Review: Invisible by Carla Buckley

Invisible
Author: Carla Buckley
Published: September 25, 2012
Genre: contemporary fiction
eBook: approx. 400 pages
Source: borrowed from the library

My Rating: 3 stars

Synopsis (from GoodReads): Growing up, Dana Carlson and her older sister, Julie, are inseparable—Dana the impulsive one, Julie calmer and more nurturing. But then a devastating secret compels Dana to flee from home, not to see or speak to her sister for sixteen years.

When she receives the news that Julie is seriously ill, Dana knows that she must return to their hometown of Black Bear, Minnesota, to try and save her sister. Yet she arrives too late, only to discover that Black Bear has changed, and so have the people in it. Julie has left behind a shattered teenage daughter, Peyton, and a mystery—what killed Julie may be killing others, too. Why is no one talking about it? Dana struggles to uncover the truth, but no one wants to hear it, including Peyton, who can’t forgive her aunt’s years-long absence. Dana had left to protect her own secrets, but Black Bear has a secret of its own—one that could tear apart Dana’s life, her family, and the whole town.

My Thoughts: The description of this novel is what really pulled me in (the cover does nothing for me) and I thought that it would be a really good thriller to read. Afterall, doesn't it intrigue you as to why Dana left and what is this secret that could tear apart the whole town? Carla Buckley explores what happens to a woman who returns home after being away for years and years, only to discover that not only have people changed, but something is changing people. There is a higher occurence of kidney failure in this area that is thought to be normal. Julie has just passed because of renal failure, and while she started to investigate, it's now up to her sister Dana to figure out what is hurting the town. The chapters alternate between Dana, who returns home to find that her sister has died and left behind a husband and teenage daughter; and Peyton, Julie's daughter and someone who is now motherless and dealing with an aunt who she just met a few days ago.

I really liked the character of Dana and thought that the chapters told from her persepctive were the best. As an outsider in the town, she does see things differently than the people that never left, and she does find it odd that there is such a high occurence of kidney-related diseases in the area, even when the doctors don't seem to be concerned. Peyton's chapters were sometimes boring and I think it was because she wasn't contributing to solving the mystery of what is affecting this town. I loved her little ocean-facts at the beginning of each chapter, because they definitely played out with humans and it was interesting to see the connections between the way of life in the ocean and that on land.

My biggest problem with this book was that it sounded like it would be more of a thriller than it actually was. Except for about five pages, it wasn't all that gripping. Sure, there was a mystery going on, but it played second fiddle to the return of Dana to Black Bear and all the stress that she must deal with. I just wish that there had been more of a thriller aspect to it, because then I think that this book could have been phenomenal. On that note, I would like to read more of Carla Buckey's work in the future because this was an interesting read, especially with her research into environmental issues. 

Review: The Stuff That Never Happened by Maddie Dawson

The Stuff That Never Happened
Author: Maddie Dawson
Published: July 28, 2010
Genre: chick lit
eBook: approx. 368 pages
Source: borrowed from the library

My Rating: 3 stars

Synopsis (from GoodReads): Annabelle McKay knows she shouldn’t have any complaints. She’s been in a stable marriage that’s lasted almost three decades and has provided her with two wonderful children, thousands of family dinners around a sturdy oak table, and a husband so devoted that he schedules lovemaking into his calendar every Wednesday morning. Other wives envy the fact that Grant is not the type of man who would ever cheat on her or leave her for a younger woman. The trouble is Annabelle isn’t sure she wants to be married to Grant anymore. The trouble is she’s still in love with someone else.
 
In the early tumultuous years of her marriage, Annabelle carried on a clandestine affair with the one person whose betrayal would hurt her husband the most. When it ended, she and Grant found their way back together and made a pact that they would never speak of that time again. But now years later, with her children grown and gone, and an ominous distance opening between them, she can’t help but remember those glorious, passionate days and wonder if she chose the right man. Then, when called to New York City to help care for her pregnant daughter, Annabelle bumps into her old lover. Offered a second chance at an unforgettable love, she must decide between the man who possesses her heart and the husband who has stood squarely by her side.

