30th September, 2014
The Drowning
| Name : | TAN HOONG WEI |
| Class : | K3B |
| School Num. : | 12196 |
| Book Call Num. : | FLAC |
| Book Title : | The Drowning |
| Author : | Camilla Lackberg |
| Publication Year/(Edition) : | Harper Collins (2008) |
Setting:
Modern Time in Fjällbacka
Characters:
Patrik Hedström- A fellow police officer who has solved numerous crimes. He is Erica’s loving husband. He cares deeply to both his wife and daughter.
Erica Falck- An author who writes crime fiction and loves mysteries. She is a wife and a mother. Currently, she’s pregnant with a pair of twins. She is strong willed and determined to solve the case of Christian’s mystery letters.
Christian Thydell- A librarian in Fjällbacka, has published his novel The Mermaid. The book has been very well-received and a great success. Even so, things are very tough for Christian: he has received very threatening letters that are devastating and extremely frightening.
Magnus Kjellner- Disappeared without a trace and has been missing for three months.
Erik- One of Magnus and Christian’s childhood friend. Has an alcoholic wife. Has an affair. Ill treats his wife. Desperately tries to hide from his past.
Kenneth- Another one of Magnus and Christian’s childhood friend. His wife has cancer and dies in the end. Heart-broken and guilty, he seeks help from the police.
Summary:
Christian Thydell, a librarian in Fjällbacka, has published his novel The Mermaid. The book has been very well-received and a great success. Even so, things are very tough for Christian: he has received very threatening letters that are devastating and extremely frightening. Erica discovers the letters and steals one of them to show to her police detective husband Patrick. Inadvertently, the existence of the letters leaks to the press, which of course increases the pressure on the already hard-pressed and fragile Christian.
At his end, at the police station, Patrik is working with a missing person case: Magnus Kjellner has disappeared without a trace and has been missing for three months. There is every reason to believe he is dead, but so far no body has turned up. When his body is found, the investigation turns into a hunt for his murderer.
After the letters turn up, it becomes clear that Christian and Magnus knew one another. That they were part of a group of childhood friends with strong ties to one another. It is quite possible that there is a connection between the letters that Christian is receiving and the disappearance. Erik and Kenneth too, had received such letters which are exactly the same.
Numerous threats had occurred in their houses. As time passes by, more and more misfortunes happen. Christian couldn’t bear the consequences and decided to end his life. Erik fled and traveled incognito. He was then brought back to his home place for questioning.
In the end, it is known that Christian had personality split. Because of his guilt when he was young, he blamed himself for his sister’s troubles and misfortunes. He knew it was the right thing to do and he committed suicide by hanging himself from the lighthouse.
Reviews:
In my opinion, this is a wonderful book to read. It is fast pacing and mind boggling. I love this book and would thoroughly recommend it to everybody. Though it might be long and dragging at some parts, it is still a good read. There are lots of twists and turns which will most definitely catch you off guard. The Drowning is an exhilarating and intriguing book as you wouldn’t know what will happen next. One will have to read till the end for the climax. When dark secrets lurk behind, it makes everything more exciting.
Posted at 8:12 am | Comments (5)
30th September, 2014
Evil At Heart
| Name : | TAN HOONG WEI |
| Class : | K3B |
| School Num. : | 12196 |
| Book Call Num. : | FCAI |
| Book Title : | Evil At Heart |
| Author : | Chelsea Cain |
| Publication Year/(Edition) : | Macmillan (2009) |
Settings:
Modern time in the United States.
Character:
Archie Sheridan
-A Portland detective, once held captive by Gretchen Lowell. He is currently solving the “Beauty Killer” case.
Gretchen Lowell
-A serial killer. Also known as the “Beauty Killer”. She has an appealing demeanor was once a nurse.
Susan Ward
-A reporter working for the Herald. A friend of Archie’s. Helpful but naïve at times. A rebellious multi-coloured hair woman as well. Currently, she has purple hair and wants to write a book about Gretchen.
Summary:
Gretchen Lowell is still on the loose. These days, she’s more of a cause célèbre than a feared killer, thanks to sensationalist news coverage that has made her a star. Her face graces magazine covers weekly and there have been sightings of her around the world. Most shocking of all, Portland Herald reporter Susan Ward has uncovered a bizarre kind of fan club, which celebrates the number of days she’s been free.
Archie Sheridan hunted her for a decade, and after his last ploy to catch her went spectacularly wrong, remains hospitalized months later. When they last spoke, they entered a détente of sorts—Archie agreed not to kill himself if she agreed not to kill anyone else. But when a new body is found accompanied by Gretchen’s trademark heart, all bets are off and Archie is forced back into action.
