TBR Thursday

Any one else's TBR pile getting out of control?  This week I've added several new books to my pile, and at this point I'm just hoping to get to them all!

First is A Pleasure and a Calling by Phil Hogan. So far this novel has been one heck of a creepy read. William Heming is a voyeur (an understatement if there ever was one) and is determined to keep his quiet English village safe from unsavory types...no matter what the cost. This novel is a great addition to the "unreliable narrator" category of suspense thrillers, and I'm enjoying it quite a bit.



I've also received an advanced copy of As Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust by Alan Bradley.  What can I say?...I love Flavia de Luce! I was skeptical when I first started the series, but now I'm a devoted fan. This installment has Flavia at her new school in Canada investigating the discovery of a body in a chimney.

Finally, I've received a copy of All The Bright Places by Jennifer Niven. These sorts of angsty YA novels aren't usually my thing, but I was intrigued by the premise of this one. Besides...I'll try any book once.

What's new on your pile this week?

Review: The Farm by Tom Rob Smith

The Farm
Hardcover, 352 pages
Grand Central Publishing, 3 June 2014
4 stars

Daniel is a garden designer living in London with his partner, Mark.  His parents, Chris and Tilde, have recently retired to a remote farm in Sweden, his mother's childhood home.  Daniel believes his parents are happy in their retirement until he receives a frantic phone call from his father.  His mother has had a mental breakdown and has fled the hospital where she was being treated.  Daniel is about to board a flight to Sweden when he receives a call from his mother, claiming everything his father has told him is a lie and she's on her way to London to see him.  As the accusations begin, Daniel is caught between his parents, unsure if he can believe his mother...especially once her conspiracy begins to implicate his father.

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"If you refuse to believe me, I will no longer consider you my son."

The Farm is a quick, engrossing read, the kind of book you'll want to finish in one sitting.  Short chapters end in cliffhangers, resulting in a story that keeps you on the edge of your seat.  Descriptions of the stark Swedish countryside, of hunting mushrooms in the forest, and of creeping around the house of a neighbor come to life through Smith's expert voice.  As well as bringing individual scenes to life, Smith also successfully conveys the suffocating isolation the residents of Chris & Tilde's new home feel, as though the location was a character itself.

The real-life events that inspired the events in this novel - the mental breakdown of Smith's mother - creates the ring of truth that makes this story so compelling. Tilde appears sane and reliable even as her story becomes less believable, moving farther into her suspicion and mythology.  The reader experiences the same confusion and skepticism that Daniel does.  The tension he feels in being asked to choose between his mother and his father is palpable to the reader, especially as he begins to realize that he does not know his parents as well as he had previously believed.

The Farm is a true psychological thriller.  There are no car chases, shootouts, or dramatic last-minute rescues.  At it's heart, it is about trust - how much do we really know about the people we love and who would we believe?  This fast-paced novel is sure to please Smith's existing fans and gain him several new.

(I received a copy of this book from Grand Central Publishing for an honest review.)

Review: I Am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes

I Am Pilgrim
Hardcover, 624 pages
Atria/Emily Bestler Books, 2014
5 stars

Scott Murdoch is a member of a secret government agency, so secret that only a few in the country are aware of it's existence.  After years of living in the shadows, Murdoch decides on  retirement and writes a book on forensics as an act of closure. Instead of a quiet life off the grid in Paris, he finds himself drawn into a murder investigation at a seedy New York City hotel.  The killer appears to have committed the perfect crime and then disappeared without a trace - all while using Murdoch's book as a how-to manual.

Soon he is pressed into service by high-ranking government officials,  traveling to the Middle East in search of a lone wolf Saudi terrorist, with the fate of Western civilization hanging in the balance.

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"The world doesn't change in front of your eyes; it changes behind your back."

At 600+ pages and cover art that some might call dull, I Am Pilgrim did not immediately strike me as a "summer read," the kind of page-turner I like to take on day trips to the lake.  However, it didn't take more than the opening lines before I was hooked.  Hayes has the somewhat dubious distinction of writing the first crime scene that I've excitedly read aloud to my husband over a glass of wine at night.

This book is a rare treat - a literary spy thriller that defies stereotype.  Our hero is a young, but extremely accomplished, member of a secret government intelligence agency.  The bad guy is a young, radical, Muslim terrorist, hellbent on the destruction of Western civilization.  The novel is full of exciting chases, thrilling shootouts, and exotic locations.  It does not, however, feel tired or overdone at any point.  The book is a fresh take on the traditional spy novel.  It's filled with enough twists and surprises to keep you on your toes.  Hayes uses exciting side plots and character back stories to allow for some breathing room between tense scenes but these scenes are far from dull.  On the contrary, they serve to flesh out his characters and bring them to life in a way that many suspense novels fail to do.

Though this is a debut for Hayes, his experience as a screenwriter results in an absorbing, action packed, heart-in-your-throat read.  The pacing is perfect, building suspense in just the right spots and then unleashing the action in explosive bursts.  Expertly delivered foreshadowing leaves you breathlessly awaiting the next surprise, the next twist.  It's not difficult to imagine the blockbuster film this book will become.

In the end, this book is certainly a contender for best-of-the-year lists.  It starts as a murder mystery, becomes a spy thriller, and ends up as one of the best books you'll read this year.

(I received a copy of this book from Atria Books in exchange for an honest review.)