Ghost 19 - Simone St. James - Book Review

 

                There I was hunting for stories to read when I came across the blurb for the book. It did sound interesting on a surface level, and the book is a novella, which promised a quick read. Therefore, I ended up reading the book. How did it turn out?

                Ginette Cox, an ex-actress, is advised by her doctor to move away from the city to a quiet town to cool her nerves. As she moves into a house, she spends her time watching her neighbours, which turns into an obsession. When she tries to leave the house to go out, she realises the truth. The house refuses to let her leave. Is it a figment of her imagination, or is the house haunted? This forms the rest of the novella. 

                This interesting premise is what attracted me to the story. As I mentioned, being a novella, it was a quick read. It did start creepily, but the essence was not maintained throughout. There were a couple of Alfred Hitchcock's 'Rear Window' moments here and there. The writing was simple and fairly engaging. At one point in time, the story starts to turn predictable, which is a damper, as it was a quick one. The unfolding of events also seems rushed. The characters, except for Ginette, lack depth. 

                In short, a quick-read novella that might not fully cater to the taste of horror or mystery genre fans. Nevertheless, this can be a decent one-time read.

Random Ramblings # 14 - The Ritual of Reading

 

Do you like reading? Well, I do. That is one activity that I do all the time. Like any reader, I have my rituals and practices related to reading.

First things first. I prefer physical books. The touch, smell, ruffling of pages, and colourful book covers invoke an unspoken bliss. I am very particular about where I sit and read, and I position specific chairs in almost every room - a rocking chair near my bookshelf, a jhula in another, a round bamboo chair in yet another room. These are more than just simple chairs. They are my reading mates. Now, to the eatables that go with an excellent reading experience: a big cup of piping hot coffee/a big cup of buttermilk/lime juice with a bowl full of peanuts. While such a practice sounds silly, it is not for people like me. And timings. I wake up at 4 in the morning just to read.

Curling up with a book creates a safe space I can crawl into. This provides a support system for me and sets up a meditative space. Importantly, this provides a place to unload my stress levels. While turning towards a creative corner, these small things trigger some spark inside me. I get a sense of positivity to spend the rest of the day that a book spreads into me.

Reading is not just the consumption of words. It involves a ritual that provides a sense of familiarity and love to readers. For an introverted person like me, sitting on a rocking chair, reading books & sipping coffee is a regimen that I religiously follow to keep my life on track. This works! What about you? Do you have any such reading rituals?

The Resting Place - Camilla Sten - Book Review

 

                Last week, while browsing the internet for some book recommendations, I came across this book by Camilla Sten. I was very much impressed by her first book, 'The Lost Village', and so decided to give this book a try.

                Eleanor suffers from prosopagnosia - a medical condition where the person is unable to identify human faces. As she reaches her grandmother Vivianne's home to meet her over dinner, she finds her murdered, and the killer walks past. Eleanor is unable to identify the killer. A lawyer calls and informs about a home that Vivianne has left her. She, her boyfriend, the lawyer, and her aunt visit the house to seek answers. With the killer still on the loose and the house holding some dark secrets, will Eleanor be able to get to the bottom of these forms the rest of the story.

                The first thing that captured my attention was the condition of Eleanor, which can be a perfect setting for a great story. I expected the story to move in that way. But when they arrive at the house, and the story tended to travel in two different timelines, there was a sense of amiss. On a positive note, the read was mostly engaging. The language was simple enough, and it kept us reading forward without many glitches. Yet, I did not get any edge-of-the-seat experience. The characters were portrayed well but carried a sense of mystery till the very end. As in many similar novels, I felt that the portions leading to the climax were stretched, and I was able to decipher the plot except for the last twist. Recently, I have this feeling that stories that carry multiple timelines in parallel tend to get stretched unnecessarily. The claustrophobic, isolated setting helped the story to a certain extent. Mental health was discussed superficially at times. There was a sense of wasted oppurtunity throughout the read, and that gets played in the back of our minds as we read the book. I think the first book might have set the expectation level at a higher level.

                Overall, a decent one-time read, which might not fully entice thrill seekers. The medical condition could have been effectively used in favour of the book. That, along with a toned-down pre-climax, could have given us a much more satisfying read.

Check out the review of other books by Camilla Sten.

The Lost Village - A Novel

A Master of Djinn - P. Djeli Clark - Book Review

 

                I was browsing for books of the fantasy genre when I came across this book. The name Djinn sparked interest, and I ended up selecting this as my next read.

            Egypt is a place in its fullest glory where djinns and people coexist. Fatma is a brilliant young woman who works for the Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments and Supernatural Entities. A mass murder happens that involves some prominent people, and it is attributed to Al-Jahiz, a famous mystic who lived many years back and transformed Egypt into what it is at present. All hell breaks loose when a person claiming to be Al-Jahiz appears out of nowhere, spreading discord. He can control the Djinns like Al-Jahiz claimed to. Fatma, along with her team, should race against time to get to the bottom of what ensues. 

            The first thing that caught my attention was the whole setting of the story. Most of the fantasy books I have read are set in an English background with ghouls, monsters, ogres, etc. This book has an Arabic backdrop that piqued my interest from the start. The book starts with a bit of excitement, which tames down as it goes, maintaining the pace as the world is built around us. Halfway into the book, it surprisingly picks up pace and keeps us well excited all the way. The book is a surprise drift away from pine forests and Gothic castles to deserts and palaces. There are a lot of things talked about in the book - feminism, women's suffrage, war, economic marginalisation of society, etc. I liked how that dived down to the djinn community as well. The pacing was apt, like I said. But the climax felt a bit dragging and preachy. The writing style was simple enough, with a lot of Arabic words being used. The characters were interestingly written (human, Djinn and Angels). Every character had their own shades, which they carried around perfectly. I realized that two novellas precede the book, which I have not read. But it did not hamper the reading experience anywhere.

            In short, a wonderfully written fantasy novel set in the Arabian lands. It will be a welcome change for fantasy lovers. And, if this develops as a series, I would certainly be interested to read more.

Random Ramblings # 13 - The Secret Lives of Books

 

During this weekend, I was simply sitting in my favourite rocking chair, gazing at my bookshelves and talking to my books. It is a pastime that I find fulfilling. Suddenly, an interesting thought struck me. What if these books could talk?

What would the books on the shelves be talking about? What thoughts would have been running through their pages?
Here are some of my interesting thoughts.

1. They might be bragging about their genre. While horror books seek to thrill and scare people, mystery books might be happy to keep the readers on their toes. Self-help books might be proud to create an impact in their readers' lives, whereas cookbooks seek pleasure in bringing happiness to it's readers through food experiences. There might be genres that are jealous of the other ones.
2. There might be books complaining about how people treat them. While some take great care while handling books, some people do not got at respecting books. Such books might be complaining about the dog-ear marks, torn pages and moth-eaten parts.
3. Imagine a library at night. The books come to life and talk to each other through the ruffling of pages. They share the experiences they had throughout the day and the different types of people they encountered all day long.
4. I am a big fan of history books. I would love it if these books could talk to me and indulge me with a walk in time, taking me deep into the annals of how the civilizations shaped up.
5. The physical books on my shelf and my Kindle are holding a debate at night after I sleep. They might be pointing out each other's pros and cons. What would be the outcome? Are they going to fight it out or reach an understanding?
6. I would love it if the book could pull me into its pages and make me a character of the novel. It could be exciting, scary, funny, or sad. Imagine the multitude of emotions it can provide you with or indulge you in.

Books are constant companions, who, if properly taken care of, can be your friend throughout. Do you take time to converse with them? If they could speak, what would you be talking to them about?