Book Review - At Home on Marigold Lane by Debbie Mason

 

At Home on Marigold Lane by Debbie Mason is about a young woman returning home to recuperate after a serious injury and a failed marriage. To add insult to injury, she then runs into the man that broke her heart years ago. Brianna MacLeod is a Family and Marriage Therapist and she feels embarrassed that she has to return home to Highland Falls after her marriage had imploded.

Bri is ashamed that she missed the red flags in her abusive relationship and feels that she isn’t qualified to be a therapist anymore. However, she loves helping others and it is second nature to her. When Bri gives up being a therapist she feels that she lost her purpose in life and she is giving up something she loves. Bri decides to move out of the inn she shares with her sister and grandfather to live by herself. Unfortunately, her plan is dashed when she finds out that she has a roommate and it’s someone she would never expect to see again.

 

Bri and her roommate concoct a plan to keep Bri’s sister from worrying about her. In the process of creating the plan, Bri ends up counseling her roommate and her neighbors. She didn’t expect that it would lead to her reconnecting with her first love.

 

Caleb Scott feels that his failed marriage to Raine is tough on his stepdaughter, Izzy. He feels that Izzy needs someone to talk to and work through her emotions with. However, he wasn’t expecting that person to be Bri. Caleb thought his feelings for her were gone when she broke his heart years ago but he finds himself falling for her. Unlike his marriage to Raine, being with Bri feels like home and comfortable. The only problem Caleb has is trying to convince Bri that their relationship deserves a second chance.

 

The novel is the fifth book in the series and it can be read as a standalone. However, I felt that there were some character nuances and storylines that were referenced that went over my head because I didn’t read the previous books. I felt that the novel started out strong and then slowly fizzled out because they were parts of the story that were connected to the previous books. The book also had a lot of characters that were mentioned once or twice in the beginning and then they would make another appearance later in the book. It was hard keeping track of these minor characters and how they related to the story.

 

The book was filled with characters who were trying to find their own paths to happiness but they could be annoying. I enjoyed reading about most of the characters but I found Raine to be very annoying. There were points in the story when she garnered some unwarranted sympathy and seemed selfless such as with her drive to build a new trauma center. However, there were many points in the story that Raine would stop at nothing to get what she wants even if it means throwing other people into the fire. 

 

Then we have two characters who seem to have something going on between them but nothing is disclosed or goes further with their chemistry. I felt that this side story did not add to the main plot and detracted from the story. I didn’t care for Caleb’s best friend, Josh. Josh seems to support Caleb but Josh never seems to be able to keep his mouth shut or read the room. Josh knows Caleb is trying to keep a secret from the town but yet Josh manages to tell everyone the secret within a few minutes of meeting the person. He then always wants to know the story but then can never keep it to himself. I am not even sure why they keep telling Josh anything since he can’t keep a secret to save himself.

 

My other annoyance is with Caleb and Bri. They know they should be keeping their relationship a secret but yet they can never seem to keep their hands off each other in public. Instead of limiting their physical embraces in public, they go at each other like teenagers as if they want to be caught. And they kept getting caught on multiple occasions but they continued acting like lovers in public. I felt like this type of behavior was unrealistic and the continuous references to previous storylines prevented me from completely enjoying and immersing myself in the book.

Book Review - Tough Titties: On Living Your Best Life When You're the F-ing Worst by Laura Belgray

 

 

Tough Titties: On Living Your Best Life When You're the F-ing Worst by Laura Belgray is part memoir and part self help book written by an award winning TV writer. Laura relates engaging laugh out loud stories about her childhood and adult years as she tries to navigate her life and find a career she enjoys.

Laura talks about being bullied in 6th grade and then “hate-following” her bully years later on social media. She mentions being self conscious of her body and then questioning her self worth when no boys wanted to kiss her during parties. She struggled with finding friends and fitting in with the popular kids. She didn’t have much of a social life or went out as much as her classmates when she was growing up.

Things didn’t really change for Laura after she graduated from college. She still had no idea what she wanted to do and she seemed to be moving through life listlessly. She moved back home to stay with her parents and she spends her days sleeping in while her nights are reserved for spending time at bars. She hoped to become a bartender but was having a hard time finding a bar that would give her a chance to try out her bartending skills.

 

She dabbled in unhealthy relationships including a relationship with a married man who bought her no joy but she still found herself obsessed with him. Laura measured her self worth by how many hookups she had with bartenders and other people. She figured if people are willing to sleep with her that she must have been worthy of something. While it wasn’t the best way to spend her time, she admits that she was able to make connections and gain opportunities that she wouldn’t have otherwise.

 

After a failed stint as a bartender, Laura decided to become an intern at a magazine. She was one of the worst interns there but she succeeded in building industry connections. She did discover that she did like certain parts of her job and that helped serve as a guide for her career path. Laura mentions that when she was let go from the job, she was late to the discovery of the Internet but ended up finding a profitable niche that she was able to build a successful business out of.

 

The book was a very relatable and laugh out loud read. The book did offer some advice but it wasn’t on the nose or trying to change a habit. Instead, Laura talked about her life and choices and then explained how things worked out for the better (sometimes). I feel like the book shows readers that it’s okay to make mistakes and learn as you go because sometimes that can lead to connections that would help you later in life.

 

I like that the book encourages readers to be weird and take their time in learning and finding themselves. Sometimes, we are made to feel insufficient or we could be doing more with our lives. And that if we are not on some Forbes list, that we are failures or not good enough. I feel that when Laura was describing her experiences it was encouraging to see that success is not always a straight path. I enjoyed reading about the author’s struggles and her triumphs as it was written in an engaging way.

 

Book Spotlight - A Whole Song and Dance by Sarvenaz Tash + Giveaway

 

About The Book:

Title: A WHOLE SONG AND DANCE

Author: Sarvenaz Tash

Pub. Date: April 4, 2023

Publisher: Disney Hyperion

Formats: Hardcover, eBook, Audiobook

Pages: 304

Find it: Goodreads, https://books2read.com/A-WHOLE-SONG-AND-DANCE

Sarah Dessen meets Abigail Hing Wen in this heartwarming romantic comedy starring Nasrin Mahdavi, an Iranian-American college freshman who's a triple threat on Broadway—but who's living a double life.

It’s her first semester majoring in musical theater at NYU’s prestigious Tisch School of the Arts, and Nasrin spends her days prepping for auditions, sweating through dance classes, and belting her heart out for the viral streaming show she’s been cast in. But on calls with her maman and baba, she’s the golden child who put her theater dreams aside to follow in their entrepreneurial footsteps as a business major. 

At least her whole life isn’t a lie—she is taking a single business course. Except she’s kind of failing it. Nasrin needs to bring her grade up fastif she’s going to keep her parents in the dark, so she grudgingly signs up for tutoring with the infuriatingly smug and annoyingly attractive Max. And yet . . . as the semester rushes by, the sparks of anger that first flew between them start to turn into a very different kind of spark. The kind she definitely does not have time for.

Except when Nasrin’s charmingly devious cousin takes an interest in Max too, Nasrin has to figure out exactly what has been an act, and what’s for real. Can Nasrin decide what—and who—is truly worth fighting for, and find a way to step into the spotlight as her full self?

About Sarvenaz Tash:

Sarvenaz Tash is the author of The Geek's Guide to Unrequited Love (an Amazon Best Book of the Year, YALSA Top Ten Quick Pick for Reluctant YA Readers), A Whole Song and Dance, Virtually Yours, Three Day Summer, The Mapmaker and the Ghost and the co-author of Ghosting: A Love Story and Hollywood Ending (as Tash Skilton). She was born in Tehran, Iran and grew up on Long Island, NY. She received her BFA in Film and Television from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts, which means she got to spend most of college running around and making movies (it was a lot of fun). She has dabbled in all sorts of writing including screenwriting, copywriting, and professional tweeting for the likes of Bravo and MTV. Sarvenaz currently lives in Brooklyn with her family.

Website | Twitter | Instagram | TikTok | Tumblr | Pinterest | Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub

 

Giveaway Details:

1 winner will receive a finished copy of A WHOLE SONG AND DANCE, US Only.

Ends May 6th, midnight EST.

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4/1/2023

The Bibliophilic World

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4/20/2023	Two Points of Interest	Review
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4/30/2023

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Book Review - The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow

 

 

The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow is a spellbinding fantasy about a young girl trying to connect with her estranged father and finding her place in the world. In the early 1900’s, January Scaller was a curiosity and an outsider. She looks and acts different from everyone else. She lives in a giant mansion with her caretaker, Mr. Locke. The house is filled with treasures and priceless artifacts, and January sometimes feels that she is something that Mr. Locke has collected. She is well looked after thanks to Mr. Locke being wealthy, but she always feels ignored and out of place.

One day, January was searching through Mr. Locke’s treasures when she came across an old book. She finds herself drawn towards the book and she spends every free moment reading her newly found lifeline. January is entranced with the characters and wants to use the book as a way to escape from real life.

 

The book tells of secret doors to other worlds that allows people to travel between them. The worlds are vastly different from January’s current world and some worlds even have magic. As January delves deeper into the book, she realizes that the story is connected with her. She first thought the story was a work of fiction but then realizes the story might be true. January decides to follow her heart and search for her own magical door.

 

I thought the book was an interesting and magical read. The story did move slowly during some parts of the book where it describes January getting older but nothing noteworthy would occur. The author wrote in a beautiful lyrical prose that was overwhelming at times. I felt that it covered up the fact that there was little story progression.

 

The first two thirds of the book does move very slowly. The story starts picking up in the last few pages and the twist is very predictable. The evil mastermind is easy to guess very early on. While the book was an entertaining read, I felt like I had a hard time connecting with the protagonist. Instead of the magical doors being a gateway to an exciting adventure, the majority of the time the characters use the doors to reconnect with a loved one. The book does have an opening for a second book which seems like it would be a good read if it focuses on January’s adventures in different worlds.

 

Book Review - Batcat by Meggie Ramm

 

Batcat by Meggie Ramm is a graphic novel for young readers about a creature who is struggling with their identity. They like being a homebody and spending their time alone in their house on Spooky Island. Batcat enjoys eating snacks while watching TV or playing video games.

Everything was going fine until Batcat finds themself haunted by a ghost who doesn’t understand personal boundaries. The ghost is always in Batcat’s way and is eating all of their snacks. Batcat is desperate to get rid of their unwanted visitor so they decide to visit the local Island Witch for assistance.

 

Batcat has to travel all over Spooky Island to gather the ingredients for the spell. They visit the Cavernous Cave where Batcat asks the resident bats for help to locate the ingredient. The bats tell Batcat that they are too round to be a bat. At the Whispering Cemetery, the resident cats will only help Batcat if they prove that they are a true cat. However, Batcat is neither only a bat or cat and that’s what makes them special, right? 

 

I thought the graphic novel was a cute and fun read. The illustrations were bright and vibrant. The graphic novel is geared towards young readers and has many important life lessons. It teaches children about identity and that they can be anything they want to be. Also, that a person’s identity can be made up of multiple facets.  As in the case of Batcat, they are both a cat and a bat.  A person doesn’t have to fit into one category perfectly.  It illustrates that everyone at some point in their lives is trying to find their place in a community and also struggles with self-acceptance. I think it would be a great gift for any young reader in your life.

Book Review - He Said He Would Be Late by Justine Sullivan

 

He Said He Would Be Late by Justine Sullivan is about a woman who suspects her beloved husband is cheating on her. Liz Bennett knows that she is lucky to snag her husband, Arno. When they first met, Arno was wealthy, charismatic and attractive. He is a supportive husband to her and a devoted father to their daughter, Emma. He is an all-star employee and everyone loves him at the top banking firm he works at in Boston. He has a promising career and he is in line for a promotion.

In Liz’s mind, Arno is the perfect example of a great husband and he’s one of the reasons why she feels that she has the perfect life. Liz’s life comes crashing down when she sees a text on Arno’s phone with a kissy face emoji. Liz becomes anxious and her wildest imagination takes over. She is worried that her best days of her marriage are over and that her husband is cheating on her.

Liz’s anxiety and worries consume her thoughts and are affecting her sleep. She spends every waking moment thinking about the text and trying to decipher Arno’s behavior. Liz is trying to see if she can catch Arno in a lie. 

Liz tries to track down the mysterious woman that sent the text. Liz’s obsession with the text message has started taking over Liz’s life and infected all aspects of her sanity and mental wellbeing. She believes in her intuition and that she must find out the truth even if it means ending her “perfect” marriage.

