Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montimore

Well, this is unusual . . . a book I finished but didn't really like. That seldom happens since I made a commitment to abandoning books that I'm not enjoying. 

The title character in Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montimore lives in one part of her life for a single year and then gets swept off to another year of her life and is stuck there, having to figure out where she is, how old, and what's going on in her life. She may live in a 50-something body, one year, and then return to her twenties. The Oona we follow almost always arrives in a time in which a future Oona has lived, so there's a notebook with hints about investments she needs to make (so that she can be filthy rich) but she has a "no spoiler" policy and, except for an often-cryptic note that she leaves at the end of each year, Oona has no hints of what's to come, for better or worse. 

OK, so it's an interesting premise and I know there are plenty of people who enjoyed this book but I had some major issues with it. Chiefly, I didn't like the main character at all. She is too quick to give in to drugs, alcohol, and unprotected sex. I should have stopped at her second life, when she arrives at a club, takes drugs, and has sex in full view of the DJ. Gross. She doesn't even take the time to find out what's going on in her life or if she's dating anyone. But, I kept going. 

I was also disappointed that Oona was so focused on her investments and staying wealthy. She never actually does anything but invest, as I recall. She has no job and  . . . ugh, I thought the "no spoiler" thing was ridiculous. If I jumped from one time period of my life to another, you can bet I would leave myself copious notes. She does eventually start working to improve at a particular skill but otherwise isn't much into learning. That bugged me. 

Meh - I'm sure there were plenty of people who loved this book (It has a 3.86 rating at Goodreads and the friends who've finished it enjoyed it, although one friend did mention that she ditched it when I posted to Instagram). I wouldn't have added it to my wishlist if I hadn't read a positive review or two but it was absolutely not for me and while I don't entirely regret reading it in the hopes that it would improve, a part of me would really like to go back in time and put it in the donation bag at Life #2. This book was definitely not for me. Having said that, I did like the ending because it was exactly how I hoped it would end. And, I did not mind the fact that parts of it were predictable, since much of it was not. 

©2022 Nancy Horner. All rights reserved. If you are reading this post at a site other than Bookfoolery or its RSS feed, you are reading a stolen feed. Email bookfoolery@gmail.com for written permission to reproduce text or photos.

Dominicana by Angie Cruz

Dominicana by Angie Cruz is the story of Ana, who is forced to marry so that she can live in the US, hopefully to prosper and send money home to the Dominican Republic. Eventually, she plans to sponsor family members who also want to become American. She is 15, her husband is 32 when they hastily marry and move to New York.

In New York, Ana finds that her husband is not the wealthy man he pretended to be. Nor is he as kind as everyone thought. In fact, this book needs a trigger warning for domestic violence. Finding herself trapped in poor circumstances, Ana comes up with sneaky ways to set money aside for herself. Ana works hard at making her home comfortable, cooking delicious foods from their home country, and helping him with a shady business out of their apartment. But, when she makes a costly mistake, will it end her chance to escape from his violence?

Recommended - I enjoyed Dominicana mostly for the work ethic and creativity of the heroine, but I also loved the way she got to know her neighbors (in spite of the language barrier), found a way to start learning English when her husband was not around to force her to stay home, and eventually made her own money. She screwed up plenty, mostly because of her youth and naïvité. But, I cared for her and hoped things would work out. The 1960s setting was unfortunately not well described. I had to keep reminding myself of the time period.

It's been a couple weeks since I read Dominicana but I remember it well. I found it very difficult to put down and since we were being hit by the outer bands of Hurricane Hanna, it was a great day to read. Hanna even cooled us off enough that I was able to spend part of my reading time outside. In July! Yay!

I think I have Instagram to thank for this recommendation. I remember seeing it frequently, not so long ago. Maybe it was a Book of the Month Club selection? At any rate, I read lots of reviews and I'm glad I was able to read a copy. The story is based on the author's mother's story. I'm curious how similar it is and in what aspects she departed from her mother's experience.


