The Queen’s Gambit by Walter Tevis: A Book Review and Series Comparision
Today Kim is going to bring you a book review and Netflix series comparison to Walter Tevis’ novel The Queen’s Gambit:
The Queen’s Gamit
Author: Walter Tevis
Published: March 11, 2003
243 Pages
Reviewed By: Kim
Kim’s Rating: 5 stars
Book Description:
When she is sent to an orphanage at the age of eight, Beth Harmon soon discovers two ways to escape her surroundings, albeit fleetingly: playing chess and taking the little green pills given to her and the other children to keep them subdued. Before long, it becomes apparent that hers is a prodigious talent, and as she progresses to the top of the US chess rankings she is able to forge a new life for herself. But she can never quite overcome her urge to self-destruct. For Beth, there’s more at stake than merely winning and losing.
Kim’s Review:
What a great story! It was nice that I had the faces of the characters from the Netflix show in my head as I was reading, but the story itself could stand all on its own. Beth Harmon is such a dynamic character and watching her grow and learn and mature was fun. Just when you think you have her figured out, she surprises you. This book reads like a history and seems to fit Harmon’s frame of mind. It’s very concise and aloof and yet it makes you care! I’m sure I would have enjoyed it even more if I understood chess; but my brain doesn’t work that way so I’m not too torn up about! Thankfully, it’s easy to read even for those of us who prefer checkers or battleship. Despite some adult themes, I think this would be a good one to get teens into reading! I absolutely recommend it to anyone!
Netflix Series Comparison:
https://youtu.be/CDrieqwSdgI
Kim’s Video Series Comparison:
Blog Tour: The Cinderella Plan
Today I share my review as a part of the blog tour for The Cinderella Plan by Abi Silver. This Science Fiction/Legal Thriller shows us where our future may go with autonomous vehicles. This one really left me thinking about this topic afterwards!
**There is also a giveaway going on for those of you lucky enough to be in the UK!**
Book Description:
When James Salisbury, the owner of a British car manufacturer, ploughs his ‘self-drive’ car into a young family, the consequences are deadly. Will the car’s ‘black box’ reveal what really happened or will the industry, poised to launch these products to an eager public, close ranks to cover things up?
James himself faces a personal dilemma. If it is proved that he was driving the car he may go to prison. But if he is found innocent, and the autonomous car is to blame, the business he has spent most of his life building, and his dream of safer transport for all, may collapse.
Lawyers Judith Burton and Constance Lamb team up once again, this time to defend a man who may not want to go free, in a case that asks difficult questions about the speed at which technology is taking over our lives.
Author: Abi Silver
Published: July 11, 2019
272 Pages
Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Read: June 18-26, 2019
Jessica’s Rating: 4 stars
Jessica’s Review:
All science fiction is fiction until it becomes science fact and we are heading in the direction of autonomous/driverless cars. Though is novel is not exactly science fiction, it is more of a legal thriller, but The Cinderella Plan leaves you thinking about that future and the effects surrounding that society.
James Salisbury owns a British car manufacturer of autonomous vehicles and drives one himself. One day tragedy happens: James and the autonomous vehicle are involved in a deadly accident. Autonomous vehicles cannot have accidents….Or can they? This is the impasse that James faces as he has no memory of the accident: Was he responsible? If so, then he faces prison. If he was not responsible and the vehicle was to blame, there goes his business he has tirelessly worked for many years. For James, he loses no matter what the verdict is: guilty or not guilty.
From the start, I was pulled into the story as we experience the accident. The actual court case was a bit too technical for me, so it dragged at times. It is obvious that Silver did her research as she wrote this novel. There are also some unexpected twists that occur. Silver also mentions how autonomous vehicles effect everything, including laws and everyday business. The novel also shows what the positives and negatives of autonomous vehicles are. The Cinderella Plan does really make you think about the future with these vehicles:
Once I finished The Cinderella Plan I was thinking about how soon we might be 100% autonomous vehicles. I honestly do not seeing that happening in the immediate future as I live in a state where you need a vehicle to get where you need to go as public transportation is not readily available everywhere. In fact, there is a big stigma towards it. These cars would be expensive and the average driver in my state would not be able to afford one. Autonomous vehicles may be coming soon, but I think it will be a long time before we are using 100% autonomous vehicles.
Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Lightning Books Website
**Readers can order the book from the Lightning Books website at 50% off (with free UK p&p) if you enter this code at checkout – BLOGTOURCIND
About the Author:
Yorkshire-bred, Abi Silver is a lawyer by profession. She lives in Hertfordshire with her husband and three sons. Her first courtroom thriller featuring the legal duo Judith Burton and Constance Lamb, The Pinocchio Brief, was published by Lightning Books in 2017 and was shortlisted for the Waverton Good Read Award. Her follow-up The Aladdin Trial, featuring the same legal team, was published in 2018.
Read more about Abi and her work at www.abisilver.co.uk .
Contact Abi:
Website
Twitter: @abisilver16
**UK GIVEAWAY**
Win 5 x PB of The Cinderella Plan
*Terms and Conditions –UK entries welcome. Please enter using the Rafflecopter box above. The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.
[Top]Blog Blitz: Him with the Beard
Today I share my review for the short story Him with the Beard by Pernille Meldgaard Pederson. This Blitz comes at the perfect time of year as we are all thinking about Christmas and Santa. Which begs the question: Do YOU remember that moment you stopped believing in Santa Claus?
There is also an international giveaway going on!
Book Description:
Do you remember that moment you stopped believing in Santa Claus?
When nine-year-old Mille suddenly no longer believes in Santa Claus, it turns the house upside down.
Her mother, Stella, is in a pickle as the hunt to find Santa Claus unearths some family secrets.
Christmas is at risk!
And there’s only one person who can save it.
Author: Pernille Meldgaard Pedersen
Published: October 10, 2018
Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Read: October 23-24, 2018
Jessica’s Rating: 3.5 stars
Jessica’s Review
This is a short story with a family coping with nine year old Mille not believing in Santa anymore, which is what every parent dreads. One parent is having a harder time dealing with it than the other. Then there is a twist: which throws everything for a loop. The twist did not personally work for me, but it is all part of the story.
This is a story that shows the magic that is Santa: Is he real or not? What does Santa mean to you? This story can show the magic that the Christmas season has!
Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Kobo
I-Tunes US
I-Tunes UK
About the Author:
Pernille was born in 1988 and loves that she was born in the decade with the tallest hair, the most colourful clothes, and the best music.
Her imagination never stands still, and it’s often expressed in words and pictures.
She wrote her first story when she was six years old. It was about the cat she unfortunately never got but wished for more than anything.
She loves autumn and Christmas and believes in elves.
From day to day she is a knight in training, an animator, and a secret agent – she has saved the world a few times by now.
She’s also a professional daydreamer.
She thinks the recipe for a good book is the same as the one for having a good life – a sense of kinship, humour, love, and that one thing that gives you a daily smile.
Vestercity is a fictional city based on her upbringing near the city of Herning in Denmark.
Contact Pernille:
Website
Twitter @Pernille56
Instagram
**International Giveaway!**
Win A Cosy Christmas Pack:
One Jim Shore Santa Claus Ornament
Santa Claus Marshmallows
A Chocolate Advent Calendar
A Pretty Christmas Storage Box
A Signed Copy of Him With The Beard
*Terms and Conditions –Worldwide entries welcome. Please enter using the Rafflecopter box above. The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then I reserve the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time I will delete the data. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.
