5 stars I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley, and every time I read one of Caitlin Crews’ books, I’m reminded of why I enjoy her writing. Honestly, I just feel so good after reading one of her books. They’re full of misunderstood heroes and strong, independent women. This one is about Zack Kittredge, sheriff of Cold River and eldest brother of the Kittredges of the Bar K Ranch, and Janie Atwood, new resident of Cold River, caregiver of one Damaris Gardiner and suspicious person-of-interest to Zack. Zack immediately suspects that Janie is hiding something from him, and she is, but it’s nothing nefarious. Eventually, he dubs her his “little outlaw.” The development of their relationship is inevitable and facilitated by Janie’s offer to teach Zack to be “charming,” knowing full-well she is already fully charmed by him. Still, it’s sweet the way he begrudgingly accepts her offer and finds himself attending afternoon tea and learning ballroom dancing, though he’s reluctant to admit it’s because he really just wants to spend time with her. There were some wonderful descriptions in this book, as well as some clever observations. In chronological order, here they are: “His eyes were like bittersweet chocolate mixed through with fire.” “Did you come here to destroy dreams?” Janie asked. “Or is that just a typical by-product of the Zack Kittredge experience?” “He unfolded himself from his vehicle, looking the way he always did. Crisp. Perfect. As if the very clothes he wore dared not defy him. As if the fabrics kept themselves obedient.” Trixie, Janie’s grandmother, believed “...that spite, when properly applied, was a more powerful force than determination and three times as sweet.” Janie observed that “Families were a collection of sweetness piled on top of sorrow, stories told and corrected and retold, and misheard by every member, all interlaced together over the years...” Janie said, “...love doesn’t always look the way we want it to look. Sometimes it looks the exact opposite of how we think it should. That doesn’t make it any less love. It just means that sometimes, we all show love to people in ways that they’re not capable of seeing it.” “There are no men in New York, Valentina (Janie’s friend) had texted. Only a thousand ways to be rejected by men you lowered your standards to go out with in the first place.” “Bridezilla is such a fascinating term,” Harriet (fiancé of Zack’s brother, Jensen) said, wrinkling up her brow. “A woman who might have spent her life being told that all that matters is her wedding day is rendered monstrous by her attention to the details of that wedding. It’s almost as if women are set up to fail.” To me, this is the perfect encapsulation of the systemic misogyny of society that is so blithely accepted without question. “He felt like an idiot. And, simultaneously, as if he’d been knocked so hard on the head that there were actual, cartoon little birds flying around him in circles.” “He nipped her gently on her chin and smiled bright enough that Janie felt sorry for the stars.” Do I recommend this book? Absolutely. It’s a heartwarming, sweet and steamy read (without being explicit), and I’d read it again. April 25, 2022
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5 stars I received an ARC of this book from the author, the third in the White Sails series. It was different from the first two because, in this one, Grace and Seamus spend so much time apart. Naturally, this was sad, but what it did was invite the reader to experience the very real separations that people were forced to endure during that period of history. We need not look too far into the past to comprehend the difficulty of communications only in the past 30 years—busy signals instead of answering machines, no cell phones for immediate contact, and correspondence dependent upon physical mail delivery rather than instantaneous messages in response to inquiries. Some of the metaphors employed by Emily Lombard were remarkable: “A large blister bulged on Chittendon’s nose like a pulsing oyster.” “His breath stank like one of Ben Blight’s farts passed through a boiled onion.” “His profanity oozed from him with the airy ease of a harmonica.” “The wind swirled around the burning carriages like a wolf circling its prey, and the fanned flames in defiant response.” “...he looked like a shiver searching for a spine to run up and down.” “The cold gnawed at his injured right wrist like a fox crunching through week-old rabbit bones.” “...his brown spittle splattering at her feet like perforated fish guts.” I also loved some of the banter between characters: This insult was great. “You couldn’t hit water if you fell off the ship!” And this description of one of the sailors was equally amusing. “...the man was so lazy that he only breathed because he had to.” Describing sheep, Grace thinks, “Stupid creatures, as sharp as a sock full of soup they were.” When asked in court about Chittendon, Seamus’ first mate for the early part of their journey, and his decision to do something risky, Grace explains, “There’s no accounting for some folk’s stupidity. One can’t expect to find what God chose to omit.” This description of summertime in Australia is enough to make me want to avoid the place. “Thank goodness the plague of flies died out at this time of year. In summertime, their numbers were sufficient to pick up a roast chicken and carry it off!” The conversations between Old Quill and Wee Granny Mac are particularly amusing, as when he says, “...Had my hand to carpentry since before ya was born.” She responds, “Aye, and what was it like apprenticing with Jesus, then?” And when the visiting priest suggests the two of them formalize their relationship, she retorts, “I don’t need to be marrit to the auld beggar to know he’s the one I want to annoy for the rest of ma days. Wound’t do it even if his arse were dipped in diamonds,” she (Wee Granny Mac) declared with supreme Scottish hard-headedness. “Mention it again and I’ll have the castrating knife to your bollocks when ya next sleep—priest or no priest.” Although I didn’t enjoy this book quite as much as the previous ones, I think that’s because of my own failings. Specifically, I have trouble remembering character names and backstories when the last book I read was months earlier (as was the case in this instance). Also, some of the ship jargon was a little difficult for me to follow, but again, that’s because I have trouble remembering the simplest of things sailing-related, like fore and aft or starboard and port. April 22, 2022 3 stars I’m a big fan of Norma Hinkens so I was thrilled to receive an ARC of this book. Unfortunately, this one was not up to her usual standards. I found the main character, Cora, not only naive, but also foolish and quick to jump to conclusions. Every decision she made had me shaking my head and questioning why she was being so stupid. It made it difficult for me to sympathize with her or care too much about what was inevitably going to happen. The story is told entirely from the POV of Cora, which makes sense because she is the main protagonist. However, toward the end, it suddenly changes POV so the reader will understand the motivation of the villain. At that point, it became too far-fetched and unbelievable for me. And Cora’s actions in response were also frustrating, although I won’t say they weren’t in keeping with some of her precious annoying behaviors. Some of the touristy stops on Cora and Adele’s trip across the country were interesting and added realism to the story. Here again, though, I didn’t connect with Cora because the things she seemed to enjoy were not things I would enjoy. Overall, I was disappointed in the story and think Hinkens’ others are much better. April 15, 2022 4 stars I love the idea of this series of short stories—learning more about Nicki Sosebee’s best friend Sean. It definitely provides more insight into his thoughts and exactly how he feels about Nicki, which I loved. There’s also more about Jesse, his best friend at the time of the stories, his crush on Nicki, and Sean’s subsequent decision to ignore his own romantic desires toward her. I have only two complaints. First, I would have loved more. Second, there were times when the stories lapsed more into telling than showing, something that would have been fixed were the stories longer. I haven’t read all of the Nicki Sosebee series yet, but I sure hope that she and Sean end up together. April 12, 2022 5 stars This is an exciting story that takes place in an African country during an attempted coup. It shed some light on what may be happening in other parts of the world right now by following Jackson and Rose’s harrowing journey to escape the country as the insurgents begin to take over the country. Luckily, Ms. Greene does not get too graphic when describing some of the atrocities incurred by the innocent, allowing the reader to use their imagination. The story is really about Jackson and Rose and their lifelong friendship/love that was severed when she was 18 and he was 19 (I think). This is the kind of couple I think of when I hear of soulmates, and their ability to silently communicate reinforces that. I particularly liked the silent communication between them. Because Rose has amnesia and Jackson, who was greatly wounded by the dissolution of their friendship, is unwilling to come out and tell her what happened, the reader learns about their past as Rose’s memory comes back to her bit by bit. It’s a clever device to keep the reader guessing about not only what happened in the past, but also what is going to happen in the future. Along the way, they meet an empathic woman who seems to know things without any explanation. She only says it’s something that has been passed down through the women in her family. She serves as the voice of wisdom pushing Jackson and Rose toward one another because she can see that they belong together. One of the things she knows is that Rose is suffering from amnesia and this woman refers to it as an “amnesia paradox.” It is only because of this loss of memory that she will be able to forgive herself for the past and open her heart to Jackson. So it’s a blessing and a curse. She later acknowledges to herself that if she had remembered the past, she might never have allowed herself to be vulnerable and open with Jackson about her feelings. It’s a rough, yet sweet story about two people who find each other again after many years apart during the kind of turmoil in a country that no one should have to experience. I recommend it. April 11, 2022 |
Elizabeth J ConnorWriter. Editor. Proofreader. Archives
September 2022
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