The Revenge List

Title:  The Revenge List

Author:  Hannah Mary McKinnon

Publication Information:  MIRA Books. 2023. 368 pages.

ISBN:  0778333469 / 978-0778333463

Book Source:  I received this book through NetGalley and a publisher's blog tour free of cost in exchange for an honest review.

Opening Sentence:  "The sharp sound of a high-pitched scream filled the air."

Favorite Quote:  "Forgiveness is a process... It takes time and commitment. It's hard and can be painful. However, if you're willing to put in the work, it might be the best decision you make."

***** BLOG TOUR *****

Review

Frankie Morgan has anger issues - serious, sometimes violent, often uncontrollable anger issues. "Truth is, we all carry some degree of anger inside, every single one of us, and anyone who insists on the contrary is a goddamn liar. Some ignore it; many stuff the sentiments into a little box and keep it closed... Others, like me... didn't far as well. We could explode in a nanosecond if the wrong button got pushed."

Frankie's  anger has had serious consequences for her, her family, and her workplace. As a reader, you know that there are reasons for that anger - reasons embedded in the past. You know that as the story progresses, the reasons will be revealed. In that sense, the story both moves forward and travels back.

The book begins in between. At her father's behest, Frankie attends an anger management group counseling session. The key to that group session is the counselor's request that all attendees write a list. The list is intended to identify those Frankie wants to forgive. Somewhere between the session and home, Frankie loses a list.

That does not seem to be an issue until one by one, people on that list start to get hurt. One, two, three... Other names on the list include people Frankie loves and also herself. The mystery of the book is who is turning Frankie's forgiveness list into a revenge list.

The story is told as a first person narrative through Frankie's eyes. Since the names on the list are from Frankie's lives, piece by piece, through those connections, a picture of Frankie's life emerges and with it, the reasons for her anger and all the other emotions that underlie that anger. It is a sad story in so many ways. Frankie's story leaves the reader with a stated lesson. "I'd been so fixated on and angry with my past, I hadn't paid attention to or tried to repair my present."

What works for me in the book is the first person narrative. It allows that vision into Frankie and allows the reader to walk her path. What doesn't work in the book is also the first person narrative. The person responsible for turning forgiveness into revenge is revealed through Frankie's eyes. That leaves a distance from that person and hence from the ending of the book. The ending makes sense but leaves me wanting to know more about this individual and life from their perspective that leads them down this road.

The ending does hint at the fact that the story may not be done yet. It'll be interesting to see if a sequel is to come.

About the Book

As a therapy exercise, a woman writes a list of people she wants to forgive, and thinks nothing of it when she loses it in an Uber…until one by one the people on the list become victims of freak accidents. Set in Portland, Maine, Hannah Mary McKinnon’s breakout suspense novel THE REVENGE LIST will appeal to fans of Lisa Unger, Joshilyn Jackson, and Tarryn Fisher.

Following an epic run-in with a client who threatened to pull out of a contract at her father’s company if she doesn’t suffer some consequences, Frankie Morgan agrees to go to anger management. With the business struggling with cash-flow and her brother needing help with the medical bills for his sick daughter, she can’t risk harming the business further. But that doesn’t mean she’ll be happy about attending.During the first session, the group is asked to spend some quiet time exploring their pasts and sitting with the emotions that generates, before making a start on a Forgiveness List—a list of people with whom they’re angry and might work on forgiving. She begrudgingly goes along with it and doesn’t worry too much when she forgets the list in an Uber on her way home. It shouldn’t matter—it was just a therapy exercise—except a few days later the first person on that list is injured in a freak accident. When the second person gets hurt, she hopes it’s coincidence. After the third is targeted, she knows it’s a pattern. And she’s in trouble. Because the next name on that list is…hers.

About the Author

Hannah Mary McKinnon was born in the UK, grew up in Switzerland and moved to Canada in 2010. After a successful career in recruitment, she quit the corporate world in favor of writing. She now lives in Oakville, Ontario, with her husband and three sons, and is delighted by her twenty-second commute. Connect with her on Facebook, on Twitter @HannahMMcKinnon, and on Instagram @HannahMaryMcKinnon. For more, visit her website, www.hannahmarymckinnon.com.

