Dark Roads

Finished January 21

Dark Roads by Chevy Stevens

This dark tale set in British Columbia on a fictional highway called The Cold Creek Highway, around the town of Cold Creek, echoes reality and the many young woman who went missing on a real highway. 

Hailey McBride has lived in Cold Creek all her life. Her mother died when she was young and her father taught her about nature, how to survive off the land and how to protect herself. He also told her to never travel the highway alone. But her father died in a car accident that she still doesn't totally understand. He was always a careful driver. She is seventeen.

Now she is living with her aunt Lana, her nephew Cash, and her aunt's police officer husband Vaughn. Hailey's best friend is Jonny. They have many interests in common and often hang at the nearby lake, along with a lot of other teenagers, or at each others houses. But Vaughn doesn't like Jonny and is trying to control Hailey, not letting her get a job, or do anything she wants to do. 

He arranges for her to help with Cash, look after him this summer, and just stay around the house. Hailey not only doesn't like Vaughn, and resents him for the controls he places on her, but she fears him as well. There's just something about him. When she finds some evidence to back up her fears, she isn't sure what to do. 

And so, with Jonny's help, she disappears. And everyone in town believes that she's just another victim of the highway murderer. 

A year later, Beth, the sister of a young woman Hailey knew, arrives in town, searching for answers. Beth isn't even sure of all of her questions. She finds work at the local diner, but she also follows clues that she finds. She also encounters Vaughn and is wary of him. 

This is a tale that is a real page turner, as you move between different voices and try to guess who is doing what. One of her best. 

Chains

Finished January 20

Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson

This award-winning children's book is set from mid 1776 through to January 1777, and is told from the point of view of Isabel a black girl. She and her sister Ruth were owned by a woman, Mary, who had promised to free them on her death, but due to upheavals from the War of Independence, Mary's lawyer is away, and her heir quickly takes the girls and sells them to a loyalist couple, the Lockton's, from Charleston who are heading to their house in New York. 

Ruth is a bit simple, but a quiet and good girl, and Isabel is very protective of her. In New York, Isabel meets Curzon a young slave whose master Bellingham is in charge at the docks and suspects that they are loyalists, and will keep an eye on them. 

When Curzon asks Isabel to spy for them, she is at first wary, but pins her hopes on promises of freedom. Isabel is a smart girl, who can read and write, and knows how to keep her thoughts to herself, except in the case of her young sister. 

As we watch the changes in New York through her eyes as the war progresses, we see the bigger picture as well, and learn about the dealings of both the Americans who fight for freedom and the loyalists that want to remain king's subjects. Isabel struggles to understand the meaning of freedom to these men who use the word with such fervor, but still have slaves. 

As she continuously looks for ways to win her and Ruth's freedom, she finds herself torn between new loyalties and old. She undergoes cruelty and hardship as well as small kindnesses from a few. This is a tale that brings history to life as well as opening the young reader to human experiences foreign to them. It is the first book in a series.

Tried and True

Finished January 19

Tried and True by Mary Connealy

Set just after the American Civil War, this is the first in a series of novels about three sisters, Bailey, Shannon, and Kylie shortly after they begin their land claims in Idaho Territory. Pressured by their father into disguising themselves as young men and joining the Union army after their only brother dies in service, the women have used their service as a way of decreasing the time they must stay on the land to finalize their claim. Kylie is the youngest, and the least adept at the skills needed to manage a farm. Her sisters helped build her cabin in the fall, and now that it is spring the story starts with her attempting to repair a loose shingle in her roof. 

She was troubled by her war experience, but after her first battle was able to avoid worse trauma by working as a general's aide and as a spy. Her commanders were unaware that her success as a spy was due to her gender as she removed her disguise when engaging in espionage activity. 

When the local land agent, Aaron Masterson comes by just as Kylie is descending from the roof, he discovers her secret and insists that he must change her claim to eliminate the service record, even though she served as women weren't allowed to enlist. 

