Book Review and GIVEAWAY: Stars Over Sunset Boulevard, by Susan Meissner {ends 5/5}

Christine withdraws a paper-wrapped lump from inside the box, revealing at first just a flash of moss green and shimmers of gold. Then she pulls away the rest of the layers. The Robin Hood-style hat in folds of soft velvet, amber-hued fringe, and iridescent feathers feels ghostly in her hands, as though if she put it to her ear, it might whisper a litany of old secrets.

She has seen this hat somewhere before, a long time ago. 
...
Stella moves closer, brow furrowed. "That hat looks familiar to me."

"It does to me, too." Christine turns the hat over to inspects its underside for signs of its designer - a label, a signature, a date. She sees only a single name in faded ink on a yellowed tag:

Scarlett #13.

I love historical books, so it was no surprise that I really enjoyed Stars Over Sunset Boulevard, as it jumps between the '30s to '60s and present-day (2012). It also revolves around Gone with the Wind, one of the most famous movies of the past 100 years, so that element was interesting as well.

Official synopsis:

In this new novel from the acclaimed author of Secrets of a Charmed Life, two women working in Hollywood during its Golden Age discover the joy and heartbreak of true friendship.

Los Angeles, Present Day. When an iconic hat worn by Scarlett O’Hara in Gone With the Wind ends up in Christine McAllister’s vintage clothing boutique by mistake, her efforts to return it to its owner take her on a journey more enchanting than any classic movie…

Los Angeles, 1938. Violet Mayfield sets out to reinvent herself in Hollywood after her dream of becoming a wife and mother falls apart, and lands a job on the film-set of Gone With the Wind. There, she meets enigmatic Audrey Duvall, a once-rising film star who is now a fellow secretary. Audrey’s zest for life and their adventures together among Hollywood’s glitterati enthrall Violet…until each woman’s deepest desires collide. What Audrey and Violet are willing to risk, for themselves and for each other, to ensure their own happy endings will shape their friendship, and their lives, far into the future.

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Book Review: Lust & Wonder, by Augusten Burroughs

The leather squeaked as he uncrossed his legs and place the papers on the floor at his feet. He propped his elbows on his knees and asked me, "What were you too late for, Augusten?"

I looked into his eyes, and then my gaze shifted to clock behind his head. It was now almost nine forty-five. But he hadn't even noticed.

I'm the one who said, "I think we ran over."

When your psychiatrist forgets to look at the clock and is hanging on your every word, that's when you know, out of all his patients, you are the sickest.

I have read Augusten Burroughs' work before, most memorably Running with Scissors - which was also made into a movie (which I have also seen), with Gwyneth Paltrow. Dry, another of his memoirs, was written first but was the second one released; apparently Running with Scissors was actually written after Dry, but released first. His writing reminds me much of David Sedaris's, except a bit darker (though still witty), and I very much enjoyed this novel.

Official synopsis:

First came Running with Scissors. Then came Dry. Now, there's Lust & Wonder.

In chronicling the development and demise of the different relationships he's had while living in New York, Augusten Burroughs examines what it means to be in love, what it means to be in lust, and what it means to be figuring it all out. With Augusten's unique and singular observations and his own unabashed way of detailing both the horrific and the humorous, Lust and Wonder is an intimate and honest memoir that his legions of fans have been waiting for.

In this memoir, Augusten talks about life in New York, as well as his relationships. He dates a man named Dennis for many years, eventually realizing he doesn't love him anymore, and he later realizes he's been in love with his book agent, Christopher, for even longer than that. Augusten and Dennis have a house together, though, and dogs, and it would be hard to separate their entwined lives; the novel contains details about this, as well as anecdotes about the small Massachusetts town where they chose to build a house. 

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Book Review and GIVEAWAY: The Two-Family House, by Lynda Cohen Loigman {ends 4/15}

This night was different. Never before had she seen such longing, pain and relief braided together more tightly. Two mothers, two babies, born only minutes apart. She had witnessed tonight what pure woman strength could accomplish, how the mind could control the body out of absolute desperation.

...
She breathed in the air again, crisp and cold, clearing her head. It ahd been a good night, two healthy babies born to healthy, capable mothers. She couldn't ask for more. What happened now was out of her hands. Wholly and completely she put it out of her mind, said her goodbyes to the house on the steps and made her way home to go to sleep. There would be more babies tomorrow, she knew, and the constancy of her work would keep her thoughts from this place. She promised herself never to think of it again.

This novel was more interesting than I thought it would be, partially because of a twist near the end of the book that I didn't see coming. In a Q&A, the author says that some readers may have already figured it out; however, it blindsided me at the time, although makes more sense now, that I've had time to reflect on it.

Official synopsis:

Brooklyn, 1947: in the midst of a blizzard, in a two-family brownstone, two babies are born minutes apart to two women. They are sisters by marriage with an impenetrable bond forged before and during that dramatic night; but as the years progress, small cracks start to appear and their once deep friendship begins to unravel. No one knows why, and no one can stop it. One misguided choice; one moment of tragedy. Heartbreak wars with happiness and almost but not quite wins.

From debut novelist Lynda Cohen Loigman comes The Two-Family House, a moving family saga filled with heart, emotion, longing, love, and mystery.

Rose and her husband, Mort, live in the first floor apartment of a house that Mort owns with his brother, Abe; Abe and Helen, his wife, live on the second floor. Mort and Rose have three girls, and Abe and Helen have four boys. When both Rose and Helen get pregnant around the same time, they are overjoyed, since the two soon-to-be born cousins will be around the same age. 

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Book Review and GIVEAWAY: Letters for Scarlet, by Julie C. Gardner {ends 4/11}

Growing up I heard all the cliches about marriage being hard, a give and take forged by sacrifice and compromise. Not ever day will be champagne and roses, Ma would say. You have to work at it, like a job. At the time I believed her. But after years of being a wife, I am starting to believe marriage is not about work, compromise or even champagne. Staying married is a decision. I only wish I knew what to decide.

So I was (and still am) in the middle of reading another book when I started this one - I was waiting in line for a movie screening, with a bad internet connection, and therefore I could only read a book on the Kindle app on my phone that I had already downloaded. This happened to be that book, and I was pleasantly surprised; I'll be honest and admit that when authors pitch me themselves (instead of through a PR company), their novels aren't always the best - but this one was very good.

Official synopsis:

Corie Harper is 28 years old when she is first visited by a ghost – in the form of a graduation letter she forgot she wrote. Although she spent a decade burying that desperate girl and her regrets, each page resurrects the past, dragging Corie back to a time when all she craved was Scarlet Hinden’s friendship and Tuck Slater’s heart. But she couldn’t keep them both and keep her word.

Scarlet is haunted in her own way, by memories of Corie and of a night that left her wishing she were dead. But Scarlet is not only alive, she’s carrying new life: a baby she never wanted and is terrified to have. Convinced she would be a disastrous mother, she questions whether or not she deserves the love of any man. Especially the father of her child.

Letters for Scarlet traces one friendship from deep roots to branches torn by broken promises and loss. An educator from a sleepy suburb of Los Angeles, Corie works through heartbreak writing letters she’ll never send. Scarlet, an attorney in San Francisco, turns to lies, betraying everyone who dares to breach her sturdy walls.

Their relationships teeter on the edge of dissolution: Mother and daughter. Teacher and student. Family. Lovers. Soul mates. But after a harrowing confrontation in a hometown cemetery, Corie and Scarlet resolve to face uncertain futures, armed not with easy resolutions but instead one simple truth: pain can take a lifetime to heal, but hope lasts even longer.

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Quick Pick: The Heart Goes Last, by Margaret Atwood

• Opening lines: Sleeping in the car is cramped. Being a third-hand Honda, it's no palace to begin with. If it was a van they'd have more room, but fat chance of affording one of those, even back when they thought they had money. Stan says they're lucky to have any kind of a car at all, which is true, but their luckiness doesn't make the car any bigger.
• Reason I picked up the book: The author is Margaret Atwood, who wrote dystopian books before "dystopian" was even an actual word - I read The Handmaid's Tale by her in high school and loved it. {and it's free to read on Kindle Unlimited right now, too!}
• And what's this book about?
Living in their car, surviving on tips, Charmaine and Stan are in a desperate state. So, when they see an advertisement for Consilience, a ‘social experiment’ offering stable jobs and a home of their own, they sign up immediately. All they have to do in return for suburban paradise is give up their freedom every second month – swapping their home for a prison cell. At first, all is well. But then, unknown to each other, Stan and Charmaine develop passionate obsessions with their ‘Alternates,’ the couple that occupy their house when they are in prison. Soon the pressures of conformity, mistrust, guilt and sexual desire begin to take over.
• Favorite paragraph:
Ed turns off the PowerPoint, puts on his reading glasses, consults a list. Practical matters: their new cellphones will be issued in the main hall. At the same time they'll receive their housing allocations. The details are explained more fully on the green sheets in their folders, but in brief, everyone in Consilience will live two lives: prisoners one month, guards or town functionaries the next. Everyone has been assigned an Alternate. One detached residential dwelling can therefore serve at least four people: in Month One, the houses will be occupied by the civilians, and then, in Month Two, by the prisoners of Month One, who will take on the civilian roles and move into the houses. And so it will go, month after month, turn and turn about. Think about the savings in the cost of living Ed says with a smile.
• Recommended for: Anyone who likes dystopian books, or books that imagine different worlds from the ones we live in. This one is not SO different - the economy is down and Ed and Charmaine are homeless. Because of this, however, they decide to participate in the new Consilience/Positron experiment - they're given a house and a "safe life," and they live one month in the house, one month in the prison, and so on. 
• Something to know: Goodreads says that this is book #4 in a series, but it's wrong - what happened was this: "The Heart Goes Last began as a serial for Byliner, which has now come down. There were four episodes under the title Positron and 64,838 were purchased. Even though the posted episodes have been completely rewritten, Byliner purchasers will be eager to find out what happens."
• What I would have changed: This was a very kooky book but I'm not sure what I would have changed. Maybe give a bit more backstory for Ed and Charmaine, so we can see how they ended up broke, but Atwood does give a little bit of backstory.
• Overall rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars.
• Where can I find this book? Click here to order on Amazon.

