Ain’t No Haints in the “The Turner House”, by Angela Flournoy - Book Review

“Ain’t no haints in Detroit” is a Turner family mantra that originated on the night Cha-Cha, the oldest of thirteen Turner children, wrestled a ghost in his room on Yarrow Street. While many of the other Turners were convinced of Cha-Cha’s vision, his father, Francis, was not, and coined the phrase. By the time the last Turner child, Lelah, was old enough for it’s usage, the saying was used to end a discussion. If another Turner didn’t buy whatever it was you were trying to sell, they’d stop you in your tracks with a flippant, “c’mon man, ain’t no haints in Detroit.”

The Turner House, by author Angela Flournoy, is about a large African American family and their goings on in Detroit. While most of the book is set in 2008, there are flashbacks to the Turner family beginnings in 1944 when Francis and Viola were newly married. With Cha-Cha on the way, Francis left Viola in Arkansas and went to Detroit to find work. These flashbacks let us know just how close the last twelve Turner children were to never being born.  

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Offbeat and Fun with “Futuristic Violence and Fancy Suits”, by David Wong - Book Review

This has to be the strangest and one of the most fun books I’ve read. And I would never had picked it up had it not been for a youngin’ at work. He was describing the morbidly funny t.v. shows and books he’s into. None sound appealing, but he was pretty passionate about David Wong. I think I probably wanted to be in with the cool kids. Just a little. I bought it, then it sat around for a long time. Okay, finally picked it up. And am so glad I did. 

“Futuristic Violence and Fancy Suits” takes place, as the title gives away, sometime in the future. There are references to today’s political landscape that help shape it. There are self driving cars (manual is illegal), video screens everywhere, and bizarre superpowers.  We still have stores like Lane Bryant (I didn’t even think they were around today) and television like National Geographic. Our tale takes place primarily in Tabula Ra$a. Yep, that’s a dollar sign instead of the “s”, which is a clear indication of the city’s decadence. 

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A Sequel Worth Reading: “After You”, by Jojo Moyes - Book Review

Is there anyone who doesn’t like Jojo Moyes? Anyone at all? Okay, now that we have that settled…

Clearly, I am a big fan of Moyes. And I’ve only read three of her novels. She is expressive, emotional, witty, and captures her characters vividly. I also love the fact that there is no obvious formula. Each story presents its own pain, joy, and wit in a way that eliminates a frequent reader’s ability to predict what’s coming.

After You: A Novel
By Jojo Moyes

After You is a rare sequel for Moyes. Me Before You, it’s prequel, was so wildly popular, her audience wanted more - demanded more. And Moyes delivered. Our protagonist Louisa is still recovering from the heartache of losing her love, Will and is lost in the world. Will gave her courage, yet she’s not yet fulfilled the potential Will knew she has, and she feels she’s letting Will and herself down. Lou is in a dead end job and still hasn’t unpacked her boxes in her London flat after living there for months. Then, she has an accident.

The accident itself doesn’t change much for her, but her family asks her to attend a support group. It’s hilarious and sad and just what Lou needs. This and the gorgeous paramedic that came to her rescue. There may be promise for her. But then enters the ghost of Will. Moyes introduces someone that rocks Lou’s world, shaking it up and knocking her around - sometimes for good, and sometimes to her detriment. 

After You did not give me the same emotional jarring as Moyes’ other works I’ve read (Me Before You and The Girl You Left Behind), but it was gratifying nonetheless. I found myself cheering for not only Louisa, but for all the main characters along the way. And Moyes maintained her unique style that always seems to do the trick.

Read our reviews of other Jojo Moyes works on Beyond the Cover: Me Before You and One Plus One.

Published: 2015
Publisher: Pamela Dorman Books

Vickie’s rating: 4 stars 

Coming of Age in “Brooklyn”, by Colm Tóibín - Book Review

Eilis Lacey is from a small Irish town. Everyone knows everyone; there are few jobs. It’s a beautiful place of family and friends with limitations to earn a living after World War II. Eilis lives with her fragile mother and charismatic sister, taking classes and caring for the home. Her three brothers have moved to London where work is abundant. She is in a comfortable, if not ideal, existence.

