Mailbox Monday

Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came in their mailbox during the last week. It was created by Marcia @ A Girl and Her Books but now has a permanent home here

 

 

This week I received a copy of A Robot In The Garden by Deborah Install from the publisher. It was published on 23rd April by Doubleday/Transworld Digital and is already getting very good reviews. I'm really looking forward to reading it.

 

 

Ben Chambers wakes up to find an unfamiliar object - rusty and lost - sitting underneath the willow tree in his garden. Refusing to throw it on the skip as his wife Amy advises, he takes it in.

 

Ben does not want children, or even a job, and now he has found yet another reason to stay in his study and ignore everyone.

 

It is only when Amy walks out that Ben realises he has alienated all the human beings in his life. He has only one friend left.

 

This is the story of a unique friendship, and how one man opens his heart to a past he did not want, and a future he cannot lose.

The Dead Lands by Benjamin Percy

The Dead Lands is set in what was once St. Louis, now a strictly governed walled community called The Sanctuary. It is one hundred and fifty years after a flu epidemic and nuclear war destroyed almost everything and everyone. It is also a re-imagining of the Lewis and Clark saga. I'll be honest and say I'd never heard of them before and I'm not sure if this made a difference to my enjoyment of the story. I don't think it did though as it's obviously set in a completely fictional world.

One day a rider from outside the wall arrives and tells them that there are other people living  beyond their community; something the inhabitants never thought possible. A small group, including Lewis and Clark, decide to escape and make the long journey to this supposed better place. But this is of course not without its dangers.

I'm a big fan of post apocalyptic books so was really pleased to get an ARC copy via Bookbridgr and the publisher. It took me a little while to get into but once I did there was a section of the book that I really enjoyed. Unfortunately though the story hasn't kept at this pace or held my interest and I've given up before the end. I don't care about the characters and therefore have no interest in what happens to them. Also there's not enough detail or back story which made it feel disjointed and confusing,  which is a real shame as on paper this should be exactly my kind of novel. I'm sure others will like it but unfortunately it's not for me.  Maybe I've read so many of these novels that they have to be of a very high standard; such as The Road, The Passage and of course Stephen King's The Stand, otherwise for me they'll fall short.

Book Beginnings on Fridays - The Dead Lands by Benjamin Percy

Book Beginnings on Fridays is hosted by Rose City Reader and as she says the idea of this meme is for you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the opener inspires. Please remember to include the title of the book and the author's name. There's a linky list on the website and you can use #BookBeginnings on Twitter.

 

My book beginning this week is The Dead Lands by Benjamin Percy, it was published by Hodder & Stoughton on 9th April.

 

She knows there is something wrong with the baby. She has known from the very beginning. First there was the nausea that left her bedridden for weeks, dizzy and barely able to eat, chewing on cucumbers, filling up on springwater. Then the surges in temperature, the blackening headaches. And finally a stillness inside her when there should have been movement - a fluttering, like the tail of a trout; that's what her friends told her - so that she would twist her body and prod her belly until the child adjusted itself, assuring her it was there, it was alive. 

 

 

Book Description:

One hundred and fifty years ago - when the world began to fall apart, when the flu mutated and millions began to die - downtown St Louis was fortified. There was no time for committees, for debate, for a show of hands. The flu was airborne. It was burning brains with fever, choking lungs with blood. And it was coming.

So the wall was built, and has remained ever since. St Louis - now called the Sanctuary - is humanity's last outpost on earth. Outside it is surrounded by a wasteland of dead scrub, inhabited by mutated creatures. Inside an oppressive government keeps the populace in its thrall.

But everything is about to change. One day a rider appears on the horizon with news of a green paradise far to the west. Determined to secure a better life, a small group of renegades set out on an epic quest across America's blasted heartland. They'll experience heartbreak, loss and unimaginable danger on their journey to the Pacific... and their safe arrival is in no way assured. 

Mailbox Monday

Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books came in their mailbox during the last week. It was created by Marcia @ A Girl and Her Books but now has a permanent home here

Just one for me, an arc of The Dead Lands by Benjamin Percy.  I love post apocalyptic novels so I'm really looking forward to reading it, I'll probably start it later this week.

