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Novel difficult to put down

23/12/2020

One Little Lie
by Carne Maxwell

“Oh! What a tangled web we weave, when first we practise to deceive!”  So said Sir  Walter Scott  And so it was when Melissa decided to tell one little lie.
Set on Waiheke Island, the novel is about four young women with a longstanding friendship taking a working holiday during their University break to earn some money picking tomatoes. The story gradually weaves in relationships and romances until  the heroine makes a poor decision and covers it up with one little lie.
This lie grows in magnitude until it involves a pregnancy, her family, her friends, drug taking, drug dealing, and eventually a death which rocks the little community. And we are left with the quandary – was it an accident or was it murder?
The story is told through the voices of Melissa, her cousin Seth, Stephen and Clive, a local policeman, all one time friends but circumstances occur to change the dynamics of this friendship.
From the first chapter where Melissa is abducted and almost buried alive I was hooked and eagerly read the chapters as the plot evolved to its satisfactory conclusion.
The story scans well, is easy to follow and descriptive with such passages as “Lies. You tell one and wham – it’s like a ticking time bomb in your head. It quietly sits there fermenting away and pops up, without warning, over and over and over again. Even if you tell the truth there’s no escape because you’ve already ruined everything”
I found it difficult to put down and would hide in a corner ignoring what else I could be doing, but deciding that, to read a good book was good for the soul.  This was one of those books.
“One Little Lie” is a novel set in New Zealand with a New Zealand flavour and will be enjoyed by people of all ages as they too think about the consequences of  not telling the truth.
Walter Scott was right.

Review by Merilyn Mary

Title: One Little Lie
Author: Carne Maxwell
Publisher: Carne Maxwell
ISBN: 9780473534509
RRP: $30 from author’s website. Varies in stores from $29.99 - $37.99
Available: website https://www.carnemaxwellauthor.co.nz
some Paper Plus stores; Poppies Howick; Writers Plot Upper Hutt; The Women’s Bookshop Ponsonby; Wheelers
Amazon: print ISBN 9780473534509; kindle IBSN 9780473547271
iBooks ISBN 9780473547288; Kobo ISBN 9780473547264
Barnes & Noble ISBN 9780473547264; Google Books ISBN 9780473547264

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Sequel that’s even better than the first

15/12/2020

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Mophead Tu: The Queen’s Poem
by Selina Tusitala Marsh

Mophead’s, or Selina Tusitala Marsh’s, journey continues in this second delightful book. Note the pun in the short title.
If you can take the time to click over to my review of the first, Mophead: How Your Difference Makes a Difference,
http://www.flaxroots.com/flaxflower/autobiographical-tale-a-delight you’ll appreciate the backstory to this before continuing.
Now read on.
Here is a sequel that’s even better than its excellent predecessor.
The author, having succeeded brilliantly in this country, takes a further huge step in her career when she receives a message from the Head of the Commonwealth. Can she achieve to the same high level in the UK?
The book, in hardcover as was the first, makes full use of its 100 pages as even the inside front and back covers are used and, in fact are a vital part of the text.
And again, using delightful cartoon-type illustrations and humorous asides, the storyline continues when Mophead, aka Selina Tusitala Marsh, aka poet laureate, is invited to write and perform a poem at a royal occasion in Westminster Abbey. There are rules imposed that must be adhered to.
The poem she presents, “Unity”, is included right at the beginning – it introduces the storyline and sets the theme –
Let’s talk about unity
Here in London’s Westminster Abbey
A simply-written message in rhyming couplets, it clearly states values, personal and universal.
In London, with top royals present, the rules are adhered to, but poetry can be subversive, and “Unity” reveals an alternative history and comment on colonialism and the Pacific.
“Unity” is a relevant text poem for school study. The whole book, Mophead Tu: The Queen’s Poem, likewise.
This is a book that looks so simple yet is obviously the result of a great amount of thought, work, writing, drawing, rewriting. It has been well worth all the effort put into it.
In terms of books it’s not lengthy, but it is huge!

