I have been reading voraciously as evidenced by my goodreads updates, but I fell way off the wagon with blog posts.
Okay more like I jumped out of the car at full speed and have been tumbling down a ravine of post-less despair for almost 2 years but don’t watch that.
I looked over some of my old material – saw a lot that I liked, some things I wanted to change and others that needed a complete overhaul. (Like this site, tf?)
Oh Deborah, where did you go wrong with this book? From top to bottom this was just… awful. I built up so much anticipation for this story after reading A Discovery of Witches. The pedestal I put the All Souls Trilogy on came crashing down, then incinerated into a heaping pile of crud. Dashed hopes and dreams (and copious spoilers muahaha) following the picture.
Let’s start with the premise. Matthew and Diana travel back in time to 1590 in order to keep Diana safe from the Covenant in the future and to find a witch (or several) who can teach her how to use her magic. Initially I thought this premise was stupid. Humans have never been friendly to “other” creatures, so why would traveling back in time help? Also, Diana wouldn’t have the knowledge to fit in even though she’s a historian because she never actually lived there. Matthew was also an ardent witch hater at this time. So he shows up with a wife who is a witch… and no one is supposed to question this? Right. Finally, there are always ramifications for time travel. Why would they think they are any different? This plan wasn’t thought out at all. In fact, sometimes it felt like Harkness was making the story up as she went along with no regard to continuity.
Now for my overall impressions. First, this book was entirely too long. Almost 600 pages for what? The plot couldn’t handle this volume so she filled it up with unnecessary characters and excruciating detail to setting descriptions. The first 300 pages were pure filler. Nothing happened besides meeting all of our favorite historical figures that made Diana weak in the knees. *yawn* We also discover that Matthew had more secrets. *double yawn*
Second, expanding on the idea of filler, Harkness introduced too many characters in the story. Most of their individual story lines could have been trimmed away. There were the people in the village, the varying royal figures, Matthew’s friends (and various political obligations), and the two children Diana adds to their estate. Every time a new character was introduced I wanted to pull my hair out. Why was she making the story more complicated than needed? Stop!
Third, after sifting through 300 pages of filler (I am superbly bitter about this) Diana discovers her magic (woo!) but then Harkness doesn’t take any of the same pains to describe what is happening (*pulls hair out*). Even toward the end of the book I am still a little confused about what is happening to Diana. Why wouldn’t you spend 100 pages telling us about the magic instead of describing the stupid setting or royal dinners with the Emperor??? (*rants and throws things*)
Fourth. Diana’s father (who she hasn’t seen since she was a child) time walks to where they are. I don’t even think I could begin to explain how livid I was when this happened. WHY WHY WHY! What was the point? Diana needs to grow up and face her path like an adult. She hasn’t had Daddy around for any of the other foolish things she’s done, why bring him back now? Why make her parents’ death such a big part of her life just to bring the father back? It wasn’t heart warming. It was a stupid plot choice that added another 50 or so pages for no reason.
Fifth (sorry this is getting as long as Harkness lol) the story followed the same “climax” as A Discovery of Witches. Matthew never lets Diana out of his sight, but the second he does Diana is captured and must rely on her emotions to save her. T I R E D. Please don’t insult me by thinking I wouldn’t notice the same exact scenario from the first book. Maybe if she wouldn’t have spent so much time describing the smell of the 1590s she could have written a better rising action.
The ONLY saving grace to this story was Phillipe. He is the only one with a lick of sense in the entire story! He might be ruthless but he got things done and instilled sense in Matthew. (and Diana too). Unfortunately, even my devotion to Phillipe was not enough to save this story.
Overall, the story was too long. Harkness spent more time showing off her knowledge of the past and left the story wanting. There were too many characters, Diana and Matthew were stupid. They spent entirely too much time in the past. They did more harm in the past than good. Diana’s father annoyed me. Diana’s magic wasn’t sufficiently explained. When they (finally) got home someone important had died. I can’t sit through another 600 page book to find out what happens, this series is just going to have to continue with one less fan. 2/5 stars.
This was one of those First Read books from Amazon. I’m a sucker for a free book. And I love magic! But this was clearly a YA book. (Somewhere I said I was gonna stop reading YA books but I clearly lied.) Anywho, in my haste after finishing this book I gave it 4 stars. Upon stewing, I decided to downgrade the rating to 3 stars. I’ll give a brief overview and tell you why after the picture!
