Category: Fiction

Dysfunctional Families, Fiction, literary fiction

Book Review: Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart

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“She had loved him, and he had needed to break her completely to leave her for good. Agnes Bain was too rare a thing to let someone else love. It wouldn’t do to leave pieces of her for another man to collect and repair later.”

Shuggie Bain tells the story of a family in 1980s Glasglow, Scotland. Thatcher’s policies have put husbands and sons out of work and the city’s notorious drugs epidemic is waiting in the wings. This story delves into Shuggie’s family and their history. There is Agnes Bain who is Shuggie’s mother and his entire world but is a burden for him and his siblings, his father, who he is named after, is a philandering taxi driver who has left his mother completely broken, his siblings who fight to get away from the burden that is their parents and their grandparents who have had to pick up the pieces for so long. This is a story about addiction, sexuality and love.

I picked up this book because I’m waiting for my library to release Stuart’s John of John to me which has just been long listed for the Booker prize and was Oprah’s book club pick for May. I decided to pick up Shuggie Bain because everyone referred to him as the author of Shuggie Bain and I’d never even heard about this book before. This book won the Booker Prize in 2020. Anyway, this book should not have been titled Shuggie Bain because it was not about him at all. This was about the entire Bain family and more prominently about their mother, Agnes Bain. It is about how Agnes’ choices and her life might have shaped her children’s life. Shuggie isn’t even 16 when the story ends so we don’t even see how her choices shaped his life at all. I couldn’t actually figure out who Shuggie was on the page because the author spent the entire time telling us how the kids perceived him and not how he actually was. His entire character was defined by his sexuality or what everyone around him saw as him being different because Shuggie never actually came out as gay, but everyone agreed he didn’t behave or walk like a “real” boy.

Agnes Bain was someone who the author did not manage to make sympathetic to me. I found everything about her to be slightly pathetic, and I felt bad that I just wanted her to be off the page so I could get to the part where Shuggie grows up. Shuggie never grows up and Agnes dominates the entire book so essentially, I did not get what I wanted at all or what the title of the book promised me. Agnes makes choices without ONCE putting her kids first. Not once. Every single choice she makes in this book was self-serving and in pursuit of male companionship. She leaves a stable marriage with two kids after having an affair with a taxi driver, she then succumbs to addiction to dull the pain from the treatment she gets from said man in her second marriage, she then uproots her kids from their grandparents’ house to a house she’s never seen before still in pursuit of this man and when said man finally leaves her and she manages to achieve sobriety she goes back to the drink because of another man. Agnes was too male centered for me to be sympathetic to her story.

Shuggie is sexually molested by multiple people in this book but at no point do we know what Shuggie actually feels about these incidents. We move right past them to being told how many cigarettes and bottles of alcohol Agnes was having while her child was being molested. We get multiple incidents of people molesting him and a scene where he thinks it’s so normal that he offers himself as payment to a taxi driver when his mother kicks him out of the house without any money, but we never even see Shuggie struggle with this. He moves right past it to continue being a caretaker for his mum and trying to keep her alive without any thought to his well-being.

Agnes’ other two kids Catherine and Leek. Catherine has the right idea to get out as soon as she could. She marries her stepfather’s cousin and skips out of Scotland straight to apartheid South Africa to supervise the blacks. Apart from the moving to South Africa to help with all the oppressing, I actually thought she had the best idea to leave Agnes. She knew from the start that she wasn’t going to stay and save her mother, and she took the first flight out of the dysfunction while Leek and Shuggie wallowed in it. When Leek finally gets out, he has only one sentence of advice for Shuggie – leave as soon as you can, but Shuggie loved their mother too much and did not know any other type of life to escape of his own free will.

Anyway, I know I’m in the minority, but I found this book very one note, but this is a favorite in the literary community so still give it a go. I gave this 3 stars on Goodreads.

Leggy

dystopian, Fantasy, Fiction

The 4 Best Fantasy Books I’ve read in 2026 So Far

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This year has been a really hard fantasy year for me. Romantasy is the publishing industry’s darling lately so a lot of the fantasy I like to read has been put on the back burner. But here are 4 books I’ve managed to read so far in 2026 that I thought had a really good premise and I actually enjoyed.

