Once Was Lost: A Review

Samara Taylor used to believe in miracles. She used to believe in a lot of things. As a pastor's kid, it's hard not to buy in to the idea of the perfect family, a loving God, and amazing grace. But lately, Sam has a lot of reason to doubt. Her mother lands in rehab after a DUI and her father seems more interested in his congregation than his family. When a young girl in her small town is kidnapped, the local tragedy overlaps with Sam's personal one, and the already-worn thread of faith holding her together begins to unravel.

In her third novel, acclaimed author Sara Zarr examines the coexistence of affliction and hope, and what happens when everything you thought you believed---about God, about your family, about yourself---is transformed.

 

I have enjoyed Sara Zarr's writing and stories in the past (such as The Lucy Variations), so when I saw this in a used bookstore I was quick to snag it.

This isn't a very long book - 210 pages, I think - but there is a lot  going on within those 210 pages. Almost too much, I think. Sam is the daughter of a pastor and a mother who is an alcoholic. For years they've quietly coped with and hidden from the public the fact that her mother cannot function without a drink, but then her mother has an accident is strongly urged to enter rehab by the courts. With her mother gone and her father there for everyone but her, Sam feels her life is falling apart. Her dad hasn't made it publicly known about her mom, so she doesn't feel she can talk about it. Then, when a local thirteen year old goes missing, she feels even more abandoned by her father (who is helping out the family).

So there's the main plot, with Sam rediscovering herself and questioning her faith. Then there's the subplots - her mother being in rehab, her father coping with his own family disintegrating, and the missing girl, Josie. Sam is in youth group with Nick, Josie's older brother, and when the youth group gets together to bake brownies for Nick, she ends up making a connection with him and they become close friends.

I really feel as if the book needed to be longer, to give more time to develop the characters, the relationships between them, and to fully flesh out all the issues that are brought up in the book (alcoholic mother, absent/clueless father, kidnapping, etc). Everything was wrapped up nice and neat in the end, and there weren't any obvious strings left hanging. Some things were never fully addressed or explained (which I realize is slightly contradictory to my previous sentence). Some details were thrown in and we're left wondering what the repercussions were, if any.

I did like that the characters were not flawless. Even the pastor. That made them seem real and tangible, as if they were people I would have in my life and not just in a story. Zarr does a wonderful job at portraying how they feel and letting their actions speak for them. I just wanted a bit more time with them to fully understand them, know them.

Overall I would say it was a decent read, but it didn't grab me by the shirt tails and leave me an emotional mess. I wasn't as connected as I wanted to be. That being said, I would still recommend it as a quick, easy read.

The Lover's Dictionary: A Review

A sweet and touching modern love story, told through dictionary entries.
 
basis, n.

There has to be a moment at the beginning when you wonder whether you’re in love with the person or in love with the feeling of love itself.

If the moment doesn’t pass, that’s it—you’re done. And if the moment does pass, it never goes that far. It stands in the distance, ready for whenever you want it back. Sometimes it’s even there when you thought you were searching for something else, like an escape route, or your lover’s face.

How does one talk about love? Do we even have the right words to describe something that can be both utterly mundane and completely transcendent, pulling us out of our everyday lives and making us feel a part of something greater than ourselves? Taking a unique approach to this problem, the nameless narrator of David Levithan’s The Lover’s Dictionary has constructed the story of his relationship as a dictionary. Through these short entries, he provides an intimate window into the great events and quotidian trifles of being within a couple, giving us an indelible and deeply moving portrait of love in our time.

Per usual, this story by David Levithan is wonderfully written. Despite enjoying that, I didn't fall in love with this book. I wanted to, but it just didn't happen.

Written in an unconventional way, there's no clear beginning, middle, and end to the story. It jumps around a lot, which makes sense with the way it was written, but I prefer my books to be clear on where we are in the timeline of things. If it's a flashback, great, but let me know it's a flashback. I still, by the end of the story, wasn't sure where things stood. I realize that the story itself isn't the main point of the book. I think it's more of a study of the relationship, picking it apart and trying to describe things that are typically indescribable. Once I got past the wanting of a typical story I was able to enjoy it much more than I had been (this was about 1/3 of the way through). 

I did enjoy the characters, despite being nameless. I like how everything was told from his point of view and that's all we got. We have no idea what was going on in her head/heart, only his. I actually liked that for this one. I liked getting glimpses into their relationship and seeing how things unfolded, even if it wasn't told in the usual way.

If you read it, my favorite entry was probably "livid". For no reason other than the sheer emotion emanating from the page. Levithan is masterful sometimes. 

I'd recommend it with the disclaimer that I didn't love it but that it's still a good read.  

Have you read it? Want to read it? :)

Smiles,
B

Review • 13 Little Blue Envelopes • Review

Title: 13 Little Blue Envelopes
Author: Maureen Johnson
Series: Little Blue Envelope #1
Publisher: Harper Teen
Publication Date: September 2006
Source:  Library
Rating: 3.5 stars

~ The Scoop from Goodreads ~

When Ginny receives thirteen little blue envelopes and instructions to buy a plane ticket to London, she knows something exciting is going to happen. What Ginny doesn't know is that she will have the adventure of her life and it will change her in more ways than one. Life and love are waiting for her across the Atlantic, and the thirteen little blue envelopes are the key to finding them in this funny, romantic, heartbreaking novel.

After reading Requiem, I really needed a breather from seriousness. From death and destruction and the heaviness of the world ending and all. This seemed like the perfect pick.

I've read four books now by Maureen Johnson. While the first, Devilish, still remains my favorite of hers, this one didn't fair too bad either. It's cute, whimsical, and fun.

While it was an adventure, I did have some problems with it. She is 17 years old. And I'm not sure it matters just how mature that child is, as a mom myself I cannot fathom letting my 17 year old daughter traipse across Europe without contact, without a buddy, without something. Maybe it's the way some people live, but for me I just can't imagine it. But once I got past that (I maybe, possibly, pictured as a college student... that's definitely possible), I was able to enjoy her ride a bit more. 

I also struggled with how naively trusting she was. I realize that she trusted her aunt and so knocking on whatever doors Aunt Peg told her to was perfectly ok with me. But the random strangers she meets and just automatically trusts them not to, I don't know, murder her in her sleep, seems a bit extreme. It would be awesome if our world was that nice, but it's really not. I know, I know, there was the one shady character, but even that didn't seem to be a big deal to her. She just brushed it off like, "Oh, that happened. I'm not freaked out at all." 

Overall, I did enjoy the story. We get to see Ginny grow little on her adventurous side and come to accept that her aunt is gone. It's a fun, light read, and I look forward to seeing what happens in The Last Little Blue Envelope.

Have you read it? What'd you think?

Smiles,
B

Review ~ The Madness Underneath ~ Review

Title: The Madness Underneath
Author: Maureen Johnson
Series: Shades of London #2
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile
Publication Date: Feb 2013
Source: eBook from NetGalley
Rating: 3 stars

~ The Scoop from Goodreads ~

After her near-fatal run-in with the Jack the Ripper copycat, Rory Devereaux has been living in Bristol under the close watch of her parents. So when her therapist suddenly suggests she return to Wexford, Rory jumps at the chance. But Rory's brush with the Ripper touched her more than she thought possible: she's become a human terminus, with the power to eliminate ghosts on contact. She soon finds out that the Shades—the city's secret ghost-fighting police—are responsible for her return. The Ripper may be gone, but now there is a string of new inexplicable deaths threatening London. Rory has evidence that the deaths are no coincidence. Something much more sinister is going on, and now she must convince the squad to listen to her before it's too late.

In this follow-up to the Edgar Award-nominated The Name of the Star, Maureen Johnson adds another layer of spectacularly gruesome details to the streets of London that will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end.

Forewarning: There may be spoilers from the FIRST book in the series. But I can guarantee no spoilers for this book. :)

Color me semi-sad. The color... gray. And that's my reaction to this book. I'm sad because I wanted oh-so-much to like it more than I did. I hadn't heard much about it, and I liked the first one (albeit probably not as much as I had hoped as well). I guess I was hoping this one would leave me waiting and wanting for more. Alas, it did not. Like the time my car was stuck in the snow in my driveway and I kept hitting the gas trying to get out... I kept waiting for the story to propel forward.

We start with Rory after the Ripper incident, the one that nearly killed her. She's healing, physically and emotionally. (Now, I've never been knifed, so to speak, but I have had a cesarean, and they cut you open for that. It seemed to me that Rory was moving normally awfully quick for someone who was sliced open and left to bleed out. That was a minor distraction to me.) She's in therapy but she can't address the real issue. She can't tell anyone about her new sight nor can she talk about what really happened in the bathroom back at Wexford. All of that makes sense.

With her new role as a terminus, however, her being away from the Shades is not conducive to their work. She's the only person that can make the ghosts go away. So her therapist is manipulated into suggested Rory return to Wexford. There's a lot of filler about her return; she's failing most, or all, of her classes (not a shocker). She has an insignificant relationship with a boy. Insignificant in the fact that it does nothing, really, to move the plot along, except maybe help her realize just how not "normal" her life. But did she really need a boyfriend to tell her the fact that she can evaporate ghosts now makes her life not "normal"?

Overall the story didn't pick up for me until maybe the last quarter. That's when things really started happening for me. Most of it was fairly predictable (in the fact that I said, aloud, "Really? You didn't see that coming? C'mon!"). There was a bit of a shocker at the end that I was really impressed with.

I will read the next installment, but I won't be rushing to get my hands on it. I was left with a lukewarm feeling with this one, so who's to say how I'll feel about the next one when it comes around.

Have you read this one or the first in the series? What'd you think? If you haven't, do you think you will some time?

Smiles,
B

Review ~ Prophecy of the Sisters ~ Discussion

Title: Prophecy of the Sisters
Author: Michelle Zink
Series: Prophecy of the Sisters #1
Publisher: Little Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: August 2009
Source: Own (Bought at a used bookstore)
Format: Hardcover
Rating: Brandy: 3 stars /Malissa: 3 stars

~Scoop from Goodreads~

An ancient prophecy divides two sisters-

One good...

One evil...

Who will prevail?

Twin sisters Lia and Alice Milthorpe have just become orphans. They have also become enemies. As they discover their roles in a prophecy that has turned generations of sisters against each other, the girls find themselves entangled in a mystery that involves a tattoo-like mark, their parents' deaths, a boy, a book, and a lifetime of secrets.

Lia and Alice don't know whom they can trust.

They just know they can't trust each other.

 

Once again, Malissa and I decided to read a book together. Since we're making a habit out of this (yes, two books together is now considered a habit... ;) ), we may just try to review all of them together discussion style on here. :) There are pitfalls, of course, to reading a book together. For some odd reason we can never seem to pace it just right and be on the same page. Also, there's the risk of our discussion leading to spoilers. Those I will leave out as long as it is humanly possible. 

Malissa

I'm still not super far in Prophecy (maybe chapter 4) but I'm enjoying it for sure. Too early to say if it will be a like or a love, but I'm definitely engaged.   I do see what you mean about Lia easily accepting all the oddity that just happens time and time again. I noticed it (maybe partly because you mentioned it) but don't know if it would have bothered me or seemed strange otherwise. The whole feel that it's all fate makes that kind of believable but it also makes her seem a bit weak and overly accepting of her fate. I'm hoping she grows from the weaker twin that she sees herself as to someone stronger by the end. That could make or break the book for me, I think. And I find myself weirdly bothered by the opposition between Lia and Alice that seems to be growing and being set up. I know it fits the storyline so far, but I just don't want Alice to be the antagonist! The sister in me wants so badly to see them become allies in whatever it is that's going on ... Please, lol? I also like the way the whole family's feminist leaning attitudes exist but aren't a huge point in the story. It's just who they are, and that works for me. 

Brandy

cartoonsource.com

I'm teetering between 2 & 3 stars. Something seemed to be missing for me. A lack of caring for the characters, maybe? I was a little deterred by her finding the mark and not questioning it, of hearing the prophecy and simply accepting it. Oh hey, there's this prophecy about twin sisters and it's hard to understand. But hey, I must be a part of it. Why else would it be in our house? I don't know. It just seemed a little... forced, maybe. Personally if I had some weird tattoo like thing show up on my arm I am thinking I might freak out a little. What was her background on supernatural type things? There didn't appear to be any to me, so why was she so inclined to just believe and not be like "this type of stuff doesn't exist" or question it in some way. I think that's the part I struggled with the most. There were a few other things that seemed thrown in there, but didn't take me completely out of the story.

That aside, I enjoyed the writing itself, if the plot and character development was lacking. I'm not sure whether or not I'll read the next one when it comes. (I ordered thru the library) But I am curious to know how it ends, just not at all on the scale it should be to be waiting waiting waiting for the next one. Maybe I'll skim them. I just wasn't as entangled in the story as I'd like to be. There was too much going on for me to completely suspend belief and fall into it. :(  I'm saddened by this because I like the idea a lot. 


Malissa
Even at not quite done, I'm in complete agreement. If I loved the characters and were totally sucked in, I would probably be OK with the way she accepts it all so easily and chalk it up to "fate." But I find myself not really caring that much. She could give in and the apocalypse could come, and I'd be mildly annoyed. But I wouldn't feel any real loss. So, I kinda feel like "What's the point?" I'll likely end on 3 stars because I don't hate any of it by any means. A teen might like it for a light, casual read. But I wanted more from it. Like you, I loved the idea. I love the way the author takes things that are usually considered occult and evil and makes them just ... exist. Not really good or bad that they do. But it could be sooo much more dramatic and deeper and even darker really. And I have books like Splintered and Seraphina, and The Diviners on my list. Plus that new Printz winner I'd never heard of ;) I want more than "meh." Life is too short for meh, lol. 

Brandy

I'm with you on the not hating it. I don't. Or I wouldn't have finished it, of course. I just don't seem to have the inclination to care enough to find out what happens next. Some parts of the story intrigued me more than others. But mostly I found it to be so-so. "Meh," as you say. :)  I agree. Life is too short for meh. It was definitely missing a wow factor for me. I do hope that in the second book Lia becomes a stronger person. For that matter, I'd like all the characters to be a bit more rounded and to care more about what happens to them.

Malissa
Finally finished the book. Must admit that I don't really care what comes next... at all. I actually skimmed the last few pages. I mean I'd still recommend it to a teen whose tastes it fits with the disclaimer that I didn't love it, but it's not a bad read. I nearly rated two starts based on just my personal enjoyment (if I have to skim to finish, it feels like less than 3 stars to me), but I truly think it's recommendable. But definitely no wow factor. No real caring for Lia or her fate. If we'd gotten a stronger main character to care about, I might feel totally different, but we didn't. She feels so bland to me. No deep hurt at the rift (to put it mildly) between her and her twin sister, no deep anger and feelings of betrayal toward her mother, and no rage over the awful "incident" near the end.  Really? I'd be a hot mess of emotion at *best.* And that equals no desire to read on for me.

Brandy
I haven't thought about the book since I finished it so I'm leaning toward not caring either. I figure if I haven't thought about Lia or Alice and wondered at all then there's no point in reading further. I have more books I want to read more. I definitely agree with her being 'bland.' I think that's a great way to put it. I'm still sad, though. I wanted to like it... I really did.

Let us know what you think. Have you read it? Did you like it if you have? If you haven't read it, do you think you will?

Smiles,

B (& M)

Fixing Delilah ~ Review

Whew! It has been such a chaotic week for me. I think the gray cloud of sickness over our household has dissipated and we're left only with a few remnants of Kleenex lying around. That, and an ongoing antibiotic for my youngest. ;)  But we're on the mend and I'm back at work trying to catch up. Fun times! 

To kick off this week and get back in the groove of things, here's my review of the book I finished while home with sick kiddos. 

 

 Title: Fixing Delilah

Author: Sarah Ockler

Publisher: Little Brown Books for Young Readers

Publication Date: December 2010

Source: Borrowed from my library

Format: Hardcover

Rating:  3.5 Stars

~Goodreads Description~

Things in Delilah Hannaford's life have a tendency to fall apart.

She used to be a good student, but she can't seem to keep it together anymore. Her "boyfriend" isn't much of a boyfriend. And her mother refuses to discuss the fight that divided their family eight years ago. Falling apart, it seems, is a Hannaford tradition.

Over a summer of new friendships, unexpected romance, and moments that test the complex bonds between mothers and daughters, Delilah must face her family's painful past. Can even her most shattered relationships be pieced together again?

Rich with emotion, Sarah Ockler delivers a powerful story of family, love, and self-discovery.

 

  

I enjoyed reading Delilah's story. Her frustration flew off the page at me and I wanted to take her mom aside and yell at her for being so blind to it all. For not understanding the deeper issue, the reason for all the changes in Delilah's behavior and life. And when Delilah's Grandmother passes away, her mom sees it as an opportunity.

Delilah is whisked away to work on settling the estate after her grandmother passes away. A grandmother she hasn't seen in 8 years and has no clue why. She knows there was a fight but doesn't have a clue what it was about nor why it caused such a huge rift between her family. 

"Everything changes in the space of eight years - faces, places, even memories - realities as different from our recollections as we are from our old selves."

I did feel, however, that some of it was too easy. if that makes any sense. She reunites with her childhood summer friend almost immediately, and just as immediately they have a palpable romantic connection. There wasn't much in the way of "hey I haven't seen you eight years" awkwardness, and there is so much that would have changed from the time she was 8 years old to now (16). It just sort of seemed thrown out there to me.

And her mom. Oh, her lovely mother, who is a work-a-holic and doesn't seem to understand that her daughter misses the carefree there-for-her-all-the-time mom she used to be. After the problems Delilah has had at home, Claire (her mom), all the sudden seems to want a clean slate, without really even talking about the issues, even the on-the-surface issues? That seemed strange to me, but maybe it fits with her work-work-nothing-but-work attitude. (Apparently I'm into dashes today. :) )

Aside from those two issues for me, the story was very well told. Despite some things feeling rushed, it all felt real. The easiness of some things didn't slow the flow for me. The end result, the connections made, rang true for me. I loved some of the twists and turns and the discoveries that Delilah makes about her family and past as the story unfolds. Not only was I reading about her anger but I could feel it, as if she were slamming in me in the face with it. I love that!

The self-discoveries Delilah makes on her journey aren't new, or fresh, to stories. They're not groundbreaking. But they are real. They are things that most, if not all, people learn at some point. The true meaning of friendship, the bond of family, the power of forgiveness, the importance of letting go.

Have you read it? What did you think?

Guest Review ~ The Light Between Oceans

 

Title: The Light Between Oceans

Author: ML Stedman
Publisher: Scribner

 Publication Date: July 2012

Source: Library Copy

Reviewed by: Malissa :)
Rating: 3.5 Stars

Malissa, my best friend and reading partner, and I were talking not too long ago and I asked her if she wanted to post a review (or more than one, whatever, whenever) on my blog. She did! :) So here's her first guest post. :)

~Goodreads Description~

After four harrowing years on the Western Front, Tom Sherbourne returns to Australia and takes a job as the lighthouse keeper on Janus Rock, nearly half a day’s journey from the coast. To this isolated island, where the supply boat comes once a season and shore leaves are granted every other year at best, Tom brings a young, bold, and loving wife, Isabel. Years later, after two miscarriages and one stillbirth, the grieving Isabel hears a baby’s cries on the wind. A boat has washed up onshore carrying a dead man and a living baby.

Tom, whose records as a lighthouse keeper are meticulous and whose moral principles have withstood a horrific war, wants to report the man and infant immediately. But Isabel has taken the tiny baby to her breast. Against Tom’s judgment, they claim her as their own and name her Lucy. When she is two, Tom and Isabel return to the mainland and are reminded that there are other people in the world. Their choice has devastated one of them.

M. L. Stedman’s mesmerizing, beautifully written novel seduces us into accommodating Isabel’s decision to keep this “gift from God.” And we are swept into a story about extraordinarily compelling characters seeking to find their North Star in a world where there is no right answer, where justice for one person is another’s tragic loss.

The Light Between Oceans is exquisite and unforgettable, a deeply moving novel.

 I finished this book back before Christmas (Dec 21st to be precise), but it's taken me until now to get the time to sit down and review it. In the long run, though, I'm actually glad that it did because sometimes I need a little bit of distance from a book to decide how I really feel about it. So...

There's a lot to like about this book. It's well written. The author has a unique way of beginning a chapter/section where she begins the first paragraph in present tense and then slowly (invisibly, really) transitions to past tense. It gives the impression that the reader enters a scene with a close up and then zooms out slowly. It's an almost cinematic feel. And it works well with the story in that the reader is close to the action but also has the slightly removed view of the omniscient narrator that provides a broader perspective. The language is beautiful and the setting (a lighthouse off the coast of Australia circa 1926) is exotic and engaging. And, most importantly, the story is a compelling one.

So, then, why only 3.5 stars? The dust jacket description of this book says it's about 'extraordinarily compelling characters seeking to find their North Star in a world where there is no right answer, where justice for one person is another's tragic loss.' Now I love a good moral dilemma as much as the next reader, but there was NO dilemma here for me. The premise of this story (and I'm not giving anything away here are the DJ and any publisher's synopsis tells you this much) is that Tom and Isabel Sherbourne, a young couple living on the island (he's taken the post of lighthouse keeper post WWI), have had 2 miscarriages and a devastating stillbirth when a boat washes ashore carrying a dead man and a nearly newborn infant. The couple (against Tom's better judgement) decide to keep the baby and pretend it's their own child born several weeks early. Their reasoning being that the dead man must be the father and the mother must have washed overboard because no mother lets her infant out of her sight at such a very young age and so the baby will surely end up in a horrible orphanage.

Now I am admittedly not yet a parent. I've never had a miscarriage, and so I can only imagine the emotional devastation that Isabel would feel after losing 3 babies. But, and this is a big 'but' for me, I ama sister, and an aunt, and a cousin, and the honorary aunt of my best friend's two kids (I like to think so anyway ;) she is... :) ~Brandy), and I know without a second's hesitation that I would take in the child of any of the aforementioned people in a heartbeat if they were to suddenly wash over over the side of a dingy. I can't think of one child I know who is loved only by his/her parents and would be missed by no one else. And, of course, since this is a novel, you can assume things will not be as simple as Tom and Isabel think they can be. But my big problem is that I just couldn't bring myself to sympathize with them. What they did wasn't a dilemma. It was wrong. I didn't hate them by any means, but a moral dilemma isn't much good if you can't buy into both sides of it. At least I couldn't.

Other readers have loved this book. It has a 4.1 star average from over 15,000 readers on Goodreads. And there's a lot more to the story than the early bones I've described here. But the rest couldn't redeem the book for me in the end (even though the end is rather well done). But I will likely still pick up M.L. Stedman's next book because her writing appeals to me very much, and just because this book an I had our disagreements doesn't mean I won't fall in love with the next one.

Has anyone read it? What did you think? If you haven't read it, do you think you will?

Thanks for reading!

Smiles,

♥ B ♥