Tag: Review

The Returned by Jason Mott (I felt much was left unsaid)

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)16 Comments

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“I use Grammarly’s plagiarism checker because my super powered Blogerific Ninja Team Raphael and Biff, that scan the blogesphere for all things copied are not always as quick and efficient as I would like them to be.  (Especially Biff, but do not say anything to him as he is HIGHLY sensitive.) 😛

Imagine… if someone you loved who has passed away – someone you had mourned for, grieved over and made deals with God about how much you miss them and only if they could return to you…

imagine…

if they did.

Harold and Louise Hardgrave had lived decades of this kind of loss and pain.  In 1966, at the age of eight their only son Jacob had drowned at his own birthday party.  As life tends to go on, even when we sludge through it… that is what the Hardgrave’s did… forming for themselves a life without Jacob and doing their best to move on.

And then one day, there he is. Jacob, at their door, looking just as he did at the age of 8. 

And not just Jacob.  All over the word that reports had been coming in for weeks that people who had passed on had suddenly arrived back at their homes, back in their loved ones lives… and no one can explain why.  Is this the sign of the world coming to an end?  Or the return of Christ?  Or is it something darker…. something difficult to fathom when standing before you is the one that you have prayed for…. hoped for….

In a new and confused world, even Harold and Louise have trouble seeing eye to eye on how they feel about Jacob’s return.  Louise is hook line and sinker ready to throw herself back into the role of nurturing mother and takes Jacob at face value.  Harold however has reservations that this really is his son.  He may look like him, walk like him, and talk like him… but he was there when his son had died.  Life zapped away in a blink of an eye does nor return like that.

Does it?

Wow.  Even before I started reading this book I had heard the scuttle around the edges of the internet of the mixed emotions this book was bringing out.  That just made me more curious.

The Returned really is a fascinating topic for a book.  As the book opened with Jacob at the door of his parents who have aged  and stooped over the years yet here was their precious little boy looking as fresh and wonderful as he did before he left them I knew I wanted to know more. 

The Return does very well at describing the emotions both accepting and abrasive as those who have passed on return to their homes and families rejoice.  I even enjoyed the dynamics of what issues this would cause our world if this really did happen… for instance, The Returned had huge appetites.  Always hungry they needed to be fed.  And for that matter housed, and cared for.  Suddenly as people keep returning, you can see where the once dead could soon out number the living.  And, The Returned did not always turn up where their families were, some had no families… others had no desire to return to the family and friends they had so choose to go elsewhere…. etc….  fascinating stuff really.

What The Return (in my opinion) does not do well at, is coming full circle.  The whole book I am waiting to see what is bringing the returned back from the graves.  In the danger of causing a spoiler, but I feel a necessary one… it is never made clear, which to me made the book feel as though it was not fully thought out.

As readers, or at least I can speak for myself and say as a reader I want to read great books.  Even when an idea, such as The Returned is a new topic (which I love it when that happens!), I still want to be intellectually stimulated and not just smile and read on for the sake of reading something that entertains my mind.  I want to feel “WOW” when I come out of the last page.  Unfortunately, as much as I can say I enjoyed the idea of The Returned and parts of the book, it did not have the full idea thought out therefore, leaving me wanting more. 

My final thoughts, I did enjoy the book.  I dont mean to come off as harsh in this review, just real.  It is enjoyable and if thats what you are looking for, I would recommend it.  If you like answers to questions that come up in your fictional reading however, you may feel a bit disappointed.

In other news, I heard that this book is being considered for TV.  I would tune in to see what they do with it.

Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)16 Comments

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*pangram: a sentence or phrase that includes all the letters of the alphabet

Nollop is a happy happy place where folks go along their merry way, minding their own business and helping a neighbor as needed.  Nollop, named for the very famous (and very fictional!) Nevin Nollop, the creator of the pangram sentence, “The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.”  On fact the town loves Nevin so much, they have the alphabet hanging in large tiles with the alphabet on them that hangs form a memorial statue of the famed man and have hung their for hundreds (maybe more!) years.

When one day, the “Z” drops from the statue the Island’s council calls an emergency meeting.  Surely this a sign from Nevin from beyond the grave!  A message quickly goes out across the land that the use of the letter “Z” is now forbidden as of midnight.  No longer may people discuss the buzzing of bees, the fixing of a zipper, or visiting a zoo.  To speak words containing this now letter that shall not be named, or writing it down will result in a series of punishments including up to public flogging and even jail time.