Plot overiew: Mercy and Maisie are twins born into a family of witches. Maisie has enormous magical powers inherited from their mother (who died at birth) but Mercy didn’t receive any of these powers. Maisie is therefore favorited by the family and Mercy is jealous and feels like an outsider. One particular aunt, Aunt Ginny, teaches Maisie magic and dotes on her the most, while being downright awful to Mercy. Mercy (understandably) hates her. So the story starts with the death of this aunt under interesting circumstances; which has wider implications for the magic world. The reader is then thrust into a world of magic and secrets, while the mystery of Aunt Ginny’s death is solved, the new keeper of the line must be chosen, and Mercy tries to deal with her feelings for two men in her life. (Whew)
Things I liked:
1. The ending caught me off guard.
2. It was short and to the point.
3. The setting.
Things I didn’t like:
1. There is a root doctor named Jilo. For all the other characters in the book to be (very obviously) white, what was the need for a (very obviously) black root doctor? If you’re gonna white wash through the rest of the story just keep it consistent.
2. There are a lot of characters to keep track of. With the introduction of all the immediate family members, plus the other witches who come for the Line ceremony, it gets to be a lot.
3. I wasn’t completely sold on who killed Ginny and why.
4. Mercy was sometimes very annoying as a character.
5. I find it hard to believe that an entire family would shun someone just because they didn’t have magic.
6. There were a bit too many familial secrets. It became too much.
7. What was up with the weird gollum thing?
In all, I’m giving is 3/5 stars because I’m not at all invested in the story nor the characters. I have no desire to see where the story heads next. In fact, I don’t think the plot is substantial enough to support a series. But it was cute as a quick read and the ending few chapters really did blow me away.
The Best American Science and Nature Writing is a series I started in 2013. I read on a GRE blog that it was good for people interested in science in order to pad your vocabulary for the test. Well, I read the 2011 installment and I was hooked. I plan to own all the copies I have read; I think it would look cool in a home library. So far I own the 2012 and 2013 installments. (See the 2012 review here) The review for the 2013 installment is fairly long. I go into detail about each chapter, giving an overview and describing what I like or didn’t like about the selection. To save you all the trouble, here’s a tl;dr synopsis:
There are 27 essays in the book which cover a variety of topics within “science and nature”. At the end of the book, I thoroughly enjoyed 6/27 articles (22%) which is hardly enough to justify the price. Some of the other articles were interesting, and I frankly wouldn’t have read them individually, which is why this series appeals to me. The articles I did like are numbers 3, 6, 16, 24, 26, 27 (I think he purposefully saved the best for last). I’ve bolded them below if you want to take a look. Overall I give the book 3/5 stars for being engaging, and informational yet missing the mark with many of the articles. Full review of each chapter can be found after the picture.
My copy of the book 🙂
Introduction: The opening to this book was kind of a snooze which unfortunately set a bad tone for the rest of the chapters. The editor, Siddhartha Mukherjee, says that many of the chapters, while talking about science, also refer to the “tenderness” in which scientists approach their work. That is left to be determined.
J. B. MacKinnon. False Idyll
The name of this article fits well with the context. The false idyll described is the odd relationship between humans and nature. While we maintain the idea that nature is idyllic, peaceful and subdued, it is quite clear from spending any time in nature that this is false. The author goes on to making broad reaching statements about how we interact with nature etc.
Benjamin Hale The Last Distinction
Humans are obsessed with themselves. We want to be the best, need to be the best. We are always searching for ways to set ourselves apart from the other lowly organisms. One way we do this is by saying that we have language and they don’t. While the premise of this chapter was certainly engaging, somewhere along the way we lost caught up in a story about a man who makes learning about language in other species very difficult. For me, it kind of misses the mark.
Tim Zimmerman Talk to Me
Dolphins are hailed as the intelligent animals of the sea. They have similar patterns of social behavior to humans (including harassing women, smh) and have brains with higher EQ than many primates. This articles talks about a group of scientists who are trying to open two way communication with a group of dolphins to get an insight into their world. I loved this article because it was an accurate representation of research science and because it stuck closely to the aforementioned ideas of tenderness. In the article you understand the passion behind the scientists, learn about the technology that goes into to such a project, and get the reality when things don’t work out so well. (Note to parents, this selection has a bit of profanity).
