Em...where do I start..... what instantly comes to mind about this book? Tough read.
Hovering my cursor rover the decline button I had to think whether to read this book or not, as this book was designated by a site for me to review. As my blog probably needs a bit of diversity I decided to not go with my instincts and move the mouse over to accept. Click.
This short video gives an insight into the book, The Canary List.
If you indeed watched the video your probably expecting a Dan Brown type book, but honestly, it is more a rip off that has come a few years too late to capitalise on The Da Vinci Code's success.
It is not necessarily a horror book, more a physiological thriller.
A little background is due to give an insight into the book.
The Pope is in a comma, the Catholic Church is in a state of unrest. The Vatican believes that a 12 year old girl has the fate of the church in her hands. Jamie Piper can sense 'the evil' and decides that the only person in the world she can trust is her teacher Mr. Crockett, as she is alone and scared. In the small hours of night, Jamie is once again frightened by 'the evil' and decides to visit Mr. Crockett.
As she visits Crockett, Jamie's foster families house is mysteriously burnt to the ground.
So there is an element of 'Angels and Demons', 'Sixth Sense' and 'Backdraft' about this book within the first few chapters. The book has all the ingredients of a good read but somehow misses the mark. Elements of suspicion arise when Police locate Jamie and get suspicious of Mr. Crockett's intentions of harbouring a minor. It is hard to read chapter after chapter of child paedophilia accusations and still have sympathy with the character.
Hopefully I have set the stage correctly, I believe the writing style is excellent. The scenes are wonderfully written, explaining the surroundings in just the right detail and always leaving the element of mystery where you can come to your own conclusions about a chapters strange happenings.
The Good: Its well written as I was saying and has a couple of twists as well as having a lasting effect into whether demons are really in the world causing havoc.
The Bad: The following quote is from the author Sigmund Brouwer's website for the Canary List:
"When one speaks of 'the smoke of Satan' in the holy rooms, it is all true-including these latest stories of violence and paedophilia...Cardinals who do not believe in Jesus, and bishops who are linked to the Demon."
Hovering my cursor rover the decline button I had to think whether to read this book or not, as this book was designated by a site for me to review. As my blog probably needs a bit of diversity I decided to not go with my instincts and move the mouse over to accept. Click.
This short video gives an insight into the book, The Canary List.
If you indeed watched the video your probably expecting a Dan Brown type book, but honestly, it is more a rip off that has come a few years too late to capitalise on The Da Vinci Code's success.
It is not necessarily a horror book, more a physiological thriller.
A little background is due to give an insight into the book.
The Pope is in a comma, the Catholic Church is in a state of unrest. The Vatican believes that a 12 year old girl has the fate of the church in her hands. Jamie Piper can sense 'the evil' and decides that the only person in the world she can trust is her teacher Mr. Crockett, as she is alone and scared. In the small hours of night, Jamie is once again frightened by 'the evil' and decides to visit Mr. Crockett.
As she visits Crockett, Jamie's foster families house is mysteriously burnt to the ground.
So there is an element of 'Angels and Demons', 'Sixth Sense' and 'Backdraft' about this book within the first few chapters. The book has all the ingredients of a good read but somehow misses the mark. Elements of suspicion arise when Police locate Jamie and get suspicious of Mr. Crockett's intentions of harbouring a minor. It is hard to read chapter after chapter of child paedophilia accusations and still have sympathy with the character.
Hopefully I have set the stage correctly, I believe the writing style is excellent. The scenes are wonderfully written, explaining the surroundings in just the right detail and always leaving the element of mystery where you can come to your own conclusions about a chapters strange happenings.
There is just something about the book which does not have me dying to turn the next page, I can not quite put my finger on it.....this is not a cop out. I honestly believe that this book has looked around other literary pieces and not thought too much about its own audience and how they would judge it. I believe as a reader that the author should be thinking about the audience 100% of the time, such as thinking about how they would interpret a scene or or how they would feel about a twist in the tale. It is fair enough to look at other books and see their formula for success but if the writer does not have heart and believe in the book, then it is not going to grip them in the way it should.
The Good: Its well written as I was saying and has a couple of twists as well as having a lasting effect into whether demons are really in the world causing havoc.
The Bad: The following quote is from the author Sigmund Brouwer's website for the Canary List:
"When one speaks of 'the smoke of Satan' in the holy rooms, it is all true-including these latest stories of violence and paedophilia...Cardinals who do not believe in Jesus, and bishops who are linked to the Demon."
-- the Vatican's Chief Exorcist, Father Gabriele Amorth author of Memoirs of an Exorcist, as quoted in The London Times, March 11, 2010
It is clear as day when you read this book that the author does not have a good word to say about the Catholic church. Be prepared for that, there is not really one good Catholic in the book. Obviously there are lots of Catholics that love Jesus but I am pretty sure lots Catholics will not love this book because of the way they are portrayed.
Conclusion: Read this book with an open mind. Its pretty fast paced and you will be swept along, possibly a bit too much as there is a lot of shifting about; place to place and character to character. You may find yourself raising your eyebrows alot and I found the book exhausting. I would not pick it up again once I have read it. For that reason, I give it a 2.5/5
