Review: 'Koh-i-Noor' by William Dalrymple, Anita Anand

Exactly two months ago I was browsing through The Guardian’s Culture section when I stumbled upon Maya Jasanoff’sreview for Koh-i-Noor, a book she described as ‘a dynamic and gory history’ of one of the world’s most famous gems. I was immediately fascinated and Tweeted as much. And then, lo and behold, I had the chance to read the book and prove to myself my earlier excitement was completely warranted. I guess I have the Guardian and Jasanoff to thank for this, as much as Dalrymple and Anand. (Also) Thanks to Bloomsbury Publishing Plc and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Pub. Date: 15/06/2017

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.

The first comprehensive and authoritative history of the Koh-i-Noor, arguably the most celebrated and mythologised jewel in the world.

On 29 March 1849, the ten-year-old Maharajah of the Punjab was ushered into the magnificent Mirrored Hall at the centre of the great Fort in Lahore. There, in a public ceremony, the frightened but dignified child handed over great swathes of the richest country in India in a formal Act of Submission to a private corporation, the East India Company. He was also compelled to hand over to the British monarch, Queen Victoria, perhaps the single most valuable object on the subcontinent: the celebrated Koh-i Noor diamond. The Mountain of Light.

The history of the Koh-i-Noor that was then commissioned by the British may have been one woven together from gossip of Delhi bazaars, but it was to be become the accepted version. Only now is it finally challenged, freeing the diamond from the fog of mythology that has clung to it for so long. The resulting history is one of greed, murder, torture, colonialism and appropriation told through an impressive slice of south and central Asian history. It ends with the jewel in its current controversial setting: in the crown of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother. 

Masterly, powerful and erudite, this is history at its most compelling and invigorating.

Non-fiction has to hit the spot. I often find myself craving a non-fiction read after a few fiction books, wanting to sink into rich history and fascinating detail. But not all non-fiction history books deliver that exquisite break you’re looking for. They’re either too technical and lose themselves in their own topic, or they breeze over the actual history in favour of personal beliefs or arguments. I hate being disappointed by a non-fiction read because it tends to trigger a reading slump with me. Thankfully, Dalrymple and Anand have crafted a brilliant book in which history and narrative go hand in hand. Koh-i-Noor is incredibly enticing, to the point where I was wandering around Shanghai reading, avoiding being hit by taxis only through sheer luck.

The Koh-i-Noor is a fascinating piece of history, surrounded by myths and legends but very few actual facts. And even the facts we have are obscured by the motivations of those who vied for possession of the diamond. Dalrymple and Anand start at the beginning of the diamond’s history, or at least what we think may have been the beginning. Tracing through the various sources, some never discussed before, Dalrymple and Anand attempt to trace the Koh-i-Noor through history, from Indian mines to te Peacock Throne to the Singh Maharajas and finally all the way to the Tower of London. Not once does their narrative become dry, rather with each new owner, each new home for the diamond, the story becomes more and more fascinating. I’d like to paraphrase Shrek here. History is like an onion; it has layers. And Dalrymple and Anand build up those layers brilliantly. By the end of Koh-i-Noor the reader has an actual understanding of how the diamond came to be so significant, how its reputation grew over the centuries and why so many people died for it. Dalrymple and Anand also don’t shy away from addressing concerns about imperialism and colonialization, especially when it comes to the diamond’s current resting place in London. It’s place in the British crown is, and will remain, controversial.

