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The Silent Patient, Alex Michaelides

Synopsis by Diane-Lyn:

Alicia Berenson is a talented painter who lives a quiet, upscale life in London with her husband, Gabriel. That is, until the night Gabriel is brutally murdered and Alicia stops speaking entirely. In a case that draws wide spread media attention, Alicia is later found guilty of murder and sent away to a psychiatric facility, the Grove, where she remains mute for years. Theo Faber, criminal psychotherapist, is determined to reach Alicia, to earn her trust and get her to talk about what really happened that night. He soon realizes, however, that his quest for answers places him on a dangerous path – a nightmarish rollercoaster ride from which he may never escape.

Diane-Lyn‘s Review:

This intense debut novel by Alex Michaelides wasted no time, opening with Alicia Berenson was thirty-three years old when she killed her husband. I was absorbed right from the beginning, This was a very fast 323 page read. Michaelides’s writing is tight, clear, and flows smoothly. Oh, what a gripping experience!

The novel is carried well by only two central characters (plus a handful of smaller ones) and a captivating plot line. As you have probably figured out, Alicia’s character is complex and mysterious. Throughout the book, Michaelides gradually releases pieces of information about her in different ways. He reaches back in time to revisit her traumatic childhood and familial mental illness, both of which shaped her, entangled her, and in the end, ruined her. Also presented was Alicia’s quite revealing diary, which I will get into later. In general, it was easy to sympathize with Alicia’s character. She was truly a victim on so many levels. Theo, with a complicated history of his own, finds himself drawn to Alicia and relates to her in a deeply personal way despite the convoluted emotional puzzle she presents. These commonalities drive Theo’s determination to reach his uncommunicative patient, taking tremendous personal and professional risks along the way. There were times when I felt that his level of commitment was unrealistic given his profession. I just could not imagine a therapist going to such great lengths and risking his career just to get information on a patient. However, as the plot evolved and his character developed, everything he did started to make sense. Michaelides’s ability to develop his characters through the microscopic dissection of their histories and deep layers of mental illness give this novel an intellectual, thought provoking angle. More than just an engaging fictional read, The Silent Patient raises real-life questions about the root of mental illness and the age-old nature-versus-nurture debate. Michaelides brilliantly incorporates his own work in the study of psychology to unravel the deepest, most vulnerable segments of the human psyche piece by piece, and then seamlessly weaves them into a dramatic, fast paced thriller. I also loved how he drew parallels between Alicia and the silent Greek heroine, Alcestis; a truly superb connection!

Now about the diary. Truth be told, this was the one part of the book that didn’t sit well with me. Alicia’s diary did give her a much needed voice, disclosing the critical information she refused to verbalize. Yes, these answers were needed, but the way in which they were presented felt a bit contrived. First, there’s the unrealistic nature of the diary itself. How was Alicia able to smuggle this huge piece of herself into the Grove and have it there for years without anybody noticing it until the day she voluntarily handed it over to Theo? I also take issue with how the entries were structured. When people write in diaries, they generally describe briefly the gist of events or conversations and their feelings about them. Alicia’s diary, however, read more like a back and forth conversation from a fictional novel (lots of quotes) rather than a personal journal. Finally, the last journal entry couldn’t have been written the way it was under the circumstances of that day, but to elaborate would give too much away so I will just leave it at that. Thankfully, the merits of this novel are strong enough to overlook what is lacking, and I enjoyed The Silent Patient enough to recommend it to anybody who enjoys a twisty murder mystery thriller. Marriage, infidelity, substance abuse, mental illness, and murder all culminate to a staggering shocker at the end (and no, I didn’t suspect a thing and I’m still reeling!). Dark but engaging, sad but thought provoking, The Silent Patient is a must-read for lovers of fast moving psychological thrillers.

**Purchase your own copy of The Silent Patient by clicking this link: Amazon. This is an affiliate link, which only means that when you click the link and make a purchase, I receive a tiny commission at no additional cost to you. Happy reading!

There are times when the mind is dealt such a blow it hides itself in insanity.

While this may not seem beneficial, it is. There are times when reality is nothing but pain, and to escape that pain the mind must leave reality behind.

 

 

 

 

The Life She Was Given, Ellen Marie Wiseman

The Life She Was Given is set in 1931. Nine year old Lilly Blackwood has never been outdoors. She has had no human contact other than with her parents. Lilly is confined to the dark, locked, secret attic of her home where she is fed only occasionally. Her mother tells her she must remain hidden because people will be afraid if they see her. Lilly has never seen herself because there are no mirrors in the attic, but she understands that something must be terribly wrong with her. Then, one night, Lilly’s mother does the unimaginable. She sells her child to a traveling circus as a freak show act, and walks away. Terrified and confused, Lilly is now property of a cruel and dark world, enduring unthinkable abuse and humiliation. Glory, another circus worker, steps in and advocates for Lilly. Glory takes Lilly under her wing and helps her adjust to this new life. Over time, Lilly grows, evolves, and manages to find love and inner strength in these harsh surroundings. As the years pass, she forges a special bond with two elephants, Pepper and JoJo, and eventually falls in love with their trainer, Cole. Lilly’s life, while still difficult, begins to have meaning and purpose. That is, until tragedy strikes….

Two decades later, Julia returns to her unhappy childhood home following the death of her mother. As she settles back into her inherited estate, Julia makes some shocking discoveries. She finds a journal in her father’s den, along with photographs of a mysterious circus woman, and later a strange, secret room she never knew existed. Determined to find answers, she investigates and uncovers a horrible family secret and the truth about her own identity.

The Life She Was Given is structured with chapters that alternate between the perspectives of two central characters – Lilly and Julia. Although their stories are twenty years apart, the transitions between them are seamless and flow beautifully. The character development of both is strong and well paced from start to finish. We see both of them begin their lives on trauma-induced shaky ground, but later evolve into strong, young women of substance – women who rise above and add value to the world. The imagery is profound and puts us right there with the characters – smelling the circus, breathing in the fear of a terrified little girl, hearing the desperate rumblings of caged animals. As a lover of animals, parts of this novel were very difficult to read but shed light on the way circus animals were treated during this era. Before you decide to read this book, understand that Wiseman presents this issue for exactly what it was – extremely graphic, heart wrenching abuse of animals at the hands of merciless handlers. The treatment of circus animals and even side show people during this time in history is infuriating and heartbreaking to say the least, and Wiseman appropriately does not candy coat any of it.

The Life She Was Given provides many themes on which to reflect – animal cruelty, child abuse, maternal rejection/abandonment and family betrayal. We are also painfully reminded of societal intolerance and maltreatment of people who are different. In that regard, we have come a long way since their exploitation in the 1930s, but the prejudice still exists even today. This is a great book, was well-written, and I think it would make a phenomenal movie. If you can handle the graphic and distressing elements described above, then I highly recommend this one for adult readers. You will fall in love with Lilly, Julia and all of the gentle giants Wiseman created, but you will never view circuses in the same way again.

“When I look at animals help captive by circuses, I think of slavery. Animals in circuses represent the domination and oppression we have fought against for so long. They wear the same chains and shackles.” – Dick Gregory

To purchase this book at Amazon, click here. Please note that when you click and purchase the book through this affiliate link, I receive a tiny commission at no additional cost to you. My opinions remain my own.

I Know This Much Is True, Wally Lamb

Oprah Winfrey nailed it – “It’s not just a book, it’s a life experience”. And oh, what a twisting and turning life experience within the 900 pages of an incredibly engaging novel. Multi-themed and multi-generational, I Know This Much Is True, Wally Lamb, will take you on a rollercoaster ride that you will not want to get off. Ever. Yes, a life experience indeed!

Dominick and Thomas Birdsey are identical twins living in the fictional town of Three Rivers, Connecticut. Dominick is mentally typical, but Thomas is a paranoid schizophrenic. They were raised in a chaotic and abusive household. Ray, their adoptive step-father, was a former military man with an explosive temper. He was abusive to all of them, but his prime target was Thomas. Concettina, their mother, was a quiet, gentle, skittish woman plagued with a cleft lip and an inability to stand up to her husband. The identity of their biological father was unknown, but revealed much later in the book.

Dominick’s adulthood is even more complicated. He continues to struggle with the ramifications of his brother’s illness and his own lost childhood. He carries these issues into his marriage, which finally comes to a breaking point following the tragic death of his infant daughter. When Concettina is diagnosed with terminal cancer, Dominick promises to take care of Thomas after she is gone. A few years into this enormous undertaking, Thomas visits a public library, pulls out a knife, and cuts off his own hand in protest of the Gulf War. He’s then committed to a maximum security asylum. Dominick struggles to protect his brother from maltreatment in a flawed system that has no regard for human dignity, but he is losing his own life in the process. Dominick finds himself torn between his dedication to his brother and mounting resentment over what that is costing him.

Also presented in this novel is the intriguing backstory of Concettina’s father, Domenico Tempesto. After his mother dies, Dominick discovers an abundance of ancestral history in the pages of his immigrant grandfather’s detailed memoir. Domenico married his wife, Ignazia (Concettina’s mother), right after meeting her and in exchange for a dowry. Ignazia was in love with another man. She wanted nothing to do with Domenico, and this forced marriage threw her into a depression. Prosperine, Ignazia’s pipe-smoking, domineering sister, was part of the package and came to live with Ignazia and Domenico in their new home. The toxic dysfunction and abuse started immediately. When Domenico beat Ignazia on their wedding night, Prosperine promised to mutilate him if he ever hurt her sister again. That incident was just the beginning. The more Dominick reads, the more he learns about his delusional grandfather, generations plagued by mental illnesses, and the heartbreaking details of his mother’s own troubled childhood.

As with all of Lamb’s books, I Know This Much Is True offers rich layers of multiple themes: love, shame, loss, survival, abuse of power, suicide, child murder, family dysfunction, and of course the effects of mental illness on family dynamics. Lamb gives a poignant and moving presentation of just how heavily the mental illness of one weighs on many, falling like bricks upon the laps of each and every family member, and tormenting generation after generation. The love, commitment, and exhausting efforts of loved ones are met with the grim reality of their own utter powerlessness, which was felt deeply throughout the book. The imagery and descriptive details put the reader right alongside the characters, feeling the rising tension, the stress of unbalanced family function, the monumental sacrifices followed by resentment and guilt, the uphill battle against a broken system, and the heartache of a loved one’s tortured existence. I Know This Much Is True is an extremely intense, heavy, multi-layered novel that brings dark issues to the table in a deeply descriptive, affective, and honest manner. We are reminded that every generation contributes to family dysfunction, and despite interventions, we are still forever shaped by our beginnings. Tightly written across 900 pages, this novel is well worth the time and emotional investment. Lamb has done an excellent job and I enjoyed every page of this “life experience”. I absolutely loved this book and highly recommend it to adult readers.

**Purchase at Amazon here.  (Please note that when you click and purchase the book through this link, I receive a tiny commission at no additional cost to you).

“I wish people could understand that the brain is the most important organ of our body. Just because you can’t see mental illness like you could see a broken bone, doesn’t mean it’s not as detrimental or devastating to a family or an individual” – Demi Lovato

See my review for Wally Lamb’s The Hour I First Believed here.

 

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The Hour I First Believed, Wally Lamb

The Hour I First BelievedSeveral years ago, my husband purchased The Hour I First Believed for me. At the time, I had never even heard of Wally Lamb. I wouldn’t have reached for this book on my own because admittedly, I tend to gravitate toward female authors. Well, this chance encounter with a Wally Lamb novel became the springboard for my obsession with the works of this incredibly gifted writer. After quickly and easily plowing through all 730 pages, I was left speechless (a rarity for me!) and found myself wanting more. Since that time, I have read I Know This Much Is True, She’s Come Undone, We Are Water and Couldn’t Keep It to Myself. Every one of these books were just as satisfying as the first, and left me still wanting more.

Caelum Quirk is a high school English teacher who grew up on a farm in the fictional town of Three Rivers, Connecticut. His ancestors ran a local women’s prison situated near the farm. The son of an alcoholic father, Caelum struggles to open up emotionally and is working to manage his anger issues. He is on his third marriage to wife, Maureen, a school nurse. Maureen’s emotional foundation is shaky as well, the result of her own difficult childhood. Still wrestling with these issues, she tends to identify and connect strongly with vulnerable students. She forges a bond with Velvet, a troubled teen who refers to Maureen as her mother.

After moving to Littleton, Colorado, Caelum and Maureen both become employed at Columbine High School. When Caelum must return to Connecticut to care for his ailing aunt, Maureen remains in Colorado. On April 20, 1999, Maureen reports to work as she always did, never imagining what would unfold on this seemingly typical day. She and Velvet are in the school library, along with some other students and staff members, when they start to hear gunshots. Panicked students run for cover under tables. Maureen crawls into a cabinet to hide, frozen in fear as she hears the taunting voices of the shooters mocking and then killing their victims. Then, finally, it is over. Maureen has survived, but she is left with intense emotional trauma, and unable to recover from the ensuing PTSD and survivor guilt. She and Caelum move back to Connecticut, but things only get worse. As they settle into Caelum’s newly inherited farm, Maureen finds herself still unable to cope with the haunting flashbacks of that fateful spring day. Spiraling further and further downward, she turns to anti-depressants, develops an addiction, and the result is another tragedy.

Caelum’s return to his childhood home presents more problems. In addition to being forced to relive some traumatic childhood memories, he makes bombshell discoveries about his family. Old diaries and newspaper clippings reveal decades of chilling family secrets. As he sifts through this painful new knowledge, he must come to terms with the truth about his own identity and his prison reforming ancestors.

Anybody familiar with Wally Lamb’s writing is well aware of his ability to intertwine multiple stories and characters together seamlessly into one novel, and The Hour I First Believed is no exception. Lamb expertly embedded true historical events spanning over decades, some of which include the Civil War, the famous Cocoanut Grove fire, the Iraq War, Hurricane Katrina, and of course, the Columbine school shooting. I especially loved how Lamb interwove Quirk’s fictional post Civil War abolitionists ancestors with real-life heroes of this movement – Louisa May Alcott, Dorothea Dix and Harriet Beecher Stow being among them.

The Hour I First Believed is multi-themed and multi-layered. In addition to school shootings being the central theme, there are also elements of adultery, substance abuse, marriage, divorce, child molestation, child abuse, mental illness, war, grief, prison reform, family dysfunction, abolition, faith, abortion, and of course, trauma. Maureen’s character clearly reminds us of the deep, long lasting impact of childhood trauma, but also demonstrates the way in which trauma deepens one’s capacity for empathy and understanding. It seems that Maureen’s ability to understand and identify with troubled students was rooted in her own difficult past. Sadly, Maureen’s character also serves as a reminder that none of us are infallible, and despite our best efforts, every single one of us has a breaking point.

The Hour I First Believed is a heavy, gripping, emotional read. It has multiple moving parts, but is at no point overwhelming or confusing. I found myself drawn into each and every sub-plot, all of which were well paced, well organized and flowed beautifully. In the 700+ pages, there was no idle time. Every page offered dense substance and moved the story development forward. This novel is extremely well written, focusing on a wide range of life events over several generations, and touches on every human emotion. I highly recommend The Hour I First Believed for any adult looking for a thought-provoking, meaningful novel.

On a side note – I was pregnant with my daughter when the news broke about a school shooting in Colorado. I remember wrapping my arms around my swollen belly, thinking about the dreaded day when my innocent child would be out in the world without me there to protect her. I worry just like all parents worry, but what happened in Columbine and the additional school shootings that followed have added a whole new dimension of anxiety to parenting and to the world in general. It seems that every day, our lives become increasing vulnerable and will continue to do so until mental illness is better addressed. Our world is complex, the struggles are real, and this all continues to escalate with each new generation. I believe that over the years, the demands of life and our expectations of children have soared. Priorities have shifted. Society has broken down. Of course there are multiple factors that go into school shootings, and the layers of mental illness run deeper than anything I can possibly understand or explain. I do believe, however, that at some point we lost control. Sadly, our children are the ones who pay the price.

To purchase this book on Amazon, click here. This is an affiliate link, which only means that when you click the link and purchase the book, I receive a tiny commission at no additional cost to you. My opinions remain my own.

See my review for Wally Lamb’s I Know This Much Is True here.

“They did not kill their spirits. They did not kill our spirits either” – Tom Mauser, father of Columbine victim Daniel Mauser (denverpost.com)

The Testaments, Margaret Atwood (sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale)

If you haven’t read The Handmaid’s Tale and plan to, then stop reading here unless you enjoy spoilers. This book is the sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale. The Testaments is definitely not a stand alone. You must read The Handmaid’s Tale first.

The Handmaid’s Tale left us hanging for thirty-four years wondering what ever happened to Offred after she was thrown into that infamous black van. Was she taken to prison or brought to freedom? What ever happened to the baby she carried? We were left to draw our own conclusions. We now have closure.

The Testaments take place fifteen years after The Handmaid’s Tale, and is structured differently. The Testaments is based on the accounts of three different characters: Aunt Lydia, Agnes, and Daisy. Unlike The Handmaid’s Tale, this sequel provides detailed points of view and witness testimonies from each of them.

Aunt Lydia, the abusive oppressor we met in the first novel, now takes center stage. She is portrayed in a whole new light, with many more details. When Gilead was becoming established, Aunt Lydia was one of many women rounded up and taken to prison. While there, she lived in deplorable conditions, suffered unthinkable abuse, and witnessed atrocities. After being broken down, these women were given a choice: either be killed or join the regime. As we well know, Lydia chose the latter, rose to power and inflicted the same brutalities on Handmaids under her supervision. It is that very power, however, that she now uses to help overthrow Gilead.

Agnes is the teenaged daughter of wealthy and powerful Commander Kyle in Gilead. She is loved and cherished by her mother, Tabitha. When Tabitha dies, Commander Kyle remarries Paula – a cruel, selfish woman with no maternal feelings for Agnes. As is the tradition in Gilead, Agnes is being groomed to become the young wife of a commander. Paula, wanting Agnes out of her home as soon as possible, takes center stage in the arranged marriage process with no regard for her step-daughter’s happiness or well-being. As Agnes reluctantly prepares for her new life, a vague early childhood memory of running through a wooded area while holding a woman’s hand resurfaces. As other events begin to unfold, Agnes puts the pieces of her life together and discovers the truth about her history and family. She learns that she was adopted and renamed after being taken away from her biological mother – a Handmaid who has since gone missing.

Daisy is a rebellious teenage girl unknowingly living under a protective secret identity in Canada. Against her parents’ wishes, she sneaks off to an anti-Gilead human rights rally one day; a decision that would change her life forever. Shortly thereafter, her parents are murdered and everything Daisy thought she knew about her life begins to unravel. Her real name isn’t Daisy. Her parents were not really her parents. Her real mother is a Handmaid who escaped Gilead years ago. She later discovers she has a half-sister in Gilead. As Daisy processes her true identity, she is faced with a monumental decision: either remain safely in Canada or risk everything in the fight to bring down Gilead.

The Testaments show us the powerful force of women, once silenced, daring to rise up and fight back. Their stories of life in Gilead are chronicled in detailed, historical testimonies, which are widely studied and analyzed years later (this was an awesome detail!). Most of these women were victims who had their families ripped apart, loved ones killed, and then risked their lives to escape and help others do the same. The accounts of familiar characters from the first novel are poignant, heartbreaking, and an ever-present reminder of a society gone horribly awry at the hands of corrupt and evil people. 

Aunt Lydia’s character development was much more in depth than it had been in The Handmaids Tale. I didn’t like this character, but I did enjoy Atwood’s description of her redemption – despite the fact that I was constantly grappling with whether or not to trust her. We cannot erase the pain and suffering she caused in The Handmaid’s Tale in order to save herself, so it is difficult to see her as a total victim or as a hero. Yet, when corruption in Gilead escalated, we did see her evolve to the point of being a paramount participant in the resistance movement. Aunt Lydia’s power in Gilead was used to aid the very people who were once her victims, so her transformation is forever colored by her earlier choices and actions. 

Margaret Atwood has done a brilliant job of expanding on The Handmaid’s Tale. The development of three central, yet very different, characters was extremely detailed and well-done. Atwood expertly demonstrated the downfall of a democracy, the injustices of a society ripped to shreds at the hands of the corrupt and powerful, and the ensuing fight for human preservation. This book is poignant, well organized and extremely well-written. If you enjoyed The Handmaid’s Tale, then The Testaments is an absolute must read for adults.

“A woman is like a tea bag. You can’t tell how strong she is until you put her in hot water” – Eleanor Roosevelt

**Purchase this amazing novel at Amazon here. This is an affiliate link, which only means that when you click and purchase the book through this link, I receive a tiny commission at no additional cost to you. My opinions remain my own.

 

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Review: The Taste of Ginger, Mansi Shah

Hello and Happy New Year! Welcome The Cozy Book Blog by Diane-Lyn. I am thrilled to be today’s stop on the virtual book tour for The Taste of Ginger, an extraordinary debut novel by Mansi Shah. I hope you enjoy my review below. Many thanks to Lisa Munley at TLC Book Tours for the invite. I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Best, Diane-Lyn
Synopsis:

In Mansi Shah’s stunning debut novel, a family tragedy beckons a first-generation immigrant to the city of her birth, where she grapples with her family’s past in search of where she truly belongs.

After her parents moved her and her brother to America, Preeti Desai never meant to tear her family apart. All she did was fall in love with a white Christian carnivore instead of a conventional Indian boy. Years later, with her parents not speaking to her and her controversial relationship in tatters, all Preeti has left is her career at a prestigious Los Angeles law firm.

But when Preeti receives word of a terrible accident in the city where she was born, she returns to India, where she’ll have to face her estranged parents…and the complicated past they left behind. Surrounded by the sights and sounds of her heritage, Preeti catches a startling glimpse of her family’s battles with class, tradition, and sacrifice. Torn between two beautifully flawed cultures, Preeti must now untangle what home truly means to her.

Diane-Lyn’s Review:

Preeti is a young woman caught between two vastly different cultures, and never fully belonging to either one. As a child, Preeti’s privileged, upper-caste family left their home country of India and immigrated to America. Once here, their lives changed drastically. Finances tightened, forcing her parents into entry-level jobs and a lower standard of living. Preeti and her brother, Neel, endured racism and cruelty in school as they fought desperately to fit into their new community, all while losing themselves in the process. In an effort to survive, the siblings “Americanized” themselves as much as possible but were often conflicted between blending in and remaining loyal to their roots and strict parental expectations, traditions and values. Years later, when a family tragedy necessitates a trip back to India, Preeti soon realizes she had forgotten the customs of her native land, and again feels like an outsider.

