Roger's Reads

Author & Book Reviewer

Review of Tin Heart by Shivaun Plozza

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Tin heart book coverShivaun Plozza is an Australian writer who is new to me, but the plot interested me so I couldn’t wait to delve into this book.

Tin Heart is a contemporary novel that follows 17-year-old Marlow Jensen who, suffering from a congenital heart condition, had come to accept the fact that she was going to die…and soon. But that all changes one day when she receives the call that a heart from a 17-year-old boy has become available for transplant.

The transplant is a success, and our story opens one year after the operation during which Marlow is trying to figure out who she is and how she fits into her world. After both she and her peers had thought of herself for so long as “sick girl” or “dying girl,” she’s now at a loss to figure out who she really is.

In her search for meaning, she’s resolved to discover who her anonymous heart donor is, hoping to contact the family in order to express her gratitude. Though transplant recipients are forbidden to contact donor families, Marlow pursues forward with some interesting — and sometimes cringe-worthy — results.

In addition to the intrigue surrounding Marlow’s heart transplant and her search for the donor family, we also delve into Marlow’s unique family. Her mother is a passionate vegan activist who opened a vegan shop next to the neighborhood butcher and has taken up the personal mission of protesting in front of the butcher shop whenever possible. Naturally, this has created quite an enemy of the shop’s owner. She also expects her children to support her and adhere to the same high moral standards as herself. But when the rivalry between Marlow and the butcher’s son Leo (whom she has nicknamed “Butcher Boy) turns into romance, all sorts of humorous hijinks ensue.

Then there’s Marlow’s upbeat always-smiling crossing-dressing younger brother Pip who dresses up for school as though every day were Halloween. I laughed out loud many times at the descriptions of his outrageous and flamboyant costumes, and I found him to be one of the most interesting and likable characters of the book.

Overall, Tin Heart was a beautiful story about a sensitive subject that the author handled with grace. It was a potent story about grief, organ donation and second chances, as well as the importance of family. It was riveting to follow Marlow’s transition from being given a death sentence to that of a recovering survivor, and I loved seeing how she moved from victim mentality to that of a self-confident and resilient young adult — although she made a few morally questionable decisions along the way.

The topic of this novel was an intense one, especially as Marlowe struggled and finally came to terms with the fact that the only reason she is alive is because someone else had to die. Organ donation is one of those subjects that people rarely think about or talk about until disaster strikes, and I don’t recall ever having read a fiction novel where this particular subject matter played a central role. So in this way, the book encourages us to think about this important topic and perhaps even paves the way to discussion with friends and family.

Though the storyline was no doubt a serious one and pulled at the reader’s heartstrings in many places throughout the novel, the story was also sprinkled with plenty of humor, lighthearted banter and wit, rendering it an especially enjoyable and satisfying read.

All in all, Tin Heart is a well-crafted, stunning contemporary novel of many layers, with a huge heart and an important message and is the kind of book that will hit you right in the heart (pun intended). Recommended.

A huge thank you to Shivaun Plozza and Flatiron Books for providing me with a review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

You can check out Tin Heart here at Amazon

Review of A Curse so Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer

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Curse so dark and lonely book cover“Do I look like a princess?”
“You look like a queen.”

I’ve been a fan of Brigid Kemmerer ever since I’ve read her Elemental series years ago about four brothers with magical powers, so I was excited when I heard that she was doing a contemporary fantasy retelling of Beauty and the Beast, though it’s much darker than the original tale. I immediately pre-ordered it and read it the day I received it in the post.

The story follows the enigmatic Prince Rhen, AKA “The Beast,” crown prince of Emberfall who was cursed by a powerful enchantress named Lilith. How his curse works, is that for the past 300 plus seasons, Rhen has repeated the autumn of his eighteenth year over and over, after which he turns into a different beast every time but a creature hell-bent on destruction. Over the years, he — or the beast — has murdered his family, his guards, his army and many innocent townspeople. In fact, a man named Grey, Rhen’s loyal guard commander, is the only living person left at the castle with him and Prince Rhen’s only friend.

Now the stipulation of the curse, is that it can be broken only if a woman falls in love with him before the end of autumn and each season Grey, who has the power to travel to our world, captures a girl and brings her back for Rhen, hoping that perhaps this time, she will be “the one.” Of course, it’s not easy to love a blood-thirsty beast, so he hasn’t been successful in finding his true love.

