Don't Breathe a Word by Jennifer McMahon

Don’t Breathe a Word, by Jennifer McMahon,  is a story that grips from the start.   The introduction of a missing child is one that strikes fear into anyone who has loved a child.  Lisa is missing and her brother, Sam, is just as much a victim.  He grew up always wondering what happened to Lisa, never knowing that the truth was very close.  

Phoebe, a broken woman herself, is in love with the now adult Sam.  They are planning a future together when Sam gets a call from someone who claims to be Lisa.  The story really gets going as deception and memories of literal fairy tales are brought to the forefront.

The novel is cleverly written.  We get to know Lisa and her story before she disappears.  She believes in fairies and her fairy king who will make her his queen.  Sam never does believe but when things start spiraling out of his control, he has to question the truth.   The twists and turns the story takes, kept me very interested and although the ending was disturbing, it made sense.  It’s definitely worth a read.

The Distant Hours by Kate Morton

I almost gave up on The Distant Hours, by Kate Morton.  It was moving slowly, I just wasn’t in the mood, and the book was too long.  That’s what I thought anyway.  I’ll tell you upfront that I am totally happy that I kept with the book.  It is long, and it does move at a slow pace, but everything fits and the story is satisfyingly wrapped up in the end, with most of the mysteries being resolved.  

The story begins with Edie discovering a part of her mother’s life that she had never known.  As a young girl, Meridith was evacuated to the countryside during World War II.  During this time frame, she lived at Milderhurst Castle with the odd trio of Blythe sisters.  The novel jumps time frames, with the modern focusing on Edie discovering the secrets of the house, the sisters, and the mystery revolving around Mr. Blythe’s famous novel, “The True History of the Mud Man”.  The flashbacks to the past are narrated by Saffy Blythe, her twin sister Percy, and the young Juniper Blythe.  

The author does a wonderful job of making Milderhurst come alive, both during the war and in more modern days.  Each sister has their own dreams and secrets and yet you can feel the fierce protectiveness they have for each other and as a reader you know they would stick together, through anything.  When all is finally resolved, it all clicks and makes so much sense.  While parts are disturbing, and I may have a few nightmares about the Mud Man, I really feel that the story was completely satisfying.  I definitely recommend it, even if it takes you a while to read!

The Dark and Hollow Places by Carrie Ryan

The Dark and Hollow Places is the third book in a trilogy by Carrie Ryan.  The first book is The Forest of Hands and Teeth.  It’s a fantastic book and I highly recommend it.  The sequel, The Dead Tossed Waves, did not disappoint either and I’ve been anxiously awaiting the third book.  It was worth the wait.

The Dark and Hollow Places takes place pretty soon after the end of The Dead Tossed Waves.  The narrator is Annah, Gabry’s twin sister.  Annah is living in the Dark City by herself, waiting for Elias to return.   While trying to leave the Dark City to make her way back to the forest, in the hopes of finding her sister again, she sees Abigail (now Gabry) passing the other direction.  Annah fights her way back to the city and meets Catcher as well as eventually reuniting with both Elias and Gabry.  The four have to find a way to escape what is left of the Dark City while avoiding both the recruiters and the unconsecrated.  

A good deal of the first two books involve characters trying to make their way through the forest.  I kind of missed that in this book but subway tunnels took the place of the forest paths.  Like the two previous novels, the story moves along at a fast pace and it’s easy to get caught up and sucked in.  I love Ms. Ryan’s writing style and her characters.  There’s always an aspect of hope, despite a hopeless situation.  I know this was supposed to be a three-book series but I wouldn’t complain if there were another!  Or two or three.  I really enjoyed the entire series and I highly recommend all three.

The Dead Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan

Because I loved The Forest of Hands and Teeth so very much, I had to read The Dead Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan.  While I didn't adore it as much as the first book in the series, it still ranks very high.  It's definitely one of my favorite books for 2010.

The Dead Tossed Waves takes place several years after The Forest of Hands and Teeth.  Mary is living in a lighthouse with her daughter Gabry in the small town of Vista.  Their job is to kill the unconsecrated (zombies), called mudo in this book, that wash up on the shores.  Gabry is completely content in her little town and has a crush on Catcher, the brother of her best friend.  In one night, everything goes wrong and Gabry finds herself on the run with Catcher, Cira, and a new friend Elias.

Gabry's past is exposed and she finds out that she wasn't quite who she thought she was.  Just like in the first book of the series, the story is action packed and heartbreaking.  The love triangle between Elias, Catcher and Gabry is sweet and I'm still left unsure of who she will ultimately choose.

The story will continue in a third book out this coming spring (2011) and I really look forward to what it brings.  If you've read The Forest of Hands and Teeth, there is no excuse to skip The Dead Tossed Waves but I do suggest you read Forest first as it does set the back story.  Go read!

A Desirable Residence by Madeleine Wickham

A Desirable Residence, by Madeline Wickham, is a story with multiple characters and a hazy ending.  The story centers on the Chambers family.  Liz and Jonathan buy a tutorial college taking out several loans to do so.  They are both teachers and are anxious to get going on their new venture.  Their daughter Alice is a sulky teen who smokes in the garage of the house she no longer lives in.  Other characters include Marcus the realtor who is attempting to help Liz rent her house,  and Ginny and Piers, the new tenants.  We also get to see the story through the eyes of Marcus's stressed out wife and his two sons.

The lives of these characters intertwine in a very believable way.  There are affairs, crushes, obsessions, and career failures that color the few months time in which the book takes place.  We are ultimately left with a bit of hope and a bit of heartbreak.  The story never really ends.  There isn't a neat and tidy ending for any of them.  I'm still wondering where Ginny and Piers went.

All in all, the story was entertaining enough to keep me reading.  I was hoping for a happy ending.  Every book I read lately has an open ending.  I need to find a happy ever after book to read next!  It's a good book but not a great one.  It's worth a read.

Dewey by Vicki Myron

Dewey is the story of a little cat who was found in a library drop box one freezing morning in Spencer, Iowa. With the love of his "mama", Vicki, and the other library staff, he thrived and lived in the library for a long nineteen years.

This is an interesting book for me to review because I'm torn. I was a big emotional mess by the time I finished the book. I have trouble with animal stories. I went to see Hotel For Dogs a few weeks ago and cried through the whole second half of the movie. Yes, that's right. I cried. At a movie for kids. About a hotel for dogs. I'm very ashamed. With that said, I knew from the start of the book that I would probably cry at the end. I did.

The fact that I cried is a good thing in respect to the book. It means that the author was able to tell the story of Dewey in such a way that I became emotionally attached. It also made me want a cat (dumb allergies).

My only problem with the book, was the repetitiveness. I felt that while the story was mostly linear there were some moments where I felt I'd read something before. The book explains why Dewey was such a special cat over and over again. I enjoyed reading about Dewey's new adventures as he explored his home, his daily routine, his pickiness regarding food, and other aspects of his life. I don't know how many times it went over the fact that Dewey would attend meetings and choose a lap to sit in. That's just one example of what I feel was repetitive.

What I'm trying to get at was that the book rambled a bit. Maybe that's all right though, it held my interest and like I said, I did grow to love the cat. I'm glad I read it. I'd be interested to hear what others thought. If you are a cat lover, I'd check it out.