Kristopher Cook - Eclectic Book Blog @kristophercook - Tumblr Blog

A killer who targets lone women, who breaks into their apartments and performs terrifying ritualistic acts of torture on them before finishing them off. His surgical skills lead police to suspect he is a physician - a physician who, instead of saving lives, takes them. But as homicide detective Thomas Moore and his partner Jane Rizzoli begin their investigation, they make a startling discovery. Closely linked to these killings is Catherine Cordell, a beautiful doctor with a mysterious past. Two years ago she was subjected to a horrifying rape and shot her attacker dead. . . . #tessgerritsen #books #thriller #novel #book #bookaddict #bookaholic #bookstagram #bookstagram #disturbing #horror #psychologicalthriller #rizzoliandisles #reading #booksbooksbooks#serialkiller #scary #TheSurgeon #Chilling #psychological #thriller #suspense #crimefiction #suspensethriller #thrillerbook #thrillerreads #thrillerbooks #suspensebooks #thrillerbook #bookstagramcommunity #horrorcommunity #mysterybooks #suspensethriller #crimereads (at Liverpool UK) https://www.instagram.com/p/CSYpUR7AfB0/?utm_medium=tumblr

A while back I read Ira Levin’s, Rosemary’s Baby; having seen the film countless times. I found it to be one of those rare instances when the film felt better than the original material – but that doesn’t take anything away from Levin’s extraordinary craft. I’ve also seen The Boys from Brazil, another book that I’m keen to read in the near future. . For Joanna, her husband, Walter, and their children, the move to beautiful Stepford seems almost too good to be true. It is. For behind the town's idyllic facade lies a terrible secret - a secret so shattering that no one who encounters it will ever be the same. . . . #IraLevin #StepfordWives #TheBoysFromBrazil #RosemarysBaby #Film #Horror #ScienceFiction #ScFi #BookReview #Bookreviewer #BookBlogger #Instabooks #Books #thrillerreads #thrillerbooks #suspensebooks #booksta #thrillerbook #bookstagramcommunity #horrorcommunity #mysterybooks #suspensethriller #crimereads #mysterynovel #bookishlife #bookreviews #bookrecommendation #bookreader (at Liverpool UK) https://www.instagram.com/p/CSH5R-3riF6/?utm_medium=tumblr

Eden-Olympia is more than just a multinational business park; it is a virtual city-state in itself, with the latest in services and facilities for the most elite high-tech industries. Isolated and secure, overlooking the luxurious French Riviera, the residents lack nothing. Yet one day Dr. Greenwood from Eden-Olympia's clinic goes on a suicidal shooting spree. Dr. Jane Sinclair is hired as his replacement, and she and her husband, Paul, are given Dr. Greenwood's house as a residence. . Although I didn’t instantly fall in love with Ballard’s work, Crash feeling so bizarre upon my first reading, his novels have grown on me. He feels like one of those authors that the more you read, the more you fall deeper into his dark, dystopian worlds. . Super-Cannes feels no different in that regard. Filled with Ballard’s voyeuristic view of the world, through the eyes of a perverted civilisation, the boundaries are pushed beyond usual limits. . . . #JGBallard #SuperCannes #Books #Bookreview #Instabooks #bookstagram #cinema #cinephile #crash #davidcronenberg #ballard #beautifulbooks #bookaddict #booklove #booklovers #booksbooksbooks #bookstagramph #britishfilm #capitalistrealism #currentlyreading (at Liverpool UK) https://www.instagram.com/p/CSFeX1JL9K5/?utm_medium=tumblr

Welcome to the new normal. The narrative is inevitable, these books are not taste trophies- they’re a novel species of sensory apparatus, a big ticket item for a dark age, a semblance of the yawning now. . I’ve been excited to read Bonding ever since I saw it pop up on @b.r.yeager page - the guy has great taste, so go check him out. . Equally, now that Maggie has made Bonding free to download, you should go and check out her page too on twitter. I’m not far through, but it feels like a fair mix between Tokyo Decadence (Ryū Murakami) and Goth (Otsuichi) – Switching from gruesome macabre to surreal horror. There’s plenty for everyone but fair warning; like the books aforementioned it’s a difficult one to get through at night. . . . # MaggieSiebert #Bonding #Expatpress #RyuMurakami # Otsuichi #TokyoDecadence #Goth #Horror #Bizzaro #ShortStories #Bookstagram #macabre #AdultFiction #creepy #horrorfan #darkart #horrorcommunity #horroraddict #death #horrorjunkie #instahorror #terror #horrorcollector #evil #horrorbook #horrorfiction (at Liverpool, England, UK) https://www.instagram.com/p/CRUSOjnL7iz/?utm_medium=tumblr

