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Kristy H (1252 KP) rated Summer of '79 in Books
Mar 19, 2020
This is an excellent novella following up with the Foley/Levin gang ten years after the events of Summer of '69. Kate and her children, Blair, Kirby, Tiger, and Jessie, gather again on Nantucket after the death of Kate's mother, Exalta.
"Exalta is dead. She died in her sleep two days earlier in the house on Fair Street, while Mr. Crimmins, their former caretaker, slept beside her."
There are a few books in the world that end perfectly, and you don't need another word. But many books are so engaging--the characters so vivid--that you often wonder what has happened to them. Elin Hilderbrand is such an excellent author and so good at world-building for her characters. It only makes sense that she would allow us to check in on her characters at a later date. And, because she's so good at bringing them to life, the concept works perfectly.
This is a slim e-book (coming out later in book form as part of a tribute anthology to the late Dorothea Benton Frank). I read it easily in one setting and quite enjoyed catching up with Kate and the kids, particularly the youngest, Jessie, who was my favorite in '69 and remains so ten years later.
"She feels like a stranger in her own family, but there’s nothing new about that."
Despite the somber occasion for which the family has gathered, it's quite fun to check in on them ten years later. Hilderbrand switches POV from Kate to all four of the kids, allowing us to see what they've been doing and how they feel. We also find Kate adjusting to moving into the role of family matriarch with the passing of her mother.
Overall, if you enjoyed Summer of '69, this is a great novella to catch you up on some beloved characters. I kind of wish we could have novellas like this for other favorite books. 4 stars.
"Exalta is dead. She died in her sleep two days earlier in the house on Fair Street, while Mr. Crimmins, their former caretaker, slept beside her."
There are a few books in the world that end perfectly, and you don't need another word. But many books are so engaging--the characters so vivid--that you often wonder what has happened to them. Elin Hilderbrand is such an excellent author and so good at world-building for her characters. It only makes sense that she would allow us to check in on her characters at a later date. And, because she's so good at bringing them to life, the concept works perfectly.
This is a slim e-book (coming out later in book form as part of a tribute anthology to the late Dorothea Benton Frank). I read it easily in one setting and quite enjoyed catching up with Kate and the kids, particularly the youngest, Jessie, who was my favorite in '69 and remains so ten years later.
"She feels like a stranger in her own family, but there’s nothing new about that."
Despite the somber occasion for which the family has gathered, it's quite fun to check in on them ten years later. Hilderbrand switches POV from Kate to all four of the kids, allowing us to see what they've been doing and how they feel. We also find Kate adjusting to moving into the role of family matriarch with the passing of her mother.
Overall, if you enjoyed Summer of '69, this is a great novella to catch you up on some beloved characters. I kind of wish we could have novellas like this for other favorite books. 4 stars.
Insurrection: Nevermore Book 1
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The virus ran swiftly on the hot summer breeze. Unseen. Unheard. Unknown. It swept through the...
science fiction fantasy
Super Badminton
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Over a million downloads! Get addicted to the Best Racquet Sports Game on the App Store! "I can...
365Flicks (235 KP) rated Leopard (2016) in Movies
Nov 20, 2019
A Beautiful, Twisted, Dark, Intense and Mesmerizing tale of Betrayal, Violence and Heart Breaking Brotherly Love..
Anyone who listens to ourleopard5-1 Podcast knows that while Chris and myself love the fanfare of the Huge Blockbuster Marvel/DC/Star Wars releases. Well nothing can quite compare to the
smaller Independent Films that you just know every second of screen time came straight from one persons passion to make a piece of Cinema that is all there’s. A movie that can display such mastery of there craft and hit you square in the heart (or balls) and make you feel something that… In my opinion Capes and Spandex just cant do.
Leopard is available On Demand this month from Osiris Entertainment.
