Tag: fiction

Book Review

Book Review: State of the Onion

Tiffany Renee Harmon

Well, the inauguration has happened, and that made me think about a White House-themed cozy mystery series which starts with the book State of the Onion by Julie Hyzy.

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This series follows White House chef Olivia Paras who stumbles across a murder and a threat to national security. She spends the novel trying to figure out what is really going on while avoiding sharing too much with her secret service boyfriend. And, to make the stakes even higher, she’s in the running to become the next head chef, so she’s trying to make a good impression with the First Lady in order to finally snag the job.

This was a really fun read, and I’m delighted that the next few books which I’ve also read were just as fun. I’m really enjoying this series. In this first book especially, there is even more action and adventure than in the typical cozy mystery. It was a fun romp that is sure to charm mystery lovers. You don’t have to love politics or cooking to enjoy this one!

Book Review

Book Review: The Rosie Project

Tiffany Renee Harmon

As I’ve stated before, I don’t typically gravitate towards romance. However, I read The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion for one of my book clubs and it was a very fun read.

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This book centers around a professor named Don Tillman who has decided that he is ready to find a wife. He is quite awkward socially since he is on the autism spectrum, and he creates very specific criteria for his ideal mate and systematically tries to find her. However, he finds himself falling for someone whimsical who doesn’t meet his criteria, and she challenges him in ways he didn’t even know he needed to be challenged.

This was an adorable romance with other fun subplots. Don is an interesting, quirky main character (kind of like Sheldon Cooper on the TV show The Big Bang Theory). Although it was an adjustment to read in his character’s perspective, the character does come across as endearing. The character of Rosie is also a perfect foil for Don, and watching their relationship progress was a lot of fun.

I would definitely recommend this one to anyone who loves both romance and psychology or genetics (both of those topics play a large role in the plot and are detailed well). This was a strong debut novel, although I was disappointed in the sequel The Rosie Effect. To me, this was a perfect stand-alone.

Book Review

Book Review: Me Before You

Tiffany Renee Harmon

I don’t typically read romance. There’s just something that feels too artificial in a lot of books where romance is the main point. Still, I like romance as a sub-plot if it is done well, and I was very impressed by the book Me Before You by JoJo Moyes.

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This book centers around the main character Louisa Clark who finds employment taking care of a quadriplegic man. Throughout the book, Louisa not only falls in love but discovers a lot about herself. She is challenged in many aspects of her life, and she grows a lot throughout the course of the book. I found her to be a very engaging character, and I think a lot of readers will be able to identify with parts of her character.

I do not want to give away too much of the plot, but I will say that I thought the ending was very well done. It made me feel many complicated emotions. I won’t say more because anticipating the ending was one of the best parts of this book reading experience.

Overall, I would absolutely recommend this one to anyone who wants romance with much character development. It was a very fast read, and I can see it doing very well in a book club because there is a lot to discuss at the end (again, I don’t feel I can say more without giving important things away).

Book Review

Book Review: The Ruins

Tiffany Renee Harmon

Every once in a while, I get on a kick where I just want to read and watch horror movies. There’s something exciting about being  scared sometimes, especially when you know you’re really safe on your couch. One horror novel that I really enjoyed recently was The Ruins by Scott B. Smith.

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The general plot of this book is that a group of travelers who are exploring the Mexican jungle find themselves at the mercy of some very dangerous ancient plants. I don’t want to give too much else away about the plot in order to avoid spoilers, but I definitely enjoyed trying to figure out exactly what was going on.

I can’t say that any of the characters really stood out to me. This one is definitely more focused on plot than character, but it was still a really exciting read, and it moved very quickly. The atmosphere is consistently creepy and the plot is not as predictable as many horror novels. I also really loved the setting of the Mexican jungle. It was exotic and much different than a lot of horror novel settings which rely heavily on cliches.

I haven’t read any other books by Scott B. Smith, but I’d definitely love to read another one to see if it is just as good as this one. Also, for those who may have seen the movie based on this book, I can assure you that the book is MUCH better!

Book Review

Book Review: A Discovery of Witches

Tiffany Renee Harmon

It’s very rare that I reread books. I just find that there are so many things I want to read that I often don’t make time to reread something. There are definitely exceptions to this like with the Harry Potter series which always helps me to relax and find an escape, but for the most part, I don’t often make time to reread things.

Another exception is the book A Discover of Witches by Deborah Harkness. I believe I have read this wonderful work of fantasy three times now, and I feel like something new stands out each time.

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This book is essentially about a powerful witch who falls in love with a vampire. It’s sometimes marketed as a grown-up version of Twilight, which I suppose is fair in some ways, but I think that this book is so much more than a love story. Diana, the witch and main character, is a really interesting character and she grows a lot throughout the book and the trilogy. She is complicated because she seems to be simultaneously strong-willed and unsure of herself. She has very relatable fears and hopes. And while the love story is interesting, I find her discovery of herself and the journey of her coming to terms with herself to be an even more gripping aspect of the book.

While this is fantasy and has an amazing amount of world-building, I am so impressed at the other things contained in this book: vast descriptions of history and science (especially when it comes to genetics). This is a well-researched book that shows off Harkness’ prowess as a historian as well as her great imagination.

At 579 pages, it is quite long for a novel (although most fantasy novels do tend to be longer generally). There is a lot of description and the pace is quite slow. These are things that don’t bother me, but I think it is fair to mention them since I’m sure they will deter some readers. Overall, however, I think that it will be worth your time if you’re interested in the subject matter and want a character-driven magical realism book. Also, if you adore history, you’ll want to definitely continue on to the second book of the series Shadow of Night, which I thought was even better than this first installment.

Book Review

Best Books of 2016!

Tiffany Renee Harmon

To be completely honest, I felt like I didn’t read as many masterpieces in 2016 as I have in previous years. I had several readings slumps where I just didn’t like anything, but some gems did still appear! Here are the top 7 books I read in 2016:

1. The Nest by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney

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This contemporary fiction novel follows the lives of four siblings who have to restructure their lives after the nest egg that they were expecting is suddenly threatened. Read my full review here!

2. Peach Pies & Alibis by Ellery Adams

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This is the second book in this cozy mystery series which centers around a witch who bakes magical goodies. It’s a fun bit of fluff that I found more engrossing than the average cozy mystery.

3. Love Your Enemies by Sharon Salzberg

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I’m sure we all have that one person in life who grates our nerves. This self-help nonfiction book helped me change my perspective and find compassion instead of irritation.

4. The White Magic Five and Dime by Steve Hockensmith

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This was a great mystery about a tarot-card reading con artist who has to solve her mother’s murder while considering whether or not she’s making the right choices in life.

5. Girl Online by Zoe Sugg

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This was such a fun bit of YA fiction. It centers around an anxiety-ridden blogger whose worst fears are realized when her online persona becomes public.

6. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

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I know I’m late to the party on this one, but I love it. This one is historical fiction about a family in Afghanistan. It was heartbreaking but beautiful.

7. Murphy’s Law by Rhys Bowen

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I really enjoyed this book that launched a historical cozy mystery series about an Irish immigrant. I appreciated that, while still cozy in tone, the series has been dealing with a few darker issues. I’ve only read the first three books so far, but I’m very curious to see where everything is headed.

I’m very excited for 2017! I have a lot of reading and writing goals, and I hope I’m able to share some great content with all of you. Have a lovely rest of your 2016!

Book Review

Review: Stars of Fortune

Tiffany Renee Harmon

With the holiday season, I have been wanting lighter things to read. The other day, I picked up a book at the library mostly because it had a beautiful cover: Stars of Fortune by Nora Roberts.

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Before this book, I had never read a book by Nora Roberts except for two of her In Death series, which she writes under the pseudonym J.D. Robb. I was a bit afraid that this book would be a bit too frothy and romantic for me, but it ended up being just what I needed to chill out and relax.

This book is hard to describe because it crosses so many genres. I think it’s apt to call is a contemporary magical realism romance. There are fantasy elements, but it takes place in our current world. There is also quite a bit of romance, but I thought it was offset nicely with the plot. I certainly don’t mine romance, but I dislike when it is the primary plot and there is little else in the story. Thankfully, this one had an exciting fantastical plot and a traditional quest often found in fantasy and magical realism. Also, while this was definitely plot-heavy rather than character-focused, I did find myself really liking the character of Sasha. I felt like I could see my own insecurities in her, and I was definitely rooting for her.

In this story, 6 strangers band together to find 3 mystical stars that have fallen in order to keep them out of the hands of a dark fairy who wants to destroy the moon. As you may have guessed from that sentence, this book does require more suspension of disbelief than most that I recommend on this blog. If you love intricate character development and detailed world-building, this probably isn’t the book for you. It’s imaginative and fun but it is very fluffy and a bit shallow. Still, I really enjoyed it and I’m excited to read more of Nora Robert’s works when I’m looking for pure escapism. I think I’ve found a new guilty pleasure!

Book Review

Why do YOU Read?

Tiffany Renee Harmon

As a creative writing MFA student, I feel like I hear a lot of people tell me why they read. I’ve always been fascinated with this because I sometimes feel like an outsider when this question comes up. I love exploring the human condition and learning something new, but really the main reason that I read is pure escapism!

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Credit: Creative Commons 

Academic crowds don’t seem to value escapism very much, and I’ve been told several times that this is a very shallow reason. But it’s still my honest reason. I read so that I can have a break from my life. I have a great life, and I know I should appreciate it more, but I also have a lot of anxiety and occasional depression. Books help me leave this behind, at least temporarily. If that’s shallow, then I guess I should just embrace being shallow.

I bring this up because I’m curious if it will get a response – why do you read? Are you part of academic circles or commercial circles or both? Are there specific genres you always read or do you read a variety of things?

My life at the library is a lot different than my life in academia. I work in a public library, and I see all sorts of people – those who love literary fiction or academic subjects, those who only read for escapism, and those who really prefer not to read at all and would rather get DVDs. I think that all of these things are okay – I don’t like passing judgement regarding how people are entertained or spend their free time. But I’m still curious – why do you read?

Book Review

Book Review: Guilt by Association

Tiffany Renee Harmon

In the interest of full disclosure, this blog post is going to be biased because Marcia Clark is one of my personal heroes. She has gone through so much in her life, and she is just a fascinating person. If I could meet one “celebrity” I would definitely choose Marcia Clark.

Guilt by Association is the first novel (but not the first book) by Marcia Clark. It was followed by three others in the series as well as a few short stories, all of which center around the main character LA Deputy District Attorney Rachel Knight.

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For those who don’t know, Marcia Clark was the lead prosecutor during the O.J. Simpson Trial. If you haven’t heard of that or don’t know all the details, PLEASE go watch American Crime Story: The People v. O.J. Simpson immediately! You may wonder why I think Marcia Clark is so awesome even though she lost the trial. Failure is a part of life. Marcia not only endured a massive disappointment when she lost the trial, but she had to deal with being completely maligned by the press and public. So much of the criticism was about her being a woman in a man’s world. She went through hell publicly , and she came out the other side. She chose to never prosecute another case, and who can blame her after all that she went through? But she didn’t give up on life. She used all of her legal expertise and her eye for detail and became a best-selling author.

Now, back to the actual book I’m reviewing: Guilt by Association. In this first installment of the series, we get to know the character of Rachel Knight really well. She is smart and determined and has an eye for detail – just like Marcia Clark. She even has an eerily similar job to Marcia Clark and often has to deal with high-profile cases. Is Marcia Clark’s character perhaps overly autobiographical? Maybe for some, but I loved that she’s writing what she knows. To me, it really works because she clearly understands the legal system and Rachel Knight, as a character, is well-developed. She’s tough but not invincible. She’s feminine when she feels like it. She endures disappointment and fear. She’s Marcia Clark, and she’s all of us.

In this novel, Rachel finds the dead body of a trusted colleague next to a prostitute. As she investigates, will she uncover her colleagues innocence or guilt or something even more sinister? I thought that the mystery was very engaging, and I enjoyed both the plot and the character development. However, something that might turn off other readers is that there is a lot of description that can, at times, be considered extraneous. I happen to like tiny details like this because I think that they still serve to set the scene and make everything feel real, but I do think it’s a valid criticism from others since the details often aren’t crucial to the story. I think this all boils down to preference. So, if you like a well-detailed legal thriller, give this one a try!

Book Review

Book Review: The Woman in Cabin 10

Tiffany Renee Harmon

I just finished the book The Woman in Cabin 10, and  I thought it was pretty great! This has been a really hot book at the library where I work. After seeing this book cross my path so many times, I just had to see what the hype was all about.

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This novel is by Ruth Ware, who wrote the much-acclaimed novel In a Dark, Dark Wood. Regrettably, I haven’t yet had a chance to read that one, so I can’t compare the two. Still, after reading The Woman in Cabin 10, I’d definitely be happy to read another mystery by this author.

I don’t want to give too much away about the plot because this is, after all, a mystery and I don’t want to spoil anything. Basically, it’s about travel journalist Lo Blacklock who scores a dream assignment to cover a tiny luxury cruise ship for the magazine she writes for. While there, she sees a woman thrown overboard. However, when she reports the murder, no one believes her and there are no missing passengers. What follows is an exciting, tense mystery.

I’ve read a lot of reviews that compare this book to The Girl on the Train. I don’t think this is really a fair comparison. First off, the main character in this novel was way more likable than any of the characters in The Girl on the Train. The tone of the book also felt way different to me. The Woman in Cabin 10 seemed much more fast-paced to me, and I will say that it kept me far more engaged. I found The Girl on the Train to be a more convoluted version of Gone Girl (which I loved) but I think that this book really stands on its own. The structure is way different, the main character is more likable, and it was much easier to follow.

One thing that I really liked about the book was how it used email and news articles and blog posts and other social media to show how information and misinformation travel in this day and age. It also added to the mystery because it revealed information that I wasn’t always sure I could trust. Again, I don’t want to say any more lest I spoil something.

Overall, I definitely think this is worth a read if you want a thriller or non-cozy mystery. I would avoid it, however, if you are about to embark on a cruise. In that case, wait until you return home safely before giving it a try.