What is the last book you read, and your rating?

[El-kanah]

The last book I read was "Who Told You That You Were Naked" by William Combs and I rated the book 4 out of 4 stars.

[Fran]

The Last Days Of Summer by Vanessa Ronan
Returning to his Texas hometown, having served his sentence for a heinous crime, Jasper Curtis finds the community less than ready to forgive muchless forget his crime. Feeling obliged to offer him a home his adoring sister too faces the sanction of the community when he moves in with her and her two young daughters. The younger of the daughters, unaward of his crime, is entralled by her uncle and thus is set in motion a cruel and equally awful set of events.
A gripping story told cleverly with suspense and terror in equal measure. The last chapter is particularly harrowing and does not make for easy reading but a superb book. I give it 4/4*

[EmunahAn]

Just completed Pearl Tail. Such an exciting book!

[bookowlie]

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid - The first third of the book was great, but I ultimately became bored by the monotonous feel of the storyline. The ending had some interesting surprises, but by that point, I stopped caring about the characters. If this wasn't the pick for my in-person book club, I would not have finished it. I certainly can't see it being a good book for a discussion. 2 out of 4 stars - if I was rating it out of 5, I would give it 3 stars.

[repoyn2]

I recently finished The Almost Sisters by Joshilyn Jackson on audio. I was a bit scared at first because in my previous experience, when the author reads the book it can get a bit dull. I was very very pleased with this one and I ended up rating it 4 out 4 stars. I thought the subject matter was tough but it was handled in a way that made it approachable. There were sad moments but there were plenty of moments that were very funny and it mimics real life.

[Redlegs]

The Indian Clerk by David Leavitt is based on true events, and GH Hardy and the Indian prodigy Ramanujan are real people in mathematical history. So too are many of the secondary characters in this study of Cambridge life (Trinity College) in the early years of the 20th century.

GH Hardy is a renowned mathematician, a don at Trinity College who, in 1913, receives a long and strange letter from a young Indian man from Madras, who is working as a minor clerk in an Indian firm. The letter offers detailed and innovative insights into mathematical theories that are almost impossible for a man with so little formal education. Hardy recognises Ramanujan as a genius and arranges to bring him to England so they can work collaboratively to prove propositions related to prime numbers.

In the years leading up to WWI. Ramanujan attempts to settle into the strange customs of English life, and especially college life, while trying to maintain some traditions and religious customs of his former life. His battles to maintain his strict vegetarianism are the source of some humour in the storyline.

Ramanujan is befriended by Mrs. Neviile, the wife of another colleague of Hardy, and he spends the early months of his time in England living with the Nevilles. The relationship that develops between Alice Neville and the Indian man is a strange and faintly obsessive one,

Over time, especially after the outbreak of war, Ramanujan's life begins to disintegrate somewhat and he falls ills with a condition that defies the best efforts of many doctors and specialists to diagnose.

The novel provides a fascinating perspective into aspects of English life in the period before and during WWI, with particular emphasis on the peculiar closed world of the intelligentsia. It also sheds light on male homosexuality, illegal at the time, although seemingly not uncommon in these circles, and the text devotes some time to Hardy's past and present relationships with men.

The research for this novel is extensive and the quality of the writing is exemplary. The plot can be a little slow at times, and I imagine anyone without some interest in mathematics might find the story tedious in parts.

All in all, I found this to be a well-crafted, intelligent and engaging novel. 4 stars out of 5.

[GPM]

I finished reading My Trip to Adele by R.I. Alyaseer and A. I. Alyaseer, and given a rating of 4 out of 4 stars.

[Ant]

Finished " He Said She Said " by Erin Kelly and will happily give it 8/10. Plenty of twists and turns in this thriller with very good characters that made it a real page turner. It was my first time with this author but it certainly won't be the last.

[Gravy]

Finished the first in a new mysteries series, Protocol by Kathleen Valenti.
Good mystery, could've had a smoother ending, interesting real facts about pharmaceutical R & D. I gave it a mid-to-high level 3 out of 4.

[Bigirimana Celestin]

The last book i read is the third installment in the Followed my Star series that tackles global policy matters and individual enjoyment in 19 chapters. Followed my Star by AR Annahita

[Jan Moraa Onsomu]

The 11:05 Murders by Brian O'Hare. I gave it a 3 out of 4 rating.

[eelavahs-jay]

The last book I read was The Frozen Witch by Odette Bell and I'd honestly give it 0 out of 4 stars. I DNF it at 25% because the writing was so bad it distracted from the actual storyline which was nothing special to begin with.

[Redlegs]

First published in 1965, The Merry-Go-Round In the Sea by Randolph Stow has become something of a modern Australian classic coming-of-age novel. Set over 8 years, between 1941 and 1949, the story focuses primarily on young Rob Coram and his 15 year older cousin Rick, whom Rob idolizes.

The first part, called Rick Away, covers 1941 - 1945, and refers to Rick joining the armed forces to fight the Japanese in south east Asia. Rick is largely absent from this part of the narrative, but we learn enough to know that Rick has been captured in the fall of Singapore and is interned in a Japanese prisoner camp.

The second part, called Rick Home, covers 1945 - 1949, and deals more with an emaciated and recovering Rick, one of few survivors, along with his close mate Hughie, of the sadistic Japanese internment camp.

Rick struggles to readjust to post-war life, feeling listless, restless, disillusioned, and finding it hard to imagine or create a positive future. Despite the support of an extended family, and the ongoing adoration of Rob, Rick struggles with career and relationships,

So, this is a coming of age story, not only for young Rob, who grows from 6 - 14 over the duration of the novel, but also of Rick, a carefree and likeable 21 year old man, who is forced to confront the harsh realities of war and what that can do to a man, not only on the outside, but mostly on the inside. But it is also another chapter in the coming-of-age of the Australian nation, in the aftermath of a long and brutal war that cost so much in so many ways.

Stow focuses with a loving attention to detail on the Australian landscape, both the coastal vistas and the inland expanses that Rob, Rick and their families inhabit and try to tame.

On a more disturbing note, the novel frequently indulges in racist and derogatory language in respect of the local indigenous population (including frequent us of the dreaded n-word).

I will give Stow the benefit of the doubt and attribute this aspect of the story to his realistic portrayal of the attitudes, language and casual racism of many of the characters, both adults and children. This is reasonably typical of the attitudes of the times, and it wasn't for another 20 years that Australia first formally recognised its first peoples as citizens of this country.

4 stars out of 5.

[0719672189]

The last book i read was Playing Dead by Julia Heaberlin,it such a great book and would rate it 5 out of 5 stars.

[EveS523]

I most recently read Lemoncella Cocktail. I rated it 3/4 stars. The book was great but still needed some professional editing.