Author: Tess Gerritsen

While attending a pathologist’s conference in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Dr. Maura Isles impulsively (and due to personal problems back home with her lover-priest Daniel Brophy) goes on a road trip with her new friends. Caught up by a huge snow storm, they get stranded in the middle of nowhere, a place called Kingdom Come, where it seems all residents left abruptly for some mysterious reason.

When she doesn’t turn up in Boston, Jane Rizzoli, together with her husband Gabriel Dean and tormented soul Daniel Brophy, fly to Wyoming to search for her.

This book is told in a different perspective compared to the previous Rizzoli&Isles ones – although in the end the mystery of the missing residents of Kingdom Come is solved on the autopsy table, the whole story centers on Maura’s unfortunate and unlucky trip, spiced up by religious fanaticism, chemical waste disposal, paedophilia and mass suicide. The end has a twist, and you will be surprised by who is responsible for everything that happened.

It is a page-turner, and I read it in one day!

Now, one thing that I want to add: the whole thing reminded me a lot of those hundreds of American movies where people go camping in some deserted place, or make a wrong turn, get lost and disappear from the face of the earth, especially when there’s no telephone signal there and – what a surprise – they decided to tell no one where they were going to…hell, I guess after watching only a couple of movies like this you should have a pretty good picture of what to do or not when you are in this situation, but worse, you almost certainly know that things won’t have a happy ending for you or your friends (because someone has to survive to tell the tale)…hahaha.

And I think Maura will never ever again make a reckless decision without planning it in advance for weeks or even months!

P.S.: The Killing Place and Ice Cold are the same book.

Buy The Killing Place from: The Book Depository or Amazon.

Author: Anthony Kiedis, Larry Sloman

Red Hot Chili Peppers fans: this book is about Anthony Kiedis, not the band, so if you want to read mostly about the band and not their front man, then this book is not for you (I mean, you should read it anyway, but just don’t complain later on that you were expecting more about the other members). Of course RHCP will appear a lot along the book, as it is part of Kiedis’ life, and he tells us about relationships between the guys and where the inspiration for many songs came from, but the book is focused on his life, from his birthday in 1962 to the publication of his biography in 2004.

As usually expected, sex, drugs and rock&roll are the main dish for a rock star, and you know upfront that you will find it here, but what is very nice about this book is how it is written: Anthony Kiedis does not try to teach us or preach about drug use – he tells us his story and shows us what he’s been through with simplicity and honesty, as if he was talking to an old friend, and sometimes you just wish you could intervene  when you see he is again going to a hole, but he does not point fingers or blame people (other than himself) and he does not try to convince you of anything.

I like Red Hot – I’m not the biggest fan, who would cross a country to see them – and I really liked the book, but I definitely recommend this book to any person (fan or not), as it is very well structured and has an interesting story of an interesting life.

Buy Scar Tissue from: The Book Depository or Amazon.

Author: Piers Paul Read

This is a true story, and I believe you all have already heard about it. It is a tragedy, but also a demonstration of faith and hope.

4 decades ago, a chartered flight carrying a Uruguayan Rugby team and their friends/families, flying from Montevideo – Uruguay to Santiago – Chile, crashed in the Andes Mountains due to bad weather and the pilots’ error. The plane split in two, with the tail and 7 people landing far from its body. From the 45 people aboard, 33 survived the crash. This was the 13^th of October 1972.

The next day, 8 more people had died from cold or injuries. The only doctor aboard had died in the crash, so two of the guys who were studying Medicine were left to try their best to treat injuries and keep people alive, even though there were no medical supplies available.

On the 11^th day in the mountains, through a small radio, they discovered that the search for them had been cancelled.

On the 29^th of October, 16 days after the accident, an avalanche descended during the night and killed 8 more people, leaving 19 alive.

With barely no food nor anything else suitable for survival in an altitude of 3600mt, and knowing that their only chance of being rescued was to cross the Andes, they came to a very difficult decision of eating the flesh of the dead bodies – and this was really hard because they were all friends or mates.

Then two guys, Nando Parrado and Roberto Canessa, left and walked for 10 days until they could find help and finally rescue the remaining  14 passengers – on the 23^rd of December 1972.

The book was written 2 years after the accident, from extensive testimony of the survivors and, according to the author, not dramatizing anything, because the whole thing didn’t need any more drama. It is an incredible and sad story that shows the details of their struggle in the mountains, the day-to-day life there, and the relationship between the passengers which, I have to say, played an important role on their fate.

This story deeply touched me, especially because when I read it I was only a couple of years younger than most of them, who were in their early 20’s.

A couple of years later, I had the pleasure to meet (and even take a picture with) one of the survivor’s dad, Carlos Páez Villaró. He is a Uruguayan artist who has a beautiful place called Casapueblo, in Punta Ballena, Uruguay. There it is possible to see a short film where he talks about the accident and how he never lost hope of finding his son (Carlitos Páez) alive.

A classic and must-read book. Absolutely recommended.

