Tag: womensfiction

Posted on

#BookReview: When We Were Enemies by Emily Bleeker

Strong Growth All Around. While this book is no WRECKAGE – Bleeker’s debut that was also her most gut-wrenching to date – as someone recently said on social media, authors have an entire lifetime to craft a debut novel – and then the lucky ones are expected to crank out a new one every year thereafter (or even more often).

Here, Bleeker actually shows remarkable growth in her writing even from her previous, also dual-timeline, tale. While yes, her direct family still plays a role in even this tale (which I suspected while reading certain parts of this tale, and Bleeker confirms in the author’s note), here it is a bit more oblique, with lots of extra research thrown in. And speaking of the research – Bleeker manages to bring forth both the era of the book remarkably well *and* the particulars of a particular section of WWII that most outside of the town Bleeker set this tale in are likely unaware of. Specifically, the treatment of Italian POWs in prison camps within the US prior to Italy’s defeat and switching sides late in WWII. In both her treatment of these characters and in her detailed view of the world they live in, Bleeker shows here that she can do full historical fiction with the best in that space – and combined with her sense of drama, arguably better than many within it.

But Bleeker’s growth as a storyteller isn’t the only story here – indeed, it is more of an “long timer” view that even really allows one to see that particular story. No, the actual story here shows remarkable growth within two key characters the book uses as its endpoints – grandmother Vivian in 1943 (when my own eldest uncle was born, adding a touch of the truly “real” for this particular reader) and granddaughter Elsie in more present-day times. Both live fully in their worlds with all of their relevant struggles, but both show how those struggles can be overcome – and how essential friends are, no matter the period you find yourself living in.

Overall truly a remarkable work, and a truly easy Amazon First Reads selection, for those so inclined to participate in that program. Very much recommended.

This review of When We Were Enemies by Emily Bleeker was originally written on November 1, 2023.

Posted on

#BookReview: What You Do To Me by Rochelle B. Weinstein

Better Than Malibu Rising. I read and reviewed Mailbu Rising as an ARC, back before it came out. In that review, I noted that while it was a good story overall, I knew of many others that were at least as good – and would likely never get anywhere *near* the hype.

Here, despite being published by an Amazon imprint and thus having a pretty solid team behind even it… we have just such a book that is *better* than Malibu Rising… and yet isn’t getting anywhere near the hype, even though it absolutely should.

Even from the opening of the tale, before you even get to a word of Weinstein’s own alternate history of Hey There Delilah, the fact that she/ someone on her team was able to get Tom Higgenson from the Plain White T’s to write a foreword for this tale is freaking awesome.

Then, we get into the tale. And what a tale it is. I’ve read several of its type over the years, of coming of age, of finding yourself, of mysterious zeitgeist happenings, of journalists looking for their big break and landing on a secret they decide to try to find the truth of, of star crossed lovers and what comes of them, of famous rockers that famously either disappear or crash and burn or crash and burn and then disappear.

And yet… Weinstein manages to make this tale her own unique blend of all of the above, and a love song to the entire music industry and the songs that we all believe were written about specific people to boot. Choosing to lead into every chapter with a song referencing someone specific, then discussing so very many different artists and songs through the narrative – and even having cameos by various artists – was a great touch.

Including a condo in Miami was an interesting touch, and perhaps a nod to her own real-life tragedy as her family knew some of the victims of the 2021 Surfside Condos collapse – though this is pure speculation (about the nod) on my part. (Those who follow her on social media know she did in fact know some of those victims.)

Weinstein almost always brings her own Jewish faith into her tales as well, and this is no different – and yet, like the best Christian writers I’ve encountered over the years, she always does it seamlessly and without preaching, just bakes it right into the overall tale she is telling and uses it to even *enhance* the story she is telling.

The addition of a young character who barely speaks English when we first meet him is also quite relevant to where we originally encounter him – Miami, where thanks to the large Hispanic population, this is a particular character type that much more commonly gets overlooked – particularly in these types of tales.

