Skip to main content

Six Weeks to Live by Catherine McKenzie

"Attention getting simply because you have to find out "who dun it" but the characters were so one dimensional and the ever shifting narrator left me feeling frustrated and confused as to who's view I was looking through and why I should care. Entertaining for what it was but forgettable in the end."

2 Stars

Pros: It did catch my attention cause it's a suspense novel so of course you have to find out "who dun it." 

Cons: The identical twins/triplet thing was confusing/The constantly changing narrator was confusing as well, since none of the characters were fleshed out enough for me to remember who they were. 

Full Review: 

At a routine follow up appointment, Jennifer receives horrible news. She has an inoperable brain tumor and only has weeks to live. While she's sitting in her car, trying to process this horrible news, she sees lab results from her last annual physical and is puzzled by the frighteningly high level of lead in her blood. At this discovery she's convinced that the cancer is a side effect of lead poisoning and she's determined to find out who poisoned her. 

She, of course, immediately jumps to the conclusion that it's her former husband, who's been hounding her for months now for a divorce, so he can be with his new girlfriend, a woman he left her for after 20 years of marriage. Their daughters, a set of identical twins and a fraternal twin try to help their mother and at times even try to help her piece together a timeline of when she may have been poisoned. 

And as they dig deeper into their parents lives, they also start to remember things from their own past. Things that happened to them as children, that at the time, didn't seem like much but now, as adults, they realize that something is very off. Unfortunate events come to light and even as Jennifer's state begins to deteriorate she has to decide whether to try and right the wrongs she committed and have peace when she dies, or if she should try and get to the bottom of who may have poisoned her. 

It was suspenseful, in its own right. You were hooked from the beginning because there was no sugar coating the fact that Jennifer was dying and had only a limited amount of time with which to "investigate" her poisoning. It was all explained in the end, which I appreciated but at the same time, none of the characters, from Jennifer to her daughters, to Jake, the lacks Husband, were really fleshed out enough for me to differentiate between them. The constantly changing narrator, from Jennifer, to either twin (Aline/Miranda) to Emily, was confusing as all Hell. Near the end of the book I started being able to tell them apart but through most of the book it was a struggle. 

Yes, the ending was somewhat surprising and it leaves the reader to wonder, "What next" but at the same time, I'm not invested enough to care all that much. It was a quick, semi entertaining read, definitely a "beach" read, one that doesn't require much brain power and thus, easily forgettable. 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Animal Farm by George Orwell

"A blithe and scathing commentary on equality, power, corruption and how everyone is created equal, but...some are more equal than others. Orwell hit the nail right on the head with this novel and it's no wonder it's a staple for most high school curriculums. " 3 Stars.  Pros:  Benjamin the Donkey is the smartest animal on the farm and it would have done all the others a world of good if they had listened to him in the first place.  Cons:  The fact that societies like this actually do exist is nauseating and terrible. It's not a con, per se, it's just a gut wrenching fact.  Full Review:  When the overworked and mistreated Animals on Manor Farm decide to rise up and overthrow their cruel master, they're successful. They rebel and now find themselves with an entire Farm to run. They rename it Animal Farm and are intent on creating a paradise, where work and play are equal, where productivity is key but relaxation is a must and all the lives of all the animal...

Fantastic Voyage by Isaac Asimov

"When a scientist, Benes, who has integral and world changing information attempts to defect and join our Side, he's injured. A blood  clot forms in his brain and the only way to save his life is to miniaturize the crew of the Proteus and inject them into Benes' body, so they can break up the blood clot from the inside. Of course, one thing after another goes wrong and every chapter is a new catastrophe but it was definitely a fantastic voyage.   2 Stars Pros:  Grant is one dry character but he's a welcome bit of amusement in an otherwise serious and scientific novel.  Cons:  Grant is also SUCH a man that he spends most of the mission staring at saving the one woman board, Cora./Definitely ripe with anatomical lessons and what part of the body they were in. Since I've never been great at anatomy, a lot of it was lost on me and became burdensome near the end.  Full Review: As in all things, there is a good side and a bad side. This book is very vague as...

A Swiftly Tilting Planet (Time Quintet #3) by Madeleine L’Engle

“The apocalypse is looming when a random South American Dictator threatens Nuclear War. Of course, Charles Wallace is the only one who can stop it!  It's all tied into the descendants of Meg's mother in law, Mrs. O'Keefe, Calvin's mother.  With the help of a Unicorn named Gudior, Charles Wallace is off to save the day. This was another head scratcher and I'm not holding out much hope that the series will start making sense." 2 Stars Pros Time travel, to me, is far less surreal than whatever was going on in #2. So this was an easier read. Cons: Megs constant questioning starts right on page 1, at least she’s consistent/I do love how Mr. Murry is on speed dial with the President/The various timelines got very confusing and all the Brans/Maddocs/Maddox/Gwens/Gwyns and the multiple Zillah and Zillies were extremely frustrating. I had no idea who I was reading about at the end.  Full Review:  Years have passed and all the Murry children have grown. Dennys and San...