Rooms - Lauren Oliver

I’m delighted to be reviewing this book for a couple of reasons. One is because it’s another library book and I’m pleased with myself for maintaining my resolution to use my local library more regularly than I had been doing.

https://nudge-book.com/blog/2018/03/libraries-a-reflection-by-gill-chedgey/ 

Secondly I was thrilled to find a Lauren Oliver book.

I’ve read several of Lauren Oliver books intended for YA readership, spellbinding books of dystopian fiction. I love to see a writer diversify so this novel , her first novel for an adult audience, was a gem to find nestling on the shelf. A digression to be sure but I was actually seeking out some early Cassandra Parkin whose last two novels I’ve had the pleasure of reviewing. There were none on that day so rather than leave without borrowing a book I spotted this one. 

Published some four years ago Rooms deals with grief, loss, identity the parent/child relationship and the desire for closure that the human animal craves. Prefaced by a Franz Wright poem of the same name I was also briefly reminded of the Bible, John 14 ‘In my Father’s house are many rooms…”. Each part of the book is a different room, quite a nice device. Some might describe it as a ghost story, but as it is not a frightening ghost story others might see it as a more spiritual affirmation of life after death. 

The chain of events is precipitated by the death of Richard Walker Our main protagonists, ex wife, Caroline, daughter Mina and son Trenton are not, on the surface, especially nice people, hard to warm to them but they seem to have been formed by the path their lives have taken or not taken as the case may be. Blighted by the perceived shortcomings of Richard Walker their sojourn in his home unravels many secrets. Not all of them theirs, an integral part of the story belongs to the ghosts and the way the strands of all their stories weave together by the end is satisfying.

Oliver knows how to tell a story. And she does it well. There are some subtle, humorous undertones here. They need to be subtle for it is a sombre book overall, redemptive and vaguely hopeful in conclusion.  It’s slow paced story. considered and thoughtful. It’s not uplifting, in fact its downright sad in places but its in the careful hands of Lauren Oliver so it is steered in the right direction.

Should You Ask Me - Marianne Kavanagh

I will admit I did struggle with this for the first thirty pages or so. I’ve come across the dual confession narrative before and found it to be effective but for some reason it wasn’t gelling for me initially. However I’m not one to easily give up on a book. In fact I can’t remember the last time I did. And if a publisher ( thanks - Hodder & Stoughton) has been generous enough to send me a review copy my natural courtesy insists I finish it. And how glad I am!! For as I got into my stride I found this book to be enormously enjoyable.

Marianne Kavanagh is a new name for me and although getting to know someone is a pleasure it can take a little time. And so it took me some time to ‘find’ the writer’s voice and it took me some time to get to know Mary and William. But it was so worth it.

For their stories are unusual and their arrival at mutual understanding was touching and satisfying. The story takes place over six days in the novel’s contemporary time setting of the second world war with William’s story starting a little earlier and Mary’s considerably earlier! I do not wish to give too much away but if you are interested in the themes this book has to offer then love must surely head that list, closely followed by loss, heartache, missed opportunities and the keeping of secrets.

The writer has sustained the historic authenticity of both time frames and locations yet never loses her way, suggesting some faultless research and plotting. Both the main characters are developed and then sustained throughout and it feels as if we are privy to the growing of their mutual association and respect. 

And whilst it is relatively easy to identify the themes, assigning a genre seems more challenging. I like that in a book!! Our need to compartmentalise can sometimes be counter productive and inhibiting. You could say this is a war story. Or an historical novel. Or a love story maybe? A mystery? The wonderful Emma Thompson suggests it is ‘An unputdownable combination of thriller and psychological drama’. That all suggests that there is something for everyone. You can’t get better than that.

The derivation of the title of the novel is, too, a point of interest raising awareness of, to me anyway, a little known poet Vera Rich. Her titular poem is quoted in full at the beginning of the book. And the whole story was apparently inspired by a natural history book about Purbeck Island. All adding to the richness of this deceptively slender volume. 

And if, like me, you falter in the initial stages of the book do persevere for I doubt very much that you will be disappointed.

The Murder of My Aunt - Richard Hull

This is utterly scrumptious, if one can ever describe a book as such. Well I can and I have!! Originally published in 1934 this book is one of the recent British Library Crime Classics publications and a worthy addition to this wonderful collection. Again with a helpful foreword by the inimitable Martin Edwards this jewel of a crime novel has been polished up for contemporary crime readers to enjoy.