He finds himself drawn to her, and finds himself visiting her again soon after when a local rancher threatens her land. When another threat appears soon after, Aaron worries about her safety alone at her cabin and works with her siblings to find a solution. 

This novel is an historical western romance, with a touch of mystery. Kylie is less helpless than she first appears, as she has depended on her sisters more than she could have. But she is also a reluctant land claim candidate and plans to sell as soon as she owns the land outright. 

I found Kylie growing on me, but enjoyed her sisters more. There are other interesting characters as well, including a motherly and capable native woman. Aaron's history played a role in the plot and was an interesting commentary on the aftermath of the Civil War. 

Witch of Wild Things

Finished November 29

Witch of Wild Things by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland

This is the first book in a series called Wild Magic. Sage Flores is the oldest of three sisters and eight years ago she left her hometown of Cranberry, Virginia after the death of her youngest sister, Sky. Middle sister Teal blames her for Sky's death, although they both know that isn't the case. 

The girls grew up in their aunt Nadia's house after their mother left town when they were young. A family legend says that it is a curse that all the women in the family have magic in them, and sometimes it feels that way. Sage's gift is with plants. She can identify plants from the smallest piece of them, and can communicate with them in a way. Sky's gift was with animals, and Teal's with weather. 

Sky fell from a cliff when engaging in risky behaviour, but her body was never found. Her ghost haunts Sage, offering ups cups of flavoured coffee and sometimes, when Sage cries, becoming visible to her. Sky tells her that she can't move on until Sage heals the rift between herself and Teal. 

Sage began working with jewelry and had a job teaching at a college. Budget cuts cost her the position, and she is moving back home as the book begins. Nadia's glad to have her back, but Teal not so much. Sage's best friend Laurel is also looking forward to her return. She lets Sage know that her old crush Tennessee Reyes is also back in town. 

Nadia has contacted some people in town already, and Sage finds that she already has a job offer back with the local garden company. She worked there in high school, where she became known as the 'plant whisperer'. 

Interspersed in the story are online chat conversations between Sage and Reyes from their high school days. Sage knew who she was talking to, but he didn't and never found out. This is something that becomes a part of the plot in the novel. The two are thrown together in a project at their workplace where they are tasked with visiting places in the area to look for local plants that aren't already supplied there. Working together means that they get to know each other, and figure out what drives each other in their lives, but they also find themselves drawn to each other. 

I really enjoyed the magical part of this novel, and the ways in which the different characters related to each other. A satisfying read. 

The Christmas Countdown

Finished October 30

The Christmas Countdown by Holly Cassidy

This seasonal romance is a satisfying feel-good novel. The main character, Callie Meyer grew up in small town Virginia. Her mother's best friend lived next door, and both were thrilled when Callie and Oliver, the best friend's son started dating in high school. They'd been together for several years when Oliver got a job in the town of Fallbrook in upstate New York and asked Callie to join him. She quit her job and followed, and got a new job in the same company he worked for, only to have him dump her shortly thereafter. 

Callie is an accountant, and good at her job. She enjoys the city and has made a good friend in her department, Hazel. 

After the breakup, she moved in with her sister Anita, an engineer who designs rollercoasters. (I loved this detail!) As Anita observes Callie stuck in a depression as the year draws to a close, she revives a childhood tradition, an interactive advent gift adventure. Anita has put a lot of thought into this, and the gifts alternate between treats and tasks, with the tasks to get Callie out and about and hopefully making some more friends in the community. 

I really enjoyed the sisterly interaction and how they obviously cared deeply for each other. I also liked how the advent focused on Callie's personality, drawing on strong ties to her family and their traditions, as well as things Callie would actually get into once she tried them. 

This was a fun read, with lots of ideas of Christmas activities that a reader might be intrigued by. 

Bear

Finished September 18

Bear by Julia Phillips

This novel is a coming-of-age novel set on one of the San Juan Islands in Washington state. The central character is Sam, a twenty-something woman who is not happy with her life, but has a dream that she holds close for a better future. She works in the concession stand on the ferry, has no real friends, and resents that she wasn't hired for a better job, despite having a merchant mariner certification. 