*Disclosure: I received an e-copy of this book from Edelweiss for reviewing purposes. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own.

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Book Review - Eligible: A modern retelling of Pride and Prejudice, by Curtis Sittenfeld

"When Lydia and Ham are back in Cincinnati, invite them over for dinner like normal. Or, I don't know, give them a waffle iron. They didn't get married to spite you guys. They're in love."

Mr. Bennet smiled wryly. "I suppose they are," he said. "But that's a condition that's acute, not chronic."

Full disclosure, I love Jane Austen's books in the sense that they are good stories - but at the same time, I find them very hard to read. I loved the movie version of Pride and Prejudice (the 2005 one, with Keira Knightley as Elizabeth) and I've heard the BBC version, with Colin Firth, is also quite good, although I haven't seen it. For anyone that's ever had trouble getting through an Austen novel, we now have Eligible, by Curtis Sittenfeld - one of my favorite authors - which is a modern retelling of the classic story.

Official synopsis:

This version of the Bennet family—and Mr. Darcy—is one that you have and haven’t met before: Liz is a magazine writer in her late thirties who, like her yoga instructor older sister, Jane, lives in New York City. When their father has a health scare, they return to their childhood home in Cincinnati to help—and discover that the sprawling Tudor they grew up in is crumbling and the family is in disarray.

Youngest sisters Kitty and Lydia are too busy with their CrossFit workouts and Paleo diets to get jobs. Mary, the middle sister, is earning her third online master’s degree and barely leaves her room, except for those mysterious Tuesday-night outings she won’t discuss. And Mrs. Bennet has one thing on her mind: how to marry off her daughters, especially as Jane’s fortieth birthday fast approaches.

Enter Chip Bingley, a handsome new-in-town doctor who recently appeared on the juggernaut reality TV dating show Eligible. At a Fourth of July barbecue, Chip takes an immediate interest in Jane, but Chip’s friend neurosurgeon Fitzwilliam Darcy reveals himself to Liz to be much less charming. . . .

And yet, first impressions can be deceiving.

Wonderfully tender and hilariously funny, ELIGIBLE both honors and updates Austen’s beloved tale. Tackling gender, class, courtship, and family, Sittenfeld reaffirms herself as one of the most dazzling authors writing today. 

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Quick Pick: Firstlife, by Gena Showalter (Everlife #1)

• Opening lines: If you failed to read my dossier, Nanne, I'm happy to bring you up to date on my highlights. I'm a well-trained and vastly decorated Laborer. What I'm not: a babysitter. Watching Tenley Lockwood is a waste of my many talents.
  
  Oh, AND DID I FORGET TO MENTION SHE'S IN A WHACK SHACK??
• Reason I picked up the book: Another blogger had recommended it, and I saw it was listed on NetGalley. I love dystopian books and this sounded very unique. 
• And what's this book about?
ONE CHOICE.
TWO REALMS.
NO SECOND CHANCE.

Tenley “Ten” Lockwood is an average seventeen-year-old girl…who has spent the past thirteen months locked inside the Prynne Asylum. The reason? Not her obsession with numbers, but her refusal to let her parents choose where she’ll live—after she dies.

There is an eternal truth most of the world has come to accept: Firstlife is merely a dress rehearsal, and real life begins after death.

In the Everlife, two realms are in power: Troika and Myriad, longtime enemies and deadly rivals. Both will do anything to recruit Ten, including sending their top Laborers to lure her to their side. Soon, Ten finds herself on the run, caught in a wild tug-of-war between the two realms who will do anything to win the right to her soul. Who can she trust? And what if the realm she’s drawn to isn’t home to the boy she’s falling for? She just has to stay alive long enough to make a decision…

• Favorite paragraph:
I've been told history is written by survivors, but I know that isn't always true. 
My name is Tenley Lockwood and very soon, I'll be dead. This is my story - but my end is only the beginning.
• Recommended for: Anyone who likes dystopian books ... this book was like a mixture of The Hunger Games, minus the actual games, and the Divergent series.
• Something to know: This is the first book in the Everlife series - the second book, Lifeblood, is already listed on Goodreads, with an expected pub date of 2017.
• What I would have changed: Another reviewer on Goodreads said something like "we literally just dive in to this world with minimal explanations" and I'd agree with that. Sometimes it got confusing trying to figure out who was who and what exactly was going on. That being said, the world that the author has created was very interesting.
• Overall rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars.
• Where can I find this book? Click here to order on Amazon.

*Disclosure: I received an e-copy of this book from NetGalley for reviewing purposes. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own.

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