As a crime tale goes it is subtle in the sense that no police,no detectives, no courts and no judges so much as put in an appearance. And it is so funny!! Darkly funny to be sure but there is an absurdity and an almost off balance predictability that grabs the reader in its clutches. Edward is nephew to the formidable Aunt Mildred, keeper of the purse and guardian of Edward after the death of his parents. She is happily living in Wales, Edward is not.  She is the titular aunt and the story is about Edward and his desire to murder his aunt. 

The bulk of the narrative is told in diary form, Edward’s diary and the writer cleverly develops Edward’s character through his diary accounts of situations and events and allows the reader to chortle away at the innermost workings of Edward’s mind. There are some subtly satiric undertones that are not always verbalised but offered to the reader to draw their own conclusions. And the conclusion of the novel is a delight, not unexpected if we’re honest but done so well that you’re happy you saw it coming and you haven’t been made a fool of!! 

You can’t actually warm to either Edward or his aunt  but it doesn’t really matter because it means the reader can remain neutral and just enjoy the ‘antics’ especially of Edward as he bungles his away around rural Wales upsetting, possibly, everyone. 

And of course the cover is another inspired addition, taken from a GWR tourist poster advertising Wales. Hats off to the British Library, they’ve done it again! Please don’t stop!!

Underwater Breathing - Cassandra Parkin - BLOG TOUR!

Be gentle with me. This is my first ever blog tour!  And I couldn't be happier that it's for this writer and this book. I read the The Winter's Child last year and loved it. So I jumped at the opportunity to read Underwater Breathing.

So let's begin with a little of the blurb..........

On Yorkshire’s gradually-crumbling mud cliffs sits an Edwardian seaside house. In the bathroom, Jacob and Ella hide from their parents’ passionate arguments by playing the ‘Underwater Breathing’ game – until the day Jacob wakes to find his mother and sister gone. 

Years later, the sea’s creeping closer, his father is losing touch with reality and Jacob is trapped in his past. Then, Ella’s sudden reappearance forces him to confront his fractured childhood. As the truth about their parents emerges, it’s clear that Jacob’s time hiding beneath the water is coming to an end. 

Here's what some other people had to say about the book.

 ‘A dark, powerful and emotional novel with hauntingly beautiful prose. It will compel you to read on even as it sends chills up your spine’ Nicola Moriarty 

‘This is a glorious, emotional novel about who we really are, where we belong in the world, and how truly at mercy we are to the events that shape us. I can't recommend it enough’ Louise Beech 

And if that hasn't whetted you appetite maybe my own review will?

Underwater Breathing - Cassandra Parkin

Oh, Cassandra Parkin, you’ve done it to me again. Only this time you’ve really done it! I am wrecked after reading this book! Which is as good a way of putting it as any, given the theme. Sort of. In a nutshell the book is about love. About the fragile, crumbling, tempestuous madness of love. In one long, glorious metaphor using the sea and its relentless power Cassandra Parkin has constructed a fiction of chilling beauty. 

If a missing child was at the heart of The Winter’s Child then missing persons are at the heart of this gripping new novel. Not necessarily physically missing though.  An onion story where layers are peeled off to reveal the truths that hide within these delicate hearts. Such tenderness nestling against such sharpness, the juxtaposition of the two states twirls your emotions around.

There are few characters in the book but without exception they are superbly drawn. Once again Ms. Parkin has demonstrated that ability which allows you to feel what her characters are feeling. Although the story seems to be Jacob and Ella’s story there is another marvellous character in Mrs. Armitage. Fascinating in her complexity and such a wonderful example of how love can wear many faces she is a support that keeps the whole story together and offers both the other characters and readers too a refuge against the storms of life that batter the people in this story. 

Impressive, too, are the vivid descriptions of the sea and the land and the battle between them. I often wonder what this poor writer has put herself thought to be able to describe these scenes and situations with such clarity and authenticity. In fact the sea is there as as one of the main characters possibly the ‘baddie’ of the book. 

There are writers and there are storytellers and sometimes you’re lucky enough to get them both within one author and I think it fair to say that of Cassandra Parkin. This is one of the best books I’ve read so far this year. Thanks to Imogen Harris at Legend Press for the opportunity to read an advance copy. 

