Fragment Friday

Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell

It was a bright and cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen.  Winston Smith, his chin nuzzled into his breast in an effort to escape the vile wind, slipped quickly through the glass doors of Victory Mansions, though not quickly enough to prevent a swirl of gritty dust from entering along with him. 

The hallway smelt of boiled cabbage and old rag mats. At one end of it a coloured poster, too large for indoor display, had been tacked to the wall. It depicted simply an enormous face, more than a metre wide: the face of a man of about forty-five, with a heavy black moustache and ruggedly handsome features. Winston made for the stairs. It was no use trying the lift. Even at the best of times it was seldom working, at present the electric current was cut off during daylight hours. It was part of the economy drive in preparation for Hate Week. The flat was seven flights up, and Winston, who was thirty-nine and had a varicose ulcer above his right ankle, went slowly, resting several times on the way. On each landing, opposite the lift shaft, the poster with the enormous face gazed from the wall. It was one of those pictures which are so contrived that the eyes follow you about when you move. BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU, the caption beneath it ran. 

Inside the flat a fruity voice was reading out a list of figures which had something to do with the production of pig-iron. The voice came from an oblong metal plaque like a dulled mirror which formed part of the surface of the right-hand wall. Winston turned a switch and the voice sank somewhat, though the words were still distinguishable. The instrument (the tele-screen, it was called) could be dimmed, but there was no way of shutting it off completely. He moved over to the window, a smallish, frail figure, the meagreness of his body merely emphasized by the blue overalls which where the uniform of The Party.  His hair was very fair, his eyes naturally sanguine, his skin roughened by coarse soap and blunt razor blades and the cold of winter which had just ended.

Bitter End by Jennifer Brown

This is what life is about, right?

Taking risks, going for it.

Falling in love - and not looking back. 

When Alex falls for the charming new boy at school, Cole - a handsome, funny sports star who adores her - she can't believe she's finally found her soul mate... someone who truly loves and understands her. But as the months pass, Alex cannot ignore Cole's small put-downs, pinches, and increasingly violent threats. 

As she struggles to come to terms with the sweet boyfriend she fell in love with and the boyfriend whose "love" she no longer recognizes, Alex is forced to choose - between her "true love" and herself. 

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Alex is a teenage girl who is yet to experience her first boyfriend. At home she struggles to deal with the loss of her mother who died when Alex was a child. Although the death occurred many years previously she is still mourned daily by both her husband and children.  Alex's father lives his life in near silence, rarely interacting with his daughters for more than a few minutes at a time. Even though Alex has great support from her two best friends she still feels like she has been set adrift alone in life without someone to guide her. When Alex meets Cole she feels her isolation has ended and a bright future filled with love and companionship is about to begin. However Cole has a darker side that turns his love and her happiness into anger and fear. 

This book was thrilling and I literally had to finish it as quickly as possible. I was desperate to find out what would happen to Alex. It was heartbreaking to watch her relationship unfold. At first glance Cole appears to be the perfect boyfriend, he is kind, loving, generous and attentive. However as the story progresses we see that those qualities are linked to getting his own way. At times when his life is not going as he would like or he feels Alex is giving her friends and family to much of her time and attention he reacts badly. 

The story was hard hitting and a great way to educate people into the danger signs of abusive relationships. I found the book was very accurate in the progressive nature of such behaviors and the author did a great job. However it was still a really enjoyable book to read even though it focuses on a difficult subject. I really liked Alex and could understand her confusion over her life and its direction even before she met Cole. I often wanted to take her in my arms and give her a big hug. I found that author wrote a fantastic character for just those occasions when the story was becoming a little to 'heavy'. Alex's boss Georgia was a great influence in the book,  she provided a neutral and adult point of view that would usually come from a parent. 

Overall the story was fantastic and I am thankful I came across it as I hadn't heard of it before.  I will definitely be keeping an eye open for more books by Jennifer Brown as I have really enjoyed reading this story. I loved the fact that the ending wasn't "happy ever after" like a fairytale but was realistic and left open to debate. It made you think and come to your own conclusions in many ways. It's a book I would recommend to a friend without a doubt. 

I rate this book 4 out of 5 stars.

Hard-hitting and addictive read with a brilliant ending. I highly recommend it.

 

Willow by Julia Hoban

Seven months ago on a rainy March night, Willow's parents drank too much at dinner and asked her to drive them home. But they never made it - Willow lost control of the car, and both of her parents were killed. Now the only way she knows how to survive and control the pain is by secretly cutting herself. But when Willow meets Guy, a boy as sensitive and complicated as she is, she finds it hard to keep the secret that's written all over her body. 

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This is the story of a young girl not only coping with the loss of her parents but also with the fact that they died due to her driving skills. It was addictive read which I read in two days even though I was also working. It was a book that I was unable to put down, I became desperate to find out how Willow would inevitably cope by the end of the book; would she thrive or continue her downward spiral? 

Willow is a character that is at her lowest point in life. Having in her eyes 'killed' her parents, her life has been shattered. Even more troubling to her is that the life of her older brother has also changed because he became her legal guardian after their parents death. Instead of enjoying the experience of parenting his own new baby he is also expected to take up where his parents left off with Willow.  

The book had a fast pace and the story was very interesting. I enjoyed the relationship between Willow and Guy. It was during the time they spent together that I saw hope for Willow and this kept me reading. The relationship between Willow and her brother was thwart with guilt, sadness, misunderstanding and pain but it was a vital part to the book. Overall it was a great book and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I rate this book 5 out of 5 stars
I really liked the book. It was an intriguing plot and the characters captured my heart. A great read.

Star Trek The Next Generation; Q-Squared by Peter David

In all of his travels, Captain Picard has never encountered an opponent more powerful than Q, a being from another continuum that Picard met on his very first mission as captain of the Starship Enterprise. In the years since, Q has returned again and again to harass Picard and his crew. Sometimes dangerous, sometimes merely obnoxious, Q has always been mysterious and seemingly all-powerful. 

But this time, when Q appears, he comes to Picard for help. Apparently another member of the Q continuum has tapped into an awesome power source that makes this being more powerful than the combined might of the entire Q continuum. This renegade Q is named Trelane - also known as the Squire of Gothos, whom Captain Kirk and his crew first encountered over one hundred years ago. Q explains that, armed with this incredible power, Trelane has become unspeakably dangerous. 

Now Picard must get involved in an awesome struggle between super beings. And this time the stakes are not just Picards ship, or the galaxy, or even the universe - this time the stakes are all of creation...

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I am big fan of Star trek and have been since I saw the pilot episode of Star Trek Voyager many years ago. From there I branched out into the Next Generation series and have found them both highly entertaining. Out of all the characters I have to say Q is one of my favorites and I find him very amusing. Which is why I decided to read this book. I knew that if the author succeeding in writing Q well it would be a fun story to read. 

The author had Q down perfectly, he was exactly as he is portrayed in the television series. Funny, calculating, irresponsible, irritating, powerful, slightly unbalanced and possible crazy. It is difficult to write a character with so many sides to his personality but it was done perfectly in this book. 

The story itself was fantastic it followed the Straship Enterprise and crew as they are introduced by Q to his 'pupil' called Trelane. This character was taken from the original series of Star Trek which I have never seen but it didn't prevent me from understanding or enjoying the story. Trelane is a child and his spur of the moment behaviour and lack of caring makes Q appear well mannered and a true gentleman. Add to this child unlimited strength and the ability to alter time and you know that it is going to get interesting to say the least. 

I really enjoyed the book and found it very entertaining. I do think that it is helpful if you have seen Star Trek The Next Generation television series as it is based on the characters from that show. I'm sure you could read it without but you may not understand some of the underlining storyline, personalities or conflicts.  The story was exciting and I really enjoyed jumping between the different possible futures. It was different and worked really well. 

I rate this book 4 out of 5 stars. 
It was a fantastic read and a perfect story for escaping the pressures of life for a few hours. It was simple entertainment at its best. 

 

Fragment Friday

Willow by Julia Hoban

Maybe it's just a scratch.

Willow Randall stares at the girl seated opposite her. Some might notice the girl because she is pretty.  Others because of her flaming red hair. If the guys in the class were looking, they would see that the outline of her bra is clearly visable beneath her shirt. But Willow's eyes are riveted by something else: an angry red welt, about three inches long, that runs from the girl's elbow to her wrist. If Willow squints hard enough, she can just about make out a few flecks of dried blood. 

How did she get it? She doesn't look the type. 
Maybe she has a cat. A whole bunch of kittens. 
Yeah, that's it. Playing with her kitty. That's probably how it happened. 

Willow slumps down in her seat. But her scrutiny hasn't gone unnoticed and the girl turns to one of her friends and starts whispering. 



Sshshhsh...
What are they saying?

Willow looks at the other girls uncertainly. She has a bad feeling that they're talking about her, and she's pretty sure that she knows what they're saying, too. 

She's the one without parents. 
No. She's the one who killed her parents.

Jamaica Inn by Daphne Du Maurier

Stark and forbidding, Jamaica Inn stands alone on bleak Bodmin Moor, its very walls tainted with corruption. Young Mary Yellan soon learns of her uncle Joss Merlyn's strange trade here - but does he deal in blacker secrets still?

As her suspicions and her terror increase, she looks in vain for help from the fearful Cornish people. Only in the Vicar of Altarnun does she find a friend - and in the oddly likeable horse-thief hey call the worst Marlyn of them all...

And, as the drama in this famous gothic masterpiece heightens, Mary must choose which to trust. 

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Jamaica  Inn is a wonderful book. I found that I was instantly drawn into the tale of Mary Yellan and the story had me hooked from the first page. It is a book that is simply oozing description and this allows the reader to be fully transported into the adventure. I felt the bite of the cold, harsh weather and the isolation of the Inn as if I were stood beside Mary herself. 

The characters were all written very well. I liked the fact that Joss Merlyn  didn't have one redeeming quality. Usually with such evil characters they always have one element which makes you feel the need to understand or even excuse their actions. However Joss was always nasty and cruel, I didn't like him throughout the book. That is in sharp contrast to his brother Jem whom I loved. Jem was very much the artful dodger of this book;  his rough appearance and often criminal activities were softened by his cheeky chappy persona. Jem was a pleasure to read, I really enjoyed his down to earth, straight to the point attitude.  Mary did annoy me at times, for all her strong, independent and Godly wisdom she could be very blind at times and failed to listen to her own instincts and upbringing in regards to what was right and wrong. However I could understand her inner conflict and this made her a very intriguing character. 

The pace of the story was fast and I enjoyed that. It would be a fun book to read in one or two sittings. Don't be fooled into thinking it is a book with little or no action as that is not the case. The mystery surrounding Mary's uncle provides for many threatening, dangerous and action pack moments.  At times the suspense was overpowering and made reading further a must even at the most inconvenient moments. 

I rate this book 5 out of 5 stars. 

This books was well written, wonderfully descriptive and a pleasure to read. I can't believe it took me so long to get around to it.

 

Fragment Friday

Jamaica Inn by Daphne Du Maurier

On Christmas Eve the sky was overcast and threatened rain. It had turned mild, too, in the night, and the mud in the yard was churned where the cows had trodden. The walls of Mary's bedroom felt damp to her hand, and there was a great yellow patch in one corner caused by the shrinking plaster. 

Mary leant out of the window, and the soft wet wind blew upon her face. In an hour's time Jem Merlyn would be waiting for her on the moor, to take her to Launceston fair. Whether she met him or not depended upon herself, and she could not make up her mind. She had grown older in four days, and the face that looked back at her from the spotted, cracked mirror was drawn and tired. 

There were dark rings beneath her eyes, and little hollows in her cheeks. Sleep came late to her at night, and she had no appetite for food. For the first time in her life she saw a resemblance between herself and her Aunt Patience. They had the same pucker of the forehead, and the same mouth. If she pursed up her lips and worked them, biting the edges, it might be Aunt Patience who stood there, with the lank brown hair framing her face. The trick was an easy one to catch, as was the nervous twisting of the hands, and Mary turned away from the tell-tale mirror and began to pace up and down her cramped room. During the past days she had kept as much as possible to the privacy of her own room, excusing herself on the score of a chill. Mary could not trust her Aunt at present - not for any length of time. Her eyes would have betrayed her. They would look at one another with the same dumb horror, the same anguish; and Aunt Patience would have understood. They shared a secret now, a secret that must never be spoken between them.