Author Archives

Melissahttp://www.missmeliss.comWriter, voice actor, dog-lover, and bathtub mermaid, Melissa is the Associate Editor-in-Chief at All Things Girl. To learn more about her, visit her website, or follow her on Twitter (@Melysse) or Facebook. You can also listen to her podcast, "Bathtub Mermaid: Tales from the Tub" at Bathtub Mermaid or on iTunes.

Review: The Wednesday Sisters by Meg Waite Clayton

by

When I saw The Wednesday Sisters on the “new in paperback” table at Barnes and Noble, I had to read the back cover. I did so, and took it home, along with about twelve other books.

In my defense – not that one needs to DEFEND book buying – I had spent almost an entire week writing about things like life insurance leads and how to save money on car insurance, and stuff like that, so I needed a lot of summer reading material.

I confess, I was hoping The Wednesday Sisters would be similar to The Jane Austen Book Club, but it was not, though both share, at their core, a story about close friendships among women.

Instead, Clayton’s book, which takes place in the late 1960s and early 1970s is a gentle story of personal growth and deep bonding, all tied in with the desire to write and publish ones own fiction – a desire I completely empathize with, since I am attempting the same.

The different women in the story were all well-drawn, with distinct voices, and while there was no snark, there were moments of real humor. Likewise, when one of the women begins dealing with breast cancer, there were moments of poignancy that would be difficult to match.

Was The Wednesday Sisters what I was expecting? No. Would I recommend it anyway? YES!

Review: The Missing Keys to Thriving in Any Real Estate Market by Eddie Godshalk, MBA

by


The Missing Keys to Thriving in Any Real Estate Market: How to Create Wealth in Any Community Using Street Analysis Technology
Eddie Godshalk, MBA
Get it at Amazon

If you’ve never working in any aspect of the real estate market, you may not think Eddie Godshalk’s book, The Missing Keys to Thriving in Any Real Estate Market, is for you. You’d be wrong, because while the last part of the book, which explains his Home Value Predictor, is aimed at real estate professionals, the first part is a thorough explanation of why the housing market has tanked, why there are so many foreclosures, and how some of the financial strife related to real estate finance could have been averted.

Even better, Godshalk explains the history of housing bubbles, how they work, why they work, and what’s happening now, in accessible language that anyone can understand, even if they’ve never taken a single finance course.

After reading his book, you’ll have a better understanding not just of the big picture, but also of the smaller sections – like why your own home is worth what it is, and why you may not be able to refinance any time soon.

If, on the other hand, you are a real estate professional, whether you’re a Realtor, broker, lender, or appraiser, you’ll finish The Missing Keys… with a better understanding of the industry in which you work, and you’ll also be armed with powerful tools that will help both you and your client.

Once such tool is Godshalk’s Home Value Predictor, which you can learn about in-depth at HomeValuePredictor.com.

As someone who worked as a mortgage loan processor and underwriter for half her life, I can honestly say that while I was asked to review Mr. Godshalk’s book, I wish I’d had it to offer every client I worked with – especially those taking subprime loans, because it should be required reading for homeowners and real estate professionals alike.

Review: A Circle of Souls by Preetham Grandhi

by


A Circle of Souls
Preetham Grandhi
Get it at Amazon >>

When Preetham Grandhi contacted me via this blog, asking if I’d consider reviewing his new novel, A Circle of Souls, I immediately stopped surfing websites for Myrtle beach vacation rentals and jumped at the chance. I was in the mood for a thriller, I told him via email, and after reading the description of the story, I thought it was just the sort of book I would love.

I was not wrong.

A Circle of Souls opens with a young girl on her way home from school – she never arrives, and the search for her (and later her killer) are half the plot of the novel. Intertwined with the murder mystery, however, is another mystery: that of a little girl who is having very vivid dreams which may be causing her harm.

Set in a sleepy Connecticut town, and filled with characters like the child psychologist working with Naya (the girl with the dreams) and a female FBI agent, neither of whom are at all predictable or “stock” characters, this book grips you from the start, teasing you with a cozy afternoon before it really dives into the action.

Despite the fast pace of the novel, and some rather bloody descriptions, there is also a gentleness to this story that is both lyrical and somewhat reassuring.

One of the ways I judge the quality of a novel is how willing I am to put it down and resume a non-reading activity. This book kept me enthralled to the point where I could not sleep until I knew what had happened.

Review: Confessions of a Counterfeit Farm Girl by Susan McCorkindale

by


Confessions of a Counterfeit Farm Girl
Susan McCorkindale
Get it from Amazon >>

I picked up Susan McCorkindale’s humorous memoir on a whim, largely because the blurb on the back cover mentioned something about living miles away from any Starbucks. As someone who has had that experience, and who considers “roughing it” to be a hotel that has neither wifi nor room service, I thought it would be something I’d enjoy.

I was not disappointed.

This book is McCorkindale’s snarky spin on what happens when a girl from New Jersey leaves her cushy job as the head of marketing for a well-known magazine, and moves, with her testosterone-laden husband and sons, to a farm in West Virginia. From her comments on local couture (or lack thereof) to her tales of catalog shopping – not for Dansko womens shoes, but for beauty aids, bikinis, and (later) chickens, everything is hilarious, but it’s hilarity tempered by her obvious love of her family.

While this book is probably best enjoyed by women with children, or women who regularly read Family Circle, there’s enough in it for those of us who only have dogs to enjoy.

Book Review: Best Friends Forever by Jennifer Weiner

by


Best Friends Forever
Jennifer Weiner
Get it from Amazon >>

When I saw Atria Book’s advertising their Galley Grab event on Twitter, I had to go pick some books. The arrived recently, and among them was Jennifer Weiner’s latest novel, Best Friends Forever. As with most of her books, I devoured it in the space of one or two afternoons and evenings.

Weiner, of course, has the talent of being able to give us a view of life as clear as if it had been recorded by one of the latest, greatest camcorders, but in this novel, the lens has a darker filter than her usual work. She’s grown from chick lit to serious fiction, and while the story is just as compelling as any of her others, the darker, more serious tone may be a bit jarring to someone expecting something like Good in Bed or In Her Shoes.

The story, as the title implies, is that of two friends. Val and Addie met in childhood, bonded, and then separated after high school, as often happens. When Val shows up at Addie’s door years later, bloodstained and shocky, how can she deny her best friend anything?

What follows is a sort of grown-up road trip, both physical and metaphysical, and at journey’s end, both women are more in touch with themselves and each other.

Sunday Salon: Free Books!

by

The Sunday Salon.com

It may not be exciting as winning a lifetime of Vegas vacations, but this week has seen me fetching free books from my mailbox at least three times. Two of them were sent because authors or publishers asked if I’d be willing to read/review their work. I love reading new authors, and the people who have approached me are so polite, and their work so interesting, that I could not say no.

The third mailbox trek, which resulted in multiple books, was my order from ATRIA Books’ “GalleyGrab“, where reviewers can request soon-to-be released work. One of these was the latest from Jennifer Weiner, Best Friends Forever, and since I finished Water Witches the day it arrived, and I’d been eagerly awaiting its arrival, that’s the book that has been holding my attention for the past couple of days.

This is NOT a review of Best Friends Forever, though I will say that Weiner’s tone is a bit darker in this offering, the humor more subtle, and the characters a bit less lovable, though still very likable. I’m just over half way through it, as I write this, and it will probably be my last book for July.

Maybe not, though, because I do read fairly quickly, and I now have a stack of books I want to read in addition to the stack of books I bought last year, and have put off reading, and have promised I will wade through before I spend (much) money on new books.

Of course, my birthday is in August, so all bets are off next month.

Booking Through Thursday: Quickies

by

btt2

On Thursday, July 23rd, Booking through Thursday asked:

Which do you prefer? (Quick answers–we’ll do more detail at some later date)

Reading for me is just as much an escape as rv camping is for other people, but just as the perfect starry summer night should never be spent alone, reading preferences should be shared. That’s how you find kindred spirits, after all. Here, then, are my preferences:

* Reading something frivolous? Or something serious? It depends. Does Chris Moore count as frivolous? I’ve been reading a lot of his stuff lately, but when I was going through heavy stuff, I read all of the Holmes/Russell series, which are hardly light and fluffy.
* Paperbacks? Or hardcovers? Paperbacks in the bath, hardcovers in bed. I’m more likely to let others borrow/keep paperbacks.
* Fiction? Or Nonfiction? Fiction, but I do love biographies, and non-fiction has it’s place.
* Poetry? Or Prose? I read more prose than poetry. I think poetry is meant to be heard more than read.
* Biographies? Or Autobiographies? Either, as long as the subject is interesting and the writing is good. Some really fascinating people just aren’t good writers.
* History? Or Historical Fiction? Either. Both. It depends on the period and the writing.
* Series? Or Stand-alones? Both. Stand-alones are great when you want to try many different authors. Series are good if you want to immerse yourself in another world.
* Classics? Or best-sellers? Actually, I prefer contemporary fiction that isn’t quite onto the best-seller list, but is still good. Though I was raised on classics, and I certainly think all well-rounded people should have a working familiarity with them.
* Lurid, fruity prose? Or straight-forward, basic prose? It depends. In a bodice-ripper lurid prose is necessary. Generally, I prefer basic prose, but good word choices.
* Plots? Or Stream-of-Consciousness? Plots, please. James Joyce and his ilk make me fall asleep – their style is too much like my drowsy brain.
* Long books? Or Short? The longer the better. Although I do enjoy short stories.
* Illustrated? Or Non-illustrated? No illustrations, please. I prefer to create my own mental images.
* Borrowed? Or Owned? I like to borrow books from friends who are serious readers, especially if a book has really touched them. I don’t like library books, though, because those funky plastic covers drive me crazy.
* New? Or Used? New is preferred. I don’t like books that smell musty, or have absorbed cigarette smoke.

Review: Water Witches by Chris Bohjalian

by


Water Witches
by Chris Bohjalian
Get it from Amazon >>

Anyone who has ever tried to lose weight can tell you that water is one of the best diet supplements. Anyone who knows me can tell you that water is my element, even though by birth I’m a fire sign. What can I say? Opposites attract.

It should come as no surprise, then, that when I saw a novel entitled Water Witches staring at me from the shelves at Barnes and Nobel, I HAD to take it home, and yet, I left it on my own shelves for months before cracking it open earlier this week.

What I found was a gently comic novel with a hint of fantasy, about dowsers in Vermont trying to fix a drought, while the protagonist of the novel, who was father, husband, and brother-in-law to these dowsing women, was working to aid a ski resort in gaining the proper permits to tap a local river in order to make snow.

As is to be expected in a novel about rural Vermont, there were colorful characters, cozy home scenes, and talk of maple syrup. What I did not expect, what surprised and delighted me, was the way the politics of environmentalism were worked in without the novel ever feeling preachy.

I don’t think I’m likely to pick up a divining rod and go searching for hidden springs under my front lawn, but I did, after reading this lovely little novel, spend a happy hour poking around the website for the American Society of Dowsers.

Review: Fluke, by Christopher Moore

by


Fluke
by Christopher Moore
Get it from Amazon.com >>

Nothing makes you want to lose belly fat like a Christopher Moore novel about whales and swimming and Hawaii. This is both because his writing makes you want to be the one diving into the water, and because you will laugh so hard that any jiggling bits you may have will eventually become painful.

Fluke like many of Moore’s novels, is an adventure comedy. This one is about whale biology, and the main character is Nate Quinn, who turns around one day to see a whale with “Bite Me” painted on it’s tail. Or so he claims. Strangely, the frame of film with the proof is missing when the film is eventually developed, and he is greeted by a vandalized home and office upon he returns from his voyage.

As with all of Moore’s offerings, to elaborate would be to spoil the plot. Just know that Moore has managed to combine the study of humpback whales with enough laughter, sexual innuendo, and preposterous misadventure, and to do so in such a way that the reader can almost feel the ocean spray.

Read this novel poolside, or better yet, take it to the beach.

Booking Through Thursday: Unread

by

btt2

On Thursday, July 2nd, Booking through Thursday asked:

“So here today I present to you an Unread Books Challenge. Give me the list or take a picture of all the books you have stacked on your bedside table, hidden under the bed or standing in your shelf – the books you have not read, but keep meaning to. The books that begin to weigh on your mind. The books that make you cover your ears in conversation and say, ‘No! Don’t give me another book to read! I can’t finish the ones I have!’ “

Right now on my nightstand I have too many books by Vonnegut, Murakami and Chris Moore. Too many because while I enjoy all of those writers, I don’t really like immersing myself in them, the way I immerse myself in Maeve Binchy or Anne Rivers Siddons, or Laurie R. King. Those women, I could read forever. Without a break. As long as they kept giving me new stuff.

Vonnegut, on the other hand, is weird. A writing coach I’ve worked with called him quirky, and encouraged me to embrace my own quirkyness. The problem is that Vonnegut’s quirkiness involves breaking the fourth wall of his novels. He’d have no compunctions, for example, about moving from a chapter about two guys going fishing, to explaining how insurance plans work.

(Disclaimer: As far as I know, Vonnegut has never written about fishing. Of course, I could be wrong.)

In any case my Unread books include:
The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove, by Christopher Moore
Timequake, by Kurt Vonnegut
Jitterbug Perfume, by Tom Robbins
The Electric Michelangelo, by Sarah Hall
The Girl Who Stopped Swimming, by Joshilyn Jackson

At this point, you’re probably thinking, “Wait, that’s only one each from Vonnegut and Moore, and no Murakami.” That’s because this list only represents the books I can reach without waking the dogs. It’s 4:41 AM – what DO you expect?