At this point in the story, overcome by angst and tragedy, he has pretty much given up all hope given that he’s pretty much lost everything over the years; his family, his kingdom, the respect of his people and eventually, his friendship with Grey. He’s also ripped apart by guilt for every vile act he’s committed during his time as The Beast. At this point, he longs for death.

Enter Harper, a young woman with cerebral palsy whose mother is dying, and her brother is in a whole heap of trouble with the both of them desperately trying to hold their family together. When she tries to save a woman who appears to be in the process of being abducted, she ends up sucked into a parallel world — Rhen’s world to be exact — with no way back home for at least an entire year and ends up being the latest pawn in the “break the curse” game.

Now Harper is not a pushover, but a firecracker of a woman — determined, resourceful and scrappy who refuses to play the role of victim. But as she spends more time with Rhen and the people of Emberfall, she begins to understand just how much is at stake. Rhen soon realizes that this woman is entirely different from the many, many others he has tried to charm. She mocks him, fights against him, taunts him, antagonizes him and before he realizes it, begins to fall for this feisty woman — a woman who challenged him to be more, to be better, to be who he was meant to be.

Because of Harper, Rhen soon finds himself daring to hope for the impossible — that there may be a way to breaks his curse after all.

But there is more going on here than just Prince Rhen’s curse. Powerful forces are threatening to destroy Emberfall, and its people and our characters soon understand that it will take more than ending the curse to save the kingdom. Harper has to make a powerful choice: go home to save her family or stay in Emberfall and save Rhen’s kingdom.

There is so much to love about this book, but I especially enjoyed the fresh, original take on one of my favorite classic fairytales. I do love retellings, and this was definitely one of the better ones with a delightfully chilling villain; a fierce and determined kick-ass heroine, high-stakes political intrigue that builds throughout the story; a handsome yet someone angsty prince; a mysterious storyline; a looming war; and the colliding of the modern world (DC to be exact) with a fantasy medieval-feeling fairytale kingdom. This reimagining ticked all the right boxes for me. I loved how every character in the book became a better version of themselves by the story’s end.

Harper was my favorite character. All of her life because of her Cerebral Palsy, she was seen as weak and as someone who needed to be protected, especially by her brother Jack. But in Emberfall, she really came into her own and took charge – and instead of needed to be protected, she filled the role of the compassionate protector of others.

And rather than being defined by her handicap, she rose above it by sheer will and determination, and in so doing, ended up accomplishing amazing things. She’s definitely the least classic fairytale princess that I’ve come across, and I loved her for it.

The story is told from Rhen and Harper’s alternating points of view which helped get to know the characters and what makes them tick. Usually, I’m not a fan of dual POVs, but I thought it worked exceptionally well in this instance.

All in all, A Curse So Dark and Lonely was a delightful, fast-paced, action-packed retelling of an old favorite with evocative imagery, beautiful writing, amazing characters, and exquisite world-building. Though the ending was entirely satisfying, I understand there is going to be a sequel entitled “A Heart So Fierce and Broken,” and I for sure will be picking it up. But yeah, this was a solid 5-star read for me.

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Review of The Binding by Bridget Collins

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The binding book coverFirst thing I want to point out is how beautiful the book is, not just the art on the dust jacket but the book itself with gorgeous gold embossing. It’s gorgeous!

Introducing Emmett

The Binding follows a young man named Emmett Farmer who is recovering from a strange illness, of which nobody knows the cause. Though he’s trying to be helpful in his father’s fields, his strength, stamina, and usefulness are only a shadow of what they once were, as he continues to suffer bouts of dizziness, nausea, and general weakness.

Summoned by a Witch

One day a strange letter arrives from a well-known Bookbinder named Seredith, requesting that Emmett become her apprentice. Now in this world, a bookbinder is not merely someone who stitches together pages of a book. Rather, Bookbinders are feared, hated and treated with suspicion. Some people call them witches because what they do, is remove portions of a person’s memory and then bind those memories in elegant leather-bound books.

