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robosquid's review
5.0
I loved this taut tale of a family in turmoil. Troubled teenager Lana disappeared for four days in the Derbyshire Peak District whilst on a painting holiday before being found injured, bleeding and claiming to have no memory of the past few days. The story is told from the point of view of Lana's mother Jen, and their fractured relationship is described in pithy, sharp detail. Many of the confrontations will be familiar to parents of teenagers, but these are exacerbated by Lana's refusal to reveal anything about what happened to her. You can feel the family's frustration and worry. Jen is of course driven to investigate and follows several red herrings before the book's conclusion.
I enjoyed this book immensely, aided by the fact that I am familiar with some of the locations, such as the Nine Ladies Stone Circle and the neighbouring 'charm' tree which is described accurately.
Characters are portrayed superbly and all dialogue feels very realistic. I liked the ending - the last line was particularly poignant. Highly recommended.
I enjoyed this book immensely, aided by the fact that I am familiar with some of the locations, such as the Nine Ladies Stone Circle and the neighbouring 'charm' tree which is described accurately.
Characters are portrayed superbly and all dialogue feels very realistic. I liked the ending - the last line was particularly poignant. Highly recommended.
penny_literaryhoarders's review
3.0
Overall this was mostly disappointing for me. :-( Honestly! What is happening with the books where I eagerly anticipate and I'm so excited to read and they don't turn out they way I had expected? This one took until the very end to be interesting? A good ending? Not one that was as expected, but by that time it wasn't enough to change my feeling of disappointment in it.
pgchuis's review
I seem to be quitting a lot of books recently...
Here 15 year old Lana, who has previously cut herself and expressed suicidal thoughts, goes missing in the countryside for four days. When she is found, she claims to be unable to remember where she has been or what happened to her.
I thought this was well-written, but I found Lana rude and her mother annoying and nothing much had really happened by the half-way point, so I am stopping. I don't much care what happened to Lana.
Here 15 year old Lana, who has previously cut herself and expressed suicidal thoughts, goes missing in the countryside for four days. When she is found, she claims to be unable to remember where she has been or what happened to her.
I thought this was well-written, but I found Lana rude and her mother annoying and nothing much had really happened by the half-way point, so I am stopping. I don't much care what happened to Lana.
ladyleckus's review
3.0
I really appreciated the way mental health was approached in this book. It was very realistic and true to the human experience. Oftentimes mystery/thrillers use mental illness to create a villain but this book didn't do that.
Also, the mystery of the book is if there is even a mystery at all. Really gets you thinking!
It's a good concept and I enjoyed the book. I'm just not in a hurry to read it again.
Also, the mystery of the book is if there is even a mystery at all. Really gets you thinking!
It's a good concept and I enjoyed the book. I'm just not in a hurry to read it again.
chaotic_wholesome's review
4.0
3.5 stars, really. But I'm rounding up instead of down because the characters drove me up a wall, in a good way. Some really cracking characterisation work, and I admire the labour of writing that must have been.
somuchreading's review
4.0
Τούτο δω το βιβλίο έπεσε θύμα αυτού που θα αναφέρω από δω και στο εξής σαν Το Μεγάλο Reader's Block του 2016. Ναι, αυτό το βιβλίο μου πήρε κάτι μήνες να το ολοκληρώσω γιατί, εχμ, απλά σταμάτησα να διαβάζω, αλλά κοιτάξτε: Ήταν καλό.
Η Χάρτινη Μνήμη είναι ουσιαστικά ένα αστυνομικό μυθιστόρημα. Υπάρχει το μυστήριο δυο εξαφανίσεων, σε αρκετή χρονική απόσταση του ενός με του άλλου, υπάρχει ένας [αναξιόπιστος] αφηγητής, υπάρχει και η παράλληλη πορεία των 2 αφηγήσεων παρελθόντος και παρόντος.
Από κει και πέρα όμως η Emma Healey διαφοροποιείται αρκετά σε σχέση με τα συνηθισμένα. Η ηλικιωμένη Μοντ πάσχει από Αλτσχάιμερ και η εξαφανισμένη φίλη της Ελίζαμπεθ γίνεται ένα με την εξαφανισμένη, εδώ και πολλές δεκαετίας, αδερφή της Σούκι, όλα μπερδεύονται, σκέψεις, πράξεις, λόγια, πρόσωπα ανακατεύονται στο μυαλό της Μοντ και η συγγραφέας κάνει εξαιρετική δουλειά στο να μας δώσει να καταλάβουμε την κατάσταση ενός ανθρώπου με την αρρώστια της πρωταγωνίστριας της.
