Ghostly

Ghostly is a wonderful little collection of spooky stories edited and illustrated by Audrey Niffeneger (The Time Traveler's Wife).

There's something for everyone in this collection - from creepy stories to funny ones. There are tales that are heartbreaking and others that are just plain odd. Standouts for me were The Black Cat by Edgar Allen Poe, Honeysuckle Cottage by P.G. Wodehouse, The Mezzotint by M.R. James, The Open Window by Saki and August 2026: There Will Come Soft Rains by Ray Bradbury.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

One Hundred Names

Cecelia Ahern is one of those hit-or-miss authors for me. Sometimes she's fantastic (PS I Love You, Love, Rosie) sometimes... not so much (The Book of Tomorrow, If You Could See Me Now) and sometimes she's in-between (The Gift).

One Hundred Names is a definite hit for Ahern's resume, as far as I'm concerned. It's the story of Kitty Logan, a journalist who's hitting rock bottom. She's just epically blown her first major story, she's about to be kicked out of her apartment and her best friend and mentor, Constance, has just died.

Just before Constance's death, she tells Kitty about the story she never wrote, the one that got away, so to speak. She directs Kitty to a file that contains a list of one hundred names and nothing else. Kitty instinctively feels that this will be the story that brings her career back - if she can only figure out what it is.

One Hundred Names is a beautiful and fun book about the story that lives in each of us, no matter how boring and everyday we may seem to the casual observer.

The Unfortunate Decisions of Dahlia Moss

Dahlia Moss has issues - she's a broke, unemployed, directionless mess. She's that annoying, whiny millennial stereotype we all love to hate and yet... there's something kind of adorable about her. When she bites off way more than she can chew and goes off looking for The Bejeweled Spear of Infinite Piercing, you can't help but root for her, even as you roll your eyes and groan at her impulsive stupidity.

The Unfortunate Decisions of Dahlia Moss is not a serious book. It does not contain the answers to any of life's big questions and it will not leave you thinking deep, existential thoughts. What it does contain is a lot of humor and a LOT of fantastically geeky references and in-jokes.

Max Wirestone has done a great job creating the characters of Dahlia Moss's world and I hope my hunch that this is the first in a series is right - I would love love love to read more stories about Dahlia and her insane roommate Charice. Also, (spoiler alert) some resolution on the guy front would be nice too!

I really have to thank Redhook Books for providing me with an advance reader copy of this one - the timing could not have been better. I had to rush back home recently for a funeral and this was the perfect book to bring along - it was light and funny and just plain goofy. It absolutely took my mind off of all the sad stuff I had to deal with and kept me distracted through drama with my flight(s) on my trip from hell.

Firsts

Where do I even start with this book?

This book, this amazing book, Firsts by Laurie Elizabeth Flynn, is quite possibly the most raw, realistic Young Adult novel I have ever had the pleasure of reading. It's just good.

Mercedes Ayers sleeps with other girls' boyfriends. A lot of other girls' boyfriends. She's not having sex with these boys because she likes them or because she wants to hurt their girlfriends. No, Mercedes is sleeping around for altruistic reasons. Really. She wants to make sure that no other girl has as bad a first time as she did, so she offers herself up to their nervous, fumbling boyfriends as practice for the real thing. She tells the guys what to say, what to wear, how to set the mood, how to make things perfect.

Of course it all has to blow up in her face.

This book goes where most Young Adult novels fear to tread. It discusses sex unflinchingly and realistically. I know that YA is meant to be for teenagers and therefore most YA novels have a PG-13 rating at the highest, but I also remember high school. As much as we all like to pretend our teenagers are still children that do nothing more than hold hands and maybe kiss on the lips (no tongue!)... the fact is, an awful lot of them are having sex. This book was refreshing in that it didn't pretend that the only people doing it in high school are there as a lesson to be punished accordingly: Don't do this or you'll get pregnant/AIDs/depression or die like this minor character the heroine is totally going to learn from, kiddies!

There were some aspects of the story that made me uncomfortable - there's an unwillingness to label some iffy behavior as rape or attempted rape, but even that I can let go when I remember how it felt to be 17 and confused about rights and what constitutes what when it comes to consent. Or non-consent, as the case may be. That stuff that makes me uncomfortable is supposed to make me uncomfortable.

I loved this book and I highly recommend it to anyone who liked the Jessica Darling books by Megan McCafferty, Forever by Judy Blume, or Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson. This is the book that proves that all YA isn't silly, dystopian, fantasy nonsense. Some of it is real and true and lovely.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Note: the book won't be out until January 5, 2016, but it is available on pre-order from Amazon.

Mrs. John Doe

Why did no one ever tell me about Tom Savage?

Seriously. He's fantastic! Right up there with Michael Connelly or early James Patterson.

I received a free review copy of Mrs. John Doe from the publisher last week and was immediately sucked in. It's a fun, thrilling, fast-paced, twisty-turny spy story that had me completely hooked.

Nora Baron has a pretty darned good life. She's got a good job, a good kid, and is married to the love of her life, who also happens to be a spy. When Nora receives a call from London letting her know her beloved husband has been killed in a car accident, she flies to England to claim the body and thus begins a series of events that grab hold of you from the start and don't let up until the very end.

I loved this book and can't wait to get my hands on even more from this author. I highly recommend that anyone who likes suspense/mystery/spy novels give this one a try. Best of all? It's only $2.99 on Amazon right now.

"There are so many unpleasant things in the world already that there is no use in imagining any more."

I finished my re-read of Anne of Avonlea last week so it's time for some more awesome L. M. Montgomery quotes! 

The post title quote is my favorite from Anne of Avonlea - probably because it's something I have to tell myself all the time. The rest of these are pretty good too, in my opinion...

When Anne starts to think that maybe there's something more than friendship between her and Gilbert:

Perhaps, after all, romance did not come into one's life with pomp and blare, like a gay knight riding down; perhaps it crept to one's side like an old friend through quiet ways; perhaps it revealed itself in seeming prose, until some sudden shaft of illumination flung athwart its pages betrayed the rhythm and the music, perhaps. . . perhaps. . .love unfolded naturally out of a beautiful friendship, as a golden-hearted rose slipping from its green sheath.

Miss Lavender explaining her depression so perfectly:

I'm just tired of everything…even of the echoes. There is nothing in my life but echoes…echoes of lost hopes and dreams and joys. They're beautiful and mocking.

Charlotta the Fourth's thoughts on marriage:

“Oh, of course there’s a resk in marrying anybody,” conceded Charlotta the Fourth, “but, when all’s said and done, Miss Shirley, ma’am, there’s many a worse thing than a husband."

Anne's realization that she and her friends are growing up, whether she's ready or not:

This was succeeded by a queer, little lonely feeling…as if, somehow, Diana had gone forward into a new world, shutting a gate behind her, leaving Anne on the outside.

Mr. Harrison's outlook on change, which I think fits in well with the quote above:

“Changes ain’t totally pleasant but they’re excellent things,” said Mr. Harrison philosophically. “Two years is about long enough for things to stay exactly the same. If they stayed put any longer they might grow mossy.”

Anne's observation on the way bad news is spread:

“Have you ever noticed that when people say it is their duty to tell you a certain thing you may prepare for something disagreeable? Why is it that they never seem to think it a duty to tell you the pleasant things they hear about you?” 

And Gilbert being Gilbert (sigh):

"It's a splendid profession," he said enthusiastically. "A fellow has to fight something all through life. . .didn't somebody once define man as a fighting animal?. . .and I want to fight disease and pain and ignorance. . .which are all members one of another. I want to do my share of honest, real work in the world, Anne. . . add a little to the sum of human knowledge that all the good men have been accumulating since it began. The folks who lived before me have done so much for me that I want to show my gratitude by doing something for the folks who will live after me. It seems to me that is the only way a fellow can get square with his obligations to the race."

And finally...: 

“It takes all sorts of people to make a world, as I've often heard, but I think there are some who could be spared,' Anne told her reflection in the east gable mirror that night.” 

