Tag: family

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#BookReview: Find Me In California by Kerry Lonsdale

Cathartic Trippiness. Imagine a Stanley Kubric type acid trip – and now imagine it in full virtual reality 8K. That is what reading one particular pivotal scene of this book is like, and it is in this sequence in particular that Lonsdale pulls out storytelling elements that even after having read literally every book she’s written to date, I didn’t know she had. Which is one of the reasons I love checking in every year for her annual release and seeing what she has come up with now – she is a master of evolving and expanding her skillset while still remaining true to the emotional depth and complexities of characters that she has crafted in every book, no matter the particulars or particular mechanics of the book at hand.

This is one of those books where the current fad of “magical realism” is done particularly well, even competing with one of my favorite scifi based such scenes in any medium ever, where in the movie Frequency (2000), the ending sequence features things happening in two timelines at once at a pivotal moment and the past being shown to directly impact the present in a key way. What Lonsdale manages to do is almost the opposite yet also quite the the same in a sense, and eventually we get to where we can almost *see* the character at hand’s neurons re-wiring as all that has happened becomes known.

And then there is the catharsis on so many levels. As noted above, Lonsdale excels in creating particularly complex characters, and this tale is no exception. That she manages to create *so many* characters that are each equally complex shows true skill – I’ve read quite a few books even just when counting as starting around the same time I read my first book from Lonsdale, and rare indeed does a book have quite this level of depth and “flavor”.

Overall truly an intriguing book that will likely be remembered for many years by at least some.

Very much recommended.

This review of Find Me In California by Kerry Lonsdale was originally written on July 11, 2024.

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#BookReview: The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center

Sometimes One Shot Really Can Change Everything. This is one of those tales where it should have been over from the very beginning – these two people are just *so* broken by their lives to this point that it *shouldn’t* work…

And yet it does, because this is a romantic comedy and that is the very *purpose* of romantic comedies, to give the rest of us hope that something like this *can* work – even in our own completely broken states. And hell, *particularly* when the book is meta enough to actively make *that very same point* within its text. (Helped by the overall plot of… actively writing a romantic comedy movie. 😉 )

Yes, some of the things that both characters do are horrible. Yes, perhaps some (or even much) of this tale doesn’t or even can’t happen in real life. Well, again as pointed out within the text here, neither can zombies or space aliens or some such… and yet people love those movies for somewhat similar reasons as to why they love romantic comedies.

So sit back and enjoy the ride and the feels. If you have to turn your brain off and enjoy the spectacle for sheer spectacle, *do that*. But don’t criticize a book that many will truly love and find catharsis in over your own hangups. Particularly don’t review bomb something just because “that can’t really happen”. *Particularly when one of the main issues in the book is exploring how reality doesn’t really apply in romantic comedies, including this one.*

Overall a strong tale with complex and complicated characters, with a lot of laughs, some smiles, and even a few dusty room scenes to boot. Come in expecting to laugh and perhaps wet your eyes a bit, and you truly won’t be disappointed here.

Very much recommended.

This review of The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center was originally written on July 11, 2024.

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#BookReview: Follow Her Down by Victoria Helen Stone

Moving Thriller Set Against Family Trauma. There are times when you find a thriller tale that has genuine heart, when a book that is supposedly intended to make your heart beat faster also manages to make the room quite dusty at times. This is one of those tales.

There is quite a bit to unpack about this story, but to reveal the things that truly make it as powerful as it is could delve too far into spoiler territory. Suffice it to say that the setup itself is done well – we are many years after a massive trauma for a family and even their small community, and the trauma reverberates to this day in many different ways. Stone manages to craft a story that is pitch perfect thriller – more bodies are piling up *now*, and it seems they may be connected to the original trauma, at least if some people are to be believed. It is the way she goes about executing this story, exploring the various internal dynamics within our main character and the larger dynamics within her family and community, that give this book its heart and its soul.