 

In Benjamin Percy's new thriller, a post-apocalyptic reimagining of the Lewis and Clark saga, a super flu and nuclear fallout have made a husk of the world we know. A few humans carry on, living in outposts such as the Sanctuary-the remains of St. Louis-a shielded community that owes its survival to its militant defence and fear-mongering leaders.

Then a rider comes from the wasteland beyond its walls. She reports on the outside world: west of the Cascades, rain falls, crops grow, civilisation thrives. But there is danger too: the rising power of an army that pillages and enslaves every community they happen upon.

Against the wishes of the Sanctuary, a small group sets out in secrecy. Led by Lewis Meriweather and Mina Clark, they hope to expand their infant nation, and to reunite the States. But the Sanctuary will not allow them to escape without a fight.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

It's Monday! What Are You Reading is a weekly meme run by Book Journey and you can mention books you've just finished, are currently reading and any you plan to read this week. You can leave a link to your blog and read other bloggers posts.

 

This week I've read two books. My review for Disclaimer by Renee Knight is here

 

I only finished The Mountain Can Wait by Sarah Leipciger last night. I found it to be great story telling that grabbed me from the start. So much so that I lost track of time and was almost late for my hairdressers appointment. It's published by Tinder Press on 7th May 2015 and is the author's debut novel.

 

You can find out more about both books by clicking on their cover images below.

 

 

 

Disclaimer by Renee Knight

Catherine finds a novel on her bedside table that she doesn't remember buying. She has just downsized to a smaller house with husband Robert after encouraging their adult son Nicholas to move out. The usual ‘any resemblance to persons living or dead’ note at the front has been crossed out and upon reading the book Catherine discovers it's about her and something that happened in her past that she's kept secret from everyone for twenty years, including her husband and son. 

 

The story is told in alternate chapters, from Catherine herself and also retired English teacher Stephen Brigstocke. It's very atmospheric and tense, I've been in a bit of a reading/reviewing slump lately but found Disclaimer to be addictive and unputdownable. Yes, this is yet another novel that has been recommended to fans of Gone Girl, but this one is worth reading. There are plenty of secrets and lies gradually revealed throughout to keep you gripped and if, like me, you're a fan of psychological thrillers then you'll enjoy this author's debut novel.

 

Thanks to Transworld and Netgalley for my review copy.

 

Rating: 4 out of 5

Waiting On Wednesday - Finders Keepers

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme, hosted by Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases we can't wait to be published.

 

 

I can't wait for Finders Keepers by Stephen King, it's the follow up to Mr Mercedes and is due to be published on 2nd June 2015.

 

“Wake up, genius.” So begins King’s instantly riveting story about a vengeful reader. The genius is John Rothstein, a Salinger-like icon who created a famous character, Jimmy Gold, but who hasn’t published a book for decades. Morris Bellamy is livid, not just because Rothstein has stopped providing books, but because the nonconformist Jimmy Gold has sold out for a career in advertising. Morris kills Rothstein and empties his safe of cash, yes, but the real treasure is a trove of notebooks containing at least one more Gold novel.

Morris hides the money and the notebooks, and then he is locked away for another crime. Decades later, a boy named Pete Sauberg finds the treasure, and now it is Pete and his family that Bill Hodges, Holly Gibney, and Jerome Robinson must rescue from the ever-more deranged and vengeful Morris when he’s released from prison after thirty-five years.

Not since Misery has King played with the notion of a reader whose obsession with a writer gets dangerous. Finders Keepers is spectacular, heart-pounding suspense, but it is also King writing about how literature shapes a life—for good, for bad, forever.

Books I Read in March

Here is a list of the books I finished reading in March:

 

The Mall by S.L. Grey 

The Doll's House by M.J. Arlidge

The Ward by S.L. Grey

Our Endless Numbered Days by Claire Fuller

The Ship by Antonia Honeywell 

 

I haven't been reviewing much lately but I enjoyed them all and rated each one at 4 out of 5.