David Deutsch and Artur Ekert Beyond the Quantum Horizon
Confession: I skimmed through most of this selection. It was boring. I love physics just as much as the next person but this gets a little too technical for my liking. There is no “tenderness” just a bunch of 0 and 1 and quantum mechanics thrown around to sound good. I pass.
Michael Moyer Is Space Digital?
Okay so maybe I don’t like physics. I started to read the chapter and was interested in the story about Craig Hogan, thinking I would get more tenderness. However, physics cropped up in the middle of the article and distracted (read:bored) me. Interesting concept, but the middle 3 pages could have been left out.
Sylvia Earle The Sweet Spot in Time
This article was extremely well written and interesting. First, if you do not read the author’s name, the piece is very gender neutral for the first few pages. But I love the female component the author introduces, which raises important points about the role of women in the 1960s, especially in the sciences. I am a woman, but I believe her message and style of writing was open to male readers as well because it shows them as dispensable to families, while women were not considered so. (Read a little into it and you will find it.) This article absolutely demonstrates the tenderness and passion the author had for her craft of studying reefs and marine biology. Great article that really gives context to what it means to be a human, a scientist, and a woman.
John Pavlus Machines of the Infinite
Interesting article about a mathematics problem that was posited and has stumped many great minds since. (Reoccurring theme right) the problem apparently has wider implications than just computer science and can be applied to different areas as well. Although you kind of get bogged down with science jargon within the selection, it still holds your attention long enough to find out the outcome of a very interesting bet.
Michelle Nihjuis Which Species Will Live?
Triage probably isn’t a word you think of when it comes to preserving endangered species. However, this article shows how triage plays an important role in determining which species will receive support and which will ultimately die. It is an unfortunate state that scientists and global leaders must choose which species are “worthy” yet the article does a decent job of explaining why such harsh methods must be taken. An interesting selection that didn’t involve much science jargon but addresses the growing problem of funding which is important across the board.
Rick Bass The Larch
This was weird. I don’t even wanna talk about it.
Brett Forrest Shattered Genius
Okay, I gotta admit I was superbly skeptical when I saw this article was from Playboy. I didn’t even know Playboy had articles. Why would they care about a washed up scientist? It was baffling. The article is about the man who solved a famous math puzzle (just read it for details) but then became a recluse and refused all the accolades associated with it. The author recount his life, stalks him, and ends up not learning anything by the end of the article. (Seriously, Playboy?)
Jerome Groopman The T-Cell Army
This article is about different approaches being taken to treat cancers. One method is immunotherapy which has been largely controversial in the scientific world. This article appealed to me because I am very interested in immunotherapy, biology and pharmaceutical work. However to someone who is not as interested, some of the scientific jargon may be a put off. This article is definitely lacking tenderness and puts a lot of weight on the heavy science behind these ground breaking results.
David Owen The Artificial Leaf
This article is about creating renewable energy by mimicking photosynthesis. The article goes on to detail the scientists who are working on this project, some of the shortcomings of the project, the goals and the controversy surrounding it. Well written and sort of interesting. I like that it doesn’t get too bogged down in scientific jargon and therefore the lay person could pick it up and understand the selection easily. However, it wasn’t the most engaging passage.
Michael Specter The Deadliest Virus
This passage is about influenza, how it affects people (and animals) and the scientists who are working on discovering its virology. It was an interesting article because it also addresses the issue of too much knowledge being accessible to the public, in which the virus could cause a pandemic worse than any terrorist attack we have been exposed to. I like the points brought up in the article because it shows us how the accessibility of information has become a gift and a curse today.
Alan Lightman Our Place In the Universe
This selection is sort of a back and forth between the vastness of the universe and the relative scale at which humans can perceive this vastness. With a bit of astronomy and history, Lightman talks about how we have learned the relative scale of the universe and yet cannot begin to comprehend or touch this vastness. Interesting and engaging passage, devoid of jargon.
David Quammen Out of the Wild
This passage talks about zoonoses, which are viruses humans contract from animals. All the big name players are here, like AIDS, SARS and Ebola, which makes this article grab your attention immediately. I am interested in immunology (as stated above) so the science of this article really interested me. If you don’t share this passion, you can easily skim over that stuff and just bask in the awe of RNA viruses and their destructive capabilities. Not to mention the cause for their unbelievable virulence: us. This article was a little long and had many parts, but as a whole was interesting and enjoyable.
