Fiction

Review ~ Labor Day by Joyce Manard.

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20140202-111551.jpgHmmm,…. Where to even begin? Ok, let’s start with the basic premise, before I go into detail why I did not like this book. The reader is introduced to 13 year old Joe (the narrator) and his mother, Adele. Living on their own in rural New Hampshire, we are told that Adele is not exactly all there. On one of their rare trips out of the house to get Joe some school supplies, they get held hostage and told to drive back home with Frank, a newly escaped prisoner.

This is where it goes to pieces.

I’m going to split this up into three sections: plot, writing and general absurdities.

Plot: without giving too much away, let’s just say that the way this plot fleshes out is extremely trite and unrealistic. I get that we need to suspend disbelief in a fiction novel, but really, don’t insult me by trying to pass off something that is utter shite. Maybe it is because I’m only in my late twenties, but really, I feel like I’ve had enough experience in life to know the basics of a relationship!

Writing:
Now, the writing isn’t terrible , but it isn’t exactly good either. The narrator is that of a hormonal, wet behind the ears, 13 year old. Not exactly reliable. For a book that’s not even 250 pages, Maynard spends way too long on Joe and his experiences throughout this time.
I’ve got no problem with coming of age novels, but in this instance, there were two strong elements to this story and not enough pages to fully explore one, let alone two. We’ve seen many plots explore young teenagers dealing with their sexual awakening, learning new things about the world and themselves, etc… However, Adele’s story is very different and had real potential to be fleshed out and had it been expanded further, it might have made me give it more credence.

General absurdities: this is going to be short as I don’t want to give too much away. Some of the tropes used in this novel were so cliche and old that throughout, I found myself audibly saying “really?”. I also didn’t like how the author coupled a certain act with punishment.

As you can probably tell, I really didn’t think much of this novel. It had real potential, and a few parts were good, but it just didn’t connect with me. However, the great thing about fiction is that it appeals to different people in different ways, so give it a go, and you might well love it.
Anyway, must dash, I have to stay in the air as a certain muse has threatened to remove my hooves!

~ Pegasus.

Labor Day Movie Tie- In Edition: A Novel (P.S.)

Review: The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt

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the goldfinchThis was sorta a tough book for me to finish. It took me close to a month to finish it. It started out strong. But at about 20% I felt it got bogged down in a repeating slump. We were covering the same material page after page. I felt this way though I would say a good 40% of the book. We just didn’t seem to move beyond a certain point in the main character’s life. When the book finally did move on to the next phase, it seemed to be in fast forward trying to make up the lost time it spent in the repeating slump. It flew past the last part of the book and I felt we missed out on some of the story. It felt very lopsided to me. Then we were provided with a hollywood HEA ending for one part of the story.

I won’t lie. At this point, I was going to generously give the book 3 stars. That’s right….3 stars. I felt guilty. I felt ashamed. Everyone else absolutely loved this book. Not me. Yes, I enjoyed it. Yes, I thought it was a great story. But I still felt it was bogged down in so many ways. I felt that it needed to either be 300 pages shorter, or 300 pages longer. Again, it was so lopsided to me….

However, having said all of that, the last 10% of the book was amazing to me. I mean, the type of book to keep you up at night thinking about. The type of book you has you sighing out loud with pure satisfaction. It made up for every other annoyance I had over the book. There was no way I could give it less than 5 stars with the ending. No, I am not talking about the neat hollywood HEA ending. I am talking about the real ending. The one that is true to life. The one that lets us all know that life isn’t perfect. Hell, sometimes it isn’t even nice. It isn’t fair. It simply is what it is. I seriously loved what the main character has realised in life. I love the way he voices what he is feeling. I love that it was not perfect. I want to go though the whole irritation felt at the middle part of the book again, just so I can read the words at the end…This is a book I won’t soon forget. I know this might not be the most gushing review you’ll find. I realise that at times it won’t even seem like an endorsement of the book. But you’re wrong. I’m just being honest with how I felt…and bottom line…I really liked the first part of the book…the middle part was starting to bore me….but the ending…..Holy Hell, it rocked my world….I simply loved it….Here are just a few quotes that moved me….

