Book Review- Liana Maeby's South on Highland

I'm a Los Angeles native and I get a kick out of reading stories set in my hometown. Thank you to Little A for an advanced copy of Liana Maeby's South on Highland, in exchange for an honest review.

PLOT - Leila Massey is talented and lucky. Her screenwriting career took off before she could finish college, so she dropped out to chase her dream. The only thing standing in the way of her success is a drug problem that is quickly going from recreational to functional to full-blown-out-of-control. As her career is taking off, Leila makes a series of wrong choices with the wrong men and quickly finds that Hollywood will not wait around for her to clean up her act. Will she be able to get clean and salvage her career?

LIKE - Leila is a mess and that drives the story. She's impulsive and rarely says no to trying any new experience, which means pretty much any drug that comes her way. While these experiences may be good for her writing career, they are destroying her life. Just when it seems like Leila had to have hit bottom, she would get herself into another heap of trouble. There is no end to the trouble that she manages to find.  I kept turning the pages, just to see where this train wreck was headed next. What's fascinating about Maeby's novel, is that it allowed me to go through Leila's experiences, but from the safety of my own couch. The story is visceral, intense and graphic. 

South on Highland is fiction, but it also supposedly mirrors the life of Liana Maeby, which is probably why it rings so true. I wonder how different this story would be, if Maeby had written her memoir instead. I suspect some of the more outlandish parts of South on Highland are actually based on real events. 

I enjoyed the Southern California setting, which was not limited to Los Angeles, but also extended to the desert, when Leila takes a road trip out towards the Coachella Valley to do research for a script. It's funny and completely believable that there could be a commune/cult of twenty-somethings living a permanent Burning Man existence in the desert. 

DISLIKE- Many sections of the story are spliced with a screenplay style, which sometimes highlights an event that just happened or continues the story. I often found it to be a distraction to the flow of the story. It felt like a gimmick to me. It was odd to use the script to retell a scene that had already occurred, backtracking the story. This device wasn't consistent in how it was used and it came across as awkward. 

RECOMMEND- Yes. For a story about addiction, South on Highland is surprisingly fresh and humorous. In theme and style, I was reminded of Bret Easton Ellis, an author that I really love. South on Highland is a quick read and a real page turner. 

Book Review - Linda Morganstein's Girls in Ice Houses

A few months ago, I received an email from author Linda Morganstein, after she came across my blog. Morganstein, who has written many books, offered me a copy of her latest novel, Girls in Ice Houses, in exchange for an honest review. Thank You Linda for the opportunity! I also need to mention that I always think that it's a ballsy move when authors contact me and I hope that when I have my novel finished, I'm bold enough to put my writing out there in the same way.

PLOT - Los Angeles based paparazzo, Maxie Wolfe is in a heap of trouble. In efforts to get a shot, Maxie gets into a physical altercation with the celebrity's agent, Fisher Jacobs. Maxie and Fisher are both arrested and subsequently sentenced to undergo anger management classes. The two women wind up in the same anger management class and a shared disdain towards each other that begins to turn into a mutual admiration and attraction. When Fisher must return home to deal with family matters in Minnesota, she invites Maxie along for the trip. In Minnesota, Maxie develops a love for both Fischer and Fischer's highly unusual family. She also rediscovers her passion for photography, a passion that has nothing to do with hunting celebrities. 

LIKE - Girls in Ice Houses is filled with highly likable characters. I was ready to move in with the lovable Jacobs clan. The Jacobs reminded me of slightly less odd-ball Wes Anderson characters. Maxie is also a very likable protagonist. She is guarded and unsure of herself, but that tough exterior begins to melt when she discovers a whole group of people who love and accept her. Morganstein has a keen sense of humor in her writing and I enjoyed how her story shifted settings from the hustle of Los Angeles to the quiet of Minnesota. I connected with the theme of Maxie finding herself through her photography and rediscovering a passion. I really got a kick out of seeing a mention of artist, Kehinde Wiley. I graduated high school with Wiley! 

DISLIKE - The sweetness of this story overshadows some very serious dysfunction. I wanted to know more about Maxie and her father, which felt like it could have been a whole book itself. Some of the conflict was resolved too easily. I thought that Maxie caved too quickly when Fischer invited her to Minnesota. I liked Maxie and Fischer, but I never quite believed their love. Maxie was so guarded throughout the story, that it felt out of character for her to make that transition to loving Fischer. It felt like a piece of the story was missing.

RECOMMEND - Yes. Girls in Ice Houses is a fun read and I think that many readers would find it enjoyable. I liked Morganstein's style and I'd be inclined to read another novel by her. Although I thought this was a good story, my gut tells me that this is not Morganstein's best work. 

Another note, I noticed on the internet that Girls in Ice Houses as classified as LGBT literature. I'll be honest, I'm not sure what exactly a book has to contain to be placed in the LGBT category. Yes, the two main characters are lesbians and they have a relationship, but I'd classify this as a romantic comedy with some very serious overtones. I think it's LGBT fiction in the same way that modern books with female protagonist get labeled "Women's Fiction". It's just funny to me. I mean to say that this story has broad appeal, appeal that stretches beyond anyone identifying as LGBT.