Leopard is exactly that type of movie. A true passion piece that is driven by the wonderfully carefully calculated mind of its Writer/Director/Actor, BUT smashed out of the park by his outstanding team of Actors. Most revleopard6iews and articles I have read liken this movie to the wonderful Paris,Texas but I personally thought it had a feeling of Shane Meadows Dead Man Shoes.
Leopard tells the story of Jack (Eoin Macken. Merlin, NBCs Night Shift Also the Writer/Director) and his brother Tom (Tom Hopper. Merlin, Black Sails). Jack is returning to his home town in Ireland after a prolonged absence and it is clear from the outset he is not all that welcome. We find that his father has passed away and he is back for the reading of the Will along with his brother Tom who is not all there (Think Lenny from Mice and Men). There relationship is fairly strained and we spend the course of the movie figuring out what happened 5 years ago and where that has left the two brothers now. Throw in some Hostile locals, A left for Dead girl to become the point of Toms fixation and a creepy Strip Club, you have leopard.
Chris and I cannot speak highly enough of this movie it ticks all of our boxes when looking for something a little bit different. The Irish setting not only makes for a great backdrop but also becomes a character within itself. The score to this movie is often hopeful and optimistic but full of eerie dread at the same time, truly wonderful. Eoin and Tom bring a level of chemistry you would hope for after there time together on Merlin. However I am going to say it here and now Tom Hopper is a Brit star to watch out for he smashed this out of the park. There is also a damn fine supporting cast in Jack Reynor (Transformers: Age of Extinction) Rebecca Night (Sky 1s The Starlings) and Helen Pearson (Mrs O from Hollyoaks).
Anyone who listens to ourleopard5-1 Podcast knows that while Chris and myself love the fanfare of the Huge Blockbuster Marvel/DC/Star Wars releases. Well nothing can quite compare to the
smaller Independent Films that you just know every second of screen time came straight from one persons passion to make a piece of Cinema that is all there’s. A movie that can display such mastery of there craft and hit you square in the heart (or balls) and make you feel something that… In my opinion Capes and Spandex just cant do.
Leopard is available On Demand this month from Osiris Entertainment.
Leopard is exactly that type of movie. A true passion piece that is driven by the wonderfully carefully calculated mind of its Writer/Director/Actor, BUT smashed out of the park by his outstanding team of Actors. Most revleopard6iews and articles I have read liken this movie to the wonderful Paris,Texas but I personally thought it had a feeling of Shane Meadows Dead Man Shoes.
Leopard tells the story of Jack (Eoin Macken. Merlin, NBCs Night Shift Also the Writer/Director) and his brother Tom (Tom Hopper. Merlin, Black Sails). Jack is returning to his home town in Ireland after a prolonged absence and it is clear from the outset he is not all that welcome. We find that his father has passed away and he is back for the reading of the Will along with his brother Tom who is not all there (Think Lenny from Mice and Men). There relationship is fairly strained and we spend the course of the movie figuring out what happened 5 years ago and where that has left the two brothers now. Throw in some Hostile locals, A left for Dead girl to become the point of Toms fixation and a creepy Strip Club, you have leopard.
Chris and I cannot speak highly enough of this movie it ticks all of our boxes when looking for something a little bit different. The Irish setting not only makes for a great backdrop but also becomes a character within itself. The score to this movie is often hopeful and optimistic but full of eerie dread at the same time, truly wonderful. Eoin and Tom bring a level of chemistry you would hope for after there time together on Merlin. However I am going to say it here and now Tom Hopper is a Brit star to watch out for he smashed this out of the park. There is also a damn fine supporting cast in Jack Reynor (Transformers: Age of Extinction) Rebecca Night (Sky 1s The Starlings) and Helen Pearson (Mrs O from Hollyoaks).
