Nosy Neighbors by Freya Sampson – a Book Review

Posted on May 20, 2024 by Amy @ A Librarian and Her Books

Every now and then you come across a book that’s exactly what you needed at exactly the right time. A palate cleanser, of sorts that pulls you out of the funk of reading some deep and depressing stuff. Nosy Neighbors is one such book. It’s refreshing, heartfelt, and makes you believe that at least some sector of humanity is worth saving.

Synopsis

Despite being plagued by bad memories of the place, Kat Bennett is drawn back to her hometown. When she answers an ad for an open room at the crumbling and historic Shelley House, all she remembers about the place is the story of the creepy old witch that lives in the house and preys on children. What she finds is an eclectic mix of tenants, most notably of which is Shelley House’s longest resident, seventy-seven-year-old Dorothy Darling (Ms. Darling, to you). Dorothy keeps to her flat watching any and all comings and goings and ensuring everyone abides by rules. When Kat’s landlord, Joseph, is attacked in his apartment, it just might be Dorothy and her notebook of offensive happenings that can crack the case. While Dorothy finds Joseph to be completely odious, she’s willing to aid in the investigation lest the culprit strike again. Is the attack related to Joseph’s campaign to stop the mass-eviction of Shelley House’s residents in preparation for its imminent demolition or is something else sinister at play? As unlikely a duo as they may be, Kat and Dorothy may be the only ones who can solve the mystery, and hopefully with the help of the other residents, save Shelley House in the process.

Review

The last thing I want to do to a talented author is compare them to someone else, but I can’t help but feel a very Fredrik Backman vibe with this novel. Of course, Sampson lends her own special voice and special touch to this book, and it’s a unique and lovely story. While the “cranky old person meets jaded millennial” theme is far from new, Sampson managed to make it feel fresh. Each and every character is valuable to this story, playing an important part in not just building a narrative but in building the portrait of a beautiful and diverse community. So often we all exist in our own separate spheres, never forming connections with the people who orbit our spheres. It shouldn’t take brutal attacks to bring us all together, but sometimes that’s what happens. Opening your heart to someone else’s pain can act as a balm for our own festering wounds and scars, and as readers it can be so beautiful to watch characters we’ve grown to love so much begin to heal one another and heal themselves.

I’m not going to go into anything in regard to plot, because there’s really a lot going on here. It’s a twisty mystery with a wonderful and refreshing dose of humor and heart. Thematically, it does drop into some really dark places surrounding grief and abuse. The audiobook narration is positively divine as performed by Sarah Lambie who managed to accentuate the personalities of both Dorothy and Kat just perfectly. And with Sampson’s expert storytelling, we are gifted a highly satisfying conclusion that’s at once exciting and touching. It might just bring on some tears if you have the capacity for feeling human emotion. I highly recommend.

P.S. – There’s a charming dog. Need I say more?

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Published April 2, 2024 by Penguin Audio. ISBN 9780593550526. Runtime 11 hrs, 9 mins. Narrated by Sarah Lambie.

Posted in General fiction, humor, Romance, Uncategorized, Uplit | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

The Banned Bookshop of Maggie Banks by Shauna Robinson- a Book Review

Posted on May 14, 2024 by Amy @ A Librarian and Her Books

This title is an entry for my reading challenge for the year. It takes the first spot for the Alliterative Title pick.

Synopsis

Maggie Banks doesn’t really feel she has a purpose. There’s nothing she really wants to do, and her family is starting to think this life of jumping around from job to job makes up the core of her existence. It’s this need for something to pay her bills that brings her to Bell River for a temporary job managing her friend’s small-town bookstore while said friend is on maternity leave. There is one problem, however. The bookstore is already struggling, and Maggie can’t sell any books published in this century. You read that right. Per some weird town rule in place by the descendant of the town’s most famous resident, Edward Bell, the bookstore can’t sell anything published after ole’ Eddie was gracing the town with his presence. Seeing the need for more modern fare, Maggie decides to covertly defy the town’s stupid rules and bring in some romances and thrillers to shake things up a bit. Will she save the bookstore or drive in the last nail in the coffin with her risky maneuvers?

