ARC review: Things We Set on Fire by Deborah Reed

Book Synopsis(via Goodreads):

A series of tragedies brings Vivvie’s young grandchildren into her custody, and her two estranged daughters back under one roof. Jackson, Vivvie’s husband, was shot and killed 30 years ago, and the ramifications have splintered the family into their own isolated remembrances and recriminations.

This deeply personal, hauntingly melancholy look at the damages families inflict on each other – and the healing that only they can provide – is filled with flinty, flawed and complex people stumbling towards some kind of peace. Like Elizabeth Strout and Kazuo Isiguro, Deborah Reed understands a story and its inhabitants reveal themselves in the subtleties: the space between the thoughts, the sigh behind the smile, and the unreliable lies people tell themselves that ultimately reveal the deepest truths.

***Many thanks to Net Galley and Amazon publishing for this advanced reader's copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. ***

This insomniac's opinion:

If you enjoy character driven fiction, this novel is for you. This was a highly emotional novel, full of twists and turns and discoveries as the plot unraveled. The characters were well-fleshed out and highly engrossing.

I admit that as the plot twisted and turned, there were several almost unbearably sad moments. However, the novel did end on somewhat of a hopeful note.

Worth staying up all night to read?

Yes.

Rating:

4 stars



Coreyography by Corey Feldman

 

Book Synopsis(via Goodreads):

 

Lovable child star by age ten, international teen idol by fifteen, and to this day a perennial pop-culture staple, Corey Feldman has not only spent the entirety of his life in the spotlight, he's become just as famous for his off-screen exploits as for his roles in such classic films as Gremlins, The Goonies, and Stand by Me. He's been linked to a slew of Hollywood starlets (including Drew Barrymore, Vanessa Marcil, and adult entertainer Ginger Lynn), shared a highly publicized friendship with Michael Jackson, and with his frequent costar Corey Haim enjoyed immeasurable success as one half of the wildly popular duo "The Two Coreys," spawning seven films, a 1-900 number, and "Coreymania" in the process. What child of the eighties didn't have a Corey Feldman poster hanging in her bedroom, or a pile of Tiger Beats stashed in his closet?

Now, in this brave and moving memoir, Corey is revealing the truth about what his life was like behind the scenes: His is a past that included physical, drug, and sexual abuse, a dysfunctional family from which he was emancipated at age fifteen, three high-profile arrests for drug possession, a nine-month stint in rehab, and a long, slow crawl back to the top of the box office.

While Corey has managed to overcome the traps that ensnared so many other entertainers of his generation—he's still acting, is a touring musician, and is a proud father to his son, Zen—many of those closest to him haven't been so lucky. In the span of one year, he mourned the passing of seven friends and family members, including Corey Haim and Michael Jackson. In the wake of those tragedies, he's spoken publicly about the dark side of fame, lobbied for legislation affording greater protections for children in the entertainment industry, and lifted the lid off of what he calls Hollywood's biggest secret.

 

 

This insomniac's review:

 

I have a couple of confessions for you, my favorite bookish buds..

 

1. I read full-on beach trash in the summer to give my weary brain a break.

 

2. In the 80's I had pictures of BOTH Coreys on my wall...and....I may or may not have kissed them each night before going to bed(shhhhhh....don't tell!). Also, I spent quite a bit of time fantasizing about being Kerri Green- a perky little cheerleader wonder.

 

Soooo- now that's that's over- to the review!

 

I expected this book to be a bit(or a lot)douchey.(Yes, douchey is a word-don't mind your spell check.)

 

However, it was surprisingly down to earth and easy to read. For an 80s child, it was a wondrous romp through a deliciously  screwed up celebrityville. I relished every page. I read this book in, like, 4 hours flat. Oh, wondrous beach trash! How lovely thy dishy pages are!

 

Worth staying up all night to read?

 

Yep! Dishy goodness!

 

Rating: 3 stars of trashy loveliness

 

 

 

 

Candy Girl by Diablo Cody

Book Summary(via Goodreads):


Decreed by David Letterman (tongue in cheek) on CBS TV’s The Late Show to be the pick of “Dave’s Book Club 2006,” Candy Girl is the story of a young writer who dared to bare it all as a stripper. At the age of twenty-four, Diablo Cody decided there had to be more to life than typing copy at an ad agency. She soon managed to find inspiration from a most unlikely source— amateur night at the seedy Skyway Lounge. While she doesn’t take home the prize that night, Diablo discovers to her surprise the act of stripping is an absolute thrill. This is Diablo’s captivating fish-out-of-water story of her yearlong walk on the wild side, from quiet gentlemen’s clubs to multilevel sex palaces and glassed-in peep shows. In witty prose she gives readers a behind-the-scenes look at this industry through a writer’s keen eye, chronicling her descent into the skin trade and the effect it had on her self-image and her relationship with her now husband.


This insomniac's review:

I could do a 2 word review for this book.(language warning)

HOLY FUCK!

Buuuuuuut......you probably want more.

I am a nurse and mother of three, bookish buddies. So I am really, really hard to gross out.

I was trucking through this book thinking to myself that it wasnt' quite as racy as the critics have said(remember that I am hard to shock, folks). Then I got to the scene in Sex World that describes a certain male client. If you've read it- you know who I'm talking about. At this point my brain shut down. Really. All I could think was clean thoughts so that I didn't vomit. Ugh.

But, truly- it made me thankful for my quasi boring life that is sans body fluid loving people(that I know of). It was very honest and entertaining.

Just try not to vomit. Mmmmkay?


Worth staying up all night to read?

If your bed partner doesn't mind an occasional gag as you read.

Rating:

3 stars. Fascinating, gregarious romp through the underworld.

ARC review: Lucky Us by Amy Bloom

 Book Synopsis(via Goodreads):

"My father's wife died. My mother said we should drive down to his place and see what might be in it for us."

So begins this remarkable novel by Amy Bloom, whose critically acclaimed Away was called "a literary triumph" by The New York Times. Brilliantly written, deeply moving, fantastically funny, Lucky Us introduces us to Eva and Iris. Disappointed by their families, Iris, the hopeful star, and Eva, the sidekick, journey across 1940s America in search of fame and fortune. Iris's ambitions take them from small-town Ohio to an unexpected and sensuous Hollywood, across the America of Reinvention in a stolen station wagon, to the jazz clubs and golden mansions of Long Island.

With their friends in high and low places, Iris and Eva stumble and shine through a landscape of big dreams, scandals, betrayals, and war. Filled with gorgeous writing, memorable characters, and surprising events, Lucky Us is a thrilling and resonant novel about success and failure, good luck and bad, the creation of a family, and the pleasures and inevitable perils of family life. From Brooklyn's beauty parlors to London's West End, a group of unforgettable people love, lie, cheat, and survive in this story of our fragile, absurd, heroic species.

 

***Many thanks to Net Galley and Random House publishing group for the advanced reader's copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. ***

 

 

 

This insomniac's review:

 

There's an awful lot of buzz about this book. Which can be both good and bad. It's great because it cues me in on which books to read. It's bad because the novel has to live up to the hype.

 

I truly enjoy Amy Bloom's writing and immediately fell in love with Iris and Eva and their sisterhood. I voraciously devoured the beginning....then the middle fell, well, flat. Really flat. It picked up again at the end, but not enough to completely redeem the novel. Although, I truly adored the ending. The book was just a bit too meandering and there were far too many characters.

 

I still would chance to read the book simply to get to know Iris and Eva, though!

 

Worth staying up all night to read?

 

Unfortunately not.

 

 

Rating:

3 stars

 

ARC view: The Memory Garden by Mary Rickert

Book summary(via Goodreads):

Bay Singer has bigger secrets than most. She doesn't know about them, though. Her mother, Nan, has made sure of that. But one phone call from the sheriff makes Nan realize that the past is catching up. Nan decides that she has to make things right, and invites over the two estranged friends who know the truth. Ruthie and Mavis arrive in a whirlwind of painful memories, offering Nan little hope of protecting Bay. But even the most ruined garden is resilient, and their curious reunion has powerful effects that none of them could imagine, least of all Bay.



***Many thanks to Net Galley and Sourcebooks/Landmark books for the advanced reader's copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.***

This insomniac's review:

I really enjoyed this read, bookish buddies! It has a bit of believable magic woven in, a la Alice Hoffman, which I found quite entertaining. It was slow-moving, but was full of loveable characters and a bit of mystery!

This is a great little summer's read for a long, hot day!

Worth staying up all night to read?

The pace isn't super fast, so it may not be one of those novels that would keep you up all night- but it is still well worth the read.

Rating: 3.5 stars

ARC review: Silver Bay by Jojo Moyes

 

Book synopsis(via Goodreads):

 

When Mike Dormer heads out from London to a small seaside town in Australia to kick-start a hotel development, he expects just another deal. But Silver Bay is not just any seaside town, and the inhabitants of the eccentric ramshackle Silver Bay Hotel - the enigmatic skipper Liza McCullen, her ten-year-old daughter, and her legendary shark-catching aunt Kathleen, as well as the crews of the local whale-watching boats - swiftly begin to temper his own shark-like tendencies. He is left wondering who really has the greater right to the bay's waters. As the development begins to take on a momentum of its own, and the effect on the whales that migrate past the bay begins to reveal itself, Mike's and Liza's worlds collide, with dramatic results. New, unforeseen hazards emerge to confront both the creatures and the McCullen women. How close can you get, before you end up destroying what you love?

***Many thanks to Net Galley and Penguin for the advnanced reader's copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.***


This insomniac's review:

I'm a huge fan of the last couple of Moyes' novels. HUGE fan. I rather adore her, in fact.

"Old" Moyes(ahem, pre-2011) is not really thrilling me so much unfortunately. This novel was vaguely reminiscent of a Harlequin romance novel. It was full of bland characters and a slow-moving plot splashed with vague pools of drama. I really struggled to finish it.

So, my advice is to pass on this one and pick up Me Before You. *sigh* That is worth reading.

I must finish my review by saying that reading this novel made me really impressed with the huge strides Moyes has made with her writing. That is no small accomplishment! I'm so glad to have found her writing!


Rating: 2 stars

Worth staying up all night to read: NO. Save yourself-walk away!

ARC review: The Girls at the Kingfisher Club

 

Book Synopsis(via Goodreads):

 

From award-winning author Genevieve Valentine, a stunning reimagining of the fairytale of the Twelve Dancing Princesses as flappers during the Roaring Twenties in Manhattan.
Jo, the first born, “The General” to her eleven sisters, is the closest thing the Hamilton girls have to a mother. She is the one who taught them how to dance, the one who gives the signal each night, as they slip out of the confines of their father’s townhouse to await the cabs that will take them to the speakeasy. Together they elude their distant and controlling father, until the day he decides to marry them all off.

The girls, meanwhile, continue to dance, from Salon Renaud to the Swan to the Funeral Parlor Supper Club and, finally, the Kingfisher, the club they come to call home. They dance until one night when they are caught in a raid, separated, and Jo is thrust face-to-face with someone from her past: a bootlegger named Tom whom she hasn’t seen in almost ten years. Suddenly Jo must weigh in the balance not only the demands of her father and eleven sisters, but those of her own heart.

With The Girls at the Kingfisher Club, award-winning writer Genevieve Valentine takes her superb storytelling gifts to new heights, penning a dazzling tale about sisterhood, freedom, and love in Jazz Age Manhattan.

 

 

***Many thanks to Net Galley and Atria books for the copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.***

 

 

 

This insomniac's opinion:

 

I have to be honest, friends. I really struggled to get into this one. Very slow-moving at the beginning. The sisters personalities were quite non-distinct and I struggled to really get to know the characters.

 

The novel did pick up steam near the middle and Jo's character became quite endearing. Overall, though, this one was meh for me.

 

 

Worth staying up all night to read?

 

Eh, not so much.

 

 

Rating:

 

3 stars.