The Year of the Rat by Clare Furniss

The Year of the Rat
by Clare Furniss

Isn't it strange when you start to read a book thinking it's going to be about one thing, and then find out it's going a completely different way? It was a bit like this with me with this book. I'd read the blurb about it (albeit not properly as it turns out) - young teenage girl, mother dies after giving birth to next baby, teenage girl ends up having to look after it. In fact, the teenage girl, Pearl, resents the baby (Rose) for many reasons - having the baby made Pearl lose her mum, the baby is now the focus of everyone's attention and no-one takes notice of Pearl. Pearl is dealing with the loss of her mother by becoming angry with everyone and she finds herself on a slippery slope to the depths of despair and self-pity. Her mum appears to her at various moments and speaks with her, and although Pearl takes some comfort from this, she still can't reveal her anguish to her or anyone else.

'The Rat' in the title is how Pearl calls her new baby sister, Rose. She can't seem to call her by her real name, she hates her, and she hates anybody who loves Rose. There is a quite upsetting part of the book where Pearl, who is supposed to be looking after the baby while her dad is out, just abandons the baby and runs off - she can't handle anything to do with her. Her best friend, Molly, tries to pull Pearl out of the deep hole of gloom, but even she cannot help Pearl.

The storyline, which seems very real and true-to-life, is handled with pathos but also humour. The author has done a good job of writing a story which could also be a script for a real life drama documentary. I enjoyed it.

For teens due to language.

Landline by Rainbow Rowell

Landline
by Rainbow Rowell

I have a bit of a hot and cold relationship with Rainbow's books. I absolutely loved 'Eleanor & Park' but then was disappointed with 'Fangirl', and now I'm a bit in between with 'Landline'. I'm not overly fond of all her talky bits, of which there are many. It's like reading a West Wing or MASH script - fast and American. All the characters over-think everything, and I just want to scream at them "Just chill out! That's not what they're thinking! You're over analysing! Be cool and British and bite your tongue!" But that's just how Rainbow writes, that's her recognisable trait.

Georgie is married to Neal and they have 2 children, Alice and Noomie. Georgie is a scriptwriter for an American sitcom, along with her co-writer Seth. A pilot of a new series that they have been working on together has just been accepted by a huge TV network, and they have about a week to perfect it and write the next 3 episodes. The only problem is, it's Christmas, and Georgie is supposed to be going with her family to stay with Neal's parents for the week. Neal and the kids go without her, which is what she was not expecting. Then he doesn't answer any of her calls. What has happened here? Is it over? Was it a step too far in her busy working schedule? She moves in with her mother and uses the old rotary telephone in her room to try to call again. This time Neal answers, but something about him is different. Can Georgie patch up her marriage by long distance telephone calls - calls with a difference.


I was glad to finish it, because the end was the best bit. You will cry. The rest of it you'll say "Mehh, that was okay". But perhaps that's just me.

Her by Harriet Lane

Her
by Harriet Lane

I think it's just coincidence that I chose to read two very sinister books one after the other. First there was The Night Guest, and now this, 'Her'. Harriet Lane's first novel, 'Alys, Always' was given very good reviews. I haven't read it, but with review words such as "thriller", "chilling", "surprises", "dramatic", "Ruth Rendell", "tragedy", "mysterious", "suspense", and "psychodrama", I can imagine that it is in the same vein as this, her second novel. I could use all the same nouns and adjectives to describe the story. Think "Single White Female" crossed with "Fatal Attraction" and even though the premise is different, the feelings you get while reading the book aren't.

The one thing about the book which annoyed me, was that you were told a scene from the viewpoint of the one main character, Nina, and then told the same scene from the viewpoint of the other, Emma. So I found myself skimming through a few paragraphs to reach unknown territory. Other than that, if you like to be made feel uncomfortable and on edge at the end of a reading session, then this is for you. Watch out who you let into your life.

The Night Guest by Fiona McFarlane

The Night Guest
by Fiona McFarlane

Ruth is in her 80s and lives alone in a house by the sea in Australia. She is a widower and her two sons, Jeff and Phil, live away. The only thing she has for comfort and companionship are her two cats and her memories. She is happy and she gets by. The only thing she is slightly troubled by is the feeling that some nights she has a visitor - a tiger. She thinks she can hear it in her living room, slinking around. She telephones Jeff, her nearest son, in the middle of the night to tell him about her fears, but she can tell he is slightly irritated by the interruption of sleep, and especially with a farcical, fantastical tale of a tiger in the house.

