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Christine A. (965 KP) rated The Diary in Books

Dec 12, 2018  
The Diary
The Diary
Vikki Patis | 2018 | Mystery, Thriller
7
7.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Contains spoilers, click to show
I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book so I could give an honest review.

Lauren left home as soon as she could after Hannah died, She never visited. It's been ten years since Hannah's death and Lauren returns home for Hannah's memorial service. Upon returning, she begins to receive text messages. After learning all of Hannah's friends have been getting them, they try to figure out who wants their childhood secrets known.

We all make mistakes, do things we regret, and hope no one ever finds out. Returning home, Lauren is faced with the possibility of her greatest regret coming to light. Just thinking of that possibility is terrifying. Your life, as you know it, could be over.

By switching between two timelines, now and then, Vikki Patis shows Lauren and her friends were not perfect children nor perfect adults. They grew up and apart. Suspicion and doubt forms. Who can anyone trust?

SPOILER ALERT The title is misleading. I expected the diary to have a major impact to the story, but it didn't. If all references of it were removed it could have been called "Homecoming" or "The Memorial" and it would have not lessened the story.

The story is worth reading and I added Vikki Patis to my "want to read" list.
  
    Chbap Toumean

    Chbap Toumean

    Book and Entertainment

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    Cambodia had a rich and varied traditional literature. There are many legends, tales, poems and...

"I didn’t want to have a theme in the records I picked. It’s a record I’ve listened to a lot lately. One of my children is 7 years old and he’s been learning a lot about Greek history recently and picking up tidbits of information. He was saying to me that he really wanted to hear some Greek music. This is not what he wanted to hear. He wanted to hear some folk music, not some weird shit. He wanted: ‘Ops la! Da da da da!’ Some cheery Greek dance music. I stumbled onto this. I asked him if he wanted Greek or ancient Greek and he said ‘ancient’ because it sounded cool. But this is incredibly trippy. It feels like a play. You don’t know where the down beat is for most of the songs. I have never figured out what about it is actually Greek. It was recorded by Spaniards in the 70s. Whether it's real or impressionistic, I don’t care. I just really like it. There’s a lot of haunting stuff in it. I’ll have the record on late at night when everyone else has gone to bed. It’ll be playing and you’ll hear the voice speaking Greek and squeals. I’ve really grown to love it and know certain pieces. I know they have made other records and I want to get them"

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My Name is Leon
My Name is Leon
Kit De Waal | 2017 | Contemporary, Fiction & Poetry
10
8.0 (4 Ratings)
Book Rating
Well written, current and political (0 more)
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Contains spoilers, click to show
Shortlisted for the Costa First Novel Award, My Name is Leon (2016) by Kit De Waal is a heart tugging, sad yet hopeful book. Set in England the late 1970's - early 1980's, Leon and his baby brother Jake are living with single mother Carol. Leon's father is in prison and Jakes father is married and wants nothing to do with Carol or the child. Carol is terribly lonely and desperately unhappy. Struggling with deep depression, the mother's fragile state leaves her unable to care for her children :
Leon has begun to notice things what make his mum cry: when Jake makes a lot of noise; when she hasn't got any money; when she comes back from the phone box; when Leon asks too many questions; and when she's staring at Jake, (p.12).
After Carol takes to her bed, Leon, at just nine years old, takes on the role of carer and parent. Through the eyes of this young boy, the reader watches his world fall apart, fragment by fragment.
Eventually the boys are taken into care and find solace in the home of Maureen, an experienced foster carer with a deep love for both cakes and children. Maureen is a lovable character who feels a deep affinity for Leon, even though Leon is highly suspicious of anyone in the care system, but when Jake is adopted, it is Maureen who picks up the pieces. It is perhaps her honesty rather than her role as parent that soothes Leon in his most difficult times:
'Now listen carefully because I want you to understand something and I don't say this to all the children because it's not always true but with you it's true so you have to believe it. And when you believe it you will stop grinding your teeth [...] You will be all right, Leon.' (p.55-56).
But when Maureen is taken into hospital, Leon is left with Maureen's sister Sylvia, a less motherly role model than Maureen but with a desire to please her sister none the less. Their relationship is strained and often uncomfortable, but soon enough Leon finds comfort in a new friend, Tufty. Tufty is a young man who looks after a plot in his father's allotment. The man and the boy form a friendship that grows alongside the seeds that they plant in the garden, so when they both find themselves in the midst of the Birmingham riots, they naturally come together to save each other.
This is a coming of age story unlike any other, it is not a happy ever after but hope for a child and his future.
I love this novel, it is clearly written with believable characters and honest emotions. At the start of the novel I was concerned about the character's point of view - a third person limited perspective from the child's perspective - but it is cleverly done. While the reader gathers glimpses of emotions from inside Leon's head, there is still enough distance to feel the tug of the story from the outside. It is as if the reader is holding the child's hand and experiencing his life with him as it unfolds. Brilliantly done and brilliantly written. Go Leon.
  
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Eilidh G Clark (177 KP) Jul 2, 2019

The Panopticon is excellent.

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ClareR (6106 KP) Jul 2, 2019

@Eilidh G Clark it’s now on my list!!

The Ever After
The Ever After
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
What would you do if you found out your husband had an affair? Would you try to end the marriage, or work it out? What if sex was not a part of the affair, would that make a difference? These are the questions that Josie has after she finds out that her husband, Frank, has been having an affair for the past seven weeks. Should she stay or go? He's so great with the kids, but what about her? This book takes you on Josie's journey from her discovery of the affair, to her final decision on whether to stay with her husband or get a divorce.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the opportunity to read and review this book.


I'm not sure what I would do if infidelity was a question in my marriage. I think, we can all say what we would do, but until we are faced with that situation, I don't think we fully understand how we would feel. Love is a tricky thing and when you find it with someone, it can be devastating when they break that love apart.

When Josie finds out about Frank's affair, her world is turned upside down. She has to find out the answer to all of her questions. She doesn't know if she will ever be able to trust Frank again or how she is going to live without him, as well. This is the man who is the father of her children and the man she has shared a bed with for so many years. But how could he betray her like this? They both decide to go to counseling. But Josie has conditions that Frank must agree to before she will even entertain the fact of sharing just her time with him. Will he agree or will they just end up going their separate ways.

This book is good for any married woman to read and may help you if this is a situation that you may be going through in your life.