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ClareR (5950 KP) rated Stargazer in Books

Nov 26, 2022  
Stargazer
Stargazer
Laurie Petrou | 2022 | Contemporary, Fiction & Poetry, Thriller
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Just to be clear: I really enjoyed this.

BUT, when I looked at it on Goodreads, one of the tags was “historical fiction”. Has it come to this now, that 1995 - the year I graduated from Uni - is seen as historical fiction?!

I’m feeling a bit old.

Anyway, I’ll hobble on to the review…

Diana and Aurelle live next door to one another in a wealthy neighbourhood, but have nothing to do with one another until Diana’s brother unexpectedly dies. Diana has had a poor relationship with her brother, but he was clearly their parent’s favourite. Diana is pushed away by her parents, and she ends up next door with Aurelle.

They become close friends, decide to study at the same college, and live together in Aurelle’s family house near the university campus. It’s an idyllic setting. Classrooms in woodland, near a lake. It sounds beautiful.

Aurelle starts to go off the rails, whilst Diana’s art really takes off.

And then it all goes terribly wrong with misunderstandings, envy and obsession.

I didn’t see the latter half of this book coming at all, and it was a real shock!

The whole book was fascinating, though. A prime example of young adults cut loose from the relative stability of their families and left to do whatever they want. And what these girls want to do, especially Aurelle, just isn’t good for them.

So if you like a ‘good’ toxic relationship in a story, then this will be for you. I thoroughly enjoyed it
  
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Chris Hooker (419 KP) rated The Institute (The Institute, #1) in Books

Jan 12, 2018  
TI
The Institute (The Institute, #1)
Kayla Howarth | 2015
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
[The Institute] by [Kayla Howarth] is an intense thriller with a futuristic lean. The main character Allira and her family have spent their lives hiding that her brother was "defective". "Defectives" go to the Institute where they are said to be kept safe and taken care of, but no one who has gone there is heard from again. Will one mistake trip them all up and find the true nature of the Institute?

The characters were typical for a YA audience but definitely good. The intertwining of the relationships and emotions makes this plot. There were some unexpected surprises as well as issues that are still up in the air. Guess the second book is a must read to clear those questions up.
  
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Suswatibasu (1703 KP) rated Educated in Books

Apr 5, 2018  
Educated
Educated
Tara Westover | 2018 | Biography
9
9.3 (9 Ratings)
Book Rating
Harrowing and inspiring
It seems almost impossible that Tara Westover is an academician from both Harvard and Cambridge given that she had never been to school. Her story is important, revealing how women are treated and subjugated in fundamentalist societies.

Brought up in a survivalist, Mormon family, Westover speaks about a poverty-stricken, difficult childhood where education is seen as secondary and violence is rife. Her relationship with her abusive brother is horrifying, And moreso is her family's acceptance of his behaviour. So gaining scholarships to top universities in the world despite having had no clue about the Holocaust, the civil rights movement, and Napoleon, is no mean feat.

While parts are repetitive, it is engaging and harrowing to hear her inspiring story.