Review by Bronwyn Elsmore

Title: Mophead Tu: The Queen’s Poem
Author: Selina Tusitala Marsh
Publisher: Auckland University Press
ISBN: 9781869409449
RRP: $24.99 hardback
Available: bookshops

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Good whodunnit

9/12/2020

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The Murder Club
by Nikki Crutchley

It was with great anticipation that I began reading another Miller Hatcher novel. Having read a previous book featuring Miller, I was looking forward to reconnecting with her and the next phase in her life. I was not disappointed, this is a great read, that is easy to follow with plenty of false leads and suspects with a surprising conclusion.
A murder mystery novel suitable for readers of 18+ years, as it does feature some violence, the odd swear word and damaged personalities.
We meet Miller Hatcher as she is picking up the pieces of her life as an investigative journalist after a disastrous reporting event in her previous hometown. She has moved to her deceased mother's house in a much smaller location and secured a job with the local paper, which is not without some office rivalry and jealousy. Miller receives an anonymous letter one day, saying “Tonight's the Night”. Miller ignores it but then a woman is found murdered in her home, strangled – with a scarf left around her neck. The letters keep coming and the murders keep happening.
A local girl, Cassie Hughes, has, for many years, been trying to find the person who murdered her mother. She is fixated on one name and after meeting Miller, asks her to report on the cold case to spark interest again and maybe uncover the murderer. Cassie is in a rather controlling relationship and the author shows how these relationships can continue despite ill treatment of one party.
Logan Dodds is introduced to the story and he is obsessed with true crime since his sister was murdered 30 years ago. Logan is a creepy character with a unhealthy fixation on murders, forming his new venture “The True Crime Enthusiasts Club”.
Miller Hatcher struggles with her own personal demons, but these flaws make her more sympathetic to those who have been affected by traumatic events in their lives, murder being one of them.
The author describes the town, people and events very well, with shady characters and one desperate for infamous attention. The reader is never quite sure who the perpetrator is and the book leads to a surprising finale.
Miller Hatcher is fortunate to have an ally in the Police Force, Kahu Parata, who also has his own personal tragedy to cope with.
The story highlights that events in a person's childhood can lead to a flawed adult, and how some relationships can be destructive.
This is a good “whodunnit” story and makes you wonder what secrets a small town can hide!
I look forward to the next episode in Miller Hatcher’s life.

Review by Fran Hartley

Title: The Murder Club
Author: Nikki Crutchley
Publisher: Oak House Press
ISBN: 9780473505929
RRP: $34.99
Available: Amazon, order from your local bookshop or www.nikkicrutchley.com

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Incredible detail in tribute to sculptor

3/12/2020

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Paul Dibble X:  A Decade of Sculpture 2010-2020
Text by Fran Dibble

The enormity of the size and variation of Paul Dibble’s work comes to life in this stunning celebration of his work over the last decade. From his iconic huia birds to the moving Featherston Stand, He Tino Mamoa (It’s a Long Way) and the surprising Killer Rabbits series with a serious message of rabbits being one of our earliest inflictors of environmental damage in New Zealand.
    This large format, 180 page book has stunning photography throughout. It includes Dibble’s finished sculptures in galleries and public places and working in Palmerston North in his workshop. Dibble’s artistic process from an idea to a 3-D form is shown in his first drawings, moulds, mock ups, materials used and the finished sculptures.
     Woven carefully throughout the book are snippets of Dibble’s handwritten notes reflecting on his art and influences. This is a treat for the reader as they get a real insight into the artist’s thoughts and opinions.
    Dibble was born in Thames and raised on a farm in Waitakaruru on the Hauraki Plains. He does have artists in his family, but had never been to an art gallery or even a library until he left the farm and went to Elam School of Fine Arts in Auckland.
    He says that even though he admires art outside of New Zealand, it doesn’t influence his work. “As far back as I can remember, my art has been preoccupied with images of this country” – Paul Dibble. This is very evident in every series of work that Dibble takes on, with strong themes of New Zealand’s fauna and flora and our social history.
    The book is collated and written by Fran Dibble, his wife of 35 years; who is a fellow artist and art critic. Fran’s close perspective is unique and insightful.
    My only criticism is the cover of the book. Clearly the X represents a decade of Dibble’s work, but the image does not immediately connect you to his iconic sculptures.
    Readers will be amazed to read that this book focuses only on the last decade of Dibble’s work and not a life time. The incredible detail in the large scale sculptures that he brings to life really make people stop, look and contemplate.
    Paul Dibble X: A Decade of sculpture is a real tribute to one of New Zealand’s most original and respected sculptors.

Review by Renee Hollis

Title: Paul Dibble X: A Decade of Sculpture 2010-2020
Text by Fran Dibble
Publisher: Bateman Books
ISBN: 978-1-98-853841-9
RRP: $69.99
Available: paperback, from bookstores

Comments

Novel difficult to put down

Sequel that’s even better than the first

Good whodunnit

Incredible detail in tribute to sculptor

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