Dominicana by Angie Cruz (Author)

Ana Cancion is only fifteen years old and lives in the Dominican.  Juan Ruiz is twice her age and proposes to her. Her family forces her  to accept his proposal. With the proposal comes major changes.  She leaves the country she imagined growing old in and immigrates to America.

On a cold, winter day in 1965 she arrived in New York City. She doesn't love or know her new husband. He brings her into their apartment and promptly leaves her to fend for herself. He returns and leaves for days, even weeks at a time. Her life is miserable and she is lonely. He is abusive and unfaithful.

 She makes a plan to escape but it's foiled when she meets Juan's brother, Cesar. He convinces her to stay and for a brief moment her life has happiness. Cesar allows her to take classes to learn English and shows her the beauties of NYC, while Juan temporarily returns to the  Dominican. Ana is finally free and happy but then Cesar returns to NYC...

Ana's voice draws you in from page one to the the very last. The character growth is incredible and she evolves from this timid, innocent young girl to a brave, independent woman. The characters are real, honesty and full of faults. The story tells itself and flows off the pages with ease. Be prepared to get nothing done once you start reading this book because it's impossible to walk away from.

The Birthday Girl by Melissa de la Cruz

 Ellie is turning forty and in typical Ellie fashion she is hosting a huge celebration party at her newly purchased home in Palm Springs. Ellie has invited everyone she knows and has everything is planned to the smallest detail however .... Things go array at the last minute, the flowers are wilting, something peculiar is up with her husband, her best friend can't make it and her step-daughter has returned home unexpectedly from college, her business is up in the air and  let's not forget that someone from her past has decided to drop in and join the celebration.

This thriller is told in alternating chapters flipping back between the ages of 16 and 40. The contrasts between 16 year old and 40 year old Ellie are vastly different in terms of life styles and character. 40 year old Ellie isn't nearly as interesting as 16 year old Ellie. The story and plot gets darker as the story unfolds and and the twist and turns are done in a manner that doesn't reveal the story until the author is ready to tell it.

This is a fun, easy read that will be sure to entertain.


* I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Three Women Book by Lisa Taddeo

Three Women isn't exactly riveting or life changing. It's just another mediocre book about sex. It follows three women from difference facets of life. The read was rather disappointing with the exception of the Maggie. The writing was decent but I was incredibly disappointed with the outcome of the book.

I think that has more to do with the way the book was marketed and not the book itself.I was expecting a very different read. I was anticipating a read that was based off the data  of many women and not just 3 women. The book was marketed as a book about sexual desires and it just covers three women. The book synopsis also states that the women are from different regions and backgrounds but the are all white American women who want to be loved. American and women are made up of so much more than that. What about other ethnic groups? Do they not count? 

The book tackles sexuality and womanly desires but it really lacks a clear thesis leaving me perplexed as to exactly what Taddeo was trying to tell her readers. I feel frustrated and the book feels unresolved. It feels like a book about men more than women and the way men control women's sexuality. This book isn't all that it's been made out to be. 

Beneath the Attic by V.C. Andrews

Publication Date 08/27/2019 

I thought it was time to revisit an old "friend" and  when given the opportunity to read an advanced readers copy of Beneath the Attic - I jumped at it. Yes, I know it's a ghost writer and I also know I probably shouldn't have been reading these books when I was 10 and 12. I reread them as an adult and nostalgia pulled me back into the world of V.C. Andrews. 

Beneath the Attic takes place decades before Dollanganger's existed.  It is the 1890's and Corrine is our main character. I need to explain that is about Garland's wife Corrine and not Chris and Catherine mother, Corrine. I need to point this out because while the book takes place in the late 1890's is reads more modern as the character(s) do things that the never would have done during that time period. I had to keep reminding myself this is Garland's wife! 

There is quite a bit of historical inaccuracies but I was able to brush them aside and keep on reading despite me expecting Corrine to pull out a cell phone and start texting. Corrine is absolutely nothing like I imagined but it does relate to and add to the actions of later generations and the way they use their beauty, which is then in turn used against them to bring them harm.

I am neither disappointed or thrilled about this book. It's a fast read and didn't take up too much of my time. If your curious pick it up because why not?

* I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware

Rowan takes a nanny job in a remote area of Scotland. The salary is great but the house has a history of short term nannies. Is is the house or the children? Rowan is about to find out what hides beneath  Heatherbrae, a home that is a strange mix of Modernism, Victorian and equipped with the latest tech gadgets.

The Turn of the Key is told by Rowan in a series of letters to a solicitor in which she unfolds what went on during her stay at  Heatherbrae and how she is not guilty of committing murder.

