About the Whodunit Book Club

Whodunit Book Club has met in its present location for almost seventeen years! If you would like to join us, our meetings are held on the last Tuesday of every month (except December).
We meet at the Chapters Store located at 41 MicMac Blvd., Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. Phone (902) 466-1640

Friday, August 30, 2013

Whodunit Meeting August 27, 2013

After a summer break from club it was good to see our Whodunit friends again.  Sixteen members attended on this lovely evening with just a wee hint of autumn in the air. 

The novel we discussed this month was Amanda Eyre Ward's "Close your eyes".  Lauren Mahdian and her brother, Alex have grown up haunted by the murder of their mother. Their father was convicted of the crime and has spent over 20 years in prison. Lauren is convinced of his guilt; Alex of his innocence. Lauren allows this truth to run her life, most significantly her relationship with her long-time boyfriend, Gerry. She's refused his numerous marriage proposals, seeing first-hand what "love" can do. 

This book had a curious affect on the members.  It didn't 'feel' like a mystery novel yet there was a murder and it had a 'Whodunit' factor.  Many said they liked it - most said it was an 'easy read' - more than a few who read it soon after June's meeting reread it to re-familiarize themselves with the plot before the Aug. meeting - yet almost everyone said it was 'forgettable' and didn't live up to the reviews.  The novel had unrealized potential.  It wasn't good, it wasn't bad, it was kind of just...there...  The overall rating out of ten according to the members in attendance was 5.75

It was commented that the character development was lacking - so that the reader really had no sense of empathy with any of the characters.  The personality of the father's character seemed contradictory to many.  The plot came across as 'choppy', disjointed and at times confusing.  It was suggested that so many lives were fractured by the traumatic event that the plot had to be fractured as well...   The author introduced new characters without warning making the reader wonder what the connection to previous characters could be.  The ending seemed to be contrived with no big reveal.

We discussed what the meaning of the title could be.  We surmised that the protagonist chose to 'close her eyes' to the trauma she experienced upon the death of her mother.

September's Whodunit title is: "Deceptions" by Rebecca Frayn

The lucky book giveaway winners this evening were:
1. Margaret
2. Camilla
3. Shauna
4. Carolyn


2 comments:

afrank63@yahoo.com said...

I love all kinds of suspense novels and this sounds very interesting, thank you so much for the review! If you like suspense, you might like the book I just finished called “Publics: Libertas Aut Mors” by Baltazar Bolado, http://baltazarbolado.net/. My friend recommended it to me and I could hardly put it down. Thanks again for the post and review!

Missy Jacobs said...

Both sound really interesting, thank you both for the recommendations! Afrank63, just wanted to let you know that I was checking out your suggestion on Amazon and plan on getting it but the title is actually “Publius: Libertas Aut Mors”. It took me a few minutes to find it, so just FYI! Thanks again!