As I said, Dalrymple and Anand create a fascinating story in Koh-i-Noor. Dalrymple covers the first part of the diamond’s history in the book’s first part, ‘The Jewel in the Throne’, relating tales of close escapes, gruesome deaths and awe-inspiring battles. There is a lot of historical information in this chapter, most of which will be new to many readers, but he presents it in a way that prevents it from becoming too much. He treats his subject with respect, both highlighting the East Indian Trading Company’s circumspect ways of gaining power, as well as the friendly fire that brought the Mughals and Maharajahs down. In ‘The Jewel in the Crown’, the book’s second part, Anand tackles the Koh-i-Noor’s journey and stay in England, from its lukewarm reception at the Great Exhibit to its crucial influence on English classics such as Wilkie Collins’ The Moonstone. With the diamond now in a completely different cultural sphere, its use and purpose shifts, yet it remains a lightning rod. The book’s two parts come together beautifully and seamlessly, and the book is as much a history of as an ode to the Koh-i-Noor.

I give this book…

 

4 Universes!

I adored Koh-i-Noor and it made me ravenous for more historical non-fiction, especially if written by Dalrymple and Anand. They present history as something within a modern reader’s grasp, bringing people who lived centuries ago to life and making them and their actions understandable, if not quite sympathetic. I’d definitely recommend this one to fans o historical non-fiction as well as India’s history more specifically. 

Exciting News: Fiction & Feeling

I'm really excited to share some news with you I got from Quirk Books a few days ago! I'm very happy to introduce you to a new publisher: Fiction & Feeling, a UK publishing house aiming to show off the world in all its diverse and complicated glory!

“Fiction & Feeling are rapidly becoming my favourite new publisher.” -- KIERON GILLEN

“I can't bloody wait to read this book.” -- LAURIE PENNY

I love their logo, the two F's intertwined! Just wait until you hear about their first book, Split!

Tell someone you’re divorced and they look at you differently. The pity, shame, and sense of failing at something that was only supposed to end in death can be a heavy burden to bear.

But it doesn’t have to be.

This book collects essays written by divorced writers exploring what led them to divorce, how they lived through it, and, perhaps most importantly, who they are now that it’s over. Where often divorce represents loss and a feeling of defeat, these essays provide an alternative: divorce as a catalyst in gaining a new sense of self and the discovery of new ways to define success.

It’s not a how-to guide, but many of the essays provide examples of how life after the end of marriage can still be satisfying despite complications, joyful despite awkwardness, or revelatory despite grief. 

Featuring established and emerging writers, the one thing all contributors have in common is they’ve lived through divorce and have offered for this collection moving, challenging, sad, funny, heartbreaking, self-aware reflections of that time in their lives. The writers are from diverse backgrounds and provide essays that are true stories of grief and parenting; of queerness, kink, and compromise; of artistic differences and academic dissonance; of mental health and addiction.

And now for even more exciting news, here is their new collection, Becoming Dangerous: An anthology about ritual and resistance!

BECOMING DANGEROUS is a collection of deeply personal essays by marginalised people operating at the intersection of feminism, witchcraft, and resistance to summon power and become fearsome in a world that would prefer them afraid. Contributions from twenty witchy femmes, queer conjurers, and magical rebels create a book of intelligent and challenging essays that will resonate with anyone who’s ever looked for answers outside the typical places.

Rituals, and magic in general, tend to increase in popularity during times of uncertainty and unrest. More people are creating private covens on Facebook, sharing ritualised skincare routines, using tarot readings to make their weekend plans, making offerings to the Goddess, and performing binding spells on their political leaders… And with mainstream media such as broadsheets, Vogue, Stylist and Buzzfeed covering the world of magic this year, what could be a better time to start discovering our own power?   

From the fashion magick of brujas to cripple-witch city-magic; from shoreline rituals to psychotherapy, from ritualistic skincare routines to gardening; from becoming your own higher power to searching for a legendary Scottish warrior woman; —this book is for people who know that now is the time, now is the hour, ours is the magic, ours is the power. 

The Kickstarter project for this collection has gone live TODAY so hop over and consider donating because this is a collection I'm desperate for! Edited by Katie West and Jasmine Elliott, I'm really looking forward to reading this! Witches, rituals, MAGIC!! All of this is exactly what I want to read. And how gorgeous is the cover?