And so, Nollop moves on, after all it is only a “Z”, and it is possible to have a pretty (almost!) normal life without that letter. 

But then… soon after…. the “Q drops.  And again the council meets, and again a letter goes out now removing this letter as well, after all, it must be what Nevin wants…. and so to the wayside goes the ability to say or write things like quick or quiver or make the noise of “Quack!”.

And so it goes… letters continue to fall and the world spreads tot he public that the use of these letters are now forbidden… as the books continues, written in letters, the letters become harder and harder to read…. when the letter “D” drops – you can no longer say you knocked on a door , but instead on a portal… and so on and so on…

What will become of the town as people slip up when greeting others or write a now forbidden letter into a sentence? 

What will become of Ella, who lives on Nollop and wants nothing more than to see the written word and language returned so once again we can freely express ourselves?

I adored this brilliant book.

I heard about Ella Minnow Pea a couple of years ago while in New York for the Book Expo.  I thought it sounded brilliant.  While Ella Minnow Pea is not a banned book, it talks about the banning of books.  As letters continue to be eliminated, the Library in Nollop is closed…. too many words and you know every one of those books has to be a violation. 

Letters sent to one another are read by a selected person to check for the offending letters – but no wait, this is not an invasion of privacy as the person hired to do this does not speak any English, therefore has no idea as to what he is reading. 

Ella Minnow Pea is a wonderful reflection of what happens when we enforce censorship.   We take away people’s rights to use the tools we have been given to communicate, to choose what we say or write and when we say it.  As the books goes on and the letters continue to be eliminated it becomes harder and harder to understand and that… is exactly the point.

Check out Ella Minnow Pea.  It’s smart, it’s fun… and it really makes you think about how one small right taken away (like the use of “Z”) seems like no big deal…. and then… one day…. it is another small no big deal (“Q”) and then another… and another…

I chose to review Ella Minnow Pea for Banned Book Week because it fits right in with what happens when we ban or challenge books to be removed from shelves due to our personal preference for what we consider to be proper.  Imagine… if everyone had their way on banning and challenging books… think of the great reads we would have NEVER been allowed to read….. The Bible, Hunger Games, Fahrenheit 451, Little House On The Prairie, Narnia, Lord Of The Rings, Harry Potter, To Kill A Mockingbird, Tom Sawyer, Huck Finn, SPEAK, Charlotte’s Web, Alice In Wonderland, The Giver, Wuthering Heights, Kite Runner, Perks Of Being a Wallflower, The Chocolate War, Beloved, Their Eyes Were Watching God, The Color Purple, The Bridge To Terabithia, Of Mice and Men, In True Blood, Song Of Solomon, Are You There God Its Me Margaret, Blubber, A Prayer For Owen Meany…

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The Hunt By Andrew Fukoda

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)8 Comments

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Before I knew it I was so caught up in the book it was like the pages were turning themselves. 

`Sheila

Gene goes to high school like the other teenagers his age.  He looks and acts just like the other students yet Gene is not like the other students.

Gene is human.  Heper, as they are called.   And they are hunted and rare,

It is unfortunate that he can not run as fast as his peers with their lightning quick moves.  But on the upside he doesn’t have to avoid the sun and he doesn’t crave the taste of human blood. 

He knows the rules to staying alive and not drawing attention to himself.  Do not sweat.  Do not smile or laugh or show and emotion for that matter.  Do not blush or cough.  And absolutely… under no circumstances do you fall in love.  Life and death depend on how close he pays attention to these rules.

Then the Hunt is announced.  A lucky few will be chosen by lottery to participate in the televised hunting and killing of a group of hepers.  The odds are that he will not be chosen out of the hundreds, thousands even that are eligible – yet as the numbers are read ….

There is no way he will not be found our for who he is. 

What are odds of survival? 

And what is the greater cost?

 

 

I was so excited to read this book dubbed as part Twilight…. part Hunger Games.   A YA read that consisted of a world of vampire like creatures that have replaced us in the schools and in the markets.  They thirst for human blood.  They hang from locks on their feet at night.  They scratch their wrist to express emotion like humor or nervousness.  Their teeth are pointy. 

To be human (heper) is unheard of unless you are under captivity to be studied or be raised like cattle… fattening up for the slaughter… but as Gene can attest, being human/heper and living among the others is rare and dangerous… but so far possible.

