Month: July 2016

My Kyrosmagica Review of Stephen King’s Revival

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Goodreads Synopsis:

A dark and electrifying novel about addiction, fanaticism, and what might exist on the other side of life.

In a small New England town, over half a century ago, a shadow falls over a small boy playing with his toy soldiers. Jamie Morton looks up to see a striking man, the new minister. Charles Jacobs, along with his beautiful wife, will transform the local church. The men and boys are all a bit in love with Mrs. Jacobs; the women and girls feel the same about Reverend Jacobs — including Jamie’s mother and beloved sister, Claire. With Jamie, the Reverend shares a deeper bond based on a secret obsession. When tragedy strikes the Jacobs family, this charismatic preacher curses God, mocks all religious belief, and is banished from the shocked town.

Jamie has demons of his own. Wed to his guitar from the age of thirteen, he plays in bands across the country, living the nomadic lifestyle of bar-band rock and roll while fleeing from his family’s horrific loss. In his mid-thirties — addicted to heroin, stranded, desperate — Jamie meets Charles Jacobs again, with profound consequences for both men. Their bond becomes a pact beyond even the Devil’s devising, and Jamie discovers that revival has many meanings.

This rich and disturbing novel spans five decades on its way to the most terrifying conclusion Stephen King has ever written. It’s a masterpiece from King, in the great American tradition of Frank Norris, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Edgar Allan Poe. 

My review: 

Revival is without doubt a very good read –  it’s bound to be – but somehow it falls a tiny bit short of a great read which is a bit of a disappointment for a Stephen King novel. Of course there is wonderful writing a plenty, particularly with regard to first love, loss, heartbreak, and death, but the slow middle section makes the narrative drag a little. The conclusion’s on the right track but ends up being so bizarre, (even though I could see what King was trying to say,) that I couldn’t quite take it on board at first reading. The ending benefits from a second reading if you can stomach it!  I’ve read through various reviews debating the final conclusion – what lies beyond death – a lot of readers found the ending pretty disturbing. In my opinion it kind of is, (nobody wants this outcome to be the truth,) and isn’t, because it’s verging on being too fantastical, talk about tripping! I expect that’s the point…. the final trip… electricity style!

Overall, I’d say do read Revival but be aware that it might or might not reach your exultantly high moon struck King expectations. If you have an addictive personality this book is for you! Reactions vary.  Nevertheless, Revival is certainly an entertaining read, portraying the main protagonist’s journey from childhood,  and youth to middle age, in a heady eclectic mix of music, (Jamie’s years playing guitar in a band,) family life, religion, love, sex, and loss, and Jamie’s downfall into drugs.  As well as addictive drugs we are introduced to pastor Charlie Daniel’s obsession  with electricity, his moving away from the church (after his young family die, in horrible circumstances – this is the pivotal point that shapes the story,)  resulting in his experimentation into the darker side of electricity, (with side effects that would make prescription drugs look pretty lame,) until he commits the ultimate terrible act against nature, and God.

I particularly enjoyed the dark humour reflections on getting older… just check these quotes and you’ll see what I mean:

“The three true ages of man are youth, middle age, and how the fuck did I get old so soon?”

“On the way home I remembered a bit of old folklore about how to boil a frog. You put it in cold water, then start turning up the heat. If you do it gradually, the frog is too stupid to jump out. I don’t know if it’s true or not, but I decided it was an excellent metaphor for growing old.”

“When I was a teenager, I looked at over-fifties with pity and unease: they walked too slow, they talked too slow, they watched TV instead of going out to movies and concerts, their idea of a great party was hotpot with the neighbors and tucked into bed after the eleven o’clock news. But—like most other fifty-, sixty-, and seventysomethings who are in relative good health—I didn’t mind it so much when my turn came. Because the brain doesn’t age, although its ideas about the world may harden and there’s a greater tendency to run off at the mouth about how things were in the good old days.”

See what I mean, King really does understand how the body ages but the brain stays forever young. Cruel or what?

