Review: MOTHERTHING by Ainslie Hogarth

 

Motherthing by Ainslie Hogarth
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A darkly funny domestic horror novel about a woman who must take drastic measures to save her husband and herself from the vengeful ghost of her mother-in-law.

When Ralph and Abby Lamb move in with Ralph’s mother, Laura, Abby hopes it’s just what she and her mother-in-law need to finally connect. After a traumatic childhood, Abby is desperate for a mother figure, especially now that she and Ralph are trying to become parents themselves. Abby just has so much love to give—to Ralph, to Laura, and to Mrs. Bondy, her favorite resident at the long-term care home where she works. But Laura isn’t interested in bonding with her daughter-in-law. She’s venomous and cruel, especially to Abby, and life with her is hellish.

When Laura takes her own life, her ghost haunts Abby and Ralph in very different ways: Ralph is plunged into depression, and Abby is terrorized by a force intent on destroying everything she loves. To make matters worse, Mrs. Bondy’s daughter is threatening to move Mrs. Bondy from the home, leaving Abby totally alone. With everything on the line, Abby comes up with a chilling plan that will allow her to keep Mrs. Bondy, rescue Ralph from his tortured mind, and break Laura's hold on the family for good. All it requires is a little ingenuity, a lot of determination, and a unique recipe for chicken à la king…

--

There's one word that I'd use to describe the narrator of this book and that is Vicious.

Abi is terrifying. And the writing is terrifyingly good. I could not read this book quickly enough. We've got this mixture of domestic suspense and outright horror. A character who's desperate to be loved and a character who's scarred by her past. There's so much inner conflict in Abi, and this was one of those books that really had me thinking deeply about the psychology of the mind--and exactly how stable Abi is. Because there's one scene in this toward the end that I did not see coming. It's gruesome, and yet kind of... inevitable. I don't even know if that's the right word, because it is so, so shocking. Abi is pretty much a psychopath. Or a sociopath. But she's endearing too. And I love traditionally unlikeable characters like this.

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Review: DEAD ELEVEN by Jimmy Juliano

 

Dead Eleven by Jimmy Juliano
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

On a creepy island where everyone has a strange obsession with the year 1994, a newcomer arrives, hoping to learn the truth about her son's death--but finds herself pulled deeper and deeper into the bizarrely insular community and their complicated rules...

Clifford Island. When Willow Stone finds these words written on the floor of her deceased son's bedroom, she's perplexed. She's never heard of it before, but soon learns it's a tiny island off of Wisconsin's Door County peninsula, 200 miles from Willow's home. Why would her son write this on his floor? Determined to find answers, Willow sets out for the island.

After a few days on Clifford, Willow realizes: this place is not normal. Everyone seems to be stuck in a particular day in 1994: they wear outdated clothing, avoid modern technology, and, perhaps most mystifyingly, watch the OJ Simpson car chase every evening. When she asks questions, people are evasive, but she learns one thing: close your curtains at night.

High schooler Lily Becker has lived on Clifford her entire life, and she is sick of the island's twisted mythology and adhering to the rules. She's been to the mainland, and everyone is normal there, so why is Clifford so weird? Lily is determined to prove that the islanders' beliefs are a sham. But are they?

Five weeks after Willow arrives on the island, she disappears. Willow's brother Harper comes to Clifford searching for his sister, and when he learns the truth--that this island is far more sinister than anyone could have imagined--he is determined to blow the whole thing open.

If he can get out alive...

--

Oh wow, I really wish I'd written this review earlier, after I'd finished the book--and not, like, six months later. But these things happen--and I feel that I really must write something about this book. Because this is one spectacular horror novel.

The interweaving narratives and storytelling modes that work together to tell the 'bigger picture' story is simply amazing. Sometimes, combining so many narratives can cause pacing or tension problems, but not with this novel. Without all the narrators, I feel it would make a far less terrifying story.

I particularly adored the setting. I mean, I love stories set on islands. I love missing-person stories. I love horrifying monsters. I love weird groups and cults.  And this book has everything.

