Category: Contemporary

‘The Heart Principle’ – Helen Hoang

Due for publication in August 2021, I’m very grateful to NetGalley for letting me read this before publication. I’ve enjoyed the previous two books in the series, but this one touched me in ways I wasn’t expecting. It felt honest, painfully so at times, but it was such a tender read that I found myself desperate to see how things worked out.

Our focus this time round is Quan, who we already know from the previous books, and his romance with violinist Anna.

Anna is a woman who sets herself high standards. She feels pressure to behave a certain way and her usual coping mechanisms are not working. Close to burnout it’s hard to imagine being at a lower point. But then her boyfriend suggests they take a break from each other and start an open relationship to help them figure out whether they’re really suited to one another. Perhaps it’s the way we’re encouraged to respond to him, but this just felt like a way for him to sow his wild oats without losing Anna. He never imagines she might be the one to move on.

When the open relationship thing is first introduced, she doesn’t know how to react. Her friends’ righteous indignation is just what was needed…setting things up perfectly for her to meet Quan.

Of course we want them to work out, and their relationship definitely ticks the boxes, but what I really loved about this was the way the pair of them together talked, shared their vulnerabilities and worked on ways to resolve problems.

Quan is invaluable support for Anna as she comes to terms with her late diagnosis of autism, and how she manages the expectations of others while working out the implications for herself. At the same time, Anna is having to cope with the demands of caring for her father and how these new responsibilities affect her and her family.

As I said, there’s a lot to digest here. Some issues are resolved, while others are not. Though there’s so much going on in this story it never felt cluttered or disorganised. Each strand combined perfectly to create a story that I defy people not to fall in love with.

 

‘Unsettled Ground’ – Claire Fuller

Unsettled Ground tells the story of a family bound together by tragedy. Dot, the matriarch, has always had a clear set of rules that the family have to live by. Since the death of her husband she has lived in a remote cottage with her twins, Jeanie and Julius. Self-sufficient, they have always shied away from village life. However, when Dot dies of a stroke she leaves the twins alone for the first time in their lives.

Jeanie and Julius are fifty-one, but have never lived apart. They are – for reasons that become clear – quite dependent on one another. After the unexpected death of their mother they come to learn just how harshly life can treat you.

Upon their mother’s death they learn that she wasn’t entirely honest about their situation. They find themselves with ‘friends’ demanding money to repay debts they didn’t know they had. Soon they find themselves evicted from the one family home they know, and scrabbling to survive.

It is clear that both Jeanie and Julius have difficulties in living a normal life. Jeanie can’t read or write, but the spirit and resolve each shows is quite remarkable. Sadly, their self-reliance seems unnecessary and as the book progresses – and we learn more about their history – it is painfully apparent that this need not have been their life.

As soon as I began reading I was struck by the beauty of the writing about the everyday experiences. Though focusing on a very miserable subject, there was an inner strength to this that I couldn’t help but admire. It reminded me in parts of Bruce Chatwin’s On the Black Hill, and left me with a similar feeling of unease upon finishing.

 

‘The Girls I’ve Been’ – Tess Sharpe

Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read this before publication in exchange for my thoughts. The Girls I’ve Been is a hard-hitting story exploring some awful crimes…but from the perspective of a young girl you can’t help but support (even though she’s had to do some awful things).

Nora O’Malley is waiting in line in her local bank to deposit some fund-raising money. She’s with her ex, Wes, and her girlfriend, Iris. Things are normal for them…until they are almost at the front of the line and the man in front of them pulls a gun. They find themselves caught up in a robbery – which would be a dramatic story of its own – but it becomes the perfect catalyst for us to learn the truth about Nora. She is not what her friends think.

During the course of the dramatic few hours they are held captive in the bank, Nora’s insight into the minds of the men holding them hostage reveals she’s got a lot more in common with them than you might think. Nora has been raised by her mother to con people…to read them carefully, to find the perfect mark, to exploit their weakness and then move on.

As their drama in the bank unfolds, we learn the truth about Nora. She has been many girls – each with a particular characteristic – in order to help her mother get the end result. But what we soon learn is that Nora is hiding a bigger secret…the last ‘mark’ was a seriously dangerous man, her mother fell in love with him and Nora did what she had to in order to escape.

There’s so much going on here, but it never felt messy as I was reading. The background to the characters was fascinating, and I really liked the dynamics between the main three characters. I can’t help but feel there’s more we could have been told, and the way the story ends really could be the start of a whole new story. Great fun!

 

‘Blackout’ – Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk and Nicola Yoon

Blackout is a collection of short stories from some fantastic contemporary writers. The premise is straightforward – New York City experiences a blackout and, in the time it takes for light to be restored, we are given an insight into some of the lives of those caught up in the experience.
The six writers involved in this collaboration talk about being keen to show the lives of black teens and to try to ensure a fairer representation for readers. It is clear they are a tight-knit group of writers/friends, and it does seem to have been an interesting collaboration since there are strands running throughout the stories.
The afterword stresses that this book began as a project doing the unsettling first period of adjusting to life in Covid-affected times. Drawing on a common experience, and showing how just one moment can impact on the lives of many is clearly at the fore of the stories. They all explore love – in some form – and the stories/experiences are varied (just as you would expect in life).
Naturally, some of the stories are more engaging than others. I’d hazard a guess that every reader will find a favourite set of characters/story, and it might not necessarily be the one written by the author that you would predict. The story by Tiffany Jackson acts as a framing device for all the stories, and though we spend more time with them these two characters still felt as if there could be more to come from their story.
For me, each story focused on a moment and captured a reaction/thought/idea. They were all cautiously optimistic and offered readers the opportunity to draw a little closer. This might not be the kind of story collection I’d return to time and time again, but I’d certainly recommend it to readers looking for something a little different from writers they are familiar with.

 

‘Beartown’ – Fredrick Backman

Beartown is one of those books that will haunt me, and though the subject matter has been done before there was nothing routine about this.

I have loved all of the books by Backman that I have read, and though I’d had this on my radar for a while I had never really felt in the mood for reading it. The subject of rape and how it is dealt with in the community is always problematic, and this is entirely true in the community of Beartown.

People say Beartown is finished…But down by the lake stands an old ice rink, built generations ago by the working men who founded town. And that rink is the reason people in Beartown believe tomorrow will be better than today. Their junior hockey team is about to compete in the national championships, and they actually have a shot at winning. All the hopes and dreams of the town now rest on the shoulders of a handful of teenage boys.

With that kind of power comes responsibility, and Beartown poses some interesting questions about the extent to which we are – as a community – repsonsible for the conduct of those within it.

The opening chapter gripped me from the off, and I loved the realisation (once I eventually got to the end) that it wasn’t quite what I expected. The novel focuses initially on the setting up of Beartown as a community. It is a crumbling town, where people are moving away in droves and it takes a particular kind of hardy soul to make their life there. The majority of inhabitants are obsessed with ice hockey – and though this is not a sport I have much experience of, the role of the team in the lives of the players and how sport can affect the community is pivotal. Understanding the sense of belonging the team gives to the boys is crucial – as it explains (though in no way justifies) the way some of them behave later.

In celebration of their achievements on the ice, the star player hosts a party. It’s been done before. Unfortunately, this time the fifteen year old daughter of the team manager is invited. Maya is naive, but it does not excuse what Kevin does. He rapes her…and what happens next is, sadly, all too common.

Maya is determined, eventually, to be brave. She does not hide away, though she knows the devastation her telling the truth will cause. The repercussions in the community are far-reaching and few are unaffected. However, it was a thought-provoking exploration of character to consider how each of our large cast responded to the events talked about.

There are a lot of characters within these pages, and each of them has a story to tell. Backman shows us their lives – their often miserable, petty lives – but he bestows on them a gravitas and dignity that I found myself admiring. Some of them are more endearing than others, but I liked the fact that Backman shows us each of them without hiding their flaws.

As we drew close to the end there was a clear sense of trying to prepare us for the story continuing in the second book, Us Against You. I have to say that I cannot wait to read it.

 

‘GIRL (in real life) ‘ – Tamsin Winter

Girl (in real life) is a great teen read, broaching the topic of social media and the extent to which we invite unknown people into our lives while showing us a character trying to come to terms with who she is.

Eva is – in many ways – a typical girl…but since she was young her parents have vlogged about her. Videos of her hamster’s funeral and ‘cute’ events in her life have been viewed by thousands of people. She’s used to her home time being carefully orchestrated to protect ‘the brand’. As she’s grown up, however, Eva is more conscious of how this constant presence invades her life. Schoolmates mock her, some find it entertaining…but when her mum posts about her first period Eva decides enough is enough.

Eva tries to explain her reluctance – and her parents were portrayed as highly insensitive in this regard. But nothing changes.

As we can see coming a mile off, Eva takes matters into her own hands and enlists the help of a new student to reclaim her life. Badly thought out, messy, but it doesn’t totally backfire so Eva is happy enough and their comfortable ‘real life’ funded lifestyle isn’t affected.

With the younger audience in mind it doesn’t do anything than skirt a very complex issue. It is from Eva’s perspective so it’s quite easy to see it in isolation, but it’s a good starting point.

Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read this prior to publication in exchange for my honest review.

‘Let’s Go Swimming on Doomsday’ – Natalie C. Anderson

Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read this before its June publication. A harrowing story, but one that should not be ignored.

Our main focus is Abdi, a sixteen year old Somali boy, who – in order to protect his family – was asked by the Americans to infiltrate the jihadi terrorist group Al Shabaab. He vividly recalls the day that Al Shabaab boys came to his town and took his brother. Abdi was thirteen.

Our story is split between the now – when Abdi is being cared for by Sam, a worker for the UN – and then – the process that lead to Abdi being recruited by the group and the activities he was forced to take part in.

There’s no getting away from the fact that the subject matter is tough reading. The indoctrination of children to such groups, and the callous disregard for human life shown by such leaders, is graphically conveyed to us. However, making it clear that Abdi did not participate willingly, and that he is now in fear for his life, meant the book did not seem to glamorise such actions at all.

The details given about how the group operated were fascinating. What struck me, however, was the very real focus on the emotional impact on Abdi and others like him of such groups. There was an emotional honesty to this that is hard to ignore, and I cannot wait to see how it goes down with teen readers.

 

‘None Shall Sleep’ – Ellie Marney

None Shall Sleep was an unexpected read, and one that I am amazed I’ve not heard more about. It’s dark, rather terrifying in its entirety but utterly compelling.

Emma Lewis and Travis Bell are teens recruited into a new FBI program. This has been done before, but the characters of Emma and Travis were quite different. Emma is the one that got away…the ‘final bride’ of a serial killer. Travis is the son of a US Marshall who was killed in the line of duty, by a teenage serial killer. They are both – naturally – affected by their experiences but determined to play their part in protecting others.

Under the care of Agent Cooper they are tasked with interviewing teenage serial killers who have not complied with previous FBI profiling attempts. This leads them to Simon Gutmunsson, the Artist, and the young man who took the life of Travis’s father. Beguiling, but one to watch, Simon is intrigued by Emma and what she has endured. He drops hints about the profile and behaviour of the killer who has come to be known as the Butcher…and, very quickly, it becomes clear that Emma and Travis are getting results.

Ominously, they are drawn into a dark and tangled web. People are killed. They are in danger, and yet they are doggedly determined to do what they believe to be right – even it means working closely with someone they feel unable to trust.
There’s a deeply unpleasant level of detail in the crimes featured. We know we’re dealing with some incredibly dangerous people…but there’s something mesmerising about their behaviour too.

This will not be for everyone. Some scenes played straight out of the Lecter/Starling moments in The Silence of the Lambs but it always felt as if we were getting something a little different. I loved the presentation of our key characters and our closing scenes were deeply affecting. While I’m unsettled by how much I enjoyed this, I am genuinely keen to see what others make of it.

 

‘One Last Stop’ – Casey McQuiston

 

I started this just after seeing a post on social media commenting on the fact that a member of the blogging community had expressed their dismay over this book and not been able to finish it…because it had lesbian characters. That, in a nutshell, seemed to sum up why such a book is needed.

This book had so much going on. While not all of the strands fully worked for me, it was a joyous read – and one that I could not help but feel happy to have read.
Our main character is a rather innocent young girl, who has moved to New York to try and finish college – and to move away from her mother’s attempts to get her to investigate the disappearance of a relative. She finds herself living in a rather strange apartment-share, with a mixed bunch of characters who quickly show themselves to be warm-hearted, caring and better than many families. She gets a job in a 24-hour diner, in spite of having no previous experience, and finds herself intrigued by the daily meet she has on the subway.

August is not particularly confident, but she is determined to try and make the best of situations she ends up in. When she finds herself meeting the same girl, Jane, on her daily commute it quickly becomes a crush she does not want to ignore.

This could have been the story and it would, probably, have worked. Seeing these two together was entertaining, and you cannot deny the attraction between them. However, we have a rather unusual twist…Jane is incapable of leaving the subway and – for reasons we are not quite sure of – actually lived in the 1970s.

I would heartily recommend this to anyone who enjoyed Red, White and Royal Blue though the tone/style is more reflective. As we drew towards the end I have to say I was nervous about reading on – just in case things didn’t quite go as expected.

‘The Lucky List’ – Rachel Lippincott

Emily always felt lucky, and the bond she had with her mum was special. Unfortunately, Emily’s mum was diagnosed with terminal cancer, her luck ran out and Emily has not felt the same since.

When we first meet Emily she alludes to some of this trauma, and as the story progresses we learn more about her life and how losing her mum has affected her. We see her trying to come to terms with things changing…but this is, primarily, a story about one girl trying to figure out who she is.

The action takes place over the summer holidays. We see Emily finding a list written by her mum of challenges she set herself at the same point in her life. Emily decides – with a little push from her new friend – to carry out these challenges. As she ticks them off she starts to feel a little freer…but the biggest challenge is whether she will be honest with herself.

Emily was a very sympathetically presented character. She didn’t always make the best decisions, but it was rewarding to see her develop and gain the confidence to feel comfortable in her own skin.

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for allowing me to read this prior to publication.