Review

I’ll be completely honest. I have some real issues with this book that are almost completely tied up in its main character. On the surface, this is a unique and intriguing premise. Weird town society pigeonholes business owners into only peddling one dead guy’s junk causing our plucky heroine to challenge the established authority and give the townspeople a voice? I like it. I just don’t really like the execution. First of all, Maggie is a total book snob. She’s a book snob who doesn’t even read, which is both unrealistic and so much worse than a well-read one.

I’m going to go out on a limb and say that publishing a book in which your main theme is that classic literature is boring is a bit risky. I am a bit torn on it, because I’ve wondered if it’s not a tongue-in-cheek critique of how literature snobs often snub their noses at genre fiction without giving readers the respect they deserve. If so, well played. The problem is that there are a lot of us who like a little bit of everything. My roots are in the classics, but I love a good mystery/thriller. I’m not a huge fan of romance, but that’s my own personal taste and I understand why some people like it. Some books challenge us and some provide us an escape. There’s nothing wrong with either avenue, and there’s nothing wrong with liking a mixture of both depending on our mood.

Robinson could have played this out and shown how Maggie develops an appreciation of ye old-timey boring crap, but she really doesn’t. Here’s where I’ll bring in Malcolm. I LOVED Malcolm. He’s nuanced, quirky, and awkwardly introverted in a way many of us can relate. He’s the opposite of Maggie. He likes and appreciates the classics and isn’t too enthused about schmaltzy romance novels, though he loves a good sci-fi. He’s the prime example of the awkward kid who stumbles upon their holy grail of a book that fills a void in an otherwise confusing existence. Now as a grown man he still treasures this one read that helped him become the person he is. So how does Robinson treat Malcolm? She has Maggie endlessly tease him, and there’s even an incredibly uncomfortable scene in which Maggie and the women in his family all gang up on him to ramp up the teasing. Malcolm starts to come around and develop a bit more of an appreciation for fiction outside his comfort zone, but Maggie remains the slightly pretentious anti-classics anti-hero we all know and don’t really love.

I struggle to see this book as the romance it’s supposed to be, because I feel there’s something toxic about Maggie and Malcolm’s relationship that will eventually cause them to implode. He’s her punching bag, and eventually he’ll get tired of being teased merely for being himself, quirks and all. I feel like we’re supposed to be rooting for Maggie, but I just think she’s a jerk.

While the book is decently well-written and well-paced, the plot is just kind of infuriating. I couldn’t believe so many of these small business owners in Bell River sold their livelihoods over to this meddlesome buffoon and allowed him to cripple their businesses. No owner of a bookstore would allow the kind of restrictions to what they can sell that were present in this book. It’s simply not a sustainable business model. Small independent book sellers already have enough trouble staying relevant in today’s digital world. In this case, it’s convenient to the plot by introducing the conflict that spurs Maggie to action, but it just seems utterly stupid when I sit back and really think it through. Don’t even get me started on the fact that Maggie so casually and easily gambled her best friend’s livelihood and the livelihood of her growing family without even clueing her in. Not ok, Maggie. Not ok.

Essentially, this is a promising premise that wound up falling flat for me. The good kind of gets overshadowed by the irritating and unlikeable main character. Sadly, this one is a 2 star for me.

Rating: 2 out of 5.

Published November 1, 2022 by OrangeSky Audio. ISBN 9781667074108. Runtime 9 hrs 18 mins. Narrated by Imani Jade Powers.

Posted in Chick Lit, General fiction, Romance, Uncategorized, Women's fiction | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

WWW Wednesday – May 1, 2024

Posted on May 1, 2024 by Amy @ A Librarian and Her Books

WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Sam at Taking on a World of Words. In it, bloggers answer three questions:

  • What are you currently reading?
  • What have you just finished reading?
  • What will you read next?

What am I currently reading?

I’m currently reading two books. The first is a historical fiction by Joanna Brady whose first novel, The Woman at the Light, I greatly enjoyed. So far I’m really enjoying it, as it’s a very unique and refreshing work of historical fiction about a subject I had previously known very little about. It is Night Witch in Berlin which follows a Russian woman who served as one of the famed Night Witches, the female pilots sent by Stalin to bomb the Nazis in rickety old planes during freezing winter nights in WWII. The second is the audiobook, The Banned Bookshop of Maggie Banks. It’s a very light read about a young newcomer to a small town who attempts to save her friend’s bookstore from ruin by defying the dumb rules that contemporary fiction can’t be sold in the bookstore by covertly opening an illicit room in the back of the store to townsfolk. It’s a neat premise, and so far I’ve been enjoying it.

