4*
Although the premise of this new romance by West is a fun one, there are subjects that are emotionally heavy and take away from the otherwise lightheartedness of the story. Foremost is Sutton’s mother who is one of the meanest characters I’ve ever read about. Her obsession with the husband who left when Sutton was 13 and never returned is in direct opposition to the love she should have for her daughter, especially since she dropped everything (including being at her new and struggling restaurant) to take care of her mother who was injured in a serious car accident. I kept hoping she had walked out and left her ungrateful mother to figure out how to pay for a caregiver/nurse.
Although I enjoyed the progression of Sutton and Elijah’s journey from strangers to lovers, any relationship that begins with deceit is bound to be rocky. Add to that the fact that Sutton would need to return to LA as soon as her mother is healed enough to take care of herself, and Elijah feels obligated to work at a job he hates in order to pay his father back for funding a boxing gym Elijah didn’t even want, and it’s no surprise there’s a third act breakup (my least favorite romantic plot device). However, I really appreciate how West resolved the conflict. Overall, this is still a funny story and one that readers will enjoy. Recommended.
I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Saturday Books through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.
5*
This brilliant women’s fiction novel is an exploration of grief and a literal and figurative journey towards forgiveness. Told in alternating voices (mother Andrea through videos, audio clips, and written notes, her daughters Rose and Poppy, and even her best friend Lewis and Rose’s son Joe), it begins with the surprising death of Andrea whose dying wish is for her estranged daughters to reunite, remember the good times in their early lives, and ultimately forgive each other. Her masterful plan, The A to Z of Everything, is full of activities that go from emotionally heavy to lighthearted while exposing secrets, forcing Rose and Poppy to be vulnerable with each other, and even bringing some enlightenment, all well navigating their grief.
Damn, this woman can write! Johnson masterfully balances everything from grief and postpartum depression to hilarious karaoke nights and glitter-adorned dice games, allowing her readers to experience the emotional highs and lows of her well-drawn characters. It elicited both laughter and tears and captivated me from the start. This is a reissue, originally published in the UK in 2017. Highly recommended.
I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Harper Muse through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.
This book made me feel both uncomfortable and angry. From childhood, Saoirse (formerly known as Sarah) has been failed by the adults in her life. Her mother had her at age 16 and was ill-equipped to handle a child, especially with a drug addiction. Her stepfather is terrifying, and the “system” didn’t save her. Instead, she saved herself by escaping to Ireland with a stolen passport, and this is where the story begins. Unfortunately, it’s also where she meets Paul on the plane. The book is a series of flashbacks, using Saoirse’s haunting artwork to tell the story. It speaks to the strength this traumatized young woman has to protect those she loves and to move to another country alone while still in her teens.
Hurtubise does a phenomenal job of balancing the suspense of the past Saoirse is hiding, the abuse that leaves its psychological mark on her, a touching romance, and an indictment of the social service programs in the US and the strict, misogynistic laws in Ireland that trap women in terrible relationships where their only potentially safe option is to flee the country.
This would be a wonderful choice for book clubs but also has a number of triggers to be aware of. Highly recommended.
I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Celadon Books through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.
Spoilers:
Sometimes a book can be really well-written, but it just doesn’t do it for me. The Book Swap is one such book. I struggled to get through it, hoping for the happily ever after that readers depend on in romances, but the longer I read, the less I liked the female main character, Erin. I thought both Erin and James were immature and so burdened by their traumas that it really stunted their emotional growth. They both dealt with mommy issues and the cancer death of their mutual best friend, but their utter lack of communication (vs. the tired miscommunication trope) and Erin’s selfish unwillingness to let James explain his actions and forgive him just annoyed me.