The next day, she gets another visitor, this time in human form. She is Frida and she says she's been sent by the government as home help for a few hours every morning. Ruth lets her in without many questions and even Jeff, on being telephoned and informed of this, does not seem to be surprised or anxious about this sudden arrival of a very larger-than-life character. Frida fusses, cleans, cooks, posts mail, takes calls, shops, looks after bills, and eventually, but quietly, moves in.

If this already hasn't started to sound unsettling and unnerving, then the rest of the book definitely will. Poor Ruth seems totally incapable of halting Frida's intrusiveness. You feel so sorry for her helplessness, and angry with her sons for not hearing any alarm bells ringing with the whole situation. The author does a very good job of drawing you deeper into the suspense and the horror of a poor defenceless old lady up against a big, bustling, matronly, bullying, dark character of a lady that is Frida. It cannot end well.

The tiger continues to make appearances throughout the book, and you start to wonder who or what this animal actually is or stands for. Is it out to harm or protect. Ruth does not always seem to fear the animal's visits, in fact she seems to enjoy to seek out evidence of its existence in her home.

This is the author's first novel, and if you love mystery and psychological suspense and the workings of the mind, then this is for you.

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

We Were Liars
by E. Lockhart

When the proof of this book arrived, there was a torn-out piece of graph paper inside with a typed message on it - "we are here for you, call us to talk" with a telephone number after it. Well that got me intrigued. What could this book possibly be about that would affect me in such a way to search for help from a stranger? I read it in a day. I could not put it down. Even though I was not in need of counselling by the end, I can see why some readers may want to talk with other readers about it immediately. Something happens that some readers may not see coming and be thrown by, but unfortunately I worked it out about half way through. I won't say it spoiled the rest of the book - I still had to wait to have it confirmed near the end.

 Cadence Sinclair goes with her mum every summer to the family island in Massachusetts to stay in one of 4 big houses built by her granddad. The other houses are filled with Aunties and cousins. Cadence forms a little gang called The Liars with her cousins Johnny and Mirren and a family friend Gat, and they spend the summer weeks playing tennis, sailing, walking around the island and rock climbing. She starts to fall in love with Gat. But one summer there is an accident - she hits her head on rocks while in the sea and thereafter suffers excruciating headaches and suffers from amnesia. She remembers nothing about how she got in the sea or what happened in the days before or after the accident. However nobody seems to want to tell her what happened. What are they hiding from her?

All I can say is - read the book and find out.

Fire Storm by Lauren St John

Fire Storm
by Lauren St John

I can't believe this is the last in the trilogy of the One Dollar Horse series. I've loved every one of them (as I have all of Lauren's books - do read her White Giraffe series set on an animal reserve in South Africa and her Laura Marlin Mysteries - all excellent). I tried to read this one slowly to make it last and savour it but of course it's impossible. You have to read one chapter straight after another.

Casey is now looking to win the Grand Slam of horse 3-day eventing by training for the Burghley Horse Trials. But a few changes in her life start to pose a threat to this possibility. It all literally becomes a matter of life and death. The young and handsome Kyle walks into her life playing with her emotions, and the reappearance of Anna Sparkes causes Casey to fear for the safety of herself and her adorable horse Storm. But is it Anna that Casey has to watch out for?

I look forward to finding out what exciting series Lauren St John has in store for us next.

Rock War by Robert Muchamore

Rock War
by Robert Muchamore



Robert Muchamore is HUGE in the male young adult audience with his CHERUB and HENDERSON BOYS series. Teenage agents, terrorism, action, adventure - everything young boys want in a series. Well, I've just finished Rock War and I'm a bit, well, underwhelmed. I think the young boys may be rather disappointed. There might be more for the girls to love here. Was I expecting too much? The story revolves around three different groups of characters - Jay and his siblings and friends, Summer and her mad school friends, and public school boy Dylan and his mates. They all have one thing in common - music and being in a band. There's a Battle of the Bands type competition to enter, and a Rock War TV series to audition for - but the latter is only really mentioned right at the end of the book so you'll have to wait for book 2 to find out more about that.

As a bookseller, I've still got to get the age right of who I'm recommending the book to. There is a huge amount of bad language and adult references, so I've got to say at least 13/14, but will boys in that age group actually enjoy the storyline? I had a quick peak at an online chat forum for Cherub lovers, and they'd heard about Rock War. Their ages were about 11-13, and most of them said they didn't think the storyline would interest them, but they would read the first book to find out.

I'm not saying I didn't enjoy the book, it's the fact there's a lot of hush hush about it (I'm writing this in October, and am not allowed to post the review till the book's publication in February), it's embargoed, there'll be a huge build up, and I just don't think the book is worth all the hype. Just release it now as a new title and let the audience quietly decide.