August Read: A Certain Kind of Starlight by Heather Webber

 

Well, it's not a reading year for me unless Heather Webber has a new release and I get to enjoy it ahead of publication. A HUGE thanks to Tor/Forge and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this lovely book. I read it a few months ago; it was released on July 23rd, and here I am, finally getting my review out. 

This novel takes place in the small town of Starlight, Alabama. Addie Fullbright has returned to Starlight to help her beloved Aunt Bean in her bakery The Starling Cake Company. The building is undergoing renovations, so Aunt Bean has moved the operation out to the family home and farm building where it all began. Addie hasn't been back for years; she's afraid she'll spill a secret she agreed to with her best friend if she stays for too long. It's a secret that weighs her down. She's also terribly concerned about Aunt Bean's health, and the possibility that Bean isn't being truthful about how serious it is. 

Tessa Jane Wingrove has also returned. She's fighting self-doubt, a frosty Addie, and some family secrets that could impact her entire life. She's got a lot of heartache and pressure from her granddad to make a financial decision on her upcoming birthday.  That decision would benefit her grandad but potentially ruin the town's most popular tourist destination. 

What is that destination? Well, it's a field situated right near the Fullbright family farm, and it's been bringing people from all over to Starlight for a life-altering experience. Years and years ago, a star fell from the sky, leaving a huge crater that glows at night with colorful starlight. Folks who need a little help walk around the crater and into the magical lights and receive the gift of clarity. The effect it has on people's lives is profound. 

There's lots of family drama, secrets spilled (some that aren't so secret after all!), and magic everywhere you look. Second chances at love, forgiveness, and, yes, clarity for those who are lost. I can say this novel gives off a very peaceful, quiet vibe that I enjoyed so much. It's probably one of my top Heather Webber novels, and I've read them all. 

Rating: 5/6. Settle back, grab a pastry, and inhale this story. It's just lovely. 

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio. 

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August Read: A Certain Kind of Starlight by Heather Webber

August Read: The Vaster Wilds by Lauren Groff

 I finished this novel a week ago and had to take some time to deal with all the book emotions it gave me. It's one of my top ten books of 2023. 

I haven't read any Lauren Groff books before this and from what I understand this one is a bit different from her previous novels. The buzz around this novel is accurate and if you're going to read any book this year, make it this one. 

Two things you'll notice pretty quickly: there is no dialogue, and you don't know the narrator's name. In fact, you finally find out the narrator's name towards the very end, and that in itself is a heartbreak. 

This short (less than 300 pages) novel centers around a young woman who has fled from a colonial settlement in America in the dead of winter. Carrying only a knife, a flint, a tin cup, leather gloves and a few blankets, she runs into the vast wilderness, bent on survival. She's leaving a terrible situation: there's no food, and people are either starving to death or dying of small pox. There's also another reason she's fleeing, but you don't know exactly what that is until the last bit of the book. 

The novel follows the narrator as she journeys far into the wilderness, struggling to survive. She's resourceful and smart, and given her limited resources, she's able to keep going when most of us would have just given up. During her journey she encounters wild animals, horrible weather, indigenous people, and one wild man who is so unsettling I was holding my breath reading that chapter.

Along the way, the narrator looks back over her short life and the journey that brought her to "the vaster wilds". Deserted as a baby, she was brought up in an orphanage in London until she was picked out at age four to be a servant in a wealthy household. There she encounters some stability, but also a few awful things. Her employer remarries a preacher man who is cloaked in handsomeness but is actually pretty awful. He decides they need to begin again in the new world.

I don't want to tell you any more, because I'll give too much away. Nature vs. man is a HUGE theme; the wonder this character finds in her surroundings even as she battles to survive. She has some pretty deep soul-searching moments, and a lot of those reflections apply to today's world. Man's determination to conquer the unknown, women feeling unsafe and powerless in a man's world; finding spirituality in nature. It's all there. 

This novel sent me on an emotional journey. The end is as it should be. I hope this novel wins all the awards. It is stunning. 

Rating: 6/6 for a short but powerful novel about survival, regrets, female power and our connection to nature, which can sustain or destroy us. 

This novel will be out on September 12th in the U.S. in hardcover, ebook, and audiobook. A huge thank you to Riverhead Books (Penguin/Random House) for an ARC. 

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August Read: The Vaster Wilds by Lauren Groff

August Read from the Shelves: I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy

 

I've been dilly-dallying between four books the past few weeks and not finishing any of them. When that happens I do what's probably counterintuitive and pick up a whole different book and read it. I've had this memoir in my stacks for a few months and decided to dive in and reset my reading mojo.

Whoa. Lots and lots of some pretty hard stuff in this memoir. Not a read for people who may have experienced physical or mental abuse; eating disorders, or alcohol abuse. I've read a few interviews with Jennette and she said she decided on this title because she wanted it to grab people's attention, and also because she knew her three brothers would immediately get it and understand. I think it's safe to say there are plenty of other people who also get it and understand. 

Jennette McCurdy's acting career wasn't something I was aware of; I was long grown up and not watching Nickelodeon when she was on iCarly. To think of her years on that show, and how miserable she was, is heartbreaking. This kid went through some stuff.

Jennette's mother decided when Jennette was six years old that she should become an actress. Mostly because that's what her mom always wanted to be. Jennette wanted to make her mom happy, because she mostly wasn't-so she said "sure". Dragging Jennette around to auditions, being a pushy stage mom, using her past breast cancer diagnosis to illicit sympathy and open doors eventually got Jennette a starring role on what was to become a very popular kid's show: iCarly. 

What people may not have known was Jennette's home life was a disaster. Her mother constantly worked to keep her children (Jennette has three older brothers) dependent on her and always cried that she didn't want them to grow up. Jennette's dismay at puberty had her mom sharing her "calorie restriction" methods on an eleven year old who developed full blown anorexia, followed by years of bulimia and a dysfunctional relationship with food. This woman was the worst mother. So awful. What's sad is Jennette believed everything her mom said, and worked so hard to not disappoint her mom. This kid was completely lost, naive, and had no chance to figure out who she was, as long as her mother was in control. 

Jennette's mother died from cancer when Jennette was 21. She's free, you think. But no, years of terrible harm to herself required extensive therapy, and a lot of ups and downs. It speaks to Jennette's incredible strength that she's come out whole on the other side. Not only as a child of abuse, but a child actor in a terrible industry that isn't kind at all. 

Jennette's writing is spot on--she's got talent, and I hope she continues to thrive. This was a powerful memoir and I'm so glad I read it, even when it became uncomfortable. 