Q&A with the Author

Describe THE REVENGE LIST in four words?
Twisted, surprising, gut-wrenching, original.

How would you describe your latest book in a few sentences?
When Frankie Morgan loses her “forgiveness list” – the names of people who have wronged her in the past, and whom she could work to forgive – she thinks nothing of it. But as the people on Frankie’s list have increasingly serious accidents, Frankie’s in trouble. She wrote her own name on the list because her past self is the one person she’ll never forgive. If she doesn’t find out who’s behind the attacks, she might be next.

What’s “the story behind the story.” Tell us about the inspiration for THE REVENGE LIST?
I can usually pinpoint exactly where the inspiration for my novels came from. Typically, it’s a news article (You Will Remember Me and Her Secret Son) or a radio segment (Sister Dear), maybe some daydreaming (The Neighbors) or a specific character (Never Coming Home).

With The Revenge List, it was after batting various plot ideas around with my agent Carolyn, and former editor Emily that a random idea popped into my head: “What if an anger management group therapy exercise went terribly wrong?” That was it—we all needed to know what the rest of the story was.

What did you have the most fun with, character or plot?
Both, because they’re intrinsically linked. I loved building Frankie’s history to figure out who had wronged her in the past, how it had shaped her life and was still influencing her in the present. Frankie’s a firecracker, and it was incredibly interesting to write from the perspective of a woman who struggles with anger and doesn’t always handle it in a way that’s expected.

Did any of the characters appear fully formed?
No, they never do, but Frankie’s character came together quite quickly once I’d decided on a rough premise. I knew she’d have a certain amount of anger caused by her past, that she might be construed as an “angry woman” and I wondered what it would be like to write from that character’s perspective – without her being angry all the time, of course, because that would be exhausting. I also deliberately placed her in a male-dominated industry, which I have a lot of experience working in.

Did the story end the way you’d initially thought?
Yes, it did. I had the ending in mind when I started outlining and it barely changed. It still gives me the shivers.

Five facts readers don’t know about THE REVENGE LIST

1. The fictional coffee shop, Jake’s Cakes, originally appears in Sister Dear. It was fun to revive it as a little easter egg for anyone who reads both books.
2. I put Frankie in construction because it’s such a male dominated industry, but also because, I often went to construction sites when I was a kid as my dad worked as an architect. I still find them fascinating.
3. Like Frankie, I had a job at a grocery store when I was in school but thankfully nothing bad ever happened there.
4. I set the book in Portland, Maine because I’ve been there and loved it.
5. I modeled reporter Danika Danforth’s personality on my good friend Hank Phillippi Ryan. One reader told me “reporters aren’t that nice” and I replied, “Hank is!”

Do you have a favorite chapter or scene?
I adored writing the scenes with Frankie and Rico because I loved the brother/sister relationship and dynamic. I don’t have a brother, but if I did, I hope it would be someone like Rico as he was such a wonderful, caring man who clearly adored his sibling but wouldn’t put up with her nonsense, either.

Do you have a favorite character?
It’s got to be Frankie. I loved writing from her perspective – I found her so interesting and complex, including the fact that, even given her history, she’s still an optimist at heart. She became a great (fictional) friend.

What do you hope readers will take away from THE REVENGE LIST?
I always say I hope to surprise readers, and that they keep thinking about the book long after they’ve finished the final page. My ultimate goal hasn’t changed: it’s to entertain, to provide people with a form of escape and to leave them satisfied thinking, “I enjoyed that. It was time well spent! What else has Hannah Mary written?”

At what point in your life did you realize that you were called to be a writer?
It wasn’t until my 40s when we came to Canada and my start-up HR company failed. I had a decision to make – keep working corporate or try something else. I plumped for the latter and I’m beyond thrilled I did. I love my second career so much and can’t imagine doing anything else.

