Review: Good Company (by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney)

My Rating:  3 stars

I'm not really sure what to make of this one.  I can't say I didn't enjoy it because I did, especially the parts that described the inner workings of the theater, which I thought was quite fascinating. The title of the book, Good Company, is actually the name of the theater company that is owned by Julian Fletcher, the husband of the main character Flora Mancini.   At first, I thought this theater company would be the main focus of the story, however it turned out to be more of a backdrop, an element of the characters' pasts back when they lived in New York City prior to moving to Los Angeles.  Rather, the story focuses on the aftermath of one very simple action — while looking for a photo to give to her daughter for her graduation, Flora stumbles across an envelope that she opens to find her husband's wedding ring, which he claimed to have lost in a pond many years ago.  This triggers a reckoning for Flora that threatens to upend not just her marriage and her family, but also her relationship with her best friend Margot.

To me, this story actually had a lot of potential, but the execution didn't work too well.  The main problem is that the story meandered and jumped around way too much.  While I understand the necessity of incorporating the various characters' backstories, it was done in a way that was distracting, as the details were often inserted in the middle of a scene or thought, basically going off on a different tangent and interrupting what was happening at the moment — by the time it got back to the current scene, I had already forgotten what had happened earlier.  The plot felt like it was all over the place, which made the story overall difficult to follow.  Also, I thought some of the plot points felt a bit forced and unnecessary — such as the  encounter between Flora and her therapist Maude, for example — and didn't do much for the story except drag it out more than necessary. 

In terms of the characters, I actually didn't care for any of them, for some reason.  I'm not sure if perhaps the structure of the story affected my ability to connect with the characters or maybe I just didn't find any aspects of their thoughts or actions relatable to my own — all I know is that I had a hard time rooting for any of the characters.

I haven't read this author's debut novel The Nestyet so I don't have a comparison point, but I have heard good things about that one, so I still intend to read it at some point.  As for Good Company, I feel it's worth a read, especially if you liked this author's previous work — it just wasn't really for me.

Received ARC from Ecco (HarperCollins) via NetGalley.

Review: Writers and Lovers (by Lily King)

My Rating:  5 stars

Lily King's newest novel Writers and Lovers came out last year and even though I'd never read her works before, so many of my reader friends recommended this one to me that I ended up buying a copy with the hopes of getting to it soon (but of course, didn't get a chance to unfortunately). Therefore, when one of my book clubs chose this for our read of the month, I knew this was the best opportunity to finally pick this one up, so I made sure to schedule it in for this month, no matter what.  I'm so happy I did, as I ended up loving this one so much!   

I enjoy reading stories about characters who go on some type of personal journey of self-discovery and eventually they come into their own, where they either realize their full potential or recognize something about themselves that they were previously unaware of (or had been suppressing to the point that they don't remember its existence).  This was certainly the case for this story's main character Casey Peabody, a thirty-one year old aspiring writer struggling through the many challenges of her life, including (but not limited to):  a writing career that might be over before it ever officially takes off, a waitressing job that enables her to pay the rent on the moldy little shed that she lives in but sucks the life and joy out of her, mountains of debt from student loans that have rendered her poor and broke, potential health issues from not being able to afford to see a doctor in years, etc (yes, that's not even all of it). Emotionally, she is a wreck, as she's not only reeling from a recent failed relationship and breakup, she is also grieving for her mother, who died suddenly and unexpectedly while on a trip.  Aside from her brother Caleb, who lives thousands of miles away, Casey only has 2 friends left: Muriel, a fellow writer who stuck with the profession and actually became successful, and Harry, her eccentric co-worker at the restaurant she waitresses for — having these two friends to confide in seems to be the only "positive" thing that Casey has got going for her at the moment.  Lost and trying to find herself, Casey meets two fellow writers — Silas, a young, poor, struggling writer just like herself, and Oscar, an older, much more accomplished writer who was recently widowed, left to raise 2 charming little boys on his own — and finds herself torn between the two men, which only adds more stress to her life.  

Casey is a character whom I connected with on so many levels, even though our lives and backgrounds couldn't be more different.  For me, the part I was able to relate to the most was Casey's determination in continuing to pursue her writing despite the odds, and even with everything seemingly working against her.  As a once-aspiring writer myself who got sidelined by the realities of life (not to mention also buried under mountains of debt) and has since given up all hope of pursuing a writing career, I admire Casey's persistence as well as her ability to stay true to herself despite everything she is up against.  I wish I'd had the fortitude and the drive she did when faced with so many challenges all at the same time. One of the scenes from the book that resonated most with me was when Casey is sitting at her desk staring at what she's written so far and reflecting on the encounter she just had with her jerk of a landlord Adam, who had insulted her with "I just find it extraordinary that you think you have something to say"...though she doesn't respond to his face, she tells us (the readers) this:  "I don't write because I think I have something to say.  I write because if I don't, everything feels even worse."  Reading this line brought tears to my eyes because it summed up so perfectly my own personal writing journey — for me, writing is therapy of sorts, it's a way for me to cope with difficult situations and an outlet that helps me "deal with" some of the real-life issues bogging me down physically, mentally, and emotionally. So many of the struggles that Casey experiences on her writing journey, I've also experienced at some point in my own life.  The connection I felt to Casey definitely made her an easy character to root for, even during the moments when I disagreed with some of the decisions she made.

