Contemporary Books

The Thirteenth Tale (Readers Circle (Center Point))

Diane Setterfield

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 598 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

When Margaret Lea opened the door to the past, what she confronted was her destiny.

All children mythologize their birth...So begins the prologue of reclusive author Vida Winter's collection of stories, which are as famous for the mystery of the missing thirteenth tale as they are for the delight and enchantment of the twelve that do exist.

The enigmatic Winter has spent six decades creating various outlandish life histories for herself -- all of them inventions that have brought her fame and fortune but have kept her violent and tragic past a secret. Now old and ailing, she at last wants to tell the truth about her extraordinary life. She summons biographer Margaret Lea, a young woman for whom the secret of her own birth, hidden by those who loved her most, remains an ever-present pain. Struck by a curious parallel between Miss Winter's story and her own, Margaret takes on the commission.

As Vida disinters the life she meant to bury for good, Margaret is mesmerized. It is a tale of gothic strangeness featuring the Angelfield family, including the beautiful and willful Isabelle, the feral twins Adeline and Emmeline, a ghost, a governess, a topiary garden and a devastating fire.

Margaret succumbs to the power of Vida's storytelling but remains suspicious of the author's sincerity. She demands the truth from Vida, and together they confront the ghosts that have haunted them while becoming, finally, transformed by the truth themselves.

The Thirteenth Tale is a love letter to reading, a book for the feral reader in all of us, a return to that rich vein of storytelling that our parents loved and that we loved as children. Diane Setterfield will keep you guessing, make you wonder, move you to tears and laughter and, in the end, deposit you breathless yet satisfied back upon the shore of your everyday life.

Remember Me?

Sophie Kinsella

Amazon Price: $11.20 List Price: $14.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Dial Press Trade Paperback Amazon Marketplace: 55 new & used starting at $6.00

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 215 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

When twenty-eight-year-old Lexi Smart wakes up in a London hospital, she’s in for a big surprise. Her teeth are perfect. Her body is toned. Her handbag is Vuitton. Having survived a car accident—in a Mercedes no less—Lexi has lost a big chunk of her memory, three years to be exact, and she’s about to find out just how much things have changed, Somehow Lexi went from a twenty-five-year-old working girl to a corporate big shot with a sleek new loft, a personal assistant, a carb-free diet, and a set of glamorous new friends. And who is this gorgeous husband—who also happens to be a multimillionaire? With her mind still stuck three years in reverse, Lexi greets this brave new world determined to be the person she…well, seems to be. That is, until an adorably disheveled architect drops the biggest bombshell of all. Suddenly Lexi is scrambling to catch her balance. Her new life, it turns out, comes complete with secrets, schemes, and intrigue. How on earth did all this happen? Will she ever remember? And what will happen when she does?

Confessions of a Shopaholic (Movie Tie-in Edition) (Random House Movie Tie-In Books)

Sophie Kinsella

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 855 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

Rebecca Bloomwood just hit rock bottom. But she's never looked better....

Becky Bloomwood has a fabulous flat in London's trendiest neighborhood, a troupe of glamorous socialite friends, and a closet brimming with the season's must-haves. The only trouble is that she can't actually afford it—not any of it.

Her job writing at Successful Savings not only bores her to tears, it doesn't pay much at all. And lately Becky's been chased by dismal letters from Visa and the Endwich Bank—letters with large red sums she can't bear to read—and they're getting ever harder to ignore.

She tries cutting back; she even tries making more money. But none of her efforts succeeds. Becky's only consolation is to buy herself something ... just a little something....

Finally a story arises that Becky actually cares about, and her front-page article catalyzes a chain of events that will transform her life—and the lives of those around her—forever.

Sophie Kinsella has brilliantly tapped into our collective consumer conscience to deliver a novel of our times—and a heroine who grows stronger every time she weakens. Becky Bloomwood's hilarious schemes to pay back her debts are as endearing as they are desperate. Her "confessions" are the perfect pick-me-up when life is hanging in the (bank) balance.

MIDNIGHT'S CHILDREN

Salman Rushdie

List Price: $22.95 By: Knopf Amazon Marketplace: 10 new & used starting at $23.63

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 180 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

WHAT A RUSH(DIE)! 5 out of 5 stars.
5 of 5 people found this review helpful.

