Review: The Women in Black by Madeleine St John

The Women in Black

by Madeleine St John

Publisher: Scribner

Pages: 224

Format: eARC

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  Sydney in the late 1950s. On the second floor of the famous F.G. Goode department store, in Ladies' Cocktail Frocks, the women in black are girding themselves for the Christmas rush. Lisa is the new Sales Assistant (Temporary). Across the floor and beyond the arch, she is about to meet the glamorous Continental refugee, Magda, guardian of the rose-pink cave of Model Gowns.


Kritters Thoughts:  Set in Australia in the late 1950s in a department store where ladies make up the majority of the workforce.  This little book rotates between characters and their different storylines and what is impacting them as they go through the holiday season.

I liked this book, but didn't love it.  I think the lack of length stunted the story and with more pages the story archs could have felt more fluid and full.  It felt as though just as I was getting involved with one of the characters and their storyline, the chapter would stop and jump to someone else and with the overall book length it felt as though a lot was crammed into just a few pages.  

I wish this book had more because I think it needed more especially as the author tried to give a large cast a lot of time to each character and there wasn't one that was solely focused on with a large secondary cast.  I wanted and wished for more with this one.


Rating: enjoyable, but didn't leave me wanting more

Ebook 2019 Challenge: 69 out of 100


Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Netgalley.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Review: The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson

The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek

by Kim Michele Richardson

Publisher: Sourcebooks

Pages: 308

Format: book

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  In 1936, tucked deep into the woods of Troublesome Creek, KY, lives blue-skinned 19-year-old Cussy Carter, the last living female of the rare Blue People ancestry. The lonely young Appalachian woman joins the historical Pack Horse Library Project of Kentucky and becomes a librarian, riding across slippery creek beds and up treacherous mountains on her faithful mule to deliver books and other reading material to the impoverished hill people of Eastern Kentucky.

Along her dangerous route, Cussy, known to the mountain folk as Bluet, confronts those suspicious of her damselfly-blue skin and the government's new book program. She befriends hardscrabble and complex fellow Kentuckians, and is fiercely determined to bring comfort and joy, instill literacy, and give to those who have nothing, a bookly respite, a fleeting retreat to faraway lands.

Kritters Thoughts:  A book that I only heard about due to a bit of controversy, but I am glad that I read it fully to compare and contrast against what everyone was saying.  I will not compare this book to another in this review, but will say it was interesting to read this against the other.  

It is 1936 in rural Kentucky and Cussy Carter is a pack house librarian.  She spends her days delivering books to the outskirts of Appalachian and visiting with different families.  She is unique herself as she is the last living female of the "Blue People" lineage.  

Most of the plot of this story revolved around her being blue and how that impacted her daily life.  The people in her town defined a blue person as a "colored person" and this whole plot line made me do a few google searches and learn about the lineage and family and how they were treated throughout the years.  I felt as though the book focused on this more than the idea of the pack horse library.

There were some sweet moments as Cussy visited her "neighbors" and delivered books and I loved those, but the logistics of the library were sort of glossed over and didn't get as much attention.  

I liked this book, but didn't love it.  I felt as though it was placed in a historical time and place, but it didn't feel rooted there.   


Rating: enjoyable, but didn't leave me wanting more

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Netgalley.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Review: The Secret Life of Mrs. London by Rebecca Rosenberg

The Secret Life of Mrs. London

by Rebecca Rosenberg

Publisher: Lake Union Publishing

Pages: 348

Format: eARC

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  San Francisco, 1915. As America teeters on the brink of world war, Charmian and her husband, famed novelist Jack London, wrestle with genius and desire, politics and marital competitiveness. Charmian longs to be viewed as an equal partner who put her own career on hold to support her husband, but Jack doesn’t see it that way…until Charmian is pulled from the audience during a magic show by escape artist Harry Houdini, a man enmeshed in his own complicated marriage. Suddenly, charmed by the attention Houdini pays her and entranced by his sexual magnetism, Charmian’s eyes open to a world of possibilities that could be her escape.

As Charmian grapples with her urge to explore the forbidden, Jack’s increasingly reckless behavior threatens her dedication. Now torn between two of history’s most mysterious and charismatic figures, she must find the courage to forge her own path, even as she fears the loss of everything she holds dear.

Kritters Thoughts:  Jack London is in the middle of his career and has already been through some interesting personal things and is currently married to a woman who is both a muse and almost a personal assistant as she is helping move his career along.  Charmain London was older than Jack London and really was a big part of the second half of his career and this book focuses on her life.

Going into this book I didn't know much about Jack London - his career or his life.  I loved reading this book through the lens of his wife, Charmain.  It was so intriguing how vital to his career she was enough that it really dwarfed and impacted her own pursuits and how diminished she was standing next to this larger than life character.  I think seeing this story through her the reader was really able to see her true feelings.  

With a bit of spoiler one of the things I enjoyed was that the story went beyond his death.  I was glad that the author didn't end Charmain's story with his death because she had a life after his death and it was interesting to see the parts where she is dealing with his death and trying to decide what she wants to do with herself apart from him.  

I liked this book, but it wasn't one of my favorite historical fiction books.  It was more with the writing and the flow of things that just didn't always work for me.  I was glad to learn about these historical figures and get a peek into their lives, but the arc of the story didn't have the flow that I usually like when reading historical fiction.


Rating: enjoyable, but didn't leave me wanting more

Ebook 2020 Challenge: 13 out of 100

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Netgalley.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Review: Batter Up by Robyn Neeley

Batter Up

by Robyn Neeley

Publisher: Dreamscape

Pages: 172

Format: eARC

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  Bakeshop owner Emma Stevens has a secret. A delicious premonition she shares every Monday evening with the bachelors of Buttermilk Falls as they gather at the Sugar Spoon bakery for Batter Up night.

Investigative reporter Jason Levine just found himself as the man candy for a bachelorette party in Las Vegas. Roped into attending the Vegas nuptials, was he hearing things when the groom shares that the only reason he’s getting married is because a small town baker conjured up the name of his soulmate in her cake batter?

Sparks fly when Jason tries to expose Emma as a fraud, but reality and logic go out the window as he begins to fall under her spell.

Kritters Thoughts:  A sweet little romance that I didn't completely love, but mostly loved!  I will explain. . . 

Emma Stevens owns an interesting little bakery in a small town in upstate NY.  On Monday nights the local bachelors come to her store to get revealed their true love and Emma has quite the matchmaking record.  A reporter comes to know about this interesting thing happening and decides to go make a story of it.  

For me, I wish the author had a few more pages to make the story flow better.  I felt as though we go from Jason and Emma meeting and having one encounter to a full on romantic episode and I wish there had been more build up to get us to the point that it did.  

I loved the concept of the book and most of the plot, it just didn't completely work for me.  The characters were great, I wanted more of a complete story arch for them.    


Rating: definitely a good read, but can't read two in a row

Ebook 2020 Challenge: 12 out of 100

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Netgalley.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

It's Monday, What are you Reading?

Two weeks worth of reading since last weekend ended up with me nursing a dog back to health and I didn't get this post up!

A meme hosted by Kathryn at The Book Date. 

Finished this past week:

Open Book by Jessica Simpson (audio)
Don't Overthink It by Anne Bogel
A Year Without a Name by Cyrus Grace Dunham (audio)
Female. Likes Cheese. Comes with Dog. by Lauren Cribb
The Sea Glass Cottage by RaeAnne Thayne
Children of the Stars by Mario Escobar
The Ghosts of Eden Park by Karen Abbott
Vanishing Girls by Lisa Regan

Currently Reading:

American Princess by Stephanie Marie Thornton

Next on the TBR pile:

One Little Lie by Colleen Coble

Review: The Girl in White Gloves by Kerri Maher

The Girl in White Gloves

by Kerri Maher

Publisher: Berkley

Pages: 384

Format: ARC

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  A life in snapshots…

Grace knows what people see. She’s the Cinderella story. An icon of glamor and elegance frozen in dazzling Technicolor. The picture of perfection. The girl in white gloves.

A woman in living color…

But behind the lens, beyond the panoramic views of glistening Mediterranean azure, she knows the truth. The sacrifices it takes for an unappreciated girl from Philadelphia to defy her family and become the reigning queen of the screen. The heartbreaking reasons she trades Hollywood for a crown. The loneliness of being a princess in a fairy tale kingdom that is all too real.

Hardest of all for her adoring fans and loyal subjects to comprehend, is the harsh reality that to be the most envied woman in the world does not mean she is the happiest. Starved for affection and purpose, facing a labyrinth of romantic and social expectations with more twists and turns than Monaco’s infamous winding roads, Grace must find her own way to fulfillment. But what she risks--her art, her family, her marriage—she may never get back.


Kritters Thoughts: Grace Kelly is a name that brings to mind images that most anyone could describe.  A woman who was held to an extreme standard for poise and physical appearance, yet I didn't know much about her life.  This book although a fictional tale, pulls back the curtain on Grace Kelly's years before she became a legit princess and then through the transition and into her years as a parent and a full fledged princess.

As much as I loved this book, there were moments where the pacing fell off for me and I felt as though it dragged a bit.  I wouldn't have minded the book being shortened just a little and getting more interesting glimpses into moments in her life.  There were parts that felt repetitive and redundant.  

Reading this book at this moment in time felt ironic with Harry and Meghan's changing of their royal intentions.  Grace made me think of Meghan in her inability to please the people of Monaco due to her "americaness" and just wanting to serve them, but also missing a piece of her life without her ability to pursue the career dreams that she had held for so long.  I really read this book with Meghan in the back of my mind.  

This book made me go and look at my TBR and look for some more Grace Kelly books to see her through a few more perspectives.  


Rating: definitely a good read, but can't read two in a row

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Penguin Random House.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Review: The Antidote for Everything by Kimmery Martin

The Antidote for Everything

by Kimmery Martin

Publisher: Berkley

Pages: 352

Format: book

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  Georgia Brown’s profession as a urologist requires her to interact with plenty of naked men, but her romantic prospects have fizzled. The most important person in her life is her friend Jonah Tsukada, a funny, empathetic family medicine doctor who works at the same hospital in Charleston, South Carolina and who has become as close as family to her.

Just after Georgia leaves the country for a medical conference, Jonah shares startling news. The hospital is instructing doctors to stop providing medical care for transgender patients. Jonah, a gay man, is the first to be fired when he refuses to abandon his patients. Stunned by the predicament of her closest friend, Georgia’s natural instinct is to fight alongside him. But when her attempts to address the situation result in incalculable harm, both Georgia and Jonah find themselves facing the loss of much more than their careers.

Kritters Thoughts:  The second book by Kimmery Martin and I am officially a fan of her writing.  Both of her books center around the medical community and both handle some hard topics.  They are not a series, but I would high suggest reading both of them.

This book centers around a man and a woman who have an intense friendship - enough to make each other their healthcare power of attorney.  Georgia Brown is a female urologist which is unique (something I learned), she has been in her field for a long time and prides herself on being a good doctor for each of her patients.  Jonah Tsukada is a primary care physician who is willing to treat all sorts of patients, he has many who are transitioning or are queer and being a gay man himself can provide an extra dose of empathy when treating them.  

These two and their friendship really made the book for me.  I love how they played off of each other and how they supported each other.  I wouldn't mind another book about this pair.  They reminded me of a few friendships that I have where you can support one another but also push each other to become better people.  

The other thing that made this book for me was the topic that she tackled - private medical care being able to make decisions about who they do and who they don't treat.  I knew before reading this book that this was a fact, but to read about it just really made it real and heartbreaking.  I can't imagine having hospital executives tell me a doctor who I can and can't treat due to social decisions that the patients make - that just blows my mind.

I love Kimmery Martin's writing, characters and plot.  It also helps that her books have been set so far in cities that I love - Charlotte and Charleston.  She is definitely worth picking up and spending some time with.


Rating: absolutely loved it and want a sequel

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Berkley.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Review: The Other Gloria by LA Villafane

The Other Gloria

by LA Villafane

Publisher: Empire Publishing

Pages: 255

Format: book

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  The truth lies in what she can't remember. There is another who harbors her unspeakable secrets. Meeting her is where the danger lies.

On a dark January night in 2019, Gloria finds herself behind the wheel of a car, beaten and covered in blood. She has no idea where she’s coming from, or where she might be headed. After pulling to the side of the road, she begins to fade out of consciousness.

The next thing she experiences is waking in bed next to a man who should be her beloved fiancé, Rick. However, she soon discovers it is her dangerous ex-husband, Charles, whom she thought she had escaped two years earlier, in 2017. She eventually finds that the year she was woken to is 2003, and she is living her life with this abusive man all over again.

Due to the abuse she endured, Gloria suffers from dissociative disorder, which has stolen the memories of her two young daughters growing up. There is another who holds these memories; the Other Gloria. She thinks maybe God has given her a do-over, and she might be able to do better, stay present, and recover the lost memories of their childhood. She knows, to do this, she must escape Charles once again.

Gloria’s plan for escaping this time around includes finding Rick, who doesn’t know she exists in 2003, but she soon comes to the realization that meeting Rick will not be enough. She knows she must do the one thing she never wanted to do – meet the Other Gloria and finally discover the unspeakable secrets she holds.

Kritters Thoughts:  With two story lines and a prologue that sends you back in time, this book was a bit hard to read and follow.  The Other Gloria starts with a Gloria who finds herself in a car covered with blood, but can't find the source, but then she is sent back in time to a time where she had two young daughters and was in a horrible marriage.  The other storyline is a few years back and Gloria has left the marriage with adult daughters and has found a new love.  

The storylines were hard to follow, but the big for me for this book was I didn't understand how they were going to collide and to be frank I have finished the book a few days ago and have thought of it and still don't feel as though I got it all and that for me is frustrating as a reader.  The sad thing is I am not sure if I read it again, that I would pick up anything and get it any more than I do now.  

I did finish the book because I did enjoy Gloria the character and her daughters.  The author did create a character that I cared about and wanted to know more about, so that lead me to keep reading even with the confusing storylines and plot lines.  

I would read another by this author, but would be real critical about the synopsis.  The building of great characters gives me enough to want to try this author again, but with a little reservation.


Rating: enjoyable, but didn't leave me wanting more

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Smith Publicity.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Review: City of Flickering Light by Juliette Fay

City of Flickering Light

by Juliette Fay

Publisher: Gallery Books

Pages: 400

Format: eARC

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  It’s July 1921, “flickers” are all the rage, and Irene Van Beck has just declared her own independence by jumping off a moving train to escape her fate in a traveling burlesque show. When her friends, fellow dancer Millie Martin and comedian Henry Weiss, leap after her, the trio finds their way to the bright lights of Hollywood with hopes of making it big in the burgeoning silent film industry.

At first glance, Hollywood in the 1920s is like no other place on earth—iridescent, scandalous, and utterly exhilarating—and the three friends yearn for a life they could only have dreamed of before. But despite the glamour and seduction of Tinseltown, success doesn’t come easy, and nothing can prepare Irene, Millie, and Henry for the poverty, temptation, and heartbreak that lie ahead. With their ambitions challenged by both the men above them and the prejudice surrounding them, their friendship is the only constant through desperate times, as each struggles to find their true calling in an uncertain world. What begins as a quest for fame and fortune soon becomes a collective search for love, acceptance, and fulfillment as they navigate the backlots and stage sets where the illusions of the silver screen are brought to life.

Kritters Thoughts:  Told through the viewpoint of three very different people who make a decision to completely alter their lives, but jumping off a train and heading to Hollywood to fulfill dreams.  Henry, Irene and Millie were in a traveling burlesque show and they leave quickly to try to make it on their own in the land of dreams.  It is the 1920s in Hollywood and this time period makes things harder for almost everyone in one way or another; this book is a look into many different cultures and how being an other, as most were, made things harder.

The thing I loved most about this book was that not all three of them ended up acting.  Through all three of them, the reader gets an inside look of other behind the scenes jobs in Hollywood, it made the book feel unique.  To spoil just a bit, I liked seeing Henry enter the costuming department and Irene end up in the script department.  

The interesting insight into an early #MeToo movement gave the book more depth and really made me think about the women and how they were treated when in regards to violence against women.  In many books you see women oppressed just in general in relationships or on the job, but to see the early indications of these men taking advantage of women in this industry made this book a more interesting read.  

I have read two out of the five books that Juliette Fay has published at the moment and after reading this one, I want to move the other three up my TBR list fast!


Rating: absolutely loved it and want a sequel

Ebook 2020 Challenge: 16 out of 100

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Netgalley.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Happy Valentine's Day!

source

Hopefully you are spending today with someone that you love!

Review: Love Rehab by Jo Piazza

Love Rehab

by Jo Piazza

Publisher: Open Road

Pages: 230

Format: eARC

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  Cyber-stalking, drive-bys, drunken text messaging, creating fake email accounts—you’re gonna have to face it, you’re addicted to love.
 
Sophie isn’t dealing with her breakup well. Dumped by her boyfriend, Eric, for his sexting, D-cupped, young Floozy McSecretary, Sophie leaves Manhattan and lands back in her hometown, crushed and pajama-clad, blaming herself and begging her ex for a second chance. 
 
But when her best friend, Annie, gets in trouble for driving drunk and is forced to go to an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, something clicks in Sophie’s strung-out mind. Women need love rehab, she realizes, to help fix the craziness that comes along with falling for someone.
 
If you start it, they will come. When she opens up her home to the obsessed and lovelorn, Sophie finds a way to help women out there who have overdosed on the wrong men—and she saves herself in the process.
 
Love is a drug and the only things that can save us are the steps, rules, and one another. Step one: Admit you have a problem, and keep the hell away from Facebook.


Kritters Thoughts:  Sophie was recently dumped and she is still not over the guy and the relationship.  When her friend has a run in with the police due to alcohol and is given the sentence of attending AA to turn her life around, Sophie is quickly inspired to enter herself into rehab to get over the craziness that has come her way from her break up.  

I completely adored this book.  I loved all the women that Sophie ended up interacting with and all the stories that came with them.  The many different ways a relationship can end and the many ways that women react to those endings - it was great.  

I loved that this story followed the typical romance arc where just as you think there is happily ever after there is a speed bump in the road and the reader has to wonder for a minute if it will truly end happy.  

This was the best book to curl up with during a month that maybe is focused on love a bit more than usual and see women band together to help each other through life's ups and downs.  


Rating: absolutely loved it and want a sequel

Ebook 2020 Challenge: 11 out of 100

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Netgalley.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Review: Been There, Married That by Gigi Levangie Grazer

Been There, Married That

by Gigi Levangie Grazer

Publisher: St Martin's Press

Pages: 336

Format: eARC

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  When he changes the locks, she changes the rules.

Agnes Murphy Nash is the perfect Hollywood wife – she has the right friends, the right clothes, and even a side career of her own as a writer. Her husband Trevor is a bigshot producer, and from the outside it looks like they’re living a picture-perfect celebrity life, complete with tennis tournaments and lavish parties.

But the job description of a Hollywood wife doesn’t cover divorce, which is the way Agnes’ life is headed after she comes home one day to find her credit cards cancelled and the security passwords to get into her enormous LA home changed. Oh, and there’s a guy there whose job it is to tase her if she tries to enter…which she does. Needless to say, Agnes’ husband is dead set on making sure she loses big time, but Agnes isn’t the type to just lie down and take it. In a world of fremenies and hot nannies, personal psychics and “skinny” jello shots, Agnes may be losing her husband, but could that mean getting her own life back?


Kritters Thoughts:  A long term Hollywood couple, he a producer, her a writer hit a large speed bump in their marriage and he has decided that their relationship isn't working for him anymore.  A book that takes all the pretentious Hollywood ideals and blows them way out of portion and for me it just didn't work.

I couldn't get excited about either character.  Agnes Murphy Nash was just a frustrating lady to follow, I wanted so much for her at a few spots in the book and she just wasn't meeting the expectations I had for her - I wanted her to rise above her husbands drama.  Trevor Nash was just an asshole and I really wish to goodness that there isn't a man out there who acts like him.  I could maybe guess that the character was based on one or two people, but I sure hope not because he was just ridiculous.

I continued to roll my eyes throughout the book.  I know it is fiction, but this just seemed like a reality tv show and a soap opera married and had this book as a baby.  

If you love the craziness of the Kardashians in book form - then this one would be perfect for you to pick up.  I need something a little more for my character for me to follow them on a journey.


Rating: enjoyable, but didn't leave me wanting more

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from St Martin's Press.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Review: Courting Mr. Lincoln by Louis Bayard

Courting Mr. Lincoln

by Louis Bayard

Publisher: Algonquin Books

Pages: 381

Format: eARC

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  When Mary Todd meets Abraham Lincoln in Springfield in the winter of 1840, he is on no one's shortlist to be president. Rough and reticent, he’s a country lawyer lacking money and manners, living above a dry goods shop, but with a gift for oratory. Mary, a quick, self-possessed debutante with a tireless interest in debates and elections, at first finds him an enigma. “I can only hope,” she tells his roommate, the handsome, charming Joshua Speed, “that his waters being so very still, they also run deep.”

It’s not long, though, before she sees the Lincoln that Speed knows: a man who, despite his awkwardness, is amiable and profound, with a gentle wit to match his genius and a respect for her keen political mind. But as her relationship with Lincoln deepens, she must confront his inseparable friendship with Speed, who has taught his roommate how to dance, dress, and navigate the polite society of Springfield.

Told in the alternating voices of Mary Todd and Joshua Speed, and rich with historical detail, Courting Mr. Lincoln creates a sympathetic and complex portrait of Mary unlike any that has come before; a moving portrayal of the deep and very real connection between the two men; and most of all, an evocation of the unformed man who would grow into one of the nation’s most beloved presidents.

Kritters Thoughts:  An interesting look at Abraham Lincoln's life before he was anywhere near the national spotlight.  He was living in Springfield, IL and there were two very important people in his life - his roommate, Joshua Speed who owned a store and shared a bed with Lincoln and the woman he eventually courted and married, Mary Todd.  Through the eyes of these two people we learn about a Lincoln who maybe isn't discussed that often as a lawyer and starting to speak up about the future of the Illinois and the United States. 

I am an Abraham Lincoln fan.  I could read almost anything about him, but all of what I have read focused on his presidential years, so I appreciated this unique look at a time where he wasn't the immensely popular man that he became.  There are chapters from each Mary and Joshua and it was interesting when their stories overlapped at times to see the same instance through both of their eyes.  

I was completely partial to Mary's story and enjoyed her view a little better.  I don't know if that is because I know her and didn't know Mr. Speed or because I am a woman and I would love to imagine the qualities that drew Lincoln to Mary.  I could have read a whole book solely from her viewpoint and would have loved it completely.  I wasn't aware of the history of their relationship, so it is always nice to learn something new!

An overall great book and I love when I read a historical fiction book and I learn something new while enjoying a great story. 


Rating: definitely a good read, but can't read two in a row

Ebook 2020 Challenge: 8 out of 100

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Algonquin.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.