Look for Becoming Dangerous on the 2nd of February, 2018 and I hope we get to see much more from Fiction & Feeling  in the future!

Find Fiction & Feeling on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram!

Review: 'The Doll-Master and Other Tales of Terror' by Joyce Carol Oates

I have been wanting to read something by Joyce Carol Oates for ages. She has always been at the top of my list when it comes to wanting to read dark fiction, the kind of fiction that twists you up a little bit. So when I saw there was a new collection coming out featuring six of her stories, I knew the time had come. Thanks to Grove Atlantic and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Pub. Date: 03/05/3016
Publisher: Grove Atlantic

From one of our most important contemporary writers, The Doll-Master and Other Tales of Terror is a bold, haunting collection of six stories.

In the title story, a young boy becomes obsessed with his cousin’s doll after she tragically passes away from leukemia. As he grows older, he begins to collect “found dolls” from the surrounding neighborhoods and stores his treasures in the abandoned carriage house on his family's estate. But just what kind of dolls are they? In “Gun Accident,” a teenage girl is thrilled when her favorite teacher asks her to house-sit, even on short notice. But when an intruder forces his way into the house while the girl is there, the fate of more than one life is changed forever. In “Equatorial,” set in the exotic Galapagos, an affluent American wife experiences disorienting assaults upon her sense of who her charismatic husband really is, and what his plans may be for her. 

In The Doll-Master and Other Tales of Terror, Joyce Carol Oates evokes the “fascination of the abomination” that is at the core of the most profound, the most unsettling, and the most memorable of dark mystery fiction.

I had mixed feelings about this collection. On the one hand The Doll-Master and Other Tales of Terror are exquisitely written, but on the other hand there was a lack of terror for me. Technically the difference between terror and horror is that terror is that feeling of anticipation and fear before something terrifying happens, whereas horror focuses on the feelings during and after the terrifying event. In that sense, Oates' stories do fit into the terror genre because all of them build up beautifully to a moment and then abruptly leave us before anything truly happens. But to me The Doll-Master and Other Tales of Terror felt much more like suspense stories, the focus being not so much on the horrifying events we were anticipating, but rather on the characters themselves, on how twisted and messed up human beings can be, how we lie to ourselves and others. In a way each story could be its own psychological thriller, exploring the dark recesses of the human mind. So the mixed feeling I ended up with was one related to the title, mostly, rather than to the stories behind the cover

'The Doll-Master' is a story of loss, which slowly but surely turns into something else. A young boy loses his cousin and steals her doll to feel closer to her. When this doll is taken away by a strict father, however, he begins collecting lost dolls. But not all is what it seems. In 'Soldier' Oates puts the reader into the mind of a man accused of killing a black teen in cold blood. It is a very uncomfortable place to be and Oates builds the tension very well as to whether he's a "hero" or a villain. In 'Gun Accident', perhaps one of my favourite stories from the collection, we see a young woman remembering a past trauma. It is an incredibly real-feeling story, which is perhaps why it is so effective. 'Equatorial' is an interesting story in which a wife becomes more and more concerned her husband is planning to kill her. Oates excels at making her an unreliable narrator, though, so the reader is constantly in doubt as to what is actually happening. 'Big Momma' is perhaps the most straight-forward horror story of the collection, with something big and dangerous lurking in the dark. A young and lonely girl is taken in by a classmate's family and finally given all the attention and love she so craves. But not all is as it seems. Finally, 'Mystery, Inc.' is the most literary and meta of the stories, a crime story within a crime story, as well as an ode to all the mystery and crime writers that have come before. It doesn't entirely fit into the collection, but I think I'm not the only one who loved it.

