Please Note:  I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  This did not influence the opinions in my review in any way.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder plunges readers into the heart of London, to the secret tunnels that exist far beneath the city streets. There, a mysterious group of detectives recruited for Miss Brickett’s Investigations & Inquiries use their cunning and gadgets to solve crimes that have stumped Scotland Yard.

Late one night in April 1958, a filing assistant for Miss Brickett’s named Michelle White receives a letter warning her that a heinous act is about to occur. She goes to investigate but finds the room empty. At the stroke of midnight, she is murdered by a killer she can’t see—her death the only sign she wasn’t alone. It becomes chillingly clear that the person responsible must also work for Miss Brickett’s, making everyone a suspect.

Almost unwillingly, Marion Lane, a first-year Inquirer-in-training, finds herself being drawn ever deeper into the investigation. When her friend and mentor is framed for the crime, to clear his name she must sort through the hidden alliances at Miss Brickett’s and secrets dating back to WWII. Masterful, clever and deliciously suspenseful, Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder is a fresh take on the Agatha Christie—style locked-room mystery with an exciting new heroine detective at the helm. 

Review:

London in the 1950's, plus a murder mystery?  Yes, please!  This premise was wild and fun, with aspects of secret societies, common rooms, and apprentices, that almost had the feel of Harry Potter (but a lot stabbier).  I loved this book.

What I Liked:

Premise:

Miss Brickett’s Investigations & Inquiries is a secret society where Marion is an apprentice.  The organization is one where crimes are investigated using fantastical gadgetry, and often less than legal tactics.  I loved all the secrets and mysteries, and the 1950's London setting.  I got a very Harry Potter vibe from this book as well.   The apprentices have daily tasks, hang out in a common room, and form strong bonds.  

 Characters:

Marion, the main character, is a lonely young woman who lost her mother, and has no other relatives.  But she does have a guardian angel looking out for her.  Frank is a father figure (or is he actually her father?) and is one of the leaders at Miss Brickett's.  He always seems to come through with hope for Marion.  So when he is accused of murder, Marion has a fierce need to clear his name.  Marion's loyalty, and ingenuity make her a character to root for.

The other apprentices, and investigators have secrets and it's hard for Marion to know who to trust.  I enjoyed figuring out their hidden agendas.

 Mystery:

The story revolves around the murder of one of the members of the agency.  This might be considered a "locked door" mystery, meaning the circumstances of the murder make it hard to understand who could have murdered the woman, if Frank didn't do it.  Solving the murder reveals uncomfortable truths about Miss Brickett's, and the level of commitment members really must pledge to the agency.  

 Rating: 

Release Date:  December 29th, 2020

Author:   T. A. Willberg

Publisher:  Park Row

Genre:  Historical Fantasy Fiction

Page Length:  352 Pages

Source: NetGalley

Format:  E-Book

Recommendation:   A fun mystery with some magical, steampunk twists.  I hope this becomes a series!

Please Note:  I received an advance copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.  This did not influence the opinions in my review in any way.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

THE HANDMAID’S TALE meets the DC universe in this breathtaking, thrilling origin story of Black Canary. Her voice is her weapon, and in a near future world where women have no rights, she won’t hesitate to use everything she has to fight back.

Dinah Lance was seven years old when she overheard the impossible: the sound of a girl singing. It was something she was never meant to hear—not in her lifetime, and not in Gotham City, taken over by the Court of Owls. The sinister organization rules Gotham as a patriarchal dictatorship, all the while spreading their influence like a virus across the globe.

Now seventeen, Dinah can’t forget that haunting sound, and she’s beginning to discover that her own voice is just as powerful. But singing is forbidden—a one-way stop to a certain death sentence. Can she balance her father’s desire to keep her safe, a blossoming romance with mysterious new student Oliver Queen, and her own desire to help other women and girls rise up and finally be heard? And will her voice be powerful enough to destroy the Court of Owls once and for all?

Review: 

I've read several of the DC Icons origin books, including Wonder Woman, and Batman, each of them has an approach that is completely different from each other.  Random House found a wide array of successful YA authors, and gave them free-reign to write their books anyway they chose.  Black Canary - Breaking Silence, is the newest offering from this series.  Full of details from the Batman universe, this is an exciting story of fighting oppression and a girl finding her own power.

