This novel focuses on the relationship between Daphne Fuller and Eddie Triplett, who are a daughter and stepfather with a love that transcends trauma, a divorce and a weird twist. They reunite after a span of 45 years at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in what is one of the most serendipitous moments that I can remember. The precipitating event was a car accident on a snowy road that left both Eddie and Daphne trapped inside and a divorce very shortly thereafter which Daphne believes is her fault (I mean, Eddie crashed the car with her inside and they could have died, so it's a reasonable assumption). We learn about Eddie and Daphne during dialogue between the characters that contain vague references and flashbacks to the actual accident. I LOVED this - it was perfect in keeping me interested and wanting to know more, the pacing was on point and, as usual, Patchett's writing is just lovely.
I felt like the characters were very real and relatable characters. They were well developed and I found myself often nodding along with them and their statements. The whole book also felt just very...KIND and it shown in how the characters interacted with each other. I loved the themes of love within families and how that can look differently to different people within different relationships or even within the same relationship. It is also about second chances.
I cherished this lovely book and I hope that you will too.
This was the first book by Kylie Lee Baker that I've ever read and I can't wait to read her other books. When I think of Gothic horror, I think of fever dream, death, unhappiness, hallucinations and all the things. This book had EVERYTHING.
First and foremost - the setting. Absolutely spooky - it's a Japanese cottage in the middle of the woods - near an ocean or maybe not. I wasn't ever entirely clear. And the characters?! To die for (literally and figuratively). They were absolutely fascinating and I was drawn into them. They were beautifully written, as was the storytelling. Ms. Baker uses a dual timeline narrative to tell the story, which was very effective in keeping my head spinning and me on my toes. However, when the two timelines finally collide, you better watch out!
The themes that were explored also very much hit hard for me. The novel dives deeply into themes surrounding perception, regret, mistakes and the role that the land/property plays in holding onto the atrocities that are committed upon them. It points out the consequences of our choices and how the place bears witness, often holding onto it. The writing itself is beautiful. It's lucid, flowing and super easy to get lost in. I found that chapters would go by before I remembered that I had to get ready for work.
This is a novel that will warrant a second reading for me so that I can pretend to maybe understand more the novel and I look very much forward to her other novels.
In this novel, we follow Annie, who is a 50-something recent divorcee who is going on her first ever celebrity cruise featuring the bank Boy Talk (which reminded me of NKOTB). Her sister, Katherine, was the real superfan and Annie intended to go with her, but Katherine broke her leg so couldn't attend. Annie is, therefore, on her own. She's paired with a roommate named Maira, who is a veteran Boy Talk cruiser and helps Annie learn the ways of the cruise. The members of Boy Talk also play a role, and are seriously stock characters. Keith Fiore is the one that we get to know the best.
I just couldn't get into this book. I appreciated that Straub was exploring themes related to aging, fandom and life changes, but the whole thing felt very superficial, flat and rushed. I didn't feel like Annie had an arc at all and was kind of just there, exploring things without having any agency or learning anything. At all. Nothing big or cathartic happened in this book. At all. I kept expecting something to happen that would inspire change and introspection on the parts of the characters but there wasn't really anything like that. It wasn't even a romance.
Skip this one. Not worth your time.
I have enjoyed Michael Connelly - I need to catch up on the Bosch books, but I'm up to date on Sergeant Stillwell and the Catalina books! From the first page, Sergeant Stillwell is in it. He's at an airstrip scene where two of his deputies are jeopardized and it goes full throttle from there.
As background or explanation, an Ironwood tree has a single root that spawns often multiple, beautiful trees. And somehow, it manages to encapsulate Stillwell, who is exiling in Catalina. He still loves the island, its people and the people that he works with - he would never have thought that he was going to be into community policing but here he is. So when the particular tragedy at the center of this book happens it's as close to devastating for him as anything he has experienced to date. As a result of that tragedy, Stil is relegated to the substation but really? Do you think he's actually going to listen? HECK NO. When he starts cleaning out the lost and found, he locates a backpack that belonged to a girl that went missing while hiking on the island many years prior. Once he reports that to the mainland, the Cold Case unit becomes involved including fan favorite Renee Ballard (who is a badass in her own right). He gets invovled in that investigation AND manages to deal with run of the mill stuff on the island as well as get to the bottom of the tragic events that landed him, supposedly, on the bench to begin.
I LOVED this book. I brought it to the beach with me when I went on vacation and finished it the same day that I started it. It is VERY fast paced and readable - it kept me hanging on wanting to know more and of course, the characters are AMAZING and memorable. Stil is one of my favorites because he wants to do the right thing and nothing is going to stop him. Be prepared, there is a lot going on with three major cases (an story lines) going on at the same time. I had a chart to help me keep track so it didn't bother me, but if you get easily thrown by that then it might not be the book for you.
I am certainly looking forward to the next installment. Keep it coming!
Dolly Parton , a national treasure, has passed away at the age of 80. The world has lost a phenomenal force - I admired her for her brains...