Can you tell us about your challenges in getting your first book published (or this book?)
I made a lot of mistakes before my first novel was published, including rushing to submit the manuscript to an agent before it was truly ready. After editing it for two years, taking creative writing courses, and reading a lot, I managed to secure representation. If I’d taken those classes and learned about the industry earlier, it may not have taken as long…but the rejections kept my feet firmly on the ground and made me more determined. In a FitBit meditation with Ceasar F. Barajas, I recently heard we could “think of rejection as redirection.” It really resonated with me.

How did publishing your first book change your process of writing, if at all?
I’ve learned to trust my writing process. If I can get the bones of the story on paper, I’ll add layers and complexity as I go over the novel again and again in preparation for my editor’s eyes. I accept the finer details will come as I work. I’ll figure out plot-holes if I allow myself time to work through them. Just like most people who draw, paint, or write music or books, the first draft will never be my best work. Rome wasn’t built in a day and all that. I’m glad I’ve accepted this because it stops me from being overly self-critical when I start a project. I also set myself deadlines and work hard to beat them.

What's your favorite part about writing/being an author? What do you find challenging?
The camaraderie of the writing community is like nothing I’ve experienced elsewhere. Authors, agents, publishers, readers, reviewers—we all love books and it’s wonderful. In terms of writing, I adore the anticipation of starting a new novel where everything is open, and the only limit is my imagination. I also love when I get to the editing part and think, “Yeah, there’s something here” — it’s always such a rush. What’s challenging? Pushing through the first draft and the edit thereof. I need cookies for both!

How has your writing process changed since your first book published in 2016?
I’ve become a lot more streamlined because of deadlines. Also, I’ve figured out what works for me (plotting and structure) and what doesn’t (winging it), all of which goes a long way. Having written seven published and two upcoming novels means I have a good few years of experience in the industry, and I’ve learned to trust my instincts. When I find myself thinking, “Gah, this is terrible!” I remind myself I’ve said that about every previous books. That’s a lie. My husband reminds me of it each time and he’s right.

All your books are filled with many plot twists and turns. How much of the stories have you mapped out in advance, or does your writing style, take, well, twists and turns as you go along?
I love twists and turns, and the more books I write, the more I plot them. While detailed outlines make me more productive and efficient because I know where I’m headed, it doesn’t necessarily mean I’ll end up at the destination I mapped out. Things change as I write. I plot, but I’m flexible and still need my manuscript to surprise me as it evolves. In The Neighbors, for example, the ending changed quite dramatically as I got closer to finishing my first draft. In Her Secret Son, the final chapters were different because I wasn’t happy with whom I’d planned to kill. Sister Dear and You Will Remember Me’s endings are close to how I’d imagined but more sinister. Never Coming Home and The Revenge List barely changed at all. With all my books, more twists and turns appeared as I wrote. That’s another fun part of writing, discovering what your characters will do when you let them loose. I can’t possibly know everything from the beginning, nor would I want to.

What is your writing process like?
Extremely structured with plots, deadlines, and word-count targets. For The Revenge List, the “what if” idea came first, then Frankie’s character, followed by the storyline. I noodled the thoughts around as the main characters took shape. The next step was to write an outline. I started by jotting down the big picture plot points, which I used as stepping-stones to build and write the rest of the outline. I filled out personality questionnaires for my main characters to understand them better, and searched for photos on the internet to build a gallery. I also put a map of Portland together to work out who lived and worked where. I wrote the basic manuscript that was a little over two-thirds of the final word count, then layered and developed until I was happy calling it a first draft, and sent it to my editor. She loved it (phew!).

What kind of research did you do, and how long did you spend researching before beginning the book?
One of the characters in The Revenge List has appendicitis, which our eldest son had when he was ten, so I drew on that experience, which thankfully was far easier than my fictional scenario. I called in the experts for more in-depth medical advice, police, and court procedures, and how adoption in Maine works, which was all fascinating. Research is one of my favorite parts of writing a book—not only because it’s interesting to learn new things, but mainly because I get to speak with such brilliant and knowledgeable people. I don’t do a lot of research before I write but tend to put placeholders for areas that need fleshing out and go back to them after I’ve finished my first draft. That way I’m not spending hours on facts that don’t make the cut, or getting sidetracked by facts which are interesting, but potentially irrelevant to the story.

What was the most unique research you had to do for a book?
Bet you I’m flagged by more than one government agency with my search history. For 2022’s book, Never Coming Home, one element was figuring out what Drano does to a corpse (spoiler: it’s not pretty), the generalities of hiring a hitman on the dark web, as well as technical aspects of spyware on cell phones. Like I said: flagged!

You often set your novels in Maine. Can you tell us why?
I prefer writing about places I’ve been as there’s only so much you can do online to visualize a town (which is why I make them up in certain novels, too). We have family in New Brunswick, and when we visit, we sometimes drive from Toronto via the United States, which takes us through Maine. It’s beautiful and I loved Portland in particular. I hope to return soon.

What's the one element of a thriller novel that is a MUST?
Plot twists and secrets. I want to be surprised when I’m reading a thriller, although that can be said for any genre, so I guess you need to throw in a dead body or three somewhere as well.

Do you find it easier to write character and dialogue for the opposite sex because you are the opposite sex? (A woman writing a man’s part and dialogue for example).
I enjoy both equally although I do find when I write a man’s point-of-view I’m more direct. Nevertheless, one of my first questions is, “Whose story is this?” After that, to be honest, I try not to overthink whether I’m writing a man or a woman. The important thing is to give them a voice, develop their character and backstory, and make them seem as human to the reader as they are to me.

Do you come up with the plot or the characters first, and how do you develop them?
It depends on the book. Generally, it’s an idea for a plot first. A “what if” scenario prompted by a radio segment, as was the case for Sister Dear, or a news story, like with You Will Remember Me. With The Revenge List it was the “what if an anger management therapy exercise went wrong” question that was the genesis for the story. It’s quite fascinating how an entire fictional world can be built from nine words. Gosh, I love my job.

How long did it take to write the book, and how many drafts do you usually write before publication?
The Revenge List took about two weeks to plot, plus four months to write and edit to the point where it was ready to send to my editor. Structural edits thereafter were quite minimal – maybe two weeks of work. I fully expect my next ten novels to kick me in the crotch because of this! In terms of drafts, there’s the basic puke draft/edit, then I’ll go over it probably 7-10 times before it’s ready for my editor. After that we’ll do another number of passes to restructure if necessary, and smooth out the rough bits. I love working with my editor!

Do you read other fiction while you’re working on a book, or do you find it distracting? Do you listen to music while you write?
I’m always with a book in hand (or headphones in my ears taking my audiobooks for a walk) and it would be awful for me to not read when I’m writing. To me, books aren’t distracting at all, but music is. I need silence when I work. My preferred writing spot, at least to draft my initial manuscripts, is our spare bedroom with its dodgy Wi-Fi connection and a laptop. I leave my phone downstairs, so I’m not tempted to check emails, the news, or go on social media. My productivity at least doubles.

Do you have a go-to first reader after you feel your manuscript is ready?
Fellow crime author A.F. Brady and bookstagrammer Sonica Soares have read quite a few of my recent novels before anybody else. They’re extremely insightful and give brilliant, candid feedback, which is exactly what I need.

What is your writing Kryptonite?
Cookies! But seriously, it’s the first pass after the puke draft. It takes forever and it’s my least favorite part.

Finish this: “I can’t write without…”
A tidy desk! For me, a cluttered space = a cluttered mind. It makes me jumpy. I also need a huge jug of water.

Buy Links

Bookshop.org: https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-revenge-list-hannah-mary-mckinnon/18745472
B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-revenge-list-hannah-mary-mckinnon/1142010420
IndieBound: https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-revenge-list-hannah-mary-mckinnon/18745472?ean=9780778333463&ref=&source=IndieBound&title=The+Revenge+List
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Revenge-List-Hannah-Mary-McKinnon/dp/0778333469Books A Million: https://www.booksamillion.com/p/Revenge-List/Hannah-Mary-McKinnon/9780778333463

Social Links

Website: www.HannahMaryMcKinnon.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/HannahMaryMcKinnon (@hannahmarymckinnon)
Instagram: www.instagram.com/HannahMaryMcKinnon/ (@hannahmarymckinnon)
Twitter: www.twitter.com/HannahMMcKinnon (@hannahmmckinnon)
Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/author/show/15144570.Hannah_Mary_McKinnon
BookBub: www.bookbub.com/authors/hannah-mary-mckinnon
LinkTree: https://linktr.ee/hannahmarymckinnon

Please share your thoughts and leave a comment. I would love to "talk" to you.

The Summer Place

Title:  The Summer Place

Author:  Jennifer Weiner

Publication Information:  Atria Books. 2022. 432 pages.

ISBN:  1501133578 / 978-1501133572

Book Source:  I received this book through NetGalley free of cost in exchange for an honest review.

Opening Sentence:  "For forty years, the house had stood, silvery cedar and gleaming glass, on the edge of the dune, overlooking the waters of Cape Cod Bay."

Favorite Quote:  "A person's happiness is his own business. Or hers."

Sarah Danhauser is one woman. Around her are...

• Ruby, her stepdaughter who wants to pull a wedding together in 3 months. Whether or not she wants to be married is a different question.
• Ruby's birth mother, who walked out on her but is now back for the wedding.
• Sarah's mother Veronica.
• Sarah's twin brother Sam who is dealing with issues of his own.
• Sarah's husband Eli who has seems estranged since the beginning of the wedding.
• Sarah's son Connor.

Surrounding Sarah is also the life of New York brownstones and Cape Cod beach houses.

Where this book is going... "Staying married ... was a choice." And "A Little selfishness could be healthy. It could even be what saved your life. That, she thought, was a message more girls and women could stand to hear, a thing that few were every taught." A valuable message, but unfortunately lost in the context of this story.

This summer beach read is about family secrets and a wedding weekend to bring them all out. It is about reminiscing about and testing the paths not taken. It is about communication or lack thereof. It is about family and love.

The premise is a common one and a relatable one, except for that kind of wealth. The multigenerational approach indicates the presence of multiple perspectives with different life experiences. The location indicates an immersion in a beautiful place. 

Unfortunately, the book goes from those beginnings to focus on different things. The family secrets and relationships do come out but in a way as to be far-fetched. The "secrets" also attempt to bring in so many different elements that each individual one gets lost. In addition, several characters end up a representative of an element being highlighted rather than a fully rounded individual. It's is more a checklist of relationship combinations. The multigenerational approach gets subsumed by descriptions of relationships that may or may not be across generational lines. The location ends up playing no real part of the story; the beauty of the place does not truly feature in the book.

On top of that, this book has scenes that are graphic. There is no real warning, and that is not my thing. Romance, yes, perhaps. Graphic sexual descriptions, no thank you. The fact that these encounters introduce the possibility of incest raises the question. Why? Just why?

Too much, too scattered, and ultimately, not for me.

Please share your thoughts and leave a comment. I would love to "talk" to you.

Bomb Shelter: Love, Time, and Other Explosives

Title:  Bomb Shelter: Love, Time, and Other Explosives

Author:  Mary Laura Philpott

Publication Information:  Atria Books. 2022. 288 pages.

ISBN:  1982160780 / 978-1982160784

Book Source:  I received this book through NetGalley free of cost in exchange for an honest review.

Opening Sentence:  "I remember now standing with my face to the horizon in the waist-deep tide of the Gulf of Mexico, making up a dance routine."

Favorite Quote:  "It's true: There will always be threats lurking under the water where we play, danger hiding in the attic and rolling down the street on heavy wheels, unexpected explosions in our brains and ours hearts and the sky. There will always be bombs, and we will never able to save everyone we care about. To know that and to try anyway is to be fully alive, The closes thing to shelter we can offer one another is love, as deep and wide and in as many forms as we can give it. Thank you for having me."

In the author's own words, "Bomb Shelter asks the question: How do any of us keep going when we can’t ever be sure what’s coming next?" The image on the cover is of a box turtle who lives in the author's back yard. Why a box turtle? According to the author, Frank the turtle is the perfect cover image because he literally carries a shelter with him at all times to keep him safe through whatever may arise.

The book comes from a "lifelong worrier" whose worries all come to fruition one night when she finds her teenager on the floor unconscious. The book is not really about the aftermath of her son's illness and diagnosis. That is the starting point.

The book is rather a series of essays on the realization of this fear, of other fears particularly about those we love, and the ability to navigate through life keeping this fear at bay. The titles of the individual essays range from "Pinwheel," to "To the Woman Screaming on the Quad," to "The Great Fortune of Ordinary Sadness," to "Spatchcock This." The topics of the essays are just as varied, ranging from her son's illness, to the family dog, to the turtle in the back yard, to the COVID-19 pandemic, to empty nester emotions. Several of the essays have been previously published through outlets such as The New York Times and The Atlantic.

My reaction to the essays varies as is expected in an any book using this format. It depends which of the situations and emotions resonate with my own experiences. Some I find myself laughing along with and nodding my head. Some I find myself skimming because they are not relevant to me or the experiences like the pandemic are too close to my own reality for me to want to read about as yet.

On occasion, I do find the writing style challenging. I find myself having to re-read to parse out and understand the meaning. For example, "...I was beginning to understand for the first time what would later, in other circumstances, hit me harder: that time was a finite resource. The more time you had in life, if you were lucky, the more opportunities you had to love and be loved, and the, at a certain point, the tide would turn, and time would start to run out, taking the ones you love with it." I absolutely agree with the central thought that time is precious and short. However, that is a lot of phrases strung together with commas to wade through to get to that point. The same point more simply put would be more powerful to me.

The book at times feels long, even at under 300 pages. Perhaps, that is the essay format for me and its inability to tell a cohesive story. Perhaps, it is repetition of the same themes throughout. Perhaps, it is reading an entire collection of essays in book format rather than pieces individually here and there. I come to the conclusion that while the individual essays are interesting, perhaps I am not the right reader for this book format.

Please share your thoughts and leave a comment. I would love to "talk" to you.

Lost Coast Literary

Title:  Lost Coast Literary

Author:  Ellie Alexander

Publication Information:  Sweet Lemon Press. 2022. 278 pages.

ISBN:  173739152X / 978-1737391524

Book Source:  I received this book through NetGalley free of cost in exchange for an honest review.

Opening Sentence:  "Jane Eyre?"

Favorite Quote:  "...the gift of good writing, good storytelling, was allowing readers to temporarily inhabit someone else's soul. It's the only time in our lives when we actually live and breathe through another person's lens. Crack open the pages of any book and suddenly we're transported into a different world. My perspective had been expanded and altered thanks to the many pages of historical fiction and poetry that I had devoured. Stories had helped shape me, written by authors who had vastly different experiences than mine. Yet these writers welcomed me i not their worlds and allowed me to glimpse (even briefly) what life was like through their perspective. Books had shifted my understanding, offered me an opportunity to see myself in a different light."

Emily's mother died when Emily was young. Life has always been Emily and her dad. Her father has been estranged from his family for a long time. Emily has glimpses of memories of love, of a family, and of a home. However, she does not know what of those memories is real and what a figment of a child's imagination. It has always been her and her dad.

Emily has landed her dream job as a book editor in New York. Books and stories have always been her life line.

A message upends her world. Her grandmother has died. Emily must travel to California to receive her inheritance. Emily finds herself traveling to her grandmother's estate in a small town on the California coast.

As you might expect, she discovers that things and the past are not quite what she has understood them to be. "The way to keep people alive is through their memories. How could I keep someone alive who I'd never been given the chance to remember?" Emily discovers a family, a home, a town, a childhood, and an unexpected hidden power.

This book ventures into family dynamics and the hurts that family can inflict, the charm of a small town, romance, and the life altering impacts of childhood events. Unexpectedly, this family story also ventures into magical realism. As the marketing for the book starts off, "When an editing pen has the power not only to change stories but also to change lives." The interesting thing about this premise is that the intent of an editor is not to change an author's story but rather to help the author realize their vision for their story. This premise is definitely a different take on "editing."