What have I just finished reading?

Believe it or not, I’m actually caught up with reviews. My last two reads were the audiobook version of Poor Things, the review of which you can find here. And also on audio, I finished The Day Shelley Woodhouse Woke Up, and you can find that review here.

What will I read next?

On deck I’m still a little tentative about my picks. I checked out several from the library so may change my mind about which to start next. But I plan to read Interesting Facts About Space by Emily Austin.

That does it for me. I’ve not a clue what I’ll be choosing on audiobook, but I should finish with Banned Bookshop of Maggie Banks in the next couple of days so I’ll be making that decision pretty soon.

What have you been reading? Feel free to leave me recommendations if there’s something you adored recently. Happy Reading!

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The Day Shelley Woodhouse Woke Up by Laura Pearson – a Book Review

Posted on April 30, 2024 by Amy @ A Librarian and Her Books

I failed spectacularly at getting the reading done for the April book club selection for Read Between the Wines. Sorry, Robert, I swear I meant to read your pick. So it’s only fitting that I blazed through the May selection at record speed before even the end of April!!! Let’s just hope I remember all the discussion points I wanted to hit by the 28th of May!

Synopsis

Shelley Woodhouse wakes from a coma with injuries she knows were inflicted by her husband, David. However, her pleas to contact the police are ignored by hospital staff, and no one seems to want to give Shelley any information at all. Her only visitors are her long-time friend, Dee, and a mysterious hospital volunteer named Matt who adorably brings her kitkats. As we jump back and forth between the present and the memories that return to Shelley, her past, present, and future become more clear to both her and to us as readers.

Review

First of all, I just want to get the cons out of the way, because there’s a lot to actually like about this book. It is highly predictable, however. I was surprised by nothing. I knew who was who from the get-go and couldn’t believe it took Shelley so long to figure some things out. What I will say, however, is that this book isn’t really about the suspense or the mystery of it all. It’s about Shelley discovering the real her that transcends her past trauma. It’s about facing the hurt, shame, and regret and not bottling it inside. People who are looking for a cozy mystery will find something a bit deeper than that which delves into the cyclical nature of domestic violence and the mark it leaves on all who are affected by it. This will leave you a bit hopeful but also sad about the existence of this hidden world of secrets and pain.

Shelley is a likeable but frustrating character. Honestly, predictability is pretty well-suited for a story about domestic violence, because both an abuser and their victim are predictable characters. The cycle continues on and on and on until the abuser finally kills his victim or she (or he) wakes up and gets the hell out. The title is a not-so-thinly-veiled metaphor for escaping the cycle. A bit cliché, maybe, but not unwarranted.

I liked how Pearson utilized secondary characters. In cases of domestic violence, the support system surrounding someone recovering from abuse is so vital to their being able to comfortably pursue living a normal life. In the case of Shelley, it was very important she see that there are truly good men, like Matt and Liam, and that trust can be earned. These characters were well developed and well placed in her life. Her relationship with her mother is also vital here. Shelley has to come to terms with the ways her mother failed her while forging a connection of understanding and forgiveness. This may be the most powerful aspect of the novel.

There you have it. It’s not exciting or glitzy. It’s not comedic. Rather, it’s a deep human story about connecting with ones inner self and healing old scars. This book could really do some good if it reached the right woman, the one who’s been thinking of leaving but just can’t summon the strength. If even one woman is able to save herself from what she feels is a hopeless situation, this book becomes invaluable.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Published April 6, 2024 by Boldwood Books. ISBN 9781785136405. Runtime 8 hrs 7 mins. Narrated by Julie Maisey.

Posted in Chick Lit, General fiction, Uncategorized, Women's fiction | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Poor Things by Alasdair Gray – a Book Review

Posted on April 29, 2024 by Amy @ A Librarian and Her Books

Initial thought: What did I just read???

