Book Review: Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty

Title: Nine Perfect Strangers
Author: Liane Moriarty
Publisher: Macmillan Australia 
Publication date: 18th September 2018
RRP: $32.99
Pages: 512
Format Read: Trade paperback
Source: Uncorrected proof from publisher

From the no. 1 New York Times bestselling author of The Husband's Secret and Big Little Lies.
The retreat at health and wellness resort Tranquillum House promises total transformation. Nine stressed city dwellers are keen to drop their literal and mental baggage, and absorb the meditative ambience while enjoying their hot stone massages.
Watching over them is the resort's director, a woman on a mission to reinvigorate their tired minds and bodies.
These nine perfect strangers have no idea what is about to hit them.
With her wit, compassion and uncanny understanding of human behaviour, Liane Moriarty explores the depth of connection that can be formed when people are thrown together in... unconventional circumstances.

I absolutely devoured Big Little Lies! I love how Liane Moriarty starts a story all sweet with likeable characters, then slowly a foreboding veil comes across the story and people’s dark side begins to emerge changing a good story into a compelling story.

Nine people book into a health resort, Tranquillum House, ready to be transformed into a better, thinner, healthier version of their former self.

A washed up romance novelist, a family broken by tragedy, a has-been football star, a young couple whose marriage is faltering, the wife who has been left for a newer model and the lawyer who has  commitment issues. Nine perfect strangers all broken in their own way looking for a make-over, a rejuvenation.

Then there is Maria (Masha) Dmitrichenko, a Russian immigrant. Masha, the director of Tranquillum House, is a transformation zealot – enlightenment for all. These nine guests are to be the first to start her new regime. Their destinies are in her hands. She is going to change these people, not just temporarily, but forever.

I wasn’t sure where this story was going to go. But.....the way it went was never in my wildest dreams what I imagined.

Moriarty’s ability to bring out the small idiosyncrasies in each person is extraordinary. She slowly dissects each character, their thoughts, fears and hopes are revealed through her writing. It was easy to see something of yourself in these everyday people.

Moriarty has written a novel that delves into the human mind and the way we think and connect with each other, showing an intricate observation of human failings and frailties.

The story had my emotions reeling. I could feel empathy for the characters and sadness over their different circumstances. But a sudden shift in the story had my anger rising, which shows how real the characters and the story felt to me. With Moriarty you never know what could possibly happen next.

Nine Perfect Strangers is a roller coaster of a read with beautifully developed characters full of insecurities, false bravado and completely relatable. Once you start reading this book it will be hard to put down!

My rating 4/5     🌟🌟🌟🌟

Content: infrequent coarse language.

Photo courtesy of Macmillan AUS

Liane Moriarty is the Australian author of seven internationally bestselling novels, including the no. 1 NYT bestsellers The Husband's Secret, Big Little Lies and Truly Madly Guilty. Her books have sold over fourteen million copies worldwide, including two million in Australia and New Zealand. The Husband's Secret was a no.1 UK bestseller, an Amazon Best Book of 2013 and has been translated into over 40 languages. Big Little Lies and Truly Madly Guilty reached no.1 on the NYT bestseller list in their first week of publication - the first time this has been achieved by an Australian. Liane is also the author of the Space Brigade series for children. 

Book Review: Feel Me Fall by James Morrris

Title: Feel Me Fall
Author: James Morris
Publisher: Inkspot Imaginarium
Publication Date: 2nd May 2017
Pages: 233
Format Read: eBook
Source: Publisher via Netgalley

 Secrets and survival in the Amazon

Emily Duran is the sole survivor of a plane crash that left her and her teenage friends stranded and alone in the jungles of the Amazon. Lost and losing hope, they struggle against the elements, and each other. With their familiar pecking order no longer in place, a new order emerges, filled with power struggles, betrayals, secrets and lies. Emily must explain why she's the last left alive.

But can she carry the burden of the past?

Discover the gripping novel that explores who we are when no one is watching, and how far we'll go in order to survive.

Emily is the sole survivor of a plane crash. Now recovering in hospital her counselor suggests she writes down her story to work through her feelings of survivor guilt.

The story is narrated by Emily so right from the start I’m wary but she is a convincing narrator telling the horror of the crash and how her and a few classmates managed to survive the initial crash into a river and pull themselves out of the rushing waters.

What follows is a gripping story of survival in the Amazon jungle. Personalities clash as school rivalries come to the fore. Friendships are made and broken whilst crushing secrets are revealed.

We follow the teens as they have moments of hope and moments of despair. The strong become weak and the weak become strong.

We see flashbacks of Emily’s life as the narration alternates between her life before the crash, her time in the jungle and now, recovering in hospital.