Reviews:
In this third installment to the Gretchen Lowell series, Chelsea Cain’s novel continues to surprise me. This is an enjoyable book. Gretchen and Archie never fail to amaze me. With Archie’s superb thinking skills, Gretchen’s exciting torments and Susan’s childish attributes, the story keeps moving and its hard to put it down. This story keeps you guessing till the end. A good read.
Posted at 8:10 am | Comments (5)
30th September, 2014
The Night Season
| Name : | TAN HOONG WEI |
| Class : | K3B |
| School Num. : | 12196 |
| Book Call Num. : | – |
| Book Title : | The Night Season |
| Author : | Chelsea Cain |
| Publication Year/(Edition) : | Pan Books (2011) |
Settings:
Modern time in the United States.
Character:
Archie Sheridan
-A Portland detective, once held captive by Gretchen Lowell. He is currently solving the “Beauty Killer” case.
Gretchen Lowell
-A serial killer. Also known as the “Beauty Killer”. She has an appealing demeanor was once a nurse. A minor character in this book.
Susan Ward
-A reporter working for the Herald. A friend of Archie’s. Helpful but naïve at times. A rebellious multi-coloured hair woman as well. Currently, she has purple hair and wants to write a book about Gretchen.
Summary:
Heavy rains have burst the banks of the Willamette River; several people have died in the furiously rising waters…but the latest victim didn’t drown. She was killed before she went into the water. Soon, other victims are found, and Police Detective Archie Sheridan realises that Portland has a new serial killer on its hands.
Reporter Susan Ward is on the story, but she’s got other leads to chase, and some secrets can be frightening for prying eyes. With Archie following a bizarre trail of evidence, and Susan close behind, the pair must unearth the identity of a vicious murderer, and uncover the truth behind a mystery more than sixty years old…
Review:
This is the fourth book to the Gretchen Lowell series by Chelsea Cain. Once again, Chelsea Cain had outdone herself. This is a fast pacing and thrilling book. It even chills you to the core! It has a perfect plot which involves some marine sea creatures, ones you don’t expect could be such deadly weapons. However, Gretchen Lowell has been captures and locked up, meaning she doesn’t appear much in this novel. In my opinion, she is the greatest killer of all time and her lack of murders in this novel saddens me. Nonetheless, this is a great read. You can’t put it down. Even if you do, the plot keeps haunting you till the end.
Posted at 8:10 am | Comments (6)
30th September, 2014
Rush of Blood
| Name : | TAN HOONG WEI |
| Class : | K3B |
| School Num. : | 12196 |
| Book Call Num. : | FBIL |
| Book Title : | Rush of Blood |
| Author : | Mark Billingham |
| Publication Year/(Edition) : | Sphere (2013) |
Settings:
Florida
Character:
Barry- irritable builder, husband to Angie
Angie- Barry’s wife. She’s gossipy.
Ed- obnoxious and adulterous, husband to Sue
Sue- Wife to Ed. Seemingly docile
Dave- Marina’s boyfriend
Marina- A wannabe actress and Dave’s girlfriend
Summary:
Three couples meet around the pool on their Florida holiday and become fast friends. But on their last night, their perfect holiday takes a tragic twist: the teenage daughter of another holidaymaker goes missing, and her body is later found floating in the mangroves. When the shocked couples return home, they remain in contact, and over the course of three increasingly fraught dinner parties they come to know one another better. But they don’t always like what they find: buried beneath these apparently normal exteriors are some dark secrets, hidden kinks, ugly vices… Then, a second girl goes missing. Could it be that one of these six has a secret far darker than anybody can imagine?
Review:
Rush of Blood by Mark Billingham is nice to read. It shows the love and care of a mother to a child, and what desperateness to lead a person to the wrong path of life. Love could lead to death and danger too. Love is truly a fatal object. The plot twist at the end of the story is unexpected. I have had suspicions about the killer and everybody seems like a suspect to me as they have no actual alibis to anything. Their idiosyncrasies are what makes them a suspect too. We must never cheat on our partners. We too, must learn how to control our obsessions, or else it’ll lead us to undesirable consequences. There are a lot or characters in this book and readers would get confused sometimes.
Posted at 8:09 am | Comments (5)
30th September, 2014
The Death Sculptor
| Name : | TAN HOONG WEI |
| Class : | K3B |
| School Num. : | 12196 |
| Book Call Num. : | FCAR |
| Book Title : | The Death Sculptor |
| Author : | Chris Carter |
| Publication Year/(Edition) : | Simon & Schuster (2013) |
Setting:
Somewhere around this time
Characters:
Robert Hunter- an intelligent detective. He has seen many grotesque crime and is more than willing to solve the cases.