©2020 Nancy Horner. All rights reserved. If you are reading this post at a site other than Bookfoolery or its RSS feed, you are reading a stolen feed. Email bookfoolery@gmail.com for written permission to reproduce text or photos.

The Paris Hours by Alex George

Jean-Paul loved his wife most when she was singing. It was the ravishing vigor with which she performed that laid siege to his heart. Music coursed through her, a joyous river. It illuminated her from within, filling her with the light of a thousand suns. When there was a tune on her lips, his wife was always the most beautiful person in the room. 

~p. 98 of The Paris Hours

In The Paris Hours by Alex George an Armenian genocide survivor, a struggling artist, Marcel Proust's maid, and a journalist all converge in the same location on a night in 1927. Who are they and how did they all end up in the same place? What will be revealed when an important notebook is sold, its secrets bound to cause damage?

Oh, my. There is so much to say about The Paris Hours. First and foremost, I think it would make an excellent discussion book and I've already told the host of my book club that we need to discuss it, some time. We read A Good American back when it came out in paperback and that discussion was quite a lively one, so she is definitely interested (but I have to wait for it to come out in paperback because that's one of the group rules). It's the kind of book you want to reread once you've been through it a first time, so I'm already looking forward to that eventuality.

But, back to the story. The main storyline takes place within a single day in 1927. But, as each character's story unfolds, the reader is taken back in time to fill in the gaps. How did an Armenian survive the genocide and end up working as a puppeteer in Paris? What is in the notebook that belongs to Marcel Proust's former maid and how did she end up with it? What will happen to the artist when his time to pay a debt to a notorious loan shark runs out? And, how does the journalist help tie these people together?

Because so many American artists, writers, and musicians lived the ex-pat life in Paris during the 1920s, there are appearances by Ernest Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, Josephine Baker, and the owner of Shakespeare and Company, Sylvia Beach, among others. But, they're background characters who give color to the time period in Paris rather than main characters. I think that may be part of the reason I felt like they were more believable than a lot of real-life historical characters fictionalized in novels, but it also is undoubtedly down to the skill of the author.

The only thing I disliked about this book? I found the ending a bit abrupt. But, only briefly. After I'd let it roll around in my head for a time, I realized that if the author had taken that final scene one step further it would have entered entirely different territory as what's about to happen in the end is both an ending and a beginning, if that makes sense. Well, just read it and you'll see.

Highly recommended - Exquisite writing in a beautifully drawn tale that brings four seemingly disparate lives together for an evening of drama and tragedy followed by hope. Personal opinion: The Paris Hours is a five-star read. I chose the quote above at random because I didn't mark anything while I was reading (too engrossed to look for the flags) and it was just serendipity that it happened to be a quote about music. There is always music in Alex George's books and he has a particular talent for describing it, probably because he's a musician and music lover, himself. I couldn't help but smile when I randomly opened the book to that paragraph.


©2020 Nancy Horner. All rights reserved. If you are reading this post at a site other than Bookfoolery or its RSS feed, you are reading a stolen feed. Email bookfoolery@gmail.com for written permission to reproduce text or photos.

Mini reviews - Under the Jaguar Sun by Italo Calvino, Virus on Orbis 1: The Softwire by P. J. Haarsma, and If Cats Disappeared from the World by Genki Kawamura

I'm going to keep writing mini reviews where appropriate, although I'm closing in on catching up on reviews, finally! It's only taken me nearly a month. That's what you get for taking time off, I guess.

Under the Jaguar Sun by Italo Calvino was my first finished book in 2020. A slim read, it contains three short stories, each based on one of the senses. It was meant to contain stories about all of the senses, plus a frame, but not completed before the author died. Under the Jaguar Sun is my first completed Calvino. Oddly, I was loving If on a Winter's Night a Traveler when I was in the midst of it, a couple years back (and I get what he means by a "frame" from that). I'm guessing I had some ARC commitments that got in the way, at the time.

The first of the stories is about the sense of taste and it's a story in which a couple travels around Mexico, trying new dishes, seeing new sights. At some point, the wife begins to wonder aloud what happened to the hearts of those who were sacrificed. The implication is that she knows and is both appalled and intrigued.

Calvino strikes me as a real writer's writer. Such deft use of language! Because there are only three stories about the senses, the book is far from complete. It's still well worth the read, though.

Recommended - Sometimes lovely, occasionally revolting, often humorous, always skillful. Under the Jaguar Sun made me want to read more Calvino.

I downloaded Virus on Orbis 1: The Softwire for free and then heard Nathan Fillion recommended the series and downloaded a couple more. That was ages ago and what finally got me to read an actual e-book (an e-book!!! — if you read my blog regularly, you know I have a problem with them) was a middle-of-the-night wake-up and not wanting to disturb the spouse or get out of bed to go to the reading chair. It was a cold morning.

JT has a special talent. He can talk to the computer on the ship that's taking children to Orbis 1, a settlement on rings near a black hole. The adults are gone, killed by a problem with the pods that were intended to keep them from aging while the ship traveled to its destination, and the computer has raised and trained the children. Only JT can speak to Mother (the computer) without using a keypad.

When the children arrive at Orbis 1, they're distributed amongst the creatures (much like in the Star Wars café, there's quite a variety of aliens) to be used as labor. JT and his sister end up together, but JT is quickly identified as a "softwire" who can talk to and even enter a computer using only his mind. With problems frequently plaguing the Orbis 1 computer system, JT is blamed. But, JT knows there's something inside the computer. And, he must solve the problem quickly because his life is in danger as long as he's being blamed.

Neither recommended or not recommended - I might have abandoned this book (a middle reader, I presume) if not for Fillion's recommendation and the fact that I really wanted to know how JT would solve the problem with the computer. There's just a bit too much world building, if that makes sense. It's so far out there that I felt a little exhausted by it. But, the final third to half of the book is full of pulse-pounding action and that was enough to make me think, "Hmm, I will definitely read on." I probably won't get around to the second in the series until another dark, cold night in which I don't want to turn the light on, but I will definitely read on.

If Cats Disappeared from the World was my choice for #JanuaryinJapan (or is it #JapaninJanuary?) and, of course, the word "cat" in the title gave it first priority. The Japanese do love their cats, as do I.

The plot of If Cats Disappeared from the World felt a little familiar to me. A Japanese man with a cat finds out he's dying. What will happen? But, in this case, when the protagonist finds out that he's dying, he makes a deal with the devil. Each day, he can choose to have something removed from the world. Once the item is taken away, he gets a single day more of life. But, is there a line in the sand? If so, what is the hero unwilling to let the world do without?

Recommended but not a favorite - I thought the storyline was a little simplistic and predictable, a little schmaltzy, but I enjoyed it anyway. I think I might have liked it a little bit better if the hero had been rounded out a little better and if he'd had to consider a variety of items to possibly remove and choose from them. Instead, as I recall, he chooses the first thing that disappears from the world but then the devil makes the choice, after that. And, each of those choices becomes more difficult as they have some meaning to the hero.

Of these three books, none were favorites but I'd have to choose Under the Jaguar Sun as the best written and the one book whose author I most want to read again.


©2020 Nancy Horner. All rights reserved. If you are reading this post at a site other than Bookfoolery or its RSS feed, you are reading a stolen feed. Email bookfoolery@gmail.com for written permission to reproduce text or photos.