Το βιβλίο είναι δύσκολο, είναι αρκετά μαύρο, συγκινεί με φυσικό τρόπο και όχι με υστερίες και, τελικά, αυτό που φέρνει μια κάποια ισορροπία στην ιστορία και δεν κατέληξα με κατάθλιψη αφού το ολοκλήρωσα [πράγμα που, να το τονίσω, δε θεωρώ αρνητικό για το βιβλίο, το ακριβώς αντίθετο μάλιστα, μερικοί το παρεξηγούν αυτό] είναι το χιούμορ που έχει διασπείρει η Healey σε όλη του τη διάρκεια.
Τι δε μου άρεσε; Οι περιφερειακοί χαρακτήρες δεν είναι ιδιαίτερα καλογραμμένοι και υποτάσσονται στην πλοκή συχνότερα από όσο θα ήθελα, μοιάζουν αρκετά flat για ένα τόσο grounded μυθιστόρημα όπως αυτό. Από την άλλη, ο "χαλασμένος" κόσμος της Μοντ είναι ένα εξαιρετικό επίτευγμα για ντεμπούτο και σίγουρα χάρηκα που τον εξερεύνησα.
Με ετούτο το βιβλίο εγκαινιάζω επίσημα και τη χρήση μισών αστεριών στο Goodreads μου, αφού δεν τα δίνουν αυτοί θα τα βάλω μόνος μου. Χάρτινη Μνήμη: ★★★½
Η Χάρτινη Μνήμη είναι ουσιαστικά ένα αστυνομικό μυθιστόρημα. Υπάρχει το μυστήριο δυο εξαφανίσεων, σε αρκετή χρονική απόσταση του ενός με του άλλου, υπάρχει ένας [αναξιόπιστος] αφηγητής, υπάρχει και η παράλληλη πορεία των 2 αφηγήσεων παρελθόντος και παρόντος.
Από κει και πέρα όμως η Emma Healey διαφοροποιείται αρκετά σε σχέση με τα συνηθισμένα. Η ηλικιωμένη Μοντ πάσχει από Αλτσχάιμερ και η εξαφανισμένη φίλη της Ελίζαμπεθ γίνεται ένα με την εξαφανισμένη, εδώ και πολλές δεκαετίας, αδερφή της Σούκι, όλα μπερδεύονται, σκέψεις, πράξεις, λόγια, πρόσωπα ανακατεύονται στο μυαλό της Μοντ και η συγγραφέας κάνει εξαιρετική δουλειά στο να μας δώσει να καταλάβουμε την κατάσταση ενός ανθρώπου με την αρρώστια της πρωταγωνίστριας της.
Το βιβλίο είναι δύσκολο, είναι αρκετά μαύρο, συγκινεί με φυσικό τρόπο και όχι με υστερίες και, τελικά, αυτό που φέρνει μια κάποια ισορροπία στην ιστορία και δεν κατέληξα με κατάθλιψη αφού το ολοκλήρωσα [πράγμα που, να το τονίσω, δε θεωρώ αρνητικό για το βιβλίο, το ακριβώς αντίθετο μάλιστα, μερικοί το παρεξηγούν αυτό] είναι το χιούμορ που έχει διασπείρει η Healey σε όλη του τη διάρκεια.
Τι δε μου άρεσε; Οι περιφερειακοί χαρακτήρες δεν είναι ιδιαίτερα καλογραμμένοι και υποτάσσονται στην πλοκή συχνότερα από όσο θα ήθελα, μοιάζουν αρκετά flat για ένα τόσο grounded μυθιστόρημα όπως αυτό. Από την άλλη, ο "χαλασμένος" κόσμος της Μοντ είναι ένα εξαιρετικό επίτευγμα για ντεμπούτο και σίγουρα χάρηκα που τον εξερεύνησα.
Με ετούτο το βιβλίο εγκαινιάζω επίσημα και τη χρήση μισών αστεριών στο Goodreads μου, αφού δεν τα δίνουν αυτοί θα τα βάλω μόνος μου. Χάρτινη Μνήμη: ★★★½
alyce6d980's review
1.0
Oof, this one hurts me. I was certain I was going to love Whistle in the Dark because I’ve heard such amazing things about Emma Healey’s debut novel, Elizabeth is Missing. I didn’t actually realise I had this book on my NetGalley because I have it sitting on my bookshelf, so I thought this story was going to be swiftly moving from my ‘read then donate’ pile straight onto my shelf of favourites.
