One thing I look forward to on vacation is having more time to read, especially when I make an effort to unplug, like I did over our last vacation. I prefer novels, and find myself drawn to stories with a mystery, so I selected Bradstreet Gate by Robin Kirman as a selection to review for Blogging For Books.
From the publisher’s synopsis:
Georgia, Charlie and Alice each arrive at Harvard with hopeful visions of what the future will hold. But when, just before graduation, a classmate is found murdered on campus, they find themselves facing a cruel and unanticipated new reality. Moreover, a charismatic professor who has loomed large in their lives is suspected of the crime. Though his guilt or innocence remains uncertain, the unsettling questions raised by the case force the three friends to take a deeper look at their tangled relationship. Their bond has been defined by the secrets they’ve kept from one another ….
(Does the placement of that “Moreover” bother anyone else?)
This wasn’t a bad book–I would have finished it even if I hadn’t gotten it through Blogging For Books–but it didn’t live up to its promises. The characters weren’t all that affected by the murder–they seemed more concerned with distancing themselves from it than “facing a cruel and unanticipated” reality. And, while we learn more about the backstories and post-Harvard lives of Georgia, Charlie and Alice, their perspectives come off as self-centered rather than taking “a deeper look at their tangled relationship[s].” I wasn’t really bothered that the question of the professor’s guilt or innocence remains a loose thread even as it is woven throughout the story, but there were other loose threads that I wish had been tied up.
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If you’re looking for an entertaining beach read with interesting characters and a plot that’s not too hard to follow, Bradstreet Gate could deserve a spot in your beach bag. If you read it, you can help me remember if people still had airplane tickets in 2002 and if you know of any restored plantation houses in Great Falls, Virginia ….
I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.
What’s left on your summer reading list?
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Good review! I like murder mysteries. One problem I have with doing the blogging for books review is that I don’t think they give enough pictures to go with the book.
Hmm. I wouldn’t usually post more than the cover anyway …. Do you have any input on Great Falls “plantations”? 😉
Seems like a great book. I always am looking for a good easy read.
Sounds interesting! I am trying to start reading more again this sound like a good recommendation. I am reading a book about kids in middle school how to deal with them since my son just started. It’s a focus on the family book.
LOL. I’m sure there could be tons of books on that! Good luck. 😉
Yea… “Moreover”… it shouldn’t be there haha. I usually give a book one chapter to hook me. If I’m not hooked, I’m most likely not going to read it. The only exception to this is the Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. The first few chapters were so boring, but everyone told me it was a amazing, so I suffered through it until I got to the good stuff 🙂
That’s why I love downloading “samples” from Amazon. If I don’t want to keep reading at the end, I just try something else. I think The Goldfinch is the one I forced myself to keep reading, and it did grow on me.
Murder mysteries are my favorites (I go back to Agatha Christie. Well actually to Nancy Drew 🙂 ). Lately most of my books are audiobooks. I love that I can “read” almost anywhere. Thanks for the review!
I’m not good at paying attention to just listening — my mind wanders and then I have to figure out where I drifted off! I was a big Agatha Christie fan as a kid. And Trixie Belden more than Nancy Drew, but I read both. 😉
I love blogging for books!
That book was recommended for me, but I read some of the reviews and they all sounded quite similar to yours. It sounded far better than it ended up being.
I have such a hard time getting into books sometimes. I might need to check to out!!
I agree: the moreover needs to go. I could use a page turner about now.
Oh the days when I can casually read on the beach again! Sounds like a good read…one day!
I know, right! Cross-country flights are my “beach” these days.
Sounds like a pretty good book! I haven’t read a good page turner in a while–since I read The Bullet.
Oh, I’ll have to check that out.
This book looks interesting. I will def look it up. Now that the kids are back in school, I need a good book to start.
seems like the kind of book I could read in a night and then feel like I wasted the money, lol. Thanks for the review!! 🙂
Great book review. I am always looking for new great reads. 🙂
A good review. I will be adding this to my bucket list of reading.
Perfect timing – i was looking for a new book! Thanks for sharing!
Sounds interesting. I haven’t read a mystery in a while
Now that I’m not studying I have more time to read for pleasure! Yay!
Great review!! I love murder mysteries, I will have to check this book out!
I love a good mystery and as busy as I am, I don’t have time for books that are extremely involved. Looks like this book would have been a great pick.