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Loss and Love in the Bookshop of "The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry", by Gabrielle Zevin - Book Review

Author Gabrielle Zevin has created her character, A.J. Fikry as an eccentric widower running a bookstore on the fictional Alice Island off the coast of Hyannis, Massachusetts. He is ornery and off-putting to anyone who ventures into Island Books, although somewhat rightfully so after the tragic death of his one true love, his wife Nic.

But then he happens upon a toddler left alone in his store with a note from her mother, which provides a questionable explanation for the abandonment. Her name is Maya, per the note, and shockingly, A.J. decides to take on the role of her caregiver. Once he does, his demeanor changes and his heart expands.  

A.J. and Maya forge an immediate bond – she starts calling him Daddy right off though no one has told her to – and she is as precocious as he is odd. They are a perfect fit. Somehow his lack of knowledge about anything baby doesn’t hinder the reader’s belief that this relationship could actually work.

Other players in the book include A.J.’s good friend Daniel, a dallying professor, and his wife Ismay, A.J.’s sister-in-law. There is Chief Lambaise, who has been on the scene for all of the monumental events in A.J.’s life: the death of his wife, the theft of a treasured book, and the discovery of Maya in the store. Finally, there is Amelia, the book rep that we meet first in the story, who ultimately comes to play an important part in both A.J. and Maya’s lives.

The story is quirky and funny. At the same time it is touching and tender, just like the main character. A.J., for all of his bluster, is really just a softie at heart. The chapters each start with a book review by A.J. giving you a glimpse into his heart and soul. He is also a lover of books, as is this reader, and so many of his lines hit me in my reading heart.

We read to know we’re not alone. We read because we are alone. We read and we are not alone. We are not alone.

A relatively short book in length, it is easy to read in a couple of days. It skips forward years at a time and I found myself wishing Zevin had gone ahead and written about all of those sped through years so it would have lasted longer. But maybe her brevity and snap shot view into her characters’ lives is what gave the book its charm.

Published: 2014
Publisher: Algonquin Books

Elizabeth's rating: 4 stars 

Surprising Subplots That Keep the Pages Turning in "The Guise of Another", by Allen Eskens - Book Review

Allen Eskens has written a really good crime novel. The Guise of Another proves the writer’s talent, only his second published  work. Eskens effectively weaves together plot with subplots, and I completely bought in.

The Guise of Another protagonist is Minnesota police detective, Alexander Rupert. He’s a decorated officer with much success as an undercover operative. We find Alexander in a pretty rough patch. He’s been subpoenaed by a grand jury under suspicion of corruption, and because of this, he’s been transferred to the Fraud Department. His marriage seems to be falling apart, and he’s garnered the attention of an international killer. Things can crumble more quickly than you can put them together, apparently. 

While bored in the Fraud Unit, an ambulance chaser reports a potential scam. As the intake officer, Alexander gets stuck with the case. But it turns out to be much more than fraud. Alexander must discover the real identity of recently deceased James Putnam, and now chases clue upon mysterious clue in a case that winds through Minnesota and New York to find answers. 

The Guise of Another
By Allen Eskens

The backdrop to the immediate case are the accusations of corruption Alexander is facing.  His partner is under investigation and ready to spill the beans. Was Alexander, so squeaky clean, guilty? His brother, Max, also a decorated cop, is doing everything possible to protect and back his brother. And his wife, Desi, has been sleeping in a separate bedroom as he suspects her of having an affair. There is Ianna, James Putnam’s girlfriend. She’s beautiful and not entirely grieving over her boyfriend’s death. And Drago Basta, a professional killer from the Balkans who is in search of James Putnam’s well hidden secret, removing anything that gets in his way.

There are other characters that are carefully included and add to the drama, each playing an important part. Quite frankly, Drago’s role disturbed me - his methods of getting what he wants are shockingly cold. Throughout though, we are rewarded with surprising outcomes. And we sometime question who we’re rooting for. 

The Guise of Another is certainly a page turner - gripping through to the end. 

