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The Last Summer at Chelsea Beach by Pam Jenoff & Giveaway

August 19, 2015 by

tlc tour host

Source: Pam Jenoff
Paperback, 384 pgs
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The Last Summer at Chelsea Beach by Pam Jenoff is a sweeping tale set during World War II, as a sixteen year old Adelia Monteforte comes to America to live with her aunt and uncle in Philadelphia without her Jewish parents, who stayed behind in Trieste, Italy.  She feels like an outsider with the relatives she’s never met before, and she realizes that her limited English and mostly secular upbringing is not what they expected.  While she speaks English, she still feels as though she’s an outsider, until she becomes like a sister to the Connally brothers.  Despite their perceived differences in religion and upbringing, Adelia becomes Addie, molding herself in the cracks of the local family she meets at Chelsea Beach.

“Robbie turned to his mother.  ‘Can we keep her?’
‘Robbie, she isn’t a puppy. But I do hope you’ll join us often,’ she added.
‘Because we really need more kids, ‘ Liam said wryly.” (pg. 38)

Jenoff’s World War II novels are always captivating, full of missed chances and second chances, moments of horror and tragedy, but also moments of hope and happiness. These snippets of time are those that her characters treasure, and they provide that kernel of hope that readers hold onto until they reach the end. Addie is a young displaced woman looking for a home, and she thinks that she’s found it with the Connallys until tragedy strikes close to home and she’s left in the breeze. She has to decide what to do for herself for the first time since coming to America, and while she chooses to go to Washington, D.C., with a half buried hope of finding her childhood crush, she also wants to do something more.

The Last Summer at Chelsea Beach by Pam Jenoff is an addicting read with its twists and turns and the realities of rationing and the closeness of war.  Jenoff is a master at characterization and romance in a way that is both fanciful, but realistic.  Her characters often have to struggle with more than the things that keep them apart, and for that, readers will be grateful.  Her books are not to be missed, and this summer read should be at the top of your lists.

About the Author:

Pam Jenoff is the Quill-nominated internationally bestselling author of The Kommadant’s Girl. She holds a bachelor’s degree in international affairs from George Washington University and a master’s degree in history from Cambridge, and she received her Juris Doctor from the University of Pennsylvania. Jenoff’s novels are based on her experiences working at the Pentagon and also as a diplomat for the State Department handling Holocaust issues in Poland. She lives with her husband and three children near Philadelphia where, in addition to writing, she teaches law school.

U.S. residents, leave a comment below about your favorite beach activity by Aug. 26, 2015, at 11:59 PM EST.  Win a bag and book!

ChelseaBeach

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: 2015 War Through the Generations - Read Any War, ARC, challenges, fiction, giveaway, historical fiction, Publishers/Publicists, Read in 2015, reviews, tlc book tours Tagged With: , ,

French Coast by Anita Hughes

August 18, 2015 by

Source: the author
Paperback, 304 pgs.
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French Coast by Anita Hughes is gorgeous and not just because its set at Cote D’Azur and the Cannes Film Festival.  Serena has come to France for the biggest opportunity of her journalistic career, even though her fiance Chase is set to announce their engagement and his bid for mayor of San Francisco.  Serena is going to interview Yvette Renault, the former editor of French Vogue.  Along the way, the life she expected is swept away from her and she has to contend with secrets she never saw coming.  While she remains as focused on her work as she can, she finds herself befriending Zoe, who is on a trip of her own to uncover family secrets and save her parents.

“‘At least you know where your father is,’ Serena said, adding cream and sugar.  ‘I haven’t heard from my parents in days. I keep expecting my father to call and say it was all a mistake.’

‘We’re the ones who are supposed to be falling in love with the wrong men and making our parents frantic,’ Zoe said as she tore apart an almond croissant.

‘Maybe we’re part of the wrong generation.’ Serena sipped her coffee.  ‘We should have been young in the sixties.'” (pg. 155)

Serena and Zoe are like ships passing in the night, but it’s clear they have an instant friendship that will last, and despite drifting since coming to France, Serena has a purpose and dives into her work.  Nick is a knight in shining armor of sorts, returning Serena’s lost wallet and phone, and eventually, they spend afternoons and evenings together talking about not only their work but their dreams.  Don’t be fooled, however, because this is not a straight-forward romance novel.  While there is romance for many of these characters, there is heartbreak and choices to be made about their careers and their futures.

