Category Archives: Book Talk

What We Set in Motion, by Stephanie Austin Edwards #review

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About the book, What We Set In Motion What We Set in Motion

 

  • Print Length: 320 pages
  • Publisher: Novel Ideas by SAE; 1 edition (March 30, 2016)
  • Publication Date: March 19, 2016

 

Set in the turbulent, colorful 1970’s, What We Set In Motion finds the daughter of a prominent old South Carolina Lowcountry family fleeing to New York’s Greenwich Village in pursuit of a dance career.  Cut off by her disapproving father and abandoned by her would-be fiancé, Nadine Carter Barnwell must strive on her own to beat the harrowing odds. Penniless and surrounded by the temptation of dubious money-making schemes and the bitter disappointment of seeing a friend fall prey to them, Nadine battles fiercely for her place in the ultra-competitive world of dance — only to reluctantly step away to please a man. It takes the loving, mystical intervention of her beloved aunt back in South Carolina and an unexpected letter from a young girl to set Nadine’s chaotic life firmly on the path to fulfilment and the startling realization that every encounter and each choice is a milestone in the quest to forge her own destiny.

Buy, read, and discuss this book.

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

About the author, Stephanie Austin Edwards Stephanie Austin Edwards

Stephanie Austin Edwards, author of What We Set In Motion (2016), is a writing teacher, novelist and grant consultant.Her recent publications include a short story in the University of Texas literary journal, riverSedge, and an essay in the book Beaufort Through the Ages. In a past life, Stephanie was a costume supervisor on Broadway for productions of Dreamgirls, Grind, The Rink (Liza Minelli) and Woman of the Year (Lauren Bacall), among others. She has worked on The Cosby Show, the Woody Allen films Hannah and Her Sisters and Radio Days, and Michael Jackson’s BAD music video. She lives in the South Carolina Lowcountry, teaching writing workshops at the college level and working for the Beaufort School District as a grant consultant.

Connect with Stephanie.

Website | Facebook

My Thoughts Melissa A. Bartell

I wasn’t entirely certain what to expect when I was offered the chance to review Stephanie Austin Edwards’ novel What We Set In Motion, but I certainly was not disappointed. The voice Edwards gave to her protagonist Nadine feels like a mix between Anne Rivers Siddons and Nora Ephron – feminine, intelligent, sassy, and definitely Southern. I was hooked from the first page.

While my favorite thing abut this novel was Nadine herself, and her story which blends low-country sass with uptown smarts, I enjoyed all aspects of this novel. The supporting characters all felt like characters you might have met in fishing camps or on city streets during the late sixties and early seventies, but slightly heightened, as if seen through the best of memories, which really worked for the story.

Similarly, I thought Edwards’ descriptions of places was amazing. Granted a costume supervisor has to have a good eye, but her words made every location seem vivid and even cinematic. I felt the dolphin spray and saw every outfit.

While I was a little concerned that this novel would feel a bit soap-opera-esque based on the drama and emotion in the first scene, but what I discovered was a well-written, compelling, thoroughly engaging story.

Goes well with catfish and hush puppies, even though they have nothing to do with the novel.

 

 

 

Terrible Virtue, by Ellen Feldman #review #TLCBookTours

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About the book, Terrible Virtue

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Harper (March 22, 2016)

Terrible VirtueIn the spirit of The Paris Wife and Loving Frank, the provocative and compelling story of one of the most fascinating and influential figures of the twentieth century: Margaret Sanger, the founder of Planned Parenthood—an indomitable woman who, more than any other, and at great personal cost, shaped the sexual landscape we inhabit today.

The daughter of a hard-drinking, smooth-tongued free thinker and a mother worn down by thirteen children, Margaret Sanger vowed her life would be different. Trained as a nurse, she fought for social justice beside labor organizers, anarchists, socialists, and other progressives, eventually channeling her energy to one singular cause: legalizing contraception. It was a battle that would pit her against puritanical, patriarchal lawmakers, send her to prison again and again, force her to flee to England, and ultimately change the lives of women across the country and around the world.

This complex enigmatic revolutionary was at once vain and charismatic, generous and ruthless, sexually impulsive and coolly calculating—a competitive, self-centered woman who championed all women, a conflicted mother who suffered the worst tragedy a parent can experience. From opening the first illegal birth control clinic in America in 1916 through the founding of Planned Parenthood to the arrival of the Pill in the 1960s, Margaret Sanger sacrificed two husbands, three children, and scores of lovers in her fight for sexual equality and freedom.

With cameos by such legendary figures as Emma Goldman, John Reed, Big Bill Haywood, H. G. Wells, and the love of Margaret’s life, Havelock Ellis, this richly imagined portrait of a larger-than-life woman is at once sympathetic to her suffering and unsparing of her faults. Deeply insightful, Terrible Virtue is Margaret Sanger’s story as she herself might have told it.

Buy, read, and discuss this book

HarperCollins | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

About the author, Ellen Feldman Ellen Feldman

Ellen Feldman, a 2009 Guggenheim Fellow, is the author of five previous novels, including Scottsboro, which was shortlisted for the Orange Prize for Fiction, and Next to Love. She lives in New York City.

For more information on Ellen and her work, please visit her website, www.ellenfeldman.com.

My Thoughts

Melissa A. BartellThere is no more appropriate time for this novel, Terrible Virtue, which was released two days ago, to be available. Ellen Feldman’s fictionalization of the life of Planned Parenthood founder Margaret Sanger is brutally honest and beautifully poignant, letting us see the life that formed her person and her convictions, but not shying away from showing her flaws. It’s an excellent reminder that our icons are, in fact, real people, just like us.

As the feminist daughter of a feminist mother, I was raised on Our Bodies Ourselves and Ms. Magazine. The name “Margaret Sanger” has always been a part of my cultural vocabulary, but the deeper truth of her story – that she was one of thirteen children, that she watched her mother becoming ever more exhausted and depleted as she gave birth to baby after baby – was new to me. This first person account of what Sanger’s life was like gave me a deeper context, and turned her from a mere name, an abstract symbol, into a whole person.

Ellen Feldman, of course, is not new to writing well-researched novels about real historical figures. Personally, her 2005 “what if” novel, The Boy Who Loved Anne Frank is one of my favorite such reads. In Terrible Virtue, however, she isn’t challenging us with the question of “what if?” Rather, she is asking, “what was likely?”

And her presentation – giving us the bulk of the story from Margaret’s own point of view where we see her as a fully dimensional young (and then older) woman, but also providing counterpoint in the form of people who disagreed with, not her fierce support that birth control was necessary and and required in order for women to be truly free, but also her other opinions –  really puts us, the readers, in the middle of history.

Her story, her struggles with her own loves and marriages, her ongoing battle with tuberculosis, and her impoverished beginnings, not only gives us a picture of a woman with a mission, it puts that mission into a deeper context.

The one quote that everyone is sharing is the one that really defines the heart of this novel, “No woman can call herself free until she can choose when and how often she will become a mother,” is absolutely the core of Sanger’s own life, as well. It’s a truth we sometimes take for granted, and one we must remember, especially in our “modern” age.

We are in the middle of an election year that is growing ever more toxic, and we are seeing our rights as women, as people, being constantly eroded by (mostly) white, male politicians who believe their religious leanings should govern all of us. TRAP (Targeted Regulation of Abortion Providers) are becoming more and more widespread, and more and more vindictive. Where is the Margaret Sanger for our age? And how will history treat her?

This book may not answer that question, but it’s a worthwhile read, and I can’t recommend it enough.

Goes well with strong coffee, dark chocolate, and an upraised fist.

Tour Stops for Ellen Feldman’s Terrible Virtue

TLC Book Tours
Tuesday, March 22nd: Sara’s Organized Chaos

Wednesday, March 23rd: Doing Dewey

Thursday, March 24th: Bibliotica

Friday, March 25th: Books on the Table

Monday, March 28th: A Literary Vacation

Tuesday, March 29th: Lesa’s Book Critiques

Wednesday, March 30th: bookchickdi

Thursday, March 31st: 5 Minutes For Books

Monday, April 4th: The Feminist Texican [Reads]

Tuesday, April 5th: From the TBR Pile

Wednesday, April 6th: Ms. Nose in a Book

Thursday, April 7th: Kritters Ramblings

Monday, April 11th: Puddletown Reviews

Tuesday, April 12th: Reading Reality

Wednesday, April 13th: Broken Teepee

Thursday, April 14th: Time 2 Read

Thursday, April 14th: Literary Feline

The Crooked Heart of Mercy, by Billie Livingston (@BillieLiving) #review #TLCBookTours

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About the book, The Crooked Heart of Mercy

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks; Reprint edition (March 8, 2016)

The Crooked Heart of MercyFrom acclaimed Canadian novelist Billie Livingston comes this powerful U.S. debut that unfolds over a riveting dual narrative—an unforgettable story of ordinary lives rocked by hardship and scandal that follows in the tradition of Jennifer Haigh, A. Manette Ansay, and Jennifer Egan.

Ben wakes up in a hospital with a hole in his head he can’t explain. What he can remember he’d rather forget. Like how he’d spent nights as a limo driver for the wealthy and debauched . . . how he and his wife, Maggie, drifted apart in the wake of an unspeakable tragedy . . . how his little brother, Cola, got in over his head with loan sharks circling.

Maggie is alone. Again. With bills to pay and Ben in a psych ward, she must return to work. But who would hire her in the state she’s in? And just as Maggie turns to her brother, Francis, the Internet explodes with a video of his latest escapade. The headline? Drunk Priest Propositions Cops.

Francis is an unlikely priest with a drinking problem and little interest  in celibacy. A third DUI, a looming court date. . . .When Maggie takes him in, he knows he may be down to his last chance. And his best shot at healing might lay in helping Maggie and Ben reconnect—against all odds.

Buy, read, and discuss The Crooked Heart of Mercy

HarperCollins | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

About the author, Billie Livingston

Billie LivingstonBillie Livingston is the award-winning author of three novels, a collection of short stories, and a poetry collection.  Her most recent novel, One Good Hustle, a Globe and Mail Best Book selection, was nominated for the  Giller Prize and for the Canadian Library Association’s Young Adult Book Award. She lives in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Connect with Billie

Find out more about Billie at her website and connect with her on Twitter.

My Thoughts

MelissaMake no mistake, this book, The Crooked Heart of Mercy is dark. It’s a difficult read, told in alternating first person chapters from Ben and Maggie, one of whom in in a psych ward, and the other of whom probably should be. It’s obvious from the start that these people have deep love for each other, but that love is being tested by circumstance, by low-percentage choices, and half a dozen other reasons that I don’t wish to list for fear of ruining the story.

The thing is, even though Maggie and Ben love each other, they’re both also fragile and broken. Maggie is trying to get her life back together, while Ben is trying to put his brain back together, and each, in their way, is also recovering from both a terrible personal tragedy, and the knowledge that their lifestyle was responsible for that tragedy.

Enter Maggie’s brother Francis. He’s a gay, alcoholic priest who decides that the best way to serve his penance, and kill his temptation for sex and booze, is to helf fix Maggie and Ben, as individuals and as a couple.

Author Billie Livingston nails the first person POVs  giving each character a distinctive voice. Ben’s parts are particularly surreal, as he literally has a hole in his head, while Maggie’s work the pathos – she really is struggling to improve.

I enjoyed the dark wit, the off kilter unfolding of the back story, and the earthy reality of the entire novel, but I also recognize that even for people like me, who appreciate snark and sarcasm and characters with somewhat murky moral codes this will be a difficult read. It deals with some difficult subjects and hard themes, and it deals with them in a brutally honest manner, but the storytelling is so good, that it sucks you in despite yourself, and you are compelled to keep reading until the ultimate resolution.

Goes well with pastrami on rye and a cold beer.

Tour Stops

TLC Book Tours

Tuesday, March 8th: Sara’s Organized Chaos

Wednesday, March 9th: BookNAround

Wednesday, March 9th: A Soccer Mom’s Book Blog

Thursday, March 10th: A Bookworm’s World

Friday, March 11th: Bibliotica

Monday, March 14th: Jenn’s Bookshelves

Tuesday, March 15th: The Reader’s Hollow

Friday, March 18th: Kritters Ramblings

Monday, March 21st: Novel Escapes

Tuesday, March 22nd: Good Girl Gone Redneck

Wednesday, March 23rd: BoundbyWords

Thursday, March 24th: she treads softly

Harlequin: Romance When You Need It

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Harlequin: Romance When You Need It

So, here’s the deal, sometimes everyone needs a romantic getaway, but life isn’t always terribly accommodating. As readers, we escape into books all the time – we sail the seas with Horatio Hornblower, write along with Jo March in her garret, ride down the river with Huck Finn, and quietly swoon as Colonel Brandon reads to us on our sick-bed. And sometimes, all we want is to be swept away by a strong, sensitive guy, whether he’s a cowboy, an architect, or a kilted Scotsman.

This month Harlequin wants to make that happen for any reader who wants to try out their different imprints – and believe me, there are a lot of them. Some are the traditional Harlequin romances we all grew up with; others feature contemporary stories with strong female characters who have jobs and lives outside their romantic encounters. What do you have to do? Just click the image above or visit this link: http://bookpages.harlequin.com/romance/

But first, watch the awesome video below.
Oh, and, before you ask? No one paid me to write this, and I’m not ashamed to admit that I read Harlequin romances every so often, myself.

North of Here, by Laurel Saville (@savillel) #review #tlcbooktours

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About the book,  North of Here North of Here

  • Hardcover: 257 Pages
  • Publisher: Lake Union Publishing (March 1, 2016)

Many may dream of a simpler life in the north woods, far away from the complications of the modern world. But in her absorbing and uncompromising second novel, North of Here (Lake Union; March 1, 2016), Laurel Saville reveals the dark side of such a life for four young people living in the Adirondack Mountains. This story of misguided decisions, a dangerous back-to-nature cult, and the universal search for meaning and love intertwines these troubled lives into a riveting blend of penetrating love story and persuasive page-turner. Saville, author of the #1 Kindle bestseller Henry and Rachel, once again taps her astute narrative powers in a tale of tragedy, survival, and love.

At the heart of the drama are four unforgettable, strikingly-drawn characters:

  • Miranda: A young “heiress” who discovers that the mountain property she has inherited is encumbered by her father’s debts and misdealing.
  • Dix: A self-assured “mountain man” who is really an educated, financially secure son of two accomplished professionals.
  • Darius: A preppy trust fund refugee who turns his own quest for meaning into a dangerous back-to-nature cult bent on healing lost souls
  • Sally: A brassy, street-smart social worker who, despite being perpetually unlucky in love, ultimately has the foresight to see the perils of loving Darius.

As this masterful novel unfolds, these four will become inextricably entwined in troubles that far exceed simple crimes of the heart.

Buy, read, and discuss North of Here

Amazon | Books-A-Million | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

About the author, Laurel Saville Laurel Saville

Laurel Saville is the award-winning author of the memoir Unraveling Anne, the novel Henry and Rachel, and the four-part short story “How Much Living Can You Buy,” as well as numerous essays, short stories, and articles. She has an MFA in Creative Writing and Literature from the Writing Seminars at Bennington College.

Once again, Laurel Saville applies her “poetic, lyrical voice” (Booklist) to a story that captures the complications of the lives we live—or wish to live.

Connect with Laurel

Website | Facebook | Twitter

My Thoughts

This book North of Here was my first exposure to Laurel Saville’s work, but reading her  work felt like curling up in a favorite couch – her language wasn’t at all simplistic, but it was still a very comfortable narrative style.

I really liked the way the four central characters, Dix, Miranda, Sally, and Darius, had distinct voices. At first Iwas concerned the Dix/Miranda story would play out like a cheesy romance novel, but Saville made both characters so real and flawed, and then turned the trope of the rugged handyman saving the spoiled damsel on its head, which I really appreciated. Similarly, in Sally and Darius she gave us two characters who were both difficult to suss out at first – Darius seemed like a nice, if slightly misguided guy, and Sally was portrayed as a white trash bitch – but then we were shown the truth of both characters.

In any other author’s hands the events in this novel – loss, death, depression, wanderlust, soul-searching, etc., would have been a story full of cliches and annoyances, something akin to old-school soap operas, and not in a good way.

Thankfully, Saville is incredibly talented. The Booklist quote above refers to her lyrical voice, and I have to agree. Saville’s storytelling never feels redundant, never slips into cliches or overly dramatic moments. Instead it is a gentle novel full of stark sadness  and incredible, naked truth.

It is that truthfulness that makes North of Here so gripping. The characters are completely vivid, and the book itself sings.

Goes well with homemade pie made with wild-picked berries, and a mug of strong coffee.

Laurel Saville’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS: TLC Book Tours

Tuesday, March 1st: Musings of a Bookish Kitty

Wednesday, March 2nd: Bibliotica

Thursday, March 3rd: Just Commonly

Monday, March 7th: Reading is My Superpower

Tuesday, March 8th: Thoughts on This ‘n That

Wednesday, March 9th: It’s a Mad Mad World

Thursday, March 10th: From the TBR Pile

Monday, March 14th: Kahakai Kitchen

Tuesday, March 15th: Book Dilettante

Wednesday, March 16th: Kritter’s Ramblings

Thursday, March 17th: FictionZeal

Friday, March 18th: My Book Retreat

Monday, March 21st: All Roads Lead to the Kitchen

Tuesday, March 22nd: Puddletown Reviews

Tuesday, March 22nd: A Holland Reads

Wednesday, March 23rd: A Chick Who Reads

Thursday, March 24th: Why Girls Are Weird

Friday, March 25th: Walking with Nora

Monday, March 28th: Life is Story

Tuesday, March 29th: Mom in Love with Fiction

Wednesday, March 30th: A Bookish Affair

The Opposite of Everyone, by Joshilyn Jackson (@joshilynjackson) #TLCBookTours #review

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About the book, The Opposite of Everyone The Opposide of Everyone

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow (February 16, 2016)

A fiercely independent divorce lawyer learns the power of family and connection when she receives a cryptic message from her estranged mother in this bittersweet, witty novel from the New York Times bestselling author of Someone Else’s Love Story and gods in Alabama—an emotionally resonant tale about the endurance of love and the power of stories to shape and transform our lives

Born in Alabama, Paula Vauss spent the first decade of her life on the road with her free-spirited young mother, Kai, an itinerant storyteller who blended Hindu mythology with southern oral tradition to reinvent their history as they roved. But everything, including Paula’s birth name, Kali Jai, changed when she told a story of her own—one that landed Kai in prison and Paula in foster care. With the two of them separated, each holding her own secrets, the intense bond they once shared was fractured.

These days, Paula has reincarnated herself as a tough-as-nails divorce attorney with a successful practice in Atlanta. While she hasn’t seen Kai in fifteen years, she’s still making payments on that karmic debt—until the day her last check is returned in the mail, along with a mystifying note: “I am going on a journey, Kali. I am going back to my beginning; death is not the end. You will be the end. We will meet again, and there will be new stories. You know how Karma works.”

Then Kai’s most treasured secret literally lands on Paula’s doorstep, throwing her life into chaos and transforming her from only child to older sister. Desperate to find her mother before it’s too late, Paula sets off on a journey of discovery that will take her back to the past and into the deepest recesses of her heart. With the help of her ex-lover Birdwine, an intrepid and emotionally volatile private eye who still carries a torch for her, this brilliant woman, an expert at wrecking families, now has to figure out how to put one back together—her own.

The Opposite of Everyone is a story about story itself, how the tales we tell connect us, break us, and define us, and how the endings and beginnings we choose can destroy us . . . and make us whole. Laced with sharp humor and poignant insight, it is beloved New York Times bestselling author Joshilyn Jackson at her very best.

Buy, read, and discuss The Opposite of Everyone

HarperCollins | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

About the author, Joshilyn Jackson Joshilyn Jackson

Joshilyn Jackson is the New York Times bestselling author of six previous novels, including gods in Alabama, A Grown-Up Kind of Pretty, and Someone Else’s Love Story. Her books have been translated into a dozen languages. A former actor, she is also an award-winning audiobook narrator. She lives in Decatur, Georgia, with her husband and their two children.

Connect with Joshilyn

Website | Facebook | Twitter

My Thoughts MissMeliss

Joshilyn Jackson is one of those authors you can always trust to tell a complex and interesting story, and The Opposite of Everyone is no exception. It sucked me in so deeply, that I devoured it in a single afternoon, not even aware of the thunder and lightning outside my window until I was done.

I really liked Paula/Kali, the narrator and main character in this novel. I love the way she described her entry into the world with a mix of brutal candor and poignant humor, and I like the way we see her as an adult for the first time – a lawyer on a case – texting completely wrong things to her ex lover who is also her go-to man when she needs a professional snoop. Her acronym BANKs- a twist on DINKs – made me snort with laughter, but also nod my head, because who doesn’t recognize people like that?

That’s really one of Jackson’s strengths, I think: creating characters who are incredibly real, flawed, and sometimes even scarred, human beings. This was evident with Birdwine, the afore=mentioned ex-lover, and with Kai – Paula’s mother who we never spend much time with in person, but get to know through memories and stories nevertheless. I think if she had been more present, instead of being more of a Presence – it would have changed the dynamic of the novel a lot.

While it would be easy to dismiss Paula’s cases as fluff or filler, I believe they’re more telling than we realize, not only because it gives us a context for how Paula lives her life, but because the irony of a woman who specializes in divorce but who becomes the driving force in keeping her family together is perfect.

And that, right there, is the essence of Jackson: perfect stories told about incredibly imperfect people.

Don’t buy this book if you think it’s going to be another fluffy relationship novel. There’s a place for those stories, too, but this one, The Opposite of Everyone, has more depth.

DO buy this book if you like contemporary fiction about strong women who sometimes have weak moments.

Goes well with tandoori chicken, jasmine rice, and iced hibiscus tea.

Joshilyn’s Tour Stops TLC Book Tours

Tuesday, February 16th: Doing Dewey

Wednesday, February 17th: M. Denise Costello

Thursday, February 18th: A Soccer Mom’s Book Blog

Friday, February 19th: Good Girl Gone Redneck

Monday, February 22nd: BookNAround

Tuesday, February 23rd: Bibliotica

Wednesday, February 24th: Jens’ Book Thoughts

Thursday, February 25th: Lavish Bookshelf

Monday, February 29th: No More Grumpy Bookseller

Tuesday, March 1st: BoundbyWords

Wednesday, March 2nd: Book Journey

Thursday, March 3rd: Joyfully Retired

Friday, March 4th: Thoughts On This ‘n That

Monday, March 7th: Novel Escapes

Monday, March 7th: Worth Getting in Bed For

Wednesday, March 9th: Books and Bindings

Thursday, March 10th: Dreams, Etc.

Thursday, March 10th: Queen of All She Reads

Friday, March 11th: she treads softly

The Ramblers, by Aidan Donnelly Rowley (@adonnrowley) #review #tlcbooktours

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About the book, The Ramblers The Ramblers

• Hardcover: 400 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow (February 9, 2016)

For fans of J. Courtney Sullivan, Meg Wolitzer, Claire Messud, and Emma Straub, a gorgeous and absorbing novel of a trio of confused souls struggling to find themselves and the way forward in their lives, set against the spectacular backdrop of contemporary New York City.

Set in the most magical parts of Manhattan—the Upper West Side, Central Park, Greenwich Village—The Ramblers explores the lives of three lost souls, bound together by friendship and family. During the course of one fateful Thanksgiving week, a time when emotions run high and being with family can be a mixed blessing, Rowley’s sharply defined characters explore the moments when decisions are deliberately made, choices accepted, and pasts reconciled.

Clio Marsh, whose bird-watching walks through Central Park are mentioned in New York Magazine, is taking her first tentative steps towards a relationship while also looking back to the secrets of her broken childhood. Her best friend, Smith Anderson, the seemingly-perfect daughter of one of New York’s wealthiest families, organizes the lives of others as her own has fallen apart. And Tate Pennington has returned to the city, heartbroken but determined to move ahead with his artistic dreams.

Rambling through the emotional chaos of their lives, this trio learns to let go of the past, to make room for the future and the uncertainty and promise that it holds. The Ramblers is a love letter to New York City—an accomplished, sumptuous novel about fate, loss, hope, birds, friendship, love, the wonders of the natural world and the mysteries of the human spirit.

Buy, read, and discuss The Ramblers

HarperCollins | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

About the author, Aidan Donnelly Rowley Aidan Donnelly Rowley

Born and raised in New York City, Aidan Donnelley Rowley is a graduate of Yale University and Columbia Law School, but her dream (long unconscious) was always to write. She is the author of a novel, Life After Yes; blogs at IvyLeagueInsecurities.com; contributes to The Huffington Post; and is the founder and curator of the popular Happier Hours Literary Salons. The middle of five sisters, she lives in New York with her husband and three young daughters.

Connect with Aidan

Facebook | Instagram | Twitter

My Thoughts MissMeliss

I’m not sure what I was expecting when I agreed to read The Ramblers, but it certainly wasn’t a triptych of love stories, combined with a dual homage to both E. B. White and the city he loved to write about, New York.

Almost like the different neighborhoods in the city, the three main characters have their own sections of the book, even though their stories overlap. Clio, whom we meet first, is, in many ways, the heart of the novel. Smith and Tate, despite having stories of their own, also serve as a sort of Greek chorus for Clio. It’s her story that opens the book, her story that closes it, and even the title refers to her tours of Central Park, and desire to ‘know everything about the Ramble.’

I found all three main characters, as well as the unofficial fourth main character, Clio’s lover, Henry the hotelier, to be very well drawn. My aunt used to teach Clio, Smith, and Tate’s alma mater, Yale University, and I attended enough social gatherings at her home to recognize all three of them as perfectly plausible graduates of that institution. I also thought Henry and his brother Patrick felt equally believable, and all of the characters were dimensional, flawed, and interesting.

Two of the characters in the novel are the city itself – specifically Central Park and the area around it – and E.B. White’s essay, “Here is New York,” both of which i mentioned above, and both of which offer key insights into the characters and their lives. In fact, the references to the essay (and my own experience with White’s work, both as a child, and since) pushed me to order a copy of his collected essays as soon as I finished reading the novels.

This is a lovely contemporary story that demonstrates the way even the people who seem to have it all are just as perfectly imperfect as the rest of us. It’s a feel-good novel, but it’s one that works through heavy personal truths in order to arrive at the feel-good place. It’s not fluffy, it’s just hopeful, and very, very real.

Goes well with a hot dog from a street-vendor and a beer from a local pub.

Aidan’s Tour Stops TLC Book Tours

Tuesday, February 9th: BookNAround

Wednesday, February 10th: I’d Rather Be At The Beach

Thursday, February 11th: A Bookish Way of Life

Tuesday, February 16th: West Metro Mommy

Tuesday, February 16th: Bibliotica

Thursday, February 18th: Read. Write. Repeat.

Monday, February 22nd: Books and Bindings

Tuesday, February 23rd: Book Journey

Wednesday, February 24th: Curling Up by the Fire

Thursday, February 25th: Thoughts On This ‘n That

Friday, February 26th: She’s Got Books On Her Mind

Monday, February 29th: Write Meg

 

 

The Christos Mosaic, by Vincent Czyz

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About the book, The Christos Mosaic The Christos Mosaic

  • Hardcover: 531 pages
  • Publisher: Blank Slate Press (October 27, 2015)

A suspicious death in Istanbul leaves one ancient scroll and clues to finding another in the hands of Drew Korchula, a thirty-two-year-old American ex-pat, a Turkish dwarf named Kadir, and Zafer, a Special Forces washout. Drew is desperate to turn everything over to the academic community, and in the process redeem himself in the eyes of his estranged wife, but Kadir and Zafer are only interested in what they can get for the scrolls on the black market. None of them anticipated a coven of shadowy Church operatives determined to prevent the revelations embodied in the priceless manuscripts from ever going public.

An action-packed, intellectual thriller unraveling a theological cold case more than two thousand years old, The Christos Mosaic is a monumental work of biblical research wrapped in a story of love, faith, human frailty, friendship, and forgiveness. The novel takes the reader through the backstreets of Istanbul, Antakya (ancient Antioch), and Cairo, to clandestine negotiations with wealthy antiquities smugglers and ruthless soldiers of fortune, to dusty Egyptian monasteries, on a nautical skirmish off the coast of Alexandria, and  finally to the ruins of Constantine’s palace buried beneath the streets of present-day Istanbul.

Buy, read, and discuss The Christos Mosaic

Amazon | Books-A-Million | Barnes & Noble, Goodreads

About the author, Vincent Czyz Vincent Czyz

Vincent Czyz is the author of The Christos Mosaic, a novel, and Adrift in a Vanishing City, a collection of short fiction. He received two fellowships from the NJ Council on the Arts and the W. Faulkner-W. Wisdom Prize for Short Fiction. The 2011 Truman Capote Fellow at Rutgers University, his stories and essays have appeared in New England Review, Shenandoah, AGNI, The Massachusetts Review, Tin House (online), Boston Review, Quiddity, The Tampa Review, The Georgetown Review, and Skidrow Penthouse, among other publications. He spent a total of nearly a decade in Istanbul, Turkey before settling in Jersey City. His work often deals with the existential themes found in art, myth and religion, dreams, and primal ways of perceiving the world.

My Thoughts MissMeliss

I confess, it took me a bit to really get into this book. I just didn’t connect with the main character, Drew, as he was in college, and at first, I couldn’t see why the Drew-at-university chapter was even there. At some point I realized that part of my reaction was because I received this book – which is a meaty 531 pages long – later than I’d hoped, so I didn’t have the time to sit with it, and the material, which basically boils down to “Was Jesus Real?” deserves, and even requires some digestion.

In terms of the subject of his novel, the theological and historical context, the mystery of the scroll in question, etc. Vincent Czyz has shown himself to be incredibly well-read, either from intense research or lifelong knowledge (probably both). You may not agree with some of the theories this book includes, but you can’t deny that the various arguments are supported.

As a novelist, author Czyz is a bit less polished, a bit more uneven. His dialogue is good, and even engaging, but I felt that his characters, especially Drew, could have used a little more depth. The plot was interesting, but the ending was predictable. Where he excelled was with his descriptions of places. In those cases, I felt like I was in Turkey, or on a college campus, or wherever the story was taking us.

If you’re really into religious history and the ages-old argument between fact and faith, you’ll probably enjoy this novel. If not, it’s likely to be the kind of thing that will appeal if you’re in the right mood when it comes into your life.

I believe Czyz has potential to grow as a novelist, and I liked this book enough that I’d definitely read his work again, but I’d be sure to set aside more time than I had.

Goes well with honeyed lamb, couscous, and mint tea.

Vincent Czyz’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS: TLC Book Tours

Monday, February 8th: It’s A Mad Mad World

Thursday, February 11th: Bibliotica

Monday, February 15th: From the TBR Pile

Wednesday, February 17th: Ace and Hoser Blog

Monday, March 7th: Life is Story

Date TBD: Patricia’s Wisdom

 

What the Waves Know, by Tamara Valentine (@tamjval) #review #TLCbooktours

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About the book What the Waves Know What the Waves Know

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks (February 9, 2016)

“A beautifully written story of a daughter’s journey to find her voice, both literally and figuratively. Valentine reminds us that to be fully human is to be both a storyteller and a story dweller.”—Christina Meldrum, author of Madapple and Amaryllis in Blueberry

On the sharp crags of tiny Tillings Island lies the secret of Izabella Rae Haywood’s sixth birthday. That night, her father vanished, taking her voice—and the truth of what really happened—along with him. In the autumn of 1974, after eight long years of unsuccessful psychiatrist visits and silence, Iz’s mother packs up the tattered remains of their life, determined to return to Tillings in one last attempt to reclaim Iz’s voice—and piece together the splintered memories of the day her words ran dry. But when the residents of Tillings greet them with a standoffish welcome, it becomes clear that they know something about Iz, and the father she adored, that she does not.

Now, as the island’s annual Yemayá festival prepares to celebrate the ties that bind mothers to children, lovers to each other, and humankind to the sea, Iz must unravel the tangled threads of her own history . . . or risk losing herself—and any chance she may have for a future—to the past.

Buy, read, and discuss this book:

HarperCollins | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

About the author, Tamara Valentine Tamara Valentine

Tamara Valentine obtained an M.A. with distinction from Middlebury College and has spent the past fourteen years as a professor in the English Department at Johnson & Wales University. Presently, she lives in Kingston, Rhode Island, with her husband and three children.

Connect with Tamara:

Facebook | Twitter

My Thoughts MissMeliss

There’s a line near the end of this novel, She will gather her children back together beside the sea, that has been pinging at my brain since I finished reading this in the wee hours of Sunday morning. I don’t have children of my own, but I understand that sentiment as if it was bred into me – the bond between mothers and daughters, and the bond some of us have with the sea = they go hand in hand.

Tamara Valentine clearly has an intrinsic understanding of both those concepts, as well, because her novel What the Waves Know is imbued with it.

Izzabella Rae Haywood, the narrator of this story, jumps off the page and crackles with life and electricity. Reading her POV is like sitting in a room with an old friend, hearing her tell a story you know you were meant to be part of, but somehow weren’t. Her voice is a storyteller’s voice. It catches you and sucks you in, which is all the more ironic when you learn that the character herself doesn’t speak, hasn’t for years, since the night her father disappeared.

But this book isn’t really about childhood trauma. It’s about the way our brains protect us from knowing too much, or feeling too much, and it’s about the way mothers and daughters, whether they’re blood family or the chosen kind, also protect us. It’s about the power of the sea as as secret keeper as well as a force of nature, and its about the way we perceive and later create, our own versions of Truth.

What I loved about this novel was that Valentine kept everything grounded in a tiny Rhode Island town (okay, Rhode Island isn’t exactly huge anyway, but tiny, run down towns have a special kind of magic, and Valentine used it well).

I also especially loved Grandma Jo, and the way she would spout pieces of utterly profound wisdom in an almost casual manner. I’ve known so many people like that.

This book affected me so much that, as you can read, my thoughts are barely coherent.

So here’s what you need to know: It’s the story of mothers and daughters, and the way generations of women forge strong bonds. It’s about family secrets and family love. It’s short enough to be read, well, devoured, in a single day, but so deep that you’ll want to take breaks.

It’s full of messy truths and rough affection and the whole thing feels wind-tossed and salt-licked.

And you’d be doing yourself a great disservice if you didn’t read it.

Goes well with homemade fish-n-chips and strong iced tea, eaten somewhere where the tang of sea air becomes a part of the meal.

Tamara’s Tour Stops TLC Book Tours

Tuesday, February 9th: Bibliotica

Wednesday, February 10th: Kahakai Kitchen

Thursday, February 11th: Ms. Nose in a Book

Friday, February 12th: Sara’s Organized Chaos

Friday, February 12th: A Soccer Mom’s Book Blog

Monday, February 22nd: Novel Escapes

Tuesday, February 23rd: Lesa’s Book Critiques

Wednesday, February 24th: Luxury Reading

Thursday, February 25th: From the TBR Pile

Friday, February 26th: Kritters Ramblings

 

Spotlight on Fighting Dirty by Lori Foster (@LoriFoster) – Read an Excerpt

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Spotlight on Fighting Dirty Fighting Dirty

  • Series: An Ultimate Novel
  • Mass Market Paperback: 448 pages
  • Publisher: HQN Books (February 23, 2016)

He’s the hottest MMA fighter in the game, but one woman is ready to try out a few steamy moves of her own in an unforgettable new novel from New York Times bestselling author Lori Foster 

With the life he’s led and the muscles he’s gained, Armie Jacobson isn’t afraid of anything. Except maybe Merissa Colter’s effect on him. It’s not just that she’s his best friend’s little sister. Fact is, she deserves better. Women pursue him for one night of pleasure, and that’s all he wants to offer. Until rescuing Merissa from a robbery leads to the most erotic encounter of his life.

Good girl meets bad boy. It’s a story that rarely ends well. But Merissa is taking matters into her own hands. No matter how he views himself, the Armie she knows is brave, honorable and completely loyal. And as past demons and present-day danger collide, they’re both about to learn what’s truly worth fighting for…

Buy, read, and discuss Fighting Dirty

Amazon | Books-A-Million | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Read an Excerpt from Fighting Dirty

Bestselling author Lori Foster shares a fighting scene from the last book in her Ultimate Series, Fighting Dirty

Fighting Dirty by Lori Foster is the final book in her addicting and wicked hot MMA-themed Ultimate Series. Check out the excerpt below to see just what we mean. Happy reading!

***

“Jesus, Quick. You’re a freak of nature. You know that, right?”

Armie Jacobson, known as Quick to his fighter friends, ignored the complaint and threw a few more jabs, then a solid body shot, making Justice, a six-foot-five heavyweight, double over. Stepping back, Armie flexed his hands, bounced on the balls of his feet, and waited.

Unfortunately, Justice only put his hands on his knees and sucked air.

Frowning, Armie removed his mouthpiece. “Seriously? Come on, dude. Let’s go.”

“Screw you.” Schlepping back to his corner, Justice grabbed up a water bottle. He doused his head and chest, and then started chugging.

Aware of others watching, Armie said nothing. Everyone worked out, trained and sparred in the rec center, but lately, whenever he did, a dozen or more people stopped to watch. He didn’t mind an audience. Hell, he couldn’t be a competitor if he did. For the most part he paid no attention. Once he got in the cage, he went into a zone and the world receded.

But this insane ogling shit, like he was a damned sideshow, bugged him big-time.

A trickle of sweat tracked down his temple from his headgear, and he swiped a forearm over his face. His muscles burned and more sweat soaked his chest, abs and rolled down his spine. He was figuring out what to say to Justice to get him back in action when he picked up her scent. The faint perfume cut through the rec center air, thick with the smells of sweaty men working hard.

Trying to look casual, Armie stared at Justice but in his peripheral vision he saw her striding across the room. No mistaking that long-legged gait, or that longer dark hair. He swallowed, frozen.

“What?” Justice asked, sounding both suspicious and ridiculously alarmed with the way Armie had locked onto him.

Armie shook his head – and thankfully Merissa disappeared into the hallway leading to the offices.

Releasing a breath, he looked toward the clock and frowned. Yeah, they’d been at it for a while, maybe longer than he’d intended. His cardio was better than most, definitely better than Justice’s, the big lug.

Armie walked over to him. “You need to get more gas in the tank.”

“Go fuck yourself.”

When Armie grinned, Justice eyed him warily. “Stop it.”

That switched his grin to a frown. “Bitchy much?”

Justice slouched against the wall and glared back. “You shouldn’t be able to grin, you prick. You should be as tired as me.”

A natural trainer, Armie took pity on him. “You’re a lot bigger.” As a six-foot tall middleweight, Armie stood five inches shorter and weighed a lot less than Justice.

“Lotta good it does me.”

Squatting down in front of him, Armie said low, “People are watching, so stop whining.”

Justice’s gaze slipped past him and he groaned.

“Yeah, the big dogs are here again.” Damned nosy bastards. Ever since he’d signed with the SBC, the powers-that-be had been scoping him out like their newest lab rat. “Stand up, go another two minutes with me, then we’ll call it quits.”

Huffing out a breath, Justice lumbered to his feet. “Freak of nature,” he muttered again, but he followed Armie out to the center of the ring, and he did his best.

His best was nowhere near good enough against Armie.

But then, they fought for very different reasons.

Twenty minutes later, fresh from the showers, Armie was ready to head out. The mid February weather left frost on every surface, so he tugged on a stocking hat over his still wet hair and pulled a thick hooded sweatshirt on over his clothes. Carrying his gym bag, he entered the main area cautiously. This late in the day, the mats were now cleared. Miles and Brand took their turn mopping with sanitizer. Many of the lights were turned down and only the core group of friends remained, clustered together in conversation.

The SBC heads were gone, and better still, he didn’t see Merissa anywhere. She’d probably just been dropping off paperwork for her brother, Cannon, who owned the rec center.

Relieved, Armie started for the door. With any luck, he’d manage it before someone stopped him –

“Hey, Armie.”

Damn. After a slight hesitation, he turned to where Denver, Stack and Cannon all stood together. “What’s this? The three Married Musketeers?”

Stack, who’d only married a month ago, reeked of satisfaction. “Aw, he’s jealous.”

Yup. But since he’d die before admitting it, Armie said, “Nope.”

Denver, still a newlywed himself, grinned. “Probably lonely too, poor guy.”

Very. Groupies, orgies, and random one-night stands could only take a guy so far. He had a rep for sexual excess, and that’s what the ladies wanted from him. That, and nothing more.

Checking the time, Armie said, “I could be lonely with three very nice ladies if you yahoos would let me leave.”

Unlike the others, Cannon didn’t laugh. “Seriously? Again?”

Why the hell did his best friend have to sound so disapproving? And if he knew why Armie had made those plans, he’d probably be pissed as well as disapproving, because it was thoughts of Cannon’s little sis that he worked so hard to obliterate. Not that a foursome would accomplish much beyond taking the edge off. His obsession with Merissa seemed to amplify by the day.

Copping an attitude, Armie shrugged. “Yeah, really. Unless you have something –” Or someone “- better for me to do?”

“As a matter of fact, that’s why I wanted to talk to you.”

Well hell. He hadn’t figured on that. Armie ran a hand over his hair. “Then let’s hear it.”

“Yvette wanted everyone to come over tonight to hang out and visit.”

Armie adored Yvette. She was perfect for Cannon and a real sweetheart. But damn… “Who all will be there?”

With a very knowing smile, Cannon said, “Everyone important to us. So don’t miss it.”

Double damn. Merissa definitely counted as important.

Armie didn’t want to, but with all the guys eyeballing him, how could he refuse? “What time?”

“Now.”

Armie scowled. “What do you mean, now?”

“Now, as in you don’t have time to do anything else, so forget it.”

Justice came dragging out, his faux-hawk hair still wet, his goatee in need of a trim, and his cauliflower ears worse than ever. He shoulder-bumped Armie as he passed. “If you hadn’t been determined to cripple me, maybe you’d have had more time for playing.”

“Wuss,” Armie accused with a grin.

“He has a point,” Brand said as he pushed a mop bucket toward them.

Miles, giving one last swipe of the mat, followed him. “Keep pushing that hard and you’re liable to hurt something before the competition.”

“I still have two months.” Two months of freedom and he’d spend it however he wanted. Sure, Armie knew there were established training methods, but they weren’t for him. Never had been, never would be – no matter who he fought for.

“This isn’t local fighting anymore,” Denver reminded him.

As if he’d forget.

“Carter Fletcher isn’t a slouch,” Miles added. “You might not walk through him like you do the local guys.”

“They call him Chaos for a reason.” Brand frowned. “I’ve seen him fight and he’s unpredictable.”

Yeah, so his first opponent was supposed to be a stud. Big deal. Armie shrugged to show he didn’t really care. Not that long ago the SBC, the most widely known MMA organization, had run him to ground and all but coerced him into signing on with them. Cannon had helped with that, pushing him to take the next step since he’d already demolished all the records in local venues.

It was a big step, too, something all the other guys had worked for. The SBC paid a lot more and offered incredible name recognition. Their fighters traveled the world to compete.

But Armie liked being low key; it was a hell of a lot safer for multiple reasons. If it wasn’t for Cannon –

“He’ll do fine against Carter,” Cannon said. “And don’t worry about his training. Armie motivates differently, that’s all.”

Always, no matter what, Cannon had his back. As the only other person to know why he’d avoided fame and fortune, Cannon understood. They weren’t related, but they were brothers all the same.

Which was the second biggest reason he couldn’t, shouldn’t, crave Merissa the way he did. Cannon protected those he loved.

And he loved his sister a lot.

“It’s getting late,” Cannon added. “Don’t want to keep Yvette waiting.”

Glad for the switch in topic, Armie pulled out his phone. “Guess I better make some calls and let the ladies know I won’t make it after all.”

Stack looked at Denver. “If it was anyone but Armie, I’d think he was making it up.”

“Lonely,” Denver confirmed.

Armie walked away knowing they were right.

About the author, Lori Foster Lori Foster

Lori Foster is a New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author with books from a variety of publishers, including Berkley/Jove, Kensington, St. Martin’s, Harlequin and Silhouette. Lori has been a recipient of the prestigious RT Book Reviews Career Achievement Award for Series Romantic Fantasy, and for Contemporary Romance. She’s had top-selling books for Amazon, Waldenbooks and the BGI Group.

Connect with Lori

Website | Facebook | Twitter

Lori Foster’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS: TLC Book Tours

Monday, February 8th: Bibliotica – Excerpt 1

Wednesday, February 10th: Read Love Blog – Cover breakdown

Thursday, February 11th: Books a la Mode – Valentine’s post

Friday, February 12th: A Chick Who Reads – Arnie, a fan favorite character

Monday, February 15th: Bewitched Bookworms – Series overview

Wednesday, February 17th: Written Love Reviews

Friday, February 19th: Worth Getting in Bed For

Friday, February 19th: Mignon Mykel {Reviews}

Monday, February 22nd: Reading Reality

Monday, February 22nd: Let Them Read Books

Tuesday, February 23rd: Majorly Delicious

Wednesday, February 24th: Stranded in Chaos

Thursday, February 25th: Bibliophilia, Please

Friday, February 26th: The Sassy Bookster