Karin Slaughter: Fractured

 

Abigail Campano, the mother of teenager Emma. comes home from her tennisclass and finds her daughter killed and the killer still in the house. The killer sees her and comes running towards her with a knife on his hands.  Abigail does what her survival instincs tell her to do: she kicks the killer so that he falls down, she gets on top of him and strangles him to death. 

But in reality he wasn't the killer and the girl lying dead wasn't her daughter. 

Her daughter has been kidnapped and the person she just strangled was probably the only person who could have helped her to find Emma. Instead the police and the agent Will Trent have trouble to realise what this crime is all about. The small secrets start to reveal themselves and the case seems sometimes even more complicated than in the beginning. 

Do they find the real murderer and what were the real reasons behind these several murders that occur in the book?!

Read to find it out, in my opinion this was the best crimenovel i've read in the past couple of years!

Arja Mäkinen: Vanhojapiikoja ja vapaita naisia

 

(free translation to English could be something like Old spinsters and free women)

This is the book made out of the authors Thesis Oikeesti aikuiset (Real adults). Basically it's the dummies version of the first one. Maybe if i hadn't read the thesis first i wouldn't feel like this, but this is how i view it now. 

It is a really good book describing the situation where you are alone and don't want any children.. And as a little lighter reading than the original thesis this could do the trick. But for me having to read the other one first, i kind of rely on that one more and this is.. just what it is: kind of repetive and doesn't really give anything new to the table.

Alex Rovira and Francesc Miralles: La última respuesta

 

translated into Finnish: Lopullinen vastaus (free translation to English could be something like Final Answer)

This one is a difficult book to describe. The plot is somewhat similar as in DaVinci-Code (yet again), but this has to do with Albert Einstein and the mysteries he left behind. The main character is Javier who has been offered a lot of money if he finds out what Einsteins secrets were and if he writes a book about them. But things aren't as they seemed (are they ever?) and he ends up travelling across the world with a killer following each of his steps. 

This book is hard to describe because the athmosphere while i tried to read this was kind of off. I never really seemed to have time to read this. It was either five minutes in the bathroom or the same five just before going to sleep. So it didn't ever really kick in, but i didn't want to put it down because i found the plot facinating. Finally i was able to read it with out any pauses, and oh boy was i dissapointed?! The ending? I haven't read this pathetic ending in a long time! It's almost like the authors gave up with the story. It could have mounted up to anything and they chose some cheesy ending to it. I haven't felt this fooled for such a long time..

So, if you are looking for an adventurous novel with awesome turns and twistes in the plot - put the book down and step away from it. And go choose something else instead.

Arja Mäkinen: Oikeesti aikuiset

Free translation of the title could be  Real adults. 

Little bit background: I've apparently started to reach that agepoint where most of my friends have already have children, are either pregrnant, dream of having children or are trying to have them. Some how i do kind of feel like left out. Not because i would want to be in their situation, 'cause honestly i don't even want to. But to be that only person who doesn't dream about the same dreams and doesn't really want to live life like that - it's sometimes quite hard in a society where living life without children is kind of a thing where you get judged on easily. 

The book is a thesis of women who live alone and don't have any children/ don't want any children or cannot have any children. There hasn't really been that much of studies on the subject and specially not within Finland, so i was really pleased i found this one (and actually couple others from the same writer). 

Of course when this is a thesis, it's not really any kind of self-help book, but anyways at least for me, it really helped out to see that there are really others like me. Others that kind of maybe would like to be in a relationship but it hasn't really ever happened - but are satisfied in their lives anyhow, but seem to get this judgement from the people and the whole society that gives out the norm that it's almost obligatory to get into a relationship, get married and have kids. 

It's really releaving that eventhough majority of the people don't understand this kind of way of living and probably assume it's either being some crazy manhunter or gay, there are other people out there who has to fight against these same assumptions and has to justify their way of living. In the perfect world you wouldn't have to justify it, but in rhe real world i don't see that happening in anytime soon..

Jennifer Lee Carrell: Interred with their bones

 

Kate Stanley is directing Hamlet in London where her old colleague wants to meet her and let her in to a secret that she is carrying. The secret is about William Shakespear but before Kate is let on into it her  colleague Roz gets killed and the theathre where Hamlet was supposed to be playd gets burned. 

From there starts the adventure that takes Kate to question was Shakespear really someone a lot of us assume he was, or was he a conspiracy that others made up. Whatever he/it is, it takes Kate to a place that is extremely dangerous and it'll make her doubt who she can trust. 

The book studies a lot of the written word that Shakespear has written - i found it at times a bit annoying because i've never been interested in the plays he has written. But overall the writer managed to include somewhat similar storyline of DaVinci Code into the book so that the story carried through and you really wanted to know what is really going on.

