FICTION p.2

 

 

135. EARLY MORNING RISING by Katherine Heiny (4/22/21) Fiction

I would not describe this book as deep, earthshaking, or profound, but like watching Seinfeld, it is a book about nothing but about everything. It was wonderful to find a book with comedy, where we could just enjoy the characters, watch them make blunders, and yet feel the poignant moments and feel their truth. We are in a small town in Michigan and Jane, a young teacher, locks herself out of her house. She calls a local handyman to help her enter and lucky for her he is a hunk and a flirt. This love at first sight feeling she has becomes a wake-up call when she finds out he has slept with most of the women in town. As he pursues her she wonders if she is just another feather in his cap or is he really in love this time.

Through humor we see that this rather lightweight theme is funny and worth the effort to follow her over the twists and turns in her life over the next seventeen years. I found this a sweet, comfy book that is saved by the relationships, funny missteps, and dilemmas which are relatable and fun.

4 Stars

 

136. THE GIRL WHO CHASED THE MOON by Sarah Addison Allen (4/25/21) Fiction

Emily’s mother dies suddenly leaving the 17 year-old Emily to move from Boston to a small town in North Carolina to live with her grandfather, whom she has never met and knows nothing about. Heartbroken and sad she finds that her grandfather is over 8-feet tall, quite shy, and difficult to get to know. He is surprised that she seems to know nothing about this town her mother grew up in or her mother’s life growing up. Small towns have memories and she learns that her mother was totally different than the person her mother had been to her, a community activist known for her selfless outreach. As she hears about her mother’s past and that she disappeared from the town suddenly, she learns that many in town resent her for her mother’s past. Mix this with a strange and magical phenomenon and we have a mystery to unravel.

I found the story a little too implausible-I’m not at all into fantasy-as in, the bedroom wallpaper magically changes overnight-but although I don’t go with that flow, some seem to find this enchanting! It is definitely not horrible, just not to my taste.

3 Stars

 

 

137. BEFORE I MET YOU by Lisa Jewell (4/27/21) Fiction

After her grandmother Areltte’s death, Betty no longer had the responsibility of Arlette’s personal care and would be free to start her own life. She debated staying on the Island of Guernsey but after hearing her grandmother’s will included a beneficiary named Clara Pickle, with an address in Soho, she decided to go to London in search of her. Betty moves into a tiny flat and started to job hunt. It was not as easy as she hoped and had to settle as a Wendy’s employee with little money to spare after the rent. She wanted to make this an adventure to learn of her grandmother’s past and also for herself. This was the 90’s when Soho is dilapidated but trendy and as she searched for Clara or her heirs she discovered that in the time her grandmother was here Soho, post WWI 20’s, this was a jazz and bohemian place filled with clubs and illegal drugs and booze, not the sort of place she would have thought her grandmother would have chosen.

The author, by moving the story back and forward, takes this mini detective story, the story of Soho, seventy years apart, fills it with lots of colorful people, their haunts and wild lifestyles as Betty comes of age in a style she had never imagined. This is an easy read and will keep you interested.

4 Stars

 

139. WINDFALLEN by Jojo Moyes (5/4/21) Fiction

On a tiny seaside village in England in the 1950’s, stands a beautiful abandoned 1930’s art deco house high above the shoreline called Arcadia. Lottie and Celia, eighteen-year-olds, become enthralled in the house when a group of bohemians with unconventional relationships move into the house. Lottie is especially accepted into the fold and is enticed by their exotic ways and it’s temptations.

Fifty years later a interior designer, Daisy is hired to restore Arcadia as a seaside tourist hotel and seeks to turn her life around after being abandoned by the father of her 4 month-old daughter. As she tackles the management of the project she becomes interested in the history of the old place and uncovers the secrets of Arcadia.

Moyes is a captivating storyteller, complete with emotional tragedy, realistic challenges and heartbreak, and nuanced romance, and appealing settings you might be inclined to visit.

4 Stars

 

 

141. IF I HAD YOUR FACE by Frances Cha (5/12/21) Fiction

Frances Cha’s debut novel, If I Had Your Face, is a social commentary on male-dominant gender roles, class divisions, and obsessive plastic surgery. In the first chapter we see Kyuri in the waiting room of a plastic surgeon as she spots a K-Pop star whose image she has been trying to duplicate with her many surgeries. Kyuri notices her crying and thinks she could do a much better job of being her, “If I had her face.” The story tells us about the lives of four female friends and an older neighbor all from modest means trying to make ends meet. Kyuri, with her beautiful face, is able to work as a South Korean hostess in a “Room Salon”, a cover to prostitution, where wealthy businessmen come to sing karaoke, drink heavily, and party hard. Roommate Sujin is saving for plastic surgery to also join Kyuri in this salon life.

Another character is Miho, an artist who is dating a man from one of Seoul’s wealthiest families, but whose parents would never agree to the marriage since she was brought up in an orphanage and unable to trace her lineage. Ara, a mute, is a hair stylist in a fancy salon, who is not worried about her chances of marriage, but whose parents worry she will be alone as their age. Wonna is married and battling infertility after having suffered three miscarriages. Having a child is utmost in society but both she and her husband worry about being able to afford a child, even with both of them working because of the high cost of childcare and no parents to help.