Oates is a great writer. All of her characters are dissected so carefully and laid bare so completely, despite the brevity of the short stories, that the reader truly get into their mind. It is here that the real power of The Doll-Master and Other Tales of Terror lies and it is also why I was slightly disappointed. These stories aren't necessarily terror but rather beautiful suspense. Oates creates these fascinating characters and immersive atmospheres in which the reader is constantly swinging from one opinion to the other. Who can be trusted? Who is telling the truth? What will happen once the story ends? The stories flow so easily and are so beautiful in their own way that I truly wanted to read way more. By calling this a collection of 'Tales of Terror' I feel Oates was done wrong because it is selling the wrong aspect of her work. Not every terror tale needs gore and death, but that is what most readers will want and expect from a terror-collection. Think of these tales as psychological suspense tales and you'll be more than satisfied.


I give this collection...

3 Universes!

I loved Oates' writing and will definitely be reading more of her work. The stories in The Doll-Master and Other Tales of Terror are fascinating, if not necessarily terrifying the way you might be expecting, and they will definitely stay with you after you finish them. The rating is largely relating to the disappointment over the title and the expectations it caused.

Guest Post by Lisa K: A Little Bookstore and 'The Satanic Verses'

Back in July I posted teasers from Salman Rushdie's The Golden House, which I greatly enjoyed. But then I received a comment on the post by Lisa from Lisa K's Book Reviews that truly intrigued me. In it, she spoke of her experiences when The Satanic Verses first came out, the controversy it caused across the world and what that meant for her.  I immediately got in touch with her and am truly blessed she agreed to write a guest post for us about that time. Before we go into her writing, however, I want to add a quick note. For those who know little about the controversy around the book, and about Rushdie's writing in general, it is perhaps worth reading up on it in order to understand the outrage and offence it caused. Literature has an incredibly power to inspire people, both to creativity and to anger. Add to that mix the explosive element of religion, and you have yourself a literary Molotov cocktail. Although the threats and intimidation Lisa writes about below are never justified, it is something we as readers can perhaps understand considering our own passion for books.

I'm honoured to share that guest post with you now!

While I have no doubt The Golden House is an amazing piece of writing, after all, Salman Rushdie has been authoring books for several decades now, each time I hear of a new Rushdie book, memories return to me of another book of his that caused a very frightening time for booksellers.

In 1988 I managed a small bookstore for two years. A dream job for me since I’m an avid reader. I was happy in my world of books and magazines. My sister worked in the same mall (She also managed a bookstore, one much larger than mine), so we got to have lunch together, drive to work together. I loved every minute of it. Until September 1988 and the release of Salman Rusdie’s The Santanic Verses. I’m not sure how many of you remember when that book was first released, but I’m not likely to ever forget.

In The Satanic Verses, like many of Rushdie’s books, the author used real life events and people to create his fictional stories. He used accounts from historians in the part of the story dealing with the satanic verses. While winning many awards for this work of fiction, there was outrage among Muslims claiming it was blasphemy and it was mocking their faith. Ayatollah Khomeini called for Rushie’s death, which in turn led to assassination attempts on the author.

The Muslim community wasn’t just angry with Salman Rushdie, they were angry with any of us selling his book. They demanded we stop selling the books or “something bad would happen”. I couldn’t believe things were this bad over a work of fiction. My sister and I kept the books on our shelves (When we weren’t sold out). Sure, we’d read about the threats, heard about them on the news, but in our corner of Delaware nothing had happened.
One day my sister informed me her store had been the target of threats. Threats meaning, bombs, guns, all around “You’ll die if you continue to sell the book” type threats. My sister, never one to give in to anyone, kept her books displayed. If I remember correctly, she even ordered more copies and made a bigger display. I kept mine out as well. I figure I was too little to target. I was wrong.

While working alone one day, a woman came into my store. I had The Satanic Verses on display in my store window. She approached me at the register and insisted I stop selling the books. I told her I couldn’t do that. The book was a bestseller, and the owner of my store wouldn’t be happy if I removed them. She quickly informed me that if I didn’t remove them bad things would happen to me and the store. I told her again I could only do what my bosses told me to do. She informed me that I was making a big mistake. She let me know I would pay for not removing the books. That I would be sorry. She would be back, but not alone. With that, she turned and left. Now, I was only twenty-one years old at the time, and she had managed to scare the life out of me. From that day on, until everything calmed down, I sold the book from under my counter.

