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Jemma

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Jemma is currently reading

Somebody I Used to Know

by David Bell (Goodreads Author)

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Jemma said: " ‘Somebody I Used to Know’ was a lovely little mystery, and I am so glad I stumbled across it. The unique circumstances and unpredictable twists meant that I devoured this book in no time, and it captured my attention until the very end. To put it sim ‘Somebody I Used to Know’ was a lovely little mystery, and I am so glad I stumbled across it. The unique circumstances and unpredictable twists meant that I devoured this book in no time, and it captured my attention until the very end. To put it simply; I really did enjoy this book.

Nick Hansen is plodding along with his average life; divorced and in his forties, living with his dog. One trip to the shops changes all of that, where he sees a young girl who is the spitting image of his old college girlfriend; Marissa Minor. The catch? She died 20 years ago in a house fire. Trying his hardest to recuperate from such an unpleasant blast from the past, Nick is unable to forget the incident as the very next day the police confront him; the unknown girl has been murdered and Nick’s phone number was found in her pocket. Now Nick finds himself tangled in the centre of multiple mysteries; who was this girl, and why was she killed? What is the truth behind her startling resemblance to his ex-girlfriend? And most importantly; what really happened to Marissa?

The author skilfully combines Nicks current predicament with the painful memories he has of his happy life with Marissa, and convincingly describes Nick’s journey as he unearths truths which have long since been buried. Whilst it is by no means the most outstanding novel I have read lately, I would certainly place it above the majority. None of my predictions and half formed theories were right, the plot was too impulsive and exciting for me to guess at. The pages are bursting with misleading clues and suspicious characters, and it held my interest consistently – not a dull moment in sight.

The characters were very stable and varied; in particular I loved Nick and really empathised with the tough circumstances that were continually thrust upon him. He was a genuinely loveable protagonist and I think his amiable narrative is what made the novel so easy to read. No one was shown as inherently evil or good; shades of grey were depicted well in this novel, and each person had their own motives and agenda.

The ending was extremely tidy (something which I value) and dealt neatly with any outstanding queries, and yet left the reader wondering at what would be the next step; the author really struck the perfect balance. I really can’t find too much to fault with this book, it was a very interesting, if not a little safe, mystery novel; I would definitely recommend it.

I received this book from Netgalley in return for an honest review. ...more "

Jun 25, 2015 12:21PM · see review

Jemma’s Quotes

“Every day is a new day. It is better to be lucky. But I would rather be exact. Then when luck comes you are ready.”
― Ernest Hemingway, The Old Man and the Sea

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“Have a little compassion on my nerves. You tear them to pieces.”
― Jane Austin, Pride and Prejudice

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“The world of the grotesque is the darkness within us. Well before Freud and Jung shined a light on the workings of the subconscious, this correlation between darkness and our subconscious, these two forms of darkness, was obvious to people. It wasn’t a metaphor, even. If you trace it back further, it wasn’t even a correlation. Until Edison invented the electric light, most of the world was totally covered in darkness. The physical darkness outside and the inner darkness of the soul were mixed together, with no boundary separating the two. They were directly linked. Like this.” Oshima brings his two hands together tightly. "But today things are different. The darkness in the outside world has vanished, but the darkness in our hearts remains, virtually unchanged. Just like an iceberg, what we label the ego or consciousness is, for the most part, sunk in darkness. And that estrangement sometimes creates a deep contradiction or confusion within us.”
― Haruki Murakami, Kafka on the Shore

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