Oliver Sacks Altered States
This article is written by a neuroscientist who was raised in the heyday of neurology and drugs. His perspective on tripping out via different hallucinogens, his painstaking details in describing these trips, and the science that backs his experiences make this an extremely interesting article. I really enjoyed the flawed nature of our protagonist. He is a real person, not separate or above the science he studies. This article, while on the longer side, was definitely one of the best in the book.
Elizabeth Kolbert Recall of the Wild
This selection talks about restoring earth to its wilderness days by actually going forward instead of backwards. By taking land and reintroducing the species that mirror past species, we can get a glimpse into how these worlds may have appeared. Of course, there are politics involved in every scientific endeavor and the selection fleshes out these issues while still adhering to the desire for a wild(er) planet.
Keith Gessen Polar Express
Many historical disputes have come over the best ways to get riches from one part of the globe to another. Polar express tells the story of a ship that wants to sail from Russia to China through the polar caps. This was a very long article but interesting because it touches on the ideas of global warming without becoming too political. It also gives the reader a sense of what it must have been like to be aboard one of the great discovering ships of the past. Definitely an interesting read, but I get the sense that it would have been much better accompanied with pictures of the ice as described in the passage.
Steven Weinberg The Crisis of Big Science
The title of this selection is a little misleading. The author tries to make the case that we are not spending enough on science then concedes the fact that we are not spending enough on most things. (We being the US). The problem is, the article starts out terribly. It sounds like a whiny kid who didn’t win the science fair. I completely respect and understand his position. In fact by the end of the article he makes great points on the state of the US economy. However, having to muddle through the physics jargon at the beginning works more to negate his points towards the end. Skip the first 5 or 6 pages to get to the good stuff.
Garett Cook Autism, Inc.
This selection is a short piece about the growing presence of autistic workers in seemingly menial jobs in Denmark and the United States. Having a family member and knowing other people with autism this story hits particularly close to home. While it wasn’t remarkably well written or insightful, I did appreciate the fact that it calls to light the different-ness of autism and not the disabled-ness.
Natalie Angier The Life of Pi, and Other Infinities
This relatively short selection (only 4 pages) says a lot in that short space. It is about infinity, why we fear it, and what its implications have on different areas of life. Interesting, if not a bit rushed.
Robert M. Sapolsky Super Humanity
This article is another short one. It talks about how extraordinary humans are on the grand scale of things. It also puts our abilities in perspective when compared to what our bodies have evolved to do and what our brains spend time contemplating. Interesting.
Katherine Harmon The Patient Scientist
This article tells the story of Ralph Steinman, a researcher on the body’s immune system and how this system can be manipulated for therapeutic uses. This is one of those easily baited stories. A famous scientist gets cancer and wins the Nobel prize right after his death. The story itself is interesting and certainly has larger implications for the treatment of diseases such as AIDS and cancer. However, this writing was not remarkable at all. It is only “noted” because of the buzz words and seemingly infinite connections that man possessed. Unfortunately, these factors do more to take away from the man’s work than to support it. Also, the mention of Steve Jobs seemed like bait. It was so useless but just another name for people to take notice.
Nathaniel Rich Can A Jellyfish Unlock the Secret of Immortality?
This article is about jellyfish and immortality. Pretty obvious from the title right? However, instead of being a dry, scientific jargon laden piece, this selection very closely adheres to the tenderness idea expresses in the introduction of the book. The passage follows Shin Kubota, a Japanese scientist who is studying the Turritopsis, which is a jellyfish that is seemingly immortal. What I loved about this article is the mix of science with a realistic view into the life of a scientist. I also agree with Kubota’s assessment that the heart of man is not ready for immortality.
Stephen Marche Is Facebook Making Us Lonely?
This article talks about loneliness in connection with the growing digital age, and names Facebook specifically as a correlation to our growing loneliness. Being alone (not the same as being lonely) is a measured American ideal, and yet we are growing more lonely as time passes. The article mixes scientific and journalistic studies with a bit of conjecture, throwing in big names here and there to keep you interested. While the author makes great points, he waivers on whether or not Facebook is a cause, effect, or simply correlation. Add to the fact that the article doesn’t focus solely on loneliness and you’ve got wasted pages for space.
