Mr. Mercedes by Stephen King

Who else can describe human nature better than Mr. King? Mr. Mercedes proves once again how sharp he is at exploring darkness and desire. Getting used to retirement has been hard for Bill Hodges, who drifts through his days without purpose until a letter arrives. A self-confessed message from someone claiming to be the notorious Mercedes Killer. Instead of fear, it sparks a reason to live, and to hunt, in Hodges.

Before retirement, Hodges faced the horrific City Center Massacre, where a man plowed a stolen Mercedes into a Job Fair crowd, killing and injuring innocent people. No DNA, no real evidence, just a clown mask and a ghost who slipped away. It became his final unsolved case, the one that never stopped haunting him.

The killer, hungry for attention in a twisted way, taunts Hodges and leaves a trail through Debbie's Blue Umbrella, an online chat site. Even Mrs. Olivia Trelawney, the owner of the stolen Mercedes, received a letter before her tragic suicide. Hodges knows he owes it to her, and to himself, to chase the truth one last time.

With help from Jerome Robinson and the unforgettable Holly Gibney, the investigation gains new life. Here, we see the roots of Holly's fragile brilliance, and it made me appreciate her character even more.

I don’t have a single critical note. King delivers gripping storytelling from the start, and Mr. Mercedes makes me want to continue exploring more of his earlier masterpieces. I give it 5 stars. I might be biased, because Stephen King is my auto buy author. 😅

Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk

OMG. This is one of those books you must read before you die. Ngl, I bought it a couple of years ago at BBW, only picked it up three days ago, and now I'm completely obsessed. 5 ⭐s from me.

The story begins with the narrator, who struggles with insomnia. His doctor suggests he attend support groups to see what real pain looks like. So he goes, finding himself surrounded by people seeking treatment or living with life threatening illnesses. He keeps going almost religiously. Then two people enter his life: Tyler Durden and Marla Singer.

Marla used to work in a funeral home, just to feel something, just to feel alive. But even funerals are nothing compared to the raw, intimate intensity of support groups. She senses he is fake, and he feels exactly the same about her.

Tyler Durden, on the other hand, is presented as charming, brilliant, and problem solver. He is the creator of the fight club. He truly creates it with purpose. For Tyler, fighting is not about winning or losing. It's about stripping everything away and discovering what survives. Soon, fight clubs begin appearing in different parts of town. Through Tyler, they also make and sell soap, and the money keeps flowing in. The narrator depends on Tyler, trusts him, almost worships him.

Then comes Project Mayhem. Members gather after fight club sessions, listening to Tyler's committee like a twisted support group. They carry out assignments around the city. The mission is to teach every man involved that they have the power to shape history, to save the world, and to use chaos as a form of truth. Of course, all of this is just Tyler's dogma. Tyler cannot stop himself from wanting to burn everything down.

As someone who loves psychological thrillers, I'm impressed by how the plot unfolds. The story pulls you in, almost hypnotically, and you begin to understand why people fall under Tyler's spell.

Lelaki Januari by Hafizah Iszahanid

Delaila Azilah dan Ali Syukri berkahwin terlalu awal ketika belajar di Nottingham (bukan cawangan Semenyih). Tidak sampai beberapa bulan, rumah tangga mereka mula goyah akibat ketidakmatangan kedua-duanya, ditambah kemunculan orang ketiga. Laila melarikan diri ke New York dan menghilang selama 12 tahun. Saat dia cuba berdamai dengan masa lalu, Ali muncul kembali pada bulan Januari. Namun persoalan aku, apa relevannya tajuk Lelaki Januari itu dengan keseluruhan cerita? Ia seolah diletakkan untuk hiasan, bukan makna.