What I Liked:

World-Building:

Although I am not a huge fan of Batman, of course I know the basics.  Gotham City (loosely based on New Your City), has been in a constant struggle between good and evil.  The good guys are superheroes such as Batman, Batgirl, and the Birds of Prey.  The bad guys are villains like The Joker, and The Penguin.  In this book, Batman is dead, and the Penguin, and his Court of Owls, has taken over the city.  

For the past twenty years, women have been controlled, symbolized by taking away their ability to sing.  But it doesn't stop there.  Some women are regulated to "approved" professions such as midwives or teachers.  But most are meant to be housewives.  These traditional roles are enforced by the Owls, who send girls and women to Arkham Asylum for wearing the wrong clothes, or doing anything that is out of line.  It is very much like The Handmaid's Tale.

Characters:

Dinah mother is dead.  She lives with her father, a policeman, and is quietly seething from all the restrictions on girls.  Even in her high school, boys get more opportunities.  For instance, while boys learn science, girls must take home economics classes.  While she knows this is how things are, she wishes for change.  I loved all the quiet ways Dinah rebels.  She trains in martial arts, and has a hidden closet of pictures from when women were free.  But her most prized possessions are the recordings of female singers.  When she realizes she can sing, she almost can't believe it.  Even more exciting for her, she finds that the women she looks up to, including Barbara Gordon, are actually superheroes. 

Could she be able to use her voice to rebel against the Owls?

Barbara Gordon, previously known as Batgirl, is a such a wonderful character.  Currently in a wheelchair, she doesn't seem bitter.  Instead she changes her focus to use her knowledge of technology and science to work behind the scenes to aid the rebellion.  Her strength shows Dinah how dedication and hard work are important character traits.  She is the mother, Dinah yearns for,

Story:

The story realistically shows how life might be like if women lose their power.  The author, Alexandra Monir, is an Iranian-American write.  I can't help but think her inspiration was the restrictive structure of Iranian society.  This brings a credibility to the story that a novel based on comic book characters rarely has.

I loved the many hidden superhero reveals over the course of the book.  The story mainly concerns the characters that make up the Birds of Prey, which I no nothing about.  But there are sufficient explanations to make sure the reader understands who each character is. 

It was fun to read how Dinah comes to understand her power, and see how she interacts with the other superheroes.  As she works to free her best friend, Mandy, Dinah must get into (and out of) Arkham Asylum.  The action was exciting and made this book a page-turner.

Rating: 

Release Date: December 29th, 2020

Author:  Alexandra Monir

Publisher:  Random House Books for Young Readers

Genre:  YA Fantasy

Page Length:  384 Pages

Source:  NetGalley

Format:  E-Book

Recommendation:  This is a fun addition to the DC Icons series, with a high energy main character, and a setting that will make fans of Batman cheer. 

Please Note:  I received an advance audio copy of this book from Random House Audio in exchange for an honest review.  This did not influence the opinions in my review in any way.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

A riveting, deeply personal account of history in the making—from the president who inspired us to believe in the power of democracy.
In the stirring, highly anticipated first volume of his presidential memoirs, Barack Obama tells the story of his improbable odyssey from young man searching for his identity to leader of the free world, describing in strikingly personal detail both his political education and the landmark moments of the first term of his historic presidency—a time of dramatic transformation and turmoil.

Obama takes readers on a compelling journey from his earliest political aspirations to the pivotal Iowa caucus victory that demonstrated the power of grassroots activism to the watershed night of November 4, 2008, when he was elected 44th president of the United States, becoming the first African American to hold the nation’s highest office.

Reflecting on the presidency, he offers a unique and thoughtful exploration of both the awesome reach and the limits of presidential power, as well as singular insights into the dynamics of U.S. partisan politics and international diplomacy. Obama brings readers inside the Oval Office and the White House Situation Room, and to Moscow, Cairo, Beijing, and points beyond. We are privy to his thoughts as he assembles his cabinet, wrestles with a global financial crisis, takes the measure of Vladimir Putin, overcomes seemingly insurmountable odds to secure passage of the Affordable Care Act, clashes with generals about U.S. strategy in Afghanistan, tackles Wall Street reform, responds to the devastating Deepwater Horizon blowout, and authorizes Operation Neptune’s Spear, which leads to the death of Osama bin Laden.

A Promised Land is extraordinarily intimate and introspective—the story of one man’s bet with history, the faith of a community organizer tested on the world stage. Obama is candid about the balancing act of running for office as a Black American, bearing the expectations of a generation buoyed by messages of “hope and change,” and meeting the moral challenges of high-stakes decision-making. He is frank about the forces that opposed him at home and abroad, open about how living in the White House affected his wife and daughters, and unafraid to reveal self-doubt and disappointment. Yet he never wavers from his belief that inside the great, ongoing American experiment, progress is always possible.

This beautifully written and powerful book captures Barack Obama’s conviction that democracy is not a gift from on high but something founded on empathy and common understanding and built together, day by day.

Review:

A Promised Land, by the Barack Obama arrives just in time to remind the world what government used to look like.  This memoir chronicles not just most of his first presidency, but also Obama's childhood, and his various political campaigns that culminates with his first campaign for President of the United States.  Although, at times, the book dives a little too much into the minutia of policy decisions, this is a riveting book.

What I Liked:

A Look at Life in the White House:

I really like learning how life is like for the First Family.  We see how many people they are surrounded by at all times, from Secret Service agents to chefs, to assistants and cleaning staff.  There are so many people who look after this family.  But, despite all the lack of privacy, Obama is able to enjoy daily dinners with his family (something he never was able to do as a busy lawyer and legislator).  Michelle, the First Lady, is able to maintain friendships, and has the aid of her mother, who moves into the White House to help with the girls.  And Obama's daughters, Malia and Sasha, make friends, go to sleepovers, and play sports like other kids.

Challenges of Life in the Limelight: 

There are also many difficulties to being in such a high profile position.  Obama and his wife has to endure racist attacks that no other President would have to deal with.   I was particularly interested in what Obama had to say about Donald Trump's "Investigation" into Obama's birth certificate.  

I was also struck by how reluctant Michelle was about Barack's political ambitions.  Actually, this is not surprising.  By choosing such high profile jobs, Barack essentially relegates the entire job of parenting their children to her.  For an accomplished woman who has spent years on her education,  this must have been a bitter pill to swallow.  Plus, she was understandably concerned for the safety and well-being of their children.  You rarely see these concerns aired in public.  This causes the reader to understand how amazingly surreal being President of The United States would be.

Osama Bin Laden:

The most interesting portion of the book has to do with the hunt for Osama Bin Laden.  Obama makes this a priority of his presidency, and the stakes couldn't have been higher.  Reflecting on other military missions that went horribly wrong (remember Black Hawk Down?), Obama is all too aware of how this could make or break his presidency.  The amount of planning, and the decision process, are fascinating.

What I Was Mixed About:

At nearly eight hundred pages, the book sometimes plods on with too many details about various summits and passages of legislation.  I suppose that a reader's reaction to each episode will depend on what their interests are.  If climate change is your priority, you will have ample insight into how the 2016 Paris Agreement was negotiated.  If you are most interesting in the Affordable Care Act, you will get a blow by blow on how it was passed.  I just wish some of this could have been streamlined.  I think more people would read this if the book was shorter.

Rating: 

Release Date:  November 17th, 2020

Author:  Barack Obama

Genre:  Memoir

Audio Narrator:  Barack Obama

Audio Publisher:  Random House Audio

Audio Length:  29 hours, 11 minutes

 Print Publisher:  Crown Books

Page Length:  768 Pages

Format:  Audiobook

Source:  Penguin Random House Audio

Recommendation:  Although overly long, this is a riveting look at an historic presidency.  

Please Note:  I received an advance copy of this novel from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  This did not influence the opinions in my review in any way.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

New York Times bestselling author Paula Brackston's second novel in the Found Things series, Secrets of the Chocolate House, was called a "time-swapping romance [that] will please fans of Alice Hoffman" (Publishers Weekly). Now, Brackston returns to the Found Things series with a third book, The Garden of Promises and Lies.

As the bustle of the winter holidays in the Little Shop of Found Things gives way to spring, Xanthe is left to reflect on the strange events of the past year. While she's tried to keep her time-traveling talents a secret from those close to her, she is forced to take responsibility for having inadvertently transported the dangerous Benedict Fairfax to her own time. Xanthe comes to see that she must use her skills as a Spinner if she and Flora are ever to be safe, and turns to the Spinners book for help.

It is then that a beautiful antique wedding dress sings to her. Realizing the dress and her adversary are connected in some way, she answers the call. She finds herself in Bradford-on-Avon in 1815, as if she has stepped into a Jane Austen story.

Now in Xanthe's time, Fairfax is threatening Xanthe into helping him with his evil doings, and demonstrates all too clearly how much damage he is capable of causing. With Fairfax growing ever more powerful, Xanthe enlists the help of her boyfriend Liam, taking him back in time with her. It is a decision that might just ensure she prevails over her foe, but only by putting her life—and his—on the line.

Review:

I don't normally enjoy time travel books, but this series,  starting with The Little Shop of Found Things, is the exception.  It has so many great aspects going for it.  It begins as a sweet story about a little antique shop in England.  But Xanthe, the daughter of the shop owner, has a special ability.  Some items with historical significance call to her.  Once she buys them, she learns the object's secrets, and then goes back in time to solve a mystery.  Then the fun really begins, as Xanthe must find a way to navigate a different historical time period.  This is a really fun series, that is getting better with each succeeding installment.

What I Liked:

Premise:

I love learning about the ins and outs of the antiques business.  What seems like a romantic job going to estate sales, really is a challenging business.  Xanthe and her mother must constantly look at items not for their sentimental value, but for how well they will sell.  I enjoyed seeing all these behind the scenes of this world.

Then there's the time travel aspect of the story.  Rather than gloss over all the logistics of how one could blend into an period hundreds of years ago, this book revels in all the possible issues that would crop up.  How can one find clothes that would look authentic to the time period?  Would you know the appropriate way to speak?  Would you recognize where you were?  All these small, but important details add so much to the story.

Characters:

Although Xanthe is obviously a risk-taker, she also feels a great responsibility towards her mother,  Flora, and I love their relationship.  Since her parent's divorce, Xanthe and Flora are rebuilding their life in a relatively new town, and with a new antiques business.  Xanthe knows if she isn't careful she could be left behind in time, and she doesn't want to leave her mother alone.  But Flora is a survivor, who knows the business like no other.  Xanthe truly respects her. 

Xanthe has a complex adversary in Benedict Fairfax.  This is a character who has continued in all three books.  When he learns he is also a "Spinner" (someone who can spin time), he wants to use this skill to enrich himself.  He sees Xanthe as the key to understanding how to master time travel.  Knowing how close she is to Flora, Fairfax uses this knowledge to motivate Xanthe to do what he wants.  But Flora is about to fight back...

Story:

I particularly liked this story.  Xanthe finds a wedding dress at an estate sale that "sings" to her.  She knows the dress has something to do with Fairfax, and must determine what it is.  She has to travel back to the Regency period (Jane Austin's time) and befriend the bride.  When she realizes that the bride is marrying Fairfax, she has a dilemma.  Does she let the wedding go on as planned, or should she warn her new friend of Farifax's true nature?  Would it even make a difference?  It's the old time travel quandary, can you change historical events, or will your actions only make events happen anyway?

Rating: 

Release Date:  December 15th, 2020

Author:  Paula Brackston

Genre:  Fantasy

Publisher:   St. Martins Press

Page Length: 320 Pages

Source:  NetGalley

Format:  E-Book

Recommendation:  This is a wonderful addition to the series.  But start at the beginning with The Little Shop of Found Things.

Please Note:  I received an advance audio copy of this novel from Libro.fm, in exchange for an audio review.  This did not influence the opinions in my review in any way.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

A highly imaginative and original horror-comedy centered around a cursed New England boarding school for girls—a wickedly whimsical celebration of the art of storytelling, sapphic love, and the rebellious female spirit.

Our story begins in 1902, at The Brookhants School for Girls. Flo and Clara, two impressionable students, are obsessed with each other and with a daring young writer named Mary MacLane, the author of a scandalous bestselling memoir. To show their devotion to Mary, the girls establish their own private club and call it The Plain Bad Heroine Society. They meet in secret in a nearby apple orchard, the setting of their wildest happiness and, ultimately, of their macabre deaths. This is where their bodies are later discovered with a copy of Mary’s book splayed beside them, the victims of a swarm of stinging, angry yellow jackets. Less than five years later, The Brookhants School for Girls closes its doors forever—but not before three more people mysteriously die on the property, each in a most troubling way.

