The Dinner by Herman Koch

The Dinner is an intriguing novel. It occurs during the multiple course a dinner at a fancy restaurant that is attended by two Dutch couples. Each has their own interests and deep need to protect themselves and their family. It is a well paced novel that slowly lets the reader in on the secret held within its pages, which the reader discovers slowly as the novel progresses.

It is a mystery novel of sorts, but not in the conventional way. The reader is pulled into a complicated mess that can be our family and it explores the deep desire to protect our loved ones at any cost. The novel shows what some people will do to keep up appearance,  the battles that are waged between brothers, and finally the cost of silence in the name of love.

This is a wonderful novel that is different from many others. It can be enjoyed by many different kinds of readers and I highly recommend giving it a chance. I promise you will not be disappointed!

The End of the Affair by Graham Greene

I did not know what to expect for my first Graham Greene novel. Yes I chose an unconventional one to begin. A novel about a love affair that ended badly is not the author's usual fair. But I guess it was the girl in me that wished to read a romance, though a tragic one, more than a spy novel.                                                                                                                                                                                                For a long while I was unsure about this book. It was not the writing that confused me, but the story itself. It is a odd story of a man who connects with his lover's husband during a tragic time. It is an odd story where you are unsure if you should feel sorry for the characters or hate them. The character, at least for me, had little to no redeeming qualities. They were not likable in any way for me.  As most readers I'm sure can sympathize it is hard to read a book that does not contain at least one character that you can relate to or at the very least like.

The novel's simple yet interesting story does grab you in an unexpected way. The underlining sadness and pathetic nature of the characters stay with you long after the last page is read. This is not a story I can find myself relating to, but I found it haunting to read of an other's predicament. It is an interesting tale that is subtle and simple in its writing style. I would not be surprised to find myself reading it again in ten years or so. I also look forward to reading more from Graham Greene.

A Clash of Kings by R.R. Martin

This is the second novel in the Song of Fire and Ice series. R.R. Martin is an amazing author. He is a wordsmith of greatness and he does an amazing job of creating an entire world full of betrayal, love, families, and magic. This is an instance where the novel is amazing, but the show is too. On a side note, I think they did an amazing thing by making this into a show instead of going the movie root. This allows for much more detail and does not disappoint fans.                                                                                                                                     A Clash of Kings carries on the story of everyone who is fighting for the Iron Thorn.  It is a bloody battle to rule a kingdom that is changing. The only get more complicated and grows into a great beast. While reading I cannot help but ask where can we go from here? Even for non-fantasy readers, these novels are engaging, fun and at some points shocking. R.R. Martin does not hold true to conventional ideas and anything can happen. His novels are refreshing for this reason. Like The Wire, no character is safe and that makes is so much more true to real life. Yes, the world is magnificent and not at all possible, but the reader is able to connect with the human stories that are told. 

A Clash of Kings is a great second books that helps to further push the story of the Lannisters, Starks, Baratheons and Daenerys Targaryen along in ways that are unexpected, new and sometimes shocking to the reader (though it could be argued that nothing could shock the reader more than what occurred at the end of the first novel). I cannot wait to the third novel and see where this story goes. Considering that R.R. Martin refuses to rush the new, yet unpublished novels, I just know the entire planned seven books will continue to delight readers across the globe.