Do you still need convincing that you simply must read this book? I've saved the best till last!! An interview with the lady herself. Cassandra Parkin answers the questions I put to her.

1. I’ve just finished reading Underwater Breathing and i thought it was marvellous. Some 
powerful themes for a reader to absorb. So I am wondering where the inspiration came for this
 story?

Oh, thank you so much – I’m thrilled you enjoyed it! 

I’m a bit of a magpie when it comes to ideas – something will grab my attention for a moment and I’ll hoard it away along with all the others, until one day it comes to the surface again. The seed for Underwater Breathing was a story on the news, years ago now, about an East Yorkshire village that was falling into the sea. The residents had always known this would happen, but the erosion was much faster than anyone had predicted. There was this one couple who’d retired there. They’d bought their house knowing perfectly well it would fall in the end, but they were gambling on them both being dead by the time the sea came for their home. They said they’d made a bet with the sea, and lost.

That seemed like such a strange and powerful bargain – the inevitability of your own death, staked against the power of the sea. I scribbled down the words family make bet with sea and lose, and then promptly forgot about them, until one day the entire plot of Underwater Breathing came to the surface and I had to write the story.     

2.Your characters are all so believable and as a reader it is easy to engage with them, especially Jacob and Ella. Jacob broke my heart he was so full of love despite his troubled childhood and adolescence. They both grew and developed before our very eyes. Is this part of your planning before you start to write or do characters evolve as you’re writing ?

For me, one of the joys of writing is getting to know the characters, and having them “take over” the story. The best moment for me is when they start telling me that no, it happened this way, not that way; that they wouldn’t do that, but would do this instead; that this is how they really felt at the time. There’s a scene in Alice Through The Looking Glass that describes this perfectly for me. The White King is trying to make a note in his diary, but Alice, invisible, stands behind him and starts guiding the pen so that it writes her words, not his. I feel as if the story and the people in it already exist, somehow, and my job isn’t to create them but to describe them, as accurately as I can.

I’ve said this to a few people, and got varying reactions (other writers tend to know exactly what I’m on about, whereas non-writers just nod respectfully in a don’t alarm the madwoman way and change the subject). I will admit it sounds weird. But then, how can I possibly have made it all up using just the pink squishy stuff between my ears? That seems far weirder to me.

3.Jacob’s relationship with his father is so touching. Despite the volatile and changeable behaviour, for the most part, he maintains such outward tenderness. What kind of research did you do in regard to memory loss conditions and the management of them by carers?

Lots of reading, to start with, from as many sources as possible. Oliver Sacks wrote some beautiful case studies about memory loss that show you the condition but also the person living with it. Then, lots of NHS advice leaflets and websites (to get a feel for what it’s “supposed” to be like), and lots of blogs and personal testimonies (to get under the skin of the reality). Finally, most families are touched by memory loss or dementia at some point, and my family has been too. So some of what Jacob feels, that combination of love and guilt and exasperation, is based on personal experience. 

4.I found the character of Mrs. Armitage absolutely fascinating. It’s easy to focus so much on Jacob and Ella that you can almost forget that here is another story running parallel to theirs. Another story of love. Her pragmatism and controlled emotions were masterful. And yet the latent care and love she had for the children was extremely moving. Is she based on anyone you know? 

Mrs Armitage came to me as a very complete person – I didn’t have any sense at all that I was creating her. It was more like having someone wander in to the narrative and say, Actually, you need to hear my version to properly understand what’s going on here. I really enjoyed getting to know her, although I’m not sure what she’d make of me in return.

5. The underwater descriptions when the children are holding their breath are so vivid and believable that it made me wonder if you practised yourself in order to write with such authenticity!!

Actually I did! Once you get used to the feeling of being completely submerged, it’s a very peaceful place to be. Sadly, as Jacob and Ella both know, it’s not possible to stay underwater for ever.

6. For me the book had two dramatic peaks, the sibling relationship, and the disintegration of the land into the sea. The descriptions of the latter were so graphic one could almost feel oneself at the risk of drowning! It’s a wonderful piece of visual writing too. Was it difficult to write that part?

It was challenging, because I wanted to get the atmosphere right. It’s terrifying, but also sort of glorious – the moment you’ve dreaded is finally here, and now you can finally discover what comes next.

