Review: Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts

Series: No, stand-alone

Published: 2004

Publisher: Scribe

Details: Paperback, 944 pages

My Rating: 5/5

Synopsis:

In the early 80´s, Gregory David Roberts, an armed robber and heroin addict, escaped from Australian prison onto India, where he lived in a Bombay slum. There he established a free health clinic and also joined the mafia, working as a money launderer, forger and street soldier. He found time to learn Hindi and Marathi, fall in love, and spend time being worked over in an Indian jail.

Then, in case anyone thought he was slacking, he acted in Bollywood and fought with the Mujahedeen in Afghanistan…Amazingly, Roberts wrote Shantaram three times after prison guards trashed the first two versions. It´s a profound tribute to his willpower…At once a high-kicking, eye-gouging adventure, a love saga and a savage yet lyrical fugitive vision.

My thoughts:

This book is rapidly becoming a modern classic, and has been praised all over the world. I first heard about it in Australia a few years ago, and when even my best friend who at the most reads one book a year got through the 900+ pages in record time, I knew it was something else.

And now after reading it, I can confirm that it is.. wow, what a story, that’s all I can say. It’s hard to imagine how anyone could have experienced these events, lived to tell it and even more so, relate the story in such a richly descriptive and lyrical writing. I’m genuinely impressed. Now, I’m not entirely convinced that the story is completely self-biographical, it’s just too hard to believe! But then, does it really matter? It is still a fascinating read.

So, as for the review, there is so much that I loved about this book that I don’t know where to start. First of all, I loved the language, a combination of powerful, poetic and witty. It was a pure joy to read some of the sentences, not just because of the content but because of how they were put together. It’s true that Roberts tend to use a language a bit too flowery sometimes (“When our lips parted, stars rushed through that kiss into her sea-green eyes..”), resembling something out of a Harlequin novel, but it didn’t really bother me. I think that is because the whole book perspires such pure joy for writing, that I found it impossible not to be swept away as a reader, give or take a few Harlequin look-alike sentences here and there.

The story itself was so intense, and described so vividly that during one of the sections in the middle of the book – the Indian prison episode – I almost stopped reading. Not because of lack of interest, but because the descriptions of the brutality Roberts suffered in that prison were so fierce that it felt as if I were enduring the pain myself. I also specifically remember reading a passage where Roberts describes his prison break in Australia. The section was described so vividly, that even though I knew he obviously succeeded the escape attempt (or else he would not have found himself in Bombay) I was literally sweating with nervousness for him to make it outside the prison walls. That’s how good his storytelling is.

It was an interesting read too and as a reader, you get an insight into so many areas you previously had no idea about, or at least I know I didn’t! Roberts expertly guides you into the slums, the secrets and hearts of the Indian people, the underlying mechanisms of organised crime, the forces behind the war of Afghanistan during the eighties just to mention a few.

What I enjoyed the most though were the interactions between Roberts and one of his best friends, the Indian tour-guide Prabaker who he meets early on in the book. Prabaker was by far the most likeable character in the book and it was usually wherever he was involved that I had my most laugh-out loud moments. The witty descriptions of their (indian-western european) cultural clashes were so spot-on and hilarious!

Finally, this is a story that is like nothing else you have ever read, thoroughly enjoyable on so many levels that I could talk about it forever. But simply put, it is a must-read!!!

Review: The Maze Runner by James Dashner

Series: Maze Runner, Book #1

Published: October 6th 2009

Publisher: Random House

Details: Hardcover, 374 pages

My Rating: 3/5

My Summary:

Set in dystopian future. Thomas wakes up in a lift that takes him up to an expanse populated with dozens of other kids, surrounded by a maze. Together they have to find a way out before they’re killed. Not as amazing as the similar Hunger Games. Action-packed and with an intriguing premise, yet I felt slightly disappointed at the end. Sequel Scorch Trials out now.

A few chapters in:

As you know, I loved The Hunger Games. Which is why lately I have been looking for, not only the next Twilight, but also the next Hunger Games, meaning a mind-blowing dystopian young adult fiction.

