So many words. So little time.
Author: tamaramorning
I had four fiction-writing sessions planned this week, but I only did three.
However…I wrote eleven book reviews this week, too. I finished reading all the books I’m reviewing in May during April…and all the reviews are written, too. And my sister-in-law went into labor and I have a new nephew, so I’m fine with that level of productivity!
Well, April was an excellent reading month for me. I finished reading all the books I’m reviewing in May…and their reviews.
Books Read in April: 35
Books Read for the Year: 99/200
Topical Books/Monthly Goal Books:
Finding Your Way Back to God, by Dave Ferguson (spiritual). This wasn’t quite what I was looking for, but I enjoyed the real-life stories.
Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë (classic). It’s been a long time since I read this…and I loved it all over again!
Perennials, by Julie Cantrell (TBR). Okay, I’ll just say it: I loved this book! Well-done Southern fiction is my jam. And this was well-done. I sympathized so much with Lovey. This book made me laugh, cry, and remember everything I love about the South.
A Shadow Bright and Burning, by Jessica Cluess (TBR). I ended up enjoying this one quite a bit, and I’m looking forward to reading more.
Salt to the Sea, by Ruta Sepetys (TBR). This was just kind of “meh” for me. Too many POVs, for one thing. And the time with each character was so short, I never really felt comfortable in their heads.
For Review:
The Secrets They Left Behind, by Lissa Marie Redmond. A thriller about a cop who goes undercover as a college student to catch whoever is behind the disappearance of three female college students. I enjoyed this a lot!
How to Have a Better Relationship with Anyone, by James Hilt (review forthcoming). This is a solid read, with a very relatable voice.
Miss Austen, by Gill Hornby. This is the story of Jane Austen’s sister, what it was like living with her famous sister, and her struggle to keep the family reputation intact. A good read, but not really a cheerful one.
Copycat Killer, by Laura Scott. I love faith-based books and romantic suspense novels, so combining the two should have been a win for me. However, I found this to be insta-love with the faith aspect barely mentioned…and the main murder mystery barely mentioned as well.
The Stolen Letter, by Paige Shelton. A woman who thinks she was a queen in a past life. A plot to close a bookstore secretly for nefarious purposes. A murder investigation. This was a fun read, even if I hadn’t read the first four books in the series!
Truths I Never Told You, by Kelly Rimmer. Long-hidden family secrets come to life in this quiet family drama.
The Engineer’s Wife, by Tracey Enerson Wood. PT Barnum was my favorite character in this historical fiction novel and I enjoyed the look at the beginning of the women’s suffrage movement, but the main characters weren’t entirely sympathetic for me.
Braised Pork, by An Yu. Okay, I’m not going to lie: the only reason I finished reading this was because it was so short. Thee was some magical realism in this, but the whole thing seemed kind of pointless. Creative name, though not really related to anything.
The Stone of Sorrow, by Brooke Carter. I enjoyed this Icelandic (sort of) fantasy, with Norse myths and legends come to life. A little more character development would have been nice, but it was a decent beginning to a new series.
The Queen of Paris, by Pamela Binnings Ewen. This is the story of Coco Chanel during the great war, and I have to say, she was pretty self-absorbed and oblivious of everything but her own concerns.
The Golden Flea, by Michael Rips. This is so far outside my wheelhouse—but I totally enjoyed it! It’s about the Chelsea Flea Market and the people and treasures found there, and ended up being absolutely fascinating.
My Name is Tani…and I Believe in Miracles, by Tani Adewumi. The inspirational story of a family who fled Nigeria for asylum in America, and their youngest son, who became a chess champion after less than a year of playing.
Feels Like Falling, by Kristy Woodson Harvey. I actually liked the secondary characters more than the main characters, and their interactions made the book a fun read. Gray was pretty spoiled/oblivious to reality, so I wasn’t a big fan of hers, but this is an easy read.
Seven Endless Forests, by April Geneviebe Tucholke. This is set in the same world as The Boneless Mercies, which was a fantastic read! I enjoyed this a lot, but the ending felt really rushed.
The Summer Villa, by Melissa Hill. I enjoyed reading about vacationing in Italy…but two out of three of the main characters were pretty self-absorbed and unlikable. This also seemed a little too good to be true, frankly. I mean, who really falls in love with a gorgeous Italian man while on vacation…and it’s mutual? That’s possibly every woman’s fantasy, but it isn’t reality.
Sugar and Vice, by Eve Calder. This was a fun cozy mystery, and I intend to go back and read the first of the series since I enjoyed this one so much.
