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Ali A (82 KP) rated When We Were Vikings in Books

Mar 4, 2020  
When We Were Vikings
When We Were Vikings
Andrew David MacDonald | 2020 | Fiction & Poetry
9
8.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
narration voice (0 more)
When We Were Vikings is about Zelda, a high functioning 21 year old diagnosed with fetal alcohol syndrome, who is a Viking enthusiast trying to figure out her life quest. Zelda lives with her brother Gert after both of their parents died when they were young. Gert and his on again/off again girlfriend Annie, whom Zelda calls AK47, make up Zelda's main tribe. Together, they try to figure out their legacies.

Andrew David MacDonald delivered an amazing story. I absolutely adored the character of Zelda. The way she loved Vikings and applied the Viking culture to make it through life's difficulties was endearing. I loved Zelda and I just wanted her to succeed. Her blunt, unembellished language was easy to read and refreshing. Whether it's telling off thugs or talking about sex and periods, Zelda says what she thinks.

Her brother Gert also tried to figure out how to not only live his life and figure the world out, but also tried to help Zelda figure hers out. He attempted to work with the cards he'd been dealt, but in all honesty, he seemed to constantly grab from the pile ones that just made life harder - he was always making messes that others were cleaning up after, even Zelda herself. I just wanted to sit him down and tell him to get it together and keep it together.

This book had a lot of concepts in it that worked for me. The characters are both quirky and realistic. It's endearing and heartwarming; it's full of love and hate. Some portions of the book made me laugh out loud while others made me want to slam the book shut out of frustration. It had some light themes but also some pretty dark themes. When We Were Vikings earned a spot on my Recommended Fiction List.

"...The point is you're willing to give it a try. That's what makes someone a legend."
  
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ClareR (6197 KP) rated The Coffinmaker's Garden (Ash Henderson #3) in Books

Feb 2, 2021  
The Coffinmaker's Garden (Ash Henderson #3)
The Coffinmaker's Garden (Ash Henderson #3)
Stuart MacBride | 2021 | Crime, Thriller
8
8.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
The Coffinmakers Garden is a gritty thriller with a healthy dash of black humour. There is clearly a good reason why Ash Henderson is an ex-Detective Inspector, and it’s not just his severe arthritis. This is a man who will pretty much stop at nothing to bring the criminals to justice - unless he’s using criminals to help him get what he wants. Ash is a teeny bit corrupt, I think (for the record, I don’t think you can be a teeny bit anything: you’re either doing it, or you aren’t).

I really enjoyed the dark humour, and I’m not particularly squeamish, so the murdery bits didn’t bother me - in fact I really enjoyed the whole book. Yes, Ash’s actions were a bit OTT sometimes, but in my opinion, this is a piece of fiction, not a documentary on police procedure 🤷🏼‍♀️ It did read a bit like a cop film set in a big US city, except with a much smaller budget and Scottish accents. And let’s face it - Ash Henderson has a dog that he clearly adores, so he can’t be all bad!

I liked that there were actually two investigations running at the same time - one of which Ash is kicked off because of his poor behaviour. He still seems to manage to be involved with them both though, which must have been frankly exhausting for him!

The fact that I haven’t read the first two books in this series didn’t lessen my enjoyment, it merely made me curious as to what happened in the previous books. I wasn’t left not understanding what was going on. Short, appropriate explanations saw to that. The characters were richly described and fascinating to read about - they were all very different people.

So, another great book chosen by The Pigeonhole, and I really appreciated the short videos that Stuart McBride prepared for us to watch throughout the book.