Ivana A. | Diary of Difference (1171 KP) rated Dead Until Dark (Sookie Stackhouse, #1) in Books
Aug 3, 2020
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#1 <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3262782990">Dead Until Dark</a> - ★★★★
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<b><i>Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris is the first book in the Sookie Stackhouse series. We follow the life of Sookie, a waitress in Louisiana, who also has the ability to read people’s minds. </i></b>
When a vampire enters the bar and Sookie can’t read his mind – she is intrigued and wants to know this mysterious man better. But vampires usually mean trouble, and maybe Sookie is not really for all the troubles to start coming her way.
After watching the TV show “True Blood” and finding out that there is a book series, I had to read the books. I am usually a person that reads the books before watching the adaptations. The first book was great and I also loved the TV Show.
<b><i>I liked everyone, apart from Sookie. </i></b>
Possibly because she acts very immature at all times and behaves like a spoilt child, when others tell her no. Maybe it is the lack of fear, empathy and emotion she feels. Or maybe, it is just the fact that she feels entitled because of her special ability, and likes to talk about how people always treat her badly because she is different. I just didn’t like her at all. And given the fact that she is the main character in this series, I am wondering how I like this book. Sookie – if you don’t behave in the next books, we’re going to have some problems!
I loved this book because of the side characters. In Dead Until Dark, we meen many amazing characters that I loved who have their own stories to tell. This was something I really enjoyed, and considering I watched the TV Shows and knew some of these stories, I was actually excited to read the book version of them. It felt like I was meeting them again for the very first time. I was really hoping to meet Tara though, but she is not in the first book… Oh well. Maybe she’ll appear after? Don’t tell me if you know.
Charlaine Harris has an interesting writing style that kept me engaged. I was invested and curious throughout the whole book. I loved the adventures and the plot twists that kept coming up. The ending was meh, but considering the fact that it is a build-up for the second book, I wasn’t too surprised. It definitely gives you something to think about until you read the next book though.
<b><i>Vampire Bill was the character that intrigued me the most.</i></b>
I was so glad that he was not the usual vampire type we are used to, of the likes of Edward Cullen or the Salvatore brothers. Bill seemed more mature, more mysterious and I loved it.
I actually enjoyed the whole vampire world in this book. The rules and the hierarchy model was pleasantly surprising. It is interesting to dive in more in how the vampires respect each other depending on their ranks and age. Even though I do wish that the mythology was more followed through, it was nice to read a book where vampires are living in the society, and are more or less accepted. We could see how people still have their prejudice though, as is the example that the women who tend to hang out with vampires are called “fangbangers”, and they tend to be frowned upon by society.
<b><i>Overall, I believe Dead Until Dark is a great first book, and a promising beginning of the Sookie Stackhouse series. I will definitely be continuing the series!
Highly recommended if you are a fan of vampires, fantasy, romance and a bit of mystery, followed by many different side characters that you will instantly adore.</i></b>
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#1 <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3262782990">Dead Until Dark</a> - ★★★★
<img src="https://i0.wp.com/diaryofdifference.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Book-Review-Banner-36.png?w=663&ssl=1"/>;
<b><i>Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris is the first book in the Sookie Stackhouse series. We follow the life of Sookie, a waitress in Louisiana, who also has the ability to read people’s minds. </i></b>
When a vampire enters the bar and Sookie can’t read his mind – she is intrigued and wants to know this mysterious man better. But vampires usually mean trouble, and maybe Sookie is not really for all the troubles to start coming her way.
After watching the TV show “True Blood” and finding out that there is a book series, I had to read the books. I am usually a person that reads the books before watching the adaptations. The first book was great and I also loved the TV Show.
<b><i>I liked everyone, apart from Sookie. </i></b>
Possibly because she acts very immature at all times and behaves like a spoilt child, when others tell her no. Maybe it is the lack of fear, empathy and emotion she feels. Or maybe, it is just the fact that she feels entitled because of her special ability, and likes to talk about how people always treat her badly because she is different. I just didn’t like her at all. And given the fact that she is the main character in this series, I am wondering how I like this book. Sookie – if you don’t behave in the next books, we’re going to have some problems!
I loved this book because of the side characters. In Dead Until Dark, we meen many amazing characters that I loved who have their own stories to tell. This was something I really enjoyed, and considering I watched the TV Shows and knew some of these stories, I was actually excited to read the book version of them. It felt like I was meeting them again for the very first time. I was really hoping to meet Tara though, but she is not in the first book… Oh well. Maybe she’ll appear after? Don’t tell me if you know.
Charlaine Harris has an interesting writing style that kept me engaged. I was invested and curious throughout the whole book. I loved the adventures and the plot twists that kept coming up. The ending was meh, but considering the fact that it is a build-up for the second book, I wasn’t too surprised. It definitely gives you something to think about until you read the next book though.
<b><i>Vampire Bill was the character that intrigued me the most.</i></b>
I was so glad that he was not the usual vampire type we are used to, of the likes of Edward Cullen or the Salvatore brothers. Bill seemed more mature, more mysterious and I loved it.
I actually enjoyed the whole vampire world in this book. The rules and the hierarchy model was pleasantly surprising. It is interesting to dive in more in how the vampires respect each other depending on their ranks and age. Even though I do wish that the mythology was more followed through, it was nice to read a book where vampires are living in the society, and are more or less accepted. We could see how people still have their prejudice though, as is the example that the women who tend to hang out with vampires are called “fangbangers”, and they tend to be frowned upon by society.
<b><i>Overall, I believe Dead Until Dark is a great first book, and a promising beginning of the Sookie Stackhouse series. I will definitely be continuing the series!
Highly recommended if you are a fan of vampires, fantasy, romance and a bit of mystery, followed by many different side characters that you will instantly adore.</i></b>
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Sheridan (209 KP) rated The Fifth Wave in Books
Jul 9, 2017
Love/Hate Relationship with this Novel
I both like and hate this book. I like the storyline it has great potential but it fell flat for me. Here's why: The point of view jumped around way too much. I thought the idea of changing point of view was good except the execution sucked. It went from one to another so hard I got whiplash and it kind of takes you out of the story trying to figure out who's part of the story you're following. The second thing that stuffed it up was the way it was written. I get that the people in it are kids they're all 18 and under but the way they thought was painful. I mean they crawl out of a hole in the damn ground all bloodied and totally f**ked up and she's worried about her hair? F**k off with that s**t. I don't care how old you are there's no way you'd be worried about that type of crap at that point. It's so shallow it hurts. The last thing is, wtf is with Cassie getting all sappy over Ben? The guy you're sort of dating might be dead and Ben kisses you and you get all mushy about it? Are you f**king kidding me? I'm sorry but you'd have a bullet in your head if it were me. I'm going to give the rest of the series a chance but at this point I'm not hopeful....
Josh Burns (166 KP) rated the PlayStation 4 version of Godzilla in Video Games
Jun 21, 2019
Nails the feeling from the movies (2 more)
Fun with a large variety of playable Kaiju
A ton of unlockables
No story mode (1 more)
Does get repetitive
A fun love letter to the classic Godzilla movies
I feel like this game was dead before it had a chance. Critics expected Mortal Kombat with Kaiju and it isn't. It's more of a kaiju simulator. You are a big lumbering monster, so that's how the controls are intentionally. Many have written it off as too clunky for that reason, missing the point.
Gameplay: It is fun, but does get repetitive after a while. There is no real story so it's best played for a while, and back off once it feels repetitive and come back later. Basically, you smash cities and generators, gaining G Energy which makes your Kaiju grow in size and power. Or, you protect them, while fighting kaiju and increasing human military forces.
content: you can unlock almost any monster seen in any Godzilla movie as well as bios for each. You can level them up and unlock figures and settings to build dioramas also. It has multiple game modes but they don't vary from each other a lot. There is also PVP online, but since the critics shredded it so bad there aren't many players so matchmaking is a nightmare.
overall: it's a lot of fun with a ton of content to unlock, just don't burn yourself out on it. I play for like a month here and there, have a blast, then back off for a while so it doesn't get stale.