Finding Balance, by Kati Gardner (review forthcoming). Loved this #ownvoices YA read!
The Secrets of Love Story Bridge, by Phaedra Patrick. This was a solid read, but I wasn’t in love with it.
Her Hidden Hope, by Jill Lynn (review forthcoming). This was an excellent inspirational romance! Sometimes they can feel a bit preachy, but this one does not fall into that category.
The Paris Hours, by Alex George (review forthcoming). to be honest, I didn’t care much for this. Or, I should say, I’m neutral. I didn’t feel a connection with any of the characters, so it was hard to care what was happening to them. And it felt really sloooow.
This is How I Lied, by Heather Gudenkauf (review forthcoming). The idea that 1995 was 25 years ago kept tripping me up here, as half the story was set in 1995, the rest in the present-day. I didn’t really like any of the characters, so I wasn’t a huge fan of this. And the sister is crazy!
Breath Like Water, by Anna Jarzab (review forthcoming). I LOVED this! I don’t know a thing about competitive swimming, and only slightly more than nothing about bipolar disorder, but I was entranced by this novel from the first page.
Carolina Breeze, by Denise Hunter (review forthcoming). I love this series of wonderful inspirational romances!
Her Amish Suitor’s Secret, by Carrie Lighte (review forthcoming). This was a sweet, enjoyable romance, although there were a couple of things that made me question the portrayal of Amish life. However…that could be my own ignorance talking, and I liked this.
On Ocean Boulevard, by Mary Alice Monroe (review forthcoming). I loved the sea turtle and conservation aspects of this, but I didn’t have much connection with the characters, except Cara. I do love Southern fiction though!
Sister Dear, by Hannah Mary McKinnon. (review forthcoming). So…this didn’t end like I expected, which is good. But I disliked all the characters, so there’s that. These people are not right.
Of Silver and Shadow, by Jennifer Gruenke (review forthcoming). This was an excellent fantasy read!
The Summer Set, by Aimee Agresti (review forthcoming). I enjoyed all the Shakespeare, but…these characters read more like young teenagers that 40-somethings. Selfish, willful, no consideration for anyone besides themselves…and everyone was sleeping with everyone else. (Not that I’m saying teenagers do all that, but these people were completely immature and vapid.)
Masquerade at Middlecrest Abbey, by Abigail Wilson (review forthcoming). I enjoyed this murder mystery mixed with lots of family drama.
Stopped Reading
Valentine, by Elizabeth Wetmore. I read 25% of this, but…it was a little too dark and gritty and depressing for me right now, especially considering current dark events. Definitely my issue, not the novel’s.
Queen of the Owls, by Barbara Linn Probst. I think I made it about 10-15% of the way through this, but the voice was too depressing for me to slog through. Just not a good fit.
Bubblegum, by Adam Levin. Just no. That is all.
Title: The Secrets of Love Story Bridge
Author: Phaedra Patrick
Genre: Fiction
Rating: 4 out of 5
Single father Mitchell Fisher hates all things romance. He enjoys his job removing padlocks fastened to the famous “love lock” bridges of Upchester city. Only his young daughter, Poppy, knows that behind his disciplined veneer, Mitchell grieves the loss of her mother, Anita.
One fateful day, working on the bridge, Mitchell courageously rescues a woman who falls into the river. He’s surprised to feel a connection to her, but the woman disappears before he learns her name. To Mitchell’s shock, a video of the rescue goes viral, hailing him as “The Hero on the Bridge.” He’s soon notified by the mysterious woman’s sister, Liza, that she has been missing for over a year. However, the only clue to where the woman could have gone is the engraved padlock she left on the bridge.
Mitchell finds himself swept up in Liza’s quest to find her lost sister. Along the way, with help from a sparkling cast of characters, Mitchell’s heart gradually unlocks, and he discovers new beginnings can be found in the unlikeliest places…
This seems like a simple story, but there’s a lot going on here. The pacing is slow and steady, which just works for this story. There’s a bit of mystery with the missing woman and her story, sadness and grief over Mitchell’s lost love, and also hope for the future. Not every story needs a fast pace to keep a reader engrossed. Sometimes, savoring a novel like this one is just as enthralling.
Phaedra Patrick studied art and marketing, and has worked as a stained-glass artist, film festival organizer and communications manager. An award-winning short story writer, she now writes full-time. She lives in Saddleworth, UK, with her husband and son. The Secrets of Love Story Bridge is her newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of Harlequin/Park Row in exchange for an honest review.)