7. I saw the crumbling of the mud cliffs as a sustained metaphor for how aspects of our lives can crumble and we are powerless to stop it. The sea certainly felt like a threat throughout the book. It felt like an additional character, a villain almost. Was this your intention?

It definitely was, and I’m so glad this came through for you in the story! My grandfather was in the Merchant Navy, and although he loved every minute of his seafaring life, he also told me that the most important advice he had for me was “never turn your back on the sea”. He thought of the sea as a living entity, with its own will and its own plans, that might coincide with our plans or might conflict with them. He said there was no point trying to fight the sea, because it would always, always win – all we could do was work with it as best we could.

8.I read A Winters Child last year which also impressed me and I was quite surprised to see another book which seemed hot on its heels! For novels of such depth and substance you seem very prolific!  Do you have ideas already stored up just waiting to be written?

I always feel as if I’m being way too lazy and not doing enough, so you can’t imagine how much it means to me to have you say this – thank you! I constantly collect little seeds and nuggets of ideas, but I only have room in my head to plant and nurture one at a time into a novel. In this industry, people quite often (and quite reasonably) ask you, “have you got any ideas for the next book?” Although I try and come up with some sort of answer, the truth is that generally speaking, I don’t, and will continue not to have, until about a month after I’ve finished the current one. (Which I find pretty terrifying, because maybe one day there will be no more ideas, and then what on earth will be the point of me?) So while I was writing The Winter’s Child, I had absolutely no idea that the next one would be Underwater Breathing. 

I must admit, writing Underwater Breathing was incredibly tough (in contrast to The Winter’s Child, which came very easily), and right up until the moment when I finished it, I wasn’t sure if I could make it work. I actually got forty thousand words into my first draft, then realised I hated every word of it and was going have to start again from scratch. I told my best friend this and she said it made her feel quite ill to think about it, but it was one of the best and most liberating experiences of my life – accepting that it was okay to fail, and start again, and do better. 

9. How do you write? By that i am wondering if you have a special place, special time, any special routines and rituals? 

I don’t think of myself as having much of a routine, but when I stop to think about it, I definitely do. I always start by building an outline, using post-it notes and sheets of A4 paper. This has to happen in the afternoon, on the living-room floor, and it’s absolutely critical that my cats come and sit on it, move things around a bit, steal post-it notes, and generally bless it with their presence. (The only time they didn’t, I wrote the first draft of Underwater Breathing that I had to throw away and start again. Moral of the story: Cat Blessing is clearly a vital part of my creative practice.)

The actual writing part tends to happen in the mornings. I have a target of between 1,000 and 2,000 words a day, depending on what else is happening and where I am at the time, and given the choice, I’ll always write at a dining-room table, in my pyjamas. 

I write my first draft like a cat crossing the road – top speed, straight ahead and don’t look back until you reach the other side. So my first drafts are always an utter unholy mess of repetition, contradictions, out-of-order events and general over-writing. I think most writers would agree that editing is when you really bring something together, and I’m no exception. 

10. I know that being an avid reader is almost compulsory for a writer so a question I always ask is if you can remember the first book you read that moved you to tears, if any?

What a beautiful question. So many books have moved me to tears, but the first one I remember is the end of “Watership Down”, when El-Ahrairah comes for Hazel. I was about six, and it was the most grown-up book I’d ever read. Hazel looks back for a moment at all the rabbits he’s leaving behind, and El-Ahrairah says, “You needn’t worry about them…they’ll be all right, and thousands like them.” That image of Hazel, setting off on his last journey but still needing to check that his family are all right before he can go…it still makes me cry now. 

11. And finally having enjoyed this novel so much I am bound to ask when we can expect another new one!

I’m currently working on the first draft of a new novel, provisionally called The Slaughter Man, about a family who have suffered the death of one of their identical twin teenage daughters. It’s about the ways we reconstruct ourselves in the wake of devastating personal loss, and how we accept that we’re allowed to survive even when the people we love the most have left us. At the moment it’s in its this-is-awful, I-can’t-do-this, what-on-earth-made-me-think-I-could-do-this awkward teenage phase, but I have faith. And at least I haven’t had to throw it all out and start again. 

I'd like to thank Cassandra for her time and her fascinating answers. (I was delighted that her work is underpinned by feline presence!)

The Illumination of Ursula Flight - Anna-Marie Crowhurst

          In which the blogger does try to fashion a review.