Cha brings out real issues in modern-day South Korean society, some of them shockingly sad, such as deep seeded misogyny and sexism. But it is an interesting window into a world of which I know little.

4 Stars

 

 

143. WHAT’S MINE AND YOURS by Naima Coster (5/16/21) Fiction

What’s Mine and Yours tells about the long-lasting consequences of crime, the effects of what school busing to achieve integration, has on two families, and the dreams of parents for the success and happiness of their children. In the 1990’s Piedmont, North Carolina, is up in arms over the plan to bus students from the East neighborhoods, to the West, and vice versa. The controversy make parents dig in deep over fairness for their children while others fear the consequences of being forced out of their neighborhoods. The story follows two families over twenty-five years. Fighting inequality can bring out the best and worse in people, even when there are good intentions.

Rich with character portrayals, this story, which forges into the complexities of cultural racism doesn’t fail to show all sides of a problem of education inequalities and the fact that “where” you live controls your future, a factor which is alive and well today.

4 Stars

 

 

145. SORROW AND BLISS by Meg Mason (5/20/21) Fiction

Martha Friel is forty and has been a mess mentally since seventeen. She had some successes, including a marriage and a job at Vogue, but most were short-lived due to her mental struggles and a pattern of harmful decision making. After countless therapies and drugs Martha cannot figure out why she alienates others with heartless and cruel remarks at almost everyone who comes in to her life. At a desperate point in her life she succumbs to the realization that she must go home to live with her alcoholic artist mother and her unpublished poet father.

Mason takes on multitudes of mental health aspects which haunt the troubled mind, including the dark side, while she attempts at humor, which didn’t work for me. The issues of heredity, misdiagnosis, and suppressed reality follow onto successive generations, a hard but all too common reality. The “Bliss” was mostly missing in this book.

3 Stars

 

150. KLARA AND THE SUN by Kazuo Ishiguro (6/2/21) Fiction

The time is the future, but not necessarily the far distant future. In this dystopian world there are two types of children-“lifted” and “unlifted”. The upper-class children often have AF’s-artificial friends-robots. Josie gets to choose her “companion” robot and picks Klara, an advanced model. Although a robot, Klara is intuitive, making it hard to imagine that she is not a child herself. She listens and computes in such a an advanced way, but is limited to what she has been exposed. For instance, when she sees a homeless man sleeping next to his dog she assumes he is dead until he stirs, which focuses on the nuances of Klara’s perspective. The sun is what gives Klara her energy and she assumes that the man was healed by the sun.

If you like Sci-Fi with a little weird thrown in, you will probably like this book, as I did. Futuristic books tend to imagine a reality which could occur. With the artificial intelligence of today we can totally imagine at least parts of this in our future reality. Ishiguro makes us go to places we can not imagine. He is a literary writer but different from the norm. You may not like this version of the future but the concept is captivating.

4 Stars

151. THE ART OF HEARING HEARTBEATS by Jan-Philipp Sendker (6/5/21)

Spanning the decades between 1950 and the present this love story begins when a successful New York lawyer disappears leaving his wife and daughter behind without a trace of what happened. Julia, his daughter, finds a love letter her father wrote many years ago to a Burmese woman. She feels she must solve this mystery and travels to Burma in search of the woman. As she uncovers details of the past and the unimaginable hardships they faced, she understands why her father had to leave. This is a beautifully written love story with poignant passion and the power of love.

5 Stars

152. FATES AND FURIES by Lauren Groff (6/8/21) Fiction

All kinds of accolades are going for this book, including a finalist for the National Book Award, and best book od the year by almost all of the big guys, such s Time, NPR, The Washington Post, and what everyone hopes for- A New York Times Bestseller, (but then aren’t they all?). It has been called a “literary Masterpiece”. I was excited to delve into his book and had high expectations. Groff presents a story about a marriage over the course of 24 years. We see the beginning with all the expectations of a “golden couple” made for each other. Is this couple destined for greatness?

We all know how relationships change over the years and how expectations evaporate. But this book layers the prose with revelations known only to them. This is not like all “marriage gone sour” books. It isn’t typical and is vibrant, satisfying and emotionally riveting.

5 Stars

153. PEOPLE WE MEET ON VACATION by Emily Henry (6/8/21) Fiction

Poppy and Alex are best friends, have nothing in common, and are direct opposites, but they look forward each year to a platonic vacation together. A beach read, as it says on the cover, with light comedy and eventually a romance, shows that friendship can be as intense as romantic love. It is a light-weight but fun, totally predictible, relationship book.

3 Stars

158. WHILE JUSTICE SLEEPS by Stacey Abrams ((6/20/21) Fiction

In her spare time, political activist Stacey Abrams decided to write about the Supreme Court. When the Supreme Court Justice falls into a coma, his law clerk, Avery Keene discovers that the Justice has selected her as his legal guardian and power of attorney. A she strives to figure why the Justice has given her the power to control his life she realizes that her life also may be in jeopardy. Avery enters the world of biotech, questionable ethics, and a conspiracy.

