Book Reviews: April 2020 Releases That Will Make You Laugh and Cry
/9 Comments/by Suzanne
Today I’m sharing reviews of some new and recent releases that are sure to please anyone who enjoys emotional reads. The Big Finish is a heartwarming and fun read that put a smile on my face, while You and Me and Us had me reaching for my tissues and doing the ugly cry.
The Big Finish Goodreads
Author: Brooke Fossey
Publication Date: April 14, 2020
Publisher: Berkley
FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley. All opinions are my own.
Brooke Fossey’s debut novel The Big Finish is an absolutely delightful story that follows a lovable cast of characters at an assisted living facility and the young woman who shows up unexpectedly and turns all of their lives upside down in the best way possible. I’ll confess right now that I requested this book because I fell in love with the adorable cover as soon as I saw it. I couldn’t resist the elderly man sitting on the back of the motorcycle waving his cane in the air. That’s the promise of a hilarious read right there and thankfully I was not disappointed.
I got so much more than a humorous read though. The Big Finish is a heartwarming story about family, friendship, love and loss. It centers around longtime roommates, Carl and Duffy. Duffy is a bit of a curmudgeon, while Carl is a total sweetheart. Even though they’re polar opposites, their friendship and living arrangements work seamlessly. That is, until Josie, the granddaughter Carl has never met, comes climbing in their bedroom window in the middle of the night one night, with nothing but the clothes on her back, alcohol on her breath, and a black eye. It’s clear Josie is in trouble and Duffy wants no part of it. If she creates drama for them, their nasty landlord will surely give them a one-way ticket to the nearest nursing home and that is not how Duffy wants to live out his final days. Duffy’s friendship with Carl means everything to him though so he reluctantly agrees to do whatever he can to help Carl get to know his granddaughter and to help her out of whatever toxic situation she is running from. What starts out as a mission on the down-low soon draws in more and more of the home’s residents as they fall in love with Josie and want to help her.
I don’t want to say anything more about the plot because you just have to experience it for yourself, but I promise this is a cast of characters you will fall in love with, especially Duffy, who is nowhere near as grumpy and gruff as he would have you believe. Duffy and Carl’s friendship is what really made the book such a special read for me and I also adored Duffy’s friendship with another resident, Alice. He would clearly love for their relationship to be more than just friends and every scene with her brings out his softer side. The Big Finish is one of those books I’d love to see made into a movie and was practically casting it in my mind the whole time I was reading it (with the cast of Grace and Frankie actually, haha).
If you’re looking for a fun and heartwarming read about friendship and the things we’re willing to do for our loved ones, you should definitely check out The Big Finish.
4 STARS
You and Me and Us Goodreads
Author: Alison Hammer
Publication Date: April 7, 2020
Publisher: William Morrow
FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley. All opinions are my own.
Alison Hammer’s new novel You and Me and Us is the heartbreaking story of what happens to a family when a diagnosis of terminal cancer turns their lives upside down. Alexis and her teen daughter, CeCe, haven’t been close in years. The ad agency Alexis founded keeps her so busy that she’s rarely ever around and has missed many of her daughter’s important milestones. While Alexis and CeCe aren’t close, the opposite is true for CeCe and her dad, Tommy. Tommy is CeCe’s rock and has been there for everything her mom has missed and then some. Tommy is devoted to both Alexis and CeCe, and neither of them know what they would do without him. When Tommy, who has been nursing a nagging cough for months, finally confesses to his girls that he has cancer and only has a few months to live, they are understandably devastated but are determined to make the most of every moment they have left with him.
Oh my gosh, guys, this book is such an emotional journey! I loved that the author presents the story to us from the perspectives of both CeCe and Alexis. I thought it gave a very full picture of what each of them was feeling at every step along the way – the sadness, the anger and frustration at the situation, CeCe’s resentment of her mother, Alexis’ sorrow at having missed out on so much of her daughter’s life (and Tommy’s for that matter). The author also beautifully captured how fearful both Alexis and CeCe were of what life was going to be like once Tommy was gone. Would Alexis finally make CeCe a priority? Would CeCe actually let her mom back into her life? I felt like the range of emotions they were experiencing were portrayed very realistically, which made the story all the more heartbreaking and engrossing.
As sad as the story is, it also has some beautiful and uplifting moments that really help to balance and round out the story. I really did love watching Tommy interact with both CeCe and Alexis. He’s just such a wonderful guy and his bond with each of them was so special. I also loved the secondary cast of characters – friends who are there for both CeCe and Alexis as they get closer and closer to the end of Tommy’s life. I was also a huge fan of the ending, which although it had me in tears, it also left me with a smile on my face and hope in my heart. If books that pack an emotional punch are your thing, I highly recommend You and Me and Us. 4.5 STARS
Weekly Recap #150: Week of 4/5 – 4/11
/35 Comments/by Suzanne
It’s time for another weekly recap post of all things happening on and off the blog. This week I’ll be linking to the Sunday Post, which is hosted by Caffeinated Book Reviewer.