Sam lives with her mother and older sister Elena in a house that her grandmother had lived in and passed down to her mother. Sam's mother has been ill for years, and now is almost bedridden. Sam knows that the time will come when her mother will pass away, and back when Sam was in high school, Elena convinced her to stay and add her income to what Elena earned at the golf club where she worked to provide for the three of them. The pandemic set them back, with the ferries running without concessions for a couple of years, and Sam, unable to find another job, took online surveys to bring in a little money. 

Elena does most of the work assisting their mother, and has taken on the finances and other necessary chores for them. She seems to be similarly living in a narrow existence between work and family. 

One day, a bear leans up against the house when they are all home, startling them and affecting both the young women in different ways. Sam is scared, apprehensive that the bear will return and reports the incident to the wildlife authorities. Elena seems more in awe of the experience of having such close contact with a wild creature, and we see as the novel unfolds, how this difference in viewpoint creates a rift of sorts between the two sisters.

Sam escapes through her countless internet surveys and brief sexual encounters with a coworker, but Elena has a different path. 

This is a book where we see Sam come to understand the situation they are living in, and what her dreams are really made of. Because several revelations happen so close together, Sam finds herself unable to cope well for a time, and I really felt for her. 

A great read. 

Keep Me Posted

Finished July 21

Keep Me Posted by Lisa Beazley

This novel is about a woman in New York City, Cassie, who begins a physical correspondence with her older sister Sid, who lives in Singapore. It begins as a thoughtful way for the two to keep in touch, as they live very different lives. Sid was inspired by old letters she found when visiting her grandparents and issued a challenge to her sister to reconnect through physical letters.

Sid had a child when she was quite young, River, and he is now an adult, taking a gap year before he goes on to further education. She has remarried a man who leads a busy life as an international businessman, and they have a young child Lulu. 

Cassie is married to Leo, and has twin toddlers, Quinn and Joey. They live in a small apartment in New York City. Cassie is vaguely dissatisfied with her life. She finds the apartment confining, and even though she and her sons go out often, the hassles of getting around are tiresome. 

The letter writing experiment goes well, and Cassie decides to keep copies of them online in a private blog, just for her to look back on. When a technical glitch makes the blog public, Cassie isn't aware until she realizes that they've gone viral and become the center of a social media discussion. Some of what they've written is very personal, and Cassie has to try to stem the leak, and find ways to tell the two people most important to her, Leo and Sid. 

I enjoyed the sisters relationship, and how they managed to keep the connection despite the distance between them. I also found it interesting to see how they dealt with the leak and made it part of the conversation in a wider, more inclusive way. 

Blood Sisters

Finished June 18

Blood Sisters by Vanessa Lillie

This novel follows archeologist Syd Walker, who works for the Bureau of Indian Affairs in Rhode Island. Syd, though white presenting, is of Cherokee heritage and was born and raised in Oklahoma, where her parents and sister still live. As the book opens, it is 2008 and Syd has just uncovered the remains of a young woman when doing a resource survey for new cables being run through the area. She has a representative from the local tribal office, who she's worked with before, and a coroner's representative attending. 

The real story of this novel though is back in Oklahoma, where a skull has been found with a link to Syd. Syd's boss flies her out to Oklahoma, where Syd is forced to face the demons of her past. When she was a teen, she and her sister Emma Lou were visiting a friend Luna, when two masked men barge in, separate them, make threats. Syd and Emma Lou survived, but Syd was able to shoot one of the men before their escape, which was followed by an explosion and a fire that destroyed the home. Syd has been haunted by the ghost of Luna, who has guided her and warned her of danger. 

Back in Oklahoma, Syd finds that Emma Lou has also disappeared, and the police seem reluctant to follow up on the disappearance. Syd goes in hot, following her instincts about old rivalries and motives to find her sister, but she finds so much more than she expected.

