September 6, 2013 by Stephanie

Friday Filter: Book “The Tenth Circle”

I recently finished Jodi Picoult’s book The Tenth Circle. Here is the “back cover” synopsis from Amazon.

Fourteen-year-old Trixie Stone is in love for the first time. She’s also the light of her father, Daniel’s life — a straight-A student; a pretty, popular freshman in high school; a girl who’s always seen her father as a hero. That is, until her world is turned upside down with a single act of violence. Suddenly everything Trixie has believed about her family — and herself — seems to be a lie. Could the boyfriend who once made Trixie wild with happiness have been the one to end her childhood forever? She says that he is, and that is all it takes to make Daniel, a seemingly mild-mannered comic book artist with a secret tumultuous past he has hidden even from his family, venture to hell and back to protect his daughter.

This is probably the first book of Picoult’s that I was not particularly fond of personally.

Rewind. It is a good book. As usual, Picoult is a phenomenal writer, who can depict raw emotions as if they are actually happening to you. I particularly did like that it showed parts of the story from the dad’s point of view, which I feel in our society is often missed. Being raised primarily by my own dad, I enjoyed seeing that love and connection in this story.

The story went through a series of events and how a split moment can change a person’s life forever. Picoult showed three different perspectives: the daughter, mother, and father. They were all impacted by this single act, and all chose to react in various ways to protect themselves and what they had left of their family.

This book had it all: romance, violence, sex, teenage angst, range of emotions, drugs and alcohol, murder, suicide, Alaskan wilderness…covered.

She also put a twist in there by having a comic book in between chapters. Daniel, the father, is a comic book artist in the story, and these drawings were supposedly his. So this added a different layer and lens on the story, since most of the comics paralleled what was happening to their family. And apparently there is a hidden code in those pages. I wasn’t able to figure it out, but maybe another day.

But I just wasn’t feeling this book. Unlike her other books, I wasn’t connected to it. Actually, I think it was the opposite, I was too connected to it. The story lines were abrasive and harsh. They were all a little too real for me. I see these stories play out at work, and the pain and anguish I read just didn’t sit right with me. It stirred up emotions that I really couldn’t do anything with so that was frustrating. It brought up experiences that I had no control over so it was like feeling helpless all over again.

So I wasn’t the biggest fan of this particular story. Sometimes you just don’t like it even if it is good for others.

Picoult is still one of my favorite authors for her realness and the way she brings stories to life. I will no doubt continue to read her work, but this is one that I probably won’t read again for personal reasons.

Friday Filters offer a review that are my own opinions. I was not contacted by anyone associated with this work or compensated for my review. My review has not been influenced by anything other than my love for entertainment and art.

August 16, 2013 by Stephanie

Friday Filter: Book “Think Twice”

I have had this book on my shelf for a few years. I found it in a clearance bin years ago, but never have actually read it. That is how a lot of the books I own came to be mine. I love giving books a chance by their covers!

Think Twice (Rosato and Associates Series #13)

I am glad I finally opened it up I was suckered in on the first page. Scottoline does a fantastic job getting you invested early on in this page turner.

This is a story about identical twins who have no similarities past their looks. Or do they? Bennie and Alice lead very different lives, and one could say it is a classic good vs. evil tale.

Until Bennie is buried alive at the hands of Alice, who attempts to take over Bennie’s cushion life.

Scottoline describes what each sister goes through during the “switch.” It is gut-wrenching to read through the harrowing details that Bennie goes through in order to fight for her life, but also Alice fighting for hers (even if she is the antagonist).

I won’t give too much more because I don’t want to give away the story. It is an interesting read that makes you think about what you would do if you were put into a life or death situation. Fighting for your life, would you want to have your revenge? Would you, a seemingly good person, become evil to save your own hide? Do you think there can be evil in a good person, and good in an evil person? —I love books that make you relate it to real life and your own actions. I always am up for a good pondering.

And what is it about our circumstances that pushes us down these paths? The book subtly talks about nature vs. nurture since these women were separated at birth and were raised very differently. There are parts that elude to jealousy for Bennie having a better life than Alice.

I think it is also interesting to think about the impact that we have on those around us. Most characters in the story did not realize that Alice was impersonating Bennie. I have not had extensive time with twins, but I feel that there are some personality quirks that people should catch on to! Even an ex-boyfriend of Bennie’s didn’t know that Alice was a phoney! Are we in a day and age, that we are really that surface level with those around us? I’m not sure if that was what Scottoline’s intentions were when writing this, but this was the biggest take away for me. It made me really examine what my relationships were like and if I was ok with the perceived status or not. I really try to make genuine relationships, but I also know that there are many that I hold at bay due to circumstances. Intriguing. ..

Also I learned not to keep a Rolodex of your passwords. Haha just kidding, I already knew this.

I will ruin one part for you. The dog does live. I cried when I thought he had died, and then cried again at the end when they revealed he had been saved. Sweet goodness.

Some quick observations about the book:

It is part of a series, which I didn’t realize until I was done with the book. So obviously the book can stand alone, but after looking at some reviews the series may be a good investment! Think Twice is the last book in the series, but it is set up easily for a follow up.

