The Daughters of Temperance Hobbs

 by Katherine Howe
March 29-April 6, 2020

I remember liking the Physick Book. A lot. Because I love witches and magic. Howe really impressed me with her crafting of the story. And while I remember the general gist of the story, the details are long forgotten. 10 years later, we have a continuation to the story. It probably would have been helpful to get reacquainted with the Physick Book first, but perhaps a better solution would have been to not wait 10 years for a follow-up. That's simply self-indulgent and gratuitous.

This time around, I am considerably less impressed. The repeat characters were hollow and lacked any depth. The fringe characters were pointless. I just didn't find Connie and Sam's relationship to be believable, passionate or event truthful. Connie, who now is in her early 30s, is extremely immature and behaves like someone barely in college. The dialogue had a much younger audience in mind (I know, right?!). There was entirely too much focus on Connie's attempt at tenure and she's always grading papers and ....blah...I'm here for the witches.

There was just no real mystery or drama to support this story. The family "curse" is revealed, with very few oohs and ahhs. It felt vaguely familiar to its predecessor, without any of the intrigue. What I did like, however, was keeping track of the generations of witches in the family, dating back to the late 1600s.

Deliverance   Mercy   Prudence   Patience   Temperance   Faith   Verity   Chastity   Charity

I really wish there would have been more focus on the past witches than the current ho-hum one. And don't get me started on the names of the newest witches, born at the end of this book, again with very little fanfare.

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Mostly Dead Things

by Kristen Arnett
March 20-29, 2020

Well, now I'm mostly dead. The biggest emotion this book evoked was rage. Some would view that as an accomplishment, but that certainly isn't my intention. I feel like I hate-read the entire novel, hoping that just maybe it would redeem itself. The author even took it upon herself to deliver the CliffsNotes version not even halfway through, just in case anyone needed a little push.

  "There was my mother, with her sudden deviation from anything I’d ever known or expected from her. My father had killed himself in a place where he knew I’d find him, leaving me a note that said it was my responsibility to take care of the things he wasn’t strong enough to handle. The only woman I’d ever cared for I’d shared with my brother, a person I simultaneously loved and hated for it." 

And still, I couldn't have cared less. Every single character was so shallow and unlikable that I struggled to focus, skimming many of the repetitive sentences. The author chose to describe people by their zits and scabs, rather than with any real emotion. The narrator was so hollow it was a wonder she was still breathing.

These characters aren’t simply unlikable. They are all horrible people who actually commit horrific crimes and suffer no consequences. I can’t image one person who would enjoy reading about the illegal killing of animals; while these acts barely got a modicum of reaction. The final chapter attempted to “make this OK” and was completely outrageous, ludicrous.

Atmospherically, everything was dirty and gross. Each scene took on some type of heavy, overused descriptive, becoming so frequent that I was more focused on the miasma than the moment itself. A long-awaited, soul-baring moment between brother and sister was ruined with disgusting details. A tender scene with two people finally declaring love (in and of itself unbelievable because no character depth was ever established) was spoiled when one licked bug parts of the other's palm. My face was in a constant grimace. Not my form of entertainment.

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Marilou is Everywhere

by Sarah Elaine Smith
Feb 9-23, 2020

I happened upon Marilou by chance. A dear friend of mine emailed one day from Chicago to tell me that an old high school friend of hers was doing a book reading at a bar in Cleveland the next night. On that cold, rainy night I was instantly hypnotized by Sarah's voice. I bought the book at the event, which she signed with a thoughtful, joyful passage. I couldn't wait to get started.

The book begins so atmospheric and calming, and I could still hear Sarah's voice reading aloud in my head. I could instantly put myself in that time and place. It was evident that the author meticulously crafted each and every sentence – she has two Master's degrees; fiction and poetry.

"The pond looked alive to me, even the shape of the hills around it... I felt, all at the same moment, that it was valiant for beauty and also so plain that it embarrassed me to belong to it... under the hawthorns, fine dappled mushrooms winked like they had invented themselves..."

Her metaphors were dreamy and yet so descriptive. But at some point, I felt that I was just indulging the poet.

"It was my time and I felt fat. A rose is. The dew of a frigid October. Buster Keaton's beautiful eyes."

I must have read those sentences five times trying to figure out what it had to do with the game of charades two characters were playing (I think – nothing.). What makes a great novel is the character development, but suddenly the characters felt empty and shallow.

"I felt like my words were made out of bones and hot dogs and nonsense."

How does that help the reader? This short book was moving at a snail's pace, and I really wanted to find out what happened, but instead one chapter was entirely devoted to soy sauce. And some excerpts were completely out of character comparative to the perfectly-honed ones:

"And Clinton didn't say about it, so I didn't say about it, and the green fur was was coming back up in divots..."

That feels like it belongs in a different book. The randomness seemed to grow rampant. The plot definitely lost track. When the climax was finally revealed, I found myself appalled at what an absolutely horrible person the so-called protagonist was – unfounded and out of nowhere. I feel like the book would have been better served to stick to a more concise plot and "try" a little less. I grew so very weary of the poetry and the metaphors, I was bored.

There's no doubt Sarah has a talent, it just needs a bit more focus for future novels. Three stars for the friend connection, but really only 2.5.

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The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna

by Juliet Grames
Jan 20-Feb 9, 2020

There is nothing I like more than a sweeping saga that spans time and generations, and in this case, more than one hundred years. So much needs to be told. Perceptions of characters may change for better or for worse, and some may stay the same. It's a true testament to the author who can evoke such strong feelings for these fictional characters.

Immediately, Grames paints a picture of a staunch Catholic upbringing where tradition is everything. And yet, you can't help but laugh out loud.

"Assunta was shy of boys and had been successfully trained to channel that groin-tightening teenage energy into concentrating on Mother Mary’s virginity while reciting the rosary."

And while there were plenty of laughs – especially every time Stella's sister threw herself to the ground in hysterics – the brutally painful moments erased any of the humor. But for me, a successful book is one that can take my emotions on a roller coaster ride.

"Those who eat alone choke alone." ~CALABRESE PROVERB

A sign of a great book for me is when I think about getting back to it every minute of the day. I actually woke up early this morning anticipating the last few chapters. I also "accidentally" stayed up way too late on a school night as the time passed unnoticed over Stella's story.

"Without faith there are no miracles, just coincidences."

In the end it's about family, faith and tradition and what it takes to endure all these things successfully over the course of a lifetime.

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The Huntress

by Kate Quinn
Dec 28, 2019-Jan 19, 2020

2020 is off to a good start! The Huntress immediately drew me in with its alternating chapters based on three of the main characters. Definitely a history lesson, definitely not a mystery (in a good way). It's evident right from the jump who the huntress is, but that doesn't in any way take away from the suspense.

I admit I'm mostly interested in France and Poland's role in WWII, so I wasn't as engrossed in Nina's wartime experience from her Russian perspective. However, it must be said that Quinn did her research and introduced me to the Night Witches – fearless Russian women fighter pilots that played a huge role in conquering the Nazis. But dividing the book into thirds, with the first part establishing the background, the middle defining specific details and history, and the last part tying everything together, the middle dragged on a little too long and tried to include too many extraneous elements. This alone is what knocks my rating down to three (and a half) stars from four. I found the 540+ pages a bit gratuitous.

“We’re standing in the ashes of a war like no other – if we don’t try harder to see the shades of gray involved, we’ll find ourselves in the thick of a new one.”

Irregardless, a highly entertaining, suspenseful book loaded with symbolism. Credit the ending for being a real page turner with a satisfying ending.

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