I have always regretted giving in. I chalk it up to my young age. The me I am today . . . well, if that happened, I would build the biggest display I could, plaster my windows with posters of the cover, and stand at the store entrance waving the book and yelling “Come and get it!”

I haven’t followed the career of Salman Rushdie, too many bad memories I guess. I knew he had written many more books, but I honestly didn’t know he was still writing until I read about The Golden House here on Juli’s blog. While I won’t be reading the author’s new book (Nothing to do with bad memories. I’m a cozy mystery reader, so this one isn’t for me), I wish Mr. Rushdie all the best, and hope he sees great sales!

Lisa K of Lisa Ks Book Reviews

Thank you so much for sharing your experience with us, Lisa! I haven't read The Satanic Verses myself yet, mainly because I always struggled connecting with Rushdie's writing. That is, until I read The Golden House. If you have time, check out my review for it.

Find Lisa K on Facebook, Twitter and of course on her own blog! Also, please do share your thoughts on what Lisa has written or any similar experiences you have had yourself. Be warned, I will not allow offensive comments on my blog. Would you like to write a guest post? Do email me!

Review: 'The Golden House' by Salman Rushdie

I have had a rough time with Rushdie in the past. I had heard about the controversy around The Satanic Verses but didn't know enough about it to truly register it. And then at university I was made to read Shame and as we all know, being made to read something significantly diminishes the chance you'll enjoy it. So Rushdie and I parted ways for a long time after that, until I saw The Golden House. And my interest was peaked again. Thanks to Random House and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Pub. Date: 05/09/2017
Publisher: Random House

A modern American epic set against the panorama of contemporary politics and culture—a hurtling, page-turning mystery that is equal parts The Great Gatsby and The Bonfire of the Vanities  

On the day of Barack Obama’s inauguration, an enigmatic billionaire from foreign shores takes up residence in the architectural jewel of “the Gardens,” a cloistered community in New York’s Greenwich Village. The neighborhood is a bubble within a bubble, and the residents are immediately intrigued by the eccentric newcomer and his family. 

Along with his improbable name, untraceable accent, and unmistakable whiff of danger, Nero Golden has brought along his three adult sons: agoraphobic, alcoholic Petya, whose rambling soliloquies are the curse of a tortured mind; Apu, the flamboyant artist, sexually and spiritually omnivorous, famous on twenty blocks; and D, at twenty-two the baby of the family, harboring an explosive secret even from himself. There is no mother, no wife; at least not until Vasilisa, a sleek Russian expat, snags the septuagenarian Nero, becoming the queen to his king—a queen in want of an heir.  

Our guide to the Goldens’ world is their neighbor René, an ambitious young filmmaker. As research for a movie about the Goldens, he ingratiates himself into their household. Seduced by their mystique, he is inevitably implicated in their quarrels, their infidelities, and, indeed, their crimes. Meanwhile, like a bad joke, a certain comic-book villain embarks upon a crass presidential run that turns New York upside-down.  

Set against the strange and exuberant backdrop of current American culture and politics, The Golden House also marks Salman Rushdie’s triumphant and exciting return to realism. The result is a modern epic of love and terrorism, loss and reinvention—a powerful, timely story told with the daring and panache that make Salman Rushdie the standard-bearer of our dark new age.

