Book Review: COUNT THE WAYS by Joyce Maynard

 

Title: COUNT THE WAYS

Author:  Joyce Maynard

Read: January 2022

Expected publication: out now

My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟

 

Book Description:

 

After falling in love in the last years of the 1970s, Eleanor and Cam follow their dream of raising three children on a New Hampshire farm. Theirs is a seemingly idyllic life of summer softball games and Labor Day cookouts, snow days and skating on the pond. But when a tragic accident permanently injures the family’s youngest child, Eleanor blames Cam. Her inability to forgive him leads to a devastating betrayal: an affair with the family babysitter that brings about the end of their marriage.

Over the decades that follow, the five members of this fractured family—and the many others who make up their world—make surprising discoveries and decisions that occasionally bring them together, and often tear them apart. As we follow the family from the days of illegal abortion and the draft through the early computer age, the Challenger explosion, the AIDS epidemic, the early awakenings of the #MeToo era, and beyond, through the gender transition of one of the children and another’s choice to cease communication with her mother, we witness a family forced to confront essential, painful truths of its past and find redemption in the face of unanticipated disaster.

With endearingly flawed characters and a keen eye for detail, Joyce Maynard transforms the territory she knows best—home, family, parenthood, love, and loss—into the stuff of a page-turning thriller. In this achingly beautiful novel, she reminds us how great sorrow and great joy may coexist—and frequently do.

My musings:

 

Every book I have ever read by Joyce Maynard managed to break my heart into a thousand pieces, and her latest is no exception to the rule! In an interview, Maynard stated that in COUNT THE WAYS she revisited the general concept of one of her earliest novels, WHERE LOVE GOES, which I read as a young mother and which remains one of my all-time favourite books. And yes, here again we have the themes of young marriage, parenthood, divorce and trying to survive the aftermath, but COUNT THE WAYS is set firmly in the present, making it extremely relatable.

 

Eleanor and Cam are a young couple in love, who settle on a small farm in New Hampshire where their three children are born in rapid succession. Life is simple but happy, until a terrible tragedy strikes, putting pressure on their marriage and ultimately being the catalyst for their divorce. In a broken family, blame and bitterness are often inevitable, which is a theme Eleanor in particular struggles with, whilst trying to protect her children from pain, even if it is at her own expense.

 

What lengths would you go to to protect your children? Fight dragons, put yourself in the path of a speeding car, sacrifice your soul to the devil? So does it come as a surprise that Eleanor will risk even losing her children’s love in order to shelter them from pain? I found this aspect of the novel the most heartbreaking, feeling pain and anger at witnessing Eleanor taking all the blame for the marriage breakup so her children will never be privy to the ugly truths leading up to it.

 

As we follow a young Eleanor from the 1970’s through to today, bearing witness to many of the historical events that touched her life (the explosion of the Challenger, Princess Diana’s and Michael Jackson’s death and more), this was both a family saga as well as a coming of age story of sorts, as her three children grow into adults. Having been around to live through some of these events myself, I found it easy to relate to all aspects of the story, and its characters took on the type of real-life quality that makes for the best reading experience. Full of heartfelt emotion, I found it hard to tear myself away from the story, and thoughts of Eleanor and her plight followed me into my dreams and thoughts for days after finishing the novel.

 

As I have said before, noone writes complicated relationships like Joyce Maynard! As with her previous books, Maynard shows an uncanny insight into the complexities of marriage and parenthood, again taking me on a true rollercoaster ride of emotions that left me heartsore and exhausted but so very glad that I was able to be part of these characters’ lives for a while.

Audiobook Review: WHAT COULD BE SAVED by Liese O'Halloran Schwarz

 

Title: WHAT COULD BE SAVED

Author:  Liese O’Halloran Schwarz

Read: January 2022

My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 all the stars!

 

Book Description:

 

Washington, DC, 2019: Laura Preston is a reclusive artist at odds with her older sister Bea as their elegant, formidable mother slowly slides into dementia. When a stranger contacts Laura claiming to be her brother who disappeared forty years earlier when the family lived in Bangkok, Laura ignores Bea’s warnings of a scam and flies to Thailand to see if it can be true. But meeting him in person leads to more questions than answers.

Bangkok, 1972: Genevieve and Robert Preston live in a beautiful house behind a high wall, raising their three children with the help of a cadre of servants. In these exotic surroundings, Genevieve strives to create a semblance of the life they would have had at home in the US—ballet and riding classes for the children, impeccable dinner parties, a meticulously kept home. But in truth, Robert works for American intelligence, Genevieve finds herself drawn into a passionate affair with her husband’s boss, and their serene household is vulnerable to unseen dangers of a rapidly changing world and a country they don’t really understand.

Alternating between past and present as all of the secrets are revealed, What Could Be Saved is an unforgettable novel about a family shattered by loss and betrayal, and the beauty and hope that can exist even in the midst of brokenness.

My musings:

 

I stumbled across WHAT COULD BE SAVED purely by accident and I am so glad that I did because I loved every minute of this book!

 

Forty years ago, Laura’s brother Phillip was abducted in Bangkok when his parents failed to pick him up after his judo lesson. The loss of their son and brother left lasting scars on the family, even long after they returned home to America. Now, decades later, Laura receives a phonecall from a woman in Thailand claiming that her brother has been found and is ready to be reunited with his family. With her father long dead, her mother suffering from dementia and her sister convinced that the call is a scam, Laura must trust her own instincts whether the man is her long lost brother or not.

 

Told in two separate timelines – the four years in the early 70’s leading up to Phillip’s disappearance, and today - WHAT COULD BE SAVED is the intriguing portrait of a family destroyed by tragedy. Or was the catalyst much earlier, before Phillip vanished? As Laura and her sister Bea are forced to confront the past, they uncover secrets about their family they never had to face up to – and come to terms with the way it has affected all of their lives.

 

I found WHAT COULD BE SAVED intriguing and captivating in equal measures, especially the chapters that tell of the family’s early days in Bangkok and the events leading up to Phillips disappearance. We hear very early on that Robert Preston, the children’s father, is working for British intelligence, even though his wife thinks they are in Thailand for a humanitarian project that is taking much longer than the three years they had initially signed up for. Both the descriptions of the ex-pats’ lives in Bangkok as well as the details regarding Robert’s posting were most interesting and kept me eagerly listening for more. Raised more by the servants than their absent and distracted parents, the siblings each adapt quickly to their new environment and each take on their own roles in the family they will keep long into adulthood. The events leading up to Phillips disappearance were tragic and as heartbreaking as the aftermath.

 

I often find that dual timelines don’t hold my interest equally, but this was not a problem in WHAT COULD BE SAVED. As much as I loved hearing about the children’s early years in Thailand, I was equally intrigued by their adult relationships and finding out more about Phillips fate. You know that your audio book is a winner when you pull into the driveway after your long commute and then sit in the car for ages in the dark because you need to listen just a bit longer.

 

Summary:

 

Exploring some dark themes such as infidelity, drugs, alcohol, the sex industry, revenge and the trauma of losing a child, WHAT COULD BE SAVED was an emotional rollercoaster of a book that had me totally enthralled from beginning to end. Each character was authentically drawn and believable, and I was very quickly drawn into the story and found myself deeply emotionally involved.  The author also paints Bangkok as an atmospheric and vivid backdrop to her story, which provided some great (if often troublesome) armchair travel, both from the perspective of the expats as well as one of their Thai employees who was working for the family at the time of Phillip’s disappearance. WHAT COULD BE SAVED will appeal to readers who love a character driven family saga full of intriguing secrets and sibling relationships. Highly recommended!

Book Review: THE BEAUTIFUL WORDS by Vanessa McCausland

 

Title: THE BEAUTIFUL WORDS

Author:  Vanessa McCausland

Publisher:  HarperCollins Publishers Australia

Read: January 2022

Expected publication: out now

My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟

 

Book Description:

 

Sylvie is a lover of words and a collector of stories, only she has lost her own. She has no words for that night at the lighthouse when their lives changed forever. What happened to cleave her apart from her best friend and soulmate, Kase?

 

Sylvie yearns to rekindle their deep connection, so when Kase invites her to the wild Tasmanian coast to celebrate her 40th birthday, she accepts - despite the ghosts she must face.

 

Through an inscription in an old book, Sylvie and Kase discover their mothers have a history, hidden from their daughters. As they unpick what took place before they were born, they're forced to face the rift in their own friendship, and the question of whether it's ever okay to keep a secret to protect the person you love.

My musings:

 

THE BEAUTIFUL WORDS is the third book I have read by Vanessa McCausland, and I enjoyed every one of them. In her latest books, she once again creates a beautiful, atmospheric Australian setting (this time in Tasmania) and complex characters whose relationships appear authentic and moving. As with her other books, THE BEAUTIFUL WORDS touched my heart as each character has to overcome their own struggles. And like in THE LOST SUMMERS OF DRIFTWOOD, the story revolves around the themes of friendship, family secrets, grief, reinventing yourself and ultimately healing and hope.

 

Readers who love the theme of female friendships in all its complexity will be pleased with McCausland’s portrayal of Sylvie and Kase, best friends at school and soul sisters, until a tragedy tore them apart. Now, over twenty years later, the friends meet again for Kase’s 40th birthday celebrations on a small Tasmanian island near Bruny. To repair the rift that cleaved their worlds apart, they must first face up to the truth of what happened when they were just teenagers ....

 

I love the way the author portrays her female protagonists, endowing each with a rich history that makes them relatable in many ways and gives them unique, multi-layered personalities as with people you meet in real life. And whilst the author has taken a theme that is very relevant today and close to her heart, you will find no preaching or lecturing here, just a gentle tug on your conscience and your heartstrings as she takes you by the hand and leads you down the path of her story with all the tumultuous emotions connected to it. Set in three different timelines – the 1960’s, 1990’s and today, three generations of women are linked by a secret that will have far reaching effects on all of them.

 

 

Summary:

 

THE BEAUTIFUL WORDS transcends multiple genres: part mystery, part drama, there is also a light sprinkling of romance, leaving the reader with a sense of hope and light despite the dark themes explored here. McCausland is a talented storyteller who knows how to bring her characters and her settings to life with language that flows a smoothly and gently like the waves lapping against the beaches in her story, which made it a real treat to read. This book will appeal to readers who enjoy contemporary books centred around female friendships and family secrets that linger in your mind and heart long after the last page has been turned.

 

 

 

Thank you to HarperCollins Australia for the free electronic copy of this novel and for giving me the opportunity to provide an honest review.

Books from my TBR pile - mini reviews

 MINI REVIEWS:

THE DARK by Emma Haughton 🌟🌟🌟

 

THE DARK is a locked room mystery set in the harsh landscape of an Arctic winter, as a group of scientists are overwintering in a remote research station. Dr Kate North has been sent to replace the group’s previous doctor, who has been killed in a tragic accident on the ice – but was it an accident? The more questions Kate asks, the tighter the group pulls together, locking her out and refusing to discuss the matter – until Kate is convinced that the doctor’s death may not have been an accident after all. But with the Arctic winter upon her, there is no way out ....

 

What I loved:

*) The atmospheric setting in an Antarctic research station. Some of the descriptions of the harsh landscape and the Southern lights managed to transport me there.

*) The psychology of a diverse bunch of people stuck in a claustrophobic setting for a few months was fascinating, with the harsh winter and darkness confining them even more. I also thought that the author portrayed really well how difficult it would be for an outsider (Kate) to be thrown into a group of people who have all been together for a long period of time and share secrets they want to keep hidden at all cost.

*) The premise of a medical emergency whilst stuck in a remote place with no outside help available was terrifying and well presented – if a tiny bit melodramatic.

 

Not so much:

*) I found it very difficult to bond with Kate, the main character. Whilst I had empathy for her battle with her opioid addiction and mourning the death of her fiancé, her constantly terrible decisions made me wonder how she was ever chosen for her role in the research station.

*) Some elements of the plot were too farfetched to seem plausible, i.e. how would an organisation employing people to live and work in one of the most remote places on earth not implement simple steps such as drug testing to keep things running smoothly? Almost every single member of the team was acting very unprofessionally for a group of experts employed to man a research station – I just didn’t quite buy it!

*) The mystery wasn’t suspenseful enough to really keep me engaged – I would have loved some more spooky vibes or messing with my mind, just as the constant darkness would have unsettled the group of scientists stuck in their remote home with no way out. Early in the book, the author referenced one of my favourite books, DARK MATTER by Michelle Paver, which mastered the balance between spooky vibes, unreliable narrator and psychological thriller as few other books have done since – and that was exactly what I was looking for!

 

All in all, THE DARK was a locked room mystery with a deliciously remote claustrophobic setting, which didn’t thrill me as much as I had hoped but still provided some great armchair travel and a decent enough mystery to keep me engaged. If I had been able to better relate to the main character, I may have rated this a lot higher.

 

 

THE ASSISTANT by S.K. Tremayne 🌟🌟🌟

Do you own an Alexa, a Siri or a Google Assistant? Are you happy to let them take control over some parts of your life, or even provide you with company of sorts, even if it’s just an electronic voice answering your questions and demands? Do you really own them, or do they own you? After reading this book, you may want to unplug them!

 

To be honest, the thought of an electronic assistant who has control over things in my home and life in general has always freaked me out, so it came as no surprise to me when things started going wrong with this concept in Tremayne’s novel THE ASSISTANT. For Jo, who has resorted to seeing her electronic helpers as the friendly voices she turns to when she is lonely, their sudden betrayal probably came as much more of a shock. Especially since they seem to know her deepest, darkest secret – and threaten to expose it if she doesn’t give in to their demands. Blackmailed by a robot – what a perfect premise for a 21st century mystery!

 

I usually love the concept of an unreliable character due to some mental illness or memory disorder, which throws all their actions and memories into doubt. Did they really do this, or did they just imagine they did? Is the main character just paranoid, or is there really someone out there trying to hurt them? Jo’s father had schizophrenia, which first manifested itself by the TV “talking to him”, which is why Jo is terrified when the electronic assistants first turn against her. Is she going crazy, too?

 

Whilst the first part of the novel perfectly messed with my mind, the later part did go slightly over the top for me, as I had to suspend a lot of disbelief. I also felt that Jo’s decisions were often inconsistent with the rest of her character, and she fell too easily into the role of the victim, when a woman of her experience and profession would surely have sought professional help or advice rather than let herself get trapped in a rather far-fetched situation. However, all in all this was a suspenseful premise that kept me guessing, and an easy, entertaining read that provided the distraction I was looking for.

 

 

THE DEVIL AND THE DARK WATER by Stuart Turton 🌟🌟🌟1/2

If you have read THE 7 ½ DEATHS OF EVELYN HARDCASTLE, then you will know that Turton writes unusual stories that stand out from the rest and are hard to put into any particular genre. This was also the case with his second book, THE DEVIL AND THE DARK WATER, which at best I can only describe as a mix between Pirates of the Caribbean, Sherlock Holmes and Indiana Jones, with the hint of supernatural themes thrown into the mix. This is a hefty book, rich in descriptions and a massive cast of characters that at times were difficult to keep track of. Set mostly aboard a ship and the high seas, it will appeal to any reader who loves a good adventure story.

 

I’m at a loss how to review a book that is so complex and straddles a multitude of themes and genres. Adventure, mystery, action and a demonic threat – you get it all here. THE DEVIL AND THE DARK WATER was a book to be savoured slowly, partly because my arms got tired from holding its bulk up whilst reading, and partly to keep all the characters straight in my mind. Set in 1634, the novel provided that particular mix between fantasy and historical fiction that offers the ultimate escape. Throw in a bit of swash-buckling and it’s a perfect distraction from the woes of our times (with all the slaughter and mayhem going on aboard the Saardam, our lives look peachy and pampered in comparison).

 

All in all, THE DEVIL AND THE DARK WATER is a book that cannot be pigeon-holed into any particular category and will appeal to a wide variety of readers: action, adventure, detective stories, historical fiction and a hint of romance. I enjoyed the distraction and entertainment it provided and am waiting with bated breath what Turton will come up with next!

 

 

THE LAST FLIGHT by Julie Clark 🌟🌟🌟1/2

I am always intrigued by the premise of people trying to disappear or changing identity, so the idea of two women trading passports at the airport to escape their own lives immediately got my attention. And whilst it may sound a bit farfetched, Clark managed to convince me that even in our times it may be possible to disappear off the radar, if you have courage and use a bit of imagination.

 

Claire and Eva both have valid reasons to run away – Claire from a controlling, violent husband, and Eva from a dangerous man who has a hold on her for other reasons. A chance encounter at the airport gives them the chance to switch identities and disappear off the radar long enough to hopefully make a clean getaway. But of course it could not be this easy now, could it? From here follows a twisty thriller with lots of surprises in store, as well as a look back into the lives of the two women before they decided to run away.

 

Whilst switching identities isn’t a new concept, Clark put a new, refreshing spin on the topic and kept me enthralled with her tale from beginning to end. And whilst I struggled a bit with the pacing of the story and thought that the ending could have exploited the premise a bit more to add drama and suspense, THE LAST FLIGHT was a quick, entertaining read that was a perfect weekend read to chill out with.

Book Review: THE WAY FROM HERE by Jane Cockram

 

Title: THE WAY FROM HERE

Author:  Jane Cockram

Publisher:  Harlequin Australia HQ

Read: January 2022

Expected publication: 2 March 2022

My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟

 

Book Description:

 

Three generations of women. Three generations worth of secrets. Will a cache of letters from beyond the grave hold the key to unravelling them all? The answer to that question lies at the heart of this addictive and atmospheric novel from the author of The House of Brides.

Growing up, the Anderson sisters could not have been more different. Susie, the wild one, had an adventurous life while Camilla— Mills—followed a safer path. When Susie suddenly dies, Mills falls apart. Until she receives a bundle of mysterious letters from her estranged sister to be read in the case of her death. Each letter instructs her to visit a place special to Susie, both to spread her ashes but also to uncover some truths Susie has long kept hidden from her family.

What attracted me to this book:

 

I love sister mysteries, and family secrets, so THE WAY FROM HERE was the perfect book for me, as it spun both themes into a suspenseful story that touched my heart.

My musings:

 

Camilla has always been the sensible, rational Anderson sister, whilst Susie was the wild, spontaneous, rebellious one. When Susie dies tragically just before her 40^th birthday, Camilla is left with just a bundle of letters from her sister, urging her to go overseas and visit places from Susie’s past that changed her life and put a distance between the sisters that Camilla could never fully explain. Intrigued, Camilla sets off to France to walk in her sister’s footsteps and solve the mystery of what happened to her that long ago summer that had such a lasting effect on Susie’s life ....

 

I loved the way Cockram portrayed Camilla and Susie’s sister relationship, a bond that seems tenuous at times and yet draws the siblings together time and time again, despite the differences in their personalities. Camilla’s quest to find out about her sister’s past was as touching as it was intriguing, and I was instantly hooked and fully invested in finding out the answers for myself. It certainly also helped that Cockram sets her story on a picturesque little French island, adding some delicious armchair travel to the mix. The more clues Camilla uncovered, the clearer it became that this was one family mystery that would go deeper than just your average misstep on a youthful backpacking adventure. We learn how all the women’s fates in the family are connected, from the sisters to their mother and grandmother, each of their decisions affecting the rest of their lives as well as future generations.

 

 

Summary:

 

THE WAY FROM HERE is a story about three generations of women bound by a secret that will have far-reaching effects on all of their lives. All relationships are wonderfully drawn, dipping into a well of emotions that touched my heart and made me connect to each character on a visceral level until I felt like a participant in the story rather than just a casual observer. Nellie, Margaret, Susie and Camilla each have unique voices that tell their side of the story as we gradually uncover the dark shadow that has lain over the family for generations. Intriguing and bittersweet, this book will appeal to readers who love a good character driven sister mystery.

 

 

 

Thank you to Netgalley and Harlequin Australia HQ for the free electronic copy of this novel and for giving me the opportunity to provide an honest review.