Lillie uses real history here, from the Trail of Tears, to the forced takeovers of Pawnee land, and the poisons resulting from mining in the area of Miami and Picher. She knows the area and the issues, since she is also Cherokee from Oklahoma. This book takes us into the lives of the people in Oklahoma, showing the reality of treaty breaking and loss of culture. It also contains elements of hope, of setting things right, and of renewing cultural traditions and language knowledge. 

This is an emotional and moving story of teenagers that went through trauma in different ways, and found ways to move forward with their lives, never forgetting their past. 

Land of Love and Drowning

Finished June 4

Land of Love and Drowning by Tiphanie Yanique

This novel, set in the Virgin Islands, is one of loss, wonder, relationships, and magic. It takes place from 1916 to the early 1970s, and has a slow pace with lush language and a strong sense of place. As the novel begins, the United States is finalizing the purchase of what is now the U.S. Virgin Islands (previously the Danish Virgin Islands) from Denmark. This sense of being American is taken seriously by the generation born around that time, including two sisters, Eeona and Anette Bradshaw, daughters of sea captain Owen Arthur Bradshaw and his wife Antoinette who is from Anegada, a smaller, less populated island. It is a feeling shared by Bradshaw's illegitimate son, Jacob Esau, by Rebekah McKenzie, a woman whose husband disappeared some time back. Rebekah reads fortunes and is widely regarded as a witch in the community. Jacob is seen and raised as a McKenzie. 

After their father's shipwreck and their mother's death, Eeona takes Anette under her care and the two are forced to move what little they now have into a poor part of town. This book follows their lives into adulthood and lives influenced by where they have come from, and the destiny predicted regarding them. Eeona is a beautiful girl who becomes a beautiful woman, and this beauty is something that she uses as needed to help her advance in life. Eeona is also scarred by her relationship with her father and her unique physical attributes. 

It is interesting to see how the island men begin to understand the racial prejudice of their new parent country when they serve in World War II, and how that same prejudice seeps into the island life, culminating in the protests and the Virgin Islands Open Shorelines Act in the early 1970s. I like learning new facts about places through fiction. 

I also liked the magic realism element here around beauty, foretelling, and the power of words. There was a natural flow to how this was revealed in the book. 

This is a novel that will stay with me for a while. 

The Darling Songbirds

Finished April 15

The Darling Songbirds by Rachael Herron

This novel is the first in a series set in the small California coastal town of Darling Bay. The Darling family has its roots in this town, even if none of them live there anymore. Hugh Darling, the last man who did, recently died, leaving his three nieces the properties that he owned: a saloon, a hotel, and a cafe. The only one still in operation is the saloon and it is barely holding its head above water. The nieces who inherited were famous in a small way as a singing group. Their mother had been a singer, but never made it big before she passed away. The girls, Adele, Molly, and Lana were just starting to make it in Nashville when their father passed away suddenly. They all handled it differently and the group fell apart.

Adele is the one who has now come back to town to deal with the legacy, and she finds memories and realities that she must deal with. 

The hotel isn't habitable, nor is her uncle's living quarters above the saloon, and the bartender who was expecting to buy the saloon soon is wary, a little resentful, and undeniably sexy. As Adele learns of the state of things and faces the realities of the situation, she finds herself unexpectedly warming up to staying for a while. 

This book has music woven through it, and the sadness of family members earlier than expected. It has themes of addiction and mental health issues, and the setting of a small town where people know each other's stories. 

The Damage Done

Finished March 19

The Damage Done by Hilary Davidson

This is the first book in a series featuring travel writer Lily Moore. Lily has returned to New York City from her more recent life in Spain after the police contact her to tell her that her younger sister Claudia has been found dead in her apartment on the anniversary of their mother's suicide. The apartment is actually Lily's and she'd tried living there with Claudia, but couldn't handle her sister's personality on a daily basis. Lily goes to the apartment and notices things that seem strange and out of character for her sister. When she goes to the morgue to identify her sister, things get even stranger, as the body there is someone Lily has never seen before. 

