Review-One Breath Away by Heather Gudenkauf.

One Breath Away by Heather Gudenkauf.

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Mira (6 July 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1848451326
• ISBN-13: 978-1848451322

Firstly, kind thanks to the publishers, for granting me the permission to review this book via Netgalley, for no charge, for an honest review.  This book was read on my kindle.

Book Description.

In her most emotionally charged novel to date, "New York Times" bestselling author Heather Gudenkauf explores the unspoken events that shape a community, the ties between parents and their children and how the fragile normalcy of our everyday life is so easily shattered. In the midst of a sudden spring snowstorm, an unknown man armed with a gun walks into an elementary school classroom. Outside the school, the town of Broken Branch watches and waits.

Officer Meg Barrett holds the responsibility for the town's children in her hands. Will Thwaite, reluctantly entrusted with the care of his two grandchildren by the daughter who left home years earlier, stands by helplessly and wonders if he has failed his child again. Trapped in her classroom, Evelyn Oliver watches for an opportunity to rescue the children in her care. And thirteen-year-old Augie Baker, already struggling with the aftermath of a terrible accident that has has brought her to Broken Branch, will risk her own safety to protect her little brother.

As tension mounts with each passing minute, the hidden fears and grudges of the small town are revealed as the people of Broken Branch race to uncover the identity of the stranger who holds their children hostage.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

My Review.

Firstly, many thanks to the publishers for granting me access to review this book, for which it was kindly received via Netgalley. This was read on my Kindle.  I have to say that i was really interested by this book when i saw the cover and read the 'blurb', however, at the same time i was hesitant to read it as i didn't know if i could 'deal' with this content in a harrowing story.  I didn't know what was going to happen and as a parent, this is every parents' worst nightmare and for that i was debating whether to go ahead and read it.  I did read it and i am SO glad i did because i LOVED this story.  It was ABSOLUTELY UTTERLY THRILLING AND FANTASTIC.  I could not put it down, i was hooked and i would even re-read it now that i know the 'outcome'. One word=WOW!

Okay so enough of that!  The cover is quite striking in a subtle way that grabs your attention because it is cold, chilling and looks like a winter setting.  It does give you a chill and the child looks clearly unhappy.  It definitely relates to the story given the situation and the title- doesn't directly relate to the story, however, when you have read the story you realise it is giving you something to contemplate, a message.

I will not go into the plot too much as i don't want to risk any spoilers and i have included a book description.  For me, i hate reading a review that says no spoilers but actually tells you a lot about the plot and what happens with more detail than what is expected.  Everyone knows the basis of the storyline, about a gunman coming into a school in Broken Branch.  This place is actually a small town, which is a perfect setting for this story- in a way it makes it more of a catastrophic event as 'who would do this here?' the community are usually together, knitted with solidarity and thinking they know everything about everyone including their secrets,but this novel portrays that this is far from the truth.  Setting it in spring but with an unusual snowstorm for the time of year makes it unbelievably unfortunate as this messes with communication, this would have aided with the rescue of the hostage situation.

It is well written, has quick pacing, full of suspense, keeps you questioning about who the gunman is and hence has you struggling to put it down.  Gudenkauf's writing and how the story unfolded but then was brought together, reminded me of another author-Jodi Picoult, her fans are sure to adore this book just as much as they do hers.  Another aspect of Gudenkauf's writing that i really liked was the thorough character development and i enjoyed how the story was delivered.  It is told by 5 of the characters and is over an eight hour span, these characters are; a teacher in the room, a teenager, a mum who is miles away in hospital, a grandad from the town and a member of law enforcement.  Each person has they own section-there isn't overlapping bwteen these sections, some are as long as a chapter and as some are very short.  It keeps the story moving quickly, it also includes overlapping of time from different people, however this works perfectly for getting the different insights.  Even though there are 5 characters 'telling the story', it never becomes confusing-each section is clearly headed and none of the characters are similar. From these only one is told in the author's 'voice' and the others are in third person.  This is one of my favourite narrations as it tells the tale from each person's perspective which adds more depth and heart to the story.

This narration was perfect for this as you are given an insight into all aspects of the situation, including inside the school.  Through their thoughts, words and actions it gives their account of this harrowing day and shows how they all react during this terrible incident.  Every individual is different as their perspective is uniquely framed by their life-memories and experiences.  We learn about these throughout from their stories, it also gives us more information to think 'who is the gunmen?'.  It provides hints to several possibilities but in my opinion it is not obvious who the actual gunman is or his reasons for his actions. 

These life experiences/stories definitely gives heart to the story and emotions are evoked in the reader which means that connections start to form with the characters, they become human as such.  These stories deal with so many issues that it is unbelievable but it is handled so well and told so well that it isn't too much, There are issues exploring father-daughter relationships,mother-daughter relationships, siblings relationships, divorce, abandonment, affairs, life or death situations, bravery, sympathy, empathy, sacrifice, love and self-discovery.  It evoked so many emotions in me, i just could not believe how i felt towards the characters and how i put myself in that situation as a parent/grand parent and even as an individual with a loved one trapped inside.  

