This is Where It Ends by Cindy K. Sproles

 

I was so excited when I read the premise of Sproles new novel This is Where it Ends. The hidden gold, the mysterious box, the handsome young city reporter, and the mountain woman close to the end of her journey all felt like the elements of a book I was sure to love and yet I found myself disenchanted.

While I typically love the old mountain granny type of character ( I know so many ladies who would fit that category in real life minus the mountains), Minerva's character frustrated me on a few levels. 

Minerva's story, even in its resolution, just hit me as sad. While some may applaud the character's faithfulness to her promises and husband, the story presented was one of such loneliness, captivity to promises that didn't deserve it, and wasted potential that her final chapter of peace feels like too little, too late to really be satisfying. Minerva herself spends most of the book asking/complaining why she can't just die.

The story arc with the young reporter Del Rankin could have had potential between his role in the mysterious box, his learning life outside of the city, and the connection he slowly builds with Minerva but with the rushed timeline and the reader stuck in Minerva's waiting to die mindset Rankin's quest for answers feels too rushed to feel like a true redemption arc.

Perhaps I just had misplaced expectations about the story's focus. When the book's blurb mentioned "a lonely life" I expected more of the sometimes lonely and less of the toxic decisions that set the course of Minerva's life.

3 out of 5 stars 

Book was provided courtesy of Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. and Baker Publishing Group.

In the Shadow of the River by Ann H Gabhart

Gabhart loves taking readers into the lives of characters I don't often see featured in this corner or historical fiction and In the Shadow of the River  is no exception. Here, Gabhart introduces readers to the life of Jacci, a young showboat actress who has spent her life on the river avoiding the darkness that hides in her past.

One thing I always appreciate about Gabhart's books is her characters. Jacci herself is an interesting lead character as she uncovers the truth of her origins both familial as well as with river life. The supporting characters add a lot of fun too and I wish we had  a prequel with Grampus' adventures with Captain Dan, Marelda, and Aunt Tildy's adventures when the kids were young and the show was being established. 

I also appreciate the attention Gabhart takes in introducing her plot elements and making sure Jacci's story has no loose ends upon the story's end. Between the mystery of her parentage, the romantic tensions on the showboat, and the dangers pursuing Jacci from the past it could have been easy to see some plot points dropped or awkwardly fit into the overarching flow of the story, but Gabhart's ability to weave in her plot elements with care and focus comes through once again.

That said, this book does move much slower and has a clunkier pacing than I'm used to from Gabhart. The first third of the book covers Jaccci's arrival into showboat life, but the major focus of that section is essentially summarized with the major tensions resolution revealed on the book's back cover.

I would have far rather had more of Jacci establishing herself on the showboat especially given the story's themes around family and identity and the interesting cast of characters that Gabhart gave Jacci for her showboat family over the 100 pages of summary revealed plot we received. I think it may have also eased some of the age difference uncomfortableness between Jacci and Gabe if more time had been given to their friendship/relationship instead of him dropping it on her (and readers) after 15 years.

3.5 out of 5 stars 

Book was provided courtesy of Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. and Baker Publishing Group.

The Long March Home by Marcus Brotherton and Tosca Lee

 

The Long March Home  is a fictional tale based on the actual events in the Pacific theatre during WWII. Centered on the character of Jimmy Propfield with his best friends Hank and Billy, this novel covers their childhood in Mobile, their experiences in WWII, and their desire to return home.

Honestly, this story was almost impossible for me to put down. The fact that Brotherton and Lee chose to tell Jimmy's whole story, from his childhood friendship with Hank, Billy, and Claire through to enlistment really emphasized the humanity and youth of the characters, as well as the real life men they symbolized. While obviously a war based novel, Brotherton and Lee have presented so much more with these characters as they explore, coming of age, brotherhood, grief, and forgiveness. 

This is one of those stories that catches you by the heart and sits with you long after the final page is turned.

On a more nerdy note, I appreciated how the authors note at the book's conclusion provided additional context on this less covered aspect of WWII. The explanation of certain historical figures and mysteries that made their way into the fictional plot as well as additional supplementary reading on Bataan is a good starting point for anyone else who had their interest caught on the historical side of these events.

As a warning for longtime readers of this publisher, this novel is far more graphic than usual offerings. The plot covers the forced death march of P.O.W.s, torture and abuse of prisoners, murder, and general horrors of war. None of these scenes felt gratuitous as they were based on the actual events and developed Jimmy's story but they can be hard to read.

4.5 stars out of 5

Book was provided courtesy of Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. and Baker Publishing Group.

The Other Side of Special by Brown, Clime, and Holt

 

I went into this book with high hopes but feel like this book was a well intentioned missing of the mark.

 My first point of concern came on page one when the authors talked about "special needs" making an off hand comment about "whatever the newest acceptable label is at the moment". The fact is, the term special needs came from the abled community, studies show often creates more discrimination, and is rejected by the majority of the disabled community. It was the first of many disappointments.

While I agree with the authors that many resources don't capture the nuance of parenting in the disabled community, their book doesn't either. I saw no highlighting in this book of the richness that comes from embracing and living in the uniqueness of disabled culture, no disabled joy, no promoting of all the hard work the disabled community has put in the last number of decades regarding advocacy, inclusion, and acceptance. In fact, I saw no evidence at all that the authors regularly sat with and learned from disabled peers and community leaders. 

I also struggled with the book's layout. While the author's covered some useful information, those sections felt like generic Christian parenting advice.
 Every parent will face negative emotions and reactions at times in their parenting journey and this book could have used its platform to highlight the similarities first, before branching out into how those common issues may uniquely impact disabled families. Instead, the book seemed to separate the disabled segments of their experience into the "messy, emotional" part of the book's tagline and the "joy-filled" parts to the generic advice.

