Early Review: Raven Calls

Raven Calls (Walker Papers 7)

- CE Murphy

Publisher: Luna

E-Arc courtesy of netgalley and Luna Books

**Warning - may contain apoilers for earlier book**

Suddenly, being bitten by a werewolf is the least of Joanne Walker’s problems. Her personal life in turmoil, her job as a cop over, she’s been called to Ireland by the magic within her. And though Joanne’s skills have grown by leaps and bounds, Ireland’s magic is old and very powerful…
In fact, this is a case of unfinished business. Because the woman Joanne has come to Ireland to rescue is the woman who sacrificed everything for Joanne—the woman who died a year ago. Now, through a slip in time, she’s in thrall to a dark power and Joanne must battle darkness, time and the gods themselves to save her.

Raven Calls starts pretty much the minute after Spirit Dances ends. (Read my review here). At the end of the last book, Joanne Walker was rushing off to Ireland after a vision of a warrior woman who had managed to bind the werewolves – which was handy as Joanne had recently been bitten by a werewolf as well. Joining her on this adventure is Gary, her 74 year old best friend and side-kick, but this time she has left behind the rest of her support in Seattle. There is no Billy, Melinda – Morrison and Coyote only appear in brief cameos. This means there are plenty of new characters most of them female, that are introduced as Joanne and Gary prepare to battle the Master who has been tormenting her since she came into her shaman power a year ago.

Joanne rarely seems to think before acting – as a result a lot of this book is fast-paced followed by periods of explanations of why she did what she did. This also means you can never be sure what will happen next as Joanne rarely seems to think beyond the next issue let alone a big picture. However, she is snarky which is fun and much more emotionally available than she was at the beginning of this series – and there is plenty here that develops her and particularly her relationship to her mother. It also shows how much she’s grown since the start of the series. However, there are a lot of references to events in previous books and even short stories in the series which can be overwhelming if you haven’t read them all – or if it’s been a while. I found it best to just let the references flow over me to focus on the current story. A lot happens within a short space of time and it can be quite breathless trying to figure out what is happening!

It was good to see Joanne and Gary outside of Seattle though and able to explore her Irish heritage. Her Irish family play a small role in the story through her cousin who joins them for a while and the exploration of Irish myths and legends did make the world seem colourful than limiting it to native American myths. Having read most of the previous books I enjoyed catching up with Jo again – but be warned it ends on another tangent that will start the next book rolling! A fast paced and action packed adventure – suited to those who get bored easily but still like intricate adventures.  

Recommended for fans of Karen Chance and Jennifer Estep. 8 out of 10

The Gift Review

The Gift

-      Cecelia Ahern

Publisher: UK – Harper

Lou Suffern is practised in the art of concealment. He is, also, always overstretched, trying to do too many things at once. His overburdened schedule gives him few moments of peace, even in his sleep. And when he spends time at home with his wife and family, he is always distracted, and, mentally, somewhere else. On a cold winter morning, Lou is on his way to work when he encounters Gabe, a homeless street dweller, sitting outside an office building. Lou is intrigued by him, and contrives to get him a job in the post room. But this act of charity rebounds on him, and Gabe’s presence begins to grate on Lou -- particularly when he discovers that the latter seems capable of being in two places at the same time. Christmas is drawing near, and before the season is over, Lou’s life will be irrevocably change by the casual act of kindness he has performed.

There seems to be an increased number of seasonal books this year with every other chick-lit book titled Coming home for Christmas or A Christmas romance. The Gift is probably the book that started it in the UK a couple of years ago. This was a present I received last year but I wanted to read it in the run up to Christmas so I picked it up during my snowdays last week. It’s the perfect type of book to read curled up indoors while there is snow falling outside and everything is white beyond your front door.

Cecelia Ahren has a habit of taking standard chick-lit tropes and giving them a slight supernatural bent. This story involves the saving of one man’s soul in the run up to Christmas after he decides to take pity on the homeless guy sitting outside his office. There is plenty of introspection in this story – working hard for your family verses spending time with them and realising what you miss out on when you don’t pay attention to the here and now. It reads like It’s A Wonderful Life in 21^st Century Ireland. I will hold my hand up and admit that I was in tears by the end – it’s a great Christmas family book. Easy to read and ultimately feel good this is a great story about learning to appreciate what you have.

Recommended for fans of Sophie Kinsella and Jill Mansell. 8 out of 10.

The Book of Tomorrow Review

The Book of Tomorrow

-          Cecelia Ahern

Publisher: UK - Harper

The magical and mesmerising story of how tomorrow can change what happens today. Sometimes tomorrow has to start today.
Tamara Goodwin always had everything she wanted. Why would she ever give a thought to tomorrow? But suddenly life takes a difficult turn, and Tamara faces the hard decision to swap her glamorous town living for life in the country. However, Tamara is soon lonely and longing for her old life. Then a travelling library arrives in the village, bringing with it a mysterious leather-bound book locked with a gold clasp and padlock. What Tamara discovers within its pages takes her breath away and shakes her world forever.

The Book of Tomorrow is marketed as a chick-lit book, even the description on the back makes you think it fits in that genre. But one of the things that surprised when I read this is that the main character, Tamara, is actually a teenager. This is actually a rather sweet coming of age story, and would perhaps be better aimed towards the YA market rather than chick-lit. However, that didn’t stop be enjoying it at all.

Tamara has to leave behind her old house, friends and life when her Dad dies and she and her mum move in with her aunt and uncle. It is a sharp change in circumstances for her, used to having anything she wanted and she has to learn how to deal with life in the country and her strangely interfering aunt. Add to that the mystery of the cottage opposite, her strangely catatonic Mum and the Nun in the woods and it feels like there is a mystery in the air...Tamara grows in leaps and bounds during the story and matures as she learns a lot about her family and herself. By the end she feels like a mature young women and someone who could handle anything.

I really enjoyed The Book of Tomorrow. It made a nice change of pace from some of the books I've reading recently. I’ve read most of Cecelia Ahern’s books and she ahas a melodic style that just sweeps you along. I also the love she marries the ‘real-life’ aspect with something fantastic – in this case a diary that tells you about the day before you live it. This adds a slightly more supernatural edge to the story which is never fully explained. In fact to have it explained would ruin the wonder of it for me.

Recommended for fans of Sophie Kinsella and Claudia Carroll. 7.5 out of 10

The Barracks Review

The Barracks

- John McGahern

Publisher: UK – Faber Firsts

Elizabeth Regan, after years of freedom – and loneliness – marries into the enclosed Irish village of her upbringing. The children are not her own; her husband is straining against his job in the police force; and her own life, threatened by illness, seems to be losing the last vestiges of its purpose. Moving between tragedy and savage comedy, desperation and joy, The Barracks is a novel of haunting power.

This is a far cry from my usual type of book. It’s a modern classic. It’s a story about real life. Real life. That means boredom, routine, peoples every day thoughts and fears. And it feels real. This book doesn’t involve a kick-ass heroine, or an ordinary guy caught up in a vast conspiracy, or even a pretty 20-something, kooky-but-successful woman looking for love. So straight away it falls to the bottom of my TBR pile. However, I wanted to challenge myself and I’ve had this book on my shelves for a while. Plus it’s a mere 232 pages so I decided to squeeze it in between by usual reading fare.

However, this wasn’t a quick read. It’s not a light read at all. The main story follows the final year of Elizabeth Regan’s life and her struggle with cancer. This causes her to reflect on her life and the decisions she’s made – most especially on her relationships with those around her. I really felt for her, but growing up in a different age, I really wanted her to stand up for herself a bit more – be independent and not spend the whole time looking after everyone else. I know this is a generational thing but I couldn’t bring myself to connect with Elizabeth completely because of it - some how I feel more connected with the vampire hunting heroines I usually read about!

It is beautifully written – the descriptions of life in Ireland in the fifties really brings the whole period to life. Everything, from the routine, the sights, smells and season are invoked and I could picture Elizabeth’s world vividly. But I never really relaxed into the writing; I was aware the whole time that I was reading and not swept along into a different world.

Overall, it is a good book – I can see why it’s become a modern classic. It’s exactly the type of book your English teacher would read to the whole class and make you write essays about. However, I didn’t really get into it – it took me a long time to read such a short novel. While I can appreciate the writing and the exploration of one woman’s life, it’s not the type of book I will re-read.

Recommended for those a literary bent. Writing  - 8 out of 10. Personal enjoyment – 4 out of 10

Ghosts & Lightning Review

Ghosts and Lightning
- Trevor Byrne

Publisher: UK – Canongate Books

Why I picked it up: I very kindly received an advanced copy prior to release.

Back Blurb: Happy or unhappy, all families are a mystery. None more than the Cullens. Having escaped their clutches and moved across the water, Denny is just beginning to make a life for himself when a call from his sister brings him back to Dublin, city of his birth. Back to square one. As if squabbling siblings and unhelpful childhood friends weren't trouble enough, a ghost starts making appearances in the family home and Denny's life starts to get a lot more complicated.

What I thought: The story is written as if it’s all dictated through the main character completely with speaking prose – yiz knaw? I fond this a struggle to read as I was continually trying to translate it into ‘proper English’ but it did add an air of authenticity to the story. It’s set in Dublin in a family that has recently lost their mother and are struggling to cope – while none of the characters are children, they are still young and not used to the full responsibilities of adult life. They do drugs, have loud parties, drink too much and struggle to work, to live. However, I struggled to identify with any of them – I spent half the time wanting to yell at them to get off their backsides and just make an effort. It’s not a world I felt comfortable reading about and I hope that’s what the author was trying to convey. Nether-the-less I’m not sure I would read anything else by the author again.

Recommended for: Realising that their are people out there worse off than you!

Rating: 4 out of 10