In a country teetering on the brink of civil war, two young people meet—sensual, fiercely independent Nadia and gentle, restrained Saeed. They embark on a furtive love affair and are soon cloistered in a premature intimacy by the unrest roiling their city. When it explodes, turning familiar streets into a patchwork of checkpoints and bomb blasts, they begin to hear whispers about doors—doors that can whisk people far away, if perilously and for a price. As the violence escalates, Nadia and Saeed decide that they no longer have a choice. Leaving their homeland and their old lives behind, they find a door and step through. . Exit West was recommended to me (ages ago) by @curlie.reads – I’m hoping this is as good as you say 🤞🏻 If anyone has any more recommendations let me know in the comments below / shoot me a DM. . . . #ExitWest #mohsinhamid #book #books #bookstagram #fiction #booknerd #reading #bookish #bibliophile #booksofinstagram #bookaddict #booksbooksbooks #bookcommunity #booklove #igreads #instabooks #instabook #bookblogger #goodreads #readmorebooks #booksofig #literature #bookgram #eastern # MagicalRealism #contemporary #AdultFiction (at Liverpool, England, UK) https://www.instagram.com/p/CRKNJtzLJEA/?utm_medium=tumblr

The final book in the original trilogy (yes, I know there's an origins book) capping the series off. . I'm hoping this one lives up to the lofty heights of the previous two - still not knowing which of them was best 🍴🍷 . Hannibal is a character that stretches beyond the realms of horror, partly because of the brilliant writing of Harris in creating a multi-faceted villain, and equally because of Anthony Hopkins brilliant portrayal in the films. . If you've never read any of these, they truly are classics! Each offering up a slightly different perspective each time. . . . #hannibal #thomasharris #canibal #thriller #policefiction #crimefiction #mysterybooks #jodiefoster #anthonyhopkins #disturbing #gory #horror #jonathandemme #bookstagram #booklover #reading #bibliophile #igreads #fiction #bookaddict (at Liverpool, England, UK) https://www.instagram.com/p/CQ4WX1GASgw/?utm_medium=tumblr

Pnin is Nabokov’s fourth book that he wrote in English and was published in 1957. The protagonist, Timofey Pnin, is a Russian-born assistant professor in his 50s living in the United States, whose character is believed to be based partially on the life of Nabokov's colleague Marc Szeftel as well as on Nabokov himself. Pnin teaches Russian at the fictional Waindell College. . Pnin was originally written as a series of sketches, and Nabokov originally began writing Chapter 2 in January 1954, around the same time Lolita was being finalized. Sections of Pnin were first published, in installments, in The New Yorker; to generate income while Nabokov was scouring the United States for a publisher willing to release Lolita. It was soon expanded and published in book form. . Ever since I read Lolita, I’ve always had a thing for Nabokov. Despite being a more classical writer, his work remains as intellectual and relevant today as it did back then. . . . #Pnin #Nabokov #Russian #russianliterature #vladimirnabokov #americanliterature #bookreview #booksbooksbooks #booksiread #literatur #modernclassic #everymanlibrary #bibliophile #bibliophiles #blogger #bookpeople #bookrecommendation #booksbooksbooks #bookworm #fiction #readersofinstagram #readeveryday #wordsmith (at Liverpool UK) https://www.instagram.com/p/CQUDwcWrnXH/?utm_medium=tumblr

I really enjoyed @romyhausmann debut novel, Dear Child, which centred around a woman and her family being held captive in a cabin in the woods. In fact, it was one of my favourite thrillers from 2020. If you haven't read it, definitely go and check it out! . This time around, the story focuses on Nadja, Polish-born women living in Germany. She’s being framed for a crime she didn’t commit, and possibly not for the first time. It’s one of those plots that you never know whose telling the truth and who you should be rooting for. . Thank you to @quercusbooks for sending me an advanced copy. Set to be published June 24th 2021 – Available at all good booksellers. . . . #RomyHausmann #Sleepless #Thriller #German #Translatedfiction #bookstagram #bookish #booklover #books #bookworm #readersofinstagram #reading #womenintranslation #bookstagrammer #bookblogger #readtheworld #currentlyreading #literature #readwomen #translatedlit #whatiamreading #booklove #bookreviewers #translated #bookishlove #bookpile #bookrecommendation #europeanliterature #mystery #suspense (at Liverpool UK) https://www.instagram.com/p/CQDjlUsLnxE/?utm_medium=tumblr