Over a century later, the now abandoned and crumbling Brookhants is back in the news when wunderkind writer, Merritt Emmons, publishes a breakout book celebrating the queer, feminist history surrounding the “haunted and cursed” Gilded-Age institution. Her bestselling book inspires a controversial horror film adaptation starring celebrity actor and lesbian it girl Harper Harper playing the ill-fated heroine Flo, opposite B-list actress and former child star Audrey Wells as Clara. But as Brookhants opens its gates once again, and our three modern heroines arrive on set to begin filming, past and present become grimly entangled—or perhaps just grimly exploited—and soon it’s impossible to tell where the curse leaves off and Hollywood begins.

A story within a story within a story and featuring black-and-white period illustrations, Plain Bad Heroines is a devilishly haunting, modern masterwork of metafiction that manages to combine the ghostly sensibility of Sarah Waters with the dark imagin:ation of Marisha Pessl and the sharp humor and incisive social commentary of Curtis Sittenfeld into one laugh-out-loud funny, spellbinding, and wonderfully luxuriant read. 

Review:

Plain Bad Heroines is a story with dual timelines. One story takes place in the early nineteen hundreds at a girls boarding school in New England, while the other is set in modern-day Hollywood.  With it's story within a story format, the book is a look at female romantic relationships in both times.  It's also a fun behind the scenes look at the making of a big budget movie, with all the power plays, and shenanigans that go along with it.  I enjoyed both stories, and found this to be a highly entertaining audiobook.

What I Liked:

Narration:

I was very impressed with the narration by Xe Sands.  She perfectly created both the cadence of New England society women and the cockiness of Hollywood players.  I particularly liked how she conveyed the longing between Libbie and Alex.  At a time when lesbians could go to jail for showing their affections for other women, Sand's voice got across all the secrecy, and fear, of these characters.

Story Within a Story:

There were two parallel stories in this book.  The story of two female lovers who are running an all girls school in Rhode Island in the early nineteen hundreds, and a modern story about the making of a film based on the girls school.  This was a fun behind the scenes look at the making of a movie, that contrasts with (and sometimes mirrors) the evolution of the female relationships at the girls school.

Characters:

My favorite character was Harper Harper, the modern-day movie star who will be the centerpiece of the movie about Brookhanst.  The tough, lesbian actress who always knew how to turn on her movie star charm, also was a young woman who knew how strange it was that she was famous at all.  I could totally see Kristen Stewart in this role.  

I also liked Audrey, the child star who desperately wants to be taken seriously as an adult actress.  The run up of her audition for the role of Clara was a riveting behind the scenes look at the movie business.  Her mother, a faded movie star in her own right, was a cringe-worthy look at a woman who ruthlessly used her daughter to gain attention for herself.

What I Was Mixed About:

Ending:

I have mixed feelings about the endings of the two stories.  I enjoyed the resolution of the contemporary story, but the one that took place in the early nineteen hundreds was unclear to me.   The modern story, which was the making of a movie based on the girls school in the earlier story, showed the completion of the movie, as well as what happened to the characters.  I was deeply invested in these characters and so it was very satisfying to have a follow up on the characters after the movie was finished.  The earlier story involving the love story between Libbie (the owner of the Bookhanst girls school) and Alex (her female lover), has a muddled ending.  Even though I could understand what happened, I had a hard time understanding WHY it happened.  The author went for a gothic horror ending, but it was tempered by the fact that it was so convoluted, the explanation of what happened wound up more confusing than revelatory.

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Rating:  

Release Date:  October 20th, 2020

Author: Emily M. Danforth

Audio Narrator: Xe Sands

Audio Publisher:  Harper Audio

Audio Length:  19 Hours, 27 Minutes

Print Publisher:  William Morrow

Print Page Length:  619 Pages

Source:  Libro.fm

Format:  Audiobook

Recommendation:  Even with it's confusing ending, this was a very compelling and entertaining book. 

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

Beatrice Clayborn is a sorceress who practices magic in secret, terrified of the day she will be locked into a marital collar that will cut off her powers to protect her unborn children. She dreams of becoming a full-fledged Magus and pursuing magic as her calling as men do, but her family has staked everything to equip her for Bargaining Season, when young men and women of means descend upon the city to negotiate the best marriages. The Clayborns are in severe debt, and only she can save them, by securing an advantageous match before their creditors come calling.

In a stroke of luck, Beatrice finds a grimoire that contains the key to becoming a Magus, but before she can purchase it, a rival sorceress swindles the book right out of her hands. Beatrice summons a spirit to help her get it back, but her new ally exacts a price: Beatrice’s first kiss . . . with her adversary’s brother, the handsome, compassionate, and fabulously wealthy Ianthe Lavan.

The more Beatrice is entangled with the Lavan siblings, the harder her decision becomes: If she casts the spell to become a Magus, she will devastate her family and lose the only man to ever see her for who she is; but if she marries—even for love—she will sacrifice her magic, her identity, and her dreams. But how can she choose just one, knowing she will forever regret the path not taken?

Review:

One of the things I like most about Fantasy books is how they can use the genre to explore contemporary issues.  The Midnight Bargain is one such book.  Besides being a suspenseful tale of a magical society, it really is a book about a woman's right to choose her own destiny, particularly in regards to marriage and parenthood.  This was so timely.  I loved the characters, and the various twists and turns of the story.

What I Liked:

World-Building:

This was a world of magic in an oppressive patriarchal society.  Magical abilities run in some families, with those clans becoming rich and powerful. Magical boys are educated and, when they have enough control, bond with a spirit, and become a Mage.  Women are not trusted to be able to control such a symbiotic relationship.  

Instead, women are not allowed to use their abilities, and are regulated to the task of bearing sons with magic.  This keeps the men's hold on power by carefully arranging marriages within magical families.  Also, there is a very real possibility (since women are not allowed develop their abilities) that a spirit can possess babies in-utero, using the children's bodies to wreak havoc as they grow up.  The solution: putting magical collars on women when they marry, thus preventing them from using magic.  This also conveniently controls women.  They are allowed to remove the collars once they hit menopause.  But by then, their most productive years are behind them.  It's too late for most women to develop their gift.

Themes:

This, of course, is a direct analogy to the control men have over women when women don't have autonomy over their own bodies.  Whether it's property rights being handed over to husbands, not having a say of when (or if) they marry, or in deciding if they want to give birth, all these things happen to women in this book.  Women have also been subjected to these practices in real life.  Thankfully most contemporary generations do not have direct memories of these times.  But it is timely reminder of what's at stake if the freedoms we have are removed.

Characters: 

 The main character, Beatrice, longs to practice magic out in the open.  She is being pressured by her family to marry, as her marriage would save her family from financial ruin.  But this would be the end of her dreams of becoming a Mage.  I could feel how stifled and oppressed she was, not just by her father, but by society as a whole.  

But she has a plan to secretly bond with a spirit and become a Mage before she can marry.  While she wouldn't be able to marry, she could help her father with the family business.  Matters become complicated when she falls in love with the most eligible bachelor in the city.  Can she be with him and allow herself to suppress her magic?  Can she even bond with a spirit without the proper training?  It's a classic struggle between your head and your heart.

I also enjoyed Beatrice's mother.  She quietly supports Beatrice over her husband's objections.  One can tell she has many regrets, and doesn't want the same fate for her daughter.  I loved how she finds a way to really show Beatrice what wearing the collar will be like so she can understand what may be in store for her if she marries.  Her quiet defiance was a clear sign of her strength, and love for her daughter.

Story:

There are many aspects of the story that parallel that of a Jane Austin novel.  The setting is Regency, with elaborate clothing, complicated manners, and a huge disparity between the rich and poor.  And parts of the story mirror Pride & Prejudice, such as the massive campaign that families undergo to marry off their daughters, and the class structures that create obstacles for Beatrice and her dream guy to marry.

But this is also a completely original story.  I loved the idea that a person could bond with a spirit.  But how would that work?  The conventional wisdom from the men was that they needed to dominate the spirit.  But Beatrice takes another approach.  She learns that these spirits yearn for the experiences people take for granted; things like running on the beach, or the taste of a glass of wine.  She helps her spirit with these experiences, and develops a friendship that forms a much stronger bond than by forcing one by brute strength.

Rating: 

Author:  C.L. Polk

Genre: YA fantasy

Release Date:  October 13th, 2020

Publisher: Erewhon Press

Page Length:  384 Pages

Source:  Public Library

Format:  E-book

Recommendation:  There is so much to love about this book.  I really hope more people will read it and enjoy it as much as I did.

Please Note:  I received an advance audio copy of this book from the publisher, Penguin Audio, in exchange for an honest review.  This did not influence the opinions in my review in any way.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

By the time Dominique Crenn decided to become a chef, at the age of twenty-one, she knew it was a near impossible dream in France where almost all restaurant kitchens were run by men. So she moved to San Francisco to train under Jeremiah Tower. Almost thirty years later, Crenn was awarded three Michelin Stars in 2018 for her restaurant Atelier Crenn, and became the first female chef in the United States to receive this honor.

In this book, the author writes of her childhood in Versailles. Adopted as a toddler, growing up she often felt like an outsider, and was haunted by a past she knew nothing about. But after years of working to fill this blank space, Crenn has embraced the power her history gives her to be whoever she wants to be. She also addresses restaurant culture, sexism, immigration, and climate change, this is a book of a chef's personal journey of discovery.

Review:

Perhaps because I always wished to be one, I'm quite drawn to memoirs by chefs.  And Dominique Crenn's story is compelling.  Growing up in France, she came from a loving home, but always felt to be a bit of an outsider.  This may have been due to being adopted.  But being an outsider allowed Crenn to look at life from a different angle.  A risk-taker who has inspired countless people with her work ethic, determination, and the poetic artistry of her cooking, she was never constrained by traditional thinking.  I loved this book, but if you need to visualize what her cooking is, you should also watch the episode of Netflix show, Chef's Table, that features Crenn.  Taken together, you will see a portrait of a dynamic force of nature. 

What I Liked:

Narrator:

Hope Newhouse does a wonderful job of using her youthful voice to show how new and refreshing Crenn's culinary viewpoint is.  She also seems to be fluent in French, as she demonstrates whenever a French phrase is used.  She helped show how wonderous Crenn's journey really was.

Insight into a Chef's Purpose:

While most of us diners go to a restaurant and anticipate a pleasant meal, Dominique Crenn uses a meal to tell a story through food.  This may seem pretentious, but her use of food is so well thought out, that one can't help but be moved by her outlook.  She sees beauty in ingredients, and finds joy in creating new ways to produce meals that touch the heart, as well as the stomach. 

Not a Tell-All:

I appreciated that this book was not a tell-all of who Crenn dated or horror stories of mistreatment by male chefs.  Certainly, she touches on these topics, but these are not the main points of the book.  The point of the memoir was to honor her father, who died of cancer.  Although she follows her instincts to pursue adventure away from France, she has deep guilt for being away from her family.  This is a tension I can identify with.  To their credit, her parents always encourage her travels.  But you can tell Crenn feels the tug of home, especially as her mother gets older.

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Rating:

Release Date:  June 9th, 2020

Author:  Dominique Crenn with Emma Brockes

Audio Narrator:  Hope Newhouse

Publisher: Penguin Audio

Audio Length:  5 Hours, 15 Minutes

Print Publisher:  Penguin Press

Print Page Length:  256 Pages

Source:  Penguin Audio

Format:  Audiobook

Recommendation:  This book will make you want to visit Crenn's restaurant as soon as the Pandemic is over!  A wonderful, inspiring memoir.

Please Note:  I received an advance copy of this novel from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.  This did not influence the opinions in my review in any way.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

From the New York Times bestselling author of Tell Me Three Things comes an of-the-moment novel that peeks inside the private lives of the hypercompetitive and the hyperprivileged and takes on the college admissions bribery scandal that rocked the country.

It's good to be Chloe Wynn Berringer. She's headed off to the college of her dreams. She's going to prom with the boy she's had a crush on since middle school. Her best friend always has her back, and her mom, a B-list Hollywood celebrity, may finally be on her way to the B+ list. It's good to be Chloe Wynn Berringer--at least, it was, until the FBI came knocking on her front door, guns at the ready, and her future went up in smoke. Now her mother is under arrest in a massive college admissions bribery scandal. Chloe, too, might be facing charges, and even time behind bars. The public is furious, the press is rabid, and the US attorney is out for blood.

As she loses everything she's long taken for granted, Chloe must reckon not only with the truth of what happened, but also with the examination of her own guilt. Why did her parents think the only way for her to succeed was to cheat for her? What did she know, and when did she know it? And perhaps most importantly, what does it mean to be complicit?

Review:

This book hit so close to home for me, as my daughter went through the college admissions process just prior to the college admissions scandal that rocked the nation.  She even applied to USC, one of the main universities involved in the controversy.  She didn't get in.  With the school's reputation now in shambles, I think we dodged a bullet.  While my daughter is very happy at an amazing college, we will always wonder if someone bribed their way into a spot she could have gotten.  

With this in mind, I read Admission, by Julie Buxbaum.  It was riveting to imagine what the young students must have gone through, as they came to realize what their parents had done.  Or were they in on it too?

What I Liked:

Characters:

I did feel sympathy for Chloe, the mostly clueless high school senior who is at the center of the fictional college admissions scandal.  As the daughter of a famous actress, she feels the pressure to attend a prestigious university.  But she's really not into it.  She's an average student at a high-priced high school where everyone is expected to achieve greatness.  While everyone is caught up in the admissions process, Chloe would be happy to attend a low-key college in Arizona.  But her Hollywood parents won't be content unless she can attend SCC (a fictional version of USC).   Chloe really doesn't realize what her parents have done.  But she does have inklings that something is off.

I liked that the character Chloe is actually a good person.  In the real-life scandal, it certainly didn't appear that the students cared how they got into college, or who they hurt along the way.

Inside Story:

What is so compelling is how the reader gets to see how the families lives are turned upside down once they are charged by the Feds.  There are lawyers, PR firms, and image consultants camped out in their living rooms.  Plus the students involved need lawyers for themselves. They are also not permitted (by the lawyers) to even talk to their parents about the case.  This creates a pent up anger for Chloe as her questions remain unanswered.  Did her parents think she was too stupid to get into college?  Was their true motive to help her, or was it just for bragging rights.  And how does this affect the other members of the family? 

What I Was Mixed About:

Characters:

While I liked most of the characters, I couldn't quite feel sympathy for the parents of the story.  The author paints a picture of entitlement that leaves very little room for empathy from me.  As they try to justify why they used the "Side-Door" to get their child into one of the best colleges in the country, it made me so disgusted.  They never truly understand how incredibly unfair all the consultants, private tutors, special SAT classes, and then bribes, and test cheating, were to students who play by the rules.    

Rating: 

Release Date:  December 1st, 2020

Author:  Julie Buxbaum

Publisher:  Delacorte Press

Genre:  YA Contemporary

Page Length:  304 pages

Source:  NetGalley

Format:  E-Book

Recommendation:  A very compelling book about how families get caught up in the college admissions process. Very timely.

Welcome to my reading update!  I'm going to post this on a few blog hops such as Stacking The Shelves run by Team Tynga's Reviews, and Sunday Post, run by Kimberly at Caffeinated Book Reviewer and a new Facebook group I've joined called The Sunday Salon

Seeing what other are reading (and finding a novel that everyone's talking about) is the reason I love looking at blog hop posts.  Please feel free to drop me a line and tell me what you're reading.

What a week it has been!  It's been a roller-coaster ride here in California.  We were all set to open up school with a hybrid model, on Monday. By Tuesday, our county went to the most restrictive (Purple) tier, and our plans for opening up schools were shuttled.  On Thursday, Governor Newsom issued a curfew to try and stop the spread of COVID-19.  It's getting scary out there, so a curfew is fine with me.  Whatever we can do , I'm in.

This has been a week of anxiousness about the virus.  So, what's the cure for my worries?  Books, of course!

I've been reading a lot, and acquired some exciting books.

What I'm Reading Now:

What I Finished This Week:

 

New Books on My Shelf:

I'm most excited to read A Promised Land, by Barack Obama.  I received this audiobook for review from Penguin Random House.  But, it is over twenty-nine hours long! Oh my gosh, this is going to take a while!

As you begin your weekend, I wish for you rest, relaxation and health.

Stay Safe!

Art by my daughter!

Welcome to my reading update!  I'm going to post this on a few blog hops such as Stacking The Shelves run by Team Tynga's Reviews, and Sunday Post, run by Kimberly at Caffeinated Book Reviewer and a new Facebook group I've joined called The Sunday Salon

Seeing what other are reading (and finding a novel that everyone's talking about) is the reason I love looking at blog hop posts.  Please feel free to drop me a line and tell me what you're reading.

This has been a much more relaxing week, since all the hoopla of the election.  In fact, I have mostly been catching up on my sleep, rather than doing much reading.  But, sometimes rest is just what is needed.  As the week winds down, I'm finally starting to get into two very interesting books.  And with the weather also finally getting colder, it's the perfect weekend to get lost in a book.

What I'm Reading:

What I Finished This Week:

New Books on my Shelf:

Have a relaxing weekend!