Anne, I completely agree.

The Girl on the Train

The Girl on the Train has been recommended to me by at least a dozen people in the last year and it keeps popping up on lists of books for people who loved Gone Girl so obviously I had to give it a read.

I'm so glad I did. Author Paula Hawkins is absolutely talented at building suspense and setting a scene, but she where she really shines is her ability to create real, gritty characters. The people in this book are simultaneously pathetic and revolting and very, very, uncomfortably real.

There's Rachel - the titular girl on the train. She's depressed and she's lonely and she's a mess. She rides the train into London every day, staring out the windows and making up stories about strangers in an effort to avoid her own problems. Her husband is gone, she's been fired from the job she pretends to go to each day and she's obviously (to everyone else, anyway) an alcoholic. I pitied her, but at the same time wanted to shake her by her shoulders and tell her to get a grip already. Stop being so weak. Right up until the end I found myself withholding sympathy from her, figuring that she was using the classic addict's technique of manipulation to make herself seem less blameless than she was. To make excuses and avoid taking responsibility. And really, the fact that I thought I was being manipulated by a fictional character goes to show exactly how good a writer Hawkins is.

Megan - the mystery of the story. Where did she go? What happened to her? I found Megan to be hard to connect with.  Her sections were the only ones I had trouble with. I couldn't relate in any way to her. She seemed so detached from life.

Anna, the Other Woman who has stolen Rachel's life. I don't have much to say about her other than that she is just. The. Worst. Imagine the bitchiest, most insecure junior high school mean girl and that's Anna.

And Tom. Awful, awful, awful Tom. Rachel's ex - Tom is the biggest gaslighter ever in the history of the world. I hated him from the start and only hated him more as the story went on.

So. All these characters with hardly a redeeming quality among them to make you want to root for them and yet - I loved it. Truly. I stayed up late 2 nights in a row to finish it. The story just sucked me right in and didn't let go.

Hawkins has a gift for capturing the inner voice of alcoholic Rachel and the spiteful attention-seeking of Anna. So many writers fail at giving characters individual voices when shifting perspectives in a novel, yet Hawkins seems to do it effortlessly. Even the disconnectedness of Megan may well have been on purpose - no one seems to be able to get very close to her in the book either.

I look forward to reading more from this author.

I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.

Recognize that quote? It's from Anne of Green Gables, by Lucy Maud Montgomery and it's one of my favorites. Not just because I love fall so much but just because it always makes me smile to think of this character, Anne, who is so delighted with everything in the world that she can't help herself from sharing it with everyone around her.

I recently bought all nine of the Anne books for 99 cents through iBooks. I loved these books as a child and I wanted to see how they held up now that I'm all grown up.

When I was a little girl, Anne Shirley was totally my hero(ine). I too knew the pain of having bright red hair and of constantly being shushed for talking too much. And Gilbert Blythe? Totally my first book boyfriend. Oh the crush I had on him...

I'm happy to report that I am enjoying Anne Shirley as much as an adult as I did as a child. As I've been reading, I've been taking note of my favorite quotes and I thought I'd share a few from each book as I finish them.

From Anne of Green Gables there's the title quote about Octobers but then there are also what I call the "isn't it splendid" quotes:

"Isn't it splendid to thing of all the things there are to find out about? It just makes me feel glad to be alive -- it's such an interesting world. It wouldn't be half so interesting if we knew all about everything, would it?"

and

"Isn't it splendid there are so many things to like in this world?"

I always loved this on on Anne's favorite time of day:

"In the mornings I always think mornings are best; but when evening comes I think it's better still."

And then there's this one... Again, I am a redhead and I got teased about it a LOT as a child. I still do sometimes. It's hard being a redhead. Sometimes I think the reason we have a reputation for having bad tempers is because we're so sick of hearing about how we have bad tempers.

"You'd find it easier to be bad than good if you had red hair," said Anne reproachfully. "People who haven't red hair don't know what trouble is."

Amen, sister.