Garcia- Robert Hunters working partner. He loves his wife very much eve though they have their own quirks.
Alice Beaumont- a firm woman. She knew Hunter since she was small and developed a liking on him when she was young. She went to the same school as Robert Hunter when they were small, though Hunter doesn’t realize that until she tells him.
Summary:
“Good job you didn’t turn on the lights……”
A student nurse has the shock of her life when she discovers her patient, prosecutor Derek Nicholson, brutally murdered in his bed. The act seems senseless – Nicholson was terminally ill with only weeks to live. But what most shocks Detective Robert Hunter of the Los Angeles Robbery Homicide Division is the calling card the killer left behind.
For Hunter, there is no doubt that the killer is trying to communicate with the police, but the method is unlike anything he’s ever seen before. And what could the hidden message be?
Just as Hunter and his partner Garcia reckon they’ve found a lead, a new body is found – and a new calling card. But with no apparent link between the first and second victims, all the progress they’ve made so far goes out of the window.
Pushed into an uncomfortable alliance with the confident Alice Beaumont, Hunter must race to put together the pieces of the investigation . . . before the Death Sculptor puts the final touches to his masterpiece.
Review:
In my opinion, The Death Sculptor is a chilling and nerve-wrecking novel. It is a creative book with an abundant of new techniques used by a killer. The Death Sculptor’s subtle and detailed works of art (or sculpting) intrigues me. Next, this book is also easy to understand and comprehend. Chris Carter has made an excellent job in writing gruesome thrillers. The plot twist in this novel is unexpected and will most definitely catch you off guard. To all crime lovers, this is a must read as well.
Posted at 8:09 am | Comments (6)
30th September, 2014
The Trinity Six
| Name : | TAN HOONG WEI |
| Class : | K3B |
| School Num. : | 12196 |
| Book Call Num. : | FCUM |
| Book Title : | The Trinity Six |
| Author : | Charles Cumming |
| Publication Year/(Edition) : | Harper Torch (2011) |
Characters:
Dr. Sam Gaddis- a divorcee and professor in University College London. Notable for his deteriorating life in London. Has a daughter named Min.
Holly Levvet- A person asking help from Dr. Gaddis. Has an affair with him.
Tanya- Works with the British Intelligent company. Went undercover as a spy to keep track on Dr. Sam Gaddis. Saved his life over and over again.
Summary:
The most closely-guarded secret of the Cold War is about to be exposed – the identity of a SIXTH member of the infamous Cambridge spy ring. And people are killing for it…
London, 1992. Late one night, Edward Crane, 76, is declared dead at a London hospital. An obituary describes him only as a ‘resourceful career diplomat’. But Crane was much more than that – and the circumstances surrounding his death are far from what they seem.
Fifteen years later, academic Sam Gaddis needs money. When a journalist friend asks for his help researching a possible sixth member of the notorious Trinity spy ring, Gaddis knows that she’s onto a story that could turn his fortunes around. But within hours the journalist is dead, apparently from a heart attack.
Taking over her investigation, Gaddis trails a man who claims to know the truth about Edward Crane. Europe still echoes with decades of deadly disinformation on both sides of the Iron Curtain. And as Gaddis follows a series of leads across the continent, he approaches a shocking revelation – one which will rock the foundations of politics from London to Moscow…
Summary:
I wasn’t expecting much on this book as I knew there would be a lot of history going on in there. The book starts of slow and boring. The first half was quiet confusing but it picks up slowly afterwards. Some of it was intense. I would give this book a 3 star rating though as I didn’t capture much of my attention to it. None the less, it’s a good read for history lovers.
Posted at 8:08 am | Comments (5)
30th September, 2014
Pretty Little Things
| Name : | TAN HOONG WEI |
| Class : | K3B |
| School Num. : | 12196 |
| Book Call Num. : | FHOF |
| Book Title : | Pretty Little Things |
| Author : | Jilliane Hoffman |
| Publication Year/(Edition) : | Harper Collins (2010) |
Settings:
Modern time in the United States.
Characters:
Bobby Dees: Bobby Dees is a special agent, who was working for the NYPD. He is 40 years old and he wants to find every missing child.
Debbie LaManna: Debbie LaManna, mother of Elaine, Liza and Bradley, is always stressed after work, because the children don’t follow her instructions at home. She’s more angry about the behaviour of her husband Todd than on Elaine’s disappearance. Her oldest child Liza became criminal and doesn’t show up often at home, Debbie doesn’t want Elaine to become like this. Her mother died of lung cancer and she doesn’t like to have the cops involved in her life.
