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  • 24/05/2012 11:00 AM
    Reader Review: "The Homecoming of Samuel Lake"
    by Lori: I absolutely loved The Homecoming of Samuel Lake which I won in an ARC giveaway. Itand#146;s the best book Iand#146;ve read thus far this year. I had been apprehensive that it might be too religious for me, but it wasnand#146;t at all. I agree with the positive comparisons to To Kill A Mockingbird. The characters are unique and well-developed, and the book is beautifully written. There was an underlying suspense in the story that made me unable to put the book down. I would highly recommend it to all readers and book groups.


    23/05/2012 11:00 AM
    Reader Review: "Turn of Mind"
    by Erin G: This was an engrossing and suspenseful read, despite the fact that the main character wasn't particularly likeable. Watching a respected physician lose her mental integrity, her memories, and her ability to care for herself was tragic; that she alone may know the details of her best friend's murder really ratchets up the tension. I will definitely be on the lookout for future books by this author.


    21/05/2012 11:00 AM
    Reader Review: "Nineteen Minutes"
    by Lauren Conrad (illinois): This was one of the best books I have ever read. Being a high school student helped me relate to so many characters in the book. I recommend this book to every high school student, as the characters can all be found in any school. There is the bully, the misfit, the popular kids. A incident occurs among the students where an email posting(which was supposed to be private) is sent out to all the school and causes a terrible situation for the sender. This is such a case of something any high school student can relate to. I think reading this book, may make some high school students think twice about how they treat each other. I sure hope it does!


    21/05/2012 11:00 AM
    Reader Review: "The Sense of an Ending"
    by Cloggie Downunder (Thirroul NSW Australia): The Sense of an Ending is the 11th novel by Julian Barnes. In his sixties, retired, Tony Webster sees his life as pretty ordinary: career, marriage, amicable divorce, one child, two grandchildren. So the letter from a lawyer, informing him of an unexpected bequest of money and some documents, is surprising and intriguing. A blast from the past, it has him thinking back to high school friends, Adrian Finn in particular, and his first girlfriend at college, Veronica Ford. As Tony examines his memories of 40 years ago, present day events have him wondering just how true his memories are, and how justified his actions really were. Quotes from his sixth form History class come to mind: and#147;Is history the lies of the victors? Or the self-delusions of the defeated?and#148; Tony decides itand#146;s the memories of the survivors, who are neither victorious nor defeated. Barnes has given the reader a clever plot and realistic characters. I found the suicide philosophy (life is an unsolicited gift you can refuse to accept) thought-provoking and the twist at the end left me gasping. I found it very reminiscent of Ian McEwanand#146;s writing. This is a short but very powerful read.


    18/05/2012 11:00 AM
    Reader Review: "The Finkler Question"
    by Phyll (Toowoomba): Contrary to Howard Jacobson's contention that Australian readers prefer their fiction to be andquot;unwrittenandquot; and andquot;unfictionalandquot;, I prefer a novel to be without haphazardness of structure and about people who stretch my boundaries of empathy. There's a tang of narcissism in Finkler. This puts Jacobson in the category of andquot;un-writerandquot; - the sort of author that he denigrated in his 1987 travel book andquot;In the Land of Ozandquot;. I admire Jacobson's humour, but would have liked a few commas and other traditional grammatical devices to admire as well. Good luck to him with the pleasure of that lucrative reward. He should revisit Australia to do a witty update of his travel book, a genre in which he excels.


    05/05/2012 11:00 AM
    Reader Review: "Chesapeake Blue"
    by Cloggie Downunder (Thirroul NSW Australia): Chesapeake Blue is the fourth of the Chesapeake Bay series by Nora Roberts. It is the story of Seth Quinn, who as a ten-year-old , was bought from his mother (Rayand#146;s estranged daughter, Gloria deLauter) by Ray Quinn and raised by Rayand#146;s adopted sons, Cam, Ethan and Phil. After years of promoting his art around the continent, Seth Quinn wants to come home to St Christopher, to the security of the place he grew up in. When he arrives, he meets Drusilla Whitcomb Banks, granddaughter of a Senator, who has come to St Chris to get away from life in Washington and the stifling demands of her parents. Sheand#146;s running a flower shop and loving it, and Seth wants to paint her, and more. But everyone has secrets in their past, and Sethand#146;s is insisting on turning up like a bad penny, threatening everything he holds dear. Is there any way someone as sophisticated as Dru can be with someone like Seth with his history? Is Seth underestimating Drusillaand#146;s strength? Has Seth forgotten he is a Quinn, and Quinns stand together? This final chapter in the Chesapeake Bay series will please fans who wanted to know how Seth turned out. Roberts knows how to create characters to love and hate, and a plot that is original. An entertaining read.


