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books_with_tutusandsons's Reviews (438)
Tense, dramatic, creepy, mysterious, even weird....all these words can be used to describe this book. Trust me, when you start reading it, you wont be able to put it down untill you finish. And even then, you'll be left with so many questions.⠀
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Talking about family Bainbridge, its past and present, its secrets and lies, hidden up in a big, maybe even possesed manor, with the wooden dolls that just keep reapearing within the house, hidden rooms and locked doors, and diaries that hide horrendous stories, this book is a wonderful example of a victorian ghost story. ⠀
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What is the difference between dreams and reality, paranormal and normal? What is real and what is not? And when can someone be defined as crazy? These are only some of the questions you will think about while reading this book. And probably a lot of the time after finishing it. ⠀
What I loved the most is the way the author gives us little hints that we must work out ourselves, she doesnt actually spell it all out but keeps it hidden, like a story within the story. And that is the story full of difficult topics like domestic violence, rape, position of women in the society and the society of 19th century in general.
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Talking about family Bainbridge, its past and present, its secrets and lies, hidden up in a big, maybe even possesed manor, with the wooden dolls that just keep reapearing within the house, hidden rooms and locked doors, and diaries that hide horrendous stories, this book is a wonderful example of a victorian ghost story. ⠀
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What is the difference between dreams and reality, paranormal and normal? What is real and what is not? And when can someone be defined as crazy? These are only some of the questions you will think about while reading this book. And probably a lot of the time after finishing it. ⠀
What I loved the most is the way the author gives us little hints that we must work out ourselves, she doesnt actually spell it all out but keeps it hidden, like a story within the story. And that is the story full of difficult topics like domestic violence, rape, position of women in the society and the society of 19th century in general.
This was my first Gillian Flynn book...and what a book it was! I don't read thriller / crime novels much, and it's not because I don't love them, but because I often find myself predicting everything too early on and it ruins the reading for me. But, I have noticed that this kind of reads have lately gotten a little less predictable, with interesting twists and turns and not so perfect characters. And I like that a lot, so there's a great possibility I'll be reading more of this kind of books in the future.
There is certainly a lot to digest with this story, but in general I think it serves its purpose and gives to the whole atmosphere and creepiness. Here you will find struggled and lonely Camille, who, as a journalist, comes back to her hometown to write about murders of a two little girls. You will also find a bunch of young teenagers eager to seek attention, a perfect housewives and mothers club, a lot of troubled family dynamics and the weird atmosphere of a small southern town. This is a very dark book, that in places goes maybe a bit too far, with the mental issues, self-harm, alcohol and drug usage. But, as I said before, it just feels right in this book. All the pieces of the puzzle fit together and every action has its purpose.
Now it's time for me to move on to some lighter topics, but I will sure be back to Gillian Flynn, because I really loved her writing style. Even with all of the broken family issues, bad parenting and ,really disturbing actions, she never sounded too pathetic or judgmental, and she was using the issues mentioned as bricks in building her story. A great story, by the way.
There is certainly a lot to digest with this story, but in general I think it serves its purpose and gives to the whole atmosphere and creepiness. Here you will find struggled and lonely Camille, who, as a journalist, comes back to her hometown to write about murders of a two little girls. You will also find a bunch of young teenagers eager to seek attention, a perfect housewives and mothers club, a lot of troubled family dynamics and the weird atmosphere of a small southern town. This is a very dark book, that in places goes maybe a bit too far, with the mental issues, self-harm, alcohol and drug usage. But, as I said before, it just feels right in this book. All the pieces of the puzzle fit together and every action has its purpose.
Now it's time for me to move on to some lighter topics, but I will sure be back to Gillian Flynn, because I really loved her writing style. Even with all of the broken family issues, bad parenting and ,really disturbing actions, she never sounded too pathetic or judgmental, and she was using the issues mentioned as bricks in building her story. A great story, by the way.
Nope. Just couldnt go over page 200...nothing that interested me enough to finish with the reading.
3.5 stars
Had it not been people from my BC, I would have never reached out for this book. But, as it often happens with BC's, they make you go way beyond your usual paths. Sometimes it ends up leaving you in love, and sometimes, well..not. To be honest, I'm still not 100% sure what has this book left me with. But it sure was something. ⠀
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Let me explain a bit. I am not a huge fan of greek mythology, the sum of a million gods and half gods has always confused me. I know the most important ones, ofc, but I do get lost in all of it. On the other hand, I have always had a great respect for stories about women. And this is one of those you just have to admire. ⠀
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A Thousand Ships tells a story about the Trojan war through the eyes of women involved in it. And tough it seems like a bunch of non related novels, in the end they make a wonderful story as a whole. I started reading it but soon transferred to the audio, narrated by the author herself. And it was so much better. You can hear the frustration in Penelope's letters to her wandering husband Odysseus, the annoyance of Calliope, the muse, trying to make the poet understand the importance of women stories and the sadness in Hecabe's story losing all of her children. Though most of the people resent the way the author has portrayed gods, esp Aphrodite, I actually found it quite entertaining and smart, them acting like a bunch of children playing games with peoples lives. ⠀
So yeah, it's a collection of sad stories, full of unnecesary deaths and tough destinies. And way too many characters. But also, its a wonderful hommage to the lives of the women behind the myth. Mothers, sisters, daughters, wives...brave, heroic, proud, angry, broken and grieving. Cause there is the other side of every war. Not pretty, but real, and this book tells a story about it.
Had it not been people from my BC, I would have never reached out for this book. But, as it often happens with BC's, they make you go way beyond your usual paths. Sometimes it ends up leaving you in love, and sometimes, well..not. To be honest, I'm still not 100% sure what has this book left me with. But it sure was something. ⠀
⠀
Let me explain a bit. I am not a huge fan of greek mythology, the sum of a million gods and half gods has always confused me. I know the most important ones, ofc, but I do get lost in all of it. On the other hand, I have always had a great respect for stories about women. And this is one of those you just have to admire. ⠀
⠀
A Thousand Ships tells a story about the Trojan war through the eyes of women involved in it. And tough it seems like a bunch of non related novels, in the end they make a wonderful story as a whole. I started reading it but soon transferred to the audio, narrated by the author herself. And it was so much better. You can hear the frustration in Penelope's letters to her wandering husband Odysseus, the annoyance of Calliope, the muse, trying to make the poet understand the importance of women stories and the sadness in Hecabe's story losing all of her children. Though most of the people resent the way the author has portrayed gods, esp Aphrodite, I actually found it quite entertaining and smart, them acting like a bunch of children playing games with peoples lives. ⠀
So yeah, it's a collection of sad stories, full of unnecesary deaths and tough destinies. And way too many characters. But also, its a wonderful hommage to the lives of the women behind the myth. Mothers, sisters, daughters, wives...brave, heroic, proud, angry, broken and grieving. Cause there is the other side of every war. Not pretty, but real, and this book tells a story about it.
Sometimes you just want some books to turn out to be a 5 star reads. Not only because you havent had that kind of a read for a while, but also because your booksta soulmate thinks it was worth that much. Unfortunately, this didnt happen to me with this book.⠀
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All the premises were promising - historical fiction situated in Iceland in 17th century. Cold, mysterious and rough. And it is, all of the above. If you add witchcraft, icelandic mythology and position of women in the society of that time, you can get the whole feeling of this book. It is gripping, its brutal, and at moments it makes you feel breathless and angry. Angry at the whole women must obey their man philosophy of that time. Angry at no right for them to speak up, to fight for their rights and their wishes..angry at neglegance concerning most of the women. ⠀
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The first half of the book was slow. A bit too slow for me. It does serve its purpose to get you in the mood, but it just goes too long without anything actually happening. The second part was better, when you can see that all is not black and white, and that all the characters have a lot of history that made them the kind of people they ended up to be. It does have the atmospheric setting and the spooky vibe of Silent Companions, but I just needed more from this book. Or maybe just my expectations were a bit too high. ⠀
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All the premises were promising - historical fiction situated in Iceland in 17th century. Cold, mysterious and rough. And it is, all of the above. If you add witchcraft, icelandic mythology and position of women in the society of that time, you can get the whole feeling of this book. It is gripping, its brutal, and at moments it makes you feel breathless and angry. Angry at the whole women must obey their man philosophy of that time. Angry at no right for them to speak up, to fight for their rights and their wishes..angry at neglegance concerning most of the women. ⠀
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The first half of the book was slow. A bit too slow for me. It does serve its purpose to get you in the mood, but it just goes too long without anything actually happening. The second part was better, when you can see that all is not black and white, and that all the characters have a lot of history that made them the kind of people they ended up to be. It does have the atmospheric setting and the spooky vibe of Silent Companions, but I just needed more from this book. Or maybe just my expectations were a bit too high. ⠀
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