The book is a sweet story about unpacking the past and discovering home. It goes about where you would expect it to. Editing lives does not have the same impact as editing a story, and first edit rarely has the impact that you might expect it to have. Stories get told, history becomes understood, relationships get mended, and new directions get discovered.

What I do love about this book is, well, the books! It is a love letter to books and the power of stories to help us see our lives, to survive the events of our lives, and to see voice given to thoughts and feelings we may not be able to articulate ourselves. The title and that premise is what draws me to this book and keeps me reading until the end. Something unexpected would have helped the story go farther, but a sweet story in a beautiful setting.

Please share your thoughts and leave a comment. I would love to "talk" to you.

Black Cake

Title:  Black Cake

Author:  Charmaine Wilkerson

Publication Information:  Ballantine Books. 2022. 400 pages.

ISBN:  0593358333 / 978-0593358337

Book Source:  I received this book through NetGalley free of cost in exchange for an honest review.

Opening Sentence:  "He should have known it would come to this."

Favorite Quote:  "Are you going to let someone else's view of who you should be, and what you should do, hold you back?"

The origin of black cake lies in British plum pudding, but the heart of black cake lies in the Caribbean. The tradition is to bake the cake just before Christmas and eat a little bit at a time until all of it is gone. Baking the cake is a days long process because the cake takes its flavor from fruits soaked in rum and/or brandy for days before the bake. Like many traditions, the cake takes on unique renditions in each family and becomes part of the family heritage passed down generation from generation.

"There it is, where it has always been, a piece of folded, lined notepaper where her mother had scribbled down the recipe for her black cake .... Rum, sugar, vanilla. And the occasional verb. Cream, rub, mix... the recipe has no number no quantities at all. Wait, was it always this way? ... her mother's recipe was never so much a list of firm quantities and instructions as a series of hints for how to proceed... What Benny learned from her mother had been handed down through demonstration, conversation, and proximity."

For Benny and Byron Bennett, a black cake is a last gift from their mother Eleanor. A cake and a recording of Eleanor telling her story is their heritage. Eleanor's history becomes the story within the story of this book. And a complicated story it is! Benny and Byron are estranged, but their mother's death brings them together. Each brings their own history, emotions, and baggage of their childhood. For each, it forms who they are as individuals. Through their mother's story comes the story of their own self-discovery and a path forward.

Through Eleanor's story, they realize how little they know - or knew - of their childhood and the woman who was their mother. Eleanor's story is that of a swimmer, of the islands, of a marriage bargain made for family finances, of friendship, of a death, of an escape, of reinvention, of leaving behind all that you are, of immigration, and of legacies like the black cake that you take with you.

This book covers a lot of ground. Through all the characters and their individual stories, the book delves into societal and political issues. Sometimes the story starts to scatter into the issues. Sometimes, the plot moves conveniently like family members uniting quickly and seamlessly after years of estrangement. Yet, the thread always winds back to Eleanor's story, which is emotional and compelling. 

Charmaine Wilkerson is a journalist turned novelist. Given that this is Charmaine Wilkerson's debut novel, I very much look forward to what she writes next.

Please share your thoughts and leave a comment. I would love to "talk" to you.

Good Rich People

Title:  Good Rich People

Author:  Eliza Jane Brazier

Publication Information:  Berkeley. 2022. 336 pages.

ISBN:  0593198255 / 978-0593198254

Book Source:  I received this book through NetGalley free of cost in exchange for an honest review.

Opening Sentence:  "There is blood in the fountain turning the water an eerie rust color."

Favorite Quote:  "A life is a dangerous things to have. I'm surprised everyone get one. Most people don't know what to do with it."

Some are rich, so rich that it seems that money does not matter and poverty is not within their realm of imagination. Some are poor, so poor as to be homeless. Either end of the spectrum looks only at those richer than themselves. When the two collide, a story of social commentary ensues. It has the potential to be powerful commentary.

Lyla and Graham are the rich. Graham and his mother Margo have this "hobby". Their hobby is to invite someone to live in their guest house and then proceed to ruin their life. It is a competition between the two. Why? The only point in the book appears to be why not? The "someone" is usually a self-made success, and these rich cannot abide another success. They must reduce the person and take away that success. As a mother-son dynamic, much can be read into that disturbing relationship.

Lyla has never been a party to this. However, at this point, she is forced. She must take on the next tenant of the guesthouse. "I have known money long enough to realize that it always comes with strings attached. And I have known the world long enough to know that at its core, it's a game. Either you play or you are the one being played with." The book reminds me of a mix of The War of the Roses and The Most Dangerous Game.

Demi is the poor. She is in the wrong place at the wrong time or perhaps the right place at the right time. She finds herself in Lyla and Graham's guesthouse. They mistake her for their guest. She may not understand that for Lyla and Graham this is a game. However, she at the same time decides to outplay the gamers.

Neither knows the other truly. 

The story is told from the perspectives of the two women - Lyla and Demi. The chapters are short and choppy. A set of chapters tell a part of the story from one woman's perspectives. A subsequent set tells the same scenario from the other perspective. Sometimes, the telling gets confusing as the reader has to pull back to the point at this a section picks up.

The book has an interesting premise, and satire and social commentary couched in this premise could make for a powerful book. At times, it is entertaining. However, in these games, none of the characters are likable. There is no one to root for to win this game. There is a twist; however, the book does not reach the point of being a page-turning thriller. It is dark and at times disturbing. The story does not carry the power that the premise holds.

Please share your thoughts and leave a comment. I would love to "talk" to you.

The Last House on the Street

Title:  The Last House on the Street

Author:  Diane Chamberlain

Publication Information:  St. Martin's Press. 2021. 352 pages.

ISBN:  125026796X / 978-1250267962

Book Source:  I received this book through NetGalley free of cost in exchange for an honest review.

Opening Sentence:  "I'm in the middle of a call with a contractor when Natalie, our new administrative assistant pokes her head into my office."

Favorite Quote:  "You've led sort of a protected life, you know? The world out there ain't as kind as you seem to think it is."

The small wealthy town of Round Hill in Derby County, North Carolina. A history of racial divides and and the never-ending work to encourage voters of color. A beautiful, young power couple building their dream home. An accident. A death. A piece of land said to be haunted. 1960s in the South. 2010.

What haunts the land? Is it supernatural ghouls or secrets of a small town some would rather keep hidden? What happened all those years ago that still casts a shadow on the present? What will happen next?

In the 1960s is young Ellie Hockley. Born and raised to be a proper Southern belle, Ellie has other ideas and ideals. The fight for civil rights and voter registration for voters of color is not a popular one in Ellie's neighborhood. She earns her family's ire, and her family feels the judgement of friends and neighbors. Decades later, Ellie finds herself home again.

In 2010, Kayla and her husband Jackson design and build their dream house - their forever home. It is, in fact, the last house on a quiet neighborhood street on a lovely, large wooded lot. Kayla and Jackson are architects and pour their hearts into their own design. Unfortunately, Jackson dies in an on-site accident. The dream turns into Kayla's nightmare. Nevertheless, Kayla moves ahead and moves into the house despite the tragedy and despite the warnings to stay away and leave the land be.

The story builds around the racial divide in the South and the specific history of the The Summer Community Organization and Political Education (SCOPE) Project. The Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) led a voter registration civil rights initiative, recruiting white college students to help prepare African Americans for voting and to continue to lobby Congress to pass what became the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

It is interesting that both main characters in the book are white women. It is through their eyes that the reader sees this history. To me, the book works even without the voice of a person of color to depict this history. I see the history identified in the story, go off and read some nonfiction articles about the history, and then come back to the story with a better understanding of its context. Going in, I did not expect the history lesson I got. 

For me, the book works because Ellie and Kayla work as characters. Their stories are told in parallel, the heartbreaking connection only coming together at the end. However, both their stories are stories of shocking and sudden loss; so, perhaps, there is some similarity. The ending is at the same time shocking and predictable given the history of our nation. It once again leaves me thinking of the divisions we create based on race and the atrocities that leads to.

Please share your thoughts and leave a comment. I would love to "talk" to you.