Book club book. Tackles GMOs, agricultural catastrophe, the loss of a child, and divorce. I never really felt engaged. Weirdly pro agribusiness. WeirdBook club book. Tackles GMOs, agricultural catastrophe, the loss of a child, and divorce. I never really felt engaged. Weirdly pro agribusiness. Weird to be rooting for the scientists modifying food. Not what I would call a “technothriller.” Started off well, with a runaway tiny smart house moving on its own through Seattle, but the strong start went nowhere. ...more
A mixture of lovely, lyrical nature writing... and rampant racism. I'm sure the author felt he was being very broad-minded, writing a star-crossed lovA mixture of lovely, lyrical nature writing... and rampant racism. I'm sure the author felt he was being very broad-minded, writing a star-crossed love story of a white man and a native Canadian woman, but we are expected to be outraged that whites are prejudiced against Kanina because she was raised by good, clean, educated white people. She is not dirty, ignorant, and backward like her own native people are. Ugh. Ugh. Ugh.
Even without the disturbing racism I would not be happy with this book. The last 100 pages contain a whole lot of melodrama (view spoiler)[(his mother dies doing a favor for him, his father decides his wife was an evil woman when he learns of letters between her and an old beau, Rory's colleague's tame birds are all set free into the snow to die by a spiteful janitor, Kanina nearly starves to death and her mother does, she and her father eat the dog, and worst of all, the goose who is the "strange one" has a terrible flight back to Canada and is badly injured - don't tell me that goose is going to survive in the wild). (hide spoiler)] Also, all that waiting for Rory and Kanina to get together, and the book ends before it happens. A shared look, the book ends, and I guess we are supposed to assume that love conquers all. Do NOT recommend. ...more
There's some funny stuff but OMG so preachy and pretentious.
Maybe it got better but after listening to about a quarter of the audiobook I could notDNF
There's some funny stuff but OMG so preachy and pretentious.
Maybe it got better but after listening to about a quarter of the audiobook I could not stand another minute. I probably would not have gotten that far if Wil Wheaton hadn't narrated the beginning. ...more
I really disliked the last book in this series and was unsure about continuing. Overall this book is a lot better. I enjoyed the first three fourths oI really disliked the last book in this series and was unsure about continuing. Overall this book is a lot better. I enjoyed the first three fourths of the book; the last quarter was over the top nonsense, with a lot of unsurprising "twists."...more
I’ve been reading a lot of true crime, and The Forever Witness is a great example written by an experienced and talented writer. Edward Humes is a PulI’ve been reading a lot of true crime, and The Forever Witness is a great example written by an experienced and talented writer. Edward Humes is a Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist who pays extreme attention to detail and can really turn a phrase. This book weaves together multiple cold case murders with fascinating information on how far genetic genealogy has come. It challenges us to think about the ramifications of using genetic genealogy to uncover criminals using the DNA of innocent relatives.
The story focuses on the murders of two young Canadians, Tanya Van Cuylenborg and Jay Cook, who travelled to the US in November 1987 to pick up a furnace for his father’s service and repair business. Their bodies were found in two separate remote locations a few days after they disappeared, and they had been killed in very different ways. Thirty years later, the crime still had not been solved; then came new developments in genetic genealogy.
The author does a great job helping us get to know the young couple by presenting little details about their lives. He sympathetically presents the anguish of their friends and relatives. As fascinated as he is by the science used to uncover the truth, he is sensitive to the fact that he is writing about real people.
The segue into discussion about genetic genealogy was technical but also fascinating. I learned a lot. In 2016, a company called Parabon NanoLabs introduced cutting-edge DNA technology called Snapshot that can generate a composite sketch of a suspect from DNA trace evidence. A couple of examples are included in the book, of Snapshots and the actual killers, and the similarities are striking.
In the end, a true crime novel that reveals a killer is both sad for the victims and satisfying when justice is done. The Forever Witness adds a riveting layer of science to the true crime template. If you enjoy true crime works that also cover science and discuss pressing social issues, you may enjoy The Forever Witness. I read an advance reader copy of The Forever Witness from Netgalley....more
While The Last High is not particularly original, it is easy to read and highly enjoyable. A bag of chips kind of novel. A doctor who is also a guilt-While The Last High is not particularly original, it is easy to read and highly enjoyable. A bag of chips kind of novel. A doctor who is also a guilt-ridden sober addict, a Canadian detective of Chinese descent who still feels like an outsider, and a whole bunch of people dead from an extremely potent street drug. Wisecracking bromance-y detectives. A paternal mentor. A race to discover what's happening and who is responsible, and to save lives.