“Looking up at the endless tiers of balconies, he felt uneasily like a visitor to a malevolent zoo where terraces of vertically mounted cages contained creatures of random and ferocious cruelty.” . Although not Ballard’s greatest, High-Rise is good fun nonetheless. There’s plenty of political and social sattire to keep you interested in the plot, and the characters are as off-the-wall bonkers as you’d expect in this kind of novel. . There’s equal focus on technology and how it dominates our everyday lives without us ever realising, and the survival instinct that kicks in when we’re forced to hunt. Both of these play out in horrific Ballardarian fashion, creating several divides throughout the complex. My full review is in my bio – go check it out. . . . #JGBallard #bookstagram #books #bookstagrammer #freedom #hope #scifi #ballard #bookaddict #booklove #bookshelves #capitalistrealism #brutalism #currentlyreading #hiddleston #highrise #modernart #modernphotography #scifibooks #dystopian #bookreview #british #literature #britishnovel #novels #sattire #capitalism (at Liverpool UK) https://www.instagram.com/p/CPdhMvlLw2_/?utm_medium=tumblr

Recently, I’ve been struggling to sleep. The problem seems to constantly feed into itself like an endless cycle of misfortune. The less sleep I get, the more I think about sleep. And naturally, the more I think about sleep, the less I seem to get. . Through a bit of online sleuthing, I came across this book, Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker PhD. He’s spent most of his adult life studying the effects of sleep, most notably on the brain. It seems that we, as humans, have been neglecting how important this process is. Not only does a full night’s sleep (8-hours) give us the rest we need to tackle the following day head-on, but it also improves just about every other function in our lives; lowers the chances of mental health deterioration, improves mood, improves physical performance as well as our abilities to learn. . Matthew Walker is a British scientist and professor of neuroscience and psychology at the University of California, Berkeley. His research focuses on the impact of sleep on human health and disease. Previously, he was a professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. . It’s in reading this book that I’m hoping to better understand how, and why, I need to sleep more. I’m not expecting a magic-bullet to cure all my problems, but if I can garner some insight and satisfaction from the topic then I’ll be suitably pleased. . How many hours sleep do you get a night? Do you think this is enough to keep you at peak performance? Let me know in the comments – I’m keen to hear what the general rule-of-thumb is. . . . #WhyWeSleep #MatthewWalker #Sleep #Non-Fiction #Self-Help #Improvement #Health #MentalHealthAwareness #MentalHealth #reading #book #bookrecommendation #wellness #currentlyreading #healthylifestyle #functionalmedicine #integrativehealth #healthyliving #learning #nonfiction #optimalhealth #stayhealthy #bookblogging #dreams #explained #fitnesseducation #greatread #insomnia #learningeveryday #livehealthier (at Liverpool UK) https://www.instagram.com/p/CPG-gVML1hI/?utm_medium=tumblr

I thoroughly enjoyed Izumi Suzuki’s irrelavent sci-fi cyberpunk shorts. Although a few of them were a little bland, the concept as a whole was incredibly fun. Suzuki plays on traditional sexuality, often mixing the roles and creating relationships that feel unbalanced compared to other science-fiction pieces. It’s also the unique selling-point of Terminal Boredom – a penchant for the unexpected. . Synopsis: The first English-language publication of the work of Izumi Suzuki, a legend of Japanese science fiction and a countercultural icon. . Izumi Suzuki was born in 1949. After dropping out of high school, she worked in a factory before finding success and infamy as a model and actress. Her acting credits include both pink films and classics of 1970s Japanese cinema. When the father of her children, jazz musician Kaoru Abe, died of an overdose, Suzuki’s creative output went into hyperdrive, and she began producing irreverent and punky short fiction, novels and essays. . You can find the full review in my bio. Terminal Boredom is now available from @versobooks and all good booksellers. . . . #IzumiSuzuki #TerminalBoredom #Verso #Japanese #JapaneseLiterature #SciFi #Sciencefiction #Cyberpunk #NobuyoshiAraki #bookstagram #bookreview #books #booklover #bibliophile #bookworm #womenintranslation #readtheworld #fictionintranslation #translatedbooks #translatedlit #bookreviewers #debutfiction #translated #bookaesthetics #bookcover #bookrecommendation #bookstagramuk #sciencefictionbooks #futurism #dystopia (at Christleton Duck Pond) https://www.instagram.com/p/CO5jAErroTK/?igshid=kfiwdxvmiy5k