When I say it is a fast paced read, I mean it. There is not a chapter that is more than 3 pages long so it goes very quick. This makes it easy to pick up whenever and get a little nibble if you only have a short amount of time, which was great for my lunch breaks. But that can also get you in trouble at night because I kept telling myself, “Oh I can read another 2 page chapter.” And then 15 chapters later I was still up reading. I finished this book in less than a week.

It follows several characters. Each chapter changes perspectives between Benny, Alice, and Mary. I like this aspect because you get to see both twins and their thoughts, but also Mary who’s perspective really give you a 360 view of the story.

I am going to put Scottoline and the Rosato series on my list of books to hit up. Her last book out “Don’t Go” is about an Army family, so that may be interesting. Inadvertently, I spent about an hour on her website checking out the books and reviews. Exciting!

Sidenote, I just showed my to read list to Tom, and he asked if that was all the books that I have read. Hahaha silly kid. I wouldn’t even know where to begin for that list.

Friday Filters offer a review that are my own opinions and are not influenced by anything other than my love for entertainment and art.

August 9, 2013 by Stephanie

Friday Filter-Nikki Heat Series

One of my favorite shows currently is Castle. I have always loved mystery in stories. I guess because I hate it in real life so I live vicariously through the excitement of the stories, all the while knowing nothing is really surprising is happening to me.

In Castle, the main character-Richard Castle-is a novelist who shadows NYPD to get insight for his latest series.

Bonus for us, they actually hired individuals to write these books from the fictional novelist.

Fantastic.

I read the first four this summer. I was not able to put them down once I started.

I find it interesting that some of the covers look somewhat racy, and one of the main characters in the book Jameson Rook moonlights as a Victoria St. Clair-a popular romance novelist.

I will say that if you like the show Castle, you are going to fall in love with these books as soon as you start. The book characters mirror those in the T.V. show, so that was fun to see that. You can also tell that this was a love letter from Castle to Beckett, which in the T.V. show she takes a long time to realize. Ugh I can’t wait to see if she says yes or not!

The books all follow the lead detective Nikki Heat as she solves crimes. Each book focuses on one particular case (sometimes involving several murders), and with each book they of course get more twisted and more intense than the one before. I love sequels though because they just keep adding layers to the characters. And then you don’t have that sadness when you realize that your relationship with the characters is over. Deadly Heat is coming out in September, just in time for the beginning of the newest season!

In these books, there is always an attack on Nikki’s life, and of course how she barely escapes alive. Rook is always in the thick of it humorously trying to save Nikki. Sometimes doing so, but sometimes just putting in some romantic comedy. It is an action murder mystery at it’s best.

Just when you think you can predict the next suspect they twist you around and show you new details that has you gasping. There were many nights Tom begged for me to turn off the bedroom light and just go to bed. I just couldn’t put it down. (And now I read by a red bulb headlamp…)

I don’t want to give too much away on the plots because half the fun is figuring it out on your own.

Each book is slightly different and shows the variety of what happens in NYC. Throughout the four novels though, you watch Rook and Heat fall in love (much like Castle and Beckett). You see them razz each other, but also how to be there for each other when times get tough. You watch them break down each others emotional walls, which I believe was Castle’s way of telling Beckett he would be there when she was ready to be raw instead of closing up all her feelings. I feel that the underlying tone of how it paralleled the show’s characters is why I found it so endearing. You can tell that even though Castle was trying to pay homage to one of the great NYPD detectives, he was really trying to tell her that they were meant to be together and would protect her, while also making her laugh. There are parts of the book that had me busting up laughing (which makes for an awkward lunch when you are alone in the courtyard). Then there are other parts where I thought I was going to chew my finger off from nail-biting-induced anxiety.

My favorite one is the last book, Frozen Heat. The case is much more personal than those shown previously. It goes into detail about Nikki’s mother’s death and a web of spies. The plot twists are perfect. They are expectedly unexpected. This is really the only book that doesn’t finish the case completely, so you will have to read the next sequel to find out what happens to a certain spy. (I also find life of spies fascinating. Why they ever took PanAm off the air is beyond me!) But, don’t fret, some pieces of the mystery are solved. One, I almost threw the book at the wall I was so mad-in a “NO WAY” kind of mad, not a “I hate this story” kind of mad.

My absolute favorite part of this series though are the afterwards. Since it is “written” by Richard Castle, he writes what a typical author would as far as thank yous go. For some reason I just get a kick out of these because they are thank yous to his fellow characters in the show. (Thoroughly confused?) He also manages to thank the real live actors subtly as well. I find this to be captivating to go through this weird lens of imaginary and real-when it is all in fact imaginary. Fascinating.

These are a particularly easy reads that have suspense, love, and some hilarious moments. It is an investment for the series if you start one because you won’t want to be left wondering what happens to Rook and Heat. If you have never watched Castle, you can still easily read these and never miss a beat. I think they [T.V. and book] are both able to stand well enough on their own, but I think are made all the better if you are invested in both the show and the book series. Like I said, they are intertwined marvelously, and I believe that is one reason why I was so riveted by this series.

But hey, I am a fan so I am probably biased. I am also a sucker for the drama!

I hoped you liked my first entertainment review!

Friday Filters offer a review that are my own opinions and are not influenced by anything other than my love for entertainment and art.