Not surprisingly, The Maze Runner comes to mind. Ever since it was published a year ago, it has drawn comparisons to The Hunger Games. And so, I had to see for myself, is it as mind-blowing? Is that even possible? Time to find out!

I’m now a few chapters in. Thomas, our protagonist, wakes up in a lift. He has no recollections of his former life, in fact, all he remembers is his first name. When the doors of the lift open he finds himself in “The Glade”, a huge expanse surrounded by massive stone walls, and met with a dozens of other boys, ranging from 12 to 17 years old. He soon learns that all the boys have arrived through that lift, with their memories wiped clean, just like Thomas.

And things just keep getting weirder. During the day, there are four exits left open in the stone walls surrounding The Glade, inviting the boys to explore the maze outside. Yes, a giant maze surrounds the place! Every night the exits close, whether to protect the boys from horrors outside or to prevent them from escaping, I don’t know.

After only a few chapters, my mind (along with Thomas’s) is already swarming with questions. Let’s just say I’m intrigued!

After finishing the book:

Ok, I have finished the book. What did I think?

Well, I know that I loved the beginning with the intriguing mystery of a maze with moving walls. Yet, it wasn’t as great as I expected it to be. Still an enjoyable read, and I kept reading because I wanted answers to all my questions. But it never truly gripped me and I’ll get to why in a moment.

Like I said, the start of the book was as intriguing as it gets. We have Thomas finding himself in “The Glade”, with a dozens of other boys. All their memories have been wiped clean, and no one knows anything about who put them there and why. All they know is that “The Creators” are providing everything they need to get by, and that a gigantic maze surrounds the place. It’s assumed that the only way out is to find a way out of the maze. The only problem is that the walls of the maze move, and that the grievers (some sort of horrible monsters) come out at night, restricting their exploration of the maze to daytime only.

Quite early on we realize along with Thomas that somehow he is special. Despite his memory loss, he senses a strange familiarity to the surroundings, especially the maze. What is also weird is that as soon as he arrives, things start changing. Previous to his arrival, the boys have been having more or less the exact same routines for nearly two years. Not surprisingly, the sudden rupture of these routines scares the boys, causing some of them to cast suspicious looks at Thomas.

A few of the boys however are on Thomas’s side right from the start, in particularly Minho, Newt and Chuck who all came across as really nice guys, each in their own way. There is also one girl involved, who arrives soon after Thomas, but spends most of the time in coma.

All of this, which I just described, really intrigued me. I wanted to know how the boys were going to solve the maze, which role Thomas played in the whole thing, who the girl was, and generally why the boys had been thrown in there in the first place!

However, while we do get answers to some of these questions, I couldn’t help but feel disapointed at the outcome.

– SPOILERS!! –

Firstly, their escape was not how I expected it to be. I mean, they figured out the solution thanks to Thomas recuperating some of his memories. But if he hadn’t remembered what to do, they would never have gotten out. Hence, the smart logical solution I was expecting, something that would make me go WOW, I never thought about that!! – turned out to be no solution at all. Given the intriguing mystery of the premise, I was expecting some clever solution. So even though it was exciting to see them fight their way out, it was also bit of a let down, if you get my drift.

– END OF SPOILERS –

What I also found somewhat disappointing was the lack of depth in some of the characters. I did care to some extent for the supporting characters Chuck, Newt and Minho, but I felt oddly detached from Thomas. Not that he bothered me but I felt indifferent to what happened to him, which I’m pretty sure was not the intention of the writer. When the girl woke up from the coma, I had a hard time caring for her too, and I didn’t feel the connection the two main characters supposedly had. Possibly, because we are only told that they used to know each other but never shown any background story. (Which makes sense given their memory loss). This may grow into something more solid in the sequel. I hope so.

The Bottom Line:

Disappointments set aside, I did burn through the book in a matter of days, eager to find the answers to all my questions (some of which are still left unanswered). It’s a good book, a page turner and the start of an intriguing albeit slightly depressing series. If you like dystopian fiction I recommend you to put it on you TBR-list. But it wasn’t the type of amazing book that have you gasping out loud. For that, you need characters that you truly care about.

