Ilona Andrews manages to do it yet again. She constructs an amazing world that you can’t turn away from in a matter of words. For such a short novella, a whole, irreplaceable world is formed. One I look forward to visiting again.
This world and story had echoes of the Hidden Legacy series. And I like that although this was set I space, it felt quite familiar. I also loved how the lead female managed to take control of her own life. After all, she got dealt an incredibly shit hand. And then decided to become an assassin.
Petty revenge makes me stupidly happy. I’ll admit, I’m not that bigger person that it isn’t something I’d want to do myself. That the lead I’m this enacts her revenge across two fronts… I’m a little bit in love.
Title: Where’d You Go, Bernadette Author: Maria Semple Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect) My Bookshelves:Contemporary, Humour, Mental health Pace: Fast Format: Novel Year: 2012
I know that this book has a lot of strong recommendations and reviews. But I honestly wasn’t expecting too much from it. Probably because I don’t often love the books that get such rave reviews. Sometimes I think that people give said reviews because they feel that they SHOULD, not because it was actually enjoyable.
Having said that. I will most definitely rave about this book. It was nothing that I expected and it drew me in from the very first moment. After all, there is a mystery to solve from the very beginning. Combine that with the ways in which Bee is able to structure and tell the story, the larger than life characters… I was completely enmeshed.
I love that this is a story about the love between a mother and daughter. It’s a reminder that real love doesn’t come with conditions, but is about accepting and loving someone for exactly who they are. Or at least, that’s how I took this story. That Bee is able to find out more and more about her mother’s flaws. But still love her.
Underlying all of this is the question of mental health. What makes someone sane? What makes them “normal”? And where is the damn line between the two? I still have no answers, and it seems that Semple doesn’t either. A perfect approach as far as I’m concerned.
Title: The Swan Book Author: Alexis Wright Rating Out of 5: 3 (On the fence about this one) My Bookshelves:Australian authors, Dystopia Pace: Slow Format: Novel Year: 2013
This is one of those books that I’m going to have to reread in the future. It was filled with intensity and symbolism. And set in a world that felt weirdly familiar. But, being 8 months pregnant I’m not entirely convinced that my brain absorbed all of the amazingness that is this story.
So maybe I’ll wait to reread this to write a far better review in the future…
Title: On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft Author: Stephen King Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!) My Bookshelves:Biographies, Memoirs, Writing Pace: Slow Format: Novel Year: 2000
Stephen King fascinates me. And terrifies me. I mean, that is a twisty man who writes the kinds of stories he writes. Which all leads me to be fascinated by the idea of his take on writing and his own writing history. Who wouldn’t be? He’s one of the most famous writers…
I really enjoyed how this book was set out. It starts with a more autobiographical account if King’s life. And then heads towards tales and information on how he actually goes about the writing process. It males a complete logical sense and still provides insights to the man behind the writing.
Personally, although I enjoyed all of the writing on HOW to write. It was the autobiographical aspect of this novel that I loved. And it’s this first half that I would read again.
It took me a little while to “click” with what was going on in this story. Mainly because the author is female, the narrator in the first story of this collection is female. But the voice of this story is male. Once the penny dropped (I mostly blame the delay on baby brain), I thoroughly enjoyed this.
I know next to nothing of Jamaica. Besides Cool Runnings, so nothing. It was fun to read a story that was set in everyday, familial life there. The simplicities of everyday life seem so simple, until you look at them from the outside. And I was intrigued.
There was such a powerful underlying pain throughout this story. It was about life and love, but there was also this feeling of being inadequate. Wondering why the good wasn’t acknowledged when the bad so often was. And how this maelstrom of emotions can combine into a complex, mash up love.
I may not be entirely sure why this collection is called Hot Summer Nights. But it was definitely good fun. I had imagined that I would be reading four beach romance novellas. Or stories of summer flings. Not quite what I ended up with.
The majority of these stories have a fun and light small-town America feel to them. They’re cute and simple filled with interesting characters. Interesting characters that I want to meet again in some of the series that these novellas introduced me to. More books to add to the wishlist!!!
This was a wonderful collection that left me feeling content and happy. Exactly what you feel after reading a good romance. Or really, any good book in my case. Definitely one that I’ll be reading again.
Title: My Caesarean: Twenty-One Mothers on the C-Section Experience and After Author: Amanda Fields Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again) My Bookshelves:Essays, Memoirs, Pregnancy Pace: Slow Format: Anthology Year: 2019
Surprisingly, considering one third of Australians have a caesarean, after being blindsided by mine, I realised I had ZERO CLOSE FRIENDS who’d been through this. In the weeks after my daughter was born, this fact left me feeling surprisingly disconnected from my fellow mums. In a moment when I thought I’d feel even more connected by shared experiences. So I decided to do what I always do… find a book that could help me with this. And this was the perfect book to do that.
Every birth story is different. Including caesareans. Like everything, our stories run the gambit from seriously enjoyable to downright terrifying. My own sits somewhere in the middle, but leaning towards the positives. I love that this collection includes the different emotions and experiences. It’s not trying to paint caesareans in any light other than what they are… a modern medical intervention that has let countless mothers and children live. But one that is contentious and can leave people feeling like they somehow “failed”.
Although many of these stories take place many years ago (quite a few before I was was born), they still have that relatability. Even if the technology and process has continued to drastically alter and evolve, the process is still the same. This gave me so many moments of empathy and points that I could just smile and relate to. For someone that doesn’t have anyone in their personal life that can do this… it was incredibly cathartic. In some instances, this was a laughing moment or a secret smile. In others, I cried a few tears as I finished processing my own birth story.
Even if you haven’t or never will have a caesarean. If you don’t know anyone who has, or are just plain curious. This is well worth a read. It gives insight into the feelings and experiences of women who are unafraid to share their experiences and feelings. The good, the bad, the ugly and the out and out joyful.
Each and every one of these short stories is thought provoking. They all make you pause and just THINK about what, exactly, you are reading. About preconceptions and misconceptions. About what it means to move through the world. They’re all brilliant.
I have literally no personal experience with racism and immigration. I’m white, I’m Australian, I was born here. But, I did love the moments of immersion into this different reality that Arthurs provides. It’s… intense. And brilliant.
Normally with short story collections, I have to keep reminding myself to go back. With this collection, I didn’t want to STOP. Each and every tale felt like a revelation. Revelations that I look forward to rereading again and again.
I loved this collection. It was brilliant and intense. With a wonderful edge of satire and wit that I probably didn’t expect. Definitely one that I’ll be going back to in the future.
Erin McCarthy does it for me every time. She is fantastic at writing light, fun and incredibly cute romances. Ice Princess is no exception. My only feeling of confusion… why was a snow story in a collection titled Hot Summer Nights?
This novella may have one of my favourite Meet Cutes of recent. I mean, trying to jump off a balcony and falling (literally) into a gorgeous man’s arms? Yes please! The fact that the lead female is quirky and kind of has verbal diarrhoea… well, it had me giggling Kate at night when I really should have been sleeping.
The gutsy and willing to go get it attitude of both of the leads in Ice Princess is seriously amazing. I’m honestly jealous of how willing they are to take a leap. And, since this is one of those Happily Ever After stories, I love how it all turns out. I won’t ever be that gutsy and willing to jump into things. But it sure was fun travelling along and imagining that I could be.
Title: Lyrics Alley Author: Leila Aboulela Rating Out of 5: 3 (On the fence about this one) My Bookshelves:Contemporary Pace: Slow Format: Novel Year: 2010
Lyrics Alley is one of those books that I’ll read again and again. There is so much going on that I found it impossible to keep up with every minutiae. And, in some books, like Lyrics Alley, I love this fact.
To be fair, even after reading this, I did look up a synopsis just to get my head further around the details of this novel. As much as I enjoyed it and found it to be wonderfully written, I did spend most of my time reading this trying to figure out if I’d missed something. And, honestly, I think that I did.
There are some books on my shelf that I consider great and genuine literature. This is one of those. It’s a read that I would read to expand my brain, not for a bit of diversion. Which means that although I plan to read this again in the future, it’ll be awhile before I feel like my brain is capable of absorbing all of the information.
Earth and Skye 