Tag: mystery

Audiobook Review: Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil
Author: John Berendt

Narrator: Jeff Woodman
Published: January 13, 1994
Audiobook
: 15 Hours 4 minutes

Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Listened To: October 5-13, 2023
Jessica’s Rating: 4 stars

Audiobook Description:

Shots rang out in Savannah’s grandest mansion in the misty, early morning hours of May 2, 1981. Was it murder or self-defense? For nearly a decade, the shooting and its aftermath reverberated throughout this city of moss-hung oaks and shaded squares. John Berendt’s narrative reads like a thoroughly engrossing novel, and yet it is a work of nonfiction. Berendt interweaves a first-person account of life in this isolated remnant of the Old South with the unpredictable twists and turns of a landmark murder case.

The story is peopled by a gallery of remarkable characters: the well-bred society ladies of the Married Woman’s Card Club; the turbulent young redneck gigolo; the hapless recluse who owns a bottle of poison so powerful it could kill every man, woman, and child in Savannah; the aging and profane Southern belle who is the “soul of pampered self-absorption”; the uproarious black drag queen; the acerbic and arrogant antiques dealer; the sweet-talking, piano-playing con artist; young blacks dancing the minuet at the black debutante ball; and Minerva, the voodoo priestess who works her magic in the graveyard at midnight. These and other Savannahians act as a Greek chorus, with Berendt revealing the alliances, hostilities, and intrigues that thrive in a town where everyone knows everyone else.

Jessica’s Review:

This book is a case of where truth is stranger than fiction and it happens in the Southern town of Savannah, Georgia! We have an intriguing and colorful cast of characters in 1981 Savannah. It has also become a movie that I saw at least 15 years ago, but when I saw it I don’t think I realized it was a true story!

This is a true crime book that reads like fiction! In actuality the author’s ‘character’ in the book is the only fictional character because in reality he arrived in Savannah during Jim William’s first trial.  Yes, I said first trial because he was tried more than once. Berendt really pulls you into this true story with some intimate details that might be TMI for some readers.

Almost any kind of ‘character’ you can think of is in this book: We have a drag queen, a con artist, black debutants, and a voodoo priestess among many more!  The narrator Jeff Woodman did a fantastic job portraying some of these real people’s voices.  My favorite among this colorful cast was The Lady Chablis. She even wrote a short biography around 200 pages that I plan on borrowing from my library! Kevin Spacey portrayed Jim Williams and they did a fantastic job of making him look like Jim Williams from a picture I found online, even though his acting was apparently not up to Berendt’s standards . I loved that The Lady Chablis played herself!

This one was a book club pick, and I enjoyed the book, it’s such an intriguing real-life tale! I even rewatched the movie after finishing it.  It’s a longer one at 2.5 hours and does a good job condensing the story but still getting the whole story.  After finishing the book, it has me wanting to go back to Savannah and even tour Mercer house which you can still do today.

 I enjoyed this true crime book!   

Here is the trailer to the movie:

Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
The Film: Amazon US

Audiobook Review: The Only Girl in Town by Ally Condie

The Only Girl in Town
Author: Ally Condie

Narrator: Elena Ray
Published: September 19, 2023
Audiobook: 6 hours 36 minutes

Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Listened To:  October 2-5, 2023
Jessica’s Rating: 2.5 stars

Book Description:

What would you do if everyone you love disappeared? What if it was your fault?

For July Fielding, nothing has been the same since that summer before senior year.

Once, she had Alex, her loyal best friend, the one who always had her back. She had Sydney, who pushed her during every cross-country run, and who sometimes seemed to know July better than she knew herself. And she had Sam. Sam, who told her she was everything and left her breathless with his touch.

Now, July is alone. Every single person in her small town of Lithia has disappeared. No family. No Alex or Sydney. No Sam. July’s only chance at unraveling the mystery of their disappearance is a series of objects, each a reminder of the people she loved most. And a mysterious GET TH3M BACK.

Jessica’s Review:

 This book was not what I thought it would be: When I finished it my reaction was “That was depressing”….. 

The Only Girl in Town seemed like a YA contemporary with a mystery to it.  It is actually a novel that deals with and is also a metaphor for loneliness, detachment, and depression. I really wish I had known that as I wouldn’t have chosen it to listen to. Trigger warnings if you deal with any of those issues: I would stay away from this book because it really brings about those feelings.

I did like that the book had extremely short chapters which kept my interest… Just one more chapter! The writing is verse-like in nature despite the heavy content.  I was intrigued as why did everyone disappear and who is leaving the sign up for July to read? But the end result just did not work for me.

We have July as our narrator and the story goes back and forth in time from the here and now and the events that lead up to everyone disappearing.  The best part of the novel was her unexpected sidekick Yolo. Yolo is a typical cat and if you love cats like I do then you will adore Yolo!  My adoration of Yolo had me giving the book and extra .5 star.

The narrator Elena Ray did a good job portraying July. But there were a few times where there is singing and that was painful for me! 

Overall, if you are prepared for the trigger warnings and how you might end up feeling with this book, go for it.  You might actually enjoy it.  For me the book was all about Yolo!

Purchase Links:
Amazon US 
Amazon UK

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Audiobook Review: The Sight by Melanie Golding

The Sight
Author: Melanie Golding
Narrator: Ella Lynch
Published:
September 5, 2023
Audiobook
: 9 Hours 53 minutes

Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Listened To: September 11-15, 2023
Jessica’s Rating: 3 stars

Audiobook Description:

Look into her eyes—she can tell you how you’ll die . . .

As a child, Faith acquired the ability to see when and how people would die—a “gift” she neither wanted nor could get rid of.

After foreseeing a family tragedy and being ostracized, Faith learns to control her visions, and returns to perform in her family’s traveling carnival. But when an unruly customer attacks her, she has a vision in full view of a crowd.

She is banned from the carnival she loves—and loses her only source of income to support her dying mother. Desperate to support her mother and with only one friend standing by her, she sees no reason to continue hiding her ability and goes to dangerous lengths to earn money. But when she sees herself in a man’s future death, Faith must face her own fears of her powers and tune into her gift to fight against a future that would ruin her life—and end someone else’s.

With The Sight , celebrated author Melanie Golding delivers another suspense-driven masterpiece with unforgettable characters and an ending that will leave you stunned.

Jessica’s Review:

This was another novel that caught my attention with the book description, but wasn’t totally for me. It took way to long (at least halfway) for me to be really interested, and for the book to get moving. The Sight is extremely slow moving, it was almost painfully slow for me.  But again, I was just curious enough to see what was going to happen and continued it.

We have Faith who can see people’s deaths. Forced out of her job at a carnival, she is made to do readings for people wanting to know how they die. Faith doesn’t know when these people will die, she just sees the death. She can guesstimate if it is soon or far off by the way the person appears in the vision.  One day she sees one person’s death and that she is the one who killed that person.  What are you to do with that kind of information when you see that?!?!From the setting and tone of the book you would have not thought it took place in present day! Until cell phones and You Tube are mentioned, I thought I was listening to a story that took place in the past. I listened to the audiobook and did like the narration.

The big twist that occurs happens right at the end, which was just too late to really save the story. When it happened, I was a little shocked and had to listen to that chapter again! I wanted to make sure I didn’t miss anything since I was listening to it for my commute to/from work. If I was interested in having a different perspective knowing the full story now, I might be tempted to read/listen again.  And some readers might just do that! And knowing the ending twist does change the beginning half of the book, so it might not be as slow moving with a second read/listen!

Many thanks to the publisher for granting me a copy to listen to and review in my own time.                                                   

Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK

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