Satu lagi benda yang ketara ialah repetitive. Hampir setiap bab Laila meratib nama Ali, sampai rasa seperti wataknya tidak bergerak ke mana-mana. Ia menghakis emosi yang sepatutnya lebih mendalam dan menjadikan pembacaan sedikit melelahkan. Aku juga sengaja kekalkan nama Ali walaupun penulis menggunakan nama Syuk sebab aku tak gemar nama itu. 😂

Secara keseluruhan, novel ini lebih klise daripada jangkaan aku. Aku pilih kerana penulis, penerbit dan tajuknya yang menarik, tetapi akhirnya ia terasa seperti drama pukul 7 dengan rentetan kebetulan yang boleh dijangka. Mungkin expectation aku sendiri terlalu tinggi. Pun begitu, ada sisi informatif tentang Doctors Without Borders dan kerjaya penyelidik di UNESCO yang memberikan sedikit nafas segar. Sebagai tambahan ini sebenarnya terbitan semula naskhah daripada penerbit Jemari Seni (2014) dan pernah diadaptasi ke drama bersiri.

Circle of Days by Ken Follet

Circle of Days is set in 2500 BCE, where four distinct communities, the herders, farmers, woodlanders and the priestess, live across the Great Plain. At the heart of their world stands the Monument, a sacred gathering place where they come together every year for the Rite. People from many villages come to trade food, clothing, tools and livestock near the ring of timber pillars. The Monument is not just a holy place but a site of ritual, storytelling, feasts and sun worship. It preserves the community’s knowledge of the sky and anchors their way of life.

But harmony collapses when drought strikes. Desperation turns neighbours into enemies, violence replaces peace and the Monument burns. Priestess Joia becomes determined to rebuild it in stone, believing that pleasing the Sun God may restore order and secure her rise as High Priestess. The scale of the undertaking is immense. It takes more than two hundred people to move a single sarsen stone and the workforce is already stretched thin. Their struggle to keep the mission alive forms the core of the story.

I was excited when I picked up this book, but at times I felt disappointed. The portrayal of certain sexual orientations felt repetitive and exaggerated, which pulled me out of the narrative. At nearly seven hundred pages, the story explores the desperation of survival and the complexity of human nature, though I expected more from this author. Still, it is an easy read with a conversational style. It even left me wondering whether horses existed in that era at all. 😅

Mastura by A. Samad Ismail

Membaca koleksi cerpen Mastura karya A. Samad Ismail terasa seperti terseret masuk ke sebuah mesin masa yang penuh warna, getir dan humor halus. Setiap cerpen menangkap ragam manusia dengan begitu tepat. 

1. Belum Baik-Baik Lagi, menghiburkan dengan pasangan pengantin baru yang masih malu-malu hingga keluarga terpaksa campur tangan. 

2. Ke Rumah Cucu pula menyentuh hati tentang seorang pesara, Encik Murad sanggup menggunting rambut orang kampung demi tambang ke Penang demi kasih pada cucunya.

3. Pak Yak Mahu Kahwin pula mencuit hati dengan kisah lelaki lembut yang diejek jiran tetapi tetap memasang impian berumahtangga. 

4. Rumah Pak Haji Harun membawa kita menyaksikan ketabahan masyarakat ketika pendudukan Jepun. 

5. Mastura mengisahkan kegelisahan wanita 40-an yang bergelut dengan rindu pada masa mudanya dan mula meragui suami serta dirinya sendiri.

6. Kau Mesti Sunat, Kata Bapa mencuit nostalgia zaman kanak-kanak dan pantang-larang dulu yang hendak bersunat. 

7. Puthu menyentuh sisi kehidupan buruh pengutip sampah yang akhirnya berani memikirkan masa depan dan mungkin cinta. 

8. Dongeng menyorot tentang Ramlah yang berjaya menjadi guru walau keluarganya tidak meletakkan harapan tinggi, namun cintanya ditentang. 

9. Amelia pula memaparkan sisi pahit suami yang makan luar, tema malang ini masih relevan. 

10. Mandi Kolam menampilkan remaja dengan kolam yang tidak mahu dikongsi dengan jirannya yang lain.

Ini karya keenam ASI yang aku baca dan keseluruhan koleksi ini padat dengan humor, kritik sosial, dan renungan yang masih relevan. ASI membuktikan sekali lagi bahawa karya klasik tak pernah hilang bisanya. Terima kasih @bukufixi atas naskhah yang terbaik ini.