Book Review: "Verity" by Colleen Hoover

Since this book was published last year, I have seen some people absolutely rave about it, while others didn't quite get it. I often heard people say, "This book is completely nuts," or "I was totally shook by this book." Too many mixed reviews made me somewhat reluctant to dive in, until just recently, when I decided it was time to take the plunge and read Verity.

"That's why I stay at home and write. I think the idea of me is better than the reality of me."

Lowen is a struggling writer desperate for money. She's a talented writer, but she isn't willing to do any publicity for her books, so they don't sell very much. When she is given the chance to write the rest of a wildly popular book series written by best-selling author Verity Crawford, she knows she can’t pass up the opportunity, given the money offered. Verity, who was injured in a car accident, can no longer move or speak, and no one is sure she is even aware of her surroundings.

Lowen is nervous about the pressure of having to write at Verity’s level. Verity’s handsome husband, Jeremy, invites Lowen to stay with them in their Vermont home so she can go through Verity’s notes to help her with the last three books. There's something about Jeremy that Lowen can't put her finger on, but she's drawn to him despite the fact that he's married to a woman in a serious condition, and that his family has experienced some significant tragedies.

When she finds an unfinished manuscript, Lowen can’t help but read it. It appears to be Verity’s autobiography, full of startling confessions which horrify Lowen. Should she tell Jeremy what she’s found, or should she allow him to continue seeing his wife through the prism of his own memories?

But as strange things keep happening in the house, and Lowen’s feelings for Jeremy intensify, she suspects that Verity might not be quite as disabled as she appears. Lowen must make the choice whether to reveal what she believes about Verity, no matter how crazy it sounds, and she also must decide whether to share Verity's written confessions with him. Of course, she has no idea whether doing so could put her—or even Jeremy and his son—in danger.

I couldn’t put this book down and read it in just a few hours. I guess, however, the hype made me expect a lot crazier of a book than this was. There were some twists and turns, but I was hoping that the book would have a few more surprises. There were also a few plotlines that never went anywhere, unless I missed something, so that disappointed me. I guess I’ve read too many thrillers!!

Clearly Hoover is a great writer, as she hooked me from the very start. I look forward to reading more of her books (which I understand are very different). I definitely give kudos to writers who venture out of their usual genre to try something new.

Book Review: "Faker" by Sarah Smith

This is a cute, light, steamy rom-com in the hate-to-love sub-genre.

Emmie spends her days faking it—being tough, that is. As one of only a few women working for a company that sells power tools, she needs to show everyone that she’s no-nonsense, and that nothing anyone says or does bothers her. It’s exhausting hiding your true self from people.

One person she doesn’t hide her feelings from is her colleague, Tate. For reasons Emmie can’t understand, he seems to hate her and always has. He takes whatever chance he can to ignore, belittle, or simply be rude to her, so she gives it right back to him.

When they have to work together on a major company initiative, it’s a disaster. They can’t even meet with each other without sniping. But every so often, Tate lets his guard down and Emmie can’t figure out what his true feelings really are.

If you’ve read a rom-com or two, you know what comes next. Is there more to Tate than a gorgeous exterior and a mean interior? Should she let her guard down? Why does he hate her in the first place?

"Faker" is sweet and there are a lot of steamy scenes to be had. Emmie and Tate have good chemistry, too. I guess my criticism is that there just didn’t seem to be enough to why Tate was such a jerk in the first place. Even the usual obstacle in the middle of happiness didn’t quite seem as insurmountable as they often do.

This is still a fun read, though, and it certainly entertained me on my flight home—and kept me hiding the book so my seat mate couldn’t read the sex scenes over my shoulder!

Book Review: "This Tender Land" by William Kent Krueger

For some reason I held off reading this book, but man, was it amazing.

"Everything that’s been done to us we carry forever. Most of us do our damnedest to hold on to the good and forget the rest. But somewhere in the vault of our hearts, in a place our brains can’t or won’t touch, the worst is stored, and the only sure key to it is in our dreams."

Minnesota, 1932.

Odie and his brother Albert are orphans, left in the care of a school for Native American children taken from their parents, despite the fact the two of them are white. This school uses the children as slave labor, treats them cruelly, makes them believe they are less than human, and tries to break them of ties to their heritage.

Strong-willed and searching for fairness in a cruel world, Odie is one of the targets of the school’s director, a woman he calls the Black Witch, and her henchmen.

When one day in the midst of a cruel punishment things go horribly awry, Odie realizes he must flee the school. Albert accompanies him on his escape, along with their friend Mose, a Native American boy who cannot speak, and Emmy, a young orphan girl.

The four head out on a journey, an odyssey to get as far from the school as possible. They experience more than their share of trouble as they try to elude capture, but they also encounter people down on their luck, people who teach them that first impressions do not always equal truth. They learn a lot about themselves and their relationships with each other, and how they ultimately must let themselves have hope.

I can’t get this one out of my head. This is such a beautiful, thought-provoking, emotional book, the story of a harrowing journey, children forced to find the bravery of adults, with a little of the mystical thrown in for good measure. I’m once again reminded how talented of a writer Krueger is.

Book Review: "Seven Letters" by J.P. Monninger

One of those books you devour but you don’t want it to end.

"There’s no cure for love but to love more."

Kate, on sabbatical from her teaching position at Dartmouth, travels to Ireland to do research for her doctoral dissertation about the Blasket Islands, a remote part of the country that the government migrated everyone away from years ago.

Shortly after arriving she meets Ozzie, the immensely handsome, part Irish-part American grandson of a woman she met on her journey. Ozzie is intense, mercurial, a veteran of the war in Afghanistan. He has fled to Ireland in the hopes he can put the memories of the war behind him.

Kate and Ozzie fall intensely in love. She knows she’s only in Ireland for a short while and knows she needs to concentrate on her research. But her love overwhelms her, and the two try to build a life on one of the islands away from everyone else. It is idyllic at times, at times challenging, and when Ozzie is unable to escape the pain of his memories, it tears at the fibers of their relationship.

When Ozzie’s impulsive nature puts both of them at risk, Kate returns to America and tries to put the memories behind her. And while they creep back from time to time, she is doing somewhat well—until she gets word that Ozzie is lost at sea, presumed dead, and she feels the need to travel to Europe to find out what happened to him. She must decide whether she’s ready to move on fully or whether she needs to be tethered to his memory for her own sake.

I’m a total sap, and this book was utterly up my alley. I thought it was beautifully written—having the gorgeousness of Ireland as a backdrop doesn’t hurt—and it captured me fully. The instant-love plot thread may seem a little overly dramatic and/or unrealistic for some but you can totally see two people be utterly consumed by the fire of their love without thinking.

I can’t get this one out of my head. I've never read anything J.P. Monninger has written before, but I'll definitely do so again.

Book Review: "The Giver of Stars" by Jojo Moyes

"Just a little homesick, Alice answered. It was the truth, she thought. She just wasn't sure she had yet been to the place she was homesick for."

Alice Wright was suffocating in England. Her parents always treated her as an embarrassment, seeing her "emotional" nature and her free spirit as a definite liability, something which needed to be quashed. When she met handsome athlete Bennett Van Cleve, who is visiting England with his father, their whirlwind romance surprises Alice yet gives her a reason to escape her stifling life.

She quickly realizes that living in rural Kentucky in the midst of the Depression isn't much more exciting. She stands out like a sore thumb in their small town, and she and Bennett live with his domineering father, who sticks his nose into everything that goes on in his household. Alice isn't interested in attending teas with the other women, many of whom hate her for landing a man like Bennett, nor is she content simply to sit at home and be idle.

When Eleanor Roosevelt's traveling library program is brought to their town, and volunteers are sought, Alice quickly signs up, much to the chagrin of Bennett and his father. She strikes up a friendship with the library's leader, Margery O'Hare, a tough-talking, independent woman who was the daughter of the town's most notorious moonshiner, and someone who will never let anyone—especially a man—tell her what to do.

After recruiting other women to help, the library program becomes something many residents value, not only for the books, but for the companionship these so-called packhorse librarians bring. But not everyone in the area approves—some, including Bennett’s father—don’t like the "ideas" that these books put in women’s heads.

As Alice’s marriage continues to disintegrate, the library and her fellow librarians become her only source of comfort. But things are becoming more fragile at home and in town, and the librarians, particularly Margery, find themselves in danger and the library is at risk.

This was a fascinating and poignant story that I raced through. It’s funny, I am not much of a fan of historical fiction yet I’ve now read two of Moyes’ historical novels and loved both. There is mystery, romance, emotion, injustice—enough to get nearly anyone fully immersed.

I really do love the way Moyes writes, and these characters felt so real to me. I’m so glad I read this.

Book Review: "The Last True Poets of the Sea" by Julia Drake

Holy hell, I loved this book so much.

Violet and Sam Larkin’s great-great-great-grandmother Fidelia survived a shipwreck off the coast of Maine. Her arrival in the town of Lyric, and her subsequent marriage, are the stuff of legend. And Fidelia’s story has always made the family believe they’re survivors.

"I didn't even have a driver's license, but I was an expert in the art of catastrophe."

Yet as Violet becomes wilder, experimenting with drugs and sex, Sam’s emotional problems become more serious, and it’s clear neither is surviving that well. When Sam tries to take his own life, and Violet responds with inappropriate behavior, their parents send her to Lyric for the summer, the place where their mother grew up and Violet and Sam’s family used to vacation.

Violet’s goal is to become more invisible, which is hard to do when you’re beautiful, musical, and nearly six feet tall. Yet she shaves her head and tries to take up as little space as possible. Working at the town’s struggling aquarium and trying to find the courage to write to Sam, she meets a circle of friends who make her want to open up, even just a little. Among them is Liv, an amateur history buff who has been obsessed with the mysteries behind Fidelia’s shipwreck and what transpired when she came to town and met the man who would be Violet and Sam's great-great-great-grandfather.

Inspired by the desire to help Sam, Violet gets drawn into Liv’s obsession, and they decide to find the shipwreck despite the fact it never was found. Along the way Violet will realize where her heart lies and understand how worthy she is, and how much she needs to be seen.

This book was so beautiful and emotional and I loved it from the start. There’s so much to this story—the need to be loved and understood, family dysfunction, emotional issues, sexuality—and Julia Drake has done such a terrific job with it. Her writing is imbued with such rich emotion, her prose is poetic at times, and her characters are fascinating—they're layered, complex, and not entirely sympathetic.

While reading this book I was reminded of two of my favorite YA books, I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson and Words in Deep Blue by Cath Crowley. Both of those books, as well as this one, mesmerized me with their power, left me emotional, and touched my heart in an unforgettable way.

Book Review: "Fix Her Up" by Tessa Bailey

Wow, I might need some aloe to cool down after the steaminess of this one!!

When she was younger, Georgie Castle was in LOVE with Travis Ford, the handsome best friend of her older brother. Those feelings didn’t diminish when he went to play major league baseball; in fact, she was probably his biggest fan. No one could talk to her during his games, she knew all of his stats, and she even was well-versed on all of the gossip about his exploits.

But when an injury forces his retirement at 28, and he comes back to town to wallow/plan his next steps, he’s not interested in dating any of the women who throw themselves at him (and they even have a competition to see who can land him first). Georgie tries her best to make him feel better but he’s not so interested in his best friend’s kid sister hanging around either. She wants to help him cope with the issues he's dealing with, but it doesn't hurt that he's gotten sexier in the meantime.

However, as Georgie starts to prove she's more than his best friend's little sister, the more he starts to see Georgie as an adult (something no one in her family seems to do), and the more he realizes there’s so much more to her. Suddenly he's finding it hard not to think about her, especially sexually. But he knows her brother will kill him.

When he needs to project a stable, family-friendly image in order to land a commentating job (he once asked out a reporter during a press conference), Georgie suggests they pretend to be dating. This, too, will help her get the respect she needs from her family since they’ll see her as a woman and not a kid, and it may carry over into her professional life, where she's looking to expand her children's party entertainment business into a full-scale operation.

As you might expect, the charade becomes more complicated when they can’t keep their hands off each other. And then feelings get in the way, but before they can deal with that, there’s some baggage that has to be dealt with on both sides. (Not to mention her brother.)

This was a fun, immensely hot rom-com, but it also deals with self-belief, self-esteem, and not letting people interfere with your dreams. Nothing really earth-shattering in terms of the genre (although this may be the first book I’ve read where the female character is a clown for children’s parties) but that doesn’t matter one bit.

I'm super excited for her next book to come out in January, as it will feature characters that played a bit part in Fix Her Up. Tessa Bailey definitely knows how to create sexual tension between her characters, that's for sure!!