My Thoughts: For quite sometime, I've been walking through my library and seen this book on display and the cover, for some inexplicable reason, just drew me towards it. Unfortunately, I usually had quite a few books already selected so I would put it back down and decide to check it out another day. Then, when it popped up on my library's OverDrive console as available, I jumped on it. Following a woman who cheated on her husband many decades ago but stuck with him after the affair ended, Maddie Dawson tells a story that spans decades and generations, and leaves you wondering when it is okay to cheat on someone and how many people you are capable of loving at once.

Annabelle is the narrator for this story and she has a very strong, clear voice. While I didn't always agree with her actions, I understood her reasoning behind them and why she was making the decision that she was making at the time. There were times when she appealled directly to the reader, but it wasn't frequently enough to make you comfortable with it. All of a sudden, two-thirds of the way through the book, she would ask you, the reader, a question directly, and it was a little off-putting because it was a bit out of place with what was going on in the novel. The other characters in the novel are secondary to Annabelle, and although they contribute to her story, it's her thoughts and actions that move the story along.

Overall, this was a nice little read. The cover doesn't necessarily describe the book, but it does fit with what happens with Annabelle (at least in the beginning of the novel). It does start out a bit slowly and you have to give it about 50 pages before it really pulls you in. Dawson alternates the chapters between the past and the present, so that you are able to fully understand Annabelle's affair and her actions and thoughts at the time. I would be interested in reading more of Dawson's work in the future and hope that she is able to continue writing with that clear voice that she gave Annabelle.

Review: Sister by Rosamund Lupton

Sister
Author: Rosamund Lupton
Published: June 7, 2011
Genre: mystery, thriller
eBook: approx. 368 pages
Source: borrowed from the library

My Rating: 4.5 stars

Synopsis (from GoodReads): When her mom calls to tell her that Tess, her younger sister, is missing, Bee returns home to London on the first flight. She expects to find Tess and give her the usual lecture, the bossy big sister scolding her flighty baby sister for taking off without letting anyone know her plans. Tess has always been a free spirit, an artist who takes risks, while conservative Bee couldn’t be more different. Bee is used to watching out for her wayward sibling and is fiercely protective of Tess (and has always been a little stern about her antics). But then Tess is found dead, apparently by her own hand.

Bee is certain that Tess didn’t commit suicide. Their family and the police accept the sad reality, but Bee feels sure that Tess has been murdered.  Single-minded in her search for a killer, Bee moves into Tess's apartment and throws herself headlong into her sister's life--and all its secrets. 

Though her family and the police see a grieving sister in denial, unwilling to accept the facts, Bee uncovers the affair Tess was having with a married man and the pregnancy that resulted, and her difficultly with a stalker who may have crossed the line when Tess refused his advances. Tess was also participating in an experimental medical trial that might have gone very wrong.  As a determined Bee gives her statement to the lead investigator, her story reveals a predator who got away with murder--and an obsession that may cost Bee her own life.

My Thoughts: Wow. Let me start this review with that one word: wow. This book is probably one of the best that I will read this year (I'm willing to make that statement pretty early on in the year!) and something that I will be talking about to everybody that I know. Beatrice has just lost her sister and nephew (who was stillborn), so she returns to London to deal with the funeral and burial. When she arrives and learns the circumstances around her sisters death, Beatrice realizes that her sister was murdered, although everyone else believes that she committed suicide following the death of her baby. Beatrice decides to solve this crime on her own since everyone believes that Tess was not murdered but just a girl going through a very hard time. 

Beatrice is the narrator for this story and she tells it in the most interesting way. She is talking to a prosecutor, telling him how she went about solving the mystery and talking to her dead sister at the sametime. It's the most interesting viewpoint that I've ever seen used to write a book and it was so engaging! When she talks to the prosecutor, you are driven to anxiousness because she has already solved the crime! You are on the edge of your seat, wanting it to  go faster! When she's talking to Tess, telling her how she figures everything out and uses the language that is common to sisters, you learn more about Beatrice and Tess, both as individuals and as siblings.

Rosamund Lupton is a gifted writer and it shows when she is talking about the sisters. As an older sister myself, I could totally identify with Beatrice and her madness to solve this crime. Afterall, we may not always get along with our sisters, but we know each other better than anyone else. That's what happens when you grow up together and share those common experiences that shape your personality and who you are a person. You forge a bond with one another that cannot be severed. And you also have an innate understanding of each other, which can never be broken. Lupton explores the relationship between sisters so wonderfully and it made me better understand my own sisters and the relationships that we have together. 

The plot is gripping and engaging and the end of the novel (don't worry, I won't give anything away) had me (literally!) on the edge of my seat, wondering if this was how the novel was going to end. I did think that it ended a little abruptly, which is why I gave this 4.5 stars. But at the end of the day, I walk away having read a fantastic book written by a gifted writer, one who I'm sure will be around for quite sometime. If you like mysteries or thrillers, or if you have a sister, then you must read this book. I promise you, you will not be disappointed!

Review: Elegy for Eddie by Jacqueline Winspear

Elegy for Eddie (Maisie Dobbs #9)
Author: Jacqueline Winspear
Published: March 27, 2012
Genre: mystery, historical fiction
eBook: approx. 335 pages
Source: borrowed from the library

My Rating: 3.5 stars

Synopsis (from GoodReads): Early April 1933. To the costermongers of Covent Garden—sellers of fruit and vegetables on the streets of London—Eddie Pettit was a gentle soul with a near-magical gift for working with horses. When Eddie is killed in a violent accident, the grieving costers are deeply skeptical about the cause of his death. Who would want to kill Eddie—and why? Maisie Dobbs' father, Frankie, had been a costermonger, so she had known the men since childhood. She remembers Eddie fondly and is determined to offer her help. But it soon becomes clear that powerful political and financial forces are equally determined to prevent her from learning the truth behind Eddie's death. Plunging into the investigation, Maisie begins her search for answers on the working-class streets of Lambeth where Eddie had lived and where she had grown up. The inquiry quickly leads her to a callous press baron; a has-been politician named Winston Churchill, lingering in the hinterlands of power; and, most surprisingly, to Douglas Partridge, the husband of her dearest friend, Priscilla. As Maisie uncovers lies and manipulation on a national scale, she must decide whether to risk it all to see justice done.

My Thoughts: I just love this series and was so glad when my hold on this book was ready for check-out. In this installment of Maisie Dobbs, Maisie journies back to where her life started, in Lambeth, where hard working people make up the neighborhood and wealth is something that lives across the river. Maisie grapples with many issues in this book, not only professionally, but personally as well. Maisie goes through a bit of a growth spurt in this novel, having to come to terms with her inherited wealth, her relationship with James, and her business. It's something that Jacqueline Winspear handles perfectly, allowing the reader to know what Maisie is thinking and showing them her decision making in the process. Unfortunately, because of all this self-discovery, I felt that the plot of how Eddie died was second to that of Maisie and didn't develop properly or resolve as Maisie's cases normally would.

The struggles that Maisie experiences in this novel are things that so many of us can relate to. Feeling suffocated in a relationship, not knowing how to handle yourself when you've moved from the bottom-rung of society to someone near the top, and what to do when work becomes just a bit too much. It's something that I know I can relate to and it was wonderful to see Maisie open up in this novel and let the reader in just a little more, to let them know what is going on in her head. Maisie can sometimes be a frustrating character because she makes decisions without always explaining them to the reader, but this time around, Winspear got it right. But because of all this self-discovery, the mystery in the book just kind of faded away. I was dissatisfied with how Maisie went about handling the case and how she came to some of her conclusions. I won't give anything away, but how she would just pull something out of thin air and guess, saying, "Well, I had a hunch."  She doesn't explain where that hunch came from, just that she has one.

Probably the best part of this book was the end. Winspear left it wide open, so you literally have no idea where Maisie will end up. Will she follow James to Canada? Will she stay in London? Will she travel her way around the world, solving mysteries as she goes? Winspear left it wide open and had me wishing that I knew just a little bit more! I cannot wait for the next installment in this series to come out (which is is March!), so that I will know what happens to Maisie next!

Review: Heads in Beds by Jacob Tomsky

Heads in Beds
Author: Jacob Tomsky
Published: November 20, 2012
Genre: memoir
eBook: approx. 256 pages
Source: borrowed from the library

My Rating: 3 stars

Synopsis (from GoodReads): Jacob Tomsky never intended to go into the hotel business. As a new college graduate, armed only with a philosophy degree and a singular lack of career direction, he became a valet parker for a large luxury hotel in New Orleans. Yet, rising fast through the ranks, he ended up working in “hospitality” for more than a decade, doing everything from supervising the housekeeping department to manning the front desk at an upscale Manhattan hotel. He’s checked you in, checked you out, separated your white panties from the white bed sheets, parked your car, tasted your room-service meals, cleaned your toilet, denied you a late checkout, given you a wake-up call, eaten M&M's out of your minibar, laughed at your jokes, and taken your money. In Heads in Beds he pulls back the curtain to expose the crazy and compelling reality of a multi-billion-dollar industry we think we know. 

Heads in Beds is a funny, authentic, and irreverent chronicle of the highs and lows of hotel life, told by a keenly observant insider who’s seen it all. Prepare to be amused, shocked, and amazed as he spills the unwritten code of the bellhops, the antics that go on in the valet parking garage, the housekeeping department’s dirty little secrets—not to mention the shameless activities of the guests, who are rarely on their best behavior. Prepare to be moved, too, by his candor about what it’s like to toil in a highly demanding service industry at the luxury level, where people expect to get what they pay for (and often a whole lot more). Employees are poorly paid and frequently abused by coworkers and guests alike, and maintaining a semblance of sanity is a daily challenge.

Along his journey Tomsky also reveals the secrets of the industry, offering easy ways to get what you need from your hotel without any hassle. This book (and a timely proffered twenty-dollar bill) will help you score late checkouts and upgrades, get free stuff galore, and make that pay-per-view charge magically disappear. Thanks to him you’ll know how to get the very best service from any business that makes its money from putting heads in beds. Or, at the very least, you will keep the bellmen from taking your luggage into the camera-free back office and bashing it against the wall repeatedly.

My Thoughts: As someone who works in the hospitality industry (I'm a restaurant manager), I'm always looking for a good memoir detailing someone's life in the hospitality industry. Since I deal with crazy guests all day, I like to read someone else's funny guest stories. It helps me to know that I'm not alone in the service industry. So, when Jacob Tomsky's book came out, I knew that I would have to read it. Chronicling his time in a hotel in New Orleans and then New York City, Tomsky tells you all about working front desk in a hotel. He began his journey in the hospitality industry after graduating from college with no job prospects and looking for some easy money while he looked for work elsewhere. Little did he know that he would become hooked in the service industry for much longer than he would like.

My only problem with this book was that Tomsky made it sound like he has worked in a variety of cities and positions, spanning decades (well, at least one decade). Instead, this book focuses on the two properties that he worked at and how you can get free stuff out of these hotels or get free upgrades. It was basically a book with his stories interspersed with how to take advantage of hotels. As someone who works in the service industry, I hate people who walk into a place trying to get as many freebies as possible. Afterall, these places are businesses, places that have the goal of making money. When you come in and nickel and dime everything out of the place, it's not only annoying to the staff, but you can guarantee that you will get the worst service possible. To Mr. Tomsky, I would like to say this: just tell people to not be mean, to be kind to the people working in these places of hospitality. They are human beings, they are not slaves, and they are not meant to be screamed at. I feel like he should have preached that more than how to get free movies and stuff from the mini-bar (also, the nicer you are to the people working in these establishments, the better service you will receive, and the more likely they are to pass along freebies to you.) 

I enjoyed this book because it did make me laugh at several points and brought a smile to my face. If you are looking for a memoir that will make you laugh and give you a peek inside the hospitality industry, then you should check this book out. While I hope that you don't go out and seek the freebies that Tomsky loves to talk about, it does give you some ideas to what you should look out for in hotel properties.

Review: The Girl Who Chased the Moon by Sarah Addison Allen

The Girl Who Chased the Moon
Author: Sarah Addison Allen
Published: January 1, 2010
Genre: chick lit
eBook: approx. 292 pages
Source: borrowed from the library

My Rating: 3 stars

Synopsis (from GoodReads): Emily Benedict has come to Mullaby, North Carolina, hoping to solve at least some of the riddles surrounding her mother’s life. But the moment Emily enters the house where her mother grew up and meets the grandfather she never knew, she realizes that mysteries aren’t solved in Mullaby, they’re a way of life: Here are rooms where the wallpaper changes to suit your mood. Unexplained lights skip across the yard at midnight. And a neighbor, Julia Winterson, bakes hope in the form of cakes, not only wishing to satisfy the town’s sweet tooth but also dreaming of rekindling the love she fears might be lost forever. Can a hummingbird cake really bring back a lost love? Is there really a ghost dancing in Emily’s backyard? The answers are never what you expect. But in this town of lovable misfits, the unexpected fits right in.

My Thoughts: I read The Peach Keeper, a later work of Sarah Addison Allen, sometime last year and wasn't in love with it the way that many people were. I thought that the characters weren't flushed out enough, the plot wasn't strong, and it left me wanting more. I decided to give her another chance since so many people (especially some bloggers who I love) seemed to enjoy her work so much, and I'm glad that I did. While this book is by no means a classic, it's a wonderful little story to get lost in and forget the outside world for awhile.

The story is so charming and sweet that it may hurt your teeth if you aren't in the right mindset to read a book like this. Set in a quaint North Carolina town, you follow Emily as she adjusts to living with her grandfather after her mother has died. You meet a cast of characters who all contribute something to the story, no matter how small the role is. Emily is a teenager, so you can expect some of those sappy teen love stories, but it didn't take away from my reading in anyway.

For me, there were a few problems with the book. For starters, it was too short! There was so much that could have been flushed out and expanded upon, but it was just a little too rushed in trying to wrap everything up. Then there was the ending. While I won't give anything away, I will tell you that it didn't really end the book like it should have. It left me with a lot of questions about the characters and wondering what happened to all of them. While it isn't a perfect novel, it was the perfect time for me to read it. I will look for more of Sarah Addison Allen's work in the future when I am looking for something quick and easy to get lost in.

Review: The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe

The End of Your Life Book Club
Author: Will Schwalbe
Published: October 2, 2012
Genre: memoir
eBook: approx. 336 pages
Source: borrowed from the library

My Rating: 4 stars

Synopsis (from GoodReads): “What are you reading?”

That’s the question Will Schwalbe asks his mother, Mary Anne, as they sit in the waiting room of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. In 2007, Mary Anne returned from a humanitarian trip to Pakistan and Afghanistan suffering from what her doctors believed was a rare type of hepatitis. Months later she was diagnosed with a form of advanced pancreatic cancer, which is almost always fatal, often in six months or less.

This is the inspiring true story of a son and his mother, who start a “book club” that brings them together as her life comes to a close. Over the next two years, Will and Mary Anne carry on conversations that are both wide-ranging and deeply personal, prompted by an eclectic array of books and a shared passion for reading. Their list jumps from classic to popular, from poetry to mysteries, from fantastic to spiritual. The issues they discuss include questions of faith and courage as well as everyday topics such as expressing gratitude and learning to listen. Throughout, they are constantly reminded of the power of books to comfort us, astonish us, teach us, and tell us what we need to do with our lives and in the world. Reading isn’t the opposite of doing; it’s the opposite of dying. 

Will and Mary Anne share their hopes and concerns with each other—and rediscover their lives—through their favorite books. When they read, they aren’t a sick person and a well person, but a mother and a son taking a journey together. The result is a profoundly moving tale of loss that is also a joyful, and often humorous, celebration of life: Will’s love letter to his mother, and theirs to the printed page.

My Thoughts: I love a good memoir, one that makes you look at your own life in a different way because of someone else, who you probably have never met. This is the case with this book by Will Schwalbe. Following the nearly two years of his mother's battle with pancreatic cancer, Schwalbe details how they came to form a special bond over that time, learning more about one another and the world than they could have without the aid of some great books.

I find if hard to review memoir's because it's hard to tear apart someone else's life and comment on it. So, I won't. Instead, let me tell you that this is a wonderful book about a mother and son bonding with one another over literature. Now, they do read a few classics, but most of what they read is newer or focused in the Middle East (Will's mother does a lot of volunteer work with organizations focused in that area). While it didn't take away from my understading of the book, it sometimes did make it hard for me to relate. But the way that Schwalbe tells you about the books that they are reading is great. If you are nervous that he is going to blow any books ending, then don't worry about it. While he is able to give you enough background on the book so you understand the topics that he is discussing, he never gives anything away (which was one of my concerns with the book.)

If you know someone who is battling cancer or whose battle with the disease has ended, then this would be a great book to read. While the word "book club" is in the title, this memoir has little to do with books, but more with the way we handle the battle of this awful disease, not only as the afflicted, but also as the family members. Definitely something that should be read!

Review: Calico Joe by John Grisham

Calico Joe
Author: John Grisham
Published: April 10, 2012
Genre: fiction
eBook: approx. 198 pages
Source: borrowed from the library

My Rating: 3 stars

Synopsis (from GoodReads): In the summer of 1973 Joe Castle was the boy wonder of baseball, the greatest rookie anyone had ever seen.  The kid from Calico Rock, Arkansas dazzled Cub fans as he hit home run after home run, politely tipping his hat to the crowd as he shattered all rookie records.
 
Calico Joe quickly became the idol of every baseball fan in America, including Paul Tracey, the young son of a hard-partying and hard-throwing Mets pitcher. On the day that Warren Tracey finally faced Calico Joe, Paul was in the stands, rooting for his idol but also for his Dad. Then Warren threw a fastball that would change their lives forever…

My Thoughts: Do you ever pick up a book and you have no idea why you want to read it? The premise of the book doesn't really seem like something you would read, but you are drawn to this book from some unknown reason? Well, that's what happened to me with this book. I don't like baseball, so why I felt compelled to read this book was beyond me. All I know is that I'm glad that I did. Following the fast rise of a man from the minor league's into the Chicago Cubs team, John Grisham tells a story of childhood, where you idolize those people who can do the unthinkable and, sometimes, the scariest people are the ones that you share a house with. Paul Tracey was a young boy when Calico Joe became a big star, but his father was a pitcher with the New York Mets. His father is a drunk and someone who believes himself to be better than he actually is.

For such a short story (only 198 pages), Grisham packs a lot into the story. There is the tale of childhood, of the long summers and playing with friends and having fun. There is also the story of a broken family, of a young boy who comes to grips with the fact that his father is a bad person and not worth the time or energy. It's sad to read about Paul's relationship with his father, but you know that he is justified in those feelings. Then, there is the fateful game, where Calico Joe plays the New York Mets. It's a game that changes Paul's life and Calico Joe's, along with his fathers. They are all changed by one play. It's a gripping scene and one that has you holding your breathe, anxious to know how everything turns out, even when you already know.

I don't read a lot of Grisham, but reading a book like this reminds me of what a great storyteller he is. In 198 pages, he tells a compelling tale of childhood and baseball, yet makes it a story that transcends the sport. If you are looking for a quick read, then I would highly recommend this book.