Tag Archives: thriller

Feeding my book addiction

I did it. I joined my local library. I was popping to Tesco, and the library is just round the corner, and I had something with my name and address on it in my handbag. Basically, the stars aligned, and I am now the proud owner of a library card and three – yes, three more! – books.

I can hear you shaking your head at me. It’s an addiction, I can’t help it. Fortunately, I get to borrow books for 3 weeks, and renew up to 3 times online, so I could technically keep them for 3 months and that’s plenty of time to read them…

Want to know what I got? It’s a pretty eclectic selection. To be honest, I was disappointed with the small YA section, but being a tiny, rural village library, I can’t really complain. Plus, I can order any book I want them to get in, reserve any book that is already on loan, and do everything online except picking up the actual physical book. But, they also have e-books and audiobooks for rent! So I could borrow books without every leaving my house! Winner.

Here’s what I picked up.

 

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Prince of Thorns by Mark Lawrence

If you saw my post about My growing TBR, you’ll know I recently acquired and ARC of Red Sister. Having never read anything by Mark Lawrence, I wanted to start at the beginning with Prince of Thorns. I saw the second book in the series on the shelf as well, so I’ll pick that up when I return this.

So, the book is about Jorg Ancrath, the titular Prince of Thorns, who sounds almost like a dark and murderous version of Robin Hood. He leads a band of outlaws in a series of raids and atrocities, and has the ability to master the living and the dead. But, he will have to face his nightmares and the ghosts of his past when he returns to his father’s castle.

It sounds like it’s set in the future, but after an unsubscribed catastrophe the world has regressed to a medieval style society. Similar to The Queen of the Tearling, perhaps, which I really enjoyed. Either way, this one should be good!

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Black Ice by Becca Fitzpatrick

This one is by the author of the Hush, Hush saga, which I loved, so I’ve had this on my radar for a while. It’s got very mixed reviews on Goodreads, it’s got almost 4 stars, but the top reviews are all very negative, so I’m going to give it a chance, but I don’t have the highest hopes. I think I’m less critical than some, so I’ll probably end up enjoying it.

It’s billed as a YA thriller, and I don’t think I’ve read many of those, plus it’s a standalone, and I definitely don’t read many of those (in YA) so it’ll be interesting.

It seems to be about a girl who has been training to climb a mountain, and before she sets off her ex-boyfriend asks if he can join her. They get separated by a blizzard and she takes refuge in a cabin, where two fugitives hold her hostage. She discovers evidence of a series of murders, and starts to wonder if she is next, but one of the fugitives shows her kindness. Could he be an ally?

I do love a good thriller, so I’ll let you know how I like this one.

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The Girl with all the Gifts by M. R. Carey

I remember hearing about this one a while ago, it has a really fascinating premise and I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. Mark Lawrence (of Prince of Thorns fame) has actually given if 5 stars on Goodreads, so I’m looking forward to this one.

I’m not sure if this is a spoiler, but I read a review that says it’s a zombie book, the little girl, Melanie, is infected and kept in a prison/science lab to be tested as they hope her blood will lead to a cure. I don’t know how far into the book you find this out, so I might have completely spoiled you – sorry! I’ll pop a review up of this one as well when I’m done, I have high hopes for it as it was quite widely publicised when it was released and has lots of positive reviews.

So, there you have it – my library book haul. Increasing my current TBR to 9 paperbacks and five audiobooks…excuse me while I go and build a fort in my spare bedroom and not come out for six months. I’m sure my husband will bring me food, and the dog will probably keep me company.

Have you read any of these? Loved them? Loathed them? Tell me in the comments, and I’ll be back with some reviews soon!

Lyndsey

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Current word count (second draft): 28,954

Review: The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

Phew! That was a bit of a whirlwind read, I haven’t read a paperback that fast in months, especially when I’m not even on holiday.

I’m a bit late to the party with this one, but if you haven’t read The Girl on the Train yet, here’s my little review. It’s a tense, twisty roller coaster of a book where no one comes out unscathed, and I loved it! I went in knowing relatively little, I wanted to read the book before watching the film, so if you want to avoid knowing too much, don’t read on. I try not to include spoilers, but this is one book where you’re best off starting with absolutely no idea what will happen.

If spoilers don’t scare you, read on!

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4 stars

In a nutshell, Rachel takes the same train into London at 8:04am every morning, and back to Ashbury every evening where she rents a room from an old friend. On the way she passes Witney station, and the house she used to share with her ex-husband before their divorce, two years ago.

The train usually stops at a signal, allowing Rachel to spend a few minutes looking into the back gardens of the houses by the tracks, including her old home. A few doors down, a young, attractive couple are often sitting on their roof terrace or patio drinking coffee, and Rachel likes to imagine who they are and what they might do for work, etc. One day, she sees the wife with another man, and a few days later she sees an article in a newspaper stating that the woman has been reported missing. Feeling like she knows these people after months of watching them from the train window, and knowing that suspicion usually falls on the husband when a woman goes missing, she decides to tell the police and the husband that his wife was having an affair.

The thing is, Rachel is an alcoholic. And she’s been harassing her ex-husband and his new wife for over a year. When Anna, the new Mrs Watson, sees Rachel on the day of the missing woman’s disappearance, she reports it to the police, and as a result Rachel becomes embroiled in the investigation. Suffering from blackouts caused by her heavy drinking, Rachel remembers being outside her old home on that night, she remembers an argument and having blood on her hands, but nothing else.

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I’ll leave it at that for fear of giving too much away, but suffice it to say this was a book filled with twists and turns, an unreliable narrator who can’t remember crucial events, and a supporting cast of very flawed, complex characters, none of which are completely innocent.

I’m giving it four stars because I really enjoyed it, I was gripped and got through it quite quickly, but there were some slightly frustrating parts. It wasn’t a completely satisfying read for this reason. I feel like the climax could have been even more tense and exciting as the whole book built up towards it and I was so ready to find out what really happened by the end.

I really enjoyed the writing style, it’s written almost like diary entries from the points of view of Rachel, Anna (Rachel’s ex’s new wife) and the woman who is missing, herself. We see the day-to-day run up to ‘that night’ and the aftermath from Rachel, with the occasional counter from Anna, and the events that lead up to it over the course of the last year from the missing woman.

I loved seeing the story from all three sides, each woman was completely different – they were all such fully formed and layered characters, each with their own traits and flaws. Hawkins is a brilliant writer, the story is well crafted, and I found the pacing was just slow enough for me to be desperate for more every time I read, but satisfied with what I had discovered so far.

If you like a good thriller, you’ll love The Girl on the Train. Even if you saw the film and weren’t convinced, I’ve heard it’s nowhere as good as the book and that they changed a few things – I’ll have to watch it now to compare!

Go and get the book, and let me know what you think in the comments below.

Lyndsey

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PS. Paula Hawkins has a new book coming out soon, Into the Water, and it sounds just as suspenseful and thrilling as The Girl on the Train!

I am a member of the Book Depository affiliate program, so if you click through and buy any of the books mentioned in this blog I might make a little commission, but I am not paid to review books and all reviews are my own opinions!

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Currently Reading:

Paperback

The Shadow Queen by C.J. Redwine

I just started reading this last night and only managed the prologue so far as I was really tired, but I love a good fairy tale retelling so I’m anticipating enjoying this one. I ran a Twitter poll to see what I should pick up next and this won so there are lots of you out there who loved it!

Audiobook

The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

I am so in love with this book! I’ve enjoyed everything by Ms. Stiefvater that I’ve read so far, I’ve got The Raven Boys lined up on Audible next and I know that’s most people’s favourite of her series, so I’m really excited to get stuck in, especially after loving this one. The voice actors who play Puck and Sean are absolutely fantastic, they really bring the characters and the whole world she has created to life. I’ll do a review of this when I’m finished as it’s a standalone and I honestly can’t praise it enough!

Second draft word count: 11,066

(I’m about 1/7th through my second draft and it’s going really well so far, keep your fingers crossed for me! I’m writing a post about second drafts so I’ll be sharing that soon.)