Tag: family

Posted on

#BookReview: Unbalanced by D.P. Lyle

Laid-Back Gulf Coast Mystery-Comedy. This latest entry in the Jake Longly series almost seemed more comedic than mysterious, though certainly the comedy was regarding the mystery – or, more precisely, how Jake continuously gets pulled into the mysteries his dad and best friend – the *actual* Private Investigators – are working. Long time fans will be pleased with this latest entry, as everything we know and love about this series is still 100% there. For those new to the series or Lyle who don’t mind spoilers about relationships and perhaps a case or two of prior tales, this is actually a great mostly standalone ish tale that will show you what the entire series is like – and I can tell you from personal experience that one of these is more than enough to get you hooked. For the clean/ sweet crowd… eh, nothing is necessarily shown “on camera”, but there are certainly clear enough descriptions of what either is about to happen “off screen” or just has that at least some in that crowd may want to pass here. Overall another fun outing with the crew, great for those *hot* and *wet* and *hard* to handle Dawg Days of the Gulf Coast summer. Very much recommended.

This review of Unbalanced by D.P. Lyle was originally written on January 17, 2024.

Posted on

#BlogTour: Principles Of (E)motion by Sara Read

For this blog tour, we’re looking at a strong, layered romance with an atypical lead. For this blog tour, we’re looking at Principles Of (E)motion by Sara Read.

Here’s what I had to say on the review sites (TheStoryGraph, BookHype, Goodreads):

Strong, Layered Romance With Atypical Lead. Up front, I’m a guy that got a degree in a mathematics related field (Computer Science) and because of the quirks of the way I attended college (also, as our lead here, at 16yo,fwiw) I came within just a couple of semesters of getting two other separate mathematics related degrees at the same time. Like our lead, I too had a flash of utter brilliance at that young age (well, in my case I was 20 yrs old) that is now, 20 yrs later, seemingly being realized in the real world. (Damn I wish I had applied for a patent, but I thought nothing of it other than as a paper for a Bachelor’s Degree level class – even if Senior Year.) And yes, like our lead, I’ve also known close friends of that era later struggle with various legal issues. So maybe the book worked so well for me *because* I am in a rare position of having a similar enough background to *really* feel it. Perhaps. But I also think these issues and situations are still prevalent enough and general enough that even if you’ve never been in or near situations with these exact particulars, you’ve been in or around similar *general* situations (strains on parental relationships, lonely, questioning yourself even as a 30+ yr old adult who is “supposed” to “know what you’re doing” by now, etc).

And that is what makes this book particularly great. Yes, it is messy. Yes, it can be convoluted at times. Yes, it may or may not feel particularly “swoon worthy” romantic at times. Hell, there are times when it feels like our lead exists for little more than sex. (That is rare, btw, but yes, “clean”/ “sweet” crowd… you’ve now been warned that this may be a bit racy for your tastes.) But all of this, to me, makes it feel all the more “real”. Because let’s face it, our lives rarely feel any of those things all the time (thank God, really).

And while some may scream at me “But I don’t read romance to feel REAL!!!!! I *WANT THE FANTASY DAMMIT!!!!*”, my argument here is that because this *is* more real, *knowing* that this book fulfills all romance requirements I am presently aware of means that despite the realism, *you still get the fantasy as well*. You still get that happy ending – at least one that works for this couple in this story in this world. You still get that “awww” and that catharsis that everything works out in the end, no matter how shitty and messy it gets in between.

And to me, that makes the story *stronger*. *Because* it was more real and more heartfelt.

This was my first book from this author. It very likely will not be the last.

Very much recommended.

