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?
Oh no! I was really looking forward to hidden pictures– I LOVED The Fortress by this author.
You may enjoy Hidden Pictures more than I did! Other people have raved about it. It just did not work for me. 🙁
I’m reading The Story of Us and it’s really good so far, about a Filipino woman who is going to work as a nanny in Canada. The author is Canadian and also queer, and has written many other books that have won awards; I’m really enjoying her writing.
That sounds really interesting! I’m glad you’re enjoying (or enjoyed, by this time!) the book. 🙂
Shoot – 2 2-star books! I had heard about Hidden Pictures and considered reading it although I do not like reading physical books so that was the big draw back. Sounds like one for me to skip!
I just finished “Drowning” which is the 2nd airline thriller by TJ Newman. It is very page turny! Now I am reading “The Book of Lost Names” which is historical fiction set in the post-antebellum south. It’s about slaves trying to reunite with their families (which is devastating to read about) and there is a modern-day story, too. I’m really liking it but “like’ feels like the wrong word. Next I will read “The Rachel Incident” which Sarah of Sarah’s Bookshelves Live and Annie of The Bookshelf both liked. And then “Good for a Girl” which is a sports memoir by a female professional runner.
Yeah, it wasn’t the best reading week for me. It happens!
I have both of TJ Newman’s books on my TBR and I’m hoping to get around to them soon. I also have Good for a Girl on my TBR – I’m going to try it on audio!
Stephany, I have started reading The Fellowship of the Ring. Grant me strength because the first sentence of the foreword was some seriously pedantic mansplaining BS and I’m already feeling a bit alienated from this world. I feel like I need to read Tolkien to fully understand his influence on modern fantasy, but I am seriously dreading it. Thank goodness for the palate cleanser that is ATGIB.
Oh goodness gracious, godspeed to you as you work through The Fellowship of the Ring. I don’t think I have it in me to even TRY that book! And yayyy for ATGIB!
I just finished Wuthering Heights. Oof. It was brutal. I remembered it being hard to read, but wow. Such miserable characters with deplorable behaviour and basically nothing happy or redemptive.
To be fair, I didn’t enjoy Jane Eyre OR Pride and Prejudice when I re-read them either.
I am loving ATGIB, though. Go, Engie!
I have never read Wuthering Heights, but everyone I know who has read it as an adult does not have great things to say about it, so I’m staying far away! I can’t do a story with no redemptive characters or plot.