The Savage Garden - Mark Mills

**** - an interesting story of growing up, solving mysteries, and 1950s Tuscany. Nothing I could write in this snippet will really be able to capture the novels interesting complexities, so I'll just say - I normally hate literary fiction. But this was really good. Recommended.

Brilliant but lazy college student Adam Strickland couldn't be happier when his adviser hands him a topic for his thesis - especially since the topic involves a 6-week trip to Tuscany to study the mysterious garden of a local villa. But Adam never reckoned with the possibility that not one, but two mysteries from the past would fascinate him to the point of holding him in sway until he discovers their solutions.

This is one of those books that is difficult to categorize. It's not a mystery - although it deals with the mysteries surrounding the meaning of the garden and the death of its owner's son in the last days of World War II. But it's also not self-consciously trying to be poetic, to be literary like most books that are placed in that category, so it seems unfair to me to lump it in with the pretentious books that tend to be labeled 'literary', but I guess that's what it actually is - more what literary is meant to be.

I really enjoyed this novel, though I wish less time had been spent on 'solving' Emilio's murder and more time had been dedicated to Adam's deciphering of the garden - the former didn't really engage me, but I found the latter fascinating. But at heart the novel isn't really about either of those mysteries. It's about Adam coming of age, using his brain, his actual talents rather than taking the easy way out and being miserable along the path his parents have laid out for him. It's about young love and betrayal and sibling rivalry. The story is one of growing up, unconsciously and sometimes painfully coming to terms with the world from a different perspective. And it's well-done. It resonates with the reader. This is the sort of novel you could write a paper about - if you wanted to. Or you could just read and savor the language , the allusions, the clever solution to the mysteries. Either way it's a good read.

Interested in other opinions?

Obsessed with Books

Fallen - Erin McCarthy

**** - gorgeous writing, gorgeous fallen angel hero, New Orleans,artists. It's no wonder that this romance appeals even to those who normally won't touch a paranormal. I'm looking forward to reading the others in this series.

Gabriel St. John is a fallen angel. Originally sent down to watch over the citizens of New Orleans, Gabriel found himself succumbing to the sin of gluttony - and addicted to absinthe. So when his mistress is murdered while he dances with the Green Fairy, he cannot be certain he wasn't responsible.

Decades later, another murder shows remarkable similarities. Now a true-crime writer, Gabriel contacts the victim's surviving daughter, forensic scientist Sara Michaels, in an attempt to solve both murders. But this proves more difficult than he expected - for Gabriel must fight their growing attraction lest Sara succumb to the curse lying over Gabriel.

I was very impressed with this story. I'm generally very skeptical of stories of addiction and substance abuse, but here I wasn't bothered by that aspect. It actually fit into the angel aspect of the story - which was also remarkably well handled. I love the way Gabriel could reveal himself by allowing people to see into his soul. In a way, the portrayal of Gabriel as a fallen angel reminded me a bit of Louis from Interview with a Vampire - torn between the sin he chose but refuses to let himself give into and a desire for his former state. Though there wasn't really the same degree of self-loathing (which is a bit irritating). Maybe that's not the best comparison - but the addiction and New Orleans, sexy sinners… it does invite comparison, doesn't it?

I found myself drawn to Gabriel. But I shouldn't be surprised. Because Gabriel is an artist - a photographer, a painter/sketch artist, a musician, who has suppressed his gifts for ages until Sara inspires him again. And I can't resist an artist.

Nor can I resist McCarthy's writing. It was gorgeous and evocative of all of the conflicting emotions. I only wish New Orleans itself had been given a little more screen time.

For the Sake of Elena - Elizabeth George

***1/2 - I really enjoyed revisiting Cambridge again, and I liked the way so much of this novel turned out to be reflections on art and artists. All of that was very interesting. I somehow missed the one between Well-Schooled in Murder and this one, so I was a bit thrown especially in the progression of Lynley's relationship. But I like George's mysteries - and I really want to catch the BBC versions now.

Elena Weaver, a bright but lazy college student at St. Stephen's College in Cambridge, turns up dead one morning. Her death unleashes a flurry of questions given her handicap, her tempestuous relationships with lovers and family, and her father's imminent nomination to the prestigious History Chair at the university. The more of her life is uncovered, the more suspects turn up, and the less any of it makes sense.

I really enjoy George's mysteries. I like the way she writes; the way things twist and turn; the way she interweaves the murders and the personal lives of her detectives so that you become invested in them as actual characters rather than just as a vehicle to solving the mystery. This is no exception. Lynley leaps at the chance to go to Cambridge despite the thankless nature of the investigation in order to be closer to Helen. Both Havers and Lynley are blinded at times by personal dislikes and affinities. And the reader gets caught up in the same, but not to the extent that I felt cheated when the actual whodunnit was revealed.

I did miss spending time with St. Simon this time around, and I was a bit upset that there was really very little that was likeable about any of the characters being investigated or otherwise (except for Miranda whose appearance made me happy - Does she turn up in later books?). And for some reason, this installment in the series just didn't really resonate with me except for the art references.

Bottom line: a good mystery that keeps you guessing, and must-read to follow the Lynley-Havers story arc, but I don’t feel that this is one of George's best.

Interested in the others? Here are my reviews:

Book 3: Well-Schooled in Murder

Newes from the Dead - Mary Hooper

***1/2 - the cover and the premise (especially that it was true) both grabbed me immediately. The story was interesting, but a little slow leading up to the hanging that we knew was coming. As usual, I found the historical note at the end to be of particular interest - especially the speculation about why she might have survived the hanging.

I have to confess, I love the binding. Fake crimson leather, gilt embossing, and an inset cameo of a pale young woman, flower covered paper on the inner covers - it's completely gorgeous. For some reason it immediately put me in mind of Frankenstein, a not necessarily inapt comparison given the subject matter:

In 1650, young servant girl Anne Green was hanged for infanticide. But when her bodywas brought to the College of Physicians for dissection, they heard a strange rattle in her throat - was the 'corpse' alive? This is Mary Hooper's retelling of Anne Green's story, both that leading up to her hanging and the harrowing time she spent after her 'death' unable to move, and unable to make herself heard while she was prepared for dissection.

This is, of course, exactly the kind of sensational tale likely to capture the attention of teenagers and adults alike, but those squeamish among you need not fear over much. Apart from some detailed descriptions of the conditions in prison at the time, there is remarkably little gore. Far more attention is given to the situation leading up to Anne's unfortunate predicament and the injustices she was forced to suffer rather than the grisly bits of hanging or dissection.

Anne herself isn't exactly a sympathetic character - she allows herself to get caught in an unfortunate situation with a man she cares nothing for in the interest of bettering her place in the world, not even because of a deep physical attraction. And in a lot of ways, that makes the story that much better. It would be too easy to turn her into a sacrificial lamb saved at the last minute by God because of her innocence. Instead Hooper makes sure that she is a real person - sometimes selfish and calculating, sometimes afraid and alone, but assuredly, despite her faults, not deserving the poor treatment she (and so many other women) were forced to endure.

An interesting story, and one that I think would be an interesting parallel to Frankenstein - I'll have to see if I can compare them in a future post.

Wicked Angel - Julia London

*** - Perhaps it's just my dislike of having reality intrude in my romance novels, but I don't like there to be too much in the way of obstacles for my romances. And having both parties give the "ah, but I am honor-bound to another" speech is just too much for me. It's honorable, I'm glad they have self-respect and respect for their obligations, but… enough is enough. And one "alas, I cannot, but I cannot break my troth" is already more than enough for me.

After essentially being sold into marriage with a senile Bavarian count, Lauren Hill has finally returned home (widowed) to her beloved estate at Rosewood. Though the property has fallen on hard times, Lauren is determined to make enough money to continue supporting the many children she has taken in and all without marriage, thank you very much. No thoughts of romance, that is, until she lands on top of the handsome and charming Alexander Christian while fleeing an irate hog. But Alex is far from a simple country gentleman. As she discovers later, he is the wealthy Duke of Sutherland - a strong political influence in Parliament, and engaged… though he can't get Lauren off of his mind.

The scenes at Rosewood in the country are quite lovely. The persistence of some of Lauren's more unsuitable suitors had me howling with laughter, and I loved the way Alex interacted with the children (even if I'm not a big fan of children in romances). Everything was pleasant and downright idyllic in the country. Once the action moved to Town, however, and the characters learned one another's True Identities, everyone was terribly bent out of shape for all the wrong reasons. Everyone is very Proud and Self-Sacrificing. This was accompanied by a lot of rationalizing about a Gentleman's Word, a Lady's Honor, and the Greater Good - making absolutely everyone completely miserable including the various fiances. It was pretty much a huge melodramatic mess, and I just don't have the patience for it, even with characters I liked as much as these.

On the positive side, I really did like the characters. I liked Alex, loved Lauren, definitely want to see more of the sexy cousin David, hope to see Magnus happily ensconced with a charming girl, etc. I loved that Lauren constantly threw out little quotations from her reading and that Alex was completely charmed by it. I loved Alex teaching the boys how to fence… I also really enjoyed the heated moments between Alex and Lauren - the chemistry was definitely there. It was just the practical relationship issues that drove me up the wall.

I'll be looking for more by this author in hopes of hitting a plot more to my taste - anybody know if Westfall has his own book?

The Interpretation of Murder - Jed Rubenfeld

*** - I'll be honest. I can't stand Freud. Which probably at least colored my reception of this novel. But truthfully I don't think I would have found much in it anyway. It tries too hard to be The Alienist, and it just doesn’t manage at all.

The year is 1909 and Sigmund Freud (along with disciples Jung and Ferenczi) have just arrived in New York to give a series of lectures on the budding field of psychoanalysis. At the same time, a rash of brutal attacks on young socialites captures the public's attention. Asked by Freud to analyze a surviving victim, psychology student Stratham Younger soon becomes involved in both the murder investigation and the tensions among Freud and his followers.

I'll be frank here - I really dislike Freud. All of the id, ego, superego stuff is fine, but his insistence that every urge in the human psyche is based on something sexual (or fecal for that matter) strikes me as utterly ludicrous. And he definitely lost any support I may have given him with his interpretation of Hamlet. It simply doesn't make any sense to me (much like Kierkegaard's interpretation of Hamlet - which is a long story involving over-eager philosophy grad student teachers) But generally speaking, such sweeping interpretations of plays don't work from a character development or motivation point of view, and as a former acting student, I have little patience with people approaching plays from other perspectives. It's a quirk of mine. So (all of that was vaguely relevant, I promise) when Younger announces that it is that very interpretation of Hamlet that inspired him to turn to psychoanalysis and Freud in particular, well, I knew I was going to be in trouble.

Although, to be honest, Freud wasn't actually my biggest problem with this book. The issue was that this tried too hard to be another 'Alienist' (even the cover is markedly similar) and it just doesn't fare too well in comparison. The mystery never quite takes off, its resolution is disappointing, and the fact that the hero frequently finds time during 'exciting moments' to stop and mull over the Oedipal complex or ruminate on how to 'solve' Hamlet, doesn't exactly speed things along and get your heart racing. Or at least it didn't mine…

Detective Littlemore was probably the best character in the novel, but sadly we're forced to spend significantly more time with Younger and his whining about transference, countertransference, and his rather pathetic 'love story' with a very disturbed young woman.

But worst of all, none of it answers the question posed in the preface - what happened in America that was so horrid that Freud referred to Americans as monsters and never returned? Because nothing between the covers of this novel warrants so strong a reaction. It's just a failed Caleb Carr copycat.

Interested in other opinions?

A Girl Walks Into a Bookstore

My Lord and Spymaster - Joanna Bourne

**** - I loved the vulnerable, flawed, and oh-so-human characters. As usual everyone really seems to live, and I still can't get over Adrian (who thankfully puts in another appearance here). Bourne's writing is amazing; she gives her characters unique voices, and knows how to keep the stakes in her plot high. Definitely a writer to watch.

Jess Whitby has come along way since her time as a street urchin amongst the London underworld. Always good with numbers and at seeing connections, Jess has devised an accounting system that keeps her father's shipping business running smoothly and profitably. But when her father is arrested on suspicion of spiriting British secrets into Napoleon's hands, Jess must use this system and all of her former talents and connections to clear his name and find the real culprit.

While not as good as The Spymaster's Lady (though few novels are), Joanna Bourne once again manages to craft a wonderful story with endearing, but flawed characters. Here, belonging to the London underworld has real consequences. Lazarus is no Robin Hood, no merry kind king of thieves so common in fantasy novels. He is the ultimate crime boss - often cruel, violent and ruthless, but possibly with a smidgen of affection stored up for Jess. But Lazarus could never allow simple emotion to undermine his authority over London's most brutal inhabitants, so Jess' meeting with Lazarus is utterly harrowing - it's far from clear that there will be a happy ending.