Well—I have to say I personally have never drawn such a sharp line between ‘good’ and ‘bad’ as you. For me: that line is often false. The two are never disconnected. One can’t exist without the other. As long as I am acting out of love, I feel I am doing best I know how. But you—wrapped up in judgment, always regretting the past, cursing yourself, blaming yourself, asking ‘what if,’ ‘what if.’ ‘Life is cruel.’ ‘I wish I had died instead of.’ Well—think about this. What if all your actions and choices, good or bad, make no difference to God? What if the pattern is pre-set? No no—hang on—this is a question worth struggling with. What if our badness and mistakes are the very thing that set our fate and bring us round to good? What if, for some of us, we can’t get there any other way?

I’d felt drowned and extinguished by vastness – not just the predictable vastness of time, and space, but the impassable distances between people even when they were within arm’s reach of each other, and with a swell of vertigo I thought of all the places I’d been and all the places I hadn’t, a world lost and vast and unknowable, dingy maze of cities and alleyways, far-drifting ash and hostile immensities, connections missed, things lost and never found…

…when in doubt, what to do? How do we know what’s right for us? Every shrink, every career counselor, every Disney princess knows the answer: “Be yourself.” “Follow your heart.”
Only here’s what I really, really want someone to explain to me. What if one happens to be possessed of a heart that can’t be trusted–? What if the heart, for its own unfathomable reasons, leads one willfully and in a cloud of unspeakable radiance away from health, domesticity, civic responsibility and strong social connections and all the blandly held common virtues and instead straight toward a beautiful flare of ruin, self-immolation, disaster?…If your deepest self is singing and coaxing you straight toward the bonfire, is it better to turn away? Stop your ears with wax? Ignore all the perverse glory your heart is screaming at you? Set yourself on the course that will lead you dutifully towards the norm, reasonable hours and regular medical check-ups, stable relationships and steady career advancement the New York Times and brunch on Sunday, all with the promise of being somehow a better person? Or…is it better to throw yourself head first and laughing into the holy rage calling your name?

But sometimes, unexpectedly, grief pounded over me in waves that left me gasping; and when the waves washed back, I found myself looking out over a brackish wreck which was illumined in a light so lucid, so heartsick and empty, that I could hardly remember that the world had ever been anything but dead.

And as much as I’d like to believe there’s a truth beyond illusion, I’ve come to believe that there’s no truth beyond illusion. Because, between ‘reality’ on the one hand, and the point where the mind strikes reality, there’s a middle zone, a rainbow edge where beauty comes into being, where two very different surfaces mingle and blur to provide what life does not: and this is the space where all art exists, and all magic.

Until next time….

Urania xx

Read it now The Goldfinch

Review: The Deepest Secret by Carla Buckley

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20140131-203205.jpgFor a self-proclaimed bookworm such as myself, there is no greater joy than finding a story that pulls you in from the first page. It calls to you late at night when you know you should be sleeping. You find yourself rushing through the pages to find out what happens while at the same time slowing down the pace because you don’t want it to end. This new release by Carla Buckley was that and so much more for me.

Fourteen-year-old Tyler is living with a rare medical condition. He’s confined to his house during daylight hours as exposure to UV light can be deadly. Of course, his serious illness wreaks havoc on the family dynamics. Mom Eve is his protector. Her life revolves around keeping Tyler safe. Monitoring the household UV levels, petitioning the neighbors to keep them from using halogen light bulbs, planning nighttime family excursions…she does it all, often at the expense of the rest of the family. Dad David commutes to work in part to support the family but also to avoid the stress and responsibility at home. Sixteen year old sister Melissa is dealing with normal teenage drama along with feelings of being neglected. Tyler’s only contact with the outside world happens after the sun goes down. During the night he secretly explores his neighborhood, gaining glimpses into his neighbors’ lives unseen by others. He realizes that we don’t truly know what goes on behind closed doors. When tragedy strikes the neighborhood in the form of a missing child, there’s no shortage of suspects.

This is a deeply disturbing book on many levels. There’s so much going on in this family, but it never detracts from the main story. It makes you question your values and ask yourself exactly how far you would go to protect those you love. This was my first book by Carla Buckley, and I absolutely loved it. Her writing style reminds me very much of Jodi Picoult, which is a high compliment. She’s a relative newcomer on the literary scene with three published books to her name. I will definitely be reading more by this author!