One of the other things I loved about this book was the writing, which I found to be exquisite and beautiful in the way it brought forth Casey's voice and personality.  The book's jacket summary states that Lily King wrote this story with her "trademark humor, heart, and intelligence" which perfectly describes how I feel about what King was able to accomplish here.  Having Casey narrate the story from her own first person perspective was very fitting and worked so well here.  I loved Casey's "voice" in this story, specifically the way she would never be afraid to admit her own vulnerabilities, but most of all, how she was still able to maintain her sense of humor even when so many things were going wrong in her life. 

It's not often that I read a book where I had too many favorite scenes to count — this book was definitely one of them!  In addition to all the scenes where Casey interacts with Oscar's two boys (both of whom were super-cute!), I also loved all the scenes that showed Casey's thought process while writing, but my most favorite of all was about a third of the way into the book when Casey interviews for a writing job at a charity organization and they have her write a thank you letter to one of the donors — it was a brief scene, only a few short paragraphs, but it made me laugh so hard because Casey's thought process as she was composing and typing that letter mirrors my own process whenever I sit down to a writing project (it can literally take me hours to write one paragraph because I keep deleting and re-writing in order to get the wording perfect).

In reading through the reviews, it looks like the reactions to this book have been a mixed bag — some readers loved it, some hated it, and a few fell somewhere in between.  I obviously fall into the "love it" category, but of course, that's based on my personal experiences and resonance to the story as well as the characters.  If you're interested in this one, I would suggest checking out both the positive and negative reviews to get a better sense of whether this one would work for you.  (As for me, I definitely just added another "favorite author" to my list!  Now to go back and read King's previous works, especially the much acclaimed Euphoria, which I already have a copy of on my bookshelf). 

Review: Mother May I (by Joshilyn Jackson)

My Rating: 4 stars

My exposure to Joshilyn Jackson's works so far has been limited to her 2019 release Never Have I Ever, which I remember was a well-written, brilliantly plotted thriller that kept me guessing throughout.  I also remember, when I wrote my review for that book, how impressed I was that an accomplished author who is used to writing books in a particular genre, could venture into a whole different genre (one that isn't easy to succeed in, to boot) and do such a good job with it.  With her newest novel Mother May I, Jackson once again takes on the thriller / suspense genre, this time centering the story around another flawed female protagonist, Bree Cabbat, and her wealthy, privileged family.   Just like with Never Have I Ever, Jackson  incorporated elements into the story that reflected societal issues from the last couple years — for example, drug addiction and the opioid crisis, disparity between rich and poor, racism, wealth and privilege, the metoo movement, etc.  

As with all thriller / suspense novels, I recommend going in knowing as little as possible, so my review will be deliberately short and vague.  One thing I will say though is that I actually liked Jackson's previous thriller (Never Have I Ever) a tad better.  While this newest one (Mother May I) was just as well-written, I feel it wasn't as tightly plotted and enthralling — I was able to figure out most of the plot points relatively easily and guessed the ending early on too.  I also thought that parts of the plot came across a bit melodramatic, though not to the point that it affected my reading experience.  I also wasn't particularly fond of the characters either — Bree annoyed me quite a bit, especially with some of her actions in the last part of the story — but again, not to the point that it detracted from the story.

Jackson definitely knows how to tell a compelling story!  Even though I figured out most of the plot early on, the story was still engaging enough to keep me continuously turning the pages, only putting the book down once (and reluctantly at that) to tend to some urgent matters.  I ended up finishing this one in two sittings.  If you're looking for a well-written, suspenseful story that goes beyond being a "run-of-the-mill" thriller, then definitely pick this one up.  Do be warned though that triggers abound, especially as it relates to sex and some of the characters' actions / behaviors.  

Of course I can't wait for Jackson's next book (whether it will be a thriller or not) — while I wait, I need to find time to read her other works as well (though easier said than done given my schedule).

Received ARC from publisher (William Morrow) via NetGalley.

Review: Of Women and Salt (by Gabriela Garcia)

My Rating: 4 stars

In trying to rate this book, I feel a bit conflicted.  On the one hand, I loved the beautiful, lyrical writing and the way that the author, Gabriela Garcia, was able to capture the emotional nuances of her characters so perfectly (and seemingly effortlessly).  I love family stories that span generations and I felt this one was particularly well done in terms of showing the generational connections between the various women as well as how the decisions each one makes impact each other in a profound way.  I also found it admirable how Garcia was able to cover so much ground in such a short novel (this one clocked in at a little over 200 pages), seamlessly weaving into the narrative timely and important topics such as illegal immigration, deportation, the border crisis, drug addiction, domestic and sexual abuse, etc., alongside political and historical events related  to Cuba and the revolution that occurred there, plus aspects of the Cuban culture and community.  The way that Garcia presented the struggles that her characters (women some from the same family but different generations, others not from the family but connected somehow) go through, I felt like I was getting a first-hand account more powerful than what usually gets presented in the news.  I definitely learned a lot!

 

With all that said, one of the things that didn't work too well for me was the non-linear structure of the story.  I didn't have a problem with each chapter being told from the perspective of different characters, but what made this a frustrating read for me was the jumping back and forth between multiple timelines and settings in a non-chronological way (for example – jumping from 2018 to 1866, then to 2014, then to 1959 then to 2016 then back to 2006, etc.).  I found it really difficult to keep track of the story arcs and ended up having to flip back and forth a lot.  I think if I had been able to finish this book in one sitting, it would've been fine, but the reality is that I'm rarely able to do so with how busy my life often gets.

 

Overall, I feel that this is a strong, assured debut that's also a necessary read, especially for readers who like well-written contemporary fiction that not just reflects current times and issues, but also incorporates historical aspects as well.  Definitely highly recommended, though with the caveat that it's best to read this one all in one sitting if you are able to.  It's also not an easy read by any means due to the heavy (and oftentimes controversial) topics it covers — though triggers abound, it's still very much a worthwhile read.

Received print ARC from publisher (Flatiron Books) via BookBrowse.

Review: Sunflower Sisters (by Martha Hall Kelly)

My Rating: 4 stars  

My family and I moved to a new place recently and with so much there has been to do, both before and after the move, my reading life has unfortunately suffered these past few weeks.  Hopefully, as we get settled in over the next week or so, I am able to get back into my reading groove and catch up on the books that I had planned to read last month but didn’t get a chance to.

With that said, during this chaotic time, I did manage to finish one book, though it took way longer than it usually would have, both due to the lack of time to read as well as the difficulty on my part with focusing on what I was reading.  It also probably didn’t help that the book I chose to read – Martha Hall Kelly’s newest release Sunflower Sisters -- turned out to be 500+ pages.   This is technically the third book in the Lilac Girls series and while I still haven’t gotten around to reading the first book, I did read the second one, Lost Roses, when it came out back in 2019 and it ended up being a 5 star read for me.  So despite the bad timing, I still went into this one with a high amount of anticipation, especially knowing the story would continue to be about the same extended family from the first two books.  This time around, the story is set several generations earlier, during the Civil War period, with the indomitable Woolsey women (Caroline Ferriday’s ancestors) and the beginnings of the family’s long history of philanthropy.  Similar to Kelly’s previous 2 books, the story is narrated from the perspectives of multiple characters:  Georgeanna “Georgy” Woolsey (one of Caroline Ferriday’s great-aunts), whose strong determination and passion for nursing leads to a calling to join the war effort as a Union nurse; Jemma, enslaved with her family on the Peeler Plantation in Maryland, yearns to free herself and her kin from the constant abuse and fear they suffer at the hands of the plantation’s mistress Anne-May as well as its cruel overseer Lebaron;  Anne-May inherits a plantation that she doesn’t know how to run and after both her husband as well as beloved brother enlist in the army, she falls in with the wrong crowd and becomes ensnared in a secret network of spies. 

While I did enjoy this book quite a bit, I felt that the story was a tad slow in places and at times, was bogged down by details that didn’t seem all that necessary.  At 500+ pages, this is already a long book and when you add a slow-moving plot too, it can seem like a chore to read. Fortunately, the characters were well-developed and easy to connect with, which did make up a bit for the slowness of the story overall.  I also found the story arcs told from the points-of-view of Jemma and Anne-May a lot more interesting and engaging than the one narrated from Georgy’s perspective.  I actually felt the same way when I read Lost Roses too — the story arcs from the perspectives of the other characters were much more engaging than the one from the Ferriday/Woolsey characters.  Of course, that’s not to say I didn’t like the characters because that’s not the case at all — in fact, I liked all the Woolsey sisters and especially loved Georgy’s personality.  It’s just that plot-wise, the other characters’ chapters seemed to move the story along more.  

Overall, I did enjoy this one, but so far, I like Lost Roses more.  It seems that for most readers who’ve read the entire series, Lilac Girls is still the favorite.  As mentioned earlier, I haven’t gotten around to reading Lilac Girls yet, but I hope to rectify that soon if I can!

Received ARC from Ballantine Books via NetGalley.