So we are all slowly but surely adjusting to our new normal. Trying to balance my own work-from-home routine with my son’s new distance learning routine has proven challenging at times but we’re making it work. The biggest challenge has been trying to get him to actually do the work. He’ll sign in online for the class meetings without any trouble, but he doesn’t then actually want to do anything. He is fast losing motivation since the principal has stated that final grades have already been calculated so nothing they are currently doing is actually being graded. It’s simply to try to at least cover the material they hadn’t gotten to yet and review what they had already done since there won’t be final exams. I’m picking and choosing my battles on this and making him at least keep up with his core subjects like Algebra, Science, Civics, and English.
His soccer coaches are also trying to have lessons online, which has been interesting too. They record skills and routines on YouTube and the kids are supposed to watch the videos and then try to do everything that’s in the video a few times a week. Also a challenge since my son seems to prefer being in couch potato mode these days. They’re going to try Skype team meetings this coming week so hopefully actually hearing from his coach will motivate him better than I am.
In other news, I did end up ordering myself a standing desk. My husband and I put it together last night and I’m actually standing at it right now as I type this post and love it. I’m glad I also purchased an anti-fatigue mat since I can tell all of the standing is going to take some getting used to, but I’m still very excited, especially since my governor’s stay-at-home order currently runs through June 10th and my company’s CEO mentioned this past week that he could easily see us working from home until Labor Day.
I got a decent amount of reading done this week in spite of having to ride herd on my son all day, everyday. I got a couple of my ARCs read and will be reviewing those tomorrow. I also started one of my anticipated reads, Shorefall, which I’m loving so far. I then got sidetracked by the sudden need to wrap up another of my lingering series so I read Holly Black’s The Queen of Nothing. That ended up being a much shorter read than I was expecting, but nonetheless a very satisfying series finale. I’m back to Shorefall now and plan to continue with my ARCs unless the mood reading monster strikes again.
I hope everyone out there is staying safe, healthy, and is practicing social distancing. Happy Easter to those who are celebrating! Take care!
WHAT I POSTED LAST WEEK
- [5 Apr] Weekly Recap #149: Week of 3/29 – 4/4
- [6 Apr] Mini Reviews – April 2020 Releases
- [6 Apr] Jack Kerouac Is Dead to Me by
- [6 Apr] Ruthless Gods by
- [6 Apr] To Have and to Hoax by
- [7 Apr] Top Ten Tuesday – Books I’ll Be Reading This Year Because of Blogger Recommendations
- [8 Apr] Can’t Wait Wednesday – THE WAY BACK by Gavriel Savit
WHAT I’M READING THIS WEEK
UPCOMING REVIEWS
STACKING THE SHELVES
TOTALLY RANDOM
Can’t Wait Wednesday – THE WAY BACK by Gavriel Savit
/26 Comments/by Suzanne
“Waiting On” Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at Breaking the Spine, which encourages fellow bloggers to spotlight upcoming releases that we’re excited about. It is a meme that I have loved participating in for over a year now, but as Jill is no longer actively posting, from now on I’ll be linking to Can’t Wait Wednesday, hosted by Tressa at Wishful Endings, which is a spinoff of the original WoW meme.
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My selection for this week is THE WAY BACK by Gavriel Savit. I was initially drawn to this book because the cover is so gorgeous, but then as I read the blurb, I became even more captivated. I love that the story pulls from Jewish folklore and was fascinated by the whole idea of demons having a world of their own and that these two teens have to travel through it and interact with the demons.
THE WAY BACK by Gavriel Savit
Publication Date: September 15, 2020
From Netgalley
Perfect for readers of Neil Gaiman and Philip Pullman, a sweeping historical fantasy that follows two teens on a journey through the Far Country, a Jewish land of spirits and demons.
For the Jews of Eastern Europe, demons are everywhere: dancing on the rooftops in the darkness of midnight, congregating in the trees, harrowing the dead, even reaching out to try and steal away the living.
But the demons have a land of their own: a Far Country peopled with the souls of the transient dead, governed by demonic dukes, barons, and earls. When the Angel of Death comes strolling through the little shtetl of Tupik one night, two young people will be sent spinning off on a journey through the Far Country. There they will make pacts with ancient demons, declare war on Death himself, and maybe– just maybe–find a way to make it back alive.
Drawing inspiration from the Jewish folk tradition, The Way Back is a dark adventure sure to captivate readers of Neil Gaiman’s The Graveyard Book and Philip Pullman’s The Book of Dust.
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I’d love to hear what upcoming book releases you’re waiting on this Wednesday? Leave me your link in the comments below and I’ll stop by and check out your CWW selection for this week. 🙂