Happy Monday! It’s the start of a new week, which means that we are one more week closer to Christmas and another ‘This Week in Books’ post. I love this post because I get to share all my feels about the books I read last week , as well as reliving those feels all over again; hair of the dog for a bookworm!
Last week was a bit up and down, mainly in terms of knowing that I need to catch up on my own personal TBR, as well as my new requests on Netgalley (two Beauty and the Beast-ish reads *eeek*).
I started the week not going to sleep around the 1am mark, and of course it was my week to do the morning school runs so I’ve been living on black coffee while trying not to eat the sugary contents of my fridge in order to stay awake (I’m missing reading snacks!) Anyways, I got through it and managed to actually plan my reviews for the next week or so , i’m learning! Managed to read three books though, score! (This post only includes two, but I also read The Choice by Edith Eger, but I wanted to give it a dedicated post).
An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen
Release Date: 7th February 2019
*Blurb taken from Amazon*
“Seeking women ages 18–32 to participate in a study on ethics and morality. Generous compensation. Anonymity guaranteed.
When Jessica Farris signs up for a psychology study conducted by the mysterious Dr Shields, she thinks all she’ll have to do is answer a few questions, collect her money and leave. But as the questions grow more and more intense and invasive, and the sessions become outings where Jess is told what to wear and how to act, she begins to feel as though Dr Shields may know what she’s thinking . . . and what she’s hiding. As Jess’s paranoia grows, it becomes clear that she can no longer trust what is real in her life, and what is one of Dr Shields’s manipulative experiments. Caught in a web of deceit and jealousy, Jess quickly learns that some obsessions can be deadly.”
Book Review
The beginning of this book I found was both mentally and emotionally engaging, plenty of *gasp* moments and nail – biting going on. It had everything a gripping thriller needs; an unknowing victim and a manipulation villain. Jess has found herself with a desperate need for money to help support her family, but the question that she is faced with is how much would she giveaway of herself for a bigger pay – day? The story makes you question your actions ethically, such as; would you tell your best friend that her partner was kissing another girl? You say that you would, but would you? Really? Although initially attention grabbing (I did finish the book in 2 days),
I found that the story developed at a slower pace that i’m used to, with a slight inability to set up a tension rising storyline in the second half. I wouldn’t say that I found this book boring because I didn’t, it just wasn’t as fast pace as I am usually used to, with a (personally) rather anti – climatic ending. I would possibly recommend this book for someone who enjoys a slow – burning thriller, but not for those who enjoy the exciting unpredictable read. But like I’ve already said, I really enjoyed the first half of the book.
The characters were developed really well, I love when books give characters a proper back-story, I think it helps to personify them. Jessica seems like a naïve woman, who obviously loves her family a lot. She feels relieved to be able to reveal her secrets to a complete strange, secrets that she wants to keep hidden from those she loves. Dr. Stein reminds me of a character of Desperate Housewives, although she fits the bill perfectly well, I can just imagine her living on Wisteria Lane.
These views are my own, although this wasn’t a book for me, it may be a read that you love. I’m just here to tell you my thoughts, but if I never read any books that someone else thought were a 3.5 star instead of a 5 star, I would have missed out on some bloody good reads!
Justice is Served by M.W.Leemin
Although I read the ebook version of this book, it is also available on amazon in paperback. It is an independently published dark, comic book style novel.
*Blurb taken from Amazon*
“Jack Jones is a man with serious issues. Abused as a child, Jack is now a disillusioned lawyer losing faith in the criminal justice system. With his grandmother’s death, Jack’s childhood memories resurface, forcing him to confront his anger at the injustice of what he suffered.
Combined with his insider’s perspective on criminal justice, Jack sees that too many are getting away with their crimes. So he decides to take matters into his own hands. After all, with a rare genetic gift that prevents him from feeling pain, he’s the right man for the job.
So he’ll suit up…and punish the guilty the way they ought to be punished.
But Jack will soon learn that taking the law into his own hands has unforeseen consequences.”
Book Review
This has been my second independently published read, and it was very different from what I normally read. That’s not a bad thing, I am developing! If you enjoy good guy turns moral vigilante, this will be the read for you. Very Tarantino crossed Gotham-esque with splashes of both gore and dark humour, all comic loving individuals should go and grab a copy…. now! This book is the first of a two – part series (I haven’t read the second one yet due to trying not to neglect my other physical books) that follows fed – up lawyer Jack as he dishes out his justice on criminals, who have not been sufficiently punished (in Jack’s eyes). The storyline is filled with violently flinchy moments, such as the fluidity of detail to describe breaking a leg, i’m still reeling from that one, with a sprinkling of witty dark humour.
The story flicked back and forth to present Jack and childhood Jack, I love when a storyline does this because you get a feel of the character on a more in-depth level. After reading about Jack’s completely dysfunctional childhood, you can kind of identify with how he feels emotionally and how that has brought him to his present character. I was slightly disappointed about how Jack became a vigilante, the way he planned it etc. How easy it was to just up and become a vigilante was the case of a few lists and a call to the local sex shop under a fake name.
Also, something I questioned while reading was, if Jack has this moral code of bad people getting away with their crimes, yet he became a vigilant to punish said baddies, isn’t he also a bad guy? Is he a hypocritical individual who feels that he is morally superior due to being a lawyer and punishing the naughty folk? Just something to think about I suppose!
It was an all in all good read, I did find myself straying around the middle section, but that was probably me as i’m not a big comic / graphic book reader (I’ve read one in my whole life and that was a true crime one!). I think someone who enjoys dark comics with a vigilante style storyline will love this, and appreciate all the humour and creativity that has gone into it! M.W.Leeming is obviously one creative individual with a hand for story writing, this was just unfortunately not for me.
Also, the graphics on the front and on the last few pages are absolutely brilliant! I liked those little touches at the end a lot.
So, that’s my week in books! I hope you enjoy and tune in next time! If you want to read more, then read last weeks This Week in Books here!
The Reading Closet 