Summer Reading 2022: The Cherry Robbers by Sarai Walker

 

This was one odd, haunting, dysfunctional family wallop of a novel. 

It's 1950, and we're introduced to the Chapel sisters: Aster, Rosalind, Calla, Daphne, Iris, and Hazel. The Chapel family is famous for gun and rifle manufacturing that has helped settle the West and win wars. Their father works every day, and they live in the town of Bellflower Village in an ornate Victorian home surrounded by acres of land. 

Their mother sees the ghosts of all of the victims of the Chapel firearms. She screams, like clockwork, every night. She hates her husband, but loves her daughters even though she's clearly got a lot of issues and can't be a very good mother. 

On their annual trek to the Atlantic Ocean, Aster meets a handsome young man, and after dating for a bit, they become engaged and plan a big wedding. Only problem is, the closer the wedding approaches, the more mother gets worked up, claiming if the wedding isn't postponed, something horrible will happen. Iris believes her mother, and does her part (as much as a small child can do) to try and disrupt and postpone the wedding. 

Well, it doesn't work, and Aster's wedding proceeds. It seems mother was wrong. 

Except the next morning, Aster's new husband returns with Aster, clad in a honeymoon nightgown, clearly not well. What follows is a horrible nightmare for the Chapel family, as Aster dies one day after her wedding day. To prevent a scandal, the doctor claims it was simply the flu, and Aster is buried less than a week after she walked down the aisle. 

Okay, weird. However, the pattern repeats itself...until it's very clear the Chapel sisters are cursed, somehow. There are possible explanations, of course, that go back through their mother's line; however, there's just enough fuzzy-wuzzy info to make you wonder if it's all real or just horrible bad luck. 

One daughter escapes this fate. The novel begins in 2017, when she receives a letter from someone claiming to know who she really is; her current name and fame as a well-known feminist artist are fake and she's actually a Chapel girl. It's been sixty years since those horrible days, and now she will be outed. Is it time to relive those memories, and spill the story of her bizarre family curse?

I was fascinated by this novel. The sisters were all definitely different characters and I felt they were well-drawn and strong women. The atmosphere of the entire novel was what really grabbed me: haunting, melancholy, and slightly off-kilter. Kind of gothic in flavor; I had to remind myself this took place in the 1950's. There's a lot to unpack in this novel and it would make a great book discussion novel. There's much to discuss about female sexuality, mental health, family issues, sisterhood, LGBTQ, and so. much. more. 

Rating: 5/6 for a novel that had me captivated and wondering just what the heck was going to happen next. The Chapel sisters are quite simply unforgettable, and this is one tale that will leave you pondering and thinking about it for days after you've turned the last page. 

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio book. 

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Summer Reading 2022: The Cherry Robbers by Sarai Walker

Summer Reading 2022: The Change by Kirsten Miller

 

This novel is definitely going in my top ten for 2022. I picked it as one of my Book of the Month selections for May and I'll just keep patting myself on the back the rest of the year. I was up reading this book at 3 AM last week because I couldn't stop thinking about it. 

Three women live in the Long Island town of Mattuck, New York. Harriett is an executive in advertising; Jo owns Furious Fitness, and Nessa is a widow who's two daughters have just left for college. Three women who don't seem to have anything in common on the surface. 

They all have something in common: the change. We know it as menopause, and those of us who have experienced it know it brings all sorts of interesting physical changes. Pretty much anything that goes haywire with your body once you hit 40 can be attributed to pre-menopause or full blown menopause. It does a number on your body. 

Harriett, Jo, and Nessa are at the age where change is happening, but not in the way you may think. For Harriett, it's finding her calling with gardening, growing herbs, plants, and all sorts of interesting things in her garden. Using those plants to help or punish others. She's so in tune with nature she just stops wearing clothes around her yard--which is safely hidden by  rose bushes that have grown big and thorny and impenetrable. 

Nessa hears the voices again, after decades of not tuning in. Her gift has been handed down in her family: she can hear and see the dead. One voice is very, very loud. 

Jo, after years of battling with her period, her body, and the patriarchy bullshit she dealt with at work, turns that rage into immense strength. She can feel it bubbling up under her skin, and the sweat pours off of her. Running miles each day just to work off the energy. 

All three women come together in Mattuck to stop a serial killer. Young women are disappearing, and the three women follow Nessa's pull towards a local beach. In the brush along the road by the beach, they find a bag, and inside, a dead girl. That's the tip of it all, and wow the book takes off after that.

