Book Review: "Other People's Weddings" by Maisey Yates

Poppy has carved out a successful career as a designer of wedding cakes. She loves helping couples come up with the perfect cake to complement their special day, even if her own romantic life has been less successful.

If there’s a downside to her success, it’s that he is always there. “He” meaning Ryan, the photographer who seems to be at every wedding she is. Ryan has hated her since they were 12, and the animosity between them has intensified into adulthood. He always seems to be present in her moments of weakness, and she always seems to make things worse between them.

When Poppy’s best friend Quinn gets engaged, Poppy is excited. She’s also a bit envious and a bit sad, because Quinn will be moving across the world to New Zealand with her soon-to-be new husband. For someone who has dealt with abandonment issues most of her life, losing her best friend may be more than Poppy can bear.

But before she can completely fall apart, she has a cake to make. And then she learns that the wedding will be in New Zealand, and Quinn and her fiancé want everyone in the wedding party to spend two weeks there. Poppy is excited to be the maid of honor…and guess who is the best man? (If you guessed Ryan, you’re right!)

Poppy can’t seem to shake Ryan. He’s even on her flight to New Zealand. But the more she deals with the jumble of emotions she’s feeling about Quinn’s wedding and impending move, the more she realizes that maybe she doesn’t quite hate Ryan after all. Maybe the tension they feel doesn’t stem from mutual dislike?

This was a cute story—a predictable enemies to lovers rom-com but fun all the same. I actually felt like the enemy thing was fairly one-sided for a while, with Poppy being the instigator of their arguments, and that annoyed me a little. But overall, this book explored a lot of issues and it really was sweet.

Book Review: "A Novel Love Story" by Ashley Poston

Emotionally undone by another Ashley Poston book…it must be that time of year! Her upcoming book has the beautiful mix of romance and magical realism I’ve come to love in her writing, and at the same time, it’s a paean to books and stories and the feelings they gives us, and it was so lovely.

Eileen is an English professor at a college. And while she’s more than happy talking about classic works, she’s a huge romance reader. Even when her life goes wrong, her favorite books, her best friend, and her book club bring her joy. Although everyone else is unable to make the book club’s annual retreat this year, she’s determined to go to the cabin in the Catskills, to read and drink wine.

On the way, she gets lost in a rainstorm and winds up in a charming small town. And then her car won’t start. But the people seem so nice and the town seems so familiar…and then Eileen realizes that somehow she has wound up in Eloraton, the setting of her absolute favorite romance series. In Eloraton, the burgers are always a little burnt, the honey taffy is always sweet, and it always rains in the afternoon. What a perfect place to wait for your car to get fixed.

The more time she spends in Eloraton, the more Eileen realizes that the characters are stuck, because the author died before the fifth book could be finished. The characters don’t realize why they’re stuck, but Eileen inadvertently creates some ripples that actually move things forward, much to everyone’s pleasure. Everyone’s except a handsome yet grumpy bookstore owner, who doesn’t want Eileen to ruin things.

Eileen realizes that she hasn’t been happy in some time, not until she arrived in town. Can’t she just stay in Eloraton, with these characters who have become her friends? How tempting it is to lose yourself in a place you love.

At first I worried this would be silly, but it’s so richly told, so vibrant. As with all of Poston’s books, this isn’t for everyone, but it filled my heart so much. I am an absolute fan of hers.

Many thanks to Berkley and NetGalley for the advance copy! The book will publish 6/25.

Book Review: "Good Material" by Dolly Alderton

Andy is a stand-up comedian whose career isn’t going anywhere. But that’s the least of his worries: he’s utterly devastated that Jen, his girlfriend of nearly four years, has dumped him. And he didn’t see it coming; it happened out of the blue.⁣

⁣ “‘Break-ups can be a good thing,’” Jane says. “‘They can teach us about who we really are.’”⁣

⁣ “‘Yeah, maybe, like break-up number one or two,’” I sigh. “‘But break-ups have depreciating gains. I’m thirty-five now. I know who I am. I am already sick of myself.’”⁣

⁣ Break-up stories are fairly common in fiction, but it’s very rare to get one written from the man’s point-of-view. Andy needs to start living for himself rather than what was. That’s the only way to move forward. But what if you don’t want to move forward? What if you were happy the way things were?⁣

⁣ Having Andy as the narrator makes you wonder why he’d even want to stay with Jen, given all the things about her that drove him crazy. But then you get a glimpse of Jen’s POV, and you realize there’s two sides to every story. This was thought-provoking, funny, emotional, and hopeful.

Book Review: "Waiting for the Flood" by Alexis Hall

Sometimes you must weather the storm to find happiness.

It was supposed to be their dream home. While Edwin loved it a little more than Marius, they looked forward to spending forever there. But forever didn’t last very long, and it’s been two years since Marius left.

Edwin lives a lonely existence. He doesn’t go out much, at least since he saw Marius utterly happy with other people and it undid him. He works to restore and repair old books and memorabilia, both historic and mundane, which seems fitting because he’s often stuck in the past.

When fierce rains flood the area, Edwin is unprepared. But a savior arrives in the form of Adam, who works for the Environment Agency. As Adam shows Edwin how to weather the storm and they fight the waters that could greatly affect his neighborhood, Edwin realizes he can open his heart again. But will he fall back in the same patterns?