I think most people have at least heard of this novel at this point thanks to the film adaptation released in 2023 starring Emma Stone, Willem Defoe, and Mark Ruffalo. I haven’t yet seen it, but I will admit to having looked it up to see if it ended the same way. It absolutely does not end the same way. As a matter of fact, its drastic pivot at the finale causes it to have a very different tone and meaning. In case you are new to the party, this is a Frankenstein-inspired novel in which an eccentric doctor, Godwin Baxter, creates a young woman by transplanting the brain of her unborn child into the woman and reanimating her. The subsequent scenes of the novel follow her coming of age and her discovery of all that is pleasurable and horrifying about the world into which she was thrust. Like Frankenstein’s creature, she learns at an intensely rapid rate and possesses great intelligence. Unlike Frankenstein’s creature, she has a lot of sex.

I listened to this one, and I can safely say I don’t recommend that format. Firstly, there are illustrations. That should speak for itself. Secondly, there’s so much going on here with the format of the text, it makes things a bit confusing. We get the analyzation and historical notes by Gray, a fictionalized version of himself that the author uses to introduce the source materials. We also get a book written by Archibald McCandless which he presents as his autobiography before subsequently getting a response to this book from Bella who sheds serious doubts on the truths supposedly in the text. Then it becomes sort of a choose your own adventure book because you basically have to decide whose account you want to believe.

Whatever the truth to Bella’s origin, there are some intense truths in this. Bella’s coming of age, or her awakening, could be true whether she possesses the brain of an infant or the fully developed brain of a woman. In such a time, women were designed to be ignorant to the realities of the world to protect their “delicate sensibilities.” Over time, Bella discovers her passions for social justice, sex, and the creation of her own identity. How many women during the Victorian period were basically grown women with the minds of children having been stunted by society’s dictates? In that respect, this novel is amazingly profound.

There were some quite dull moments that had me zoning out from time to time, especially parts surrounding conversations about politics during the 19th century. These were, of course, important for Bella in crafting her identity, but for me they were a bit painful and I wished they’d be over. The most miserable portion was Alasdair Gray’s historical notes at the very end. I didn’t feel I needed most of them and, in some cases, couldn’t even recall if the people discussed had been present in the actual story. I assume I zoned out during their first introduction, so it was boring in both places.

As any and all narrators are utterly unreliable, I was constantly on my toes wondering what exactly was going on. Just when I thought I had it all figured out, Gray throws in one final line that turns everything upside down again. So if you like novels in which reader interpretation is required, this is the book for you. At times it does read like a Victorian era classic with some modern twists. I can’t say I necessarily enjoyed reading this, but I do believe it has a lot of meaning and lot of literary merit. The writing is brilliant, and Bella is an utterly fascinating character. Overall, I give this one 4 stars out of respect for the sheer uniqueness of this novel.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

First published January 1, 1992. This version published December 1, 2023 by Clipper Audiobooks. ISBN 9781004146277. Runtime 9 hrs 16 mins. Narrated by Russ Bain and Kathryn Drysdale.

Posted in Coming of Age, General fiction, Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Seriously Weird Shit, Uncategorized, Women's fiction | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years by Shubnum Khan – a Book Review

Posted on April 24, 2024 by Amy @ A Librarian and Her Books

The world of publishing can be a fickle place. One minute vampires are trending to be replaced by witches or werewolves the next cycle. Things usually cycle back again, but it’s a bit like the tide going in and out. You know what doesn’t go out of style, however? Creepy old houses. Why? Because they are awesome.

Synopsis

When Sana and her father move into an Akbar Manzil, an old mansion that serves as a boarding house in South Africa, Sana finds herself enamored with the house and its history. She ventures into a wing of the house that no one ever enters to find tantalizing clues of the lives lived before within the walls. In a prior timeline, we get the story of Meena, a young woman pulled out of poverty by a wealthy man for the purpose of becoming his second wife. As time moves on and Meena falls more in love with her husband, the cruelty she receives from the first wife and her mother-in-law intensifies. All the while, the Djinn has been watching and waiting.

Review

As I previously mentioned, I love creepy old houses. When done well, the house acts as a character whose sadness and whispers of forgotten pasts fill the space with a heavy foreboding. In this case, the Djinn acts as sort of the personification of the house. It’s tied to it, and it has no choice but to exist within the walls in a prison of memory and grief. This is quite a lovely and unique twist on the genre, and I enjoyed the fusion of the gothic and cultural elements. I see this book labeled as horror, and I wouldn’t call it that. It’s magical realism, for sure, but I never really got the sense I was reading a horror novel.

