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Review of In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren

January 4, 2021 by Roger Hyttinen Leave a Comment

First off, let me start by saying that I love the film “Groundhog Day,” so the synopsis of this story caught my attention right away, so I ordered it. It was actually December’s Book of the Month Club pick.

So “In a Holidaze” is a time-travel Christmas romance and the story starts on out December 26th. We follow a somewhat disenchanted woman named Maelyn, who has just spent the Christmas holidays with her family at a cabin in Utah with two other families, a tradition that they’ve all done since before she was born. She’s embarrassed, and maybe just a little bit humiliated because, over the holiday, she made a super-embarrassing romantic mistake. Not only that, she hates her job, is living with her parents, and has just learned that this was the last Christmas they all would be spending at the beloved cabin because the owners plan on selling it. As she broods over her life, she makes a wish to the universe: “Please show me what will make me happy.”

Her parents’ car then collides with another vehicle, and everything goes black. When she wakes up, it’s December 21st again, and she’s on an airplane bound for Utah to begin the holiday trip once again. This happens several times — she blacks out and wakes up back on the plane on December 21st, heading to Utah. So now she has to figure out what she needs to do to break this Groundhog Day-style time loop that she’s caught in. It just might have something to do with one of the two handsome brothers, Andrew and Theo Hollis, who share the cabin with her and her family and both of whom she’s known all her life. One brother is the recipient of her long-time secret crush, which she’s harbored for years, and the other is a cherished friend and just may have a crush on her.

Each time she gets sent back, she makes different choices, but as she learns, if she makes one mistake, one misstep, she had to do it all over again. Eventually, she figures out that if she ever wants to escape the loop, she just might have to overcome her fears and do that which frightens her the most.

This was a super fun, fluffy, heart-warming story, and I loved how the author used the time-loop as a plot device. It worked really well in this story. I also loved the nostalgic aspect of this story about holiday traditions, a dual-family vacation, complete with snowball fights, snow sculpture contests, playing games, stolen kisses, and eggnog.

There was also plenty of humor and a fantastic cast of characters. All of the other family and friends in the story were so endearing, with each person playing an essential element in the narrative — though I was especially fond of her family friend, Benny, who helped steer our protagonist in the right direction and who was the only one who knew what was really going on with Mae. I also enjoyed how she started to avoid the little disasters and mistakes that she knew were coming and figured that if she can prevent the little ones, she should be able to avoid the big ones too. Right?

And at the end, Mae receives an answer to her question and learns exactly what it is that will make her happy.

All in all, I found In a Holidaze to be a lovely, emotional, heartfelt Christmas romance with an intriguing plot about finding the courage to pursue one’s happiness. This playful story is ideal for anyone looking for a fast and breezy low-angst tale with plenty of holiday cheer and a big heart.

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Review of The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins

January 2, 2021 by Roger Hyttinen Leave a Comment

The story takes place in Birmingham, AL, and follows twenty-three-year-old Jane, a former foster child who has just arrived in town and is looking to start a new life. She works as a dog-walker in an extremely affluent gated community called Thornfield Estates, where, in addition to walking her client’s dogs, she also swipes their expensive jewelry.

Early on, we learn that Jane is not her real name, and she has some sort of dark past that she’s running from — an incident that occurred at her last foster home. Since that time, she’s been on the run. So now, she’s mostly broke, walking dogs and living with a rather unctuous roommate.

But her luck changes when she takes on a new client: the handsome and incredibly wealthy Eddie Rochester, a recent widower. His successful entrepreneur wife Bea (also not her real name), along with her best friend Blanche, drowned in a boating accident several months prior during a “girls only” weekend at the lake cabin. But their bodies were never found. Dum…Dum…Dum.

Jane now sets her sights much higher than merely on expensive jewelry — she sets them on Eddie and soon, is determined that she will be the new Mrs. Rochester. Sparks fly as Jane and Eddie begin a whirlwind romance. But as we soon learn, Jane is not the only one keeping deep dark secrets — secrets which may involve even murder.

As Jane gets to know Eddie and the gossipy neighbor women, she begins piecing together Bea’s past and figures out that Bea and Blanche weren’t really best friends but rather fierce competitors — enemies even. Though Jane hopes to put Eddie’s past behind them and start fresh, let’s just say that the past refuses to say buried. So we then begin to wonder: Is Bea really dead? Is Blanche really dead? Because remember… no bodies. Is Eddie really who he claimed he is? Is Jane safe? And most importantly: what really happened that night at the lake?

