The Kizuna Coast: A Rei Shimura Mystery

The Kizuna Coast is the latest book in the Rei Shimura series.

From Goodreads:
"When an earthquake triggers a tsunami that floods Japan's northeast coast, amateur sleuth Rei Shimura is pushed into her most rugged adventure yet.
It starts with an SOS from Rei's beloved elderly friend, the antiques dealer Mr. Ishida, who's trapped among thousands on the ravaged Tohoku coast. Rei rushes from Hawaii to blacked-out Tokyo, where she discovers Ishida Antiques may have been burglarized and its cuddly watchdog, Hachiko, needs a caregiver.

Rei and Hachiko board a bus full of disaster volunteers headed to the damaged town of Sugihama. Once there, they learn about the disappearance during the tsunami of Mr. Ishida's antiques apprentice, Mayumi, a troubled young woman from a famous lacquer-making family.
Making use of her volunteer friends, as well as her knowledge of Japanese manners and antiques, Rei investigates Mayumi's suspicious disappearance. Complicating the situation is a police force overwhelmed by counting the dead, and a stalker who's set his or her own sights on Rei." 

Sujata Massey was done with Rei Shimura's character after Shimura trouble but when the tsunami hit Japan's coast she knew she had to bring Rei back. It's been years after the supposed end of the series but it feels like coming home. Still, this book feels different than it's predecessors, just in a good way. Eventhough there is a mystery to solve I feel like it focuses on the catasthropy itself a lot more and explores how it effected not just the country, but the people. It worked for me. I loved the new people we meet and get to know. I have missed Mr.Ishida though and I'm so happy he had quite a big part in the story.

I've read these books since a friend introduced me to them in the high school and I remember falling in love with Rei immediately, trying to borrow all Shimura books at once. I've been on this journey for over 10 years. With Kizuna Coast I realised my tastes have changed, I've changed.I used to love Rei's romancies because she wasn't definied by a man she was dating. Reading this though, I couldn't shake the feeling of being annoyed. As much as I love Rei and her husband, Michael, I feel weird when they express jealousy. I'm not sure if it's a cultural thing or if I just lack that trait but after reading the last two Shimura books I realised how big of a deal it can be. It causes situations where Michael acts possessively and Rei irrationally and it just makes me very uncomfortable. I wouldn't tolerate their actions for long personally.

Over all I really liked this book. It was a quick read as always since I just get sucked into the story , meaning I had a hard time putting the book down. For some it's probably not as good as the adventures before but I enjoyed the change of pace . Of course it has those moments where plot requires suspense of belief because things are solved with amazingly convenient events. I don't think anyone reads Rei Shimura for it's complicated and realistic plots but because of the characters, the ambiance and knowledge of new things the books share with us. Learning about antiques, history and customs have always been a draw for me when it comes to our lovely adventurer. I'm not sure if Sujata Massey has planned on continuing this story or if this was officially final book but either way I'm happy with how it ended. I think I'll look for her other works for now.

The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon

This is not the first book I've read this year but it is the first interesting one I'd say. The girl who loved Tom Gordon is the first book I remember reading from Stephen King and I absolutely loved it. When I saw it at the bookfair last year I knew I had to get it. It fits perfectly in the reading challenge as well since we are meant to read a book from someone who has written over 20 books.

This is the blurb from Goodreads "Nine-year-old Trisha McFarland strays from the path while she and her recently divorced mother and brother take a hike along a branch of the Appalachian Trail. Lost for days, wandering farther and farther astray, Trisha has only her portable radio for comfort. A huge fan of Tom Gordon, a Boston Red Sox relief pitcher, she listens to baseball games and fantasizes that her hero will save her. Nature isn't her only adversary, though - something dangerous may be tracking Trisha through the dark woods. "

Just to get this out of the way, there was something in the beginning that annoyed me. When Trisha realised she was getting lost, she didn't turn back. Why? Wouldn't it be safer? She does so many things right later on that this just baffled me. I guess there wouldn't be a book if she had been smarter but still.

I like this book because you can basically choose to believe there is something supernatural in the woods with Trisha or you can try to logic it out. If you aren't a big fan of supernatural books but are still curious about King then I'd say this is the book for you. It does get rather gross if you are faint of heart but it didn't really bother me. After all she is just a little girl doing her best to survive all by herself. There's no public bathrooms in the middle of forests. I read afterwards that everything she eats in the forest is actually something you can find in real life at that time of the year. Even more if you know your plants.

I think I like this book partly because I can relate to the girl. If I were lost with little food and all I had was radio I could only listen to every once in a while to save battery, I'd turn to my imagination as well. I wouldn't be surprised if I conjured a person to keep me company while I try to find the way out. I am not a sports fan and know nothing of Boston Red Sox but parts about Tom Gordon were still entertaining to me. Also I learned he is a real person so I guess I learned a lot while reading this. Only sad part was that I remembered how the supernatural part turned out so it wasn't a surprise for me but I still enjoyed the athmosphere.

The book itself is a quick read so I will probably keep going back to it once I forget most of the storyline. It's a curse and blessing because I can enjoy reading my favourite books over and over again. It seems that The girl who loved Tom Gordon is either liked or hated. It divides people for some reason. Which makes me curious, have you read it and what were your thoughts on it? I would recommend at least giving it a try.

Reading challenge of 2017

Link for it here http://www.helmet.fi/fi-FI/Tapahtumat_ja_vinkit/Vinkit/Helmetlukuhaaste_2017(115505) . Scrolling it down you can find the list in English, Swedish and Russian as well which is very cool.

I'll probably gear my reading list towards this challenge since I'm hoping to broaden my book horizon. I'm used to reading safe books I know I'll love and I miss being a kid who just devoured everything. With the list everyone can join me and share tips for what books you feel fills which categories. Politic one I thought was going to be hard for me but my dad gave me a book to read about our old president, Kekkonen. He was an avid fisher and hunter so that is what the book focuses on but there should be some tidbits of what was happening in Finland from mid 50s to early 80s.

Some will be tricker than others of course and lots of books can fit more than one category. Kekkonen for example could fit the part of book with pictures as well. I was hoping to read my pictured Narnia chronicles for it though, it's been on my bookshelf for years now. I might also have to finally read Sofia's choice as it's from a writer I've only read one book from before.

All this just gets me excited for the New Year. May it be better than 2016 as it was quite tough for us when it comes to losing our icons. Hopefully personally New Year is going to be amazing for everyone. I'll be seeing you all when I'm done reading my first book of the year, whether it's the book about late president or magical world of Narnia, hopefully it's a great one to start of the reading adventure!

Blog update

This is a different kind of post as my normal book reviews but it's been a while since I posted anything here so figured I'd update it a little. Around the time of my last book review my books started piling up and after a while I knew I'm not going to review all of them. Just no time or interest really. I didn't know which books to do though so I kept pushing it back and back and you can see what happened. I read a lot of lovely books this years. If you want to see my full list my username on Goodreads is also Kupari. I challenged myself there to read 52 books this year and only managed 41. I'm still happy because most of the books I finished were great. I also managed to weed out books I'll never read again which means little less chaos on my bookshelves.

This year I'll take part on another book challenge. On 30th so in two days, book list will be announced and I'll try reading as many books as I can that fit the list. It's organized by certain Finnish library group I think and this is my first year participating. To give you a better idea here are few things from this year's list.

1. Book about food
2. Book were people fall in love
3. Book that is not written in your mothertongue.
4. Book about libraries.
5. A play
6. A children's book
7. Book written by African writer

List goes on to 50 so there is lots of themes and books that will broaden my reading world. All I know from the 2017 challenge is a teaser that showed a bride so maybe we'll have read a book about marriage? Will be interesting to see. I hope to bring you guys with me to this journey and maybe I can even get book recommendations for some of the tough parts of the list.

In any case I hope everyone has a happy new year and we'll see again next year!

Dust by Hugh Howey

I would love to quote the back of this book but it is very spoiler heavy if you haven't read the first book. In Dust we follow the survivors of Wool who are trying to find their place in the world. Everything has changed and none of the people can control their future. Will everyone survive?

Like the first book the story in this one really kicked in around the halfway of the book. I was more into it from the beginning though as it felt more urgent. Everything was very uncertain and I just needed to know if everyone is going to be okay. We also learn a lot about the world this time around. Why people live in that silo, what happened to the world. We also get a conclusion to the story. Parts of Dust made me sad and there was also a very disgusting part with the church. People praying on the innocent makes my blood boil.

In Dust we get to know more new people. A little about why they are so important to the story. Also the name Dust starts making sense. Even Shift that is the story of how all is this started. That is the book I'm currently reading as I just want to know every little possible detail of this world. If you are satisfied by knowing somewhat what happened and why, then Dust is a good ending to the saga. But if you love discovery I'd suggest also reading Shift.

I had a person in Wool that disgusted me. I guess these type of stories will always have so called bad guys. It wasn't until Dust though that we are introduced to someone who truly disgusts me. Someone who helped this destruction. Just really made me feel slimy. I honestly hope that if technology advanges to the state it is in the books, that there is no apocalypse. Especially not one where humanity is forced to live underground for hundreds of years. Where everything is regulated and everyone has their place. Free thinking isn't an encouraged way. Also can you imagine walking 100 stores everytime you wanted to check out the whole silo from top to bottom? Trip that can take days. I am jealous of the physical condition of the couriers in this world.