The story was totally engrossing and I felt the teens time in the jungle was very realistic.

The story reminded me of The Life of Pi as in it was an account by a sole survivor. They can tell ‘their’ story the way they want it to be.

The ending was outstanding. I didn’t see that coming!

A recommended read.

*I received an ecopy from the publisher via Netgalley.

Content: Implied sex

                 violence

My Rating: 4/5      🌟🌟🌟🌟 

 

Photo courtesy of Goodreads

James Morris is a former television writer who now works in digital media. When not writing, you can find him scoping out the latest sushi spot, watching 'House Hunters Renovation', or trying new recipes in the kitchen. He lives with his wife and dog in Los Angeles.


 

Book Review: P.I. Penguin Series (Children's Books)

P.I. Penguin Series Book 1 - 4 

                                       Author: Bec J Smith

                                       Illustrator:  Adit Galih

Each book opens with a Glossary of words that children may find tricky to comprehend.

P.I. is a gorgeous little penguin but he is also a private investigator. If you have a problem to solve PI is the one to call. He looks the part in his shirt, tie, black jacket and fedora hat.

P.I. Penguin and the Case of the Missing Bottle 

P.I. Penguin #1

P.I. wakes wondering if this is the day he will find his missing parents. He looks at the missing penguin photos on his evidence board.

Bella the dolphin asks him to help find the culprit that stole a bottle from her collection. They look for clues, searching different areas of the ocean bed, and ask different suspects their alibis. They come across an octopus juggling bottles and one was Bella’s. The octopus gives the bottle back as she didn’t know that Bella owned it. Bella says she can borrow her bottles anytime.

The story is told in rhyme with beautiful ocean illustrations depicted throughout.

P.I. Penguin and the Case of the Lost Little Penguin

P.I. Penguin #2

P.I. awakes and looks at his missing penguin evidence board – a few more notes have been added since book 1 but he still can’t puzzle this out.

His Aunt Beth calls, she needs his help. Her baby, Kyle, is missing. P.I. goes straight to Perth Zoo and assures his aunt he will find Kyle. P.I. asks the other animals in the zoo for help. He asks the meerkats because they are inquisitive; the giraffe because she can see above all; the ghost bats because they have night vision. The ghost bat spies the baby penguin and P.I. takes him back to his mum. As a thank you she gives him a photo of his family. P.I. pins the photo to his board, the search for his family continues. 

P.I. Penguin and the Case of the Bell Tower Bandit.

P.I. Penguin #3

P.I. gets a call from Detective Pete, a pigeon. There is a thief at the Bell Tower. P.I. goes straight to the Bell Tower by ferry. The guardsman are two black swans (I thought this was cute because the Perth Bell Tower is home of the Swan Bells). P.I. gathers evidence and interviews his suspects who all have an alibi. But the culprit is the unlikeliest one you would suspect. Another case solved.

P.I. Penguin and the Case of the Tree Top Tagger.

P.I. Penguin #4

P.I. is atop the Obelisk Tower (which I believe is a Perth monument) wondering if he could see his family from so high. He hears that a tagger has scratched his initials in a boab tree. P.I. is aghast, this is against the law. He must find out who this tagger is. The kookaburras tell him to go down to the lake and ask every bird and beast. When he finds out who carved the initials they say they will never again deface a tree. The story ends with P.I. back home and the kookaburras promising to keep an eye out for his family.

Beautifully illustrated with gorgeous Australian fauna and flora.

The books are written to help and encourage children with dyslexia to embrace reading. However are fun reads for all ages and abilities.

 

The stories are short at around 32 pages and easy to read in rhyming prose. It is good to read them in order because they do have the continuing plot of P.I.’s missing family.

P.I. Penguin and the Case of the Christmas Lights.

A stand alone story.

On the first page is a list of items to find scattered throughout the illustrations.

In this story P.I. is solving a mystery of his own. Why don’t his Christmas lights look right? P.I. visits different Australian animals and birds, asking them what makes their lights so special. After each animal tells him what makes their lights special to them P.I. goes back to his house with Santa to find all his friends have decorated his house. Friendship is what makes a special display!

The books are written to help and encourage children with dyslexia to embrace reading. However are fun reads for all ages and abilities.

I read these stories to Dot, who is 4 years old. She liked P.I, he was cute, and the illustrations kept her attention. However the prose didn’t capture her. I think the rhyming with unusual words made it hard for her to understand the story.

 

 

Bec. J Smith is the Western Australian writing team of Sci-fi/Fantasy novelist Rebecca Laffar-Smith and her children, Kaylie and Joshua.

 Discover the P.I. Penguin series and other fantastic books from Aulexic! Become a Little Owl and receive free activities, great offers, and more.

Sign up today by visiting AULEXIC