Quinto's Challenge by Peter McChesney REVIEW

Summary:

On the 100th anniversary of JFK's challenge to land a man on the Moon and return him safely to the Earth, visionary US President Vince Quinto challenges America with an even more audacious goal: finding a way to conquer death before the century is out - by developing the scientific means to achieve resurrection.

As the 21st century draws to a close, advances in genetics, quantum physics, and artificial intelligence converge to make Quinto's Challenge possible. The final breakthrough - hailed as the Theory of Everything - is made by Deeley Carr, a young, shy, quantum physicist recruited to work on a top-secret US government project.

However, those privy to this highly classified science quickly realize that the power to restore what once was is a double-edged sword - if it falls into the wrong hands, it could be wielded as a superweapon of surveillance and control, inevitably used for the subjugation of all.

My Thoughts:

This book is such a treat, I love it when books talk a lot about science, especially when it is central to the plot. Deeley is hired by CAPR, a top-secret government agency to assist with making Quinto's challenge of resurrecting the dead to come true. Working with two androids, Xina and Xara, Deeley is able to have a breakthrough that will change everything. But despite this, the real challenges lie ahead. President Gates' term is coming to an end, and if Benson succeeds him, all research will be put to an end. And in order to start attempting resurrection, they must upgrade Xara - which is currently illegal.

Deeley is such a lovable character. She is very shy and introverted yet extremely smart. I also love the characterization of the androids, who feel like they could be human, which helps this book in making it truly feel like the future. All of the characters in the book are very well developed and seem like real people that could exist. While I am not a science buff, this novel was truly enjoyable to read and I would definitely recommend reading it.

My Rating: 5 stars 

Where the Dead Brides Gather by Nuzo Onoh REVIEW

Summary:

Bata, a young girl tormented by nightmares, wakes up one night to find herself standing sentinel before her cousin's door. Her cousin is to get married the next morning, but only if she can escape the murderous attack of a ghost-bride, who used to be engaged to her groom.

A supernatural possession helps Bata battle and vanquish the vengeful ghost-bride, and following a botched exorcism, she is transported to Ibaja-La, the realm of dead brides. There, she receives secret powers to fight malevolent ghost-brides before being sent back to the human realm, where she must learn to harness her new abilities as she strives to protect those whom she loves.

My Thoughts:

Bata, at eleven years old, is chosen as a bride sentinel. When her family learns of this, her father takes her to medicine man Dibia, who helps her connect with the spirits to gain her powers. But when something goes wrong and Bata is in Ibaja-La for longer than supposed to be, she comes back to the mortal world with different eyes and speaking a different language. While this is going on, one of her mothers is planning on running away with another man. But the man plans to kill her mother and take her money. When the mother dies, the man's fiancee is plagued by a vengeful ghost-bride, and Bata must save her.

This was a very interesting concept, but the book dwelled a bit too much in the land of the ghost-brides and not enough time in the mortal world. Once Bata returns to the mortal world, she doesn't really use her abilities until the end of the book, which was different than what was advertised on the summary of the book itself. However, it was a quick and fun read, as well as a look into African culture.

My Rating: 3 stars 

Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters REVIEW

Summary:

Nan King is captivated by the music hall phenomenon Kitty Butler, a male impersonator extraordinaire treading the boards in Canterbury. Through a friend at the box office, Nan manages to finally meet her heroine. Soon after, she becomes Kitty's dresser and the two head to London, where they begin a glittering career as music-hall stars in an all-singing-and-dancing double act. Behind closed doors, they admit their attraction to each other and their affair begins.

My Thoughts:

While the writing was somewhat difficult to get used to, I think this was a really interesting read. We follow Nan, a closeted lesbian in the late 1800s who falls in love with Kitty, a male impersonator. After getting to know each other, they go to London and star in an act together. But Kitty's fear of being outed is what makes her lose Nan, and Nan runs away after learning of Kitty's affair and engagement to Walter. After another failed attempt with a rich woman named Diane, Nan finds her true love and a circle of women who are just like her.

This book was a roller coaster ride of emotions. Nan's sister Alice was probably my least favorite character, as she was really terrible toward Nan when she found out her sexuality. I both loved and hated Kitty, and the same for Diane and Florence. Despite the large time distance, I do feel connected to Nan in some aspects, with some of my family not being happy about my sexuality.

My Rating: 4 stars

Kill Your Darlings by Peter Swanson REVIEW

Summary:

Thom and Wendy Graves have been married for over twenty-five years. They live in a beautiful Victorian on the north shore of Massachusetts. Wendy is a published poet and Thom teaches English literature at a nearby university. Their son, Jason, is all grown up. All is well…except that Wendy wants to murder her husband.

What happens next has everything to do with what happened before. The story of Wendy and Thom’s marriage is told in reverse, moving backward through time to witness key moments from the couple’s lives—their fiftieth birthday party, buying their home, Jason’s birth, the mysterious death of a work colleague—all painting a portrait of a marriage defined by a single terrible act they plotted together many years ago.

Eventually we learn the details of what Thom and Wendy did in their early twenties, a secret that has kept them bound together through the length of their marriage. But its power over them is fraying, and each of them begins to wonder if they would be better off making sure their spouse carries their secrets to the grave.

My Thoughts:

This was an interesting read. From the beginning, we know that Wendy wants to kill Thom, and she does, but the novel takes us back in time to the reason they were together in the first place. Wendy and Thom dated in middle school until he moved away. When they meet again years later, they hatch a plan to kill her husband together so that she can get his money and can marry Thom. Years later, Thom is struggling with the guilt of what he did and not being able to talk about it with anyone else, prompting him to write a fictionalized version of what happened, which sends Wendy over the edge.

I enjoyed the writing and the story, but it is a bit lackluster when it comes to Thom's character development. He seems like a one dimensional character despite being important in the overarching story.

My Rating: 3 stars

Out by Natsuo Kirino REIVEW

Summary:

This mesmerizing novel tells the story of a brutal murder in the staid Tokyo suburbs, as a young mother who works the night shift making boxed lunches strangles her abusive husband and then seeks the help of her coworkers to dispose of the body and cover up her crime. The coolly intelligent Masako emerges as the plot's ringleader but quickly discovers that this killing is merely the beginning, as it leads to a terrifying foray into the underbelly of Japanese society.

My Thoughts:

While slow at first, it quickly picks up the pace. Yayoi, a young working mother finally strikes back at her abusive husband and kills him. Not knowing what to do, she calls Masako for help, who enlists Yoshie and Kuniko to help dismember and dispose of the body. But after the work is complete, everything seems to fall apart. Parts of the body were found, as Kuniko dumped them in the park instead of somewhere where they wouldn't likely be found. A man in charge of a club is arrested due to a previous altercation with the deceased, but is later let go. And the man is out looking for revenge on whoever actually did the crime.

The writing is slow but suspenseful, and I really like the characters of Masako and Yoshie. However, the ending seemed abrupt and disjointed from the buildup. If the ending was different, I likely would have rated it higher, but it felt out of place. Despite that, I would recommend reading this, as it was very suspenseful and entertaining up until the end.

My Rating: 3 stars