Gameplay: It is fun, but does get repetitive after a while. There is no real story so it's best played for a while, and back off once it feels repetitive and come back later. Basically, you smash cities and generators, gaining G Energy which makes your Kaiju grow in size and power. Or, you protect them, while fighting kaiju and increasing human military forces.
content: you can unlock almost any monster seen in any Godzilla movie as well as bios for each. You can level them up and unlock figures and settings to build dioramas also. It has multiple game modes but they don't vary from each other a lot. There is also PVP online, but since the critics shredded it so bad there aren't many players so matchmaking is a nightmare.
overall: it's a lot of fun with a ton of content to unlock, just don't burn yourself out on it. I play for like a month here and there, have a blast, then back off for a while so it doesn't get stale.
Ivana A. | Diary of Difference (1171 KP) rated Quietus in Books
Oct 2, 2020
Sometimes, we don’t search for a particular book to read. It just finds us. That happened to me with “Quietus”. One of the best books I’ve read this year. I connected to Nick immediately, and the story was appealing, so it was a struggle to close the book. This is one of the books that you read in one breath. I could connect with all the characters, with Nick, with Carrie, even with Sophie.
The description about them made me like them in a different way, all of them, yes, even Sophie. The author describes not only the physical part, but also their thoughts and how their mind works, and before you even realize it, you have this strong bond with every single one of them.
The personality of Sophie is so well described, that’s it’s almost unbelievable. All the sociopathic characteristics, the whole building of this character is so appealing to read, it makes you want to know what’s wrong and how it can be fixed, and it is told by Nick, by someone who has affection towards this person and it tells both sides of the story, how a person can make you like them and make you hate them at the same time.
The scenes are so realistic, that I felt like I was there. Each chapter is left unfinished, and it only makes you want to read more and more. The whole death-life thing made this book special to me. It made me think way deeper than just how the scene are put, or how was the description of the characters. Maybe I didn’t get the point of the story… I just wonder now. It will bother me for days, that’s for sure. It will haunt me and make me think again and again, deeper and deeper about what was the character’s purpose in this book. Why they were exactly where they were, and why did Nick went to Jersey right after his death in the first place.
All in all, this indeed was a story that has a deep meaning behind her, that reaches into people’s minds and hearts and certainly stays there for a while, like I’m certain it will stay in mine too. It is a story that makes us realize things about life, and then ask ourselves if what we believed in up until now is really true. It made me think how sometimes dead people can influence us, like Carrie influenced Nick, and Nick influenced Sophie. It makes me think how, in fact, it isn’t the dead people that influence us, but just us ourselves.
When you think about it deeper, you’ll realize we don’t change because someone is influencing, but we change because someone woke up some thoughts in us, and it’s us that realize it all and then change. Did Sophie kill herself, or they were actually there, because the whole trip was their imagination. Did they influence her, or it was only Sophie herself? I guess I’ll never answer some of those questions, but I still do think sometimes it’s us ourselves that realize some things, even though Nick and Carrie’s deaths had a purpose too. If there wasn’t a Carrie, there wouldn’t be an imaginary trip to Sophie’s hospital. And if there wasn’t a Nick, we’d never realize that she’s a sociopath.
The description about them made me like them in a different way, all of them, yes, even Sophie. The author describes not only the physical part, but also their thoughts and how their mind works, and before you even realize it, you have this strong bond with every single one of them.
The personality of Sophie is so well described, that’s it’s almost unbelievable. All the sociopathic characteristics, the whole building of this character is so appealing to read, it makes you want to know what’s wrong and how it can be fixed, and it is told by Nick, by someone who has affection towards this person and it tells both sides of the story, how a person can make you like them and make you hate them at the same time.
