Fourth Wing Playlist
Just after the holidays, with less than a week left of Christmas break, I was at loose ends about what to read. On every social media platform I participate in this book, Fourth Wing, kept popping up. In all honesty, this isn’t a genre I normally read but I kept hearing so much about the novel. I hemmed and hawed about whether I wanted to invest in this.
Oh boy……did I invest in this! I couldn’t put the book down and finished it in a matter of days. I enjoyed Violet’s spunk but I really admired how she used her intelligence in lieu of physical strength in situations that required her to be physically strong. Xaden’s integrity and his depth of feelings for Violet are traits that are revealed slowly as the story progresses. Taking this approach made him wildly attractive! The slow burn of their romance…..🔥
When it came time write a review of this novel, I decided I wanted to change things up a wee bit. After a whole lot of searching and listening, I came up with a playlist for this novel. In no particular order, here is a list of songs whose lyrics, I feel, relate in some way to the storyline or characters of this romantasy novel:
The Fighter (Gym Class Heroes feat. Ryan Tedder
Brave (Sara Bareilles)
Warrior (Demi Lovato)
Home (Gabrielle Aplin)
Say Something (A Great Big World & Christina Aguilera)
Solidier (Gavin DeGraw)
Shake It Out (Florence and The Machine)
Titanium (David Guetta feat. Sia)
Natural (Imagine Dragons)
If Today was Your Last Day (Nickleback)
A Thousand Years (Christina Perri)
Let me know what you think of this playlist!🎶
The Invisible Hour by Alice Hoffman
I ❤️ Alice Hoffman novels. As soon as her latest book is released, I buy it. No ifs, ands, or butts.
The Invisible Hour contains the elements of magical realism and women on a journey of self-discovery, love and independence that her novels are well-known for. What is different about this story? She includes the element of time travel.
A young girl, Mia, is born into a cult community where books outside of the ones found in the cult are banned. With her mother’s support, she secretly frequents the library in town and discovers Nathaniel Hawthorne and his novel The Scarlet Letter. A tragedy within the cult occurs which is a tipping point, forcing her to runaway. She gets help from the librarian of that library who takes her to live with her partner who lives in another state. As the years go by, Mia’s interest in Nathaniel Hawthorne endures as well as the cult leader’s obsession with getting her to return to the cult. When another tragedy occurs, Mia’s heart’s desire comes true: she is transported back in time and meets the Hawthorne.
The Invisible Hour combines two well known tropes: time travel and a ‘star-crossed lovers’ storyline. Sign me up. The roles of the library and the books spoke to my literary loving heart. Including Nathaniel Hawthorne as a character was an engaging way to present his biography. It deepened my understanding of the weight of the legacy he carried, how it shaped his personality and appeared in his writings.
However, I found the storyline involving Nathaniel Hawthrone too fantastical. For me, the magical realism didn’t mesh with this well. The story felt like it was two different stories. Part 1 was Mia’s life before she time traveled and Part 2 was life when she time traveled. I don’t want to say too much more about what occurs when she does this. I will say I liked how Mia’s story intersects with The Scarlet Letter and I will say I did not care for two of the outcomes of the time travel.
Did this book grab me? Yes. Did I walk away thinking about Mia and her journey? Yes. Did I like learning about Nathaniel Hawthorne’s history? Yes.
Will I continue to read Alice Hoffman novels? YES!
Books I Have Loved 2023
I know we are almost 1/3 of the way into 2024….better late than never!
These are in no particular order….
