Booksparks 2014 Summer Reading Challenge - Emily Kiebel's Serenade

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Lorelei is a freshman vocal student at a prestigious music college in Maine, when tragedy strikes. While her father is visiting her for the weekend, he is struck and killed by a car. As he is dying, Lorelei has an overwhelming urge to serenade him and she sings to him as the ambulances are arriving. Lorelei's mother has never been supportive of her decision to pursue music and with the family in mourning, she forbids Lorelei to return to school. Lorelei disobeys her mother and sneaks off to return to Maine, only to discover that she cannot concentrate on her classes. She receives a letter from a mysterious Great Aunt, who lives on Cape Cod, with an offer for Lorelei to visit indefinitely. Curious about her aunt and unable to cope with school, Lorelei takes off to meet the family that she has never known. 

Without giving away any major plot twists, Emily Kiebel's Serenade is The Little Mermaid meets Final Destination. It's a strange mix that actually works. Keibel writes high energy action scenes and her book has a cinematic quality. It's often exciting and her writing makes it very clear to visualize. Plotting and action are Kiebel's strengths. 

That said, Serenade was not my cup of tea. 

I felt very disconnected from Lorelei at the start of the novel and I never got beyond that feeling. I often gravitate towards stories with grieving characters and I usually find them to be  cathartic. However, Lorelei's grief did not mirror my own experiences and I just couldn't relate to her. She was whiny and entitled. Although her mother's coldness is explained, it rings false. I wanted a resolution between the mother and daughter. I wanted her icy exterior melted a bit. The characters often felt one-dimensional. This was especially true later in the story with the romance between Lorelei and Tyler. I just didn't buy into it. 

Serenade is set to be the first in a series of books and that means that there isn't a total resolution at the end.  The ending is rushed with a lot of explanations regarding supernatural elements in the world. Again, a set up for the coming book.The number of lose ends seemed more like a second book in a series, the book that is written in response to the overwhelming popularity of the first novel.  Unfortunately, I was not left wanting more.

Like I said, this was not my cup of tea. I think this could appeal to YA audiences or people who like stories with fantasy elements. The story has a lot of creativity. I liked elements of Kiebel's writing, but overall, I didn't feel like the story gelled. 

Book Review- Jen Mann's People I Want to Punch in the Throat

I've recently discovered NetGalley, a website where reviewers can receive copies of books from publishers in exchange for honest feedback. I need more books like I need a hole in the head, so naturally, I signed up. I was perusing the offerings last week and came across blogger/author Jen Mann's new book, People I Want to Punch in the Throat.  Random House-Ballentine was kind enough to accept my request to review Mann's book.

Let's start with the title. When you go for the jugular and title your book, People I Want to Punch in the Throat, you risk coming across as harsh or bitchy. It could alienate readers. This is unless, your reader "gets you". Mann is my kind of people. Like me, she is a bit of a non-comformist and an introvert. I don't actually want to punch people in the throat and I don't think that she does either. It's just that it's a darn good phrase when you're fed up with other people. Plus, as far as books go, it's an attention grabbing title.

Mann is the mother of two young children living in the suburbs in Kansas. Much of her frustrations are directed towards other parents and the hyper-competitve nature of parenting in her neighborhood. If you've watched a TLC Reality show, you get the idea. I don't have kids, but I still found her book to be highly entertaining, primality due to Mann's writing style. She writes in a way that made me feel like she was telling me stories over a bottle of wine. Much like Blogger, Jen Lancaster, I have a feeling that if I met Mann, we would be good friends. She has a personable writer's voice.

Mann's collection of suburban complaints is very funny. I read it in less than twenty-four hours and it was so entertaining, that I often had to pause to read sections aloud to my husband. We both agreed that if we had kids, I'd be a mom very similar to  Mann, especially when it comes to moaning about missing out on Survivor! And no amount of peer pressure will ever make me do crafts!

I've just started following Mann's blog and I will definitely check out her other books. I think that Mann's books might have enough of a broad appeal, that they could be recommended to friends that don't normally take the time to read books. It's was very entertaining!

Booksparks 2014 Summer Reading Challenge - Taylor Jenkins Reid's After I Do

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College sweethearts, Lauren and Ryan have been together for nearly ten years and their marriage has hit a rough patch. A long, long rough patch...For many months, the romance has fizzled and they have gone from a loving marriage, to living as roommates. Worse than living as roommates, their relationship has declined to a point where they can't stand to be around one another. They're snipping and irritable over minor things. Finally, they hit a breaking point and their feelings spill out. Rather than immediately filing for divorce, they make a pact to separate for a year and to have zero contact. They will spend the year focusing on themselves and their own needs, in hopes that it will strengthen their marriage when they reunite.

Admittedly, my above paragraph makes Taylor Jenkins Reid's novel, After I Do, sound really ridiculous. It's not though. As I was reading it, I was engaged. Lauren and Ryan feel like real people and having gone through a divorce, I found myself being able to completely relate to their situation and emotions. 

Stylistically, Reid makes a strong choice with writing short chapters early in the story to build tension and to set the time line. It's punchy and keeps the intensity with regard to the pacing. I really enjoyed this aspect of the story and felt that it kept me emotionally invested in the characters. Reid keeps it simple, which keeps the story strong. Her phrasing is often simply stated and stark, which I felt was more emotional, than if she had written flowery prose. It fit the tone. 

In many ways, After I Do reminds me of my favorite musical, Robert Jason Brown's The Last Five Years. It's not just that the two relate with the theme of a marriage falling apart, but that they both feel honest and real. The both have heartwarming and gut-wrenching moments. They both have rounded characters.  

I really liked Lauren's family. It's impossible to read this story and not fall in love with them. Is it possible to be adopted by a fictional family?

I was left a tad dissatisfied with the ending. It wrapped up too easily and too completely. I think that I would have wanted the same ending, but to have it drawn out a little and not so easily resolved. 

Overall, I felt this was a carefully rendered story of a relationship that felt true to life. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it, especially if you've been through a rocky relationship or divorce. Mostly, I enjoyed Reid's writing style and I look forward to reading more of her stories.