This story is loaded with D.C. insider adventure, and a puzzle the Justice chose to confuse her, all while she is trying to protect his life. I found there were a lot of superfluous characters which seemed unnecessary, sidetracking and slowing down the story line. I would have preferred to see it more tightly knit.

3 Stars

160. PASSING by Nella Larsen (6/22/21) Fiction

First published in 1929, the novel is about two negro (their term) women who pass for white, and the dangers they face in the process. Clare and Irene, reunite in a chance encounter in “white” restaurant many years later. When they recognize each other they open up about their lives. Both are fair skinned and passing for white, tho, Clare admits that she is married to a white man who doesn’t know her secret. Irene is married to a black man. As their relationship progresses the constantly shifting of racial and sexual boundaries erupt in this deeply segregated time. The advantages and pressures of appearing to be white and the dilemmas faced because of skin color, are problems not as apparent in present times, but possibly hiding in plain sight as racism is on the upswing today.

4 Stars

167. HELLO SUNSHINE by Laura Dave (7/15/21) Fiction

Reese Witherspoon grabbed up this book to make into a movie. The protagonist is a charmer named Sunshine Mackenzie- TV culinary star, author of bestselling cookbooks, has millions of fans and a devoted husband. All is going well until she gets hacked and exposed for her lies. She has been lying about her whole life and with this betrayal loses everything, including her husband who cannot forgive her for the deceit. With few options she returns to her family home occupied by her estranged sister. Can she navigate back to an honest life? We see how fragile and fickle “celebrity” can be. Can she rise from the ashes? You’ll just have toread this delicious book!

4 Stars

170. THE INVITATION by Lucy Foley (7/20/21) Fiction

Lucy Foley, author of THE GUEST LIST (#61), takes us on a journey to the Italian Riviera where an Italian Contessa invites a number of actors and artists on a voyage on her yacht along the Italian coast to the Cannes Film Festival. Along with the guests she includes a journalist, Hal, to accompany and report on the voyage for publicity. Hal, somewhat down on his luck, feels like he hit the jackpot as he mingles among the guests and spots a young woman he had previously met a year ago who he was entranced with but then vanished. His obsession with Stella grows and he realizes she is hiding her past. As the liquor flows he learns others also are not as they appear and he is determined to bring Stella back to the girl she once was.

The setting was glamorous, dynamic and a fun peek into the world of the privileged was a guilty pleasure.

4 Stars

173. EVERYONE IN THIS ROOM WILL SOMEDAY BE DEAD by Emily Austin ( (7/23/21) Fiction

The heroine in this funny, upbeat story, is Gilda, a young woman who is a lesbian, and atheist, and is obsessed with “death”. She stumbles into a job as a receptionist at a Catholic church when in seeking relief from her panic attacks she goes for free therapy at the church. Instead she is met by Father Jeff who assumes she is coming for a job interview. He immediately takes a liking to her and hires her. She is not sure she wants the job but agrees when the nice pastor tells her she would be replacing the recently deceased receptionist, Grace. Also she passes herself off as a Catholic, and hides the fact that she has a new girlfriend. Gilda becomes curious about Grace when an email comes through and she begins to impersonate the dead Grace to get information. She gets in deep when the police become involved in the unusual circumstances surrounding Grace’s death.

This is a fun book about a quirky person who cannot be herself and seems to make all the wrong decisions, but has a good heart. Gilda is a great character.

5 Stars

174. THE PAPER PALACE by Miranda Cowley Heller (7/25/21) Fiction

Fifty year old Elle, married to a man she loves, parents of three, has been coming to her family’s beach getaway on Cape Cod her whole life. Each year the reunite with her best friend from childhood, Jonas, and his family. Something passionate happens between them this summer and she has sex with him for the first time. By morning Elle realizes she has crossed the line with her friend that could change their relationship, ruin her very good marriage and change all of their lives.

This is a passionate story of unfulfilled dreams, and a mid-life crisis where choices heve to be made and hearts can be broken. This debut novel is emotional, realistic, and it draws you in from the start in a “take no enemies” fashion.

4 Stars

178. THE LEAVERS by Lisa Ko (8/15/21) Fiction

The day before she disappears, Polly Guo tells her son Deming that they will be moving to Florida. Deming, unhappy with the thought of leaving the family they live with- Vivian, her brother Leon, and son Michael-argues his resistance. Polly says harshly that he has no say in the issue. That evening Polly and Leon, who are lovers, get into a fight, overheard by Deming. But the next morning Polly is off to work and Deming, off to school. That evening Polly fails to return and as the days go by without her Deming starts blaming himself, thinking she went to Florida, leaving him behind.

Ten years pass and Daniel Wilkinson and friend Roland are about to perform with their band at a Manhattan nightclub. Daniel has already had too much to drink and runs off the stage when he realizes he has forgotten the lyrics of the song. He wanders away to Chinatown remembering his early childhood with his mother, and his former name, Deming Guo. The story takes us back and fills us in on his last ten years and how his mother’s disappearance is yet haunting him. You will have to read it to find out. This is a heart-rending story with lots of emotional ups and downs, with the worst tragedies poviding the better stories.

