It's a known fact, we eat with our eyes. I read with my eyes. Meaning many times I choose a book based on if the cover catches my eye. When I saw thisIt's a known fact, we eat with our eyes. I read with my eyes. Meaning many times I choose a book based on if the cover catches my eye. When I saw this cover, I was drawn to it. The colors drew me in and I found it intriguing and mysterious. Could just be me. I'm weird. I also think when I see that chocolate chip cookie it's better for me than that kale salad. Anyway. I grabbed the audio based on the cover, knowing nothing about it. I asked Dana if she was up for a buddy read and off we went. And we both loved it!
The Paper Palace tells the story of Elle, a fifty-year-old happily married mother of three. She is at her family summer home on the Cape, called The Paper Palace. You see, she just had sex for the first time with her childhood friend Jonas. Both of their spouses are inside chatting, drunk, possibly passed out. Elle and Jonas go way back to their childhood and have a deep bond. They both love each other but are married to others. Elle needs to choose, her husband or Jonas. The story slowly unfolds beginning with Elle's birth telling the story of her life, how she and Jonas met, what incident drew them apart and ruined things, how they each met their spouses, and what happens on this fateful evening. The story is told from the point of view of Elle and the 24 hours at The Paper Palace between sleeping with Jonas and deciding if she will stay with her husband or go off with Jonas. Via flashbacks the story of how they got here slowly unfolds. To her ultimate decision.
I loved this one. The writing was wonderful, the story was great, most of the characters were ones I grew to love (I loved her mother), the narration was amazing. This book took you right to the end. The last 3-4 mins of the audio threw me for a loop. I had to rewind about 5-6 times to listen again to see if I heard it right, did I understand it, I needed to hear it again. We had a great discussion of this ending with us going back and forth, listening again and discussing. We both agreed this was a top read for the year. I loved it so much I honestly thought afterwards, after that ending, I needed to go back and start it again from page 1. A highlight of the reading year for me and so glad I read with my eyes else I might have ignored this one....more
Wow I'm so behind. I finished this one weeks ago. Enjoyed it, loved the audio, and fit in for my Summer of Christie binge.
Hercule Poirot is summoned tWow I'm so behind. I finished this one weeks ago. Enjoyed it, loved the audio, and fit in for my Summer of Christie binge.
Hercule Poirot is summoned to action. He is requested to help a gentleman who writes to him asking for help. He believes he is in danger. He goes to the man but alas he is too late. The man was murdered the night before. Joined by Captain Arthur Hastings, Poirot begins to investigate this twisted tale of murder. A wonderful, quite full cast of characters appears. And it keeps you guessing up until the very end. This is book 2 in the Poirot series but honestly you can read them in any order. The key between book 1 and 2 is Captain Arthur Hastings. Such a fun character who appears to be in love with every woman he sees. And Poirot points this out to him. The banter between the two is quite fun and Poirot snickers at what a dunce Hastings can sometimes be. This added to my overall enjoyment.
A buddy read with Dana where we both enjoyed the read. It was a bit more complex than some other stories. The audio, loved it. But I'm a huge fan of Richard Armitage and his narrations. Overall, another good read, so I happy I got to it, and now to find the next one for my summer enjoyment....more
I'm a firm believer a narrator can make or break a book. Also, there are times where I listen to an audio for just the narrator. This is oneRating 4.5
I'm a firm believer a narrator can make or break a book. Also, there are times where I listen to an audio for just the narrator. This is one of those times. To have Mr. Darcy, eh...I mean Colin Firth read a story to you. The best.
The End of the Affair is a story about hate, and love, but really hate. Maurice Bendrix is a writer and just consumed with hate. His hatred for Sarah Miles and her ending their love affair. Bendrix is just consumed with his love for her, his jealousy, it all makes him hate her and distrust her. He is so blinded by all his emotions that he doesn't really see that Sarah loves him. But he can't figure out why all of sudden she has ended the affair. Sometime later he finds out how truly Sarah does love him but very shortly after she dies. Again he is consumed with hate but focuses his hate on God.
The End of the Affair is one I've wanted to read, actual print. But then I ended up watching the latest movie version. I loved it! So I said 'now read the book' but when I saw it was narrated by Colin Firth I had to have it. I'd rate the story around 4 but bumped it up for the wonderful narration. Bendrix is such a miserable guy who suffers from 'you don't know what you have until you've lost it' but you can't help but feel for him. It's odd to have enjoyed a book with such hate and to have a review with that word used so many times. Just goes to show what a great character study this one is (and I'm a sucker for those books). Slight difference between the movie and book version and I'll give the slight nod to the movie version. I really liked them both and so happy to finally have listened to this one....more
Interesting read. The title is odd and I had no interest. The book cover is horrible and I'd usually ignore it. But I saw Jan B's review and she sold Interesting read. The title is odd and I had no interest. The book cover is horrible and I'd usually ignore it. But I saw Jan B's review and she sold me. I'm a sucker for anything that dives deep into a character/s. Figured maybe I should give this one a shot. I grabbed the audio from Hoopla and in the end, I liked it. Kinda odd for the story line.
No Hiding in Boise tells the story of a mass shooting in a Boise bar one late night. The story is told from mainly three women's point of view. One is the wife of one of the survivors of the shooting, another is a survivor of the shooting, and the last is the shooters mother. The story is told in alternating points of view with here and there throwing in the stories of all the victims, survivors, and the shooter. You learn the reasons why each person was there, how people react to tragedies, and how each of these three women's lives are intertwined and forever changed that fateful evening.
I couldn't help but think of that saying 'it's like a train wreck and you can't look away'. What these people went through is unimaginable but it's such an interesting story. To almost get inside the mind of some of these people. There was quite a twist in the story and while the whole book was quite somber at one point I laughed so hard. There were a number of different narrators for the audio which was decent. Why a 4 star - it started to drag just a bit, Angie (the wife of a survivor) was beginning to annoy me as she seemed to whine a lot, and the narration was OK, nothing I would remember. Overall, a good read....more
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