I adhere to the adage that you can’t judge a book by looking at its cover but I might make an exception here. For the cover is a delight and prepares us for what’s inside this delightful debut novel from Anna-Marie Crowhurst. It is one thing to write historical fiction, many have done so successfully and convincingly but this book swallows up its reader and deposits them very firmly in the seventeenth century. It is as if you are truly there . Now that may be down to the fonts used and the wonderful design, format and layout of the book, it certainly helps without a doubt, but t’would be a disservice to this writer to credit the success of this book wholly to that. Ms. Crowhurst writes with an exuberance so often a feature of a debut novel and overdone in many instances but here it all works so perfectly. Using several devices, diary, letter and play scripts, we accompany the young Ursula on her journey to maturity.

For this is such an enjoyable book, warm and witty even when the going gets tough for Ursula, our heroine. And what a heroine she is! It’s a restoration comedy that romps along barely giving the reader time to breathe. Ursula is a breath of fresh air. A modern woman of her time, she possesses such spirit and resilience that she pushes this story onwards to its satisfying conclusion.

The buoyancy of the book must surely belie all the hard work and dedication that has gone into its creation for it is more than a straightforward, meticulously researched historical fiction. The basic premise of an arranged and unsuccessful marriage is not a new one but it is a feature of that age and has fired the imagination of many a novelist. It’s how a writer takes a basic premise and develops it that elevates the book. Using the vernacular of the age so consistently throughout was a joy to read. The authenticity of the descriptions flowed and convinced.

I don’t think there is anything I didn’t like about this book. From Ursula’s birth on the night of a ill omened comet to her ultimate triumph in pursuit of her goals, this coming of age story will uplift you and if you’ve avoided historical fiction up to now, think again, and maybe take a chance with this story. It really is fun.

My thanks to Readers First for the opportunity to read this delightful story.


     

Author Meets Reviewer - Bonnie Pipkin

Having read and reviewed Aftercare Instructions I was fortunate enough to pose some questions to the author, Bonnie Pipkin, facilitated by Nudge Books and Legend Press. My thanks to them.

Nudge Q&A with Bonnie Pipkin

(Questions by Gill Chedgey)

1. Firstly, may I say I really enjoyed Aftercare Instructions and read it in nearly one go! The first thing I wondered was when did you start writing and where did you get the inspiration for the book?

Thank you so much! Reading it in nearly one go is something I hear quite often from readers, which is definitely a compliment for a writer, but it’s also ironic how LONG it can take to make a novel read FAST. I started writing the book in my MFA program at Vermont College of Fine Arts in 2012. This program was a deep exploration of craft, so the novel went many directions before it found the right path, however, the inciting incident always remained the same: a girl named Genesis would have an abortion then walk into an empty waiting room. That scenario came to me first as the flash of inspiration. Then I had to get to know exactly who Genesis was and what she wanted most. 

2. I know it’s only one part of the story, but many might feel that abortion is a contentious subject for a book aimed at a younger audience. Did this bother you during the writing? Did you ever have any reservations? 

Never! I’ve always been drawn to edgier subject matter and content. I suppose that may be part of my personality, but I also whole-heartedly believe that the tough stuff needs to be talked about; it needs to be normalized and discussed without shame. It actually excites me to write stuff like this because I know I’m pushing the boundaries that need to be pushed. Young people don’t get enough credit for what they can handle. It doesn’t matter what we adults think: they’re going through it with or without us, and I’d rather be with them.

3. Gen is a great character and there’s plenty for kids to identify with when they read about her. Is she based on someone you know?

It’s hard for me to remove myself from Genesis. At some point before, during, or after, she really became me. So much of how she reacts to situations is how teenaged (and grown up) Bonnie would act. The events of the story aren’t events that happened to me, but I definitely draw from life and what I know when I write, so I’m deeply woven into the character. Which is why I have to laugh when I read people talking about how selfish she is and how she makes some really terrible choices. I just want to ask: “Have you never made a mistake?”

4. When we first meet Gen, she’s been through a hell of a lot, including being abandoned at the Planned Parenthood Clinic. You write so convincingly that I was really worried that you might also have been through some of these challenging and emotional events?

