I was given a copy of Catching Fire, the second installment in the Hunger Games trilogy, as a birthday present. Since Vivian did me the favor of opening it early, I couldn't resist re-reading it.
Book #27
5 stars
And to tell you the truth, I think I like it more than the first one. I definitely liked it more this time around than I did when I first read it, just like I liked my second read of The Hunger Games more than my first. I really think that's because I just read them way too quickly when they came out. I didn't let anything sink in. I just had to know what was going to happen.
This time, I let myself absorb more and think about it, and it was awesome. I still got through it really quickly, but not because I was sprinting. I could see Peeta and Katniss more clearly than before. The characters really took off for me this time. Haymitch also grew a lot in my mind. He definitely reveals some extra layers here.
I can't wait for the film adaptation to come out next year. As I was reading, I couldn't help but speculate on who they will get to play certain characters. Finnick and Johanna may top that list. Also, Wiress and Beetee. Any ideas?
Showing posts with label bestsellers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bestsellers. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Monday, January 16, 2012
The Thirteenth Tale-- and my third read
Title: The Thirteenth Tale
Author: Diane Setterfield
Published: 2006
406 pages
Meg's rating: 5 stars
I loved this book.
Just had to get that out of the way.
The Thirteenth Tale is awesome. It is a mystery and a ghost story. It is about books and book lovers. It features writers and storytellers, siblings and twins, forbidden affairs and unnatural passions, a larger-than-life dessert caterer, a reclusive bestselling author, a destructive house fire, and loss, heartbreak, and reunion. Among other things.
Diane Setterfield hit one out of the park with this book. I was drawn in almost immediately-- and though I thought I liked it at the beginning, I liked it more and more with every chapter I read. Though I read this book concurrently with another one (which I shall be reviewing shortly) it was this book that stayed on my mind all the time-- this book that I couldn't wait to get back to every day.
The main character and narrator of this book is Margaret Lea, the daughter of a loving, book-shop-owning father and a mostly absent, ever grieving, depressed mother. Margaret dabbles in autobiographical writing when she is not helping her father out at the shop and so is only mostly shocked when she receives a letter from one of the most prolific authors of the day, Vida Winter, who wants Margaret to write her biography. Ms. Winter has written numerous bestsellers, but has managed to keep her personal life a tightly-held secret. Though reporter after reporter has come to call, Ms. Winter gets her thrills by answering their questions with complete fabrications. She is a master storyteller.
Margaret decides to accept Ms. Winter's request, and what follows is an enchanting, gripping, enthralling tale. To say it was mesmerizing is not an exaggeration. And I will leave it there, because I don't want to risk spoiling anything. Suffice it to say, I highly recommend this book. I give it five stars because, not only did I love it, I can't wait for some time to pass so I can read it again. I would absolutely LOVE to see a film adaptation, and will not be at all surprised if I do at some point.
From the back of the book:
"Reclusive author Vida Winter, famous for her collection of twelve enchanting stories, has spent the past six decades penning a series of alternate lives for herself. Now old and ailing, she is ready to reveal the truth about her extraordinary existence and the violent and tragic past she has kept secret for so long. Calling on Margaret Lea, a young biographer troubled by her own painful history, Vida disinters the life she meant to bury for good. Margaret is mesmerized by the author's tale of gothic strangeness-- featuring the beautiful and willful Isabelle, the feral twins Adeline and Emmeline, a ghost, a governess, a topiary garden and a devastating fire. Together, Margaret and Vida confront the ghosts that have haunted them while becoming, finally, transformed by the truth themselves."
Author: Diane Setterfield
Published: 2006
406 pages
Meg's rating: 5 stars
I loved this book.
Just had to get that out of the way.
The Thirteenth Tale is awesome. It is a mystery and a ghost story. It is about books and book lovers. It features writers and storytellers, siblings and twins, forbidden affairs and unnatural passions, a larger-than-life dessert caterer, a reclusive bestselling author, a destructive house fire, and loss, heartbreak, and reunion. Among other things.
Diane Setterfield hit one out of the park with this book. I was drawn in almost immediately-- and though I thought I liked it at the beginning, I liked it more and more with every chapter I read. Though I read this book concurrently with another one (which I shall be reviewing shortly) it was this book that stayed on my mind all the time-- this book that I couldn't wait to get back to every day.
The main character and narrator of this book is Margaret Lea, the daughter of a loving, book-shop-owning father and a mostly absent, ever grieving, depressed mother. Margaret dabbles in autobiographical writing when she is not helping her father out at the shop and so is only mostly shocked when she receives a letter from one of the most prolific authors of the day, Vida Winter, who wants Margaret to write her biography. Ms. Winter has written numerous bestsellers, but has managed to keep her personal life a tightly-held secret. Though reporter after reporter has come to call, Ms. Winter gets her thrills by answering their questions with complete fabrications. She is a master storyteller.
Margaret decides to accept Ms. Winter's request, and what follows is an enchanting, gripping, enthralling tale. To say it was mesmerizing is not an exaggeration. And I will leave it there, because I don't want to risk spoiling anything. Suffice it to say, I highly recommend this book. I give it five stars because, not only did I love it, I can't wait for some time to pass so I can read it again. I would absolutely LOVE to see a film adaptation, and will not be at all surprised if I do at some point.
From the back of the book:
"Reclusive author Vida Winter, famous for her collection of twelve enchanting stories, has spent the past six decades penning a series of alternate lives for herself. Now old and ailing, she is ready to reveal the truth about her extraordinary existence and the violent and tragic past she has kept secret for so long. Calling on Margaret Lea, a young biographer troubled by her own painful history, Vida disinters the life she meant to bury for good. Margaret is mesmerized by the author's tale of gothic strangeness-- featuring the beautiful and willful Isabelle, the feral twins Adeline and Emmeline, a ghost, a governess, a topiary garden and a devastating fire. Together, Margaret and Vida confront the ghosts that have haunted them while becoming, finally, transformed by the truth themselves."
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