The premise of a romance building between two strangers who share ever-increasing parts of themselves in the margins of books found in a London little book library should have been a slam dunk for this romance-loving librarian, but the narrative was just too bogged down with grief, job dissatisfaction, James’s mother’s bipolar disorder, and Erin’s mom’s betrayal. As a former educator and parent, I really hated reading about James’s bullying, and couldn’t fathom why no adults in his life put a stop to it. They both should have been in therapy in their adolescence, another failure on the part of their parents. Even when Erin’s (ironically) psychotherapist sister forced her into therapy at age 30, it was clear that it wasn’t doing her any good in terms of her grieving and stubbornness in holding on to others’ past transgressions. Pretty much everyone in the book is either miserable or making others so. Bottom line, I just found this book depressing and, if I’m being honest, somewhat triggering. Speaking of, there should be trigger warnings for death, bullying, mental illness, and abandonment. Not recommended.
I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Grayson House through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.
Oh, my goodness! Sarah Ready really knows how to pluck at your heartstrings, a fitting metaphor for this gorgeous romance that pairs music and love. Every once in a while, I read a love story that is so incredibly well-written and an embodiment of the human spirit and condition that I know I’ll never forget it. The Space Between is one of them.
I envy Ready’s talent for crafting stories that mine the depths of human emotion, creating multi-faceted characters who aren’t stereotypes, and writing multi-genre romances (from epistolary to magical realism and more) that draw readers in. In The Space Between, she has written about soulmates who meet as teens, recognizing that the love they share is timeless, even if their timing is all wrong. On the surface, they’re polar opposites, inhabiting two very different realities (Andi, the daughter of two Uber-wealthy Manhattanites, and Jace, the orphaned son of loving parents living in a roach-infested Bronx tenement and playing music with his brothers as a way to love and honor their memories). However, it’s what’s in their hearts and souls that draws them together, forming an instant bond that others try to break for their own selfish reasons. For me, it’s the inherent goodness in them that touched me the most. I loved the thread running throughout of the two writing and sharing lyrics with each other as a way of expressing their love.
If you haven’t yet discovered Ready’s books, please don’t wait another minute. She deserves a wide readership, and if you’re a fan of Abby Jimenez, Emily Henry, Katherine Center or Kate Clayborn, you’ll love her books as well. Highly recommended!
I received a complimentary ARC of this book from W.W. Crown through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.
Although this book ends on a high note, I struggled with it because it was really depressing and not just because Nora herself suffered with mental illness. After reading the synopsis, I’d expected an “uplifting and heartwarming” story, and it wasn’t. I’d describe it as sad and highly dysfunctional with a few pages of hope and renewal at the end. From the moment Nora wakes up from a coma after her near-death experience of drowning, it’s obvious that her family puts the D in dysfunction. Her ethically-challenged father, a personal injury lawyer, is both emotionally and physically abusive, her mother is in major denial and lives to criticize and gaslight her, her younger sister has lost all faith in her after being disappointed too many times when Nora’s depression caused her to break promises, and her cousin Gus is a lonely, sad alcoholic who also doesn’t trust her.
As Nora goes through rehab and therapy, she re-evaluates her life Before (capitalized in the book) the drowning and decides that she needs to make some major changes, including trying to recapture some of what she lost. She creates a reverse bucket list that includes trying to find Jack, the man she met during a robbery hostage situation who she thinks may be The One, and tending to her late grandfather’s community garden plot that she let go wild while her mental health was spiraling. I didn’t understand London’s choice to have Nora fail at everything she tried, unless it was to highlight how easy it is to slip back into depression and self-doubt. One of the only highlights of the story is the group of senior citizen thespians she meets who knew her grandfather. They provide the only bit of comic relief in the book and are instrumental in helping Nora navigate her After life. There are also many deathbed vignettes of Jack’s hospice patients which were really interesting and set the stage for how kind and empathetic he is. I wouldn’t classify this as a romance, although there was an element of it, but women’s fiction instead.
As someone who has suffered from chronic depression and lost my father way too young, it was somewhat triggering to read Nora’s story, especially the joy she felt seeing her late grandfather while in the coma. So, I think it’s important to share trigger warnings. If you don’t want any spoilers, stop reading here.
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Depression, abuse, suicide, death, grief, alcoholism
I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Harper Muse through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.