This is the second book in Alexis Hall’s Spires series, after Glitterland, which is already one of my favorite books of 2023. This, however, didn’t quite work for me. Instalove happened so quickly, it almost felt like something was missing. And I guess because Edwin was an intellectual, his dialogue was peppered with a lot of big words which didn’t quite fit.

There are two other books in this series, so I’ll give it another shot, because I do love the way Hall writes!

Book Review: "We Are The Light" by Matthew Quick

The latest book from the author of Silver Linings Playbook is a tremendously moving story about grief, recovering from tragedy and trauma, and the impact people have on our lives.

The town of Majestic, Pennsylvania has recently been impacted by a terrible tragedy. A young man shot and killed 17 people in the town’s historic movie theater during a showing of a Christmas movie before dying himself.

Many in the town see Lucas Goodgame as a hero for his actions during the massacre, but he doesn’t like to think about that. All he can focus on is that his wife Darcy was among those who were killed, although he believes she comes to him each night as an angel.

Lucas doesn’t know how to process his grief, and the worst thing is that his Jungian analyst of three years, Karl, has ended their sessions because Karl’s wife was killed that day, too. He had come to depend on Karl and he is at a total loss, so the only thing he can do is write letters to him in the hope that Karl will decide to start seeing him again.

Things take an interesting turn when Eli, an 18-year-old whom Lucas had helped before, starts camping out in Lucas’ backyard. The entire town ostracizes Eli and he has nowhere else to turn.

This book, told completely in letters Lucas writes to Karl, is about the process of healing and how complicated it can be. As Lucas and Eli try to help the community—and especially the survivors of the massacre—with recovery, beautiful and troubling things will be uncovered.

I found this really moving. It’s very sad in places and there may be triggers for some. I don’t know about Jungian analysis, so the references to that went over my head, but this was a really poignant and beautiful story.

Book Review: "A Quiet Life" by Ethan Joella

A Quiet Life is one of those books that grabs your heart and doesn’t let go.

A Little Hope, the debut novel by Ethan Joella, was one of my absolute favorite books last year. I received an advance copy and knew nothing about it, and still can’t get it out of my mind. So when Ethan offered me an advance copy of his upcoming novel, you bet I said yes—but I’ve been holding on to it since it doesn’t come out until November.

This is another of those books that sneaks up on you and hooks you completely. But, like the title says, it’s a quiet story, about love, about overcoming grief and taking tentative steps toward something new, and about our desperate need for connection, especially in times of trouble.

“Maybe loving someone so deeply means accepting the fact that they occupy a specific, clear place in you. You accept that there will be a hole if you lose them—the same way a painting or photograph will leave its shadow on the wall after it’s gone, the way a tree will leave a crater where the roots and stump were.”

The book follows the lives of three characters—Chuck, a widower still coming to terms with grief and guilt after his wife’s death, as he tries to will himself to make their annual sojourn to Hilton Head without her; Ella, a young mother struggling to hold on after her daughter goes missing; and Kirsten, whose father’s unexpected death has left her in a kind of emotional limbo. The three will interact in ways that will change them profoundly.

Joella’s storytelling, the emotions he imbues his story with, and the characters he has created, are so exceptional. It’s powerful without being flashy, and it touches you without being maudlin.

Thanks so much to Ethan and Scribner Books for the advance copy in exchange for an unbiased review!! The book will publish 11/29.

Book Review: "Crying in H Mart" by Michelle Zauner

Crying in H Mart is a moving, thought-provoking look at grief and the complicated relationship between mother and daughter.

“Sometimes my grief feels as though I’ve been left alone in a room with no doors. Every time I remember that my mother is dead, it feels like I’m colliding with a wall that won’t give. There’s no escape, just a hard surface that I keep ramming into over and over, a reminder of the immutable reality that I will never see her again.“

Michelle Zauner, a writer and indie musician known as Japanese Breakfast, lost her mother to cancer in 2014, when Michelle was 25 and her mother was 56. Although they had had a difficult relationship through Michelle’s troubled adolescence and early adulthood, there was no question that she was going to fly home to Oregon to nurse her mother through her final days.

In this beautifully poignant memoir, Zauner recounts her relationship with her mother and its peaks and valleys. Her mother was Korean and her father is American, so Zauner struggled with identity and being caught between two worlds. At times she embraced and at other times she ran from her Korean heritage and the pressures of her overbearing mother.

But their relationship was best celebrated through food, such a vital part of so many cultures. Zauner talks about eating with such gusto, the memories of her mother making different dishes to mark different occasions or for special situations. She also recounts cooking for her mother and her family in the last months of her life.

Losing a parent is never easy; she lost her mother just five months after my dad died suddenly. While every person’s grief is unique and they deal in different ways, this book definitely hit me in the feels and made me think of my relationship with my dad, which had its own beautiful moments and challenges.

Don’t read Crying in H Mart on an empty stomach, especially if you’re a fan of Korean food! (My stomach was HOWLING.)

BookSparks, Knopf Books, and Michelle Zauner sent me a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an unbiased review as part of #SRC2021. Thanks for making it available!

Book Review: "Heartbreak Boys" by Simon James Green

Simon James Green's most recent book, Heartbreak Boys, is an adorable and fun story about trying to overcome heartache and finding the strength to start over.

