Until You're Mine, by Samantha Hayes

In this psychological thriller, someone is killing pregnant women, cutting the fetuses out of them and leaving them to bleed to death. The reader hears from three point-of-views. Claudia Morgan-Brown is the step-mother of two twin boys, soon-to-be mother of a baby girl, and working as a social-worker until the last possible moment. Her husband, James, is in the military and is about to be deployed. To help her with caring for the children and the house, the two have hired a nanny, Zoe. However, something about Zoe seems off to Claudia and, given that Claudia's husband's away and she has no adult but Zoe in the house, Claudia is beginning to worry about whether or not the new nanny can be trusted.. The more we hear from Zoe, the more it seems that Claudia might be right to worry. It becomes clear to the reader that her name is not Zoe and that her purposes for taking the job as a nanny are neither monetary or altruistic. The third point-of-view is that of the police officer in charge of the case, Lorraine. Her husband and her are going through a rough patch (brought on by his infidelity) and trying to hide it from their daughters. On top of that, she needs to hunt down the person who is slaughtering  pregnant women before that person kills again.
<P>The book is well-written. The author and editor have good spelling and grammar skills and there aren't any sentences that are phrased awkwardly. The book is suspenseful and it would take a genius to guess how things turn out. Although there are subtle clues to the killer's identity and why certain characters do what they do, they are very subtle and the reader is genuinely surprised by the way things unfold. The only thing I'd say could be improved is the connections between the different characters. It seems as if every single main character is connected in some way. While, for a story to work, there needs to be some connections, I feel that there are some ones that are needless in the case of this book. For instance, Lorraine's husband's one-night stand just happens to be with one of the view-point characters, whose sister just happens to have had an affair with the father of one of the murdered pregnant woman's child. I can see including maybe one of these connections, but both seem a bit extreme. Although both do contribute to why certain things unfold the way they do, there could have been alternative explanations that didn't involve as many coincidences. Other than that, though, it was a great book and I'd give it a 4 out of 5.

<P>: I received a copy of this book from the publisher through the Blogging For Books program in exchange for an honest review.

The Room, by Jonas Karlsson

In this (kind of bizarre) novel, the main character, Bjorn, moves to a new company. It immediately becomes clear that there is something odd about this man. He looks down on his coworkers and presumes to give them orders. He even thinks about ordering his boss around and these thoughts seem to come naturally to him. Bjorn doesn't seem to think that there's anything odd about this. After all, to his mind, he's far superior to everyone else in terms of talent and creativity and it's so obvious that even they must see it. Soon, Bjorn comes upon a room at the Authority (his company). It seems like a typical room in an office. Except it contains a mirror. While in the room, Bjorn begins to feel even more confident of himself and seems to work even better. However, it soon becomes apparent that the room only exists inside Bjorn's mind and that, when he thinks he's inside, he's really standing still and staring at the wall. This disturbs his coworkers to the point where they begin to demand he's fired. Bjorn believes that they are all lying and trying to drive him insane. He plans to get revenge by conducting such exquisite work that the head of the company has no choice but to cater to Bjorn's demands (which are to fire all those who have offended Bjorn).

<P>This book is quite thought provoking. While I suppose one has to entertain the thought that Bjorn might be correct and everyone else is lying about the room, given his personality, thought pattern, and the fact that, even according to Bjorn's own calculations, there is no space for the room to exist, the reader is certainly more inclined to take the view that Bjorn is mentally ill. He comes across as a cross between Dwight and Creed (for Office fans).  However, even after the reader reaches this conclusion, the book still makes one ponder about the definition of existence, mental illness, and society's treatment of the mentally ill. After all, Bjorn firmly believes in the room's existence and nothing seems able of piercing this delusion. Clearly it exists for him. Furthermore, even though he's most likely hallucinating and delusional, Bjorn seems able to go through his day to day life and his hallucination seems to even aid him in his work. However, his coworkers seem unable to accept him because of his mental illness. To be fair, I'd probably be creeped out by someone staring at a wall for long periods of time. At some points he even takes people into the room, which to them just involves them staring at the wall together. That would be unnerving for most people. Furthermore, his perception of his own superiority makes it difficult to like him. However, Bjorn doesn't hurt anyone, keeps to himself, and completes all his work (and sometimes other people's work). One has to wonder, given these circumstances, shouldn't his eccentricities be ignored? After all, he's fulfilling his contract and the side-effect of his mental illness doesn't seem to get in the way of anyone's well-being. In fact, the room seems to allow him to excel at work, benefiting the Authority. Why is it so hard to just ignore his mental illness? This book forces one to ponder these questions and offers no definitive answer. However, the lack of answers isn't as unsatisfying as one might imagine. In fact, I think the book wouldn't be as interesting if there was an ending that was wrapped up in a bow.