Mark Bowden The Measured Man
Saving the best for last are we? This extremely interesting selection talks about Larry Smarr, a computer scientist utterly obsessed with knowing. His obsession has turned him to knowing all about himself, his genetic makeup, his intakes and outputs and a host of other health factors. He wants to ushers us into an age where humans can monitor all of these factors to self-medicate and get us further involved in maintaining healthy lives. But as the article points out, this abundance of information may be more of a curse than a gift. Extremely well written, interesting and objective, this article tackles the problem of being too tender while addressing the issue of drowning in information.
Kevin Dutton The Wisdom of Psychopaths
Once again saving the best for last? Touché! This article was fantastic. At the end I was begging for more, sad that it had gone by so soon. It takes our conventional view of psychopaths, that they are violent killers unfit for society, and turns it on its head. Many of our most prominent leaders possess psychopathic tendencies. It is this mix that gives them a competitive edge. I would definitely like to read more on this topic.
Books about racial identity are always touchy subjects. I know when I was reading it, a lot of my friends asked me why. Their comments ranged from – you should know why they are sitting together, because they are black, to -what’s the point of reading this if you’re already black? These comments are discouraging, but I think it is so important that we all read about diversity and race relations so that we may understand how to create a more understanding community. For this reason, I think this book serves as a great starting point to discussing some topics we might be uncomfortable with.
My loved copy of the book
This book answers the titular question but also delves deeper into not only why racial groups tend to sit together, but also why it is *ok* that this happens. Sometimes, we just need to be around people who look like us, who have had similar experiences, and who we feel comfortable talking to. Tatum is very clear in her definitions, her methodology of writing and the examples she uses. I was very happy to find a chapter dedicated to white people. I think this was very important because more often than not, white allies feel like they are fighting an uphill battle where it is easier to just become complacent in the face of racism, a system that no doubt favors them. I also commend Tatum for pointing out that at some level we all belong to a system of privilege even if we are unaware. To be “normal” in America means to be an Anglo-Saxon heterosexual, Christian male. But we all know that many Americans do not fit this mold at all, although you may fit into one of these privileged categories, or even have privilege within your smaller community.
If you have ever wanted to talk about racial identity. If you have ever wanted to connect with a colleague but you are scared you might say the wrong thing, then this book is for you. I wish I had found it way before I started college or even high school, as it would have comforted me on the days when I sat at the black table, much to the dismay of my high school teachers and white friends. I wish I could have shown them these passages to say “hey, its not that I don’t like you, but sometimes you just don’t get it.” I wish it would have been there when I was teased about my Brooklyn accent, celebrated for being “smart for a black girl” etc. I think it is an invaluable tool for educators because it is frank and takes the awkwardness edge off of very awkward situations. Yes the book is flawed. It is short. It makes the issue very Black vs. White which is not representative of the problems at hand. However, it is a starting point. I gave it 5 stars for the blunt tackling of the systematic oppression and disadvantages of minorities, while offering real and attainable actions for curbing this trend.
(I wasn’t really sure of what to name this post but I guess updates will do.)
I’m done reviews for 2013! Now you’ll start to see some fresh stuff, namely the 16 books I’ve read in 2014 so far (super ahead of schedule on my reading challenge whoop whoop!!!) The first books I read this year were The Atlantis Gene series (Books 1 & 2, with 3 still in the works apparently) written by A.G. Riddle. I’m not doing a review for them because:
I don’t remember the separate details from each book
I don’t want to give away spoilers
They weren’t that good to waste my (and your) time
I probably won’t even read the third book
But I got them on Amazon where they have become pretty popular so if you’re interested in mediocre writing / plot in the dystopian/ science fiction genre I say go for it.
Moving right along! I’ll post my 2014 reading list (so far) later on today, then the first review will be up on Friday.
Right now I’m reading Bad Monkey by Carl Hiaasen. It’s a little slow to start but I’m enjoying the dry humor.
What is everyone reading? I’d love to get some input since I’ve been blazing through books lately! 🙂
I mentioned to a friend that I was reading this book (and that it was taking me forever) and she immediately jumped down my throat. “Victorian era romance? *Scoff!*” she said. Well at this point there wasn’t much romance in the book so I scoffed right back! Then I finished it. (Oops) lol. So this is a romance novel and I loved it. SUE ME. I also loved Pride and Prejudice (which everyone seems to hate HOW?!?!) so maybe it’s not too far fetched. Anywho …
No matter how many times I refer to the phonetic pronunciation of “Eyre” (like the are in square) I still say it wrong. For any other story that would be inconsequential (for example, I said Hermoine wrong until the chamber of secrets movie debuted) but so many people in the actual story say her name wrong so it’s sort of important. Anyway! Yes there is romance in the story but I shall defend it as much more than that!