I loved the flow of this book like Hunger Games into a world where survival is the goal and friend is pitted against friend.  What I didn’t love was when it became a little too close to Hunger Games, for a while there “The Woman director shows up again in her frilly dress”…. and “Their can only be one survivor… one real champion” was a bit too cookie cutter copied for my liking.

HOWEVER…. as the book went on I was thrilled to see it take its own path and break out of that cookie cutter mold into a story that kept me reading and guessing and hoping and…. well… and ordering the next book, The Prey.

Did I love it?  Pretty darn close.  Overall it was an awesome read, one that filled me with those first thrills that Hunger Games did and those are rare finds.

The Hunt is way more Hunger Games than it is Twilight, and if you enjoyed Hunger Games, I think you will find this a nice fix.

The White Princess by Phillipa Gregory

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)14 Comments

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Philippa Gregory weaves a fiction tale so fine through factual history that is at times hard to see where one begins and the other ends.  Fantastic reading!  ~Sheila

 

When Henry’s battle ends with a crown to a kingdom that he is not handed, but instead takes from the battle ground as his own , he know that his only hope is to marry the Princess Elizabeth of York to bind the Tudors and the Yorks after nearly two decades.

Elizabeth is both beautiful and strong-minded and in love with a man who was slain during this war.  Henry in turn shows Elizabeth no love or affection but instead parades her around as his prize possession and handles her roughly and against er will behind closed doors.

Ahhhh…. the lives of the Tudors and the Yorks.

In the hearts of those in England they hope and pray for someone to come along and return the power of the kingdom to the York’s.  When a young man come sup against the kingdom the battle begins as Henry fights to protect his stolen kingdom and Elizabeth watches with interest and fear as this man who claims to be her long-lost brother comes to return the power to York and Elizabeth now has to choose between a man she is coming to love and the boy who could save them all.

 

 

Why did I want to read this book?  Ever since The Boleyn Girl I have adores Phillipa Gregory’s writing.  Her writing flows with passion and facts and fills the holes that  time has created giving us “what if” to think about. 

 

The White Princess was just as fulfilling as I had hoped when I chose to listen tot his one on audio.  Narrator Bianca Amato is a fantastic choice for Gregory’s books as her accent is perfect for the narration and I found myself trying to roll words off my own tongue as she did.

“Whot?”  (What)

I tried a few at work but my rendition is nowhere near perfect as Bianca’s.  Audio book lovers, you will thank me when I tell you try this one in audio. 

Phillipa Gregory is not known as the “Queen Of Royal Fiction” without cause.  Her books are interesting and bring you right to the time of flowing gowns, castles filled with servants and royalty, and a longing to be a part of the court.  Every time I read her books I find myself fully engaged in whatever part of the story she is sharing at that moment.

The White Queen is breath-taking.  We meet Elizabeth in earlier Cousin War books, but this is the storyline where she takes her place as Queen on a throne that is both welcoming and torturous. With her mother by her side, when she is not forced to go elsewhere, Elizabeth tries to be the Queen in every sense of the word, holding her head high and not let others see the pain behind her eyes, behind closed doors, and nowhere to ever escape.

In a reading slump or looking for your next “WOW!”, open up any one of Phillipa Gregory’s books.  You do not have to read The Cousin’s War books in order, each one pops you right there and you will have no problem finding your place in the crowd of Gregory fans.

 

 

 

Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)26 Comments

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“That was it. That was all of it. A grace so ordinary there was no reason at all to remember it. Yet I have never across the forty years since it was spoken forgotten a single word.”

William Kent Krueger

Like a soft whisper you barely hear, Ordinary Grace brings your senses to full attention – you are on alert for what will happen next and in the end, you were not even close to the truth but wow – what a fantastic journey!

Sheila DeChantal

New Bremen, Minnesota 1961.  The Twins were a new team, ice cold frosty mugged root beer was the coveted drink of choice, and Hot Stuff comic books were the way to spend that change that was waiting in your jeans pocket.  For thirteen year old Frank it started out as a summer of possibilities, but this summer had other plans, plans no one could have foreseen.  The summer of 1961 in New Bremen Minnesota turned out to be the summer of death.