<P>Overall, I'd give this book a 5 out of 5.

<P>Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from the publisher through the Blogging For Books program in exchange for an honest review.

The Secrets of Life and Death, by Rebecca Alexander

The Secrets of Life and Death, by Rebecca Alexander has two story lines. In the present day, Professor Felix Guichard is called in to consult on mysterious symbols found on the body of a dead girl. In his research, he meets Jack, who we learn is dead. Or was. She was supposed to die, but magic keeps her alive. However, people with her condition need to have certain sigils on their body and remain inside magic circles for a certain amount of time (hence the girl dying when she left them). It soon becomes clear though, that there is a bigger danger. With Maggie, a witch, Jack saves other people from dying so that they can live full lives and so their blood (which has magical properties) can be used to help others. Someone is hunting for revenants and they've focused on finding the one Jack just saved: a teenage girl. They don't know who this woman is. However, they know one thing: her intentions aren't pure.
In the past, Edward Kelley and John Dee (occultists/spiritualists) have been called to the court of Istvan Bathory. It seems his niece, Erzsebet, is ill with a debilitating condition that both weakens her and has left her barren. The mission seems simple. Using their knowledge and skills, Kelley and Dee will save this woman's life. However, as they learn more about the Bathory family, it becomes clear that saving Erzsebet may lead to an even greater danger.
The overall story line is interesting. It makes the reader want to keep reading to find out what happens next and how the magic works. However, there were two things that made it impossible for me to fully enjoy this book. The first is that Erzsebet is portrayed as a victim of a curse that has been in her family for generations. She is possessed by a demon, which leads to her becoming quite possibly the most prolific serial killer of all time. Erzsebet Bathory was a messed up woman. We might never know if she had some disease or psychological illness that made her behave the way she did. But, despite any circumstances that might have contributed to her torturing and murdering hundreds of girls, she was not a victim. There might be more things in Heaven and Earth than we understand but, unless we rule out every single scientific solution for a condition/problem/event, we should not assume that the person is besieged by supernatural assailants. Erzsebeth was a monster but, to the best of our knowledge, she was responsible for her actions, not a demon or a curse. To pretend otherwise is insulting to her victims. They may have lived a long time ago but they were just as human as we are and they don't deserve to have their murderer pitied.
The second feature is that the romance that develops between Felix and Jack seems a bit rushed. They go through a lot together and maybe it's only natural that their relationship progresses beyond the category of just friends, but it seems to happen too fast. One day they meet and, over a course of a few days, Felix is declaring his love for her. It just seems like it should have been slowed down a bit.
In conclusion, the basic plot line is entertaining, but the aforementioned points detracted from the story. I'd give this book a three out of five.
Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from the publisher through the Blogging For Books program in exchange for an honest review.