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Review: THE SCHOOL FOR GOOD MOTHERS by Jessamine Chan

 

The School for Good Mothers by Jessamine Chan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

In this taut and explosive debut novel, one lapse in judgement lands a young mother in a government reform program where custody of her child hangs in the balance.

Frida Liu is struggling. She doesn’t have a career worthy of her Chinese immigrant parents’ sacrifices. What’s worse is she can’t persuade her husband, Gust, to give up his wellness-obsessed younger mistress. Only with their angelic daughter Harriet does Frida finally feel she’s attained the perfection expected of her. Harriet may be all she has, but she’s just enough.

Until Frida has a horrible day.

The state has its eyes on mothers like Frida — ones who check their phones while their kids are on the playground; who let their children walk home alone; in other words, mothers who only have one lapse of judgement. Now, a host of government officials will determine if Frida is a candidate for a Big Brother-like institution that measures the success or failure of a mother’s devotion. Faced with the possibility of losing Harriet, Frida must prove that she can live up to the standards set for mothers — that she can learn to be good.

This propulsive, witty page-turner explores the perils of “perfect” upper-middle-class parenting, the violence enacted upon women by the state and each other, and the boundless love a mother has for her daughter.

--

This book is just... AMAZING. I have no other word for it.

It took me a while to read it all, because it's quite dense--yet I don't mean that in a negative way. A lot happens in this book--a lot of really shocking things--and it really makes you think. I found that I needed a lot of 'breathing space' around my reading sessions for this book to really digest it and fully comprehend the terrifying world that Jessamine Chan has come up with for this one--and it's especially terrifying given how close it feels to real life.

There's a lot of important discourse in this book surrounding motherhood, the role of women, and parental responsibility. While we can definitely argue the case that Frida is flawed and could be seen as a 'bad mother' after leaving her baby alone for an afternoon, we get to see the nuances of her character. Does one moment of 'bad mothering' make her a totally awful mother? Where exactly is the line? Because as the novel progresses, we are rooting for her, yet feeling like a happy ending isn't on the cards because of the truly horrific worldbuilding Chan cleverly incorporates into this story.

Characterisation for all the characters is strong and impressive. I just cannot stop thinking about this book.

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Review: DAISY DARKER by Alice Feeney

 

Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The New York Times bestselling Queen of Twists returns…with a family reunion that leads to murder.

After years of avoiding each other, Daisy Darker’s entire family is assembling for Nana’s 80th birthday party in Nana’s crumbling gothic house on a tiny tidal island. Finally back together one last time, when the tide comes in, they will be cut off from the rest of the world for eight hours.

The family arrives, each of them harboring secrets. Then at the stroke of midnight, as a storm rages, Nana is found dead. And an hour later, the next family member follows…

Trapped on an island where someone is killing them one by one, the Darkers must reckon with their present mystery as well as their past secrets, before the tide comes in and all is revealed.

With a wicked wink to Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None, Daisy Darker’s unforgettable twists will leave readers reeling.

--

I finished this book maybe six weeks ago, and I cannot stop thinking about it. It's not often that a book stays with me this much, to this extent, but Daisy Darker really is a gem.

I've started other books by Alice Feeney before but not finished them--I'm not really sure why--but I found this book to be very different and I was so compelled to read it, and I think it all comes down to the character. As a narrator, Daisy is compelling. And I'm going to try and write this review without spoilers, because that ending absolutely blew me away. And you know, up until that ending my one critiquing point really was that I felt like Daisy was a bit passive in the 'present' timeline, but that ending totally explains that and it just blew me away.

This is a phenomenal story.

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Review: RIVER WOMAN, RIVER DEMON by Jennifer Givhan

 

River Woman, River Demon by Jennifer Givhan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

When Eva's husband is arrested for the murder of a friend, she must confront her murky past and embrace her magick to find out what really happened that night on the river.

