La Bibliofille Reviewing books, movies, TV, etc.

Rosamund Lupton

Sister is a murder mystery, a medical thriller, and the story of the love that exists between sisters. Rosamund Lupton is an author who is new to me, so I really took a chance purchasing it for my Kindle.

Beatrice is the older sister. Raised in London, she has moved to New York and made a life for herself there. She has a demanding job, a fiance, and a lovely apartment. One Sunday, she receives a phone call from her mother. Her younger sister, Tess, has gone missing.

But Tess is young, irresponsible. She is an art student living in a cheap flat in London. Although her mother does not know this at the time, Tess is pregnant by a married man, one of her instructors.

Beatrice flies to London as quickly as possible. And the search for Tess begins.  Although they live an ocean apart and lead very different lives, Tess and Beatrice are unusually close. Part of their bond is due to the childhood death of their brother Leo from Cystic Fibrosis. Tess’ baby was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis in utero, and Tess was part of a clinical trial of a gene therapy designed to cure the dread disease.

Does Tess’ disappearance have anything to with the trial? Or is her married lover to blame? What about the fellow student who has been stalking her?  There are lots of questions. And it takes until the end of the book to learn the answers. Along the way there are false leads and red herrings. As Beatrice searches for the answers, she undergoes some life defining moments. Her personal relationships change as her obsession with Tess grows.

There are so many layers here, it is sometimes hard to figure out what Lupton is trying to accomplish. It this book truly about the sisterly bond? Or maybe it is about the evils of the British National Health System and gene therapy. Anyway, it does seem a bit muddled. However, it is a quick read-good for an airplane ride or the beach. I did not guess the ending, but then I really didn’t try. I didn’t care that much about any of the characters, but since I paid for the book, I wanted to finish it.

In USA:

Published in softcover-Broadway Books-2011

Sister: A Novel

John Hart

The Last Child is a striking work of fiction. It is a mystery, and a very good one. It is full of false clues, red herrings, and coincidences. There is also some important history lessons as well as comments on contemporary society thrown in.

A year after the kidnapping of Alyssa Merrimon, her twin brother Johnny continues to search for her. The now thirteen yer old Johnny believes she was taken by one of the numerous sexual predators in their small North Carolina town. Johnny’s father has left the family months earlier, since Johnny’s mother blames him for Alyssa’s disappearance. With his family shattered, all Johnny has to cling to is the hope finding his twin.

Johnny plays hooky from school most days to focus on his quest. His mother is lost in a haze of alcohol and drugs. She and Johnny are subject to the whims of Ken Holloway, a violent man who is their landlord and now his mother’s boyfriend (and supplier).

And then a classmate of Johnny’s disappears taken, like Alyssa, is broad daylight after school. Is the same predator responsible? Is it one of the men on Johnny’s list? What about the recently escaped convict whose wife and her lover were found murdered?

Johnny’s search puts him and his mother in further danger, and yet he continues. He is smart, resourceful, and persistent. The Last Child  is an excellent book. The characters are real and memorable, and there are so many twists and turns in the plot that no one in my book club figured it all out before the end.

I highly recommend this for the avid mystery fan and even if you are not, there is plenty of action and interest for most anyone else. John Hart has won the Edagr Award twice (once for this book), and he deserved it! So where is the movie version?

In USA:

Published in hardcover-Minotaur Books-2009
Softcover edition-Minotaur Books-2010

The Last Child

Taylor Stevens

The Innocent is the second novel in the series about my favorite action hero Vanessa Michael Munroe. Munroe is contacted by Logan, an old friend of hers. A  girl named Hannah has been kidnapped into a cult known as The Chosen. After looking for Hannah for eight years, Logan knows that the now thirteen year old  is living in one of The Chosen’s  “havens” in Buenos Aires.

Logan and a small group of former cult members wish to hire Munroe to abduct Hannah out of the haven, and return her to her mother. Only because of her long-standing friendship with Logan does Munroe agree. The assignment will be dangerous for Munroe, but more so for any one who stands in the way of her mission.

Author Taylor Stevens was raised in a cult and she understands the indoctrination process and how a child with limited experience can be taught to fear the outside world. Stevens herself broke of the Children of God in her twenties, and she has special insight into Logan and his friends and how they deal with the world.

This book is fast-paced and exciting. It is very violent and there are strong allusions to sexual abuse of children. But it is all necessary to explain why Logan and Munroe are desperate to rescue Hannah.

Apparently, Stevens has finished the third book in the Vanessa Michael Munroe series and I look forward to reading that.

In USA:

Published in hardcover-Crown-2011
Softcover edition-to be published-Broadway Books-June 2012

The Innocent: A Vanessa Michael Munroe Novel

Adam Johnson

Wow! Did Adam Johnson get lucky or what? The Orphan Master’s Son is set to be released in January, just weeks after the death of North Korea’s Dear Leader Kim Jong Il. And this novel could only have been written by someone who has completed extensive research on North Korea life today.

This is the story of Pak Jun Do. His father was the orphan master referred to in the title. Although not an orphan, Jun Do was raised amongst the orphans and given an orphan’s name. Jun Do’s “career path” followed that of many North Koreans. He was conscripted to become a tunnel fighter, skilled in the art of zero-light combat. He then became a kidnapper for the state, preying on innocent Japanese citizens.

With nothing but his own strength and intelligence, Jun Do impersonates the powerful and feared Commander Ga, a close associate of Kim. Jun Do insinuates himself into Ga’s life so completely, that everyone acknowledges that he is Ga. And Jun Do’s goal? Freedom.

North Korea remains the most repressive and secretive nation in the world today. It’s remarkable that Johnson was able to gather so much information about the country, its (former) leader, and the policies that control the lives of its citizens so thoroughly.

I received this book weeks ago from the LibraryThing Early Reviewer program. I was so put off by the unattractive cover I could not even pick up the book. So-don’t judge a book by its cover. And read this book!

In USA:

To be published in hardcover-Random House-January 2012
The Orphan Master’s Son: A Novel

Jonathan Safran Foer

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (hereafter referred to as ELIC) is an extraordinary book by the very talented Jonathan Safran Foer. I was anxious to read it now as the movie, starring Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock, is about to be released.

It tells the story of Oskar Schell, a young boy whose father has been killed in the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center. Oskar is an unusual and precocious child who was close with his father.

In his late father’s closet, Oskar discovers an envelope with the word Black written on it. Inside the envelope is a key. Oskar sets out to discover what lock the key opens. He believes that Black is a name, and sets out to question every person named Black who lives in New York City. This quest takes Oskar all through the five boroughs where he meets a wide range of Blacks.

Interspersed with Oskar’s story is that of his paternal grandparents, who survived the bombing of Dresden in 1945 ( if you’ve never read Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse- Five, now is the time).

ELIC  is a complex and interesting novel. Although Oskar is the most finely drawn character, the others are interesting as well. I read this on my Kindle, and the only caveat I have is NOT to get the Kindle edition. There are drawings and creative use of printing (blank pages, very tiny cramped writing) that are just confusing on the Kindle.

In USA:

Published in hardcover-Houghton Mifflin-2005
Softcover edition-Mariner Press-2011

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close MTI: A Novel