The Golden House is a truly modern book, a book that delights in the 21st century.  Rushdie's characters live in the New York of now and throughout the novel he infuses the narrative with references to 21st century politics, pop culture and more. There is art, there is music, literature, the 2016 election, movies, clowns in the streets, so much makes an appearance in The Golden House that it is almost overwhelming. I personally adore social commentary in novels. I feel like it is one of literature's duties to reflect upon its own time and to draw lessons from it for readers. Think of how Les Miserables or War and Peace comment on Russia and France, and how both are obsessed with Napoleon. These novels told me more about the influence of Napoleon than my history teacher ever did. And so when I find a novel like The Golden House, which plunges itself headfirst into one of the oddest few decades to date, I can't help but love how topical and relevant is it. Will it feel dated in a decade or so? Perhaps, but it will always be a product of its time, a kind of ode to the optimism of the early years and the downward spiral of the latter years.

Despite having an initial dislike for Shame, I have come to majorly appreciate it for the way in which Rushdie consistently manages to weave together myth and fact, legend and reality. His take on Magical Realism consistently astounds me \and he does so again in The Golden House. On the one hand it is deeply rooted in the modern world, and yet it is also magical. Baba Yaga personified makes an appearance, there is a magic childhood, and myth and legend suffuses everything. What perhaps topped my fascination with the Magical Realism in the novel, is how incredibly meta this book is. At the heart is a young filmmaker who dubs himself René, leaving it up to the reader to guess whether that is his real name. In a meandering style he tells us of the Golden patriarch and his three sons as they move into his neighbourhood in New York. He doesn't just tell us their story, René shapes it into an idea for a movie. He considers how to best present the different people, what symbolism lies in their lives and how exactly this story will even end. As he uncovers more and more about the Goldens he gets more and more drawn into their lives, until he is a key part of the story he is crafting. This set-up is mind boggling, in ways, as the readder is constantly questioning what exactly is the truth, but then truth is one of the themes at the heart of the novel. The Golden House is a glorious puzzle that is well worth undertaking despite its countless pieces.

Rushdie really doesn't need me praising his writing style, and yet I will do so anyway. The Golden House is beautiful, how it blends together past and present, how its sentences run on and on and yet never lose their strength, how it doesn't forget itself in the middle of its social commentary. The style of this novel is flamboyant and effluent, and yet concise and meaningful at the same time. It always feel as if each of these words is supposed to be there, is necessary. Much like a Bach piece, take on word out and the whole thing may collapse. The Golden House is the kind of novel that comments upon the human condition, and that sounds more frightful than it is. With flawed yet human characters, plot lines that are too ridiculous not to be true, Rushdie poses the questions that lie at the core of our minds. What is good and evil? Can one be both at the same time? And what does that say about us?

I give this novel...

5 Universes!

I absolutely loved The Golden House and devoured it way quicker than I expected. This novel has something of everything and paints a truly human picture of the last few decades. Are any of the characters likeable? I couldn't really say, but their story will teach you something about yourself. I'd recommend this to anyone interested in Literary Fiction.

I also have a great guest post up, by Lisa K., about The Satanic Verses in celebration of the release of The Golden House.

Review: 'My Absolute Darling' by Gabriel Tallent

I love reading because books take you other places. They let you explore the world, transport you to other moments in time and into the minds of different people. There are books that bring you joy, take you on a moonlight stroll through the pleasant valleys of life. But there are also books that drag you down to the darker regions of life, the depravity and despair of some people's lives. And those books are just as powerful and necessary. My Absolute Darling is one of those latter books and it is an unforgettable read. Thanks to 4th Estate and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Pub. Date: 29/08/2017
Publisher: 4th Estate; Harper Collins

A brilliant and immersive, all-consuming read about one fourteen-year-old girl's heart-stopping fight for her own soul. 

‘You think you’re invincible. You think you won’t ever miss. We need to put the fear on you. You need to surrender yourself to death before you ever begin, and accept your life as a state of grace, and then and only then will you be good enough.’ 

At 14, Turtle Alveston knows the use of every gun on her wall;That chaos is coming and only the strong will survive it;That her daddy loves her more than anything else in this world.And he’ll do whatever it takes to keep her with him. 