French Coast by Anita Hughes is a delightful read for the summer months and beyond.  Serena is a strong woman who is sure about her career, but little else at least until fate plays its hand.  Hughes is a talent and her books are always delightful reads to pop in the beach bag or to read out on the deck or at the pool.  This one has the right amount of mystery thrown in as well, making it even more engaging.

About the Author: (photo by Sheri Geoffreys)

Anita Hughes was born in Sydney, Australia and had a charmed childhood that included petting koala bears, riding the waves on Bondi Beach, and putting an occasional shrimp on the barbie. Her writing career began at the age of eight, when she won a national writing contest in THE AUSTRALIAN newspaper, and was named “One of Australia’s Next Best Writers.” (She still has the newspaper clipping.)

She received a B.A. in English Literature with a minor in Creative Writing from Bard College, and attended UC Berkeley’s Masters in Creative Writing program.

Other Reviews:

Filed Under: ARC, chicklit, fiction, Publishers/Publicists, Read in 2015, reviews, St. Martin's Press Tagged With: , ,

Red Sox Rhymes: Verses and Curses by Dick Flavin

August 13, 2015 by

Source: William Morrow
Hardcover, 224 pgs
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Red Sox Rhymes: Verses and Curses by Dick Flavin is chock full of historical information about the team and the players from the team, particularly the World Series winning teams and Ted Williams. Flavin is an icon often associated with the Red Sox, and this book dubs him the “Boston Red Sox Poet Laureate,” and he is that.  Flavin’s got some great poems in this collection that not only chronicle the hardships from a fan’s point of view, but also from that of the players’ points of view.  There is the curse of the Bambino, the plight of Jackie Robinson who loved the game more than anything, and the ins and outs of the historic field.  Let’s not forget the enigmatic Manny Ramirez.

From "The Ring" (pg. 35)

My God, I've got a Series ring,
      Please, do not wisecrack.
If Lucchino hears about this
      He'll make me give it back.

His rhymes are well done for the most part, and many of the poems are humorous, especially when he gets to writing a poem about Carl Yastrzemski. How can you make a rhyme with his name? Unless you make something Seussian up. And lest you think the collection includes poems that are negative to the New York Yankees, it does not. There is some respect for their best players. The book also includes a great collection of photographs and memorabilia.

Red Sox Rhymes: Verses and Curses by Dick Flavin is a great collection for Red Sox and all baseball fans.  It was fun to read, and great to see some of the history of the game.  My dad even picked this one up while he was here, reading some of the poems and checking out the photos — this is amazing since he doesn’t like sports much.  He does like Dick Flavin and remembers meeting him a couple times, so he was intrigued.

About the Author:

Dick Flavin is a Commonwealth institution, widely known and highly regarded for his 22 years on Boston television. He’s blessed with no small measure of talent and a memorable personality. He’s a great Red Sox fan, but in that he’s hardly unique, since there are several million patriotic Americans who qualify for that distinction.

But among those fans, those patriots, who stretch from sea to shining sea, there may be no other fan who finds more joy in putting pen to paper or finger to keyboard and celebrating in verse our beloved Boston Red Sox.

Since the inception of the Writers Series he has been present at all of our events. Being slow of mind, however, it took me a while to realize Mr. Flavin’s special gifts, in both verse and song. But once that happened, my belated discovery, it was easy to designate him Poet Laureate of The Great Fenway Park Writers Series. That he willingly accepted the title and its attendant responsibilities was a special day for The Great Fenway Park Writers Series.

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: challenges, Harper Collins, New Authors Challenge, poetry, Poetry Reading Challenge, Publishers/Publicists, Read in 2015, review copy, reviews Tagged With: , ,

Rome in Love by Anita Hughes

August 12, 2015 by

Source: the author
Paperback, 320 pgs.
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Rome in Love by Anita Hughes is an enjoyable jaunt in Italy with a young actress, Amelia Tate, remaking Roman Holiday, a movie that made Audrey Hepburn famous.  She is thrilled to be making a movie, and while her fiance supports her, he also seems eager to be married and take her away from the spotlight so she can be at his side as he makes deals.  Italy is often considered a home for romance and love, but in Hughes’ hands, it also becomes a place of contemplation and pivotal life decisions.  Amelia’s beginnings in Italy on the set of Roman Holiday mirror those of Audrey Hepburn, including the love of acting, the break up with a fiance, and the entrance of a new love interest.  However, unlike Hepburn, Tate has decided to allow herself to be seen as a maid at the hotel, rather than the actress she is.  In her ability to blend in, she makes friends with a real princess, Sophie, and finds a friend in Philip, an expat journalist who is trying to make a career for himself away from his stockbroker father.

Like many of us who wish that our lives were different and can sometimes take on new personas online, Amelia is quick to masquerade as a maid because it gives her the freedom from the paparazzi and the other trappings of Hollywood, but it also doesn’t come with the financial or other stresses of being a real maid.  Sophie is similar in that she’s enjoying Rome’s arts and music and shopping before she returns home to marry her childhood friend, Leopold, in an arranged marriage.  In many ways, Rome becomes the home of imposters, with each of these characters trying out different lives and enjoying their time without the pressure of those lives.

Hughes easily builds the scene in Italy through food, art, music, and more, but in many ways, here characters here are lacking something.  Readers may find that they are more attached to Audrey Hepburn than they are Amelia, who spends a great deal of time waiting for things to happen, rather than acting.  Sophie’s story is intriguing, and readers may almost want to hear more of that story.  However, Amelia’s romance with Philip is one fraught with misunderstandings, which are by turns amusing and frustrating.  Rome in Love by Anita Hughes is entertaining and a great summer read that will take readers on a trip to Europe, and there’s nothing wrong with that.

About the Author:  (photo by Sheri Geoffreys)

Anita Hughes was born in Sydney, Australia and had a charmed childhood that included petting koala bears, riding the waves on Bondi Beach, and putting an occasional shrimp on the barbie. Her writing career began at the age of eight, when she won a national writing contest in THE AUSTRALIAN newspaper, and was named “One of Australia’s Next Best Writers.” (She still has the newspaper clipping.)

She received a B.A. in English Literature with a minor in Creative Writing from Bard College, and attended UC Berkeley’s Masters in Creative Writing program.

Other Reviews:

Filed Under: ARC, chicklit, fiction, Publishers/Publicists, Read in 2015, reviews, St. Martin's Press Tagged With: ,

Mr. Mercedes by Stephen King (audio)

August 11, 2015 by

Source: Public library
Audiobook, 12+ hours
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Mr. Mercedes by Stephen King is another example of how good King’s story-telling is.  Rather than rely on paranormal or other elements to craft this story, King has created a murder mystery that will leave readers on the edge of their seats.  But he never compromises his dynamic characters in favor of a fast-paced plot.  When someone runs down a bunch of people at a job fair on a rainy morning in a Mercedes and disappears, it seems as though the police will never find him.  Along with a series of other open cases, ex-cop Bill Hodges realizes just how much his job had become all there was in his life.  Now, watching horrible television talk shows and fingering his father’s gun, Hodges continues to fall into and out of deep thoughts, until Mr. Mercedes reaches out.  Will Patton always does a great job narrating King’s novels, and this narration is no exception — his voice is easy to follow as the main characters and changes enough that you can gauge who is speaking.  Patton also takes the time to act out these scenes and dialogue so that readers will feel as though they are in the room with the characters as they track Mr. Mercedes down.

Mr. Mercedes has more than just mommy issues, as he’s guilt-ridden but also homicidal.  He’s beaten down by his measly existence, yet revels in its anonymity.  His plots against others were initially random and unplanned, but as he’s progressed, he’s come to realize that the best medicine for him and his needs requires careful planning and due diligence.  Hodges, on the other hand, is mourning the loss of his work as a cop, but the communication he receives “under the blue umbrella” spurs him into detective mode and he cannot stop himself.