Rating: 5/6 for a moving, powerful memoir about a young woman's traumatic childhood and her struggle to find her voice. If you have a chance to watch one of her interviews about this book, please watch! 

Available in hardcover, ebook and audio. 

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August Read from the Shelves: I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy

March Read: Weyward by Emilia Hart

 

I first saw the cover of this book months ago, and immediately knew it would be a novel I had to read as soon as it was published. I can't tell you how much I love this cover. Absolutely stunning. 

I'm happy to say the novel was just as good as the cover promised. Women becoming empowered, to be strong and fearless in the face of adversity always resonates with me. 

This novel is told in three voices: Altha, Violet, and Kate. Three generations of women from the Weyward family; each with a powerful connection to nature, particularly crows. Altha's story takes place in 1619, Violet in the 1940's, and Kate in present day England. 

Kate is married to Simon, an abusive man who has cut her off from everyone she knows. He locks her in their posh apartment, monitors her phone, and has complete control over her. He wants a child, and Kate is terrified of getting pregnant. When she discovers she is pregnant, she is forced to act on her carefully laid plains to flee and disappear from her life with Simon. 

Kate runs away to the small village of Crows Beck, where her Great Aunt Violet has left Kate her cottage. Named Weyward Cottage, Kate arrives to discover a squat little place full of Violet's things, and a wild garden. And crows. Lots of crows. Kate is fearful of the cottage and the surrounding woods, which seem to be full of bees, birds, insects, and wild flowers. Yet she can't help but be aware of a strange buzzing in her chest; and a heightened sense of hearing that connects her to nature. 

Violet's story takes place near Weyward Cottage in 1942. Living in Orton Hall with her overbearing father and her younger brother Graham, she is a teenager who has not been allowed to leave the grounds of the estate her entire life. She's completely naive to the world and longs to leave. Her father is an ogre who refuses to speak of their mother and believes Violet is just like her. When cousin Frederick visits on leave from the War, Violet's life takes an unexpected, violent turn. 

Altha lives in Weyward Cottage in 1619, and is the ancestor of Violet and Kate. She's been accused of witchcraft and the murder of a local man, who early one morning was trampled to death by his cows. She is positive she will be found guilty and hung as a witch. Her trial drags on while Altha recalls her life with her mother, also a healing woman who tried to stay under the radar of watchful eyes. 

All three women are connected not only by blood, but by their gifts, handed down each generation to another Weyward female. Each woman's journey to embracing her gifts and using them to empower themselves is the center of this novel. 

I absolutely loved reading each women's story. All three women have compelling lives; I found Violet's to be the most fascinating. The descriptions of nature, flowers, gardens, insects, and the woods resonated with me mostly because of the upcoming Spring months. I thought a lot about flowers blooming, the earth waking up again,  and growing my garden. It was a great reminder of how everything works in sync, and that we are a part of the natural world. To put down the phone and to take a walk and inhale fresh air. 

The novel reads quickly, but I found myself lingering. I didn't want it to end! 

Anyone who is a fan of Alice Hoffman, or Sarah Addison Allen will want to read this novel. I certainly hope Emilia Hart writes more; I will definitely read whatever she writes. 

Rating: 5/6 for a novel about three women from the Weyward female line who learn  to appreciate and embrace their gifts and use them to live their true lives. Is it witchcraft or just a powerful connection to the natural world? 

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio. 

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March Read: Weyward by Emilia Hart

The Secrets of Hartwood Hall by Katie Lumsden

 

This book hit me right at the perfect time. I was having a bit of reading fatigue this week and thought it was a good time to read the e-arc of this gothic novel (thank you Penguin Random House!). It was the perfect antidote to my reading blahs. 

It's 1852 and Margaret Lennox is recently widowed and broke. She's accepted a governess position for a young boy at Hartwood Hall, far away from London. Margaret arrives, and of course this place is massive, set all alone past the creepy dark woods in the English countryside. 

Young Louis is a sweet boy, and Margaret immediately connects to him. If only the Hall wasn't so big, and if only there weren't weird things happening. The villagers won't go near the Hall, and Louis and his mother, Mrs. Eversham aren't welcome there. Superstitious villagers are convinced she's a witch and the Hall is haunted. 

Margaret's terrible marriage still weighs on her mind, and she's convinced she somehow killed her husband. Susan, one of the hired help, is always watching Margaret, and it's pretty clear she's spying on everyone and gathering information to blackmail not only Margaret, but the whole staff. She's a nasty piece of work. 

I went into this novel not knowing much at all about it, and went along for the ride. I couldn't put it down and the plot kept ramping up just enough to keep me in it. Margaret was a pretty decent character, but I was a bit annoyed at her relationship with Paul the gardener.  I get why she made her decision, but I felt it was a bit cold, too. I just felt the relationship was a bit clunky in some spots. I liked all the characters and how Margaret's relationships with all of them evolved. 

One thing I would have liked is an epilogue to see where the characters were a year later. Otherwise, a solid story that I enjoyed quite a bit. 

Rating: 4/6 for a gothic tale with tones of Jane Eyre (the book features in the plot), strong female characters, and families can be shaped by circumstance, friendship, and love. 

Thank you to NetGalley for a review ARC and Penguin Random House for the chance to read and review this novel. It will be out in hardcover in the U.S. on Tuesday, February 28th. Also will be available in ebook and audio. 

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The Secrets of Hartwood Hall by Katie Lumsden

February Read: Finding Me by Viola Davis

 

I've always admired Viola Davis as an actor and as a woman. I've always thought she had such poise, dignity, and class. And that voice--stops me in my tracks. 

When Viola recently won a Grammy and became an EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony winner) I decided it was time to read her memoir. 

Wow. Not at all what I was prepared for when I began her memoir. Viola's childhood was rife with extreme poverty. Often going hungry, living in a building that was actually condemned, seeing her father abuse her mother repeatedly. Viola and her sisters and brother were exposed to so much as children it isn't at all surprising she talks about how they all wet their beds for years and years. 

She speaks about how they had no way to be clean, and often had to wear wet clothes to school because hand washing the night before and hanging clothes didn't dry them in time. How she was made fun of at  school and chased home, knowing if she was caught she'd be beat up. How being dark made her feel ugly and not pretty like the lighter skinned black children. 

But what Viola and her sisters had was imagination, and their escape into putting on plays was the beginning of the way out. They were all also very smart kids who were determined to escape poverty. They knew education was the way out. 

