Club de lectura de Fandomtopía

Warm Bodies* (epub, mobi)

by Isaac Marion

R is a young man with an existential crisis—he is a zombie. He shuffles through an America destroyed by war, social collapse, and the mindless hunger of his undead comrades, but he craves something more than blood and brains. He can speak just a few grunted syllables, but his inner life is deep, full of wonder and longing. He has no memories, no identity, and no pulse, but he has dreams.

After experiencing a teenage boy’s memories while consuming his brain, R makes an unexpected choice that begins a tense, awkward, and strangely sweet relationship with the victim’s human girlfriend. Julie is a blast of color in the otherwise dreary and grey landscape that surrounds R. His decision to protect her will transform not only R, but his fellow Dead, and perhaps their whole lifeless world.

Scary, funny, and surprisingly poignant, Warm Bodies is about being alive, being dead, and the blurry line in between.

My personal opinion:
I really liked it, it’s really dark and poetic, even if there are some (necessary) plot holes. It was refreshing to read something with such a unique voice.

It may ring a bell because:
They just released the trailer for the movie. The trailer is quite spoilery but the movie itself has nothing to do with the tone of the book. They have taken a bit of the story and made a comedy out of it. I think it will be fun to see but take it into consideration: the tone of the book is completely different.

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The Casual Vacancy* (epub, mobi)

by JK Rowling

When Barry Fairbrother dies unexpectedly in his early forties, the little town of Pagford is left in shock. Pagford is, seemingly, an English idyll, with a cobbled market square and an ancient abbey, but what lies behind the pretty façade is a town at war. Rich at war with poor, teenagers at war with their parents, wives at war with their husbands, teachers at war with their pupils…. Pagford is not what it first seems. And the empty seat left by Barry on the town’s council soon becomes the catalyst for the biggest war the town has yet seen. Who will triumph in an election fraught with passion, duplicity and unexpected revelations? Blackly comic, thought-provoking and constantly surprising, The Casual Vacancy is J.K. Rowling’s first novel for adults.

Do I need to say anything else?

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Good Omens* (epub, mobi)

by Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett

The world will end on Saturday. Next Saturday. Just before dinner, according to The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch, the world’s only completely accurate book of prophecies written in 1655. The armies of Good and Evil are amassing and everything appears to be going according to Divine Plan. Except that a somewhat fussy angel and a fast-living demon are not actually looking forward to the coming Rapture. And someone seems to have misplaced the Antichrist.

My personal opinion:
I had such great expectations that I kind of… didn’t like it. But most people love it and they’re doing a tv show out of it so, don’t let my personal opinion stop you from reading it!

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Detective Michael Bennett series* (epub, mobi)

by James Patterson

1. Step on a Crack
2. Run for your Life
3. Worst Case
4. Tick, Tock
5. I, Michael Bennett

A powerful and political thriller from the master of the genre. The scene is set for a huge funeral in St Patrick’s Cathedral in New York. The rich and the famous from all over America - and beyond - have arrived to honour a former First Lady after her sudden, unexpected death. Then follows an attack that was three years in the planning. Hostages are taken - the ex-President among them - ransoms demanded, a couple of hostages shot to show the kidnappers mean business. It’s all brilliantly and chillingly co-ordinated, and Michael Bennett, the detective in charge of the case, knows it will be his biggest ever challenge.

My personal opinion:
I found out about these books when I read an article about James Patterson a few years ago. It said something like “his new book, about a NY detective with ten adopted kids”. What? I was totally sold. It’s kind of an action movie in book form, they have a crazy pace and I really enjoy them. It makes for a fun, quick reading.

Random info:
If you’re a Castle fan, you may have seen Patterson playing poker at Castle’s place. He’s cool like that.

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(Versión en español más abajo)

Still missing* (epub, mobi)

by Chevy Stevens

On the day she was abducted, Annie O’Sullivan, a 32-year-old realtor, had three goals—sell a house, forget about a recent argument with her mother, and be on time for dinner with her ever-patient boyfriend. The open house is slow, but when her last visitor pulls up in a van as she’s about to leave, Annie thinks it just might be her lucky day after all.

Interwoven with the story of the year Annie spent as the captive of a psychopath in a remote mountain cabin, which unfolds through sessions with her psychiatrist, is a second narrative recounting events following her escape—her struggle to piece her shattered life back together and the ongoing police investigation into the identity of her captor.