Unfortunately, the exact opposite ended up happening. I’m about to get spoilery...
Whistle in the Dark doesn’t really tell a story. A girl goes missing during a vacation in the Peak District with her mother, and when she comes back she won’t tell anyone where she’s been. Her mother is worried that someone kidnapped her or took advantage of her, but Lana remains tight-lipped: is she protecting someone, or has she suppressed her memories of the traumatic event? Sounds like the makings of a perfect psychological thriller, right?
WRONG. This book has such a brilliant premise, but it doesn’t live up to it AT ALL. It starts to try to address so many different, interesting plot lines, then abandons them and jumps off on other tangents. There are a slew of almost thought-provoking inclusions – the struggles of parenting a child with depression, self-harm, sperm donation, religion – but in the grand scheme of things every single one of them falls short.
I’ve seen a lot of different reviews since I finished this book, and all of them have said that they were impressed by at least one section – either the beginning, the middle or the end – so they’ve felt justified in giving Whistle in the Dark three stars minimum. Meanwhile there’s me, the salty little sausage in the corner, who can’t think of a redeeming thing to say about the entire novel. The beginning was intriguing for all of five minutes, the middle perfectly showed the paranoid musings of an anxious mother (and then showed it perfectly over and over again, as Jen repeated her worries so regularly that I began to worry that I was pressing the back button on my Kindle rather than reading further into the book), while the ending was possibly the worst thing I’ve ever read.
Turns out, Lana went into a cave to OD, passed out, came around and got lost in the cave and managed to find her way out three days later. We learn this because Jen goes exploring and gets lost in the same cave… But gets out within a couple of hours. How long are we supposed to believe Lana was unconscious?! None of it added up, and it’s the least satisfying pay off I’ve ever gotten from a ‘thriller’.
I’m still going to pick up Elizabeth is Missing, but I wish I’d trusted the Goodreads ratings on this one.
This review was originally posted on The Bumbling Blogger.
Unfortunately, the exact opposite ended up happening. I’m about to get spoilery...
WRONG. This book has such a brilliant premise, but it doesn’t live up to it AT ALL. It starts to try to address so many different, interesting plot lines, then abandons them and jumps off on other tangents. There are a slew of almost thought-provoking inclusions – the struggles of parenting a child with depression, self-harm, sperm donation, religion – but in the grand scheme of things every single one of them falls short.
I’ve seen a lot of different reviews since I finished this book, and all of them have said that they were impressed by at least one section – either the beginning, the middle or the end – so they’ve felt justified in giving Whistle in the Dark three stars minimum. Meanwhile there’s me, the salty little sausage in the corner, who can’t think of a redeeming thing to say about the entire novel. The beginning was intriguing for all of five minutes, the middle perfectly showed the paranoid musings of an anxious mother (and then showed it perfectly over and over again, as Jen repeated her worries so regularly that I began to worry that I was pressing the back button on my Kindle rather than reading further into the book), while the ending was possibly the worst thing I’ve ever read.
Turns out, Lana went into a cave to OD, passed out, came around and got lost in the cave and managed to find her way out three days later. We learn this because Jen goes exploring and gets lost in the same cave… But gets out within a couple of hours. How long are we supposed to believe Lana was unconscious?! None of it added up, and it’s the least satisfying pay off I’ve ever gotten from a ‘thriller’.
I’m still going to pick up Elizabeth is Missing, but I wish I’d trusted the Goodreads ratings on this one.
This review was originally posted on The Bumbling Blogger.
nickipettitt's review
4.0
Dark and intense, this book kept me guessing to the end. Like the main character Jen, I worried about where her daughter Lara had been and what she could have experienced when missing. Although similar in theme to a lot of books with missing teenage daughters, the impact of depression on a family, and relationship issues, this book was different in style with the inclusion of letters, articles and other unusual ways of telling the story. This made it stand out. Beautifully written, I had a real insight into Jen's world.
readwithamy's review
3.0
2.5 - Pretty disappointed in Whistle In The Dark. It started out well and I was intrigued to see what happened. I couldn’t really warm up to any of the characters and found Lana and Jen, frustrating quickly. It was too slow paced and the ending was lacklustre.