What I found interesting is how Viola's significant accomplishments--those awards she's won over the years--she talks about them, but doesn't make a big deal of them. They're important, but so much else in her personal journey of acceptance was so much more important. The value of self-love was her biggest reward, and something that was a long time coming. 

After reading Finding Me, I admire Viola Davis even more than I did before. She's overcome overwhelming obstacles through determination and a hard won belief in herself. I can't wait to see what she does next. 

Rating: 5/6 for a compelling memoir about creating a life of happiness and success, appreciating all of it, and loving that scared little girl who ran home from school every day. 

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio. 

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February Read: Finding Me by Viola Davis

In the Middle of Hickory Lane by Heather Webber

 

I thought I'd finally post something for November! It's been a very busy month at work and then I immediately got sick for a week. On the backside of that, and finally feeling better. I did read a few books while I was at home and I'll review those later. They are both YA historical novels for a high school library project. 

This is another delightful magical novel by Heather Webber. I've read all of her novels: Midnight at the Blackbird Cafe, South of the Buttonwood Tree, and The Lights of Sugarberry Cove. She's an author I immediately buy, no questions asked. I'm guaranteed a satisfying read. 

This novel takes place in Sweetgrass, Alabama. A typical small Southern town with old homes, solid lifetime friendships, and secrets that are bound to come to light. 

Emme Wynn arrives with just a suitcase to her grandmother Glory Wynn's home. Emma has lived her short life with a mother who was a con artist, always on the run. As soon as Emme turned eighteen, she was on her own. Now twenty-six, she yearns for a family and home to call her own. Emme's got an interesting gift-she can immediately see a person's strongest characteristic. In Glory, she sees loving. In Cora Bee her cousin, she sees softhearted. It's a talent that has saved Emme from some bad situations in her past. She doesn't feel like she belongs, and is a fake, but Glory and her friends immediately draw Emme into their circle. 

What's interesting about this special neighborhood is the garden that exists smack dab in the middle of, you guessed it, Hickory Lane. It's a magical place, complete with a bubbling spring water pool that sometimes reveals the past to those who stop to gaze. There's a vibration in the earth, and flowers that bloom way beyond their lifespan. It's also the place where a sinkhole opened up, revealing the skeletal remains of someone who died long ago. Could it be Bee Gipson, who disappeared fifty years before? Bee is the sister of Glory, and the grandmother of Cora Bee. She's the one who began the magical garden on Hickory Lane. 

Using bits of Bee's diary, her story slowly unfolds as Emme slowly lets her guard down and begins to enjoy living and learning with Glory, and becoming friends with Cora Bee. Each character's secrets slowly come to light--with a little help from Cora Bee's special skills at reading people's colors. You might say the women in the family all possess some magical skills, and all help them navigate their way into new possibilities.

I thoroughly enjoyed this mix of gardening, bees, family, sweet treats, and healing. I'm a sucker for any kind of magical tale that involves flowers, gardens, and, of course, bees. Emme is a character who definitely grows in confidence and opens up in spite of her terrible childhood. Cora Bee is also on a path of healing and has a chance at happiness, too. Glory is the glue that holds everyone together through it all. 

If you're looking for a gentle read, this is it. Perfect for gifting to a friend, or for yourself. Settle down, take a break from the whirlwind of the holidays, and enjoy! You'll want to have a sweet treat, FYI. 

Rating: 4/6 for a novel that doesn't hold many surprises, but was a delight to read. The setting, the characters, and the plot all flowed easily and it was a refreshing break from a busy month. 

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio. 

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In the Middle of Hickory Lane by Heather Webber

The Overnight Guest by Heather Gudenkauf

 

I had to put the books I've been reading on hold this last week so I could read Heather Gudenkauf's latest--I had a 10 day check out from the library so I couldn't dither!

It wasn't hard to do, because this novel grabbed me from the first few pages and I quickly became completely invested in the characters and the plot.

Wylie Lark is a true crime writer, and she's come to Burden, Iowa to stay in an isolated farmhouse to finish her latest book. A big blizzard is heading quickly towards town, and Wylie heads to the farmhouse to huddle up and wait out the storm. 

Twenty years before, young Josie Doyle and her friend Becky were spending a last summer night together out at Josie's parent's farm. It was hot and hard to sleep. The girls slip out to jump on the trampoline outside, and hear gunshots in the house. Running towards the house, the girls quickly realize their mistake and turn around to flee into the cornfields. 

Josie makes it into the field to hide, but Becky doesn't. That night, Josie's world crumbles and Becky disappears.

The blizzard is raging, and Wylie lets her dog out and ends up having to go outside herself to get Taz to come back to the house. She finds a small child, lying in the snow. How did the child get there? 

Wow this was so good! The story flashes back and forth between 2000 and the violence at Josie's home, a young mother and child living in a basement (you know right away this isn't right!), and Wylie focusing on keeping the child alive and figuring out what the heck is going on--all while the power goes out, the storm rages, and no one is available to help. 

It wasn't hard to figure out who was who, but the story was tense and oh golly, that blizzard--I could feel it in my bones. I felt chilled the whole time I was reading. 

It's a quick read, but a good one. All the pieces come together at the end. There are some sensitive subjects involved in this one, so be prepared. 

Rating: 5/6 for a thriller set in an isolated farmhouse in rural Iowa during a massive blizzard. Past and present come together with a bit of a twist at the end. Heather Gudenkauf did not disappoint! 

Available in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audio.

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The Overnight Guest by Heather Gudenkauf

The Maid by Nita Prose

 

To order, click here

 This delightful mystery has been getting all the buzz lately, and I couldn't wait to read it. 

Molly Gray is a maid at the Regency Grand Hotel, and she takes her job very, very seriously. She will not leave a hotel room less than perfect for a hotel guest. Her tag line: "I am here to restore your room to a state of perfection". 

Molly is a character that is certainly memorable. She has trouble reading social cues and takes everything people say literally. She's painfully honest, too. Sadly, she's a loner amongst the hotel employees, and of course they make fun of her. Yet she is the sweetest, most honest person around. 

One day, Molly returns to the hotel suite of the Blacks, a rich couple who frequent the hotel. Molly doesn't care for Mr. Black, as he's rude, crude, and treats his young second wife badly. He's been known to be mean to hotel staff, too. Molly had already been in the suite once that morning, but had to leave before she could finish cleaning the bathroom. Upon returning, she notices the suite she left in tip-top shape (except for the bathroom) is now messy again. Moving into the bedroom, she discovers Mr. Black, dead on the bed. 

Oh dear. 