And then there are the actual relationships here, and where the true magic and heartbreak of this story lies. The daughter who may not know as much about her parents or why they split as she thinks she does. The lover who pushes people away because she thinks she is unworthy of love. The soulmates forced into separation. The loving parent who never stopped wanting the best for their kid – even when the kid actively rejected them. So many others, and it all comes crashing together in this maniacal way that in less deft hands and with a less skilled storyteller could have been an absolute mess, but instead Weinstein pulls off masterfully in ways that will have you both breathless and bawling.

Truly an excellent work, and very much recommended.

This review of What You Do To Me by Rochelle B. Weinstein was originally written on October 17, 2023.

Posted on

#BookReview: The Secret Midwife by Soraya M. Lane

Soraya Lane Takes On Auschwitz. How can you be a historical fiction writer who mostly focuses on the European theater of WWII… and *not*, at some point, do a story about Auschwitz? Well, the answer here is… you can’t, and this is Lane’s take on it.

Now, how can you be an amateur historian, with large amounts of knowledge about large amounts of things – and familial ties to the liberation of concentration camps during WWII to boot – and *want* to read a story about Auschwitz, knowing all too well the very real horrors there, among the worst humanity has ever inflicted upon humanity? (Arguably worse than the Imperial Japanese military’s Unit 731 in overall scale, though it seems that Unit 731 may have been even more horrific – if such a thing is possible.) My answer is… I didn’t and don’t, but I’ve read many of Lane’s books and trust *her*.

As it turns out, my trust is well placed. Lane manages to craft an Auschwitz tale that never shirks from discussing the horrors of that facility – while never showing them in brutal, sadistic detail the way an author with a more horror-genre nature might. Instead, Lane takes a page from Titanic (and a school assignment I once had that I’m fairly certain predates that movie, and which I’m coming to realize ever more that I had really done the way I want to now as an adult when it was possible as a child) in creating a dual timeline (shocker, I know, for long time fans of Lane) tale of hope and survival against the most brutal and desolate backdrop possible in Europe during that particular period. Taking inspiration from a variety of real life people who really did a lot of the things Lane has her characters doing to help people survive, Lane manages to show the goodness of some people and the willingness to risk their own lives in order to do the right thing, even in the very heart of the place doing so many very wrong things. Indeed, even the Angel of Death, Josef Mengele is a recurring character throughout the tale – though to be clear, while always being clear about the horrors he was responsible for while never directly showing them “on screen”.

Longtime fans of Lane will note her usual stylings are completely in play here, as is her usual historical accuracy to a relatively high degree, while still taking the occasional artistic liberty where necessary to tell the story she is telling in the manner in which she wanted to tell it. Even here, the liberties are more subtle than jarring, almost to the point of being indetectable.

The horrors of Auschwitz in particular are some of the most well known brutalities of the Jewish Holocaust of WWII, at least in the West. (I’m told they still aren’t as well known in certain Eastern circles? But I have no real way of knowing, having never lived outside the southern US.) At on that level, perhaps some might argue that an author like Lane should instead pursue her “normal” focus and tell the *other*, far lesser known, stories. To that, I point out that among the first books I read from her was about perhaps *the* most famous event of WWII in the American zeitgeist at minimum (*arguably* more famous than even the events of D-Day nearly three years later), the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. In between these two well known events, Lane *has* been writing about lesser known events, indeed some that even this amateur historian had never heard of and had to learn about in more detail after reading one of Lane’s books. (Which I absolutely encourage all of her readers to do.) I also point out that just because a particular thing is well known, doesn’t mean it can’t or shouldn’t continue to be explored – even as I readily encourage exploration of the lesser known topics as well, which again = Lane also does.

Overall, this is an appropriately sober and stark tale about one of the darkest stories in all of WWII, while still shining a light on the very real lives women lived in the period and events in question and still showing the goodness of humanity and the light of hope even in the darkest of situations, as Lane tries to do in all of her tales. Very much recommended.

This review of The Secret Midwife by Soraya M. Lane was originally written on July 27, 2023.

Posted on

#BlogTour: Women Of The Post by Joshunda Sanders

For this blog tour, we’re looking at a great work that shows the complex yet all too real lives of some WWII veterans you’ve likely never heard of. For this blog tour, we’re looking at Women Of The Post by Joshunda Sanders.

Here’s what I had to say about it on Goodreads:

Well Told Story Based On Real Unit/ People. This is a story probably unlike most any other you’ve encountered in historical fiction of WWII. Even if you’ve read about mail carrriers (there are a few such books out that I’m aware of, and likely more that I’m not), you likely haven’t read about *these* mail clerks. Even if you’ve read about African American servicemembers during the war, you likely haven’t read about *these* African American servicemembers during the war. Even if you’ve read about LGBT people during the war… you get the idea.

One thing that became interesting to me as I read this was thinking of the grandmother I don’t often think of much, my mom’s mom. But this was the grandmother that was married during WWII, and who bore her first child – my oldest uncle – just months before D-Day. Her husband at the time, my grandfather, I’ve spoken of a fair amount in reviews of WWII books, including his Silver Star and Purple Heart for his actions during the Battle of the Bulge. But here, the connection is with his wife, back home in Georgia alone (presumably with family around) with their infant son. You see, even when I knew her almost 40 years later, during the dawn of the Personal Computer era and as the Net was coming online (she would die a few years after the Dot Com Bust of the mid 2000s, having outlived both of her husbands and sharing this earth for over 23 years with me)… that woman always *loved* writing and receiving letters. Actual, handwritten, long form, letters. As with my grandfathers and their experiences in WWII, I can’t *know* what she went through living through that era – I never once asked her about it. But seeing how letters and morale were stressed so dearly in this tale here, and knowing her own situation at the time, I can maybe make some assumptions about how *I* would feel in similar situations, and it brings another level of depth to both this tale and my memories of her life.

Even if you don’t have a personal connection, however tenuous, to the subject here though, this really is an interesting and clearly at least somewhat well researched tale showing a “based on” level tale of real people who really lived and did and likely experienced these very things during that period, up to and including the Klan burning crosses in their front yards and the active discrimination that was so rampant even after the war, even well after supposed “integration”.

About the only suspect detail here is the idea that lesbians could live more comfortably in post-war Ohio than in South Carolina, but that is perhaps explained away as being able to get to an area where neither person is known by anyone, and thus be able to craft your own identity and reputation away from those who have ever known anything but what you tell and present to them. Which, one could argue (and build a genuinely solid case for) is simply no longer possible in today’s hyper-connected world.

Overall truly a great work that shows the complex yet all too real lives of some WWII veterans you’ve likely never heard of. 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: Women Of The Post by Joshunda Sanders”

Posted on

#BookReview: Blame It On Emerald Isle by Luke Young

Strong Continuity And Also Strong Growth. This book is Luke Young’s first in several years – I believe his last new release before this one was 2017’s Seriously Messed Up, which *still* holds up as one of the funniest, most truly laugh out loud books I’ve ever read. This book actually opens with a scene that will readily bring to mind that book for any who have read it, and the overall tale actually has a lot of similarities to Young’s formerly long running Friends With … Benefits series, including a fair amount of quite explicit, damn near erotica level sex that brings to mind the “Ian Dalton” “sexier” versions of Friends With… Benefits series.

And yet, Young also shows quite a bit of growth in writing almost a women’s fiction level romantic tale of self discovery, as well as in creating some genuinely heartbreaking moments not usually seen in his prior works. Clearly, the time away from new releases has allowed Young to grow and develop as a storyteller – and while that is never a bad thing, this in particular is also a case of a great comedic storyteller learning to show true depth, while staying true to his comedic roots, which overall makes him an even *stronger* storyteller.

So read this book. I can almost guarantee you’ll never find anything quite like it, as despite my extensive and wide ranging reading (particularly since Young released his last book), even *I* have never encountered one quite like this one – and yet it is perfectly in line with the romance/ women’s fiction spaces, and thus familiar *enough* to not be alienating in any real way (barring personal hangups about any number of topics).

Very much recommended.

This review of Blame It On Emerald Isle by Luke Young was originally written on July 15, 2023.