Title: Sugar and Vice
Author: Eve Calder
Genre: Cozy mystery
Rating: 4 out of 5
OUT OF THE OVEN
Lately, Kate has a lot on her dessert plate. She’s launching a cookie-of-the-day challenge in the heart of Coral Cay, providing sweet treats for the reception of the town’s handsome new veterinarian—not to mention dealing with tourists in town for a pirate festival and the surprise arrival of her former fiancé, Evan, who seems determined to win her back.
AND INTO THE FIRE
And if that’s not enough, a skeleton has been found—in the backyard behind her best friend Maxi’s floral shop. Kate knows Maxi could never hurt a fly. Maybe the remains belong to Sir George Bly, a long-dead pirate whose name has become urban legend—until now? It’s time for Kate to use every trick in the recipe book to prove Maxi’s innocence, and find the truth about the skeleton, before the last of the cookies crumble…
This was such a fun read! I love the small-town setting with beach vibes. It may not be a good reading choice if you’re trying to give up sugar—because the descriptions of the cookies were making me hungry! I haven’t read the first book in the series, but that didn’t matter.
Maxi and Kate’s friendship was wonderful, and I loved how vibrant Maxi and her family were. Add in two mysteries, a persistent ex, and a cute new veterinarian, and this amounted to a lot of fun!
Eve Calder is from Florida. Sugar and Vice is her newest novel, the second book in The Cookie House Mysteries series.
(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)
Title: The Summer Villa
Author: Melissa Hill
Genre: Women’s fiction
Rating: 4 out of 5
Three women. One summer reunion. Secrets will be revealed…
Villa Dolce Vita, a rambling stone house on the Amalfi Coast, sits high above the Gulf of Naples amid dappled lemon groves and fragrant, tumbling bougainvillea. Kim, Colette and Annie all came to the villa in need of escape and in the process forged an unlikely friendship.
Now, years later, Kim has transformed the crumbling house into a luxury retreat and has invited her friends back for the summer to celebrate.
But as friendships are rekindled under the Italian sun, secrets buried in the past will come to light, and not everyone is happy that the three friends are reuniting… Each woman will have things to face up to if they are all to find true happiness and fully embrace the sweet life.
On one hand, I thoroughly enjoyed reading about Italy—and a vacation sounds wonderful right about now! On the other, I found Kim and Annie to be mildly annoying characters at best. Kim was rather self-absorbed, spoiled, and selfish. Annie was…well, she had a huge chip on her shoulder and spent quite a bit of time feeling sorry for herself. That’s a no-go for me.
I liked Colette, and I would have enjoyed more time spent with her, but a lot of this novel fell in the “too good to be true” category for me. I mean, doesn’t everyone meet handsome strangers who fall immediately in love with you on vacation…and end up wildly successful in your chosen field? This is still an quick, breezy read that doesn’t require too much mental involvement to enjoy.
Melissa Hill is a bestselling author. The Summer Villa is her newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of Harlequin/MIRA in exchange for an honest review.)
Title: Seven Endless Forests
Author: April Genevieve Tucholke
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 4.5 out of 5
On the heels of a devastating plague, Torvi’s sister, Morgunn is stolen from the family farm by Uther, a flame-loving Fremish wolf-priest who leads a pack of ragged, starving girls. Torvi leaves the only home she’s ever known, and joins a shaven-skulled druid and a band of roaming Elsh artists known as the Butcher Bards. They set out on a quest to rescue Torvi’s sister, and find a mythical sword.
On their travels, Torvi and her companions will encounter magical night wilds and mystical Drakes who trade in young men. They will sing rowdy Elshland ballads in a tree-town tavern, and find a mysterious black tower in an Endless Forest. They will fight alongside famous Vorseland archers and barter with Fremish wizards. They will feast with rogue Jade Fell children in a Skal Mountain cave, and seek the help of a Pig Witch. They will face wild, dangerous magic that leads to love, joy, tragedy, and death.
Torvi set out to rescue a sister, but she may find it’s merely the first step toward a life that is grander and more glorious than anything she could have imagined.
I thought The Boneless Mercies—Tucholke’s previous book set in this world—was phenomenal, and I thoroughly enjoyed reading this one. The story opens with tragedy…and tragedy shadows the entire story. Parts of this are magical and enchanting, parts are inspiring, sad, evocative; basically the whole gamut of emotion lives here. The ending felt a bit rushed to me, but that was because it was more of a summary of events instead of actually telling the story (and to set things up for the next book, I imagine). Nevertheless, I highly recommend this!
April Genevieve Tucholke lives in Oregon. Seven Endless Forests is her newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR) in exchange for an honest review.)