The Favor by Nora Murphy -> A woman does another woman an unexpected life favor and she recipocates it. What makes this unique - they don’t now each other. Or do they? Do their actions make them bad people? Morally gray plot makes for great book club discussions. 😇😈
Age of Vice by Deepti Kapoor -> From the time Ajay, one of two main characters, is a child until he is well into adulthood, his life takes unexpected turns which makes him darker and angrier as time passes. This is due in large part to Sunny, the other main character, who takes an interest in Ajay when he is a teenager. Sunny is a man drowning in demons so when he takes Ajay under his wing, it is not necessarily a good thing. This is a long story, 560 pages, that brings you deep into life in modern India. I wanted to read this because I am interested in lives set in other cultures. This did not disappoint. 🇮🇳💰
The House of Eve by Sadeqa Johnson -> Books about two different characters whose lives eventually intersect have become one of my favorite story lines. A teenage girl who has great potential but a difficult personal life and a woman who marries above her economic background struggle to fit into roles and places they aren’t exactly welcomed. This novel was engrossing and you have to read to the very end to understand the connection the two characters have. 🔗
The Housemaid by Freida McFadden -> A new to me author. Millie, living in her car, is desperate for a job and accepts the position of live-in maid with the Winchester’s. Nina Winchester is erratic, her daughter Ceclia is difficult, and Andrew, the husband, is patient and kind. You think you know the story but remember there are always two sides. This reminded me of Gone Girl. The story reads quickly and is the first in a three book series centered around Millie, the main character (The Housemaid’s Secret (2023) and The Housemaid is Watching which will be available in June 2024). 🫢
The Girls in the Stilt House by Kelly Mustian -> The setting and two female protagonists reminded me of Where the Crawdads Sing - Ada returns to her abusive father after running away to marry a man who leaves her. One night, the father goes to far but Ada is saved by Matilda, a young woman who has her own share of heartache. The two young women slowly form a bond as they learn to work with their circumstances, show fortitude and use their wits to survive and thrive.💪🏼
Other Birds by Sarah Addison Allen -> I am so HAPPY that she has resumed writing! The ensemble cast of characters who live in an apartment complex and gradually create attachments to one another drew me in. I was rooting for each of them. There is a bit of twist at the end which connect the threads that each of these characters present. This author is known for the magical realism in her writing which is present but not as obvious as it is in her other novels. It took me a bit to get into this story but once I did…. ❤️
Night Road by Kristin Hannah -> It is Kristin Hannah, do I need to say more? This is the story of a mother of twins and it is the story of these twins who befriend the new girl that shows up on the first day of school. All suffer a friendship ending tragedy just before high school graduation which sends the survivors into different directions. This novel broke my heart and put it back together again.😥
The Perfect Marriage by Jeneva Rose -> Wow! The plot: a wife who is a well-known successful attorney defends her husband, a struggling writer, after he is accused of killing his mistress. That in itself makes for a gripping read. BUT the very end….she took me in a direction and then yanked me around. One of Us is Dead (2022) is actually next up in my TBR pile. Looking forward to it! ↪️
This Tender Land by William Kent Krueger -> His novel gave me a mix of Tom Sawyer and Lost Boys vibes. Living at the Lincoln Indian Training School means living with mean caretakers that commit unspeakable acts on children. One evening a horrific event occurs and the two main characters, orphan brothers Albert and Odie, along with their deaf friend and their favorite teacher’s daughter flee the school. They decided to float down river to the city where the brothers’ aunt lives, hoping she will let them live with her. I enjoyed it more than I thought; it was haunting and redeeming all at the same time. Ordinary Grace (2013) is in my TBR pile. 🛶
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid -> A novel I looked at often but didn’t pick it up. I don’t know what my hesitation was. A famous actress who is notoriously private decides to grant a much coveted interview discussing her life to a very specific journalist. This story is part history of Hollywood, part mystery as Evelyn Hugo, the actress, has a reason she wanted to give her story to Monique, a writer who is struggling with the direction of her life. Intriguing and sad. Definitely a new favorite author - I’ve gifted her books and I have others in my TBR pile.👰♀️👰♀️
Brushing It Off
Hello, it’s me. Again.
I could go on and on about where I’ve been but not going to do it.
I’m just picking this blog back up, brushing it off, and moving onward. 🧹
My Dark Vanessa
I was in a reading slump, mostly due to the world going sideways when I saw a promotion for this book, MY DARK VANESSA by Kate Elizabeth Russell. The premise, a teacher and an underage student who has "a relationship," really intrigued me. I ordered it (from an indie bookstore!) and had it shipped.
Totally snapped me out of my slump.
This is dark and heavy. I was dumbfounded by now quickly Strane was able to groom Vanessa. He's such a repugnant character but yet vulnerable. The question is whether that vulnerability is a reflection of a genuine moral dilemma he is experiencing or is it part of his performance to ensnare Vanessa? Did he really not take things with other students as far as he did with Vanessa? Did he eventually develop genuine feelings for her? If you believe he limited his abuse with these others, is that proof of those feelings? Proof that he did have some morality? I have no doubt his ending is totally for selfish purposes; the coward’s way out. He can't face the consequences of his actions.