~ Thalia

Buy it Now: The Deepest Secret: A Novel

Review: Feel the Heat by Kate Meader

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20140131-073947.jpg I felt the heat, alright! This book was full of passion – people passionate for love, food, family, sex, cooking, loyalty, and reputation. Jack was hot for Lili, Laurent was hot for anything with a skirt, the DeLucas got excited over their restaurant, and — after much encouragement from family and friends — Lili reclaimed her passion for life.

Kate Meader did such a wonderful job making these characters come to life. I felt like I was in the Deluca kitchen listening to the yelling and watching the hugging. The dialogue rang true, the sex scenes were fun but realistic (yep, sometimes people talk during sex, and sometimes they don’t have on a lacy thong), and the combination of an Italian-American, a Brit, and a Frenchman all in the same kitchen was dynamite.

The book had a chick lit feel instead of a traditional romance. The supporting cast was necessary, the hero and heroine were part of a group more often than alone together, and the book was funny. I laughed … and I cried … and there was a happily-ever-after … sure signs of a winner.

The characters in Feel the Heat live large, and it makes for a fun, upbeat, exciting read. There will be a sequel featuring more cooking and cocky-as-all-get-out Shane the Irishman. Can’t wait.

-Calliope

Feel the Heat

Review: At the River’s Edge by Mariah Stewart

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20140128-102744.jpg I’ve got to stop reading new books in a series when I haven’t read the previous books in that series. I’m just so confused by the number of characters and I can’t keep the relationships straight! At the River’s Edge is the seventh book in the Chesapeake Diaries series. It’s a fun read, but I would’ve enjoyed the subplots more had I been familiar with all the secondary characters.

The main plot is terrific! Sophie leaves her old life in Ohio, moves south, joins the family law firm, and buys an old restaurant. In the process she meets handsome Jason, a new local landscaper who has become close friends with Sophie’s grandfather.

I had fun reading about the challenges of Sophie’s and Jason’s respective businesses, the small-town friendships they forged, and the community spirit they made themselves part of. Their romance seemed secondary to their positions in the community, but that was okay. I love a good, sweet, hometown story, and the Sophie-Jason romance was icing on the cake.

Because I like an easy read, I enjoyed the positive, predictable plot direction. Sophie and Jason practicing forgiveness and humility (after their selfishness got in the way) brought a tear to my eye. The happy ending… Well… *sigh* … I love a happy ending.

-Calliope

Buy At the River’s Edge

Review: Golden State by Michelle Richmond

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goldenstate***Sneak Peek Review! “Golden State” will be released on February 4, 2014***

I picked up a book years ago that was entitled “The Year of The Fog”. I devoured it in hours. I absolutely loved it. I rushed out, purchased multiple copies and sent them out in the mail to the only readers I knew at the time. I then proceeded to read her other works. Sadly, that’s been over 7 years ago! I’ve never forgotten how much I enjoyed TYotF and I often browse looking for a new release from Richmond. I joined up for her newsletter via her website and heard very little. Then FINALLY!!! I got an email that said she had a new book coming out! I quickly checked my ARC websites and saw the book in both NetGalley and Edelweiss….I quickly applied to both sites to snag my copy…and surprisingly enough I was approved by both websites. I can’t remember being so excited about a book for a while now.

It wasn’t soon that I was completely worn out from hooting and hollering and dancing around the house from all of my excitement. Suddenly, as I sat down to catch my breath, I was dejected. I had waited so long for this book to be written, now it was here…what if I hate it? What if the love I felt for TYotF was just a fluke? What if I am so disappointed in this novel that it even takes away from my previous feelings of obsession to getting to my next Michelle Richmond read? What if the writing is so awful that I start to doubt what I felt in the past? I was torn….to start the book or to stare at its cover for a time and just imagine what might be between the covers?

Heck!!!!!!! You guys know me, RIGHT???????? I ripped into this baby so fast!!!!! I couldn’t wait to start it! Was I disappointed? Heck no!!!!!! It’s a Michelle Richmond novel! I absolutely loved it from start to finish!

I think I might have loved it even a bit more than TYotF….

