Lasting Damage

…by Sophie Hannah.

I am going to be killed because of a family called the Gilpatricks.

That’s how the book starts on the 24th of July 2010. We are then taken back to a week earlier with Connie Bowskill the narrator. She lies in bed waiting for her husband Kit Bowskill to fall asleep and then sneaks out to check out a property listing online. While watching the virtual tour of 11 Bentley Grove, Cambridge, Connie sees something. In the living room, in the middle of the carpet is a woman lying face-down in a pool of blood. She rushes to get Kit to view it. But when he does, he sees no dead body. Nothing. Just an ordinary house for sale.  Thus begins a nightmare for Connie. She attempts to get Simon Waterhouse but is dismayed to find that he is away on his honeymoon. She has to make do with Sam Kombothekra. Who listens to her story although he is a bit sceptical. Kit does not believe Connie and thinks she is losing her mind. Until another woman comes forward with the same story. A real estate agent Jackie Napier. But with no dead body, what is it they saw?

Is it someone playing a cruel prank?

Who are the Gilpatricks?

Is Kit having an affair with the woman at 11 Bentley Grove as Connie suspects?

Or is Connie making up the entire thing herself?

To know all these answers, well, you have to read the book. Once again, Sophie Hannah manages to weave a wonderful psychological thriller. She really manages to get into the heads of all her characters and gives them intricate and unique personalities. As for the dysfunction, she’s a master at chalking them out. It was hard for me to have to put down the book while at work in the last day because I was so eager to know what happened next. And Sophie Hannah manages to do that…keep you hooked so much so you don’t want to put it down until you know the answers. I am still constantly stumped by her mysteries and mind you, I can solve most mysteries pretty quickly. If you are looking for an interesting psychological thriller, this is the way to go.

I give it a rating of 3.

Until next time,

Cheers!!!

Theodore Boone

…by John Grisham.

Theo Boone is a 13 year old 8th grader living in the small city of Strattenburg with his parents Marcella Boone and Woods Boone, and his dog Judge. Both his parents are lawyers. But not the exciting kind. His father is a real estate lawyer while his mother is a divorce attorney. Theo thinks he’s a lawyer too. And some day, want to be a criminal lawyer in exciting trials. As the city of Strattenburg gears up for one of the biggest murder trials, Theo is excited and a bit of an expert. The prosecution doesn’t seem to have much of a case. And then, Theo is dragged into the middle of the case. Soon, he is the only one who knows the truth and needs to decide what to do before a murderer could walk free. And Theo wants to see justice served.

What does Theo know?

What will he do with the information especially if lives are at stake?

Will the murderer walk free?

To know all this, well, you have to read the book!

It’s a book for light reading and is one you can probably finish quite quickly. It keeps you hooked for most part and the characters are quite nice. Theo seems like a nice kid and you kind of want him to break through the barriers and see that justice is served. That being said, it’s nowhere near Grisham’s brilliant books like The Partner, A Time to Kill or The Client. But then again, I think this is a book for young adults and teens. It’s a nice little mystery with courtroom drama. Read it for an enjoyable read.

I rate it a 3.

Until next time,

Cheers!!!

Matilda is missing

…by Caroline Overington.

Barry Harrison has been left with a box of files and tapes by his friend Frank Brooks. Frank was a judge in the Family Court who passed away from terminal cancer. And he manages to tell Barry that he stuffed up and hopes Barry can help him make things right. Problem is Barry doesn’t know what Frank wants from him. All he has are court documents and transcripts of a couple who went through the Family Law Court and their counselling session tapes. Amidst all this, he is also dealing with his own son’s divorce and his wife’s reaction over-reaction to not being able to have access to her grandchildren. Barry then listens to the tapes at hand. They are of Softie Monaghan and Garry Hartshorn. The couple fighting for the custody of their daughter Matilda. The couple had nothing in common when they got together. Softie was a sophisticated career-woman while Garry was in his own words, a bogan, with several jobs under his belt. It appears that the only thing that made Softie continue with the relationship was that his adoptive mother Jean and her second husband Rick Hartshorn, a well-known car dealer were sophisticated enough leading her to believe she could change Garry. Plus there was her ticking body clock at the age of thirty-nine. While both parents believe they have Matilda’s best interest at heart and are hence entitled to her custody, it is little Matilda who gets lost in the process.

This is now the third book I’ve read by the author Caroline Overington and she reminds me a bit of an Aussie Jodi Picoult in that she deals with issues that are probably on everyone’s minds but which no one likes to talk about. Add to that a bit of mystery to keep the reader intrigued. In this book, Overington tackles the issue of Family Courts and how ridiculous the laws have become where in the end, the child loses. While the child may not lose their parents, being dragged through the process is hard on some kids. She also appears to make comments on how women give so much importance to the whole ticking of their body clocks that they are willing to have a child with just about anyone. Without thinking about the consequences. Add to that the idea that you can change your partner and just how wrong that can be! Neither Garry nor Softie are particularly likeable but I think that was the point…so as a reader, you really wouldn’t side with one over the other. All in all, it has been yet another book I thoroughly enjoyed. I am definitely going to be looking forward to her books in the future.

My rating would be a 5.

Until next time,

Cheers!!!

Note: This has been cross-posted on my personal blog