Todd LaManna: Todd LaManna is the father of Bradley and stepfather of Elaine and Liza. So he doesn’t care of Elaine’s and Liza’s problems. He has a job as a used-car salesman at CarMax Regional. He cheats his wife with another woman.
LuAnn: LuAnn is the wife of Bobby. She loves her daughter and is very sad that she went away from home.
Katherine: Katy is the daughter of the special agent Bobby. After a conflict with her parents she ran away from home, because of this Bobby have a feeling of guilt.
Summary:
A terrifying new standalone psycholgical thriller from the bestselling writer of ‘Retribution’ Special Agent Bobby Dees knows what grief feels like. He understands the pain of losing a child. And he’ll do whatever he can to prevent it from happening again. The phone call that comes on a Sunday morning will take him away from his insular world of grief and sleepless nights — and into a far darker place. A young girl, Elaine Emerson, has gone missing and only Dees has a chance of finding her. It seems that Elaine had gone to meet her boyfriend, a mysterious figure she met secretly on the internet, who goes by the name of “Boogeyman” or El Capitan, and whose reality is as cruel and chilling as the worst thing Dees can imagine!
Reviews:
This book is an exceptional thriller. It deals with reality and teenagers nowadays. Child kidnappings are common and people do not give much notice about it. This novel sets as a reminder to everybody to not be fooled by online dating sites, especially teenage girls. The characters in this book aren’t stereotypical and it enhances the twist and turns of this novel. This is a rather nice book to read. One should never be fooled by online daters. We must always keep an eye out on strangers and be wary of our surrounding as well.
Posted at 6:59 am | Comments (5)
30th September, 2014
Fade
| Name : | TAN HOONG WEI |
| Class : | K3B |
| School Num. : | 12196 |
| Book Call Num. : | FMCM |
| Book Title : | Fade |
| Author : | Lisa McMann |
| Publication Year/(Edition) : | Simon and Schuster (2011) |
Settings:
Modern time in the United States.
Character:
Janie, is the main character. She tells us what is going on in her life, and she is the most important character. She is able to see into other peoples dreams and whenever she sees someone in class, or riding the bus sleeping, she starts to get nauseous and feels like she is sick when this happens.
Cabel Strumheller, Develops a romantic relationship with Janie and is the only one who knows her secret. He does not play a major role until late in the story. He has a covert identity and helps police with drug busting. He is also plagued with dreams of killing a man who Janie later realizes is his father.
Miss Stubin, an elderly woman who lives in Heather Home where Janie works. Also a dream catcher, she helps Janie realize her abilities.
Captain Fran Komiski, Cabel’s boss, and the one who is in charge of the drug busting operation.
Summary:
For Janie and Cabel, real life is getting tougher than the dreams. They’re just trying to carve out a little (secret) time together, but no such luck.
Disturbing things are happening at Fieldridge High, yet nobody’s talking. When Janie taps into a classmate’s violent nightmares, the case finally breaks open — but nothing goes as planned. Not even close. Janie’s in way over her head, and Cabe’s shocking behavior has grave consequences for them both.
Worse yet, Janie learns the truth about herself and her ability — and it’s bleak. Seriously, brutally bleak. Not only is her fate as a dream catcher sealed, but what’s to come is way darker than she’d feared….
Reviews:
Fade is the second book to the Dream Catcher Trilogy. It has a great blend of suspense, thriller and mild romance. Janie, the protagonist in this book, is a very courageous woman and is willing to sacrifice her future for the sake of the society. Her immense bravery makes her a fantastic heroine. Thus, I duly recommend this book. The spying techniques and putting on facades spice up this novel. 4 stars for this book.
Posted at 6:58 am | Comments (7)
30th September, 2014
The Inquisitor
| Name : | TAN HOONG WEI |
| Class : | K3B |
| School Num. : | 12196 |
| Book Call Num. : | FSMI |
| Book Title : | The Inquisitor |
| Author : | Mark Allen Smith |
| Publication Year/(Edition) : | Simon and Schuster (2012) |
Settings:
This era in the United Kingdom.
Characters:
Geiger- A professional torturer with a buried past and a gift for extracting the truth at any cost. A man with no boundaries. Except one: never work on a child.
Ezra- a twelve-year-old boy hiding a dangerous secret. An innocent child thrown into an adults’ game of cat and mouse. He has nowhere to run and hide, and no hope of protection. Except Geiger.
Henry- Geiger’s partner. Has a mentally ill sister. Desires to end his sister’s life but fails in the end. Ends up grieving for his sister’s death.
Summary:
Geiger has a gift: he knows a lie the instant he hears it. And in his business—called “information retrieval” by its practitioners—that gift is invaluable, because truth is the hottest thing on the market.
Geiger’s clients count on him to extract the truth from even the most reluctant subjects. Unlike most of his competitors, Geiger rarely sheds blood, but he does use a variety of techniques—some physical, many psychological—to push his subjects to a point where pain takes a backseat to fear. Because only then will they finally stop lying.
One of Geiger’s rules is that he never works with children. So when his partner, former journalist Harry Boddicker, unwittingly brings in a client who demands that Geiger interrogate a twelve-year-old boy, Geiger responds instinctively. He rescues the boy from his captor, removes him to the safety of his New York City loft, and promises to protect him from further harm. But if Geiger and Harry cannot quickly discover why the client is so desperate to learn the boy’s secret, they themselves will become the victims of an utterly ruthless adversary.
Reviews:
No comments. Why? Because this book is EPIC, compelling and exciting. No words could describe it. It’s full of gore and blood. The plot is wicked and gruesome. The torturing method used by Geiger in this book is interesting and attracts my attention. It teaches us how fear plays tricks with the mind, thus, making it a partly educational book as well. This is an absolutely engrossing book! 10 stars for this book!
Posted at 6:56 am | Comments (8)
30th September, 2014
Our Happy Time
| Name : | Stella Anne Teoh Ming Hui |
| Class : | K3C |
| School Num. : | 12231 |
| Book Call Num. : | FGON |
| Book Title : | Our Happy Time |
| Author : | Gong Ji-Young |
| Publication Year/(Edition) : | Atria Books/Marble Arch Press (July 1, 2014) |
Characters:
Yunsu – A convicted criminal who is not innocent but not guilty of the crimes he is convicted for. He falls in love with Yujeong even though he has little time left here on this planet.
Yujeong – A rape victim with a troubled family history, she learns the other side of life, which is dark and sunny at different times and becomes closer to her Aunt Monica. She learns to open up her heart when she gets to know Yunsu better.
Aunt Monica – A nun who works at a prison, she brings Yunsu and Yujeong together but eventually dies.
Summary/ Conclusion:
This story is a cold-harsh narrative of the fact that there are other sides, situations in this reality we all live in. At first, the reason I picked up this book was the fact its title was “Our Happy Time”, but the picture of the barren tree with a crane flying, gave me a chance to steel myself for the obvious onslaught of a story of unfulfilled love. In this case it was an eye-opening, wall-tumbling love, between a convicted murderer and a rape victim with a history of 3 failed suicide attempts. The chapters overlap between their past and their present, the one in-the-background character that has the most impact on readers is Aunt Monica. Aunt to Yujeong, the rape victim, who has all one should need in the world, yet she finds no solace in what she has. Aunt Monica, who is a sister and works at the prison, allowing convicted felons a chance at redemption before they meet their end, brings together literally the most unlikely of people. Yunsu is a criminal convicted of manslaughter and rape and Yujeong is the victim of the same crime Yunsu is convicted of.
As the chapters increase, the storyline thickens, slowly out of the depths of their hearts, these two completely different people, find solace in each other and their secrets are revealed. The reactions they get, are far from the reactions they expected, each one has promised not to make the same mistakes again, each one realizes the slim chance of an everlasting love, and yet each are both victims to the most powerful thing of all, love.
As they come to terms with their love, it is already too late, Yunsu is taken away and as he leaves behind this existence, his parting words written in a journal he never expected to be found, where three words we all know.
The story ended with Aunt Monica’s death, Yujeong admitting her desire to be a mother and realizing her Aunt Monica gave up her dream of a blood-related child, to be a mother to all those wandering and already lost souls in the prison.
As I closed the book, I was overwhelmed by the sense of helplessness and immense realization, it was the truth, there were people out there, people who had done horrifying things, and yet, there were just lost. They were probably like little children who wandered too far but had no one to guide them back to the path. It seems the only words that would matter to a child growing up would be those of love, guidance and encouragement. No matter how many achievements we seem to have, no matter how high we are up on the social ladder, there will always be a little child inside of us, wanting, needing to be loved, reassured and guided. Whether an older child will guide a younger one, whether they will walk side-by-side, or walk one in front and one behind, or whether one will carry the other, it is all up to us, what decisions we make, whether we choose to love or not. As I quote a sentence from the book, I hope all who read this have the courage to love, love with all your heart and never hold back.
“As I had learned from Yunsu, love meant gladly enduring for another person, and that it sometimes meant having the courage to change yourself.” – Our Happy Time by Gong Ji-Young
Posted at 6:48 am | Comment (0)