Got my results and have passed everything, so good news there, but the hard part now will be finding...
Got my results and have passed everything, so good news there, but the hard part now will be finding a job that fits in with school hours and holidays!! Will worry about that once holidays are over...!
Member since:05.03.2006
Reviews:107
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The Take by Martina Cole
As I am normally the chick lit Queen, I was surprised that I even gave this one a second glance. A friend lent it to me and told me that it was a good read. I was doubtful, but I thought I'd read the first few pages anyway - expecting to have put it down after a few pages. Instead I was hooked.
This book is about the criminal underworld, gangsters and a lot of wheeling and dealing. I don't normally read or watch this type of thing, but Martina Cole has an excellent way of writing. She brings the characters to life, makes them real, and she really draws you in.
The main story revolves around the Jacksons - Freddie and his younger cousin Jimmy. Jimmy looks up to Freddie at the beginning of the story but the tables turn throughout it.
Freddie is married to Jackie, a raging alcoholic whose first love is drink, second love is Freddie and third love is her children. She is not in any competitions for mother of the year!
Cole has written about Jackie's alcoholism in acute detail that you can understand a bit better that her drinking is not just about having a drink anymore. Drink really is Jackie's life and reading about her alcoholism makes you grateful that you don't have her demons to battle.
Freddie is quite a violent character, who wouldn't think twice about killing someone. He is treachorous and holds no loyalty to anyone.
Freddie's cousin Jimmy marries Jackie's sister, Maggie. While Freddie and Jackie waste their money and live in squalor, Maggie and Jimmy are more sensible and live in a nice house. It makes Freddie and Jackie resent Jimmy and Maggie - jealousy and greed are quite central in the book. This causes Freddie to try to bring Jimmy and Maggie down. Ultimately, his family betrayal only leads to the downfall of himself and Jackie.
This book is addictive. It's not the sort of book that I normally go for but once I started reading it I couldn't put it down.
The author uses direct, and often colourful, language, and there is a lot of violence in it. At the same time, main characters have been described in such vivid detail and she has written a lot about relationships and love between the characters, such as Maggie and Jimmy, and Maggie and her nieces. I would recommend this book to anybody wanting a good read.
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Jul 26th, 2007
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