Molly quickly becomes the center of the murder investigation-mostly because police can't understand how or why she can remain calm, cool, and emotionally detached as they question her. Well, Molly is a bit different, and unfortunately, the police just don't understand her at all. 

Molly gets herself into a pickle, mostly because she just can't read people very well, and mistakes attention for caring when it's not. As Molly finds herself getting deeper into the muck of the murder, will she be able to save herself from going to jail?

Molly will tug at your heart, for sure. She's lonely, has only the best intentions, and is struggling to make ends meet. You will certainly cheer her on, worry about her, and want to make her a cup of tea. The murder definitely takes some twists and turns, too. 

Rating: 5/6 for an entertaining mystery centered around a maid who falls under suspicion after discovering a dead body at a hotel. This novel takes a few surprise turns, all the way to the end. I loved it. 

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio. 

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The Maid by Nita Prose

The PIlot's Daughter by Meredith Jaeger

 

This book came out of nowhere thanks to an invite to read and review it (thank you Dutton/Penguin/Random House).  I just got back from vacation and found it in a pile of books while I was unpacking and immediately started reading it. I'm not exaggerating when I say I couldn't put it down. I spent quite a bit of Sunday on the couch reading this historical novel that bounced between 1920's New York ad 1945 San Francisco. 

Ellie Morgan is a secretary at the San Francisco Chronicle and has recently become engaged to a handsome officer stationed in San Francisco as World War 2 rages on. She chafes against societal rules that keep her career limited to housewife or secretary--when all she wants to do is write for the newspaper and wear trousers like Katherine Hepburn. 

However this all falls to the wayside with a telegram stating that her father, a pilot, is missing and presumed dead over the Adriatic Sea near Italy in December, 1944. Devastated, she refuses to believe he's dead--after all, her father was a resourceful man, and surely he survived. The arrival of her father's personal effects is a blow, and comes with an unwelcome surprise: a package of letters from a woman named Lillian in New York, which clearly illustrate a decades long love affair. What??!!

This sends Ellie on a trip to New York City with her Aunt Iris, determined to find Lillian and see if she has any information on her father. What Ellie finds out from her Aunt Iris, as well as the discoveries she makes in New York City change her life forever. 

This did remind me of Fiona Davis novels, in that it took place in NYC and set in the early to mid-20th century. The 1920's portion of the novel involves the Zigfeld Follies, rich men, and an unsolved murder. Yes, it ties into Ellie's quest in 1944 very neatly-you'll see as you read. I just found it fascinating. 

Many parts were predictable, but that didn't lessen my enjoyment at all. I blazed through this story and am eager to read more of Meredith Jaeger's novels. 

Definitely fans of World War 2, early-mid 20th century history, Broadway history, San Francisco, journalism-you name it, this has a little bit of everything in it. It's also about societal and familial expectations, and how going against them can ruin a woman, or set her free. 

A big thanks to Dutton (part of Penguin/Random House) for the chance to read and review this novel. I found an author I enjoy, and that's always a gift. 

This novel is available in trade paperback, ebook, and audio.

Rating: 5/6 for a fast paced historical novel that didn't disappoint-it definitely transported me to the glam of 1920's NYC, and the foggy streets of San Francisco. Likeable characters and definitely a few bad apples, too. 

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The PIlot's Daughter by Meredith Jaeger

The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune

 

Buy Here: https://amzn.to/3m1SPH3

I knew I'd love this book when it first was out in hardcover last year (2020) and it was getting so many great reviews. It took me a year but I finally bought it in paperback and vowed I would read it this month. This is a sweet, special story. 

Linus Baker is living a life as dull and grey as the weather in London. He is in his early forties and every day he works at the Department in Charge of Magical Youth. He travels to orphanages and checks to make sure the magical children at each location are being properly cared for--and he takes his job very seriously. He's been doing the same job for seventeen years. His routine is the same every day: get up, go to work, come home and feed his cat, eat a sad salad, and listen to records. No friends, nothing. He's fully aware his life is not the best, but he's just too tired to do anything about it. 

He gets a special assignment from the Extremely Upper Management--a case that is very special and secret. Linus takes the case and finds himself traveling away from the dreary, grey rain and into a special place full of sun, brilliant colors, warmth, and the sea. A house on an island full of interesting children, each uniquely special, as is Arthur, the man who is in charge of this particular orphanage. Linus is ill at ease as he reads the files on each of the children--he's way out of his comfort zone and doesn't know how he's going to make it for a whole month, observing and sending reports back to the Extremely Upper Management. 

Yet as the days tick by, Linus starts changing, a little bit more every day. He's losing his ability to stay impartial. He finds himself being charmed by all the quirky characters, and drawn to Arthur's gentle presence. He's torn between his growing feelings and knowing he will have to leave and return to his job at The Department in Charge of Magical Youth. He can't possibly dream about a different alternative, can he?

I am not going to tell you about the children--it's part of the story that you have to read and discover for yourself. But let me tell you they are all unique, and you'll quickly fall for all of them, as Linus does. This is a sweet, gentle, calming read. It is like traveling to another place; a place that calms, soothes, and heals. I sound corny, but that's how this novel made me feel. 

So take a jump into the Cerulean Sea and find out how just lovely the water feels!

Rating: 5/6 for a delightfully sweet story about a man who is lost, and how he finds his way home.

Available in hardcover, trade paperback, ebook, and audio. 

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The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune

The Peacock Emporium by Jojo Moyes

I've read quite a few of Jojo Moyes' novels and haven't been disappointed in any of them. I have to say, however, The Peacock Emporium fell a bit flat for me. It was a novel I've had on my shelf for about a year, and after clearing off my bookcases, I found it again and added it to my summer reading list. But darn it all, it was a struggle to read and I'm still scratching my head over it after finishing it late tonight. 

Reading the back cover, I thought this would be about a delightful young woman running a shop and dealing with a mother who is a bit overbearing. The delightful young woman would find her way by being a successful shop owner, and eventually connect with her mother. That's what I got out of reading the back cover. 

Oh heck no, I was waaaay off. Honestly, I spent a lot of my time a bit confused as to where this plot was going. It seemed to be a jumble, as if the author couldn't decide which set of characters to concentrate on, so she tried to fit them all in. It didn't work for me. 