The sequel is called Scorch Trials, which I will most likely read in the near future. After all, too many question marks are left hanging and I remain curious to what will happen next!

Review: The Camel Club by David Baldacci

Series: Camel Club, book #1

Published: Sept 1, 2006

Publisher: Vision

Details: Paperback, 624 pages

My Rating: 3/5

Synopsis:

After witnessing a shocking murder, the Club is slammed headfirst into a plot that threatens the very security of the nation, full of stunning twists, high-stakes intrigue and global gamesmanship rocketing to the Oval Office and beyond. Soon the Club must join forces with veteran Secret Service agent Alex Ford, who becomes an unwilling participant in one of the most chilling spectacles to ever take place on American soil. It’s an event that may well be the catalyst for the long-threatened Armageddon between two different worlds, and all that stands in the way of this apocalypse is five unexpected heroes.

My thoughts:

I have never read anything by Baldacci before. This book was a gift, and ended up lying on my book shelf for years before I finally got around to reading it. So, it was without any greater expectations (or rather any expectations at all) that I first opened the book. Therefore, it was a surprise when I found myself suddenly drawn into the story, and rapidly turning pages to find out what was going to happen to the characters. Clearly a page-turner.

On finishing it however, it left me with that same feeling (or lack of feeling) I have every time I have watched a hollywood action movie ( i.e. time flies while you’re watching it but the moment you step outside the cinema you’ve forgotten what it was about). In short, this book is a light fun read, pure entertainment but forgettable. I find it similar to the work of Dan Brown, that same type of light fast-paced thriller, ending with cliff-hangers at the end of each chapter and a story involving some sort of conspiracy. The Camel Club is the first book in a series of four, but suffice to say, I won’t be running out to get my hands on the other books. If you´re looking for light and easy distraction, this is your pick. If you want something that will stay on after you’ve read the last page, then leave it at the book shelves.

Review: Succubus Blues by Richelle Mead

Series: Georgina Kincaid, book #1

Published: March 1st 2007

Publisher: Kensington

Details: Paperback, 343 pages

My rating: 2/5

My summary:

Start of a series, by same author as Vampire Academy. About a succubus who seduces and pleasures mortal men (while sapping their life energy), but also longing for what she can’t have, a true love. This was ok, not as bad as Bitten, but not great either. Good writing but a weak plot. I may read another one in the series to see if it gets better.

See my full review here:

Synopsis:

Succubus (n.) An alluring, shape-shifting demon who seduces and pleasures mortal men. Pathetic (adj.)

A succubus with great shoes and no social life. See: Georgina Kincaid.

When it comes to jobs in hell, being a succubus seems pretty glamorous. A girl can be anything she wants, the wardrobe is killer, and mortal men will do anything just for a touch. Granted, they often pay with their souls, but why get technical?

But Seattle succubus Georgina Kincaid’s life is far less exotic. Her boss is a middle-management demon with a thing for John Cusack movies. Her immortal best friends haven’t stopped teasing her about the time she shape-shifted into the Demon Goddess getup complete with whip and wings. And she can’t have a decent date without sucking away part of the guy’s life. At least there’s her day job at a local bookstore–free books; all the white chocolate mochas she can drink; and easy access to bestselling, sexy writer, Seth Mortensen, aka He Whom She Would Give Anything to Touch but Can’t.

But dreaming about Seth will have to wait. Something wicked is at work in Seattle’s demon underground. And for once, all of her hot charms and drop-dead one-liners won’t help because Georgina’s about to discover there are some creatures out there that both heaven and hell want to deny…

My thoughts:

This book is written by the same author as The Vampire Academy, which is an highly acclaimed vampire series. I’ve also read a couple of good reviews and so I decided to give it a go, despite the synopsis which sent off a couple of alarm bells. You see, it revolves around a succubus, who feeds of sex from mortal men. It felt like this could be one of those adult romance type of novels, which really are porn disguised in a paranormal romance package.

I’m relieved to say that no, it wasn’t that bad. Yes, of course there is some sexual content, as we are dealing with the life of a succubus, but it never felt like it was too much. It was there to move the plot along. So in that aspect, all good.

