Book Review: The Bunker Diary

The Bunker Diary by Kevin Brooks - Paperback, 268 pages - Published March 7th 2013 by Penguin
The Bunker Diary by Kevin Brooks – Paperback, 268 pages – Published March 7th 2013 by Penguin

The whole idea of this book really intrigued me. A 16-year-old boy, Linus, is kidnapped off the street and stuck in what appears to be an underground bunker. The book is written as his diary, like the title suggests. There are a few diagrams to help the reader visualise the scene, and it’s full of Linus’s thoughts and ideas as well as the events that take place.

The ending was so unexpected, and I absolutely adored it. It wasn’t a typical happy ending. It wasn’t even a resolved ending. Everything sort of just fades out, and it ends mid-sentence followed by numerous empty pages. I suppose this is what makes it more realistic, and more like someone’s diary.

Linus is followed by five other people in the bunker; little Jenny, Anja, Fred, Bird and Russell. Tensions are high, and they’re faced with numerous horrific problems. They can’t find a way to escape, and although things are bearable at first, The Man Upstairs soon stops sending down food supplies or providing heating or energy. Everyone is struggling to survive, to keep up hope. But there doesn’t seem to be a way out, a way to contact the outside world.

Eventually, things start to really go downhill. People start to lose their lives in numerous horrendous ways, and there’s only so long a group of people can survive for without food, water, heat, or electricity. The pain seems endless.

This is such an exciting book, where you never know what’s coming next. It was even rather emotional, and extremely hard to contemplate being in such horrible circumstances. I really enjoyed The Bunker Diary and all the plots it includes. An easy 4 stars for this.

BookMarked

Last Line Read

He didn’t answer me.


The Bunker Diary by Kevin Brooks, page 20

Book Review: Candy

Candy by Kevin Brooks - Paperback Cover
Candy by Kevin Brooks – Paperback, 357 pages – Published 2006 by Chicken House

… a story as sharp as the title is sweet …

When I found this book in the library, I had never heard of it before. I had no idea what to expect, or how good the author – Kevin Brooks – is. At first I wasn’t certain how I was feeling about Candy, but a few pages in and I must admit I was hooked.

This is not a typical book about boys and girls, love and loss. This is a book about real-life problems that nobody wants to admit are drifting around this world. This is a book about facing the facts and doing what’s right, no matter how hard it may be. This is a book about a boy, and it is a book about a girl, but it’s also a book about the devastating world hidden within the city of London, the darker face behind all the wonderful things many of us associate with the capital of England.

Joe Beck is normal. He’s plain – and so is his life. That is, until he meets Candy – Candy with the eyes and the skin and the legs… Candy turns Joe’s life completely upside down. He’s faced with dilemmas that he’d never even considered before, dilemmas that people are facing every day while we’re watching TV or going out with friends. This novel really drives home the reality of drug addiction, prostitution and abuse, leaving you shocked and scared with every chapter.

I actually loved this book more than I expected. I was happy, excited, scared, sad… There were so many twists that I was always anticipating what was on the next page. Candy deserves 4 stars in my opinion. I’ll be sure to check out some of Kevin Brooks’ other works!

BookMarked

Last Line Read

And she’d taken my hand, and I’d led her down the final few metres of the track, and now here we were – standing outside the cottage, shadowed in the light of the moon, exhausted and cold and relieved.


Candy by Kevin Brooks, page 244

Last Line Read

Even when you know there’s nothing you can do about something, even when you’re absolutely sure, even when you’ve considered every possibility, over and over again, knowing full well that you’re wasting your time … even then, you still can’t help feeling that maybe you’re wrong.


Candy by Kevin Brooks, page 148

Last Line Read

It was too many things all at once: a light in the darkness, a crying voice, the scent of freshly washed skin, some wonderful oblivion…


Candy by Kevin Brooks, page 41