It’s prom night. Jack is hoping that he and his boyfriend Dylan might be crowned king and queen. Although school had been hell for Jack since he came out, once popular athlete Dylan did, Jack’s flamboyance became nearly tolerable by his classmates. (Nearly.)

Meanwhile, Nate is still coming to terms with publicly acknowledging his sexuality. He’s kept his relationship with Tariq very secret until this point, but on prom night he’s ready to finally let the world know who he is, and let everyone know he and Tariq are together.

But prom night isn’t the magical occasion Jack and Nate hope it will be, when they both get dumped, quite publicly. They’re both devastated, and while Jack is used to being the target of humiliation, for Nate, it seems like a good excuse to go back into hiding again.

With their now-ex-boyfriends showing no signs of regret or sadness, Jack comes up with a plan: he and Nate could create the illusion that they’re having the summer of their lives, too. Jack agrees to tag along on Nate’s family’s road trip across England, and document their exaggerated and/or fake moments of living their best lives for social media.

Nate and Jack were childhood friends, but Nate pulled away from Jack right around the time he came out. Nate knows he’s nothing like Jack and he isn’t sure he wants to be, but is the idea of rekindling their friendship really that awful?

If you’ve read a rom-com or two, you know where all of this is going. Heartbreak Boys was a really sweet, enjoyable book that accurately captured the emotions of young relationships and the battle between living your truth and staying out of the spotlight.

Given that you know how things will unfold, the pacing was a bit slow at times, and I wanted the characters to say what they needed to instead of constantly avoiding subjects. But Jack and Nate, as well as a few of the supporting characters, are such fun, you can’t help but root for them.

This is my first Simon James Green novel, but it won't be my last, that's for sure!

Book Review: "The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett" by Annie Lyons

The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett by Annie Lyons is one of those books that makes you feel like you're getting a big hug even as you may be tearing up.

Eudora Honeysett is 85 years old. She’s lived alone since her mother died 13 years earlier, and she has only a cantankerous cat to keep her company. She’s very particular of things, including the way people behave, and she doesn’t have friends. That’s just fine with her.

She’s decided she’s ready to die, and has found a clinic in Switzerland to help her reach the end of her life on her own terms. She has to convince them she’s not making this decision lightly or because she’s depressed.

The last thing she’s prepared for is new next-door neighbors, including an irrepressible 10-year-old girl named Rose. Rose takes an immediate interest in Eudora and wants to be friends with her, and before Eudora knows it, this whirlwind and her family—as well as another neighbor—have worked their way into her life.

But while Eudora genuinely enjoys the companionship and Rose’s constant enthusiasm, she’s not going to let anything derail her plans. And she also tries to keep her heart protected after it was damaged by hurt and guilt earlier in life.

This is a wonderfully heartwarming, emotional book, which shifts back and forth between the present and Eudora’s memories of growing up during WWII and her relationships with family and friends that still shape who she is and how she reacts to people and situations.

Yes, we’ve seen this story before. Eudora isn’t quite as curmudgeonly as Ove (of A Man Called Ove) or other similar characters, but there are themes you’ll recognize. However, this didn’t matter one bit to me. This book made me smile and it made me cry a little (something was in my eye, lol), and I enjoyed it a great deal.

William Morrow Books provided me a complimentary copy of The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett in exchange for an unbiased review. Thanks for making it available!

Book Review: "The Straight Crimes" by Matt Juhl

Matt Juhl's The Straight Crimes, a newly revised version of his debut novel, is powerful, emotional, and so thought-provoking.

Harper has the unenviable role of being a new student in high school; even worse, she shows up on the last day. Her confidence and take-no-prisoners attitude quickly raise the hackles of her fellow students, but she doesn’t care.

Nik can’t take his eyes off her. Harper mesmerizes him, and when she helps him during an encounter with another student, he falls for her. But he knows it’s the last thing he should do.

In a typical story, the two would fall in love and struggle to overcome obstacles in their way. But in the society Juhl has created here, same-sex relationships are the norm, and those who pursue relationships with the opposite sex are ostracized, called “queer,” and often are forced to leave their “normal” lives behind.

Even though society tells them it’s wrong, Nik and Harper fall hard for each other. Should they do what’s expected of them and avoid the trouble and hurt that will come from following their heart, or should they fight to be together?

Amidst this love story, there’s also tragedy. It seems like everything and everyone is against their finding happiness. There’s a good mix of romance, angst, and mystery here.

I really was blown away by the concept of this book. I think people will find this role reversal eye-opening, to see what LGBTQIA+ people deal with on a daily basis, and I hope it may change some people’s minds. It really was thought-provoking and moving.

The author provided me a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an unbiased review. Thanks for making it available!

Book Review:"Love, Unscripted" by Owen Nicholls

Wouldn’t it be nice if love were like the movies? Or is that not really such a good thing? In Love, Unscripted, Owen Nicholls weighs in on that debate.

Nick and Ellie meet on Election Day in 2008, at a party to watch the results come in (despite the fact they live in London). He’s a projectionist at a movie theater, an enormous movie buff, and an aspiring screenwriter, and wouldn’t mind living a romantic comedy of his own. It seems to Nick that Ellie ticks all the boxes for the perfect modern romantic comedy heroine.

The two are quickly drawn to one another. Nick is romantic, thoughtful, while Ellie helps keep things grounded. But four years later, Ellie has moved out, saying the fire is gone, which leaves Nick bereft, trying to figure out why their relationship didn’t have the happy ending he expected. Suddenly he finds himself without a job, without a place to live, and without the woman he hoped to spend the rest of his life with. Is there any way to get her back?

Love, Unscripted shifts between the past, starting with Nick and Ellie's very first meeting, and the present, as Nick sifts through the detritus of their relationship, trying to figure out what went wrong.

I wanted to love this book, because I thought the concept was really cute. As a movie fan it’s right up my alley, but I was bored. Nick becomes such an unappealing, sad-sack character, a jerk to everyone, that you don’t understand why Ellie would want to be with him. You certainly see that it wasn't all his fault, but his downward spiral isn't fun to read about, nor does it make him any more sympathetic.

This book taught me one thing: it’s hard to enjoy a rom-com when you don’t root for the relationship at the core of the story!

Ah, well. On to the next.

Book Review: "Goodbye, Paris" by Anstey Harris

In Goodbye, Paris, a woman whose life is shattered finds the strength to turn everything around, thanks to two unlikely allies.

"The only way I am going to start to rebuild my life is on a ladder of honesty. This is where I start; this naked vision of me."

Grace is a talented luthier; the musical instruments she makes and restores are praised by musicians and collectors around the world. At one time she had a promising future as a musician herself, until a traumatic incident led to her departure from music school and her inability to play in front of anyone. Alone she can play forever; the minute someone steps into view she has a panic attack.

Grace has been in a relationship with David for eight years, shuttling back and forth from her home in the UK to his apartment in Paris. Everything has been arranged to fit David’s life; she has kept everyone else at bay while they’re together. She knows there will come a time when they can be together always, and she just needs to be patient. But in a split second, with a single reaction, everything changes, forcing Grace to push everything—and everyone—away, and to destroy the things she cherishes so much.

It will take the love and support of her teenage shop assistant and an elderly customer to find her passion again, to embrace the things she should and say goodbye to the things that hurt. That will involve reopening some old wounds and finding the courage to move on.

Goodbye, Paris was a really good story and I even got choked up a bit. (That should be surprising and yet not surprising at all.) It has some slow moments but Anstey Harris has created some tremendously memorable characters, and things unfold slightly differently than I expected. It's always nice to have a surprise or two when reading a romance novel, which are never that big on surprises.

My greatest criticism isn't of the book, it's of the marketing of it. The blurb refers to this book as "Jojo Moyes meets Eleanor Oliphant." I'm never keen on comparing books to the latest thing, because most of the time it either sets up expectations or makes people who didn't like the books it's being compared to shy away. Suffice it to say, there's not a trace of Oliphantishness in this book, and I'm not even certain where the Moyes comparison comes in.

Goodbye, Paris is a good book in its own right. It's a poignant, thought-provoking story worth reading.

Book Review: "Love & Luck" by Jenna Evans Welch

There’s nothing like the beauty of Ireland and some chaotic travel to help ease the pain of a heartbreak!

In Love & Luck, Addie has just suffered a major heartbreak and betrayal for the first time, and what’s worse is, her older brother Ian knows about it, and it’s not long before others do, too. But she and her family are in Ireland for her aunt’s destination wedding so Addie just wants to pretend it never happened—for now.

Ian keeps urging, even threatening, Addie to tell their mother what happened before it’s too late. His nagging reminders push Addie to her breaking point, a fistfight during their aunt’s wedding. Their mother is mortified and angry, and gives the siblings an ultimatum: they can still take their planned trip to Italy to see Addie’s best friend, but if she hears anything about their fighting or arguing, they’ll have to quit their sport teams when they return home.

So with that plan in mind, how is it that instead of Italy Addie is driving around Ireland in a dilapidated car with Ian and Rowan, Ian’s (handsome) Irish friend? Will the copy of Ireland for the Heartbroken that she took from the hotel library and Rowan’s presence help her recover?

"You opened this book because your heart was broken and you wanted it fixed. But that was never the cosmic plan. Hell, it was never my plan. Hearts break open until they stay open. It's what they were made to do. The pain? It's part of the deal. A small exchange for the wild, joyful mess you'll be handed in return."

This was a sweet and charming book, and it definitely entertained me. The whole plot line with Addie’s secret was dragged out a little too long for me, but I really enjoy the way Jenna Evans Welch writes and the characters she creates. Her first book in this series, Love & Gelato, really was terrific, and I'm eagerly awaiting the third book, Love & Olives.

Side effect of reading this book: I want to go to Ireland now!!

Book Review: "Say You Still Love Me" by K.A. Tucker

How many of us would jump at a second chance with a lost love, or wish we had that opportunity at some point in our lives? What would we be willing to risk to see that second chance through?

Piper Calloway is being groomed to take over her father's multibillion-dollar real estate development firm, if he's ever willing to retire. She definitely knows her stuff and can go toe-to-toe with any man in the business, but many believe she's only risen through the ranks of the company because she's the boss's daughter. Since she's beautiful and 29, and a woman, many aren't willing to take her seriously—at their own peril.

As if battling for respect from one of her father's right-hand men isn't hard enough to deal with on a daily basis, she also needs to work closely with David, her ex-fiancé, who is a fellow VP at the firm. He's handsome and intelligent—and he knows it—but Piper's father still hasn't gotten over their ending their engagement, since David is both surrogate son and sidekick. David is just biding his time until Piper realizes the error of her ways.

One day, in the midst of all her daily chaos, she sees a face she hasn't seen since the summer she was 16 years old. Kyle Miller, the handsome, cocky boy who stole her heart when they were summer camp counselors 13 years ago—and then broke her heart when the summer ended and they went their separate ways—has grown into an immensely handsome man. She's never been able to find him on social media, never heard from him again—what is he doing in her building?

"Because, even after all these years, with college and boyfriends, and my career and my engagement to David, Kyle Miller has always been a sliver in my heart, a shadow in my thoughts. A lingering 'what if' that I have never been able to truly shake."

It turns out Kyle is now a security guard in her building, and at first, he didn't seem to even know her name. But when he admits that was an act, he also admits he'd like to keep their relationship formal. Too many years have passed, she's nearly the CEO of the company that owns the building in which he works, and he's just a security guard. Once again, they're on either side of the financial divide, and Kyle would like to keep it that way.

Piper can't seem to shake the feelings that Kyle has reignited. Was this just a summer relationship between two high school kids, not destined to go anywhere, or did it have the potential to be so much more? Why did Kyle cut her off completely, change his name, and disappear, leaving her wondering whether the feelings he told her he had were genuine or just a way to get what he wanted that summer? Can a relationship succeed between two people who are so different that forces will try to keep them apart?

K.A. Tucker's new book, Say You Still Love Me, explores the idea of a second chance years later, when so much has changed, but the people are still the same at their core. Can a teenage relationship from summer camp blossom into something serious, all these years later? Can a relationship in which the participants are so far apart financially ever work? Are there secrets which can keep them apart even now?

The narration shifts between when Piper and Kyle first meet at camp 13 years ago and present day. It also shifts between Piper's attempts to understand Kyle's disappearance and his distance since then and her struggles to succeed outside her father's shadow. It's an exploration of friendship, first love, family, and the secrets that threaten to destroy it all, or which incite us to want to throw it all away.

I read Tucker's last book, The Simple Wild, earlier this year and fell completely in love with it. I was really excited to get the opportunity to read Say You Still Love Me before it was published. I really enjoy the way Tucker writes, and her combination of emotion, humor, and sex is really appealing.

I definitely enjoyed this book, and loved the concept (especially having gone to summer camp for 10 seasons and seen many couples from that time married now), but I honestly could have done without the narration from camp. I felt that part of the story dragged and took far too long to tell. I understood Tucker was setting the scene but it seemed to just be the same things over and over again.

More and more, I'm becoming a fan of rom-coms, and Tucker is definitely an author I'll turn to again and again. Say You Still Love Me was an enjoyable, emotional read that brought a tear to my eye.

NetGalley and Atria Books provided me a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review. Thanks for making it available!

This book publishes August 6, 2019.

Book Review: "Hold Still" by Nina LaCour

"How amazing it is to find someone who wants to hear about all the things that go on in your head. You just think that things will stay the way they are. You never look up, in a moment that feels like every other moment of your life, and think, Soon this will be over."

Caitlin and Ingrid were best friends. They were practically inseparable, sharing a love of photography, music, laughing at themselves and others. One night they were talking about their futures, and the next morning, Ingrid was dead, having committed suicide.

Ingrid's death shakes Caitlin at her very foundation. Ingrid didn't leave a note, but Caitlin realizes there were so many times where she should have said something to Ingrid when she noticed her erratic moods, her cutting herself, her crying jags. Could she have saved her friend?

When school resumes in the fall, Caitlin has to navigate her way without Ingrid for the first time. She's a jumble of emotions—anger, loneliness, guilt, grief—and doesn't like being an object of curiosity to her classmates, who want to know how Ingrid killed herself and whether she left a note. Even their favorite photography teacher treats her like a pariah.

Then Caitlin finds Ingrid's journal under her bed, where Ingrid presumably left it for her to find. As she reads Ingrid's words, she begins to understand more clearly just how troubled her friend was, how she struggled to find self-worth, tried to will the boy she liked to reciprocate her feelings, and how she wanted Caitlin to understand what she was feeling but was afraid she'd treat her differently or worse, not want to be friends with her.

"Maybe there is no right thing to say. Maybe the right thing is just a myth, not really out there at all."

Nina LaCour's exquisite, emotional debut novel, Hold Still, chronicles Caitlin's first year of living without her best friend. It is a year of trying to comprehend this loss, wanting to lean on people yet not wanting to let anyone else in or be vulnerable, and a year of understanding there was little that could have been done to prevent Ingrid's death. It's a story about how to find the strength to move on, to identify rays of hope again, and realize that making new friends isn't betraying the memory of the one you lost.

This book is also a tremendously candid look at the effects a suicide has on the lives of those left behind. From parents to friends to teachers to crushes, everyone is affected in some way, and LaCour beautifully explores the range of emotions and actions that are caused by such a tragedy. I expected this book to make me cry and it certainly did, but it wasn't as maudlin as I feared it might be—it is powerful and immensely poignant.

I've been a fan of LaCour's writing since reading You Know Me Well, a book she wrote with David Levithan, a few years ago. Last month I read We Are Okay, and was again captivated by her tremendous storytelling ability. She is a writer whose work you really need to read, for its beauty and its emotional power.

On the off chance that someone reading this review is in crisis or having suicidal thoughts, please know that there are people standing by to listen to you and help you. Please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255, the Trevorlifeline for LGBTQ+ Youth at 866-488-7386, or if you are in the U.S., you can text "HOME" to 741741, which will reach the Crisis Text Line.

Book Review: "The Secret of Clouds" by Alyson Richman

It takes a talented storyteller to get you completely hooked on a story even if you can pretty much predict everything that is going to happen. It takes even more talent to make you get all choked up even when you know what is coming.

In her new novel, The Secret of Clouds, Alyson Richman proves she has exceptional talent, because even though the plot moved as I expected it would, I was hooked on this book from the very start, and I found myself sobbing late last night as it ended.

Maggie Topper is a teacher with a true passion for what she does. She loves the feeling of reaching her students, of making connections with them, and inspiring them. She looks at each school year as a new challenge, and tries not to fall prey to the cynicism that often plagues her fellow teachers.

At the start of a new school year, Maggie is asked by the principal to take on an extra task—to tutor a student, Yuri, whose heart problem hampers him from being able to attend school on a daily basis. Maggie is reluctant at first, because the thought sparks painful memories from her own childhood, but she realizes that Yuri deserves to be inspired and challenged just like every other student she teaches.

Yuri at first rebuffs Maggie's attempts to connect with him, until she realizes she may be trying too hard. She finds the key to Yuri's intellect and his heart is through baseball—even though he cannot play the game, he is a diehard Yankees fan like his father, and has tremendous passion for the players and the stats. Little by little, she realizes how much wiser and more insightful he is than a typical sixth-grader, and he opens Maggie's eyes to the need to live life to the fullest.

Maggie and Yuri's relationship deepens, and she begins to understand just how his parents, Katya and Sasha, who emigrated from the Ukraine in the mid-1980s following the Chernobyl disaster, are torn between wanting to protect him and wanting him to be a "normal" kid, between believing he will get better and fearing for the worst. But Yuri seems to give everyone the strength he so desperately needs for himself, and touches people in ways they never quite expected.

"We can't be so afraid of experiencing pain that it interferes with the things we love."

The Secret of Clouds is in many ways, a love story—romantic love, the love between friends, parental love, the love of baseball, and above all, the love of life. Richman has created some beautifully fleshed-out characters and tugs at your emotions without being too maudlin (most of the time). Maggie's mother also is supposed to be an amazing Italian cook, so it's best not to read this on an empty stomach! (She does provide a recipe along with the acknowledgments at the end of the book.)

You may not be surprised by the book's plot, but I hope you'll be moved, and that you'll think about these characters long after. I know I will.

Book Review: "All We Can Do Is Wait" by Richard Lawson

It seemed like just another day in Boston. And then, without warning, the Tobin Bridge collapses, with about 100 cars on its span at the time. These were people just going about their business—students, parents, families, people racing to work or school or home or to some other obligation or exciting occasion.

"It was hard to say who was less lucky, the ones who fell into the water or the ones who fell onto Charlestown, debris tumbling on top of them. Was it better to be swiftly crushed or to slowly drown in your car?"

As news of the tragedy spreads, loved ones of those believed to be on the bridge gather in the emergency room of Massachusetts General Hospital. Among those gathered is a group of teenagers, waiting for word about the condition of their family members or friends. They comfort each other, provide solace and support, and offer a sympathetic ear to listen to the others' fears, their regrets, even their secrets.

Siblings Jason and Alexa are waiting for news about their parents. For nearly a year, Jason has withdrawn from his family, preferring to spend his days in a stoned haze, where he is cut off from his feelings. Alexa resents her older brother for abandoning her emotionally, because she has really needed someone to turn to this past year. Yet each is hiding a secret that threatens to further widen the gap between them at a time they need each other most.

Scott's girlfriend Aimee was traveling over the bridge with friends en route to a theater production. Scott is deeply in love with Aimee but worries their relationship will fall apart once she leaves to go to college. He can't help but resent her a little bit because she seems just a little too excited to leave town for school. Maybe she's excited to leave him, too? He knows he's been difficult lately, but he just wants the opportunity to tell Aimee he loves her, so she'll realize they're meant to be together.

Kate, Skyler's older sister, has always looked out for her. Even though she's only two years older, Kate has in some instances acted like Skyler's aunt, even a surrogate mother, especially since their parents are no longer in the picture and their grandparents live in Cambodia. When Skyler was in danger and hid that fact from everyone, Kate knew—and once again, rescued her. So as Skyler waits to find out whether Kate survived the bridge collapse, she wonders how she might possibly survive without the person who has meant everything to her.

Facing uncertainty as to whether your family members or other loved ones are alive, dead, or seriously injured is a difficult task for anyone, much less teenagers dealing with their own problems at the same time. For Jason, Alexa, Scott, and Skyler, just being in proximity to each other brings some comfort as they wait for answers. At the same time, each struggles with reliving past regrets, looking at the events that brought them to this moment.

All We Can Do Is Wait gives evidence to the adage that "misery loves company." The book grabs you right away and keeps you rooted to the characters' stories, to the pain and fear each has borne to this moment, and the pain each could face depending upon the condition of their loved ones. At first I found it interesting that not one of these teenagers had anyone else who was worried enough about them to track them down at the hospital, but you realize that each of them have only themselves and those in the bridge collapse to depend on.

This is a really engaging story that reads a bit like a movie—I could honestly see these scenes playing out in my head. That's a testament to Richard Lawson's writing ability. I did think the book was perhaps a little too melodramatic and angsty even given the setting and the situation facing the characters, but that wasn't a deal-breaker for me. I waited for the "big reveal" in the case of one character, and it unfolded exactly like I expected, but it still choked me up a little.

At a few points I found the characters a little immature, and then I realized these were high school students. It was actually refreshing to find characters that weren't more sarcastic and erudite than people twice their age. There were a few places I worried Lawson might take the plot into total melodrama, and I was glad he avoided that.

This was a very fast read for me and I was completely invested in the story; in fact, I would love to know what happens next to these characters. I hope never to be in a situation like this, but I think Lawson accurately depicted the emotions and the events that would occur if a tragedy like this occurred.

Book Review: "What Happened" by Hillary Rodham Clinton

"Losing is hard for everyone, but losing a race you thought you would win is devastating."

I was one of many Americans watching the 2016 presidential election results come in, feeling shock, disbelief, horror, and utter disappointment as the realization that Hillary Clinton had been defeated began to sink in. I really thought, despite the last-minute bombshell dropped by now-former FBI Director James Comey regarding her emails, that she'd be able to prevail.

I honestly believed, as did Clinton and her staff, as well as polling organizations, political experts, and many media outlets, that despite the concerns so many had expressed about her character and her lack of trustworthiness, the idea of electing a person who had never held public office, one who (at least to me) clearly was unprepared for the presidency, would finally persuade people to cast their votes for Clinton.

As we know, the polls and many political experts and others were wrong, and Trump is now president. There were a lot of factors contributing to his victory—the never-ending email scandal being one significant one—but I still found it hard to understand just how a woman I felt was perhaps the most qualified individual ever to run for president could be defeated. (And as hard as it was for me and so many of Clinton's supporters to understand, I could only imagine how she must have felt!

What Happened is not only a powerful, first-hand account of the 2016 election and its aftermath from Clinton's viewpoint, but it's also a candid look at what convinced her to run for president again after losing the Democratic nomination to Barack Obama. It's also an in-depth glimpse into Hillary the candidate, Hillary the former First Lady and dedicated public servant, Hillary the mother, wife, and daughter, Hillary the friend, and Hillary the person.

"I wear my composure like a suit of armor, for better or worse. In some ways, it felt like I had been training for this latest feat of self-control for decades."

While the book does tread on some familiar territory, it's pretty candid in sharing things you probably didn't know about Clinton. Not only does she share the emotion, despair, disappointment, and frustration she felt when she lost, but she also shares how she felt being vilified as horribly as she was during the campaign, going from being the most-admired woman in America when she left her position as Secretary of State to being followed by people chanting "Lock her up" and pictures of her in prison clothes. She doesn't go into great depth about the challenges to her marriage through the years, but she does touch on the struggles she had, and how she addressed her questions and her fears.

Some have questioned why Clinton wrote this book, and immediately assumed she would point fingers at everyone other than herself as factors contributing to her defeat. While she does discuss the impact of many factors—from Bernie Sanders and Jill Stein's participation in the 2016 race to the imbalanced media coverage she received, as well as Trump's oversized persona—she reserves the largest amount of blame for herself.

"On the campaign trail, I offered ideas that I believed would address many of the underlying causes of discontent and help make life better for all Americans. But I couldn't—and wouldn't—compete to stoke people's rage and resentment. I think that's dangerous. It helps leaders who want to take advantage of that rage to hurt people rather than help them. Besides, it's just not how I'm wired. Maybe that's why Trump was now delivering the inaugural address and I was sitting in the crowd."

At times, the book gets a little too in-depth in areas of policy, as Clinton shares those issues which are most important to her and how she feels America could move forward. She also discusses areas she believes Democrats need to focus on in upcoming elections if they want to be successful.

But what makes What Happened so good is the raw emotion Clinton imbues it with. I read the book, I didn't listen to the audio version, but I could still hear her voice narrating it, and there were times when the things she said really choked me up. I can't imagine what it must be like to come so close to achieving a goal you spent nearly eight years of your life tirelessly pursuing, not to mention the disappointment you felt about letting your supporters down, but this book evoked those emotions so powerfully. She also wasn't afraid to show glimpses of her sense of humor and the generosity of her spirit.

I remember how disappointed I felt the night the election results came in, how I struggled to reconcile the country Trump and his supporters saw from the one I did. But if Hillary Clinton can persevere, I know I can.

"Things are going to be hard for a long time. But we are going to be okay. All of us."

Book Review: "The Winter in Anna" by Reed Karaim

This book was utterly exquisite and moving, yet told with such gorgeous simplicity.

"We would like to think we will recognize the people who come to matter to us at first sight, but of course that's absurd. They often slip into the corners of our lives, unnoticed, then taken for granted, until one day, if we are lucky, we see them anew with startled comprehension, and think, There is my best friend, or There is the woman I love, or There is someone who saved me."

In a split second, Eric Valery decides to drop out of college just before he graduates, and gets a job as a reporter at a newspaper in small-town Shannon, North Dakota. It is there he meets Anna, a fellow employee, whose outer calm belies a life full of disappointment, pain, and emotions, the depths of which no one truly knows.

It's not long before the two strike up a close friendship, and Eric begins to understand there is so much more to life than what he thinks and has experienced, understands what life is like for those who truly struggle. Anna, too, learns from this friendship, as she gets to experience Eric's confidence and idealism, and feels buoyed by his enthusiasm for the small town in which they live and work.

Little by little, Anna begins to trust Eric, and reveals to him the secret pain she carries with her. She teaches him that there is so much more to life than what he sees in front of him, but all of it—moments both happy and sad—are what makes life richer, even if it is difficult. And as Eric faces his own sadness and his own indecision, he realizes that we cannot always choose the circumstances we're handed, but what we do with those circumstances is what makes a life.

The Winter in Anna is Eric's reflections on his relationship with Anna years later, as he remembers the person who perhaps meant more to him than anyone, although the realization of that fact may not have come right away. It's a portrait of a young man with his whole life ahead of him, who finds someone that both directly and obliquely changes the course of his life.

"No one had seemed to defy the idea that our future is written in our past more than Anna."

There was so much I loved about this book. I found the characters so fascinating, so complex, and even though one key plot point is revealed in the first few pages of the book, my love for these characters kept me reading every single word. Reed Karaim infuses his book with such emotion and so many life lessons, and his prose is absolutely gorgeous. Even his imagery is poetic. Take this example:

"The afternoons swell with diffused light, the trees are kaleidoscopes, the sky cracks gently along the edge, and all the colors spill into early evening. It's a time when the unexpected perfection of a particular day can stop you in midstride, when your thoughts slow down to take on a renewed clarity and you make a series of small resolutions to do better from here on out as you turn up your collar against the approaching winter."

I'm always loathe to compare writers since everyone is so unique, but Karaim's style and lyricism reminds me of Kent Haruf and Leif Enger. I read this book on a plane ride and just fell in love with it. It's one of those times I wish I was reading the actual book instead of a digital copy, so I could tell people on the plane how special this book was. (I'm usually not interested in making conversation with people on planes so I can concentrate on reading, so this is a big deal.)

Some may find the pacing a little slow, but I really thought The Winter in Anna was one of those special books you hope to find every so often, and you don't want it to end, nor do you want to lose the memories of these characters.

Book Review: "Our Short History" by Lauren Grodstein

If it has been said that insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result, well then, I'm (more than) a touch insane. Because I keep reading books that are tearjerkers despite the fact that television commercials make me tear up, and yet I'm surprised that these books leave me a sniffling mess nearly Every. Single. Time. And so it is with Lauren Grodstein's newest novel, Our Short History.

Karen Neulander has made a name for herself as one of New York's top political consultants. She's not afraid to leak things to the press about her clients' opponents, or do everything she needs to in order to help them gain advantage and, of course, votes. She's equally protective of her six-year-old son, Jake, whom she has raised alone since before he was born. When she found out she was pregnant, her boyfriend at the time told her he didn't want to have kids, so she left and never spoke to him again.

Now Karen is facing an even tougher opponent. Two years ago she was diagnosed with Stage IV ovarian cancer, and given approximately four years to live. While she has fought as hard as she could, with surgery and chemotherapy, she knows there will come a time that she won't be around any longer, no matter how much she hopes a miracle might come her way. But she has everything all planned out—when she feels that she's ready, she and Jake will move to Seattle to live with her younger sister Allie and her family, so Jake will be cared for when it's time.

While Jake understands—as much as a young child can—what is happening to his mother, he has one request: he wants her to get in touch with his father. After dragging her feet for a while in the hopes that he will forget what he asked, Karen relents. She's not too surprised to find out that Dave Kersey is still living in the same expensive condo in New Jersey. But she is thrown for a loop when he's excited to meet Jake.

Despite how happy Dave makes Jake (and vice-versa), Karen is adamant about allowing him to become too large a part of her son's life. She can't reconcile this man who is head over heels for his son when he didn't want her to have the baby in the first place, and as the two grow closer, she becomes frightened that Dave may try to take Jake away from her, or at the very least, upset the plans she has made for his future. And she can't seem to accept that perhaps what Jake needs most of all is his father, at a time when all she wants to do is cling as closely to her son as possible.

Our Short History is written as Karen's "memoir," ostensibly to be read by Jake when he is older. She provides glimpses of her childhood and her relationships with her own parents and grandparents, as well as her time with Dave, and what it has been like raising Jake. It also includes "advice" and her hopes for her son, so he knows how much she has always thought, and feels, about him.

Well, as you can imagine, this packs an emotional punch. But despite its ability to generate tears, this is a book about the fierceness of a mother's love, and the need to hold on to her son as tightly as she can for as long as she can, as if that can make up for the time she won't have with him. It's also a story about how we can be short-sighted and let our own hurts take precedence over doing what is right.

As I remember from her previous books, A Friend of the Family and The Explanation for Everything, Grodstein is a talented writer and knows how to tell a story. I thought this was a little predictable, and while I completely understood the emotions, fears, and anxieties Karen was experiencing given everything happening in her life, I found her to be a little more unlikable for a little longer than I expected.

This book definitely makes you count your blessings as well as wonder how you might act if faced with similar circumstances. It takes you on an emotional journey and gives you a touching picture of everything a mother would do for her child.

NetGalley and Algonquin Books provided me an advance copy of the book in exchange for an unbiased review. Thanks for making this available!