Vanessa is such a sad personality and I'm not sure how I feel about her. She obviously deserves sympathy. I eventually became a little bit annoyed with her hanging on to Strane well after it was necessary for her to have contact with him UNTIL the scene in Ruby's office toward the end of the novel when she admits "I can't lose the thing I've held on to for so long. You know?" My face twists up from the pain of pushing it out. "I just really need it to be a love story. You know? I really, really need it to be that." That is how she was able to handle what happened to her and not completely fall apart; the difference between Vanessa walking around almost dead and actually being dead.
For more about this author, please visit her website Kate Elizabeth Russell or on instagram @kateelizabethrussell
Wildland by Rebecca Hodge
I’ve known Rebecca for a little more than a year. I’ve had the privilege of peeking over her shoulder as she navigated the path to having Wildland, her first book, published. Her debut novel has a unique premise, combining two events that individually are difficult situations to contend with, let alone combining them.
Kat, her protagonist, has gone to the mountains to make a life or death decision - to pursue treatment for the cancer that has returned or to let nature take its course. In short order, she becomes the foster mom to two dogs and, with a little ‘help’ from them, befriends two children, Lily and Nirav, whose dads, Scott and Malcolm respectively, are renting the cabins nearest to hers. Within days, the lives of Kat, Malcolm, Scott, and the children will intertwine in a way that none of them ever anticipated.
The author uses alternating POV, switching between Kat and Malcolm, a security expert and brand new dad, with a very tight timeline to create unrelenting tension. Kat has to dig deep within herself to find the will to push on and not give up, not just for the sake of the four lives that are depending on her but also to decide once and for all if she truly wants to live or die.
Truthfully, I wasn’t sure I would like the story as the plot, on the surface, wasn’t something I could connect with personally. I was wrong. I was unable to put the book down and stayed up past my bedtime to finish it. 🥱
I give it 👍🏻👍🏻.
Please pay a visit to her website, Rebecca Hodge Fiction, for further information and where you can purchase a copy of her book.
Women and Adversity: Lady Deborah Moody
Since moving to South Carolina almost two years ago I have connected with several writers….definitely goes in the + column of making this giant move!
One such writer is journalist and freelance writer Jo Ann Mathews. She has been such a great friend and resource on writing. She generously offered to let me write a guest post on her blog “Women and Adversity.” Twice a month she profiles women from all walks of life, from all different time periods who faced obstacles as they forged their place in the world.
I invite you to read my contribution about Lady Deborah Moody, an English woman who was instrumental in Long Island’s history. I chose to write about her, in part, as a nod to my home state but also because she was a female voice driving and advocating for her community in a time period where women had none especially when it came to public affairs.
I encourage you to sign up on Jo Ann’s website to receive posts right to your email - always an interesting read over that morning cup of coffee or tea!
Books I Have Loved 2017
Part of my getting back on the horse, so to speak, involves updating my website and Twitter to reflect more current information. Much to my chagrin, when I looked at the Book page of my website I saw it has been 14 months (!) since I updated that page to reflect novels I recommend. So please go check that page out - the fact that I can recall the plot for each one, after all the hubbub of this past year, speaks volumes :)
Here are a few thoughts on each one.......
The Memory Box - I found the protaganist to be so twisted! If you like twisty female lead characters, here you go!
We Never Asked for Wings - the characters and story line represent a situation and ethnic group not often written about. Was really rooting for this family.
The Girl Who Wrote in Silk - just loved the story line and the fact that the plot was set against a piece of history I was only peripherally aware about.
The Garden of Small Beginnings - picked this up on a whim and could not put it down. The premise of the story is sad but heartwarming. It's an excellent example of people not being who they appear to be.
And as for Faithful, The Rules of Magic and The Night the Lights Went Out, well, I'm a hardcore Alice Hoffman and Karen White fan so anything they write will always be on my list! :)
Children's Book Review: LITTLE MOUSE'S SWEET TREAT
Recently, I was asked by an author to review her first ever children’s book. The book is titled LITTLE MOUSE’S SWEET TREAT by Shana Hollowell, a Virginia based writer.
I found this book to be a ‘fast read’ which is a great feature as the age group the book is geared towards isn’t known for their patience! The author uses simple sentence structure and short paragraphs in an effort to keep her young readers’ interest. The author also uses rhyme, repetition, and onomatopoeia to help her young readers predict what will happen. She does a nice job using questions to create a journey for the mouse and thus move the plot along. The problem in the story is spot on - what child doesn’t like sweets - and therefore children will be able to identify with mouse’s dilemma easily. The mouse shows persistence which is an important trait for children to learn in order to accomplish goals. I also loved the illustrations! The colors were soothing and didn’t make the pages busy.
