The Arctic Fury by Greer Macallister

 

The Arctic Fury is a novel I've been waiting quite some time to read, and I've been chipping away at it all week. Today I spent the day on the couch reading all day to finish it. It was a day well spent! 

Sometimes when I'm reading a book, I look at reviews about midway through just to see how people have reacted to the story. I'd say for this, there were a lot of folks who didn't like the lack of relationship building between the women. Now that I've read the book, I can say that wasn't the case for me, and I was not disappointed at all in this historical adventure. 

Viriginia Reeve has been summoned to Boston by Lady Jane Franklin with a very unusual proposition: to lead a group of women into the Arctic to find her husband, Lord John Franklin of the famed Franklin Expedition. Lord Franklin and his crew, along with their two ships, never returned, and no one knows what happened to them. Lady Jane believes a group of women can actually succeed where men have failed: either find the crew, of find out what happened to them. Her stipulation: Virginia has to take along a crew of 12 women (3 of her choosing), and if she tells anyone Lady Franklin funded the trip, Lady Franklin will deny, deny, deny. 

Virginia's background is pretty interesting: she has been guiding people to California  for a number of years as an experienced trail guide. After her friend's untimely death, she decides it's time for something new. Virginia is at times confident in her ability to traverse to the Arctic, and at others, terribly uncertain and aware of the responsibility on her shoulders. As we meet the other women who join the expedition: Doro, Elizabeth, Siobhan, Margaret, Irene, Ebba, Althea, Caprice, Stella, Dove, and Christabel--the story slowly unfolds, moving back and forth between the expedition in 1853 and the Virginia's trial for murder in Boston, 1854. Who is she accused of murdering, and how will she prove her innocence? 

This is definitely a story that unfolds bit by bit, chapter by chapter. All of the women have useful skills for the expedition; the dislike between Virginia and Caprice signals trouble to follow; and let's not forget we've got a group of women going where no white women have ever been. It's 1853; women trekking their way up North in dangerous conditions not only puts them in treacherous weather, but sharing space with men who look at them with suspicion, lust, and disdain. 

The story of the expedition is interspersed with chapters of the trial. We know what Virginia's thinking, but what of the other women? You get glimpses, for sure. Each have their own secrets and reasons why they joined the expedition. Each has a reason to tell the truth--or near enough the truth. Virginia's life is on the line--will she hang or will the truth come out? 

I enjoyed this novel very much. Adventure, tense standoffs, friendships formed. I felt the relationships between the women started off standoff-ish, but they quickly realized they only had themselves to depend on to survive. There is a bit of a surprise with Virginia that is slowly revealed, that explains a lot of her behavior. She is definitely a strong woman, surviving tragedies that would finish off so many others. There's also a bit at the back of the book about the Franklin Expedition. There are so many books available if this novel peaks your interest in Lord Franklin's doomed expeditions. Fascinating stuff. 

Rating: 5/6 for a thrilling adventure featuring a group of women who set off to do what no other women have done: travel to the Arctic in search of a lost expedition. The story unfolds, keeps you turning the pages, and holding your breath. It would make a pretty darn good mini-series! 

Available in paperback, ebook, and audio. 

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The Arctic Fury by Greer Macallister

Miss Benson's Beetle by Rachel Joyce

 

I've read Rachel Joyce's novels before, and I know I am always in for a quirky tale that hits me hard in the heart when I'm least expecting it. Her latest didn't disappoint, and I loved everything about it. 

It's 1950, and Margery Benson is in her late 40's, single, and teaching home economics in post World War 2 England. She has no family, and has settled into a pretty sad and lonely life. One particular day, a student draws a picture of Margery, and once Margery sees the drawing, she loses it. She snaps, walking out of the school, quitting her job, and going home. She decides to leave it all behind and pursue her one dream-a dream from childhood that she stuffed deep down and decided would never happen. Her dream? to travel to New Caledonia in pursuit of the legendary golden beetle. Does it exist? Who knows? But Margery is determined to find it. She advertises for a companion to help her in her quest, and lively, quirky Enid Pretty is her last hope to pull off her adventure. 

Enid isn't exactly what you'd want on a trip to New Caledonia-a place that's full of jungles, rain forests, mountains, and all sorts of danger. Even Margery isn't in the best shape to undergo an arduous trip, but her mind is set and she's not going to give up. As Enid and Margery travel by ship to their destination, they get to know each other and a friendship slowly forms in between a whole lot of rocky situations. Just who is Enid Pretty? What is she running from? 

