What a great idea!
Spoiler Alert: Yes or No
Spoiler
The only potential spoilers will be in spoiler tags. Open if you dare.
Title of Book
Genuine Fraud by E. Lockhart
Brief Summary of Book:
A psychological thriller backtracks the friendship Jule and Imogen, a story told in reverse chronological order by an unreliable narrator. The plot involves romance, murders and lots of lies. It is set in a variety of places (including this beach) and involves a fair bit of travel. The friendship between these two seems tumultuous at times, but the truth is drip-fed to the reader, creating a lot of suspense. It was certainly a book that kept you wanting more, albeit a little confusing at first. Combined with the other characters, all suspicious of the nature of Jule and Imogen's relationships and the stormy relationships she has with Forrest and Brooke, we are left to wonder how things will pan out.
Analysis (meaning and purpose of text):
I'm not really sure, to be honest. This isn't something I often think about. I guess that this novel highlights many issues within our community and leaves us feeling a little uncomfortable as we begin to relate to a narrator who seems quite wicked in all she does. The issues this text touches on include adoption (and abandonment), crime and mental health.
Favourite Quote(s):
“She didn't know if she could love her own mangled, strange heart. She wanted someone else to do it for her, to see it beating behind her ribs and to say, I can see your true self. It is there, and it is rare and worthy. I love you.”
“The way you speak is often more important than anything you have to say.”
“She knew that women were rarely the centres of such stories. Instead, they were eye candy, arm candy, victims, or love interests. Mostly, they existed to help the great white hetero hero on his fucking epic journey. When there was a heroine, she weighed very little, wore very little, and had had her teeth fixed.”
“The important thing is this: to be able at any moment to sacrifice what we are for what we could become.”
"Your character isn’t static. It’s an adaptation.”
Spoiler
“If only she could go back in time, Jule felt, she would be a better person. Or a different person. She would be more herself. Or maybe less herself.”
Reccomedantion out of 5:
4/5 - I thoroughly enjoyed it but there were a lot of mixed reviews online. The reason I did not give it 5 is because of how confusing I found the story to follow initially, although it did get easier quite quickly. The ending was fantastic, which is always important when choosing a novel, so that's definitely a plus!
Spoiler Alert: Maybe?
Spoiler
All spoilers will be in one of these!
Title of Book
We Know It Was You by Maggie Thrash
Brief Summary of Book:
This book is set at an American school (with a section for boarders). It involves a death, an amateur mystery solver, a pornography ring and a team of football players with their cheerleaders. It shows the way that high schoolers relate to each other as well as authority figures, including some very unbelievable situations.
Spoiler
This book revolves around the use of hypnosis and how one girl manages to take control of everything, inadvertently killing a pervert and seriously harming many other students.
Benny, the social outcast and "Mystery Club" leader, asserts to the only other member that the only way to solve a mystery is to Be There. As he and Virginia try to be there, suddenly the unexpected happens and a mystery arises before their very eyes. As they attempt to untangle it, things get more dangerous and confusing that they ever imagined.
Analysis (meaning and purpose of text):
Once again, not often something I think about, but this book definitely commented on the way that people relate to each other, and the way that so many people pretend to be happy or living in the moment, but are so busy putting on a mask that they do not actually experience the situation.
Favourite Quote(s):
"It’s better to know the truth. At least sometimes."
Reccomedantion out of 5: 3/5
Frustrations:
This book dealt very poorly with topics including:
Spoiler
- disability (although there was somewhat of a resolution, it would have been nice to see it taken a bit further)
- sexual assault (and child pornography)
- racism
The way that the book dealt with them was rather unimpressive, and it would have been great to see them delved into further.
It also feels as though it lacks an ending, which is understandable as it will be part of a series, but so many little details were left unresolved.