Please Note: I received an advance reader's copy of this novel from the publisher, and agreed to give an honest review as part of the promotional blog tour for this book. This did not influence the opinions in my review in any way. Additionally, I have linked the book cover to Amazon. If you buy the book through this link, I do get a small fee.
Synopsis (From Goodreads):
In search of the
perfect story to put a human face on a tragedy for his newspaper, my dad
will fly into the eye of the storm. And now he’s heading to Ukraine,
straight into the aftermath of a deadly earthquake. I don’t want him to
leave. I don’t want to spend the week alone in a silent house with my
mother, whose classically Russian reserve has built a wall between us
that neither of us knows how to tear down. But I don’t tell him this. I
don’t say stay.
I think I’m holding it together okay—until the
FBI comes knocking on our door. Now it’s all I can do to fight off the
horrifying images in my head. The quake has left so many orphans and
widows, but Mom and I refuse to be counted among them. Whatever it takes
to get Dad back, I’ll do it. Even if it means breaking a promise…or the
law.
Review:
About a year ago, I had the great pleasure of reading Calla Devlin's first novel, Tell Me Something Real. It was an emotional roller-coaster of a book! I loved it. So when the publisher offered an advance reader's copy of the author's next book, Right Where You Left Me, I couldn't resist.
Although these books very different, they both explore the complicated relationship between mothers and daughters. With foggy San Francisco as a backdrop, the compelling story of Charlotte's missing father pushes her to confront her challenging relationship with her mom. If her dad doesn't come home, can Charlotte and her mom continue as a family? The sense of impending doom is palatable.
What I Liked:
Setting:
Okay, I am very biased here. I live in the San Francisco Bay Area, so any book set here is one I will be partial to. But the author's descriptions of specific neighborhoods are so vivid, I must assume that she has lived in San Francisco at some point in her life. There is simply too much love in her descriptions to have been made up. Now I want to revisit the areas Calla Devlin has placed the story, walk the streets, and fall in love with San Francisco all over again!
Food:
The Russian bakery items that Charlotte's mom, Valentina, makes are prominently featured as part of this book! The descriptions of bird's milk cake, rogaliki, and Tulskie prianiki are mouth-watering! I thought making sharlotka the dessert that she associates with Josh (her crush) to be so clever because of how Charlotte and sharlotka sound so similar.
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| Bird's Milk Cake |
 |
| Rogaliki |
 |
| Tulskie Prianiki |
 |
| Sharlotka |
Characters:
Charlotte and her mom, Valentina, are both complex characters. Valentina is distant and is not very affectionate with her daughter, making Charlotte feel isolated and unloved. At first, I thought she was a little bratty for feeling this way, but as the book slowly unfolded, we begin to understand why Charlotte feels this way.
Charlotte is also very conflicted about many aspect of her life. She is attracted to Josh, but knows her friends don't approve of him. She also thought she wanted to be a journalist, like her dad. But she is also drawn to photography and art. Can she disappoint her dad (if he ever returns), given what he has gone through?
Valentina is Russian and immigrated to the United States when she married Charlotte's dad, Jeremiah. Although it seems like they are living a happy life, tragedy lurks in the corners. Their first child, Lena, died as an infant, and when Charlotte was born, Valentina suffered a stroke. Does her mom blame Charlotte for causing her stroke? Does she resent that Charlotte is alive while Lena isn't?
There is so much misunderstanding on both sides. It is rather heart-breaking, yet I get how people's perceptions can cause a rift in a relationship.
What I Was Mixed About:
I thought the main event in the book was a bit too easily resolved. As it was pointed out in the book, these situations can continue for years. However, I think that unless you want an epic saga that spans a decade, resolving the event was a smart move.
Rating:
Release Date: September 5th, 2017
Genre: YA Contemporary
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing
Length: 256 pages
Source: Publisher (Thank you!)
Format: ARC Paperback
Recommendation: A fast-paced drama that encompasses larger than life incidents along with small, intense moments of truth. This is an absorbing novel.
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Please Note: I received an ARC copy of this book from Irish Banana Tours in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect the opinions in my review in any way.
Synopsis:
Three sisters struggle
with the bonds that hold their family together as they face a darkness
settling over their lives in this masterfully written debut novel.
There
are three beautiful blond Babcock sisters: gorgeous and foul-mouthed
Adrienne, observant and shy Vanessa, and the youngest and best-loved,
Marie. Their mother is ill with leukemia and the girls spend a lot of
time with her at a Mexican clinic across the border from their San Diego
home so she can receive alternative treatments.
Vanessa is the
middle child, a talented pianist who is trying to hold her family
together despite the painful loss that they all know is inevitable. As
she and her sisters navigate first loves and college dreams, they are
completely unaware that an illness far more insidious than cancer
poisons their home. Their world is about to shatter under the weight of
an incomprehensible betrayal…
Review:
Having had cancer, I am drawn to stories that explore the effects that major illnesses have on families. This book deals with three sisters coping with their mother's leukemia. Taking care of their mom is all-encompassing: the trips to Mexico for treatments, helping give their mom medications, taking care of the house and their youngest sister, Marie. It is overwhelming for Vanessa and her sister Adrienne. Their father is not much help, as he is trying to make enough money to afford his wife's treatments at a Mexican clinic. He is never home.
I really try to keep spoilers out of reviews, so I cannot say more about the plot, but I was blown away by what happens in this novel.
via GIPHY
There is so much more going on than what is on the surface. Nothing is as it seems.
The book presents many moral conundrums. How can you balance earning a living with caring for your family? Should you tell your children all the details when there is a family crisis? How can one feel safe amid family chaos? Can a teen make decisions on their future without feeling guilty? How does one forgive a parent when they make a mistake? There was so much to think about.
I loved all the sisters in this book. Each one has a different way of getting through their family predicament. Peter (the dad) drowns himself in work to avoid his wife's illness. Adrienne is foul-mouthed and rebellious. Marie becomes obsessed with the gruesome lives of Catholic saints. And Vanessa overcompensates by assuming the role as caretaker for their mom.
I was so invested in this family's situation, that I yelled out loud when the book took a sudden, dramatic turn. This pretty much sums up my reaction:
via GIPHY
Normally, one would think that I didn't like this book. But it was just so astonishing that I then dove down the rabbit hole and was amazed all over again.
This book was tender, showing the power of sibling relationships. There is a special bond forged in difficult times. While each girl has different ways of working through the situation, the sisters rely on each other. No one else can understand what they are going through. I would be really interested to read a follow up book on how these girls are in 10 or 15 years.
This book is much different than how I envisioned it would be. It was surprising, sweet, and provocative. I can't recommend this highly enough.
Rating:
Release Date: August 30th, 2016
Source: NetGalley & Irish Banana Tours
Format: Digital ARC
Recommendation: This is an amazing book that I will think about for a long time. Run out and get a copy today!
About Calla Devlin:
Calla Devlin is a Pushcart nominee and winner of the Best Of Blood And Thunder award whose stories have been included in numerous literary journals and in anthologies, including Because I Love Her: 34 Women Writers Reflect On The Mother-Daughter Bond, for which she was featured in the San Francisco Chronicle and San Francisco magazine.
Tell Me Something Real is her first book.
And now for a giveaway:
a Rafflecopter giveaway
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