Book Review, Fiction, Uncategorized

Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff ~ Book Review

Morgan

Fates and Furies w/ cookies

Riverhead Books
Genre: Literary Fiction
Release Date: September 15, 2015
My Rating: 🍪🍪🍪🍪

Lotto and Mathilde’s love story is unlike any I’ve read before. It’s an unusual story in both structure and content. Lotto and Mathilde impulsively get married at twenty-two, move to New York, and begin their lives as struggling artists. The narrative is told from start to finish with Lotto in the ‘Fates’ half of the book, and then retold with Mathilde’s insight in ‘Furies.’ The choice to set up the book in this way, rather than alternating perspectives by chapter means that the reader takes all of Lotto’s perceptions at face value, and Mathilde’s side of the story is accompanied by shock after shock.

It was really interesting to get to know each of the two main characters so deeply and separately from one another. From childhood through their meeting, and every step of their lives together, Lotto and Mathilde seemed like realistically complicated individuals. There were depths to each of them that were heartfelt and heartwarming. It was interesting to be privy to what they chose to share, or keep from each other. Reading the two different halves of the book was much like sinking into two distinct, but unified, character studies. There is no doubt that Groff knew Lotto and Mathilde really, really well.

Groff’s prose crackles with energy. Nothing about her writing is ordinary. The way her mind creates connections between objects and emotions leads to descriptions that are unique and thought-provoking. There were times when I lost sight of what was actually happening in the midst of a descriptive tangent, but these instances were few and far between. For the most part, they enriched the actions of the actual storyline.

I did feel that the narrative could have been a bit shorter. Especially with the repetitive nature of Mathilde’s perspective repeating their entire relationship, I felt that there were pieces that could perhaps have been cut. Other than that, I was thoroughly enthralled in this swirling eddy of prose.

My Rating: 🍪🍪🍪🍪
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Book Review, Fiction, Romance, Uncategorized

The Honey-Don’t List by Christina Lauren ~ Book Review

Morgan

The Honey-Don't List and brownies

Gallery Books
Genre: Romance
Release Date: March 24, 2020
My Rating: 🍪🍪🍪

The Honey-Don’t List felt very pointedly like a fictional recounting of Chip and Joanna Gaines. The story centers around Melissa and Rusty Tripp, celebrity interior designers, and their respective assistants, Carey and James. I really enjoyed the world this story was set in, and the way the toxic addictiveness of celebrity was portrayed. With book and tv show deals on the line, character incentives often blurred lines. Carey is our protagonist, who has been working for the Tripps since she was a teenager. I liked the way her character’s arc was set up. Her job with the Tripps is all she’s ever known in her adult life, and she feels conflictingly loyal and trapped in her position supporting Melissa. Her motivations juxtapose well with those of James, who didn’t sign up to be in an assistant position, and is immediately looking for ways to move himself up the ladder, despite being new. 

I loved The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren, and I was expecting to eat up the romance in this book as eagerly as I did with this previous work. Unfortunately, I didn’t feel a believable buildup between Carey and James. The romance seemed to me to come out of nowhere — I didn’t have time to root for them! Even once it was established, I didn’t feel the passion I was hoping for.

The majority of the book takes place during the Tripps’ book tour, which was a unique plot element and made for a lot of drama given the close quarters of traveling together. Tensions between the very much no-longer-in-love Tripps are increasingly fraught, and their assistants are forced to go to greater and greater lengths to keep up public appearances. Unfortunately, I wasn’t grabbed by this one, but I’ll still be keeping an eye out for the next Christina Lauren installment!

My Rating: 🍪🍪🍪
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Book Review, Fiction, Romance, Uncategorized

The Girl He Used to Know by Tracey Garvis Graves ~ Book Review

Morgan

The Girl He Used to Know and cookies

St. Martin’s Press
Genre: Romance
Release Date: April 2, 2019
My Rating: 🍪🍪🍪

The Girl He Used to Know is not like anything I’ve read before. As an avid reader, it’s always refreshing to come across a book that feels fresh and unique. Annika’s experiences through college and beyond as someone undiagnosed on the Autism spectrum were really interesting. Although I can’t speak to the accuracy of the depiction, I felt like Graves did a wonderful job of explaining life through the eyes of someone who has trouble fitting in, and who’s not quite like everyone around her.

