Tag: book

Empire of Pain + Netflix’s House of Usher

April 29, 2024

I’ve been obsessing about this ever since reading Empire of Pain and then in hindsight realizing the Netflix miniseries Fall of the House of Usher was about the same family! Mind blown!

Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty documents the real life story of a family who made their sordid fortune by agressively selling controversial pharmaceuticals in any way possible, including deceiving the entire world with countless underhanded methods spanning over three generations.

Netflix’s 2023 miniseries The Fall of the House of Usher combines several of Poe’s short stories into one saga about a family who made their sordid fortune by agressively selling controversial pharmaceuticals in any way possible…including literally selling their souls.

Most chilling part of the show: When Verna tells Roderick:
“You know, I’ve worked with a lot of truly influential people over the years
but when it comes to sheer body count, you’re in my top five.
Take a look.
Those are your bodies.
They’d each be alive today if it weren’t for you.
New one every five minutes.”

It’s entertaining when it’s TV, but chilling when it’s real.

**Don’t read on if you don’t want to see any spoilers!**

Some random parallels between the show and the book:

  • The infamous family is large (siblings started the company) and one family member in particular remarrying multiple times and having several children.
  • Creating an addictive drug and officially claiming it isn’t addicting.
  • Aggressively marketing said drug.
  • Secrets, secrets, secrets.
  • Convincing someone close to take the drug for chronic pain only for that person to become addicted (book- a secretary, show- Juno).
  • Directly blaming the consumers for their addiction.
  • $$$
  • A lawyer who helps cover up for the family (show- Arthur Pym).

I could go on, but it’s time to wrap this up with the recommendation of both the book and the show! The show is definitely creepy and disturbing (just like Poe’s stories), and there are a few jump scares. It isn’t especially gory, but there is some. I appreciated that it is more subtle than a lot of horror movies/shows, which is how it should be because that’s how Poe wrote his stories! So even if you aren’t a fan of horror, you may still be able to watch the series.

Leave the World Behind

January 15, 2024

Leave the World Behind

By: Rumaan Alam
Published: 2020
# of pages: 241
Challenges: Alphabet Soup, Book Bingo (Netflix adaptation)
Quote: “Trees knew to occupy only their given patch of earth and sky. Trees were generous and careful, and maybe that would be their salvation.”

Amanda and Clay head to a remote corner of Long Island expecting a a quiet reprieve from life in New York City, quality time with their teenage son and daughter and a taste of the good life in the luxurious home they’ve rented for the week. But with a late-night knock on the door, the spell is broken. Ruth and G. H., an older couple who claim to own the home, have arrived there in a panic. These strangers say that a sudden power outage has swept the city, and – with nowhere else to turn – they have come to the country in search of shelter.

But with the TV and internet down, and no phone service, the facts are unknowable. Should Amanda and Clay trust this couple – and vice versa? What has happened back in New York? Is the holiday home, isolated from civilisation, a truly safe place for their families? And are they safe from one another?

Goodreads

First of all, I haven’t seen the Netflix movie by the same title. I’m planning to watch it tonight, so maybe I will write a post about that as well. Otherwise, where to start with this review?? I have so many thoughts about this book.

The story is about an average family from NYC who decide to go on vacation to the country. Clay, Amanda, and their two teenagers make themselves at home in a remote, but charming, Airbnb. However, after only one relaxing day, an older man and woman show up in the middle of the night claiming the house is theirs…and that there’s been some sort of power outage in the city, possibly over the entire east coast. Amanda and Clay are confused as everything seems perfectly normal out on the edge of nowhere USA.

The narrative is told from a meandering omniscient point of view, at different times delving into each character’s thoughts. The prose is often overdone, but the farther into the story the reader goes, the more it “works” and makes sense. The characters are definitely confused and the reader is confused as well, but at the end it all starts coming together. Well, at least it does for the reader. I don’t know how a movie could possibly begin to make sense of the story, but I guess I’ll find out tonight!

