JESS JUST READS

A BOOK REVIEW BLOG

The Rosie Project (Don Tillman #1) by Graeme Simsion

Don Tillman, professor of genetics, has never been on a second date. He is a man who can count all his friends on the fingers of one hand, whose lifelong difficulty with social rituals has convinced him that he is simply not wired for romance. So when an acquaintance informs him that he would make a “wonderful” husband, his first reaction is shock. Yet he must concede to the statistical probability that there is someone for everyone, and he embarks upon The Wife Project. In the orderly, evidence-based manner with which he approaches all things, Don sets out to find the perfect partner. She will be punctual and logical—most definitely not a barmaid, a smoker, a drinker, or a late-arriver.

Yet Rosie Jarman is all these things. She is also beguiling, fiery, intelligent—and on a quest of her own. She is looking for her biological father, a search that a certain DNA expert might be able to help her with. Don’s Wife Project takes a back burner to the Father Project and an unlikely relationship blooms, forcing the scientifically minded geneticist to confront the spontaneous whirlwind that is Rosie—and the realization that love is not always what looks good on paper.

I feel like this is one of those books that would’ve been a risk at acquisitions time – you don’t know if it’s going to sell well or not sell at all. And then, of course, the book actually becomes a phenomenon and receives rave reviews.

This novel is funny, but not necessarily a laugh-out-loud funny. It’s more a quiet chuckle or an amused smile. This isn’t a bad thing – Graeme has written the main character Don Tillman so believably that you’re not actually chuckling at him, but at the absurd things that he does. Like creating a survey for women to fill out, and they have to answer every question correct for Don to consider them a candidate for the Wife Project. Don has Asperger’s syndrome, but he doesn’t know it. But the reader is aware of it from the very first page – Graeme has captured his schedule and his personality and his subjective perspective perfectly.

Don is an unusual protagonist, but I really like him. I like that he evolves over the course of the novel – he seems to forget about his routine, and in his own way, goes after Rosie. The love story between Don and Rosie is behind-the-scenes, and doesn’t actually feel like a love story. Don is not the typical brooding lead male in the story, and doesn’t attempt to whisk Rosie off her feet. In fact, he’d probably argue that whisking someone of their feet is impossible, a cliché, and too vague to actually achieve.

Despite Don being extremely intelligent, he also possess a certain level of naivety. And although this probably comes from him having Asperger’s Syndrome, it is also a writing achievement.

My Score: 8/10
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Assassin’s Apprentice by Robin Hobb

In a faraway land where members of the royal family are named for the virtues they embody, one young boy will become a walking enigma.

Born on the wrong side of the sheets, Fitz, son of Chivalry Farseer, is a royal bastard, cast out into the world, friendless and lonely. Only his magical link with animals – the old art known as the Wit – gives him solace and companionship. But the Wit, if used too often, is a perilous magic, and one abhorred by the nobility.

So when Fitz is finally adopted into the royal household, he must give up his old ways and embrace a new life of weaponry, scribing, courtly manners; and how to kill a man secretly, as he trains to become a royal assassin.

When I started this book, I wanted to read it as if I were a non-fantasy-reader. Since Game of Thrones became such a phenomenon, more people are opening themselves up to the genre, and it’s easy for me – a huge reader of fantasy – to read Assassin’s Apprentice and review it based on how well it utilises the conventions of fantasy fiction. But this novel, which is the first in a trilogy, has the abilty to engage all readers, even those who aren’t familiar with the genre.

Assassin’s Apprentice is fast-paced and interesting, and the first person narration is believable and realistic. And the journeying in the story doesn’t take 50,000 pages, which is usually what frustrates me about fantasy fiction (*cough* The Queen of the Tearling *cough*). Robin Hobb reveals enough about the world and the characters for the reader to understand the story, but not too much where the reader is going to feel fatigued by the excess information. I assume that Robin reveals more to the reader in the second and third novels in this trilogy.

Robin Hobb’s writing is fluid, and events seem to flow from each other in a natural sequence. There are no disjointed events or conversations that have the reader confused and flicking back through an earlier chapter. Fitz’s motivations and doubts are seen through his actions, not through telling. This is hard to accomplish, especially since fantasy authors have so much information to write down and it’s tempting for them to simply tell the reader things instead of showing them.

What I loved about the main character, Fitz, is that although he’s brave and intelligent, he’s also extremely flawed. His relationships with the other characters are sometimes misguided, or he says or does things that the reader might not understand or agree with. And because he’s flawed, the reader sympathises and engages with him on a greater scale.

My Score: 8/10
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The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

Rachel takes the same commuter train every morning. Every day she rattles down the track, flashes past a stretch of cozy suburban homes, and stops at the signal that allows her to daily watch the same couple breakfasting on their deck. She’s even started to feel like she knows them. “Jess and Jason,” she calls them. Their life—as she sees it—is perfect. Not unlike the life she recently lost.

And then she sees something shocking. It’s only a minute until the train moves on, but it’s enough. Now everything’s changed. Unable to keep it to herself, Rachel offers what she knows to the police, and becomes inextricably entwined in what happens next, as well as in the lives of everyone involved. Has she done more harm than good?

This book is a lot like Gone Girl, in the sense that you get to the end of the story, and everything you thought you knew about the main character was wrong. You’re completely blindsided. And then you’re left sitting there wondering how you missed it.

At first, you’re a bit confused, because you’re trying to work out how Rachel, Amy, Megan, Jess etc all fit in together. And then you work it out and you run with it, because you want to know what happened to Megan. For a while there, you question Rachel. But you know that since she’s the main character and you’re supposed to sympathise for her, that she didn’t do anything to Megan. And Paula is able to achieve this through the realistic representation of multiple point of views. Oh, and an extremely flawed character.