Music outlives us all…. see this quote and you’ll know what I mean…

“Music matters,” he told me once. “Pop fiction goes away, TV shows go away, and I defy you to tell me what you saw at the movies two years ago. But music lasts, even pop music. Especially pop music. Sneer at ‘Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head’ if you want to, but people will still be listening to that silly piece of shit fifty”

My rating:

A difficult one to rate, on first reading – 4 stars. Might benefit from a second reading – the more I think about this one the more it intrigues me!

Have you read Revival? What did you think of it? Are you a fan of Stephen King?

Bye for now,

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My Kyrosmagica Review of Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon

 

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Goodreads Synopsis:

My disease is as rare as it is famous. Basically, I’m allergic to the world. I don’t leave my house, have not left my house in seventeen years. The only people I ever see are my mom and my nurse, Carla.

But then one day, a moving truck arrives next door. I look out my window, and I see him. He’s tall, lean and wearing all black—black T-shirt, black jeans, black sneakers, and a black knit cap that covers his hair completely. He catches me looking and stares at me. I stare right back. His name is Olly.

Maybe we can’t predict the future, but we can predict some things. For example, I am certainly going to fall in love with Olly. It’s almost certainly going to be a disaster.

 

My review: 

I read New York Times Best Selling Author Nicola Yoon’s, Everything Everything, in two days, partly because it was a page turner but also because I’ve been stuck in bed with a particularly nasty vomiting virus! I shall spare you the details…. I’m fine now!

It’s a hard one to review. On the one hand there are so many engaging aspects to this novel – and so many feels, particularly the romance between Maddy and Olly, the emails, etc. The desperate sense of what it must be like to be stuck inside every single day of your life, with no friends, no school to go to, no boyfriends to date, to kiss.. no possibility of a real life. OMG can you imagine? Just staring out of your window watching the world go by while you’re imprisoned forever in your own body. That is the worst scenario.

Then on top of all this potential for misery there is a  plot twist in the latter part of the story  which encourages the reader to contemplate other issues: the impact of bereavement on mental health. I don’t want to give too much detail about that particular section of the novel as I don’t want to spoil it for you. This was a great idea … a nice progression …

But…….and here’s the but, I just felt that the revelation at the end could have had much more impact if we’d seen Maddy acting a bit more furiously than she did. If perhaps there had been more immediate dialogue between her and her mother, rather than so much focus on her chit chat with her nurse. Also there seemed to be a fair amount of telling.  OK, she locked her mum out- actually locked the door, to suggest shutting her out, alienating her, which was clever, (reversal of the situation, her mother is now shut out from her world – her daughter,) but the timing was wrong. We needed some reaction to happen before this, otherwise in my opinion, it distanced the reader from the emotion of the moment.  Wouldn’t Maddy be more likely to shout and scream to begin with? Given the enormity of what she finds out? And then lock her mother out, and then realise that she has to forgive? Her reactions all seem to be heavily focused towards her nurse. Which is strange given that she is meant to be close to her mother, having spent so much time with her for so many, many, years.

Also there were a few inconsistencies in the story – like how did she manage to get a credit card without her mother’s consent? And when she was liberated from the confines of the house wouldn’t she long for freedom, but be petrified, frightened of the very air she breathed? To me this didn’t come across as strongly as it should. I think Everything Everything had the potential to be a very strong read, perhaps even a 5 star read given the subject matter, and the potential revelation of the ending, but for me it fell a bit short of that expectation.

I’d say the appeal of this novel lies in its underlying sense of optimism. Given the dire circumstances that Maddy finds herself in, she seems a pretty chilled kind of girl, rather than a whinger. The cheerful and buoyant voice of the author shines through in so many tiny touches, and in the novel’s illustrations. So if this is the type of book that appeals to you, dive in and buy a copy! It would make a very good holiday read.

My rating:

This debut novel is undoubtedly engaging. I shall be keeping an eye out for this new author.