'Salem's Lot

“That above all else. They did not look out their windows. No matter what noises or dreadful possibilities, no matter how awful the unknown, there was an even worse thing: to look the Gorgon in the face.” - Stephen King

Have you ever read ‘Salem’s Lot? If you haven’t, you totally should. It’s one of Stephen King’s earliest books and it’s a favorite of mine. First published in 1975, the book is King’s take on vampires. Not sparkly vampires. Not soulful, romantic vampires. No, these are old-school vampires. The kind that will rip out your throat and laugh as the blood sprays. Scary vampires.  Probably not an ideal book for a 12 year old to have been reading, but that was the rule in our house – we could read or watch whatever we wanted (this was, of course, long before the internet became a fixture in every household) as long as it didn’t give us nightmares.  Nightmares meant waking up my mother and that simply Wasn’t Done.

So. It was a dark and windy night. I was curled up in my bed reading long past midnight. The house was dark and quiet – my older brother was off spending the night at a friend’s house, my parents had gone to bed hours earlier. It was just me and my book in the quiet.

Slowly I became aware of a tapping noise at my window. I brushed it off at first. There was a large oak tree close by and the wind would sometimes push the branches against the window.

I was at a point in the story where a boy is visited by a vampire knocking on his second story window when I remembered that my stepfather had cut the branches of the oak tree back not 3 days earlier. He’d been proud of his work, telling me that I no longer would have to listen to the scraping of the branches at my window.

I froze, mid page turn. If the branches had been cut back, what was tapping at my second floor window?

“I’ll ignore it,” I thought. “He must have missed a branch, that’s all. It’s really windy and he missed a branch and that is what that noise is. Vampires aren’t real.”

My resolve lasted all of 15 seconds. Then the tapping started up again, stronger now. I turned out the light and crept towards the window. I slowly, slowly, slowly parted the blinds and peeked through the crack. A bat stared back at me. A bat. A freaking bat! It had somehow made it’s way past the screen and was fluttering crazily against the window panes.

I bolted down the pitch black hallway to my parents’ room, sure that something was going to pop out and grab me as I ran.

“Mom! Mom!,” I whisper-hissed when I got to her bedside.

“Mmm?” she said, half asleep still. “What is it? What time is it?” She was coming more awake now. “What’s wrong?”

“There’s a bat, there’s a bat, there’s a bat in my window Mommy!” I was half-hysterical at this point.

“A what? A bat?” she said. “Wait a minute. What book are you reading?”

“’Salem’s Lot,” I answered.

She rolled over. “Go back to bed. We’ll talk about this in the morning.”

“But Mom!”

“Go. To. Bed. I am not getting up in the middle of the night because you’ve scared yourself silly over a book. Good night.”

I went back to my room, packed up most of my things, and moved into the guest room down the hall where I sat up the rest of the night reading Babysitter’s Club books in an effort to distract my brain from all things creepy and dark.

In the morning my mother came to check on me before she left for work and I showed her that I had not been dreaming the night before. I hid behind my almost closed bedroom door and watched through the crack as she slowly opened the window and carefully raised the screen (a corner of which had not been in its track – the bat had pushed it’s way inside but then been trapped) so that the now-sleeping bat could get out when it woke up in the evening.

She apologized, laughing. “I’m so sorry honey. I just thought you were dreaming. I mean really, a bat? In your window? I’ve read that book. I just thought you were having a nightmare.”

I can look back on The Incident With The Bat now and laugh but at the time...not so much. I had trouble sleeping in my room for a week and it took me a month to pick ‘Salem’s Lot back up.

Seriously, if you haven’t already read it, pick up a copy and read it now. And when you get to the part where there’s tapping at the window, think of me and my bat.

October TBR List

I've got a heavy-ish load on my nightstand this month. In addition to advance electronic copies of The Winter Girl, Bats of the Republic and The Guest Room that I'm reading for review, I'm also finally getting around to The Girl on the Train and am planning to finish up The Distant Marvels and read One Hundred Names, which I picked up at the library last night on a whim. I'm sure that won't be all for me this month, but I haven't decided on what comes next yet.

Any suggestions?