After the jump, an excerpt from the book followed by the “publisher details” – book description, author bio, and social media and buy links.
Continue reading “#BlogTour: Principles Of (E)motion by Sara Read”

Posted on

#BookReview: Kinfolk by Sean Dietrich

A Rare View Of The South As It Really Is. As a native Son of the South – and in particular of a region *so* steeped in most *all* of its history, from prehistoric Native American burial mounds to the first female (and last slave owning) US Senator – it is rare for me to find a book that portrays Southern life *well*, both in its strengths and its weaknesses. This book does exactly that. It doesn’t shy away from our ne’erdowells, it doesn’t make excuses for assholes. But it shows that most everyone is somebody to someone, even if it takes them a lifetime to figure that out. There’s a lot here that may make some uneasy, including a violent on screen suicide to open the book, a detailed discussion of breast cancer in an era before that particular affliction was as well known as it is now, a mother’s untimely death, and I’m sure even more depending on the reader’s own sensibilities – those are just the biggest ones. But even there, Dietrich uses those things in furtherance of the story he is telling, and he does in fact wind up using every single one quite well to paint a particularly vibrant tapestry of words. There are many stories to tell of Southern life, but if one is looking to read a zany at times tale that will pull the heartstrings quite a bit – and yes, even make the room quite dusty a time or two – this is absolutely one of those types of tales. What Jimmy Buffett’s fiction did for the Caribbean, Sean of the South’s is doing for the American South in general. Very much recommended.

This review of Kinfolk by Sean Dietrich was originally written on December 29, 2023.

Posted on

#BlogTour: The Weekend Retreat by Tara Laskowski

For this blog tour, we’re looking at an intriguing tale with multiple (and rapidly switching) character POVs. For this blog tour, we’re looking at The Weekend Retreat by Tara Laskowski.

Here’s what I had to say on the review sites (TheStoryGraph, BookHype, Goodreads):

Intriguing Tale With Multiple (And Rapidly Switching) Character POVs. This is one of those tales with a lot of moving parts and a lot of different character POVs that can throw some people off. So if that is you, know up front that this is the style Ms. Laskowski has chosen to tell this particular tale in. Specifically, we have three couples – each of the surviving children of a now deceased former matron of the family + their significant others, as well as a seventh person – an unannounced and unplanned guest. (The final central character is another, planned, guest.) The tale uses the perspectives of each of the three females + the unplanned guest as our narrative device, and ultimately it tells a strong tale of family secrets, petty grudges, and everything else that makes a family so complex at times. Here, the book truly shines – and yes, it is helped by its stormy, near gothic mansion (complete with hidden passages and rooms!) setting. The prologue is particularly strong, drawing the reader in and urging them to find out what exactly happened on this eventful weekend among siblings (and their partners), and the overall mysteries are much deeper than are originally thought, adding to the depth and complexity of the tale.

Overall Ms. Laskowski did a truly great job telling this story in this particular format, even as confusing as the frequent perspective jumps can be at times – she also used them to great effect to propel the reader forward in an “I’ve GOT to see what happens next!” manner. Yes, after an admittedly somewhat slow start, this will eventually become one of those that you’re going to want to stay up later than you probably should to finish the book.

Those looking to end 2023 with a bang would do well to pick this book up, as it releases just in time to be many peoples’ final book of 2023. Very much recommended.

After the jump, an excerpt from the book followed by the “publisher details” – book description, author bio, and social media and buy links.

And at the very end, special to this particular blog tour… the Spotify Playlist Ms. Laskowski created for this book!
Continue reading “#BlogTour: The Weekend Retreat by Tara Laskowski”

Posted on

#BlogTour: Two Dead Wives by Adele Parks

For this blog tour, we’re looking at an interesting sequel that the author originally never intended to exist. For this blog tour, we’re looking at Two Dead Wives by Adele Parks.

Here’s what I had to say on the review sites (TheStoryGraph, BookHype, Goodreads):

WOMAN LAST SEEN Began My War On Books Featuring COVID. This Book Continues It. Having read literally 394 books between WOMAN LAST SEEN and this book, I did not *even* realize this book was a sequel to that one until the very end, when I read the Author’s Note. Perils of reading so much? This isn’t exactly the first time this has happened to me in my reading these last few years, though I think this is (so far) the most books between sequels. Long winded way of saying, if you read these books closer together than I did, or perhaps have better memory than I do, you’ll likely pick up on the fact that this is a sequel within the first chapter or two, so despite me not finding out until the end… it isn’t exactly a secret, either.

