The Accident Season by Moïra Fowley-Doyle

The Accident Season by Moïra Fowley-Doyle

I thought I would take a break from the classics and saw this in the library. I thought it looked different, especially the title from any other book I’ve read and it was. I promise it’s not as depressing as it sounds. I kind of hope that this book will be turned into a film as I’d like to see how a director would portray it.

“So let’s raise our glasses to the accident season,

To the river beneath us where we sink our souls,

The bruises and secrets, to the ghost in the ceiling,

One more drink for the watery road.”

Every October, the same family always experiences freak accidents; broken limbs, car crashes and deaths. Both their father and uncle were killed in the accident season. However, they cannot work out why. The mother turns over protective during the month, hiding anything dangerous out of reach of her teenage children. Well, when I say children- she has two daughters, Cara and Alice and their “ex-stepbrother” Sam who is the same age. It’s complicated. The mother’s ex-husband had a son but when he, Christopher, left, he left all of them. However, Cara whose perspective it’s written from is in love with Sam. Awkward.

"Is it a curse or a coincidence?"

 

Cara realises that in every photos she has ever taken there is a girl who she comes to realise is called Elsie. Who is she? When Cara starts looking for her, no one has ever heard of her or knows anything about her. Who is she? How did Cara find out about her? Will she find out who she actually is?

As well as Cara and Sam’s weird ‘incest’ relationship, they prepare to hold a Halloween party in a haunted house. Sounds quite cool. However, they have no idea when the next accident will take place.

Alice is known as a ‘witch’ at school because she takes cards around and claims she can predict the future. That’s quite a good talent until it claims that that following month, Alice and her ‘siblings’ will experience the worst accident yet.

I hope you enjoyed this book review and I really recommend it because it is nowhere near as depressing as it sounds.

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

“Love makes you want to be a better man- right. Right. But love, real love, also gives you permission to just be the man you are.”

You have to read this book before you see the film- it wouldn’t really work the other way round. However, if you haven’t read it yet- you must! The film did the book justice but the length of book is much better to build up suspense. You can’t really fit everything; the suspense, details or elements, in a 400 page book into a film. Actually seeing the film was an event. I read the book before I found out they were making it into a film but when I found out they were, I persuaded my mum and my aunt to go with me. We got ready, went to the cinema and mum asked for two adults and a child- OMG- the film was an 18. I’d read it and it’s not that bad. Anyway, it took me a while to actually get hold of the film but it’s not that bad.

“My mother had always told her kids: if you’re about to do something, and you want to know if it’s a bad idea, imagine seeing it printed in the paper for all the world to see.”

The book is full of affairs, murder and weird stuff.  Amy Dunne is married to Nick who is framed for her murder. There’s a crime scene which has been badly covered up. Forensics assume there was a murder but no body can be found. Where is it? Police officers find Amy’s diary which along with neighbours’ accounts of Nick show him to have a psychopath personality. However, Nick pleads that he never murdered her and that he had nothing to do with it. However, no one believes him. Nick starts to question whether he did actually murder his wife. Did he?

Every year, Amy leaves clues for her husband on their fifth wedding anniversary but this year she is murdered. Is it a clue, a freak accident or a tragedy? However, Nick starts finding the clues left behind but the question is, who are they from?

 

The book reminisces over their past; how they met, their difficulties, their affairs and you start to question whether their marriage was real or a cover up and could it have led to Amy’s murder?

Books like these are really hard to write book reviews about without giving away the point of the story. What actually happened to Amy Dunne? Well you’ll have to read it to find out won’t you?

I hope you’ve enjoyed this book review and I’ll write soon with my next one.

Fight Club by Chuck Palanuik

Fight Club by Chuck Palanuik

"Only after we've lost everything that we're free to do anything."

Hey. Sorry I've had quite a dramatic and eventful week with my house centre-meters away from flooding and loads of coursework due in. That means I haven't been able to read as much as I have wanted to. So I thought I'd write a book review on a book I actually enjoyed doing at school for coursework: Fight Club.

"Welcome to Fight Club. 

The first rule of Fight Club is: you do not talk about Fight Club. 

The second rule of Fight Club is: you DO NOT talk about Fight Club! 

Third rule of Fight Club: if someone yells “stop!”, goes limp, or taps out, the fight is over. 

Fourth rule: only two guys to a fight. 

Fifth rule: one fight at a time, fellas. 

Sixth rule: the fights are bare knuckle. No shirt, no shoes, no weapons. 

Seventh rule: fights will go on as long as they have to. 

And the eighth and final rule: if this is your first time at Fight Club, you have to fight."

Don't watch the film of this before you read the book to understand because it is nothing like the book. It's a great film but in its own right. 

I studied this book and had to compare it to The Great Gatsby- how? Exactly. I compared the animals in each which I really enjoyed. Surprisingly doing my coursework on it hasn't ruined reading it for fun. Probably because it's such a weird book. Yes it doesn't make much sense but that's kind of what makes it such a great book. 

The book is utter madness about a nameless guy and Tyler Durden who lead a group of men known as 'space monkeys' to do terrorist like acts. Yes the book tells you how to make bombs- do they work? I have no idea.

I definitely recommend this book if you want something weird and wacky because that's what it is. Read and accept without trying to make sense of it- does that make sense? And enjoy.

Heart of darkness by Joseph Conrad

Heart of darkness by Joseph Conrad

I've never written a negative book review but this was such a boring book. 110 pages of indigestible contents. I feel sorry for anyone having to read this for school or university- I bet I'll have to study it now. I just don't feel like anything happens. Anyway the only reason why I read it was because it was on the A2 reading list. However, I did finish it! I'm surprised as you are.

When I saw the title "A heart of darkness" I thought it would be about a society or people without the knowledge of love. Not at all. It seems like the book is all metaphors for greater ideas but I'm not convinced. Maybe if I had read it to study it, I would have been more interested. 

I don't know about you but I like short chapter that I can quickly flick through. Well guess how long these chapters were?! 45 pages! And it was small text on each page. Honestly. 

So basically, this guy called Marlow arrives on an island where there's loads of slaves. The language used to destine the slaves are shocking and I know they were 'more acceptable' then, it's still awkward to read. Marlow finds that his ship has sunk and that it will take a long time to repair. Once it's repaire they travel up the river in search of Kurtz who they're told is ill. They come across a hit with firewood and notes telling them to turn back. There is then a fog and they are attacked by natives. It runs out that the natives think of Kurtz as their God. He is bought on on a stretcher. They bring an ill Kurtz back onto the ship and onto the shore where his mistress (the first woman mentioned). Then Kurtz disappeared into the forest. There is a sense of urgent as his health is falling fast. Will Kurtz survive and will Marlow get back to Europe? 

 

I'll write soon about a better book!