Overall a strong tale, though perhaps not *so* atypical as to be heads and shoulders standing above others of its form and genre. Still, for those that enjoy this type of tale – or even those open to exploring if they like this type of tale – this is certainly a strong entry within the space, and a worthy read indeed.

Very much recommended.

This review of Follow Her Down by Victoria Helen Stone was originally written on June 5, 2024.

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#BookReview: For The Love Of Summer by Susan Mallery

Solid Susan Mallery Tale Of Finding Friends Even In Difficult Situations. I admit, I’m a bit weird here due to how my own family was as I was growing up, and even how my wife’s family is to this day. You see, my grandparents divorced well before I was ever born. I never knew them married. And yet, my grandmother and step-grandfather lived on my grandfather’s property, at times even inside his own house, at a few different points of my childhood. Similarly, my wife’s mom’s best friend… is the ex-wife of her husband (my wife’s stepdad).

Thus, when I find myself reading a tale such as the one here, where a new wife suddenly finds that her only real chance at moving forward is the generosity of her husband’s ex-wife (prodded on by their daughter)… it actually isn’t that far out of the realm of “normal” for me. 😀

So maybe I had an easier time accepting this plotline than some, but for me it absolutely worked quite well. Yes, it could get a touch repetitive at times as Mallery was driving home her major thematic elements, but… that is kinda part of Mallery’s style, at least of late. Yes, her books – including this one – could easily be 20 or more pages shorter without all of the repetition, but I honestly think that many of Mallery’s bigger fans appreciate this to some level.

Ultimately, this is a tale of hope and found family/ found friendship and how these can make life bearable even under difficult and somewhat unusual circumstances. This is a tale of women bonding even in situations that would likely tear many female bonds apart, and it is a tale of the power of friendship. I for one thoroughly enjoyed it, even if, yes, it did run perhaps a touch too long. But again, that is just something one comes to expect from Mallery, who I’m beginning to think has some kind of deep seated aversion to publishing a book with less than 400 pages in it.

Very much recommended.

This review of For The Love Of Summer by Susan Mallery was originally written on June 5, 2024.

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#BookReview: The Lighthouse Cafe by Bebe Reed

Short Cozy Family Drama Sets Up Series Well. This is one of those barely 200 page books that packs quite a bit in it – but is also one of those books where everyone is lying to someone about something, which is where much of the drama comes in. Meant to be more of a cozy coastal foodie vibe primarily, it actually does work as that down the stretch… it just takes a bit to get there. The titular Lighthouse Cafe really comes into its own eventually – kinda sorta ala settlement building in Fallout 4. Yes, the pieces are there and broken when you first encounter them, but this is where a lot of the beauty for a lot of people comes in, seeing just how these people mend themselves as they mend the building and business.

Overall a breezy book with perhaps more drama than many would want on a “beach read”, but also great for those cold winter nights when you need to be transported to a more tropical location in your mind.

Very much recommended.

This review of The Lighthouse Cafe by Bebe Reed was originally written on June 5, 2024.

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#BookReview: Unstuck by Stephanie Stuckey

Fascinating And *Southern* Tale Of Near-Death Of Road trip Staple. Stephanie Stuckey has led a life few Georgians have. She is a scion of a family that had become somewhat rich and somewhat powerful over the last century, whose grandfather once proclaimed (per Stuckey, here in the text) that he had made more money than his grandchildren could ever spend (but which they did, again, per Stuckey here), whose father had been a Congressman and who herself had been a State Representative for nearly 15 years. Both she and her father are UGA alumni, both from well before the era where the HOPE scholarship made such an achievement much more doable for many Georgians.

All of this is included here, but really, this is the tale of the ascent to those heights… and the downfall from them, as changes mostly made by others – as well as a few mistakes made within the company – led to near non-existence of the family company, fortune, and even legacy.