The Art of Bookbinding

People go to Bookbinders to remove those memories that cause them pain, cause them grief or as a manner to hide a dark secret. Do you want to forget something? Go to a Bookbinder. Do you have secrets, an embarrassing mistake or a dark past that you want to be removed from your memory? A Bookbinder can fix you right up. Is the pain or grief from the loss of a loved one so great that you simply cannot live with it? A Bookbinder can remove it all for you. And once you’ve been bound, you’ll completely forget that you’ve been bound.

The books created from these memories have the power to change lives and destroy lives, should they ever fall into the wrong hands. And what happens if those books are ever destroyed? Why, all of the memories in the book come immediately rushing right back to their originator, which could have some quite disturbing consequences.

Emmett’s Destiny

As Emmett learns from Seredith, Bookbinders aren’t made, they’re born — bookbinding is part of who you are — it’s in your blood. For as long as Emmett can remember, he’s been strangely drawn to books even though his father has strictly forbidden them. His new mentor tells him that Bookbinding is a sacred vocation and informs him that the reason he has felt this affinity for books is that he is “binder-born,” which was also the cause of his illness. But now that Emmett is working with books and fulfilling his destiny, his illness abates, and he finds a kind of peace in his workshop.

Shady Characters

Now, this is one of those novels that you can’t say too much about without giving anything away. I went into this book completely blind, having not even an inkling of the plot and I’m so glad I did because the surprises are worth it. Let me just say that not all binders are of the high moral caliber as Seredith, and there are definitely some bad apples. Some of them are in it just for the money, and some even stoop so low as to illicitly sell these books of memories on the market to make a profit.

Eventually, Emmett unwillingly becomes involved with some of these less scrupulous binders and ends up having to make some really tough decisions. It’s also worth mentioning that the art of Bookbinding is abused by some of the more dodgy characters in the book, leading to some powerful and heart-wrenching scenes. For instance, I found it genuinely chilling that memories from a rape victim can be wiped clean, allowing the perpetrator to walk away unpunished. Emmett soon finds himself plunged into a world of wealth, abuse, cruelty, depravity and deception.

A Story in Three Parts

The book is told in three parts. The first part follows Emmett’s story in the present as he is summoned by the Bookbinder and begins his apprenticeship. It’s in this part where we learn the truth about what Bookbinding actually is. I found this section absolutely riveting as we’re introduced to the somewhat unsettling and macabre world of Bookbinding.

Part Two of the story brings us to the past but prior to Emmett’s illness, before Emmett knew who or what he was. Here, we’re integrated into Emmett’s daily life on the farm and see the events that led to Emmett’s illness and his subsequent summons by the elderly Bookbinder. Initially, I found this abrupt change in direction from the first part a bit jarring, mainly because I didn’t understand the purpose to this section and how it related to the story we’ve been told thus far. But then, all the pieces fell into place leading to a delightful “ah-ha!” moment.

In Part Three, we return to present day, but interestingly, we are no longer experiencing the story through Emmett’s eyes but instead, through the eyes of someone else and I found this section just as beautiful and compelling and as the previous ones.

Verdict

The Binding is a beautiful, atmospheric and haunting story that I found to be a remarkable read. I adored the intriguing and frightening premise of this fantasy world where portions of a person’s memories can be removed and then be preserved for safekeeping in a book. I thought this concept was absolutely mind-blowing — it was so imaginative, original and clever. This was one of those books that stuck its hooks into me almost immediately, and I didn’t want to let go at the story’s finish. A truly captivating story that I didn’t want to end.

Though the world of the Binders is fascinating, the heart of this story lies in the beautifully woven yet forbidden romance of two desperate souls who find themselves caught up in the dark and cruel machinations of others around them. This story wrecked me in the best and most unexpected ways. It hit me right in the heart, and I’m still thinking about it many days later so in this way, it’s an incredibly profound and shattering story.

This book certainly raises some interesting questions and made me wonder how many of us would pay a visit to a Binder to get painful or embarrassing memories permanently removed, thus creating new stories for ourselves in the process? Quite an interesting concept, for sure.

All in all, The Binding is a unique, haunting and beautifully written multi-layered novel that’s unlike anything I’ve ever read before and I completely fell in love with this story. The author created such a vivid and realistic world here that at times, I forget I was reading fantasy. All in all, a solid 5-star read for me and I’m already thinking about giving this one a re-read.

