The Night Season

by Chelsea Cain

Thrillers

St Martin's Paperbacks - 2011

337 pages - 9, 99 $

En Français ici

Why this book

Again, because I met the author at the QuebeCrime festival. As I had already bought a lot of book form male authors, I wanted to try a feminine approach of the thriller.

Summary

He captured the Beauty Killer, one of the most deranged serial killers in the country. Now, Portland police detective Archie Sheridan faces a different kind of killer—a brutal rain season that has flooded the Willamette River, claiming several lives. As water levels rise, so does the fear. Because some of the victims didn’t drown—they were murdered.

The first body contains a rare poison. Three others prove to be murders as well. And with each gruesome discovery the medical examiner uncovers, Archie begins to realize he has not escaped his nightmares—even with his deadliest enemy behind bars. The flood has washed up old skeletons from the past. And a ruthless new serial killer rules the night…

The story without revealing it

Archie Sheridan, still traumatized from his encounter with The Beauty Killer, tracks another serial killer who takes advantage of the flood of Portland and the incessant rain to sow corpses. He is assisted by Susan Ward, a journalist dedicated to the dead and other creepy weird with a knack for finding herself where she should not be.

What I think of it

Really good! I finished it at 2:00 in the morning, because I have not been able to close it earlier promising me to finish it the next day. I had to know how it would end. It's nervous, it moves all the time, the characters are well drawn. The trap at the end is a little déjà-vu, but that does not stop the stress up a notch. This is also the strength of Chelsea Cain, you know that something will happen and you can not let go of the book!

In addition, the atmosphere is very present throughout the book, without tons of description - which is cool as I usually hate them. Here the flood of Portland brings a landscape and a creepy atmosphere (I've never been so happy to be warm under my duvet while Archie and Susan were drenched in a downpour .. .)

Let's be brief

A writer to discover. It seems that the first three books are in sequence, but this fourth installment can be read without having read the others, although there are some references - that make you want to read the beginning of the series - in the story. A reference that I'll keep for my next purchase and I would definitely recommend for anyone who loves a good captivating thriller.

A Clash of Kings

by George R. R. Martin

Fantasy

Random House Publishing Group, 2011

1009 pages - 10,99 $

En français ici

Why this book 

Because after having enjoyed the first book, I did not want to stop there. I love  series, because it gives you all the time and leisure to know the characters and love (or hate) them. To read a sequel, it's a bit like getting friends at home: hours of fun - well, normally, if not... you might want to read the Marquis de Sade.  I could not wait to plunge into the world so complete and complex of Martin.

Summary

A comet the color of blood and flame cuts across the sky. And from the ancient citadel of Dragonstone to the forbidding shores of Winterfell, chaos reigns. Six factions struggle for control of a divided land and the Iron Throne of the Seven Kingdoms, preparing to stake their claims through tempest, turmoil, and war. It is a tale in which brother plots against brother and the dead rise to walk in the night. Here a princess masquerades as an orphan boy; a knight of the mind prepares a poison for a treacherous sorceress; and wild men descend from the Mountains of the Moon to ravage the countryside. Against a backdrop of incest and fratricide, alchemy and murder, victory may go to the men and women possessed of the coldest steel...and the coldest hearts. For when kings clash, the whole land trembles.

What I think of it

Once again I have not been disappointed. Martin is truly a master in story telling. We are spellbound throughout the book. I love the way paragraphs succede each other according to the points of view of characters. It's different and it avoids the chronological appearance in most other novels. There may be two actions simultaneously, but in different places and I like very much this impression to see the unfolding of the story through the eyes of the characters.

Another plus point for which the author is known, nobody is totally good or totally bad, everyone has their reasons. At first I was afraid of the result - because yes, I like that the heroes are heroes unconditionally - but ultimately one can be closer to the characters, because let's face it, it is not easy to compare oneself to a hero without fear and without reproach (especially the blameless side...)

In any case, the 1000 pages of the book go like lightning. I loved Tyron Lannister and his rogue intelligence, I wondered if Arya would return one day to her family, I felt like killing Theon - but then he was looking for trouble - I exulted when Robb became king of the north, I was afraid for Jon ... what amount of emotions experienced! Finally, the only one that I like less is Bran, but perhaps it will eventually revealed something of his adventures.

Let's be brief

A sequel not to be missed ... but honestly, if you've read this book, it's that you have already read the first ... and I do not have much to say to convince you of the quality of this story!

