Book Review- Fredrik Backman's The Winners

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for a copy of Fredrik Backman’s The Winners.

The Winners is the third installment in Backman’s Beartown trilogy, taking us back to the small, hockey obsessed, rival towns in Northern Sweden. This time, a severe snow storm has hit Beartown and Hed, destroying one of the hockey arenas. The rivalry between the two towns in alternatively suspended as they help save lives, but also restored when old wounds and biases resurface.

I absolutely love Backman. He is one of my favorite authors and I will read anything he writes, but that said, I’m not sure if I needed this to be a trilogy. The Winners was little long and slow-paced, yet I held on because of Backman’s wonderful characters. He also teased the death of a major character throughout the entire story, saving the reveal for near the end and writing as though any number of beloved characters could have been on the chopping block. This made me anxious, yet it kept me turning pages.

Without giving a spoiler, the death made me cry, but other aspects of the story made me cry even more. Backman excels at sentimental situations. He always manages to have his tough-as-nails characters be hit with a tender moment: cue the tears. I think this works so well, because Backman also infuses his stories with a fair bit of dark humor, allowing his readers to experience a range of emotions. It’s always complex.

The Winners is the weakest in the trilogy, but it is still excellent and absolutely a must-read if you are a Backman fan. Only Backman could make a non-sports fan like me, love a trilogy centered around hockey fanatics!

Book Review- Prince Harry's Spare

Thank you to Libro FM for providing me with an audio arc of Prince Harry’s memoir, Spare.

At the risk of sounding ridiculous, I’ve married a Brit ( who always likes to make it clear that he now has dual-citizenship) and it has made me quite interested in all things English, including the royal family. I’m the one begging to visit all of the castles on our trips to England and I’ve been reading all of the royal bios, so of course, I had to read Spare. To be transparent, I also love a bit of scandal!

After listening to the audio book, narrated by Prince Harry, I was just left feeling sad for his entire situation. I watched the Harry and Meghan Netflix documentary and the book didn’t seem to provide new information on the situation, or what was new, was revealed in spoilers pre-publication. So I guess, I didn’t feel that I heard anything so shocking that hadn’t already been shared.

However, as with the Netflix documentary, I felt empathy for Harry and Meghan’s situation. I also felt empathy for the other members of the royal family, who seem caught up in this system that impacts their interpersonal relationships. I kept thinking that this book isn’t going to help the strained family dynamics and it seems that this is true, as the book was published months ago, and it doesn’t seem like things have improved. I don’t think Harry was actually trying to resolve things with his father and brother.

Beyond all of the really sad family problems, Harry does share some interesting aspects of his life, especially his charity work in Africa. I read that this was the first in a four book deal and I really have no idea how he will manage to continue to have content to keep readers engaged, but perhaps he will focus one of the books on his time in Africa.

My delay in writing this review ( I listened to the audio book in the first week it was published) has brought another issue to light. Harry’s reveals of drug usage, particularly on US soil, might impact his ability to remain in the United States. From a writing perspective this is both intriguing and problematic. In memoir, we expect people to be candid, especially in a celebrity tell-all, however, now he may face consequences for sharing these details. As a writer, I’m not sure how I feel about this. I’m interested to see how it will play out.

Overall, I enjoyed Spare and I thought Prince Harry did a solid job with the narration on the audio book. This is a memoir for people who already have an interest in the royal family, specifically in hearing Harry’s side of the story. I found his side to be quite compelling, however, I always bore in mind that there are two sides to every story.

Book Review- Emily Henry's Book Lovers

Nora Stephens has always loved books, she spent her childhood living above a bookstore and has spent her adult years as a book agent in New York City. Although she makes a good living, Nora spent many years struggling, especially after her mother died and Nora, in her early twenties, took over caring for her teenage sister, Libby. Libby is now married and pregnant, but Nora still feels mothering, especially when she sees Libby struggling financially. This dynamic has driven a wedge between the sisters.

When Libby asks Nora to go on a sisters only trip to a small town in North Carolina, a town that is the inspiration for one of their favorite books, Nora jumps on the chance to spend time together. Libby is acting odd and Nora fears that her sister might be pregnant and heading for a divorce. Libby does have a secret motive for this trip and it involves getting her sister to fall in love with both the town and perhaps, one of its locals.

Their vacation is thrown into a tizzy, when Nora runs into Charlie, an editor that she had an awkward meeting with in New York. Charlie is from this small town and has returned home to help his aging parents run their independent bookstore. Nora and Charlie quickly realize that they may have more in common than just their love of books.

This is my third Emily Henry novel and I’m a fan. I love her snappy dialogue, wry humor, and quirky characters. Her stories have a sweetness to them that isn’t over wrought or sickly. In the best possible sense, her stories remind me of an episode of Gilmore Girls.

Book Lovers has a fun theme that is a take on the tropes in romance novels or more specifically, Hallmark Christmas movies- although, the story is not set during the holidays. Libby creates a list of all of the things that Nora must experience during their vacation, which includes things like going skinny dipping in the lake and saving a local business. The idea is to use the list to recreate tropes from rom coms, and of course, rarely does anything go according to plan.

Henry excels at creating strong, believable relationships and in Book Lovers, nothing is more powerful than the sister bond between Libby and Nora. This is the primary relationship in Book Lovers, with the budding romance between Charlie and Nora coming in second. Although there are some unsavory characters in the town, there are no true villains and the story is mostly concerned with the dynamics between likable characters.

It’s hard to choose a favorite Henry novel, but I think the theming for Book Lovers will resonate strongly with readers. It’s a cute story with a lot of heart.