This novel is a day in the life of Doctor Julie Walker. Of course, it’s no ordinary day. California is in the midst of a game changing election day. Her sister needs her help pronto. Her Jeep is broken into. And two men in her life are not where she needs them to be. And this ladies and gentlemen is only the beginning….

Now let me forthright and honest here for just a moment….I wish there was a bit more to the ending…that Richmond had taken it just a little bit further…I wanted to see just a smidgen more of the side story of the novel (and for sake of spoilers, that’s all I will say on that subject)

Also, it needs pointed out that Richmond has a unique writing style. She doesn’t blurt out the plots. They are just there…yes, you sort of know what they are, but at the same time, you’re not 100% sure. All the while, Richmond drops bread crumbs along the trail and confirms her story or throws in a small twist that has you wondering….

At the same time, she jumps back and forth. It can be frustrating if you want things laid out in a straight path to follow. One moment, the main character is in the present, the next second she is 3 hours earlier or a decade earlier. The only way you have to follow is to simply LISTEN to thoughts of the main character. Soon enough, if you just relax, you can follow along just fine.

I was sitting there after I finished the book, pondering it all (did I mention I LOVED the book?) and I realised, really, think about it, isn’t that how we really are? We jump from the present to what we had for breakfast this morning…and then a moment later a song, or a smell, or for some reason we don’t even know, think back to a time in our past. To a memory. Pondering how we got to this place in time. Memories are a great tool. They help us live our current lives and they help shape our futures as well. Memories are not just something that we leave behind and forget. We never know when they are going to hit us.

I think that is why I love Richmond so much. She has a way of writing that I really feel like I can connect with the character. I am there with them, confronting the memories. Dealing with their guilt. Or their anger. Or their confusion. I am there feeling them realise their imperfections. Accepting their blame. I am the one trying to find forgiveness. I am the one who is trying to change for the better. I can’t recommend this book enough. I really can’t. I won’t say that it’s a perfect format for writing. I won’t say this is a literary gem that will challenge all the writings throughout time. But I will say, PLEASE, FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT YOU HOLD HOLY, DO NOT MAKE ME WAIT ANOTHER 7 YEARS FOR THE NEXT BOOK, MICHELLE RICHMOND!!!!

Bwhahahahahahaahahahaha….go get this book!!!! As fast as you can! Still not convinced? Maybe a few quotes will do for you…

I understand how families become estranged, not by design, but by embarrassment. You come to a point when so much time has passed that it seems impossible to make the first move.

We tend to see life as a continuum, Julie, but really, it’s a series of phases, generating a series of different selves. You leave one life behind and start another. And each time, a different version of yourself emerges.

I guess I’m just stuck on the idea that there’s this monumental machine, and we’re all part of it. Most of the time, we don’t even stop to think about how it works. We just go about our business, doing our part, trusting that everyone else will do their part, and the machine will keep functioning. But all it takes is for someone to come along who isn’t thinking straight, some who’s not paying attention, or worse, hell-bent on self-destruction and everything turns to shit.

Go on then! Buy the book!!!!

Until next time….

Urania xx

Buy it now Golden State

ARC provided by NetGalley and Edelweiss for an honest review.

Review: Cider Brook by Carla Neggers

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20140124-152113.jpg It’s kind of funny – when I love a book and it’s perfect for me, the review is easy and fun to write. But when I am ambivalent, a review is much more difficult to write. My sentences don’t flow as well, my organization is off. So, the writing of this review reflects some of the disjointedness I perceived in Cider Brook.

Cider Brook got me curious about pirates and the Quabbin and all kinds of New England history that I’ve never been interested in before. I wished for more facts and some closure regarding the pirate part of the story. I loved the reserved personalities of Samantha and Justin. I got a kick out of the vocabulary – words like “parse” make me happy. As a fellow New Englander, I recognized many of the places mentioned in the book, and enjoyed the local flavor.

The love story was just okay. There was chemistry, there was banter, there was flirtation, but there wasn’t a whole lot of substance. There’s a happy ending, but for two people who kept their feelings hidden, they certainly surprised the reader getting from point A to point C, bypassing point B. It just wasn’t believable.

There were also too many characters, in my estimation, but that could be because I didn’t read the series from the beginning. The only other flaw was that I felt like the story set me up for a romantic suspense… But it wasn’t really a suspense novel at all. Again, maybe I’d have been better off reading from the beginning of the series. 🙂

All in all, I did enjoy the writing, plot, and characters, but the story development just didn’t flow for me.

–Calliope

Review: Home to Seaview Key by Sherryl Woods

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20140122-142516.jpg Home to Seaview Key, second in a series, will be released January 28. It’s a charming tale of a small island with grassroots businesses, opinionated grandmothers, and a strong sense of community. Abby returns there to find herself. Seth moves there to mentally recuperate after fighting in Afghanistan. They share their broken hearts and decide to give friendship – or maybe more – a chance.

I enjoyed the characters and the plot, loved the whimsy of the oldest Seaview Key generation, and appreciated the realism of the ups and downs in a new relationship. However, the story was a little flat. There wasn’t enough intensity, and lots of things were glossed over with an explanation instead of showing what happened. It was a nice, enjoyable story but not one I was particularly excited reading. You’ll enjoy it if you’re looking for a low-key, easy read to relax with.

-Calliope

Buy it now Home to Seaview Key

Review: Before We Met by Lucie Whitehouse

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aaaThis book was a fast suspenseful read. It takes place in England and has links to the East Coast in The States as well. After a short romance Hannah Reilly and Mark Reilly marry. Hannah has always had trust issues, but Mark sweeps her off her feet and soon she has left The States to live her happily ever after with Mark in London. Everything seems to be going well. Hannah believes she has found true happiness and is learning how to lean on someone else and trust them to provide for her. However, all of that changes when Mark misses a flight home from New York. Hannah means to surprise him at the airport but he never shows up. Once she hears from Mark, her unease starts to ease up….but left alone, Hannah starts to question what she has been told….after talking to others, things start to really have her questioning Mark and her entire relationship. Just how well does she know the man she loves and married? One question leads to another…and Hannah is forced to question her own feelings and psyche! Is she looking for things that don’t exist? Is she letting her past insecurities question her current relationship?

Whitehouse does a brilliant job not only making Hannah question herself, but also having the reader question themselves. As a reader, I felt I had it figured out…I knew who the bad guy was…but Whitehouse puts just enough of twisted characters in the story that you often find yourself changing your mind as to whom you should trust….At points, you wanted to scream at Hannah for being so trusting…and at other times you wanted to scream at her to let go of her trust issues from the past….I found myself standing up for Mark and trying to justify his actions, every bit as much as Hannah did in the story….I almost felt like Hannah and I were volleying back and forth…She would find a reason not to trust Mark and I would justify his actions in my mind….she would justify his actions and find a valid excuse and I would point out why he could not be trusted…

This is a quick easy read that is sure to have readers wanting to discuss it with others….

ARC provided by NetGalley for an honest review

Until next time….

Urania xx

Buy it now Before We Met

Review: The Calling by Suzanne Woods Fisher

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20140120-145038.jpg If you’re a fan of Amish fiction, then you’re probably already familiar with Suzanne Woods Fisher. She’s an excellent writer – her narratives are smooth, easy to read, organized, and precise with regards to vocabulary. Her characters are well-thought out, and I haven’t ever found an error on one of her books — they’re professionally done.

This particular title, The Calling, met all my expectations for a Woods Fisher novel. I loved Bethany, the strong heroine, and the people she held close to her. I enjoyed seeing her beau mature and his mother find common ground with Bethany.

I had difficulty with the number of characters – so many! Maybe I’m too accustomed to novels with fewer than a dozen, but my brain simply couldn’t keep track of all the families and in-laws and grandparents. There were quite a few mentions of people that had died in the past, and that complicated things further for me. Besides that, I appreciated the various subplots — the grass roots soup kitchen, the elderly sisters, mental illness’ effect on families, a few budding romances, securities fraud, and Geena, the non-Amish woman who finds the path she’s looking for among the Amish. So many well-developed themes and subplots in one story – the fine writing definitely supported them all. I was impressed.

Now that I know the characters a little better, I’ll more easily enjoy the next in the Eagle Hill series, I’m sure.

-Calliope

Buy it now The Calling