I’d rate this a fast paced, easy read, just under 4 stars, say 3.75 stars.

Authors information:

Authors website: Nicola Yoon

Her next book The Sun is Also A Star is due out in November 2016. More about that here: Nicola Yoon The Sun Is Also A Star

Plans are afoot for a movie! I can see this concept doing very well visually in a movie. Here’s the link if you’d like to find out more: Everything Everything movie

 

Have you read Everything Everything? Did you enjoy it? Read it quickly like me?

Bye for now,

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Marje @ Kyromagica xx

My fun (totally not serious but nevertheless 90% true,) author bio on Wattpad – Link below.

Marjorie Mallon was born in Lion City: Singapore. She grew up in a mountainous court in Hong Kong. Her crazy parents dragged her  spotty soul away from her exotic childhood and her much loved dog Topsy to the frozen wastelands of Scotland. There she mastered Scottish country dancing, haggis bashing, bagpipe playing and a whole new Och Aye lingo. 
As a teenager she travelled to many far flung destinations to visit her abacus wielding wayfarer dad. On one such occasion a  barracuda swam by. It stopped to view her  bikini clad body, longing to take a big bite. With dogs' fangs replacing barracudas' teeth, she returned to her mother's birthplace: Kuching, Cat City. There, Blackie, a black-hearted dog sniffed her frightened butt, whimpered and ran away! Shortly after this extraordinary event an angry female Orang-Utan chased her unfit ass out of the Malaysian jungle believing that she was a threat to her babies! She still monkeys about, would love to own a cat, or a replacement Topsy but refuses to entertain  murderous dogs, or over-protective monkeys.
It's rumoured that she lives in the Venice of Cambridge, with her six foot hunk of a Rock God husband, and her two enchanted daughters. 
After such an upbringing her author's mind has taken total leave of its senses. When she's not writing, she eats exotic delicacies while belly dancing, or surfs to the far reaches of the moon. To chill out she practises Tai Chi and Yoga on the crest of a wave. If the mood takes her she goes snorkelling with mermaids, or signs up for idyllic holidays with the Chinese Unicorn, whose magnificent voice sings like a thousand wind chimes. 

She is a child of the light and the dark. Her motto is simply this: Do what you love,  stay true to your heart's desires, remain young at heart, and  inspire others to do so, even if it appears that the odds are stacked like black hearted shadows against you...

 

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The Heart Stone Chronicles – Book Cover Reveal

Colleen at Silver Threading’s Book Cover reveal for The Heart Stone Chronicles – Book 1 The Swamp Fairy. So excited for her. The book cover has been designed by Wendy Anne Darling who is launching a new book cover business –  Bookxeedo.

I have just contacted Wendy with an initial book cover enquiry for my upcoming book which hopefully will be launched in the autumn too. Fingers crossed..

Exciting times!

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Prom 2016: Churchill College

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It’s been a few weeks since the prom – 1st of July – time to let the dust settle and reflect on the event of the year! I know my daughter loved every single minute of her prom, and judging by the above photo it certainly looks like her friends were excited by the prospect too!

Better not leave the guys out!!

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There had been various discussions about how to get to prom with suggestions ranging from overpriced limos, to a Scooby Doo van, but in the end Georgina went in her boyfriend – Joseph English aunt’s car (photo courtesy of Joseph’s mum – Giovanno.)

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It must have been quite a moment, walking up the red carpet and that backwards glance from my daughter, Georgina tells quite a story. (photos courtesy of Giovanna.)

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I fell in love with the dress! We found it on an outing to Ely, at a Prom Dress, Ball gown, Cruise Wear and Cocktail Dress shop called you guessed it: Something Special. 

It was hanging on the rack by the changing room. I suggested that Georgina tried it on, and that was it, all the other dresses paled into insignificance.  It was the one. EEK the price was frightening…. but I figured perhaps in the future she might wear it again… Anyway to soften the blow she kindly offered to pay half with money she’d saved up from her Saturday job. I wrote about our day out in Ely and a whole bunch of other things on this blog post: Hugh’s Weekly Photo Challenge – Faces

Here’s a photo of the dress detailing its full length, and little train. (Photo courtesy of Giovanno.)

