Best Day Ever by Kaira Rouda- Book Review

I will admit I am a sucker for a good cover. The week this book came out, this cover stuck out among all of the other books. The bright red crunchy envelope just called out to me.

I am also in the mood for good horror/psychological thrillers with the approach to Halloween, so I got this one on a whim. I knew nothing about it, didn't even read the inside jacket except to verify that it was a thriller, and impulse purchased this sucker.

I was glad I did because it hit the spot at the right moment and just in the right way.

Told completely in first person, this is the story of a narcissist, abusive, womanizer named Paul. He is taking his wife, Mia, up to their holiday cabin right at the change of season. He plans to have the best day ever with her after a few situations that have strained their marriage. He plans to have a good meal, sex, and murder her (not a spoiler), so he can head off with his fling who is much better than his wife. Paul uses people until he is done with them and then discards them through violent means. This is going to be the best day ever for Paul until he turns into the driveway and sees Buck, the neighbor who cares for their cabin in the off season. Buck just won't go away and keeps appearing at the wrong time not to mention Mia is getting a little too close to Buck for Paul's taste.

First up, one needs to know this is not literary fiction nor does it set out to win the Pulitzer for writing. I state that because I think reviewers on occasion treat every book written equally and they shouldn't. This is a weekend/vacation/Halloween/sit by the fireside and just release for a few hours type book. You know what you are going to get.

With that written, there are some moments that are jaw dropping in terms of plot, but I completely did not mind because I knew what I was getting. How things play out throughout the book are pretty elaborate and that is completely ok with this type of book. This isn't a bad book, but it is a fun book.

Paul, as a character, is creepy, over the top, and completely in love with himself and his needs. He thinks he is fooling everyone. He thinks he is more handsome than most men. He thinks all women want to instantly have sex with him, while he deems them worthy or not. Paul is pond scum and the great thing is Rouda treats him as such. She does not try to make him empathetic, there are no lessons learned, and he isn't redeemable. He is loathsome and you cannot wait to get his comeuppance. This is what makes the novel fun. He is the heel about to get his. How that happens is a little over the top, but who cares?

I did enjoy that the final chapter is the entire book retold from Mia's point of view too. It was a nice little bonus.

I gave this one 3.5 stars, but not a bad 3.5 stars. It is a- you know what you are going to get type of book and I enjoyed it a bunch. Trigger warning for abuse told in the first person by the abuser.

I Can't Breathe by Matt Taibbi- Book Review

We know the story- On July 17, 2014, Eric Garner was surrounded by police for selling "loosies" (loose cigarettes). When he questions why he is being arrested, he attempts to walk away, when he is wrestled to the ground in a chokehold. As he is dying, he repeats the phrase- "I can't breathe" over and over again, until he dies. The police officer continued to hold him until he died. There was no indictment, but only an internal investigation. It was settled out of court for $5 million.

This book looks at the incident from all sorts of angles- what was happening at the time leading up to the death, what were the policing policies in place at the time, why was this hold used, etc. Taibbi talks to people that know Garner, people in similar situations, and proves a full account of that day.

I will admit I was a bit hesitant requesting this as a galley. The hesitancy came from the question- can a white guy tell a black man's story and do it well? Taibbi didn't have the experiences that Garner had and even though Taibbi is an incredible journalist, I wondered if the story could be told with justice.

After reading it, I can say, absolutely yes Taibbi did a fantastic job. While other authors touch upon Garner and lift up similar issues- such as Guiliani's crack down on crime, the rise of loosie's, etc, having that information all in one place was a big help. It led to a fuller story and Taibbi goes into Garner's life a bit more than some other authors do.

This was a tragic read, but a well researched and complete narrative. I am glad I read it.

I gave it 4.5 stars.

*I want to thank NetGalley for the advanced copy. I received it in exchange for an honest review*

The Visitors by Catherine Burns- Book Review

It is October and we are getting closer to Halloween. Like most readers, I begin to get into the mood for creepy, scary horror stories. My focus is more the creepy than the gory, so I look for the thrillers and the tense books. When I read the description of The Visitors, I knew this was the right October book.

There is something happening in Marion’s basement. She has heard cries for “Help,” babies crying, and other noises that occur throughout the day. Her brother John is the only other occupant in the house though. He goes downstairs each night and doesn’t tend to return until morning. Marion relies on John because she is not the brightest person, so she ignores the noises she hears.

Marion and John have lived in the house for their entire lives. Their parents had high hopes for John, but not many hopes for Marion. They would travel together and be a family together. Their father would often be with John, while Marion sat with her mother. Marion has seen her father do strange things too, but chose to ignore them, just like her mother did.

As the novel progresses, John has a minor accident which causes him to go to the hospital. Marion must now care for John’s projects in the basement. What will Marion see and what will she do?

This book has creep factor written all through it. There is no guessing what John is up to at all, but the story is the lead up to how we got to this situation. While John is the outright psychopath, the fun of the book is figuring out Marion. She is not an innocent, even though she believes she is. It is this tense line that keeps the book going well.

The entire book is told from Marion’s perspective. She is a pretty unreliable narrator in that she constantly convinces herself that she is innocent in everything and is just a simple woman. It is her unraveling and her leaps to make herself innocent while she justifies her and John’s evil deeds that keeps the book moving. She is not an innocent though and glimpses of that begin to appear in her story too with the thought- are you evil too, when your brother is more evil? Comparative evilness.