Published: 2015
Publisher: Seventh Street Books

Vickie's rating: 4 stars

Horror and Thriller in Time for Halloween - Ghosts and Murder in Two Books: "Eeny Meany", by M.J. Arlidge and "The Ice Twins", by S.K. Tremayne - Book Reviews

Both Eeny Meany and The Ice Twins are set in Great Britain, and both are mysteries. So why not review them together? Both are also hard to put down, but their storylines and tempos are vastly different.

Eeny Meany involves a tough, strong female detective chasing a twisted serial killer who seems to have taken a page out of the “Saw” movies’ playbook. The killer doesn’t actually do the killing, just pits two people against one another with an extreme ultimatum: only one gets out alive.

Author S. K. Tremayne’s The Ice Twins, haunting in a much different way than Eeny Meany, is a ghost story complete with a wind rattled lighthouse cottage on a deserted island wrapped up in a thriller that leaves you guessing until the end.

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A Classic Writer in Modern Times: “Go Set a Watchman”, by Harper Lee - Book Review

I’m a little behind on this review, as Go Set a Watchman was published in July, and I read it several weeks ago. My hesitation in writing the review for Harper Lee’s novel is primarily the controversy that surrounds it - our beloved Atticus Finch as a racist, and the questionable circumstances as to how this piece of literature came to publication. Another reason for the delay is that, well, I’m not sure how I really feel about it. Perhaps finally putting “pen to paper” will help me whittle that out.

I’ll begin with the storm around the publication of Go Set a Watchman. Lee has been fortunate enough to have her loving sister as her protector during illness, but her sister passed away recently. Lee has famously displayed chagrin about the state of American literature, "I think the thing that I most deplore about American writing … is a lack of craftsmanship. It comes right down to this — the lack of absolute love for language, the lack of sitting down and working a good idea into a gem of an idea.” In essence, Lee was no longer going to participate in the literature scene, thus publishing only one book, her masterpiece, To Kill a Mockingbird. If you’re interested in a rather scathing commentary, take a look at Joe Nocera’s opinion in the New York Times who is palpably angry about it, and makes a convincing argument that we should be too.

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A Rather Familiar Family in "The Vacationers", by Emma Straub - Book Review

Author Emma Straub writes of the quintessential New York family.  In The Vacationers, the Post family travel to the island of Mallorca, off the coast of Spain for two weeks to celebrate Jim and Franny’s thirty-fifth wedding anniversary.

Fourteen days of family togetherness….what could possibly go wrong??

Daughter, Sylvia, fresh out of high school, would much rather be with friends in the City or on her iPad. Bobby, the prodigal son returned, brings along his cougar girlfriend (whom no one likes) and a bucket full of problems. Charles, Franny’s dearest friend, tags along, at Franny’s urging, with his husband, Lawrence, much to Jim’s chagrin. Oh, and the couple of the hour? There is most definitely trouble in paradise.

Everything and nothing happens during the two weeks. Relationships deepen and dissipate, alliances shift, and bonds emerge in unexpected places. Straub masters the microcosm of the Post family’s dysfunction while allowing the reader to bask in the beauty of the Spanish isle.

At the end of the day, the Posts aren’t so different than any other family; their lives are full of laughs, heartbreaks, resentments, and tenderness. But also, a whole lot of love that ultimately carries them through the rough spots.

The Vacationers is the perfect vacation read.

Published:  2014
Publisher:   Riverhead Books

Elizabeth's rating: 4 stars

Unsavory Characters in an Agreeable Novel: "Summer House with Swimming Pool", by Herman Koch - Book Review

Author Herman Koch’s Summer House with Swimming Pool opens with Marc Schlosser, the main character and narrator, explaining to the reader what a caring doctor he is to his patients - how his patients come from miles away because of his genuine, heart-felt bedside manner. He is woefully unconvincing in his delivery.

Despite what his patients may think, right off the bat, Marc is unlikeable. He is insensitive and judgmental. Koch lays down Marc’s thoughts in long, self-important paragraphs that drag on for pages. Surprisingly, though, the antagonist in the book, chauvinistic stage and screen actor, Ralph Meier, is even less likeable.

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