Friday Book Report: Gotcha! by Christie Craig

Christie Craig’s novel, Gotcha! is a quirky and fun loving romance with a dash of mystery and suspense mixed in.  Published in 2009 by the Dorchester Publishing Company, this is an enjoyable, lighthearted read.

Macy Tucker is tired of the men in her life letting her down.  At five years old, her beloved grandfather died in his plate of spaghetti and never took her to the circus.  At twelve, her alcoholic and oftentimes abusive father abandoned his family.   At twenty-five, she found her husband rolling around in her bed with his secretary, and quickly thereafter she gave him the boot.  And now, her troubled brother has just escaped prison to apparently protect her and his new girlfriend.  For her, men have been unreliable and overall disappointing.

Men are not on Macy’s to-do list.  She’s focused on getting her law degree and supporting herself with her part-time pizza delivery job.  But all her well-laid plans go awry when she starts receiving death threats from one of the other prison escapees and in walks detective Jake Baldwin.  Her mind is telling her to stay away from the hunky cop, but her body has other ideas. 

Jake Baldwin is a man’s man.  He’s proud, and sexy, and he knows it.  A broken heart in the past has made him cautious when it comes to women.  But when he runs into Macy (literally), she knocks him on the floor (literally).  There’s something about Macy that makes him want to put his heart out there again, and he’s going to do everything he can to prove she can trust him, even if he has to embarrass himself in the process.

This is your typical contemporary romance novel.  It’s fun and lighthearted, and it seldom takes itself seriously.  Oh, there’s a murderer on the loose and a little bit of suspense to balance out the romance, but this is overall a love story.  I enjoyed this book, it’s not one of Craig’s best, but it’s still pretty entertaining.  Macy and Jake are cute together, she’s stubborn and he’s bossy.  She’s a vegetarian and he can’t believe she doesn’t eat bacon.  She doesn’t trust men, and he’s a man.  They are polar opposites, and yet they fit together.  It was  entertaining to watch their relationship progress and see how they worked around everything that was going on. 

My one complaint is that there were too many side stories in this book and it detracted from the story of Jake and Macy.  The secondary stories were cute but weren’t really essential to the plot of the book, and therefore I felt too much attention was placed on them.  We didn’t really need to read about Macy’s mother and her attempts to get over the destruction her abandoned husband did.  It was a compelling story, but not crucial to this story.  Billy (Macy’s brother) and his girlfriend Ellie had a cute story about redemption, but again it wasn’t necessary to go to such lengths to develop their story.  While the side stories were cute, to me they weakened the main plot and robbed the reader of learning more about Macy and Jake.  This story is about those two, and the secondary plots deterred from their story.  Of all the secondary characters, we didn’t even get to learn more about the villain, and all we saw of him were brief glimpses and parting shots.  I thought less focus on Billy and Ellie and Faye (Macy’s mom) and more attention on Macy and Jake and the villain would have made this story better.  The book flipped back and forth between characters and at times it felt jumbled and randomly thrown together.  Craig tried to pull in too many characters’ point of view and in doing so the book loses emphasis in certain sections.  I suppose what I’m trying to say is that I think the book could have been better if the secondary characters stayed secondary and Craig just put her attention on the main roles. 

I give Gotcha! a B grade.  It’s still a cute and fun story, and Macy and Jake make this story what it is.  They are great characters and you really feel yourself pulling for them.  Too many times the minor characters became too major and it pulled away from the real plot.  Craig is a great writer, and she writes with a lot of humor and spunk and it shows in several spots.  This is a romance novel and there are the obligatory love scenes, so beware if that’s not your thing.  While they aren’t overly descriptive, they are still there and readers who aren’t in to that should read with caution.  There’s also some coarse language (a bit too much I thought sometimes), and so this is definitely a book more for adults.  It’s a fun book, a quick and easy read and I’d recommend to readers looking for something light and amusing and sweet to read.  Macy and Jake are entertaining to read about and their story is cute and heartwarming, it’s a fun book to pick up on a rainy day when you don’t want to take yourself too seriously.

Friday Book Report: A World I Never Made by James LePore

James LePore’s novel, A World I Never Made is a suspense thriller that takes Patrick Nolan across the globe to track his estranged daughter before it’s too late for her and for him as well.  It was published in 2009 by The Story Plant.

American Patrick Nolan is beckoned to Paris to identify the body of his daughter Megan, who has apparently committed suicide.  Megan leaves him a cryptic suicide note, and while at the morgue to identify his daughter, he knows it is not Megan and it’s clear that she has staged her fake death and is calling to him for help.  Now Patrick, armed with only a few mysterious clues, searches for his daughter, and the closer he gets to finding her, the more dangerous the journey becomes.

Joining Pat on his search is Paris detective Catherine Laurence, a beautiful woman, but a tortured soul, much like himself.  The two bond and their friendship turns into much more as they hunt for his wayward daughter.   They are both tormented by past mistakes, and in each other the possibility for healing and peace finally seems to be conceivable.

Megan, a freelance journalist was in Morocco for research when she meets Abdel Lahani, a Saudi businessman.  She begins an affair with Lahani, something Megan has done often in her adult life.  But this is one man that could ruin the game, and what she learns about Lahani could have disastrous results for her and the world at large.

This book started out slow, but it started to pick up and peak my interest about halfway through.  It’s predictable in spots, and while the author makes no bones about who the villains are, the ending is anything but predictable and should leave the reader with a somewhat satisfying end.  I liked the juxtaposition of the two stories and how they collide together at the end.  While Patrick and Catherine are searching for Megan, we get a glimpse into Megan’s life with Lahani bit by bit and learn why she did what she did at about the same time as Patrick.

What I didn’t like about this book was that Megan was so completely self-centered and vain; it was hard to root for her and want her to be found.  Pat and Megan have had a rocky relationship at best, but even with all the mistakes made I felt Megan’s cry for attention a little too preposterous for me to believe.  Add to that that after one epiphany she completely changes course and the reader is left to presume that she’s reconciled her past life and reformed.  I didn’t buy it, and even towards the end I still felt a little disdain for her character.

LePore also tries to impress the reader with his massive vocabulary and doesn’t hesitate to pull out the big money words whenever he can.  I find this type of writing to be arrogant and pointless.  An author doesn’t need big words to get his point across; in fact, I think it loses focus from the actual story.  LePore spent so much time describing scenes and places that weren’t essential to the story, at times the actual dialogue and storyline got lost amongst the hefty writing.  It’s a rare talent for an author to know when to describe scenes and when to back off and just tell the story, and at times in this book LePore spent too much time describing and reaching for his thesaurus and not enough time developing the characters and plotline.  I know I harp on a lot of authors for this very pet-peeve of mine, but it really makes or breaks a book for me. 

But overall, it’s got good suspense and a somewhat satisfying ending.  Patrick and Catherine are believable characters and I found I was very interested in learning more about them and their backstory.  I give this book a C+ grade, because of the incessant overuse of haughty words and unnecessary descriptions.  It’s predictable in parts, but it has good suspense and I liked how LePore merged the two storylines together to come to the climax at the end.  It is not a suspense novel for younger readers.  It has adult situations and harsh language that wouldn’t be fit for anyone younger than 15 or 16.   I doubt I’d read this again, but it kept my interest and kept me entertained for the most part, and that’s all I generally look for in a book.

Friday Book Report: Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen

Sarah Addison Allen’s novel, Garden Spells is about two sister’s that are polar opposites finding a way to come together and compromising after years and years of regret and disappointment.  Published in 2007 by Random House, this book is at times enchanting and endearing.

The Waverley’s of Bascom, North Carolina have always been a peculiar family.  Generations and generations of Waverley’s have been endowed with amazing gifts that have made them all outsiders in the small town.  Their garden even has a reputation, with a fruit-flinging apple tree and the special powers of the edible flowers.  The Waverley’s history and their futures are in this soil, and no matter how far away from the garden, every Waverley knows it.

Claire Waverley has become a successful caterer, tending the garden and using the powerful plants in her recipes.  Abandoned by her mother when she was just a girl, Claire has lived in the old house ever since and has no desire to ever leave.  Her life is built around routine and consistency.  But a charming and handsome new neighbor moves in, and when her baby sister comes home after being gone for ten years, the routine that Claire has worked so hard to maintain suddenly turns upside down.

Sydney has spent ten years of her life running away from the Waverley name.  Following in her mother’s footsteps, Sydney traveled all over the country and did things that she never should have done.  But when she finally gathers the courage to leave her abusive boyfriend; Sydney takes her daughter Bay, and returns to the only place where she’s ever felt safe.  Now she has to learn that being a Waverley was never a bad thing, and to embrace the gifts that have been bestowed upon her.

This book is charming, and it’s a fun read if you want to escape for a while.  I enjoyed the storyline of the two sister’s finally coming back together and learning to give and take to peacefully exist together.  There’s definitely a lot of potential for this book, but for me it just fell short of living up to its expectations.

For one, it’s way too short.  On my Nook, this book is only about 175 pages, and that is definitely not enough to write about all that was supposed to be going on in this book.  There are way too many characters for a 175 page book.  I felt like I was missing out on a lot of character development.  I really wanted to learn more about Sydney and Claire and about their relationship with one another as well as their relationship with Henry and Tyler.  Instead we get sections about Fred and James who aren’t really vital to the overall storyline of this book.  Or we have to hear about John Hunter and Emma regardless that their role in this book is minimal at best.  Those characters shouldn’t have had the big roles that they did, and in a sense they diminished the Sydney and Claire dynamic.  It never felt like this book progressed, or if it did there was no real complexity or explanation for that progression. 

I wanted to get to know all the characters in this book, but since it was so short I barely felt like I knew who Claire or Sydney was.  I think the character that was explained the best, with the most depth and charm was the anthropomorphic apple tree.  There was something fascinating and endearing about an apple tree with human characteristics that threw prophetic apples at people. 

I give this book a C+ because there just wasn’t enough progression or depth for me to really get into the flow.  There are a few adult situations and some choice words thrown in; I’d say this is a PG-13 book.  The characters are loveable yet unmemorable, there’s a small conflict that takes up about two pages to explain it away, and the love stories are summarized at best.  I know I get on a lot of authors for being too descriptive, but in this case Allen was too concise in her storytelling.  She needed to really delve into the character’s thoughts and feelings and give us some narrative about whom they are and why they are instead of condensing their lives.  This book almost felt like an abridged version, it was that short.

The story is good, the characters are fun and it’s a delightful read if you take it for what it is.  It’s escapism without a real meaning, and you won’t get much more out of this book.   I don’t know if I can highly recommend this book, but if you want something fun and light-hearted with a colorful twist on magic and escapism, this might a book for you.

Friday Book Report: Blue by Lou Aronica

Written by Lou Aronica, and published by Fiction Studio in 2010, Blue is a novel about the power of limitless imagination and the ability to create when you truly believe. 

Chris Astor’s daughter; Becky, is the light in his world.  From the day she was born she has been his greatest joy, his entire world.  But when Becky was five she was diagnosed with leukemia and his entire world shifted on its axis.  Becky went into remission, but his marriage failed and when Becky was 10 he was divorced and moving out of the home that had once brought him so much happiness.  Now Becky is 14, just starting high school and becoming more and more detached from Chris as the days go by.  They barely see each other anymore, and when they do conversations are forced.  The connection they once had is gone and Chris desperately wants the bond he once had with his daughter to come back.

When Becky was going through chemotherapy years ago, Chris came up with the idea to create an imaginary place to take Becky’s mind off of the pain of the treatments.  They named the place “Tamarisk” and every night for years they came up with fantastical stories about the young Princess Miea who lived there.  The stories are so elaborate at times; they even had names for all the whimsical flora and fauna they created.  It was truly a special place, a place where there was no cancer for Becky, a place where Chris and his daughter could bond together.  But once the divorce was final, Becky gave up on Tamarisk which essentially severed the bond she and her father had.

It appears that Tamarisk isn’t imaginary after all.  Princess Miea is now Queen and is facing one of the biggest challenges since becoming Queen.  Tamarisk as she knows it is suffering, plants are dying off for no known reason and the results of the dying ecosystem could be fatal to Tamarisk and all who live there.  At their most challenging stage in their lives, Becky and Miea discover each another one fateful night.  Becky shares this with her father who can hardly believe what his daughter is telling him.  Becky can’t believe the place she created is actually real, Miea can’t understand how a child could imagine a world into existence, and Chris can’t believe he’s finally sharing something important with his daughter again.  For all of them, an entire new world of opportunity has presented itself.  But time is running out.  Tamarisk is dying, Becky’s cancer has come back and the three of them must work together to figure out the secret to keeping all they hold dear alive. 

This is an exceptionally moving novel.  I found I thoroughly enjoyed it, and the author does a fantastic job of bringing the imaginary world of Tamarisk to life.  He creates not only the people and places of Tamarisk, but goes so far as constructing a world with new and original plants, animals, substances, and even designs games that the children of Tamarisk can play.  Aronica truly makes you believe this place could exist, and his descriptions of this world are extremely vivid.  The one exception was his character; Gage.  Gage is an otherworldly “gatekeeper” of sorts that allows Becky to cross between the two worlds.  He’s mysterious and somewhat of an enigma, and I suppose that’s how he was written to be, but to me it just felt like he was underdeveloped and thrown in there for the sole purpose of allowing Becky to cross over without providing a real conclusive explanation for it.  Other than that, I thought all his characters were very well thought out and developed nicely throughout the book.

I found I was easily able to connect with both Chris and Becky, and the point that Aronica was trying to make throughout this book.  He’s able to really depict how divorce and estrangement can put a strain on past relationships, and he illustrates how each side reacts differently.  Chris is lost without his daughter, he’s confused that his relationship with his daughter is slipping away from him and he doesn’t know how to get it back.  Becky is absolutely hurt because of the divorce.  It feels as if her parents are forcing her to choose sides, when all she wants is for things to be the way they were.  Becky’s mother is trying to move on from everything.  She’s remarried and is trying to make a stable home for Becky, but sometimes joint custody seems to get in the way of that.  She doesn’t understand the imaginary land Chris and Becky created, and therefore resents the unique bond it gives the two of them.  Oftentimes I think she feels left out because she doesn’t believe.   While I think Aronica wanted Becky’s mother to be the “bad guy” in all of this, he was still able to illustrate that while Polly may not believe, she still loves her daughter and wants only what is best for her, even if she herself feels differently.

I’d grade this book with a B+, the storyline was clear and concise and the imagination involved was extraordinary.  It reminded me a lot of C.S Lewis.  There’s some adult language and adult situations, but I think this book would be appropriate for anyone aged 13 and up.  It’s a very good book about father’s and daughters and the special bond they have.  It’s a very touching novel about the healing powers of the imagination.  It’s about how whisking away to a fun and fanciful place can enrich and enhance our lives.  It’s also about how unselfish love can create the biggest miracles, and that magic can exist to those that are willing to open their heart and believe.

Friday Book Report: The Heir by Grace Burrowes

I love Romance Novels and I’m not ashamed of it.  While the thought provoking and sentimental books do hold some appeal, sometimes you just have to escape and indulge in a little romantic liaison with characters you can root for.  And for me, the typical clichéd romance novel allows me to do just that.  There’s just something about the hunky hero saving the headstrong woman and living happily ever after.  Grace Burrowes’ debut novel, The Heir definitely satisfies those guilty pleasures with a compelling tale of love and trust and the desire to have both without sacrificing ones true self.  It was published in 2010 by Sourcebooks, Incorporated and is a delightful read for any fan of historical romance novels.

Gayle Windham, Earl of Westhaven is the first legitimate heir to the Duke of Moreland.  To dodge his father’s matrimonial machinations, Westhaven escapes to London Town where his father’s schemes can be somewhat thwarted.  But instead of hiding out and evading his father’s pressure to marry, Westhaven finds himself deeply intrigued by his new and beautiful, yet secretive housekeeper. 

Anna Seaton is a beautiful, intelligent, strong-willed woman.  Definitely not one born to service, Westhaven is perplexed that this genteel woman would endure the life of a mere housekeeper.  But Anna has secrets, and ones she is not willing to divulge to her charming employer.  As the two grow closer together, the secrets become harder and much more painful to keep.  Her hidden background catches up with Anna and she has to choose to either run away from the only man she’s ever loved, or trust in him enough to allow Westhaven to protect her.

For a debut novel, this one is crafted very well.  I thoroughly enjoyed this book and look forward to reading more about Regency England from this author.  Burrowes captures the spirit of the times splendidly and her prose is sharp and refined with just a touch of English wit that will keep you turning the pages.   The banter between Westhaven and Anna is clever and the dry humor they both provoke in one another gives the reader a lot of entertaining moments.  Westhaven is a charming, intelligent, and cunning earl and Anna complements his character perfectly.  She is not afraid of his station, and has no bother telling him like it is.  I really enjoyed the interaction and dialogue between the two.

And while Anna and Westhaven are brilliantly created, the same can be said for the secondary characters.  Westhaven’s brothers provide ample opportunities for more of that English wit and Anna’s sister Morgan is a character you really want to cheer for.  The Duke of Moreland and his duchess are the perfectly meddling parents, but you can easily see their meddling is done out of love for their offspring.  I admire the way Burrowes was able to not just bring all these personalities together, but provide the depth and strength of character that romance readers want in their protagonists.

The only fault I would give this book was that the actual conflict didn’t seem to fully develop until close to the end, and then I thought it was wrapped up much to neatly for my liking.  Of course romance novels are really about the love story and the conflict is a secondary plot, but I do like the predicaments to hold some water.  I just felt it was hastily thrown in at the end to just get it out of the way and make room for more of the love story.  And while the conflict didn’t resolve itself as I thought it should, the love story is definitely worth reading.  It’s not just about the love the two have for each other.  This book is about gaining the trust of the one you love, and gaining that trust isn’t just about loving a person.  It’s about the little details, the small and sometimes insignificant gestures one does for the person they love.  I thought Burrowes captured that vividly.

I really liked this book and give it a B+ grade.  The love story is wonderful, and while Anna’s secretive background could’ve been further developed it was still a witty and charming story about love and trust.  There is some coarse language and of course the obligatory love scenes which can be quite detailed and uninhibited.  For those reasons, this is an adult type romance and wouldn’t recommend to readers under age 18.  But if you are a fan of historical romance novels, you should really check out Grace Burrowes’ debut, The Heir.  I think you will be delighted with it as much as I was.