The Institute by Stephen King
Today Kim brings you a video review of The Institute by Stephen King. This was her first ever King book she read and she has so much to catch up on! She does go on a little bit of a rant about how King must think about people from South Carolina and how he must not know anyone from that state.
The Institute
Author: Stephen King
Published: September 10, 2019
561 Pages
Reviewed By: Kim
Kim’s Rating: 4 stars
Book Description:
In the middle of the night, in a house on a quiet street in suburban Minneapolis, intruders silently murder Luke Ellis’s parents and load him into a black SUV. The operation takes less than two minutes. Luke will wake up at The Institute, in a room that looks just like his own, except there’s no window. And outside his door are other doors, behind which are other kids with special talents—telekinesis and telepathy—who got to this place the same way Luke did: Kalisha, Nick, George, Iris, and ten-year-old Avery Dixon. They are all in Front Half. Others, Luke learns, graduated to Back Half, “like the roach motel,” Kalisha says. “You check in, but you don’t check out.”
In this most sinister of institutions, the director, Mrs. Sigsby, and her staff are ruthlessly dedicated to extracting from these children the force of their extranormal gifts. There are no scruples here. If you go along, you get tokens for the vending machines. If you don’t, punishment is brutal. As each new victim disappears to Back Half, Luke becomes more and more desperate to get out and get help. But no one has ever escaped from the Institute.
Kim’s Video Review:
Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
**Goodreads is currently running a giveaway where 25 copies are being given away. This giveaway runs through November 14th. Check out Goodreads if you are interested!
The Tenth Girl
Today Kim brings you a video review of The Tenth Girl by Sara Faring. Please note that there WILL be spoilers (she warns you first) and she also becomes very passionate about the last 60 pages……
The Tenth Girl
Author: Sara Faring
Published: September 24, 2019
458 Pages
Reviewed By: Kim
Kim’s Rating: 2 stars
Book Description:
Simmering in Patagonian myth, The Tenth Girl is a gothic psychological thriller with a haunting twist.
At the very southern tip of South America looms an isolated finishing school. Legend has it that the land will curse those who settle there. But for Mavi—a bold Buenos Aires native fleeing the military regime that took her mother—it offers an escape to a new life as a young teacher to Argentina’s elite girls.
Mavi tries to embrace the strangeness of the imposing house—despite warnings not to roam at night, threats from an enigmatic young man, and rumors of mysterious Others. But one of Mavi’s ten students is missing, and when students and teachers alike begin to behave as if possessed, the forces haunting this unholy cliff will no longer be ignored.
One of these spirits holds a secret that could unravel Mavi’s existence. In order to survive she must solve a cosmic mystery—and then fight for her life.
Kim’s Video Review:
Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Someone We Know
Someone We Know
Author: Shari Lapena
Published: July 30, 2019
Audiobook
Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Read: October 7-16, 2019
Jessica’s Rating: 2 stars
Book Description:
Maybe you don’t know your neighbors as well as you thought you did . . .
“This is a very difficult letter to write. I hope you will not hate us too much. . . My son broke into your home recently while you were out.”
In a quiet, leafy suburb in upstate New York, a teenager has been sneaking into houses–and into the owners’ computers as well–learning their secrets, and maybe sharing some of them, too.
Who is he, and what might he have uncovered? After two anonymous letters are received, whispers start to circulate, and suspicion mounts. And when a woman down the street is found murdered, the tension reaches the breaking point. Who killed her? Who knows more than they’re telling? And how far will all these very nice people go to protect their own secrets?
In this neighborhood, it’s not just the husbands and wives who play games. Here, everyone in the family has something to hide . . .
You never really know what people are capable of.
Jessica’s Review:
Yet another thriller that had an intriguing premise that did not deliver for me. The beginning definitely pulls you in with a brutal murder, but from there the book just did not work for me. I really did want to like this novel. The idea of a teenager sneaking into homes and getting on people’s computers and possibly finding out things…. Oh yeah! But I was not attached to any of the characters or care about them in any way. I just know one thing: I would not want to live in this neighborhood as everyone has secrets. This one was ultimately forgettable for me.
Do yourself a favor and read Lapena’s first novel The Couple Next Door. I LOVED IT! Other than her first novel, Lapena may be another author I need to steer clear from as all of her other novels have fallen short for me.
My review for The Couple Next Door is here.
Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK