Normal People by Sally Rooney

A special thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada/Knopf Canada for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A coming-of-age love story of classmates Connell and Marianne.  He's a the popular star of the football team and she is the mysterious loner.  Connell's mother works for Marianne's family and the two begin a complicated and secret relationship that starts when Connell comes to Marianne's house to pick his mother up from work.

Fast-forward a year and they are both students at Trinity College in Dublin.  Marianne has come out of her shell and flourishes socially while it is Connell that is struggling to fit in.  Throughout their time at university, they ebb and flow in each other's lives, always drawn back together.  As Marianne starts a downward spiral into self-destruction, Connell and Marianne must face just how far they are willing to go to save each other.

Rooney explores the complexity of relationships, the obsessive and possessive elements of first love, what class and social standing really means, and the entanglement of families and friendships.  She nails the disconnect that many teens experience with the real world and also with how self-absorbed they are while trying to find their place in the world.

What I found exhausting about the book on a whole was how stereotypical the characters were.  The women wanted attention and to be loved, all the while not realizing their worth.  The men were lacking in morals just like the jock character in a teen movie, they are 'boys being boys' and this is perfectly acceptable (cue eye roll).  She also pens some vile characters that blur the lines with things like bullying and neglect that aren't fully explored, instead they simply vanish.

The writing was poignant and stirring; this book had so much potential but I couldn't see beyond what I mentioned above.  

Things You Save in a Fire by Katherine Center

A special thank you to Edelweiss, NetGalley, Macmillan, and St. Martin's Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Cassie Hanwell thrives on emergency situations and as one of only a few female firefighters, she has dealt with all kinds.  She is excellent at her job and steadfast in a crisis.  But even with all of her training and natural ability, Cassie is not prepared for the type of emergency her estranged and ailing mother springs upon her—she wants Cassie to move from Texas to Boston to assist her with day-to-day living.

Taking a transfer, Cassie now works at an old-school firehouse.  Even though Cassie is more than competent, they are less than thrilled to have a woman on their crew.  The only one that is not bothered by Cassie's arrival is the handsome rookie who started on the same day.  But Cassie needs to stay focused and stick to the advice that her old captain gave her which is to never date a firefighter.  She has worked incredibly hard to be taken seriously and can't risk jeopardizing her career over falling in love.

Things You Save in a Fire is a story of relationships, love, the power of forgiveness, and how to be brave against all odds.

This is my first foray into Center's writing and it won't be my last.  She has an effortless style that completely captures the reader.  The pace and flow of the narrative was spot on, and it was an absolute pleasure to read this story.

I don't want to mislead anyone by pigeonholing this book as "chick lit" because apparently this is a genre that turns off/alienates readers and I'm not sure why.  Is it because it is deemed as fluff or badly written?  Or perhaps trashy?  Anyway, this book is so much more than how it is perceived. Obviously there is a romantic element going on, but there are different relationships being explored that offer value to the narrative.  There is also a strong female lead in a male-dominated industry that deserves recognition—Cassie is a complex and interesting character that holds her own without compromising her integrity and sense of self doing so.

After reading the book, I feel like I came away with learning a thing or two.  I also, if possible, have more of an appreciation for those that put their lives on the line every day for their communities.  Many women, not just those that work in professions that have traditionally been male (fire, police, sports journalists, mechanic, etc.), face incredible obstacles and sexism in their workplaces and this story shined a small light on what these women endure on a daily basis and for that, I applaud the author.

KATHERINE CENTER graduated from Vassar College—where she won the Vassar College Fiction Prize—and received an MA in fiction from the University of Houston.

A former freelancer and teacher, she lives in Houston with her husband and two young children.

Hello, Friends!: Stories from My Life and Blue Jays Baseball by Jerry Howarth

A special thank you to Edelweiss and ECW Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Jerry Howarth has been the voice of the Toronto Blue Jays for 36 years.  He has covered historic moments, like the rise of the Blue Jays through the 1980s that resulted in back-to-back World Series Championships in 1992 and 1993, and worked with the best in sports.  His remarkable broadcasting career is legendary, evident in the tributes that poured in when he retired this past February.

In this book, Howarth brings together anecdotal stories about baseball, life, family, and work.  Baseball fans will enjoy reading about pivotal players such as Dave Stieb, Duane Ward, Roberto Alomar, Joe Carter, the late Roy Halladay, and more recently, John Gibbons, Edwin Encarnacion, Josh Donaldson, and Canada's own Superman, Kevin Pillar.

Jerry, you are a national treasure and Canadians are so grateful that you chose our country to call home. Congratulations on your broadcasting legacy and your well-deserved retirement.  Your kindness, integrity, and impeccable work ethic are evident in these wonderful stories.

Told in short, digestible parts, Howarth delights sports enthusiasts (especially Blue Jays fans) with tales from his time both on and off the field.  Hello, Friends! is a must-have for any sports fan.  

The Revolution of Marina M. by Janet Fitch

A special thank you to NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Fitch amazed me with Paint in Black.  I listened to the audiobook that was read by Jennifer Jason Leigh and it was mesmerizing—Audible cast this book perfectly, Leigh was brilliant and her delivery  was flawless and was exactly what the character embodied.  I also read and thoroughly enjoyed White Oleander when it was the Oprah's Book Club selection.  Fitch is a powerful and poignant writer and has such purpose and thought throughout her novels.

This was quite the undertaking at 816 pages and it took several attempts to not only get into it, but to stick with it.  Hear me out...  Fitch did an extraordinary job in her research and retelling of the Russian Revolution but at times this was the only redemption. I struggled with the main character, she was completely void of depth and was surprisingly underdeveloped for such an intricate story.  

The last almost quarter of the book was completely unnecessary—I'm not even going to try to understand why it was included, it should have been edited out.  Especially because this is apparently volume one of two.

The beginning was the best part, and then...it's like Fitch had to include every single detail and every bit of research and it's not necessary.  Is she looking for validation for her years of work?  The story then just becomes a linear piece of writing which begs the question, should this have not been a historical fiction book but rather an actual book on the Russian Revolution?  I think so.  

Jodi Picoult's A Spark of Light Book Tour

Book cover and author photo source: Random House Canada.  All other photos by Girl Well Read—do not use without written permission.

Jodi Picoult in Conversation was hosted by Indigo Books & Music and the Toronto Reference Library.  Picoult is the bestselling author of 25 novels and one of the most provocative writers of our time. She discussed her new novel, A Spark of Light, which addresses one of the most relevant and politically heated issues of today, women's reproductive rights.

If you haven't had the pleasure of attending an event featuring Jodi Picoult, I highly encourage you to do so! She is incredibly well spoken, engaging, and articulate. She is also warm and funny.

What I enjoyed the most was hearing about her writing process. A Spark of Light opens with the climax and each subsequent chapter goes back in time by one hour. Readers of her books know a few things: Picoult doesn't shy away from sensitive topics, and she tells all sides of a story, even if she doesn't hold the same opinions or beliefs. When she has an idea for a book, she creates an outline which is around three pages.  This book however had a staggering 48 page outline. Jodi also edited the book backwards by each character, and then forwards by each character—she said she would not write this way again.

There are many challenges when writing about a sensitive topic. As part of her research, Picoult spoke to people who were pro-choice and pro-life. Of the latter, Picoult had a lot of misconceptions. She assumed that they were "hard core religious," but was surprised at their level of commitment and compassion. Jodi also spoke with 151 women that had abortions and of those women she interviewed, only one regretted her choice yet all of the women think about it every single day. From this same group, fewer than 25 wanted to be acknowledged in the book because of the guilt and humiliation which is also why most of them hadn't told anyone that they had an abortion.

Picoult noticed that there are a lot of parallels between those that are survivors of sexual assault and those that have had abortions. There is a narrative of blame and shame and women need to take back this narrative. Nearly one in four women in the US have had/will have an abortion (I'm unsure as to the numbers here in Canada) and these women are cast as evil and selfish.

Jodi shared her personal inspiration which sparked the story. When she was in college, her friend was seven weeks pregnant and she wholeheartedly supported her with the decision to terminate. Years later, when Jodi was also seven weeks pregnant, she had a complication yet couldn't help but see the situation differently—to her, it was already a baby. She wondered how she could believe both, to hold both concepts in her mind at the same time. "In America we tend to legislate reproductive rights but laws are black and white and the lives of women are a thousand shades of grey and that was why I wanted to write this book," Picoult said. "Uncertainty exists for the individual woman over the course of her own life. What you believe at 14 is not what you think at 30 or 45."

Dr. Ward is based on Willie Parker. Parker is a devout Christian who performs abortions to underserved communities. Poverty is linked to abortion and reproductive rights—it is hard to extricate race, privilege, and economics out of reproductive rights. At these clinics, only 3% of the work they do are abortions, but you don't hear about the other 97%. I also learned that there are eight states that only have one clinic left because of restrictions and regulations such as a clinic’s distance from a hospital, the size of the procedure rooms, the width of corridors, as well as the need for a surgical suite because of the supposed complications that could arise from the procedure. These restrictions are not economically feasible to accomodate and the clinics can't survive.

Picoult touched on a few of the other characters: George is a single dad (which was a conscious decision because Picoult was sick of the single mother narrative); Joy is recovering from an abortion when the shooter enters the clinic; Janine is a pro-life protester, disguised as a patient, who is literally is in the wrong place at the wrong time. What is interesting is that these are women that are both in a crisis situation and that even though they are on opposite sides of abortion, they choose to have each other's back.

In closing, Jodi answered some questions via Twitter which included writing advice and talking about the most fun she had while researching a project which was for Second Glance. She actually went ghost hunting with the Atlantic Paranormal Society to a few locations, one of which was an abandoned mental institution. (That is literally the stuff of my nightmares!) They also took her to a house in Massachusetts ​where the owners had been in contact after hearing noises coming from the attic. The ghost hunters set up a camera in the attic to record any paranormal activity. Jodi was the last one out of the attic where she closed and locked the door with a padlock. The couple had two kids (6 months and 22 months), asleep in their separate rooms on the second floor. Downstairs, the homeowners were telling the ghost hunters about coming home to find all the faucets running or all the cereal having been spilled into a pile on the kitchen floor. There was even one night where they heard calliope music and found a child’s toy piano playing—without batteries—on the steps of the attic. When Jodi went to check on the kids, there were six pennies dated between 1968 and 1973 on the floor outlining the edge of each crib that were not present just 10 minutes earlier. She then checked the attic, unlocking the door, and underneath the tripod there were another 15 pennies which were all dated between 1968 and 1973 that had not been there when she locked up. Pennies with these dates are scarce. The ghost hunters did determine that there was indeed something paranormal in the house and discovered that two people died there, one in 1968 and in 1973. Say what?!

It was a fantastic evening and I thank Indigo Books & Music Inc., the Toronto Reference Library, as well as Random House Canada.      

A Spark of Light

The warm fall day starts like any other at the Center-a women's reproductive health services clinic-its staff offering care to anyone who passes through its doors. Then, in late morning, a desperate and distraught gunman bursts in and opens fire, taking all inside hostage.

After rushing to the scene, Hugh McElroy, a police hostage negotiator, sets up a perimeter and begins making a plan to communicate with the gunman. As his phone vibrates with incoming text messages he glances at it and, to his horror, finds out that his fifteen-year-old daughter, Wren, is inside the clinic...

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JODI PICOULT received an AB in creative writing from Princeton and a master’s degree in education from Harvard. The recipient of the 2003 New England Book Award for her entire body of work, she is the author of twenty-five novels, including the #1 New York Times bestsellers House Rules, Handle With Care, Change of Heart, and My Sister’s Keeper, for which she received the American Library Association’s Margaret Alexander Edwards Award.

She lives in New Hampshire with her husband. They have three children.

The Night Before by Wendy Walker

A special thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The night before...and the nightmare after.

Even though Rosie and Laura are sisters, they are complete opposites.  Rosie is happily married and stable whereas Laura is single and trying to break free from her troubled past.

Laura is getting ready for a blind date, not entirely sure if she's going to go through with it.  She's intrigued by the man's photo and the exchanges they've had so far have been easy and enjoyable so she decides to give it a shot.  

Only Laura doesn't come home from the date.

As Rosie searches for her sister, the past comes knocking and her greatest fears are validated.  Is it Laura that's the danger, or is it the stranger?  Is she even still alive?

Told in alternating perspectives and with dual timelines—the night before and the day after—The Night Before is a fast-paced, taut thriller about loyalty, love, and desire that boarders on obsession.

Walker ratchets the tension over the course of the narrative.  Her pace is spot on and the dual timelines are the perfect vehicle to execute the story.  Her writing is hypnotic, and the plot is just twisty enough to keep your turning the pages like mad.  I polished this off in two sittings, staying up way too late, but I literally could not put it down.  It's been a while since I have been gripped by such a compulsive read.

The alternating perspectives were incredibly effective.  Walker utilizes this technique to reveal a little at a time, not only working the reader into a frenzy, but building on the momentum.

What was most impressive was how Walker made this book feel completely original.  It was sharp, clever, and utterly captivating.  

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WENDY WALKER is the author of the psychological suspense novels All Is Not Forgotten, Emma In the Night, and The Night Before. Her novels have been translated into 23 foreign languages and topped bestseller lists both nationally and abroad. They have been selected by the Reese Witherspoon Book Club, The Today Show and The Book of the Month Club, and have been optioned for both television and film.

Walker lives in Connecticut where she manages her busy household.

I Owe You One by Sophie Kinsella

A special thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

As her late father always said “family first”, Fixie Farr has always put her family’s needs above her own. She is constantly picking up the slack of her siblings and helps takes care of her family’s charming housewares store.

It's in her nature to fix things, hence her name. When a chance encounter in a coffee shop has her watching a handsome stranger’s computer, Fixie can’t help but save it from disaster. To thank Fixie, Sebastian attaches his business card to a coffee sleeve with an IOU scribbled on it. She politely accepts it but doesn’t think she would ever cash in an IOU from a stranger, or would she?

Ryan, Fixie's longtime crush and brother's friend, is back in town after a failed attempt at working overseas and his predicament has Fixie chomping at the bit to help him. She decides to cash in her IOU and ask Seb to give Ryan a job at his company to which he agrees. Things don't go quite as she plans and a series of IOUs ensue.  Things start to unravel and Fixie is torn between her family and taking a stand.  Can she really fix everything and make herself happy at the same time?

I have also had the pleasure of reviewing My Not So Perfect Life and Surprise Me and was thrilled to pieces to learn that I was selected to be an early reader/reviewer of I Owe You One. Sophie Kinsella, you've done it again!  I absolutely adore your writing and your words always make me smile.  (If you haven't listened to one of Kinsella's books, I highly recommend it, especially if narrated by Jayne Entwistle.)

Overall, I enjoyed this book. It is light, fun, and endearing. I loved the setting, haven’t you always wanted to be a shop owner? The IOU was a cute theme and the perfect vehicle for a romance.

What almost derailed it for me were Fixie’s siblings—they are incredibly cruel, and I realize that part of the story deals with growth and empowerment, but they were just so awful! As far as the other characters, I found that Greg was an unnecessary addition.

Stick with the book, it is delightful and adorable, and we need more Fixies in the word. Thank you, Sophie, for another gem!  I adore your writing and your wit.

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SOPHIE KINSELLA is the author of the bestselling Shopaholic series as well as the standalone novels Can You Keep a Secret?, The Undomestic Goddess, Remember Me?, Twenties Girl, I’ve Got Your Number, Wedding Night, My Not So Perfect Life, and Surprise Me.

She lives between London and the country.