Jane then makes a shocking discovery that changes everything.

This is supposedly a darker retelling of Jane Eyre, which I really can’t comment on, given that I haven’t read it. But I can say that this was one hell of a dark and twisty rags-to-riches domestic thriller with a plethora of evil and menacing characters and a compelling mystery to solve.

Pretty much every character in the book is unlikable and has secrets, and that’s what made this book so much fun. I actually ended up liking all these mostly unlikeable people as they were, I thought, compelling and fascinating. Additionally, every relationship in this book was utterly dysfunctional: Eddie and Bea, Bea and Blanche, Blanche and her husband Tripp, Eddie and Blanche, and Jane and her slimy roommate.

Jane, who is quite a compelling and complex character, is the principal narrator in the story though later on in the book, there are some chapters told from Eddie’s and Bea’s point of view, which added to the suspense and intrigue of the narrative. It was fun to see the story unravel from several different perspectives, all of which help provide a clearer picture of what actually happened to Bea and Blanche.

As the story deepens, we see that there’s really a lot going on in this novel: blackmail, class differences, deception, murder, manipulation, keeping up with the Jones, identity, hidden agendas, dark pasts and layers upon layers of secrets, as well as plenty of suspense.

I love a story where nobody or nothing is as they seem, which was definitely the case here. There was also kind of a Rebecca vibe (by Daphne du Maurier) as Jane found herself living under the shadow of Bea — a self-starter who created a multimillion-dollar empire.

All in all, The Wife Upstairs is an immersive and addicting story with a Southern gothic vibe that held me in rapt attention until the surprising ending. I loved how the taut tension, as well as a sense of unease, builds up slowly as we move through the pages. So many lies, so many secrets, leading to many surprising twists, all resulting in a fast read with plenty of punch.

And I loved the fact that you didn’t know who to believe until the very end of the book. Because that’s what makes this dark and chilling novel so absolutely good, the not knowing what’s happening, the constant doubt. The past then meets up with all the characters in the present, and the intensity builds to a crescendo, resulting in a satisfying yet stomach-churning psychological thriller.

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Review of Boy Shattered by Eli Easton

January 1, 2021 by Roger Hyttinen Leave a Comment

Boy Shattered follows our two main characters, Brian and Landon, and takes place at Jefferson Waller High School. The story starts off as an ordinary day at school, and we’re introduced to our two protagonists, who, as of yet, barely know each other. Brian Marshall is a handsome and popular quarterback who is secretly hiding the fact that he’s gay, mainly because of his extreme right-wing gun-praising father and Landon Hughes, one of only a few openly out and proud gay students at the school.

The next day, two gunmen attack the school, and in the midst of the shooting rampage, Landon comes across Brian in the school cafeteria, bleeding out from a gunshot wound on the floor. Following his instincts, Landon immediately put pressure on the wound and saves Brian’s life.

What follows in the heart-wrenching aftermath of the school tragedy is the strong connection that forms between Brian and Landon. Brian is now living with severe PTSD and survivor’s guilt, and through it all, Landon ends up becoming Brian’s sole system of support. Brian now only feels safe when he’s in Landon’s presence and comes to depend on him. It’s also worth mentioning that the shooters were not caught, which only adds to Brian’s anxiety.

In the days that follow, Brian starts spending more and more time with Landon and his parents, and a powerful friendship developed between the two boys. It doesn’t take long for Brian to admit to Landon that he’s not only gay but that he’s had a secret crush on Landon for a while; though this admission doesn’t happen right away — the romance is definitely a slow burn.

I enjoyed that the story is told both from Brian and Landon’s point of view, allowing us to see both the events and the aftermath from both of their perspectives. We really get a feel for Brian’s fear, anxiety, and uncertainty and Landon’s strong desired to not only protect Brian but to enact permanent change. It also helped to show the different paths each had to take in order to heal from the event.

Now let me say that the first couple of chapters, which chronicled the events of the shooting massacre, were absolutely brutal to read. The author does not sugarcoat the events of the shooting nor the aftermath and steps us through the event in a realistic way. It then zeros in on the shell-shocked survivors in the subsequent days.

This story hit me hard: it’s raw, heart-shattering, visceral, and with so much horror and grief. And though it’s fiction, you realize while reading it that this has actually happened to real people in real life. That realization was extra tough to get through.

But through the tragedy, there is a silver lining, and that is the slow and tender romance that develops between Brian and Landon. Their story was hopeful and uplifting — a light that shines through the darkness. But though there was a romance between the two boys, the heart of this story was how each of them deals with the after-effects of the shooting, each coping and healing in different ways. It’s a psychological drama with so many serious and importing themes such as school violence, coming out, bullying, compassion, healing friendship, survivor’s guilt, gun control, innocence taken, PTSD, and first love. There is also a mystery to solve as the killers were not initially caught, which added extra intrigue and tension to the story.

Reading this story leaves you outraged, angry, sad, and frightened for our characters, but it also leaves you with hope at the end — that Brian and Landon, through their love, will be okay. So while this story is indeed gut-wrench and brutal, it is also beautiful in many ways. One of the more emotional elements in the story were Brian’s poems, which made me misty-eyed on a couple of occasions.

Yes, this is a painful story, but there’s a lot of beauty and heart to it as well. So if you have the fortitude to take on a story such as this one, you may find it as rewarding as I did. If you have PTSD, however, proceed with caution, as many people may find this too triggering.

All in all, I’m so glad this story came to my attention. I admit, I put off reading it for quite some time because of the heavy subject matter but ultimately, I’m glad that I finally picked it up. I’ve enjoyed every book that I’ve read by this author, and this one was no exception, though the author’s impressive writing skills really shone through in the story. Not every author has the writing chops to pull off what Easton did here.

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Review of Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin

December 31, 2020 by Roger Hyttinen Leave a Comment

Giovanni’s Room is a tragic classic gay literary novel written in 1956 and is quite a courageous novel for its time. The story takes place in Paris in the 1950s and follows an American man named David, who is desperately trying to suppress his sexuality and deal with his internalized homophobia.

He has a fiancé named Hella, who is off traveling in Spain. While in Paris, David begins a love affair with a handsome and passionate Italian bartender named Giovanni. He ends living with him in “Giovanni’s room,” leading to a catastrophic turn of events, mainly due to David’s inability to acknowledge or accept his true feelings for Giovanni.

David, the narrator of the story, is an extremely unlikeable character: he’s selfish, dishonest, cruel, extremely judgmental, self-loathing, self-deprecating, and feels next to nothing when he hurts those who love him. He hates himself and seems to hate anyone who cares for him, and though he claims to be happy at times, there is a shadow hanging over him, a claustrophobic feeling of despair. Yet, you can’t help but relate to him on some level, especially the shame and regret he experiences.

So what we have is a broken and complex young man struggling with his sexuality and the love triangle which he has created, creating a sort of self-made prison. Though David is mostly an unlikeable protagonist, your heart still breaks for him because of his deep self-loathing and shame, which seem to crush him and both of which, unfortunately, win out in this story leading to pain and loneliness, and terrible tragedy.

Yes, it is a grim, draining, and heart-wrenching story. Still, there are so many compelling messages and metaphors within the pages, all expressed in Baldwin’s beautiful and mesmerizing prose, almost like music. The incisive writing itself swept me away. Though it’s a short novel — coming in at only around 150 pages — it is as hauntingly beautiful as it is evocative and packs an all-mighty emotional punch in such a short span of pages.

Giovanni’s Room is an honest exploration of identity and sexuality and perhaps a reminder that love needs to be open, free, and without shame. This story was a clear example of how, when love has shame and guilt at its core, that love can quickly turn to hatred.

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Review of Teddy Spenser Isn’t Looking For Love by Kim Fielding

December 30, 2020 by Roger Hyttinen Leave a Comment

This is a fun enemies-to-lovers/opposites attract type of romance that follows Teddy Spenser, our narrator, who works for an up-and-coming Chicago design firm called Reddyflora. Teddy is not amused when his boss puts him on a high profile project with his nemesis — the stodgy and abrasive software engineer Romeo, who also happens to be quite cute. I also learned about “smart vases” in this story, something I never even knew existed.