If you are a fan of apocalyptic stories then I definitely recommend this one. It might start a little slow but everything and everyone really has a place in the plot. It might not always be a big part but it's usually still important. After reading 2 of the 3 books I feel like I live in that world when I open the pages. It's not a place I'd want to live but it is a place that I like to visit.

Wool by Hugh Howey

This book was also lend to me by a friend which meant I read two post-apocalyptic books in a row. Halfway through I found out there's 2 more books which meant a trip to the library. I love that the stories are collected in these books making reading a lot easier for those who weren't able to read the standalone shorts.

Goodreads says "This is the story of mankind clawing for survival, of mankind on the edge. The world outside has grown unkind, the view of it limited, talk of it forbidden. But there are always those who hope, who dream. These are the dangerous people, the residents who infect others with their optimism. Their punishment is simple. They are given the very thing they profess to want: They are allowed outside."

Basically something happened and the world outside is not habitable. Nothing grows there, it's all grey and even the air is poisonous. People live in a silo underground that has 100 floors and no elevator. Most people never do the trip uptop or only does it when it's time for cleaning duty and they want to watch. It means that monitors to outside world are clean again and you can see the world properly. From very early on you find out cleaning duty is just another word for death sentence. It's also not a very fun way to die either.

First story of the book focuses on Holston. He is one of the sheriffs as you learn later on that there are few stations scattered around the silo for convenience. No one man can monitor hundred floors. Holston had a wife who was send to cleaning duty and her husband hasn't gotten over it. He wants to find out what happened, why did his wife actually volunteer for the duty. This sends him on a dangerous path.

Second story continues from the first one focusing on the mayor this time. She starts the work for mayor campaign and decides to make the trip down all those stairs. The campaign isn't the only reason for the trip but revealing it would spoil a lot. Eventhough these 2 stories seemed a little slow I did enjoy reading them. I loved learning more of the characters and the world this silo is in. Howey also made clear quite soon that life in silo isn't all rainbows. Death occures and it isn't always an accident. It made me little worried about liking any characters if I'm honest.

Last part of the book is where I didn't want to put down the book. A lot starts happening and you realise not everything is as it seems. We follow Juliette who is a mechanic but who is given a new duty. Which once again I can't reveal for spoilers. With Jules the story really kicks in. Things that have never happened in the silo before or if they have, the knowledge is buried. I was up until 4am because of how invested I became. This was also the point we were introduced to the first character that I just loath. Actually wished bad things to happen to them. Last half of the book also guaranteed I needed to read the other books for full understanding of the world.

I honestly loved this book. Sometimes post-apocalyptic stories are very similar with this heroine who doesn't want to be the leader or is clumsy or just not the heroine type you'd imagine. She does something amazing anyway while falling for the first guy to notice her. As much as I enjoy those books I was happy to find something different. Where need for the truth was more powering for these characters than some random person they happened to fall in love. There is romance elements of course but they aren't the center of the story as much as the person's journey. It makes me really happy. I honestly would recommend this one and I am actually reading the sequal as we speak.

Batman by Craig Shaw Gardner

                                          Have you ever danced with the devil in the pale moonlight?

Here is the novelization of the blockbuster Warner Brothers summer movie of 1989, Batman, from the author of The Lost Boys movie tie-in and the Ebenezzum fantasy series. Stars Jack Nicholson, Michael Keaton and Kim Basinger. Original.

I don't know where to start. I don't think I've ever read a novelization of a movie before and it feels weird. I saw Batman as a kid and don't think I've seen it since. It was a pretty good movie and I loved Jack Nicholson's Joker. All I ever remember is the Joker falling in the poison and his catchphrase "Have you ever danced with the devil in the pale moonlight?" he likes to say everyone before he kills them.

If you've seen the movie you know what this book is about. How Joker was born from Napier, Bruce Wayne dated a reporter called Vicki while trying to be Batman and keep his identity as a secret and what chaos Joker caused. It's darker than Batman stories used to be.

The book is surprisingly good. I'm not sure it was necessary but if you love reading and Batman then this probably works for you. It keeps you on your toes and makes you interested in Joker. I found him to be more fascinating than Batman if I'm honest. He was the main reason I liked the book. Vicki and Harvey Dent for example weren't something I invested in as characters and it made me a little sad. I'm probably biased though as I've never been a huge Batman fan. I like him but billionare superhero thing isn't really my thing.

Overall it's easy to read book that you will be done in few hours. It will keep you entertained and invested. It shows superhero stories can be dark and work well. Which seems to be the popular direction these days. Not sure I'll read it again but it's still nice to have.