In no particular order:

1. Mortedant’s Peril by R. J. Barker (The Trials of Irody Hasp #1):

Irony Hasp is a Mortedant, a cleric tasked with reading the last thoughts of the dead. He’s extremely unpopular, rarely gets work and is scarcely tolerated even by the other members of his guild. After reading the corpse of a low-level records keeper, Irody’s troubles quickly multiply when his apprentice is murdered and he is accused of his death. He gets 72 hours to proof that he is not the murderer, but his investigation is attracting powerful enemies with few scruples, and he has to figure out why the thoughts of a low-level records keeper is worth his life. I really enjoyed this book and thought the world building was very well done. Seeing the different levels humans in this book are classified in and seeing the Mortedant look down his noses at them even when he can barely afford to live on the 5th level was quite funny. This one was not as popular as it should have been, and I happened upon it on Goodreads newly released list and gave it a shot. Was very happy that I did.

2. The Art of Prophecy by Wesley Chu (War Arts #1):

A prophecy – A child will rise to defeat the Eternal Khan and liberate the kingdom. The Hero – Jian has been found as the boy who was foretold in the prophecy and raised in luxury and splendor, celebrated before he has won a single battle. Taishi arrives to evaluate the prophesied hero and finds a spoilt brat unprepared to fight anyone worth his salt. As she takes over his training and tries to make him better something unfortunate happens. One day, during a skirmish an ordinary soldier kills the Eternal Khan making Jian useless. The prophecy has failed or the prophecy was wrong. The kings of the different regions that make up the kingdom want to kill him so that he cannot be used as a political pawn but as he is tossed into the real world to escape the kings’ assassination attack, he has to hide who he really is in order to survive and figure out what to do when you’re no longer a hero. I absolutely loved this book. I went into it blind and when the Khan died 20 pages into the book, I was so surprised! I was so excited not to read the usual hero book.

3. Daughter of Crows by Mark Lawrence (The Academy of Kindness #1):

I did not like Mark Lawrence’s last series – The Library Trilogy. I managed to finish the first book in the series, but I was so bored and then I never got through the second one. I’m usually a Mark Lawrence completionist but that series killed that for me. Anyway, the Lawrence that I fell in love with is back with this installment. The Academy of kindness is a brutal academy that creates agents of retribution. They take in 100 girls every year and only graduate 3 after ten long years of training. They are cast in the image of the furies against whom even the gods hesitate to stand. Only the desperate would sell their child to the Academy but Rue sold herself. And years after she graduated from the academy and after years as a kindness she has finally retired as an old woman, but war has been brought to her doorstep. That was a mistake. I absolutely loved reading the brutality of this one. Lawrence tells the story of the academy from a POV, but you don’t know if who is telling the story is Rue. We skip between the present day, and the academy and the academy was so fascinating. Anyway, I really enjoyed this one and think the second book is going to be even more amazing.

4. The Strength of a Few by James Islington (Hierarchy #2):

“A society cannot make a man a monster, Diago. But it can give him the excuse to become one.”

I think anyone who knows me knows that The Will of the Many was my favorite read of 2023. This is the second book in the Hierarchy series. Vis wins the ludicum at the end of book 1 and we find out how the Labyrinth actually works. The Strength of the Few sees Vis in 3 completely different worlds with completely different magic operating system and it is amazing what Islington is able to achieve building this world that is starting to feel too big to contain. The stakes feel higher but at the end he makes some choices that do not feel like what our main character would do at all and it made me question whether Islington would be able to land the ending. Anyway, it’s really hard to explain this series because it’s so convolated but if you love epic fantasy and world building, please pick this series up.

There you have it. 4 fantasy books that I’ve read so far that I actually enjoyed. Let me know which fantasy books you’ve enjoyed this year in the comments. Maybe I’ll give them a go.

Leggy

dystopian, Fiction, literary fiction, women's fiction

Book Review: Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke

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“The goal of an influencer is not to be lovable, and it is not to be unbearable. The goal is to be both at once. In other words: addicting.”

Natalie lives a traditional lifestyle. She’s married to a senator’s son who is a handsome cowboy, her charming farmhouse is rustic, and her six children are all so perfect and delightful. Natalie is an influencer with millions of followers whose father-in-law is currently running for president and wants to use her influence to get him to the white house. She never discloses the workers on the farm, the producers behind the scenes, or the nannies that keep everything running. She hides the microwave and the industrial grade fridges and ovens and performs for the camera. One day, she wakes up and she’s living a life that isn’t hers. Her home, her husband and her children are different but familiar. Her kitchen has no electricity, and her children are dirty and strange and there are no nannies.