Ann Brashares: The second summer of the sisterhood

 

Like the title already tells us, this is a sequel of the book "Sisterhood of the traveling pants". I haven't read the first book, but i've seen the movie where Amber Tamblyn, Alexis Bledel, America Ferrera and Blake Lively starred in. Eventhough already in 2005 i wasn't probably the main audience agewise, i really liked the movie and when "the opporturnity came" to read this book, i took it.

So basically to describe what this book is about, you should know about the first one. Obviously this continues with the four girls lives where the last book/movie left off. But to not to give anything away the main idea is, that these four girls who have been friends since their childhood find a pair of pants that fits all of them even when they are sizewise different. In the first book they decide that they'll share the pants and each can have them for a spesific time until they have to ship them for the next person and include a letter that tells what happened while they were wearing the pants. 

And stuff do happen while they have the pants. Even events that changes their lives. This second book continues with the path that was shown in the first book. It was a good read, the story was consistent and it was easy to read. I really enjoyed it and can recommend it to anyone who like these kind of somewhat light books.

Anne B. Radge: Satunnaista seuraa (casual company)

 

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 If you want to read this yourself after it gets translated into your own language - stop reading now.

If not, follow me ;) The book is about 38 year old Ingunn who has never really been in a real relationship/ doesn't really seem to even like to be in one. That being said, it bugs the hell out of me why the author couldn't pull that storyline through to the end. It bugs 'cause you don't see those happily childfree/relationshipfree people in literature at all and this had a good start but it didn't carry through. Everything is sugarconed into sunshine and puppies. Eventhough this one starts with random sex with anything that can walk it ends with sunshine and puppies and it makes me somehow very dissapointed. 

The title and.. everything just hinted that for once there could be a book without the "this is how it's supposed to be"-storyline and it got me so excited. But from this point of view the story fell short. From some "yay this is the only way to go"-point of view this book is probably a success.

Natascha Kampusch: 3,096 Days

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In the beginning the storyline portraits young Natascha struggling between her mother and father and their broken marriage. She is portrated as a sheltered child who doesn't really care of other childrens company. 

For the first time she is let to walk to school all by herself. She is ten years old and is somehow aware of some national sexual abuse cases that other children of her age has encountered with. Little does she know that she is about to get kidnapped during her walk to the school. 

The kidnapper was a disturbed and extremely violent 35-year old man who, during these eight years that she was captived by him, made sure to her that no-one cared about her and her family were actually releaved that they have gotten rid of her. 

She had to spend almost all of her time in a tiny room with no window or other source of natural lighting.  Instead of those there was a "god" who controlled the time and her daily routines. It is almost unbeliavable that she truly got away and is able to live a normal life afterwards.

I'm very interested in these missing children-cases. I just wish all of the Amy Fitzpatricks and suchs would somehow, sometime have the same opporturnity to escape if they are put in these kind of similar situations.

Denise Mina: Garnethill

 

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One of the persons who suggested me to read Ian Rankin, suggested also this book. After having these disastorous moments with Ian, i did have some trouble to really grab this one. But i'm glad i did.

Story of the book is about Maureen who gets involved in a murder after she wakes up in her aparment and finds her boyfriend dead. The night before she was so drunk that she can't really remember what happened. The thing she remembers is that she didn't kill him but of course the police suspects her. 

As the story goes, you'll learn a lot more about Maureen, her family and their past. At some points it was kind of hard to follow all the different characters but in the end you kind of learned to know the important characters a lot better that way. 

This was the first crimenovel in a long time where i didn't guess the murderer right away, so a huge plus for that.

Juhani Mykkänen: Matkaoppaat

The book is based on a hit realityshow of mainly Finnish travelguides working in Alanya, Turkey. The book interviews the guides and gives behind the scenes look to the show. A fine book, but nothing really that special as books about tv-shows never really are.

John Verdon: Think of a number

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Dave Gurneys old friend asks him to help him in an odd case. The friend, Mark Mellery, had received some letters and the first one suggests him to think of a certain number and the closed envelope tells him the exact number he was thinking of. There starts a story that definitely has similarities with the likes of Agatha Christie.

I really enjoyed this book, it's one of those detectivenovels that you can't really put down before you've read it all. Unfortunately i've read so many crimenovels in the past that i kind of knew pretty early who the suspect was. It didn't really spoil the end though, so four stars because of it!

Elbie Lötter: It's me, Anna

I think it's really hard to write a book review of this one because the story is so tragic and i kind of feel like i'm not allowed to say really anything about it. Overall the book is a true story about Anna, a young girl who gets both physically and sexually abused by her stepfather Danie while her mother just looks away and doesn't really believe in her. Maybe that part is the most grossing ever when a mother doesn't believe her own daughter and is willing to risk the life of their younger daughter as well.

I would have given 5 stars if the story wasn't coloured with a different ending.

Lucy Dillon: Lost dogs and lonely hearts

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The story is mostly about Rachel who inherits her aunts dogcarecenter. She has kind of troubled relationship and the move to her aunts place kind of helps her to really think it over.

Book is also about the dogs and different people who all get to know these dogs. One of the biggest topic although is kids. One couple can't have them, one gets them almost "too easily". I didn't really think at the beginning that this one has so much to do with kids, if i had known, i'm not sure if i'd borrowed this book. It's not the books fault though, it's written well and the story is consisted. Just everywhere i look, hear or read, there's stuff about children and i'm just pretty over it atm. So for me, it just might have been the wrong time in life to read this sort of a book.

Anja Lampela: Pyry

If anything could go wrong, it definitely goes in this one.

Pinja is living in a relationship and she is pregnant. She is thinking that her relationship is happy and in the excact place where every working relationship should be, but she is quite wrong.

It's really hard to describe the book without giving too much away. Overall this book contains every single thing why i hate reading Finnish literature...

Roslund & Hellström: Tyttö katujen alta (girl under the streets)

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The book is about people living in the Stockholm tunnelsystem that is situated under the city. The people who live in there are either runaways, homeless, drunks or just other people who have a good reason to hide from the rest of the world.

The tunnelsystem connects basically every building, such as police stations, hospitals etc. but the ways are usually blocked. Or are they?

The Stockholm policeapartment gets a case that is based of the underground. They find a body from the hospitals basement and find traces that people have come from the tunnels. So they start to look for the murderer.

The story was overall an ok read. The ending was quite surprising but i almost remember seeing similar storyline already in the Beck- or Wallander-series (forgot..). But for someone who doesn't know that there is this large tunnelsystem underground, this book might be really interesting. For me, not really.

Deborah Rodriguez: the Kabul beauty school

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At one point i really enjoyed reading all these sort of true story books where people live in countries i couldn't even ever imagine to live in. I'm not sure though i "enjoyed" reading this one.

It's about a beauty school the writer helps to build in Kabul, Afganistan and about the students. It's really nice to hear the stories of the students as well, but because it's titled "The Kabul Beauty School" i kind of wished it would have told lot more stories about the actual beauty school-part and the customers, the everyday life overall within the school.

I do realise the world is so different over there and maybe the writer believed that she has to tell every awful story behind every woman, but i don't know, would have been nice to read little more about the fun stuff that happens around the school, within the school walls. Maybe this is just result of reading too many awful stories about women in these sort of countries, that for once i just wished for to have a little different view on the subject - when for the fact the title really allures you to think so.

Sophie Kinsella: Mini-shopaholic

Classic Kinsella and very enjoyable story of Rebecca and Luke. Unfortunately at least i believe that the title of the book is little off. Yes, they already have a kid and yes she has a minor role in the book. But overall the story is about everything else than the kid, so little dissapointing there...

Suzanne Collins: Mockingjay

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This is the last book of the Hunger Game-trilogy.

The game from the second book ended a little differently as before and Katniss finds herself staying at the sector 13, the one that she didn't believe existed.

All the other sectors have started to rebel and she, wanted it or not, is the leading figure of the fighting against the Capitol. Because of that a little different "Hunger Game" begins and she will fight along Gale, Peeta and others against the cruel President Snow and his ruling over the 12 sectors.

Overall the book was good, but in my opinion weakest of the three. But what i really did like about it that the story wasn't stretched into even more books. Trilogy is definitely enough for this story eventhough i do think i'll miss Katniss and would kind of like to know what their future holds..

Suzanne Collins: Catching fire

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This is the second book of the Hunger Games-trilogy and it continues around the same subject.

Although this time around Katniss has survived from the Hunger Games and believes she would be coaching the next gamers for the game just as Haymitch did for her and Peeta.

Unfortunately it doesn't happen so. She and some other old survivers are put back into the game and for the second time they all have to fight for to come back alive from the game... Read yourself what happens..

Suzanne Collins: The hunger games

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Northern America is divided into 12 sectors and the Capitol rules over every sector. Some of the sectors are richer than others and some - poorer.

Katniss lives in the sector 12. She is the older daugher of two from a family where the father has died in a miningexplosing. Her mother has been quite devastated because of that and that has made Katniss the "head of the family".

Sector 12 is very poor and Capitol doesn't really believe in feeding them, so they have to provide food to themselves. Katniss, for example, is quite good hunter and therefore her family survives little better than maybe some of the other families.

For the Capitols entertainment (and to let everyone from the sectors know their place in the world) the Capitol organizes the Hunger Game in every year. It means that from every sector a girl and a boy gets to chosen to take a part in a competition. Winning of the competition means that the Capitol will provide food for the whole section and they'll have the chance to live in luxury for a while. The downside is that in order to win the competition all the other competitors must be killed.

Katniss's little sister gets to be one of the chosen ones but Katniss offers herself instead and then the game begins...