Tag: Book Review

Book Review

Book Review: Troubling Love by Elena Ferrante

Tiffany Renee Harmon

I am a huge fan of Elena Ferrante, the Italian novelist whose true identity isn’t publicly known and who has written some of the most interesting pieces of contemporary domestic fiction. Ferrante is best known for her Neapolitan Quartet (which is fabulous and is being adapted by HBO). Recently, however, I had the opportunity to read one of her stand-alone novels Troubling Love.

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In Troubling Love, after a personal tragedy befalls the main character Delia, she returns to her native Naples to discover long lost secrets about her family. What follows is a fascinating self-discovery which explores the themes of love, loss, and the true meaning of family. I devoured this one in just two sittings (it’s only 139 pages long), but so much insight was packed into this thin novel. Between the heartbreaking emotions and the amazing setting details, this was such a richly rewarding book.

I am so intrigued by Ferrante and the mystery surrounding her. She’s been quoted, “I believe that books, once written, have no need of their authors.” Still, her anonymity combined with the power of her prose makes me want to know more about her as a human being. Maybe it’s because I’m also an author, so while I agree with her quotation, I also feel that there’s some inextricable bond between an writer and her words.

Book Review

Book Review: A Discovery of Witches

Tiffany Renee Harmon

Autumn is coming, and with the cooling of the season comes the realization that Halloween is fast approaching too. This year, I plan on doing a “31 Days of Halloween” blog-a-thon where I’ll be reviewing a horror movie daily in October. But until then, I’ve been revisiting some of my favorite supernatural-themed books. One of my favorites is A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness.

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A Discovery of Witches is the first in a supernatural trilogy that follows the witch Diana Bishop as she comes to terms with what she is and learns the history of both her family as well as other supernatural creatures like vampires and daemons. There are so many things to love about this book:

  • Diana is a fascinating main character. She has a lot of depth and is a very strong woman. Even though she falls in love (and there is some compromise in her relationship as there is in all relationships), she retains her agency. She’s even flawed in believable ways that makes her seem like a real person. Her growth throughout this book and the rest of the trilogy is compelling.
  • The romance here is bittersweet but satisfying. I dislike when a book’s romance feels too easy. Here, there are obstacles to be overcome, and both characters grow as the relationship develops.
  • There is some fascinating world-building in this book. From a supernatural perspective, the folklore here about witches, daemons, and vampires felt like a really fresh and unique take on creatures that are so common in fiction these days.
  • Harkness is a historian by trade, and it really shows. She’s an academic (as is her main character), and I loved the details about history, science, alchemy, genetics, and more. You can tell that everything in this book was meticulously planned and researched.

I absolutely loved this book (and the whole trilogy). I’m so excited that this universe is expanding and there is going to be another book about a supporting character – Marcus. That book is called Time’s Convert, and it comes out on Tuesday!! My copy has been pre-ordered since the announcement!

Have you read this book, or do you have a favorite supernatural book you want to share? Be sure to let me know in the comment section!

Thanks for reading!

-Tiffany

 

Book Review

Book Review: Aim True by Kathryn Budig

Tiffany Renee Harmon

Sometimes, self-improvement books can be really frustrating. Often, they’re filled with bad advice or they just feel super impractical. However, every so often, I stumble upon a truly amazing one and then I just have to share. The most recent one I’ve been loving is: Aim True: Love Your Body, Eat Without Fear, Nourish Your Spirit, Discover True Balance! by Kathryn Budig.

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Like most females, I don’t always feel super positive about my body. Well, in this book, renowned yoga instructor Kathryn Budig delivers solid advice for loving yourself inside and out. She also has a lot of anecdotes about her own experiences with body image, mental health, and physical health. Her writing style is light and humorous, and it almost felt like I was reading a very long letter from a new friend than reading a book.

This book includes a lot: recipes, yoga guides, meditation guides, and self-care/homeopathy tips. But what I loved most was the personal, honest way that Budig shares her own journey. Even if you’re not in to yoga, I think this one is worth giving a try because it’s just so positive an uplifting.

I highly recommend this book for all women, but especially those who sometimes struggle with their self-esteem and body image.

Thanks for reading,

Tiffany

 

 

Book Review

Book Review: Magick & Mayhem

Tiffany Renee Harmon

I love the wide variety of subjects that come up in the cozy mystery genre. You can find almost any hobby, profession, or setting if you look around at Cozy-Mystery.com (my favorite resources for finding new cozies to read!)

Even though it’s July, I’ve been thinking a lot about Halloween because my coworkers and I are trying to decide what our costume theme will be. Because of this, I’ve been in the mood for something spooky and paranormal. While no cozy is really spooky, I have found some great paranormal picks, and one of my new favorite series is the Abracadabra Mystery series by Sharon Pape, which begins with the book Magick & Mayhem.

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First off, can we just acknowledge how adorable this cover is? I love it so much!

This book starts off with our spunky protagonist Kailyn Wilde who unexpectedly inherits her grandmother’s shop and ends up stumbling upon a murder. This jumpstarts a very cozy and humorous adventure through this small-town infused with magic.

Kailyn comes from a long line of magical descendants, and some charming (literal) ghosts from her past help to guide her along the way. As she tries to prove her best friend’s innocence in this murder mystery, Kailyn also learns more about her powers and grows stronger in her magical practice. This book sets up a unique world of magic mystery. I was so pleased by the balance between traditional magical elements and fresh, new twists on the typical cozy witch story.

The mystery itself was more detailed and richly plotted than the average cozy mystery. I enjoyed the adventure and the great world-building. Rather than stumbling upon clues, Kailyn and her sidekicks are smart and resourceful. They are really solving puzzles here to discover the identity of the real murderer.

Kailyn is a really fun protagonist who is kind of insecure about her powers. She’s got a lot of growth to do, so I think this is the start of a really wonderful series where she will get more and more confident with each book. There are three books so far in this series, and I hope many more are to come.

Book Review

Book Review: When Books Went to War

Tiffany Renee Harmon

I don’t often read a lot of historical-themed nonfiction, but my book club always tackles one a year. This year, we read When Books Went to War by Molly Guptill Manning.

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This was a fascinating book about WWII and the Armed Services Editions of books that librarians and publishers from the USA made sure went overseas for soldiers to read in their down time. The result was a new generation of readers. Even soldiers who hadn’t been interested in reading before the war, fell in love with these paperback books. Fan letters from soldiers were written to authors, and some long-forgotten books like The Great Gatsby might never have become classics without finding this new audience. Over 100 million books were banned and burned in WWII, but this effort resulted in keeping literature alive.

If you’re interested in history, publishing, or just interesting facts, give this one a chance!

Book Review

Book Review: Black Ice

Tiffany Renee Harmon

I’m currently working on a romantic suspense project, so I’ve been reading a lot of romantic suspense to learn as much about the genre as I can. Recently, I picked up the book Black Ice by Anne Stuart, and I was not disappointed!

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This book is a lot steamier than mine will be, but it was so exciting to read. In this novel, innocent American book translator Claire Underwood (this is an older book, so this is not an homage to House of Cards) runs into sexy Bastien Toussaint during a business conference in Paris. There’s been a dire misunderstanding, and soon she’s dragged into the Parisian underworld filled with dangerous arms dealers and ruthless assassins. Sparks fly as Claire and Bastien spend more and more time together on the run.

There were so many intriguing elements in this book. First, there’s the romance, which was more lustful passion than anything else. Also, the fast-paced adventure was filled with fun twists and turns. I never was sure who was good and who was bad until the very end. I really enjoyed this little guilty pleasure, and I’m excited to read the rest in this series.

I do think I should note that this is really aimed at audiences who love to suspend disbelief and just want to go along for the ride. It’s over-the-top and unbelievable, which is negative for some and great escapism for others.

 

Book Review

My Favorite Cozy Mysteries

Tiffany Renee Harmon

I love reading and write cozy mysteries. There’s something so charming about their idyllic settings, and often they have a lot of humor and a dash of romance as well. There are puzzles to be solved, but they’re not going to keep you awake at night. Cozies are probably my very favorite type of mystery, so I wanted to share a list of my favorites:

 

Agatha Raisin by M.C. Beaton

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Agatha Raisin is a retired PR Maven who moves to the English countryside for a peaceful life. Once there, she gets entangled in local gossip and ends up solving murder after murder. Agatha is a prickly but endearing character, and these short books are so fun. The setting of the Cotswolds is also fantastic.

 

Her Royal Spyness by Rhys Bowen

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When I discovered this series, I just couldn’t stop reading them, and now I anxiously await each new book. Georgie, the main character, is a distant relative to the monarchy of England. She discovers a passion for detecting and often helps her royal relatives when they get caught up in murder plots. These books are really fun, and the historical setting is very engrossing.

 

Jaine Austen Mysteries by Laura Levine

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This is another funny cozy series. In this one, Jaine Austen (named for the acclaimed Classic author) works as a freelance writer and often stumbles upon murders as she does her writing jobs. This series has a whole cast of funny characters, including her cat Prozac. Jaine’s humorous exploits and her unlucky-in-love storylines make this a really interesting and relatable series.

 

Charmed Pie Shoppe Mysteries by Ellery Adams 

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This cozy series has a splash of magic, which is extra fun. These books follow baker and witch Ella Mae LaFaye as she navigates the world of magic and her own baking business. I was so impressed by the world building in this series, and the magical moments really enhanced the story. There are five books in this series, and I really hope another one comes out soon!

 

Booktown Mysteries by Lorna Barrett

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This last series stars Tricia Miles who owns a mystery book store in a small New England Town filled with niche bookstores. I adore the setting for this series, and I love that there are so many characters that grow from book to book. The mysteries are also a bit more complicated than some other cozy series.

 

Do you have a favorite cozy series? If so, be sure to let me know in the comment section! I’d love to check it out.

 

Book Review

Book Review: The Hate U Give

Tiffany Renee Harmon

I was finally able to get my hands on a copy of The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas. This is a teen fiction novel that has just exploded in popularity due to its excellent writing and timely theme. In this book, a 16-year-old girl Starr is in a car with her friend Khalil, who is stopped by a cop and shot and killed during the event. The title comes from Tupac lyrics and reference the racial tensions currently happening in this country.

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I can’t recommend this book enough. It’s powerful and painful and something that we all need to read. My experiences in life have been a lot different than the narrators, and that’s exactly why I needed to read this book. Fiction has this amazing power to build empathy and understanding for cultures different than your own.

On a technical level, this book is so well-writing. It’s engaging and flows at a rapid pace. Even though it’s marketed as a teen book, it will definitely appeal to a much wider audience than that. Starr is an engaging protagonist who struggles with her feelings. She is caught in two different worlds – the rough part of town where she lives and the prep school that her parents pay for her to go to in a different neighborhood. When this tragic event happens, her two lives intersect and she has a bit of an identity struggle.

The theme is also something that is very timely. If you’ve watched the news over the past year, chances are you’ve heard several stories about unwarranted police brutality against young African American males. This book handles this topic very respectfully. It doesn’t come across as preachy, but it does shed light on the larger ramifications of this phenomenon.

Overall, I highly recommend this book to pretty much everyone, especially those who haven’t had to directly experience anything like this. I think that this book is going to really help continue the conversation of fixing racial discrimination in this country. You should definitely read this one!

Book Review

Book Review: The Days of Abandonment

Tiffany Renee Harmon

I know this makes me sound like a major nerd, but I actually have a favorite publishing company: Europa Editions. Europa publishes tons of international books that have been translated into English. I’ve found so many gems from this publishing company, but recently I read one that I just had to share: The Days of Abandonment by Elena Ferrante.

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Elena Ferrante is an Italian author who is most known for being notoriously private. Her true identity has never been revealed, although there is plenty of speculation online as to who she might be. She is known most for her four-book Neapolitan series. The Days of Abandonment is one of her earlier works, but I thought it was an absolutely fantastic exploration of a crumbling relationship.

The Days of Abandonment follows a woman who is blindsided by her husband as he leaves her. In this short book (it’s only 188 pages), you can track her grief – from denial to emptiness to acceptance. This is one of the most emotionally raw books I’ve ever read, but it worked. I could see some complain that it is overly sentimental, but I disagree. I think that Ferrante has depicted the genuine emotion that comes from this situation. This is a hyper-realistic story that really touches on the psyche of the abandoned. Here, you can see how the whole family has to deal with this unexpected change. I highly recommend it to anyone who is looking for carefully crafted domestic literary fiction.

Book Review

Book Review: The Glass Castle 

Tiffany Renee Harmon

If complicated memoirs are your thing, have I got a book for you! This is one that has been in the press a lot since there was recently a movie that came out that was based on this book. With all the buzz surrounding the movie, I decided to give The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls a try.

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This memoir is about Walls’ childhood. She grew up constantly moving around as her family struggled to scrape by. Her parents were clearly brilliant, but they were also clearly unstable. They rejected the notion of holding down “regular” jobs and tried to make their own way, often illegally, every place they lived. Walls and her siblings suffered the most in this situation as they were forced to act like the adults of the family.

I found this book to be so fascinating but also infuriating because no child should have to go through this. However, Walls still spoke with love and reverence regarding her parents. This memoir isn’t like an angry rant or anything like that. Rather, it’s a careful reminiscence of the past. She’s looking fondly on her childhood while also seeking how, in retrospect, there were lots of unfortunate incidents. Still, it’s clear that her overcoming her upbringing has made Walls extremely strong. I highly recommend this one.