Silent Sister by Megan Davidhizar

This sibling rivalry is one of the fast-paced reads about things that don't go as planned, and lessons are learned about the nature of sisterly love after they're gone. I shed a few tears.

Grace and Maddy Stoll are siblings who are only 10 months apart. They have different circles, but they love each other nonetheless. Grace is the best sports student, outgoing, and has received a scholarship to college, while her sister, Maddy, is more reserved. She loves writing poems and tries her best to step out of her sister's shadow.

Their school is having a Senior Sabbatical week for the students as part of a traditional trip to Shady Oaks Lodge. The excitement turned into a nightmare when the sisters went missing from their room in the middle of the night, and only one was found on the side of the road the next morning, a mile from the lodge.

The search for Maddy Stoll continues, and there are rumors about a fight they had before the disappearance. While suffering from an injured head trauma, Grace becomes a suspect when the police treat it as a homicide. Her only solution is a journal that Maddy left behind and friends to clear things up because she's sure did not kill her own blood.

For a debut, I think the premise sounds familiar, but it's captivating with a twisted ending. Thanks to @times.reads and @putrifariza for the uncorrected proof copy. All views are my own 💙 

*Available at all major bookstores in Singapore and Malaysia and their online stores 

Derma darah

Hari Rabu yang lepas aku telah pergi ke hospital untuk menderma darah selepas 4 tahun. Ini kali ketiga.

Pekat betul darah aku. 

Elevator in Saigon by Thuan

An immigrant Vietnamese woman attends her estranged mother's funeral, traveling from Paris to Saigon. When an acquaintance of her mother pays a visit, he relays a story from fifty years ago when she was a liaison girl for the Viet Minh and was held as a political prisoner.

A notebook and a photo of a man named Paul Polotsky, dated 1954, are the only clues she has about her mother. This further investigation is more like a journey through Saigon to Paris. Her mother's life resembles a treasure trove, and she is playing detective to make things clearer. She also learns about her mother's extended family and their roles in Vietnam's Revolution. It's like time traveling back to the place where her mother's side of the story originated.

This is my second mellow and meandering read about Vietnam in a row. Although it's slow-paced, it is thought-provoking.

Anam by Andre Dao

As the son of refugees and the grandson of a political prisoner, the narrator feels that the world owes something to his grandfather. A simple, mournful remembrance is insufficient; he wants to keep the memory of Annam alive by writing a memoir. His grandfather was a lawyer in Vietnam, also known as Anam. After the U.S. was defeated, the communist government took over. He had been imprisoned at Chi Hoa Prison for 10 years without being charged or tried as a revolutionary.

However, after returning from a fact-finding mission in Vietnam, he realizes that he may have become carried away in his quest. He is determined that the suffering of his grandfather at the hands of a repressive regime cannot be forgotten. At the same time, he feels he does not belong everywhere, matter-of-factly.

The narrator's memory of his grandparents, a research trip, fragments of his extended family in Vietnam, extensive reading, internet searches, and the support of his beloved wife and daughter have inspired him to envision a better version of himself. His grandfather believes that forgiveness is necessary for our own good.

Stories of POWs always make me sad. Their PTSD is hard to endure, and finding healing and closure may haunt them for the rest of their lives. Feeling sympathy and guilt may not be enough. This is the debut novel of the author, and it won the 2021 Victorian Premier's Literary Award for an Unpublished Manuscript.

The House of Last Resort by Christopher Golden

Tommy and Kate Puglisi decided to start a new life in Becchina, a small town in Sicily. Moving there was a big step for them, and they saw it as an investment in their future together. It was also a chance to spend time with Tommy's grandparents.

However, their excitement quickly faded. The town experienced frequent tremors, and their new house, which used to be a church, was filled with strange noises. They had never been believers in the supernatural, but the eerie occurrences in their home began to unsettle them.

The story starts with a cliché opening, but I found myself drawn in by the history of the house, Tommy's father's connection to Becchina, and the growing sense of unease. The ending felt rushed and somewhat predictable, but overall, I found the story enjoyable to read.