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3.6 AVERAGE
3.6 AVERAGE
This book had some really lovely moments, but the end was a bit abrupt and unsatisfying.
I really enjoyed this book. The chapters written from Grace's perspective are often funny and have a lovely naivety to them. Other parts of the book are quite dark, though, and unsettling at times, which takes the book away from a standard "coming of age" story and gives it more complexity.
The author has a lovely turn of phrase and her descriptions are very apt and insightful. I found myself re-reading some of the passages a few times to take them in. I felt I had a very good idea of the characters and their motivations by the end.
While at heart this is a very perceptive story about what people are revealing and concealing from those they live next to, there are a couple of mysteries running through the book. I enjoyed trying to figure out what had happened from the various pieces of information the reader is given as we go along; particularly the information Grace and Tilly glean, which they themselves don't fully understand.
I'd definitely recommend this book. It's quite different from the sort of book I normally read, but I did enjoy it.
(I won my copy as part of a Goodreads giveaway but this hasn't influenced my opinions).
The author has a lovely turn of phrase and her descriptions are very apt and insightful. I found myself re-reading some of the passages a few times to take them in. I felt I had a very good idea of the characters and their motivations by the end.
While at heart this is a very perceptive story about what people are revealing and concealing from those they live next to, there are a couple of mysteries running through the book. I enjoyed trying to figure out what had happened from the various pieces of information the reader is given as we go along; particularly the information Grace and Tilly glean, which they themselves don't fully understand.
I'd definitely recommend this book. It's quite different from the sort of book I normally read, but I did enjoy it.
(I won my copy as part of a Goodreads giveaway but this hasn't influenced my opinions).
A slightly unsettling read, set in 1970s Britain - this novel looks at the relationships between neighbours back when people really thought they knew the people next door.
I really enjoyed the chapters told from 10 year old Grace's point of view, she and Tilly were great characters. And to be honest, part of me wishes that the whole book had been written in that voice - but I do understand that in order for the twists to flow there had to be other voices.
I think this will prove to be a very popular book and I look forward to more from this author.
The only thing we are spoon fed is the Angel Delight, the answers are there but not always obviously so.
I really enjoyed the chapters told from 10 year old Grace's point of view, she and Tilly were great characters. And to be honest, part of me wishes that the whole book had been written in that voice - but I do understand that in order for the twists to flow there had to be other voices.
I think this will prove to be a very popular book and I look forward to more from this author.
The only thing we are spoon fed is the Angel Delight, the answers are there but not always obviously so.
Had to follow. To many loose ends and threads not completed.
This is a first book so maybe future books will tie up the loose ends.
This is a first book so maybe future books will tie up the loose ends.
It is 1976 in England. Mrs. Creasy is missing from Grace and Tilly's neighborhood. These two 10 year olds paid attention to their vicar when he said God is everywhere. The girls believed that since God is omniscient and omnipresent, God would know where Mrs. Creasy went. So if they find God, they will know where Mrs. Creasy is. Grace and Tilly's neighbors, though, do not, have such firm faith in God and they blame the intense heat wave that has gripped England for Mrs. Creasy's disappearance. Grace is spunky, opinionated, clearly a leader and Tilly is thoughtful, introspective, and quiet. This team of amateur detectives start their search of finding God and through Him finding Mrs. Creasy. As the girls start asking questions, the tight knit neighbors start giving up their secrets. A complex web of deception and intrigue begin to emerge that glues the readers to the pages. The deception seems even more poignant as they are in direct contrast with the innocence of two 10 year olds and the prism through which they perceive the world around them. A decade ago a fateful lie was told that had devastating consequences. Mrs. Creasy, it appears, disappeared right before she was beginning to unearth the secrets that would expose many of the well loved neighbors of the cul-de-sac.
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
What a wonderful book, there are moments that make smile and tear up
Thoroughly enjoyable
Thoroughly enjoyable
Clever, well-written. Great combination of coming of age with a mystery.
This was like reading Desperate Housewives through the perspective of a precocious child while child and her best friend search for God???? Yeah, it's as mixed up as it sounds. In the midst of the search for God, you get some mixed in perspectives of her neighbors which start to uncover the town's dirty little secrets.
I think these separate perspectives were also supposed to make these individuals, if not more likable, then more understandable. I definitely did not like many (or maybe any) of them. They were just racist and rude and looking for a reason to Freddy Krueger their weird neighbor without any real proof of wrongdoing. They were less neighbors and more a dangerour mob lying in weight and ready to strike. Listen, don't buy real estate in that neighborhood especially if you are brown and aren't interested in laughing off your neighbor's "harmless" racism or if you aren't ready to trash and then burn down your neighbor's house. How are these people not all in jail?
I think these separate perspectives were also supposed to make these individuals, if not more likable, then more understandable. I definitely did not like many (or maybe any) of them. They were just racist and rude and looking for a reason to Freddy Krueger their weird neighbor without any real proof of wrongdoing. They were less neighbors and more a dangerour mob lying in weight and ready to strike. Listen, don't buy real estate in that neighborhood especially if you are brown and aren't interested in laughing off your neighbor's "harmless" racism or if you aren't ready to trash and then burn down your neighbor's house. How are these people not all in jail?
Books from a child's perspective are interesting reads (as they are written by an adult) this one was no less interesting, but I found the chapters in the adult voices to interrupt the flow of the book and the story. I had an aha moment at the end when it all came together, but it took a little too long for that to happen.