I’m no stranger to the challenging and emotional. While I myself wasn’t abandoned at a Planned Parenthood Clinic after having an abortion, I know first-hand what loss feels like. I know what it feels like to be disappointed by someone and have to take the reins and figure it out for myself. I have been very close to addiction, depression, and all the other darker themes in the novel. On the flip side, self-discovery through art has always been a huge part of my life, just as Genesis has to rediscover her passion for theater. And support from awesome girlfriends has also always been crucial in my life, just like Gen’s.

5. I really enjoyed the play script sections of the novel and I thought that was a clever device. It also got me thinking that this story would translate well to stage or screen. Might this be likely in the future? 

I would love that! As for its likeliness, there have been some conversations that I hope translate into reality at some point! But that it exists as a novel people can hold in their hands is enough for me at this very moment. 

6. How do you write? By that, I mean do you have any strict routines, superstitions or rituals that you adhere to?

Oh man, it could be stricter! I pretty much start each week re-defining my process and trying out new ways to trick myself out of procrastination. I had a conversation recently with another writer about how much of writing time is spent *not* writing. The stories are always swimming around in my head. I could use some better rituals though. I have to mix things up in my process or I get stagnant. Sometimes private dance parties help get things going, and sometimes twenty-minute sprints of writing do the trick, but mostly it’s about getting to the page. This is more successful for me when I schedule my writing time for the morning, but it almost always falls naturally to the afternoon. So, if you live below me and hear stomping around in the afternoon hours, it’s for a good cause. I promise. 

7. You seem to have an ability to get into the minds of young people. Do you see yourself concentrating on the Young Adult readership? 

Thank you again! Writing young adult is my main concentration now. I can’t say for sure if this is where I will stay forever, but for now it is the most exciting and raw place for me to work from. As for readership? Anyone, any age can read YA!

8. I know that being an avid reader is almost compulsory for a writer, so a question I always ask is whether you can remember the first book you read that moved you to tears (if any have)?

I am a big crier, seriously. Even cooking shows make me cry. And there is one part in my novel that always makes me cry as well, from the writing stage through each edit. The first novel where I remember bawling my eyes out was Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson. SPOILER ALERT: It was the first time I’d experienced a young person dying in a book and it was something I was lucky enough not to have faced myself yet. Books are beautiful, safe spaces to explore these situations and emotions. 

9. And finally, having enjoyed this novel so much, something else I am always bound to ask is when we can expect another one!? 

There’s one in the works now! It’s slowly pouring out of me, so it will probably be a little while before it’s in your hands. I hope sooner rather than later though! The next book will also hover on the edge and push boundaries, I assure you!

Don't Make A Sound - David Jackson

I was unfamiliar with David Jackson’s work and the Nathan Cody series before reading this gripping new thriller from Mr. Jackson and I was worried that my ignorance of the first two Cody books might inhibit my appreciation of this third one. Not so. If anything it has made me want to see exactly what happened to Cody prior to this!

This is a most disturbing and uneasy read. I think that’s true of any story where you have children in jeopardy. It is a chilling tale. It’s fairly slow to start, with a clever opening chapter that persuades us to think that we have a nice cuddly story of a middle aged couple’s devotion to one another and their family .The revelation that all is not as it seems is one of those chilling moments. I don’t do spoilers or give anything of the story away if I can help it so I’ll say no more.

The plot is relatively straightforward for the majority of the book with an unexpected twist at the end that could do with a little more exposition. But it’s a real ‘never-saw-that-coming’ moment which, as thriller readers, we all love don’t we? Isn’t that part of the reason we read thrillers? There is a romance type sub plot amongst the police officers which I don’t think adds a great deal to the story as a whole other than offer us a little character development but the ultimate relevance may be better understood by having read the previous Cody novels.

The characters for the most part are believable in that the villains are suitably villainous but I did have problems with one of the children who at ten had an enviable emotional intelligence and whose cognitive processes exceeded those of many adults. It just didn’t ring true. Crucial to the plot without a doubt but if you’re a stickler for realism it might grate. 

However nothing is perfect and nit picking is not a fulfilling pursuit. It’s a rollicking good read and it has the potential of an ‘unputdownable’ . A straightforward narrative well paced as a thriller should be. There’s lots of nasty bits, some not very nice bits and some in-between bits. I’m not sure that all lived happily ever after but this is no fairy story. It should satisfy Mr. Jackson’s existing fans and I’ll be surprised if he doesn’t gain a few more on the way.

My thanks to Readers First for the opportunity to read and review this book.