Friday Friyay: 'The Vines' by Shelley Nolden

 This week is such a week, I don't even know. I've had a few assignments due, as well as as 4000-word essay on Sunday, and yesterday I had a 20-minute presentation on my previous MA Dissertation, so my brain is pretty much gone! Thankfully I have the next two weeks off, before university comes back with a vengeance for one last block, so I plan to do loads of reading and give myself a proper break! One of the books I can't wait to read is The Vines by Shelley Nolden, which came out on the 23rd of March with Freiling Publishing!

In the shadows of New York City lies forbidden North Brother Island, where the remains of a shuttered hospital hide the haunting memories of century-old quarantines and human experiments. The ruins conceal the scarred and beautiful Cora, imprisoned by contagions and the doctors who torment her. When Finn, a young urban explorer, arrives on the island and glimpses an enigmatic beauty through the foliage, intrigue turns to obsession as he seeks to uncover her past—and his own family’s dark secrets. By unraveling these mysteries, will he be able to save Cora? Will Cora meet the same tragic ending as the thousands who’ve already perished on the island?

The Vines intertwines North Brother Island’s horrific and elusive history with a captivating tale of love, betrayal, survival, and loss.

Book Beginnings is at home on Rose City Reader, hosted by Gilion Dumas, and Friday 56 at Freda's Voice, hosted by Freda. I'll also be joining the Book Blog Hop, hosted by Charlie over at Ramblings of a Coffee Addicted Writer.

Book Beginnings:

'2007

Forty-four years since the abandonment of Riverside Hospital on North Brother Island, north of Hell Gate in New York City's East River

July

'A thick keloid encircled the young woman's throat like a noose, ready to seize her last breath.' p.1

Whooo what an opening! I did have to Google what a keloid was, which kind of changes the tone a little but not much. Also, I think we're being set up for multiple shifts in time periods, so that'll be intriguing!

F56:

'Stop, she warned herself, or she would fall apart and fail at her task. Clenching her teeth, she peeked under the next sheet and backed into the surf, away from a mother, her baby still clutched to her breast.' p.56

I haven't started The Vines yet so I'm not sure what is happening but it sounds highly dramatic! I do think this sentence is a bit confusing because of the pronouns, as I think it is the woman she is backing away from that is clutching the baby, not the narrator?

Book Blogger Hop:

We have another great question submitted by Julie from JadeSky:

Does the cover of a book affect whether you are more willing to read it?

In some way, yes! I love a dramatic cover and I always love browsing Lithub's posts on new book covers. The way the title, font, background etc. all come together to give an impression of the book is fascinating to me. But I also read a lot of classics who have very staid and calm covers, usually, like the Penguin covers for example. Both of those attract me in different ways, just as the books they cover also draw me in for different reasons.

I am however also aware that especially independently published authors don't always have a budget for cover art which means that the old adage to not judge a book by its cover still rings true. So I try to see the cover as just one aspect, just like the blurb. Both of these can make or break whether a book attracts your attention and I have absolutely read books that were great but were not helped by either their cover or blurb. So from those experiences I try to not let the cover influence my decision too much, but it does play a role.