I like the writing style as well. It wasn’t poetic or anything like that. But it was kind of easy-going. It had a flow which made you get into the story very easily.

Still, despite all this, I wasn’t blown away by the book. And I’ll get to why in a moment.

The main character Georgina is a charming and witty girl who works at a book store in Seattle, living a relatively normal life. She is also a succubus, which means she feeds of sex with mortal men, in which she sucks their life energy.

She hates it though and refuses to destroy good mortal men, and as such, prefers feeding of scums, guys with low moral values. Her friends include, apart from the mortals working in the book store, a vampire, a demon and an angel.

When we are introduced into the story, Georginas favorite author has just arrived to town. A charming guy called Seth. And here begins her struggles with liking him but not wanting to give him too much encouragement, because obviously any sort of physical contact would be impossible, seeing as that would destroy Seth.

Seth is not the only love interest though. There are several other guys around in this book, all utterly charmed by Georgina of course seeing as she is a very attractive woman, due to her shape-shifting abilities (as part of her being a succubus).

While Georgina is running around not wanting to get too close with any of the guys that she likes, yet doing exactly that, a murder mystery is going in Seattle. Someone is killing immortals, i.e. vampires, demons etc. And somehow all this is linked to Georgina. She’s getting these mysterious notes from someone who appears to be the killer.

So yes, you might have guessed it already.. I thought the plot was pretty weak. I didn’t believe in the murder mystery – it seemed to have only been thrown in there in order to create some suspense. It also got a bit tiring with Georgina’s all love interests. I mean, if she had such an issue with guys being attracted to her, why not just turn of the charm or shape shift into a less attractive woman? Problem solved! Also, the love interest Seth felt quite bland. Yes, he was a nice guy but he lacked charisma.

I did however root for one side character. I won’t say who, but if you read the book you might guess who I’m talking about. I am kind of curious to see if he will play a bigger part in the books to come. So even though I wasn’t too impressed by the start of this series, I think I might read another to see if it gets better.

Review: Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Series: Hunger Games, book #1

Published: October 1st 2008

Publisher: Scholastic Press

Details: Hardcover, 374 pages

My rating: 5/5

My summary:

One of the better books I’ve read in recent years. Impossible to put down. All though brutal at times, also sweet, full of warmth and with great characters. The story is so good that I find it hard not rattling on about it to everyone I know. This is simply put a must read!!

See my full review here:

Synopsis:

Life in District 12 isn’t easy for Katniss and her family. Ever since her father died the girl has spent her time saving her mother and little sister Prim from starvation by hunting on forbidden land. But worst of all is reaping day. Once a year the government chooses two children from each of the twelve districts to compete against one another in a live and televised reality show. Twenty-four kids and teens enter, and only one survives.

When Prim’s name is called, Katniss exchanges herself without hesitation to compete alongside the baker’s boy Peeta. To survive in this game you need to win the heart of your audience, and so District 12’s trainers come up with a plan. Why not make it as if Peeta and Katniss were in love with one another? But in a game where only one person can live, Katniss will have to use all her brains, wits, and instincts to determine who to trust and how to outwit the game’s creators.

My thoughts:

Wow, that’s all I can say, really wow! I heard about this book, it was generally people raving about it on various book-blogs and I considered reading it. Still hesitant, because it seemed so brutal and I wasn’t sure if I was up to reading a “lord of the flies”, with kids running around beating each other to death. But as I accidently happened across the book at the local library I decided to give it a shot, and boy am I glad I did!

If I’ve called other books page-turners, I think I’ll have to invent a new meaning for the term, because this was such a page-turner that no force in the universe could have made me put the book down, once I started! It’s a 400+ pages book and I literally read it in one sitting, cancelling all other activities I had planned for the day. The story is so good, that at times I had to stop and just marvel at the turn of events the author had created.

But here I am rattling on..let’s get to the review:

As seen in the synopsis, this is the story about Katniss who in a dystopian future takes the place of her sister in the yearly tournament Hunger Games. The Hunger Games have been created by the Capitol (the government) to ensure the people in the districts are reminded each year how helpless and powerless they are up against the Capitol. This is to prevent the people to rebel, which is something that happened many years ago.