Margery is delightful, and you can't help but admire her persistence in what looks like a completely foolish endeavor. Enid is a bit of a mystery, and she's so different than Margery you wonder how they could ever become friends, let alone go on an adventure that is both thrilling and dangerous. Yet Enid's story slowly unfolds, and you see how alike both women really are, and how both have dreams that neither is willing to let go. This is a travel tale, an adventure, a story of two women who become dear friends, and a tale of pursuing dreams. It's never too late! 

I so hope this becomes a limited series somewhere on TV. I would recommend this novel to book groups, and pretty much anyone else! I'll be passing my copy onto friends for sure. The author has some extras at the end of the book that you're sure to enjoy. Definitely one of my favorite novels of 2020. I've left a lot for you to discover as you read it--I can't give away all the good stuff! 

Rating: 5/6 for an unlikely adventure and friendship between two women who seem very different but are actually quite a lot alike. I'll confess I got a bit teary-eyed a few times and it left me thinking about Margery and Enid for quite some time. 

Available in paperback, audio, and e-book. 

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Miss Benson's Beetle by Rachel Joyce

The Orphan of Cemetery Hill by Hester Fox

 

Blogger upgraded and I discovered I can add more fonts. After years of using one particular font, I decided to branch out and use this font, called "raleway". Exciting stuff! 

Hester Fox has written three novels, and I've read them all. I still love her first novel the most, but this one was pretty interesting, a mix of spiritualism, grave robbers, and a secret society determined to reanimate corpses ala Frankenstein. 

Did you know there were people who were hired to sit with someone as they died, and then sit with them a few days more to make absolutely sure they were really dead? All because people were terrified of being buried alive. Can you imagine having that job?!

So. The orphan in this novel is Tabby, a young woman who, with her older sister Alice, ran away from their horrible aunt and uncle ten years before. The sisters were separated, and Tabby was forced to fend for herself as a young twelve year old in 1844 Boston. Penniless, with nowhere to go, Tabby ends up hiding out in a cemetery. There, she meets Eli, the caretaker of the rundown cemetery. 

Ten years later, Tabby lives with Eli and helps him in the cemetery. She still looks for her sister every month in the last place they saw each other. Tabby's got a special gift: she can speak to the dead. So far, nothing from Alice, which is a relief to Tabby-she knows her sister is alive somewhere. Tabby has told no one of her skill-or curse, as she sees it. Seances and spiritualists are all the rage, and most are charlatans-but Tabby is the real deal. However, she is afraid to trust anyone with her secret. 

Grave robbers are making a comeback in Boston, and Tabby has witnessed their thievery in her cemetery. She becomes entangled with a young man who is accused of murdering his fiancee, and the plot thickens--how is this murder related to the sinister late night grave robbing? 

This was an interesting plot, and for the most part it was pretty interesting. But it did feel a bit disjointed as far as the timeline moved-I couldn't get a grip on the weeks and months that passed for two of the characters, and for Tabby at the same time. Tabby's timeline didn't quite match up. The characters were all likable, except for the evil Mr. Whitby. He's clearly the bad dude from early on in the novel. 

This wasn't a frightful novel at all, but definitely gothic. A quick read, with a few continuity issues. Overall, a good book to read as night creeps closer, temperatures cool, and the dead get restless! 

Rating: 3/6 for an interesting read about the spiritualist movement of the mid 19th century in the United States; death customs and rituals, and the thin veil between life and death. 

Available in paperback, ebook, and audio. 

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The Orphan of Cemetery Hill by Hester Fox

Galapagos by Kurt Vonnegut

I've never read a Kurt Vonnegut novel before, so I wasn't sure what to expect. I bought Galapagos on the recommendation of my brother. Uh...I bought it a few years ago, and it's been sitting on my bookcase. But once again, a book group spurred me on to pick it up and finally dive into a truly odd tale.

Published in 1985, Galapagos is told from the viewpoint of a ghost. Yes, a ghost. He's connected to the story through a ship that becomes, in a weird way, a modern Noah's Ark. Oh, and the story is told from a million years in the future.

It's A.D. 1986, and an apocalypse is brewing all over the world. A group of guests have gathered at the El Dorado Hotel in the city of Guayaquil, Ecuador. These guests are all bound for a trip to the Galapagos Islands for a spectacular cruise aboard the Bahia de Darwin. Little do they all know that in the space of a few short hours, two will be dead, one will be dying, and a new human race will come down to one man, a high school science teacher, and six indigenous young girls. Oh--and there's a woman who will give birth to a furry baby girl on the island that becomes ground zero for the new human race. 

It sounds pretty goofy, and it is-but there is a point to all of it. Vonnegut talks about the "big brains" that humans have in 1986, and how much trouble they are; humans are only concerned with food, shelter, and money. If they are successful, their brains keep them from ever thinking about life without food, money, and shelter. Being oblivious to need, they don't realize there are people in the world who don't have one, two, or all three of those things. Blinded by money and a full stomach, they just don't see the signs of impending doom as economies collapse, people riot, and those with happy trigger fingers declare war on each other and start unloading nuclear bombs. 

The story travels back and forth between 1986 and a million years into the future, when humans aren't really human anymore--rather, they've evolved back into fishy-type things that have smaller brains, fins, and hit their peak at age six. Utter nonsense, right? It was actually quite fun to read. Timing, slight adjustments in plans, and plain old dumb luck (or not) all play a part in the survival of the human race. Adapt, adjust, survive, until a shark eats you and you go into the blue wiggly after-life tube that everyone enters when they die. Is the human race even human a million years from now? What does it mean to be a human, after all?

This was definitely not at all what I usually read, but I'm glad I finally dipped my toe into the writing of Kurt Vonnegut. I will be interested in reading more of his novels. He's funny, thoughtful, pointed, and writes a story that kept me involved-even when I knew the ending (because he keeps telling it to you all throughout the book!). 

I don't think I'll ever think of Darwin quite the same again. 

Rating: 4/6 for an odd novel, for sure. But it's funny, in a very pointed way, about the obsessions we have that are really not worth much, and usually keep us from paying attention to what's really going on. I would love to discuss this novel with one of my reading friends, so I'll be nagging someone to read it soon! Interesting characters, a truly imaginative plot and plenty of moments where I laughed out loud. 

Available in paperback, audio, and ebook. 

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Galapagos by Kurt Vonnegut

The Marvels by Brian Selznick

Oh Brian Selznick.  I can't even imagine how to move beyond a stick figure when I draw, and you, with your wonderful illustrations just make magic happen.  Brian's previous two novels, The Invention of Hugo Cabret and Wonderstruck were incredible stories mixed with his wonderful illustrations.  Both combine to tell stories that tug at your heart.  The Marvels is no different.

In this novel, Selznick puts over 400 pages of illustrations first.  The first part of the story is told through these illustrations. Here are a few examples of his extraordinary talent:

(Source:BN.com)

 In the first half of the novel, we start in 1766 aboard a ship, and we meet Billy Marvel, a young boy who has stowed away on his brother's ship.  Adventure is in store for Billy, as well as heartbreak.  He ends up in London, working at a theater, and starts a family that will soon be famous for their theatrical talents.  Generations of Marvels take to the theater, until one day....

 The second half of the novel is prose that builds on the first half of the novel.  It's 1990. We meet Joseph Jervis, a young boy who runs away from boarding school in England to find his uncle Albert Nightingale in London.  Joseph has never met his Uncle Albert, but is miserable in his boarding school (his mother and father "travel" all around the world without him) and Christmas is approaching.  Albert is not your average uncle, and his house is not your average house.  The house is pretty mysterious, and I was sucked into the story from the first page.  Yes, the two stories do tie together, and in a away that surprised me.  I never once figured it out.  

This novel is a true work of art.  It clocks in at over 600 pages, and yes, it is a young reader novel.  I loved the story and had the weepies at the end.  The story speaks about family, legacy, and living a life that makes each of us happy.  It speaks of memories, and the power of imagination.  I was not disappointed, and this novel was worth the wait.  Some reviews I read didn't like the LGBT angle in the novel, but it certainly didn't bother me and actually made the novel all the more poignant.  And remember--it's written for middle schoolers!  So it is age appropriate.  

If you haven't read a Brian Selznick novel, you need to make it a reading goal for 2016.  He usually bases his novels on true life, and will explain at the end of the novel where his inspiration came from, and how he used it to create a wonderful story.  

Rating:  8/10 for a beautifully illustrated novel that tells a powerful story about family.  It's got a permanent place on my bookshelf.  

Available in hardcover and e-book.  But trust me, spend the extra cash and get the hardcover.  So worth it.  

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The Marvels by Brian Selznick