All of that noted, as with Woman Last Seen, here we get an excellent mystery/ thriller sequel, one that actually manages to work within the bounds given by the original book when a sequel was never actually intended – and thus showing just how strong of a storyteller Parks is (and perhaps how good of an editor she has). If you love fairly fast paced, character driven mysteries, you’re likely going to enjoy this one.

And then… the COVID. Whereas the first book dealt with COVID more as an ominous foreshadowing, being set in the days immediately prior to the global lockdowns that destroyed far more lives than the virus ever will, this book dealt head on with said lockdowns and actually incorporated them – and the slow global re-opening – into the story. Thus, while I deducted a star from Woman Last Seen because I DO NOT WANT TO READ ABOUT COVID even though it was more tangential in that book, with it being far more central and ever present in this tale, the deduction remains because even nearly four years later, I STILL DO NOT WANT TO READ ABOUT COVID. My war against such tales began with Woman Last Seen, and with Two Dead Wives it continues, along with my own real “weapon” at my disposal: the single star deduction in rating. Seriously, authors, PLEASE – just abandon that entire year or so of human history. Or at least ignore those parts of that year.

But again, other than the COVID aspects, this truly was a superb tale that truly shows how remarkable Parks is as a storyteller – I truly don’t know of many that *could* have written such a book when it was never intended, and I perhaps know of even fewer who *would* write such a book when readers clamor for it.

Very much recommended.

After the jump, an excerpt from the book followed by the “publisher details” – book description, author bio, and social media and buy links.
Continue reading “#BlogTour: Two Dead Wives by Adele Parks”

Posted on

#BlogTour: The Vacation by John Marrs

For this blog tour, we’re looking at a complex, interwoven thriller with a lot of moving parts. For this blog tour, we’re looking at The Vacation by John Marrs.

Here’s what I had to say on the review sites (TheStoryGraph, BookHype, Goodreads):

Complex, Interwoven Thriller With Numerous Characters And Flashbacks. Hell, the one thing to knock this book on is just how sudden the flashbacks and returns can be. Other than that, this is one of those twisty, complex, interwoven tales more about the people that find themselves at a particular hostel at a particular moment than any titular “vacation” – though, as you’ll come to see, every single one of them is truly on a “vacation” of sorts, so the title *does* work. I simply think the original title of “Welcome To Wherever You Are” may have actually been a more apt title for the tale.

If you want a single, simple plotline with a one or two true main characters and maybe a supporting cast… this isn’t that kind of tale. If you want a tale where there are definitive answers and everything is black and white… this isn’t that kind of tale. If you want an absolute mind fuck of a tale that makes you question your sense of reality… this isn’t that kind of tale, either.

Instead, this truly is one of those more interesting in between tales that shows a more accurate depiction of humanity and how we’re all flawed and we all have our own stories both before and after any given encounter, this simply happens to be the tales of those people who wind up being in the same Los Angeles area hostel at the same moment in time at the particular moment of the story here. If you’re looking for *that* kind of tale… congratulations. You’ve found one of the better examples of it I’ve ever come across in my own reading.

Very much recommended.

After the jump, an excerpt from the book followed by the “publisher details” – book description, author bio, and social media and buy links.
Continue reading “#BlogTour: The Vacation by John Marrs”

Posted on

#BookReview: Starting Over by Kay Bratt

Starting Over. Yes, the title of my review and the title of this book are the same, because I want to emphasize just how well Bratt titled this particular story. Yet again, we get a pulse pounding crime unfortunately based on real-world events in the South, in this particular case (as the prologue shows, so no real spoilers here) an abduction from a Walmart parking lot. And there is a lot of action in this particular case, including hiking through one park I’m very familiar with and another I’ve been to a few times – Amicalola State Park and Unicoi State Park, respectively, both in the North Georgia mountain region. In particular, the camping areas, trails, even the hike-inn that Bratt mentions were all part of my teens in particular, with several trips out there from my home town not very far away.