Posted on

#BookReview: The Beauty Of Rain by Jamie Beck

Beck’s Most Powerful Book To Date. Somewhat surprisingly, I seem to either own and/ or have read every single book Beck has put out to date – and I think there’s only four (the Cabot trilogy + In The Cards) that I haven’t actually read yet. So I can absolutely speak with a degree of authority on that title here in particular. With her move towards women’s fiction over the last few years, after spending her earlier career in romance novels, Beck has seemingly been working to exactly what she pulled off here – a balls to the wall, full out emotional rollercoaster that has the sheer power of the best coasters around, even Universal Orlando’s Velocicoaster (my personal standard for most powerful coaster online today).

To be clear, those struggling with suicidal ideation should absolutely steer clear of this book, as that subject plays a substantial and substantially heavy role in this tale – and which Beck herself makes clear in a forward to the book.

Also, this book is nearly black hole heavy, with a few jokes and other lighter moments thrown in, but the emotional weight of all that has happened before this book and is happening during this book truly is some *heavy* stuff – and indeed that is one of the things that makes this book so great. Because even while it is indeed so heavy, it never feels oppressive or hopeless. Quite the opposite – Beck does a tremendous job of showing the hope even in the depths of such tragedy and misfortune.

Overall, if you’re looking for something more light and fluffy, go with one of Beck’s earlier books. But if you’re ready to see some hope even in some of the darkest times that normal people do in fact experience… maybe you’re ready for this book. Very much recommended.

P.S.: While this book does in fact mention COVID, it is in the period before the events of this book, and while the events that play out in that period are significant here – COVID never really is, thus I did *not* deduct a star there.

Also, the struggles of parents of Autistic children is a major storyline in this book, and for my fellow Autistics as well as our parents, I want to point out just how *real* that story does in fact play out. Yes, at times it seems like Beck may be following that agency that claims to “Speak” for Autism (yet is actually the Autistic community’s KKK, according to many of us) and their “hopeless” commercial (one of the things we hate so much about them), but I need to stress here that there is no mention of that organization or even that idea. There is no child endangerment or abuse here. No so-called “Applied Behavioral Analysis” that so many of us in the community consider to be active child abuse. Certainly no filicide that is all too rampant among far too many parents. Instead, Beck shows a very real view of a parent just trying to do her best for her Autistic child. And indeed, even when looking for positive, Autistic Adult created and/ or inspired resources for parents, *even as someone who was once plugged into various Autism advocacy networks*… it was shockingly difficult to find something so basic “Here’s some resources if you think your child may have Autism” from the more respected organizations. And y’all… that’s on us. We need to create those resources to help these exact types of parents and prevent them from becoming the parents who actively harm their children.

But again: Unless you’re struggling with suicidal ideation… read this book. It really is Beck’s Most Powerful Book To Date.

This review of The Beauty Of Rain by Jamie Beck was originally written on July 10, 2023.

Posted on

#BookReview: All We Could Still Have by Diane Barnes

Quick Read That Serves As A Good Look Into The Mind Of Some Childless People. I’ve struggled for nearly 10 days now to sit down and write out my thoughts on this book, and ultimately what I come down to is that this really is a really good look at how desperate some people are to have children – and the lengths they will go through to get them, up to and including risking everything else they claim to care about. As a sub-300 page book, it is also a relatively quick read, which helps because this is largely one dark and depressing tome (can a sub-300 page book be a ‘tome’? this one certainly feels like it) that will have many readers wanting to throw it out the nearest window, even if reading it on your Kindle or other device. There is just enough light here to keep it from being *too* dark and depressing, but seriously, if you’ve ever been anywhere near these issues in your “real” life… this one hits all too close to home. And while I, as a male, have never been in our female lead’s exact shoes – I’ve been near enough to her husband’s, as we actively weighed IVF and the “modern miracle” horrors it wreaks on the female body in a desperate ploy to *maybe* get pregnant. In the end, my wife and I actively chose to become childfree – yes, there is a difference between childfree and childless, and this book actively shows it. Childfree is happy not having kids. Childless is always feeling a void/ like you’ve missed out on something, as our lead here does. Still, for those who have never reason to consider this particular path or its varying branches… this really is truly a strong look into that overall mindset, for all its benefits and pitfalls. Very much recommended.

This review of All We Could Still Have by Diane Barnes was originally written on July 19, 2023.

Posted on

#BookReview: Have You Seen Her by Catherine McKenzie

Not McKenzie’s Strongest Work, Still A Solid Read. I suppose this is how you know when an author is truly good overall – when they can have a book that is rather far from their best, and still create a mostly compelling tale from it. Here, it almost seems like McKenzie is phoning it in. Clearly, *something* happened here, but that is for her to know and we readers to simply move on from. 🙂

The book itself is both interesting and yet slow. There is enough of the mechanics built in to move the plot along and to ratchet up the mystery and tension before a wild curve late in the book that very nearly gives a sense of whiplash, and there is even room here for a sequel, should McKenzie choose to go that route. There is a lot of telling what happens rather than showing what happens, and yet McKenzie overall makes this work within the space of this tale and how she is telling it.

If you’re a fan of Yosemite National Park and/ or want to vicariously live a summer there, this may be of interest. If you’re interested in learning something about the volunteer search and rescue teams that spend summers in some of these parks, this may be of interest. And if you’re a long time fan of McKenzie, this will absolutely be of interest. But for anyone else, I actually recommend reading almost any of McKenzie’s *prior* works first, to see how good she is and build some trust first. *Then* come into this book with that trust, and hopefully it works out for you. I know it did for me, as I’m still looking forward to the next one. Recommended.

This review of Have You Seen Her by Catherine McKenzie was originally written on June 19, 2023.

Posted on

#BlogTour: Cassandra In Reverse by Holly Smale

For this blog tour, we’re looking at an intriguing take on time travel fiction. For this blog tour, we’re looking at Cassandra In Reverse by Holly Smale.

Here’s what I had to say about the book on Goodreads:

Neurodivergent Time Travel Women’s Fiction. I do believe this is the first time I’ve ever encountered a book quite like this one – a book with a neurodivergent main character who time jumps most similarly to The Time Traveler’s Wife (vs a true time loop ala Groundhog Day or a “glimpse” ala Family Man), but yet ultimately lands more on the women’s fiction side than the romance side, despite said main character’s main focus being on restoring the romance she loses at the beginning of the tale. There’s also quite a reliance on Greek mythology reimagined, more akin to elements of Jeremy Robinson’s Infinite Timeline event than say Rick Riordian’s Percy Jackson lore. But as with at least Robinson’s books (I’ve never actually read Riordian’s), there is enough explanation of the relevant mythology that one not need have a degree in the field to understand the story enough to enjoy the story for itself. Overall, this has quite a few rare features in it, and fans of the time travel genre will likely enjoy it the most, but others should still step into this wildly quirky world. Very much recommended.

After the jump, the “publisher details”, including an excerpt from the book, the book description, author bio, and social media and buy links.
Continue reading “#BlogTour: Cassandra In Reverse by Holly Smale”

Posted on

#BlogTour: Famous In A Small Town by Viola Shipman

For this blog tour, we’re looking at a tale that will make nearly anyone want to jump in their car and drive to Michigan. For this blog tour, we’re looking at Famous In A Small Town by Viola Shipman.

Here’s what I had to say about it on Goodreads:

All Michigan Tourism Boards Should Hire “Ms. Shipman”. Seriously, this book in particular is basically one giant love letter to rural Michigan, in prose form for around 350 pages. The history – for better and worse. The current – for better and worse. The land. The culture. The lakes you can never get far from.

And the cherries. Always the cherries.

Oh yes, there are humans here too. And some mysticism/ “magical realism”. And their story is both linked and compelling, as they always are in a Viola Shipman book.

But really, you’re reading this book to feel like you’re travelling to Michigan – and that is not a bad thing at all. It really is described so beautifully that even this hardened Southerner who has been north of the Mason-Dixon just three times in his lifetime… want to consider going to Michigan at some point. Maybe.

Very much recommended.

After the jump, the “publisher details” – including an excerpt from the book, the book description, author bio, and social media and buy links.
Continue reading “#BlogTour: Famous In A Small Town by Viola Shipman”