I thoroughly enjoyed Izumi Suzuki’s irrelavent sci-fi cyberpunk shorts. Although a few of them were a little bland, the concept as a whole was incredibly fun. Suzuki plays on traditional sexuality, often mixing the roles and creating relationships that feel unbalanced compared to other science-fiction pieces. It’s also the unique selling-point of Terminal Boredom – a penchant for the unexpected. . The first English-language publication of the work of Izumi Suzuki, a legend of Japanese science fiction and a countercultural icon. . Izumi Suzuki was born in 1949. After dropping out of high school, she worked in a factory before finding success and infamy as a model and actress. Her acting credits include both pink films and classics of 1970s Japanese cinema. When the father of her children, jazz musician Kaoru Abe, died of an overdose, Suzuki’s creative output went into hyperdrive, and she began producing irreverent and punky short fiction, novels and essays. . You can find the full review in my bio. Terminal Boredom s now available from @versobooks and all good booksellers. . . . #IzumiSuzuki #TerminalBoredom #Verso #Japanese #JapaneseLiterature #SciFi #Sciencefiction #Cyberpunk #NobuyoshiAraki #bookstagram #bookreview #books #booklover #bibliophile #womenintranslation #readtheworld #fictionintranslation #translatedbooks #readersofig #translatedlit #bookreviewers #debutfiction #translated #bookaesthetics #bookrecommendation #bookstagramuk #sciencefictionbooks #scifiworld #futurism #dystopia (at Christleton Duck Pond) https://www.instagram.com/p/COyTSLHrQ9v/?igshid=h20c4kb5z7bp

In a remote Chinese town – where the theft of a few chickens counts as a major crime – a young woman is found brutally murdered… with her heart, lungs and liver removed. Inspector Lu Fei, a weary cop who fled the city, suddenly finds himself under the intense scrutiny of the ruling party in Beijing. . Although the premise sounds a little cliché, a weary cop down on his luck, I’m still keen to read this one. For anyone who’s been following my posts will know, I have a keen interest in China and plan to go back there someday soon. And it’s this side that holds the most interest here. . Klingborg has an MA from Harvard where his major field of study was Chinese Cultural Anthropology, leading him to live and work in China for several years. . I can’t wait to see how he threads the subtleties of Chinese culture into a murder mystery without it sounding ham-fisted. Thank you to @headlinebooks for sending an advanced copy – City of Ice will be published in Hardback, 13th May. What murder mysteries have you been reading recently? . . . #CityofIce #BrianKlingborg #China #ChineseCulture #Thriller #Murder #Mystery #Crime #ChinesePolice #Headline #bookstagram #booklover #books #bookworm #bookstagrammer #suspense #reading #action #fiction #booksbooksbooks #novel #psychologicalthriller #bookcommunity #booklove #currentlyreading #igreads (at Liverpool UK) https://www.instagram.com/p/COkzIymrmCN/?igshid=1a8lg50vt4sz9

For seven years, Xinran Xue hosted a daily radio phone-in programme for Radio Nanjing during which she discussed women's lives, and invited women to call in and talk about themselves. Broadcast between 10 and 12 at night, Words on the Night Breeze soon became famous all over China for its powerful, honest discussions of what it means to be a woman in today's China. It started in 1990, a time when China seemed to be 'opening up', both for the Chinese and for the world. Xinran's programme revealed aspects of women's lives that had never been talked about in public before. She felt as if she was opening a tiny window into a huge fortress whose inhabitants had never before communicated with the outside world. Soon she was receiving over two hundred letters a day from women telling her their stories. She realised that she knew far less than she had thought about what it means to be a Chinese woman and embarked on a journey of discovery to collect their stories. . I’ve been wanting to read more non-fiction of late, and giving my vested interest in China I thought this would be a great place to start. Xinran sheds light both on the persistence of oppression of women in China as well as the new opportunities for women in modern Chinese society. Drawn mainly from anecdotes and interviews, and sparsely substantiated by historical facts and statistics, this book takes on important issues without resorting to a black-and-white view of the situation. . . . #TheGoodWomenofChina #Xinran #China #ChineseLiterature #Translated #Translatednonfiction #nonfiction #communism #womensrights #chinese #women #books #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #chinesebook #chineseculture #mandarinbooks #booklife #readingcommunity #amreading #bookbloggersofinstagram #bookholic #bookjunkie #bookreccomendation #booksintranslation #booksofinstagram (at Liverpool UK) https://www.instagram.com/p/COgNFAxL2dP/?igshid=1dufigtz987lk