Mr. Mercedes by Stephen King was very well told and readers will enjoy this other side of King’s writing — the less paranormal and more normal side.  He creates dynamic and flawed characters who are taken on an unexpected journey, and for the most party they survive that journey and blossom into better versions of themselves.  Another engrossing read from a master storyteller.

About the Author:

Stephen King is the author of more than fifty books, all of them worldwide bestsellers. His recent work includes Doctor Sleep and Under the Dome, now a major TV miniseries on CBS. His novel 11/22/63 was named a top ten book of 2011 by The New York Times Book Review and won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Mystery/Thriller as well as the Best Hardcover Book Award from the International Thriller Writers Association. He is the recipient of the 2003 National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters. He lives in Bangor, Maine, with his wife, novelist Tabitha King. (Photo Credit: Denver Post)

Filed Under: audiobooks, borrowed copy, fiction, Publishers/Publicists, Read in 2015, reviews, Simon & Schuster Tagged With: , ,

Salem’s Lot by Stephen King (audio)

August 5, 2015 by

Source: Public Library
Audio, 17.5 hours
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Salem’s Lot by Stephen King is just as good as I remembered it.  Author Ben Mears returns to Jerusalem’s Lot in Maine to write out the horrors of his childhood in a house on a hill.  Reading this, you’ll note nods to the great horror stories, including Dracula, but here it is not just about the vampires in the shadows, it’s about the shadows that lurk in the small town among the people.  From the Catholic priest, Father Callahan, who is not seen as fit enough to replace the previous one to the townspeople who are easily sucked into the plots of Straker and Barlow.  The consummate storyteller, King uses his main character to dig into the recesses of the town and uncover not only the mysteries of the haunted house on the hill, but the darkness beneath the quaint little town’s aesthetics.

Along the way there is love and friendship, but these things are tested in only ways that the supernatural and Stephen King can test them.  These are the horror books of my childhood, and I still love them, even on audio.  I love that vampires are what they are meant to be — blood-sucking evildoers.  I love that small towns have darkness in them, including those greedy people who will sell you down the river for a pretty penny.

Salem’s Lot by Stephen King is that creepy novel that you’ll want to stop reading but can’t put down, and when the lights go out, you’ll be trembling beneath the covers and peering over the edge at every shadow as your mind works overtime.  I cannot recommend this one enough.

About the Author:

Stephen King is the author of more than fifty books, all of them worldwide bestsellers. His recent work includes Doctor Sleep and Under the Dome, now a major TV miniseries on CBS. His novel 11/22/63 was named a top ten book of 2011 by The New York Times Book Review and won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Mystery/Thriller as well as the Best Hardcover Book Award from the International Thriller Writers Association. He is the recipient of the 2003 National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters. He lives in Bangor, Maine, with his wife, novelist Tabitha King. (Photo Credit: Denver Post)

Filed Under: audiobooks, borrowed copy, fiction, Publishers/Publicists, Read in 2015, reviews, Simon & Schuster Tagged With: , ,

Crooked Heart by Lissa Evans

August 4, 2015 by

tlc tour host

Source: TLC Book Tours
Hardcover, 288 pgs.
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Crooked Heart by Lissa Evans is an odd narrative in that it is disjointed at times and features a number of eccentric characters, including 10-year-old Noel, Vee, and Donald.  Noel is a young orphan evacuee who is sent to live with Vee, Donald, and Vee’s mother during WWII.  Noel’s a quiet boy who loves detective novels and is incredibly heart-broken by the time he reaches their home.  Vee, on the other hand, is struggling to make ends meet only to have a son who does little more than expect her to wait on him and barely goes to his job.  Evans captures the essence of these struggling residents during rationing and bombardments by the Nazis.  Readers will be fully engaged by the historical setting, but the pairing of this intelligent boy and this woman who is looking for the next get rich quick scheme, is unlikely and tough to take at face value until more than halfway through the novel.

“His teeth were regular and well-spaced, like battlements.  Noel liked to imagine tiny soldiers popping up between them, firing arrows across the room or pouring molten lead down Uncle Geoffrey’s chin.” (pg. 10 ARC)

“The day after that, all the children disappeared, as if London had shrugged and the small people had fallen off the edge.” (pg. 15 ARC)

Vee is impulsive and Noel is level-headed, and like Vee, Donald, makes impulsive decisions that often land him into trouble.  Evans has a way with imagery and she captures the tumultuous times deftly, but often the disjointed narrative can pull readers out of the story, especially when she moves from one perspective to another with little to no transition.  However, as the relationship develops between Vee and Noel, moving from a business relationship to a more familial relationship, readers will become invested in their struggles.  The story of Donald, her son, however, fades in importance, and by the end almost feels as though it was an add-on, not really integral to the story.

Crooked Heart by Lissa Evans provides a realistic look at life in London and elsewhere in England at the time of WWII when rationing was in full swing and bombings were a real concerns, especially for residents of London.  Vee and Noel are able to find a home among the wreckage, and while not everyone’s stories are wrapped up neatly, Evans develops a realistic picture of wartime England.

About the Author:

Lissa Evans, a former radio and television producer, is the author of three previous novels, including Their Finest Hour and a Half, which was longlisted for the Orange Prize. Crooked Heart was also longlisted for the Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction (formerly known as the Orange Prize); it is her first novel to be published in the US. Evans lives in London with her family.  Find out more about Evans at her website, and follow her on Twitter.

 

 

 

Filed Under: 2015 War Through the Generations - Read Any War, ARC, challenges, Harper Collins, historical fiction, New Authors Challenge, Publishers/Publicists, Read in 2015, reviews, tlc book tours Tagged With: ,

Mireille by Molly Cochran

July 30, 2015 by

tlc tour hostSource: TLC Book Tours
Paperback, 619 pgs
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Mireille by Molly Cochran is a sweeping novel that takes place near the end of WWII through the 1960s, and the title character is forced from her home at the same time she is forced to realize that her life must become an illusion in order for her to survive.  Mireille is an unusual beauty who finds herself caught in the web of her own lies later in life, and while she’s desperate to escape, she’s also careful to protect her family from harm, even if that means paying a heavy price.  Following the end of WWII, she makes the trek on foot to Paris and finds herself in even worse health and shape than when she ran from her home.  She learns quickly that kindness is hard to come by and that the only way she can provide for herself and survive is the become the best prostitute in all of Paris.

Cochran has dove deep into the world of Paris escorts, and the depravity Mireille finds there is something that she can only deal with by severing her actions from her true 17-year-old self.  She soon meets Oliver Jordan, a famous movie producer from Hollywood, but he’s darker than she ever could imagine.  He will remind readers of the Marquis de Sade driven by his baser instincts and clearly someone who knows nothing about love or emotional attachment.  He only understands manipulation, physical release, and ownership.

Mireille by Molly Cochran is a page turner that is neatly wrapped up by the end of the novel, and as long as readers can ignore the historical issues — such as actresses unable to earn a great deal because they were owned by their respective studios at the time in the novel and Mireille’s apparent wealth — the book will take them on a dark journey that will leave their stomachs turning.  However, as a book about perseverance, Mireille does have a will that will rival many — as she strives onward even in the most dire circumstances.  A solid read full of sex, profane events, and more.

***My apologies to Molly Cochran and TLC Book Tours for failing to review this in June.***

About the Author:

Molly Cochran is the author of more than twenty novels and nonfiction books, including the New York Times bestseller Grandmaster, The Forever King, The Broken Sword, and The Temple Dogs, all cowritten with Warren Murphy. She is also the author of The Third Magic, and she cowrote the nonfiction bestseller Dressing Thin with Dale Goday. Cochran has received numerous awards, including the Mystery Writers of America’s Edgar Award, the Romance Writers of America’s “Best Thriller” award, and an “Outstanding” classification by the New York Public Library. Recently she published a series of young adult novels, Legacy, Poison, and Seduction, and two novellas, Wishes and Revels. Legacy won a 2013 Westchester Fiction Award.

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: 2015 War Through the Generations - Read Any War, ARC, challenges, historical fiction, New Authors Challenge, Publishers/Publicists, Read in 2014, reviews, tlc book tours Tagged With: , ,

A Week at the Lake by Wendy Wax

July 28, 2015 by

Source: JS Publishing & Media Consulting
Paperback, 432 pgs.
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A Week at the Lake by Wendy Wax is less of a chicklit romance and more of a story about friendship that has been tested when Emma Michaels backs away from her college friends Serena Stockton and Mackenzie Hayes without explanation and again when they agree to meet again for a retreat at Lake George.  Emma has been a single mother to Zoe for nearly 15 years, and her parents and siblings from Hollywood’s elite have been kept out of their lives for some time.  Although Emma enjoys acting, she takes jobs on her own terms, and she’s tried her best to shelter her own daughter from that fast-paced life.  Serena, on the other hand, may be a beautiful starlit that many men drool over, but her work is mainly as the voice of Georgia Goodbody in a cartoon.  Mackenzie is the least famous of the three, who moved back to the Midwest with her husband to run a local theater and make costumes when her dreams of motherhood were quickly dashed.

“‘We could put you in the bottom of a canoe and float you out into the lake like a Viking warrior,’ Mackenzie said.
‘As long as nobody tries to set me on fire,’ Emma said.
There was laughter, all of them glad to see any sign of the ‘old’ Emma.”  (page 132)

The friendship between these women has been strained, but each of them is excited to head to the lake and reconnect.  Serena continues to have a string of shallow affairs with married men, and Emma has focused her attentions on her daughter, Zoe, and her work.  MacKenzie has had a relatively quiet and routine life, and her life is the most disrupted by the events that happen to these women.  Readers will enjoy getting to know these women, the nuances of their friendships, and the struggles they have in their own lives.

A Week at the Lake by Wendy Wax is a heavier book than most chicklit books, given that these women deal with some significant crises of confidence, emotional baggage, and real-life pain.  Wax creates some strong and flawed female characters, and readers will love how these women interact with each other, how friendships can be tested and nearly break, and how they resolve their larger issues.  This was another winner, and if you haven’t read Wax’s books, you better get started.

About the Author:

Award-winning author Wendy Wax has written eight novels, including Ocean Beach, Ten Beach Road, Magnolia Wednesdays, the Romance Writers of America RITA Award finalist The Accidental Bestseller, Leave It to Cleavage, Single in Suburbia and 7 Days and 7 Nights, which was honored with the Virginia Romance Writers Holt Medallion Award. Her work has sold to publishers in ten countries and to the Rhapsody Book Club, and her novel, Hostile Makeover, was excerpted in Cosmopolitan magazine.

A St. Pete Beach, Florida native, Wendy has lived in Atlanta for fifteen years. A voracious reader, her enjoyment of language and storytelling led her to study journalism at the University of Georgia. She also studied in Italy through Florida State University, is a graduate of the University of South Florida, and worked at WEDU-TV and WDAE-Radio in Tampa.

Also Reviewed:

Filed Under: chicklit, fiction, Penguin, Publishers/Publicists, Read in 2015, review copy, reviews Tagged With: ,

Z for Zachariah by Robert C. O’Brien

July 23, 2015 by

Source: Public Library
Paperback, 249 pgs
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Z for Zachariah by Robert C. O’Brien, which was our July book club selection, and is a post-apocalyptic young adult novel in which a teen is alone on the family farm when the rest of the family ventures beyond their valley in search of other survivors.  The only survivor of the bombings, but the teen has enough knowledge to know how to grow food and care for what farm animals are left.  Soon, the teen realizes that there may be others, as smoke in the distance moves closer and closer each day.  After being alone for a long period of time, how would you react to another person, a stranger that you don’t know anything about other than that he is a scientist and has some knowledge of radiation.

“I passed the house.  Visions moved behind my eyes, and I saw the house as I had seen it as a child: climbing the front steps on the way to supper; sitting on the porch at night, watching the fireflies; my grandfather rocking me on the swing; sitting there listening to someone singing, or a phonograph; later sitting on the swing at night weaving long, romantic dreams about my life to come.”  (pg. 242)

After observing the stranger for a few days, the teen decides that to meet him face-to-face is the best option, as this is the family home in the valley.  There is a sense of responsibility not only for the farm and its buildings, but for creating a home-like atmosphere even for this stranger.  Mr. Loomis, who claims to be a chemist and knows about radiation, falls ill with radiation sickness when he throws caution to the wind and jumps into the stream without testing it.  The green lushness of the valley has lulled him into a false sense of security, and this mirrors the false sense of security the teen feels when a routine develops between them.

Z for Zachariah by Robert C. O’Brien is character-driven from a first person point of view, and while the protagonist can be insipid at times, there are moments of evolution in her character.  Some readers, however, will be angered by the teen’s reactions to Mr. Loomis and his actions.  There are moments in which readers will want to slap the teen silly, but living a farm life in a semi-religious family, it can be easy to see how the teen would have an outlook that is hopeful and positive, expecting the best from others, rather than the worse.  Mr. Loomis and the teen are nearly foils of one another in terms of worldview, and while he is paranoid and controlling because of the loneliness he felt, the teen views the world optimistically and with wonder.  Is this due to the difference in age, their upbringing, or other factors …  it is unclear.  Background information on the characters is minimal, but the story is engaging for the most part as a teen faces a series of tough decisions.

What the book club thought: (updated 9:12 AM)

Our meeting had a consensus of they liked the book for the most part, but the protagonist drove us crazy and the scientist is someone we thought was just evil — though one member made the argument that he may have experienced more damage during his radiation sickness than we thought.  We liked the premise of a valley isolated in its own weather pattern from the fallout and we liked that the young girl had survived on her own because of her farming skills, and most of us agreed that had it been an urban kid there, they would likely have had a harder time.  There were some religion vs. science themes, but it didn’t seem to be overly done to most of us.  There were two members who absolutely disliked the main character and her decisions, her inability to swear, etc., and her naivete about the world outside the farm and the necessity of killing the antagonist.  Some also had issues with the plot and overall, most were disappointed by the ending — though we agreed that because this is an older book (1973, I think, and was finished by the author’s wife and daughter from his notes) the prose was much different than today’s cinematic-style YA post-apocalyptic novels.

About the Author:

Robert Leslie Conly (better known by his pen name, Robert C. O’Brien) was an American author and journalist for National Geographic Magazine.

Filed Under: borrowed copy, challenges, New Authors Challenge, Publishers/Publicists, Read in 2015, reviews, Simon & Schuster, young adult fiction Tagged With: , ,

The Cake Therapist by Judith Fertig

July 21, 2015 by

Source: Tandem Literary
Paperback, 304 pgs
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The Cake Therapist by Judith Fertig will have mouths watering all over these pages as these gorgeous confections meld savory and sweet and extrapolates memory, emotion, and the past from flavors.  Claire “Neely” Davis returns to her hometown to clear her head after yet another slip-up by her husband, Luke, a famous NFL player.  She leaves behind her five-star life in New York for a life that requires a bit more grit and persistence.  Slowly she finds that she has more than one bakery talent — she sees the lives of others in flavor and color, much like her grandmother did.

Even as she works through her own emotional issues, she dives head first into work.  She’s building her business, Rainbow Cake, from the ground up, but she’s also reconnecting with her past and her family.  Her grandmother’s home will not be vacant because she’s been moved to a nursing home.  Her hometown friends are happy to have her back, and while she’s still recovering, she begins to feel at home too.

“‘It’s a gift, you dope.’  I pressed the box into his stomach.  He read the card that said, ‘Thank you for helping me feather my new nest.’  He opened the box and saw a tiny cake shaped like a bird’s nest in three small round layers of tender, browned-butter vanilla cake with an apricot filling.  A ‘nest’ border of piped rum and mocha buttercream enclosed a clutch of pale blue marzipan eggs and a sugar-paste feather.  The complicated yin and yang of rum and mocha, the ‘everybody loves’ vanilla, Mr. Social white chocolate, tart and witty apricot, and artistic marzipan — all said ‘Gavin’ to me.”  (pg. 16)

Her culinary skills also come in handy when helping her employees and some others in the town cope with their own situations at home and from the past.  As she helps them see the strength in themselves, she becomes more sure of herself and that path she must take into the future.  Claire is an emotional mess, and like many of us, she throws herself into work and something she’s passionate about, leaving the heavier stuff on the back burner.  She often helps others, and that helps her work through her own issues, sometimes without even realizing it.

The Cake Therapist by Judith Fertig is a delightful confection and perfect for summer reading by the pool with some cake and delightful coffee — tea if you’re into that sort of thing.  Fertig has a clear talent for writing foodie fiction, and perhaps that is because of her background in cooking and writing cookbooks.  Bon appétit!

About the Author:

Novelist and cookbook author Judith Fertig grew up in the Midwest, went to cooking school in London and Paris, and now lives in the Kansas City area. Described by Saveur Magazine as a “heartland cookbook icon,” Fertig debuts a new novel that engage the mind, the heart, and all five senses—and celebrates cookbooks that reflect her love of bread, baking, barbecue, and the fabulous foods of the Heartland.

Novels you can read like cookbooks. Cookbooks you can read like novels. That’s what you get when an English major studies at École de Cuisine La Varenne (formerly in Paris) and The Cordon Bleu in London plus The Iowa Writers Workshop. Fertig often weaves storytelling into her books. Follow her on Twitter.

Filed Under: challenges, fiction, New Authors Challenge, Penguin, Publishers/Publicists, Read in 2015, review copy, reviews Tagged With: , ,

Revival by Stephen King (audio)

July 15, 2015 by

Source: Public Library
Audio, 11 cds
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Revival by Stephen King, narrated by David Morse, is more subtle in its horror than previous novels, but King’s gift for weaving a complex story with dynamic characters shines through.  Jamie Morton is a young boy in a small New England town who is wowed by the new minister, Charles Jacobs.  Like any new, young couple who enters a small town, the Jacobs’ turn heads, with the young ladies fawning over the minister and the young lads gazing at his wife.  When tragedy strikes, Jacobs shocks the small town with a final anti-religion speech that sends him packing, but even Morton cannot forget the minister’s passion or secret obsession with electricity.

Morton, however, has his own path ahead, and much of it is spent in a drug-induced haze of rock n’ roll clubs and motels as a guitar player.  While he feels like an amateur, he has enough talent to take him from band to band and earns enough money to keep his habit up.  Morse does an excellent job with the narration, and he’s sufficiently creepy.  What I found wonderful were the nods that King places to previous novels, such as Mr. Electrico in Joyland, inside Revival to provide a little extra umph to the idea of reviving or living again.

King really has a handle on childhood and growing up in small towns, and the many superstitions that can be spread about among teens and their parents.  Rumors often spread like wildfire, and in many ways, when those of us leave those small towns, we try to reinvent ourselves like Jacobs’ does.  But the difference is that his obsession with revival becomes the only focus of his life, and in the process of pursuing the truth of life and death, he ruins the lives of others, drags Morton into the darkest of places, and ultimately, leads to a truth that can never be unseen.  Revival by Stephen King, narrated by David Morse, is well told, and though slow in some places, weaves an incredible story that will have readers questioning reality and their faith.

About the Author:

Stephen King is the author of more than fifty books, all of them worldwide bestsellers. His recent work includes Doctor Sleep and Under the Dome, now a major TV miniseries on CBS. His novel 11/22/63 was named a top ten book of 2011 by The New York Times Book Review and won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Mystery/Thriller as well as the Best Hardcover Book Award from the International Thriller Writers Association. He is the recipient of the 2003 National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters. He lives in Bangor, Maine, with his wife, novelist Tabitha King. (Photo Credit: Denver Post)

Filed Under: audiobooks, borrowed copy, fiction, Publishers/Publicists, Read in 2015, reviews, Simon & Schuster Tagged With: , , ,