Noll's 2016 Books and Cross-Stitch

[pontalba]

#58 The Butterfly Garden - Dot Hutchison    

 

Genre: Psychological thrillerSynopsis: Near an isolated mansion lies a beautiful garden. In this garden grow luscious flowers, shady trees…and a collection of precious “butterflies”—young women who have been kidnapped and intricately tattooed to resemble their namesakes. Overseeing it all is the Gardener, a brutal, twisted man obsessed with capturing and preserving his lovely specimens. When the garden is discovered, a survivor is brought in for questioning. FBI agents Victor Hanoverian and Brandon Eddison are tasked with piecing together one of the most stomach-churning cases of their careers. But the girl, known only as Maya, proves to be a puzzle herself. As her story twists and turns, slowly shedding light on life in the Butterfly Garden, Maya reveals old grudges, new saviors, and horrific tales of a man who’d go to any length to hold beauty captive. But the more she shares, the more the agents have to wonder what she’s still hiding...*** Review: I picked this book up entirely because of the amusing reaction Anna had to it, which was mostly that she wasn't entirely sure what to make of it. That, combined with a review (on Goodreads) claiming a gaping plot hole, proved too much for my curiosity to resist. I wasn't expecting too much from this book, and while it was a quick, easy read it about lived up to expectations.

It's an interesting concept with some thought gone into it, but I felt the execution was a little underwhelming. You know from the first chapter or two what is ultimately going to happen, the only mystery really is how it comes about. That was what kept me reading, wanting to find stuff out, but my reaction in the end was pretty much 'meh', because due to the police interrogation nature format of the story, there were no real surprises there. Anything that hadn't been overtly stated, the reader could guess from maybe halfway through. Well there was one 'twist', but it wasn't great or really very relevant to the story. I would also have liked there to be more focus on the Gardener and his background.

I guess what the story lacked, apart from a good structure, was credibility. I should have been horrified by what was happening in the book, but it just felt too fake for it to have any real impact on me, and I do think that's a shame, because I really liked the concept. I'm giving it three stars because I read to the end and got some enjoyment out of it, but really my reaction to it is 'meh'.Rating: ★★★✰✰ (I liked it.... I guess!)

All interesting reviews. This one is reminiscent, I think of The Collector - https://www.amazon.com/Collector-Back-Bay-Books/dp/0316290238/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1466725513&sr=1-1&keywords=the+collector+john+fowles. I saw the film of it when it came out......scared the crap out of me! http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0059043/ I understand there are differences between the film and book, however I haven't read Fowles book yet. Not entirely sure I want to!

[Nollaig]

Oooh, interesting. I've put it on my wishlist!

[pontalba]

Oooh, interesting. I've put it on my wishlist!

 

I'll be interested in your reaction to it.  

[Nollaig]

 

#61 A Little Life - Hanya Yanagihara

 

   

Genre: Fiction

Synopsis: When four classmates from a small Massachusetts college move to New York to make their way, they're broke, adrift, and buoyed only by their friendship and ambition. There is kind, handsome Willem, an aspiring actor; JB, a quick-witted, sometimes cruel Brooklyn-born painter seeking entry to the art world; Malcolm, a frustrated architect at a prominent firm; and withdrawn, brilliant, enigmatic Jude, who serves as their center of gravity. Over the decades, their relationships deepen and darken, tinged by addiction, success, and pride. Yet their greatest challenge, each comes to realize, is Jude himself, by midlife a terrifyingly talented litigator yet an increasingly broken man, his mind and body scarred by an unspeakable childhood, and haunted by what he fears is a degree of trauma that he’ll not only be unable to overcome—but that will define his life forever.

 

*** 

 

Review: I don't feel qualified to review this book, so I'm going into this with the aim of sharing how it made me feel. Tired, for one. It's over 720 pages of almost unadulterated misery. So why read it? Maybe you shouldn't. Personally, I don't remember the last time a book basically stunned me into contemplative silence.