    04/05/2012 11:00 AM
    Reader Review: "The Lifeboat"
    by Diane S.: Thirty nine people in one lifeboat adrift for many weeks waiting for rescue, some strong some not. Rogan takes what is a relatively simple plot line and than fills it with moral ambiguities and decisions that keeps the reader wondering what will happen next. Not sure what I think of the main character and narrator Grace, we are filled in on her back story, except to say that I felt she was definitely an opportunist, but above all she is a survivor, not only of the ship sinking and subsequent trial, but in life itself. The language used is insightful and well in keeping in what was going on in the lifeboat. Couldn't help wondering how I would have acted if found in the same situation as these people. This will make an interesting book for discussion groups as there are many different aspects of this novel that can be discussed.


    01/05/2012 11:00 AM
    Reader Review: "A Land More Kind Than Home"
    by Diane S.: My goodness but this book was fantastic! His use of local color and dialect, his descriptions, his use of the weather to ratchet up the tension, and all this from a first time author. The town midwife, Adelaide, who sees it as her job to protect the children, the sheriff, who has plenty of tragedy in his own life, and the two young boys, Jess, who is in third grade, and his older but mute brother, Christopher. When evil comes to their small Appalachian town in the form of itinerant preacher, Chambliss, events are set in motion that will leave few unscathed. Two boys would pay for their natural curiosity in a way that is out of all proportion to their misdeed. I knew this story drew me in when I found myself wanting to grab one of the characters and tell them not to do it. I felt the tension in the pit of my stomach, like the way one feels before the big drop on a roller coaster. Yet in ends in a note of hope and a looking forward to that I would not have thought possible. Absolutely gripping!


    01/05/2012 11:00 AM
    Reader Review: "The Dovekeepers"
    by Louise J (Canada): I have read a lot of novels about ancient Jerusalem during this era but I must begin this particular review with one word and#150; WOW!! I was completely entranced with Alice Hoffmanand#146;s The Dovekeepers which took place during the Roman siege during the first century CE.

    The story is told through the voices of four different women: Yael, Revka, Aziza and Shirah. Each of these women had secrets about where they came from, who they are, who their fathers were, and who they love. Each of the womenand#146;s stories bound them together throughout the novel emotionally and symbolically. The change in each womanand#146;s story flowed effortlessly and leant to the dynamic retelling of this sad and tragic period in history.

    The dramatic end to this story will rip your heart out and leave tear-stains on your pages as you turn them. The title The Dovekeepers has a symbolic meaning throughout the story.

    Iand#146;ve read a lot of Hoffmanand#146;s work and I believe this to be her very best. I believe this will become a classic in the future and a novel that will be talked about in book groups, peopleand#146;s living rooms, in the news and will be a bestseller. I for sure will be touting the merits of this book to anyone and everyone who will listen. Kudos to you Ms. Hoffman!


    28/04/2012 11:00 AM
    Reader Review: "Blue Asylum"
    by Diane S.: Set during the civil war, the wife of a slave owning plantation, is sentenced to the lunatic asylum on Sibella Island. There she meets many different characters, some sane some not, and Ambrose who is scarred by his own actions in the war. This novel is a quiet novel, almost ethereal in tone, because the reader learns what sent these people here in flashback and conversations from the characters instead of directly from the acts. Loved the doctor's son, a young boy who fears he himself in insane. The descriptions of the water, sea life and the island are beautifully rendered. As for the name Blue in the title, it does have meaning but you will have to read the book to find out what it is.