Shah captured these struggles poignantly, all while seamlessly interweaving additional themes, characters, and events into the plot line. I’m sure most readers will connect with the dynamics and strife of the Desai family – much of which is universal. A mother’s expectations and aspirations for her children go head to head with a daughter’s quest to find her own way, the favoring of one adult child over the other, the constant power struggles, the pressure to maintain the appearance of a perfect family even when everything is falling apart. The inner workings of a family are always so different than what is visible. The truth is, all families are complicated and Shah illustrated these challenges in such an empathetic and relatable way. I could sympathize with Preeti and Neel. They were always under intense pressure to succeed, and in a position that didn’t allow for mistakes. Their race constantly dictated how much harder they needed to work in a white privilege society. It was certainly eye-opening.

It took me a while to warm to Preeti’s mother. I really didn’t like her throughout most of the book. I couldn’t understand how she could raise her children in America, but then stop speaking to Preeti because she was involved with a white man (Honestly, what did she expect?). She just seemed unrealistic, cold, rigid, and not very maternal. However, later in the book so much was revealed about her mother’s history, and everything about her started to make sense. I enjoyed her mother’s evolvement over time. I was better able to understand her as she began to open up about her long buried pain, and how it shaped her decisions. It became clear that, despite her tough exterior, she was fundamentally not that different than other mothers. She loved her children. She wanted to protect them. Her decisions were based on what she thought was right at the time. Mistakes were made, but honestly, motherhood is hard. She clearly had done the best she could.

I loved how Shah incorporated India’s customs and traditions into this novel, as well as its beauty. The sights, smells and sounds of India were all around me. I truly felt like I was there sipping chai and smelling spicy cooking; or making my way through busy streets, overcrowded with people, cows and rickshas. Even more interesting were the striking cultural contrasts. I was aware that many Indian marriages are arranged, but still surprised at just how unyielding some of these arrangements are, and the limited choices one has in selecting a spouse. Often, marriage decisions are not based on love, but rather on caste and social status and this is not taken lightly. In fact, any deviation from these norms can ruin an entire family. Marriage is a business transaction. First you marry, then you date, then you fall in love. Of course, love is not guaranteed, and one can only hope for a union that is workable. And speaking of unions, The Taste of Ginger illustrates India’s zero tolerance for homosexuality. When Shah introduces a gay character, I was deeply saddened by the reality of his life in an extremely homophobic country where roles are so firmly set, and being gay can have life-threatening repercussions on people and their families.

Shah added a staggering, gut wrenching layer to the novel by taking the reader through the process of a tragic, epic loss; the shock, the aftermath, and its bitter effect on people and relationships. In any society, nothing tests a marriage more than the unimaginable loss of a child. Regardless of culture, people are people, and heartache is heartache. I was so moved by Shah’s ability to fully immerse the reader into every aspect of such a loss, deeply feeling each painful stage in the process, and its impact on every area of a parent’s life. It was written with such poignancy that I found myself fully absorbed in the devastation, as if I were among the grieving characters. A debut novel that so profoundly captures a reader in this way can only be the work of a gifted writer. Bravo!

The Taste of Ginger reminds us that regardless of differing cultures, we are all just human beings trying to find our way in the world. We all have the same basic needs – to be loved and accepted; to belong. I was drawn to Preeti’s personal growth over time as she started coming to terms with her identity. No culture is perfect, but it seemed Preeti was learning to embrace them both.

Wow! The Taste of Ginger is a masterpiece! This novel is extremely well written and well organized. It encompasses so much, yet it’s easy to follow and the pacing is steady. The characters and themes are varied, but they are smoothly intertwined into the plot line without any jumpy shifts. Shah did a remarkable job of incorporating robust imagery and the beauty of India. I was impressed with her ability to connect imperfect, complex characters with a riveting chain of events to deliver a deeply engaging, realistic and highly relatable story. Despite my busy schedule and limited time to complete this book, I sailed through it quickly. I found myself rooting for the Desai clan and I’d love to hear more about how each of them fared after the story ended. There is so much potential for a sequel and I do hope Mansi Shah will consider a continuation of this narrative. Fingers crossed!

I loved The Taste of Ginger and highly recommend Shah’s debut novel to all adult readers. Gripping and emotional, this will be a novel you will not soon forget.

“I feel like an outsider everywhere I go,” Preeti Desai, The Taste of Ginger (Mansi Shah)

“Fitting in is about assessing a situation and becoming who you need to be to be accepted. Belonging, on the other hand, doesn’t require us to change who we are; it requires us to be who we are.” Brene Brown

To purchase your own copy of The Taste of Ginger, click here: Amazon. Note that this is an Amazon affiliate ink, which only means that when you click the link and purchase the book, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. My opinions remain my own. Happy reading!

 About the Author:

 

 

Mansi Shah is a writer who lives in Los Angeles. She was born in Toronto, Canada, was raised in the midwestern United States, and studied at universities in Australia and England. When she’s not writing, she’s traveling and exploring different cultures near and far, experimenting on a new culinary creation, or trying to improve her tennis game. For more information, visit her online at mansikshah.com.

 

 

The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood

Imagine the horrific aftermath of a nuclear war. Imagine the United States government being overthrown and replaced with a dystopian society, known as Gilead. Imagine, on American soil, families are separated. Children are ripped away from their parents and placed with powerful couples. Imagine losing the right own property or have a bank account. Imagine being tortured for reading or writing. The Handmaid’s Tale is about all of these things, and so much more.

Margaret Atwood introduces us to the Republic of Gilead, where the roles of people, especially women, are clearly defined and brutally enforced. Due to the nuclear effects on reproductive health, birth rates are down. Young women who have remained fertile (Handmaids) are forced to produce babies for prominent families. They are made to participate in mandatory monthly impregnation rituals with their commanders, and later ordered to hand their baby over to them and their wives. Handmaids are trained and disciplined by the “aunts”. Aunts are women higher up in the hierarchy, authorized to administer torturous punishments to disobedient handmaids. Additionally, handmaids unable to produce a baby, or any woman deemed useless or rebellious, can be shipped to radioactive, contaminated wastelands and used as slave labor. Public executions are also common and take place for a variety of senseless reasons.

June is a happily married woman, with a daughter and a successful career in the Boston area. Frightened by the unfolding changes in society, she and her family attempt to flee to Canada. In the process, June and her daughter are captured and separated. June is sent to be trained as a Handmaid under the tyrannical Aunt Lydia, and later ordered to live with Commander Fred and his wife, Serena Joy. No longer June, “Offred” is desperate to get her daughter back and escape the Republic of Gilead. Despite being under the constant supervision of “The Eyes” (Gilead’s secret police), she joins a secret resistance group called “Mayday” and risks everything to save her daughter and take back their freedom.

The Handmaid’s Tale gripped me right from the beginning and refused to let go. I am shook to the core. Every page had me in Gilead and I remained there long after the last page was read. One cannot help but imagine the horrors of a real-life Gilead right here in America. The treatment of women in particular was one of the central themes in this novel, and I found myself envisioning my own loved ones being stripped of their freedom and placed in the role of baby breeding machines for prominent families. I thought of older, professional women reduced to a life of servitude, and watching their husbands being executed for refusing to join a murderous regime. Of course, such thoughts brought my mind to similar real life atrocities – the legalized abuse of women in other countries, public executions for holding certain religious beliefs, the Holocaust, and so on. There is simply no denying the parallels between the events of this novel and the world in which we live.

The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood, is poignant and extremely thought provoking. Through this book, we consider the effects of power on the human capacity for ruthlessness, and vice-versa. That is, when the wrong people are in positions of power and unable to handle such power, the damage to a society can be devastating. Additionally, the character development is extraordinary, well-paced, and well-presented. Over time, we see ordinary people doing the unimaginable in order to survive, and then finding the strength to fight back in the name of freedom, risking everything to do so. We are reminded of the great lengths to which a mother will go in order to protect her child (all moms will relate!). Atwood expertly presents the strength and fragility of the human spirit, and the breakdown thereof, in a totalitarian society. This book is not for the faint of heart, but an excellent, engaging, extremely well-written work. I highly recommend The Handmaid’s Tale for adult readers. 

The sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale is The Testaments. See that review here.

**Purchase The Handmaid’s Tale at Amazon here. This is an affiliate link, which only means that when you click and purchase the book through this link, I receive a tiny commission at no additional cost to you. My opinions remain my own.

“Once a government is committed to the principle of silencing the voice of oppression, it has only one way to go, and that is down the path of increasingly repressive measures, until it becomes a source of terror to all its citizens and creates a country where everyone lives in fear.”  – Harry S. Truman

Leaving Time, Jodi Picoult

Leaving Time by Jodi Picoult is set on an animal sanctuary where Dr. Alice Metcalf, a dedicated animal researcher, studies elephant behavior alongside her husband, Thomas. On a fateful day that would change their lives forever, a co-worker is brutally killed at the sanctuary. Shortly thereafter, Alice mysteriously disappears and Thomas is committed to a mental institution. Their three year old daughter, Jenna, is left behind.

Ten years later, precocious Jenna Metcalf never recovered from the loss of her mother. All she has left are memories and journals, but she yearns for answers and is determined to find them. Desperate for help, she secretly recruits Virgil Stanhope, the ex-cop who was assigned to the case a decade earlier. She also contacts Serenity Jones, a once famous but disgraced psychic, to help her put the pieces of her family together.

Like Jenna, Virgil Stanhope never recovered from the case either. Uncomfortable with how it was handled, he has spent the last decade on what-ifs and easing his guilt with alcohol. When Jenna appears seeking his help in locating her mother, he takes the opportunity to investigate the case again in hopes of making things right, all while battling his own self-destructive demons.

Serenity Jones, a well known, eccentric psychic, is reluctant to involve herself in Jenna’s quest for answers. However, Jenna is persistent and Serenity eventually agrees to help. As the story unfolds, we learn that this once highly acclaimed psychic has a devastating history of her own, and a reason for leaving the spotlight and isolating herself in a small New Hampshire town.

The three are an unlikely team with conflicting ideas on how to reach their common goal of finding out what happened to Alice Metcalf. As they dig deeper and get closer finding answers, they start to realize things are not as they seem. The case is far more twisting and complex than any of them ever could have imagined. Before long, they come to understand that the deeper they dig and the more they find, the less they want to know.

Superstar author Jodi Picoult has, once again, seamlessly woven characters and events into multiple themes that culminate to an explosive surprise ending. Picoult presents so many life issues for us to reflect upon: loss, maternal bond, animal cruelty, suicide, murder, marriage, infidelity, substance abuse, mental illness, death and the afterlife. The plot is delivered through the points of view of central characters and set in an animal sanctuary. Throughout the novel, Picoult intertwines information about elephant behavior, emotions and cognition. Not only does this information help to place the reader in the setting, feeling for these giant creatures and all that they have endured, but it also provides important symbolism. The symbolic connection between Jenna’s longing for maternal love and the bonding patterns of mother and baby elephants is clear. We see the void in Jenna’s life and her hunger for motherly affection, then we see how deeply elephant mothers and babies grieve when one of them is lost. These connections are smoothly tied in, add depth to the novel’s themes, and help the reader understand the raw emotions of the characters. Furthermore, the information Picoult provides about elephants, their struggles with exploitation, the cruelty of hunters, and the battles they face in the wild have made me fall in love with these beautiful, sensitive creatures. I will never look at an elephant in the same way again.

Also true to life are the complexities of these characters. As human beings, we all have histories. We all have trauma. We are all injured in some way, and indeed, shaped by our pasts. As each character develops, we see the hefty price they have paid for their mistakes, the impact of their subsequent guilt, the effects of maternal loss on emotional development, and the high cost of betrayal. As each character navigates their own twisting path and attempts to cope in their own, unique way, we are reminded that people are complicated, life is messy, and there are no easy answers.  

As with all of Jodi Picoult’s novels, Leaving Time is extremely well-written, appropriately paced and deeply thought provoking. This novel offers a wide range of characters and is centered around one of the most fascinating animals on the planet. Leaving Time is a gripping read that I highly recommend for teens, adults, and animal lovers. 

***Purchase this amazing novel at Amazon here. Please note that when you click and purchase the book through this affiliate link, I receive a tiny commission at no additional cost to you. My opinions remain my own.

See my review of Picoult’s Handle with Care here.

“No one in the world needs an elephant tusk but an elephant” – Thomas Schmidt

The Riverwoman’s Dragon by Candace Robb (book tour excerpt and more!)

Hello,

Welcome to The Cozy Book Blog by Diane-Lyn. I am thrilled to be today’s stop on the book tour for the new release, The Riverwoman’s Dragon by Candace Robb. Enjoy reading about this great new novel, and an excerpt is included! Many thanks to Amy Bruno at HFVBT for the invite! Thanks for visiting and enjoy the tour!

Best, Diane-Lyn

THE RIVERWOMAN’S DRAGON BY CANDACE ROBB

Publication Date: October 1, 2021
Severn House

Series: (Book 13 in the Owen Archer series)
Genre: Historical Mystery

When the wise woman Magda Digby is suspected of murder, Owen Archer sets out to prove her innocence in this intricately plotted medieval mystery.

May, 1375. Owen Archer returns from London to find York in chaos. While the citizens are living in terror of the pestilence which is spreading throughout the land, a new physician has arrived, whipping up fear and suspicion against traditional healers and midwives. With the backing of the new archbishop, he is especially hostile towards Magda Digby, the wise woman who has helped and healed the people of York for many years. At the same time, Magda is uneasy about the arrival of two long-lost kinsfolk. Though they say they are seeking her help, she senses a hidden agenda.

Magda’s troubles deepen when she discovers a body in the river near her home – and finds herself under suspicion of murder. Days later, fire rips through a warehouse in the city. Amongst the charred debris lies the body of a man – not burned, but stabbed in the back. Could there be a connection to the corpse in the river?

Determined to prove Magda’s innocence, Owen sets out to find answers – but the more he uncovers, the deeper the mystery becomes…

Excerpt:

The Riverwoman’s Dragon © 2021 Candace Robb
Timkin held his head as he cried out, “Old Bede’s house is burning!”
There was more, but Owen was already up and moving toward him, thinking of Bede’s
widowed daughter Winifrith and her young children, who lived with him. He bent to the man
who was now doubled over, gasping for air. “Did the family escape?”
“Don’t know,” the old man sobbed. “I saw folk running to the river calling ‘Fire!’
Rushed after them, saw what was burning. Someone said the men who lit it called it a plague
house. A lie!”
Owen need hear no more. In a moment he was pounding down Coney Street, his
companions falling back—Crispin needed a cane. At King’s Staithe he joined Ned Cooper and
several other young men who often worked for the bailiffs. He saw the flames now, licking at a
much larger space than Old Bede’s small cottage. Several small buildings in the lane behind the
staithe were on fire, moving close to a large warehouse.
He whispered a prayer of thanks when he spied Old Bede, Winifrith, and the two children
among a group huddled together as they watched the fire. Ned had paused by them, his fellows
rushing on to grab the pots and buckets that neighbors were carrying out of their houses and
rushing down to fill them with river water.
Some men were hacking at a burning wall near a warehouse. Beyond them folk were
stretched along the staithe and down onto the mudflats to reach the water at low tide, passing
along filled buckets in one direction, empty buckets in another.
Owen grabbed two of the axe-wielders and tossed them toward the shore. “Water, you
fools. Water is what you need.”
“We are paid to watch the warehouse.”

2

Picking up an axe, Owen growled, “Water.”
The men stumbled off toward the staithe, sputtering curses.
A woman was wrapping Winifrith, Bede, and the children in blankets.
“You can sleep with us tonight,” she said. “Devils, the ones who did this. We’re all out
on the street every day. We’d know if the great sickness was here. Someone did this for spite,
they did.”
But who was the target? “Did you see anything?” Owen asked.
Old Bede shook his head. Winifrith was busy with the children.
“No,” said the woman. “I knew nothing until my son shouted ‘fire’.”
“Is your house far enough from the flames?”
“I pray so, Captain. Go. Help with the fire. I will take them home.”
Four buildings burning, and the sparks were catching the thatch on a fifth. Owen directed
a few buckets there, enough to wet it. “Keep watch on that,” he ordered a young woman working
the line, skirts hitched up, her eyes aglow with the fire. He moved through the crowd, helping
where he could. So far it seemed everyone had escaped their homes, most of them working to put
out the fire. Homeless, frightened, but safe. Owen helped the water-bearers until Crispin limped
down to tell him that the fire appeared to be under control.
“Hempe says leave it to the men,” said Crispin. “You need to rest up. You will be busy
tomorrow chasing down the culprit.”
After passing a few more buckets, Owen sought out the woman sheltering Old Bede’s
family. “Did your son see who started the fire?” he asked the woman.
A young man stepped forward. “I heard someone shout ‘plague house,’ and ‘burn out the
Death’, but there was so much smoke.”

3

“Did you see or hear anything else that might help us find them?”
“No. I can ask my friends. Should I come to you if I hear anything?”
“Me. Or Bailiff Hempe. Good work, calling out your neighbors.”
Hempe waited beneath Ouse Bridge. “Ned’s taking charge for the night,” he said “They
will watch the fires, keep them low. That’s one of the Graa family’s warehouses at the staithe.
His men complained that you ordered them about. I set them straight who you are. They whined
that in the smoke they hadn’t recognized you. As if I believed them. They’d note the patch no
matter the smoke.” He spit off to the side. “I set them to stand the watch with Ned and the others,
told them if I heard they’d wandered off I would fine them.”
“Unwilling helpers can be more of a nuisance than a help,” said Owen.
“I don’t much care if they guard only the mayor’s warehouse. The others will be free to
watch the rest.”
“Clever.”
“So off home with you.”

AMAZON | BARNES AND NOBLE | INDIEBOUND

About the Author

I’m Candace Robb, a writer/historian engaged in creating fiction about the late middle ages with a large cast of characters with whom I enjoy spending my days. Two series, the Owen Archer mysteries and the Kate Clifford mysteries, are set in late medieval York. The Margaret Kerr trilogy is set in early 14th century Scotland, at the beginning of the Wars of Independence. Two standalone novels (published under pseudonym Emma Campion) expand on the lives of two women in the court of King Edward III who have fascinated me ever since I first encountered them in history and fiction.

I am a dreamer. Writing, gardening, walking, dancing, reading, being with friends—there’s always a dreaming element.

WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | TWITTER  | BOOKBUB

Blog Tour Schedule

Monday, October 18
Guest Post at Novels Alive

Tuesday, October 19
Excerpt at Books, Ramblings, and Tea

Thursday, October 21
Interview at Passages to the Past

Friday, October 22
Excerpt at I’m All About Books

Tuesday, October 26
Excerpt at Books & Benches

Wednesday, October 27
Review at Bookfrolic
Excerpt at The Cozy Book Blog

Thursday, October 28
Interview at Chicks, Rogues, and Scandals

Friday, October 29
Review at Coffee and Ink

Monday, November 1
Review at Passages to the Past

Giveaway

Enter to win a copy of The Riverwoman’s Dragon by Candace Robb! We have 1 copy available to the US and 1 to the UK.

The giveaway ends on November 1st. You must be 18 or older to enter.

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Direct Link: https://gleam.io/7klCm/the-riverwomans-dragon

Thank you!

Other People’s Children, R.J. Hoffmann

Purchase Other People’s Children here: https://amzn.to/3qs6MjX. Please note that this is an affiliate link, which only means that when you click the link and purchase the book, I receive a tiny commission at no additional cost to you. Happy reading!

Synopsis & Review:

Longing for a child and being unable to have one is a heart wrenching human experience. From the time we are young, we have a vision – an expectation, really – of how our lives will unfold. We get older and enter into loving marriages. We purchase homes with yards in anticipation of starting a family. Then, when the time comes, the fortunate ones enjoy a smooth and successful transition into parenthood, while others are faced with a cruel cycle of rising hope followed by crushing disappointment month after month. Or pregnancies that result in miscarriages – over and over again.

When Gail and Jon Durbin realized they were expecting, they moved into a new home in the suburbs to start their family. Sadly, the pregnancy resulted in what would be the first in a series of miscarriages – each of them sending the couple further and further into crippling grief. Finally, they decided to adopt, but soon learned the process is much more complex than they ever could have imagined. After some failed adoption attempts they met Carli, a pregnant teenager from a blue collar and financially strapped family. Carli had dreams of creating a future brighter than her past. She was determined to leave behind her mother’s highly dysfunctional, toxic home and pursue a college education. Having a baby would prevent her from moving beyond the life she was living, and most of all, she wanted something better for her child. Carli’s decision to place her baby up for adoption became a major point of contention between she and her mother, Marla. Marla wasn’t ready to give up her grandchild, and she would do anything to prevent this from happening.

Wow! Where do I begin? Asking me to put down this book would have been like asking me to stop breathing. Other People’s Children delivers a twisting, turning and highly emotional plot. This debut novel by R.J Hoffmann tackles the complex, gut wrenching legal process of adoption. Hoffmann presents adoption issues poignantly, yet realistically, in a book that is extremely well-written and well developed. Other People’s Children explores issues of poverty and the ever-present socioeconomic divides, yet reminds us that maternal love knows no boundaries. It touches every human emotion – sadness, anger, joy, love, grief. Hoffmann delves deeply into the complexity of human beings, and reminds us of how we are forever shaped by our pasts. There are additional themes of mental illness, loss, substance abuse, marriage, and of course, adoption. Each chapter focuses on the point of view of a character, giving them an increased level of depth and a powerful voice. Finally, Other People’s Children raises tough questions about what defines a family, who deserves to be a parent, and how far a mother will go for her child.

Reading this novel somewhat reminded me of the Baby Jessica case back in the early 1990s, but it was so much easier to take sides in that situation. At the beginning of the book, I was rooting passionately for the Durbins. However, as the characters evolved it became harder and harder to know who to root for, and my heart just broke for both parties. Carli’s character matured throughout the novel and she made so many selfless decisions for the sake of her baby. Her circumstances were truly desperate, and she was doing her best to put her child first. Clearly, both parties loved that baby. Both were in excruciating pain. Both made desperate, unimaginable decisions in the name of love. Still, there could only be one winner. I think even King Solomon would have struggled with this one. There were no easy answers.

Other People’s Children is a deeply moving and highly relatable novel. All parents (adoptive and biological) will connect. I enjoyed this novel immensely and would be interested to see where each character is in five years. I am keeping my fingers crossed for a sequel. The emotional pull of the characters has me longing to revisit them later on as their future remained somewhat open-ended at the conclusion of the book. In any case, I look forward to reading more from this author. Bravo to R.J Hoffman on a magnificent debut!

“Foster care is risky. Adoption is risky. Love itself is always risky.”  – Orphan Justice

“There is no friendship, and no love, like that of the parent for the child.” – Henry Ward Beecher

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