ARC Review: Fangirl

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
5/5 stars
St. Martin's Press, 2013
433 pages
YA/NA Contemporary

Source: Received an e-ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

After adoring Rowell's Eleanor and Park and Attachments, I was both thrilled and nervous to hear about her third novel. Thrilled because of course I crave more of Rowell's writing; nervous because this is the last Rowell novel until she has another one published-how am I going to handle the wait???

I guess I could embark on some fanfiction as the protagonist of this book does. Cather is writing one of the most popular Simon Snow (kind of like HP) fanfics around and finds solace in this world even to the exclusion of our real world. Her first year at college challenges that safety, with her twin sister Wren deciding that they shouldn't be roommates, an intimidating upperclassman and her awfully friendly ever present guy friend, and a writing professor who encourages Cath to come up with her own characters, in addition to parental difficulties like their father's maniac episodes and their estranged mother's attempts to reenter their lives.

There is so much going on in this book and it would be impossible for me to cover everything so you should probably plan on reading this for yourself. What really stood out for me was the examination of fan culture particularly through fanfiction (I wrote a few chapters of Wicked fic years ago-never finished it and I read a lot of musical fanfiction around that time too) and the writing process. Cath is filled with words and has a distinct style with an especially keen eye for characterization. I wonder if authors would have a richer experience in this book. While I think of myself as a writer thanks to the writing I do for this blog, I don't aspire to write a novel nor do I write the way Cath is compelled.

But the element I loved most was the romance, which begins very slowly and progresses fitfully with each making their share of mistakes and Cath especially loath to reveal her vulnerabilities. I think Rowell writes amazing non-cliche love scenes and there are more great examples in this novel to prove my point :)

Also as a sister who totally wanted an identical twin as an adolescent, I was fascinated with the sister-sister relationship, which gets very splintered over their first semester as Wren parties with a vengeance and Cath withdraws within herself. Luckily the sisters move toward patching up their relationship and Cath's roommate Reagan is hilariously bold and blunt, being an excellent secondary character.

Saying that, this was my least favorite of Rowell's novels. I don't know if it was that my expectations were higher or if Cather was a bit more on the difficult side (I love her I do and I identified in a lot of ways with her personality quirks but I think some characters you can easily instantly fall in love with and Cather was not one of those for me.) I also thought the style was a bit clunky, possibly because of the integration of sections from the Simon Snow books and Cath's fanfiction.

Overall: Definitely a must-read, though I admitted it wasn't completely to my taste. I still devoured it in less than 24 hours, alternating it with the dark Rose Under Fire to help me keep my equilibrium.

Other Opinions:
Book Labyrinth 
Ladybug Storytime
Supernatural Snark
The Midnight Garden
Young Adult Book Haven

Chose the Wrong Guy, Gave Him the Wrong Finger

Chose the Wrong Guy, Gave Him the Wrong Finger by Beth Harbison
3/5 stars
St. Martin's Press, 2013
384 pages
Adult Romance

Source: Received an e-ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

What an eye-catching title, am I right? Those nine words are the explanation Quinn Barton writes to her guests after she abruptly calls of her wedding to long-time love Burke after being informed by his brother Frank that Burke has been cheating on her. She ran off with Frank and although they enjoyed two nights of passion, she felt like she would never be freed from Burke if she stayed with his brother. Now it's ten years later, Quinn hasn't quite gotten over the heartbreak and both men are back in her life when their grandmother asks Quinn to make her wedding dress.  With the aid of her best friend Glenn, Quinn has to start facing her past and reach for a brighter future.

Many times I crave a lighthearted romantic story and from the summary, I thought this might fit the bill. Indeed there were many moments of hilarity usually provided by Glenn who pushes Quinn out of her comfort zone with daily challenges ranging from the relatively mundane to the outrageous. However the angst experienced by Quinn over her feelings for both brothers drove me crazy. They were completely understandable-she had been with Burke for six years, starting in high school, with Frank always being a warm presence as well. But for some reason, I had no sympathy for her, preferring that she go back to chilling with Glenn instead of trying to fight her intense physical attraction to both guys.

Additionally I loved her career. She owns a custom wedding dress shop, designing exquisite creations to please brides of all sorts. I loved getting to see her customers and the way she delicately negotiated their wishes. She also faced competition mostly with grace and was rewarded with a positive outcome. I just wish this could have been more of a focus instead of the stupid guys.

Overall: I guess I wasn't craving romance as much as I thought because the non-romantic relationships and career paths were far more enjoyable than the romance at the focus of the story. Still it might tickle someone's heart though it didn't mine.

Battleship

Battleship by Dorothy Ours
3/5 stars
St. Martin's Press, 2013
276 pages
Adult History Non-Fiction

Source: Received an ARC from Amazon Vine in exchange for an honest review.

This book first got my attention when I saw it featured by the publisher on Netgalley; unfortunately my copy expired before I got to it so I was pleased to see it for offer on Amazon Vine, giving me another chance to check out what seemed to be billed as a very gripping read. While it was not to my taste, I think there will be fans of the story.

I've always heard that little girls love horses but maybe there was something wrong with me because I never got it. Horses are big and smelly and I had less than zero interest in them. Instead I was interested in this book because of the billing of a daring heiress (Marion duPont), teenage jockey (Bruce Hobbs), an American horse (the titular Battleship), and the converging paths of all the people necessary to make a racing legend like Battleship.

The conclusion to this book with that final race that made his name was very exciting. It shows clearly all the hard work and time invested that was necessary to reach that point. However many of the passages before that bored me. There was so much information about horses and racing and I did not care nor did I need full recaps of all the races that even remotely related to the story. My expectation of this book was that it would be filled with engaging writing and be accessible to laymen and I don't feel like it met either of those.

I did enjoy the passages that focused more on the humans especially Marion's life of seemingly confirmed spinsterhood in an era that really condemned such a fate to two somewhat surprising marriages against her lifelong passion for horses. The jockey, Bruce's, story was also fascinating with his tough upbringing under his strict horse-mad trainer father that led to the very tall young man riding to victory on a comparatively small horse.

Overall: Not to my taste at all!

Note: As I read an ARC, it lacked footnotes or endnotes and pictures, both of which I hope are in the final product. I would love to see how Battleship stacked up next to the bigger horses mentioned over the course of the novel.

ARC Review: A Perfect Proposal

A Perfect Proposal by Katie Fforde
4/5 stars
St. Martin's Press, 2013
Originally published in the UK by Century, 2010
384 pages
Adult

Source: Received an e-ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I've seen Fforde's name a ton since she was always shelved next to my beloved Jasper Fforde but for some reason I never picked up one of her books (no, I don't know why...it's a mystery never fully explained). However it did mean that this was the perfect opportunity to pick up her book and I was utterly charmed. I didn't really know what to expect but I was absolutely swept away.

My one quibble about this book was the significant age difference between the love interests, which is mentioned several times as a negative or at least not the best situation but is not really something they discuss. I think that Sophie is certainly on the more mature side for her youthful age (something I empathized with as I have had several people recently tell me that I'm very mature-I don't really know what to do with that as I think I am exactly as I should be but always with room for improvement) and I fully believe in the HEA but I think that could have been hashed out more.

The rest of the book was great though. The genre would probably be "chicklit" as it focuses on a young woman, struggling to figure out her career, love, and life in general while also dealing with familial pressures and friendship travails. In this instance, Sophie is the youngest in a family of intellectuals and has forgone acquiring a degree, pursuing something more practical like design so that she could go into business for herself. Although her family is happy to enjoy her skills, they also constantly deride them to her face. Thus Sophie leaps at the chance to travel to America where she meets an elderly woman and sparks with that woman's grandson.

Sophie is rather passive at the start, allowing her family to run roughshod over her but she grows more of a spine through her experiences. There are many funny moments as well as sweet and sexy times. This was a great introduction to Fforde's writing and I am eager to read more of her fairly extensive backlist.

Recommended for when you need a light, humorous romantic read, perhaps in between some darker denser material :)

ARC Review: The Ashford Affair

The Ashford Affair by Lauren Willig
3.5/5 stars
St. Martin's Press, 2013
355 pages
Adult Historical Romance
Scheduled to release April 9

Source: Received an e-ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I'm a big fan of Willig's Pink Carnation series so I was thrilled to check out a new novel from her even if it meant not getting to continue with the exciting spies of that series. What I did not realize was that this book would also be a blending of past and present, with scenes taking place in the 1920s, 1999/2000, and a few other years as well to trace a family's history.

Beyond familiarity with the author, I also was grabbed by the reference to "Downton Abbey" and the mention of a Kenyan setting. However I did not notice the contemporary setting, which came as a surprise to me. There is one chapter in the 1920s and then it jumps to 1999 and I was so thrown. It took me a couple of chapters (and reading over the goodreads summary) before I was eased into the story.

It's a big family story with Clementine Evans on the path to partnership, looking into her grandmother's past, spanning England to Kenya and the many family secrets. As the story unravels, I found it fairly predictable but I was still sucked into completing the story. None of the characters really popped out at me. Clemmie is a workaholic lawyer who has just ended an engagement and has neglected family relationships in pursuit of a partnership. But the illness of her grandmother Addie leads to her questioning the family past. Meanwhile Addie's story in the past is of a poor relation, pushed to the side by her lady aunt but protected by her cousin Bea; their relationship becomes increasingly tangled as they age and the world goes mad (they live through World War I and the destruction of the aristocracy).

For me, the most interesting part was reading about the lives of the aristocracy, pre and post war. Before the war, they are flying high but after, Bea and the other young people drown in ennui and pursue any distraction to keep themselves from their thoughts. This also leads to some horrible decisions on the part of Bea and someone else.

Overall: I vastly prefer Willig's Pink Carnation series-I find them generally witty, fizzy confections while this book's more serious tone was less welcome although the time period is fascinating.