This is an all-out war between corrupt men and the women who aren't going to take it anymore. The exclusive gated community near Mattuck that houses billionaires during the summer is the bullseye for corruption and may very well be where the serial killer lurks. There's danger everywhere for the women, and their very lives may be in danger as they begin poking around. 

What I loved about this novel was the "F**k around and find out" attitude the trio give-especially Harriett and Jo. Nessa is a little more timid, but is compelled to keep moving forward. Harriett is my favorite of the three--she's just magnificent. Jo's hot flashes are so intense she can literally start fires with a touch of her hand. Her simmering rage is certainly understandable. After decades of having to put up with men who treat them as less than, the women have come into their own with a roar!

Oh, I hope someone buys the rights to this novel and turns it into a movie. I'd see it in a second. I absolutely love Kirsten Miller's take on menopause and aging women who certainly are not done with achieving their potential--heck, even finding new potential. Menopause isn't the end, but the glorious beginning. 

Put this on your summer read list. I raced through it, and carried it with me to work to read at lunch, and even was up late the other night at my partner's house, reading while he peacefully slept in the other room. I couldn't wait to finish it. And oh, it's got a heck of an ending. 

Rating: 6/6--yes! A book that grabbed me from the beginning and kept me smirking, giggling, and heck yes, a bit pissed off until the end. But oh, do the punishments fit the crimes. Hell hath no fury...

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio. 

READ THIS ONE!

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Summer Reading 2022: The Change by Kirsten Miller

The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes

I am a fan of Jojo Moyes. I've read most of her novels, which are usually contemporary. She's written a few historical novels, and I love them just as much as the contemporary novels. The Giver of Stars is an historical novel focusing on a group of ladies who created quite a stir during the 1930's, and all these decades later, their stories are popping up again. I'm talking about the horseback librarians of Kentucky. These were some badass women. 

There is another novel out, that I've reviewed--as a matter of fact, I said it was one of the best novels I'd read in 2019, and it still is--The Bookwoman of Troublesome Creek. Click on the title and you can read my review from May. It is also about the horseback librarians of Kentucky, but this novel is quite different from Jojo Moyes' novel. There has been some kerfuffle about both authors writing about the same subject mere months apart, and how similar the novels appear to be. Well, I've read them both, and enjoyed them both, and I can say they are pretty different stories. 

The Giver of Stars has the delightful Alice, an Englishwoman who's been swept off her feet by Bennett Van Cleve, the handsome son of the local big-wig owner of the mines Mr. Van Cleve. She's married him and traveled to Kentucky to begin a new life far away from her old life--and she couldn't wait to escape the doldrums of her strict life in England. However, life in the small town of Baileyville is not at all what Alice expected, and she's just puzzled at Bennett's inability to seal the deal with her. She's pretty naive, but even Alice knows something is not right. People are expecting her to have a baby, and it's just not, er, happening.  Sitting in the big house, with nothing to do, Alice is becoming desperately unhappy. 

Until the day of the town meeting, when it's announced that a library service is coming to Baileyville, and volunteers are needed to deliver books to folks around town and up into the mountains of Kentucky, to those who live isolated, and often very poor lives in the harsh rural areas of Kentucky. Alice jumps up and volunteers, much to the anger of her father-in-law. She's bored, and has nothing to lose. 

Alice begins her journey from bored housewife to horseback librarian with the help of Margery O'Hare, a smart, self-sufficient, tough as nails woman who runs the library and knows the mountains of Kentucky like no one else. The two women soon become fast friends, and as other women join the library, it becomes a safe haven for Alice, who's home life is increasingly dire.

The cast of characters is outstanding. There are so many, yet it doesn't get confusing. Sven, Margery's steadfast partner, is a strong, solid man determined to wed Margery, even though she's completely against marriage. Fred, a gentle man who owns the property the library sits on, is quiet, loyal, and a shoulder for Alice to lean on in rough times. The other librarians: Izzy, Beth, Sophia, and Kathleen are all amazing ladies each in their own way, struggling to survive in a world that doesn't value education, strong women, or free thinking. Mr. Van Cleve is the bad guy--determined to shut down the library and bring Alice back around to behaving like a proper wife should. He's a real ass. 

The time frame of the novel is roughly a year; there is a lot that happens to the town, to Alice, Margery, and the other ladies. I enjoyed it all, and I loved the final chapter, which gave the reader a peak into the future. After spending time with Alice and the ladies, I was invested in their happiness, and I needed to know what happened after the story ended! 