Frank, now 40, looks back at this summer of 61 with a sense of peace and awe at the grace of it all.  In 1961 he lived with his Methodist Minister father of several churches in the area, his mother who never planned on being a ministers wife but that is what she was and while she liked to smoke cigarettes and hold her own identity she did her best as part of the choir at the churches, an older sister with talent that had her heading right towards the awaiting gates of Julliard and a tag along always under foot younger brother who while bothersome, was wise at the most perfect times.  At the brink of manhood, Franks thirteenth year was one that changed his way of thinking for life.

Death comes in many forms:  Accident.  Nature. Suicide.  Murder.  Thirteen year old Frank is about to experience all of the above.

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William Kent Krueger the end of August 2013 at Wine and Words in Baxter Minnesota signing away.
What a great down to earth guy! Meet him if you get the opportunity.

Why did I want to read this book?  William Kent Krueger is a Minnesota legend.  He is that author who is writing books that generate followers of his writing yet I had never read him.  I have over the past several years picked up his books here and there, tales of Minnesota’s North Shore and while I planned on reading him…. I just never got to it.  Thanks to Wine and Words and Kent’s generous offer to be a part of our debut year, I knew I had to (and wanted to!) read him and Ordinary Grace was told to be a different kind of tale for Krueger.  With all that said – I was in. 🙂

Ordinary Grace is the kind of book you do not want to put down.  It flows with a pace you would expect for 1961, a small town pace that reminds you of summer heat and the days before the media outpouring at every way you turn and the days of course where you could pick up a soda with a straw at the local drug store and make it last for hours. 

As I melted into the pages of Frank’s life and his family I had no trouble at all seeing through thirteen year old Frank’s eyes.  William Kent Krueger drew a perfect picture of the life and times of Frank and his family, and I fell right into Bremen as though I were a resident. 

Drawn in completely Ordinary Grace has the town characters who are indeed “characters”.  Gus (to name one)is the buddy each of us has in our life that likes to love life a little bit on the edge, not always a rule follower which keeps things interesting when you are with them and usually has a heart of gold and would do anything for you.  And Gus is only one of the great people you will meet within the pages. 

In the end, Ordinary Grace took my breath away.  I cruised through the final pages as in rapid succession the missing pieces of the summer of 61 were dropped into place.  I closed the final page with a sense of bewilderment in the crazy and amazing grace of a young boy who in a summers worth of days grew to know more than he had ever wanted or thought he needed, yet molded him into the man he was to become. 

I can not wait to dig into William Kent Krueger’s books again.  Tamarack County awaits for me. 

A Place At The Table by Susan Rebecca White

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)7 Comments

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When you see the differences in one another and learn to embrace them rather than exploit them… you become whole.

Sheila

A cafe in Manhattan.  Bobby, a gay man from Georgia, young and trying to find his way as his family pulls from him.  Amelia, money has never been a problem for her but finds she can not buy her way out of a family secret that has the power to change everything.  Alice, African-American and knows that life can be cruel but finds her way through the day-to-day by looking ahead and using her great gifts in cooking to reach others…

All three have been uprooted from their pasts and they all migrate towards cooking, hungry for companionship, understanding, and acceptance.  As the book starts in 1920’s where slaves are being freed, to the AIDS epidemic of the 80’s, all three know the true meaning of sacrifice in order to find authenticity.

 

Why did I want to read/listen to this book?  The synopsis sounded powerful.  The three protagonists of the book were all so different, I wanted to know what would bring them together.

Even as I write this review I find myself settling into a state of melancholy, and maybe that is not the right word, but I feel a longing for these characters a sense of wanting more yet saddened that as I write this, they are already a part of my past.  Does that make sense?

A Place At The Table was fulfilling, much like the table at which they all sat.  While food fills them, it is the relationships that fill them up and that imagery that Susan Rebecca White paints is one I want to hold on to.  I listened to this book on audio and loved the narration of Robin Miles (she also narrated The Last Original Wife which I LOVED!), George Newbern, and Katherine Powell.  The book flowed smoothly from one scene to the next which I can imagine was no easy task, yet it mixed so well together to create a book I will recommend to others.  This would be a great discussion book for book clubs and  I will be recommending it to my book club for sure!

Thank you to Simon and Schuster Audio

for the opportunity to listen to and review this audio

Dad Is Fat by Jim Gaffigan

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)16 Comments

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Why I wanted to listen to this audio:  Heard a little hype about this on Facebook from friends I trust…  thought I would give it a try.  I am always up for a good laugh. 😀

Dad Is Fat is Jim Gaffigan’s hilarious stories on what it is like to be a father of 5 (yes 5!) children.  Jim shares the moments in his and his wife’s life of what it is like to try to maneuver through life in New York with 5 children and no car and taxi’s will not take more than 4 passengers in a vehicle.  An awesome listen or read for any parent who feels they may be outnumbered in their home or even for people like me who have no

It’s hard to write a synopsis for this audio when all I want to do is pull up a chair and start sharing with you the funny moments that had me laughing out loud…

“There is no difference between a four-year old eating a taco and throwing a taco on the floor.”

“We are all a little weird. And we like to think that there is always someone weirder. I mean, I am sure some of you are looking at me and thinking, “Well, at least I am not as weird as you,” and I am thinking, “Well, at least I am not as weird as the people in the loony bin,” and the people in the loony bin are thinking, “Well, at least I am an orange”.”

But don’t take my word for it… here is Jim, live from his audiobook – Dad is Fat:

I thoroughly enjoyed this audio, loved listening to Jim – and highly recommend this one for your next road trip.  This audio is family friendly.

Looking For Me by Beth Hoffman

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)12 Comments

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Where Cee Cee Honeycutt was sweet, Looking For Me is a direct hit to the heart.

So accurately imbedded are these characters that you will not soon

forget them… nor will you want to.

~Sheila

Teddy Overman found from a young age that she had a passion for taking the old and abandoned treasures she found in furniture and making them unique and new.  It was always exciting to find something broken down along side a garbage dumpster or in a ditch like a chair or end table and work her magic into restoring it to something to be loved again.  Teddy’s mother felt differently and encouraged her daughter to take up other interests like typing so she could be a secretary with a steady pay check, but Teddy’s love or restoring did not waver.

Teddy’s brother Josh had a heart for animals.  He would go out of his way to rescue the abandoned and the abused… in a way, the siblings had similar hearts.  As Teddy felt she could see into the heart of a piece of furniture and see what is could be, Josh felt he could hear the animals and nature call to him.  That call was so strong that one day he left his home… and never returned again.  As time goes by and days pass into years the family has no choice but to think that Josh has surely died out in the elements. 

As Teddy grows to be an adult she finds she can full fill her passion for working with furniture in a shop that has a delightful cast of characters that not only work along side her, but frequent the shop.  Each one as unique and beautiful as the furniture she loves.  When tragedy strikes and Teddy finds herself driving that familiar road back to her childhood home signs lead to the fact that Josh may be alive. 

Trapped between her past and her future, Teddy must decide what is true and to be held on to, and what must be let go.

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Beth Hoffman and I in New York (Book Expo) 2011

Holy cheese on a cracker.  Or something like that.  Looking For Me spoke to my heart in so many ways I do not even know where to begin.  I wanted to read this book because I enjoyed Beth Hoffman’s debut in Cee Cee Honeycutt, a sweet as sweet tea story that made me long to keep Cee Cee in my circle of fictitious friends.  When Looking For Me was on its way into my hot little hands I am pretty sure I watched the mail box every day for a week. 

Looking For Me was everything I had hoped it would be … every bit as strongly written as Cee Cee Honeycutt but also more.  Looking For Me has a sharp edge to it, one that is tamed a bit by the southern feel and location of the book, but it is there all the same and it is a good thing.  The book deals with family disappointments, loss, reaching for your dreams, taking the road less traveled, love, heartbreak, friendships, and letting go – in some cases; all of the above.

I laughed and cheered Teddy on – strong willed and self assured (even when she was faking it) I found a bit of me in her.  I would also have to say I cried… at least twice while reading this book.  There are subjects that always hit a bit close to home for me, and not in a bad way.  I love a book that makes you feel.. that makes you want to pick it up again and again…

Looking For Me was that book.  One of the most impactful books I have read this year.  If you are looking for such a read to enjoy while spending time in the sun or curled up with a blanket in a cozy chair, please consider Looking For Me to be that book. 

Restrike by Reba White William

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)7 Comments

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Cousins from North Carolina, Coleman and Dinah know how to find trouble.

 

When the cousins move to New York to follow their love for art, Coleman finds herself in the position of editor of a sweet and popular arts magazine, while Dinah becomes owner of a Gallery in Greenwich Village.  The jobs are of course exciting and cause the girls to feel on top of their game until trouble brews within the integrity of an employee at the magazine and due to a poor location, sales are floundering at the art gallery. 

