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The Hating Game: Sally Thorne. 4 STARS

Friday, 9 September 2016

Author: Sally Thorne

Paperback

ISBN: 9780349414256

E-Book

ASIN: B01DT7MSLO

Publisher: Hachette/Imprint: Piatkus

Publication date: 09 Aug 2016

Source: Hachette Australia

Publishers Summary

Nemesis (n.)

1) An opponent or rival whom a person cannot best or overcome.

2) A person's undoing

3) Joshua Templeman

Lucy Hutton has always been certain that the nice girl can get the corner office. She's charming and accommodating and prides herself on being loved by everyone at Bexley & Gamin. Everyone except for coldly efficient, impeccably attired, physically intimidating Joshua Templeman. And the feeling is mutual.

Trapped in a shared office together forty (ok, fifty or sixty) hours a week, they've become entrenched in an addictive, ridiculous never-ending game of one-upmanship. There's the Staring Game. The Mirror Game. The HR Game. Lucy can't let Joshua beat her at anything-especially when a huge new promotion goes up for the taking.

If Lucy wins this game, she'll be Joshua's boss. If she loses, she'll resign. So why is she suddenly having steamy dreams about Joshua, and dressing for work like she's got a hot date? After a perfectly innocent elevator ride ends with an earth-shattering kiss, Lucy starts to wonder whether she's got Joshua Templeman all wrong.

Maybe Lucy Hutton doesn't hate Joshua Templeman. And maybe, he doesn't hate her either. Or maybe this is just another game

Review

Well, not my usual genre for sure! Usually knee deep in crime books I was in need of something light, easy to read and funny. I grabbed the chance to read The Hating Game as it seemed to fit the bill nicely.

So, how did these two game players end up sharing an office?

Gamin Publishing and Bexley Books were both sinking fast, the solution was to merge the two failing publishing houses to form a new baby: Bexley and Gamin Publishing.

The two co CEOs are chalk and cheese, Helen Pascal is a real Gamin girl (books are treasure) and Richard Bexley is a true Bexley bloke (books are units). Due to their polar world views they could not possibly share just one executive assistant so Lucy Hutton (Gamin) and Joshua Templeton (Bexley) found themselves sharing an exceedingly shiny office on the 10th floor.

What are these Hating Games all about? For a start, they are childish and, as Lucy admits “dreadfully immature”. They are conducted mostly in silence, like the Mirror Game, every move Lucy makes is mirrored by Joshua on an ever so slight time delay. Then there is theHR game where one reports the other for some real or perceived infraction. Even the HR lady is fed up to the back teeth with the pair of them.

They hate each other then do they? Hmm, do they really? By page 50 Lucy is having/enjoying a Joshua dream where they are playing an altogether different game!

Back to daytime reality, the co CEOs announce that a brand new position is coming up for grabs, it has the grand title of “Chief Operating Officer” (yes, COO). It is open to outside candidates but Joshua and Lucy are both encouraged by their respective CEOs to apply, the expectation being that one of them would be successful.

Big problem!

The loser would be working for the winner, a thought that neither can bear.

This, then was to be the biggest and most important game of all!

I really enjoyed the first part of the book, very witty, very funny and the antagonism between the pair of them is so well described that it isn't difficult to imagine such silly little antics happening in real life.

The middle part focuses on the process of Lucy admitting to herself that she is falling for Josh (by now, he is Josh). I did get a bit fed up with her drooling over his amazing body. I also got a bit tired of hearing about her tiny stature, it was mentioned so often that I began to wonder if she were a Little Person, but no, she is 5 foot tall, a respectable enough height which doesn't really warrant all the girly "I'm so tiny" references.

Then there were some very long, very tedious conversations between the pair of them, I would have preferred it if they had been a lot less chatty!

The final part became a lot more interesting again and the humour returned, I don't want to risk a spoiler so I will simply say that Josh has a secret! Of course, Lucy discovers this under somewhat embarrassing conditions - and that is all I’m saying!

One odd little thing, there is no mention of country of setting, and though the author is Australian, I’m pretty sure it is set “somewhere in America”. The clues are in the terminology, we Aussies, Kiwis, Brits and other English speaking readers do not call our mothers “Mom” nor do we shop at a “drug store,” and we no longer record our body temperatures using the Fahrenheit scale, I reckon these are pretty convincing clues.

An enjoyable book with some really good qualities that makes it suitable for holiday reading; it is funny; it requires no brain effort, and most importantly it is highly entertaining.

Review copy provided by Hachette Australia.

About the Author

Sally Thorne lives in Canberra, Australia and spends her days writing funding submissions and drafting contracts (yawn!) so it's not surprising that after hours she climbs into colorful fictional worlds of her own creation. Sally believes that romance readers are always searching for intensity in their next favorite book - and it isn't always so easy to find. The Hating Game is her first novel. (via publisher)

Oil and Marble

Thursday, 21 July 2016

Written by: Stephanie Storey
Narrated by: P. J. Ochlan
Length: 13 hrs and 34 mins
Unabridged Audiobook
Release Date:06-10-16
Publisher: Audible Studios
5 STARS

Publishers Summary
From 1501 to 1505, Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo Buonarroti both lived and worked in Florence. Leonardo was a charming, handsome 50-year-old at the peak of his career. Michelangelo was a temperamental sculptor in his mid-20s, desperate to make a name for himself.
Michelangelo is a virtual unknown when he returns to Florence and wins the commission to carve what will become one of the most famous sculptures of all time: David. Even though his impoverished family shuns him for being an artist, he is desperate to support them. Living at the foot of his misshapen block of marble, Michelangelo struggles until the stone finally begins to speak. Working against an impossible deadline, he begins his feverish carving.
Meanwhile, Leonardo's life is falling apart: He loses the hoped-for David commission; he can't seem to finish any project; he is obsessed with his ungainly flying machine; he almost dies in war; his engineering designs disastrously fail; and he is haunted by a woman he has seen in the market - a merchant's wife, whom he is finally commissioned to paint. Her name is Lisa, and she becomes his muse.
Leonardo despises Michelangelo for his youth and lack of sophistication. Michelangelo both loathes and worships Leonardo's genius.
Oil and Marble is the story of their nearly forgotten rivalry. Storey brings early 16th-century Florence alive and has entered with extraordinary empathy into the minds and souls of two Renaissance masters. The book is an art history thriller.
©2016 Stephanie Storey (P)2016 Audible, Inc.

Review
I rarely read book reviews until after I have read the book and posted my own, but in this case I made an exception because the genre is so far outside of that which I usually read. What I found were some wonderful reviews written by some very enthusiastic and seemingly knowledgeable art lovers, so, as one who knows very little about art, my review will be from a very non-arty-type point of view.

I did find it a little hard to get immersed in the story, but once I changed my mindset from worrying about what is fact and what is fiction to one of simply listening to and enjoying the story for what it is, (fiction loosely based on fact) I really got into it and enjoyed it.
No art expertise required!

The main story is, of course, based on the rivalry between da Vinci and Michelangelo, both being attributed with artistic temperaments and each man being highly reactive to the achievements of the other. Each artist is featured in alternating chapters; their lives, families, loves and their careers, the highs and the lows.

Despite the rivalry and dislike between the two men, the older daVinci is shocked and distressed when he hears that Michelangelos' completed statue of David might have suffered damage at the hands of vandals. This revealed another side to his character; the side that believes that, above all else, art is everything.
I enjoyed the chapters about daVinci more so than those about Michelangelo, I'm not sure why, maybe because he was older and had more interesting things going on in his life; the account of his attempt to re-route the river in order to prevent flooding was fascinating to me. He seemed always to be working on various projects, improving the old and inventing the new.

Michelangelo seemed to have but one obsession, his "David", he also seemed to spend a great deal of time feeling hard done by and sorry for himself, but then, those characteristics may have been the result of the authors artistic licence.

I loved the accounts of how people lived in those times, the streets, the buildings, the food and drink, their clothing. I can't imagine how many hours that the author would have spent in researching this for her work, dedication indeed!

I would highly recommend this book to those who love historical fiction, but art lovers, especially those who are really knowledgable, do need to bear in mind that, despite the factual content, it is a work off fiction.

Narrator
A narration of well over 13 hours and with many characters is no mean undertaking and I admire the narrator, P. J. Ochlan, for his consistency. Each character has an Italian accent and P.J. Ochlan succeeded in giving each one a distinct voice, I enjoyed them all, I thought he captured the complaining tone of Michelangelo perfectly.
I did find that listening to the Italian accents a bit wearing, but that really is just a personal preference, many audiobook listeners believe that accents add a nice touch of authenticity.

Audiobook provided by the author, narrator or publisher in return for an unbiased review

Deceptive Cadence: The Virtuosic Spy

Friday, 17 June 2016

Written by: Kathryn Guare
Narrated by: Wayne Farrell
Length: 11 hrs and 19 mins
Unabridged Audiobook
Release Date:03-11-16
Publisher: Kathryn Guare
5 STARS
Publishers Summary
Meet Conor McBride. He's even more interesting than the trouble he gets into.
A talented Irish musician reluctantly reinvents himself, disappearing into an undercover identity to search for the man who ruined his career: his own brother. On a journey from the west of Ireland to the tumultuous city of Mumbai, Conor McBride's only goal is to redeem the brother who betrayed him. But he's becoming a virtuoso of a different kind in a dangerous game where the rules keep changing - and where the allies he trusted to help him may be the people he should fear the most. ©2014 Kathryn Guare (P)2016 Kathryn Guare
Review
Home on the farm milking cows, living with his mother, when he ought to have been pursuing his career as a concert violinist - and all because he signed stuff without reading it. Conor McBrides brother Thomas had pulled a fast one by deceptively obtaining EU grants, then he just disappears leaving Conor and his mother to pay massive fines and deal with the aftermath.
A few years pass and a rather odd fellow from British Intelligence rolls up, he tells Conor that Thomas is alive and living in India. They need to find him as he may be able to provide them with information. They want to enlist Conor to go to India and help find Thomas. Conor reluctantly embarks on a British Intelligence training programme in preparation for his mission.
From the peace and quiet of rural Ireland to the hustle of the streets of Mumbai, it's quite a ride for the concert violinist turned farmer turned spy. Conor is answerable to an agent who has his own demons, can Conor trust him? The only one he feels safe with is the Indian woman he had met and helped on the journey to Mumbai. She with her Hindu faith and he with his Catholic faith make for an unlikely but very touching alliance.
This has just about everything I want from a novel, OK the plot may be a bit far fetched, but it's fiction, escapism and pure entertainment. The ending is very satisfying, I loved the book and highly recommend it to anyone who loves a good adventure and good writing which flows beautifully.
Narrator
This is one of those times when a narrator just lifts a good book that much higher. I don't think narrating this book, with all its characters and accents could have been an easy undertaking yet I could fault nothing. I was particularly impressed with his performance towards the end of the book, of how he conveys Conors emotions so well without going over the top. Very realistic. Wayne Farrell became Conor McBride, excellent job.
Audiobook provided by the producer, author or narrator in return for an honest, unbiased review

Torch Ginger

Friday, 4 March 2016

Written by: Toby Neil

Narrated: by Sara Malia Hatfield

Length: 9 hours 6 minutes

Series: Lei Crime Book 2

Unabridged Audiobook

Published by Audible Studios

Release date: 11/11/14

Available from Audible

5 STAR REVIEW

Publishers Summary

If J.D. Robb's In Death series went on location with Kaui Hart Hemmings's The Descendants, you'd have Toby Neal's Torch Ginger.

The island of Kaua'i is remote jungle, golden beaches, and ancient culture - but transients are disappearing in paradise, and only Detective Lei Texeira notices. Lei transfers to the island of Kaua'i, where she uncovers a pattern of disappearances that may be related to a bizarre cult - or is it just one madman at work? In Lei's world, everyone is guilty until proven innocent. In the midst of the biggest case sleepy Kaua'i has ever seen, Lei must also untangle the mysteries of her heart and discover who she loves.

My Review

I didn't read the first in the series, "Blood Orchids" but there is enough back story in "Torch Ginger" to ensure the reader doesn't feel bewildered by how and why Lei finds herself now working on Kaua'i.

Lei is the new girl, low in the pecking order and as such, gets all the boring jobs. She is working hard to fit in but after only two months on an island described as "a jungle paradise of secretive people and strange spiritual forces" Lei is finding life to be "slow and boring".

It's while plodding her way through one of her dull cases that Lei is asked to talk to Kelly Waterson, Kelly reports her boyfriend Jay as missing. It has only been 24 hours since she last spoke to him by 'phone, but the circumstances catch Leis attention. When a worried Kelly flew in and visited Pine Trees, the unofficial camp site, she discovered Jays belongings dumped in the rubbish bin. His wallet still held his credit cards and also some strange origami shapes, three stones were left on his shoe.

Now the story really begins! During the course of her investigation she meets many strange and intriguing characters and she becomes convinced that the disappearances aren't merely people who have simply taken themselves off the grid. Getting others to take her convictions seriously is a hard task.

There are so many threads to this story, yet they are woven skilfully to produce a story that is difficult to put down. The characters are all so well described that they seem totally believable, even the more way out types.

Mystery and intrigue abound, there is, in some characters, a sense of other worldliness which is at odds with Leis own world view.

I thought the reunion of Lei and her father beautifully written, his gentleness and his love for his daughter so sensitively described.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone who loves a mystery set in a lush and exotic location and with many intriguing extras. I for one shall be reading more of Toby Neil's work.

Narrator

This is the first book I have listened to narrated by Sara Malia Hatfield, and what a wonderful voice she has. Sara has all the attributes of a good narrator, but, for this book, it took a special person to pull it off. Born and raised in Hawaii, she was the perfect choice to perform those subtle differences in accents. The more I listened the more fascinated I became by both her voice and the pidgin speak, just wonderful! I look forward to more.

Just a word about the Audible sample, should you listen to it, it in no way does justice to the audiobook, for some reason, the sample seems of lesser quality.

This audiobook was provided, without condition, by the representative of the author.

The Girl in the Ice

Monday, 15 February 2016

Publisher: Bookouture (February 12, 2016)
Publication Date: February 12, 2016
Sold by: Amazon
Language: English
ASIN: B019G6DSDE
ISBN 9781910751763
3 Star review
Excerpt from publishers summary:
"When a young boy discovers the body of a woman beneath a thick sheet of ice in a South London park, Detective Erika Foster is called in to lead the murder investigation.
The victim, a beautiful young socialite, appeared to have the perfect life. Yet when Erika begins to dig deeper, she starts to connect the dots between the murder and the killings of three prostitutes, all found strangled, hands bound and dumped in water around London."
My Review
I don't like to disagree with everyone else, but I was asked for an honest review in return for my Netgalley ARC and this is it.
The prologue, written from the victims point of view, seemed promising, full of intrigue and tension, and the anticipation of getting a good read hooked me. Sorry to say it, but for me it all went downhill from there on, my disillusionment began with Erika. Erika is the lead character and, like so many fictional female detectives, is emotionally damaged and socially inept. She resents authority and goes her own way against all orders and common sense. She is hell bent on her own theory and won't cooperate with anyone else. That her presence will engender resentment from her new colleagues pretty much goes without saying. I'm not even sure she should even have been placed in that particular setting. Would the Metropolitan Police Force, with all their resources really bring in an officer from another territory to investigate a murder? Would the officers really act in the manner portrayed? I don't think it likely, not these days but then, I'm sure the author would have used the services of a police media advisor.
There were far too many stereotypical characters for my liking, even the old prostitute is a dirty, foul mouthed, ill mannered, drug addicted woman with crooked brown teeth. The working classes and criminals are portrayed as arrogant and ill mannered because they are poor, and the are rich portrayed as arrogant and ill mannered because they are privileged.
I thought it was a real shame because the actual plot itself is quite good and that is what earns it the 3rd star. It failed for me though because the whole story ran along predictable lines, including the usual part where the protagonist finds herself facing almost certain death (and that's not a spoiler because we know it's a serial). Having said that, judging by the number of 5 stars and the gushing comments, this style of writing must be exactly what many people want to read, I'm just not one of them.
ARC provided by Netgalley and Bookouture in return for an honest review.

Elective Procedures: Elle Harrison

Monday, 18 January 2016

Written by: Merry Jones
Narrated by: Cindy Piller
Length: 9 hrs and 30 mins
Unabridged Audiobook

Release Date:10-22-15

Publisher: Oceanview Publishing

Audible

3 Star Review

Publishers Summary

Elle Harrison is back! She and her pals Jen, Becky, and Susan travel to Mexico where Jen has arranged cosmetic surgery, after which she will recover in a plush hotel suite. But more is going on at the hotel than tummy tucks. Soon after they arrive, Elle sees the woman in the suite next door fall from her sixth floor balcony. When the room is later occupied by another patient, Elle finds her brutally mutilated body on that same balcony. Police question Elle as the last person to see these women alive. Their doctor also takes an interest in Elle; a woman staying at the hotel asks Elle to help her fend off a creepy stalker; a veiled woman sneaks into Elle's suite at night; and her late husband, Charlie, reappears (or Elle imagines that he does) when Elle gets pushed under water in the ocean and nearly drowns. As dangers swirl and intensify, Elle is forced to face her unresolved issues with Charlie, even as she races to find the connections between killings before more patients - including Jen - can be murdered. And before she herself becomes prey.

©2014 Merry Jones (P)2015 Oceanview Publishing

My Review

The story begins in Mexico where we discover Elle in a very dangerous, perilous predicament, we then flash back to several days prior to the trip, Becky and Elle are on their way to a girls night out, Becky has the hankering to consult with a fortune teller who tells her she is about to meet her special man. Against her better judgement, Elle was persuaded to also have a reading where she was given a strange but vague forecast:

"If you are wise, you will protect yourself", Elle immediately assumes the fortune teller is referring to the dead.
"You are stronger than you think, this is why they come to you"

Back to Mexico, where, as the blurb tells us, Jen has undergone her plastic surgery, despite having a private nurse to attend her, she constantly calls upon her friends to pander to her real and imagined needs. Jen is a bit of a fool, or else her surgeon omitted to gain an informed consent because she seems to have had no idea that undergoing invasive surgery, by its very nature, involves a degree of post operative discomfort. She does not suffer it well and there are some amusing passages involving her petulant demands and the begrudging responses of her friends!

The scenario set, the story then takes us back to the opening passage of the book, which, as it turns out, is Elles' attempt to save the life of the female stranger in the adjoining hotel room, a failed attempt. The woman's death quickly turns in to a police inquiry, where Elles explanation of the sequence of events is viewed as being an unlikely story by the investigating officer. Many strange occurrences follow, she can't help but recall the fortune tellers prediction. Sometimes it seems easy to believe that Elle is, indeed, quite mad, she has conversations with her dead ex husband (who is, as it happens, quite the voice of reason). She reports some strange goings on, both to her friends and to the police,which are always disproved or discredited to the point where even she wonders what is real.

Amidst all the mystery, Elle finds herself attracted to a very handsome fella, Jens' surgeon, and he gives every indication that she is very special to him, yet Elles' lack of self esteem prevents her from believing his feelings are genuine. Meanwhile, Becky, having found her dream man is getting on everyone's nerves by vacillating between her euphoria and her fears of losing him.

This story has many layers, many threads, A little humour, a nod to the paranormal, romance, moments of trepidation and, of course, mystery. I didn't, however, feel much affinity for Elle, some of her actions seemed out of sync with her character as I understood it. She certainly made some unexpected, not to say slightly improbable moves, to be truthful, I'm not sure I really liked her all that much. The group of girls worked well I thought, with their differing characteristics and, despite their little squabbles, all came through for each other, just as friends do. I'd be happy to read more of their adventures.

Narrator

Read by Cindy Pillar who I have previously had the pleasure of listening to. I said "read" but Cindy is more than a reader, she knows how to tell a tale and, as such, does any author the huge favour of making the best of the characters. She has a pleasing, easy to listen to voice, excellent characterisations, I particularly enjoyed our petulant patient, Jen. Cindy does a good creepy and chilling too!

This audiobook was provided by the publisher, author or narrator in return for an honest review