So yes, read both novels. They are both very different; the only things they have in common are strong women and the pack horse librarian theme. I loved them both. 

Rating: 5/6 for a strong cast of characters that came to life swiftly and completely. A novel about the role of librarians in spreading literacy and changing lives during the Great Depression. Plenty of action. romance, and danger to keep you involved!

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio. 

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The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes

The Ingredients of Us by Jennifer Gold

Sometimes a book that you think is going to check off of all your boxes ends up being one that leaves you with a lingering feeling of disappointment and dissatisfaction.  The Ingredients of Us was one of those books. Maybe I went into the book thinking it was going to be a fun-filled novel about a baker, and recipes, and a bit lighthearted, with just enough drama to keep it from being sappy. 

Instead, I struggled to finish it, and it took me a few weeks. It's the story of Elle and Tom, married for 8 years, and Elle has recently discovered Tom has had an affair. A busy woman with a popular bakery, she's consumed by her love of baking--so much so that it usually takes priority in her life, even over Tom. Feeling neglected, he cheats. And this is the main plot of the novel--how they cope with his infidelity while deciding if saving their marriage is something they want to do. 

We see their relationship from the earliest stages up to the days and weeks following Elle's discovery of the affair. While it was important to understand where they came from as a couple, it was a bit too much bouncing back and forth, back and forth, between "7 years and 3 days before Elle finds out" to "Four weeks after Elle finds out". I'm never one to complain about plots zipping back and forth between the before and the after, but this seemed a bit overdone. The  looks back were a bit all over the place, so it was hard to settle in and see where in the relationship Elle and Tom were and what it had to do with what was going on in present time. One big issue was children--Tom wanted them, and Elle wasn't ready. Was she ever going to be ready? It's a pretty big deal, and I'm not really sure it was ever laid to rest as I turned the last page. 

So while I was looking for a lighthearted read, I didn't find it here. The recipes and baked goods sounded divine, but the writing of the recipes seemed completely at odds with the tone of the novel--they seemed a bit out of place. 

This wasn't the read I was expecting it to be, and maybe it's my fault for being disappointed in the result. If you want to read about a marriage and all the trials and troubles that add to it, and potentially destroy it, this is the novel for you. It just wasn't my jam. 

Rating: 2/6 for a novel about two people navigating the choppy waters of infidelity. Too much jumping around was jarring, and the bakery setting and foodie parts didn't seem to jive with the seriousness of the rest of the novel. 

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio. 

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The Ingredients of Us by Jennifer Gold

Park Avenue Summer by Renee Rosen

I've said it a million times, and I'll say it again: cover art sucks me in every time. The woman on this cover pulls off a look that I could have never, ever pulled off! It sets the tone for the story of Alice Weiss, a newcomer to New York City in 1965.  

Alice arrives in NYC from Youngstown, Ohio, old camera in hand, ready to dive into her love of photography. She hopes to find a job as a photographer, but quickly realizes her portfolio of photos is unimpressive in a city known for high fashion. An old family friend hooks Alice up with an interview for secretary to a new editor in chief at Cosmopolitan magazine: Helen Gurley Brown. 

Alice takes the job, since it's the only one she's been offered, and it's steady employment. The world she enters is pretty fast paced, and HGB is not your typical executive. As the new-and first-woman editor for Cosmopolitan, she's got quite a few different ideas about what a woman's magazine needs to be, and she's meeting a lot of resistance from corporate headquarters. She's tossing out all the old stories, photos, and concepts, and is determined to revamp Cosmo into a young, sexy, fun magazine for women like Alice: career oriented ladies who have boyfriends, casual sex, and want to enjoy it all. HGB is a giant bomb that lands right in the middle of a very conservative group of male executives. 

Alice sees it all, and quickly becomes indispensable to HGB as her secretary, arranging meetings, appointments, keeping track of it all, and guarding HGB's office door from unwanted visitors. It's a hectic time both in and out of the office. Someone is trying to sabotage HGB's first Cosmo issue...

Meanwhile, Alice is navigating her way through the city, camera in hand, hoping to sharpen her skills and not giving up on her dream to be a photographer. After all, her mother was a model in NYC and Alice has dreamt of living there all her life. Now she needs to make her dreams come true, but how?

A lot of this novel is about the first few months at Cosmo under HGB's leadership. She was a bit of an odd duck-very tiny physically, but an incredibly strong, tough woman when she had to be. Devoted to her husband, she leaned on him through it all, and he was her wise mentor. She was up against an established way of thinking about women, and determined to change that-especially after the raging success of her book Sex and the Single Girl, published in 1962. She rocked the boat--actually, she capsized the boat! 

I got into this story pretty quickly, and zipped through it. I spent a few early mornings reading before work because I couldn't put it down. Novels about women starting out on their own and finding their way always have a special appeal to me, and this was one of those novels. If you're at all a fan of Mad Men, you will enjoy Alice's story. 1965 was a year of big, big changes for Alice. 

I remember quite vividly the covers of Cosmopolitan magazine in the late 70's and early 1980's. The women were super glam, and the covers always had lines about sex, orgasms, and how to be that "it" girl. When I did venture to flip through the magazine, it was mostly ads for perfume, designer clothes, and makeup. I know without a doubt if I'd brought one home my Mom would have thrown it in the garbage. It was, without saying, "that" magazine for women. It was naughty, thrilling, and full of advice for young women living on their own, having flings, and living their lives full speed ahead. I was, however, not one of those women, and my babysitting money was barely enough to cover buying Gee, Your Hair Smells Terrific shampoo and conditioner, much less oodles of makeup and clothes. 

I had to do some internet searching of Helen Gurley Brown, of course. She died in 2012. She ran Cosmopolitan for decades, until she was forced out. Her views, which were empowering for women in the 1960's didn't much change over the years, and eventually became outdated and out of touch with what was really going on in women's lives in the 80's, 90's. But when she was riding high at Cosmo, she was inspiring to a whole generation of young women. 

Rating: 4/6 for an engaging story about the beginning of Helen Gurley Brown's reign as Cosmopolitan's first female editor in chief, as seen from a young woman who serves as her secretary. Follow Alice's journey from newbie to the big city to a young woman confident in her choices and the new life she makes. 

Available in paperback, ebook and audio. 

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Park Avenue Summer by Renee Rosen

The Book that Matters Most by Ann Hood

I had no expectations before I started this novel;  all I knew was that the story involved a book club. I had never read an Ann Hood novel which made it all a big unknown read for me.

I was pleasantly surprised.  Ava's husband has left her for another woman; her two children Maggie and Will are out of the house (and out of the country); she's alone, bitter, and needs to get out and mingle.  When a chance to join an exclusive book club at her local library pops up, she decides it is a good way to dip her toe into the social pool.  The club decides that the next year will be all about reading and discussing books that matter the most to each of the ten members.  One book each month, presented by one of the members.  Ava's choice, From Clare to Here, is a poignant novel about the loss of a daughter, and a mother's choice to stay in the land of the dead with her instead of returning to the land of the living and her other daughter.  It hit pretty close to home for Ava; as a child her younger sister Lilly fell out of a tree and was killed in their front yard.  Ava's mother, Charlotte, ended up killing herself a year later.  Ava grew up with her father, haunted by the deaths of her sister and mother.  

The novel moves back and forth between Ava's book group (and her budding romance with one of the members) and her daughter Maggie, who is living in Paris--even though Ava thinks she is studying in Florence.  Maggie is a mess.  She's always been a handful; Ava and her husband struggled to keep her straight and away from drugs, alcohol, and bad choices.  Maggie left Florence, following a boy to Paris, and now is in deep trouble.  Addicted to heroin, she's living in a haze, dangerously roaming around Paris, becoming involved with unsavory characters.  She lies to Ava and sends deceptive texts with stock photos of Florence to her mother to keep her thinking Maggie's still in Florence.  
Meanwhile, Ava has promised her group she will bring the author of From Clare to Here to the December book group.  Only problem:  Ava has no idea where Rosalind Arden is, and time is growing short before she's forced to admit she lied to the group and can't produce Rosalind Arden.  

One of the characters talks about books that matter most to us.  Kiki says:
"...I think it's impossible to pick such a book.  When you read a book, and who you are when you read it, makes it matter or not.  Like if you're unhappy and you read, I don't know, On the Road or the Three Musketeers, and that book changes how you feel or how you think, then it matters the most.  At that time."
  
That passage had an impact on me.  People ask me all the time what my favorite book is, and I never have a good answer.  This is because so many books have mattered to me at different times in my life.  I don't have one go to book that comforts me.  They all comfort me at different times.  I don't have a favorite, I have favorites.  Many books have changed my perspective on something, taught me a history lesson, made me cry, helped me with my grief.  You get a taste of that in the characters of this book, and the books that matter most to each one of them.  

If you didn't already know the power of books to change you, reading this book may very well give you a kick in the pants.  If anything, it will get you started on a book list, or encourage you to start or join a book club.  Just remember:  watching the movie isn't the same as reading the book--don't be like Ava in her first few months at the book club. 

Rating:  8/10 for a novel that wasn't what I expected.  A little bit of this, a little bit of that.  A look at life after a marriage ends, the grip that drugs can have on a soul, and grief that never lets go.  

Available in hardcover and e-book. 

Thank you JBP for the review copy!  
 

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The Book that Matters Most by Ann Hood

13 Ways of Looking at a Fat Girl by Mona Awad

This was a tough book to get through.  Not because of the writing, but because of the self-loathing that the main character, Elizabeth, carries throughout each story within the story.  13 Ways of Looking at a Fat Girl is pretty brutal in the many ways women look at themselves, and are seen by others, based on their weight.  There was a time when being thin was an indication of being poor, and being plump was a sign of a good life.  In today's world, with an all-time high level of unhealthy eating habits and obesity, the criticism is so harsh against anyone who isn't a healthy weight, that it permeates our thinking and harms our vision of ourselves.  

Beth, Elizabeth, Liz...all one person, seen through her teen years and into her late 20's as she is an overweight teen struggling to find self worth and love by letting men use her for comfort (while loathing her size), to being so self-conscious that she can't send a full length photo to men she meets online for fear of them seeing how she looks.  Finally, Elizabeth meets a man online who loves her for who she is, but this is jeopardized at she begins to lose weight and becomes trapped in a cycle of hunger, exercise, and constant comparisons of herself to other women.  Being surrounded by women of all sizes, who all have a self-consciousness about food and appearance, and not only are judged by men, but judge each other.  The episodes where Elizabeth tries on dresses in stores hit close to home.  The bad lighting, the attendant constantly knocking on the door to see if everything's okay...the clothing never fitting and the only size available is one that will never fit.  That feeling of just wanting to give up and wear t-shirts and sweatpants because nothing looks right or fits at all.  We've all been there.  

It doesn't matter if you have been heavy all your life, or if you've been on the vicious diet cycle of thin, heavy, thin, heavy.  For me, I was always thin for most of my life (my legs were referred to as chicken legs) and I never appreciated what I looked like--there was always someone thinner. I was always the sister with the boobs, and I was always the "healthy looking" one.  I look at pictures, and I can't believe I didn't see myself in a positive light; that I always felt less than, somehow.   I didn't ever try crazy diets or watch what I ate--I was lucky.  But that isn't the case any longer; years of stress, grief over losing loved ones, and being unhappy with parts of my life have combined with growing older and packing on the pounds.  I think my younger self would be shocked at the change in me.  Self-loathing is an easy trap to fall into; and it can rule your life, as it does Elizabeth's.  

I saw snippets about this book that said it was humorous, so that's what I expected--a bit of self-deprecating humor and a lovable character I could laugh and commiserate with on the subject of weight.  I was wrong.  Elizabeth was a painful character, and I didn't find any humor in her struggle.  I guess it depends on the reader, and life experience, on how this will effect your view of Elizabeth's story.  If anything, it did point out some painful realizations:  comparing myself to everyone else, treating food as an enemy, and my underlying unhappiness at how I look and feel are detrimental to my self-confidence and peace. I can't look back, but can only look forward.  

I think this novel would be an excellent book club discussion book, and certainly something I would recommend for late teens and early twenties young ladies.  It is brutal, honest, painful, and gut wrenching.  

Thank you to Penguin Random House for a review copy.  

Rating:  8/10 for a powerful look at one woman's struggle to love herself in a world that has a harsh opinion on how we look.  

Available in paperback and e-book.  

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13 Ways of Looking at a Fat Girl by Mona Awad

Yes, I Read a Romance: Between a Vamp and a Hard Place by Jessica Sims

When I was much younger, I read a lot of romances.  This was before vampires, combat warriors, and every paranormal creature around filled the shelves of romance sections in stores and libraries.  My romance reads consisted of cowboys, corporate millionaires, titled gentlemen, and Scottish hotties.  

I received a request to read and review this novel from Simon and Schuster and I thought, why not?  I could do with a fun, otherworldly romance.  I finished it in a few days (a nap and housework kept me from finishing it in one day), and I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed it.  