4 Stars

182. THE RETURN by Nicholas Sparks (8/24/21) Fiction

After Trevor Benson, Navy doctor, gets hit by a mortar blast in Afghanistan, he returns stateside to deal with his injuries. After a long stint of recovery and rehab he decides to return to New Bern, North Carolina to reside in the cabin he inherited from his grandfather. While in the Navy he served in the orthopedic unit and was interested in a second stint in medical school in order to practice in his profession. But first he had to sort out his life.

While regrouping he finds romance and a mystery as he lovingly tends to his grandfather’s beehives and relives the memories of his beloved grandfather.

Sparks’ excellent story-telling skills are in full view as he engages you with his characters and their secrets and how to go forward in life. Enjoyable and comforting.

4 Stars

191. THE AWAKENING by Kate Chopen (9/17/21)

In this classic, first published in 1899 and republished many times, we visit the awakening of 28-year-old Edna Pontellier, wife and mother, who becomes aware of her desire for men and her need to express these issues of women having passions and desires for sex and of women not satisfied with her role as wife and mother.

At the first printing these were scandalous expressions. Time and social mores have changed behaviors and attitudes towards woman’s roles, however, even after 120 years I find the questions raised in this book still find validity today.

3 Stars

197. LITTLE BROKEN THINGS by Nichole Baart (9/30/21) Fiction

Nora shows up at her sister Quinn’s lake home with a little girl. With no explanation other to tell no one about the girl, especially their mother, she drops little Lucy off and speeds away leaving Quinn to worry about what kind of situation Nora has gotten herself in to and who is this girl? Nora has always had a fierce aloofness and lack of communication skills and now Quinn has been brought into a situation she neither likes not understands. Lucy, looking lost and scared, gives no clue into this situation, making Quinn even more upset about the dilemma. The story unfolds into a suspense driven life and death plot. Readable if you are in the mood.

3 Stars

198. THE WEDDING DRESS by Danielle Steel (10/1/21)

Not to be confused by the novel by the same name written by Rachel Hauck, this as we see in bold lettering is written by Danielle Steele, the iconic storyteller of over 169, mostly romance, novels, I must admit I downloaded the audiobook at a weak moment when I wanted a light-weight read. It has been at least a couple of decades since I have read one of her books and I was curious to see a more recently (one year ago) published book. This saga begins in 1928 as a wealthy San Francisco family commissioned a Parisian design house to create a wedding dress for their daughter to beat all others. The story of the bridal gown continues through the crash of 1929, and the great loss of fortunes, to their survival and lifestyle changes, and on to the War, the drug cultures of the 60’s, and how they had to adapt to the changes and challenges in their lives.

This was surprisingly well-written, or has she always done a good job? Many suppose that such a prolific writer must have a ‘formula’ in order to churn out so many books in one’s lifetime. Or maybe a staff. Be that as it may, for I will judge just this single book on my enjoyment quotient.

4 Stars

199. ASYMMETRY by Lisa Halliday (10/3/21) Fiction

Alice, a book editor in her mid-twenties, becomes involved with a famous writer Ezra, 45 years her senior. While controlling yet generous, Ezra feeds his protege on what to read and how to look with Alice, the want-to-be-a-novelist, a willing recipient, trusting little of herself. She almost lacks a voice in this section.

The book makes an abrupt about-face with introducing us in the firstperson narrative, to Amar Ala Jasfari, an Iraqi economist in London, visiting a friend who then plans to go to Kurdistan in search of his brother who has disappeared, but instead he gets interrogated at the airport during the war on terrorism.

I have to admit I don’t see the value in two separate stories which do not merge. I fail to see the significance of pairing them . They are about two people being asymmetrically controlled in different ways, which is interesting separately, but I would have to search deeply to find the connecting significance. No thanks.

3 Stars

200. THINGS YOU SAVE IN A FIRE by Katherine Center (10/4/21) Fiction

Cassie Hanwell is a firefighter in Austin, breaking into the male dominated workplace by earning recognition, a service award, for saving a life, a goal she craved to prove herself up to the job. But Cassie had been crippled by two traumatic events on her sixteenth birthday and got in trouble by losing her cool at the firehouse. The events of the past, her mother abandoning the family and a schoolmate assaulting her ten years ago, had a lasting effect on her ability to control her reactions to difficult triggers. After a desperate request from her estranged and ailing mother, she reluctantly agreed to move to the Boston area where she joined a smaller fire department, far less welcoming than the last. Again she had to prove herself, this time while also covering up her attraction to a rookie she was training.

The internal struggles of Cassie’s emotional past, the challenging male dominated dynamics within the fire house, and the resistance to giving herself over to love give this story depth, excitement and pace.

5 Stars

201. THE GRAMMARIANS BY Cathleen Schine (10/6/21) Fiction

Laurel and Daphne are identical twins who from the time they were infants shared a secret language, twin tongue. As they grew and could speak, their love expanded into a great love for language and words of all kinds. Their father expanded their vocabulary when he brought home a huge Merriam Webster’s New International Dictionary, Second Edition. Quickly their obsession grew which continued as Daphne became a copy editor and grammar columnist and Lauren, first a kindergarten teacher and then wrote poetry. Their relationship began to fray over who would get custody of their most prized possession, the dictionary.

Mostly this book is a joyful, comedic anthology of words and the relationship of a shared linguistic delight with the joys and stresses of twin intimacy.

4 Stars

202. THE FRIEND by Sigrid Nunez (10/9/21) Fiction

Nunez uses an unnamed narrator to “talk” of her best friend, spoken as “you”, her literary mentor and the previous owner of a Great Dane named Apollo. The narrator muses about “you’s” three marriages and his affairs with his students. Along with the narrator’s ramblings about art, grief, and life, and the narrator befriends Apollo to further her presence into “you’s” life. They delve into random discussions of topics the narrator had with her mentor who was a major influence in her life.

The story has no plot but rambles about memories of past writing workshops, her grief over you’s suicide, and distress over the suffering of human trafficking of women. After you’s death his third wife wants the narrator to take Apollo who then becomes her closest friend as she sleeps with the dog and rarely leaves the dog behind. The narrative wandered in and out of time and if you tend to enjoy following lightly related musings you may find this literary style to your liking. It is like reading someone’s mind. Note: Critics have applauded this style, and it won the National Book Award for 2019. Despite that, I personally found myself drowning in it’s sad irrelevance.

3 Stars

203. WHAT ARE YOU GOING THROUGH by Sigrid Nunez (10/10/21) Fiction

After struggling through the previous book by Nunez (#202), which won the National Book Award for 2019, I was anxious to see if this book was more relatable, more understandable. The story begins when a woman goes to a hospital to visit a friend dying of cancer. Then we see her as she attends a lecture and finds out it is given by her ex-boyfriend. The lecture is a doomsday climate lecture where he sees no hope of survival of life in the future. Another story is about an owner of an Airbnb and how difficult she finds interacting with her guests. Another is about a stranger who needs help comforting his mother.

Again, the author uses a narrator for seemingly random experiences. I tried to “free-associate and just let the dialog flow without expectations. I also tried to not make relationships from story to story mandatory to my enjoyment. Individually, the stories are about aspects of the human experience and how some deal with large and small problems. All characters make choices or have reactions as it relates to their unique experiences. Nunez as an observer realizes “….the saddest time that has also been one of the happiest times will pass. And I will die alone. Some have found her philosophy “inspirational”, I have found it depressing.

3Stars

206. MISS BENSON’S BEETLE by Rachel Joyce (10/18/21) Fiction

Margery Benson is a schoolteacher and spinster in post WWII London, and is still reeling from the effects of the war. Margery has a tough life at school, never seeking nor trying to fit in. One day, while reaching her breaking point, Margery decides to quit the job, sell her belongings to get enough money to set out on an expedition in search of a rare insect that is thought to exist in New Caledonia. She advertises for a French-speaking assistant and ends up with her polar opposite, a silly fun-loving, not to classy, blond bombshell with a zest for adventure, and a heart of gold, named Enid Pretty. Margery has misgivings about this girl but has no other options. Together this odd-couple cross the ocean, and land totally ill-equipped for the adventure ahead. In spite of the challenges the ladies slowly form a peculiar friendship. Though the ladies and the story is crazy and wacky it is also hilarious and poignant and this tale was fabulous to listen to.

5 Stars

208. APPLES NEVER FALL by Liane Moriarty (10/26/21) Fiction

This is about a family who previously owned a tennis academy, and with Stan and Joy now in their golden years, their relationship has changed from the hopes for their star players, including their four children, to make it to the top, they become laden with disappointment, disagreement, and bickering. Also, past infidelities Joy remembers and how Stan would disappear on her further divides them. Thrown into this mix is Savannah, a bruised girl who shows up at their home, who Joy takes in without a question to nurture. The four siblings are suspect of the strange girl even as she takes over the cooking and the cleaning for the burned out Joy, who is a little tired of the whole family. When Savannah and Joy separately go missing the police were notified and Stan becomes a prime suspect of a possible crime. Liane Moriarty has a great knack at conversational dialogue and with flashbacks she fills in the relationships, past and present.

5 Stars

209. THE GOLDEN GIRL by Elin Hilderbrand (10/31/21) Fiction

Hilderbrand has made a fortune writing “beach reads” and in this book she makes the protagonist an author of 13 wildly popular “beach reads”! Not wanting you or me to give up too easily by this cliche, I kept at it and found enough depth to keep going. Right at the beginning, Vivian Howe, author and mother of three, is killed by a hit and run driver while jogging down a road in Nantucket. Killing the protagonist in the beginning usually means there will be lots of flashbacks, true to form. But, not true to form, we first see her in the “Beyond” being granted three nudges (wishes) by Martha, her heavenly “Person”, who allows her for one year to see what is going on.