 

This is the story of how difficult it can be to love oneself, taken to extremes. It is the story of how sometimes, all the love in the world is not enough to overcome trauma. It is also the story of the fallout of deep, systematic abuse. It is horrifying, and while most of what is contained in this book at both ends of the spectrum - the abuse and pain, and the sheer comfort, success and financial freedom, are not things most of us will ever experience, in a way they don't matter. We don't need to experience the suffering or the freedom for this to be an incredibly human novel. No amount of money or freedom can save you from the things you believe about yourself. Sometimes, not even the heartfelt love of those around us can save us. Everyone doubts themselves, feels like a failure sometimes, wonders are they truly loved, or believes they cannot be. Jude is the personification of these doubts and fears, created in the most brutal way by other human beings. And I think why his self-loathing and his determination to never accept what he deserves does not become tedious in these 700 pages is exactly that - I see so much of myself in him. When I want to make Jude feel better - and god, did I want to do everything for this man to help him - it's the empathetic part of my mind reaching out to the things I bury deep and chasing them away from myself. I rooted for him, I wanted him to find contentment, because if Jude can, anyone can.

 

This book has flaws - it's definitely overwritten, and I would argue it takes a while to settle its focus on Jude, leaving the reader wondering will we learn no more about other characters. It is however immersive. I felt like Jude was a real person, and each of the supporting characters - Willem, J.B., Malcolm, Andy, and Harold each feel like a different layer of support, a different approach to dealing with Jude and helping him deal with himself. It's worth mentioning, this book depicts extreme physical, sexual, and self-inflicted abuse. It is not light reading, in any way. It's probably the most depressing thing I've ever read. But it's fantastic.

 

Rating: ★★★★★ (It was amazing)

[Athena]

Great review . I don't know if it'd be a book for me, because of the abuse, but I'm happy you found a book you really liked.

[ian]

It sounds like one of those books you'll either love or hate; no middle ground. It'll go on my TBR list nevertheless.

[Nollaig]

Great review . I don't know if it'd be a book for me, because of the abuse, but I'm happy you found a book you really liked.

 

No, honestly, it's definitely not a book for you, you'd find it very distressing. And thanks

 

It sounds like one of those books you'll either love or hate; no middle ground. It'll go on my TBR list nevertheless.

 

Yeah I've seen a few reviews from people saying 'ffs Jude why doesn't he cop on' and 'why do these other people waste so much time and energy on someone who doesn't want to be helped', and I get where they're coming from, but I also think they lack empathy. It's an interesting study in self-worth and empathy. I hope you like it if you read it

[bobblybear]

Great review! What did you think of the ending?  I thought it ended kind of as expected....couldn't have ended any other way really. I enjoyed it, but I was so glad when it was over.

[Nollaig]

Great review! What did you think of the ending?  I thought it ended kind of as expected....couldn't have ended any other way really. I enjoyed it, but I was so glad when it was over.

 

 

I wasn't surprised, but I was sad. I thought it was beautifully done, the struggle by everyone for three years ultimately failing, because as you say, it couldn't have ended any other way. I think his death made the statement on how you can't always help people all the more potent because he had SO MUCH support and because he finally gave in and actually tried, but still couldn't. I was suprised by the choice to not depict his death from his viewpoint, but much more offhanded. But I guess, that was also done deliberately to make us feel the sudden shock that other characters would have felt, the 'he can't be gone, he was doing well'. I'm not sure I was glad it was over, I'm pretty immune to reading about heavy stuff like that so I wasn't overly depressed by it. I was sad to finally lose Jude, I think. But I thought the sentiment at the end about him being in everything and therefore being kind to everything was absolutely beautiful. I wish I could share that quote without spoiling.

 

 

Well, you did ask!

[Athena]

No, honestly, it's definitely not a book for you, you'd find it very distressing. And thanks

I didn't think so. Thanks .

[Ben]

A Little Life is fabulous. So glad you "enjoyed" - absolutely not the right word - it. Have added The People in the Trees to my wishlist - didn't even realise she'd written another novel.

[pontalba]

Excellent reviews, Noll.  I've got A Little Life on the stack already.

[Nollaig]

A Little Life is fabulous. So glad you "enjoyed" - absolutely not the right word - it. Have added The People in the Trees to my wishlist - didn't even realise she'd written another novel.

 

I only gave it three stars in the end, not as good as A Little Life, imo.

 

Excellent reviews, Noll.  I've got A Little Life on the stack already.

 

Thanks I hope you like it!