I don't read many romances nowadays, and I don't have an answer as to why. There are romances for every taste, and I certainly could hand-sell them to customers without much effort.  Ask a few questions, know a few authors, and you can match people with the right romance.  Between a Vamp and a Hard Place is definitely for those who like contemporary, funny, hot romances with a vampire tossed in to make it that much better.  I've talked about my pet peeve of a bad cover, and I have to say this one shows Rand with a clean cut look.  Rand is a 600 year old vampire, and his hair is repeatedly described in the novel as "shaggy".  Let it be shaggy on the cover!!

Anyway.  To the story.  Lindsey and her friend Gemma live in Nebraska and are struggling to build an antique business.  They are super close friends who grew up together in a foster home and only have each other.  Gemma takes a chance and spends all their savings on an opportunity to clear out an old apartment in Venice.  They get first dibs on all the potential antiques.  It could be a disaster, or a money-maker.  They travel to Venice, and begin working through the apartment.  It's a mess.  Filled with boxes and boxes of stuff.  Lindsey spots a picture above a piece of furniture, tries to grab it, and ends up losing it behind the furniture.  Her fumbling around leads to the discovery of a hidden passage behind the wall.  Lindsey and Gemma follow the stairs down a damp passageway, and into a room that is filled with a whole lot of antiques that could potentially save their business.  

And guess what else?  Yep.  A coffin.  Lindsey creeps down at night to see the coffin, and bravely pries open the lid, thinking for sure it's either empty or full of more antiques.  What she finds is Sir Rand FitzWulf.  And of course he's a hottie.  Rand has no idea he's been sleeping for hundreds of years, and has no idea why anyone would stake him. Yes, he was staked.  It doesn't kill a vampire, but puts them into a sleep from which they can't awaken.  Lop off their head, and they're dust.  Remove the stake, and they wake up.  

Lindsey is pretty calm about all of this.  Gemma thinks it's pretty cool.  Rand only knows that he's got the hots for Lindsey, and he must find whomever tried to end his life centuries before.  The Dragon is Rand's mysterious leader, and one evil dude.  Can Rand find him and end it all before The Dragon ends Rand?  

This was a fun, fun, book.  Gemma swears like a sailor, and Lindsey alternates between tough girl and a woman with a serious case of lust.  I've read a few reviews that say Rand is so controlling and manipulative.  Seriously people.  He's a 600 year old vampire, with vampiric powers, and was a warlord living during the crusades. Heck yes he is controlling.  You can't make a 600 year old man act like a modern man.  I found him charming, myself.  There are quite a few sex scenes that use pretty specific language, so you are warned.  If you like your romances with lots of fade-outs, be forewarned this one has none of that.  I had to laugh out loud at the line uttered by Lindsey: "He's a shower, not a grower."  First time I've ever read that in a romance. 

So yes, sometime this year, grab a romance and read it.  Pure utter fun.  I liked the story line, the characters, and the conclusion.  The cover, however, could use a bit of tweaking.  

Thank you to Simon and Schuster for the ARC.  

Rating:  7/10 for a romance full of hotness, a tough yet vulnerable hero, and a feisty heroine.  The cover art, however, doesn't fit the characters.  But don't let that stop you from enjoying the story.

Available in paperback and e-book.

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Yes, I Read a Romance: Between a Vamp and a Hard Place by Jessica Sims

Indie Chicks Blog Tour: Unfaithfully Yours by Chrystal Rose

I know, this isn't my usual historical fiction!  But I am part of the Indie Chicks blog tour, and reading always means trying new genres and moving out of my comfort zone.  

Unfaithfull Yours is a memoir by Chrystal Rose.  She pulls no punches in this retelling of her struggle to remain faithful to her fiancé  "Shark Boy".  Chrystal's life hasn't been easy:  shuffled between divorced parents, struggling to be heard and understood, and finding herself at a strict boarding school looking for the love she doesn't have growing up.  It all is told humorously and honestly as she moves around the country, working her butt off making a living (sometimes working 3 jobs).  When she's not working, she's partying.  Lots of drinking and fooling around.  Her memoir includes advice on why jerks are not what a woman needs--go for the nice guy.  She also includes a few practical guides to making your partner happy in bed.  Through it all, Chrystal moves from inexperienced and a bit lost to a strong woman who realizes, as Glinda in the Wizard of Oz so aptly put it to Dorothy:  "You've always had the power."  

I would recommend this memoir to young women who are learning who they are and what they want.  It is humorous and salty and chock full of sexual escapades and life lessons.  Fans of Chelsea Handler and Mindy Kaling will enjoy this quick read.  

And please, check out Indie Chicks!  

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Indie Chicks Blog Tour: Unfaithfully Yours by Chrystal Rose