This like most ‘beach reads” is a little light weight, and feel good, but still filled with interesting characters, a luscious background location, a little mystery, and not much deep thinking. This is a great book when you might have lots of distractions, having to lay it down often, and it will be easy to pick up again.

4 Stars

214. CHINA DOLLS by Lisa See (11/19/21) Fiction

Lisa See is one of my favorite authors and in this book she goes in a new direction by following the lives of three showgirls, in the late 1930’s through the 40’s, in the Chinese nightclub scene of San Francisco and beyond. Grace Lee, Helen Fong, and Ruby Fong, all estranged from their families for various reasons, meet at and audition for an all new Chinese nightclub opening soon. In a time of racist and gender put-downs this is like magic to the three women wanting to get out of the sweatshops and laundries and into the glamour and excitement of the limelight. Each woman has a past with secrets they hide until they are impossible to keep. When WWII brings added hatred and bigotry to their lives and the clubs close they struggle to find jobs. See brings this extraordinary time period to life in this exciting and heartbreaking novel.

5 Stars

222. MALIBU RISING by Taylor Jenkins Reid (12/6/21) Fiction

This is a story of a family, the Riva’s, who had the good luck to grow up in Malibu and spend most of their childhoods surfing. In 1983, now all adults, they threw an end of the summer party to end all parties. Booze, sex, drugs, and wild rough housing increase as the hours develop later in to the night which culminates with family drama, some which will change their lives forever. But first we get to the back-stories in their youth and see how their lives and relationships developed or at least progressed. There was fringe telling of celebrity insights and seemed like the author had insider knowledge of Malibu life, especially parties, in the 80’s. I didn’t like what was going down at the party but I couldn’t put it down.

3 Stars

226. THE KEEPER OF LOST THINGS by Ruth Hogan (12/20/21) Fiction

orty years ago Anthony Peardew lost a keepsake from his fiancee on the day she died. Haunted and brokenhearted, he started collecting (or rescuing) lost objects others have lost or left behind. Now near the end of his life he regrets not finding the owners and gives that task to his his assistant, Laura, as he bequeaths not only his mission but his home. Laura, having gone through a bad divorce, is lonely but soon finds quirky neighbors who she eventually recruits to help her in reuniting the lost things with their rightful owners.

This debut novel is as the Brits say, “charming” though not thought-provoking or suspenseful, it has rich characters and mini stories about the objects and their journeys.

3 Stars

232. THE SOULMATE EQUATION by Christina Lauren (1/8/22) Fiction

The Soulmate Equation is a fun romantic comedy about single mom Jess Davis, a data and statistics wizard who was abandoned by the father of her child and similarly by her parents. A relationship was not on her radar even though she was lonely and financially burdened. When a new dating company based their matchmaking on DNA and the statistics for similarities was introduced, she gave it a try and the results proved unusual but amazing as she found out that her high-level “Diamond” pairing was a match with a most unlikely person.

This is a fun story loaded with quirks and laughs which I need to read at times. Also catch her other book, #234 on my book list called “The Unhoneymooners”.

4 Stars

235. THE UNHONEYMOONERS by Christina Lauren (1/15/22) Fiction

Olive and Ami are twins, identical in looks but not in luck. Olive, the unlucky twin, becomes lucky when her sister gets married but gets sick with food poisoning at the wedding and asks her to use a free honeymoon that she won and wants her to go with the best man, Ethan, whom Olive detests. Neither are happy but hate to waste an all-expenses-paid vacation at a luxury resort. Now the fun begins.

Of course they are attracted to each other. Of course they pretend to be newlyweds. Of course they meet people who they know. Of course it is sexy and fun.

If you like a “Oh, I hate him but he’s so sexy” kind of a book it will meet your needs. I kept wondering why I stayed with this book to the end. I guess I liked it a little.

3 Stars

236. HOW TO MARRY KEANU REEVES IN 90 DAYS by K.M. Jackson (1/16/20) Fiction

Bethany is devastated when she hears that the confirmed bachelor, Keanu, is getting married in 90 days. She figures she is the perfect soulmate for him and although unlikely, she decides to take her BFF Truman on a wild road trip from NYC to LA to find Keanu and to confess her undying love.

Here is another cute, funny, relaxing read to put you in a good mood.

3 Stars

239. MAISIE DOBBS by Jacqueline Winspear (1/30/22) Fiction

Maisie Dobbs at the age of thirteen became a servant at the estate of Lady Rowan who caught her perusing the library and instead of firing her proposed an education for the young girl. She and another benefactor continued to support her education until The Great War interrupted as Maisie enlisted for overseas nursing duty. After the war Maisie apprenticed at Scotland Yard and later opened her own office as a private investigator. Her first case involved what was a suspected infidelity, but became a search for a killer and mysteries of he war.

This is the first book of what will become a series about the plucky, determined, and lucky Maisie. This book is predictable, not too mysterious, and easy to read. I did not hate it but it is far from being a favorite. But this kind of clean-cut mystery, filled with genuinely nice people, a strong female lead, and is a place for those who do not want violence or too much tension. Oh, and there is always a happy conclusion.

3 Star

240. POPPY HARMON AND THE PILLOW TALK KILLER by Lee Hollis (2/2/22) Fiction

Lee Hollis is the fictional name of a brother and sister who are jointly writing this book which is part of a series, Desert Flowers Mystery. Private investigator Poppy Harmon in Palm Springs likes working for the hottest names, many from Hollywood. Her client, a rising starlet and social media influencer, fears a stalker and Poppy stays close to her at the movie set where Poppy is spotted by a director who wants to cast her in a part, a career she had given up many years ago. Feeling it is a good cover for her presence on the set she reluctantly agrees. There is a murder, Poppy has a hunky sidekick, and the action and movie back-set is interesting. Not a great book but I thought it was fun. I didn’t put this book in the category of Fiction Thriller because it is more about the characters than the plot. But it is lightweight fun.

3 Stars

242. THE GOOD SISTER by Sally Hepworth (2/9/22) Fiction

Fern and Rose are twin sisters but as unlike as can be. Rose is married but oversees Fern who avoids crowds, loud noises, bright lights. She manages to overcome her idiosyncrasies at the public library where she makes her job her mission. Rose, protective of Fern has dinner with her three times a week and manages Fern’s life by helping her through difficult situations.

When Rose discloses that her dream to become a mother cannot happen due to a female problem Fern takes it to heart and decides she can pay back Rose by having a baby for her. She looks over the men who come to the library and choses one to be the father, without his knowledge. The problem begins when she begins to like him as he accepts Fern and her oddities.

This psychological novel peels like an onion as we get snippets of their childhood and a perplexing accident which has crippled their lives. It is well-written with twists and turns and surprises.

4 Stars

244. WHILE WE WERE DATING by Jasmine Guillory (2/20/22) Fiction

If you’re in the mood for a sizzling romantic comedy you will enjoy this fun book. Ben is in advertising and gets to promote a new ad campaign to none other than Anna Gardiner, a beautiful movie star. Anna will be starring in the commercial, another step into making herself a household name. Ben and Anna start flirting and the temperature goes way up. When a family emergency comes up for Anna, Ben comes to the rescue where they reveal more of themselves than is their norm.

This is a cute rom-com, playful and sexy, but not great literature.

3 Stars

245. BEWILDERMENT by Richard Powers (2/16/22) Fiction

Theo Byrne, a young astrobiologist, found a way to search for life on planets many light years away. After his wife died in an accident he was in charge of bringing up his nine-year-old son, Robin, on planet Earth, who is on the autism spectrum, OCD, and ADHD, but has a savant-like intellect and curiosity. Theo does not want his vibrant, creative son to follow the path of psychogenic drugs that will dull his spirit and finds a way of meeting most of Robin’s needs and curious mind. His many interests include animals, especially the endangered, where he decides to paint elaborate pictures of every animal on the list. But when Robin is at school Theo cannot control his triggers and when bullying erupts Robin retaliates with violence. Robin no longer wants to go to school and home-schooling seems the only answer. Robin’s activist mother endowed him with a desire to solve an explanation for a world that is on a path to self-destruct. Robin starts a desperate campaign to save the planet in a world that doesn’t seem to care.

This book delves into planetary science, biofeedback for Robin, and politicians with little regard for science. This is a love story of a father and son, full of love, honesty, challenges, curiosity and dreams and heartbreak.

5 Stars

246. THE FRIENDS WE KEEP by Jane Green (3/3/22) Fiction

Three college friends who swore to remain close drifted apart and came together at their 30th Reunion. None of them had the lives they had hoped for and after some soul-searching decided to live together. All had disappointments, secrets and unfulfilled dreams. Could their secrets ruin their relationship? Can they all re-start on a path to success? In this we venture back and forth through their lives and pasts. It is an easy read, pretty lightweight at times, but good when you don’t want a heavy, deep read.

3 Stars

251. SHADOWS OF PECAN HOLLOW by Caroline Frost (3/18/22) Fiction

In 1970 thirteen runaway Kit Walker met smooth-talking Manny Romero. She was too love-starved and broken to realize that he was abducting her and went away with him willingly. Manny was a low-level criminal who groomed Kit into being his partner-in-crime, mostly gas station robberies. Soon they became infamous as the “Texas Twosome” and enjoyed the fast life and excitement. The story takes in the gritty lifestyle they lead as they get in and out of scrapes and close-calls.

As Kit grows up their relationship changes. In many ways. And we fast-forward twenty years where Kit and her daughter live in a shabby home in Pecan Hollow and we start to piece together what took place in between. The story is about survival, the complexity of love, what one can do out of desperation, and the vulnerability and strength of womanhood. At times this is hard to watch as all characters act-out of desperation and the tendency to continue on a path of poor decisions. With all the mistakes Kit has made, as a mother she tries to lead her daughter forward without the skills needed to succeed. This is a tour into live of the impoverished. But between all the grit and grime there is unexpected tenderness and resilience.