Clay and Amanda are written in a similar style to many of Stephen King’s characters, a mixture of likeable and unlikeable all in one. Perhaps the author thought their thoughts were “realistic,” but I dislike thinking that the average person thinks and behaves in those ways. But obviously there are plenty of people in the world the same way, so perhaps it is realistic.

The homeowners weren’t described in as much detail and were often described through Clay and Amanda’s points of view. They often seemed opposites of Clay and Amanda. I appreciated the conflict they felt about owning the house but not being able to legally reside there because of the rental agreement.

I enjoyed the teenage characters more, perhaps because they reminded me of my own kids and Amanda’s thoughts about them echoed my own thoughts about my kids in many ways.

The overall message of the story was sobering and thought provoking. The reader feels horror, hopelessness, and confusion throughout the book, but the ending is intriguing. This would be an interesting book club read! I recommend this to adults who don’t mind meandering narration and vague circumstances.

Ink Blood Sister Scribe

January 6, 2024

Ink Blood Sister Scribe

By: Emma Törzs
Published: 2023
# of pages: 416
Challenges: Alphabet Soup
Quote: “…power is always a reflection of the world that has created it, regardless of intention.”

For generations, the Kalotay family has guarded a collection of ancient and rare books. Books that let a person walk through walls or manipulate the elements–books of magic that half-sisters Joanna and Esther have been raised to revere and protect.

All magic comes with a price, though, and for years the sisters have been separated. Esther has fled to a remote base in Antarctica to escape the fate that killed her own mother, and Joanna’s isolated herself in their family home in Vermont, devoting her life to the study of these cherished volumes. But after their father dies suddenly while reading a book Joanna has never seen before, the sisters must reunite to preserve their family legacy. In the process, they’ll uncover a world of magic far bigger and more dangerous than they ever imagined, and all the secrets their parents kept hidden; secrets that span centuries, continents, and even other libraries . . .

Goodreads

I loved the originality of this magical realism story. It was fascinating and well written. I couldn’t seem to really get into it, however. There’s not a good reason why not, except maybe just getting back into the swing of things after the holidays. I did keep thinking (towards the end) that this would be a good book to have spin off novels about other characters’ pasts and/or futures. It’s not often that I want a standalone book to become a series, but this world is intricate and original and I think it would be interesting to learn more about some of the side characters other than Joanna and Esther.

The book follows two sisters, Joanna and Esther, who have been separated for 10 years. Both have been shaped by their shared history of being in a family of caretakers of magical books. Esther has left that life behind at their father’s urging and Joanna hasn’t left home a day in her life, also at their father’s urging.

Nicholas lives a life similar to Joanna’s, in constant service to magical books at a family member’s urging. However, he doesn’t just care for the books, he also writes the books.

All three of the characters live in constant fear and at the whim of others. But soon their worlds are all turned upside down and they have choices to make as to whether they should stay in the box someone else created or break out and face the unknown.

I recommend this to teens and adults who enjoys fantasy and magical realism.

Cats in the City of Plague

September 11, 2023

Cats in the City of Plague
By: A.L. Marlow
Published: 2021
# of pages: 140
Challenges: Alphabet Soup, Book Bingo (features cats)

Set amidst the chaos of the worst pandemic in history, the Black Death of the 14th century, Cats in the City of Plague tells the tale of a group of cats who are unfairly blamed for the plague.

The main character, Leander, and his fellow cats cannot understand why people they have trusted have turned against them. But they realize that their only hope of survival is to escape from the French city that has long been their home and return to the forests where, cat legend has it, their kind originally lived.

While evading the humans who seek to destroy them, the cats embark on what Booklife calls “a tense and dramatic journey through the city, powered by the danger and sacrifice inherent in tales of epic quests.”

Racing over rooftops, hiding in the cathedral’s crypt, can they make it out of the city before dawn reveals them? And if they do make it, can these city cats learn to live in the wild?

Goodreads

This was a sweet and action packed story. I read it several months ago, but it has stuck with me and I think about it often. The story follows feline Leander and the other cats in his city as their lives are turned upside down and they suddenly find themselves on their own.

