Stacked-Up Book Thoughts: 2 Good Books, 1 Good TV Show

I don't know what's wrong with me this year, but I haven't been watching as much Olympics as I usually do. I don't know if it's because of the nature of the coverage or because there always seems to be so much national news to absorb. Whatever the reason, the Olympics has mostly been in the background.

Thanks to my busy season, reading for pleasure is becoming a luxury. In case you didn't know or remember, I'm a freelance book editor, so after a 10-hour day of deskwork, my body wants to move and my eyes don't want to see any more printed (electronic) words.

Yay for audiobooks! I was able to listen to two very different books last week. I also started a new guilty pleasure television series.

Listening / Reading

Chainbreaker by Tara Sim (Forever Young Audiobooks; 10 hr, 29 min) is the second entry in the steampunk, time-bending Timekeepers series. In an alternate England, Danny Hart is a clock mechanic, which is a highly skilled and important job because if the town clock towers aren't working correctly, then time itself doesn't flow as expected. Danny's talents entail more than just maintaining and fixing the cogs and gears; he can also manipulate the very strands of time and communicate with clock spirits, who inhabit the towers. In this outing, Danny and a fellow timekeeper, Daphane, are tapped to go to India, where someone or something is destroying clocks. Their job is to solve the mystery and learn more about the nature of time. Sim addresses a number of issues in this series. Danny is gay and is still dealing with feeling comfortable about coming out. Daphane must prove herself as a woman professional and struggles as the sole caretaker of her troubled mother. In India, we see the effects of colonization and a variety of prejudices. Finally, time, technology, religion, and mythology are tangled together and are at the heart of Sim's alternate world. The characters are well drawn so it's easy to get caught up in their lives. I like the developing friendships and the complexity of Danny's relationship with his boyfriend. The mystery of what is happening with the clock towers in India is nicely set up, and there's a good balance between action and description. If I have any complaint, it's that this book ends on a cliffhanger. Argh! Now I have to wait a year to find out what happens. The audiobook of Chainbreaker is read by Gary Furlong, and as I mention in my review of Timekeeper, the first book in the series, it took me a little time to warm up to him. But after the first twenty or thirty minutes, I became caught up in Furlong's performance. His consistent characterizations kept me on track, and his sense of pacing amped up the action scenes. I'll have more to say in my AudioFile magazine review. (Review copy for freelance assignment)

You'll want to listen to or read I'll Be Gone in the Dark by Michelle McNamara (Harper Audio; 9 hr, 45 min) with the lights on. In fact, you may have trouble sleeping--like ever again! This true crime story follows the trail of the Golden State Killer, who raped at least 50 women and murdered at least a dozen people in California from the late 1970s to late 1980s. He's never been indentified. McNamara was fascinated by this young man, who terrorized women in their homes in the middle of the night. He was a stalker, voyeur, rapist, and murderer. Truly chilling, especially because he's still on the loose. McNamara died young and unexpectedly before finishing this book, which was was completed by other true crime writers / investigators who knew her and knew her work. The finished book flows smoothly, and editor's notes alert you to the sections that were compiled from McNamara's notes or taped interviews. McNamara's writing style is engaging and finds a balance between informative and poetic. She doesn't leave out the gruesome details, but neither is she prurient. What's particularly interesting is the developing technology, especially for the DNA evidence. Warning: this story is damn creepy and scary. I can't imagine what it was like to live in California during that time. The audiobook is brilliantly read by Gaba Zackman, who approaches the material matter-of-factly but with good expression. She blurs the line between narrator and author, which allowed me to lose myself in the story. I had a copy of an eGalley, and so read a little when listening wasn't convenient. If you decide to listen to the book, don't forget to download the supplemental materials, which include a few maps that you'll want to refer to. Author Gillian Flynn reads her own introduction to the book, and McNamara's husband, the comedian / actor Patton Oswalt reads his own conclusion. The very end of the book consists of a letter McNamara wrote to the killer; you'll want to read or listen to that more than once. If you're into true crime or nonfiction, you won't want to miss this book, which comes out next week. (Review copy from the publisher)

Viewing

Okay, so apparently I live a very sheltered life. Until Saturday I hadn't even heard of the television show Parenthood. I'm now a little bit addicted. It stars Peter Krause (Six Feet Under) and Lauren Graham (Gilmore Girls) as well as other recognizable actors and explores parenthood in its many stages and guises. Great escape viewing. Here's the official trailer, which was a little out of focus on my screen, but may look better on yours. The show is on DVD and available for streaming on Netflix and Hulu.