Contemporary Fiction

This is one of my first forays into the magical realism genre compared to my past reads that are solidly fantasy adventure or straight fiction which is a group of character leading seemingly unrelated lives and stories whose only surface level connection is their shared residence at the Dellawisp Manor/condo. New to the island and fresh out of high school Zoey moves into her late mom’s condo and spends the whole novel discovering parts of herself and finding her place in life through learning about her other neighbors on Mallow Island. The magical realism contributes the presence of certain characters as ghosts who have their memories and stories in-tact but really only exist to connect with those who are actually alive. The story jumps between different characters perspectives in the present tense as well as slowly introducing their backstories which surprise, isn’t as unrelated as things appear. I found the characters backstories and arcs to be quite varied but there’s common themes of broken or flawed familial life, rough upbringings, and a sense of abandonment. The story focuses on the concept of found family and although there are dark elements of child abuse and substance abuse, Other Birds still feels…

A solid 4.5 that I’m tentatively rounding up as a nod to how well crafted this novel is. The dialogue between the various characters is snappy and the back and forth snark between Nora and Charlie is amazing (while also giving me uncanny valley to how I talk and respond at times). What I love about Book Lovers is it’s realist satirical tone poking fun at the common romance book tropes delivered via Nora’s first-hand expertise as a literary book agent; it’s so refreshing to read how it throws in a common trope and then runs with it as a self-aware joke. While it’s not categorized as a comedy per say, I often found myself chuckling thanks to the witty dialogue and smart humor (+some purposefully cringy business pun names). The last plot sequence in the last 70 pages or so is where the narrative started to stray from my personal taste. I was fully sold for majority of the story but I found Nora’s perspective and character to be a little off-putting. This is entirely a me thing; her character development and internal growth is excellent and relatable for many but is not something I connect or empathize with…

Full disclosure, I decided to read The Glass Hotel purely because I had purchased a copy of the Sea of Tranquility not realizing there’s a bit of overlap and a cameo appearance by the character of Mirella who has a supporting role in The Glass Hotel and a main arc in Tranquility (they’re both standalone but I wanted to read them in order regardless). I had little expectation based on the vague and convoluted synopsis for the Glass Hotel, but perhaps having no expectations enhanced the reading experience as I was blow away by the back half and ending of this book. This was an absolute page-turner for me from the half-way mark but not in a traditional sense or one that most readers will agree with. It’s difficult to describe and summarize, but the gist of The Glass Hotel involved the reveal and collapse of a large-scale Ponzi scheme involving investments and the impact it has on a giant cast of characters (money and wealth is a constant theme throughout but that’s not the only fallout involved). Reading the Glass Hotel feels like watching Mandel play a game of chess with herself. The novel includes no less than at…

Note: The following original review for this book is old and does not meet current review standards. A fully rewritten review is planned. I had a hard time trying to figure out why I couldn’t really get into this one despite the novel having all the elements to be a compelling and romantic read and I think the biggest problem I had was finding the protagonist August and her love interest Jane to be bland and uninspiring. There’s quite a colorful variety of characters of various ethnic backgrounds and sexualities that provide fun group dynamics and banter which help pad out the novel (the side characters are frankly more interesting than the leads), but I felt like the actual core story and romance was thin and lacking development. To their credit McQuiston tries to pull some creative scenes to break up the monotony of repetitive constant scenes all taking place in a subway train car, but I often found myself applauding the effort that went into the book rather than actually enjoying the book. I also felt like there was very little plot progression in the first 250 pages other than establishing that August is out of place in a big…

Note: The following original review for this book is old and does not meet current review standards. A fully rewritten review is planned. On paper this book wasn’t going to be my cup of tea as I am generally uninterested and detached from stories focusing on familial drama. While I struggled to stay invested for majority of the first 2/3 of the book, my patience was rewarded by the last 70 or so pages that surprisingly connect all the loose threads in such an explosive and exciting manner (rewarding endings seem to be a trend for me and Matt Haig novels). I was almost taken aback at how much action happens in such a short number of pages vs the rest of the novel that spent so much time setting the characters and pieces into place. As other reviews that covered, the vampire elements and lore take a back seat to the drama and relationships between the Radley family members and suspicious neighbors in the quiet village of Bisthopthorpe, though they do have key moments that are integral to the plot. Would’ve rated the first 2/3 of the book 2 stars and the last 1/3 4 stars so we’ll go with…