Well, here I am talking about cancer and dying again. I swear it's the last of these for a good long while, guys. (I hope I don't end up eating my words.) The Bright Hour: A Memoir of Living and Dying by Nina Riggs was recommended to me after reading When Breath Becomes Air because Nina's widowed husband is now dating the widow of Paul Kalinithi who wrote the aforementioned. O_O  At the start of her story, Nina was 38 years old and her biggest problems centered around publishing her newest bit of writing and mothering her two young sons with her husband...and then Cancer rapidly derailed her life. When Nina was initially diagnosed with breast cancer her mother was fighting her own battle with an aggressive myeloma. At first, Nina's diagnosis seemed quite straightforward in comparison. Her doctor felt it was quite treatable with a mastectomy and chemo but right as her life seemed to stabilize a stabbing back pain (reminiscent of Paul Kalinithi) made itself known. This turned out to be the harbinger of Stage 4 cancer which unfortunately was not curable. To add insult to injury, her mother's cancer stopped responding to treatment and she opted to stop her treatment. Overwhelming and almost unbelievably melodramatic as this all sounds Nina chose to view each day through a positive lens. It is obvious to me that she was a special person with a whole lot of spirit. Sadly, she passed away before final publication of her book but her legacy still lives and breathes on each page of her memoir. I'm sorry we can't enjoy more writing from her in the future.  9/10

 

 

What I'm Currently Reading: Tales from the Inner City by Shaun Tan

3.5Stars
May be a person with the extreme love of art will like it better. Story was just common and predictable. Okayish.

Take Me with You - Nina G. Jones
There's no sorta about it. Sam is a villain. He isn't playing at being a bad guy. He's the thing in dark that we fear at night. The reader witnesses his crimes up close and personal. Despite this, it's impossible for me not to find him desirable. Throughout the story, the reader gets glimpses of Vesper and Sam's pasts and looks from inside their minds. I enjoyed putting all the pieces together. My feelings about what should happen and how I thought the story was going changed with each each scene. The emotions are complex. It's impossible to condone his actions, but the inclination to look over them is compelling. I understood her decisions, weaknesses and strengths. The struggle is real. I don't think there's ever been a more complicated love story. It's been a long time since I've read a dark romance that kept me this engaged. I recommend Take Me With You to those who truly enjoy dark. If you need trigger warnings, this most likely is not the book for you. I love the characters, the storyline and the writing.

Take Me with You - Nina G. Jones




"It’s when you are secure in your sleep, in the safety of your warm covers, when you think you are most alone. That’s when I come, when every last guard is down."


Vesper Rivers lives a good life. A bubbly likable girl with a charming smile. The perfect girl with the perfect boyfriend. Until the day she catches the eye of The NIGHT STALKER. A man that invades the lives of his prey, leaving carnage and destruction in his wake.



A feeling of being watched and a glimpse of ice blue eyes has Vesper on edge, but intrigue. Longing for something more. Something less perfect. When she finally comes face to face with those cold, empty eyes, nothing in her life will be the same again.


"If you leave, I’ll have to kill you, Vesp. I don’t want to do that. Don’t make me do it.” He’s killed me a thousand different ways. Stolen countless breaths and hopes. Slaughtered the girl who had plans to marry a nice doctor. Killed the dream of helping people for a living. Snuffed a piece of her soul by pulling her out of her little brother’s life. Pillaged her pride."




I honestly don't know where to begin with this review. I LOVED every twisted fucked up moment of it. And there were A LOT of twisted fucked up moments that's for sure.

Sam is a ANTI anti hero. I should HATE this guy. I should LOATHE him. The things he does (has done) to women (including the heroine) should make me SICK. And they DID, but you see somewhere along the way I started to like this guy. Then we would get more and more hints about his past. We'd get these fleeting moments of kindness and vulnerability and I started to LOVE this guy and root for him. I'm not really sure I want to look too closely at what that says about me...


"Who am I?” he asks in that voice, dirty and broken. “I am the person who has nothing to lose but you.” He pushes himself inside of me, and even though I am ready, it is so sudden and hard, I nearly cry as I gasp. “I am a man who has risked everything to have you.” He pulls out slowly and plunges into me again. “You are the only thing, Vesp.” He draws himself out and buries himself inside of me. “And you...are my obsession."




His and Vesper's relationship (a term I use loosely here) was all kinds of fifty shades of fucked up but I couldn't help myself. I was rooting for these two to get a HEA. I had NO clue how the author was going to get us there, but my fingers were crossed and she didn't disappoint.

This book isn't for the faint of heart that is for sure. I almost lost my lunch a couple times (yikes) It danced on the edge of crossing the line for me a few times, but this author can WRITE. I was sucked in from word GO and didn't stop until I reached the last page. That said I would be remiss if I didn't add that this would have been a 5 star read, but I did feel like it dragged a bit in the last 15% or so of the book.

So if you are like me and LOVE a good dark and twisted read with a fucked up hero and a heroine with a little "fucked up" in her as well, then this one should definitely be on your TBR shelf.

Quick story: Occasionally I switch Kindles with a friend and we spend a couple days reading books we wouldn't normally buy as our tastes vary. This is one of those books.

I just planned on rating this and basically I just am but I just had to say this book traumatically turned me on...traumatizingly made me hot...hotly traumatized me????????????

I DON'T KNOW and I'm not sure I feel good about anything that I'm feeling.

My review:
Reading this probably feels like what having and the aftermath of sex with Jack Nicholson feels like.