The author is an emergency room physician and it shows. Everything about the hospital scenes feels realistic. Maybe not so much how the doctor gets to tag along after the detective as he interviews suspects, but their relationship is sweet. The book does contain violence, and a lot of drug use and death. The author wants to both entertain and educate, and he achieved that with this reader.
It seemed like it was setting up a sequel but I don't see one on the horizon. This is an author I would read again....more
I chose this book for my Food for Thought book club at the request of a club member. I know the author was a finalist for the Pulitzer for the reportiI chose this book for my Food for Thought book club at the request of a club member. I know the author was a finalist for the Pulitzer for the reporting that eventually became this book, but OMG the book is depressing and boring. And I am interested in the Great Lakes! And in water issues! And in the environment!
I'm sure this book is meticulously researched and very important, so I gave it four stars. I just did not find it very readable. If I hadn't had to read it for book club, I would have bailed....more
OK, bailing on this series. The novelty of narrative style has worn off. The first book was inspired by the author's son's toy rob2.5 stars, seriously
OK, bailing on this series. The novelty of narrative style has worn off. The first book was inspired by the author's son's toy robot; now the plot has the air of a story being told by a child. ("Kara and Vincent have a test tube daughter they've never met! And....and...she can tell the future! And...and...they transport to another galaxy!")
The series really jumped the shark for me when the author killed off (view spoiler)[TWO of his four main characters. Since he killed a main character in book 1 and brought her back to life I was looking for signs of that again, but they seem really dead. Kara and the mysterious dude (hide spoiler)] were the best part of book 1, and now they are dead.
Some good stories, some not so good stories. I enjoyed the Inspector Banks stories the most, though I have two complaints.
This collection was read by Some good stories, some not so good stories. I enjoyed the Inspector Banks stories the most, though I have two complaints.
This collection was read by four different narrators. The last Banks story, a novella really, was NOT read by audiobook boyfriend Simon Prebble but some other guy. Simon Prebble IS Alan Banks as long as he is alive to read him! (The narrator wasn't bad, just not Simon Prebble.)
The other thing is that the last story was set around the wedding anniversary of Arthur and Ida Banks, the parents of Inspector Banks. His brother Roy also made an appearance. Robinson must have some kind of rule where he always refers to his main character as "Banks" even though there were many times when it would have made more sense to call him "Alan" with all those Banks around. And it seemed like every time the author referred to any of the other Banks characters he called them "Ida Banks" or "Arthur Banks" or "Roy Banks" instead of just their first names. Maybe it would not have been annoying in print, but it was driving me bloody crazy on audio.
Such a disappointment after the previous books in the series.
I didn't mind Jejeune getting knocked down a peg or two, but I didn't like the same for DSuch a disappointment after the previous books in the series.
I didn't mind Jejeune getting knocked down a peg or two, but I didn't like the same for Danny Maik, and I didn't believe Maik's behavior. There were too many plot threads to follow, and they were wrapped up too neatly. I didn't like anything about what was going on between Jejeune and his girlfriend Lindy. References to birding mainly seemed to be excuses to list a lot of collective nouns for types of birds. And the whole thing ended with an unanswered question, which I think is a cheap trick.
My least favorite in the series so far, mainly because of the ridiculous ending (view spoiler)[where Jejeune "breaks up" with Lindy and retur3.5 stars
My least favorite in the series so far, mainly because of the ridiculous ending (view spoiler)[where Jejeune "breaks up" with Lindy and returns to Canada because an old foe wants to kill her to get back at Jejeune, rather than being honest with her and telling her she is under threat. (hide spoiler)] The new twist in an old case was predictable, and birds played the smallest role yet. Also the presence of investigator Des Gill seemed pointless unless she is coming back in future books....more
There is nothing remarkable about this book or the people featured in it - and yet there is. There is a poignancy to the actions of the people of NewfThere is nothing remarkable about this book or the people featured in it - and yet there is. There is a poignancy to the actions of the people of Newfoundland who welcomed the thousands of travelers (including animals in the cargo holds) who descended on them on 9/11/01. The author does a good job of weaving together the stories of some of those travelers and some of the people who welcomed them. In these crazy times it is helpful to remind myself that there is a lot of good in the world and in human beings.
The only thing that really seemed flat to me, reading this book 17 years after 9/11, was the Epilogue. I wish I could read an updated version.
One odd thing I learned is that a lot of the airplanes were required to return to Europe rather than flying on to the United States. How stressful for all those passengers!
Now I'd really like to see the musical Come From Away, based on what happened in Gander after 9/11....more
I loved the photos and the author's sense of humor.
"[W]e set off for Greenland, where we will try to be the youngest navigator and first chicken ever I loved the photos and the author's sense of humor.
"[W]e set off for Greenland, where we will try to be the youngest navigator and first chicken ever to cross the dangerous Northwest Passage over Canada."
