Welcome to Litsy!

The Paris Express, by Emma Donoghue (2025 🇨🇦)
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Premise: As the train implicated in the infamous 1895 Montparnasse train wreck rushes towards in doom, we meet a wide assortment of passengers and crew with their own motivations and problems.

Review: There‘s no doubt that this is a successful novel written by one of Canada‘s most reliable authors. But I found this disappointing, ⬇️

This author has really gotten into the historical fiction and I'm here for it. She takes real people, adds in some extras, and imagines a real life situation as it could have been. Maybe. This is that famous early photo of the train engine that went off the platform.

#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

A pleasant read. Historical fiction about a train journey and the passengers on the trip. Don't know that I will remember it. 3 🌟

Laced with suspense, this is based on a true story…the photo at the back of the book shows the aftermath of the event described. Donoghue tells the story from the perspective of multiple characters, before real and fictional characters, including an anarchist with a deadly plot in mind. And, the train engine is a character—don‘t worry, the train‘s perspective actually adds depth to the story. Fast read! #SebastianKitty #Zeke #Xander #CatsOfLitsy

#bibliophile #redcover
Based on a true event. The story was interesting but the large number of narrators made it challenging to follow. Even at the end I struggling to keep them straight.
@Eggs @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

On the platform below, the bookstall's yellow awning
reads Hachette: Banish Monotony and Ennui. The word banish makes Maurice think of villains sent abroad and never allowed to return to France. Georges says if Maurice listens to his elders and reads every spare minute he gets, one day he'll know all the words there are and could even be a school-teacher.

After working all day and doing laundry, I finally sat down to read. I‘ve been looking forward to this one, however, Mama Cat had other plans. I can‘t even be upset 💛🐈

I had an ARC of this so started it in (digital) print but wasn‘t drawn in. The audio was much better, although there were too many characters so it was difficult to get to know / care about some of them.

The storyline had me gripped though, and I was desperate to find out the ending.

However, I‘m also slightly disappointed as I expected more (something quirky, unusual or clever) from this author and this felt like a fairly standard HF.

I enjoyed this much more than I expected. Donoghue delivers an excellent novel based on a historical event, but this book focuses on the different individuals on the train before the accident. It's a wonderfully written character study that explores class, politics, and human nature.

It's a short read that only took me a few hours because I couldn't stop reading it.

I had high hopes for this one as I enjoy this author, but it never quite met my expectations. While I enjoyed it, the overwhelming number of characters meant that with some exceptions, it was hard to differentiate among them. I think the author captured the time and place well and I did learn something, but I wanted more. It is still, however, a worthy read, but perhaps not as good as her previous works. Thanks to Edelweiss+ for the ARC. 3.25/5

I typically really like Donoghue, so this surprises me. And I‘m honestly not sure if this is me, the book, or the format. I found the audio reader hard to hear somehow, and that certainly didn‘t help. (I think the performance was fine and the mixing just needs to be adjusted.) I may try it again in print just because of the author.

Author Emma Donoghue writes a suspenseful historical fiction story based on the October 22, 1895, Granville–Paris Express train that crashed through the wall of Gare Montparnasse station in Paris, France, after overrunning the buffer stop. Using the actual passengers on the train, Donoghue looks at class and politics as the train travels towards Paris, as one of the passengers plans a sinister plot.

#Two4Tuesday

1) I‘ll set my book goal at 150.
2) These are my most anticipated 2025 new releases. I also keep hoping for a new Madeline Miller.

Want to play? @TieDyeDude @WildAlaskaBibliophile @CBee

@TheSpineView

New Emma Donoghue coming in March! And it sounds good!!!! https://www.harpercollins.ca/9781443474238/the-paris-express/