She doesn’t know why she feels so different from the other girls at school;Why the line between love and pain can be so hard to see;Why making a friend may be the bravest and most terrifying thing she has ever doneAnd what her daddy will do when he finds out … 

Sometimes strength is not the same as courage.Sometimes leaving is not the only way to escape.Sometimes surviving isn't enough.

Some books are terrifying and My Absolute Darling is one of those books. It is deeply chilling and psychologically tense. It also seems to have no true heroes but only villains of different shades of evil. It's not a very optimistic book, you won't walk away from it with a bounce in your step. And yet it is a wonderful book, incredibly visceral and emotional. Tallent captures the beauty and wildness of nature, the harshness of human contact, the unflinching cruelty of love. Despite its highly emotional topics, Tallent avoids cliches and overly dramatic prose. Rather, he digs deep into Turtle's psyche, bringing her internal life to the forefront in a way that feels genuine and real. He describes this so well that when he breaks outside of Turtle's world it almost feels jarring and yet strangely exhilarating. It's hard to describe just how much Tallent sucks you into his story and his world, but it is an experience I would recommend to everyone.

At the heart of My Absolute Darling is Turtle, who lives alone with her father in what seems the middle of no where. Her only true emotional and social contact outside her father is her grandfather, himself a conflicting and conflicted character. Her father trains her how to hunt, how to survive, how to anticipate the end of the world. Yet all his training and discipline, his obsessive love for her, has Turtle constantly on the edge of overwhelmed. As she starts to see more of the world around her, how other people live, she begins to question and to wonder, something that will ultimately lead to the end of everything she knows. My Absolute Darling is a chilling character study of both Turtle and her father, a journey into the depths of human darkness, but also an ode to human resilience. There are parts to this book which are truly shocking and graphic, both violent and sexual, and hence I would recommend perhaps avoiding this book if these are triggers for you until you feel ready to face them head on.

Tallent amazingly captures Turtle's mind. On the one hand she is slavishly devoted to her father, who is all she has. On the other hand she is developing her own mind, her own self, and starting to questioning the world he has created for her. There is something lyrical to the novel, how Tallent describes Turtle's ease around nature, her instinct in crisis. Tallent also avoids may of the pitfalls I thought might lie ahead. There is no happy ending with a cherry on top, no grand love affair that carries Turtle away from her misery, no guardian angel that steps in just in time. The novel focuses in solely on Turtle, her journey, her internal life, and she becomes everything the reader needs. My Absolute Darling is a novel of survival, but not in the 'I conquered it and now everything is good'-sense. Rather, it shows survival as the continuous struggle it is, the conscious decision day in day out to wake up and face the world again, to face your demons head on. In that sense, My Absolute Darling is also a very inspiring read.

I give this novel...

5 Universes!

God this novel is amazing! I devoured My Absolute Darling and simply couldn't put it down. Tallent has you on the edge of your seat the whole time and leaves you shaken by the end. It's the kind of novel that will give you something new every time you reread it. I'd recommend this to everyone willing to go on this journey with Turtle, but keep the trigger warnings in mind.

Review: 'Girl in Snow' by Danya Kukafka

Nothing is more dramatic than high school drama. Except for the real world. And when those two combine with a murder mystery than you're usually in for a good read. So many books bring these three different elements together and weave either magic or sow chaos. The balancing of teenage hormones and horrible crime is difficult and it doesn't always go well. Girl in Snow is a novel that balances on that edge but, sadly, is constantly on the point of falling off. Thanks to Simon & Schuster and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Pub. Date: 01/08/2017
Publisher: Simon & Schuster

An addictive debut thriller about the mysterious death of a small-town golden girl and the secret lives of three people connected to her: the social misfit who loved her from afar, the rebellious girl who despised her, and the policeman investigating her death.