Enter Hayward Baine, a millionaire in the art field and possibly (hopefully) the answer to the cousins prayers.  Yet once again trouble strikes as an art dealer turns up dead and Baine suddenly is posing questions as to him possible involvement…

Life…

is never dull.

 

 

 

Restrike was brought to my attention by its fun cover and quirky synopsis.  Easily labeled a cozy mystery, Restrike poses an occasional “snort out loud” fun humor with an engagingly light story line.  Being from a small town and having had the opportunity to see New York as well, the story was interesting to see this huge change in zip code play out. 

Coleman and Dinah are fun characters and Restrike is their debut…. from what I hear, there is more to come and for that I am glad. 

Restrike makes for a good summer read that is not overpowering, but light and enjoyable as a beach read or one to definitely toss in with the luggage for vacation.  Versatile as it is – enjoy it curled up on a stormy night as well with a really good bowl of popcorn.

 

Thank you to TLC book tours who brought me to a world

that was fun to walk through with the cousins.

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Inferno by Dan Brown

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)12 Comments

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Why did I want to read (listen to) this book?  I have a friend who just recently read it with her book club.  It was her first Dan Brown and when she was done she was thrilled with it.  “A real thinker” she told me.  I downloaded it on audio and as the story pulled me in… I remembered, I really enjoy Dan Browns writing.  How could I have forgotten?”

Sheila

 

Synopsis:  Robert Langdon (our hero of such literacy wonders as The Davinchi Code, Angels and Demons, and The Lost Symbol) finds himself once again pulled into a horrific plan on deceit and “God playing” centered this time around “Dante’s Inferno” .

When he awakens in a hospital bed not knowing where he is or how he got there, the pieces start to fall into place quickly that Robert has stumbled into something big and there are people – powerful people who do not want him anywhere near the plans they are making.  When Robert takes a look out the window of his hospital room and sees an architecture piece that just can not be… he realizes….

“Toto.. we are not in Kansas anymore.”

As the pieces start to fit together Robert Langdon is not sure who he can trust.  What he thinks is true can possibly be just a play on his lack of memory over the past few days, but as Langdon starts to see more clearly the truth is both fascinatingly outrageous as it is frightening.  He has a very short window to move forward on and try to stop a genius of a mad man from altering the worlds population in a effort to save us all….

 

 

 

 

Whoa.  Double whoa.

Within minutes of getting into this audio, I was hooked.  Paul Michael does an incredible job with the narration, but  if you are more of a book person, I think you will be just as quickly hooked.

Dan Brown does not mess around with a long drawn out intro to Inferno.  Instead, it opens with a rush of energy and we as readers/listeners are instantly engaged in the “What happened?  Who…. wait….” and all in a good heart pumping way. 

There is something fascinating about the under belly of the earth and those who dwell there.  I have always enjoyed how Dan Brown can take an existing piece or art or history and wrap a story around it so engaging you start to believe that this was always part of the history of the piece and it would be easy to associate one with the other from this day forward.  Remember readers – while Dan Brown writes with a fascinating pen… he is writing fiction…. great fiction.  But fiction all the same.

Inferno moves with a rapid pulse and I found it so engaging and so interesting.  I have heard of Dante’s Inferno, but knew little about it. 

 

From Wikepedia:

Inferno (Italian for “Hell”) is the first part of Dante Alighieri’s 14th-century epic poem Divine Comedy. It is followed by Purgatorio and Paradiso. It is an allegory telling of the journey of Dante through Hell, guided by the Roman poet Virgil. In the poem, Hell is depicted as nine circles of suffering located within the Earth. Allegorically, the Divine Comedy represents the journey of the soul towards God, with the Inferno describing the recognition and rejection of sin.

I thoroughly enjoyed Inferno.  Never predictable when I did find out what was going on and how it took my breath away.  There are pieces of Inferno that make you think “what if”.  There is so much more I would like to share about Inferno, but it is a pleasure to read or listen to it fresh with no pre-thoughts so I am going to leave it at this. Do you need to have read the other Langdon books to understand this one?  Nope.  All of the books mentioned above are incredible stand alones.

 

 

If you would like to dig deeper into this one, I am rolling out the Spoiler Button which when pressed, will take you to a new page for those of us who have read Inferno and want to talk about it more.

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