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Such a wide variety of beautiful dresses, and glamorous young ladies!

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I’d like to give a shout out to Gina’s tutor at her secondary school – Stephen Creamer who took some wonderful professional photos of the prom. Whilst I can’t share his photos on this post without permission I’d like to mention his website : Steven Creamer Photography

We had a very special visitor at prom – my mother in law. It was wonderful that she was able to share in the occasion. She is now nearly ninety. She is such a remarkable woman – still able to travel all the way from Edinburgh to Cambridge on her own at her age. The next big family occasion will be her 90th birthday in September. Here she was smiling happily – the ‘wee woman with the big zest for life,’ so pleased to be here to share this occasion with her two granddaughters, Georgina and Natasha.

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After the prom was over I jokingly said to my daughter, ‘Now it’s time for old clothes and porridge!’

Not sure how impressed she was by that suggestion…

Porridge might not exactly be the best form of food at the moment.The poor wee lamb has had a touch of either belly ache or heat stroke or perhaps both. Oh… this turned out to be a nasty tummy bug that afflicted me too.. Better now.. So don’t forget to wash your salad, avoid swallowing dirty water while kayaking, take care in the sun, drink lots of water, rub in that sun cream folks. Oh, my!  I’m beginning to sound like my mother!!

Bye for now. My bitmoji has had a wardrobe change – it’s just too hot for long sleeves!

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Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

My fun (totally not serious but nevertheless 90% true,) author bio on Wattpad – Link below.

Marjorie Mallon was born in Lion City: Singapore. She grew up in a mountainous court in Hong Kong. Her crazy parents dragged her  spotty soul away from her exotic childhood and her much loved dog Topsy to the frozen wastelands of Scotland. There she mastered Scottish country dancing, haggis bashing, bagpipe playing and a whole new Och Aye lingo. 
As a teenager she travelled to many far flung destinations to visit her abacus wielding wayfarer dad. On one such occasion a  barracuda swam by. It stopped to view her  bikini clad body, longing to take a big bite. With dogs' fangs replacing barracudas' teeth, she returned to her mother's birthplace: Kuching, Cat City. There, Blackie, a black-hearted dog sniffed her frightened butt, whimpered and ran away! Shortly after this extraordinary event an angry female Orang-Utan chased her unfit ass out of the Malaysian jungle believing that she was a threat to her babies! She still monkeys about, would love to own a cat, or a replacement Topsy but refuses to entertain  murderous dogs, or over-protective monkeys.
It's rumoured that she lives in the Venice of Cambridge, with her six foot hunk of a Rock God husband, and her two enchanted daughters. 
After such an upbringing her author's mind has taken total leave of its senses. When she's not writing, she eats exotic delicacies while belly dancing, or surfs to the far reaches of the moon. To chill out she practises Tai Chi and Yoga on the crest of a wave. If the mood takes her she goes snorkelling with mermaids, or signs up for idyllic holidays with the Chinese Unicorn, whose magnificent voice sings like a thousand wind chimes. 

She is a child of the light and the dark. Her motto is simply this: Do what you love,  stay true to your heart's desires, remain young at heart, and  inspire others to do so, even if it appears that the odds are stacked like black hearted shadows against you...

 

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Wattpad

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Good News!!! I’ve Won An Ad Slot!

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I’m thrilled to say that I’ve won an ad slot on Jenny in Neverland’s blog in November – how cool is that! This is truly awesome. I’m so looking forward to having this opportunity for some promotion. Especially, as by then hopefully I’ll have my novel ready to be published! It is currently with my second beta reader, my daughter Natasha (who writes also, and reads a lot too!) for edits, and then will come back to me for final edits. Before this, it was beta read by Graeme Cumming who did a wonderful job of the first draft edits. Thank you so much Graeme for all your help. Graeme blogs at: Graeme Cumming. Do check out the review that I did for his book Ravens Gathering:

https://mjmallon.com/2016/04/21/my-kyrosmagica-review-of-ravens-gathering/

So here it is the tweet with the good news!