 

The book was a thrilling roller coaster ride of answering the question of: is he cheating or not? As the story progresses, we see Liz unravel from a relatively sane person to someone who is consumed by anxiety, distress, and suspicion over her relationship with her husband. The reader is taken on a journey as we try to decide if Liz's instincts are incorrect or is there more to the text message that Arno received.

 

Liz was an interesting character. She was a flawed and relatable person. It was suspenseful reading about her inner turmoil. However, I wish there was more background information to her character and whether or not this is the life she really wanted. Liz went from a woman who was happy with her current life and then she became unbalanced and nothing brought her joy. At times, the story did get repetitive and didn’t progress much. I didn’t like that it ended abruptly and the reader was left to draw their own conclusion. I wish we could have known about the aftermath of what happened after Liz makes her discovery.

Book Review - Bindle Punk Bruja by Desideria Mesa

 

Bindle Punk Bruja by Desideria Mesa is about a Mexican witch trying to open her own speakeasy during the Roaring Twenties, while providing for her family and coming to terms with her heritage. Luna, or Rose, depending who is asking, is a caucasian-looking daughter of an immigrant Mexican woman. Luna’s mother wants her to pretend to be White so Luna can have the best opportunities life can offer. They’ve both seen how society treats people who are different.

Luna is a descendant of a long line of magical witches which are based off of Mexican folktale. However, she is struggling to control and expand her abilities like her talented grandmother.  She wants to rely on her budding powers to make progress in her life, but it doesn’t seem that she is able to control her powers.

Luna is struggling to come to terms with her two different personalities along with handling her magical abilities.  During the day, “Rose” is a part time reporter at a newspaper. During the night, “Luna” is a partial owner of a nightclub.  Luna wants to own her own jazz nightclub outright, as she is tired of dealing with the crooked politicians and the deadly mobsters who run the underground nightlife. Even though Luna looks like a White woman, her loved ones still get targeted with violence because of the rampant sexism and racism. Luna wants to mitigate these risks by owning her own business with no ties to mobsters.

Utilizing her magical powers of charm, she is able to negotiate with criminals to keep her business running smoothly. As she’s making progress, she finds herself in the crosshair of someone who wants to harm her and her business to a greater degree than her “business partners”.  Luna is used to depending on herself but she finds herself overwhelmed. Will she be able to turn to her loved ones for help?

 

It was engaging seeing how Luna was trying to manage the two different sides of herself and trying to combine her heritage and her new life into one. I liked reading about her dreams of running her own business and how she overcame the people who were trying to stop her.

 

The book was packed with action on every page but it felt overwhelming at times. There were points though that I had a hard time following along. I felt the Spanish phrases and the terminology used during that time period made it hard to keep up with the pace. I would have liked a glossary or a translation of what something meant.

 

I also felt at times that the writing was choppy. A scene would transition to another scene without much warning or heads up that the story was moving in another direction.  It seemed as if the author wanted to broach many different social issues such as racism and sexism, but she touched the surface and didn’t really go anywhere with it.

 

I had a hard time connecting with the main character. I felt that the reader got a one dimensional look to her. The author didn’t spend much time giving her a background or explaining her magic in more detail. I felt like the novel lacked proper world building, which was confusing since she used a lot of 1920’s jargon. Luna’s thoughts were so muddled and repetitive that it made it confusing to me. The book had a lot of potential but it needed to be better edited to make the story easier to follow.

Book Review - Dangerous Beauty by Melissa Koslin

 

Dangerous Beauty by Melissa Koslin is about a chance encounter uniting two people from different walks of life. 

Liliana Vela refuses to think of herself as a victim. She is a fighter and survivor. She will not let the past dictate how she lives her life.  Liliana witnessed her family being brutally murdered in her impoverished Mexican village before being kidnapped by the human traffickers. She was able to escape before the men made the exchange with her buyer.  Liliana is determined to take back her life after escaping from the men who held her hostage.  However, she realized that she has no connections or anyone to help her in America.  She feels she is all alone.

Meric Toledan decided to stop for water at a service station when he noticed Liliana needing help from some men that are following her.  He decided to help rescue her from these men, who he realizes are traffickers. When he realized that she had no one to rely on for help in a new country, he decided to marry her to keep her safe from the traffickers. The mysterious buyer refuses to let his prize be stolen away by someone else. Will Liliana be able to live her life free from the buyer in the end?

The book was an absolute borefest with almost no thrills or action. Liliana and Meric were one dimensional and dull. The two main characters always seemed to say the perfect thing to each other and they could do no wrong. The story got repetitive and moved slowly, with nothing happening plot wise. The author used the word “cold” to describe Meric’s personality in almost every other sentence.  I also found it weird that Meric is described as a cold, withdrawn, and prudent person, but then marries and wills all of his assets to someone who is practically a stranger to him. 

I felt that the plot and twists were unrealistic. It is mentioned that Meric isn’t a “people” person even with the people that work for him or are “close” to him. But Meric goes out of his way for Liliana, whom he just met but he simply found her too beautiful. Multiple times during the novel, it’s mentioned that Meric can’t be near her because her beauty is so overwhelming to him and he is afraid he can’t control himself. It all seems so shallow. I felt that if Liliana wasn’t beautiful he wouldn’t be willing to give her his entire fortune and help her with her predicament. The author’s description of Liliana’s beauty and Meric’s cold personality was repeated constantly to the point that  it got annoying. I felt that the author should have used that time and space to add more to the story’s plot.

The ending seemed far fetched and everything was neatly tied up in a bow. I felt that the ending didn't seem plausible. It left me with more questions about the validity of Meric’s familial connections. There were a lot of side stories that didn’t add value to the main storyline.  Liliana met a group of elderly residents and they seemed to be having fun and they even had an outing together. However, after an incident that wasn’t directly related to them, they were written out of the story with no additional mention of them. It made me wonder what the point was of including these characters for a few chapters. The book felt lackluster because the characters were bland, the story was long winded, and the plot didn’t feel feasible.

Book Review - This Time It's Real by Ann Liang

 

This Time It's Real by Ann Liang is about two young adults who agree to fake date each other to bolster their careers.  Seventeen year old Eliza Lin spent her entire life traveling the world due to her mother’s job. At her new international school in Beijing, she is given an assignment to write about her personal life. However, she isn’t comfortable sharing her personal life with complete strangers. Instead of writing a true story based on her life, she decides to write a fictionalized version of her non – existent love life, taking snippets from her parents' love story.

Eliza didn’t expect much attention to her essay since she is a new student with no friends. However, her story goes viral overnight and Eliza is now famous and her classmates all want to know more about her secret boyfriend. Eliza loves the attention her article has garnered her but she is afraid of her lie being exposed.

Eliza is desperate to keep her secret, so she enlists the help of a famous actor in her class. Caz Song is a charming and charismatic actor who has fans following his every move. She proposes a mutually beneficial agreement between the two of them. Caz pretends to be her boyfriend so she can keep her journalism internship opportunity and in return she will help him write his college applications.

While Caz is pretending to be her boyfriend, Eliza realizes how great he is. Caz is sweet to her little sister, he passes her notes in class, he is thoughtful towards her requests, and he takes her out on motorcycle rides all over the city to try new snacks. Eliza finds herself falling for Caz but she isn’t sure if he feels the same way. Is Eliza willing to give up her dream internship for her chance at real love, seeing as the reason for her internship was to give readers an exclusive look into her relationship?

The book was a clean romance with minimal hand holding or touching involved. The novel had funny moments sprinkled throughout. There weren't any twists or surprising events. The characters were fun and relatable as they navigate their lives. Eliza tries to work through her feelings of always being the new girl and not having anywhere she can call home. She rarely tries to make any new friends because in her mind they will just end up leaving her. Caz’s parents are never home and he spends most of his time being an actor and proving himself. They both had challenges of not belonging and not having someone in their corner. I do feel that fans of K-dramas or romcoms might really enjoy the book.

Book Review - A Killer by Design: Murderers, Mindhunters, and My Quest to Decipher the Criminal Mind by Ann Burgess

 

A Killer by Design: Murderers, Mindhunters, and My Quest to Decipher the Criminal Mind by Ann Burgess is about a trauma nurse’s journey to create a process to help identify serial killers and stop them before they hurt someone else. During the 1970s and 1980s, progressive activism and sex positivity was prevalent and underneath this forward movement for change was a dark undertone brewing. As cases of sexual assault and homicide began to rise, the FBI responded to the need by creating a specialized team known as the “Mindhunters” or also known as the Behavioral Science Unit in the FBI.

Typically the FBI agents previously used their gut instincts to find and catch serial killers. They needed someone to help create a process that can be used by others to help narrow down suspect pools. The team decided to tap Dr. Ann Wolbert Burgess to help them because of her role and research with interviewing rape victims.

In the book, Ann details how her research on sexual assault and trauma garnered the attention of the FBI and how she ended up working with the team. Over the course of two decades, she and the FBI agents in the BSU help create and build a specialized team that focuses on identifying, interviewing, and capturing over a dozen of infamous violent offenders.

Ann illustrates and gives a detailed, behind the scenes look of the creation of the team. She describes their triumphs and roadblocks. She gives a graphic description of the murders and explains how the FBI's Behavioral Science Unit played a role in the capture of each offender.

As a person who loves reading true crime, I found the book to be an enjoyable read. The book covered a few cases that I wasn’t familiar with. I liked reading how Dr. Ann Wolbert Burgess contributed to creating a team within the FBI that was dedicated to capturing these violent criminals. I feel that women’s contributions in certain fields are not as widely known or celebrated as their male counterparts. I like reading books that showcase the talents of women in their fields as it’s inspiring to read. 

The author gave enough details about each crime to understand it and then explained how the BSU helped capture the criminal. I also like that she went into details about the methodologies they used and explained industry key terms. Her narration style was easy to understand and wasn't overly technical. It was interesting to learn about the different tools investigators can use. For example, I learned about the “check attention” type polygraph and its purpose. The book included a few photos of past crime scene evidence and photos of the team. If you loved the Netflix show, “Mindhunters”,  you will love the behind the scenes narrative in this book.

Book Review - We Are the Light by Matthew Quick

 

We Are the Light by Matthew Quick is about a small community coming together after an unspeakable act of violence occurs. Lucas Goodgame is a school guidance counselor who helps children adjust to issues that they might have at home or at school. He lives in the quaint suburb community of Majestic, Pennsylvania.  At a local movie theater, a gunman entered and slaughtered multiple victims before he was stopped. Lucas is considered a local hero because of his act of courage in stopping the gunman.

Lucas doesn’t see himself as a hero and tries to avoid the attention from others. He insists that his deceased wife, Darcy, is an angel who is guiding him. Lucas spends his time writing letters to his former “Jungian analyst”, Karl, to help cope after the deadly tragedy.

Everything changes when Eli, an eighteen year old, starts to camp out in Lucas’s backyard. Eli was a former student of Lucas and he is related to the gunman. Lucas feels that Eli is the way to heal the community and themselves. They embark together to fuel their grief and anxiety into making art while bringing in the other survivors from that night to help.

The author is well known for his other books but this was my first time reading any of his novels. The novel is written in epistolary style, meaning that it is written in the form of letters that Lucas writes.  Lucas writes and spills his heart to his former analyst to help himself cope with his grief. The writing style was an interesting choice but it felt limiting as we only got Lucas’s point of view.

I didn’t understand what a Jungian analyst was and the process. The author did explain that he was a fan of it but didn’t do a thorough job of communicating what this therapy was to the reader.  I personally felt like I didn’t quite understand it and it took away some enjoyment from the novel. The author did mention that he was going through his own struggles and that this form of therapy helped him.  I felt that the author included too many phallic/“being a man” references in the beginning. The main female character, Darcy’s best friend, Jill, does all the household work and becomes caregiver to Lucas. She has to handle all the bills, the cooking, cleaning, laundry, and budgeting while Lucas goes off on his madcap adventures and ideas. Lucas rarely considers her feelings and she is made to be seen as an annoyance or getting in Lucas’ way instead of being the life support she really is. Gender stereotypes were rampant in this book.

I felt like the plot was predictable, boring, and moved very slowly. There were a lot of side stories going on that were overwhelming at times. I didn’t care for Lucas as a main character. He seemed like a petulant child that would throw tantrums when things didn’t go his way. He seemed to be struggling with his grief and acting erratically while his supposedly close friends were enabling him.  This story might have been a great movie but it was lackluster for a book.  The visual aspect may have been a better medium for the suspenseful pieces of this book.