Chuyển đến nội dung chính

South African books to add to your reading list this festive season - part 1

Hiya book lovers With Christmas being just around the corner, I thought I’d highlight some South African reads that should go on your TBR pile. We have so many phenomenal SA authors that deserve to be celebrated , and because this list will be an extensive one, I am splitting this post and making it a series. I know it won’t be possible to include every single South African author, but I am going to try to  highlight books from every genre and make it as diverse as possible (so, with respect, please don’t ask me why so and so isn’t on the list – there’s more to come).  First up:  1. Sing Down the Stars by Nerine Dorman A book I recently received for review ( thanks you NB publishers ) and am super excited about diving into is Sing Down the Stars. I was first introduced to Nerine’s writing years ago, when I read one of her first books, What Sweet Music They Make (Would 100% still love to see more of that). Over the years, I ’ve come to know Nerine as well and she’s not ...

The Secret

Book review: The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

The follow up to The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, Hodkin’s Evolution of Mara Dyer is a story filled with nail-biting tension, intense creepiness and spine-chilling moments.

The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin (published by Simon Pulse, a division of Simon & Schuster UK, in 2013)
 

Disclaimer:
Review first appeared on Women24.com.

You can purchase a copy of the book on Raru.co.za


NOTE:
Given that The Evolution of Mara Dyer is the second book in a trilogy, this review may contain spoilers from the first book.

I’m a sucker for a good, psychological and mind-bending, twisted read.

This, is why I finally decided to pick up The Evolution of Mara Dyer. It’s a book that’s been sitting in my shelf for ages, and one that I’ve been meaning to read for a while.

The first thing you should know is that this isn’t the kind of book you can read without having read the first book.  The events that occur in this book, is preceded by the cliff-hanger ending of The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer.

I think that part of the reason why it took me so long to read this book, is because I adored the first book so much; and was afraid that the second book wouldn’t live up to my ridiculously high expectations.

Second book syndrome, as the bookish muses like to call it.

Thankfully, from the moment I started reading, my reservations quickly dissipated.  I ended up deeply immersed in a story filled with tension, intense creepiness and some gore-inducing, spine-chilling moments guaranteed to leave you feeling on edge.

When we last left off, Mara Dyer found herself reporting to the police in an attempt to surrender. However, instead of being locked up in a cell, she ends up in a psychiatric treatment centre, as no one seems to believe that her ex-boyfriend, Jude, is still alive.

Still struggling to come to terms with the death of her best friend and her lethal ability, Mara knows that the only way she can get out of the treatment centre, is by faking normality.

But, it’s easier said than done.

And with her (unwanted) ability to kill people with her mind, flashbacks to a past life she has no recollection of, and dealing with deliberate and gory reminders of events that have happened, Mara’s battle is only beginning.

If you love books that combine the sinister atmosphere of abandoned asylums with the supernatural, then you’ll love this.

Michelle Hodkin has a gift for creating an acute sense of menace, and the beauty of this novel lies in the fact that the sinister proceedings aren’t always overt (although when it is, it’s hectic).

Most of the time if feels as if things are moving slowly and insidiously, creeping up on you in a way as there is a feeling of impending doom with each and every turn of the page.

Feeling inclined for a book to scare the wits out of you? Do yourselves a favour and pick this one up.

Nhận xét

Popular Posts

Book review: Harry Potter and the Cursed Child by J.K. Rowling, John Tiffany & Jack Thorne

Firstly, a huge apology for my absence. It’s been a while since I’ve blogged, I know, but a number of factors have prevented me from getting around to updating - exhaustion being the primary reason for my silence.    I hope to get around to blogging more this month, but in the meantime, I thought I’d get back into the swing of things by posting up this short review of Harry Potter and The Cursed Child, which, although not perfect, I quite enjoyed!     Source: Review copy from the publishers. You can purchase a copy of the book from Raru.co.za   Summary: Goodreads Publication date: 31 July 2016 Publisher: Little, Brown UK  publishers Based on an original new story by J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne and John Tiffany, a new play by Jack Thorne, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is the eighth story in the Harry Potter series and the first official Harry Potter story to be presented on stage. The play will receive its world premiere in London’s West End on July 30, ...

Book review: Turtles All the Way Down by John Green

Sometimes you don’t win the war, but you learn how to navigate the battleground. Turtles All the Way Down by John Green (first published in 2017 by Penguin Random House) Disclaimer: A shortened version of this review originally appeared on W24.co.za . Click on the link at the bottom to purchase a copy of the book. If I could sum up John Green’s latest book -  which focuses on a young teen with severe obsessive compulsive disorder – in one sentence then this is what that sentence would be: Sometimes you don’t win the war but you learn how to navigate the battleground.   I say this because as someone with depression and social anxiety disorder, I’ve been around the bend a few times. I have as many good days as I have bad days and sometimes the one outdoes the other.  I hope to win the war some day, but for now, I do what I can to keep going. Like I said, navigating. John Green is a household name in the YA genre.  The bestselling author of hits like Paper Towns, Lookin...

South African books to add to your reading list this festive season - part 1

Hiya book lovers With Christmas being just around the corner, I thought I’d highlight some South African reads that should go on your TBR pile. We have so many phenomenal SA authors that deserve to be celebrated , and because this list will be an extensive one, I am splitting this post and making it a series. I know it won’t be possible to include every single South African author, but I am going to try to  highlight books from every genre and make it as diverse as possible (so, with respect, please don’t ask me why so and so isn’t on the list – there’s more to come).  First up:  1. Sing Down the Stars by Nerine Dorman A book I recently received for review ( thanks you NB publishers ) and am super excited about diving into is Sing Down the Stars. I was first introduced to Nerine’s writing years ago, when I read one of her first books, What Sweet Music They Make (Would 100% still love to see more of that). Over the years, I ’ve come to know Nerine as well and she’s not ...

Free $100