I hope everyone had a good week! I had four fiction-writing sessions planned this week, but I only did three. Trying to give myself a break this week and not feel guilty over things like this…and not working out at all this week.
I did write seven book reviews this week, though!
Title: Feels Like Falling
Author: Kristy Woodson Harvey
Genre: Women’s fiction
Rating: 4 out of 5
It’s summertime on the North Carolina coast and the livin’ is easy.
Unless, that is, you’ve just lost your mother to cancer, your sister to her extremist husband, and your husband to his executive assistant. Meet Gray Howard. Right when Gray could use a serious infusion of good karma in her life, she inadvertently gets a stranger, Diana Harrington, fired from her job at the local pharmacy.
Diana Harrington’s summer isn’t off to the greatest start either: Hours before losing her job, she broke up with her boyfriend and moved out of their shared house with only a worn-out Impala for a bed. Lucky for her, Gray has an empty guest house and a very guilty conscience.
With Gray’s kindness, Diana’s tide begins to turn. But when her first love returns, every secret from her past seems to resurface all at once. And, as Gray begins to blaze a new trail, she discovers, with Diana’s help, that what she envisioned as her perfect life may not be what she wants at all.
I loved the relationship Gray had with her assistant and her best friend! Their interactions, especially when adding Diana into the mix, made the whole novel come alive. I didn’t quite get why Gray had such a problem with the age difference between herself and her new man—it wasn’t that big, and he was in graduate school, it’s not like he was a freshman or something. She also dropped him pretty quick and was interested in someone else—who she then handed to her best friend like he was a purse she tried out and didn’t like. This was definitely a novel about opposites, as Diana was a far cry from Gray’s posh and privileged life. A fun read, but not a lot of character depth.
Kristy Woodson Harvey is a bestselling author. Feels Like Falling is her newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of Gallery Books in exchange for an honest review.)
Title: My name is Tani…and I Believe in Miracles
Author: Tani Adewumi
Genre: Nonfiction
Rating: 4 out of 5
Tani Adewumi didn’t know what Boko Haram was or why they had threatened his family. All he knew was that when his parents told the family was going to America, Tani thought it was the start of a great adventure rather than an escape. In truth, his family’s journey to the United States was nothing short of miraculous—and the miracles were just beginning.
Tani’s father, Kayode, became a dishwasher and Uber driver while Tani’s mother, Oluwatoyin, cleaned buildings, while the family lived in a homeless shelter. Eight-year-old Tani jumped into his new life with courage and perseverance—and an unusual mind for chess. After joining the chess club in his public school, Tani practiced his game for hours in the evenings at the shelter. Then he began competing in the ultra-exclusive chess clubs of New York City. And winning—again and again. And then, less than a year after he learned to play, Tani won the New York State chess championship.
I enjoyed this story a lot—from the terror in Nigeria to finding hope in New York. I’ve never learned how to play chess, and the idea of an eight-year-old being so good at it is mind-boggling to me. What I found even more inspiring, though, was the family’s faith and positive outlook, no matter how desperate their circumstances. Truly an inspiring read!
(Galley courtesy of Thomas Nelson in exchange for an honest review.)
Title: The Golden Flea
Author: Michael Rips
Genre: Nonfiction
Rating: 4.5 out of 5
For decades, the Chelsea Flea Market on the west side of Manhattan drew shoppers seeking treasures in booths crammed with vintage dresses, ancient swords, glass eyeballs, Afghan rugs, West African fetish dolls, Old Master paintings, and more
Writing with a beguiling style that has won praise from Joan Didion and Susan Orlean, Rips introduces the Flea’s lovable, oddball vendors, including the Haberdasher, who only sells to those he deems worthy; the Art Dealer, whose obscure paintings often go for enormous sums; the Troubadour, who sings to attract customers; as well pickers and collectors of every stripe. As Rips’ passion for collecting grows, and the Flea’s last days loom, he undertakes a quest to prove the provenance of a mysterious painting that might just be the one.
The Golden Flea was so far outside my normal reading taste that I’m not even sure why it caught my eye—and I LOVED it! I was intrigued from the very first page, and I ended up being totally captivated. (Except the fetishes. Those were just gross.) Rips’ writing brings to life vibrant people and a colorful setting—in a completely unexpected place. The characters are quirky but fascinating, and I was sad to realize the Chelsea Flea Market and its inhabitants are a thing of the past.
Michael Rips is an author, lawyer, and supporter of the arts. The Golden Flea is his new book.
(Galley courtesy of W.W. Norton & Company in exchange for an honest review.)
Tomorrow Is Another Day 