Tokyo Heist

TOP TEN TUESDAY: Ten Books Set Outside The US

Top Ten Tuesday is a feature run by BrokeAndBookish each week. This week it’s all about different book settings, especially as so many popular books are set in the USA, so it’s good to share books that are set in different places to the norm.

FullSizeRender (1)Beautiful Broken Things by Sara Barnard
This book is set in Brighton in England. It stuck with me as I actually live about 45 minutes away from Brighton so it was fun recognising the place that the story was set.

 

 

tokyo heist elenasquareeyesTokyo Heist by Diana Renn
As the title might suggest, the majority of this book is set in Tokyo. The descriptions of Tokyo are very vivid and then when the story moves to Kyoto it sounds like such a beautiful and peaceful place.

 

lagoon elenasquareeyesLagoon by Nnedi Okorafor
Lagoon is set in Lagos in Nigeria – a place I’ve never been too and I’d never read a book set there either. While I have mixed feelings about the book, I loved how Lagos was described and it felt like a bustling city that may have it’s problems but was still kind of beautiful. (more…)

REVIEW: Tokyo Heist by Diana Renn

tokyo heist elenasquareeyesWhen Violet goes to stay with her artist father over the summer, she never expects to be embroiled in a hunt for a missing priceless sketch by Vincent Van Gough. The sketches are stolen from her father’s client and are held ransom for a painting that hasn’t been seen in decades and until they find it, all their lives are in danger. With her friend Reika, Violet search for the missing van Gough takes her from Seattle to the streets of Tokyo to the beautiful Kyoto. As the mystery deepens and the danger heightens, Violet isn’t sure who to trust – all she knows is she has to find the painting and the criminals before it’s too late.

I loved the whodunit aspect of Tokyo Heist. While “heist” may be in the title, the story really follows the aftermath of the original heist as Violet tries to figure out what happened. There’s a lot of people who seem as if they are hiding something and then there’s the involvement of the Japanese mafia and who could possible know or want to work with them.

Violet is an interesting character. She loves art and Japanese culture but her love of manga and use of Japanese words in her everyday lexicon makes it seem like she’s fetishizing the Japanese culture. It’s a bit awkward, especially at the beginning as Violet feels like she knows everything about Japan but when she arrives in Tokyo it’s a shock to her. It was quite nice to show that while Violet definitely had an interest in Japan and manga, she didn’t really know as much as she thought she did. (more…)

WWW Wednesday – 4th November 2015

WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Taking on a World of Words. It’s a simple meme where you just have to answer three questions:
– What are you currently reading?
– What did you recently finish reading?
– What do you think you’ll read next?

I think it’s a great way to share my recent reads as my reviews are always way behind what I’m actually reading.

So here’s my answers!

What am I currently reading?tokyo heist elenasquareeyes
Tokyo Heist by Diana Renn
I love anything to do with heists. I love true stories about heists (as long as no one got hurt) and I love books and films about heists so this book is right up my street. It’s all about a missing painting and I’m pretty much bang on half way through and I do like it even though the main characters dad is the absolute worst – he is really not a good parent and he bugs me whenever he appears.

What did I recently finish reading?Fairest elenasquareeyes
Fairest by Marissa Meyer
Though it’s not a proper part of The Lunar Chronicles (Re)Readalong I wanted to read Fairest before Winter came out this month. As Fairest is a prequel it was interesting to see what Lavana was like when she was younger and what made her so evil or if she was always like that. It was a quick read and now I’m really looking forward to see what happens in Winter.

What do I think I’ll read next?the house of hidden mothers elenasquareeyes
It depends on when I finish my current read. Either I’ll read The House of Hidden Mothers by Meera Syal, a book that seems like it’s a family drama but also has some humour in it, or if it’s out I’ll go straight to Winter by Marissa Meyer because I can’t wait to see how the series ends.