The novel starts with with Vivi and Douglas in 1963 going to a big fancy party in the English countryside. Vivi is in love with Douglas, who remains oblivious. At the party, Douglas falls for Athene Forster, who is wildly beautiful, troubled, and a bit out of control. Vivi is devastated, of course. Then the story swings to 35 years later--and Suzanne Peacock. Suzanne and her husband Neil have left London and moved back to Suzanne's hometown due to some bad financial mistakes Neil made--they are getting back on their feet very slowly. Suzanne is gorgeous and a bit spoiled. She's not interested in visiting her parents, who own a family estate outside of town. And guess who her parents are? Yep--Vivi and Douglas. 

Suzanne is the kind of character who doesn't make you feel warm fuzzies at all. She's completely lost, resentful of everything, and decides to open a small shop in town to help her pass the time. The Peacock Emporium is a bit of a mishmash of a coffee shop and a store that sells higher end bits and bobs. Suzanne just hangs out there, and meets Jessie, a young mother who boldly decides to work part-time at the shop and show Suzanne how to engage with the public. Jessie and Suzanne become friends, and all seems to be going well. 

However, there's a bit of a mystery involving Suzanne and her family. Suzanne is unhappy in her marriage, and not sure how to get out of it. And there's a new man in town from Argentina who is growing on Suzanne's heart and mind. 

Tragedy happens and that was the one thing I didn't see coming. Not at all. Not sure why; maybe to move the plot forward? I'm not sure. It definitely took the wind out of my reading. I had to put the book down for a week before I could return to it. I finally finished it today. 

I don't know what to tell you about this novel. It seems like it was all over the place, and I wasn't sure what the heck I was reading-was it Suzanne's story, was it Jessies? Was it Vivi and Douglas' story, or was it Athene's? I spent a lot of time trying to understand what exactly was going on, and not enough was going on to keep me glued to the pages. This novel was written in 2004, and released in the U.S. in 2019. So I think it is one of Jojo Moyes' earlier novels. Darn it all, I was all set for a great story, but this one just wasn't it. 

Rating: 2/6 for a disjointed tale of one woman's journey to understanding her place in her family, and finding happiness for herself. I usually don't have any trouble following dual storylines involving different decades, but this one jumped all over and I couldn't piece it all together very easily. I'll still read Jojo Moyes because she is quite good, but this one, an earlier novel, definitely wasn't a favorite of mine. 

Available in paperback, ebook, and audio. 

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The Peacock Emporium by Jojo Moyes

The Last Train to Key West by Chanel Cleeton

I'll confess I've wanted to visit Key West for many years, and I've yet to get there. When I saw this novel set in Key West in the 1930's, I had to pick it up. Add to the plot a devastating hurricane over Labor Day Weekend, 1935, and I grabbed a copy to read on my last few days of a short staycation. 

The plot revolves around three women who are in Key West and the surrounding area over the Labor Day Weekend. It's 1935, and the southern most tip of Florida is a pretty rough place--not the tourist destination it is today. The Florida East Coast Railway had finally been built to bring passengers all the way to Key West. World War One vets were living in pretty miserable camps while they worked on building and extending the railroad. No one wanted to deal with vets returning from the Great War that had left them damaged with PTSD; it was easy to ship them down to Florida and forget about them. Wow. Do we never learn from past mistakes?! 

Anyhow. Three women: Helen, Elizabeth, and Mirta are all in the Keys this fateful weekend. Helen lives there; she's 9 months pregnant, living with an abusive husband, and working as a waitress in the only cafe around. Elizabeth has fled New York City and come to Florida looking for her brother, who may be at one of the veteran camps. She's got a secret or two. And Mirta has arrived from Cuba with her new husband, handsome Anthony. Mirta married Anthony so her family would be safe in Cuba from the changing leadership. They are on their honeymoon before traveling to Anthony's home in New York City. 

The paths of all three women criss-cross over the fateful few days they are trapped in Key West as the hurricane comes barreling down. The weather officials claim it will miss them; the locals, who know better, are getting nervous seeing the ominous signs that the terrible storm is advancing. Who will survive? Will each woman find the answers they are seeking? 

The plot moved along fairly quickly. I didn't have trouble following each woman's story; chapters have each woman's name, so you know which one you're following. Each story is compelling; I found Helen's tale of matrimonial abuse and her desire to escape the most interesting. The hurricane left death and destruction that was horrible. I looked at a few stories on the actual hurricane of 1935 and yes, it was as bad as it is portrayed in the novel. While the hurricane literally wiped clean the islands that make up the Keys, it also wiped clean the lives of these three women, and created new chances for each. I don't want to give much away, so I'll stop there. There aren't any huge surprises, but the puzzle pieces all fit together in an interesting way, and each woman is connected to each other by more than geography. 

There are book club discussion questions in the back of the book for those who want to read and discuss. I would definitely like to read Chanel Cleeton's two other books: 

I'm always intrigued by books set in the 1920's and 1930's--in between the two world wars. 

Definitely a book I'd recommend if you're traveling to Florida (maybe in 2021?). I didn't see any non-fiction books about the Labor Day Hurricane of 1935 but I'd love to know more about it beyond newspaper articles revisiting the event. 

Rating: 4/6 for a historical novel about three women at definitive crossroads in their lives; a deadly hurricane that forces them each to make choices, and the ever present and unresolved issue of returning veterans and failure of our government to honor and protect them as they return home. 

Available in paperback, ebook, and audio. 

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The Last Train to Key West by Chanel Cleeton

A Review of The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

Summer. It's here. It took me a few months to get back into my reading groove, and I think I'm almost there again, thankfully. 

The world is a hurting place, and I, along with so many others, are self-reflecting on my place in it, and my responsibility towards living a life of peace and love. I have always looked to the stories that books tell-whether they are fiction or non-fiction-to help me understand where the world was, and how we came to be where we are now. How others live; their cultures, the barriers they face, and the ugly and brutal things we do to each other out of fear and just plain ignorance.

 I will continue to read stories, memoirs, and history books that will help me understand the beautiful, magnificent, deeply troubled and damaged world we live in and call our home. And I hope I can, in some way, make it better. I may not be out protesting, but I will vote for change, and donate to causes I feel are important. We all do what we can. 

I saw a quote from Denzel Washington yesterday. He said that "Resistance is NOT a one lane highway. Maybe your lane is protesting, maybe your lane is organizing, maybe your lane is counseling, maybe your lane is art activism, maybe your lane is surviving the day. Do NOT feel guilty for not occupying every lane. We need all of them." 

So, onto The Vanishing Half. I received an advanced copy of this novel from a library conference and it was a great choice to kick off my summer reading. Brit Bennett's the author of The Mothers, which is the  adult All Iowa Read for 2020. I haven't read it, but now it's definitely on my list. 