If working together wasn’t enough, their boss then sends them on a business trip together to Seattle to meet with a wealthy and eccentric potential investor, Joyce Alexander. Oh, and there was a mix-up at the hotel and not only did they have to share a room, but it was a room with only one bed.

I loved watching these two learn about each other over the coming days and seeing both of them overcome their hostilities. It was fun to see how their initial impressions of the other slowly fell apart once they discovered new and admirable facets of the other person, all of which led to a fierce devotion on both of their parts by the end of the book. Their transition from enemies to lovers is quite sweet and heart-warming and I ended up adoring both of these characters.

There was kind of an unbelievable aspect of the story, where the two of them were sent on sort of a contest and needed to perform a set of quirky missions. Though unlikely, I found this aspect of the book to be a lot of fun and I didn’t mind suspending disbelief for a little bit here.

The only thing I didn’t really like was the insta-love aspect of the story. They went from barely knowing each other to eternal declarations of love within a few days. But Insta-love aside, I enjoyed this delightful low-angst book and found both of our characters to be lovable and admirable, with just enough tension to keep the narrative compelling.

All in all, a sweet and tender perfectly constructed story with diverse characters and a heart-warming storyline. I loved the way the story progressed culminating in a beautiful epilogue.

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Review of Touch by Claire North

December 30, 2020 by Roger Hyttinen Leave a Comment

Touch is a unique sci-fi/thriller/espionage story that follows an entity known as Kepler, who is referred to as a “ghost”; that is to say, a being who has the ability to jump from one body to another, basically, hijacking the other person’s body. The ghost then lives that person’s life: it drives the person’s car, is married to the person’s spouse, can spend the person’s money, and have sex using the person’s body. The person whose body they take over (the host) is pushed aside and has no memory of anything that has occurred while the ghost is in control. Ghosts can leave a body at any time by simply touching a different person, and the only thing ghosts leave behind when they move on is bewilderment and confusion.

The story takes off when the host body that Kepler was wearing, Josephine Cebula, is brutally murdered. The kicker is that the assassin was not only out to kill Josephine but also Kepler. Kepler now occupies the assassin’s body and is determined to find out the truth about who or what is behind the assassination — and why.

This story kind of reminded me of Every Day by David Levithan, in which the entity wakes up in a new body every day, except they have no control over who they occupy. In this story, our main characters can jump into any body they want, whenever they want.

I loved the original premise of this story, of how the ghosts can live any type of life they want. They can be whoever they want, look however they want and go wherever they want. If you want to, you could be a movie star or even a leader of a country.

Of course, this isn’t so great for the hosts, who can lose days, months, years, or even an entire lifetime to a ghost. Imagine that you’re seventeen-years-old and shake hands with a stranger. The next thing you know, you’re 77 with children and grandchildren, and you don’t remember any of the prior 60 years. So in this way, the story deals with the morality, implications, and ramifications of wearing someone else’s body. Many interesting moral issues were brought up throughout the book, especially those such as free will, identity, and the nature of love. It also raised some interesting questions about the nature of reality.

Have you ever found yourself in another room and forgot why you’re there? Hmm…perhaps a ghost just took a ride in your skin.

I loved the depth in which the author examined the life of a ghost and found it utterly compelling and fascinating. We learned how such an untethered soul survives by stealing the consciousness of others and are, in essence, immortal (unless their host dies before they can touch another person). It struck me that, in a way, Kepler and their kind are a sort of “parasite” and one can certainly understand someone’s desire to eradicate such beings. And that’s the interesting aspect of this story; that though ghosts are indeed parasites, they are also people.

Regardless, however, there are those who hate and fear ghosts and consider them to be nothing more than monsters who steal people’s lives and deserve to be eliminated. But the villain in this story — a serial killer — has motivations much grander and more dangerous than merely eliminating ghosts.

Even though there was quite a bit of body jumping going on in the story as well as numerous flashbacks, I was never confused. I loved journeying along with Kepler as they described their mesmerizing life, both in the past and present. I found this fast-paced story to be so addicting that, even though the book was over 400 pages, I tore through it in two sittings. The gripping storyline and the short chapters helped in that manner.

All in all, this story ranks up among my favorites, especially with its likable yet morally gray protagonist. The writing is beautiful, the plot is utterly unique and engaging, and the story execution flawless. This dark and brilliant story really took me by surprise and did not disappoint. Loved it!