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In Death comes Life

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Under the Whispering Door T J Klune Published 21 September 2021, Kindle edition 432 pages.  Wallace Price has oodles of money, the best of everything in life and is a bastard of a boss. While he believes he is revered and respected at work, his unwavering commitment and high expectations meant that he is universally loathed. A fact that only becomes apparent when Wallace having died of a heart attack, attends his own funeral as a ghost. Expecting a cast of thousand to attend and bemoan his loss, he is aggrieved to find a handful of mourners who are there out of duty, not respect. At his funeral Wallace encounters Reaper Mei, who promises to take Wallace to the Ferryman Hugo who will be able to assist in his journey to the afterlife. The journey that Klune takes you on this novel is of realising that materialism, power, and status are all worthless when death comes calling. That time is always ticking towards death. That the life you lead, the love you encounter, and give is of a greate
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Pirates, murder, mystery and plenty of small-town secrets

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The Treasure Hunters Club: A Mystery Tom Ryan 384 pages, expected publication October 24, 2024 For hundreds of years people have been coming to Maple Bay, Novia Scotia to search for the long-lost obelisk pirate treasure. The arrival of two newcomers sets off a train of events that take things to a new deadly level in discovering what happened to the treasure.   There is a lot to unpack in this novel as Ryan has an extensive cast of characters who are all important to the overall story and you switch between four distinct points of view.   You have the present day of Peter, Cassie and Dandy and each have a point of view. There is the middle time which is the treasure hunter club with Mirabel, Bill etc. and they important to development of the story.  The last point of view is told through journal entries of Henry Bellwood who tells of the five boys who started the whole saga.  Now, the thing is, stick with it, as all the buildup as all these characters are required to for a conclusion t
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Gothic Spiders

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The Silence Factory  Bridget Collins  Kindle Edition, Expected Publication Date: 9 May 2024, Harper Collins    From the outset, as you read the first diary entry, you know this story is going to take you down dark holes of the human psyche and that redemption may never occur. Collins has reached deep to bring to the page a gothic novel, that is full of twists, turns, ambiguities and a cast of characters that are complex, flawed and whose morals are cryptic.   There are two threads to the story, the letters composed by Sophia Ashmore-Percy in the 1820s. She writes about her experiences on a Greek Island, her husband James fixation on a scientific discovery with spiders and her interaction with the locals. The second thread is that of Henry Latimer, grieving the loss of his wife, he works with his father-in-law who owns a shop that provides hearing aids, and his life is not going anywhere. Until Sir Edward Ashmore-Percy walks into the shop seeking assistance for his deaf daughter. Sir Ed
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Poetical Brutality

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Violet Bent Backwards Over the Grass Lana Del Rey 128 pages, Hardcover Published September 29, 2020 by Simon & Schuster I am going to be honest, I love poetry but I am crap understanding those deeper meanings that many are able to articulate. I read and allow myself to be emerged into the words and imagery. In Lana Del Rey’s book ‘Violet Bent Backwards Over the Grass’ you not only have a collection of poems but some wonderful images that accompany the text. I found Del Rey’s photographs really captivating, I love the street scenes as it really compliments the text. I have been dipping in and out of the book for over six months, even though under 200 pages, I have taken my time to absorb and mull over what Del Rey has allowed onto the page. Again I can not profess to have the necessary attributes to tell you what the poems are about, only what I feel. ‘Thanks to the Locals’ – it flows, it packs a punch, there is vulnerability and toughness. The dilemma, the angst is very real on the
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Still fresh after 2000 years

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Letters from a Stoic Lucius Annaeus Seneca (4 BC-AD 65) 254 pages, Penguin Classics, first published January 1, 65 What does my head in, is that here am I in 2024 reading letters that were penned some 2000 years ago. Not only that the issues being discussed we are still ruminating over today. Letters from a Stoic, is a collection of Seneca’s work and read like observations of daily life. It those parts I enjoyed the most as Seneca describes the seemingly mundane but these snippets give the most insight. It is easy to go through and tab/highlight slabs of text as there are some absolute corkers in there.  Like all works of philosophy, you will find what is relevant to you and what you think is absolute rubbish. However, 2000 years on Seneca remains relevant as you question and think about what he has put on the page.
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Whose Bad!

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The Dark Heir  C.S. Pacat 496 pages, Allen & Unwin paperback, first published November 14, 2023 Dark Rise set the reader up for a terrific ride and Dark Heir continues that journey. Will and his friends find themselves trying to stave off a disaster that is coming through the unleashing of an unholy force. That is all you need to know as anything more is giving away all the twists, turns, chaos, betrayals and sparks of romance that in the novel.  Pacat has again created an array of characters that all have their primary motivations questioned or misrepresented by others. Will knows who and what he is, whether he chooses to accept that mantle is unclear. He knows that what he feels for James is real but their history makes it unsure whether they are together for the right reasons now, or whether it is the past that brings them together. The other characters really sing off the page and each one faces a test of who or what they believe.  As a reader, you can trust Pacat to not overwh
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Greatness in development

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The Early Stories of Truman Capote.   Audio Book 2015 - Narrators Scott Brick, Nancy Linari, Sarah Scott .  This a collection of 14 short stories written when Capote was a young man and it's wonderful.   Each story has delightfully created characters, situations that are believable and capture the essence of the times.   It is exciting to hear Capote's voice at such an early age and it is not all perfect. That is okay as you can hear the development of many of his writing traits.  I listened to the audiobook and the characterisations by each of the readers really breathe life into the stories. It allowed me to be just carried away into the descriptions, the anguish, the vindictiveness, the kindness, the humour, the desperation, the hope, all wash over you. I really enjoyed this audio book, and I will purchase the paper back so I can revel in the words in greater detail. 
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