The Island by Victoria Hislop

Today I'm reviewing a book that is among Voodoo Bride's favourites:

The Island by Victoria Hislop.

What is it about:

The story starts in the present as a young english/greek woman named Alexis tries to learn more about her Greek heritage and then the story goes back to tell the tale of her great grand parents and their daughters who live in a small village on Crete across from an island that holds a leper colony. They are a loving family, but when Alexis' great grandmother Eleni is diagnosed with lepracy and send to the island their lives are forever changed.

Why Voodoo Bride thinks it's good:

The story is dramatic and yet also filled with happiness and hope. You can't help but love some and loathe other characters. While following the lives of the characters in this story you learn a lot about lepracy and the fight to find a cure for this disease. One thing that Voodoo Bride particularly loved in this story is that it turned out mostly ok for her favourite characters. (She usually has the bad luck to like the ones who die a horrible death.)

What did I think:

This is definately a book for women. Too much drama and love and that sort of stuff to appeal to me. When my owner and Voodoo Bride cry when reading a book it usually means it has too little zombies in it.

Why should you read this book:

If you love a tragic story about family, friendship and love this might appeal to you. It also gives an interesting view on how lepers were treated even in the 20th century.

If you liked this book you might also try 'The Return' by Victoria Hislop which is a family history set in the Spanish Civil War. I must warn you though that 'The Return' is much more a history lesson then a novel. Although interesting to read it isn't as alive as 'The Island'.

American Gods by Neil Gaiman

My first review on this blog will be about one of the best books I've ever read: American Gods.

What is it about:

Shadow is only a few days away from being released from prison when he gets the message that his wife has been killed in a car accident. As he gets out of prison one of the first persons that he meets is the mysterious Mr. Wednesday who offers him a job. When Shadow reluctantly takes this job he meets some strange individuals and is pulled into a series of even stranger events of which no one seems to know the outcome except that it might get very ugly indeed.

So why do I think it's good:

Gaiman mixes a suspenseful story with mythology and fantasy. I learned a lot of history from this book without having the feeling that someone was trying to teach me something.

The way he writes his characters made me want to keep reading to learn more about them, they feel lifelike even those that aren't quite human. The story itself is intruiging and beautiful. It has a good pace and everything fits. And it even has a sort of zombie in it!

Why should you read it:

If you like a well written story that challenges you to think about certain things and makes you curious about other things, this is the book you should read.

And if after you read this book you think: Hmmm... that Anansi guy was a cool character, don't hesistate to pick up a copy of 'Anansi Boys'.

What this is about

Well, I decided to make a second blog on which I'll post reviews about books and movies. Voodoo Bride will be helping me out with some of the reviews (especially when a book or movie is a bit girly). I'm not sure yet how often I will post a review, but it won't be daily I think.