The two separate timelines are well-balanced and I found myself actually surprised at one detail as to how they came together in the end. There was something I had a suspicion about, and I was half right but wrong on the specifics. I did feel like there were some loose ends at the conclusion that left me feeling a bit dissatisfied, but the experience of reading this one is very pleasant. It has good pacing and, for the most part, I enjoyed the character development. I hated how obtuse Mr. Khan was in the face of Meena’s plight. His mother and first wife were positively awful to Meena, and at any point he could have stepped in and protected her. Instead, he lives his completely oblivious existence. Sadly, I think this is probably a very authentic portrait of family dynamics in traditional Indian households. He makes the money and leaves the management of the house to the matriarchs. And a son never defies his mother.

Overall, I enjoyed this for the lovely non-horror historical novel that it is even though I felt a little dissatisfied by the ending.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Published January 9, 2024 by Viking. ISBN 9780593653456. 320 pages. Hardcover.

Posted in Gothic, Historical Fiction, magical realism, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

The Prospectors by Ariel Djanikian – a Book Review

Posted on April 22, 2024 by Amy @ A Librarian and Her Books

In 1941, 100 copies of a memoir by Alice Edna Bush Berry were published privately by a small press. The book was called “The Bushes and the Berrys” and recounted the family histories of the Bush and Berry families and their subsequent adventures into the Klondike where they would strike it rich, as well as their later foray into the oil business. Eighty-two years later, Ariel Djanikian, a descendant of the Bush and Berry families, would release this novel that delves much more deeply into the impact the Gold Rush not only had on this one family, but also on the landscape and the groups of Natives displaced by the rush of white Americans hell-bent on claiming the “free” land that would make them rich.

On researching Djanikian, I stumbled upon some interesting facts about her life that inspired her to write such a work. While her great-great-grandmother, Alice Bush (sometimes referred to as Edna or Tot), was on the receiving end of fortune at the expense of others, her Armenian father had escaped Turkey during the Armenian genocide of 1915, an event that claimed his parents and siblings. Djanikian says, “[w]hen writing this book, I wanted to dramatize the way fortunes are made, how individuals position themselves within families to seize wealth, and how racism is used as a cruel instrument for maximizing profit.”* We tend to celebrate the plethora of “rags to riches” stories that come out of the American frontier while turning a blind eye to those whose lands, resources and ways of life were stripped from them by force.

Life is not as simple as a 1950’s Hollywood western where the brave and ethical cowboy battles the bad guys and saves the damsel in distress. In the true American west, cruelty reigned supreme and was so often motivated by racial prejudice and sheer greed. Don’t get me wrong, that doesn’t mean that Djanikian presents the Bushes and Berrys as villains. She presents them as humans, driven at first by desperation and then at the prospect of more. Let’s face it, history is full of people who, when presented with a better life, take it. They didn’t hesitate and ruminate on consequences. They saw people stepping off boats with pocketfuls of gold and the promise that if you can get yourself there alive, the land is yours for the taking. They weren’t evil, but the Bush and Berry families were like other prospectors of their time, consumed by a single-minded quest to better their own lives while remaining completely ignorant of the injustice that should have been right before their very eyes.

Djanikian also presents a future generation, a character named Anna who, at her Grandfather’s behest, sets off on a quest to the Klondike to make amends to the descendants of those wronged by her ancestors. While Alice’s initial memoir reads more like a journal laying out the surface facts of their family history, Djanikian’s novel delves so much deeper into the things that we can’t really know but that make sense. No single character is perfect but they are very authentic, and I applaud her for her ability to capture the nuances of the time. Readers won’t necessarily much like this version of Alice, but they won’t be able to deny that she’s a compelling historical figure very representative of the type of woman who persevered during such a time.

There’s a fair amount of excitement peppered throughout this book to make sure the adventure aspect is still present, but it’s still thought provoking and powerful in its historical presentation of identity, both racial and gender, and in family dynamics. It pretty expertly shows how the corrupting influence of money just continues to trickle down through generations and erodes what little dignity there is left of a family, with some important exceptions.

