Heart of the Matter by Emily Giffin

Heart of the Matter is simply a book that doesn't have much heart. It tells the story of two women; the wife and the "other woman." Tessa (the wife) has recently quit her job as a professor to become a stay-at-home mom to her two kids. Valerie (the other woman) is a single mom and career woman whose life revolves around her son Charlie. When Charlie gets into an accident Tessa's "perfect" husband becomes his pediatric surgeon and so his relationship with Valerie begins...

Don't think I'm giving away some huge secret by revealing this affair, because that is what the entire book revolves around and it's obvious from early on. The book alternates between Tessa's and Valerie's points of view as the affair progresses. The characters just seem pretty cliche and it feels as though Giffin only brushes the surface. I didn't find either woman particularly likeable, and by the end I was almost glad to be done with them.

The premise behind the novel definitely isn't anything new, but the way in which Giffin presented it was different. I found myself intrigued at first with the alternating perspectives, but the story just didn't develop enough to really keep my interest.

Was it worth the read?

No. I found myself very disappointed in the end and a little bit depressed. I think Giffin should stick to lighter fare until she comes up with a story with more originality and dimension. She has potential, but she hasn't fulfilled it with Heart of the Matter.

Thirst No.1 & 2 by Christopher Pike

My sister and I have always been fans of Christopher Pike; we started reading his teen novels at a young age and always turn to his books when we're looking for something interesting and unpredictable to read. His Thirst series is another example of his incredible imagination and it's a great summer read.

The series revolves around Alisa Perne, a 500-year-old vampire that to most of the outside world is just another innocent, young, blond girl. As we soon learn, Alisa is really anything but innocent - living through five centuries can really alter one's view on the world and Alisa's perspective on life is pretty interesting. Sometimes her actions made me cringe, but I still couldn't help but be pulled in by this strong, empowered, intelligent female character.

Alisa's story is a classic that a lot of people can relate to - all she really wants is to live a normal life, but her past keeps coming back to haunt her. There are some great flashbacks to her previous lives in India, Ancient Egypt and Europe as well as an ongoing plot involving Alisa's relationship with Krishna whom she met centuries ago.


Was it worth the read?

Yes. Pike's interpretation of vampires is definitely one of the best that I have come across. Unlike the sparkling vampires of a certain popular series, Pike's vampires seem like they could really be living among us - his explanations of their powers, weaknesses and beginnings are all very believable. Like many of his novels, Thirst combines a mixture of supernatural elements, religion, history and romance and it makes for a truly epic tale.

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Steig Larsson

The third and final book in the trilogy starts off with Lisbeth Salander at a hospital, unconscious with a bullet lodged in her brain. Her psychopathic father lies two doors down with an axe wound to his head. The craziness has begun.

I had heard some rumblings about this book, mainly that there were too many secondary characters and too much focus on them. Aside from one especially long background explanation of one of the Sapo men, I found the side story of Erika Berger and the insight into Monica Figuerola to be entertaining and I thought they added a lot to Larsson's exploration of "men who hate women".

The book, like it's predecessors was long at 563 pages for a hardcover book, but the length was something I loved because it meant just that much more time I would get to spend in Lisbeth's world. I finished the book satisfied, but with a heavy heart knowing that this was the last thing Larsson had ever wrote. There are talks of a partial fourth manuscript on his girlfriend's computer, but now I've heard there is a big dispute over his estate and the contents of this manuscript will probably take years to make it into the public eye. The whole thing is tragic, and so eerily like one of his books that it makes you wonder.

Was it worth the read?

Yes. Lisbeth's long list of enemies finally get their comeuppance, and they get it in a meticulously thought out, hit em' where it hurts kind of way. It's gratifying to the extreme, with a great court scene at the end. Long live Lisbeth!

Posting vacation

It was my goal when we started this blog to post at least one thing every month. Five months in and I've already broken it! The last month was full of amazing weather (the first of it's kind in Toronto in a long, LONG time) and one amazing trip to Portugal. But now we're back and ready to blog!