Diana is renowned historian specializing in the origins and evolution of Alchemy. She’s also a witch, albeit one who never learned the craft. Matthew is a scientist studying DNA. He’s also a vampire. I avoided this series for years because I didn’t want to get caught up in several lengthy books, and I was tired of YA novels, especially those with vampires, witches and other supernatural creatures. Turns out the only one of my expectations that proved true was that this was a series of lengthy books. Despite the fantasy elements it is both real and raw, uplifting and tragic. It is suspenseful, it is enlightening, and it is one of the most beautifully articulated love stories I have ever read. Don’t judge this book by its title like I nearly did.
Author Archives: careyrox
Bear Town by Fredrik Backman
Bear Town both welcomes you and spits you out. It nurtures you but keeps you from growing. It is both the best and worst place to raise a family. It sounds like my kind of place.
The Sleepwalker – Chris Bohjalian
I used to think the extent of sleepwalking was roaming around your house in a daze, maybe eating a snack or moving something to a spot it doesn’t usually go. I had no idea the extent to which people could operate while fully asleep. I found this fascinating. But I imagine if this condition plagues you or a loved one, you’d pick a different term. Isolating. Debilitating. Deadly.
The Paris Wife – Paula McLain
The Paris Wife is a fictional tale of the emotions surrounding Earnest Hemingway and his first wife, Hadley. Even though I knew the outcome I still read this hoping I might be wrong. Earnest was outwardly brave and boastful, but inwardly insecure, and Hadley seemed the only person to truly see this and understand it and love him for it all the same. And when that wasn’t enough anymore, I almost took it personally.
From the Page to the Screen
More and more books are being made into movies or TV shows these days, and while I make it a point to see as many of them as I can, I can’t say that I’ve ever seen a book reproduced on screen and thought it surpassed its original. Most of the time I don’t feel disappointed if the screen version wasn’t better; I generally don’t expect it to be. And some of the time I don’t even get offended when the two versions differ greatly. But there’s one story I can’t bring myself to watch on the screen; the one that changed my life.
Truly, Madly, Guilty – Liane Moriarty
When tragedy strikes, how will you react? Will you lean on your family for support? Will you pull away? Emotions can be varied and unpredictable emotions when they are tested, so can we ever really say how we’ll react?
The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry – Gabrielle Zevin
As an avid reader I fell in love with the notion that we can learn more about ourselves through books. Characters or situations could mirror our own lives if we step outside reality and look at things through the fantasy lens, perhaps giving us strength, comfort, or a sense that we aren’t alone simply because someone was able to articulate in a fictional story what we have trouble seeing in real life.
Drums of Autumn – Diana Gabaldon
Jamie and Claire continue to share a rare bond, which I think serves as an example for all the young adults around them. But for the first time Claire contributes to this bond verbally, so I felt a stronger sense of the panic and loneliness she must have endured without Jamie, and the intensity of her need for him.
If I Stay – Gayle Forman
Mia and Adam are not your typical high school students. They are both exceptionally gifted in music and mature beyond their years. Their story is told primarily through flashbacks, after a tragic accident, and it’s clear early on that this is not some teenage crush. They don’t waste time on superficial conversations; they explore each other’s passions, beliefs and dreams so thoroughly that they seem to become one.
The Circle – Dave Eggers
Solving a need, saving lives, even pushing the boundaries of exploration are all worthy pursuits afforded technology. But sometimes these pursuits have unintended consequences, and by putting our faith in technology, by putting our entire identities online, we are slowly taking away our ability to maintain any form of privacy. When happens in a society where nothing is private?
Michele Lenard 