Robert Gray on Dolly Parton's Passing, Beans and Bind Debuts in Spokane Valley, Wash., Gloria Steinem Obituary, Meet me in Paris by Kristin Harmel, When Lemons Give you Life by Anna Johnston, The Castle in the Glen by Rhys Bowen and The Impossible Fortune by Richard Osman.

Heyho, fellow book travelers! It's been a horrific week or two, leading the end of the summer feeling like it took a whole year to run out. Between dental appointments, and esophageal banding with a gastro doc I've never heard of (because my own gastro doc is so busy and booked out through the first month of next year) and an anesthesia nightmare that had me hallucinating that everyone in the procedure room was some kind of animal (one nurse was a giraffe, Nick was a big brown bear eating a salmon with berries lunch) and they all were dancing and singing in a 70s nightclub with loud furniture colors and patterns, to trying to get more pain meds and trying to get a standing order for paracentisis and the illusive MRI for my painfully decaying knee, I feel like I don't know whether I'm coming or going. I'm fortunate to have a son who is ready and willing to help me with food prep and house cleaning and bills and everything else. If it weren't for him, I don't think I would have made it this far. Now in the past week, we've lost some great people, including the wonderful Dolly Parton and Gloria Steinem, both of whom have written books that I've read. Both are amazing women whose like this world will never see again. Anyway, here are some book reviews and tidbits/obits for you all to reflect on.

RIP to the great Dolly P, who wrote books and songs and gifted books to millions of children. God bless her. May she rest at God's right hand.

Robert Gray: Dolly Parton 'Believed Deeply in the Power of Reading'

Everywhere I go, the kids call me 'the book lady.' The older I get, the more appreciative I seem to be of the 'book lady' title. It makes me feel more like a legitimate person, not just a singer or an entertainer. But it makes me feel like I've done something good with my life and with my success.--Dolly Parton (via the Bookstore at Fitger's, Duluth, Minn.)

Dolly Parton died on Tuesday. She was 80. The Associated Press described her as a "country music icon whose soaring vibrato vocals, poignant songwriting and sparkling costumes defined her rise from a log cabin in the Tennessee mountains to the height of stardom and acclaim." 

That's true, but she was so much more. The AP also noted that Dolly was a "charismatic humanitarian, whose good humor and straightforward generosity lifted the well-being of communities in her home state and beyond. Fans across generations and geographies say it will remain part of Parton's legacy."

I wasn't surprised by the book world's emotional response to her passing. Dolly was one of us. In addition to being an accomplished author, her legacy is permanently enshrined in the Imagination Library, which to date has donated more than 330 million books to children across the U.S., Canada, the U.K., Ireland, and Australia. The project was inspired by her father, whom Parton described as a "very smart man," adding that she "often wondered what he could have done had he been able to read and write."

Many independent bookstores honored Dolly with, fittingly, books, including Secret World Books, Highland Park, Ill. ("a free used book to any kid 10 and under who comes in through Saturday"); and the Secret Bookshelf, Carrickfergus, Northern Ireland ("giving away 50 books to families from tomorrow to Saturday"). Plenty of options for donating were posted by booksellers like the Book Box, Draper, Utah ("all sales from our kids section will be donated to Imagination Library through the end of August").

Powell's Books, Portland, Ore. ("Dolly understood something simple and powerful: give a child a book, and you give them somewhere to go."); and many more.

Indie booksellers also flooded social media with heartfelt tributes to Dolly. Here's a sampling:

The Book & Cover, Chattanooga, Tenn.: "As a bookstore, Dolly Parton has been with us from the day we opened, part of the very first display we agonized over. As Southerners, she's been with us our whole lives, making sure we had books in our childhood libraries, making sure we knew being proud of who you are goes hand in hand with being kind, and making sure we knew one of the most important parts of living is knowing who you are and doing it on purpose."

Carmichael's Bookstore, Louisville, Ky.: "Dolly saw needs and took concrete actions to help. We would all be better served if we asked ourselves 'What Would Dolly Do?' and do what is in our power to help others. Thank you, Dolly, for everything. We will always love you."

Green Apple Books, San Francisco, Calif.: "Dolly Parton meant a lot to a lot of people. She did work beyond that of an entertainer.... We encourage you to do what you can in her honor now and always--be brave, be kind, shine on, and don't suffer fools!--but we are also putting a link in our bio to the Imagination Library if you feel like donating to their work."

Main & Mountain Bookstore, Kernersville, N.C.: "Dolly believed deeply in the power of reading.... As a bookstore, we can't think of a more beautiful legacy. Because somewhere, there is a child who fell in love with reading because a book arrived in the mail with their name on it. A child who asked for one more story before bed. A child whose imagination became a little bigger because Dolly believed books belonged in their hands."--Robert Gray

Spokane has been the victim of recent summer wildfires, causing death and destruction untold in the past month. This is a bit of good news to come out of the Spokane area, a new bookstore that I believe will fill residents with hope for the future of the Spokane Valley.

Beans & Bind Debuts in Spokane Valley, Wash.

Beans & Bind, a bookstore and coffee shop, opened August 1in Spokane Valley, Wash., the Spokesman-Review reported. Located at 17325 E. Sprague Ave., Beans & Bind carries general-interest titles for all ages, along with non-book items like tote bags, apparel, stickers, candles, kitchenware, and coffee mugs, much of it sourced from local suppliers. The cafe side of the business serves coffee, tea, espresso drinks, Italian sodas, and other hot and cold beverages. The food menu includes panini sandwiches, pre-made burritos, pastries, cookies, and other treats.

The store's children's section also serves as an event space, and owner Marcella Ferraro and her team have already held book drives, art activities for kids, and author events. Future event plans include things like candle-making classes and Gilmore Girls watch parties, and community members can rent out the space for their own functions.

Prior to opening Beans & Bind, Ferraro had eight years of experience working as a barista and always wanted to open a coffee shop of her own. After finding the space on Sprague Ave., she decided to expand her plans and combine two of her passions.

"I told my husband, 'we should just go check it out,' " Ferraro told the Spokesman-Review. "And then we got in here and saw the space, and I was like, I've got to combine the two things I love the most: reading and coffee, because there's room for it."

"From day one, our grand opening, pretty much every customer we get in here that's local has thanked us for having something like this in the Valley," she said. "Hearing how it's touched people to have a place like this to go…that we've never really had until now is amazing."

I started reading Gloria S's works when I was a pre-teen and a teenager in the 70s, and I would discuss her ideas on the patriarchy and misogyny and society with my mother on the long nights we worked the graveyard shift together at Iowa Lutheran Hospital. I continued to read her books later in my life, and I was always inspired by her clear reasoning and her brilliant wit and wisdom. Nobody, not even popular talk show hosts like Johnny Carson or Letterman or Merv Griffin could get the better of her in an interview...she outshone and outsmarted every one of them. Rest easy, beloved feminist icon.

Obituary Note: Gloria Steinem

Gloria Steinem, journalist, author, editor, and feminist activist, died yesterday at age 92.

"Calling herself 'an entrepreneur of social change,' Ms. Steinem helped usher in sweeping cultural transformations across virtually every facet of American life, from the boardroom to the courtroom to the bedroom," the New York Times wrote. "For more than half a century, she personified the women's movement and became its most enduring symbol; her tinted aviator glasses and curtain of streaked-blond hair parted in the center made her one of the most recognizable women in the world.

"Her own feminist awakening didn't come until her mid-30s, when, as a journalist in 1969, she attended a 'speak out' of women discussing their illegal abortions. Charismatic, articulate, media savvy, deeply empathetic and a workaholic, she evolved into a political and cultural force."

In the 1960s, she was a prolific freelance journalist, contributing to a variety of publications. In 1968, she helped found New York magazine, where she wrote a regular political column. In 1971, Steinem co-founded Ms. magazine, the ground-breaking feminist magazine, and was an editor there for 15 years. Among many other achievements, she also co-founded the Ms. Foundation for Women, the Women's Media Center, and Equality Now, and produced documentaries.

An autobiography, An Unexpected Life: A Memoir, is being published by Random House on September 22. In it, Steinem writes about growing up "a curious child: going on road trips with her itinerant father, caring for her mother, and devouring every book she could find" and her slow awakening to the problems of poverty and women's roles in society, becoming a leading feminist--and the rest of her long, rich life. Her earlier books included:

Outrageous Acts and Everyday Rebellions (1983), which includes a variety of essays and material, including her exposé, "I Was a Playboy Bunny"; a tribute to her mother, "Ruth's Song (Because She Could Not Sing It)"; essays on female genital mutilation and the difference between erotica and pornography; and the satire, "If Men Could Menstruate."  Revolution from Within: A Book of Self-Esteem (1992), which draws on her own experiences with a lack of self-esteem as well as those of others, including Mahatma Gandhi. The Truth Will Set You Free, but First It Will Piss You Off!: Thoughts on Life, Love, and Rebellion (2019), an illustrated collection of inspirational and outrageous quotes by Steinem along with her introduction and essays. Marilyn: Norma Jean (1986), in which she "revealed the woman behind the myth."

Among her many honors, Steinem received the Penney-Missouri Journalism Award, the Front Page and Clarion awards, the National Magazine Award, the Women's Sports Journalism Award, the Lifetime Achievement in Journalism Award from the Society of Professional Journalists, the Society of Writers Award from the United Nations, the James Weldon Johnson Award for Journalism, and others. In 2013, she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama.

Meet Me in Paris by Kristin Harmel is a romantic historical women's fiction novel that follows some of her earlier works (which I've read) like The Book of Lost Names and the Forest of Vanishing Stars with lyrical prose and a sturdy, well researched plot that illuminates a part of WWII from various women's perspective and leaves readers pondering the lives of their grandparents and great grandparents during a time when the world was aflame with danger and changing daily. Here's the blurb: Nine Americans in Paris. Seven intertwined love stories. One City of Light.

Love Actually meets The Notebook in a tale of love, loss, and finding your way home, all set over the course of one life-changing week in Paris.

Julia Glover has brought her twenty-three-year-old daughter, Piper, to Paris for the first time—but they know it will also be their last trip here together. Julia is dying, and as the mother and daughter desperately try to make memories together as the clock ticks down, the world opens up around them. Piper meets a cute French waiter, who might just understand her better than anyone she’s ever met, and Julia meets a man at a dive bar and struggles with how to tell him the truth about her future.

Rock star Jackson Quick’s glory days are behind him. He had a handful of hit songs thirty years ago, but he hasn’t toured in a decade. This week, he’ll launch his reunion tour in Paris, the city where it all began. But he wants more out of life than being defined by fame. When he meets a woman who finally sees him for who he is at his core, the ground shifts beneath his feet.

Henry McGee has been writing hit songs for decades—including Jackson Quick’s biggest hit, City of Light. But his secret is that every love song he’s ever written is for a woman named Celeste, whom he loved a lifetime ago, when they were both teenagers in Paris during World War II. He has spent eighty years believing she died—but when a letter arrives telling him the opposite, he’s on the first flight to France. Can he break through the haze of her dementia, using the songs he’s written all these years, to remind her of who they once were to each other—and to tell her he came back for her?

Henry’s granddaughter, Melody, has just discovered that her husband of twenty years, Gilles, a French cosmetics executive, is having an affair. When she confronts him, he tearfully apologizes and begs her to forgive him. But can she? And, perhaps even more importantly, does she want to? Or is there a different kind of life out there for her if she chooses to be alone?

These intertwining stories—plus several others—unfold over a few breathtaking spring days, as an unforgettable group of Americans in Paris must find their way to their own versions of happily ever after in the City of Light. 

Despite it seeming more fragile, Love actually becomes stronger during times of national/international crisis, as Harmel illustrates in each woman's love story, some of which end in tragedy and some in triumph. This poignant book leaves readers emotionally wrung out, having laughed and cried abundantly as we hear of the fate of those caught in the Polish ghettos and others who never even made it to the concentration camps, but were shot by Nazi soldiers or died of cold and disease on trains going to the camps. The horror of mans inhumanity to man will leave you as breathless as the love that sprouts and grows like a tough weed between people in unlikely places. While I learned a lot about the ghettos and the Paris resistence, I also felt that at times Harmel was a little heavy handed with her research, which left me feeling hopeless and finding it hard to continue reading. I'd give this book a B for that reason, and recommend it to fans of Wartime romance.

When Lemons Give You Life by Anna Johnston is an LGBTQ family life and adventure fiction novel that shines a light on a gay senior citizen who has given up on life and his talents as a chef, until one day he finds it all coming back to him when he makes a lemon tart for a fellow inmate of the nursing facility he's living in. Here's the blurb: 

From the author of The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife comes a heart-stirring novel about family, second chances, and the lengths we go for those we love, following a woman fighting to hold onto life and her older brother who's rediscovering reasons to embrace it

Retired Michelin-star chef Griff Barlow has lost his appetite. He's done with grief, guilt, and the beige slop they call food at Sunny Glen Aged Care Facility, where he resides. Six decades of life have handed him all the lemons he can handle, so he breaks into the nursing home kitchen to bake one last tart as his final meal. But the act of cooking stirs a dormant joy, and soon he's sneaking in after dark to serve up flavor and comfort to fellow residents, who come alive with each bite—all while hiding a lie big enough to destroy the one thing he has left to protect.

Lisa, Griff's younger sister and sole visitor, is navigating a midlife ADHD diagnosis, a new romance, and unexpected news that could change everything. Despite their fractured relationship, she keeps showing up, even with hope for reconciliation long buried in the silence between them. But the truth has a way of boiling over, and when secrets, soufflés, and second chances collide, Griff and Lisa may discover a recipe for forgiveness.

Heartfelt and inspiring, When Lemons Give You Life is a deeply human novel about love, forgiveness, redemption, and rediscovering joy when life has lost its flavor.

Grumpy Griff is, I would guess, loosely based on Hell's Kitchen's Gordon Ramsey, the foul-tempered and foul mouthed chef who creates blissful cuisine out of seemingly thin air. Griff has been living a lie, since he pretended to have dementia years ago, so the powers that be would allow him to live with his long-time love, suffering from Alzheimers, in the same nursing home room. No one, including his estranged sister, has copped to the fact that he's been lying, so he uses his anonymous mutism to sneak into the kitchen on weekends, pretend to be their chef, and make delicious food for the patrons of the nursing home, whom he knows don't all need or want bland tasteless mush day in and day out. Everythings going well until he's caught, and his ungrateful sister is really pissed off at him. Fortunately, he's been going through the food budget books and manages to get the adminstrator who has been stealing money from the food budget arrested. Eventually his sister forgives him (she seems a bit too needy and mean to me) and the HEA wraps everything up. I'd give this heartfelt and fun novel a B+, and recommend it to anyone who is interested in nutrition and the elderly, food and what its like to be alone and forgotten after age 65.

The Castle in the Glen by Rhys Bowen is a historical mystery set in Scotland. Here's the blurb: 

A ghostwriter plunges into danger as she unravels the dark secrets of a powerful Scottish family in a thrilling novel of romance and mystery by the bestselling author of Mrs. Endicott’s Splendid Adventure.

Australian writer Emma Callander has been recruited to complete the final historical mystery in a series by celebrated author Iris Blackburn. It’s 1965, and Iris’s memory is fading. She’s certain that only Emma can do justice to her novel about a murder on the Isle of Skye. When Emma ventures to Scotland for research, she discovers the story is not fiction at all but rather a true crime, unsolved for more than fifty years.

It was 1904 when a couple’s suspicious drowning led to the disappearance of a mysterious young woman the locals called the Wild Girl. To this day the mystery is unforgettable, especially among the descendants of an aristocratic family who’ll do anything to keep their secrets buried. From the misty Highlands to a medieval castle, Emma and Tony Gordon, Iris’s handsome lawyer, work ever more closely to uncover them.

But while Iris may be known for her fiendishly clever twists, there’s one not even Emma could have seen coming.

The clever protagonist and her search for belonging on the Isle of Sky was engaging and romantic at first, but became slightly tedious midway through. I knew that Emma was being manipulated by Iris right from the start, and I felt that she should have realized that the story she was charged with completing was true, and that Iris was trying to tell her something (but felt it was better to play games with her rather than come right out and tell her what was going on). I've read more than a few of Bowen's books, and her prose becomes more polished in each one. Since this book was so long (over 400 pages) it helped that Bowen never over-stretches her plots, and allows readers a recap or two along the way, so they don't get lost in all the mysterious background stuff. I'd give this book a B-, and recommend it to those who like slow-reading historical fiction that you can savor.

 

The Impossible Fortune by Richard Osman is the 5th book in the Thursday Murder Club Mystery series, which was made into a TV streaming series a couple of years back with Helen Mirren and Pierce Brosnan. Here's the blurb: Who's got time to think about murder when there's a wedding to plan?

It’s been a quiet year for the Thursday Murder Club. Joyce is busy with table plans and first dances. Elizabeth is grieving. Ron is dealing with family troubles, and Ibrahim is still providing therapy to his favorite criminal.

But when Elizabeth meets Nick, a wedding guest asking for her help, she finds the thrill of the chase is ignited once again. And when Nick disappears without a trace, his cagey business partner becomes the gang’s next stop. It seems the duo have something valuable—something worth killing for.

Joyce’s daughter, Joanna, jumps into the fray to help the gang as they seek answers: Has someone kidnapped Nick? And what’s this uncrackable code they keep hearing about? Plunged back into action once more, can the four friends solve the puzzle and a murder in time?

 

Though I really enjoyed the first season of the streaming series, I now can't picture the characters in the novel as anyone but the actors who have portrayed them on TV.   So when I read about Ron, I see Pierce Brosnan, and Elizabeth will always be Helen Mirren for me. Daffy Joyce will always be Celia Imrie, and Ben Kingsley the stately Ibrahim. The prose from actor Richard Osman is stunning, and his plots full of twists and turns that you will never see coming. I laughed out loud at several points, and as usual, Osman left me wanting more, so I will be waiting impatiently for the 6th book in the series. I'd give this installment a B+, and recommend it to anyone who enjoys reading about more seasoned (older) sleuths going the distance to solve the various mysteries that plague one's life.

 

The Ministry of Time Comes to TV, Highland Books Chalkboard Wisdom, The Secret Society of Librarians by Kate Thompson, Murder at the Bookstore by Sue Minix, Weyward by Emilia Hart, The Romance Revival by Christina Lauren, and Better Than Revenge by Kasie West

It's the last month of August, FINALLY! Welcome to the end of summer and the beginning of Fall, my favorite time of year. It's "ber" season, as in September, October, November and December. All months full of cozy revelry, warm fires and good memories. BTW, today the wonderful Dolly Parton died of cancer...she was 80 years old, but still making music and reaching out to do good things in the world. She gave millions of books away to children all over the world to stave off literacy, she gave money to scientists to help them find a COVID vaccine, and she constantly did duets and talk shows with other musicians, uplifting everyone in her wake. Amazing woman, gone too soon. I hope she's in heaven having a great time singing and dancing with those who have gone before her, including her husband of many years. God speed, Dolly. You will be missed.

 

I read this series, and while I really enjoyed the first few books, the latter ones became too focused on things other than time travel. Still, it had a lot of fun plot elements and some great dialogue between characters. I will look forward to see the TV series. 

 

TV: The Ministry of Time

Aoife Hinds (Dune: Prophecy, Normal People) and Billy Howle (The Perfect Couple, Under the Banner of Heaven) will star in the BBC and A24 TV series The Ministry of Time, based on Kaliane Bradley's bestselling debut novel. Deadline reported that Hinds will play Sophy and Howle will be Commander Graham Gore, with filming beginning in and around London.

The BBC's director of drama Lindsay Salt commissioned the six-part show,

which has been adapted and written by Alice Birch, who is an exec

producer alongside Aneil Karia and Jo McClellan for the BBC. Frances du

Pille is the producer, and A24 has international distribution rights. 

"The Ministry of Time is a truly distinctive, genre-defying series with

a beautiful central relationship and we are thrilled to have Aoife and

Billy leading the cast," said Salt.

"If I could travel back in time six years to tell past me what was going

to happen with that polar explorer she'd just started writing about, I

think she would have done some very Victorian swooning," Bradley added.

 

YES! This is the best way to survive in these troubled times, especially in America. 

Chalkboard: Highland Books

"I solve the majority of my problems by ignoring them & then reading about the conflicts of fictional characters instead." That was the message on the sidewalk chalkboard in front of Highland Books in Brevard, N.C.

(Editors note: Me, too!)

 

The Secret Society of Librarians by Kate Thompson is a WWII historical fiction novel that is so well researched and written that you might find yourself, as I was, so engrossed in the narrative that you look up from its pages and realize that hours, or even an entire day has passed. Here's the blurb: The Secret Society of Librarians is a heartbreaking yet heartwarming wartime library-set novel, inspired by real people, real stories, and extensive research.

Meeting through real-life Secret Society of Librarians in London, two women form a close bond. When WW2 hits, they take their libraries underground, creating create a roaming underground library.

But when one of them is taken to Poland and a concentration camp, they think there is no chance of ever being reunited again.

This is an inspirational, true and compelling story about friendship, everyday bravery and the power of books, with a dual narrative set between London and Poland in the 1940s. 

 

This page turner is very descriptive of specific incidents of WWII, like the London Blitz and the bombing of homes and refugee centers, as well as the conditions in the Polish ghettos and the forced removal of Jewish families via train to concentration camps like Auschwitz. So if you have a weak constitution, or stomach, be aware that this might not be the book for you right now. Even though, having worked as a nurse, I'm not bothered by gore and such, these scenes from the wars front lines really got to me. I cried several times, even knowing that all of the drama happened 80 years ago. Of course there were also lighthearted moments of romance and beauty, and when one character or another stepped up to save the life of a Jewish child (there were so many orphans! Horrific!) I felt such tremendous hope for the child, that they would grow up happy and healthy, with a roof over their head and good food in their bellies...things so many of todays children take for granted (I certainly did). Thompson's prose is clear and direct, and her plot takes more than a few detours, but she manages to thread them all together expertly. There are photos, at the end of the novel, that the author took on a visit to Auschwitz, of the open graves and the railroad tracks. Chilling, literally. I'd give this intense and beautiful historical novel an A, and recommend it to anyone who wonders about the veracity of the Jewish holocaust and the London Blitz.

 

Murder at the Bookstore by Sue Minix is a sassy mystery that combines the best of old school whodunnits with today's cozy style small town mysteries. Here's the blurb: 

Meet Jen Dawson, mystery writer, coffee lover, and amateur detective?

Crime writer Jen returns to her small hometown with a bestselling book behind her and a bad case of writer’s block. Finding sanctuary in the local bookstore, with an endless supply of coffee, Jen waits impatiently for inspiration to strike.

But when the owner of the bookstore dies suddenly in mysterious circumstances, Jen has a real-life murder to solve.

The stakes are suddenly higher when evidence places Jen at the scene of the crime and the reading of the will names her as the new owner of the bookstore …

Can she crack the case and clear her name, before the killer strikes again?

 

This book is a combination of an Agatha Christie and Miranda James or Laurie Cass, with their fun and fascinating "cats in the stacks" mysteries that always have a smart kitty helping out with the sleuthing. The prose was slightly overdone, but the plot was sturdy and direct and managed to keep everything running smoothly to an ending that I did not see coming, which is rare for me. I'd give it a B+ and recommend this novel to anyone who is interested in small town bookstores and writers finding themselves after returning home.

 

Weyward by Emilia Hart is a historical fantasy along the lines of Alice Hoffman's Practical Magic. The prose is bold and the plot gripping, but you really have to pay close attention to both, lest you get lost in the unusually weird and wild plot. Here's the blurb: I am a Weyward, and wild inside.

2019: Under cover of darkness, Kate flees London for ramshackle Weyward Cottage, inherited from a great-aunt she barely remeTmbers. With its tumbling ivy and overgrown garden, the cottage is worlds away from the abusive partner who tormented Kate. But she suspects that her great-aunt had a secret. One that lurks in the bones of the cottage, hidden ever since the witch-hunts of the 17th century.

1619: Altha is awaiting trial for the murder of a local farmer who was stampeded to death by his herd. When Altha was a girl, her mother taught her their magic, a kind not rooted in spell casting but in a deep knowledge of the natural world. But unusual women have always been deemed dangerous, and as the evidence of witchcraft is laid out against Altha, she knows it will take all her powers to maintain her freedom.

1942: As World War II rages, Violet is trapped in her family's grand, crumbling estate. Straitjacketed by societal convention, she longs for the robust education her brother receives––and for her mother, long deceased, who was rumored to have gone mad before her death. The only traces Violet has of her are a locket bearing the initial W and the word weyward scratched into the baseboard of her bedroom.

Weaving together the stories of three extraordinary women across five centuries, Emilia Hart's Weyward is an astonishing debut, and an enthralling novel of female resilience. 

 

Just when you think you know where all the disparate stories of these three traumatized women is going, Hart pulls a fast one and the plot breaks off in a completely different direction, which can be confusing. Yet there's a lot of good feminist views intertwined within the novel, so you really root for each of the characters to get out of their troubles and begin a new life on their own. Freedom, as every woman knows, is not easy to find or maintain for a woman in any era of society, so the fact that all three of these women strive for it, despite long odds, is heartening and hopeful. I'd give this odd but worthy duck of a book a B+ and recommend it to anyone who enjoyed Alice Hoffmans Practical Magic, or other witchy tales.

 

The Romance Revival by Christina Lauren is a romantic fantasy married to a Frankenstein-like tale of the powers of science to revive the dead and the moral dilemnas thereof. Here's the blurb: Christina Lauren returns with an unforgettable romance in which a fateful accident erases a troubled marriage from memory—and a scientific breakthrough gives love one extraordinary do-over.

Three years ago, scientist Emery Finch did something completely out of character: She got married. To Luca—the impossibly charming landscaper she met on one blistering night in Vegas who made her laugh, made her dance, made her feel.

But now, Emery is consumed by her top research, missing dinners, forgetting anniversaries, and promising herself Luca will understand once her cutting-edge discoveries come to light. Until the unthinkable happens: A tragic accident takes Luca from her.

Desperate not to lose him, Emery breaks every rule, using the classified technology she’s developed to bring him back to life. And Luca would probably thank her for it, if only he could remember her. Their first kiss, their Sunny Sundays at the beach, the life they built together…all of it is gone.

It may be a miracle of science, but for Emery it’s her one shot at a second chance. And this time, she won’t waste it—because true love is always worth reviving.

 

I disagree with the last statement there...I don't think the novel proves that love is always worth reviving, especially with all the trouble that Emery gets into when other powerful people discover that she's used this technology for her own ends, and they will do anything to acquire it.There's some spice in the later chapters, but it reads like it was written after discovering a "how to write sex scenes in a romance" pamphlet, so it flops around without much of a point. The ending was also kind of lukewarm, and predictable, so I was underwhelmed by it. All in all, I'd give this novel with the lovely cover art a B, and only recommend it to those who are big fans of romantasy that has scientific complications.

 

Better Than Revenge by Kasie West is a YA rom-com that started out with a strong female protagonist, only to have her fall prey to the "Oh, I can't keep doing this because I'm in loooovvve with him!" trope, which was really disappointing. Here's the blurb: A swoony new romance from the author of Sunkissed! When her football-player boyfriend and now ex lands the podcast job she’s been dreaming of, a girl takes matters into her own hands by enlisting the help of his nemesis to get revenge.

Seventeen-year-old Finley has only ever had one goal: to become a famous podcaster. This includes coming up with the perfect pitch to land her on her school's podcast team. But when her football-obsessed boyfriend, Jensen, decides to also try out—and uses her idea—she's left confused and betrayed.

Determined to get back at him, Finley and her friends try to find the perfect revenge scheme, but quickly discover that Jensen is almost-impossible to best. Keyword, almost.

By chance, Finley discovers a knack for kicking and decides to take Jensen's spot on the football team. To help her train, she recruits Jensen's cute but conceited nemeses, Theo. Soon the two discover that their connection runs deeper than football. But Finley can't let herself get distracted, and Theo has secrets of his own. Is true love really better than the perfect revenge?
  

Finley, whose goal of becoming a famous podcaster is just within her grasp, is betrayed by her butt-head of a boyfriend Jensen, who takes her spot on the school podcast team without batting an eye...and she wants revenge, which is perfectly understandable. Her way of getting revenge is to take Jensen's spot as a kicker on the football team, but her feelings for his frenemy Theo get in the way, unfortunately. Here's the blurb: A swoony new romance from the author of Sunkissed! When her football-player boyfriend and now ex lands the podcast job she’s been dreaming of, a girl takes matters into her own hands by enlisting the help of his nemesis to get revenge.

Seventeen-year-old Finley has only ever had one goal: to become a famous podcaster. This includes coming up with the perfect pitch to land her on her school's podcast team. But when her football-obsessed boyfriend, Jensen, decides to also try out—and uses her idea—she's left confused and betrayed.

Determined to get back at him, Finley and her friends try to find the perfect revenge scheme, but quickly discover that Jensen is almost-impossible to best. Keyword, almost.

By chance, Finley discovers a knack for kicking and decides to take Jensen's spot on the football team. To help her train, she recruits Jensen's cute but conceited nemeses, Theo. Soon the two discover that their connection runs deeper than football. But Finley can't let herself get distracted, and Theo has secrets of his own. Is true love really better than the perfect revenge?

Theo doesn't seem to be that much of an improvement on Jensen, but Finley can't possibly, being just a girl, resist his big strong arms and pretty eyes and hair. so in the end, she leaves it to karma to take care of Jensen, while she does her own thing and gets on with her life and her new boyfriend, the conceited Theo (UGH). The author states in her afterword that "Karma is greater than Revenge" and while I think that would be a noble sentiment if things worked out that way every time, I don't think that its tissue-thin morality plays well here. Crappy people don't get what is coming to them a majority of the time, and good people very often get railroaded by jerks who are only concerned with their own lives and ambitions. If it were me, in other words, I'd find a way to make Jensen "swim with the fishes" or at least get into some horrible legal trouble that destroyed his future. Still, the prose was easy and the plot lazy and clear. I'd give this little YA rom-com a C+ and only recommend it to those who wouldn't be offended by the female protagonists lack of follow-through.

 

Barack Obama's Podcast Debuts in September, Jane Eyre Comes to TV, Quote of the Day, Obituary for John Crowley, People of the Book Movie, The Bletchley Riddle by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin, Vera Stein is Fine by Julie Murphy, Better Hate Than Never by Chloe Liese, and A Tarnished Canvas by Anna Lee Huber

Welcome to the second to last week of August! I've been struggling with my health issues, but in the next three weeks I have a bunch of procedures, doctor appointments and even, finally, an MRI happening, so hopefully I will get some answers and have a path forward to get out of pain and on the road to recovery. 

  

Meanwhile, here's some great tidbits, including a podcast by one of the greatest presidents we've ever had in America, a strong and intelligent and kind man who should, IMO, still be at the helm of this country.

A Great Book with Barack Obama Podcast Debuting in September

Higher Ground, Barack Obama and Michelle Obama's media company, has teamed with Audible to launch A Great Book with Barack Obama, a new original podcast hosted by the former U.S. president, who sits down with six luminaries to discuss the books that have profoundly shaped his worldview and our society. The six-episode series debuts on Audible September 24. Guests will be announced at a later date.

The book selections include The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin; Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison; All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy; Gilead by Marilynne Robinson; All the King's Men by Robert Penn Warren; and Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy by John le Carré.

"Great books have always helped me figure out who I am and what I believe," said Obama. "The six books featured in this series have stayed with me throughout my life, and each one has something to teach us about the human experience. For this podcast, I invited some friends to explore why they resonate, how they can shape our understanding of ourselves and each other, and why literature matters now more than ever. I hope listeners will be inspired to discover or rediscover books that change the way they see themselves and the world."

Dan Fierman, head of audio at Higher Ground, commented: "President Obama has always been a champion of reading, and this series captures his genuine passion for literature in a way that is personal and accessible.

These authentic conversations explore how books can challenge us, comfort us, and change us. The chemistry between President Obama and each guest creates truly special moments that remind us why storytelling matters. We're proud to collaborate with Audible on a project that honors both the intimacy of audio and the power of great books."

I'm excited that there will be a new version of Jane Eyre coming up on the BBC. The fact that this novel continues to fascinate people nearly two centuries after publication is a testament to a great writer, Charlotte Bronte.

TV: Jane Eyre

BBC has joined Working Title's new TV adaptation of Charlotte Brontë's classic novel Jane Eyre, starring Aimee Lou Wood (The White Lotus, Sex Education) in the title role. The series is being written by Miriam Battye (Succession). BBC will develop the project and become its broadcaster-financier.

The novel has inspired several film and TV adaptations, most recently a BBC TV series in 2006 starring Ruth Wilson. Prior to that, Mia Wasikowska had the lead role Cary Fukanaga's 2011 adaptation (for BBC Films), and Charlotte Gainsbourg played Jane for Franco Zeffirelli in 1996. Next year will mark the 180th anniversary of the novel's first publication.

Quotation of the Day

"I want every single person to know that they have a space there and that they belong there, and I feel grateful to be able to be in a position where I can do all of this because of the generosity of the community. I truly feel like when you support your community, your community supports you.... I know I have to make a living to be able to support myself and to keep the store going, but I truly am about the community. As long as I have a place to sleep, food to eat, and the store's lights are on, I'm doing great.

"I've lived here my whole life, but I've never met more amazing people than I have through having the bookstore. I've made so many friends and amazing connections in the community, because readers are truly some of the best people--people that just want to learn and expand their knowledge or just escape the world that we currently live in."--Nicole Barnett, owner of Rubber Rose Books & Print

I remember reading Little Big years ago, when I was a preteen, and being fascinated by it. Crowley was an amazing author. RIP. BTW, I miss magazines about SF and fantasy and weird subjects, like Locus and Omni. 

Obituary Note: John Crowley

John Crowley, an author of "sweeping fantastical narratives whose ability to blend such disparate material as American history, dreams of lost utopias and Alice in Wonderland-tinged occult allowed him to transcend the fantasy genre in novels like Little, Big," died August 8, the New York Times reported. He was 83.

Crowley's 14 novels and 10 volumes of essays and short fiction "explored a considerable range of subjects and genres," the Times noted. His first novel, The Deep (1975), "was set on a disc-shaped world and involved a war between two factions, the Reds and the Blacks, loosely based on the 15th-century War of the Roses in England.... Even his most straightforward, realistic novel, Four Freedoms (2009), about the workers at an airplane factory in Oklahoma during World War II, is an alternative history of the home front."

His fourth novel, Little, Big, was his best known work. Poet James Merrill, a fan of the novel, arranged for Crowley to receive a grant from the Ingram Merrill Foundation, which Merrill directed. Ursula K. Le Guin said that the book "calls for a redefinition of fantasy," while Harold Bloom observed that it was "literally the most enchanting 20th-century book I know." It was named the best novel at the 1982 World Fantasy Awards.

In 2009, Crowley told the Believer magazine: "The kind of fiction that always interested me is stuff that somehow manages to be convincingly actual--in the sense that you believe that truths are being told about the world you live in--and are also somehow connected to the imaginary in some way."

He told Locus magazine in 2010: "To actually articulate a way of being in a literary world without boundaries between reality and fantasy--it can't just be a bunch of craziness and surreal carrying on.... Fantasy fiction at bottom, or at its best, is about making true fictions by the rules, in worlds you make up out of whole cloth, or out of your heart."

People of the Book was a great read, as are all of Brooks books. I can hardly wait for this movie to debut, to see how they handle the subject matter.

Movies: People of the Book

Bleiberg Entertainment will be selling worldwide rights at the Toronto International Film Festival market to People of the Book, based on the historical novel by Geraldine Brooks. Deadline reported that the project, directed by Michael Haussman (Edge of the World), recently wrapped filming in the Valencia region of Spain, including at Ciudad de la Luz in Alicante, and in Trieste and Venice in Italy.

People of the Book "tracks the creation and survival of a sacred religious artifact across 500 years, weaving back and forth between a series of interconnected chapters that span across several centuries and countries including pre and post inquisition Spain, 17th century Venice, Nazi-occupied Bosnia and a contemporary narrative focusing on an Iraqi refugee family's harrowing escape journey from ISIS-held Mosul to safety in Europe."

The Bletchley Riddle by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin is a YA historical fiction/mystery/adventure tale that will have you turning pages into the wee hours. Here's the blurb: Remember, you are bound by the Official Secrets Act…

Summer, 1940. Nineteen-year-old Jakob Novis and his quirky younger sister, Lizzie, share a love of riddles and puzzles. And now they’re living inside of one. The quarrelsome siblings find themselves amid one of the greatest secrets of World War II—Britain’s eccentric codebreaking factory at Bletchley Park. As Jakob joins Bletchley’s top minds to crack the Nazi's Enigma cipher, fourteen-year-old Lizzie embarks on a mission to solve the mysterious disappearance of their mother.

The Battle of Britain rages and Hitler’s invasion creeps closer. And at the same time, baffling messages and codes arrive on their doorstep while a menacing inspector lurks outside the gates of the Bletchley mansion. Are the messages truly for them, or are they a trap? Could the riddles of Enigma and their mother's disappearance be somehow connected? Jakob and Lizzie must find a way to work together as they race to decipher clues that unravel a shocking puzzle that presents the ultimate challenge: How long must a secret be kept? 

 The beautiful prose collaboration in this novel creates a sublime palate for the swift and riveting plot, which will bring you to the end of the tale before you know it. I found myself wishing for more chapters of the life and times of Jakob and Lizzie, two determined teen siblings who refuse to give up on their mum, who is reported as KIA, and to give up on England during her darkest hour (the Blitz). Though its pigeon holed as children's lit, this is one of those books that should be read and enjoyed by people of any age and reading level. I'd give it an A, and recommend it to anyone interested in code breaking and what it was like to grow up in England during WWII.

Vera Stein is Fine by Julie Murphy is a delightful midlife rom-com that, like Murphy's other novels (I've read and loved them all) has a plus sized protagonist who is gorgeous and fierce and hilarious. Here's the blurb:  

From author Julie Murphy comes a heartfelt and hilarious tale of a woman who thinks life and love have passed her by until she’s thrown into her grandmother’s quirky world of octogenarian free love and gets a second chance with the one man she never expected to see again. Perhaps it’s never too late to play the opening credits.

Welcome to Starlight Palms, a favorite retirement facility among Hollywood actors and industry professionals tucked away just outside of sunny Palm Springs. Filled with forgotten scream queens, eccentric screenwriters, and heartthrobs of the past, it has a brand-new resident: Vera Stein, age forty.

Vera knows she’s missed her chance at a life worthy of the silver screen, just like she missed her chance at ever finding true love. But Vera isn’t one to take chances. She’s spent most of her adult years caretaking for her dying mother and her movie star boss’s ego. Now abruptly houseless and jobless, Vera has nowhere to land, so to grandmother’s house we go!

The Starlight Palms Senior Living Center is midcentury Hollywood down to its pastel-painted bones. This desert gem isn’t lacking in saucy plot twists (swinging seniors, anyone?) or a leading man: Elias Buckley, the on-site doctor and Vera’s former ill-fated college fling and—for reasons that will stay in Vegas—legally her ex-husband according to the state of Nevada.

It’s not long before Vera falls into a job as the activities coordinator and under the spell of a certain smart-mouthed doctor… Suddenly all those empty years in LA look less like mistakes and a lot more like backstory. With a fresh start at her fingertips, Vera begins to see that even with all the detours she’s taken, there’s still a Hollywood ending (and maybe even a happily ever after) in sight.

Like a delicious midnight snack, this excellent novel goes down a treat, a satisfying page-turner that will have you laughing and crying and cheering for Vera's HEA before you are more than halfway through the book.  Though Vera's grandmother is annoying and narcissistic, I believed that Vera handled their relationship with deftness and empathy, when many would have slammed Ruby and left for less difficult climes. I found Eli to be a tough nut to crack, but when he and Vera finally reconnected, steamy and spicy scenes were the results. I appreciate the fact that Murphy never forces her heroines to lose weight or hide themselves in sexual situations, but makes the more realistic choice of having their partners thrill over every dimple and roll of chub. It's inspirational, and I wish Murphy's books had been around 40 years ago or so when I needed to feel like their was hope for plus sized women like me to find someone to love and treasure us just as we are. I'd give this splendid book an A, and recommend it to any woman who believes she is past her "sell by" date for romance.

 

Better Hate Than Never by Chloe Liese is a contemporary romance based on Shakespeare's "Taming of the Shrew," which is long overdue for another adaptation (The first I remember seeing was the wonderful movie 10 Things I Hate About You with Heath Ledger). Here's the blurb: Childhood enemies discover the fine line between love and loathing in this heartfelt reimagining of Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew.

Katerina Wilmot and Christopher Petruchio shared backyards as kids, but as adults they won’t even share the same hemisphere. That is, until Kate makes a rare visit home, and their fiery animosity rekindles into a raging inferno.

Despite their friends’ and families' pleas for peace, Christopher is unconvinced Kate would willingly douse the flames of their enmity. But when a drunken Kate confesses she’s only been hostile because she thought he hated her, Christopher vows to make peace with Kate once and for all. Tempting as it is to be swept away by her nemesis-turned-gentleman, Kate isn’t sure she can trust his charming good-guy act.

When Christopher’s persistence and Kate’s curiosity lead to an impassioned kiss, they realize “peace” is the last thing that will ever be possible between them. As desire gives way to deeper feelings, Kate and Christopher must decide if it’s truly better to hate than to never risk their hearts—or if they already gave them away long ago.

 

It's rare to find a book with good, steamy hate sex scenes, which this volume has in abundance. But what I enjoyed most about it was the semi-Shakespearean banter between Kate and Christopher, and their willingness to not give up on love and eventually to bare their hearts and souls to one another.Vulnerability is one of the hardest things about establishing a relationship, and Liese doesn't shy away from the tough scenes and soul-searing parts that both protagonists must play to get to a place of peace and understanding. As I mentioned, the prose is well-wrought and the plot vigorous, so the book flies by, when one would think it could get bogged down in hewing to Shakespeare's twists and turns and troubles. I'd give this book a B+, and recommend it to anyone who enjoys enemies to lovers romances with a side of Shakespearean drama.

 

A Tarnished Canvas by Anna Lee Huber is the 13th Lady Darby historical mystery, and though I've read them all, Huber continues to surprise me with the convoluted problems that her heroine Kiera gets herself and her husband Sebastian Gage, into as they solve another gristly mystery. Here's the blurb: Lady Kiera Darby had planned to spend the winter practicing her painting, but instead, she must find the flaw in a killer’s masterpiece when an art auction results in one participant’s final bid.

March 1833. Kiera and her husband, Sebastian Gage, have decided to settle in Edinburgh for the winter with their infant daughter. This also allows Kiera to enjoy long hours painting in her studio, making progress on the portraits she soon hopes to unveil in her own exhibit. She’s thrilled when she receives an invitation to the auction of the late Lord Eldin’s coveted art collection, and she and Gage eagerly accept. When the floor collapses beneath the gathering, killing one of their fellow bidders, Kiera and Gage are lucky to escape with their lives.

Within days it becomes apparent that what at first seemed to be a terrible accident is actually something far more nefarious. Someone deliberately compromised the integrity of the structure, though the police are unsure of the culprit’s aim. Sergeant Maclean requests Kiera and Gage’s assistance in figuring out who would wish to harm the bidders. As they dig deeper, it becomes increasingly apparent that the victim was not the killer’s intended target . . . and that Kiera was lured to the auction deliberately. Kiera and Gage must utilize all their resources to unveil a monster willing to risk the lives of dozens of bystanders to achieve their ends. But they’re on the verge of making a dire miscalculation. For one of the cleverest tricks in a painter’s repertoire is the art of misdirection, and their eyes have been drawn far from the gravest danger. 

 

What is fascinating about this volume in the series is that although Kiera and Gage have a child, they still do not hesitate to put themselves squarely in the face of danger, regardless of the chances that they will die in pursuit of the truth, leaving their daughter an orphan. Still, Kiera manages to continue painting portraits of "regular" people and the poor, because she feels that her commissioned work, portraits of the rich and famous of the time, leads to a blinkered and diminished POV that keeps the "classes" apart with distrust and prejudice. Leaving her mark in such an unusual fashion only endears the character of Kiera to readers who, for the most part, will never know the kind of life lived by the aristocracy. Even Kiera, with her nanny and servants, is something that few in todays world could ever aspire to or understand. I'd give this 13th volume a B+, and recommend it to anyone who has read the other dozen books in this inviting series.

 

You Are Here Comes to TV, Obit for Joseph Caldwell, Tryst Bookstore Opens in Walla Walla Washington, Obituary for Ursula Hegi, Secrets of the Catalogue by Amelia Spencer, Penitence by Kristin Koval, Sea of Charms by Beth Durst, The Charmed Library by Jennifer Moorman, and Look on the Bright Side by Kristin Higgins

The Dog days of Summer are almost over, though not without more high temps and thunderstorms, unfortunately. I've spent the past couple of weeks in and out of Emergency rooms, all to mostly no avail, as no one wants to get me an MRI for a very painful left knee. Still, I had my first paracentisis, and they took 20 pounds or 10 liters of water, the most they're allowed to remove, from my abdomen, which was amazing, but seems to have caused me to have Crohns flares that are increasingly more painful in the days following. Today I could barely sit up. But with some pain meds and tea and toast, I fight on. Here's some tidbits and a lot of reviews that I've been saving up until I was able to sit in a chair for longer than an half hour. Enjoy, and keep cool, Autumn is right around the corner!

I can hardly wait for this program to come on to a streaming service...it sounds fascinating. 

TV: You Are Here

Matthew Macfadyen (Succession) and Claire Foy (All of Us Strangers) will star in You Are Here, a BBC and Starz adaptation of David Nicholls's bestselling novel. Deadline reported that Nicholls has written the eight-part series, which will be produced by Element Pictures. Lenny Abrahamson (Normal People) is the director.

Set along the coast-to-coast walking trail from the Lake District to Robin Hood's Bay in North Yorkshire in England, You Are Here will be filmed in the Lake District and around Manchester. Deadline shared the synopsis: "When a mutual friend throws them together, Marnie and Michael unexpectedly find themselves setting off on an epic walk. Against the odds, they end up on the brink of a relationship that neither was looking for, but which might be exactly the one they both need."

"I'm so delighted to be working on You Are Here with Element, the BBC, Starz, and Lenny, whose work I've admired for many years," said Nicholls. " We can't wait to bring Marnie and Michael's journey to the screen."

I used to watch Dark Shadows with my brother, and was terrified of Barnabas Collins, so much so that my mother banned me from watching the program...of course, as I got older, I watched reruns, often laughing at how cheesy the melodrama was. My late husband adored DS, and collected books and videos of the program. He never met a cheesy program he didn't love.

Obituary Note: Joseph Caldwell

Joseph Caldwell, an award-winning novelist whose fiction explored faith, love, loss and moral ambiguity, and whose earlier career helped shape the cult television phenomenon Dark Shadows, died of a stroke on July 13. He was 97. 

Over a career spanning more than five decades, Caldwell was a playwright, memoirist, television writer and actor, though he became best known for a series of acclaimed novels that earned praise from critics for their precise yet elegant prose and psychological depth. His honors included the Rome Prize in Literature from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the John Golden Fellowship in Playwriting from Yale University and the American Broadcasting Company Fellowship in Playwriting.

Before turning to fiction, Caldwell devoted himself to theater and television writing. After becoming disillusioned with several theatrical productions, he joined the writing staffs of the daytime dramas Love of Life and The Secret Storm. He later became a principal writer for the Gothic soap opera Dark Shadows, where producer Dan Curtis asked the writing staff to create "a vampire for the kids for the summer." Working with fellow writer Ron Sproat, Caldwell helped create Barnabas Collins, the reluctant vampire who became the series' defining character.

Caldwell later said that giving Barnabas a conscience provided the writers with "something always to play against," transforming him from a conventional monster into a tragic figure. The character's popularity propelled Dark Shadows to an audience of about 20 million viewers and secured its place in television history.

Raised Roman Catholic, he moved to New York in the 1950s, where he began living openly as a gay man while wrestling with the tensions between his religious faith, his sexuality, and his artistic ambitions. That lifelong conflict found its fullest expression in his memoir, In the Shadow of the Bridge (Delphinium, 2019). The book recounts his youthful relationship with an emotionally distant photographer and traces its consequences across decades. It culminates in his volunteer work with AIDS patients through a program at St. Vincent's Hospital, where he ultimately cared for his former lover during his final illness.

Caldwell turned to fiction in the late 1970s. His first novel, In Such Dark Places (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1978), follows a gay photographer who witnesses a stabbing and searches for his stolen camera, believing it contains evidence of the crime.  His final novel, Lazarus Rising, published on the eve of the Covid pandemic, tells the story of an artist whose unexpected recovery from AIDS leads to unforeseen tragedy.

Whether writing about rural New England, contemporary New York, Naples or Ireland, Caldwell returned repeatedly to characters seeking grace after loss. His work examined the difficult coexistence of faith, desire and conscience with quiet compassion, qualities that earned him the admiration of critics and a devoted readership. --Joe Olsham and Carl Lennertz

I really wish that I could investigate this delightful sounding bookstore just a couple of hours from where I currently reside in MV, Wash. 

Tryst, a Romance Bookstore Debuts in Walla Walla, Wash.

Tryst, a romance bookstore, hosted a grand opening celebration, which "saw lines out the door from the pink bookstore," on July 28 at 39 E. Main St. in Walla Walla, Wash., the Union-Bulletin reported, adding: "While small, the store is stocked with a broad range of subgenres including queer stories, paranormal pieces and everything in between."

"Since I was little, I thought that having a bookstore would be the perfect thing, the perfect job," said owner Jen Sharon, who has also worked as an independent proofreader and editor for fiction writing for the past four years, with a number of her clients writing romance. After seeing many romance-specific bookstores open in the Seattle area, Sharon and her husband, Jim, saw a niche they could fill in Walla Walla.

"The classifier of a romance novel is that it has a happily ever after ending," she said. "So, who doesn't need to feel happy and read happy endings in this world?... I want to carry what the people in town want to read." Sharon envisions the bookstore as a gathering place, with customers able to participate in different book clubs with a cozy seating area. She plans to expand programming to hold author signings and book release parties.

After the grand opening, Sharon posted on social media: "I want to thank everyone who came out for Tryst's grand opening yesterday! I was blown away with how many people were ready and waiting for the doors to open! That was a lot of people in my tiny store all at once, but we made it, and I hope you all enjoyed your visit. I already need to restock! And also thanks to everyone who suggested a favorite author or title. I'll be keeping a list."

Stones from the River was brilliant, and I'm sorry to see this great writer hang up her pen. RIP U.H.

Obituary Note: Ursula Hegi

Ursula Hegi, "a novelist who drew on her childhood in post-World War II Germany to write searing books about silence, community, and historical memory," including the bestselling Stones from the River, died on July 27, the New York Times reported. She was 80. Born in the western half of occupied Germany just after WWII, she immigrated to the U.S. after high school and became an American citizen, though her native country served as the wellspring for much of her writing.

She was best known for a cycle of four novels, set during the first half of the 20th century, that take place in the fictional German town of Burgdorf. Beginning with Floating in My Mother's Palm (1990), the quartet explored the ways in which the people of the town both acknowledge and ignore the dark passage of history around them. Burgdorf, she wrote, was the sort of provincial locale where life "happened slower and later than in most other places."

"Hegi's genius lies in her ability to recreate the Nazi era without ever calling up its nomenclature," Barbara Finkelstein wrote in a Chicago Tribune review. "There is not a word in here about gas chambers, Gestapo agents or Jews."

Hegi's second Burgdorf novel, Stones from the River (1994), launched with a modest original print run of 25,000, but in 1997 Oprah Winfrey chose it for her year-old Oprah's Book Club, driving the book onto bestseller lists and prompting the publisher to print 1.5 million hardcover copies and 500,000 paperbacks.

Stones from the River revolves around Trudi Montag, a dwarf who is "both an outcast and a fixture of town life, an indispensable gossip and fixer," the Times noted, adding: "In Ms. Hegi's hands, Trudi becomes a sharp lens for examining the ways in which Burgdorf--and Germany writ large--responds to the Nazi era."

In addition to her nine novels, Hegi wrote two books of short stories, a children's book, and a nonfiction work, Tearing the Silence: On Being German in America (1997), for which she interviewed hundreds of German Americans who had been born around the Nazi era.

"If you want to look at fiction as the building, I had the building but I also had the scaffolding that helped me to build this building," she told Focus on Literatur. "And if we were to leave the scaffolding on the building it would be very ugly. So it was a real challenge and took a lot of revisions to massage the research into the text."

Secrets of the Catalogue by Amelia Spencer is a bizarre dark fantasy that starts out with an interesting premise, but loses steam about halfway through, becoming boring and pedestrian. Here's the blurb: When Emerson Blackwell discovers a secret library in New York City where the books are doorways into magical worlds, it seems like she's found the perfect adventure. But as Emerson begins to explore the Catalogue, she is drawn into a world filled with secrets and more questions than answers.

Eight years ago, Emerson Blackwell’s mother died in a tragic fire and she booked a one-way ticket to New York City to escape her grief. But the trauma of her past comes rushing back when she uncovers a Library in the heart of the city where the books are doorways to magical worlds. However, The Central Library responsible for publishing books in the Catalogue is banning books and hunting down authors that The Central Library claims are dangerous. When Emerson finds out her mother is alive and publishing banned books, the question arises--are these books dangerous? Or is The Central Library hiding something?

As Emerson becomes entangled in a web of secrets, political rivalries, and conspiracies, she rekindles a romance with her first love, who is secretly working with her mother against The Central Library. However, tensions rise when Emerson finds herself drawn to the son of The Central Library’s Head Librarian--her mother's greatest enemy.

Secrets of the Catalogue is a dark academia fantasy romance set in a hidden New York City library where the books open portals to magical worlds. Secrets of the Catalogue is a captivating tale of love, adventure, and the blurred line between fiction and reality. Perfect for fans of political intrigue, slow burn romance, secret societies, and hidden libraries!

 

I wish that there had been more focus on the books in the hidden and forbidden libraries, and less on the wimpy and sad protagonist, Emerson, who clearly has mommy issues and doesn't really do anything about them other than harbor resentment and anger, all while cavorting with two men who are both controlling jerks, using her for their own ends. Both Silas and Adrian don't seem to understand that NO is a full sentence, and that consent is important. They jerk around Emerson (and she lets them, for reasons that are never fully explained) and go on to try and force her to choose sides in the library wars, though her mother, who abandoned her at a tender age, is the general on one side, while the head librarian is the general (and former friend of her mothers) is on the other. There's a lot of time spent on tattoos that glow gold if they're good, and red if they're bad, and also a lot of time spent in various worlds inside of books, most of which are scary and full of creatures who want to destroy the librarians hopping in and out of their world. The prose, which was sturdy in the first half, started to crumble in the second, and there was no actual ending to the novel. It just stops at a bit over 300 pages. Ugh. I'd give this disappointing novel a C, and only recommend it to those who don't mind an interesting premise destroyed by a flagging plot and dull prose.

 

Penitence by Kristin Koval is a family and coming of age novel that reads, at least to me, like one of those drippy family sagas from the 1970s. Boring. Here's the blurb: For readers of Ann Patchett and Celeste Ng, Penitence is a poignant exploration of love and forgiveness. It’s a suspenseful, addictive page-turner filled with literary insight that compels readers to consider whether the worst thing we’ve ever done is all that defines us.

When a shocking murder occurs in the home of Angie and David Sheehan, their lives are shattered. Desperate to defend their family, they turn to small-town lawyer Martine Dumont for help, but Martine isn’t just legal counsel—she’s also the mother of Angie’s first love, Julian, a now-successful New York City criminal defense attorney. As Julian and Angie confront their shared past and long-buried guilt from a tragic accident years ago, they must navigate their own culpability and the unresolved feelings between them.

Spanning decades, from the ski slopes of rural Colorado to the streets of pre-9/11 New York City and back again, Kristin Koval’s debut novel Penitence is an examination of the complexities of familial loyalty, the journey of redemption, and the profound experience of true forgiveness. 

 

There's not a page that goes by that doesn't "examine" GUILT, and the desire for forgiveness for the unforgivable. There's a death that Julian was involved in decades ago that he can't really do anything about now, but he suffers from guilt nonetheless, and tries to provide help to Angie, his first love, when her daughter shoots and kills her son Nico, who was suffering from Huntingtons (and probably asked her at some point to end his pain before he died in horrific circumstances), and won't talk to anyone about why or what happened, as she claims to not remember. This is Julians "penitence" for being such a coward when he didn't help out a child who died during a ski vacation. Still, he gets the job done, but all the characters are still living under the haze of past guilt, so I don't see why this story needed to be told in the first place. It got pretty boring, but I did manage to finish it anyway. I'd give it a C+ for effort, and recommend it to anyone who likes impossible court cases.

 

Sea of Charms by Beth Durst is a cozy romantasy that takes place at sea, and is fully delicious and delightful, with Durst's trademark elegant and emotional prose. Here's the blurb: Author Sarah Beth Durst brings cozy fantasy romance to the high seas in Sea of Charms, the third magical adventure in the Spellshop series!

Marin had always belonged on the great blue sea. When the man she thought was the love of her life schemed to ruin her parents’ business, she did what her heart knew best: she fled to the sea.

Now working as a supply runner on her own boat, Marin sails from island to island, delivering a varied array of goods: letters, flour, stories, and even the occasional enchanted statue. It’s a lonely life, but it’s hers. Besides, she’s got the company of Perri the sea serpent and Ree the sailor shrub. They’re the best crew she could ask for.

On one of her routine trips to the capital of the Crescent Islands Empire, Alyssium, Marin finds the city on fire and a revolution underway—so she offers transportation to Dax, a composer friend who refuses to leave behind his instruments. What starts as a rescue evolves into a deal: Marin will keep Dax on as a (temporary) member of her crew if he becomes her pretend boyfriend at the End-of-Harvest Festival back home.

Against her better judgment, Marin finds herself intrigued by his stubbornness, his passion for stories, his charming smile—and realizes that perhaps she isn’t saving him. Maybe it’s the other way around.

Sea of Charms is a cozy fantasy romance about finding your crew, your family, and moreover, finding yourself. Read in whatever order your heart desires, but don’t miss The Spellshop and The Enchanted Greenhouse.

 
I read and enjoyed the Spellshop and the Enchanted Greenhouse, so I expected this to be just as wonderful, and I was not disappointed. This book takes place ina musical and magical world that I'd love to visit again and again. A world of beauty, acceptance and hope...ENCORE I say to all three! Though I adored Perri the sea serpent, Ree the bush's dialed up optimism and zero filter got on my nerves more than a few times. Dax and his crystal horns and musical genius made up for any and all annoyance, however, as he made the disparate crew into a sort of musical sailing family, and his love for Marin, though she tried to be emotionally closed off, was gorgeous and heart-rending. I'd give this book an A, and recommend it to any and all TJ Klune and Fanny Flagg fans. This is a book whose prose will grip you and take you on an adventure in a swift plot to an HEA ending.

 

The Charmed Library by Jennifer Moorman is a YA magical romantic fiction novel with heartfelt storytelling and a fascinating premise that will keep readers turning pages into the wee hours. Here's the blurb: 

With her signature blend of magical and heartfelt storytelling, author Jennifer Moorman returns with The Charmed Library, a love letter to libraries, favorite childhood stories, and readers who have fallen for fictional heroes.

 

Like many other public libraries, the one in Blue Sky Valley, North Carolina, is a haven for readers. But it's also unlike any other. In this library, fictional characters step off the page into real life. Assistant librarian Stella Parker has no idea. Still reeling from her father's death and--more recently--a breakup, she hasn't noticed. All she knows is she's stuck in a job she's overqualified for and stumped about what to do with her life.

 

Everything changes when she burns her beloved journal.

 

Words matter to Stella. For as long as she can remember, she's seen them. Words appear--in varying colors and fonts--rising from surfaces, bouncing over objects, and even wiggling out of people. Words give her insight into emotions and untold stories. But the words change for Stella after she burns her journal. Suddenly they're demanding, urgent--and painful.

Then Stella stumbles upon strange characters in the library after hours. One is an oddly familiar World War II soldier who introduces himself as Jack--Jack Mathis, the main character from her favorite book. A fictional hero and Stella's first crush. Standing in front of her in the flesh.

 

Jack tells Stella about the magic hidden in the library. Skeptical, Stella rashly invites a villain to visit, and chaos ensues. As she discovers the importance of protecting the library's secret and gets to know the real Jack, words continue to appear. What are they trying to tell her?

Much too quickly, Stella is faced with the reality that all stories must end, and magic comes at a price. The characters who visit the library can only stay for fourteen days. And Jack's time is almost up.

A cozy, Hallmark-esque rom-com, The Charmed Library invites readers to escape to a world where words come alive and book boyfriends leap off the page.

 

I was totally on board with the book boyfriend idea, having had more than a few myself over the years. Though Moorman takes it a step further by trying to force a way for Jack and Stella to be together forever, though she knows that fictional characters are only allowed out of their books for two weeks, lest they escape and their books disintegrate forever, as if they'd never existed. While its never actually outlined why Jack is such a hero, he proves himself by helping Stella corral other fictional characters longing to escape into the real world, damning the consequences. I love that Stella sees important words and phrases all around her, and that she tries to be practical amongst all the magic of the book characters coming alive, allowing them to pretend to be actors to do readings and reinactments at book festivals and holidays. Moormans prose is rock solid, and her plot takes interesting twists and turns. I'd give this book a B+ and recommend it to anyone who has ever forged an emotional connection to a fictional character.

 

Look on the Bright Side by Kristin Higgins is a family rom-com that is fun and satisfying, and zooms along on a breezy plot with sunny prose. Here's the blurb: From the author of Pack Up the Moon comes a funny, romantic, and deeply moving novel about the unexpected rewards that come from life’s detours.

Lark Smith has always had a plan for her life: find a fantastic guy, create a marriage as blissful as her parents’, pop out a couple of kids and build a rewarding career as an oncologist.

Things aren’t going so well.

For one, the guy didn’t work out. Theoretically, she’d love to find someone else, but it hasn’t happened. Two, she’s just been transferred out of oncology for being too emotional. (Is it her fault she’s a weeper?) Three, her parents just split up.

Deviating from the plan was…well, not in the plan. A potential solution comes from the foul-tempered and renowned surgeon Lorenzo Santini (aka Dr. Satan). He needs a date this summer for his sister’s wedding. His ancient Noni wants to see him settled. In exchange, he could make a few introductions and maybe get Lark back into the field of her choice.

As a sucker for old people and fake relationships, Lark agrees. Teeny problem—she instantly falls for his big, warm family. Especially his estranged brother.

Meanwhile, Lark’s mom has moved in with Lark’s colorful landlady, Joy, and an unlikely friendship blossoms. The three women have a long summer and a big beautiful house on the ocean to figure out what’s next…and quite possibly learn that the best things in life aren’t planned at all. 

 

I loved Lark and her mom and Joy's relationship, all of which were inspiring because they involved women helping lift up other women, and allowing themselves to grow into specific situations. I'm glad that Lark realizes early on that Dr Satan (the surgeon, and surgeon's being cold-hearted asshats is so familiar its almost a cliche), will never change, and that she is better off falling in love with his brother, who is a nice guy, diametrically opposed to his cold and cruel sibling. Lark also realizes that she doesn't need to honor a family member who died of cancer by becoming an oncologist. She flourishes in the ER, where her talents as a quick-thinking diagnostician are needed and valued, vs the oncology ward, where her emotions often get the better of her when faced with daily death sentences. There's a lovely HEA that doesn't stint on the warm fuzzies, either. I'd give this fascinating and warm beach read an A, and recommend it to anyone who needs a change in their life and career path.