But as always with this series, this tale is about the small town and family relationships as much as it is about the crime of the book, and it is here that we truly get a sense of this series – that was supposed to end here – is actually “starting over”, in all the best possible ways. We get a return to the true roots of this series, but with everyone involved in different situations than they were in at the actual beginning of the series. Being told with Bratt’s usual careful yet evocative styling, this book will leave you particularly glad the series is “starting over” rather than concluding here as was originally intended. Very much recommended.

This review of Starting Over by Kay Bratt was originally written on December 8, 2023.

Posted on

#BookReview: For Roger by Laura Drake

If You Only Read One 2023 Release, Make It This One. Wow. Phenomenal. I’m writing this review roughly 12 hrs after finishing the book, and I am still in awe of what Drake was able to do here. When I first encountered her books, Drake was writing cowboy romances. She’s extended into women’s fiction more recently and done a great job with it, and this one I would assume would mostly classify within that space as well.

But let me be clear: This book has a LOT going on, a lot that places Drake writing about very serious issues and very different spaces. We get medical discussions and specifically discussions around terminal illness, suicide, assisted suicide, and related issues. We get a legal courtroom thriller that dives deep into questions of justice vs mercy vs the letter of the law and even into what are laws and why do we have them. We get open discussions of how to make different spaces better and more responsive, and in these areas Drake shows several practical ideas that could genuinely work – even though this is a fictional tale. Throughout all of this. Drake proves herself capable of at minimum holding her own with even the masters of these spaces who only write explicitly within them, such as John Grisham’s legal thrillers.

And then there are the more traditional women’s fiction aspects, the relationships that make this book truly sing throughout all the heaviness of the above discussions. The loving wife who is barely older than her stepdaughter, despite being in absolute love with her husband. The stepdaughter who resents the stepmother being so very close to her own age. The brilliant husband who dearly loves his wife *and* daughter. The best friend who happens to be the Governor of Texas, with all the behind the scenes politicking that entails. The mother who loves her daughter no matter what. The misunderstood older sister. And yes, in a nod to Drake’s real life (as anyone who follows her socials will know), a mischievous and nearly scene-stealing cat named Boomer.

In telling such a moving story, Drake truly masters bringing in such difficult discussions that *need* to be held at every level and in every corner of this great land.

Issues of how to handle terminal illness within a marriage – how far is each willing to go? What is the loving thing to do? Do the local statutes matter when it comes to trying to make the right decision? What *is* the right decision?

Issues of criminal justice as it relates to terminal illness, echoing at a societal level the same types of questions every relationship needs to answer within itself.

Issues of what we expect from our penal system – can people be rehabilitated, or should they be exclusively punished? Is there a difference between someone committing suicide, their spouse helping them, their doctor helping them, another person outside of a legally protected relationship helping them? Does the situation itself matter, and if it does, what do we condemn and what do we excuse?

All of this and so much more, Drake crafts into a moving and poignant tale of one particular family struggling to navigate these very complicated and delicate issues.

Read this book. Think about how *you* would handle these things. Think about how *we* should handle these things…

Or not. Maybe you jus need to cry, or even bawl your eyes out. Maybe these issues aren’t theoretical for you – maybe they’re as real for you as they are for the characters in this book. Maybe you’re just trying to find answers yourself.

Read this book too. And may you find comfort within its words even in the midst of your own storm.

But read this book, regardless. Very much recommended.

This review of For Roger by Laura Drake was originally written on November 20, 2023.