The writing isn’t too complex, but it’s very descriptive, I could imagine myself there with the cats as they travel around the city. The author did a good job of capturing the personality of cats and how they are often solitary creatures, but can get along sometimes, especially as needed.

I recommend this to adults and young adults looking for a quick but interesting read. There obviously is some description of violence to cats, nothing too detailed, but disturbing. Sadly, that was a non-fiction occurrence in those times. 😦

Nettle & Bone

June 10, 2023

Nettle & Bone

By: T. Kingfisher
Published: 2022
# of pages: 245
Challenges: Alphabet Soup
Quote:
“I am doing a heroic task and heroic tasks are not done by half measures.”

After years of seeing her sisters suffer at the hands of an abusive prince, Marra—the shy, convent-raised, third-born daughter—has finally realized that no one is coming to their rescue. No one, except for Marra herself.

Seeking help from a powerful gravewitch, Marra is offered the tools to kill a prince—if she can complete three impossible tasks. But, as is the way in tales of princes, witches, and daughters, the impossible is only the beginning.

On her quest, Marra is joined by the gravewitch, a reluctant fairy godmother, a strapping former knight, and a chicken possessed by a demon. Together, the five of them intend to be the hand that closes around the throat of the prince and frees Marra’s family and their kingdom from its tyrannous ruler at last.

Goodreads

Does anyone else sometimes dislike reviewing books they love? I feel like I can never do them justice! This is one of those books. It was magical, emotional, beautiful. And there’s no way I can describe those characteristics.

I loved the character of Marra and how realistic she was, even though she’s a fairytale heroine. I also loved the other characters, the crew that aids her quest.

Although the book is based on classic fairytale tropes, it is still unique. As the description above says, the impossible is only the beginning in this story.

The Overstory

February 27, 2023

The Overstory

By: Richard Powers
Published: 2018
# of pages: 502
Challenge: Alphabet Soup
Quote: “Here’s the thing about an apple: it sticks in the throat. It’s a package deal: lust and understanding. Immortality and death. Sweet pulp with cyanide seeds. It’s a bang on the head that births up whole sciences. A golden delicious discord, the kind of gift chucked into a wedding feast that leads to endless war. It’s the fruit that keeps the gods alive. The first, worst crime, but a fortunate windfall. Blessed be the time that apple taken was.”


The Overstory is a sweeping, impassioned work of activism and resistance that is also a stunning evocation of – and paean to – the natural world. From the roots to the crown and back to the seeds, Richard Powers’s twelfth novel unfolds in concentric rings of interlocking fables that range from antebellum New York to the late twentieth-century Timber Wars of the Pacific Northwest and beyond. There is a world alongside ours—vast, slow, interconnected, resourceful, magnificently inventive, and almost invisible to us. This is the story of a handful of people who learn how to see that world and who are drawn up into its unfolding catastrophe.

Goodreads

My Goodreads review for this book was simply: “This is such a beautiful book. Words can’t describe how the beauty of both nature and humanity are captured in only 500 pages.”

I don’t think I would have read this book based on the description, but my mother-in-law gave me a copy and so I read it to discuss it with her. I’m glad I did because it was an amazingly written story. There’s a reason it earned a Pulitzer. The characters were fascinating, their stories complex, and I loved how all the storylines came together.

What’s in a Name 2023 Sign Up

December 12, 2022

Welcome to the 16th annual What’s in a Name reading challenge!

In years past, this challenge was hosted by Charlie at The Worm Hole. I took over in 2019 and I’m excited to host again this year!

The challenge runs from January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023. You can sign up any time, but only count books that you read between those dates.

Read a book in any format (hard copy, ebook, audio) with a title that fits into each category.

Don’t use the same book for more than one category.

Creativity for matching the categories is not only allowed, it’s encouraged!

You can choose your books as you go or make a list ahead of time.

Sign up using the Mr Linky below with a link to your WIAN challenge page/post, not your main blog URL. Feel free to save and use the graphic at the top of the page! Also, link back to this sign up page in your challenge post so others can join too.

The categories below are links to each category sign up link.  Add your book review for each category so we can see what you’ve read and discover ideas as needed.

In 2023, choose 6 books that have titles that contain:
(Click on the links for more examples and info)

Click the Mister Linky graphic above to enter your name and/or blog name (many people use this format: Andrea @ Carolina Book Nook) and the URL to your challenge post.  If you have any issues, email me through the contact menu at the top of my blog and I’ll manually sign you up.

Let me know if you have any questions or suggestions!  Thanks and happy reading!

#wian2023 on Instagram!

Kill Creek

October 8, 2022

Kill Creek

By: Scott Thomas
Published: 2017
# of pages: 416
Challenge: R.I.P. XVII
Quote:
“There’s something about letting another person lead you into darkness that is both unbearably terrifying and exquisitely thrilling.”

At the end of a dark prairie road, nearly forgotten in the Kansas countryside, is the Finch House. For years it has remained empty, overgrown, abandoned. Soon the door will be opened for the first time in decades. But something is waiting, lurking in the shadows, anxious to meet its new guests…

When best-selling horror author Sam McGarver is invited to spend Halloween night in one of the country’s most infamous haunted houses, he reluctantly agrees. At least he won’t be alone; joining him are three other masters of the macabre, writers who have helped shape modern horror. But what begins as a simple publicity stunt will become a fight for survival. The entity they have awakened will follow them, torment them, threatening to make them a part of the bloody legacy of Kill Creek.

Goodreads

This has been on my TBR list for a couple of years and I finally picked it up, not expecting anything extraordinary, but I was wrong! I loved it and I thought it would be a 5 star read…up until the last fifth of the story. So close!

Most of the story is a subtle horror and suspense. The story follows four horror authors, who each have their own style of writing the genre. At one point they are asked what horror means to them and they each have a different answer, but each answer is correct. I believe the author of Kill Creek is also incorporating different styles into one book. The reader will experience Gothic, indirect, dreams, supernatural, evil, subtle and graphic descriptions, etc, all in one story.

I personally appreciate subtle and Gothic style horror, but others may like the more graphic, spelled out horror. What disappointed me was that the ending of the book felt a little rushed. After all the build up and intricate details, the end was very “basic.” However, that also made me wonder if it was planned to be that way, because of one of the plot lines of the authors becoming “slaves” to their writing. Maybe Thomas felt the same way about Kill Creek!

Anyway, I was very impressed with how deep the characters and plot were many times throughout the novel. I do wish it had stayed that way to the end, but the very end redeemed itself.

I recommend this to fans of horror. It definitely had a Stephen King feel, so if you enjoy his books I think you’ll like Kill Creek as well.

The Inheritance Games

May 2, 2022

The Inheritance Games

By: Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Published: 2020
# of pages: 376
Series: The Inheritance Games (#1)
Challenges: Alphabet Soup

Avery Grambs has a plan for a better future: survive high school, win a scholarship, and get out. But her fortunes change in an instant when billionaire Tobias Hawthorne dies and leaves Avery virtually his entire fortune. The catch? Avery has no idea why–or even who Tobias Hawthorne is. To receive her inheritance, Avery must move into sprawling, secret passage-filled Hawthorne House, where every room bears the old man’s touch–and his love of puzzles, riddles, and codes.

Unfortunately for Avery, Hawthorne House is also occupied by the family that Tobias Hawthorne just dispossessed. This includes the four Hawthorne grandsons: dangerous, magnetic, brilliant boys who grew up with every expectation that one day, they would inherit billions. Heir apparent Grayson Hawthorne is convinced that Avery must be a con-woman, and he’s determined to take her down. His brother, Jameson, views her as their grandfather’s last hurrah: a twisted riddle, a puzzle to be solved. Caught in a world of wealth and privilege, with danger around every turn, Avery will have to play the game herself just to survive.

Goodreads

This was a fun read and the mystery was better than I was expecting! For some reason when I checked this out from the library I was thinking it was going to be a mixture of The Hunger Games (Suzanne Clark) and Legend (Marie Lu). Obviously I just skimmed the description and looked at the title! However, rather than taking place in the future and involving an organized and widespread competition, this book takes place in present day and the “game” is within a family.

I liked the character of Avery and the teenage angst and love interests didn’t bother me as much as some YA books do. It is the first in a series, but it could also work as a standalone because it wraps up at the end and doesn’t leave the reader too desperate to read the next. I will be reading the second book because of how much I enjoyed this book. Overall I recommend this to those who enjoy YA and/or these type of mystery/puzzle stories.

Tomorrow’s Bread

April 14, 2022

Tomorrow’s Bread

By: Anna Jean Mayhew
Published: 2019
# of pages: 352
Challenges: Alphabet Soup

Goodreads review:

In 1961 Charlotte, North Carolina, the predominantly black neighborhood of Brooklyn is a bustling city within a city. Self-contained and vibrant, it has its own restaurants, schools, theaters, churches, and night clubs. There are shotgun shacks and poverty, along with well-maintained houses like the one Loraylee Hawkins shares with her young son, Hawk, her Uncle Ray, and her grandmother, Bibi. Loraylee’s love for Archibald Griffin, Hawk’s white father and manager of the cafeteria where she works, must be kept secret in the segregated South.

Loraylee has heard rumors that the city plans to bulldoze her neighborhood, claiming it’s dilapidated and dangerous. The government promises to provide new housing and relocate businesses. But locals like Pastor Ebenezer Polk, who’s facing the demolition of his church, know the value of Brooklyn does not lie in bricks and mortar. Generations have lived, loved, and died here, supporting and strengthening each other. Yet street by street, longtime residents are being forced out. And Loraylee, searching for a way to keep her family together, will form new alliances—and find an unexpected path that may yet lead her home.

As a geography major at a university in this city, I learned about the gentrification of Second Ward in the city of Charlotte, so when I saw that this book was the local library’s book club choice I was eager to read this version of history!

The story follows Loraylee, a young woman who lives in the neighborhood of Brooklyn, a black community that happens to be close to uptown Charlotte. The neighborhood is segregated for decades until local developers, government, and wealthy citizens decide that it’s a “blight” (aka: prime real estate from which they can’t monetarily gain.) In their eyes the best way to handle the run down sections is to bull doze the entire ward and rebuild it as more upscale and worthy of the new image wanted to change “downtown” Charlotte into “uptown” Charlotte. Yes, around that time Charlotte was rebranded and one major way of doing that was referring to the main area as “uptown,” which it is still referred to as now.

Loraylee is an interesting character, mainly because of how progressive she is while still appreciating her family and neighbors and their traditions. Other characters whose POVs were included were a preacher in Brooklyn dealing with the destruction of his church and its graveyard and a white woman who doesn’t live in Brooklyn, but whose husband is a member of the board in charge of the Brooklyn redevelopment. Was it super realistic to have so many characters who were open minded during that time? Maybe, or maybe not. But obviously there were people living at that time who were progressive and taking risks by interacting with other people of different races. I’m grateful they did so and set the stage for where we are now and where we will hopefully continue as a country.

Overall, I enjoyed the book and was excited to read about the city and countryside (now suburbs!) of the area I call home. At the end of the book the author clarifies what was true and what was fiction in her story. I was disappointed to read that much of the preacher character’s story about the church and graveyard mystery was fiction. I wonder if there was another cemetery that really existed in Charlotte that was affected by the gentrification. I don’t know, but it would be cool if another author would tackle the same subject from different angles!

I know this is a controversial subject, but I always appreciate authors of any gender/race writing about minorities as long as they make a visible effort to do the characters/subject justice and respect. It’s totally fine for others to disagree because I understand feeling otherwise, but that’s my personal feeling about the matter. This was an original, important, and interesting subject to write about as a historical fiction book and I’d love to see others do the same… Either about the same subject, Second Ward in Charlotte, or about gentrification in other cities. And I’d love to see authors of color write about the subject, especially if they had ancestors affected by displacement.

So overall, I recommend this to anyone who enjoys historical fiction, if only to add to knowledge and fuel the quest for other books about similar subjects.