YVO’S SHORTIES #94 – Release & How To Walk Away

Time for another round of Yvo’s Shorties! This time around a title I ended up having mixed thoughts about (Release by Patrick Ness) and another I picked up based on recommendations and ended up really enjoying (How To Walk Away by Katherine Center).

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Title: Release
Author: Patrick Ness
Genre: YA, Fiction, Contemporary
First published: May 7th 2017
Publisher: Walker Books
Finished reading: April 4th 2019
Pages: 287

“Blame is a human concept, one of its blackest and most selfish and self-binding.”

I had been meaning to pick up another Patrick Ness title for a while now, and thought the Magical Readathon was the perfect excuse to do so. I’ve been seeing mixed things about Release ever since it was… errr… released, so I decided to keep expectations low. I’m glad I did, because I ended up having mixed thoughts about this story as well. In fact, something similar happened with The Rest Of Us Just Live Here (the chapter introductions vs. the rest of the chapters) so I’m guessing this particular writing style and me just don’t really get along. What do I mean? Well, while I mostly enjoyed Adam’s chapters, I wasn’t so sure about the other more fantastical one (Katie). Both were so extremely different in tone and even genre that they mostly just clashed for me (like what happened in The Rest Of Us Just Live Here). I know magical realism can go both ways for me and this time around it definitely wasn’t a positive reaction… I had a hard time making sense of Katie’s POV and it mostly just distracted me considerably from what was happening to Adam. The way both POVs finally ‘met’ wasn’t really satisfactory for me either, but that might just be me reacting to the magical realism. I did enjoy the writing in Adam’s POV and I really loved that while the story is basically taking place in just one day, there is a lot going on and you won’t find yourself bored. Adam sure is having a pretty bad day! Religion is involved since it plays such a vital role in Adam’s family (and part of his misery), but nothing too preachy so I didn’t mind. The story wasn’t too heavy on the romance as a whole (something I could really appreciate), and the lgbt elements were well developed. If Release would have been just Adam’s POV and nothing more, I would probably have ended up rating it higher… But Katie’s more unique magical realism chapters kind of put a damper on things for me. Depending on how you react to those chapters you will either absolutely love it or end up having mixed thoughts like me.

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Title: How To Walk Away
Author: Katherine Center
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
First published: May 15th 2018
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Finished reading: April 13th 2019
Pages: 320

“There are all kinds of happy endings.”

There has been so much hype around How To Walk Away ever since it came out last year that I’ve been a bit afraid to pick it up myself. But after seeing so many raving reviews, I was also curious to find out what I would make of this story myself. I think I’ve become an instant fan of Katherine Center‘s writing, and she is a new addition to my short list of contemporary romance writers that are able to make me enjoy the genre. It took a few chapters to warm me up completely to the characters and the situation, but once I did I was hooked. The writing is excellent and one of the things that really stood out for me. Following the main character as she has to learn to live with the consequences of the accident was both heartbreaking and intriguing, as her struggles and fears are realistically and well described. Chip made me want to hit something, but I guess that fits the purpose of his character… I liked seeing Margaret’s character develop and grow over time though. How To Walk Away isn’t just about recovering after an accident, having to learn to live with a disability and Margaret seeing her life changed forever though. It is also about family and the estranged relationship with her sister. All characters in general are well developed, feel realistic and add there little something to the plot. I could really appreciate this was more of a slowburner romance and instead there is a lot more focus on Margaret’s situation and personal development. The chapters set in Belgium brought back memories of Bruges and made me crave chocolate! The ending of How To Walk Away was without doubt satisfying and I would recommend this story to anyone who enjoys the genre.

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WWW Wednesdays #217 – April 10th

WWW WEDNESDAYS is a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World Of Words and is all about answering the three questions below.

• WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY READING?

I’m currently reading the final book I need to complete the exams for the Magizoologist career in the #OWLsReadathon2019 which is The Wolf Border by Sarah Hall. I’ve been curious about this title ever since I found it during our trip last year; fingers crossed it’s a good one. I’m also starting Final Betrayal by Patricia Gibney as it’s due soon. I’m looking forward to spend time with Lottie Parker again!

WHAT DID YOU RECENTLY FINISH READING?

1. Release by Patrick Ness (3/5 stars) REVIEW 14/04
I ended up having mixed thoughts about this story. In fact, something similar happened with The Rest Of Us Just Live Here (the chapter introductions vs. the rest of the chapters) so I’m guessing this particular writing style and me just don’t really get along. What do I mean? Well, while I mostly enjoyed Adam’s chapters, I wasn’t so sure about the other more fantastical one (Katie). Both were so extremely different in tone and even genre that they mostly just clashed for me (like what happened in The Rest Of Us Just Live Here).