The only thing that bothered me about this novel was that it seemed like Sebastian was constantly rescuing her from something, and I wanted Jess to hold her own a bit more obviously. Because Jess is feisty, clever and completely uncontainable. Her combined strength and vulnerability is exactly what make her such an intriguing heroine. Sebastian, himself, is quite fascinating - he's been given a back story that allows him to truly understand (at least to a degree) Jess' situation and allows for a believable acceptance and affection to grow between them (once they finally let it). But the problem with the love story was the sheer amount of suspicion and distrust (all well called for, really) that floated between the characters. It's hard to convey a believable romance when the characters constantly think the other is on the verge of betraying them.

I continue to find myself yearning for Adrian's story, though I fear I'll have to wait quite some time - next up is Maggie and Doyle's story. And I have high hopes for that one as well.

Interested in other opinions?

Romance Rookie

Good Books, Bad Books

Green Rider - Kristen Britain

***1/2 - Decent fantasy, but nothing particularly stands out. I think my problem is that I couldn't help comparing it to Der Brief fuer den Koenig - an outstanding young adult fantasy with similar themes. But I'm interested enough in the characters and the kingdom to want to read the rest of the series (which I hear were a little less disjointed).

Karrigan G'ladheon just wants to go home. Under threat of expulsion from her prestigious school for fighting a nobleman, she hopes to reach her father before he hears the story from someone else. But her plans are thwarted when she comes across a dying Green Rider, one of the legendary band of king's messengers. He begs Karigan to bear his message to the king - a matter of life and death. And soon she discovers the truth of that statement, for she is pursued by assassins and a fearsome 'shadow man' who threatens to unleash the dark magic the kingdom has held at bay for so long.

This was certainly a decent first novel. The plot is nothing particularly new - giant arachnid monsters, an uncannily intelligent horse, magical artifacts and prophecies - but it's also not painfully unoriginal. There are moments when Britain really shines - the characterization (and the entire setting) of the Berry sisters, the intriguing set-up with the Bard, King Zachary. But unfortunately she doesn't really succeed at making me feel the journey - perhaps it's because all the boring travelling bits in between adventures were cut out, but I just didn't feel like she had been on the road for as long as she had - and that meant I lost a great deal of the urgency, the impatience to get there, hurry! Before it's too late! that is so important in messenger stories in particular.

So partially I wanted more set-up - more of a sense of why Karrigan was so reluctant to turn to this life as a Rider when she seemed to be thirsting for adventure. And partially I couldn't help compare it to other messenger type books that I've read that just managed to suck me in, while this one didn't. Not that I was bored. I just wasn't immersed. I'm intrigued enough by Karigan and particularly some of the secondary characters that just seemed too good not to give a greater role, that I'll be looking for the others in the series. And I think this one deserves a re-read in that light before I decide its ultimate place on my shelves or someone else's.

Interested in other opinions?

Wandering Coyote

Powder Monkey - Paul Dowswell

****1/2 - a good Navy book that really communicates what life aboard must have been like. An absolute necessity for someone as ships & sealing wax obsessed as I am, and well worth the read for the rest of you as well.

13-year-old Sam Witchall has always felt the call of a life at sea, but he's not so desperate as to join the Royal Navy. Instead he finds himself a berth as a ship's boy aboard a small merchant vessel - relatively safe and with chances to return home to see his family and his sweetheart. But Sam's comfortable life aboard is turned upside down when he is pressed into service as a powder monkey (a boy who carries powder to the guns during battle) on the HMS Miranda. Far from a romantic adventure, Sam now lives in a world of harsh discipline, bullies, and constant threat of danger.

I'll admit it right up front - I adore ship books. Preferably elegant age-of-sail ships with tall masts any young, spirited protagonists, though any ship will do. Luckily this fit all of my favorite criteria. So it's no surprise that I couldn't keep myself from purchasing this when I saw it. Nor is it surprising that I loved it.

The book's greatest strength is its emphasis on realism. Sam doesn't want to be on board, he's frightened and chafes under the sudden restrictions to his former freedom. He's not extraordinarily clever, extraordinarily brave or kind. He's just a boy trying to make his way out of a nasty situation. And being onboard a fighting ship during the Napoleonic Wars was certainly nasty - about that the book leaves no doubt. It details the poor food, the threat of flogging for any infraction (real or imagined), officer tyrants and the fear of enemy fire. But it also shows the cameraderie, the friendships, the fun had by sailors skylarking in the rigging or singing at night.

This is a great read for those already interested in this sort of book, but there is no quest or great adventure like in Treasure Island or many other young adult ship books; this is more a book about the daily hardships (large and small) aboard a Navy ship of the time - which is fascinating, but not perhaps the best place to start for the uninitiated or those not already bitten by the sea bug.