The scenes are so realistic, that I felt like I was there. Each chapter is left unfinished, and it only makes you want to read more and more. The whole death-life thing made this book special to me. It made me think way deeper than just how the scene are put, or how was the description of the characters. Maybe I didn’t get the point of the story… I just wonder now. It will bother me for days, that’s for sure. It will haunt me and make me think again and again, deeper and deeper about what was the character’s purpose in this book. Why they were exactly where they were, and why did Nick went to Jersey right after his death in the first place.
All in all, this indeed was a story that has a deep meaning behind her, that reaches into people’s minds and hearts and certainly stays there for a while, like I’m certain it will stay in mine too. It is a story that makes us realize things about life, and then ask ourselves if what we believed in up until now is really true. It made me think how sometimes dead people can influence us, like Carrie influenced Nick, and Nick influenced Sophie. It makes me think how, in fact, it isn’t the dead people that influence us, but just us ourselves.
When you think about it deeper, you’ll realize we don’t change because someone is influencing, but we change because someone woke up some thoughts in us, and it’s us that realize it all and then change. Did Sophie kill herself, or they were actually there, because the whole trip was their imagination. Did they influence her, or it was only Sophie herself? I guess I’ll never answer some of those questions, but I still do think sometimes it’s us ourselves that realize some things, even though Nick and Carrie’s deaths had a purpose too. If there wasn’t a Carrie, there wouldn’t be an imaginary trip to Sophie’s hospital. And if there wasn’t a Nick, we’d never realize that she’s a sociopath.
Elli H Burton (1288 KP) rated Mermaids Singing in Books
Nov 22, 2019
See below...
Contains spoilers, click to show
Okay so I finished this book a few nights back but it's taken me until now to be able to write my review down.
I really enjoyed it, couldn't put it down and it has good plot lines that make you NEED to know whats next. You really start to root for most characters and loathe the others. Theres plenty of twists that are completely unexpected, which in some cases you can see a twist coming a mile off so thats a plus.
The reason I put that this contains spoilers is because of how I felt at the end, resulting in my rating only being a 7.
The ending is frustrating!!! I know some writers write their books in sequences (Rosie Goodwin: Days of the week, Annie Murray: Birmingham, Narrowboat Girl etc) so when i reached the ending (AT 1AM BECAUSE I COULDN'T PUT IT DOWN) I assumed it had a sequel. IT DOESNT. So many questions, so many plot lines left unfulfilled. For example, Bella was in love with her step son Edward but he is now married and his father dead. The new Lady Mableton wants to adopt Bellas daughter after discovering she cannot have children and wants an heir to the mableton estate, she will stop at nothing to get this child. Kitty tries her hardest to get hold of Bella after she ran off to be with a man she was sold to when she was younger whom she thought was awful (dont even get me started) you never find out if Bella gets contacted!! Her daughter is left with her mother who says she will not let Lady Mableton have her granddaughter under no circumstances. THATS THE END OF THE BLUMMIN BOOK?!! How do they stop this woman from getting the child? Does bella and her beau come back and save the day? Does Edward put a stop to it? Also will Bellas mother (who was known to not be a very nice woman) give the child over at a price, since it would be of character?
DILLY COURT - PLEASE WRITE A SEQUEL AAARGHHH.
I really enjoyed it, couldn't put it down and it has good plot lines that make you NEED to know whats next. You really start to root for most characters and loathe the others. Theres plenty of twists that are completely unexpected, which in some cases you can see a twist coming a mile off so thats a plus.
The reason I put that this contains spoilers is because of how I felt at the end, resulting in my rating only being a 7.