My personal opinion:
I read through this book in just two days more than a year ago and the impact it had on me is still present (just the fact that I actually remember it with my terrible memory is proof enough). It’s a really dark book, perfect for when you are in the mood for something different.

Be aware:
When I say that a book is dark, I mean that it’s really dark. I don’t like explicit warnings because I find them spoilery but there are tons of triggers in this book (though nothing you can’t find in plenty of fics). If you have any issue at all feel free to send me an ask and I’ll tell you more about it.

Nadie te encontrará* (epub, mobi, fb2)

por Chevy Stevens

Para Annie O’Sullivan, agente inmobiliaria de Clayton Falls, en la isla de Vancouver, el último cliente del día está a punto de convertirse en su peor pesadilla. Tras la afable sonrisa de aquel hombre, sin embargo, se esconde un psicópata que destrozará su vida. Annie despertará atada en una cabaña en el bosque, lugar en el que permanecerá retenida durante más de un año. Allí deberá aprender a convivir con su enemigo, un ser repugnante y obsesivo cuyos maltratos dejarán una indeleble huella en todo su ser.

Mi opinión personal:
Me leí este libro en solo dos días hace más de un año y me impactó tanto que aún sigo acordándome de él (lo cual es raro con mi mala memoria para estas cosas). Es un libro muy oscuro, para cuando tienes ganas de leer algo distinto.

Cuidado:
Si yo digo que un libro es muy oscuro, es que es muy, muy oscuro. No me gustan las advertencias explícitcas que suelen poner en los fics anglosajones, pero este libro desde luego está lleno de detonantes (aunque nada que no haya en miles de fics). Si alguien quiere leerlo pero tiene algún problema, que no dude en mandar un ask y preguntar.

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On Fire: A Teen Wolf Novel* (epub, mobi)

by Nancy Holder

In Beacon Hills, a mountain lion is blamed for a spate of vicious attacks; Scott McCall wishes the cause was that simple. Unfortunately, hiding his werewolf identity, especially from Allison Argent, while fighting his need to shift, is only one problem. Keeping his mysterious, murderous Alpha off his back (literally), avoiding hunters, deciphering strange dreams about flames and impending doom … is really eating into lacrosse practice and hang-out time. So when Jackson Whittemore doesn’t show for his date with Lydia, Scott hopes that helping Allison track down their buddy will be simpler. Derek—whose hunger for vengeance blinds him to the dangers that lie in wait—and Stiles are also looking, but the worried teens’ search is leading right to the preserve from Scott’s nightmare. They aren’t the only ones in the woods, and their little trip starts looking less like a rescue mission and more like an elaborate trap—one that will force them to make the choice between killing and being killed…

My personal opinion:
Haven’t read it yet!

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Code Name Verity* (epub, mobi)

by Elizabeth Wein

When “Verity” is arrested by the Gestapo, she’s sure she doesn’t stand a chance. As a secret agent captured in enemy territory, she’s living a spy’s worst nightmare. Her Nazi interrogators give her a simple choice: reveal her mission or face a grisly execution. They’ll get the truth out of her.  But it won’t be what they expect.
 
As she intricately weaves her confession, Verity uncovers her past, how she became friends with the pilot Maddie, and why she left Maddie in the wrecked fuselage of their plane. On each new scrap of paper, Verity battles for her life, confronting her views on courage, failure and her desperate hope to make it home. But will trading her secrets be enough to save her from a merciless and ruthless enemy?

My personal opinion:
I have a terrible memory but I remember that I quite liked it and that it wasn’t as dark as I expected (not so much torture as I was led to believe). It was really interesting and I learned A LOT about WWII that I didn’t know, specially about daily life in the UK during that time.

In connexion to The Montmaray Journals:
They have some themes in common (WW II and planes?) and I read this one before reading TMJ, so that’s probably the reason why I missed a bit more action in TMJ, so to speak. I’d recommend to read TMJ before reading this one, even if they’re totally different kinds of books.

