HOT MESS by Emily Belden

HOT MESS  by Emily Belden

Well, the title is correct – this book is a hot mess. If you can get past the f bombs and constant sex, one dimensional characters and thin plot, there might be a half way decent short story good for an hour or two on a long plane ride. 

So, what is good about this book.  There are complete sentences.  There is a plot with a beginning, middle and, thankfully, a conclusion. Once Benji is out of the picture so to speak, the book improves.  The story concerning the restaurant is not half bad. The love story is juvenile and unbelievable. 

So – if you don’t mind the language, the immaturity of all the characters and the constant focus on sex, this book might, repeat, might, be worth spending an otherwise boring afternoon with it.

By the way, even though this book is about food and cooking and restaurants , there are NO recipes or even lucid discussions about actual food.

1 of 5 stars

MUSIC OF THE GHOSTS by Vaddey Ratner

MUSIC OF THE GHOSTS  BY Vaddey Ratner

Oh my goodness! What to say about this book. First the good. The writing is lyrical. Some phrases are  exquisite.  The word usage is wonderful.  Then there is the story. I am SOOOOO confused. I tried very hard to like this book, but just couldn’t do it.  The Old Musician and his reminisces wander all over-- future, past, present -- all in present tense.

Somewhere around page 200, the story began to make sense. If you can make that far -- this tale of Cambodia and Khmer Rouge, death, love, life, hate, perseverance, family, faith --  becomes full of life and forces one to engage its loveliness and its heartbreak.

Teera and the Old Musician enter your heart and mind and take up residence.  They stay with you  long after you have read the last page.

Still, only 3 of 5 stars for the slow start, the initial confusion, the ethereal sentences.

THE WIDOWS OF MALABAR HILL by Sujata Massey

THE WIDOWS OF MALABAR HILL  by Sujata Massey

If you like historical fiction, especially India in early 20^th century, and learning about different cultures and ways of life, you will like this book. While it is a murder mystery, it is also an exploration of the various cultures active in India from 1915 to 1922. The heroine is a young woman Parisi (Zoroastrian) who has trained to be a solicitor (lawyer) at Oxford and is working in her father’s firm when three widows, Muslims who live in Purda or complete seclusion from men, need a lawyer.  A murder occurs, and Perveen, the untried female lawyer, is the only one who can enter the widows’ seclusion. 

The situation of women of all faiths becomes integral to the plot,  as do marriage customs, inheritance, family practices, the law, the role of the English in India, Indian independence, class strictures and even education and employment for women.  While the plot moves slowly, the descriptions of a way of life unknown to most Americans, keeps the reader interested and reading.  Besides a murder, there are also two kidnappings, financial shenanigans, jewelry theft, families in crisis,  and other plot devices to keep interest high.

The noises, smells and flavors of Bombay and Calcutta set the scene. Clearly drawn characters and lively writing add to a tale well worth spending time with tea, curry and Perveen as she navigates the path forward with three widows who are clearly not sisters of the heart.

4 of 5 stars

GREAT SMALL THINGS by Jodi Piccoult

Great Small Things  by Jodi Piccoult

I haven’t read any Piccoult for a while (a little tired of the “disease of the month” rut she seemed to be in), so I had avoided this book also. But I kept hearing really good things about it. People who didn’t read Piccoult LOVED it. So, I gave it a shot.

All those good things I heard were true. This is a good book!  The tale revolves around an African-American nurse. She is a good nurse with a sterling reputation until she is Labor and Delivery nurse to the wife of a white supremacist. This IS a Piccoult book,  so, of course, something terrible happens to the baby.  Now the tale becomes sympathetic (yes, sympathetic) portrayals of a white, racist, perfectly awful man, his white racist, perfectly awful wife and a here-to-for unbiased, wonderful person African-American nurse and her honor roll student , off to Yale son.

You will learn more medical jargon than you ever wanted to know and, maybe, discover a few of your own biases and prejudices.  This is a good story, well told, that will keep you wondering about yourself until the final pages.

5 of 5 stars

TEMPESTS AND SLAUGHTER by Tamora Pierce

TEMPESTS AND SLAUGHTER  (Book One in The Numair Chronicles)   by Tamora Pierce

Pierce is one of my favorite authors for young adult fantasy and this outing is one of her best. She has created a world that is fully populated and nuanced with peoples, animals, gods and Gods, as well as climate, flora, and laws of both nature and man. 

Her main character this time is male, unusual for Pierce who is a creator of strong females. Arram is an eleven year old mage student when the book opens, and is joined by Ozorne, a Prince of the Realm, and Varice, a female kitchenwitch, both also mage students.  There are plenty of fully realized supporting characters including teachers, gods and Gods, gladiators and other students.   

This first book in the new series covers the lower and upper years of The Imperial University of Carthak (The School for Mages) and sets up the themes for the following books.  Themes indicated are friendship, use of power, loyalty, the role of government, slavery and gladiators, justice and revenge, and kindness.

One item that shows Pierce’s attention to detail is the use of Arram’s class schedules to introduce each new season.  Each schedule shows us the progress of Arram’s studies, introduces faculty members and details the breadth of Arram’s Gift. Each also reinforces the sense of reality Pierce creates in her Tortall World.

Several interweaving plots carry the reader quickly through the more than 400 pages. A glossary at the end is helpful for newcomers to the Tortall World. You will be sorry this book has ended and be anxious for the next to be published.

5 of 5 stars

TAKE OUT by Margaret Maron

Take Out  by Margaret Maron

I love Maron’s Deborah Knott books. This is only the second Sigrid Harald novel I have read.  I was unfamiliar with the recurring characters, so I was often to turning back to see “who is this”, especially considering there are three separate plots and three sets of characters to keep straight.  Once I got familiar with them, all the plot(s) moved along quickly. 

The New York setting was on point with a number of neighborhood businesses and interest points used.  Lt. Harold’s relationship with artist Oscar Nauman is part of the plotting along with a gallery, a mobster’s family and an aging opera star.  The plots are intriguing and keep you guessing (I did quickly figure out one point, yea, me) with enough ambiguity to keep you reading.

Good reading, but I still like the Deborah Knott books better.

4 of 5 stars

HOPE IN THE HOLLER by Lisa Lewis Tyre

HOPE IN THE HOLLER by Lisa Lewis Tyre

This delightful middle grade novel features a plucky 5^th grader who has just lost her mother to cancer. Wavie is sent to live in a tiny Appalachian hamlet with an aunt she didn’t know existed.  

Wavie acts and speaks like a real 5^th grader. So, too, do the other young people in her new town. Her aunt, Samantha Rose, is a horror and her cousin isn’t much better.  An uncle and a weird old man make up the rest of the main characters in this lively novel.

A mystery and secrets lead to the plot which moves along quickly.  Middle graders will love this book that emphasizes honesty, pluck, determination, kindness, friendship and bravery. This would be a good book for a parent/child book club or an all student book group. Even boys would like it as there are several interesting boy characters in the plot.

5 of 5 stars