The ending is frustrating!!! I know some writers write their books in sequences (Rosie Goodwin: Days of the week, Annie Murray: Birmingham, Narrowboat Girl etc) so when i reached the ending (AT 1AM BECAUSE I COULDN'T PUT IT DOWN) I assumed it had a sequel. IT DOESNT. So many questions, so many plot lines left unfulfilled. For example, Bella was in love with her step son Edward but he is now married and his father dead. The new Lady Mableton wants to adopt Bellas daughter after discovering she cannot have children and wants an heir to the mableton estate, she will stop at nothing to get this child. Kitty tries her hardest to get hold of Bella after she ran off to be with a man she was sold to when she was younger whom she thought was awful (dont even get me started) you never find out if Bella gets contacted!! Her daughter is left with her mother who says she will not let Lady Mableton have her granddaughter under no circumstances. THATS THE END OF THE BLUMMIN BOOK?!! How do they stop this woman from getting the child? Does bella and her beau come back and save the day? Does Edward put a stop to it? Also will Bellas mother (who was known to not be a very nice woman) give the child over at a price, since it would be of character?
DILLY COURT - PLEASE WRITE A SEQUEL AAARGHHH.
ClareR (5874 KP) rated The Other Side of Mrs Wood in Books
Aug 15, 2023
I’ve read a couple of books recently with mediums front and centre, and I really enjoyed The Other Side of Mrs Wood.
Mrs Violet Wood is one of the best known mediums in London, if not the whole country. People come to her for solace and pure entertainment, and the local Mediums meet up regularly to practice their skills on one another. Feeling her age (bearing in mind she’s not 40 yet - and this really got my goat, if I’m completely honest!), Mrs Wood agrees to take on an apprentice who has been standing outside her seances, hoping to be noticed. Emmie Finch is a very keen pupil. Or is she?
We all know that seances are pure showmanship, and highly unlikely to actually make contact with the dead, but these women really believe what they’re doing - even as they set up the room to cheat those who were paying for their services. The seances where the mediums are there on their own would make anyone think that they believed 100% in what they were doing. Clearly they had their own moral codes, and no one appeared to be cheated out of money (but if you have someone paying you regularly for work that isn’t genuine, are you cheating them?!).
I did feel for Mrs Wood as she was pushed out of her position by the upstart Emmie, and could understand how she worried about losing her livelihood and her house. Mrs Wood descends into a bad place and pushes all of her friends away for a time. This seems out of character, but she’s being pushed to her limit. She doesn’t have the backstop of a husband to save her if everything goes wrong. Self-sufficient women of means were probably few and far between at this time, and if you lost everything it was a long fall.
I read this with The Pigeonhole, who again helped me with my NetGalley reads (I do like reading along with everyone else on there, it really adds a different perspective to the books I read). Many thanks to the author, Lucy Barker, Fourth Estate and to The Pigeonhole for serialising this fascinating book.
Mrs Violet Wood is one of the best known mediums in London, if not the whole country. People come to her for solace and pure entertainment, and the local Mediums meet up regularly to practice their skills on one another. Feeling her age (bearing in mind she’s not 40 yet - and this really got my goat, if I’m completely honest!), Mrs Wood agrees to take on an apprentice who has been standing outside her seances, hoping to be noticed. Emmie Finch is a very keen pupil. Or is she?
We all know that seances are pure showmanship, and highly unlikely to actually make contact with the dead, but these women really believe what they’re doing - even as they set up the room to cheat those who were paying for their services. The seances where the mediums are there on their own would make anyone think that they believed 100% in what they were doing. Clearly they had their own moral codes, and no one appeared to be cheated out of money (but if you have someone paying you regularly for work that isn’t genuine, are you cheating them?!).
I did feel for Mrs Wood as she was pushed out of her position by the upstart Emmie, and could understand how she worried about losing her livelihood and her house. Mrs Wood descends into a bad place and pushes all of her friends away for a time. This seems out of character, but she’s being pushed to her limit. She doesn’t have the backstop of a husband to save her if everything goes wrong. Self-sufficient women of means were probably few and far between at this time, and if you lost everything it was a long fall.
I read this with The Pigeonhole, who again helped me with my NetGalley reads (I do like reading along with everyone else on there, it really adds a different perspective to the books I read). Many thanks to the author, Lucy Barker, Fourth Estate and to The Pigeonhole for serialising this fascinating book.