I am going to sum up here because i feel that this review is very long.  I cannot express anymore why i love this book, and why everyone should read it! I would re-read it as i said.  It lived with me for a long time after i put the book down, i couldn't stop thinking about it and trying to analyse it.  The title is so true in respect that, 'One Breath Away'  is all it takes to change your life forever.

Please Read it :) Without a doubt 5 out of 5!

Early Review-The Lliac House.

The Lilac House. A Novel.
By Anita Nair.


Published: 24th April 2012
Publisher: St. Martin's Press.
Pgs 352: 


Firstly, kind thanks to St. Martin's Press for granting me the permission to review an early release of this book via Netgalley.  I did start reading this 5 days prior to the due date but it took me a lot longer to read unfortunately then i planned. It was read on the Kindle.


Book Description.
Meera is happily submerged in the role of corporate wife and cookbook writer. Then, one day, her husband fails to come home. Overnight, Meera, disoriented and emotionally fragile, becomes responsible not just for her two children, but also her mother, grandmother and the running of Lilac House, their rambling old family home in Bangalore.
A few streets away, Professor J.A. Krishnamurthy or Jak, cyclone studies expert, has recently returned from Florida, to care for his nineteen-year-old daughter, the victim of a tragic accident. What happened on her holiday in a small beachside village? The police will not help, Smriti’s friends have vanished, and a wall of silence and fear surrounds the incident. But Jak cannot rest until he gets to the truth.
Meera and of Jak's paths intertwine as they uncover the truth about the secrets of their pasts and the promise of the future. The Lilac House is a sweeping story of redemption, forgiveness and second chances.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
My Review.


Firstly, many thanks to St. Martin's Press for granting me the early review of this book for which it was kindly received.  I only had 5 days prior to the publication date to review this book and try as i must i could not and only finished it on the 1st May.  I will explain throughout the review.
Secondly, the book cover, misses out on the Kindle it really does. But i can see the significance of the book imagery; the lilac background and are they pomengrates and how they link with Hera-...interestingly this is mentioned at the back of the book.


Initially this book took me FOREVER to get into, on one occasion i put it down and read the information for the book and pushed myself to go with it and i got into the book really well.  What makes it difficult in the early parts is there is only small parts to grab onto.  There is a different culture with foreign names, that were new to me, and many of these included Greek mythology, all with a short space in the book and i found it really overwhelmed for the start.  But i did pick it back through and pushed through.  If i had any knowledge of Greek mythology it may have make this easier.  
    
Once i pushed through i did notice a bit difference, people were explained more and their character's developed and blossomed.  Anita Nair has a lovely way to describe individual characters in a way that they feel like family; it looks an some characters more in depth than others but i really warmed towards Meera as the book progressed.  So many different aspects of life is experienced-marriage, family, parent-child relationship, friendship, loss-om so many levels, and these are all are explored whilst having characters who are going through changes in their character; showing strength, determination, love, loss, grief, and making changes.  It isn't just set in the present as i said, it also goes into the past, which then explains things that are occurring in the future.


Therefore, all this jumping about tenses, the Greek mythology and the complexity of the characters is the reason why is seems a difficult read, and then added to that is the Indian culture and settings with Indian place names.  I have never read a book set in India and places names can be quite difficult to 'say it properly' meaning you can't just read the sentence in a flowing way but you stop to focus on the word.  It does show a lot about Indian culture and i did like this enrichment of the book; for one of the major topics which is 'outcasted', the book was perfect being set there.  This major topic is a massive issue (not going into for spoiler reasons) and to focus on this in a book and makes you think, wow, does this actually really happen and then you find out it does, sadly.


The Greek mythology is explained more in depth at the end and yes Meera is right to compare herself to Hera, but i had no idea about this and if there wasn't any Greek mythology in the book i think that it wouldn't have made a difference, in my eyes, it didn't add anything.  Another aspect that let the book down is that some storyline parts just weren't needed, they were short, added nothing and let you with questions and then there would be aspects went on and on,added nothing and was a waste.  Some characters needed more 'padding' to enrich their presence more rather than the briefness used. I think the book was really too long for the storyline even with the complexity.  The start and middle went on forever it seemed whereas the end and the summing up seemed to happened really quickly but those were the best bit of the book and the first bits should have being short and more focus on the medium to end and ending/summing up.


The book does seem to all come together and you don't go away feeling any sadness which is entwined throughout the book, but you feel some relief, some positivity, happiness and hope.  It's lovely how individual stories can be told about the characters and then come together and the stories fit perfectly!           
       
This review goes on forever and i am really sorry.  Again i did enjoy the book when i made myself read it.  The negative aspects i said let it down for me but it was BEAUTIFULLY written and a lovely book.

I gave this 3 out of 5 stars

***