Each year, each district is forced to send two of their kids to fight against their lives in an arena filled with dangers, created by the Capitol. Only one kid is allowed to survive.

Katniss, our heroine is from district 12. Ever since her father died in a mine explosion, and her mother consequently went into a depression, she has been the food supplier of the family, mainly hunting game out in the forbidden woods outside the district.

She is a tough girl, and as a reader you believe and vote for her straight away as someone who actually might make it alive through the games. Complications arise though when the other kid from district 12 is chosen, a boy named Peeta. He seems like such a good boy and well, without saying too much, let me just say I rooted for him pretty much immediately. But only one is allowed to survive, right?

We enter the Hunger Games, and there are some turn of events here that literally had my gasping out loud. Yes, there are 24 kids here, who are to be slaughtered in a number of ways. Yet, seeing as we are following Katniss, who is not present at most of the deaths, it’s not as cruel as you might think. Instead, as a reader you focus on her, and how she will survive. I don’t like when things get too cruel and dark. Generally, I need some heart and warmth to keep me going in a book. But let me assure you, that despite the cruel premise in this book, there are some real heart-warming moments. That’s what makes it so good.

I really only have one minor criticism, and that is the ending, which clearly needs a follow-up. It’s not exactly a cliff-hanger but you will want to read the next book, Catching Fire, pretty much straight away.

Review: The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting

Series: The Body Finder, book #1

Published: March 16th 2010

Publisher: HarperTeen

Details: Hardcover, 327 pages

My rating: 4/5

My summary:

About a girl who “senses” murdered bodies. This is a sweet first love story with many similarities to Bella and Edward, allthough no vampires involved. There is also a murder mystery which to me was the weaker part of the book. Still very enjoyable read.

See my full review here:

Synopsis:

A serial killer on the loose. A girl with a morbid ability. And the boy who would never let anything happen to her.

Violet Ambrose can find the dead. Or at least, those who have been murdered. She can sense the echoes they leave behind… and the imprints they leave on their killers. As if that weren’t enough to deal with during junior year, she also has a sudden, inexplicable, and consuming crush on her best friend since childhood, Jay Heaton.

Now a serial killer has begun terrorizing Violet’s small town… and she realizes she might be the only person who can stop him.

My thoughts:

I heard a lot about this book on various book blogs, usually in rave reviews.

It can be classified as paranormal romance with suspense. The romance is not paranormal per se, as in both people are actually human. The main character Violet however has some unique paranormal abilities.

Her paranormal ability is that she senses bodies of those who have been murdered. It is as if she has a sixth sense, capturing some kind of energy that eminates from murdered bodies, that is; bodies that are not in peace. This may sound strange but is very well described in the book, and you can practically sense it as you are reading it.

Violet lives in the small town Burke with her family. Her best friend and childhood friend is Jay. We enter the story where Violet is starting to have feelings for Jay. At about the same time girls start disappearing in and around her town, to be discovered murdered. Seeing as she can sense not only the victims of the murders but also the murderers themselves, Violet decides to try and capture the murderer herself.

It sounds like a book centered around the capturing of a murderer, but really, most of the book is romance. The murderer is constantly lingering as a threat in the background but the main focus of the story is the relationship between Violet and her love interest Jay.

That doesn’t matter though as the romance is really sweet. It’s an all-consuming first love kind of romance. And even though Jay is not a vampire, (he’s just a normal guy) he reminds me a little of Edward in terms of his personality, slightly overprotective but really sweet. Come to think of it, Violet sort of reminded me a Bella too, in how she’s constantly trying not to cause anyone trouble, hates to be the center of attention and manages to put herself in danger all the time.

The suspense was well written but had a couple of logical gaps regarding some parts of the plot. I just didn’t buy that a serial killer would behave the way he did in this book.

But as I said earlier, that doesn’t really matter as the romance is the focus of the story, and as such is one of the sweetest romances I have read in a while. So all in all, this is a page turner which is definitely worth the read. Apparently there is a sequel coming out next year, Desires of the Dead, which I’m very happy about. I would love to read more about Jay and Violet!