This book will not be for everyone. Marion is not treated well by her family or John. She is often verbally abused by her parents and sibling, but she doesn’t always see it that way. We also journey into the basement and see up close what John has in there. This is not an easy scene. It is good solid October horror though and just right for the season.

I gave this one 3.5 stars.

Origin by Dan Brown- Book Review

As much as I want to write a bunch of excuses for why I have not been posting as much recently, I am going to use the simple statement- Pastor stuff. I'll leave it as that.

There have been a lot of incredible releases within the last few weeks and each has seemed to be a giant book! One of those books was the new release by Dan Brown. A new Robert Langdon adventure.

This time around, Langdon almost plays second fiddle to his student- Edmond Kirsch and his AI Winston. Almost.

Kirsch has figured out the answer to the big questions- "Where do we come from and where are we going?" His answer has threatened to undo the three major religions of the world. Before he presented his findings to the world, he presented them to the three heads of the major religions and they knew this information must not get out.

Langdon is present on the night of the presentation, when all of a sudden Kirsch is killed. It is up to Langdon, Winston, and the beautiful Ambra Vidal to find a way of getting the presentation out. They are against the clock, against the major world religions, and even a King!

Yes, this is a typical Langdon adventure- short chapters, exciting cliffhangers, and a few puzzles. For me, what was missing was the art. While there were some art aspects, it was not the amount as in other books. I found I missed those moments.

It is though a great discussion around the origins of the universe and a theory about what is happening to us. While I don't think it quite dismantles all religions, in fact there was a positive aspect to religion in the end. I found the theory quite interesting.

While I still think the DaVinci Code is still one of his best books, I did find this one quite fun. My only critique was the lack of art and that 200 pages are about finding one thing. I won't say what, as that will be a spoiler, but it wasn't so much about solving puzzles rather it was about finding information. Once I got past that, I went along for the ride and enjoyed it a lot.

Bluebird, Bluebird by Attica Locke- Book review

I will fully admit I had certain assumptions when I started reading this book and avoided reading it because of those assumptions- African American Texas Ranger, a white town, a murder of an African American and a White Woman, and my assumptions began to take shape. We all know the sayings about assumptions though, don’t we?

While some of my assumptions were true, if you pass this one up strictly due to the description, you will miss such a twisty turny murder mystery that kept my attention from beginning to end. Yes, some things you can imagine would happen, happen, but this is not a paper cut out story. The characters are rich and it has an ending you might not expect.

Darrin Matthews is a black Texas Ranger who is on suspension when he hears about a murder in a mostly white town- first an African American male is found dead and the town doesn’t care much. Then a second body is discovered- a white woman, whom the town knows well. Drawn in by the mystery, Matthews begins investigating even though he is not allowed to.

As he begins investigating, Matthews discovers a bar where the woman worked. In it, he finds a group of Aryan Nation members. This is that type of bar. Turns out it was also the last place where both of the victims were found. This is the part where you think what is going to happen begins to happen.

On the other side, Matthews has unreliable witnesses, family histories that go generations deep, the black/white divide that goes back to slavery days, and Matthews himself is battling his own history and his suspension. To solve this mystery, Matthews must get out of his own way first.

As stated, there may be some initial eye rolling at the mention of a Black Ranger and an Aryan Nation bar, but this is not that story. In some parts it is, but this is more a story about a town with deep secrets that may not always want to be shared outside of town people. It is a town rich with layers that goes beyond the black/white divide.

Even Matthews himself is not the typical cop on suspension character. He is a screw up. He has deep flaws. His addiction is not just to take the edge off, but it is a real addiction where he needs a drink to just get by. His addiction has also ruined his relationships and his career. He too is a complex character.

I had a guess where the ending was going, but it took almost to the end to figure it out. The way she rolls out the story was quite well done. As Matthews finds out information, the story of what happened with the two victims begins to roll out, but stops at the information that Matthews knows. By the end, we see the full night and watch everything play out from beginning to end. It is like getting pieces of a puzzle where the picture isn’t quite clear and even when you figure something out, there is one more piece which changes the perspective.

This was so well done that I am ready to tackle another of her books. I loved this one. I gave it a solid four stars.

*I want to thank NetGalley for the advanced copy. I received it in exchange for an honest review.*

Warcross by Marie Lu- Book Review

One of my favorite books from the last few years was the book Ready Player One. It was a great mix of video games, dystopia, and adventure. I have been looking for a book with a similar spin and the good news is Warcross is that book. It is difficult not to draw comparisons between the two, but Warcross stands well on its own.

Warcross is a virtual game that has taken over the world. Everyone either plays or watches Warcross. Each year, the finals of the game attract everyone who plays including Emika Chen. Chen is a hacker and a bounty hunter.

As she is watching the finals, she hacks into the game and is seen by everyone including the creator of the game- Hideo Tanaka. Tanaka recognizes that someone is trying to destroy his game and it is happening from the inside. He hires Emika to not only play the game, but to find out who is coming after him. He is the target because he is about to launch the latest version of his glasses to get into the game.

Emika is going to enter a world of teamwork, of competition, and may lose her life in the process. It gets even more complicated the closer she grows to Tanaka.

I really enjoyed this one, except the ending. I am not going to spoil the ending, but it has happened in a Doctor Who episode and a certain movie that just had a sequel this year.

Besides the ending, I had a lot of fun with this one. It is a good mix of adventure, video games, and Emika is a great female lead. I read this one in a few hours because it was so fun.

I gave this one four stars.