The Vanishing Half is about two sisters-identical twins. The Vignes sisters: Desiree and Stella. They live in the very small town of Millard, Louisiana. Millard is a black community with a bit of a twist: everyone there is light skinned. They could pass for white people, but they identify as black, and are treated by the white people around them as black. It's the 1960's, and both girls want to escape Millard. Memories of their father being murdered by white men haunt them both, but especially Stella. They run away to New Orleans, and seem happy there for a bit. But Stella decides to try for a 'whites only' job, and gets it. She hides her secret every day, afraid someone will find out she's not white at all. And as she works, she realizes that she wants that kind of life-the white kind. But it means leaving Desiree behind. 

Years later, Desiree returns to Millard with her young daughter, Jude. Desiree did what most folks in Millard consider unforgivable: she married a black man-a very dark black man, and produced a child that did not fit into Millard's light skinned community. Poor Jude. She's shunned by everyone in the town; sits by herself at school, and running track is her only way out. Desiree stays in Millard, reconnecting to an old boyfriend and taking care of her mother. She always says she'll leave, but she never does. Desiree thinks about Stella-where she is, what her life is like, and the depth of her anger, sense of betrayal, and grief never goes away.

You also dive into Stella's life. It's vastly different from Desiree's life. She lives her life as a white woman, and keeps her secret from everyone, including her husband and her daughter, Kennedy-a blonde, violet eyed beauty. She has lived her life as a white woman longer than she ever identified as a black woman. And she lives in a privileged community in L.A., caught in her lies and unable to make peace with all of it. 

The novel moves into the 80's, as Jude and Kennedy grow up--and yes, cross paths. You may think it's just not possible, but Bennett writes the story in such a way that yes, it's very possible and makes perfect sense. How can these two women find any commonality? Will Stella ever return to Millard? Will Desiree ever see her sister again? What do you do when you live a lie for so long that it traps you? 

This was such a powerful novel about sisters, family, race, and identity. Hiding behind masks. Struggling to be seen. Jude--I loved Jude! She is such a powerhouse. Kennedy--a hot mess so lost she doesn't even realize how lost she is, and just keeps spiraling down. Stella so full of guilt; Desiree who tried to escape but finds herself right back where she started. The characters in this novel are worthy of long discussions, and this would make an excellent book group title. 

Rating: 5/6 for a powerful look at how we identify ourselves and people of color, and how society identifies us-the struggles to reconcile dreams with reality, and the sacrifices made on the journey. 

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio. 

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A Review of The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

Midnight Blue by Simone Van Der Vlugt

This was one of those books I spotted at the bookstore and it immediately caught my eye. I bought it and promptly added it to a stack of books to be read...in 2018.

Well, I'm a few years off, but I finally read it, and am annoyed with myself for waiting so long to finally get to it. I love reading historical fiction that teaches me something I didn't know anything about before i picked up the book. In this case, it's all about the Dutch pottery industry in the 1650's. Add that to a soap opera worthy story with a smart, capable lead female character, and this was a thoroughly enjoyable read. 

Catrin has just lost her husband to a sudden illness, and she is a widow at 25. She decides to sell the farm, leave her small village, and makes her way to Amsterdam and a new life. There, she has a chance to learn a bit more about painting-something she loved to do on bits of furniture and pottery, but was never able to fully explore. Just when it looks like Catrin is settled into her job as housekeeper, her past comes back to haunt her, and she flees to the small city of Delft, where she is hired on as a painter of pottery in a local workshop. Working with Evert, the owner of the workshop, Catrin helps to develop a new kind of pottery to rival the Chinese delicate porcelain that is all the rage, but increasingly impossible to import. Has Catrin finally found her place, and another chance at love and happiness?

Catrin--I liked her from the get-go. She's brave, she's smart, and she's talented. She's a good person, and tormented by the choices she made in order to save herself. Throughout most of the novel, she is always questioning whether or not she will be punished by God for her sin, or if it's possible for God to forgive a sin that she didn't regret committing. Jacob, a former farm employee of Catrin and her husband, keeps showing up like a bad penny, threatening to expose Catrin's awful secret. He's always the catalyst that keeps the novel moving along. 

Catrin has a lot of great luck, and a lot of bad luck. But she keeps going, keeps moving forward. I found the descriptions of the pottery workshops to be very interesting, and the glimpses of Rembrandt, Vermeer and their art throughout the novel make this time period really come alive with color and vibrancy. It definitely was Holland's Golden Age. 

I've got nothing negative to say about this novel. I was happy to read about a completely different time period, and a completely different artistic movement-something I was pretty unaware of before I picked up this book. And of course the plague makes an appearance, and I find that very timely, with all the news about the Coronavirus spreading all over the world. 

Rating: 4/6 for a historic novel full of artists, larger than life characters, unrequited love, evil-doers, a fiesty heroine, and a fascinating look at the beginnings of the Delft Blue porcelain movement in 1650's Holland. 

Available in paperback. 

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Midnight Blue by Simone Van Der Vlugt

The Westering Women by Sandra Dallas

Sandra Dallas knocked it out of the park again with her latest novel about women pioneers, Westering Women. I've had the pleasure of meeting Sandra, and I've read pretty much all of her novels over the years. I'm never disappointed. 

One of my favorite history subjects is pioneering women. I've always been fascinated by these incredible women, who gave up everything they knew and loved to follow their husbands out West to start new lives. Imagine walking from St. Louis to California. In a dress. No A/C, no iced coffee, no comforting hotel to sleep in at night. Maybe giving birth while out in the middle of nowhere. Losing children and husbands to cholera, accidents, drowning. When I think of these women, I can't help but admire their tenacity, strength of mind, and downright badassery. I wonder if I would have been able to do what they did; if I had the hardcore toughness, and grace, to make it West and start a new life. This is what Sandra's novel had me thinking about every time I sat down to read Westering Women. 

It was pretty easy to slip right into Maggie Hale's story, which starts in Chicago. She's fleeing a horribly abusive husband with her small daughter, Clara. She sees an advertisement for women to travel West as potential brides for miners in California. It's her only chance to get out of Chicago before she's arrested for her husband's murder. A seamstress, she's been working hard to keep herself and Clara going, but money is running out, and after defending herself and Clara from the latest abuse of her husband, she fears she will pay the ultimate price. 

Maggie meets Mary at the church where they gather to apply to go West. Mary is one tough woman. Standing tall and broad, she works on the farm she shares with her brother and his wife. She's treated badly by both, and does the work of two without much reward. She's ready to travel West and start anew. 

Maggie and Mary are two of the main characters, but there's also a host of other folks who round out the wagon train: William and Joseph, both reverends who have organized the wagon train; Caroline, Joseph's wife and William's sister, who shows compassion and love to all she meets; Penn, a runaway from an abusive man and his brothers; Winny, a servant who wants to find her brother in California, and Bessie, the rich widow who is sponsoring the trip and also going West to start over again. There are more characters, and you'll get to know them all. 

The women endure many hardships, challenges, and tragedies. It may seem like a lot, but in reality, this was life on the trail. Most of the men in the novel aren't the best characters. Penn and Maggie are always looking over their shoulders, afraid they will be caught. But as the weeks go by, the women learn to defend themselves, perform the hard labor required to keep the wagons moving forward, and find strength they never knew they had. The trail hardens them in all the best ways. William and Joseph also change for the better, as they face the reality and responsibility of their journey. 

Most of all, this novel is about friendship and sisterhood, and the ties that bind women together. It's about working as a team even when it's hard or when it doesn't benefit you. It's about supporting, celebrating, and comforting those on the journey with you. This is always a theme in Sandra's novels, and I can't think of a better over-arching theme to weave into every story she creates. 

Fans of Nancy Turner's These is My Words--if you haven't read Sandra's novels, I would highly recommend you do. I can't get enough of them. 

Rating: 5/6 for another wonderful story about women who keep moving forward through strife, heartbreak, and pain. The characters are endearing, the story moves swiftly, and it is hard to put down! 

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio. 

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The Westering Women by Sandra Dallas

St. Francis Society for Wayward Pets by Annie England Noblin

My last read of January. I finished it at about 2:30 this morning, after falling asleep by 9 PM and then being WIDE awake in the middle of the night. Apparently I'd had enough sleep.  I suspect I'll be on the downslide by about 10 AM this morning. Just in time for my second round of coffee. 

This was a quick read, and I wasn't quite sure where it was headed as I was reading about Maeve and her new life in a small town. It felt like the author wasn't quite sure which themes she wanted to focus on and I just figured it would all shake out. After all was said and done, I was happy with where the author was going and satisfied with the whole shebang. 

Maeve has just lost her job as a sports journalist (and not a very good one, as she says), and her semi-famous baseball playing boyfriend has just humiliated her with a YouTube video of him smooching on another woman. Broke, she moves back in with her parents, and contemplates her mess of a life. Everything changes when she receives a call informing her that Annabelle, her birth mother, has died. 

Annabelle lived in the small town of Timber Creek, Washington, about four hours away from Maeve's life in Seattle. Maeve, at 36, never knew her birth mother and quite honestly has a big bag of complicated feelings about her. She decides to attend Annabelle's funeral, and that is the start of Maeve's new life. 

Yes, there is the ruggedly handsome and complicated Abel (I couldn't help but see Jason Momoa in this role); Alice, Annabelle's best friend and keeper of secrets; and the ladies of the St. Francis Society for Wayward Pets. They knit sweaters for cats and dogs, and Annabelle was a founding member of the group. Maeve finds out she's inherited Annabelle's house, car, and ragamuffin cat, and what was intended as a one day trip extends into Maeve deciding to stay in Timber Creek for a few weeks. After all, she's unemployed, and doesn't want to go back to living with her parents. She's also got to come to terms with her feeling about her birth mother. A major theme in this novel explores the  often complicated feelings carried around by those who are adopted. Maeve comes from a very happy upbringing, but still feels rejected and unwanted as an adult because she was given up by Annabelle as a newborn. Will she be able to find some peace and healing living in Annabelle's hometown? 

I enjoyed this novel, and realized I have Pupcakes, another novel by this author. Give me a contemporary tale that sprinkles in a few irresistible pets, small town life, and a cast of interesting characters and I'm all in. Humor, a bit of modern romance, and an underlying theme of finding and claiming your identity all came together to create an entertaining read. If you're a sucker for dog themed novels, Annie England Noblin has even more novels with equally adorable covers:

Rating: 3/6 for a quick, entertaining read about a woman's search for her past and a chance at creating a new future for herself. If you love novels featuring pets, check out this author. I plan on reading more!

Available in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audio.

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St. Francis Society for Wayward Pets by Annie England Noblin

Recipe for a Perfect Wife by Karma Brown

I zipped through this novel in a day--my first of 2020. It read very quickly, and I had a hard time putting it down. 

Why was it so compelling? I'm not sure. It's a dual storyline, between two women: Nellie in 1956, and Alice in 2018. Both are living in the same home, and married. Nellie is married to a man who swept her off her feet, and she quickly realizes he's not a nice man. Not nice at all. He wants a wife who is pretty, looks perfect all the time, cooks, cleans, and has babies. He's not afraid to use some physical force to keep her in line. 

Alice is a modern woman, who recently left her job in New York City under a cloud--although she's kept that bit of information from her husband Nate. He thinks she quit. Nate wants to move out of the city and start a family in a home set in the suburbs. Alice, very reluctantly, agrees. She's a big city lady, and used to working a lot. Nate makes enough money that she can stay home and write her novel. Alice and Nate buy the home Nellie had lived in 60 years before, and even though it needs a lot of work to modernize it, Nate loves it. Alice, not so much. While rummaging around in some boxes in the basement, she finds an old cookbook that belonged to Nellie. It's safe to say Nellie's spirit inhabits the home, and Alice slowly begins to immerse herself in the role of a housewife who gardens, cooks (out of Nellie's cookbook), and yes, even starts smoking again. She claims it's all for research on her novel, but wow, she starts to take on a lot of Nellie's personality. 

The novel moves back and forth between the two women. I liked Nellie quite a bit. She's trapped in an abusive marriage with very few options. Her friendship with the woman next door is really the only thing that keeps her sane. That and her gardening; she loves to garden and is very good at it. She thinks about her choices and regrets marrying Richard. Her life looks grand from the outside, but inside it's deeply troubling. 

Alice. Sheesh. At first I liked her, but as the story moves along, I found myself annoyed with her. She lies, and keeps lying and makes a heck of a lot of bad choices. She doesn't want to have a child right away, and can't tell Nate how she feels. Instead she's sneaky, and that leads to big issues. She has never come clean to Nate about her job, and why she was fired. She's taken up smoking, but hides it from Nate. She's so unhappy, but instead of communicating that to her husband, she just gets more resentful and keeps adding lies upon lies. 