Buy Alive: The Story of the Andes Survivors from: The Book Depository or Amazon.

Author: Irvine Welsh

After a mental breakdown due to a child murder case he investigated, and still recovering from drug abuse, D.I. Ray Lennox (Filth) goes on holidays to Miami, Florida with his fiancée Trudi, whose only idea is planning their wedding.

While there, they have a fight which ends up with Ray going with two women he met in a bar to their apartment to have some cocaine. Things go wild and Ray is now responsible for Tianna, a 10 year old girl and daughter of one of the women.

Haunted by the memories and ghosts from his recent case back in Edinburgh, Ray’s only quest now is to protect Tianna from a paedophile network.

The book is good and easy to read, but I didn’t get attached to it as with the other Irvine Welsh’s books. I don’t think there is enough depth on the story and the characters, and although the usual combination of drugs-sex-booze-violence, typical from the author, is there, it felt quite a different writing style – which is not my favorite. I love Welsh’s old and usual way of writing.

Buy Crime from: The Book Depository or Amazon.

Author: Kim Edwards

1964 – During a snowy night in Kentucky, Dr. David Henry has to make the delivery of his and his wife Norah’s own and first child, helped only by a nurse called Caroline. A perfect boy named Paul is born – and that’s when he realizes there is another baby coming – a girl with Down Syndrome. Worried about her health and the impact on Norah’s life, he asks Caroline to put the baby girl in an institution, and tells his wife the girl was stillborn. Caroline, seeing the precarious conditions of the institution, decides to take care of the baby, and names her Phoebe.

Norah was never the same after her daughter’s “death”, and Caroline moved to Pittsburgh to start a new life with Phoebe as her daughter.

We follow Paul and Phoebe’s growth throughout the years, while David and Norah’s marriage deteriorate.

The plot is very interesting, but the book is disappointing. The characters are unlikeable, some things are not explained very well while others are repeated a thousand times, and the end is, of course, predictable.

What a shame! It could have been a great book if written in a completely different way.

Buy The Memory Keeper’s Daughter from: The Book Depository or Amazon.

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Author: Carlos Ruiz Zafón

Using the same universe of The Shadow of the Wind, The Angel’s Game takes us to Barcelona in the 1920’s. Although it is not a proper prequel, because the story is very different and has no connection to that of the first book, we again see the Cemetery of the Forgotten Books and the Sempere & Sons Bookshop.

This time, David Martin, a young writer disappointed with his love and professional life, accepts the offer of a mysterious editor to write a book that could “change the world” – but not for a cheap price.

After having fallen in love with The Shadow of the Wind, I was highly anticipating this would be another wonderful book, but unfortunately it didn’t meet my expectations. The book in itself is good, no doubt about it – there’s mystery, friendship, romance, and the descriptions and the characters are very profound. At some points I felt this weight upon my chest and my mood was kind of deteriorating – just what happens when the words and characters have such depth – but maybe because of this, when I think about this book I think of darkness (maybe some part of me is still lost inside a room or a corridor of David’s house), and for that and the natural comparison that we’ll all do, The Angel’s Game is not near as good as the previous one.

But, said that, as this is a 4-part series, I’ll certainly read the next books and try not to raise my expectation so high, so maybe I’ll be surprised, and for the better.

Buy The Angel’s Game from: The Book Depository or Amazon.

Author: Markus Zusak

Set in Germany during World War II, this could be another book amongst millions that explore the war period with a dramatic story on top. Huge mistake. The Book Thief is simply a masterpiece and should be in the bookshelves of every person in the world. So what makes it so special?

To start with, the narrator of the book is Death, but believe it or not, he is not keen of war as everyone seems to think. It’s very interesting to see Death defining himself and his job, but most of all, him opining about human actions, morals and thoughts – he is sarcastic, smart and funny.

His first encounter with the main character, Liesel Meminger, a 9 year old german girl, happens when she and her younger brother are being taken by their mother to a foster family and her little brother dies. Stopping for the burial, Liesel finds a book called “The Gravedigger’s Handbook” lost in the snow – this is the first book she “steals”.

After that, Death will continue telling us Liesel’s life with her foster parents, big-hearted Hans Hubermann (Papa) and strict Rosa Hubermann, as well as the neighborhood and Max Vandenburg, a Jew they hide in the basement and with whom Liesel develops a great fondness and shares the passion for words. I will not write more than that because I don’t want to spoil the whole story – you’d better read and discover it for yourself, and I’m sure you won’t regret it.

One other thing that is interesting is having the point of view of common germans during the war: those who didn’t approve Hitler’s actions and didn’t want to take part on it, and kids, who tried to make the best of their days during those tough and strange times.

Beautifully and amazingly well-written, Markus Zusak deserves all the glory for this book.

A must read, definitely.

Buy The Book Thief from: The Book Depository or Amazon.

