Iona Iverson’s Rules for Commuting by Clare Pooley (★★★☆☆)
Print • Library • Contemporary Fiction • 2022
Short synopsis: Follow an eclectic group of people with almost nothing in common except their commute as they discover how a chance encounter can blossom into much more. There’s Iona, the larger-than-life magazine columnist. Sanjay, the nurse with the heart of gold. Emmie, the quiet girl who’s always reading a book on the train. And Piers, the man who almost chokes on a grape and changes the course of all their lives.
There seems to be an influx of these types of books lately: multi-generational people coming together for a specific purpose. I’ve read more than a handful of them lately, and they all truly hit me in my feels. Loneliness is an epidemic, and these authors are trying to remind us of the humanity of the people we live next to, commute with, and work side by side with. I loved the cast of characters in this novel and how different their stories were. (With a large cast of characters, it wasn’t hard to differentiate each story, which is a feat!) Some of them had such beautifully redemptive arcs! My main issue with the book, however, was that the pacing was a bit off. Near the end of the book, the plot started to meander and it felt like the author was trying to figure out the best way to end the book so she just kept writing until she found it. Which could work in some cases, but with this novel, it just felt boring. A tighter edit could have helped. All in all, a feel-good story that could be a great palate cleanser in between more difficult books.
Hidden Pictures by Jason Rekulak (★★☆☆☆)
Print • Library • Thriller • 2022
Short synopsis: Mallory has just finished rehab and is looking for a fresh start. She gets a job as a live-in nanny for a five-year-old boy named Teddy who loves to draw. Soon, though, his drawings morph from cute stick figures to sinister images—drawings well beyond his years. Mallory has to wonder: Is a supernatural force drawing these pictures, and what do these pictures mean?
Oh, goodness. This book was a trainwreck. It was hyped up big time on one of the bookish podcasts I listen to, and I was so excited to read it, but the writing just did not work for me at all. Let’s talk about the good: Mallory. I loved Mallory’s character so much and appreciated the way she was written. (Men writing thrillers often do not write female characters very well.) Also good: All of the drawings in the book. It’s a must-read in print because the illustrations definitely take the book to the next level. Now the bad: the ending. A well-done thriller is only as good as its ending and this one was particularly bad. It had characters changing their behaviors in an instant, a convoluted story that made no sense, and a very problematic reveal at the end. This is not a book I was a fan of, but YMMV, of course.
A Proposal They Can’t Refuse by Natalie Caña (★★☆☆☆)
E-Book • Libby • Contemporary Romance • 2022
Short synopsis: Kamilah is looking to put her family’s Puerto Rican restaurant on the map and save it from closing in their gentrifying neighborhood. Liam’s family’s distillery business has been nominated for a national competition and everything he’s ever wanted is in his grasp. Kamilah and Liam are former best friends turned enemies due to a long-ago feud, and when their meddling grandfathers get involved, telling them they have to get married to keep their businesses intact, they have to figure out how to keep their life’s work without losing their hearts.
If the synopsis for this book sounds very complex, that’s because it is. I had the hardest time writing a synopsis for this book! Why do these grandfathers want their grandchildren who barely like each other to get married? I CAN’T TELL YOU! It was never fully explained in the book, other than they might be matchmakers who see the potential in a relationship between Kamilah and Liam? I think?! This story had the potential to be great (I love a good foodie romance novel!), but it was rife with plot holes and disappointing character decisions. I never felt true chemistry between Liam and Kamilah, and it’s hard to understand why they liked each other so much when they didn’t really have much in common. A pretty mediocre romance, unfortunately.
What are you reading?