Book Review: Lisa Appignanesi - Paris Requiem

This follows the life of Raf, James, and Ellie – a trio of siblings. Having been giving the task to bring his siblings back to America, James travels to Paris and finds himself caught up in something that he might have preferred to avoid. After a spate of apparent suicides, including Raf’s lover, the trio (though more so Raf and James) set about trying to get to the bottom of what happened as they’re certain there’s something amiss and it was murder, not suicide.

I will be completely honest and say it took me quite a while to get into this book – not because it’s written terribly or because it’s boring, but simply because it’s more challenging to read than what I’d found myself reading of late. It’s the kind of book that you have to concentrate on in order to keep up with what’s happening – at least that was the case for me, anyway. However, once I had got into the book (took me perhaps 50-100 pages), I was utterly absorbed. I found myself looking forward to the journey to work just so I could sneak a few pages in.

It’s a rich story with lots of aspects to follow, hence the need for concentration, but I never once felt like all the aspects didn’t mesh or work together. Everything blended into a story that was compelling to read and, consequently, something that I would advise people to read. It touched upon themes that I’m not so used to reading about (mental health and anti-Semitism for example) but that’s not a bad thing.

The characters are detailed and full, none of them felt like they overpowered another or were simply there for the sake of being there. Each character has a purpose and brings something to the storyline whilst helping to get certain things out of other characters too. They work well together without feeling bland or pointless.

It’s set in Paris in the 1800’s and I feel like, although it’s not necessary to know what times were like back then to enjoy and appreciate the story, it might have helped to know a little of the background. While we’re on the subject of Paris, one thing that I didn’t enjoy about this book (in fact, it’s the only thing and it’s the tiniest of complaints) is that there would be the odd sentence in French that wasn’t always explained and if, like me, you’re not particularly good at French, it puts you off the reading flow.

The ending felt very well written – sometimes with books I get the feeling the author has reached the point of desperation and just wants to get the ending over with ASAP. That wasn’t the case with Paris Requiem.
I enjoyed the structure and the plot of this book. It flowed wonderfully, I was left guessing and wondering what was going to happen next. The time line was relatively clear so you never felt lost or confused. All in all it was a pleasure to read and I look forward to reading more of Appignanesi’s work.

Amazon: Paperback

Goodreads

P.S. on a side note, how beautiful is the cover and does it remind anybody else of The Exorcist? xx

FICTION 5: Great Books for Mothers Day!

In no particular order, here are 5 books I think would make fantastic presents for any mother on Mother's Day!

1) Lettice & Victoria - Susanna Johnston

I wrote a review about this book (read it here) but in short, it's a great read. It's one of those books that might take more than one read before you absorb everything fully but that just makes it even better - it proves how rich it is and the amount of layers there are in the story. If your mum liked 'Keeping Up Appearances', chances are she'll love this!

Kindle | Hardback

2) Billy and Me – Giovanna Fletcher

In all honesty, I’ve read a LOT of books and this is, by far, one of the most touching books I’ve ever read. I cried a lot when reading this but not always sad tears. I’ve written a review on this book (read it here) and I know that I’m going to read this time and time again in the years to come. I love it. The characters are fantastic, you can’t help but love them. Also, the story doesn’t follow the usual chick-lit structure which appealed to me.

Kindle | Paperback

3) The Time of Our Lives – Jane Costello

I recently finished this book and loved it all. It’s about 3 friends who win a luxury holiday (their first holiday together in a LONG time) but things don’t work out as they’d planned. They find themselves in hilarious situations, although probably not so funny if they’re happening to you. They also realise things about themselves that they didn’t want to admit before. I laughed through the majority of the book and when I wasn’t laughing, I was gasping at the situations the 3 friends found themselves in or saddened by the back story of Imogen. It’s light-hearted, funny, and easy to read. This, a cup of tea (maybe not for me as I don’t like tea), and a comfy sofa and I guarantee your mum will be relaxed!

Kindle | Paperback

4) The Handmaid’s Tale – Margaret Atwood

Without a doubt, hands down, my favourite book of all time. I had to read this when I was studying English Literature at 6th Form and I fell in love with it immediately. Usually, as we all know, when you have to study a book, you pull it apart so much that you end up hating it and never wanting to read it again – not the case with this book. I’ve read it more times than I care to remember and I love it just as much. It’s set in a dystopian world where women are forced to act out certain roles in society, right down to how they dress/speak. They’re not allowed to read and lose touch with many friends. This is written from the view point of Offred, a woman who’s rebelling in her own ways against the world she now finds herself living in.