Herein lies a quintessential Southern tale of Southern family and business acumen, of a legacy built, nearly destroyed, and of one woman’s fight to restore that legacy to all that it had once been… and maybe, just maybe… even increase it for her own children.

The story is told with all of the grace, grit, and wonder of a granddaughter who clearly grew up living at least some of the history involved, but only much later in life finding out all that she *didn’t* know, including just how fundamental the black community was to her (white) grandfather’s success in the era of Jim Crow, and how mutually beneficial and respectful the relationships there were. Up to and including Civil Rights activists actively encouraging their people to stop at Stuckey’s, knowing that they would be treated with the respect they didn’t always get in the South in that era.

As someone who has also uncovered lost family history later in life – and who has lived in some of the regions this tale centers around, as well as, yes, having sampled quite a few of the family’s candies-, this was a story I could connect with on several levels, even as my own family was… let’s go with “not quite so fortunate” over the years, to the point that when I graduated from Kennesaw State University near the turn of this Millennium, I was the first in my family to have graduated college at all.

Overall truly a triumphant and hopeful tale, well told with the respect, humor, and candor one doesn’t always get in such deeply personal tales fraught with such sensitive topics as race relations in the South. Very much recommended.

This review of Unstuck by Stephanie Stuckey was originally written on May 24, 2024.

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#BookReview: Under The Palms by Kaira Rouda

Sequel Perfectly Flows From Prior Book. This is one of those books where everything I said about its prior book, Beneath The Surface, still feels spot on for this book as well. This is the continuing saga of one family and their business empire and the machinations as the patriarch of the family faces his coming death and everyone else is biting at the bit to become his chosen successor. The atmosphere switches from a yacht off shore near Catalina Island to a resort onshore… as the Santa Anna winds kick up, with all of their usual effects on both land and people (at least per so many books and even some real life reports I’ve seen, I’ve never lived in Southern California or indeed anywhere west of the Alabama/ Georgia State Line).

Because this flows so perfectly from Beneath The Surface, you really do need to read that book first. But once you do, you’re likely going to be glad that this book is already available – I read almost 130 books between reading them both as Advance Review Copies.

Whatever you feel about dark family/ boardroom dramas is how you’re going to feel about this series as it currently exists, as both books have really identical feels. Rouda actually did a truly superb job in doing so well with the first book and then managing to clone the stylings so effectively in this tale while telling a similar yet distinct tale the furthers the overall universe – and even allows for some intriguing possibilities for any potential Book 3.

Overall a very fun book, and also on the shortish side at under 300 pages. Very much recommended.

This review of Under The Palms by Kaira Rouda was originally written on May 9, 2024.

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#BookReview: Ten Kids Two Lovebirds And A Singing Mermaid by Cathy Lamb

Hilarious And Heartwarming. This is one of those tales that is very adult, yet told primarily through the eyes of children. Thus, when certain things happen – always behind closed doors, in these cases – the actual manner of storytelling gets particularly creative, no matter what adult situation the “certain things” may be. And yet we get a complete tale of wonder and heartache and healing into something even better than before, told with a skill and care that shows true talent and empathy.

In a way, yes, this is reminiscent of The Brady Bunch in that two families each with several kids ultimately come together. But the actual manner this is done in and the actual story told to get us to that point, even from its earliest stages, is also dramatically different than that old show – and yet, this tale does take place in a somewhat idealized late 1970s California, one where cheating, abuse, the Vietnam War, and drug abuse happen, but one where the Vietnam protests, gas crises, and other larger issues largely have not.

Truly an excellent tale with a rare twist in storytelling mechanism, and for that alone this is easily worth reading.

Very much recommended.

This review of Ten Kids, Two Lovebirds, And A Singing Mermaid by Cathy Lamb was originally written on May 8, 2024.

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#BlogTour: The Summer Swap by Sarah Morgan

For this blog tour, we’re looking at . For this blog tour, we’re looking at The Summer Swap by Sarah Morgan.

First, the review I posted to the book sites (BookHype.com / BookBub.com / TheStoryGraph.com / Goodreads.com):

Slow, Character Driven Coastal Tale Featuring Flawed Yet Understandable Characters. Yes, to an extent if you’ve read one Sarah Morgan non-Christmas tale, you’ve read every Sarah Morgan non-Christmas tale. (And her Christmas tales are simply a variant on the non-Christmas ones, featuring some extra Christmas emphasis of some form.) This noted, what Sarah Morgan does, she does solidly and has clearly built a fan base for a reason, and this is yet another example of why her formula works so well.

Here, yet again, we get three generations of female leads, with the guys mostly playing romantic foils of some form or another, and each of our female leads has her own dramas and insecurities and, yes, mistakes. Of course, in typical Sarah Morgan fashion… well, let’s not give away her endings in this review, shall we? Let’s instead say that the Hallmarkie type crowd will generally enjoy these books, even though the Sarah Morgan formula is at least *slightly* different than that one.

Overall a solid tale solidly written, and a perfectly fine, inoffensive, casual “summer” / “beach” read (that, to be clear, can truly be enjoyed any time). Very much recommended.

After the jump, an excerpt from the book followed by the “publisher details” – book info, description, author bio, social links, and buy links.
Continue reading “#BlogTour: The Summer Swap by Sarah Morgan”

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#BookReview: Blackbird by Kay Bratt

Kay Bratt Goes “North Ga Dark”. Ok, so what the hell do you mean by “North Ga Dark”, Sexton? Well, growing up even “in the country” in North Ga, specifically the Atlanta exurbs (then, now northern suburbs), even on a pitch black, moonless night… you still had the glow of Atlanta and its suburbs over the horizon. Thus, even at nature’s absolute darkest… there was still *some* light, if well over the horizon and very faint.

And that is what Bratt has introduced here, with both our longer term story and one of the active cases in this story now focusing on themes of abuse in various forms. To be clear, this is one of those stories that will be quite difficult for some, perhaps many, readers – but as usual, Bratt manages to handle even these themes with a care not every other writer decides to put into their story, for any number of reasons. So while the evil is very present and menacing *in story*, it is more like a shark menacing – if you’re in its domain (ie, a character in this book, for the book evil, or pretty much anything in most any body of salt water, for the shark), you’re going to feel its presence and you should probably take appropriate precautions. The easiest of which for most of us is simply… stepping away from its domain for a bit. In which case, sitting on the beach with a good book is probably a solid idea for both. (With your beverage of choice, for when you need to step away from the book if it gets too menacing for you… as you ponder the water and the menaces within it. :D)

As with a few other reviewers, I noticed the lack of direct family involvement in this book, which had previously been a long-running staple of the series. And am I just forgetting (it has been 75+ books for me between Book 8 of this series, Starting Over, and this one), or did a certain sequence that was (somewhat briefly at that) explained as happening before the events of this book not actually happen in the previous book? Because I don’t remember that particular scene in that book, and I think I would have commented on at least its presence – even if somewhat obliquely to avoid any outright spoilers. If this is indeed the case, this was likely the most egregious miss of this entire series. While the series didn’t need a full on “Return Of The King” massive *event* for this particular scene… it still would have been great to see it “in real time”. (Note: While writing this review, I did go back to my copy of Starting Over and confirm that it did not include this particular scene. It included a blatant setup for the scene, but not the scene itself. So I stand behind my comment that this was a major miss, and a glaring hole from an author not generally known for such obvious misses.)

All of this noted, this *was* a supremely enjoyable and fast read, and it absolutely sets up for Bratt to either conclude the series (as was originally intended with Starting Over) with Book 10 – Hello Little Girl, out Summer 2024 – or possibly extend it again. It will be interesting to see which direction Bratt takes, particularly given that she seems to be actively writing that book at the time of me writing this review. Very much recommended.

This review of Blackbird by Kay Bratt was originally written on May 1, 2024.