Although I enjoyed Klara and the Sun, it’s safe to say I wasn’t blown away by the story. As with most of Ishiguro's work, Klara and the Sun is both deeply moving and incredibly sad; but thought provoking nonetheless. There are a few recycled tropes that stops this one being totally original, but if you're a fan of his work, definitely pick it up. Read my full review with the link in my bio. . . . #klaraandthesun #book #bookcover #booksofinstagram #bookcoverdesign #kazuoishiguro #bookstagram #neverletmego #reading #books #bookworm #bookstagrammer #bookrecommendations #ishiguro #japaneseauthors #bookerprize #faberandfaber #beautifulbooks #bookaesthetic #booknerdigan #fiction #japanesewriters #nobelprize #beautifulcover #waterstones #bookcoverdesign #bookcover #theguardian #british (at Liverpool UK) https://www.instagram.com/p/CN-UTs2rxlr/?igshid=1f940qleyk9vf

‘Within the concealing walls of an elegant forty-storey tower block, the affluent tenants are hell-bent on an orgy of destruction. Cocktail parties degenerate into marauding attacks on ‘enemy’ floors and the once-luxurious amenities become an arena for riots and technological mayhem.’ . I’ve been a big fan of Ballard’s work ever since I read The Atrocity Exhibition. For those who’re unaware of his surrealist new wave style, Ballard has a knack of twisting the normal everyday into a perverse introspective light, shining directly on society. The subjects of Ballard's stories - time and space, the mass media's control on human lives, individuals discovering conspiracies by corporations or governments - are characteristic of his work as a whole. . High-Rise looks at the war between British classes, something that’s been prevalent for many decades with the working class often feeling put down or ignored by higher-class politicians and aristocracy. . This is the fourth Ballard book I’ve read, the others being; Crash, The Atrocity Exhibition, and Cocaine Nights. You can find reviews for each of these on my website (link in the bio). . . . #JGBallard #HighRise #Crash #CocaineNights #TheAtrocityExhibition #British #Fiction #bookstagram #books #bookaddict #booklovers #booksbooksbooks #capitalistrealism #climatefiction #paperbacksfromhell #britishfilm #jamesspader #existentialism #postmodern #beautifulbooks #brutalism #igbooks #currentlyreading #architecture #bookstagram #books (at Liverpool UK) https://www.instagram.com/p/CNk94yALAQX/?igshid=scwdecntufqf

Kendi weaves together an electrifying combination of ethics, history, law, and science, bringing it all together with an engaging personal narrative of his own awakening to antiracism. . At the turn of the year, I wanted to be more conscious of the books I was reading, especially in a non-fiction format. I’m sure you don’t need me to tell you about everything that’s going on in today’s world – but I made the decision to use this as a backdrop for further educating myself on the problems that do exist and how I can start to become part of an active solution. . How to be an Antiracist has been highly praised for its open and honest portrayal of racism within society and how we all contribute towards it without realising it. Ibram Kendi breaks it down into two camps; you’re either racist or an antiracist – there’s no middle ground. To be ‘neutral, or ‘colour-blind’ is to sit on the fence, therefore allowing racism to pass through society unchallenged, which ultimately makes you a racist. . He also breaks down a lot of the terminology used in modern environments into a more manageable format, making it easier to understand, which can only make it easier for people to take action. My question to you is, what will you do to not only educate yourself on these issues but to also take action? . . . #HowtoBeanAntiracist #IbramXKendi #Racism #Society #nonfiction #blacklivesmatter #antiracism #bookstagram #antiracist #justiceforbreonnataylor #justiceforgeorgefloyd #howtobeanally #whitefragility #icantbreathe #nojusticenopeace #books #bookstagrammer #bookworm #educateyourself #igreads #america #antiracisteducation #bookaddict #bookclub #booksofinstagram #racialequality #racialjustice #socialjustice #antiracistreadinglist (at Liverpool, England, UK) https://www.instagram.com/p/CNQUQ1RL7zZ/?igshid=1wrf37ehobpd1

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