nomadreader

  WARNING: This review will contain spoilers for The Siege , the first book in this series. If you haven't already, I encourage you to read my review of The Siege . The backstory: The Betrayal , a sequel to The Siege, which was shortlisted for the Orange Prize in 2002, is on this year's Booker Prize longlist. The basics: The Betrayal picks up in Leningrad in 1952. Anna and Andrei are happily married and raising her younger brother Kolya as if he were their own. Andrei is a successful doctor, but his values are put to the test when the child of a senior secret police officer comes in for treatment and the prognosis isn't good. My thoughts: I really enjoyed The Siege , and it was wonderful to reconnect with these characters so quickly. In many ways, though, The Betrayal doesn't read like a sequel. Yes, the characters are familiar, and the setting is still Leningrad, but life during the siege and life under Stalin are radically different. Also different in this...

  This review contains spoilers because honestly, you've either already read it or don't really care, but in the event you do care, please be warned: I will spoil the hell out of this book. The backstory: I liked The Hunger Games ( my review ) and absolutely adored Catching Fire ( my review ), so I was quite excited to see how Suzanne Collins would end this trilogy, even though I don't read very much young adult literature any more. My thoughts: I've waited a week to write this review because I wanted some time to calm down and fairly articulate why I hated this book . I'm not sure a week helped, but after writing this review in my dreams for hours last night, I'm ready. On structure: I was riveted by this novel for the first 85% of it. I read all of its 400 pages in one day. How can a book go from something so lovely to something so horrible so quickly? I'm still not sure. I enjoyed the structure of this novel. I think Collins intentionally mo...

Thursday night, Mr. Nomadreader and I took a little road trip down to Millerton, New York to see Suzanne Collins at Oblong Books . We drove down a little early and had a wonderful lunch at Harney and Sons , a gourmet tea shop. We got to Oblong a little over an hour before the signing, and we were rewarded with a number oh so very close to the front of the line . We all sat on the floor to listen to Suzanne read, and I was thrilled she first read from Catching Fire , which I adored. Next she read the opening pages of Mockingjay , and I was amazed how many in the audience hadn't read it yet (I mean, it had been out for two days already--kidding!) After the reading, the line started moving quite quickly. We had our book stamped and were back outside to enjoy a beautiful day before 5:30 p.m. We stayed in Millerton for a phenomenal dinner at Manna Dew and toasted the last night of my 20's. All in all, it was a wonderful night, even though (I confess) I didn't like Mo...

The backstory: I was coveting   Trespass even before the Booker longlist was announced, but I was thrilled to hear it made the list because I'm reading it sooner than I probably would have otherwise. The basics: I really like the introductory blurb in the book: "Set among the hills and gorges of the Cevennes, the dark and beautiful heartland of southern France, Trespass  is a thrilling novel about disputed territory, sibling love and devastating revenge." My thoughts:  I feel foolish because Trespass  is the first Rose Tremain novel I've read, and I absolutely adored her prose: "Disdain--born out of a specialist knowledge, or what he thought of as a secret knowledge --was a habit perfected over forty years, and was now one of the few pleasures left to him." (p. 11) I didn't know too much about this novel going into it, and the initial chapters all introduced different characters. I tend to really enjoy novels with seemingly unconnected characters...

1.  Happy Sunday! Are you ready for Tuesday? It's finally Mockingjay release day ! I've really been enjoying the  fake Mockingjay spoilers  trend on Twitter, but I'm ready for the real thing. According to my friends at Scholastic, it will be available for download at midnight on my Kindle. As much as I wish there were a local midnight release party, I'm excited to be able to start reading at midnight in the comfort of my own home. In the interest of making it through work Tuesday morning, my plan is to actually go to bed early Monday night, then wake up at 5 a.m. to get four hours of reading in before work. It's a short day at work, and I hope I'm able to finish it in the afternoon before meeting friends for dinner. If not, I'll have time to finish it Wednesday. 2.  As excited as I am for Tuesday, I'm even more excited for Thursday because Suzanne Collins will be at Oblong Books in Millerton, and I'm going . I'm thrilled to meet her and ...

The backstory: The Siege was shortlisted for the Orange Prize in 2002, and it's sequel, The Betrayal, is on this year's Booker Prize longlist. The basics: This novel is set in Leningrad in 1941, when it is under German siege and winter is coming. Everyone is fighting for survival. Anna, the 22-year-old heroine, is taking care of her younger brother; their mother died in childbirth. Their father is a writer, but his stories are no longer published because of his political views. My thoughts: I debated reading The Siege , but I am so glad I did. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I am not a scholar of Russian history, and seeing the War from the standpoint of Leningrad was absolutely fascinating to me. I learned so much by reading this book, but I think those familiar with the setting and history would still enjoy this novel. Several times I was so wrapped up in the story I forgot it was real; it read like a dystopian novel: "Words are regaining their meanings, after ...

The backstory: I really enjoyed Anna Quindlen's last novel Rise and Shine , so I was eager to read her newest one. The basics: Every Last One  is the story of Mary Beth Latham, a wife and mother of three: Ruby, a high school senior, and fraternal twins Max and Alex, who are ninth grade. My thoughts: I do enjoy Quindlen's use of language, and these characters were certainly dynamic. It seemed obvious to me that something was looming over these characters from early on in the book. I felt like a very paranoid reader as warning signs piled up and didn't explode. Then, when I didn't actually suspect it, Quindlen drops this novel into a completely different place. I won't spoil it for you, but I will tell you I was reading it in a coffee shop and my jaw dropped open and I audibly gasped. Yes, it's dark, but I think it's authentic. What I'm unsure about it is if it's necessary. I am not opposed to depressing novels, but I do want the emotions authors...