I'm a mom to children with a variety of disabilities and I'm also disabled myself. Parts of this book were uncomfortable to read due to the casual inclusion of ableism and the general negativity surrounding disabilities. 

I would love to see these authors spend more time actually embracing and learning from the disabled community in the future.

1.5 out of 5 stars.

Book was provided courtesy of Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. and Baker Publishing Group.

The Weight of Air by Kimberly Duffy

 

In 1911, Mabel MacGinnis is Europe's strongest woman and has performed beside her father in the Manzo Brothers Circus her entire life. But at his unexpected death, she loses everything she's ever known and sets off in the company of acrobat Jake Cunningham for America in hope of finding the mother she's just discovered is still alive.

Isabella Moreau, the nation's most feted aerialist, has given everything to the circus. But age and injury now threaten her security, and Isabella, stalked by old fears, makes a choice that risks everything. When her daughter Mabel appears alongside the man who never wanted to see Isabella again, Isabella is forced to face the truth of where, and in what, she derives her worth.

(excerpt from back of book)

This may not be Duffy's most polished novel but I feel like it may be one of her more memorable and emotional ones. I feel pretty confident saying this won't be everyone's cup of tea and more conservative readers will probably find the subject matter uncomfortable. However, I found the story highly engaging and a thoughtful attempt to address some deeper topics in fictional form.

While the story may be centered in the world of 1911 circus life, Duffy uses the tale to explore themes such as post-partum depression, abandonment, suicide, loss of spouse, and having to rebuild your life/self. 

Mabel and Isabella were interesting leads in both their comparison and contrasts. I appreciated how Duffy used their storyline to highlight just how often generational pain can be unintentionally handed down and how much strength can be required to being healing at any age. While I was sometimes frustrating with either woman's decisions Duffy really works hard to provide framework within her characters stories to highlight how past trauma and fear can drive her characters decisions even years later (and yes I'll include Jake in that as well).

Though Mabel and Jake do fall under the marriage of convenience trope, it still comes across as a wonderful slow burn romance and really helped give the characters some space to heal from the previous mentioned trauma to come to a place where they were ready to pursue a relationship. Which made it a much more satisfying read, in my opinion.

4 out of 5 stars. 

Book was provided courtesy of Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. and Baker Publishing Group.

The Metropolitan Affair by Jocelyn Green

 

I will confess, Jocelyn Green has always been a hit or miss writer for my personal taste. So I was thrilled to find myself on the edge of my seat as Green takes readers back to Prohibition era NYC.

Leading this tale is Dr. Lauren Westlake, the assistant curator of the Met's Egyptology department. I mean, there was so much I liked about Lauren, she's a smart and capable scholar, a caring and attentive friend, and yet Green writes her longing for family and stability with such vulnerability to make her feel relatable and well-rounded.

As usual, Green does deliver a strong and complex storyline. The Egyptology/art forgery storyline is utterly fascinating. Green's descriptions of key signs for forgeries, her ability to convey the excitement and dismay of Lauren as items were confirmed or found short really helped to engage the story as I was relatively clueless on the subject before this book.

I also appreciated Lauren's more personal storyline centering on the theme of her family both with her strained relationship with her father as well as her reconnection with detective Joe Caravello. Green does such an excellent job capturing that alternating hope and pain that can be present with childhood trauma.

With Green's attention to detail and ability to capture the feel of her settings there are definitely times this novel feels like a written film noir. Joe's plotlines with police corruption, prohibition, and murder have that grittier feel with Green's detailed world building.

Readers looking for a clean, happy ending will probably find themselves a little disappointed by the ending. While Green wraps up the story beautifully there's definitely not the "storybook happy ending" for all the plot threads that readers may expect from this publisher. However, I think Green made the best choice for her story as anything else would have felt hollow to the characters she has created and the realities of their tale.

4 out of 5 stars

Book was provided courtesy of Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. and Baker Publishing Group.

A Match in the Making by Jen Turano

A Match in the Making is my first time reading a book by author Jen Turano but I certainly hope it won't be the last. This latest story was a delightful mix of romance, humor, and heart that gave me some modern day Pride and Prejudice vibes as well.

Here our protagonist is Miss Gwendolyn Brinley, former travelling companion to her cousin turned assistant matchmaker in Newport's well-known summer season. I really loved Gwendolyn's no nonsense approach to life, her sense of humor, and her care for those she encounters. She's a lead you just want to cheer for. While there is some tension in her storyline  about traditional vs. nontraditional goals the takeaway felt more about finding one's own path wherever that may lead which felt appropriate for Gwendolyn

Her male counterpart is Walter Townsend, a widower looking for a wife who ends up one of Gwendolyn's clients in Newport. Townsend had a lot more depth than I expected and I truly enjoyed watching his growth with regards to his family throughout the tale, not to mention his frequent head to heads with his matchmaker. 

My favourite part of the whole story though was simply the experience that comes through Turano's writing. Her ability to capture the little details, to add the ridiculous and hilarious scenarios that come from both life with small children and from a pack of socialites looking for a catch, and the careful ways she slowly weaves her characters together to a satisfying ending just makes this an enjoyable read start to finish.

 As a final note, Adelaide really stood out among the Newport Summer crew and I'm definitely excited to see that she'll be continuing the series in To Spark a Match  the second addition to this series currently slated for release in late 2023.

5 out of 5 stars

Book was provided courtesy of Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. and Baker Publishing Group.