I highly recommend this book for lovers of historical fiction, especially if you’re looking for those lesser-covered subjects and time periods. Additionally, if you’re interested in reading Alice Bush Berry’s original memoir, it’s available pretty much anywhere online as it’s in the public domain, so check them both out.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Published October 3, 2023 by William Morrow. ISBN 9780063289734. 448 pages. Hardcover.

Posted in Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Uncategorized, Women's fiction | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

WWW Wednesday – March 27, 2024

Posted on March 27, 2024 by Amy @ A Librarian and Her Books

Welcome to WWW Wednesday, a weekly meme hosted by Sam at Taking on A World of Words. In this series, bloggers answer three questions about their weekly reading. The three W’s are:

  • What are you currently reading?
  • What have you recently finished?
  • What will you read next?

What am I currently reading?

I’m still woefully behind on my reviews, but I’ve certainly made reading progress. I’m currently reading two books. In hardback, I’m reading the urban fantasy Masters of Death by Olivie Blake. On audio, I’m listening to a book that’s caught readers’ attention lately because of the Oscar Nominated movie adaptation released last year. It’s Poor Things by Alasdair Gray. I have to say, I’m really enjoying both of them and am looking forward to getting to my reviews.

What have I just finished reading?

I’ve most recently finished the controversial memoir A Million Little Pieces on audio. This was the book club pick for this month. It was a great discussion piece and I’m looking forward to penning my review which I hope to put out this week. I also finished a wonderful gothic novel I borrowed from the library. It’s The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years by Shubnum Khan.

What Will I Read Next?

This is my favorite question and often the most difficult one to answer. My only planned read is The House of Doors by Tan Twan Eng. I actually started this audiobook a while back and got distracted by something else almost immediately, so I will go back to it and start over again when I finish Poor Things. From there, the possibilities are endless! That’s it for me. What are you reading lately?

Until next time, happy reading!

Posted in Fantasy, General fiction, Gothic, Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Memoir, Uncategorized, Urban fantasy | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

An Inheritance of Magic by Benedict Jacka – a Book Review

Posted on March 26, 2024 by Amy @ A Librarian and Her Books

This positively delightful cover is the first in a new series by Benedict Jacka, who is otherwise known for his Alex Verus series. I haven’t read it, but it’s quite popular with readers of urban fantasy. As a reader, I’m not particularly dedicated to any one genre, which gives me a lot of variety, but I’m far from a fantasy aficionado. I enjoy a good fantasy title from time to time. This one I mostly chose because of the cover art. Translation: presence of cat on cover. No really, the cover is gorgeous. And … cat. Ok, in all seriousness this one is my reading challenge pick for a book about or including cats in some capacity, so score one for me.

Synopsis

Stephen Oakwood is a relatively normal young man. He lives alone in a not-so-swanky bachelor pad, struggles to make ends meet with his minimum wage job, and he has the aforementioned cat. Oh… minor detail… he also practices the ancient art of drucraft in his apartment at night, something to which he was introduced by his father who disappeared under fairly mysterious circumstances years ago. You know, the usual. When Stephen’s world collides with that of a wealthy and powerful family of fellow drucrafters, he finds himself in a fight he never wanted but will be forced to finish if he’s to make it out alive.

Review

This is a very compelling concept for an urban fantasy. It’s infused with this always timely theme of class. Even in the world of magic, the wealthy are running the show and taking the best resources for themselves and piggy-backing on the efforts of the working class to build their magical empires. This is definitely a thread I’m looking forward to exploring as the series progresses. Unsurprisingly we see a thread of nepotism and the damage that can be done when someone with immense power but no discernible skill or intelligence jumps at the chance to flex. I mean, really, the lengths the villains will go to in the name of issuing a STAY OFF MY TURF message is infuriating. You don’t mess with the cat, bro!!!

I’m sorry if that seems a bit spoiler-y, but let’s just say that Stephen’s main motivation for ass-kicking is in defense of his bestie, and he’s going to do everything in his power to hone his magical abilities so he can save and protect the one he loves.