Midnight's Children 2/100

by Salman Rushdie
Vintage Canada Edition - 2006
533 pages - 22 $

En Français ici

Why this book

I wanted to read at least one book by this great author I've heard about at the exit of The Satanic Verses thanks to the scandal it generated. I said to myself "I should read an author who unleashed such passion, be it for whether he is worth it." And most importantly, the Satanic Verses not tempted me a lot... the story of a guy who flies and turns to end up with horns and hoofs ... how to say: too metaphorical for me? Anyway, I decided to try this author with Midnight's Children whose summary tempted me more.

Summary

Saleem Sinai is born at the stroke of midnight on August 15, 1947, the very moment of India's independence. Greeted by fireworks displays, cheering crowds, and Prime Minister Nehru himself, Saleem grows up to learn the ominous consequences of this coincidence. His every act is mirrored and magnified in events that sway the course of national affairs; his health and well-being are inextricably bound to those of his nation; his life is inseparable, at times indistinguishable, from the history of his country. Perhaps most remarkable are the telepathic powers linking him with India's 1,000 other "midnight's children," all born in that initial hour and endowed with magical gifts.

This novel is at once a fascinating family saga and an astonishing evocation of a vast land and its people-a brilliant incarnation of the universal human comedy. Twenty-five years after its publication, Midnight's Children stands apart as both an epochal work of fiction and a brilliant performance by one of the great literary voices of our time.

What I think about it

Rushdie is undoubtedly a master in the art of carrying us into a world of magic and poetry. He is capable of creating a world full of color, brilliance and magic. Reading the book I had the impression of being in a setting of the Thousand and One Nights and for that alone, it's worth it. It is rare that a book enchants me by his descriptions and settings. As for the story, it is also powerful and for who knows or loves India, it's parallel with the history of this country and Pakistan is not to be underestimated. I also liked to see what I enjoyed in India: that every action, every gesture, every adventure is fraught with meaning. Nothing is left to chance and the rich context of this country is an endless source of discoveries. Midnight's Children is no exception and everything that happens there makes sense.

For cons, I found some passages a little too long - euphemism: I was bored - especially the chapter in the forest. I also had trouble with the multiple metaphors the author uses, resulting in completely fantastical scenes - in my case - hard to understand, but as I said earlier: metaphors and me ...

Let's be brief

A book to read for its magic and richness of imagination in which we are transported - even imported - but that's also serious and concrete. After all, it's not every day that a country political history is also written in such a pretty way!

Dead Harvest

by Chris F. Holm
Urban fantasy

Angry Robot; Original edition 2012

384 pages – 8.99 $

En Français ici

Why this book 

I've met Chris F. Holm at the QuebeCrime festival and I immediately liked his humor and humility as an author. He wondered what he was doing in the middle of so many great writers of thrillers and other crime fiction. His first book Dead Harvest was released in February, the second The Wrong Goodbye in October. I did not know his books, but he was so nice that I wanted to encourage him by buying his first novel.

Summary

Meet Sam Thornton. He collects souls.

Sam’s job is to collect the souls of the damned, and ensure they are dispatched to the appropriate destination. But when he’s sent to collect the soul of a young woman he believes to be innocent of the horrific crime that’s doomed her to Hell, he says something no Collector has ever said before.

“No.”

What I think of it 

I loved it! The black humor sprinkled over the story, the story itself and the villain (collector of souls) that you come to love. Is there more anti-hero than a collector of souls? But it works! It's fast-paced, a lot of action, twists, doubt (is the girl really innocent?). When starting the book, I was afraid that it would be too preachy, too religious - good versus evil and the whole shebang. But not at all, there are bad guys in angels and good guy in demons, all of which is a matter of choice.

About the story. I'm not a big reader - or was not until that book - of urban fantasy and I've never read anything about a collector of soul who investigates and it's brilliant. Like in George R. R. Martin I find interesting that good or evil is a matter of choice. The characters can choose to do right or not.

The tone of the book is also something you'll soon learn to love. It's cynic, funny and witty. There are some dialogues in the book which made me burst out laughing - which is not a good thing when you're reading next to someone sleeping!

Let's be brief

I highly recommend it for those who love thrillers and urban fantasy, because it's a perfect mix of those genres. One of the best book I've read this year. I now know why he was invited to QuebeCrime Festival: because he truly is one great author!

A Storm of Swords

by George R. R. Martin

Fantasy

Random House Publishing Group, 2011

1177 pages - 10,99 $

En Français ici

Why this book

I don't know if I can pretend that I read this book just because it was part of the first four book set that I bought? Well, no, I'm not like to flog me reading a book - let alone a series of books - that I do not like! The truth is that I really love A Song of Ice and Fire serie. So I read this book, because I was eager to see the further adventures of the seven kingdoms and its protagonists - and it was already in my library, as a not buried treasure just waiting to be read.

Summary 

Of the five contenders for power, one is dead, another in disfavor, and still the wars rage as violently as ever, as alliances are made and broken. Joffrey, of House Lannister, sits on the Iron Throne, the uneasy ruler of the land of the Seven Kingdoms. His most bitter rival, Lord Stannis, stands defeated and disgraced, the victim of the jealous sorceress who holds him in her evil thrall. But young Robb, of House Stark, still rules the North from the fortress of Riverrun. Robb plots against his despised Lannister enemies, even as they hold his sister hostage at King's Landing, the seat of the Iron Throne. Meanwhile, making her way across a blood-drenched continent is the exiled queen, Daenerys, mistress of the only three dragons still left in the world....

But as opposing forces maneuver for the final titanic showdown, an army of barbaric wildlings arrives from the outermost line of civilization. In their vanguard is a horde of mythical Others--a supernatural army of the living dead whose animated corpses are unstoppable. As the future of the land hangs in the balance, no one will rest until the Seven Kingdoms have exploded in a veritable storm of swords. . .

What I think

This is the best of the first three volumes. I've never regretted leaving a book and its world so much - except maybe Harry Potter ... - I've been through some terrible and incredible twists and exaltations (frankly, *** spoiler **** when Daenerys kills the slaver, it's so great! Especially after the fear of seeing her sale her dragon ***).

George R. R. Martin is an author who is not afraid to write what pleases him. He thinks that an author can't please everyone anyway and he kills the characters that we expected to see longer. And it works! This is what is great about the realism of Martin in his novels : as in real life, people die, people betray people band together. This is a fantasy world sprinkled with realism, with characters we love and others we love to hate. Personally, I have a soft spot for Jon, Daenerys and Arya and I would gladly slap Cersei! And you?

Let's be brief 

A must have, must read! We always talk about classics that should be read and here is a classic fantasy to offer and to provide, to read and reread because you never get tired of a world so rich! 1177 pages of pure pleasure ...

Good to know

A Storm of Swords was the first of the series to be nominated for the Hugo Award in 2001 (one of the two most prestigious awards in science fiction and fantasy, but Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire won.

George R. R. Martin also finds that it is the most intense of his books in this excellent interview. He is very cool as author right?

Autumn Killing

by Mons Kallentoft
Fiction, mystery & détective
Hodder - 2012
503 pages - 15,99$

En Français ici

Why that book

Well, as for Chris F. Holm, I met the author during at QuebeCrime festival end of October this year. He was very friendly and I wanted to try reading more Scandinavian thrillers. I had already read Stieg Larsson and Camilla Läckberg and appreciated it.

Summary

It is Autumn in Linköping and the heavens have opened, but not even these biblical rains can wash away the blood of crimes past and present.

Then the brutally-stabbed body of self-made Internet billionaire Jerry Petersson is discovered floating facedown in the moat surrounding his home, the imposing Skogså Castle.

Malin Fors, the brilliant but flawed star of the Linköping police force, is already struggling to keep her life together following the recent murder attempt on her teenage daughter, Tove. Now, as the Petersson case forces Malin to delve deep into Linköping's history and her own family's past, the secrets she uncovers threaten to drown her, too . . .

What I think

Fans of psychological drama and suffocating atmosphere will enjoy it. Kallentoft creates a very special atmosphere. I found it as special as Millenium, but power 10. Autumn appears almost as a character in itself as it takes a lot of place, especially at the beginning, which made ​​me a little scared I must admit - as I don't especially like that.

The author has fun destabilizing the reader through a game going back and forth between different points of view - the police, Malin in particular, the victims (dead I should tell ...), the witnesses. He even make short sentences that follow on one another, but do not talk about the same thing. Which is quite special to me, but may appeal to some.

An excerpt?

'Let's get it to Börje,' Malin says.
'OK,' Zeke Replies.
Malin goes for the passenger seat. Zeke can do the driving.
The dog whimpers in the back seat.
Daniel Högfeldt's naked body.
What's wrong with me? Malin thinks.

Let's be brief

A book dedicated to a particular public who appreciates the very cold atmosphere, where the characters have the spotlight over the action, where the psychological takes precedence over events. This is not a page-turner, it took me almost three weeks to read it... probably a record length of time for reading a thriller in my case!

I must admit we do not choose a Scandinavian book for its action, but to plunge into a village or town, to know his protagonists and their torments and joys, in short for the atmosphere, but I thought that the action was not enough present - well enought to say I really love action in a crime fiction!

Good to know

Mons Kallentoft grew up in Linköping where the Malin Fors series takes place. This book is the third in the series following Fors.