It was especially interesting to learn about Annika’s family dynamic and the ways that her parents chose to raise her in the most protective and supportive way possible. I liked seeing how her relationships with her mom, dad, and brother, each changed as she grew older. It was touching to see the ways that they grew to understand each other better over time.

I had a little bit of trouble with Jonathan’s romantic relationship with Annika. I wished we had some more insight into his feelings for her. He sometimes seemed fixated on trying to get her to fit into social situations, when I felt he should have been able to embrace her as she was more fully. Their story is split between two times periods: when they first meet in college, and when they are reconnected by chance years later in Chicago. I liked the way that the present day sequences were able to reflect on their experiences in college and shed light on them in different ways. This allowed for a lot of artfully depicted character development.

The last few chapters of this book were extremely unexpected. I would like to know the motivation behind this choice. I would have been more satisfied with an ending that didn’t dramatically change the tone and dynamic of the storyline.

My Rating: 🍪🍪🍪
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Book Review, Memoir, Nonfiction, Uncategorized

Comfort Me with Apples by Ruth Reichl ~ Book Review

Morgan

Comfort Me with Apples and Cheese Board

Random House
Genre: Nonfiction (Food Writing)
Release Date: April 10, 2001
My Rating: 🍪🍪🍪.5

I read Ruth Reichl’s most recent memoir, Save Me the Plums, prior to this one, and adored it. I think it may have set my expectations a little too high. Comfort me with Apples was a very personal memoir (I get that that is essentially what all memoirs amount to, but I think I was expecting it to be more directly career focused). Much of the story chronicles Reichl’s time cheating on her husband with different men she meets through work. Their love affairs are described in a rather unemotional manner, and it was hard for me to connect with the lack of empathy being depicted. 

It’s always interesting for me to see how people’s careers shift, change, and grow, and I find food writing especially fascinating. Comfort me with Apples details Reichl’s different jobs, of course, which kept me reading. The characters she introduces are just that, characters. It was wonderful to read about such caricature-esque people who she encounters in her industry. 

The book is punctuated with recipes. I really enjoyed the way these were incorporated to directly relate to phases of Reichl’s life. Typically, she added in recipes that she was making frequently during the period being written about. Cooking acted as an emotional response to events in her life throughout the book, so including the recipes tied together career, and life in an interesting and accessible manner. Although I haven’t tried any of the recipes myself, I like knowing that they’re there for me to reference, should I feel the need to comfort myself with apples in the near future.

My Rating: 🍪🍪🍪.5
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Book Review, Fiction, Romance, Uncategorized

Anna K: A Love Story by Jenny Lee ~ Book Review

Morgan

Anna K with Bun

Flatiron Books
Genre: YA Romance
Release Date: March 3, 2020
My Rating: 🍪🍪🍪.5

Full disclosure: I have not read Anna Karenina, which Anna K. is based on. Although I can’t speak to how this adaptation compares to the original, I will say that there was definitely language throughout the story that felt reminiscent of a past century. Because I knew that this was a remake of an older novel, this really worked for me — I appreciated the sense of self awareness throughout the narrative. Some of the characters even uttered phrases (usually ironically or as jokes) that were fitting to the time period when Anna Karenina was written.

The back cover of the ARC I read says “In development as a TV series at HBO Max.” I’m not sure if that influenced my thinking, but the chapters of Anna K felt very much like episodes to me. Reading it felt like binge-watching a Gossip Girl-esque YA show about uber-rich teenagers living in Manhattan. Anna K has a broad range of characters who Lee weaves a tangled web around. Each character was unique enough that it was easy to keep track of them. They each came with a heavy load of baggage, both emotional and substance-based.

As can be expected from a book about ridiculously rich high schoolers, drugs, partying, and sex featured liberally throughout the plot. The main unifying theme was the pain caused by love. The narrative begins with Anna’s brother, Steven, asking for her help after his girlfriend finds out he’s been cheating on her. From that moment forward, the complications and heartbreak that result from being in love stayed a steady trope as the plot barreled forward.

About halfway through the book, things started to feel a little slow to me. It’s a long story, and I wasn’t sure that the really privileged characters who filled the pages could sustain something so big. A lot of the language became very “telling” (as opposed to showing), and entire scenes and conversations were just described instead of actually unfolding. It may have been a tactic to shorten the narrative, but it really annoyed me after a while. Because the story was not broken up into different perspectives, it was also a little jarring when the writing would bop around from one character’s emotions to another. I don’t think I would have had so much of an issue with these mechanical oddities if the book had been shortened a bit (although I’m aware that it is far shorter than Anna Karenina). 