Eva Santos Moon is a burgeoning Chicana artist who practices the ancient, spiritual ways of brujería and curanderisma, but she's at one of her lowest points--suffering from disorienting blackouts, creative stagnation, and a feeling of disconnect from her magickal roots. When her husband, a beloved university professor and the glue that holds their family together, is taken into custody for the shocking murder of their friend, Eva doesn't know whom to trust--least of all, herself. She soon falls under suspicion as a potential suspect, and her past rises to the surface, dredging up the truth about an eerily similar death from her childhood.

Struggling with fragmented memories and self-doubt, an increasingly terrified Eva fears that she might have been involved in both murders. But why doesn't she remember? Only the dead women know for sure, and they're coming for her with a haunting vengeance. As she fights to keep her family out of danger, Eva realizes she must use her magick as a bruja to protect herself and her loved ones, while confronting her own dark history.

A psychological thriller that weaves together the threads of folk magick with personal and cultural empowerment, River Woman, River Demon is a mysterious incantation of reckoning with the past and claiming one's unique power and voice.

--

This is a stunning book. Highly lyrical language, beautiful imagery, believable and authentic characters, and a murder mystery that had me guessing right to the very end.

I loved the genre-blend of crime/detective story with Chicana brujería and curanderismo practices--Jennifer Givhan really pulled this off and I can't wait to read more of her work. There's a lot of very important discourse in this book about race and brutality, and I really admire the way that Givhan tackled these points. Eva is also one of the best characters I've ever read. She's flawed--deeply flawed--and there were so many times where I was begging her not to do something because I could see it was a mistake--but we get to see her learn from her mistakes, and that's what I really appreciated. Eva also stays true to her core values, and I really liked that.

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Review: The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson

 

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Other Tales of Terror by Robert Louis Stevenson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was a surprisingly quick read; while the writing style was somewhat 'wordy' and a little heavy, I found it very compelling and read the whole thing in a couple of days as part of my PhD research on the Victorians' fear of primitiveness and devolution.

Going into the story, I already knew the rough plot, given it's a book that's talked about a lot. But I was still engrossed, and it's actually made me want to seek out some of the film and TV adaptations.

The language that Stevenson uses in this book was of particular interest to me. I was fascinated by the way that Hyde's personality and criminality is inscribed on his body, via his 'inherently malign and villainous' appearance due to his 'impression of deformity without any nameable malformation' and 'his displeasing smile'. He's described as unfeeling, 'a man of stone' whose 'every act and thought centred on self', in great contrast to Dr. Jekyl's caring nature. We get two very different personalities here, as Stevenson is one of the first--if not the first--author to look at the idea of split personalities, but does so in the context of nineteenth century anxieties around primitiveness, evilness, appearance, and monstrosity.

Physiognomy is at play largely in this text, as we are told that Hyde's 'black secrets, by the look of him' are visible to everyone as his 'particularly wicked-looking' countenance represents the evil inside him. There is never any doubt presented to characters or readers that Hyde is the bad guy, the killer, because this is a cruel man 'at once so callous and violent' that it has physically distorted his appearance. He is also described with primitive language and is likened to 'a monkey', tying into contextual anxieties surrounding repression and return of primitive nature. Hyde represents the uncontrollable, the evil, and the monstrous, and while Dr. Jekyll does initially manage to control him to some degree, Jekyll's death can be seen to represent a death of civilisation and goodness. Instead, all that's left is evil and reversion to what Victorians considered primitive and murderous states of being.

Yet, looking at Hyde's death--when Dr. Jekyll is trapped in Hyde's form--and he takes his own life, we can see an attempt at being the saviour, at keeping the evil at bay. While Dr Jekyll has solved the problem of the killer being at large--a problem which only came about due to his own obsession with making a drug that separates the two sides of one's personality--we also lose the 'goodness' that is Dr. Jekyll. Stevenson therefore somewhat suggests that evil runs amok when there is no goodness there to ground it.