As morning dawns in a sleepy Colorado suburb, a dusting of snow covers high school freshman Lucinda Hayes’s dead body on a playground carousel. As accusations quickly spread, Lucinda’s tragic death draws three outsiders from the shadows.

Oddball Cameron Whitley loved—still loves—Lucinda. Though they’ve hardly ever spoken, and any sensible onlooker would call him Lucinda’s stalker, Cameron is convinced that he knows her better than anyone. Completely untethered by the news of her death, Cameron’s erratic behavior provides the town ample reason to suspect that he’s the killer.

Jade Dixon-Burns hates Lucinda. Lucinda took everything from Jade: her babysitting job, and her best friend. The worst part was Lucinda’s blissful ignorance to the damage she’d wrought.

Officer Russ Fletcher doesn’t know Lucinda, but he knows the kid everyone is talking about, the boy who may have killed her. Cameron Whitley is his ex-partner’s son. Now Russ must take a painful journey through the past to solve Lucinda’s murder and keep a promise he made long ago.

Girl in Snow investigates the razor-sharp line between love and obsession and will thrill fans of Everything I Never Told You and Luckiest Girl Alive.Intoxicating and intense, this is a novel you will not be able to put down.

To quote Natalie Imburglia, I'm torn. It is undeniable that Girl in Snow has an intriguing plot with a lot of high stakes. It's also undeniable that Kukafka addresses a lot of interesting topics, as the blurb suggests. The small town struck by tragedy is a great setting to bring underlying tensions to the surface and Kukafka does so relatively well. However, there is something about the book that left me underwhelmed. Perhaps I have been ruined by psychological thrillers and mysteries where suspense lurks on every page, but Girl in Snow didn't capture me the way I really wanted it to.

Lucinda, this novel's sad victim, isn't truly at the centre of this novel. Rather, Kukafka focuses on Jade, Cameron and Russ as they are thrown into ever-deepening turmoil by her death and everything that comes with it. Kukafka explores the trauma of their lives before Lucinda's death and how these now affect their actions, choices, and ideas of self. In a way this is really interesting, but Lucinda therefore also becomes a side-character and about halfway through the novel I realised I didn't really care who killed her. The reader has no chance to build a connection to her and the novel's twists also don't really come from this plot line. Rather it is Jade, Cameron and Russ' lives which provide the reader with their excitement. Switching between their different points of view, Kukafka explores different angles of this small town's response to Lucinda's death, as well as showing how everyone has secrets, fears and hopes, how we all keep certain parts of ourselves hidden away. It is this that saves the novel, for me at least.

Danya Kukafka has a knack for describing emotional situations in a way that both places you inside the characters' minds while also removing you just enough to be able to appreciate the moment. You truly get a sense of who her characters are and what they feel, and this is the most interesting part of Girl in Snow. Occasionally the novel "breaks" its narrative to share excerpts from Jade's imagined screenplay, 'What You Want to Say But Can't Without Being a Dick'. This both works really well to give you an insight into Jade's mind and set up that everyone has thoughts they don't or can't share, but it also interrupts the tension Kukafka tries to build and snaps the reader out of the story. In a way it's emblematic of what didn't work for the novel. There are a lot of great ideas but the execution of them isn't always perfect. This also counts for the confusing mix of genres. On the one hand this novel is a murder mystery and crime novel, yet the pace is inexorably slow and halts Girl in Snow from truly building up momentum. Considering this is a debut novel that isn't necessarily surprising but it is promising. I'd rather have a book with great potential than an utterly boring yet beautiful one. As such, I would definitely give Kukafka's future books a try.

I give this book...

2 Universes.

I have very mixed feelings about Girl in Snow. On the one hand I really wanted to know how it would end, how it would all unravel. But on the other hand I never found myself truly engaged with the novel, truly caught by it. I'm confused as to who to recommend this to, since for crime lovers this novel won't deliver. Its pace may also be too slow for YA readers. Yes, I'm torn.