The Secret Keeper

The Secret Keeper

by Kate Morton

★★★★☆

Kate Morton has earned a reputation as an expert gothic mystery writer. If you pick up one of her fat novels you know what you’re in for. So far I have loved each of her novels, The Forgotten Garden, The Distant Hours and The House at Riverton, but I thought Morton might disappoint me this time. I made it about ¾ of the way through this novel and still didn’t know if I liked it. Needless to say I judged it too soon, I shouldn’t have doubted her.

A famous actress, Laurel, returns home to visit her ailing mother, Dorothy. As she reconnects with her sisters and explores her childhood home she can’t help but reminisce about some strange details from her childhood, particularly a violent event that happened when she was a teen. She begins to learn more about her parents’ history as she researches their lives during World War II.

The book switches between multiple points of view, Laurel, Dorothy, Dorothy’s boyfriend Jimmy and her friend Vivien. I loved this aspect of the book because it gives the reader a chance to get to know each character and to question the honesty of the narrative. I really loved the pieces of the story set during WWII. Though the middle was a bit slow for me the end was well worth the wait.

BOTTOM LINE: If you’re a fan of Morton’s novels you can’t miss this one! If you’re new to her work I would check out The Forgotten Garden, my personal favorite. She’s a sure bet for anyone who loves a great gothic mystery.  

I read this for the R.I.P. Challenge hosted by Stainless Steel Droppings.

Wordless Wednesday: Swimming with Dolphins

On my recent trip to Florida I got the chance to swim with dolphins. 

That's been on my bucket list for a long time and 

I'm so glad I finally got the chance to do it! 

The dolphin I was with weighed in at 525 lbs! 

I got to feed him fish, kiss him, rub his belly and toss him toys. 

It was everything I thought it would be. 

More Wordless Wednesday here.

Photo by moi.

Galapagos

Galapagos

by Kurt Vonnegut

★★★★

Vonnegut tends to be one of those authors that you just get or you don’t. I love his sarcastic style, but I know it doesn’t work for everyone. I also think I have a particular soft spot for him because he is a fellow Hoosier.

In this novel we meet Mary, a widow who is taking a cruise to the Galapagos islands. Little does she know that their cruise ship will soon become a second Noah’s ark when the world ends and the only people left are those on the ship. The story is told a million years in the future by the son of Kilgore Trout. The few remaining humans must attempt to restart the human race on the Galapagos islands.

One of the themes in Vonnegut’s work is the absurdity of man; our willingness to destroy both ourselves and each other. This is a central point in Galapagos as well. He can’t help but add a few lines about his own big brain’s crazy idea to go fight in Vietnam, which echoes his own experience fighting in WWII.  

BOTTOM LINE: An overlooked classic and one of Vonnegut’s better books. If you’ve already checked out his big ones (Breakfast of Champions, Slaughterhouse-Five and Cat’s Cradle) then pick this one up. It’s an incredibly quick read and sure to make you laugh if you love Vonnegut’s sense of humor.

“I say the same thing about the death of James Wait: "Oh, well - he wasn't going to write Beethoven's Ninth Symphony anyway." This wry comment on how little most of us were likely to accomplish in life, no matter how long we lived, isn't my own invention.”

p.s. A few of Vonnegut’s best lines.

This was my Classics Club Spin book for September and a book on my 2013 TBR list.