Rachel is an alcoholic and is weak. She can’t give up alcohol, no matter how many times she tries. Does she even want to give it up? The reader keeps thinking it’s going to happen – we’re inclined to read a flawed character and hope that their flaws disappear over the course of the novel. But Rachel’s flaws don’t. Kudos to Paula for maintaining Rachel’s faults throughout the entire novel. This makes us question Rachel at times, and it makes us not want to like her. It makes us doubt her actions, and as a result, we grip the novel in frustration. And that’s extremely rare. It’s rare to have a main character who is more unlikeable than likeable. To be honest, I really couldn’t stand Rachel, but that’s actually because Paula is a really good writer.

The mystery surrounding Megan had me interested, but there were so many other aspects of the story that kept me reading. Rachel’s relationship with her ex-husband, and his relationship with Amy. Megan’s relationship with her boyfriend, and his friendship with Rachel. These characters all connected, and there were times when I was reading this where I’d grit my teeth and think ‘What the hell are you doing? I don’t understand!’

If you love thrillers or crime novels, you’ll love this. And if you’re one of those people who don’t usually like to read, but you sucked it up and read Gone Girl, then you’ll love this book too. My brother said to me a few weeks ago: I want to read clever books. Books that have me guessing. And so I gave him this book.

My Score: 9/10
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The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still. By her brother’s graveside, Liesel’s life is changed when she picks up a single object, partially hidden in the snow. It is The Gravedigger’s Handbook, left there by accident, and it is her first act of book thievery. So begins a love affair with books and words, as Liesel, with the help of her accordion-playing foster father, learns to read. Soon she is stealing books from Nazi book-burnings, the mayor’s wife’s library, wherever there are books to be found. But these are dangerous times. When Liesel’s foster family hides a Jewish fist-fighter in their basement, Liesel’s world is both opened up, and closed down.

This was a re-read for me, and I finished it just prior to Dymocks announcing that The Book Thief had topped the Top 101 books list.

This story is amazing, and extremely difficult to review. Even when I give something a 10/10, I try to point out at least one fault in the story, because not every story is perfect, right? Wrong! This novel is beautifully written, and uses subtly to highlight the horror of the Holocaust and the immense loss of life – the line ‘death has never been busier’ achieves this all by itself.

The unique thing about this book is that it’s written from the point of view of Death as he travels across Nazi Germany and collects souls during the Holocaust. His point of view allows for a reverent tale. He’s honest, and he travels around to showcase different characters. I liked that Death would mention things that would eventually happen to a character – it would completely blindside the reader. Death liked to talk about someone in the story, and then give a fleeting mention on how they’re going to die, or when, or even if they’re going to die soon. This intrigues the reader and propels the story forward.

This book is sad. Because of Death’s narration (and his foretelling), you know that certain characters are going to die, but you just don’t know when or how. And waiting for that is both a cruel and genius writing technique.

The character development is definitely one of the strengths of this novel. Leisel grows to love her foster parents, who have many flaws, and they grow to acknowledge the injustice surrounding them. Leisel and Max bond over storytelling and writing, and Leisel’s best friend Rudy helps to show a different side of Leisel – she’s determined, bold, and she knows what she wants. She evolves throughout the story, and stops being so timid and naïve.

I recommend this novel to everyone. It’s fantastic, and it’s something you should keep on your bookshelf for a reread.

My Score: 10/10
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The Shining Girls by Lauren Beukes

Harper Curtis is a killer who stepped out of the past. Kirby Mazrachi is the girl who was never meant to have a future.

Kirby is the last shining girl, one of the bright young women, burning with potential, whose lives Harper is destined to snuff out after he stumbles on a House in Depression-era Chicago that opens on to other times.

At the urging of the House, Harper inserts himself into the lives of the shining girls, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. He’s the ultimate hunter, vanishing into another time after each murder, untraceable-until one of his victims survives.

Determined to bring her would-be killer to justice, Kirby joins the Chicago Sun-Times to work with the ex-homicide reporter, Dan Velasquez, who covered her case. Soon Kirby finds herself closing in on the impossible truth . . .

I’ve wanted to read this book since before I read Broken Monsters – mostly because I love the cover (I really need to stop judging books by their covers) and I was told this book is different to most crime/thriller novels. It’s not really a crime novel as such. It has elements of science fiction in it, and the jumping-back-and-forth style of storytelling is different to that of most crime/thriller novels.

The serial killer, Harper Curtis, is not glorified in this book – nor is his only survivor, Kirby, who starts tracking down his other victims in an attempt to catch Harper. Lauren Beukes always has such great characterisation. Each victim – and they may only be featured on a couple of pages – really feels unique, and you come to understand them, their desires, and what motivates them. And then they leave the story, and you feel depleted.

Beukes does a fantastic job of highlighting social prejudice. Harper travels through different time periods in order to kill these ‘shining girls’, and by doing so, the reader is subjected and thrust into the harsh, sexist or racial criticism that isn’t as prevalent in society today.

Sometimes I found myself having to reread a few pages in the first third of the book when Harper was travelling in and out of different time periods – when he was travelling back to his murders and leaving things at the scene. But this was only until I got the general idea of how his house worked, and how he was travelling back in time. Once I got that, I could follow the story quite easily.

The book ends on an almost ambiguous, especially between Kirby and the detective. I like this, because what Kirby experiences would dramatically affect how she reacts with other people. I recommend this book to people who love reading crime/thriller novels. The science fiction aspect (Harper being able to travel back and forth in time) is but a small aspect of the story, and shouldn’t act as a deterrent to those people who are always like ‘ew science fiction. No thanks’.

My Score: 8/10
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