If this book was described by 1001 readers, I think you'd get 10,001 different views of what they experienced. Some knowledge of the history of India & Pakistan before and after independence and the partition will be helpful. Perhaps some "-ism" (magical real(ism), coming-of-age(ism); post-modern(ism); stream of .....) reading would prepare you for this. But neither is required to enjoy it. Having read many of the less than stellar reviews, it seems that many had preconceived notions that weren't met or they tried to make it a fast read.

This is not a "page turner" suspense novel; nor is it Joycean (or any other author's). It is Rushdie. This is what he writes and how he writes. Read it for its own style rather than trying to compare it with someone else.

I think too much effort is made by publishers and reviewers to put authors into groups. I'm sure the publishers do it to capture buyers with "if you like A, then you'll like B". Reviewers too often do it to show how many authors they have read rather than making valid comparisons.

Base your judgment of Rushdie (or any of his books) on what you like or dislike about his work rather than by "someone says he is like Marquez and he isn't, so I didn't like it".

Editorial Review:

Saleem Sinai was born at midnight, the midnight of India's independence, and found himself mysteriously 'handcuffed to history' by the coincidence. He is one of 1,001 children born at the midnight hour, each of them endowed with an extraordinary talent - and whose privilege and curse it is to be both master and victims of their times. Through Saleem's gifts - inner ear and wildly sensitive sense of smell - we are drawn into a fascinating family saga set against the vast, colourful background of the India of the 20th century.

The Uncommon Reader: A Novella

Alan Bennett

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 95 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

"Once upon a time ... 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

"It was the dogs' fault."

The Queen (aka "One") met Norman Seakins and books in a van parked near the garbage bins.

One "read of course, as one did, but liking books was something she left to other people."

One is thorough: "Books, bread and butter, mashed potato - one finishes what's on one's plate."

Norman becomes her amanuensis (and more); he "was unaffected by her because she seemed so ancient, her royalty obliterated by her seniority."

Except with Norman, One is unable to discuss books:

The President of France "looked wildly about for his minister of culture."

Her driver "opened the glove compartment and took out his copy of the `Sun'."

Asked what they were reading: "To this very few of Her Majesty's loyal subjects had a ready answer (though one did try: `The Bible?')."

Her staff: "I'm afraid Her Majesty is getting to be what is known as a handful."

Or One is disinclined: "Harry Potter, but to this the Queen (who had no time for fantasy) invariably said briskly, `Yes. One is saving that for a rainy day.'"

Even authors "she found were best met on the pages of their books."

So the Queen decides to join her ancestors and relatives - Henry VIII on heresy, Victoria with Leaves from a Highland Journal, the Duke of Windsor with A King's Story - and become an author herself.

To the consternation of her ministers -- the Queen has a "terrible sense of duty" -- she announces "One must not talk about it or it will never get done."

And they all lived interestingly ever after.

Robert C. Ross 2008

Editorial Review:

From one of England's most celebrated writers, the author of the award-winning The History Boys, a funny and superbly observed novella about the Queen of England and the subversive power of reading

When her corgis stray into a mobile library parked near Buckingham Palace, the Queen feels duty-bound to borrow a book. Discovering the joy of reading widely (from J. R. Ackerley, Jean Genet, and Ivy Compton-Burnett to the classics) and intelligently, she finds that her view of the world changes dramatically. Abetted in her newfound obsession by Norman, a young man from the royal kitchens, the Queen comes to question the prescribed order of the world and loses patience with the routines of her role as monarch. Her new passion for reading initially alarms the palace staff and soon leads to surprising and very funny consequences for the country at large. 

Case Histories: A Novel

Kate Atkinson

List Price: $23.95 By: Little, Brown and Company Amazon Marketplace: 77 new & used starting at $0.46

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 151 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

A triumphant new novel from award-winner Kate Atkinson: a breathtaking story of families divided, love lost and found, and the mysteries of fate.

Case One: Olivia Land, youngest and most beloved of the Land girls, goes missing in the night and is never seen again. Thirty years later, two of her surviving sisters unearth a shocking clue to Olivias disappearance among the clutter of their childhood home. . .

Case Two: Theo delights in his daughter Lauras wit, effortless beauty, and selfless love. But her first day as an associate in his law firm is also the day when Theos world turns upside down. . .

Case Three: Michelle looks around one day and finds herself trapped in a hell of her own making. A very needy baby and a very demanding husband make her every waking moment a reminder that somewhere, somehow, shed made a grave mistake and would spend the rest of her life paying for it--until a fit of rage creates a grisly, bloody escape.

As Private Detective Jackson Brodie investigates all three cases, startling connections and discoveries emerge. Inextricably caught up in his clients grief, joy, and desire, Jackson finds their unshakable need for resolution very much like his own.

Kate Atkinsons celebrated talent makes for a novel that positively sparkles with surprise, comedy, tragedy, and constant, page-turning delight.

Shopaholic & Baby

Sophie Kinsella

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 189 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

The last shopaholic book I'll ever buy! 1 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I've been a big Kinsella fan ever since I read her Undomestic Goddess book, followed by the Shopaholic series (yes, I read every single one of them!) I HAD looked forward to this one...and what a disappointment it was! Kinsella had a lot of material to work with...there's dearth of material to write about having a baby! But instead, Kinsella made Becky Brandon (nee Bloomwood) so STUPID! This is the first Kinsella book I bought that I cannot finish. This book was absolutely AWFUL! (Did anyone read her draft before publishing it?) I may never read any of Kinsella's books again.

Editorial Review:

With over eight million copies of her beloved books in print, Sophie Kinsella is a true phenomenon. Now Becky Brandon (née Bloomwood) is back, in a hilarious new Shopaholic novel!

Becky’s life is blooming! She’s working at London’s newest big store, The Look, house-hunting with husband Luke (her secret wish is a Shoe Room)...and she’s pregnant! She couldn’t be more overjoyed—especially since discovering that shopping cures morning sickness. Everything has got to be perfect for her baby: from the designer nursery…to the latest, coolest pram…to the celebrity, must-have obstetrician. But when the celebrity obstetrician turns out to be Luke’s glamorous, intellectual ex-girlfriend, Becky’s perfect world starts to crumble. She’s shopping for two…but are there three in her marriage?

Shopaholic & Sister

Sophie Kinsella

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 207 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

What’s a round-the-world honeymoon if you can’t buy the odd souvenir to ship back home? Like the twenty silk dressing gowns Becky found in Hong Kong…the hand-carved dining table (and ten chairs) from Sri Lanka…the, um, huge wooden giraffes from Malawi (that her husband Luke expressly forbade her to buy)… Only now Becky and Luke have returned home to London and Luke is furious. Two truckloads of those souvenirs have cluttered up their loft, and the bills for them are outrageous. Luke insists Becky go on a budget. And worse: her beloved best friend Suze has found a new best friend while Becky was away. Becky’s feeling rather blue—when her parents deliver some incredible news. She has a long-lost sister! Becky is thrilled! She’s convinced her sister will be a true soulmate. They’ll go shopping together, have manicures together.…Until she meets Jessica for the first time and gets the shock of her life. Surely Becky Bloomwood’s sister can’t…hate shopping?

Sophie Kinsella is a former financial journalist and the author of the bestselling novels Confessions of a Shopaholic, Shopaholic Takes Manhattan, Shopaholic Ties the Knot, Can You Keep a Secret?, and The Undomestic Goddess. She lives in England, where she is at work on her next book.

In Pale Battalions

Robert Goddard

List Price: $18.95 By: Holiday House Amazon Marketplace: 43 new & used starting at $3.00

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 18 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Brits suffer thrugh WWI again 4 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

British heroes suffering the horrors of the first WW have become quite a popular theme in recent mysteries. Supposedly dead heroes who in fact opted out of the suffering have also become common. Still, Goddard adds a sexy, imperious femme fatale to spice things up and the plot takes off from there. Not bad.

Exceeds expectations 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

This being my first book by Robert Goddard, I was unsure of what to expect of a British author whose name I wasn't familiar with in the thriller genre. Tucked in with the "written for the screen" thrillers that populate the bookstore shelves,this lyrical mystery caught my eye in part due to its setting during World War I. The mystery, not just surrounding the murdered guest, but of the main characters' pasts, was intriguing and thought provoking. I highly recommend this stylistically sophisticated thriller.

Brilliant, epic novel. 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

This book is vintage Goddard, and the best of his books to be published in the US so far (his other two greats, Painting the Darkness and Past Caring, have not yet been published stateside). "Into the Blue" is also great, but trails behind "Battalions".

This novel builds layer upon layer of intrigue, murder, blackmail, suicide, and other secrets, making for a finely crafted mystery...certainly one of the best I've ever read. The mystery has consequences that span several generations and the resolution is deeply satisfying.

Editorial Review:

Hatred governs Leonora's childhood after the Great War, but cannot crush her longing to know the truth of her mother's life and father's death.