[bobblybear]

 

I wasn't surprised, but I was sad. I thought it was beautifully done, the struggle by everyone for three years ultimately failing, because as you say, it couldn't have ended any other way. I think his death made the statement on how you can't always help people all the more potent because he had SO MUCH support and because he finally gave in and actually tried, but still couldn't. I was suprised by the choice to not depict his death from his viewpoint, but much more offhanded. But I guess, that was also done deliberately to make us feel the sudden shock that other characters would have felt, the 'he can't be gone, he was doing well'. I'm not sure I was glad it was over, I'm pretty immune to reading about heavy stuff like that so I wasn't overly depressed by it. I was sad to finally lose Jude, I think. But I thought the sentiment at the end about him being in everything and therefore being kind to everything was absolutely beautiful. I wish I could share that quote without spoiling.

 

 

Well, you did ask!

 

 

I can't actually remember that his death wasn't depicted from his viewpoint.   He could never have had a happy ending.....I think that would have 'Hollywood-ized' the book and ruined it. At the same time, I thought 'Oh of course, another negative depressing thing happens to Jude'....with his background, plus Willem's death, and then his suicide, it was just one depressing thing after another. But I think, on the whole, I was 'happy' with the ending, and at least it was in keeping with the tone of the rest of the book.

 

I think if he had given in earlier in his life, and opened up to his friends, his doctor/friend and his adoptive parents he may have had a chance of happiness. Not that I'm saying it's his fault....I mean, with his state of mind it was surprising that he lived as long as he did.   

 

[Nollaig]

 

I can't actually remember that his death wasn't depicted from his viewpoint.   He could never have had a happy ending.....I think that would have 'Hollywood-ized' the book and ruined it. At the same time, I thought 'Oh of course, another negative depressing thing happens to Jude'....with his background, plus Willem's death, and then his suicide, it was just one depressing thing after another. But I think, on the whole, I was 'happy' with the ending, and at least it was in keeping with the tone of the rest of the book.

 

I think if he had given in earlier in his life, and opened up to his friends, his doctor/friend and his adoptive parents he may have had a chance of happiness. Not that I'm saying it's his fault....I mean, with his state of mind it was surprising that he lived as long as he did.   

 

 

 

I was really shocked by Willem and Malcolm's death, at first I thought they were - if you'll excuse the pun - overkill. But really, everything in the book was overkill, it was the most broadly unlikely set of events to ever happen to one person directly (jude) and indirectly (via his friends deaths), and I think that was part of the point - it was meant to convey the struggles of these experiences and emotions, not portray an actual likely life. I'm still thinking about the book now, it really was amazing.

 

[Nollaig]

 

#62 The Driver's Seat - Muriel Spark

 

   

Genre: Fiction/Thriller/Mystery

Synopsis: Lise is thin, neither good-looking nor bad-looking. One day she walks out of her office, acquires a gaudy new outfit, adopts a girlier tone of voice, and heads to the airport to fly south. On the plane she takes a seat between two men. One is delighted with her company, the other is deeply perturbed. So begins an unnerving journey into the darker recesses of human nature.

 

*** 

 

Review: This is a quick, fairly easy and extremely quirky little read.

 

I'm taking a star off because I felt the ending lacked the shock and 'oopmh' I feel a lot of other people experienced. It wasn't that I expected it - I had vaguely guessed what was happening and only totally figured it out a few pages before it's clarified - but I had just gotten to the point of accepting the random words and actions of this seemingly unhinged person that I don't think ANYTHING she did or said was going to shock me. That said, I read some discussions about this book after finishing, and I will say that a lot of details fall into place - it's quite fun to think back over the the events of the novel and work out how they all slot into the bigger picture.

 

If there's any bigger message behind the story, it went clean over my head, and most of the discussion I've read about it seemed to be about identifying the aforementioned details which imply the ending throughout the book, so I think a lot of other people are content to read it on the same level as me. I've noticed a comment or two about female autonomy, so there might be something about that in there?

 

Anyway, it was quick and easy, random and fun to consider after the fact of reading, so yeah, it was good fun for something a little different.

 

Rating: ★★★★✰ (I loved it)

[Nollaig]

 

#63 Solace - Belinda McKeon

 

 

Genre: Fiction

Synopsis: Mark Casey has left home, the rural Irish community where his family has farmed the same land for generations, to study for a doctorate in Dublin, a vibrant, contemporary city full of possibility. To his father, Tom, who needs help baling the hay and ploughing the fields, Mark's pursuit isn't work at all, and indeed Mark finds himself whiling away his time with pubs and parties. His is a life without focus or responsibility, until he meets Joanne Lynch, a trainee solicitor whom he finds irresistible. Joanne too has a past to escape from and for a brief time she and Mark share the chaos and rapture of a new love affair, until the lightning strike of tragedy changes everything.