Author: George R.R. Martin

**CAUTION: IT DOES CONTAIN SPOILERS IF YOU HAVEN’T READ THE PREVIOUS BOOKS**

After the slaughter of several important characters in the previous book, one had to wonder who was left to tell the story and how the author was going to keep it up. The answer is plain and simple: a whole bunch of new POVs. 6 they are: The Prophet / The Drowned Man (Aeron “Damphair” Greyjoy); The Captain of the Guards (Areo Hotah); The Princess in the Tower / The Queenmaker (Aryanne Martell); The Kraken’s Daughter (Asha Greyjoy); The Soiled Knight (Ser Arys Oakheart) and The Iron Captain / The Reaver (Victarion Greyjoy). Additionally to them, there’s also 6 POVs already known to us from the previous books (thankfully, otherwise I would not follow it so eagerly): Cersei and Jaime Lannister; Samwell Tarly; Brienne of Tarth; Arya Stark / Cat of the Canals and Sansa Stark / Alayne Stone. All the above with a slash between names mean that character has chapters of his own with two different names – confusing, if you are not paying too much attention on the new characters. Also, the prologue is told by a novice of the Citadel.

Said that, I found the first two hundred pages a bit boring and struggled to get past it, but persistence paid off – once the story caught up, I couldn’t stop reading.

In Dorne, we are introduced to Prince Doran Martell, his daughter Aryanne, the Sand Snakes (the Red Viper’s bastards), and we discover Doran’s plans for vengeance against King’s Landing.

In the Iron Islands, the Kingsmoot turns out to be very predictable (surprise!).

Sansa is in the Eyrie, living as Littlefinger’s natural daughter. I didn’t intend to spend too much time talking about her, because she doesn’t deserve it – she is too silly, even after everything that happened to her and her family, but one thing caught my attention and I want to add this as another reason as to why I despise her so much. After “ages” having not thought about Jon Snow, when someone makes a comment about him, she thinks “he was only my half brother, but still…”. Even when she completes saying, or better, thinking, that now he’s all that she has, she has never considered him as real family! In comparison, Arya loves Jon with all her heart, and if she doesn’t think about Sansa too, who is her sister (not half), it is because they are completely different girls and this difference made them fight, so it’s not because of their blood that she doesn’t give a thought about silly Sansa.

Meanwhile, in the Riverlands, Brienne is still on her mission to keep her promise to Catelyn Stark and also Jaime Lannister, and she now has with her Podrick Payne, Tyrion’s squire.

But it is in King’s Landing that most of the action takes place. Cersei, sweet Cersei…I guess she will have what she deserves soon enough, or so I hope. She’s so full of herself and blind with power, that she does not seem able to think rationally, although she thinks her moves and plots and lies and games are fantastic and would make her father proud of her. What a big fool. She should know better.

Jaime has changed for better, and I definitely sympathize with him now. Samwell is the same craven as ever, and Arya is the one to whom all my best wishes are directed for, but at this point of the series, I have no idea what is going to happen to her.

To finalize: A Feast for Crows is focused in Westeros – from Dorne up to the Eyrie, the Iron Islands and King’s Landing. There are some bits and pieces happening in Braavos, across the Narrow Sea, but apart from that, we hardly hear about The Wall and Essos. George R.R. Martin decided to split the story in two books due to its length, but instead of dividing it per chronology, he divided it by location and characters, which means the next book, A Dance of Dragons, will focus in Daenerys (Essos) and Jon Snow / Stannis (The Wall).

I think this is good, because then we don’t have superficial stories everywhere, but does it mean that we’ll have to wait until the 6^th book (The Winds of Winter – publication date unknown) to know what happens to the characters in Westeros? This is cruel!!!!

It’s another brilliant book, but I’m not giving 5 stars because of those first 200 pages.

Buy A Feast for Crows from: The Book Depository or Amazon.

Author: Tess Gerritsen

First of all, I like Tess Gerritsen’s books very much, in particular the ones with Detective Jane Rizzoli and Dr. Maura Isles, a forensic pathologist whom I usually compare and put at the same level as Kay Scarpeta (Patricia Cornwell’s character).

The Silent Girl, though, disappointed me. I read the book until the end, but only because I don’t like to leave a story unfinished, and also because I was hoping it would get better, which it didn’t.

A body is found in Boston’s Chinatown, which brings Rizzoli to the investigation and Maura Isles to do the autopsy – and she finds two non-human hair strands in the clothes of the victim. This murder is soon connected to a tragedy that occurred 17 years ago, also there in Chinatown. Side stories, if we can call it that, are Isles testifying against a cop, which prompts all police department to kind of hate her; and Rizzoli kind of fighting with her husband, who thinks she’s taking too much risks at work (as if he didn’t know her profession when they got together).

Anyway, although there is mystery and a twist in the story, I didn’t like it because there is too much “paranormal” or similar things – let’s put it that way – and all these ultra martial arts movements, the type that you see on TV and think “yeah, yeah, right…”, so this was very unreal and not what I was expecting.

There are better books by Tess Gerritsen, and I will try to review a couple of them later on, but you may enjoy this one if you like Chinese culture.

Buy The Silent Girl from: The Book Depository or Amazon.