As she tries to find her sister, tracking down who and when anyone last saw or heard from here, she finds the police seem likely to think Claudia may have something to do with this woman's death. Claudia's best friend Jesse has her back, and provides a place for her to stay when she feels unsafe in her old apartment. 

With her ex-fiance, wealthy hotelier Martin trying to come back into her life, Lily finds herself still charmed by him, and yet wary too. There are a few other interesting characters, from Claudia's ex, Tariq, to the strangely friendly new neighbour Sarah, to the two police officers, Renfrew and Bruxton, assigned to the case.

I liked Lily, and enjoyed seeing both her strengths and flaws become apparent over the course of the novel, and found the plot gripping, with a few twists thrown in. 

I'd read the other two in this series a few years ago, so it was interesting to see earlier events in Lily's life, and I would have liked to see more of some characters, like Bruxton and Tariq, in the other books. 

The Clinic

Finished February 21

The Clinic by Cate Quinn

This suspense thriller mostly takes place at a remote luxury rehab centre on the Oregon coast. Haley, an famous singer, is a patient there and we see her as the novel begins going into an area that she's not supposed to be in.

The novel then jumps to her sister Meg. Meg works at a casino in Las Vegas, where she is part of the investigative team looking for people trying to cheat the system and for other types of crimes. Meg was caught a few years back by some of the bad guys and suffered an injury that she got opioids for and now she is a functioning addict. She's already used other substances to deal with childhood trauma that she hasn't dealt with, and has recurring nightmares that include a man in a fedora and playing cards. 

She'd been close to Haley until Haley left home suddenly, leaving Meg with their mentally unstable mother. 

When Meg gets the news that Haley has died at the rehab centre, and hears rumours of suicide, she is at first very upset, then decides to enter the centre herself as a guest to try to find out what really happened to Haley. She is sure that Haley would never commit suicide. 

There is a second point of view here as well, that of the manager of the rehab centre, Cara, who hasn't been there long. Cara has a background in the hotel industry, where she worked until she got caught up in a scandal. As Cara gradually learns what is going on, partly from the doctor there, Max, and partly from her own investigations, we learn about things from a different angle. 

The other guests at the centre are as famous as Haley was, actors and singers, all there for various addictions. The head of the centre is a man from Switzerland with his own sketchy past, and as the local police also show an interest after the death of Haley, we find some other centre staff may have troublesome connections as well. 

This is a story of both psychological suspense and some physical suspense as well. It has lots of twists and turns and unexpected events that keep you guessing on things right to the end. None of the characters are particularly likeable, even though you might think are. 

The author has her own experiences in rehab, and says that this is her first novel that she's written sober. 

Anger Bang

Finished February 19

Anger Bang by Avery Flynn

This novel is the first in a romance series and the two main characters, Thea and Kade, had their own baggage that they are bringing to their present situation. Thea was a child actress along with her sister and their mother was a stereotypical Hollywood mom, doing everything she could to keep parts coming. But Thea's heart was never in it and she stepped back when she became a teenager and the parts dried up. She is now a paleontologist and loves her job. Kade's story is unveiled as the book progresses, but he had an unhappy childhood that is still unresolved. 

As the novel opens Thea is getting the final fitting for her bridesmaid dress. Her sister's wedding is a reality show event at a camping resort in Wyoming, with footage revealed to fans daily. Both bride and groom are stars looking for a lift in their careers and have agreed to do this as a career move. They are friends as well. As Thea is standing outside her sister's trailer, she meets Kade, the best man and brother of the groom. Kade looks like a rebel with his tattoos, long hair, and motorcycle, but he has a successful entrepreneurial career that belies his looks. 

When Thea overhears her sister say that she didn't even want Thea at the wedding, but the producers insisted, she is hurt. That evening, at the rehearsal event, Thea propositions Kade in front of everyone, on camera, and is surprised when he agrees. As the two spend time together, both trying to escape the cameras and wedding events, the find themselves confessing secrets and growing closer. 

There is lots going on here, with Thea's issues with both her sister and mom, and an unresolved situation at work that we never see resolved. Kade has issues with both his brother and his estranged mom, not to mention his dad who passed away years ago. With his mom at the wedding, things come to a head for him in a way that isn't entirely predictable.

This book has a lot of humour that really makes the story come alive. Thea is a lovely woman who has let herself be a doormat for far too long, and Kade has pushed people away in his life, focusing on his work. It was a quick enjoyable read. 

Ms. Demeanor

Finished April 14

Ms. Demeanor by Elinor Lipman

This fun novel is set in New York City. Jane Morgan is a lawyer with a large firm. One day she meets an intern from her firm at the market and the two go back to her place. They hang out on the roof and get a bit frisky. Unfortunately for Jane, a woman at a neighbouring building calls the police to complain, and they end up being charged with public nudity. In court, the man is given a small fine, and Jane is given a fine, six months home confinement and has her license suspended. She is angry, embarrassed, and devastated. even more so when no one at her firm contacts her to offer support. 

Her support comes from her twin sister Jackleen, a dermatologist. She gives Jane money for groceries and encourages her to make cooking videos, trying to tie in to health for her own practice. Jane had often made meals when they were growing up and enjoys experimenting, especially when the annotated cookbook of an deceased relative makes its way into her hands. She finds herself investigating other old cookbooks, and focusing on both comfort food and odd, yet simple dishes from the past. 

When one of the doormen in her building lets her know there is someone else on home confinement in the building who orders in all his meals, she decides to reach out by hand delivering a meal to his apartment. 

Perry Salisbury worked as an art handler for a prestigious auction house when he made an impulsive and stupid decision that resulted in his current circumstance. He isn't hurting for money, and ends up making a contract with Jane to deliver a few meals each week to his place. As their business relationship develops into a friendship, Perry makes a wild suggestion of his own, and Jane finds herself agreeing. 

This is a fun and lighthearted read about two people who made impulsive decisions that resulted in big setbacks in each of their lives, and they now have to find a way to evaluate how they move forward. Jane has to apply to get her license reinstated and find a new position if she wants to continue as a lawyer. Perry has to restart his career in the art world with a big stigma if he wants to do what he is both good at and enjoys. I liked both characters, particularly Jane's sense of humour. A fun read. 

For the Throne

Finished February 10

For the Throne by Hannah Whitten

This is the second book in the Wilderwood series that started with For the Wolf. This book focuses mostly on the older sister Neve (short for Neverah), but we do see what's happening with other significant characters as well, like Redarys (Red), her sister whose voice was the main one in the first book, and Raffe, the young man left behind in her kingdom as she gets taken into the Shadowlands. 

The Shadowlands are a greytone world, that is located under the world the characters live in. It is a world without colour, where the roots from trees above are the trees, and many things from buildings to hills and mountains are made from bones of creatures small and large. The Shadowlands are a part of this world that some of the Old Gods still exist in, they are in fact what it is made of. But there are newer Gods here too, and they want a way back into the world above. Neve holds the promise of a door to that world.

The man that has brought Neve to the Shadowlands was also a god, and a king. His name is Solmir, and he is both a vessel for magic and a man who has rejected the dream of the gods. 

The two, Neve and Solmir must go on a journey in this part of the world, a journey that takes them to some very scary situations, and they must meet gods, in many forms. And Neve must decide whether she will choose to be the Shadow Queen. 

Red and Raffe find that a visitor to their land knows some of their secrets, and she Okada Kayu has secrets of her own. She will lead Red, and Raffe and others on a journey too. As Red tries to save her sister, she finds that there may be higher stakes involved, and she must risk her own life to meet them. 