 

*** 

 

Review: Oh, this book. This book was beautiful. I bought it months ago, to represent Longford in my Irish Counties Challenge, but for some reason it took me until now to get around to reading it. I even started it, once, around the time of purchase, and then put it back down. Perhaps I was waiting until I was in the right frame of mind. This is a subdued, almost melancholic extract from the intersection of several familial lives - primarily between farmer Tom Casey and his PhD student son Mark. It uses the common Irish cultural theme of traditional older generations (particularly those rural, small-towns) clashing with the aspirations and modern progression of the young as a broad backdrop to the more specific ins-and-outs of life for the Casey family, from the lead up to massive changes in their lives through a tragedy into the aftermath. The slow-paced, gentle writing itself is a stark contrast to the events of the novel, and I think this makes those events oddly both more shocking, and also easier to process.

 

There were a couple of points in this book which made me cry - and I will note here that I was in a fairly low frame of mind reading this, so it was pretty easy to make me cry, and I think my heightened emotional state exaggerated the impact this book had. That is not to say that the book itself is not powerful, it is, but it is a book you have to be willing to wade into and immerse yourself in. At least one of the moments that made me cry was a tentatively happy one - a description of Mark and Joanne tucking themselves away at home from the miserable weather with a subdued, almost melancholic kind of contentment on New Year's Eve.

 

I feel like McKeon has an insight into how different people think, and even more importantly in novel-writing, an ability to wholly and accurately convey the conflicts and emotions of being human in an unpredictable, sometimes tragic world. I'm a little biased because this is an Irish novel, set in the rural farmlands of Longford and the bustling city of Dublin, contexts which are culturally, if not directly, familiar to me, and the lyrical pose combined with a lilting pace which talks about how the Irish never talk (definitely an Irish trait), but I like to think this book could pull anyone in. I wasn't overly mad about any of the characters in particular, but I felt this book is more driven by emotions than by the characters experiencing them.

 

I am absolutely dying to read her second novel, Tender. Also, look at that cover. The painting continues round the back cover to show Dublin city off in the distance. Beautiful. Highly recommended. The book, not the cover. Enjoy.

 

Rating: ★★★★★ (It was amazing)

[Nollaig]

 

#64 The People in the Trees - Hanya Yanagihara

 

   

Genre: Fiction

Synopsis: In 1950, a young doctor called Norton Perina signs on with the anthropologist Paul Tallent for an expedition to the remote Micronesian island of Ivu'ivu in search of a rumored lost tribe. They succeed, finding not only that tribe but also a group of forest dwellers they dub "The Dreamers," who turn out to be fantastically long-lived but progressively more senile. *

 

* I'm cutting the synopsis off there because it basically tells you the entire book.It opens with a description of the charges of sexual abuse against minors raised against the main character, and the whole book is based on

Daniel Gadjusek - a medical researcher accused of same.

 

*** 

 

Review: As soon as I finished Yanagihara's second novel, A Little Life, I looked this one up and - adoring the concept - decided to dive right in. And for most of it - for so much of it - I was willing to overlook the flaws that are, admittedly, much larger than those in her sophomore novel. But then the final 80-90 pages happened, and it did not do the book any favours. I've struggled for a couple of days with the rating for this - it was 5 stars right up until those last pages, and I felt it was only fair to drop it down to 4 stars, but then I thought - that ending, in conjunction with all the other flaws - can I really justify any more than 3?

 

This book is every inch as detailed and intensely depicted as A Little Life, and it is also as unapologetic in its depictions of morally questionable acts and attitudes. The main character, the man whose autobiography we are reading, is an amoral creep (although I will say, I actually agree with his points on moral relativism. If you can't deal with the fact that ancient civilizations sacrificing virgins actually wasn't immoral at all, at the time, then you maybe shouldn't read this book). And, granted, 'I see what you did there', Yanagihara, turning any acceptance moral relativists may have of that philosophy back on their judgemental, culturally affected selves by the end of the book, but it just didn't work.