Kindle | Paperback | Hardback

5) The Brightest Star in the Sky – Marian Keyes

The story is set in Dublin and is based on the lives of everybody living at 66 Star Street. The way Keyes makes the lives intertwine is engaging and captivating. There are points where you think you know what’s going to happen and then you find out you’re wrong. Throughout the story, there’s a small narrative from the mysterious visitor and it isn’t until you’re about halfway into the book that you work out just who that visitor may be. If you think then that you know how the book will end, you might just find you’re wrong. The story touches upon love, pain, loss, and success, in such a way that you can’t help but keep turning the pages. This book is guaranteed to put a smile on your face and tug at your heartstrings at the same time. It’s brilliantly written and is one of the best books I’ve read this year. The story counts down the days until the absolute revelation of the mysterious visitor and it’s that eagerness to find out just who it is that makes it slightly impossible to stop reading. This book is incredibly heart-warming, funny, and just genuinely amazing.

Kindle | Paperback

REVIEW: Susanna Johnston - Lettice and Victoria

“This mischievous roman à clef revolves around the interactions of five main characters. Victoria, barely twenty, finds herself acting as amanuensis to Laurence, an elderly man of letters, now blind, who lives in a ravishing house by the sea in northern Italy. Soon after her arrival, she indulges in a heady night of passion with Edgar, a youthful Englishman. Their subsequent union introduces Edgar's pretentious mother Lettice, who is jealous and suspicious of her daughter-in-law's prettiness and her ability to amuse Lettice's intellectual friends. While Victoria struggles to adapt to her new surroundings, Lettice, in a bid to maintain her own social superiority, attempts to thwart her every move in hilarious fashion. Enter Archie, one of the inner circle, whose relationship with Victoria provokes a scandal that threatens to destroy her. Darkly funny and deeply insightful, Lettice & Victoria is not just a love story with a fanciful and flawed female protagonist, but a wonderful portrait of English society.”

‘Lettice and Victoria’ follows the story of Victoria, a young woman who reads and writes letters for Laurence, a blind man who lives in a very nice house in Italy. Whilst there she meets Edgar and, from then on, seems to go from one convenience to another. Her mother-in-law, Lettice, is a fascinating character who seem rather jealous of Lettice and the effect she has on her nearest and dearest.

Although the book focuses on both Victoria and Lettice, for me Lettice is far and away the character who steals the show. She’s very reminiscent of Hyacinth Bucket from ‘Keeping Up Appearances’ (a great TV show). In fact, ‘Lettice and Victoria’ is very much all about keeping up appearances, especially from Lettice’s point of view.

The book seems to be set in years gone by based on communication methods (very letters based), the social habits in the book, and the speech – not to many the choice of names. It’s described as a ‘love story’ but I beg to differ on that part – there’s very little love or romance throughout, it’s all very much relationships for convenience. The book itself is fast paced with short chapters which is my idea of heaven when it comes to a book. I like something that keeps me turning pages and that’s one sure-fire way of getting me to do so! One of the drawbacks to this tempo is that, towards the end especially, the book can feel slightly rushed – as though the author wanted to wrap everything up quickly.

There are a few moments of humour, not enough to make me laugh aloud but certainly enough to get me smiling. The humour mostly comes from Lettice’s reaction to certain situations – she really is the stand out character for me. I love and hate her, all at once.

The relationship between Lettice and Victoria is one that a large number of people could easily relate to. Lettice is very much a person who wants to be the centre of attention and wants to appear as though she’s more than she is (much like Hyacinth Bucket) which results in Victoria biting her tongue at times and going along with things for the sake of it. Within the group of friends in the book, there’s a certain amount of bitching and back-stabbing which all of us at some stage will have experienced.

Speaking of the friendship group – golly, they’re a weird bunch. Their friendships are complicated and, at times, seem like more of a convenience than a genuine like. That being said, people in this book clearly marry for convenience so that’s to be expected, I suppose.

Maybe it’s a generation thing (I feel this book would be better suited to someone a little older than me) but I found their social habits and friendships really weird, but in a good way. I had to keep reading, I needed to know how things were going to end, if the relationship between Lettice and Victoria was going to improve, etc.

The blurb mentions a scandal that ‘threatens to destroy’ Victoria. I got the impression when reading that, for a scandal, it was fairly overlooked. That being said, the fact I’m not sure I’m talking about the right scandal (you’ll know what I mean when you read it) means that it must be a juicy read!

One of my favourite things about this book is the level of description. The setting, the characters, the whole book is so incredibly rich in description it’s easy to picture everything and get caught in the story. It sounds obvious to say but description is so helpful when it comes to setting the scene which, I feel, helps you to get something out of the book – that certain something that the author set out for you to get.

Overall, I liked this book. I enjoyed reading it and I liked the pace it went to. I find the characters slightly strange but in a captivating way. Plus, who wouldn’t like a book that reminds them so much of a great TV show?!

'Lettice and Victoria' is available to buy on Amazon: Kindle - £5.39 or Hardback - £12.99

*sent for review by Arcadia Books*