The Dry and Force of Nature by Jane Harper

I got an Advance Reader Copy of Force of Nature by Jane Harper via Shelf Awareness after reading many gushing reviews, comments, and tweets about Harper's first release, The Dry. Knowing Force of Nature was the second in a series, I asked friends for advice about order. Did I really need to read The Dry, first? Would I miss important background that would likely feed into the next novel? I've read series books out of order, in the past. Sometimes it works; sometimes it doesn't. The advice I received was mixed but leaned toward the likelihood that I'd miss out if I didn't read The Dry, first, so I ordered a copy and have decided to review them together.

In The Dry, when Federal Agent Aaron Falk returns for his best friend Jake's funeral, it's his first visit to his hometown since he and his father were driven away. Luke, his wife, and son have been killed. But, did Luke murder his family and commit suicide or did someone else kill the family? Why was their baby daughter left alive but their son killed? Falk doesn't plan to stay in town to find out. But, then Luke's parents ask for help.

The title comes from the drought conditions in the area, as the story is taking place. Farmers are losing their livelihood because of the lengthy dry spell and nobody appears surprised that Luke may have killed most of his family. Since The Dry is the first in a series, you get to know Aaron Falk and the story of how and why he and his father were driven out of town in tandem with the unfolding investigation.

While there were some moments when I felt myself pulled briefly out of the story because I thought a particular element was weak, those were rare moments and the book was almost impossible to put down. I liked Aaron Falk and that feeling grew throughout the reading. And, I loved the way the author steered you toward believing someone was guilty, eliminated them entirely, and then did it all over again. The ending was surprising, tense, exciting, and believable. An excellent read. The book is set in rural Australia, west of Melbourne, and the setting is almost a character in itself. I love a very vivid setting, so The Dry was a 5-star read for many reasons. Highly recommended.

In Force of Nature, the weather has taken a 180° turn. It's winter, now. Months have passed since Aaron Falk solved the mystery of his best friend's death. He has a new partner named Carmen and the two of them have been working with Alice Russell to uncover money laundering at her place of employment. Alice has disappeared while on a team-building hike that lasted three days. The other 4 women made it out of the bush alive but some were injured. They claim Alice took her phone and hiked out on her own after they became lost and spent the night in a cabin. But, did she? Is it possible her disappearance is related to the investigation into the company's finances? A serial killer used to operate in this part of the Giralang Ranges and his son has disappeared. Could he have something to do with Alice's disappearance? Will she be found dead or alive -- or, not at all, like one of the victims of the serial killer?

I had two concerns when I first started reading Force of Nature: 1. Will it be as good as The Dry or a disappointing sophomore effort? and 2. Can she pull off yet another "5 women go into the woods and only 4 come out," storyline? It's a plot that has been done to death and I was definitely worried that it would be same old, same old.

Well, good news on both counts. I thought Force of Nature was actually even better than The Dry. As with the first novel, I found the book almost impossible to put down. The Giralang Ranges are, as I suspected, based on The Grampians (a few hours' drive from Melbourne, where Falk is based -- you can take a bus tour into The Grampians from Melbourne) and, again, the setting is practically a character unto itself. Whereas I felt the intensity of the heat and craved water while reading The Dry, I shivered along with the characters and grew weary of the rain in Force of Nature.

Highly recommended and I absolutely cannot wait to see what Jane Harper comes up with, next. I'm not a big mystery fan but I am fond of Aaron Falk, love the Australian settings, and find Harper's writing both competent and believable. I liked where she took her main character emotionally and thought Carmen was a nice addition as a sidekick.

Note on order: Force of Nature stands alone fine, but I'm glad I read the two books in order because I do believe that the events of the first book feed into the second one, mainly in the way of character development. There are some references to Falk's father, his burned hand, and his hometown. However, the storyline in Force of Nature doesn't depend in any way upon events in The Dry. So, no worries if you can't read The Dry, first. You can always catch up, later.


©2018 Nancy Horner. All rights reserved. If you are reading this post at a site other than Bookfoolery or its RSS feed, you are reading a stolen feed. Email bookfoolery@gmail.com for written permission to reproduce text or photos.