A Gaggle of Book Reviews

Mrs. Perfect is Jane Porter’s newest novel. If you read Odd Mom Out when it was released last fall, you will recognize several of the characters, as Mrs. Perfect is also set in a well-off Seattle neighborhood. If you didn’t have a chance to read it, the storyline in Odd Mom Out focused on Marta Zinsser, a newcomer who moved into the area as a single, working mother when the other moms in the area are well-dressed, wealthy, at-home moms with nannies. Taylor Young, the main character in Mrs. Perfect, is one of those “perfect” moms from Odd Mom Out, but now we learn the rest of the story - sometimes life isn’t as perfect as it looks. While both books can be read as stand-alone novels, I highly recommend reading both, and not just because Jane Porter’s novels are addicting; they are great reads.

Jane Porter has written more than 20 romance novels for Harlequin, and has written several wonderful chick lit novels for 5-Spot as well. Jane has taken incidents in her own life, and spun them into fiction that captures your attention and imagination, pulling you along for a fabulous ride. Jane’s writing skills help blur the line between romance and chick lit - her characters in her romance novels come alive just as much as her chick lit characters, and while she uses her memories of time spent traveling in her romances, she seems to put more of her self in her books for 5-Spot. Jane was nice enough to chat with us about the lines between fact and fiction in books today.

When Mrs. Perfect begins, we meet Taylor, and at first she is not a particularly endearing heroine; she has a nanny so she can volunteer, have drinks at the country club, and run everything the her way. Her mothering style for her three girls is not particularly hands-on, and her attitude towards other women is not particularly positive. At first, the reader wonders how we will become invested in the life of this character, her superficial nature is off-putting, and it’s hard to relate to a woman who thinks nothing of spending hundreds of dollars on a bra.

Jane Porter’s skill with characters makes the characters in Mrs. Perfect work, though. Once we peel back the superficial layers around Taylor, we learn about her history, the battles she fights within herself, and her judgemental nature about herself, which explains some of her judgemental attitude towards others. When a big financial crisis hits Taylor’s family, life changes, and Taylor is forced to rethink a big part of their lives.

Taylor Young is forced to deal with the questions every person wants to avoid. What is most important in your life? What is the worst thing that could happen to your family, and how could you cope with it? Are your friends the kind that will support you through a difficult time? When we see inside Taylor’s soul, as she has to rethink her life and her attitude, we start to think about our own lives and our own attitudes. The storyline and characters in Mrs. Perfect grip you, and you won’t be able to shake the book out of your head, even if it raises some uncomfortable questions about your own life.

I strongly recommend picking up Odd Mom Out and Mrs. Perfect. You may just want to pick up all of Jane Porter’s novels, too - or reserve them at the library! Jane doesn’t gloss over the dark parts in our lives, but she helps her characters get through those bad spots so that they come out better people at the end, people who deserve a happily ever after. This isn’t one of those dark novels that your book club might force you to read, but it will make you think about the state of your own life - can you get to “happily ever after” yourself? Enjoy Jane Porter’s perspective, and grab Mrs. Perfect as a lawn chair or beach read this spring or summer!

This book was received from the publisher for review

Megan Crane’s Names My Sisters Call Me is her newest chick lit novel. If for some reason you haven’t read Megan Crane’s novels, go do so, as she has written some fabulous novels you shouldn’t miss; they are engrossing and entertaining. With her most recent novel she revisits the theme of family dysfunction, but in Names My Sisters Call Me she focuses on the relationship between three sisters.

Courtney is our narrator and the youngest, newly engaged to Lucas, her boyfriend of three years, and at 28 still finding her own footing. Norah is 8 years older than Courtney, and embodies all the oldest child tendencies: bossy, controlling, goal-oriented, etc. Raine is the middle child, 6 years older than Courtney and 2 years younger than Norah. Courtney describes her as being the opposite of Norah, a free-spirited artistic soul, but one who “ruined” Norah’s wedding and drove off to California six years before our story begins. As an added bonus, Courtney’s first love, Matt, was also Raine’s best friend, and he drove out of her life with her sister. It’s no wonder that it’s taken years for everyone to recover. In a family where the father died decades previously, Norah has taken on a parental role, expressing her opinion on all of Courtney’s life choices.

When Courtney and Lucas become engaged, Courtney wants to have her middle sister at the wedding. After speaking with Raine, she speaks with Norah,

And when I hung up a moment later, awash in guilt and formless anger, i realized that I was destined to feel about thirteen years old no matter which side of the country I was on.
Apparently all it required was a conversation with one of my sisters

While I don’t have sisters, I can relate to the idea of feeling thirteen whenever you’re with family! Each of the characters goes beyond the sterotype, Norah is much more than the oldest, Raine is much more than the estranged wild child, and Courtney is much more than the youngest. The insecurities, the love, the guilt, and their spirits are all so unique, and create vivid characters with whom I felt an instant connection. Megan Crane has fabulous character development skills, which she utilizes to create characters real enough that you feel like you are joining them for their weekly Family Dinner.

I was interested in reading another one of Megan Crane’s novels, yet I was also drawn to Names My Sisters Call Me because I have three daughters. I grew up with brothers and boys, and wasn’t really prepared for the sisterly love/dislike relationship that waxes and wanes each day. I am hoping that our family is less dysfunctional than the Cassel family in Names My Sisters Call Me, and I also hope that I can show each of my daughters that I love each one individually, as Courtney’s mom has done. As much as there is a lot of sisterly rivalry, there’s also a lot of sisterly love and motherly love in Names My Sisters Call Me. One thing the mom did to show how much she understood each daughter is that when there was a celebration, she made 3 cakes, as each daughter had very different tastes! Now that’s a show of love!

As much as Names My Sisters Call Me is a chick lit novel about a woman, her fiancé, and her ex-boyfriend, it is also a beautiful novel about the many different faces and types of love. We see sisterly love, romantic love, parental love, and crushes, each with their own strengths and weaknesses.

Names My Sisters Call Me is a book you won’t quickly forget, and one you will want to share with your sisters and sisterly friends, though you’ll want to make sure you get it back! I loved this book by Megan Crane, it was the best book in the Chick Lit genre I’ve read in quite a while. Names My Sisters Call Me is definitely one book you should go pick up!

This book was received from the publisher for review

Blood Moon is an intense soon-to-be released novel by A. W. Gryphon. Blood Moon is Gryphon’s first book, and it is also the first novel in the planned Witches Moon Trilogy. As with several other books I’ve read recently, this one is hard to categorize. It deals with Wicca and Witchcraft, so it could be paranormal or urban fantasy, yetBlood Moon is also a mystery, and it could also fit as a women’s fiction novel as we uncover a woman’s childhood and the facts of her mother’s life. Regardless, this is a book that will capture your interest from the beginning, and it will be hard to put down before the story is complete.

Blood Moon begins with a preface which educates the reader about the practices of Wicca, and then spins into a “fairy tale” about “The One” who was descended from the High Priestess Maeve and High Priest Domhall, and who would inheirit an incredible set of powers on her 28th birthday, which coincided with a full Blood Moon (aka harvest moon). When Maeve gave birth to boy/girl twins during a Blood Moon, the witches had split into two factions: Maeve, her daughter, and the women forming the “good” witches; Domhall, his son, and the men forming the “bad” witches. There has been strife between the two factions in the hundreds of years since that occurred, as well as from The Organization, a faith-based group who wanted to eliminate all witches.

The introduction and first few chapters of Blood Moon help the reader become accostomed to the Wiccan life, introducing the tools and philosophies as well as the characters. Gryphon does an amazing job of describing a Wiccan ritual, she is both accurate and fascinating as she explains what went right and what happened that was horribly wrong. The storyline pulls us in quickly as we learn about the young and powerful witch Amelia, her family, and the possibility that she is “The One” who will inherit the power on her 28th birthday.

As Amelia’s life drifts out of her control, we follow her as she moves to England with her father, and while parts of her life are wonderful, including a beautiful romance, there are threads that start to pull her apart, leaving her without support. In Blood Moon, Gryphon deftly uses third person narration to switch perspective from one character to another. We can see inside Amelia’s head, understand her motivations, and cry with her as her life appears to fall apart. We can also see into the minds of her confidants and rivals, and begin to understand their motivations. Despite all that we learn about Amelia and the others, we don’t understand everything, Gryphon keeps us on the edge of our seats, eager to find out what will happen next.

At its heart, Blood Moon follows the life of a woman for 21 of her 28 years. We see her love for her family and her work, as well as her need for revenge after so much has gone wrong. I spent the last section of the book wondering which would win out, love or revenge. The love experienced by Amelia is the kind that inspires ballads, while the pain she endured is more than most of us could take. Amelia is an amazing character, and it took great skill to create a character so conflicted and yet so endearing.

Let yourself be pulled into the Wiccan world inside Blood Moon. It’s the type of book that you will long to read in one sitting, though you might need to take breaks for food and drink! This story gripped me, and several parts completely surprised me, I never saw parts of the mystery’s solution coming. I really enjoyed Blood Moon, and highly recommend picking it up when it’s released at the end of April! If you adored Kim Harrison’s newest Rachel Morgan novel, you’ll love Blood Moon! I can’t wait to see the next book in the Witches Moon trilogy!

I read an Advanced Readers Copy (ARC), which still needed some editing, I’ve noticed that other reviewers have focused on that issue, but I have been assured that the author was beside herself, and that the finished book will not have the editing issues. As a result, I chose to focus on the plot and characters rather than the editing issues. When I “bleeped” over editing issues, I adored the story. I definitely want to read the edited version, and I truly believe that anyone with an interest in women’s literature, art appreciation, Wicca, or Paranormal ideas will adore this book - and that’s an eclectic mix for sure!

If you’re impatiently awaiting the April 28 book launch, you can pre-order Blood Moon at Barnes & Noble, and then you’ll get it as soon as it’s released!