Rowan herself is a particularly odd character and the book focus on the child care but not on the actual children.  Readers don't get to really know the children and as a result of this there is a discord between the reader and the characters. Perhaps that was the purpose but it didn't allow for me to connect, which meant I didn't really care much for what happened to them.

This doesn't meant that the book isn't good because it is and the thrill of what is going on is an exciting road of twists and turns. Some you see coming and some you don't The build up is a bit slow but the read is most definitely worth it.



* I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Turbulence by David Szalay

Turbulence is a mix of 12 short stories. Each story has a new character, a new story line and then they end up connecting to form a full circle.

This book is only 160 pages and felt incomplete. I was left wanting to know more and to connect to characters and while this may have been the purpose of the writer it just left me frustrated. This doesn't mean that it isn't a good read because it is - it just means that the reader is left  feeling uncertain about the story and characters.

* I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

A Nearly Normal Family: A Novel A Nearly Normal Family: A Novel by M.T. Edvardsson and Rachel Willson-Broyles

Stella Sandell is 18 years old and stands accused of murder. The brutal murder of a successful business man. Her parents are successful and prominent figures in the community. Adam is a pastor and the arrest of his daughter has shaken his belief system.  Ulrika is a criminal defense attorney and the law is incredibly important to her. They are both faced with some major obstacles to overcome in their personal and professional lives.

The story is told by 3 different narrators, Stella, Adam and Ulrika. The story starts off strong and then slowly unfolds. It winds back and forth unraveling in a courtroom trial and flash back memories.I liked the book but didn't love it. It doesn't move as  fast as I would like and none of the character's are likable however I do see how the read could be interesting to some because it comes down to moral character and how choices we make change our lives and that of others.






 

The Grace Year by Kim Liggett

Publication Date 10/08/2019 

 

In their sixteenth year the girls are banished and released into the wild for one full year, their grace year. In that year they are supposed to "lose" their magic. The very magic that they have been taught seduces men and drives women crazy. 

Tierney James is 16 and about to be forced into her grace year but she dreams literally and figuratively of a better world, a world in which there is no grace year and women aren't pitted against one another.  The Grace year is shrouded in secrets and the women who return don't speak of it nor do they speak of the ones who don't return. 

The Grace Year is well written and addicting. It is Lord of Flies meets The Handmaiden's Tale with a bit of The Hunger Games tossed in for good measure. It's an excellent addition to the dystopian genre and you will be left wanting to know more.

* I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Flight or Fright by Stephen King , Bev Vincent, et al.

 

Flight or Fright is a collection of 17 stories from various authors regarding ... flying.

It's a mixed bag of nuts. Some you like, some you don't. A few of the stories put you in the seat, make your heart beat fast and put you on edge while others aren't so great and you have to push through them to finish it.

My favorite were the ones that dealt with horror and my least favorite was the poem. I wouldn't read any of these on the plane or before boarding a plane that's for sure.



* I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Stepsister by Jennifer Donnelly

Isabelle is the ugly step-sister. She didn't get the price (her step-sister did) despite cutting off off her toes in an attempt to get the glass slipper to fit. The entire town hates her and her sister for the way they treated the now prince's wife. She's is ugly in personality and looks. She's an outcast. Her attempts at being perfect, sweet, kind and meet her mother's expectations have failed leaving her jealous, angry and hollow.

Isabelle is given an opportunity to redeem herself. A chance to change her fate. This is her story and it's a great one.

The story is told in third person. It's darker and the focus isn't on the girl who get the prince but the one who didn't. I genuinely enjoyed this version, a version that shows you that a villain is a mix of good and bad. A villain could be me, you, or anyone. We are all imperfect and can change our character.

The read can at times be a bit sluggish but overall it's enjoyable and worth the effort.

Miracle Creek by Angie Kim

Miracle Creek is the story of an immigrant Korean family. They open up an alternative clinic that provides hyperbaric oxygenation. It is used as an alternative method to help those with autism, infertility, cerebral palsy, etc. 

A small group of clients use the chamber and another group protest the clinic's methods. On a fateful day a series of events take place that result in a fire and death. The mother of one of the children who used the chamber is accused of setting the fire as a means to kill her child. A trial takes place and secrets are revealed.

This is Angie Kim's debut novel and she doesn't disappoint. Courtroom trails are either hit or miss with most writers but Kim has it down to a science. Everything is revealed systematically. The characters are imperfect (which I love) and aren't all likable (nor should they be).  The story flows and ebbs but keeps you entertained. Everyone is essentially a suspect. This is the quintessentially who done it book.