Jane Eyre is something of a classic so I’m guessing many people know the plot. (Sparknotes abound if you don’t) Basically Jane is a poor orphan living with cruel aunt (Mrs. Reed), sent to boarding school, made into good Christian woman and teacher. As a result of her teaching ability she is introduced to noble classes and falls in love outside her caste.
What I liked:
Jane is a different kind of heroine. She’s faithful and moral bound and pays exquisite attention to the proper manner of behaving. I like that she was attuned to the feelings of others and wanted to coax others to their happiness. I also appreciated her “realness”. Yes she knew her love for Mr. Rochester was wrong but that didn’t keep her from grappling with it. She also knew she did not care for St. John Rivers as a husband (at all) and even though she was drawn to her Christian duty of his mission, she knew her heart would hurt under the burden. You go girl! (Also keep in mind the Victorian era, she was a poor woman yet bold! Go head girl!!!) Jane also had some of the best “one-liners” such as:
“I don’t think, sir, you have a right to command me, merely because you are older than I, or because you have seen more of the world than I have; your claim to superiority depends on the use you have made of your time and experience.” – (said to Mr. Rochester)
I love Victorian era settings. I don’t know why. Maybe it’s the way they talk, the overwhelming detail to custom, the description of clothing and entertainment? Description of riding on horses and in carriages instead of cars? The beautifully described homes? The lack of modern conveniences (and learning what they actually considered modern conveniences)? And the language! *blissful sigh*
Neutralities:
More so than a romance, it’s a story that speaks well of the Christian faith and duty. Obviously lol. I was neutral on this. On one hand it makes sense because of setting but on the other hand it was like reading a Christian propaganda pamphlet because it was being shoved down your throat.
I was neutral on the story’s development. The most important parts for me began after she started working for Mr. Rochester to the end of the book.
What I didn’t like:
It was long. Very long. It took me over a week to finish and I was so frustrated because I never read that slow! Maybe it was because I had to slow down for language considerations, and the prose was extremely thick.
Mr. Rochester’s wife and back story. I thought that was a little much. Mostly because of the racial implications. The fact that he had to be tricked into marrying her and that she was crazy would only be allowed because she wasn’t white. This didn’t sit well with me and only got worse as it became a more important part of the story.
Overall I gave Jane Eyre 5/5 stars. Probably because I’m a sucker for a headstrong heroine and a good love story with a happy ending. But I understand this type of book isn’t for everybody.
Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl was one of my favorite books last year, and as noted in the review for Dark Places, I had to read EVERYTHING Flynn had written. I started with Sharp Objects which is Flynn’s first book. Simply put, I loved it. I gave the book 4/5 stars.
My loved copy (from Strand!)
Sharp Objects has typical Flynn like female characters: dark, flawed, secretive and not “nice”. It is her exploration of the naughty side of women that really appeals to me. I love morbid topics that many popular female characters shy from (or are shielded from). In retrospect, the guys kinda suck in this book too but they are less significant in my mind.
This story is about a series of murders in the hometown of the main character Camille Preaker. She is a reporter who is just getting back on her feet from a mental breakdown and her boss believes a trip back home will be a step in the right direction. However, the boss (and the reader) are initially unaware that the source of her mental troubles are still holed up in Wind Gap with her mother and stepsister. We follow the development of the murder investigation of two little girls,who are well known in this small town. Of course the story rocks the people of Wind Gap who cannot imagine the death of such young and (seemingly) innocent girls. The plot resolution is somewhat unexpected but not at all far fetched. I do not want to include spoilers; read it!
I’m from a large city so reading about small town shockers are always so interesting to me. Flynn does the small Midwest setting very well and really allows the reader to imagine what it must be like to know everyone and everyone knows you. There are obvious ramifications for this setting in terms of a murder because a) they are rare b) local gossip can get mixed up with official investigation. These small town cases make great stories because there aren’t too many characters and locations to keep track of.
Read this book! It has murder, mean women, broken women, thrillers, plot twists and skips the cliché resolution for a very tangible, accessible story. Flynn does it again!
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