The Woman in Black, by Susan Hill

The Woman In Black, by Susan Hill, tells the story of Arthur Kipp. The book begins with Arthur and his family gathered in their country house for Christmas. One soon finds out that Kipp is a retired solicitor, whose family consists of his wife, Esme`, his step-children, and his step-grandchildren. The family is gathered around the fireplace, telling ghost stories, when the step-children ask Arthur to tell one of his own. Arthur tries to back out, saying he has nothing to tell, but the step-children insist. Finally, Arthur tells them that he will not tell a story and abruptly leaves the room. After walking outside to regain his composure, Arthur reveals to the reader that he does have a ghost story, a true one, one that he has not told anyone and which has haunted him for ages. He then returns to the house and decides to commit his thoughts to paper, in an attempt to escape the turmoil that the past events have caused.
When Arthur was a young man, engaged to a woman named Stella, he was sent to the town of Crythin Gifford to attend the funeral of a Mrs. Alice Drablow and settle her affairs. Almost as soon as he arrives, Arthur is plunged into a world of intrigue. While the townspeople are friendly, they avoid the topic of Alice Drablow and her house, Eel Marsh House, as if it were the plague. Even more mysterious, is a woman in black, who Arthur sees at Mrs. Drablow's funeral, and who appears on the grounds of Eel Marsh house, even though they are supposed to be vacant. There are strange sounds on the marsh and noises in what should be a silent house. While Arthur tries to explain these away but, soon his answers only lead to more questions and he is forced to come to the conclusion that not all things can be explained.
This book has a great beginning. Before the first chapter is over, the reader is hooked. As the story progresses, tidbit by tidbit of information is added to form a mystery. It builds up to Arthur finding out the back-story of Eel Marsh House and the Woman in Black. However, then it ends a bit too soon. While Arthur does find out why the Woman in Black is haunting the house, he never does anything about it, even after it impacts him rather drastically. Of course, many people, if they were in his shoes, would be too terrified or distraught to try to end the haunting. However, the book feels like there should be one more scene to it. Maybe a scene where Arthur returns to the house to try to put a stop to the Woman in Black, or maybe one last encounter, face-to-face. Instead, we find out what the Woman in Black did to Arthur, and then the story is over.
All in all, this book is worth the read. The prose is lovely and most of the story is entertaining. It will keep readers focus and keep them guessing. The only problem is that it ends a bit too soon. I'd give this book a four out of five.

Sherlock Holmes and the Heir of Albion by Ronan Coghlan

    The books starts out with a reporter, Hector Wace, being hand-picked by Holmes to conduct an interview of the famous detective. Wace soon finds out that Holmes actually wants the reporter's help on a case. Moriarty (who survived from Reichenbach by falling on a goat) is the client. Moriarty has obtained a full pardon by promising to care for an infant. The professor wishes for Holmes to discover the origins of the child and take him back to his parents as soon as possible. Together, Holmes, Wace, and Gyratt (Holmes' friend. Watson is away on vacation) must unravel the mystery of this mysterious baby.
   This book is so-so and, while it is not a complete waste of time, I would try checking it out of the library rather than spend money on it (if I could go back in time). I cannot find any mention of whether the author intended this to be comical or serious. If he did intend for this to be comical then he succeeded, but added enough seriousness in it to make the reader wonder what his intentions in writing it were. For examples:the Giant Rat of Sumatra is revealed to be a human/rat hybrid that talks and dresses as a human (Gyratt= Giant Rat). Moriarty is a petulant old man, who seems to lack the wits to be the "Napoleon of Crime". Watson's first wife died by falling into the bear pit at the zoo and one spectator remarked that one bear wasn't getting as much of Mary as the other bears.
   As well as the book's plot line being slightly ridiculous, the book also has several typos and more than a few sentences that are awkwardly phrased. One example of the latter is, "Had it not been for your father's quick thinking by emptying the rock that was supposed to produce water when struck all over me, I might not be in this chair today"(Coghlan 155- Holmes to Wace). This could be more accurately worded as, "Had it not been for your father emptying upon me the rock that was supposed to produce water when struck, I might not be in this chair today." or "If your father hadn't put out the fire with water from the rock(that was supposed to produce water when struck), I'd be dead.".
   If one is looking for something to laugh at, while this will not leave one gasping for air, it will give one more than a few chuckles. However, be prepared for numerous grammatical/spelling/structural errors. If one is looking for something Doyleish or is unable to look past said errors, look further