Jenny is doing some wonderful posts on Mental Health Awareness Week so do pop over to her blog to support her in this very important and worthy cause. I just checked out her blog and found a massive amount of book giveaways! Here’s a link to that post to see what I mean: Jenny in Neverland Mental Health Awareness Week Giveaways.

I have more good news to tell you, but I’m keeping that for another post…

Bye for now,

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Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

 

 

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Glasgow Inspiring City Award

 

As you’ll know from my previous post Glasgow University, Hogwarts and Kelvingrove Park I’ve recently been to Glasgow with my hubby for a few days away. We stayed near Kelvingrove Park and I was lucky to be able to get a chance to visit The Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum which is ‘located on Argyle Street, in the West End of the city, on the banks of the River Kelvin (opposite the architecturally similar Kelvin Hall, which was built in matching style in the 1920s, after the previous hall had been destroyed by fire). It is adjacent to Kelvingrove Park and is situated near the main campus of the University of Glasgow on Gilmorehill.’ Wikipedia Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum

‘Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum houses one of Europe’s great art collections. It is amongst the top three free-to-enter visitor attractions in Scotland and one of the most visited museums in the United Kingdom outside of London.’ Glasgow Life Kelvingrove Museum

So I thought I’d share with you some of my photos of my day out.

I walked through the park and came upon this guy on the bridge.

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Then I saw this very fine path leading up to this magnificent looking building.

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And then a little sculpture within the grounds .. The Vital Spark Puffer by George Wyllie

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And this one too..

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And I walked round to the Argyle Street museum entrance too. Here it is standing proudly like a jewel of beauteous splendor on a hill.

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Closer it doesn’t disappoint. Look at this! What an imposing building.

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Inside it is just as magnificent. I arrived in time for the organ recital – do you see that tiny dot of a man in the middle of the photo wearing a white jacket playing the organ?

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Take a look at these white floating heads There’s something quite eerie about them!! …

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And this…

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There are 9,000 pieces on exhibition or thereabouts, don’t expect me to count them all individually – this is what I read somewhere. Judging by what I saw I could well believe this. My advice is don’t be a tight Scotsman! Pop some money in the donate box – this really is an amazing art gallery and museum, and a few pounds wouldn’t go amiss to show your appreciation! At the moment there are three exhibition on too:

Then it’s time for a coffee.

There are two options for cafes. Either you can grab a quick sandwich in the centre hall of the museum gallery, which is fine if you’re in a hurry. But if you’re not, I’d advise you to treat yourself to a drink, cake or lunch in the KG Cafe in the basement.  That’s what I did and I didn’t regret it. Here’s why… beautiful views…

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Glasgow is an inspiring and welcoming city. I’m leaving you with my final photo of these beautiful flowers which adorn various places of interest in the streets of Glasgow.

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Have you visited Glasgow? Do let me know if you have. Perhaps you might want to take a look at this: Newsquest Scotland Inspiring City Awards

Bye for now, stay cool…

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Marje @Kyrosmagica xx

 

 

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Glasgow University, Hogwarts and Kelvingrove Park

 

I’ve been in Glasgow for a few days, with my hubby  – for a short holiday. Like my dad he’s a keen golf fan. We’ve been to the Golf Open at Troon. We had a day there together – practice day  – and the next day I had a day to myself in Glasgow to do whatever I fancied. Not being the type to fuss too much about shopping I decided to have a wander in Kelvingrove Park – which happened to be very close to our hotel, The Lorne Hotel. It was quite a sunny day so I stopped for a treat, my favourite:  a chocolate wafer which is basically a tasty chocolate covered wafer filled with marshmallow sandwiched together with vanilla ice-cream. What a supreme feast!