Posted on

#BookReview: Hello Goodbye by Kay Bratt

Shocking Final Chapters Leave Readers Breathless. This book was one of the more interesting in this series both because the crime being investigated here is one of the more brutal Bratt has ever put into her fiction (at least in my now 5+ yrs of reading most of her work) *and* because Bratt’s style doesn’t normally lend itself to “oh my god I can’t stop reading I have to know what happens next NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” level pacing… and yet this one’s last several chapters read exactly that way. Thus, showing a truly deft hand with her storytelling along with strong growth as a storyteller. Indeed, perhaps one minor weakness here is that given the somewhat limited number of characters (wait, what? I know – but bear with me here), it isn’t really *possible* to show just how shocking this particular crime would be throughout an entire region of small Southern towns – though even here, Bratt works well within her style and within the world she has crafted through this series to relay that as best as possible. And yes, as others have noted, given everything that happens here… Book 8 *could* be the series finale… but I too agree I’d like to see it continue well beyond that point. Very much recommended.

This review of Hello Goodbye by Kay Bratt was originally written on November 17, 2023.

Posted on

#BlogTour: Plot Twist by Erin La Rosa

For this blog tour, we’re looking at a solid series continuation that still isn’t afraid to touch issues many in its genre will never get near. For this blog tour, we’re looking at Plot Twist by Erin La Rosa.

Here’s what I had to say on the review sites (TheStoryGraph, BookHype, Goodreads):

Solid Series Continuation, Maybe Slightly More For the Zoomer Set. As is my custom, I went in and read a lot of reviews of this book *after* I read the book myself. In a bit of an unusual move, I *also* actually went back and read my own review of Book 1 of this series – which I read roughly 200+ book ago. Here, La Rosa continues a lot of the things that made the first book so good – she isn’t afraid to shy away from far deeper issues, but also tries to make sure that they don’t overly weigh down the book (and for the most part, succeeds quite well there). She also uses various social media platforms – in this particular case, primarily current “darling” TikTok – to further the overall story, both in the actual plot and in the comments and DMs related to the various videos. Yes, that means that at some point this book will be quite dated – but it also means that it will serve as a bit of a time capsule for what this particular era really was like. So again, it actually works quite a bit better than its detractors in other reviews claim.

Now, about the Zoomer bit – our female lead is openly bisexual, her former partner is a lesbian, and there are a fairly good mix of sexualities, genders, and most other demographics present in this book. La Rosa actually used them quite well within the world she created here, though yes, depending on where you, the reader of my review lives and the life you lead… maybe this isn’t as expressive of the world you’ve created for yourself. Further, I know nothing of La Rosa beyond her pen name and her general writing style. So while others may want to critique her on not being “real” or not being “own voices” or “authentic” or some other bullshit… I truly don’t give a flying fuck about an author’s demographics, and the story La Rosa has crafted here is genuinely *good*. So complaining about those things, to me, speaks more about your own issues than La Rosa’s storytelling abilities.

Finally, the substance abuse angle. Yes, it is prominent. And yes, it likely doesn’t follow the path of real-world recommendations, particularly in the last chapters of the book when it comes to a head. There again, the dominant real-world recommendations aren’t the only ones, and there are many who have real-world problems with the real-world dominant recommendations. So the fact that La Rosa chose to craft a *fictional romance tale* the way she did… doesn’t bother me as much. And to be clear, I say this as the grandson of an alcoholic and the cousin of more than a few drug abusers, in addition to all the other areas of my life I’ve worked with those affected by these choices. But there again, if this is a topic that is going to be particularly sensitive to you, it says more about you and your issues than it does about La Rosa’s storytelling when you complain about these things in your review. So if you, the reader of my review, thinks this issue will be a problem for you… maybe spare yourself the hurt and La Rosa the 1* and just skip this book? No harm, no foul, and I wish you the best in your own struggles.

Overall, truly a solid sequel, and I’m truly looking forward to seeing how this series progresses. Very much recommended.

After the jump, an excerpt from the book followed by the “publisher details” – book description, author bio, and social media and buy links.
Continue reading “#BlogTour: Plot Twist by Erin La Rosa”