This is a story that is fast-paced and moves easily between speakers, giving us a window into what is happening in both places. The descriptions of the Shadowlands in particular are striking and bring it to life for the reader, a land bleak and colourless, yet also made up of many parts. 

I love the courageous women in this series, how they face their fears, and their truths. This is a series that will stay with me for a while. 

Act of God

Finished October 15

Act of God by Jill Ciment

I always enjoy Jill Ciment books. This one is a little quirky. Two sisters, Edith and Kat live in a rent-controlled apartment in New York City. Edith is a recently retired legal librarian. Kate, her identical twin is more eccentric and romantic. The year is 2015, and it is a sweltering summer in the city. They've recently had a new landlady, Vera Cebu, a Shakespearian actress who has lately become more famous for her TV commercials than her stage roles. 

Edith has been complaining about a musty smell to Vera for some time, but not getting a response. So when Kat discovers a phosphorescent mushroom sprouting from the wall in their hall closet, she gets angry.

Meanwhile Vera finds a Russian girl, who has run away from an au pair position, secretly living in her guest room, and calls the police to remove the intruder. In the course of the arrest, the police find a second mushroom in the guest room closet and they involve the authorities. 

All four women are forced by the authorities to evacuate their contaminated building with only the clothes they are wearing. The infestation spreads along the street and others get evacuated as well. From the building caretaker to the older couple with their much-loved cats, the people affected significantly by the outbreak come to life and find themselves making changes to their lives beyond what they'd ever imagined. 

An engrossing tale of opportunity, resilience, and community. I loved it. 

For the Wolf

Finished March 22

For the Wolf by Hannah Whitten

This novel is the first in a new series called The Wilderwood. Neverah (Neve) and Redarys (Red) are two sisters, daughter of the Queen of Valleyda. They are fraternal twin sisters, with Neve the older of the two. It's been many years since there has been a Second Daughter in the royal family of their kingdom, and Red has known of her fate as long as she can remember. 

There is some world-building here, but mostly around the one kingdom. There is mention of the other kingdoms and one gets a sense of some elements of how they interact with each other, but nothing deep. I'm curious as to whether the series will bring them in more in future installments. 

Long in the past, the Kingdoms' leaders had asked the Wilderwood to save them from monsters, and in exchange they agreed to give every Second Daughter of the ruling family of Valleyda to the Wolf that guards the wood. So, on their twentieth birthday, these young woman are put through a ceremony dedicating them to the Wolf and then paraded to the edge of the forest at the northern edge of the kingdom and sent in, never to come out. 

Neve and Red are close, and have talked in the past about trying to rebel against this tradition. When they were sixteen they left a celebration and went to the forest to rebellion and something happened. Red was changed by this experience and has been fighting a pull from the trees ever since. She believes that following through with her traditional destiny is the best thing to do, and has stopped fighting to change it. 

Neve doesn't understand why Red has given in, and wants to still fight to keep Red beside her. As Red continues to follow her destiny and enters the forest in her ceremonial clothing, she finds something that she didn't expect, and, as she learns more of the fate of her predecessors, and of the true nature of the Wolf, she finds that her thoughts about the Wilderwood and its nature adjust and become more complex. 

I'm really looking forward to the next book, which there was a taste of at the end of this one. 

Juniper Lemon's Happiness Index

Finished March 2

Juniper Lemon's Happiness Index by Julie Israel

This teen novel follows title character Juniper during her junior year of high school. A couple of months ago Juniper was in a car accident that also took the life of her older sister Camie. Before Camie died, Juniper was keeping a daily list of things in her life that made her happy, something Camie encouraged her in. Since then, Juniper has adjusted the list for both happy and sad, and numbered them from that day instead of with the date. She keeps them on index cards, and when she is running late one day, she takes the card to school to finish. 

When she gets home the card is missing and this sends her on a hunt for it that takes her to some unusual places and brings her some unexpected companions. 

Juniper's lifelong best friend has been keeping her distance, and Juniper doesn't know how to fix that. She ends up approaching new people and making new friends, but her motives for that don't always come from the right place. 

One unexpected outlet for her ends up being art, and she begins experimenting with her feelings for her sister through this. 

I liked the character of Juniper and felt for her struggling through her grief, as well as with the differing reactions of those around her, from her parents to her friends, teachers, and classmates. 

A good read, that kept me interested throughout. 

The View from Penthouse B

Finished October 12

The View from Penthouse B by Elinor Lipman

This is an author I always enjoy reading. Here we have two sisters, Margot and Gwen-Laura, who have agreed to live together in the penthouse apartment that Margot owns. Margot, the oldest sister, is recovering from a very public end to her marriage, with her husband, a fertility doctor in jail for fraud after inseminating some of his clients with his own sperm, in some cases directly. She bought the apartment with some of the money from her divorce and invested the rest. Unfortunately, she invested it with Bernie Madoff, and now has little funds to get by on. Gwen-Laura, the middle sister, is still grieving the sudden loss of her husband, a public school music teacher. It's been almost two years, but she can't seem to move on. Their younger sister, Betsy, has suggested they join forces by living together. So far it is going well. 

When Margot encounters a younger man, also affected by the collapse of the market and invites him to move in, things get interesting. Anthony is handsome, interesting, and a baker of cupcakes and begins encouraging the two sisters in different ways. When Margot's paroled ex-husband moves into a smaller apartment in the same building, the situation grows more complex. 

The story is mostly told by Gwen-Laura, and the reader can see her beginning to take small steps forward as she reengages with life. From dating apps to new work ventures, the sisters and Anthony give each other encouragement and support. 

Lighthearted with touches of humour, this is a feel-good read.

The Other Alcott

Finished August 28

The Other Alcott by Elise Hooper

This is a tale based on May Alcott, Louisa May Alcott's youngest sister. May lived in the shadow of Louisa, and in the shadow of the character Amy from little women. The book begins just as Little Women is published and Louisa is receiving the first reviews. May did the illustrations for the book (which are included at the back of this book), and some of the reviews spoke negatively about the illustrations. Louisa tried to protect May from these, but May did take them personally. Louisa was supporting the entire family with her writing, including many years of art instruction and living expenses for May. Hooper has done a great deal of research for this novel and the main elements from May's life are here. In the afterward, she explains what characters and events she changed, but they are pretty minor. The two sisters were close, but both ambitious and passionate about their art, which made them both sometimes resentful of the time they had to take care of the family that they both loved dearly. May lived in a time where women artists struggled to get access to art instruction, let alone make a living at it, and it was only through the support of other female artists, particularly American ones, and a chance encounter with John Ruskin, that she finally took the risk to sell some of her work and begin to support herself. While Louisa was almost completely focused on her writing, May also longed for a marriage with a spouse who would support her artistic ambitions. We see her engaged in romances, but she had trouble finding someone who lived up to her dreams in this way. May studied not only in nearby Boston, but also in Rome, London, and Paris, and her work was accepted twice into the famous Paris Salon exhibition. She was in her late 30s when she finally met the love of her love, a Swiss man named Ernest Nieriker, who was much younger than she was. They married quickly and moved to Paris. She was just beginning to fulfill her dreams both professionally and personally when tragedy struck. 

I grew up reading and enjoying Louisa May Alcott's writing, and really enjoyed getting to see a bit of her personal life and that of one of her sisters. I wasn't aware of May's being an artist, and that she had known many of the other female artists of the period, including the more famous Mary Cassatt. The details of the education that was offered in art, and the struggles to succeed that women had more than men of the time was very interesting. I particularly found it interesting that one of her main sources of income through her art was doing work in the style of Turner, both copies of his pieces and ones of her own using a similar style, focused on the light and colour that he used. This article gives more information on her as an artist including some images.  As I read, I was hoping that May would take the risks and get recognized for her talent, and that she would meet a man worthy of her. This book really captured me, and gave me insight into the real people portrayed here.