I sat down in the park and watched these guys – aren’t they fabulous? It warms the heart seeing young people out enjoying themselves having fun. Really exhilarating!

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Isn’t it nice to see such a lively park area? With youngsters doing flips and star turns on their bikes and skate boards.

I also popped over to the Kelvingrove Museum and Art Gallery which is a must if you’re ever in Glasgow. Do not miss the opportunity to visit. I will be doing a photographic feature about this wonderful museum soon…

To round off the day I found a pathway of steps via the park that led to Glasgow University. No wonder people tend to think that this beautiful University resembles Hogwarts, (even though Harry Potter wasn’t filmed there.) The view is certainly magical. Not too far away from the University is Ashton Lane, a hidden alleyway lit with fairy lights which is packed with pubs and cafes, supposedly author J.K. Rowling’s inspiration for Diagon Alley. I happened to have an evening drink and meal there with my hubby and a couple of our friends. We started off our evening at a very quaint bar and restaurant called The Ubiquitous Chip. Only in Scotland can the humble chip be elevated to such a grandiose name!

http://www.ubiquitouschip.co.uk/

ubiquitous
juːˈbɪkwɪtəs/
adjective
  1. present, appearing, or found everywhere.
    “his ubiquitous influence was felt by all the family”
    synonyms: omnipresent, ever-present, present everywhere, everywhere, all-over, all over the place,pervasive, all-pervasive, universal, worldwide, global;

Here are a couple of photos of the Ubiquitous Chip and its wee sister The Wee Pub at The Chip:

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Perhaps when my youngest is University age she might consider going to Glasgow University! What a magical place to study.. I wish I could have studied there.. I did study in Glasgow many years ago now… but I went to the then Polytechnic which is now known as Glasgow Caledonian University……

I felt such a fondness for Glasgow returning for this short holiday all these years later. Student days are truly one of the best moments in our lives. I just wish I could turn back the clock and relive them all over again. If only…

What about you, have you been to Glasgow? Or are perhaps studying at Glasgow University? Is it a magical place to study?

Bye for now,

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Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

 

My fun (totally not serious but nevertheless 90% true,) author bio on Wattpad – Link below.

Marjorie Mallon was born in Lion City: Singapore. She grew up in a mountainous court in Hong Kong. Her crazy parents dragged her  spotty soul away from her exotic childhood and her much loved dog Topsy to the frozen wastelands of Scotland. There she mastered Scottish country dancing, haggis bashing, bagpipe playing and a whole new Och Aye lingo. 
As a teenager she travelled to many far flung destinations to visit her abacus wielding wayfarer dad. On one such occasion a  barracuda swam by. It stopped to view her  bikini clad body, longing to take a big bite. With dogs' fangs replacing barracudas' teeth, she returned to her mother's birthplace: Kuching, Cat City. There, Blackie, a black-hearted dog sniffed her frightened butt, whimpered and ran away! Shortly after this extraordinary event an angry female Orang-Utan chased her unfit ass out of the Malaysian jungle believing that she was a threat to her babies! She still monkeys about, would love to own a cat, or a replacement Topsy but refuses to entertain  murderous dogs, or over-protective monkeys.
It's rumoured that she lives in the Venice of Cambridge, with her six foot hunk of a Rock God husband, and her two enchanted daughters. 
After such an upbringing her author's mind has taken total leave of its senses. When she's not writing, she eats exotic delicacies while belly dancing, or surfs to the far reaches of the moon. To chill out she practises Tai Chi and Yoga on the crest of a wave. If the mood takes her she goes snorkelling with mermaids, or signs up for idyllic holidays with the Chinese Unicorn, whose magnificent voice sings like a thousand wind chimes. 

She is a child of the light and the dark. Her motto is simply this: Do what you love,  stay true to your heart's desires, remain young at heart, and  inspire others to do so, even if it appears that the odds are stacked like black hearted shadows against you...

 

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