2. The Dare by Carol Wyer (4/5 stars) REVIEW 25/04
If you are looking for a well written, suspenseful and entertaining detective thriller that reads like a train, you know you can always turn to Carol Wyer. Both this series and her detective thrillers in general have been consistently solid so far and The Dare is no exception to that rule. I found myself flying through those pages to discover more about the killer and how things would unfold… It’s true I never grew to like Natalie as a character, but her team’s chemistry mostly makes up for that. And I’ll definitely be looking forward to discover whatever will be thrown at them next.

3. The Murmur Of Bees by Sofia Segovia (4,5/5 stars) REVIEW 16/04
I really loved this historical fiction story set in early 20th century Mexico. With a Gabriel Garcia Marquez feel, The Murmur Of Bees tells us the story of a wealthy land owner family and how the appearance of the mysterious Simonopio both saved and changed their lives forever. Historical facts are mixed with the surreal in such a way that will keep you invested until the very end… The writing is lush and wonderful and will take you to a different time.

4. Song Of Sacrifice by Janell Rhiannon (4,5/5 stars) REVIEW 12/04
I love Greek mythology retellings, and Song Of Sacrifice is a new favorite. If you enjoy reading about the Troyan war and what happened to cause it, I can without doubt recommend this first book of a new series… The writing is more than solid and while there are many different characters involved it never distracted me (I guess it does help having a general idea of who the main characters involved are). I really liked that the story doesn’t focus on one character, and instead offers us multiple views and stories to treasure.

• WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU’LL READ NEXT?

I’ve been trying to work through my ARCs and since quite a few were longer reads I didn’t get as far as I hoped. Little Darlings by Melanie Golding is up next; I’ve been hearing good things about that one. I also need to continue reading books for the #OWLsReadathon2019 challenge so How To Walk Away by Katherine Center and The Guernsey Literary And Potato Pee Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows are up soon… My TBR jar pick is still Sweetheart by Chelsea Cain; I’m not sure if I’ll be able to get to it this month since I still have three more ARCs and a bunch of readathon books (five including the two I mentioned here) I still need to pick up first.

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WWW Wednesdays #216 – April 3rd

WWW WEDNESDAYS is a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World Of Words and is all about answering the three questions below.

• WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY READING?

I’m currently reading two books for the #OWLsReadathon2019 challenge, the first a backlist title and the second an ARC. I’ve heard mixed things about Release by Patrick Ness so I’ve gone in with low expectations and I’ll be crossing my fingers… And I’m excited to be reading another Carol Wyer title and to be meeting Detective Natalie Ward again in The Dare.

WHAT DID YOU RECENTLY FINISH READING?

1. Tell The Wolves I’m Home by Carol Rifka Brunt (3,5/5 stars) REVIEW 
Tell The Wolves I’m Home is a (recent) historical fiction slash contemporary story with a focus on family, AIDS and death. Tough themes that are very tricky to get right and sometimes not that easy to talk about, but the 1987 setting made for a very interesting backdrop for this story. I can’t put my finger on the why, but while I did find the Tell The Wolves I’m Home a very interesting read, there was also something about it that didn’t work for me. Part of this might have to do with the main characters…

2. Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid (4,5/5 stars) REVIEW 08/04
With this new story she has once again proven to me she belongs on my list of favorite authors. What a read! What really stands out for me is the uniqueness of the format of Daisy Jones & The Six. The story is told through a series of interviews with the different members of the band and a few others close to them. This is done in a way that you start wondering if your memory failed you and there really was a band called Daisy Jones & The Six in the seventies… The different characters really came alive for me and it felt like a real biography of a rock band with a very colorful history.

3. Wolfhunter River by Rachel Caine (4/5 stars) REVIEW 07/04
While I don’t feel Wolfhunter River was as good as the previous two books, I can’t deny I still highly enjoyed my time with this serial killer thriller. Suspenseful, twisted, explosive and lightning fast: once you get past the first few chapters and the setting changes to Wolfhunter, it will be really hard to stop reading before you reach that final page. I had some doubts about the credibility of the plot and the way things wrapped up was a bit too convenient to my taste, but the story has a lot of promise for what it yet to come and I’ll definitely be looking forward to the next book.

4. The Blue by Lucy Clarke (4/5 stars) REVIEW 08/04
The Blue turns out to have been an excellent choice. As someone who has been lucky enough to travel quite a bit in the past, I love reading travel related stories. Add a destination I haven’t been able to visit myself and that is another bonus… And if you combine it with one of my favorite genres (suspense), the book and me most likely are going to get along. This is exactly what happened with The Blue.

5. The Silver Ladies Of Penny Lane by Dee MacDonald (2/5 stars) REVIEW 11/04
I was really looking forward to this one as I loved The Getaway Girls last year, but I guess it wasn’t ment to be… I had quite a few issues with this story and surprisingly none had to do with the fact that contemporary romance normally isn’t for me. I’m going to try to keep things easy in my review, but it might turn out into a rant… You’ve been warned.

• WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU’LL READ NEXT?

I need to get a few ARCs in before the due date, so both Song Of Sacrifice by Janell Rhiannon and The Murmur Of Bees by Sofia Segovia are up next. They both fit the prompts for the #OWLsReadathon2019 challenge so that is a bonus. 😉 I’m also picking up The Guernsey Literary And Potato Pee Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows for the same challenge. My TBR jar pick is still Sweetheart by Chelsea Cain… I’m hoping to read that one once my ARC schedule has cleared up a bit.

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WWW Wednesdays #215 – March 27th

WWW WEDNESDAYS is a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World Of Words and is all about answering the three questions below.

• WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY READING?

It took me a little while to pick up Tell The Wolves I’m Home by Carol Rifka Brunt and keep reading because I wasn’t in the mood… But I’m finally making good progress and will probably finish it today. Afterwards, I’m going to dive straight in one of my most anticipated releases Wolfhunter River by Rachel Caine as my first book of the O.W.L.s readathon.

WHAT DID YOU RECENTLY FINISH READING?

1. The Dry by Jane Harper (4,5/5 stars) REVIEW 28/03
I’m glad I finally picked up my copy of The Dry, because I’ve become an instant Jane Harper fan. What a fantastic read! The setting, the writing style, the plot and character development: I found each element to be extremely well executed and I can see why this debut has received so much love. This is one of those stories you will want to clear your schedule for… Once you have turned the first few pages, you will find yourself stuck in Kiewarra until you discover what really happened to Luke and his family and if it has to do with something that happened long ago.

2. Harry Potter Y El Cáliz De Fuego by J.K. Rowling (4,5/5 stars) NO REVIEW 
No review this time as this is a reread… But of course it’s easy to say the Harry Potter series is one of my all time favorites and it’s always great revisiting the world. Book number four is among my favorites of the series!

3. I Know You by Erik Therme (3/5 stars) REVIEW 
I Know You is a story with an interesting premise and mix of different elements. I liked how the focus of this story wasn’t just on the kidnapping case, but also on the family drama and flawed characters in general. It is without doubt a superfast read perfect for when you need a little break from life and forget about your own problems. I personally ended up having mixed thoughts, mostly related to the credibility and lack of dept in and connection to the characters… But there is no doubt the story was still entertaining enough.

4. Every Exquisite Thing by Matthew Quick (3/5 stars) REVIEW 02/04
While I can say this was a superfast read, the tone and writing style of Every Exquisite Thing really started to get on my nerves and made the reading experience less enjoyable than expected. I also had problems with the main characters… While I like that they are flawed and unique and especially Nanette evolves over time as the story progresses, there was also something about them that really annoyed me and I wasn’t able to connect to them in general. I did love the fact that this story is build around a book called The Bubblegum Reaper, where we see both the influence of the writing on its reader and learn more about the author himself.

5. We Are Of Dust by Clare Coombes (4/5 stars) REVIEW 30/03
I guess you might know by now I have a weak spot for WWII historical fiction… So as soon as I read the blurb, I knew I HAD to accept this request to read We Are Of Dust. This is without doubt both a solid and heartbreaking story based on true events. It shows that the author has investigated the details painstakingly and I liked how we see multiple sides of the war with the help of the different characters. This is actually the first book of a series (something I didn’t know), and the ending will leave you wanting for more… But I guess that is always a good sign.

• WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU’LL READ NEXT?

I was going to wait a little while longer, but I just couldn’t resist after seeing one raving review after the other so I’m picking up Daisy Jones And The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid next. I’m also thinking about picking up Fruit Of The Drunken Tree by Ingrid Rojas Contreras as I’ve been meaning to read it for a while now. Depending on if it’s April already, I’ll start with the O.W.L.s readathon and pick up Release by Patrick Ness. My TBR jar pick is Sweetheart by Chelsea Cain…

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Friday Finds #131 – May 5th

FRIDAY FINDS showcases the most interesting books I’ve encountered during the last week and have added to my neverending TBR list on Goodreads. Below a selection of my newest additions; click on the book descriptions to go to its Goodreads page! 😀

My finds: