Reveiw of Graveminder

Well, shoot. I just realized today is June 12th and not tomorrow which means the #WeekofReview challenge begins today. Which also means I need to post my first review to my blog. Luckily, I just finished a book this afternoon and I can use it for this first blog post of the challenge. And today is a day that losing myself in a book is a requirement.

The Graveminder by Melissa Marr

• Pub. Date: 2011
• Publisher: Harper Collins eBooks
• Format:Kindle
• page number:341
• Source: I bought it from Amazon.
• 3 stars

Rebekkah has lost most of her beloved family, Here step-father Jimmy and beloved sister Ella. And now she has received word that her grandmother Maylene is gone and she must return to her adopted hometown Claysville to bury her. And important mysteries and secrets go with Maylene, the graveminder, to the grave.

Waiting in Claysville for Rebekkah are those mysteries. What is a graveminder and why is Rebekkah expected to take that role instead of Maylene’s daughter Cissy? Why is Rebekkah’s former lover Bryon so important to the graveminder? And the biggest mystery of all, who killed Maylene and why is no one looking for the killer? Rebekkah and Bryon togethr try to solve these and other mysteries, and discover their role in the town of Claysville. And on top of all of this work out their relationship. There is a lot going on in this story.

I like the premise of the story. It kept me turning the pages eager to discover the answer to all of the mysteries of the story. Especially what a graveminder is and what it is they do. And for the most part that question is answered. And think about what a cool idea it is. A town where one woman is tasked with keeping the dead in the ground. Its quite original. And the dead that don’t stay put? Well, then the graveminder must take them to the land of the dead. And the taste we get of that land is fascinating. The world Melissa Marr builds her and in Claysville is well done. i would like to spend more time is this world she has created.

But that is part of the problem of this story. Too much time building up an introduction to this world and not enough time in it. Too much time watching Rebekkah trying to tentatively understand what is going on and why, and not enough time with the important part of the tale. So many things are lightly touched upon and never mentioned again. Minor characters come out of nowhere to give important information, and then are never seen again.  I have questions about plot points and characters, both minor and major, which are never answered. And so I thought this means she is writing this as a part of a series. She writes YA series according to her Goodreads page, so this could explain the all unanswered questions. But. I can find no indication that she plans of writing book 2. Which is too bad because I would like to visit Rebekkah and Byron again and see what is going on in this world she has created.

 

Reading in June and Other Stuff.

I’m still new to blogging and have not yet found my voice. So I spend a lot of time reading other book blogs to see what is going on the book blog world. Over the weekend I noticed that a lot of bloggers not only recap the prior month but also blog about the reading month ahead. So that’s my plan for today! Here are my reading plans for June.

I have three books to finish reading this month: S by J.J. Abrams and Doug Dorst, The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón, Graveminder by Melissa Marr. I’m very close to finishing all of them in the next week or two.

Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel and The Sharper the Knife, The Less You Cry by Kathleen Flinn are both for the Book Riot Read Hader 2016 Challenge. My good friend Dayle and my husband both recommend Station Eleven highly so I’m really looking forward to reading it. Another good friend, Daniela, gave me The Sharper the Knife for my birthday years ago and I’m just now getting to it.

My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante is new to my TBR, and is a literary sensation. I’ve not read a review for it that doesn’t praise it. Which makes me nervous. What if it doesn’t live up to my expectations? I have been disappointed by sensations before. But this month I’m taking the dive into it. I’ll let you know my thoughts at some point! On Beauty by Zadie Smith is also new to the TBR, but I’ve been looking forward to reading it for years.

And all the books on my June TBR pile are owned by me. I’m still working on the #readmyowndamnbooks challenge.

Other Stuff

Speaking of challenges, I’m participating in another challenge, y’all! This one is hosted by Estella’s Revenge. It’s the #WeekofReveiws just click on the link to learn more about it or sign up to participate. Basically, between June 13th and 19th I will post a new book review everyday. My reasons for doing this are bit different than Estella’s. I’m very shy about reviewing books online even though that is one of the reasons why I started this blog. So rather than putting it off any longer, I’m using the challenge to kick-start my book review writing.

This week I will be writing those reviews, so if you have any tips or suggestions for writing book reviews, be sure to post them in the comments.

 

The Friday 56, #3 & Book Beginnings

Today, I’m going to participate in two similar book memes: The Friday 56 & Book Beginnings Friday.

The Friday 56 is hosted by Freda’s Voice. Here are the rules:
*Grab a book, any book.
*Turn to page 56 or 56% in your eReader
(If you have to improvise, that’s ok.)
*Find any sentence, (or few, just don’t spoil it)
*Post it.
*Add your (url) in Linky on Freda’s Voice. Add the post url, not your blog url.
*It’s that simple.

On Beauty by Zadie Smith

” Jerome, in all his gloomy Jeromeity, had joined them. The ill-pitched greetings that compassionate age sings to mysterious youth rang out; hair was almost tousled and then wisely not, the eternal unanswerable question was met with a new and horrible answer (‘I’m dropping out.’ ‘He means he’s taking a little time out.’) For a moment it seemed that the world had drained itself of all possible subjects that might be discussed on a hot day in a pretty town.”

Book Beginnings on Fridays meme is hosted by Rose City Reader. The rules are simple! Share the first sentence (or so) of the book you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the opener inspires. Please remember to include the title of the book and the author’s name.  Be sure to visit her blog and add your Book Beginning to the linky on her page.

Graveminder by Melissa Marr

“Maylene put one hand atop the stone for support; pulling herself up from the soil got harder and harder every year. Her knees had been  problem enough, but of late the arthritis had started settling in her hips. She brushed the soil from her hands and from her skirt and pulled a small bottle from her pocket. Carefully avoiding the green shoots of the tulip bulbs she’d planted, Maylene tilted the bottle over the earth. “Here you go dear,” she whispered. “It’s not the shine we used to sip, but it’s what I have to share.”

So what do you think of this weeks books? Would you be interested in reading either? Or both? Let me know in the comments, and if you are participating in either meme leave a link in my comments and I’ll come by and visit your blog.

Have a great weekend.

The Friday 56, #2

May 27, 2016

The Friday 56 is a book meme hosted by Freda’s Voice. Do visit her blog to see which book is posted for this week and a list of bloggers who are also participating in this meme.

Rules: Turn to page 56 or 56% of an ebook. Find a sentence or two to share on your blog. Visit Freda’s Voice and add your (url) post the in Linky. Add the post url, not your blog url. And that is it.

Perfume began in Mesopotamia  as incense offered to the gods to sweeten the smell of animal flesh burned as offerings, and it was used in exorcisms, to heal the sick, and after sexual intercourse. The word’s Latin etymology tells us how it worked: per=through + fumar = to smoke. Tossed onto a fire, incense would fill the sky with a smoke otherworldly and magical, which stung the nostrils as if clamorous spirits were clawing their way into the body.

And

When he heard Rebekkah scream from the other side of the barrier, he spun around, clawing at the invisible barrier, scrapping his his fingertips over it to find an opening of some sort. Nothing helped: he was trapped outside the land of the dead. His choices were to wait or to go back, and going back seemed exceptionally unwise.

So what do you think? Would you be interested in reading either of the books? Let me know in the comments. Happy reading!