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Review: BECOMING LIZ TAYLOR by Elizabeth Delo

 

Becoming Liz Taylor by Elizabeth Delo
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

'An accomplished and memorable debut full of heart and heartbreak - an absolute corker for reading groups!' Ruth Hogan, bestselling author of The Keeper of Lost Things Val, a widow living in Weston-super-Mare, spends lonely evenings dressing up as the movie star Elizabeth Taylor. It seems to be a way of coping with the loss and sadness she has experienced in her life. One day, when Val sees a pram left unattended on the seafront, on a whim she kicks off the brake and walks away with it... Set in the present and the 1970s, BECOMING LIZ TAYLOR is a vivid and touching depiction of love, loss and bereavement - thought-provoking, moving fiction for fans of Rachel Joyce, Emma Healey and Ruth Hogan.****Shortlisted for the debut novel prize at the 'Festival du Premier Roman' in Chambéry.***

--

I picked this book up on a bit of a whim really. I was in Waterstones and saw that a new romance display had just been created on one of the tables, and this was one of the covers that really stood out to me. I've been trying to read a bit more contemporary fiction and romance recently, and as soon as I read the back of the cover, I was hooked!

I started the book a couple hours after buying it, and by the end of the day, I'd read half. The next day, I finished it. I simply couldn't read it quick enough.

There's something so compelling and enticing about Elizabeth Delo's writing. I think this is the first time I've read a novel that's got a narrator in their 70s, and it was very refreshing and I really appreciated the POV (normally, I read YA or narrators in their 20s or 30s).

Val is such a complex character. She's so flawed, but we can see why she's like this, and it's heartbreaking watching some of her decisions. So many times I was screaming at her! She felt so real, and I think that's what made this story so stunning and a compulsive read. Because, yes, Val is the villain. She kidnaps a baby. Only she thinks she's doing the right thing. She doesn't see it as kidnap. And while I wanted the baby to be reunited with his mother, I also desperately didn't want Val to be caught and punished.

In this stunning debut, Delo offers us a mixture of complex characters, heart, and insight into families.

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Review: THE PATIENT by Teri Terry

 

The Patient by Teri Terry
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I feel the steady thump of my new heart beating inside me. The surgeon said everything went well. But I can’t stop thinking about my the girl who was killed. Her death saved my life. But now whoever took hers is coming for mine…
I can’t believe it when I learn my donor’s identity. The attack on Flora was all over the news. From my hospital bed I read every article, obsess over every word and soon I feel like I know the beautiful girl with flame-coloured hair, adored by everyone around her. Why would anyone hurt someone so perfect?
When Flora’s family reach out to me, I’m unsure. My hands are shaking as I arrive at their grand mansion with its golden stone and sprawling gardens, but they’re warm and welcoming, tears shining in her mother’s eyes as she smiles at me.
She even tells me to take anything I want from Flora’s things, as she can’t bear to go through them herself. I run my fingers over the racks of beautiful designer items, carefully choosing outfits in Flora’s signature yellow, the bright colour complementing the new flush in my cheeks. I think of the years I’ve wasted being ill, and the crushing loneliness I thought would never end. I deserve this.
But then there’s a violent attack on another patient who received one of Flora’s organs. My heart – Flora’s heart – races dangerously fast. Is it a coincidence?
Maybe I’ve made a mistake by stepping into Flora’s life. Has this second chance really saved me? Or has it cost me everything?

--

This was a heart-stopping read (excuse the pun!) about a woman who receives a heart transplant, only to find that her donor was murdered. And, what's more, soon all the other recipients of the donors' organs are being hunted down too...

I first became aware of this book when watching the author on a panel at CrimeFest last year, and I was very excited to read it. I knew nothing of the book's premise at that point (I'm a massive fan of her YA books) and then I learned what The Patient was about, I was gripped and just could not wait until release day was here. And what a read that was!

One thing I really loved was how fast-paced this narrative was, and how we have multiple narrators. Sometimes, this can be a bit hit-and-miss for me as I often find it hard to distinguish the different characters' narrations in my head, but I didn't have that problem here. The opening in particular really drew me in, enticing me to read as fast as I could from the very first page.

And let me just say this: Teri Terry is the queen of twists! Those twists at the end--I did not see them coming! Every time I thought I'd worked out who the villain was, another twist just blew me away.

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