Despite the length, reading Anna K felt like sinking into a guilty pleasure show, and I will for sure be jumping on board when it becomes just that.

My Rating: 🍪🍪🍪.5
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Book Review, Fiction, Romance, Uncategorized

The Two Lives of Lydia Bird by Josie Silver ~ Book Review

Morgan

Two Lives of Lydia Bird with cookies

Ballantine Books
Release Date: March 3, 2020
Genre: Romance
My Rating: 🍪🍪🍪🍪

I’ve been eagerly awaiting Josie Silver’s next book ever since I read One Day in December (the first time), so I was extremely thankful to Ballantine and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy of The Two Lives of Lydia Bird (out March 3!). The book opens up with the death of Lydia’s fiancé, Freddie (that’s not a spoiler, it’s in the synopsis, I promise!). The instant heartbreak that Lydia experiences gave me an immediate connection to her character, which sucked me in quickly.

The actual “two lives” thing threw me for a loop a little. As it turns out, the second life she experiences is a sleeping-pill induced dream-life. I don’t know exactly what I was expecting from the synopsis, but this whole premise took some getting used to for me. Nonetheless, I thought it was really interesting to watch Lydia dip back and forth between the two, and see as, little by little, she diverges as a person between the two ‘worlds.’ Silver does a wonderful job of creating a narrative that explores the strength that’s gained from overcoming loss.

As in her first book, Silver is also a master at crafting believable and heartwarming relationships, both romantic and platonic. I loved reading Lydia’s interactions with her mom and her sister. Both of them felt extremely real and distinct, and it was heart-wrenching to see the ways that they were each affected in their own way by Freddie’s loss.

It was beautiful to watch Lydia learn how to reclaim her life and reconnect with herself and her surroundings in the face of unimaginable loss. There were some points in the middle of the book that felt a bit slow to me, but the end had me feeling all the feelings (read: tears, so many tears).

My Rating: 🍪🍪🍪🍪
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Book Review, Fiction, thriller, Uncategorized

You Are Not Alone by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen ~ Book Review

Morgan

You Are Not Alone with Oreos

St. Martin’s Press
Genre: Thriller
Release Date: March 3, 2020
My Rating: 🍪🍪🍪🍪

My very first bookstagram post was a review of An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen, so the author pair has a special place in my heart for that reason at the very least. Their newest thriller, You Are Not Alone follows a young woman in New York who’s feeling a bit adrift. If this sounds familiar, that’s probably because it mimics the structure of their last book. I do not, however, find fault in this fact. They know this setup works for them, and I fully agree.

Shay Miller as a character did not stand out to me. Her personality seemed pretty watery and passive. The further into the narrative I got, the more I realized that this worked in her character’s storyline, but I still would have liked a little more depth so that I had a reason to really care about her. Shay is unlucky in love with her roommate who’s girlfriend has practically become a third member of their apartment. She’s been laid off from her job and then, the ultimate showstopper, she enters a subway station just in time to see a woman jump in front of the train. Shay can’t get the site of the woman’s vacant stare out of her head.

Shay becomes increasingly set on learning about the woman, Amanda. She attends her memorial service where she meets the mysterious Moore sisters. The two women are unbelievably chic and connected, and Shay, desperately needing something to cling to, becomes enamored with them.

The Moore sisters were an intriguing set of characters, used by Hendricks and Pekkanen to guide the story. I loved the way different threads from their past were woven in around Shay’s story, and did not foresee how they would tie together. 

Much of this book felt like watching Shay getting helplessly tangled in a spider’s web. The actions and mannerisms of the Moore sisters make it clear that Shay is being deceived, but it was not until the conclusion that the details of what exactly was happening clicked together, and the premise for the entire setup fell into place. Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for an ARC!

My Rating: 🍪🍪🍪🍪
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Book Review, Nonfiction, Uncategorized

Cork Dork by Bianca Bosker ~ Book Review

Morgan

Cork Dork and wine and pastry

Penguin Books
Genre: Nonfiction
Release Date: March 1, 2017
My Rating: 🍪🍪🍪

The first time I checked out Cork Dork from the library I didn’t end up reading it. Although the topic interested me — I’ve always wanted to know more about wine (or anything about it, for that matter) I wasn’t sure the topic could sustain my interest for an entire book. More than anything though, Cork Dork is about Bosker’s journey to become a Sommelier. She quits her job as a journalist to fully immerse herself in the process, beginning with acting as a ‘cellar rat’ at a restaurant: keeping track of the location and inventory for hundreds of bottles of wine, and retrieving them as requested by customers.