Here’s the thing with this book. It’s a great concept, and I really liked getting to know Stephen and Hobbes. However, this book is primarily set-up. It reads more like a drucraft primer, which I guess is necessary considering we’ll need to understand the fundamentals of drucraft in order to follow Stephen and his foes and allies along their subsequent journeys. Unfortunately, that caused this book to drag in some places for me personally. It’s all part of the world-building, and I respect that immensely. There are some readers who absolutely love that part of fantasy, so in this case I believe it’s personal preference. I’m looking for the meat of the story. I like the human elements that tie this fantasy world to the real world. It’s all about the balance.

There’s a lot of potential for Jacka to knock it out of the park in the subsequent books. He’s got a great setup, and he left us with a pretty major teaser in the final words, so time will tell if he can capture that full potential in execution. He’s good at crafting action sequences that are fast-moving and suspenseful, and I anticipate there will be a major uptick in these from this point forward. Also, on Jacka’s blog he JUST announced the cover reveal for the 2nd in the series, and it’s also a beauty. It’s planned for release on October 15, 2024, so that’s something to anticipate.

Overall, I enjoyed this but mostly for it’s purpose of setting up what I hope is to come. I’ll say 3 1/2 stars for this.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Published October 5, 2023 by Ace. ISBN 9780593549841. Paperback. 384 pages.

Posted in Fantasy, magical realism, Urban fantasy | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

A Midlife Gamble (The Midlife Trilogy #3) by Cary J. Hansson – a Book Review

Posted on March 22, 2024 by Amy @ A Librarian and Her Books

I guess you could say I’m reviewing the entire Midlife Trilogy in one review, because I read the first two during my slight unplanned hiatus from blogging and their reviews wound up being really quick goodreads reviews. I didn’t do them justice, and that isn’t fair because this is a really wonderful series. All three books follow three friends: Helen, Caro and Kay. Each woman is unique to her own experiences, but they have a bond forged by almost a lifetime of shared history. The Midlife Trilogy begins with A Midlife Holiday, in which the three friends go together to Cyprus, each one simultaneously escaping the difficulties of their middle-aged existences and searching for some meaning in their monotonous but complicated lives. Some serious stuff happens, and then that brings us to the second book in the series, A Midlife Baby. That title probably perked you up, didn’t it? Things get even more complicated in this book and some serious shocks get thrown our way culminating in quite the cliff-hanger. In A Midlife Gamble, we find the quintessential final book. Suspense, raw emotion, and an explosive conclusion that’s really quite satisfying.

On the surface, these books give off the sweet “chick lit” vibe, but in all honestly they delve very deep into some intense subjects of female identity, friendship, romantic relationships, and mortality. There are resentments and deceptions, but their presence is less soap opera-y and more human and real. In fact, these women feel so real. They are the woman you see at the supermarket who looks a bit frumpy and spent and who doesn’t really smile from her eyes. They are the fashionable, perfectly coiffed woman in heels whose hard-edged business approach hides her true insecurities. And they are the one with the perfect life and the perfect family who is drowning on the inside beneath the things she never says.

Their friendship is sweet and complicated, and each book sort of serves the purpose of helping each woman find her voice, in the world and in their friendship. Boy, do things happen. Lots of things. It’s a fast paced, funny, delightful series and I never found myself getting bored. I could have hung out with these ladies forever. Even when they were selfish and cruel to one another, I still loved and rooted for them. The whole series is bursting with authenticity with just enough Stella getting her groove back fantasy to charm the hopeless romantic in us all. Pleasantly, though, that all takes a back seat and is merely the gateway to the women finding themselves and each other.

Honestly, the ending broke out of the authentic mold and drifted toward completely ludicrous and unlikely. Really, though, I can’t say that I mind. I loved the twists and surprises, no matter how unlikely they wound up being. This series just leaves me with a smile on my face, and sometimes that’s what I’m looking for. And it’s a great reminder as I get older to never give up on myself and never stop choosing my own happiness. Some days it’s really difficult for us women to advocate for ourselves, but it’s completely ok if we do. It really is.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Published May 17, 2023 by Hansson Publishing. ISBN 9798368921105. Runtime 9 hrs, 30 mins. Narrated by Lisa Armytage.

Posted in Chick Lit, General fiction, Romance, Uncategorized, Women's fiction | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment