. I wish I had studied this text at university, there's so much packed in this book that I'd have loved to explore. You know you're a literature geek when you just want to write an essay on a recent read! I think that's partially why it was a 4* for me (and a general distaste for Victorian texts) and not a 5 - I couldn't get as deep into it as I would have enjoyed.
Shelley's writing style comes across as relatively modern when compared to other Victorian writers. It is very simplistic and to the point, without too much of the classic Victorian scene-setting and class indications. Though there are times when the prose can get a little flowery, these are often as plot points to help hammer home Shelley's points.
A relatively quick read and very atmospheric for this spooky month. If you haven't read it yet, then this is the perfect time to give it a go - and don't be intimidated by its classic status, its one of the easiest classics to get into and certainly more accessible (for me anyway!) than Dracula. Plus, there are lots of copies available for really low prices or completely free: so no book buying bans will be broken!
Copy of the review as posted on my blog: https://proseamongstthorns.wordpress.com/2020/10/15/frankenstein-by-mary-shelley-book-review/
I don't think I need to go into too much detail about the plot because I feel like its a book that everyone knows, but I'll briefly sum it up. In a time ripe with scientific advancement, Shelley begs the question: does the ability to do something mean we should do it? Frankenstein succeeds in creating life, a fantastic scientific achievement, but his creation is not what he intended. Less beautiful creature, more horrifying monster.
And yet, Shelley presents Frankenstein's monster as an extremely eloquent being who finds comfort in the beauty of nature and feels the isolation of his horrendous features. What he wants most is a companion to spend his life with, away from the cruelty and hatred of humanity who fail to see past his exterior. His creator, Frankenstein, denies him this honour and tragedy follows him. There's a mirroring effect between humans/God and the monster/Frankenstein, which itself raises more questions about the nature of evil.
This novel awoke my desire to explore and analyse. I wish I had studied this text at university, there's so much packed in this book that I'd have loved to explore. You know you're a literature geek when you just want to write an essay on a recent read! I think that's partially why it was a 4* for me (and a general distaste for Victorian texts) and not a 5 - I couldn't get as deep into it as I would have enjoyed.
Shelley's writing style comes across as relatively modern when compared to other Victorian writers. It is very simplistic and to the point, without too much of the classic Victorian scene-setting and class indications. Though there are times when the prose can get a little flowery, these are often as plot points to help hammer home Shelley's points.
A relatively quick read and very atmospheric for this spooky month. If you haven't read it yet, then this is the perfect time to give it a go - and don't be intimidated by its classic status, its one of the easiest classics to get into and certainly more accessible (for me anyway!) than Dracula. Plus, there are lots of copies available for really low prices or completely free: so no book buying bans will be broken!
Copy of the review as posted on my blog: https://proseamongstthorns.wordpress.com/2020/10/15/frankenstein-by-mary-shelley-book-review/
This book is outstanding. If I could give it more than 5 stars I would! Literally 24 hours before reading this book, I decided to get rid of my James Patterson books: I can no longer sit through the misogynistic portrayal of women. I didn't think I'd find any man who would write a respectful and diverse crime-thriller and definitely not so soon. Welcome to the stage: Robert Bryndza.
Shadow Sands is the second novel in the Kate Marshall series following Nine Elms. The rest of this post will have some minor spoilers so let me summarise by saying this book is packed full of plot-twists, characters that spring off the page and emotions. Bryndza is a masterful writer and I highly recommend his work.
One of my favourite aspects of Shadow Sands is the love interests. For protagonist Kate there is none - she has her own demons and focuses on herself and her son, rather than having a long line of love interests as some crime novels feature. And then there's Tristan - sweet Tristan. In Shadow Sands Tristan comes out as gay, as someone who came out later in life I appreciated the exploration of this. It was very realistic and made some fabulous observations on homophobic behaviour.
"Listen, Tris. Sarah's not homophobic. She loves them coloured cups they do for Pride at Costa."
Bryndza has cemented himself as my new favourite crime writer with this dark instalment. His characters have such depth to them and you aren't bombarded with information, rather you slowly learn more and more about them and can begin to predict their behaviour. Shadow Sands is absolutely fantastic and I can't recommend the series enough. I'll be grabbing myself a physical copy as soon as they're released to match my Nine Elms.
Shadow Sands is available from November 3rd. Thank you to Robert Bryndza, Thomas and Mercer and NetGalley for providing an ARC in return for an honest review.
Shadow Sands is the second novel in the Kate Marshall series following Nine Elms. The rest of this post will have some minor spoilers so let me summarise by saying this book is packed full of plot-twists, characters that spring off the page and emotions. Bryndza is a masterful writer and I highly recommend his work.
One of my favourite aspects of Shadow Sands is the love interests. For protagonist Kate there is none - she has her own demons and focuses on herself and her son, rather than having a long line of love interests as some crime novels feature. And then there's Tristan - sweet Tristan. In Shadow Sands Tristan comes out as gay, as someone who came out later in life I appreciated the exploration of this. It was very realistic and made some fabulous observations on homophobic behaviour.
"Listen, Tris. Sarah's not homophobic. She loves them coloured cups they do for Pride at Costa."
Bryndza has cemented himself as my new favourite crime writer with this dark instalment. His characters have such depth to them and you aren't bombarded with information, rather you slowly learn more and more about them and can begin to predict their behaviour. Shadow Sands is absolutely fantastic and I can't recommend the series enough. I'll be grabbing myself a physical copy as soon as they're released to match my Nine Elms.
Shadow Sands is available from November 3rd. Thank you to Robert Bryndza, Thomas and Mercer and NetGalley for providing an ARC in return for an honest review.
As soon as Mackenzie Finklea reached out to me on Instagram about her book, I knew it would be something I'd enjoy. I come from a family of history fanatics and adore museums, my partner proposed in The British Library (part museum, part library and part magic) and we spent the rest of our day wandering around London's museums. Finklea allows us a look behind the curtain and inspires you to take museums more seriously.
At the beginning of the book there's almost a disclaimer, saying that the book is tailored for those who may not enjoy museums at all and not the connoisseur. I was worried - but I shouldn't have been. After reading this book I forced my partner to agree to accept a new challenge: visit every museum in the UK. A quick google search showed me there were 6 museums in my city. I've only visited 2 of them (and plan to get married in a 3rd). In the UK in particular, there's no reason for the drop in museum numbers - it's a free, educational day out, why wouldn't we go? And yet, there is a problem worldwide with visitors dropping.
As a generation becoming more aware, its important we continue to support the arts, as museums play a vital role in our art and culture. Whilst we may not agree with some exhibitions and the ethics behind acquisitions, it is unfair to judge all museums the same. With proper research, you can find museums which are not wrapped up in problematic situations. The opposite view, is that this is a unique opportunity to witness artefacts that may soon be returned. Beyond the Halls helps remind you just how important museums are and why they're truly magical.
Finklea's work explore museum myths, teaches new ways to enjoy the day out and approach exhibits. Her enthusiasm and passion for museums is infectious and her advice is brilliant. I particularly loved the sheer number of museums (virtual, physical and somewhere in between) she highlighted throughout her work. Immediately after reading I checked out Virmuse and am excited to watch the platform grow and expand. Her inclusion of online and virtual exhibits allows the reader to consider the place of the museum in a modern world.
I loved reading Beyond The Halls and am so thankful for the gifted copy. This a book everyone should read; it'll help open your eyes to the joy of museums. It's a book that's incredibly hard to review as your response will differ greatly and it's supposed to be an experience. I hope you pick it up and fall in love with museum's all over again like I have.
At the beginning of the book there's almost a disclaimer, saying that the book is tailored for those who may not enjoy museums at all and not the connoisseur. I was worried - but I shouldn't have been. After reading this book I forced my partner to agree to accept a new challenge: visit every museum in the UK. A quick google search showed me there were 6 museums in my city. I've only visited 2 of them (and plan to get married in a 3rd). In the UK in particular, there's no reason for the drop in museum numbers - it's a free, educational day out, why wouldn't we go? And yet, there is a problem worldwide with visitors dropping.
As a generation becoming more aware, its important we continue to support the arts, as museums play a vital role in our art and culture. Whilst we may not agree with some exhibitions and the ethics behind acquisitions, it is unfair to judge all museums the same. With proper research, you can find museums which are not wrapped up in problematic situations. The opposite view, is that this is a unique opportunity to witness artefacts that may soon be returned. Beyond the Halls helps remind you just how important museums are and why they're truly magical.
Finklea's work explore museum myths, teaches new ways to enjoy the day out and approach exhibits. Her enthusiasm and passion for museums is infectious and her advice is brilliant. I particularly loved the sheer number of museums (virtual, physical and somewhere in between) she highlighted throughout her work. Immediately after reading I checked out Virmuse and am excited to watch the platform grow and expand. Her inclusion of online and virtual exhibits allows the reader to consider the place of the museum in a modern world.
I loved reading Beyond The Halls and am so thankful for the gifted copy. This a book everyone should read; it'll help open your eyes to the joy of museums. It's a book that's incredibly hard to review as your response will differ greatly and it's supposed to be an experience. I hope you pick it up and fall in love with museum's all over again like I have.