Both women resent their roles as "housewives". Nellie really just wants to be alone with her garden. I'm not quite sure what Alice wants. I found Nellie's story to be much more interesting. While I wasn't surprised at what happened, it was fun to watch it unfold, along with Alice's dramas. I felt sorry for Nate. He seemed completely lost and clueless. He also made a really dumb mistake, but he was genuinely confused as to who Alice was becoming. My gut tells me that Nellie's spirit was influencing Alice, but it's never stated in the novel. 

I guess you could take this as a novel about women fighting to be themselves in a marriage, figuring out who they are, and working towards that happiness. Or, like me, you could just read the novel as a clever tale of one woman's revenge on an abusive husband. I was dissatisfied with the ending, because Alice and Nate are kind of left hanging. I would have liked to know more about Nellie after 1956. 

I think this would make a good book club selection. Plenty of themes to talk about, and I'm sure readers will either really like Alice, or really dislike Alice. 

Rating: 4/6 for a tale of two women, living decades apart in the same house, and the false lives they lead. Not a thriller, but an interesting look at what is expected of women as wives and mothers, and the stress it can cause a woman to try and fit into those molds. 

Available in hardcover and ebook.

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Recipe for a Perfect Wife by Karma Brown

The Widow of Pale Harbor by Hester Fox

I was excited to finally dig into this novel, the second by Hester Fox. Her first novel, The Witch of Willow Hall, was published last year, and it was outstanding. So of course I expected her sophomore novel to be just as good. 

While I did enjoy reading The Widow of Pale Harbor, it didn't match my expectations. Gothic, yes, certainly. A small town--Pale Harbor, Maine is the backdrop for this tale of a woman who lives in a large mansion, alone with her companion Helen, who is reviled and treated poorly by the townspeople. Four years before, Sophronia's husband Nathan had died in a carriage accident, and the town blamed her for his death. The town didn't know Nathan was a cruel, vicious husband. 

It's 1846, and Edgar Allan Poe's short stories are wildly popular. Sophronia has taken over running her late husband's magazine, and deciding which stories will be published. So many Poe copy cats are out there, trying to make it into this popular magazine, and Sophronia fears she has angered someone by rejecting their stories. Strange things have been happening around town, and at her home, the Castle Carver. Dead ravens left on her doorstep, stuffed dolls left in trees...combine that with the endless fog, damp days and rain, and you've got a pretty atmospheric plot. Enter Gideon Stone, a man posing as a minister, who has traveled to Pale Harbor to open a new church. He's not a minister at all, but is doing this all out of guilt for letting his deceased wife down--and he's determined to be successful as a minister to somehow heal his guilt. Poor Gideon. He's no minister, that's for sure. He's a hard working man, large of stature, and he has no business trying to pass himself off as a minister. He knows he's hopeless at it, but struggles to carry on and find inspiration. 

Gideon meets Sophronia, and sparks fly. Both quickly succumb to their attraction, as all the while things are taking a darker turn in Pale Harbor. Now bodies are piling up, and the town blames it all on the Widow Carver. Some say she's a witch. The race is on to figure out who's behind the cruel notes, the mysterious deaths, and the clues that are straight out of Poe's famous stories.

I liked a lot about this novel, but I was a bit surprised at how much romance was center stage. Gideon and Sophie's romance burned pretty bright right from the start, and much of the storyline involved the two of them briefly fighting their feelings, then deciding to give in and admit they loved each other. It did help to have Gideon be the catalyst to understanding Sophronia's character; her background, her terrible marriage, and her complicated relationship with Helen, her companion. Helen is an interesting character, and a bit dark, too. However, I was a bit disappointed in finding out who was behind all the terrible things, and what their motive was--it seemed a bit far-fetched. I was hoping for something a bit more paranormal, I guess. This was definitely a gothic tale, but far more a historical romantic thriller than a spooky nail bitter. 

I'll read more of Hester Fox, for certain. A fun read for my cool and windy October nights.

Rating:  3/6 for a gothic romantic thriller that had an interesting idea in the plot, but fell short at the end. I was hoping for something more out of this world. You may, however, find yourself in a swoon over Gideon. He's pretty swoon-worthy. 

Available in paperback, ebook, and audio. 

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The Widow of Pale Harbor by Hester Fox

I Finally Read Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman

My top ten reads list for 2019 is filling up fast and I've still got 5 months to go. This book is definitely on the list. It's a novel I've had my eye on since it first came out in hardcover; but as you know, other books crowd in and it's soon pushed waaaay back on the list. So far back that even buying the paperback earlier this year still didn't push it to the top of my TBR list. 

However, on Instagram I follow Penguin Random House, and they've been showing a new book bag that features Eleanor Oliphant. I really would like that bag! But their Instagram did what it was supposed to do, and it had me looking through my bookcases at home to find my copy. There were a few moments of "I'm pretty sure I bought a copy...I'm pretty sure...I think..." and yes, I was right. I did have a copy tucked away. I spent Sunday afternoon diving into Eleanor's world, and I was immediately captivated. 

Eleanor is the voice inside your head that says everything you wish you could say out loud. And not because she's mean-she's just very honest and observant. She's also very lonely. In a world where everyone has some kind of contact or relationship with at least someone, Eleanor has none. Her weekly phone call to Mummy is filled with angst and dread, because Mummy is "away", and Mummy is a horribly mean person. Abusive, in fact. 

Eleanor meets Raymond, an IT fix it guy at work when her computer freezes and he comes to her desk to fix it. He's just an everyday Joe, and Eleanor slowly  begins a friendship with Raymond. And by slow, I mean bit by bit. As you read Eleanor's story, you quickly realize she's got a lot of issues, and she has quite the journey to overcoming those issues. But that journey is the best part of this novel. 

Eleanor is one of those characters that captures your heart right away, even as you hurt for her and sympathize with her. You understand why she is who she is-what made her a 30 year old lonely, timid woman. Her understanding that her life is not okay, and she's not completely fine, are key to her slow steps towards healing. She's weird, she's funny--oh so funny; you just want to give her a big hug. If she would let you. 

Read it, if you haven't already. It's a book that I will wholeheartedly recommend to anyone. Gail Honeyman really created one unforgettable heroine--and yes, she is a heroine. Read the book and you'll understand why. 

Rating:  6/6! Yes! For a book that will have you laughing, tearing up, cheering, and thinking about those who are quietly suffering. It's a book about acceptance, friendship, and simple gestures that can mean the world to someone. 

Available in paperback, hardcover, ebook, and audio. It's been optioned by Reese Witherspoon for a movie...I hope the movie does the book justice.

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I Finally Read Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman