thoughts on books

Category: Debut

  • first time long time by amy silverstein

    Allison is a college professor and at the age of 28, her mother is being very annoying about her singleness. Allison is a relatable character, she has other side hustles like facilitating book clubs. She met Reid at a bar, he is close to her father’s age. He is a successful shock jock and inspired by Howard Stern. She teaches creating writing and is a writer herself. Allison’s divorced parents are interesting side characters.

    I struggled with how to rate this- some of the lines of dialogue are so purely and cleverly written. This is true witty banter and a “slice of life” story. Amy Silverberg is a talented writer and has keen observations of life. My favorite character is Reid’s daughter Emma (she is incorrectly called Maddie in the blurb).

    In the acknowledgements she mentions that this started as a 30 page short story and damn I bet that was amazing. I kept thinking “this would work better as a short story” as it was a strangely paced story. Also the blurb gives away a LOT of the story that doesn’t happen until 66% through the novel.

    Like many of my favorite short stories, it ends with just an image, rather than a conclusion of plot. If you are looking for a lot of plot, you will likely be disappointed; but if you love observational dialogue, this is some of the best I’ve read.

    Thank you to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for the ARC. Book to be published July 22, 2025.

  • doll parts by penny zang

    An intriguing and creative debut novel with dueling timelines of “sad girls on campus” twenty years ago and another timeline of today.

    Sadie has a baby and lives with her child’s father, Harrison. Harrison is recently widowed by Sadie’s former childhood friend, Nikki. So, Sadie and Nikki were estranged and never spoke for 20 years. Nikki dies, seemingly of suicide, and Sadie sits in the back at her funeral. 9 months later we skip and Sadie is living with her widow and has a baby with him.

    If this seems weird and a bit unbelievable, you aren’t alone in that thought!

    We side with Sadie and see things from her perspective. We don’t love Harrison, we aren’t sure about Caroline, who is Nikki and Harrison’s teen daughter.

    Both mysteries are good, the past one is better, it is clever to be following two mysteries in different timelines because it gets away from the typical criticism of slow burn mysteries as that it can drag in the middle.

    Why is it called Doll Parts? No idea! I do love the cover, though.

    My favorite character was Nikki, the past segments are in her view point.

    Lots of open ended things with no conclusion, but it works. I liked this and found i very readable, some of the minor characters didn’t have enough characterization so I didn’t know them as well. I did love the setting and the writing style.

    A fresh new voice in women centered mystery/thrillers!

    Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks/Landmark for the ARC. Book to be published August 26, 2025.

  • the phoenix pencil company by allison king

    You have 32 great-great-great-grandparents. And some of them were probably very brave. Some were very smart, and some were very good people. Over time, their stories have been lost, likely you do not know any of their stories specifically. If you have done 23 and me, you likely know where they were born and grew up. For most people on earth today, you live in a different country than your great-great-great grandparents did. And so much of our experience, our connections, are wildly different than theirs. And yet, much is the same.

    Monica’s family’s legacy is the Phoenix Pencil company, a manufacturer of pencil in Shanghai. As her grandmother Yun is facing her final days, Monica wants to reconcile her relationship with her cousin Meng. She survived the Chinese civil war (I did have to look up “Chinese civil war” on wikipedia quickly for context) and came to California, leaving her beloved cousin behind. Soon Monica discovers that the pencils are not just pencils but carry the stories within them. And what is a Phoenix but a magical creature that burns and is born from its own ashes.

    Highly lyrical and descriptive, The Phoenix Pencil Company is a debut novel that spans generations and continents. The characters change and grow, and there is also a tangential love story that (to me) kind of sprang up out of nowhere. The plot, while simplistic, was hopeful and original. True to the culture and timeline, the story echoes the question, “who owns your story and who will tell it?”

    Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for the ARC. Book to be published June 3, 2025.

  • the art of vanishing by morgan pager

    A lovely original story, reminiscent of a stand alone episode of Doctor Who or The Twilight Zone. Claire gets a great job cleaning an art museum and can’t stop staring at the artwork, painting in the early 20th century. The tour guides are able to give people the background of the artists, painting their families, and the symbolism of the objects within the paintings. Claire has a good trainer, Linda, and takes a bit longer cleaning at night, until she realizes that she can see the people in the paintings move, which will remind you of the Harry Potter paintings at Hogwarts. 

    Like the magical paintings, the subjects are pulled into a painting world, do not sleep, and freeze in place during the day. But at night they come alive and can even visit worlds in the other paintings on the walls. Claire is unique in that she can step into the painting, and will fall in love with 19 year old Jean. She has some family secrets she isn’t sure she wants to reveal about herself. But just as she is willing to open up, the covid pandemic happens and the painting subjects are completely confused as to why they have been abandoned, left in the dark. They surmise that the country is at war.

    This debut novel is such a creative romantic premise, written simply and accessibly, for those that enjoy the magical realism and romantic genre. This is lighter on the romance and heavier on contemporary fiction and characterization. There are 3 storylines, Claire finding out about Jean in his world, the pandemic and what happens with Claire and her family during the 4 months they are apart, and a bit of a suspense/crime storyline at the end. 

    While some reviewers may not like the change in plot direction, I found it to be whimsical and clever. Jean is a relatable character, and Claire bringing her iPhone into the paintings and conversations about how different their worlds are is very humorous, smoking, technology, art and the appreciation thereof. 

    It is a bit of a doomed relationship for obvious reasons, but the best relationships teach us more about ourselves, even when they don’t last forever. 

    Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Ballantine for the ARC. Book to be published July 1, 2025.

  • grace of the empire state by gemma tizzard

    This book is just like Mulan except if Mulan was named Grace and;

    Instead of replacing her old dad as a soldier she replaced her twin brother with a broken arm
    Instead of China it is America
    Instead of the year 400 it is 1930
    Instead of fighting a war she is being a riveter 300 feet in the sky, building the Empire State Building.
    Instead of falling for her commanding officer she falls for her Italian co-worker Joe.

    Much like Mulan, Grace dresses as a man in order to save the day. It is a good and memorable story and a solid effort from a debut author. I will say it is written very simply, probably at an 8th grade level. It reminds me of the old books based on the American girl dolls.

    Boy it is a good thing we have OSHA and Unions. Otherwise we would all be dead. I adore the Empire State Building and I am eternally grateful for my great grandfather who poured the steel in Pittsburgh to create it, and the riveters and connectors who put the whole thing together.

    Thank you to @gallerybooks for this #gifted book #partner.

  • playing flirty by shameez patel

    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7211329694

    I gave this geek-driven rom com 2 stars for a couple of reasons; mostly that I did not like the main character and I didn’t believe her. The MMC, William, was a little one dimensional. Although I found his actions endearing and lovable, I didn’t know him like I like to. I was missing the chemistry. The relationship between Rose and William’s half brother Shaun was a solid one, Shaun gets engaged to Rose’s female best friend early on in the book. I liked that Rose was good friends with both of them equally and also as a pair. 

    Much of the middle was boring, we don’t see her attraction to her boyfriend Patrick, he treats her terribly and they aren’t right for each other. Although there is a rivals-to-lovers trope, it comes along slow and drags in parts. I couldn’t get used to the prose and it was challenging for me. 

    So while I didn’t love the content, I do want to give the audiobook 3.5 stars- I was gifted an audiobook from Hachette Audio and NetGalley. To separate the content from the narrator, I did feel like the audiobook narrator did a good job of the Rose dialogue. There were longer pauses so I listened at 2.0 speed although I listened 3 times through because I wanted to give me diligence to the audiobook narration separate from the content of the book. While I probably wouldn’t pick up another book from this author, I would happily choose another book by this narrator. 

    Thanks again to Netgalley and Hachette audio. Book was published January 14, 2025.

  • between the devil and the deep blue sea by jessica guerreri

    Leah is ten years into a marriage with 3 children. Her husband, who comes from a comfortably wealthy family, sees her as the center of the universe, but she is fueled by resentments and a self-pity that will not be quieted. Her life was upended and her art took a backseat when she became pregnant with her first child, and somehow she ended up drinking more and more each night. Leah is close with her sister in law, Amy, who has had a difficult upbringing. A well written book that feels like falling into quicksand, which is a apt analogy for how sometimes alcoholism sneaks up on us as our lives get smaller and smaller.

    I likely would not have picked up this book had I not read the blurb, which says it is critical of “mommy wine culture,” which is something I am passionate about. There are plenty of “sober curious” quit lit memoirs out there, and many women find a lot to relate to about them. However, I find that it works here better in a fiction rather than memoir format. I like the challenge of writing a story of acceptance and coming to realization that something has to change in your life.

    This is a perfect read for those who liked [b:Same As It Ever Was|199344873|Same As It Ever Was|Claire Lombardo|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1701715475l/199344873.SX50.jpg|203772114] and [b:Sandwich|200028726|Sandwich|Catherine Newman|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1699631079l/200028726.SY75.jpg|201706043], the inner dialogue and unraveling of a mother in her midst of her life, the story picking up when life seems boring, it doesn’t seem that things are changing often, but you are reaching for substances to get you through your days. If I have a criticism of the book it is just that the main character will be seen as unlikable for most of the book, it is hard to root for her. It is hard to feel connected to someone that is self-pitying and resentful, these are things we often miss in ourselves in our self-awareness.

    This debut novelist is one to watch.

    Thanks to @netgalley and @harpermuse for the ARC. Thank you not only for the ARC itself but for reaching out to me and recommending it for me specifically. Book to be published May 13, 2025.

  • penitence by kristin koval

    Literary fiction with a tremendous amount of suspense. This is a book you won’t be able to put down. 13 year old Nora shoots her 14 year old brother Nico in Lodgepole, Colorado. Her parents, David and Angie, are devastated.

    I can’t imagine a worse scenario.

    Will she be tried as an adult or a juvenile? Is it second or first degree murder? Nora’s defense attorney will be Julian, who was Angie’s first love.

    Alternating chapters go back to the late 90’s, when Angie and Julian were together and starting their careers in New York City. Julian turns to alcohol to deal with the terrible stress of being a young g lawyer. I thought this was going to be a mystery of why Nora shot her beloved brother,but it is such an expansive and engaging story. The characters are imperfect and interesting. They have a hard time forgiving themselves but an easy time forgiving others.

    This is good on audio, the narrator is excellent.

    Thanks to NetGalley and @macmillan.audio for the ARC. Book will be published January 28, 2025.

  • broken country by clare leslie hall

    This book grabs you and slowly pulls you into a small country town and a collection of tragic, untimely deaths that will leave you reeling. This book is heartbreaking, but in the very best way, and you will no doubt hold your heart and sigh. EVERYONE IS GOING TO READ THIS BOOK. I am sure of this, it is going to be on every top ten list this year, everyone’s book club pick, and a movie will be made, so you might as well add it to your TBR now.

    The very symbolic beginning starts when a dog runs into a field of sheep and attacks the lamb, as it likely the dog’s nature. The farmer shoots the dog to save the rest of the flock, and a 10 year old boy, Leo, cries out. Leo believes his dog has been murdered. Leo and his father Gabriel are new to the small country village in England after being in America, Gabriel is returning back to where he grew up after a divorce from Leo’s American mom.

    Small towns are where everyone is connected, and the farmer, Jimmy Johnson, has a close brother Frank and his wife, Beth. It turns out that Beth was Gabriel’s first love, and they still have feelings for each other 10 years later. Beth and Frank have a good partnership, but one that has been racked with tragedy. Two years ago, Beth and Frank lost their son Bobby, who was Leo’s age.

    Gabriel and Beth become friends again, and Beth begins to look after Leo. She tells Frank that it helps her with Bobby, because no one else in her life will let her talk about her dead son.

    I read this book in one sitting, it is historical fiction as it takes place mostly in 1968, but jumps back to 1955 when Beth and Gabriel and Frank meet, and jumps forward at the end to 1975 when the tragic events of the book have all run their course to a future of hope. The story sits with you for some time, and you consider what intimacy means. Can you be in love with two men at the same time? Can you love a child in the same way you loved your own? Can your relationships heal after losing a child?

    If you have lost your only child, are you still a mother?

    It will make you think about how you treat the people in your lives that have overcome loss.

    Thanks to @netgalley and @simonbooks for the ARC. Book to be published 3/4/25.

  • fake it like you mean it by Megan Murphy

    Elle is a successful podcaster with a series called Elle on the L in which she interviews people on the Chicago commuter train. This book has one of the cutest and sweetest openings from the first chapter! The first thing we read tells us more about the tone of the book than it does about Elle herself, but that comes later. Elle was raised by her grandparents, and her widowed grandmother Lovie lives in her Indiana hometown. Elle goes home to visit and take care of Lovie only to find a home health nurse named Adam Wheeler. Adam is a good guy, your typical hero that the Hallmark holiday movie heroine falls for when she is back in her hometown. He is completely non-problematic and funny.

    Lovie mistakes them for herself and her late husband, how sweet is that? The majority of the book is them falling for each other and dealing with Lovie’s dementia and advancing Alzheimer’s disease. Lovie is such a firecracker, even in her advanced state of memory loss, with such zingers as “calories only count if you count them.” Adam helps Elle see her limitations in being a caregiver, together they learn that “you don’t have to have lost your memories to not want to keep coming back to what brings you comfort.”

    Alzheimer’s is a main character in this debut novel, and it is so well done that I am sure the novelist is writing from experience. While the romance has some good banter and chemistry, the relationship between Lovie and Elle really takes center stage. The major theme is “Love is supposed to make you more yourself, not less” and Adam and Elle are able to love each other in a way they haven’t before.

    Biggest criticism is my second lease favorite trope- the miscommunication/third act breakup. I would make a 3rd act breakup illegal if I could. I feel like it’s unnecessary easy pacing element that this book could have done without.

    Overall, I loved it. A must read for any contemporary romance readers that have been through the life altering experience of loving someone with Alzheimer’s.

    Thanks to NetGalley and Alcove Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Book to be released March 18, 2025.