"Whether I am raising the sail or keeping a lookout, Monique is always trying to help out (although she is not in fact very helpful).
There are some cool shots with a drone camera. If I had kids I would read this book to them over and over. :)...more
A short and sweet novella featuring a feisty Canadian heroine and a boy who finally becomes a man at the age of 30. Too short to really become investeA short and sweet novella featuring a feisty Canadian heroine and a boy who finally becomes a man at the age of 30. Too short to really become invested in the characters, but the dialog was funny....more
I loved this novella when it first came out in 1998. I did not love it re-reading it in 2018. This is a new adult romance, and I am no longer a new adI loved this novella when it first came out in 1998. I did not love it re-reading it in 2018. This is a new adult romance, and I am no longer a new adult.
The preposterous plot twist of the gorgeous heroine being both an actress AND a genius scientist and dating the hero as both was an unwelcome bonus.
I am going through an old box of romance novels. I loved this author and have a lot of her books - I hope I don't react to all of them like this!...more
I enjoyed this when I read it 20 years ago, but whoa not this time. Two people who have no chemistry, who fight all the time in something that is suppI enjoyed this when I read it 20 years ago, but whoa not this time. Two people who have no chemistry, who fight all the time in something that is supposed to pass as suppressed attraction, who mistake the passion that arises in a beautiful setting for love. I predict this marriage won't last. A short book that I nonetheless found draggy.
I do enjoy that the author is Canadian and so are her characters....more
Alexandra Sellers published a number of "Yours Truly" novellas in the 1990s that I remember really enjoying. They've been stored in a box of paperbackAlexandra Sellers published a number of "Yours Truly" novellas in the 1990s that I remember really enjoying. They've been stored in a box of paperbacks I'm reading and reviewing.
Boy, how one's tastes change. Instalove, a manipulative future mother-in-law, a heroine who refuses to break up with her rich boyfriend even though he's a jerk and she doesn't love him, a hero who is possessive and controlling. A lot happens in this short book, but very little of it to my liking.
I give All Our Wrong Todays 4.5 stars. I deducted half a star only because the ending wasn’t perfect (although I don’t have a suggestion for a better I give All Our Wrong Todays 4.5 stars. I deducted half a star only because the ending wasn’t perfect (although I don’t have a suggestion for a better ending). Otherwise it is mostly 5 stars because I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book.
The narrator, Tom Barren, is straight with us right from the first chapter. He lives in our world in 2016. But it’s not supposed to be like this. An unlimited energy source invented in 1965 is supposed to have changed everything, leading to peaceful lives, plenty of food and health care for everyone, transport for all, and plenty of other cool things. But it’s not like that in our current timeline – and Tom himself is to blame. A stupid mistake while stupidly time travelling has changed everything.
Not everything is worse though. Our world is as messed up as we know it to be. But Tom’s personal situation is much, much better. This causes him some highly believable angst, since he knows he need to restore the timeline if possible, no matter what it costs him personally.
Everything in this book seems so plausible, and the time travel science seemed real (whether it is or not) and not too confusing for a nonscientist. I felt I got to know Tom well, given his complicated personal circumstances (I don’t want to spoil anything by saying more), and every now and then Tom hit me with something that I found insightful.
After finding a damaged pocket watch in his original timeline world:
“In the early twentieth century, railroad accidents were commonplace because trains running on the same tracks weren’t accurately synchronized. Keeping time was actually a matter of life or death. A watch like this was made to protect people. Every piece of technology in my world shared a global chronometer, coordinated to the microsecond, a planet of people all living in unison. But this pocket watch was from an era of temporal isolation, a planet of people each inside their own definite of time.” (pp. 67-68 of the advance reader copy)
Wow, temporal isolation. What a great concept.
About the new timeline world (our world):
“Part of the problem is this world is basically a cesspool of misogyny, male entitlement, and deeply demented gender constructs accepted as casual fact by outrageously large swaths of the human population. Where I come from, gender equality is a given. I’m not talking about absurdly fundamental things like pay equality. I mean that there is no essential difference in the way men and women are perceived in terms of politics or economics or culture.” (pp. 159-160)
Maybe the author put this in as a ploy to appeal to his female readers, maybe it’s sincere, but I loved it either way.
At one point he describes his mom as “rereading The Time Machine with what I guess you would call passive-aggressive literary exasperation.” (p. 215) Ha, what a great turn of phrase!
I found this book cleverly constructed and very very entertaining. The author kept me guessing with the plot and threw in twists I didn’t see coming. This would be a perfect book for a long plane ride. Also, it is separated into nice short chapters if you read in short bursts, always a plus for easily finding a place to stop reading.
I read an advance reader copy of All Our Wrong Todays. It will be available in February 2017. ...more
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