If you are interested in purchasing this book, you can do so through Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
Accidents of Marriage by Randy Sue Meyers
I’ve had this book on my to-read list for a bit. I am SO GLAD that I read this book. From page one, it held my attention.....I was annoyed at being interrupted while I was reading it. Always a good sign that I’m loving the story!
Ben and Maddie have been married 15 years. They have three children; their oldest being 14 year old Emma. Like any couple that has been in a marriage for a while, the day to day domestic have to’s have taken over and battle against their careers for time. Ben is the head honcho in the Public Defender’s Office; Maddie is a social worker. Ben's behavior is becoming more disturbing, making Maddie and the kids very uneasy when he is around. There is a horrific accident and Maddie is irreversibly injured. Ben has to step in to Maddie’s shoes and step up as a parent and a husband. He struggles all the way around. When Maddie learns of his actions, both pre and post accident, she must decide if Ben can be part of the new life the accident has foisted upon her and the family.
Ben and Maddie are two strong, well defined characters. I vacillated between liking and hating Ben but ultimately I rooted for him. Because the author writes the novel from the perspective of three characters - Ben, Maddie and Emma - a reader gets to see inside Ben’s head. He is egocentric but self aware. He knows his behavior is horrible and wants to be better to his wife and kids. He struggles to control his anger but it isn’t until he is on the brink of losing his family that he is desperate enough to be apologetic, humble and willing to change. I actually found Maddie harder to like. She is in denial that she is in an abusive relationship. Yet, she spends a great deal of her time in social work counseling women who are in abusive relationships. I understand her reluctance to see her reality but am frustrated that she didn’t take a firmer stance with Ben prior to the accident. It’s when she is physically at her weakest that she finds emotional strength, making some tough choices about the future of her marriage and family.
The perspective of Emma, their 14 turned 15 year old daughter, is realistic and valuable. The author captures that exterior toughness teen girls like to throw off but also exposes the insecurity and child like tendencies that still exist on the inside. Her entire family, including grandparents and aunt, leans heavily on her. This forces her to feel like she needs to be much older than she is and that conflict leads her to make some choices that are not in her best interest; they mirror some of the things her parents have done. I found her to be the only honest voice about how freaked out she is about her mother’s condition and how ambivalent she feels about her mother being home.
While I am happily married, I found I was able to identify with this marriage in so far as my husband and I have found ourselves at points in times not as attentive to one another as we should be. The tasks of every day life have, at times, clouded our ability to appreciate the family we’ve created. I think this is reality for a lot of couples and families. This story can definitely be viewed as a cautionary tale to be mindful of safekeeping relationships with these important people.
Ultimately, this is the story of family who didn’t appreciate that they were a family. It took a tragic event for all to open their eyes and see what they have in one another. The question of whether there has been too much of the proverbial water under the bridge to repair the relationships is what the characters and the reader need to decide.
The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
Really loved the book! As evidenced by the fact that I did nothing that I wanted to get done yesterday because I sat on the couch reading………This was a dark, depressing and at times creepy novel. Pacing was fast; characters are incredibly flawed and ragged. Rachel has to be one the saddest, most pathetic characters I've ever met. It wasn't until almost the end that I started to suspect who the bad guy was. The author did a skilled job of planting seeds of motive in all of the suspects so the reader could see how they all may have been committed the crime. This is a cautionary tale to not take at face value things that we see.
I have a great deal of admiration for authors who can tell a story seamlessly from the perspective of three different characters. Being able to keep character personalities consistent, the plot lines, and in this case the timing, straight takes a lot of attention to detail. Getting the inside scoop on more than one character, how she thinks and feels about people and situations, gives the reader the opportunity to be invested in more than one character and thus way more engaged with the story.
Tempting Fate by Jane Green
In the teaching profession, there is a school of thought that the way you get reluctant readers to read is to provide them with literature they can relate to. Not all students can identify with the works of Shakespeare or Hemingway. You need to provide students with pieces that are not traditionally taught in a classroom, like BRONX MASQUERADE or CRANK. When I finished this book, what immediately came to mind was that, maybe for the first time ever, I really understood this argument from a reader’s perspective.
I absolutely LOVED this story. I related to all of it, except the one night stand aspect. Having said that, I totally understood Gabby’s motivation for engaging in the flirting and letting it escalate to the inevitable one night affair. We are the same age, married about the same amount of time, relocated with no family close by, letting go personal ambitions for the family. I appreciated that the author gave Elliot’s, Gabby’s husband, reaction and subsequent internalization of the affair and its consequences. She made him a good guy but not a saint and I found I was interested in him just as much as I was interested in Gabby. She also extends the impact of the affair to the friendships Gabby and Elliot had. The author didn’t make their best friends’ reactions cookie cutter or expected. They didn’t take the high road; they too made choices that had unpleasant ramifications. The novel is genuine.
For me, it is one of those books that stick with you, that make you think, and that maybe even make you keep a more open mind towards a person who commits adultery. Marriage is many things but it is never a 50-50. And it does happen in a marriage that some major decision gets made by one partner without fully caring about the other partner’s position or feelings. Sometimes the motivation for an affair is less about sex or the thrill of getting away with something and more about what is going on with a person emotionally at a particular period of time in their life. And that moment in time is the accumulation of events and decisions up to that point and the way these have impacted/influenced the person.
Book Reviews: John Grisham
SYCAMORE ROW by John Grisham.
I've never, ever read a Grisham novel. No particular reason why except the plots were not something that interested me. Until I read the publisher's summary of this novel. I added this to my very long list of books I want to read and there it has sat. But recently, in between book club selections, I picked this up and decided I'd give it a try.
I really liked it! Even though it was over 600 pages long it read very quickly. It grabbed my attention from the get go and I found that I wanted to keep reading even after I put it down for the day. My most favorite part of Grisham's writing is his characters. I very much enjoyed them and felt their unique personalities came off the page. Even though this is connected to his previous novel, A TIME TO KILL, I found I didn't need to have read that to understand the backstory that Grisham uses to explain relationships and motivations in this story. The author provides enough of the history from that novel so the reader doesn't feel left out. The only aspect of the writing that I felt was weak was the reason why Seth Hubbard did what he did. I figured this out/guessed pretty early on. But even knowing that I didn't really know how the court case was going to work out until it did.
Will I go back and read something else he wrote? Probably not. But I have no hesitation in telling people that I did read this and I recommend it.
Book Review: BURIAL RITES by Hannah Kent
The author, Hannah Kent, imagines the story of Agnes Magnúsdóttir who was found guilty, along with two others, and executed (beheaded) for murdering Natan Ketilsson and Pétur Jónsson. The novel is based on a true story that took place in 1828 Iceland; this was the last execution in that country. Through meticulous research and reliance on the country’s strong oral tradition, the author builds a story around what led up to and the reason for the killings.
Agnes is sent to live with the family who occupies the farm in Kornsá while she waits to learn when her execution will take place. Initially, she shares her story, starting from her birth, with Assistant Reverend Tóti who is the religious person she asked to be assigned to her as she prepares herself for execution and, eventually, the family. She tells them that she met Natan, a reputed medicine man/sorcerer and womanizer, at a farm she was working on; he befriended and then seduced her. He asks her to come to his very remote farm, Illugastadir, to be his housekeeper and oversee Sigga, a maidservant already living there. Shortly after she arrives, Agnes begins to realize that Natan hasn’t been truthful with her - not about her role at the farm, Sigga’s relationship to him nor about himself. Natan’s reputed lover, the poet Rosa, shows up one day with her child by Natan on her hip and gives Agnes, albeit not very friendly, a warning about Natan. Their nearest neighbor, Fridrik Sigurdsson, begins to make visits with occasional long periods of stays. He is a 19 year old mean tempered, jealous young man who ends up developing a relationship with Sigga. As the long, bleak Icelandic winter progresses, the relationships shift and become very tense, ultimately culminating in the murders.
The author does an eloquent job painting a bleak, harsh, and lonely picture of life in the northern part of Iceland. She achieves this in large part due to her repetition of images: fires fueled by dung, the constant unpleasant odor of animals and dirty bodies, temperatures so cold that ice forms while characters sleep. Inter dispersed between chapters are copies of correspondence between the various officials in charge of carrying out the punishment. There is such a matter of fact tone to these documents it sends shivers down the spine; that men could talk of putting to death two people so unemotionally has an almost nightmarish quality to it.