4 Stars

252. AS I LAY DYING by William Faulkner (3/22/22) Fiction Classic

In 1930 “As I Lay Dying” was published and is considered an American classic for its structure, style, and drama as Faulkner nails the dialect of a range of characters from the impoverished low Mississippi countryside. Each Dundren family member has a narrative, usually quaint, with seemingly insignificant observations which give the reader a view into that person’s mind.

In the beginning Addie is nearing death and seeks to have her wishes met after her death. She wants to be buried with her kin in Jefferson, a long and difficult journey for the family. Son Cash is building a coffin right outside of Addie’s window. The more prosperous neighbor’s, the Tull’s, ask for sons Darl and Jewel to do an errand for him and they leave only to come home in two days to find their mother had died. These are a few of the snippets which set up the odyssey of Addie’s trip to Jefferson.

This sometimes pathetic, sometimes humorous story of mishaps, and poor decisions goes on and on. One of the best scenes is when the floods wash out the bridges they attempt a river crossing over a makeshift ford. A stray log upsets the wagon, the coffin falls out and the team of mules are drowned. Cash’s previously broken leg is re-injured. Neighbor Tull sees the wreck and helps Jewel save the coffin and wagon from the river. Then they all search the riverbed for Cash’s tools. Anse ends up mortgaging his farm equipment and using his false teeth money to buy a new team of mules. A horse doctor sets Cash’s leg and he faints from the pain.

This moment in time, with all the scabs and flaws of the characters, makes this a unique, but believable family portrait.

4 Stars

Set in the fictional African village of Koswana, it tells of people living in fear as their children get sick from the water and earth as oil spills by an American oil company brings environmental degradation making the land useless and the people sick and dying. Promises of cleanup and monetary reparations to the villagers are made and ignored year after year. The country’s government, led by a corrupt dictator leaves the villagers no choice but to fight back. And one hopeful young woman who was granted a scholarship in America becomes an activist to help her village and people.

This book has won many tributes and acclaim from being one of the 10 best books of the year by The New York Times, People, The Washington Post and others. I am sure this is based on many similar true stories in Africa and beyond.

5 Stars

256. THE UNFAMILIAR GARDEN by Benjamin Percy (4/4/22) Fiction

A meteor strike in the Seattle area altered the weather pattern and caused a massive drought. The night of the meteor, Jack and Nora Abernathy’s daughter, Mia, disappeared while Jack was doing science experiments in the woods in the middle of the night with Mia. Nora lost herself in her work as a homicide detective when she tried to solve her young daughter’s disappearance. Jack’s promising biologic research crumbled as he struggled with guilt over Mia’s disappearance. When Jack uncovers evidence of a parasitic fungus the parents unite to find out the truth about Mia’s fate and it’s relationship to the meteor strike.

This is no only science fiction, but a gripping thriller, and a story about family tragedy, all rolled into one. On a personal note, I usually steer clear from science fiction, especially when it seems too creepy, contrived and unrealistic, BUT, this one has human elements along with possibilities that at least some of these circumstances could actually happen, to encourage a high recommendation for this one.

5 Stars

258. DEAD SILENCE by S.A. Barnes (4/10/22) Fiction

In this futuristic space novel we can go to space on vacation. Claire Kovalik is part of the Beacon repair crew which attends to problems in space. She is young, spunky, and a risk-taker with ambitions of making a name for herself. They accidentally spot the beacon of a luxury space-liner, the Aurora, which on it’s maiden voyage tour disappeared into space. The Beacon crew decided to investigate which would immediately make them “high-profile” and in the news. Aboard the Aurora they realize that something horrific happened as they see signs written in blood and passenger’s bodies floating around of the high profile rich people, athletes, royalty and celebrites. Violence definitely happened on this ship. Instead of abandoning the ship to it’s fate, Claire, who is leading the mission, decides to bring the ship home despite the risks of recovery. The retrieval can bring the crew the money and fame that could set their career paths for life.

This is pretty exciting vision of what life could look like if we can use space as a destination. It is cleverly written, exciting, although a little too technical for my limited knowledge. Space addicts will love this book.

4 Stars

263. DISAPPEARING EARTH by Julia Phillips (5/3/22) Fiction

This debut novel has won or been a finalist in many literary awards including The National Book Award and National Book Critics Circle, and the New York Times Book Review named it one of the top 10 best books of 2019. With these credentials I had high expectations. The title comes from a story told in the opening chapter about a seaside village that was washed away by a tsunami and the disappearance of two young girls, seemingly unrelated to the tsunami. The 13 chapters are named after a month of the year except for chapter 6 which is named “New Year”. The author writes from a third person point of view and has an unconventional narrative structure, shifting perspectives from one Kamchatkan (Russian) woman to another. Rather than telling one story it tells many with lots of characters in loosely related vignettes. At the very end of the book the author ties many of the characters together but leaves out many.

This type of literary experience, although highly acclaimed, leaves me confused as to why I am seeing so many stories that seem to have little relationship to each other, nor relevance. Tying up some of it in the end was helpful but not satisfying to me. It left me with the feeling that I must have missed something, or maybe this unique style is why it got rave reviews.

3 Stars