The Most Fun We Ever Had

I'm not sure I'd be enthusiastic reading 500 pages about this privileged family, but as an audio book, I was engaged and motivated to continue to hear how it would end.

Parents of 4 daughters Marilyn & David are that affectionate, loving couple we all envy. Nothing that's thrown their way can come between them, they remain crazy about each other throughout the years. Their thoughts & feelings did get repetitive towards the end though. We get it, they're madly in love!
Perfect daughter Violet had the biggest skeleton in her closet, making her imperfect and therefore interesting. She annoyed me to no end. I wanted someone to (figuratively) smack some sense into her over Jonah. Well done Claire Lombardo! Grace was just ridiculous, and Liza sad, both not as interesting as their older sisters Violet and Wendy.

The narration by Emily Rankin was wonderfully done, especially Wendy's character. She nailed the snooty, spoiled rich bitch voice I expected her to have.
It was the skilled narration and many moments of lovely prose that kept me going with this lengthy book, and made it awesome audio.
You know I've voted for this in the 2 categories it's nominated for in the Goodreads Choice Awards. 

Until next time,

Kara

Blood Sisters

This suspenseful tale about thee sisters has it all: a horrific accident, stalking, secrets, jealousy, threats, and revenge. 

In a what-could-go-wrong? opener, Alison takes a job teaching art in a prison. It's not a maximum security prison, but a supposedly low-risk, open one, with prisoners not locked up. This is an uncomfortable set up to say the least, with some creepy prisoners in close quarters to her. The not very plausible scenarios begin, with a work space in a locked hut and no guard, and Alison and her students have access to (sharp!) art supplies. Alison even spends the night to experience being in a cell overnight. 

Growing up, Alison was always on the outskirts looking in at the closeness her two sisters shared. 
Kitty has never recovered from what happened when they were children, and remains institutionalized. She can't communicate anymore, but we read her thoughts, which include a lot of swearing. 

Step sister Vanessa is rude, yet charming. She's spoiled, devious and too provocative for her young age.  

I enjoyed how the story was told in present day and then would go back to 15 years ago. I can't say I liked any of the sisters though, or felt any connection to them.  

Blood Sisters, as well as My Husband's Wife, is a great example of write about what you know. Author and journalist Jane Corry worked in a men's prison as a writer-in-residence. 

I received Blood Sisters in a GoodReads giveaway. 

Until next time,

Kara 

Bob's Red Mill muesli

In my ongoing quest to consume more natural foods and eat breakfast (I'm not a brekkie eater 😌), I was happy to discover Bob's Red Mill.🌾🌻

This European style muesli is definitely wholesome. I've been enjoying it with yogurt, Swiss style, with yogurt and a grated apple & kept in the fridge overnight, and hot. I appreciate that there's no added sugar, so you can control the sweetness if you add honey. Dates, sunflower seeds, raisins, almonds, flax seeds, & walnuts are some ingredients. This muesli has me eating breakfast! 😁

A Stranger on the Beach

Wealthy city chick Caroline spots townie Aidan staring up at her new luxury beach house one night. They meet again when Caroline goes into a local dive bar to drown her sorrows over her troubled marriage where Aidan's a bartender. So begins their fling. 

A Stranger on the Beach gives us the common theme of when well-to-do meets working class. Is it just a cliché? Can such a relationship ever work out? 

I enjoyed hearing the story told from both their points of view. It's a case of her truth, his truth, and something in between. There were times Caroline really annoyed me, just as much as Aidan did. Then I began to feel for Caroline. Well done Michelle Campbell.

Just when you thought their story was headed in a certain direction, it switched, which makes for an intriguing thriller. You wait for the twist, and Campbell delivered on that. It was an easy, fast read that kept me intrigued. 

I received A Stranger on the Beach in a giveaway. 
Until next time,

Kara 

Summer of '69

Not many times in our recent history are as iconic as the summer of 1969, and I simply had to read about the summer of my birth.
It's told from the point of view of four siblings from a middle class family who summers in Nantucket. Even though we get to read some of brother Tiger's letters sent from Vietnam, Summer of '69 is a female centered book. 

The differences with the generations, grandmother, mother and (in particular) teenage daughter were captured well.
Grandmother Exalta was a curious character who you just knew had more underneath. Mother Kate and eldest daughter Blair's blandness annoyed me. Middle sister Kirby and the youngest Jessie were the most alike, both going through this summer learning about themselves, and growing up.   

Something that happened in this book reminded me of watching the final episode in season 1 of Big Little Lies with my mom, who referred to Jane's rape as a bad night with Perry, and I said um, she was raped. My mom's generation didn’t call it rape, it was "what women went through". They were hesitant to give such acts a criminal name. My generation, coming up in the 1970's, began calling assault what it is, and wasn't afraid to go against men, hold them accountable.  

Thirteen year old Jessie discovered her pervy tennis instructor humping her is unfortunately typical of what teens start to go through. I cringed at Helen's mother's poor, un-supportive reaction when Helen was groped by him.  Passing it off as she did is a girl’s worst fear! That your mother won't understand what happened, or support & defend you is gut wrenching. I cheered though when Jessie told Suze and got her help.  

Towards the end of the summer, Jessie has a few mature realizations. When she see's her grandmother kissing the caretaker and then thinks of her as a real person, not just the grandmother she never warmed to. She also thinks twice before telling her father everything about her summer. Children tell their parents everything, but grown ups keep some things to them selves, she thinks.  

This was my first Elin Hilderbrand novel, but won't be my last.

I received Summer of '69 in a giveaway. 

Until next time,
Kara 

Daisy Jones and the Six

Daisy Jones and the Six - I don't know if you've heard of this book...?😜

There was a lot that was unappealing for me. It wasn't the interview format, which was fine. I looked forward to experiencing a different style. The first problem for me was that the characters all sounded detached. There were no feelings here.

Like when Daisy described her first time, I thought, where was the emotion? I would have expected more descriptive words to be chosen, particularly from a song writer. But it felt lacking.

As well, the band members all sounded the same at the beginning. I kept searching for, and hoping someone would have a different voice.

It also was turning out to be quite predictable. I really enjoy an alt gritty lifestyle story, that's what makes reading so enjoyable, being able to escape into another life. But I was finding this had... no soul.

But then things fortunately changed when the dynamic between Daisy and Billy got interesting.

Some may like Daisy's confidence, some may be turned off by it. I had a hard time understanding her. Rock stars are full of themselves though, and this story improved when author Taylor Jenkins Reid allowed Daisy to go deeper into her insecurities. We finally got to learn that her big ego and self importance came from a sense of having no self worth. 

The dialogue improved when Daisy & Billy began working together, they started to develop and show feeling, and utter something other than cliches and typical defensive responses.

The Six became interesting then too, especially Karen & Graham's relationship.

I suppose that could be the point TJR had, to start off with characters that want to appear aloof, like they are just old rock n rollers, reminiscing about their party years,and then eventually, get to the real deal.  

Reading this did make me think a lot about my favourite band, Fleetwood Mac, and wonder about what Stevie Nicks and Lyndsey Buckingham and Christine and John McVie went through. 

I liked Daisy's voice comparison with Billy: "I sounded like a cool new pair of jeans and Billy sounded like a pair you've had for years." 

Her observation when Hank became aggressive, she thought of all the decisions she made that brought her there would flash before your eyes. "Something tells me men don't do that same thing. When they are standing there, threatening a woman, I doubt they count every wrong step they made to become the asshole they are. But they should."

Her explanation about getting high: "It's funny. At first, I think you start getting high to dull your emotions, to escape from them. But after a while you realize that the drugs are what are making your life untenable, they are actually what are heightening every emotion you have. It's making your heartbreak harder, your good times higher. So coming down really does start to feel like rediscovering sanity. And when you discover your sanity, it's only a matter of time before you start to get an inkling of why you wanted to escape it in the first place."

I received Daisy Jones and the Six in a giveaway. 

Until next time,
Kara 

The Kiss Quotient

Right off the bat, I must say, I just didn't buy Michael as the hooker with a heart of gold. Professional, sex worker, gigolo, escort, prostitute, ho - whatever label is given to Michael, he still has sex for money.
Even when we learn why he does what he does, it that supposed to make it alright, excuse his choice in a job? I understand that this story teaches us to get past judgement, and be accepting of how people earn their money, once we know their back story. But I wonder if the roles were reversed, if "Michelle" was the pro and "Stuart" the client, would people feel the same? Perhaps because Hoang created a male prostitute turned hero, this is equal opportunity?


A nephew of mine has Asperger's, so I was most curious to see how Stella's Asperger's would be handled. I was pleased to discover Helen Hoang's description of Asperger's is done with sensitivity and accuracy. 

Michael is leery of clients becoming obsessive, and that's Stella's weakness, a trait of Asperger's, she obsesses with things. Something she discovered the very first night with him.
I wondered how it will work, how will she rein in her desire for him?
It was well written, I thought, Michael's reaction to her lessons, and how he explained to her that they don't need to get around her problems, but through them. He creates intimacy with her which is necessary to be a good lover. Intimacy, after all, doesn't start in the bedroom.
These Asperger's traits that Michael observed were right on: Stella had trouble with eye contact, rarely spoke unless asked a direct question, and gave short, direct answers. She listened intently, and frowned with concentration. 

Kudos to Hoang for writing contemporary dialogue. It's a fast, effortless, fun read.
The Kiss Quotient is the type of fairytale that many go ga-go for. In a world of so much harsh reality, it is nice to have fairy tales.

I received The Kiss Quotient in a GoodReads giveaway. 

Until next time,

Kara