Pages - 384
Published Date - May 24, 2010
Blum (Those Who Save Us) visits Tornado Alley in this vivid novel about a set of twins with a dark history. At home in Minnesota, Karena Jorge gets an unexpected call informing her that her twin brother, Charles Hallingdahl, whom she hasn't seen in the 20 years since something went very wrong during a storm chase, has been admitted to a Kansas mental hospital. Charles suffers from rapid cycling bipolar disorder, and all Karena knows is that he refuses medication, he can be a danger to himself and others, and he is still obsessed with storm chasing. When she rushes to the clinic and finds he has already left, Karena joins a professional storm-chasing tour company, hoping to find her brother in the caravan of watchers who follow major storms. In the course of the tour, Karena confronts the past and the way it has shaped her life. The unpredictable and dangerous storms provide a framework for an exploration of the bond between siblings (and its limitations), and Blum renders the stormy backdrop as richly as she does her nuanced characters.
My Review - 3 More Sugar Please
I enjoyed learning about Stormchasers and getting a glimpse into the life of someone with Bipolar disease. This was a good story and written well, my issue is it was just a story..... it wasn't exactly my cup of tea. I expected more highs and lows with the rush of the storms and some emotional touching dramatic times with siblings dealing with Bipolar but it never got intense and I needed that.
Another style issue I had is the Chapter flow. We started in present for Part 1 then into the past with the siblings then back to the present when the siblings reunited. This is not a style I like because it ruins the flow for me, I wanted more present and had to wait but then wasn't really interested in the past. I would have appreciated glimpses of the past throughout the story more than this style.
What I did love, the characters. Karena was a great character, I enjoyed her, felt she was real and the twindar feelings for her twin brother Charles was totally believable and wonderful. The man she met, Kevin, was also a good feeling character and liked them together. Something about Charles was missing for me, maybe I just wanted to feel and understand the Bipolar part more.
If you enjoy Adult Fiction and good characters, I would still recommend this book for you.
I have to smile, this was my pick for the online bookclub, sigh, how funny that it was just ok to me. I really needed more. Doesn't the person that chooses the book usually love it????
Book Club questions are here, join in if you have read it.
Paula over at Tome's Devotee is hosting this Book Club, go here to join.
The benefit of this Book Club is you get to have turns choosing the book.
Have you read this, what did you rate it?
This sounds interesting. Switching from past to present usually doesn't bother me, but I do think I would expect some action from a story like that.
ReplyDeleteI have Jenna Blum's Those Who Save Us, which I really want to read. This book though - I'm not looking forward to it that much, maybe because I don't find the theme too exciting? Don't know, but I get you - sometimes it's so nice to have a little more drama to keep in sync with the theme.
ReplyDeleteNice review, Marce. I totally agree with you about the flow too. I would have liked it better if it started off with the past and then made its way to the present, not present-past-present like it was.....
ReplyDeleteI've been curious about this author, especially her first novel, Those Who saved us. Honest review.!
ReplyDeleteThis sounds good. I've been wondering about this one.
ReplyDeleteI love the cover on this. I am sorry that it fell flat for you, Marce. The story itself sounds like an interesting one.
ReplyDeleteJust because you picked it for bookclub does not mean you are going to love it, lol. We've all had books that we've picked thinking it was going to be wonderful, but just did not fulfill our expectations.
This sounds interesting, but I'm sorry it wasn't as good as you would have liked.
ReplyDeleteFrom a storm chaser's perspective, it was a fun read. Would have liked more chasing, but I'm biased. Also hope you don't mind, if you want to go storm chasing, Storm Chase Guide provides low priced storm chasing tours. In 2010 all of my customers observed multiple tornadoes, I would be thrilled to provide you the same experience.
ReplyDeleteStorm Chasing Holidays / Storm Chasing Tours - Storm Chase Guide