 

There are two elements to this book. One, some anthropologists and a soulless scientist go to track down a mythical tribe of immortal people in a Micronesian jungle. The other, is the story of the charges raised against the main character. The portions set in the jungle are fantastic. Yanagihara creates a credible tribe of people and sprinkles a little magic onto the discovery. I loved exploring these people, their home, their language, their customs and rituals, even the incredibly disturbing ones (maybe didn't 'love' those, but it added to the experience). I loved the idea of the opa'ivu'eke turtles. One of the only, but quite large, flaws of these element, is that the anthropologists and scientist took pages and pages and pages to figure out what is A) outlined in a myth at the beginning and B) clearly told in the synopsis. In fact, the (Goodreads) synopsis is basically two thirds of the book, so don't read it.

 

The second element of the book (the last 80 pages) I honestly didn't care about. I felt it lacked impact, lacked anything but vague moral-relativistic relevance to what preceeded it and honestly it felt like reading an entire other book. I put up with a terrible human being for a narrator because I was interested in what he was talking about. When that talk turned to his own life and doings, it became uninteresting. Apparently there was a 'did he or didn't he do it?' element regarding the charges. I assumed he did, since he went to jail for them (stated at the beginning of the novel), and that whole aspect was lost on me. I'd have been far more interested in learning about the anthropologist dude who disappeared. (It wasn't relevant to the plot, or any kind of foreshadowing. He just disappeared.)

 

So yeah, as you can tell, I have a lot of mixed feelings about this book. I just feel like Yanagihara ultimately missed the mark when it counted, which is a shame as a few of her starting shots got so close. That said, it's one I'm likely to read again and just ditch 80 pages before the end.

 

Rating: ★★★✰✰ (I liked it)

[Nollaig]

#65 Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? - Phillip K. Dick

 

Another non-review. I really liked this book - I found it easy to read, not too heavy on the sci-fi, and interesting enough to read to the end. The end, however, was lost on me, and I wasn't sure what I was supposed to take from it. I looked it up, and people seem to have different interpretations. I'll definitely read more by PDK, but probably not for a while.

 

Rating: 3 stars

[Nollaig]

#66 The Lie Tree - Frances Hardinge

 

   

Genre: Fantasy/Historical Fiction/YA
Synopsis: It was not enough. All knowledge- any knowledge - called to Faith, and there was a delicious, poisonous pleasure in stealing it unseen. Faith has a thirst for science and secrets that the rigid confines of her class cannot supress. And so it is that she discovers her disgraced father's journals, filled with the scribbled notes and theories of a man driven close to madness. Tales of a strange tree which, when told a lie, will uncover a truth: the greater the lie, the greater the truth revealed to the liar. Faith's search for the tree leads her into great danger - for where lies seduce, truths shatter . . .

*** 

Review: I wanted to love this book so much, but I feel like it turned out to be a missed opportunity. I have read two other books by Hardinge - Fly By Night and Cuckoo Song - and The Lie Tree is easily the most disappointing one. I adored Fly By Night for its incredible prose, fantasy setting and themes that adults can appreciate. Cuckoo Song was also beautifully written and full of fantasy - albeit not the kind of fantasy I'm really into, but it was great for what it was. The Lie Tree could have been on par with Fly By Night, had Hardinge chosen a different focus - once the focus finally resolved itself, after a very slow start.

Easily the least magical of the three I've read, The Lie Tree is set on a fabulously gothic Victorian island, on the cusp of scientific breakthroughs and radical changes in social thinking. The main character is a girl cut more from modern cloth than her parents and peers approve of, who is eager to learn everything she can about her famous father's work. His work is incredibly interesting, the Lie Tree itself, the one real source of fantasy in this novel, is fantastic, and could have been used to much greater effect. The role of women, the potential strength and intellect of women, and the changing attitudes of females like Faith are a huge theme in this book, and that is probably the one aspect I would say is very well done. But it is, while an important theme, an ordinary theme, and I hoped from a book about a magical truth-granting tree reminiscent of the tree of knowledge that we might have a greater focus on historical religious leanings versus the revelations of science - a tree that would reveal scientific truths that shatter the foundations of Victorian society while itself being a magical entity of religious lore.

I mean, I loved reading this book. I devoured the thing. And it's quite possible I simply hold Hardinge to a much higher standard than most authors, because this is certainly, by no means, a bad book. I just had such hopes, and very few of them were met.

Rating: ★★★✰✰ (I liked it)

[Nollaig]

#67 Distress Signals - Catherine Ryan Howard

 

   

Genre: Thriller
Synopsis: Did she leave or was she taken? The day Adam Dunne's girlfriend, Sarah, fails to return from a Barcelona business trip, his perfect life begins to fall apart. Days later, the arrival of her passport and a note that reads 'I'm sorry - S' sets off real alarm bells. He vows to do whatever it takes to find her. Adam is puzzled when he connects Sarah to a cruise ship called the Celebrate - and to a woman, Estelle, who disappeared from the same ship in eerily similar circumstances almost exactly a year before. To get the answers, Adam must confront some difficult truths about his relationship with Sarah. He must do things of which he never thought himself capable. And he must try to outwit a predator who seems to have found the perfect hunting ground...

*** 

Review: I actually picked this up, would you believe, not knowing it was written by a woman from the very county I live in! At first, my expectations were pretty low - the writing wasn't exactly accomplished, and I was afraid it was going to detract from my enjoyment of the book. Fortunately, either it got better, or I simply settled into the simplicity of it, because I forgot all about it after a while and just enjoyed the book. The beginning was a little bizzare to me, set as it is in Cork city itself, and mentioning the university campus where I studied and work, as well as the nearby cafe where I've sometimes gone for coffee, and later, the main police headquarters. You'd know a Cork woman wrote it - there were plenty of perfect descriptions of the place, such as the airport, built on a hill prone to fog - "in other words, a terrible place to build an airport" - which were as hilarious as they are accurate.

A notable feature of this book is the use of modern technology, such as Whatsapp - Adam is as perceptive as any woman about his girlfriend's use of the app. I will say there were a few flaws (Adam noted his messages to his missing girlfriend were not indicated 'read' by two blue ticks, but the fact is you can read your Whatsapp messages from your notification bar without them showing as 'read' in the app itself, which surely someone who didn't want to be found or make contact would do.) The other major flaw I found was Adam's reasoning. He seemed to make great leaps of tenuous logic, such as - who books a middle seat on a flight? Um, maybe someone on a packed plane? Doesn't inherently mean she's with someone...

Anyway, to get away from the specifics, this is actually a really fun, compelling read. I was genuinely unsure what happened to Sarah, and tore through the book to find out. Unfortunately, the ending really let it down, dropping the book down from a 5-star rating to a 4. The sub-plot needn't have been in the book at all, and I found the character motivations towards the end to be highly questionable. I sound like I'm being really hard on this book, but I did love reading it - it was great fun right up til the end.

Rating: ★★★★✰ (I loved it)

[Nollaig]

#68 The Deposition of Father McGreevy - Brian O'Doherty

   

Genre: Fiction/Irish Culture
Synopsis: 'The Deposition of Father McGreevy' tells of the tragedy of a village where all the women mysteriously die. Father McGreevy struggles to preserve what remains of his parish, battling against the rough elements and the grief of his people.

*** 

Review: I discovered this book while compiling my list for my Irish Counties Challenge, and the synopsis had me really intrigued - particularly as it is set in my home county, Kerry. Unfortunately, it turned out to in no way resemble what I was expecting. I guess the hint was in the word 'shameful' on the back cover  - I saw 'strange' and 'women dying' and expected some poignant tale of inevitability about disease destroying a village and way of life.

Nope. That happens early in the story, and aside from a lot of back and forth with the local clergy about the fate of the fading town, the actual events which led to the total destruction of  a population whose reputation amongst nearby townsfolk was already in question, were a lot more.... well. I suppose I won't spoil it for you, but there is nothing interesting or exciting about it. It's kind of icky, actually, and at no point in this book do all the frequent ominous suggestions of impending disaster ever really manifest into anything other than a lot of misfortune and gossipy people. And I have to say, I dislike the stereotypical associations with Kerry people featured in this book, as well as the unjustifiable, lax attitude some characters have to what is going on.

I will say the writing is pretty good - while I didn't care much for the characters and not at all for the plot, in the end, it was well-written enough to keep me reading to the end without too much effort. All the same, not a book I'd reccomend to anyone. How it got shortlisted for the Booker Prize I'll never know!

Rating: ★★✰✰✰ (It was okay)

[Athena]

Great reviews! I hope you read some more enjoyable books soon, seeing as 2 out of 3 books were rated lower than 4-stars .

[pontalba]

Great reviews, Noll.  Distress Signals sounds good!

[Little Pixie]

I'm intrigued by distress signals ; off to get a sample.