It’s hard to actually learn about different wines without tasting them yourself, but this book brings to light everything that goes into tasting and truly understanding wine. Most of the time, I had no idea what Bosker was talking about. The flavor profiles used to describe the different wines were essentially meaningless to me. It would have been interesting to have a few bottles on hand, and have a more interactive experience with this book.

What struck me most about the core of this book, was the massive lifestyle change Bosker undertook in the spirit of learning how Sommeliers live and learn. First and foremost: how was she financing all this? Did her husband support her when she quit her job to work in a cellar? I wished this piece had at least been touched upon, rather than me chalking it up to privilege. Additionally, Bosker admits to being drunk most of every day at the height of her wine tasting practice. I wanted a more rounded picture of how this affected her physically and mentally. Did she ever question what she was doing with her life and wish she could backtrack?

I guess I was hoping for more of a memoir, and this was strictly outlining the steps and processes Bosker undertook as she slowly became a wine expert. I did enjoy hearing about the zaniness of the people she encountered, and learning how she had to crawl her way up from the very bottom of the New York City restaurant ladder to begin to be taken seriously. That being said, some of the chapters seemed a bit repetitive, and I’d had my fill by the end of the book.

My Rating: 🍪🍪🍪
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Book Review, Fiction, thriller, Uncategorized

The Poison Garden by A.J. Banner ~ Book Review

Morgan

The Poison Garden with almond cookies

Lake Union Publishing
Genre: Thriller
Release Date: October 22, 2019
My Rating: 🍪🍪.5

The Poison Garden is a succinct read. At less than 200 pages, it felt like it was concluding as soon as it got under way. Elise Watters is caught between her husband Keiran, whom she catches cheating on her on their first wedding anniversary, and her ex-husband, who seems increasingly intent on stalking her. 

Elise’s habit of sleepwalking, combined with the herb garden in the backyard, sets up a very unstable setting with many possibilities for disaster. It felt like too much to me. The sleepwalking cliché plus a literal poison garden, plus a cheating husband, plus a stalking ex (and a few things I won’t spoil)? It may have all worked in a longer book, but in The Poison Garden it just felt crowded. For me, the reading experience felt disjointed.

The character motivations in the storyline felt too glossed over to me. I did not get a clear sense of thought process. I finished the book because of its brevity, but I never really got into it.

My Rating: 🍪🍪.5
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Book Review, Fiction, Romance, Uncategorized

The Dinner List by Rebecca Serle ~ Book Review

Morgan

The Dinner List with Cookies

Flatiron Books
Release Date: September 11, 2018
Genre: Fiction 
My Rating: 🍪🍪🍪🍪.5

I have never cried from a book before like I did with The Dinner List. It might just be where I’m at with relationships in my own life, but nonetheless, when I closed this book I didn’t know what to do with myself — besides cry.

The aforementioned was definitely not the reaction I expected from a story about a girl who’s having dinner with five people she selected out of anyone, living or dead, to share a meal with. The premise of this book does not do it justice.

Sabrina’s birthday dinner consists of her best friend, her dad, an influential professor, and her ex-boyfriend, Tobias. As the dinner conversation slowly unfolds, we cut to excerpts of Sabrina and Tobias’s years-long relationship. The ups and downs of their love were alternately heartwarming and heart wrenching. Their constant struggle between prioritizing themselves or their relationship hurt to read. It was raw and relatable.

Although the concept of the dinner seemed very weird to me for much of the start of the book, it slowly became clear what its purpose was. It may have been a plot device, but it was well used, and it worked. The connection between Tobias and Sabrina’s relationship, and the meal was revealed bit by bit as the narrative went along. Pieces slotted into place as the relationship unraveled and my heart hurt. The dinner conversation allowed Sabrina to open up, and examine her relationships with different people in her life, and the introspection was wonderfully woven in. The dialogue Serle crafts is thoughtful, believable, and vibrant, and this absolutely cemented her as a go-to author. Read this book!

My Rating: 🍪🍪🍪🍪.5
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