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Austenland* (epub, lit, pcr)

by Shannon Hale

Jane is a young New York woman who can never seem to find the right man—perhaps because of her secret obsession with Mr. Darcy, as played by Colin Firth in the BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. When a wealthy relative bequeaths her a trip to an English resort catering to Austen-obsessed women, however, Jane’s fantasies of meeting the perfect Regency-era gentleman suddenly become more real than she ever could have imagined. Is this total immersion in a fake Austenland enough to make Jane kick the Austen obsession for good, or could all her dreams actually culminate in a Mr. Darcy of her own?

My personal opinion:
Haven’t read it yet. Hoping it will be like Lost in Austen and trying to ignore Stephenie Meyer’s involment in the movie…

It may ring a bell because:
They’re doing a movie.

Midnight in Austenland* (epub, mobi)

by Shannon Hale

When Charlotte Kinder treats herself to a two-week vacation at Austenland, she happily leaves behind her ex-husband and his delightful new wife, her ever-grateful children, and all the rest of her real life in America. She dons a bonnet and stays at a country manor house that provides an immersive Austen experience, complete with gentleman actors who cater to the guests’ Austen fantasies.

Everyone at Pembrook Park is playing a role, but increasingly, Charlotte isn’t sure where roles end and reality begins. And as the parlor games turn a little bit menacing, she finds she needs more than a good corset to keep herself safe. Is the brooding Mr. Mallery as sinister as he seems? What is Miss Gardenside’s mysterious ailment? Was that an actual dead body in the secret attic room? And-perhaps of the most lasting importance-could the stirrings in Charlotte’s heart be a sign of real-life love?

Sequel. Haven’t read it yet either (duh).

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(Versión en español más abajo)

The House at Riverton* (epub, mobi, lit)

by Kate Morton

Summer 1924: On the eve of a glittering Society party, by the lake of a grand English country house, a young poet takes his life. The only witnesses, sisters Hannah and Emmeline Hartford, will never speak to each other again. Winter 1999: Grace Bradley, 98, one-time housemaid of Riverton Manor, is visited by a young director making a film about the poet’s suicide. Ghosts awaken and memories, long-consigned to the dark reaches of Grace’s mind, begin to sneak back through the cracks. A shocking secret threatens to emerge; something history has forgotten but Grace never could. A thrilling mystery and a compelling love story, The House at Riverton will appeal to readers of Ian McEwan’s Atonement, L.P. Hartley’s The Go-Between, and lovers of the film Gosford Park.

My personal opinion:
I hate knowing the ending of books or films so I didn’t like knowing from the first moment how it would end, but it’s the kind of story where the important thing is the journey itself and not the destination. It’s an amazing story and I got really hooked when I read it.

You’ll like it if:
You like Downton Abbey. It’s really, really similar to the show in certain aspects so you’ll probably like it if you like DA.

Also, be aware that it starts as a film script for a few pages, then you have a letter and then you got to the first person POV.

La casa de Riverton* (epub, mobi)

por Kate Morton

Verano de 1924. Durante una rutilante fiesta de la alta sociedad en Riverton Manor, una preciosa mansión a orillas de un lago, un joven y prometedor poeta se quita la vida. Las únicas testigos de ese dramático hecho, las hermanas Hannah y Emmeline Hartford, no se volverán a hablar nunca más.Invierno de 1999. Grace Bradley, una anciana de noventa y ocho años que otrora fuera doncella en Riverton Manor recibe la visita de una joven directora de cine que está rodando una película sobre el suicido del poeta. Esa visita convoca los fantasmas del pasado, recuerdos que durante décadas Grace había relegado a lo más profundo de su mente, incapaz de enfrentarse a ellos.Kate Morton retrata en La casa de Riverton los últimos esplendores de la aristocracia inglesa, un mundo de convenciones y secretos atravesado por vehementes pasiones y terribles desengaños.

Mi opinión personal:
Odio saber el final de libros o películas por lo que no me gustó saber lo que ocurría desde el principio pero este es el tipo de libros en el que lo más importante es el trayecto y no el destino. Me gustó mucho cuando lo leí y me enganchó bastante, la verdad.

Te gustará si:
Te gusta Downton Abbey o Gosford Park. Se parece mucho a DA en bastantes aspectos así que lo más seguro es que te guste si te gusta la serie.

Por cierto, que sepáis que empieza como un guión de cine, pero solo durante unas páginas, luego sigue con una carta, y ya después se llega a la narrativa en primera persona.

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