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Review of The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides

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Silent patient book coverThe Murder

The Silent Patient is a dark psychological suspense that follows a famous painter named Alicia Berenson who is happily married to her husband, Gabriel. But in the opening scene of the book, we learn that Alicia’s husband has been murdered. Alicia is standing covered in blood next to the body of her dead husband, who is still tied to a chair. He had been shot in the face five times, and as it turns out, Alicia’s fingerprints were on the gun that was lying on the floor. The obvious conclusion is that Alicia murdered him.

Did She or Didn’t She?

But did she? Well, the reader had to come up with his or her own conclusion because after the murder, Alicia never spoke another word. Nothing. She refused to talk and gave no explanation or justification for what she did — no defense, no denial, no commentary. Totally silent. Alicia was taken to a psychiatric facility called The Grove, and we wonder whether she will ever speak again to let the world know what really went down that night.

Theo to the Rescue

Fast forward six years where we then, we meet Theo Faber, a criminal psychotherapist who has waited a long time for the opportunity to work with Alicia. The novel is actually narrated by Theo who tells us Alicia’s story. This is always a trope that I enjoy; that is, when the story is told from the perspective of a psychiatrist. This could be because my undergrad degree is in Psychology, but regardless, I find the exploration and analysis of a patient’s psyche absolutely riveting and it certainly was in this case.

Theo’s Investigation Begins

He is determined to help her find her voice and solve of the mystery of why she shot her husband, with only one main clue at his disposal: an unsettling self-portrait that she painted after the murder and which she titled ‘Alcestis,’ which is the name of a Greek Tragedy.

Though Theo’s conversations with others, we learn more about Alicia, especially how others viewed her, their assumptions about her and their theories about what led up to the murder. As he dug deeper into her past, I began to create certain theories and assumptions of my own. But I’m happy to say that I did not figure it out. Because I hate that. I will also say that the author doesn’t try to lead the reader down the wrong path by peppering the story with erroneous clues. Truth be told, I had no idea how it was all going to play out until the final shocking pages.

A Dark and Disturbing Path

So as Theo begins interviewing others, diving deeper into Alicia’s psyche through therapy and studying entries in Alicia’s diary – the diary she was keeping before her husband’s murder — he ends up going down quite a dark and twisty path, especially once he begins to get a clearer image of who she was, her history and of the events that preceded the murder. Naturally, not all is as it seems. But all through the story, I had one nagging questions: Why has Alicia remained silent. What is shock or fear or guilt? Or something else entirely?

Given that the story is told from Theo’s point of view, we also get a peek into his life and his thoughts, and eventually learn why he is so determined to learn the truth about what happened that night.

Oh — That Ending!

But the highlight of this story is the completely insane and unexpected twist that comes at the end. It was nothing short of amazing, and I did not see it coming at all. It snuck up on me without warning. I was shocked, I tell you, shocked. This ending is definitely a favorite.

Verdict

All in all, The Silent Patient was a meticulously well-crafted, captivating and clever psychological thriller that kept my eyes glued to the page with a plethora of twists, turns, and surprises. I have to say that I found Alicia to be one of the MOST compelling, enigmatic and complex characters I have ever read about. This is a well-written, engaging, and suspenseful novel that drew me right in from the beginning and then totally blew me away at the end. It was a complete whirlwind of a story — dark and intense — and I loved it.

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Review of Perfect Match by AG Meiers

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Perfect match coverPerfect Match follows Sven, a lumberjack who has not found is Mr. Right, which concerns his family. So they take matters into their own hands to find him someone through an online site called Perfect Match. The result is the arrival of a somewhat effeminate young city boy named Jayden who is pretty much out of his comfort zone being surrounded by a group of gruff lumberjacks. Sven and Jayden couldn’t be more different, but there seems to be an attraction — a chemistry — between them.

But we soon learn that the company “Perfect Match” is not what it seems and that Jayden is actually trying to deceive and con Sven, though deep down, Jayden is really a decent guy. But the kicker is that Jayden has fallen for Sven. Moreover, he has some dark secrets that he doesn’t want anyone to find out, most of all, Sven. Naturally, all sorts of wacky hijinks ensue.

This was a light-hearted and fun gay romance with family shenanigans, sweet and endearing characters and two opposites who find each other. Perfect Match is a feel-good story that only had a teensy bit of angst, and it was fun to see the main characters slowly growing to trust and care for each other. The chemistry between them was terrific, and the writing made this book a heart-warming read. And you couldn’t help but fall in love with Sven’s family. All in all, a truly pleasant and solid reading experience.

A huge thank you to Netgalley and AG Meiers for providing an Advance Reader Copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

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Review of Rabi and Matthew by L.A. Witt

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Rabi and matthew cover imageRabi and Matthew is a gay romance story which the blurb describes as “A queer retelling of Romeo & Juliet, except no one has to bury their gays.”

The Story

This novel follows Rabi Hashmi and Matthew Swain who meet one night at a party and end up falling in love. Simple enough story. Well, not really. What makes this story interesting is the decades-old rivalry between the two families as their two fathers run against each other in the election for a seat in Congress. What we have here is Democrat vs. Republican, Muslim vs. Christian and years and years of mistrust and hatred between the families.

Rabi and Matthew know that their love will not be without its challenges, that falling in love with each other in the middle of a war that has the potential of turning bloody is probably not the wisest thing. But they can’t resist the attraction and the feelings that grow between them and decide to take a chance. They meet in secret, often heading out of town in order to lower the risk of running into someone who could report back to their families.

I thought the scenes with them getting to know each other during their secret rendezvous-vous were heartfelt and endearing. Little did they know, however, that the pot had reached its boiling point, and hatred along with escalating racial tensions now threatened everything they hold dear…and not everyone may end up a happily ever after.

A Queer Romeo & Juliet

I loved the entire premise of a queer telling of Romeo & Juliet, with a white Christian boy from a racist Republican family falling in love with a Pakistani Muslim boy from a Democrat family, with both families obsessed with their hatred. The author expertly handled the storyline, and I was impressed with the clever parallels with Romeo & Juliet.

I also give the author extra points for not stereotyping our main characters as either Romeo or Juliet. Neither one of them fit those roles, for which I was grateful. Now I will say that there is definitely some Insta-Love going on here, but given that it’s a retelling of the classic Romeo and Juliet, I could overlook it. I thought their whirlwind romance was tender and sweet, with there being a powerful chemistry between them. It was a joy seeing the two of them fall deeper in love with each other, in spite of the dangers from everyone around there.

A Plethora of Themes

There are so many interesting themes that run through this novel: racism, hatred, gun violence, violence in general, xenophobia (particularly Islamophobia), homophobia, and politics to name a few. There are some scenes in the book that are absolute insanity, with the hatred, bigotry, and violence overtaking all semblance of reason.

So that being said, this story had plenty of edge-of-your-seat, nail-biting drama that gripped me and held me until the emotional ending. This is the kind of book that takes your heart, tosses it into a blender and then slowly puts it back together at the end; though I will say that the journey was exhilarating.

Remember…It’s A Love Story

Now, it’s important to remember that this novel, though it may not seem like it at times, is a romance and not a tragedy like Romeo and Juliet. That’s not to say that horrible things don’t happen in the story, because they do. But ultimately, this is a love story, and though the characters don’t end up with perhaps an ideal happily-ever-after, the ending is perfect in light of the events that take place in the book, so in this way, it was a satisfying conclusion.

My One Niggle

I had one main niggle with this book and with one particular scene. It was after our two main characters have just gone through a horrendous experience….I mean the ultimate worst. They dash out of town, rent a hotel room and then jump into bed and have sex. I thought, “Oh come on! Really?????”

I can’t see how anyone in their right mind could or would think about sex being in their situation. This scene struck me as unrealistic, and I just couldn’t buy into it. I actually found this scene so far-fetched and unbelievable that I was ready to bail on the book. But I did stick it out, and I’m happy I did because the author more than made up for it by giving us a beautiful and touching ending.

Verdict

Rabi and Matthew was one heck of a rollercoaster ride, one for which you might want to have a tissue nearby. There are a lot of intense scenes and heavy topics in the book, and at times, it is difficult to read. But ultimately, I ended up loving this emotionally satisfying story, and I found myself tearfully be rooting for our two heroes as chaos erupted all around them. I thought the novel was well-crafted and deeply engaging, with even a twist or two to keep things interesting. Recommended!

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