I think this is one book where the premise was so much better than the actual execution. What I was expecting was not what I got. The way this book was marketed was very misleading and even though I still rolled with the punches as they came, the reading experience ended up being unsatisfying. But I also like the way the main character Natalie was written. She drove me crazy because sometimes she would have so much insight about the disparity between men and women, but she would never come to the right conclusions. She just kept digging in her heels even when a smart woman like her should have pivoted. I never felt a lot of dislike for her, in fact, I actually felt such compassion for her and was sad to see her life just go downhill.

Natalie’s descent into paranoia was hard to read about. She became so resentful of other women and the commenters, and she would make up elaborate stories about how horrible their lives were compared to the perfect life she had curated. At points, it seemed that she had forgotten that her life on social media was not actually the life she was actually living. The writer traps us inside her mind as it unravels into chaos, and it was not a nice place to be at all. Nothing in her life is grounded and every experience is filtered through the lens of how it would appear on social media. She completely surrenders her life to the new producer who enters her life and even though there were so many red flags, she completely ignores them just because of the number on social media.

When Natalie wakes up in the actual trad life she’s been curating online and when we find out how she got there and what the premise actually what, it leaves me so disappointed. Because you’re left to wonder if Natalie is actually a manipulative social media mastermind or just a mentally ill woman who is trapped in the identity she has built and can no longer recognize the real world from the one she has curated. The author completely denies any responsibility of what kind of story she’s telling. She expects the audience to decide what Natalie is. You start to wonder if this is a book about an influencer or just a book about how mental illness shows up in women. She completely gives over the responsibility to the audience to decide what type of book they want to be and I don’t know if this is genius or if this is a way for the author to escape all criticisms about labelling large groups of people – Christians, trad wives, influencers etc.

Eventually, after going through the chaos that is Natalie’s mind and ultimately arriving to an end that doesn’t wrap up with a bow. I think this is one book that is going to stay with the reader whether you enjoy it or not. I ended up giving this 3 stars on Goodreads.

Leggy

Fantasy, Fiction, romance, Romantasy

Book Review: Starside by Alex Aster

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Starside is the realm of magic and immortals while Stormside is where mortals fight for scraps of that magic. Hundreds of years ago, a brutal war caused the split but every 50 years the gates between them open and 50 challenges are allowed out of Stormside to journey to Starside on a deadly quest to access a pool of magic that can heal, grant wealth, or extend life. Everyone has their reasons for entering, but Aris has only vengeance. As a child, a goddess set fire to her village, killing her family. Aris isn’t after the gods’ magic – she wants to kill them. Also going on the quest is Harlan Raker, the merciless and mysterious king’s guard who we’re told betrayed her years ago and who may now be the key to her making it to Starside.

I think this book is everything I do not like about romantasy. This book starts out with the author telling us how much Aris hates Harlan Raker and how he is the worst person on earth and how he betrayed her and how she could never forgive him. The author tells us that all she wants is to achieve vengeance. I think a lot of romantasy sets us up with a premise but casts it all out on the altar of romance. We are consistently told that all Aris wants is vengeance but then she constantly makes choices that make us doubt that premise. Because this is a romantasy book and in romance you need the characters to be likeable, I find that authors lay everything on the feet of likeability. She’s a fighting demon and so amazing with a knife but she is also the kindest person you’ll ever meet with a heart of gold who will give away a magic portion that is guaranteed to save her life to an enemy who was just trying to kill her just so we know how amazing she is and how worthy of love she really is.

Aris consistently makes choices that make me so annoyed. She decides she is super attracted to Harlan who by the way she has never seen his face. Even the first time she makes out with him, it is with his face covered. So please tell me what there is to be attracted to. A man who you have told us you hate most in the world didn’t even have to show you his face before you throw yourself at him. I completely understand making a deal with him so you can get to Starside. I expect that of a person who’ll do anything to get to Starside but to then fall in love or lust or whatever with a man who just 20 days ago you hated. I don’t know if these authors respect our intelligence at all.

Apart from the romance part, I actually think the author builds an absolutely beautiful world in this book. Every creature and magical character they come across I’m absolutely fascinated by. I think she did such an amazing job with the side characters especially the magical characters not coming off as one dimensional. The ancient creatures, magic-wielding beasts and bloodthirsty immortals were written very well and then a new peril that even the immortals feared that kept them from traveling at night was fascinating. Everything was crammed into this book which kept me reading because I felt that the actual journey was the best part of it all.

Finally, the ending of the book was so ridiculous. I’m sorry, making a bargain to bring her family back? What is she? 5? No matter how old you are. why would you make a bargain to bring your family that have been dead for years, back? It just made me feel like the author had written a very dumb and emotional character. And I saw the twist about Harlan’s identity coming but how she dealt with the requirement to get her family back was quite ridiculous. I think the author forgot that her main character is actually human and the gates don’t open for another 50 years which means her saying “see you in 50 years” doesn’t mean a thing when she’ll be what 70?

I’m obviously in the minority with this book because this book currently has an above 4 star average on Goodreads but I gave it 2. If you tell me that I’m about to read a revenge book, then I want a proper revenge book. She could barely stand on hating someone after knowing them for just 20 days and I’m supposed to believe she has the fortitude to actually see her vengeance through? Please.

Have you read this one? Let me know in the comments.

Leggy

african author, african stories, Black Authors, Fiction, literary fiction, women's fiction

Book Review: The Sun Sets In Singapore by Kehinde Fadipe

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“Sometimes the best person to listen to is the person who did exactly what you don’t want to do. Don’t let what your grandparents or your mother or anyone else wants or wanted influence you now”

Dara, Amaka and Lillian, all of Nigerian heritage, are currently expats living in Singapore. Dara is a lawyer, Amaka is a banker and Lillian was a pianist who moved from the U.S with her American husband. They are all living the lives they have created for themselves in Singapore, while each fighting their own battles until a new arrival, Lani steps in and affects their lives in different ways.

This was an okay read for me. It had an intriguing premise but I think I wavered on the execution. One minute, I found myself invested in the characters because Fadipe did a good job in fleshing them out and you get a good sense of who they are and how they are handling their various predicaments. We get a good grasp of their background and their families and the connection and friendships between each other, also made sense. Dara’s struggle as a black woman in a law firm, Amaka dating a non-Nigerian and not seeing it as long term and Lillian feeling lost and trying to find her place were all realistic.

But then the next minute, it just felt like the drama was never ending and it was being stretched out for no reason and because I was itching for a resolution, the characters started becoming annoying. I specifically found Dara to be bratty. The pace picked up the second half of the book and because so much was happening, I didn’t know how I felt. So much was going on and I didn’t have the bandwidth to care deeply for all of them. That’s the other thing, be prepared for a million and one stories going on at the same time.

I did this book on audio and I honestly wouldn’t recommend doing audio, if you are Nigerian. The narrator had a British accent and was fine for the general narration but when it came to pronouncing the Igbo names, the pronunciation was terrible and in the little Igbo spoken, it was butchered. Her American accent was such struggle bus and it had me cringing and the last straw for me was when she read out the famous 1004 apartments as 10-04 vs. one thousand and four. There were also a bunch of volume or tone fluctuations where you could tell the difference from when she picked it up at a different time.

Overall, as mentioned above, I didn’t hate it but I didn’t love it either. I do think that it was a decent read that serves well as a filler read or reading palate cleanser. I think it is obvious that this is a debut book but I would still check out other books by her.

Taynement

african author, african stories, Black Authors, Fiction, LGBT, literary fiction, Nigerian Author, romance, We Chit Chat

We Chit Chat – Blessings by Chukwuebuka Ibeh

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“It’s one thing to love a child, but it’s an entirely different thing for the same child to feel loved. A home is the last place a child should feel conditionally loved.”

Leggy: I remember seeing this book months ago on Bookstagram. An Asian content creator popped up on my feed talking about this book and I sent it to you and suggested we read this.

Taynement: Yep! It was a book by a Nigerian author being spoken about by a non-Nigerian and it piqued my interest because something I always talk about is wondering how people who aren’t familiar with the culture digest books about Nigeria.

Leggy: This book follows Obiefuna, who was born into a lower middle-class family in Nigeria. His peculiarities make him the black sheep of his family and when his father finds him in an intimate position with another boy, he ships him off to seminary school.

Taynement: To be clear – his peculiarities to them were the fact that he loved to dance and wasn’t particularly good at sports but in reality, he was gay. Obiefuna was a rainbow baby after his mother suffered many losses. He turned out to be a golden child, and his parents attributed their successes to his birth, and he held a special place in his mother’s heart. His father makes the sole decision to ship him off after finding him in a compromising position with a male apprentice without letting his mother know the reason why.

Leggy: This is one of the best books I’ve read this year. I think what makes it so impactful is how quiet and not exaggerated it is. Every time I thought the author was going to make an outrageous choice he always chose something different. And I think the quiet choices make this book even more powerful because you recognize the characters. You know this would absolutely happen in Nigeria. There’s no exaggeration to pull you out of the story and other Obiefuna’s humanity.

Taynement: Yes, it was very realistic, and I agree that it was quiet and not exaggerated. It’s funny because some other books that I have as my faves this year share those same characteristics.

Leggy: What did you think about his experience in boarding school?

Taynement: I think it was true to form. I chuckled when his dad chose that as a form of punishment because it was almost predictable that he would explore his sexuality there. I would say though that I had my heart in my throat the entire time because I kept expecting him to be raped especially when he built a connection with Senior Papilo.

Leggy: Exactly. I was like sending your son to an all-boys school because he’s gay is a choice. That’s something I loved about this book. I thought Senior Papilo was going to rape him as well but that never happened. The author never made any shocking choices and that choice would have been expected.

Taynement: But again, another reason I liked this book is also showing how flawed our parents’ generation was in parenting. They just did not have the tools. His dad thought he was doing his best. Another way that this manifested in the book is when Uzoamaka (Obiefuna’s mother) visited the hospital with Anozie (Obiefuna’s father) and the nurse makes the comment about him being a good man because he accompanied her to the hospital when most men wouldn’t. Anozie loved his family, and he was showing up for his wife.

Leggy: I do believe Anozie genuinely loved his family. He even tried to hide the fact that he found out Obiefuna was gay from his wife because he thought it would break his wife’s heart. When they finally had the discussion in the open and she told him where else would a boy like him be loved if not at home?

Taynement: I do think certain threads were left loose or maybe I did not pick up on their usefulness to the story. The two most prominent were – Ekene’s (Obiefuna’s brother) plot purpose and when Senior Papilo takes him to a brothel.

Leggy: I think Ekene served as a juxtaposition to Obiefuna.

Taynement: I get that, but I don’t know if it was well done. The juxtaposition didn’t seem to have any effect on Obiefuna? Basically, if he was left out of the story would it have affected my understanding of Obiefuna?

Leggy: It was because of him that Obiefuna even came in contact with any traditional masculine things. He would have never gone to the football field if Ekene did not exist. Also, even though Ekene was not that smart he was left in the private school while Obiefuna was moved to seminary school because of his gayness leading the private school to have a meeting with Uzoamaka inquiring why Obiefuna was moved.

Leggy: I also expected Obiefuna’s brother to turn on him at some point because he was portrayed as so macho and being complete opposite of him, but they actually stayed closer than I expected them to. When Obiefuna comes back from holiday and Ekene sings for him to dance. I thought that was such a touching scene.

Taynement: The scene where he tells Obiefuna to dance, do you think it was him acknowledging it? Ekene just seemed to be in the dark about a lot of things.

Leggy: I absolutely think he knew. And I think that scene was a way for him to acknowledge it without having that conversation especially from someone considered traditionally masculine. He was never going to confront it head on.

Leggy: Also, about Senior Papilo taking him to a brothel, honestly, I thought Papilo was gay the way he gathered all those young boys to himself, the way he treated them and the way they competed for his attention. So, when the brothel happened, I was confused. I was actually relieved that the boys just went to a brothel. I genuinely thought they were leaving the school to do something more sinister like armed robbery and that Obiefuna was going to get caught up in it. I was so relieved that that wasn’t the case that I didn’t even think about the brothel anymore. But I think it speaks to how straight men initiate younger boys into what they believe manhood is.

Taynement: Interesting. I do think Papilo is gay but wasn’t going to “give into it”. Papilo is one of those Nigerian men who will marry a woman and live a straight life and a part of me wondered if he was giving Obiefuna an out by taking him to the brothel.

Taynement: And something that struck me was up until the end of the book had Obiefuna actually had sex? He mentions touching and rubbing and we never really going into the nitty gritty of his relationship with the artist.

Leggy: They never described his actual sexual relationship with the artist. Only that he did a lot of drugs with him and I was so worried because obviously Obiefuna was depressed and grieving and I was worried about the path he was heading down. But he never had actual penetrative sex with the long-term boyfriend that comes after the artist.

Taynement: Overall, I think that is the beauty of this book. It was written so well, and it maneuvered from topic to topic so deftly and the story just flowed.

Leggy: This book culminates with the 2014 law that criminalized gay relationships with a hefty 14-year sentence. That was devastating to read about.

Taynement: It was a good balance of reality. I liked the fact that Obiefuna found a community because they do exist in Nigeria.

Leggy: And then when one of his friends was kitoed. By the way, this is an actual thing that happens in Nigeria and that’s when straight men pose as gay men on dating apps to lure gay men out and then they get beaten up, videos are made of them confessing to be gay and then they are robbed while law enforcement looks the other way.

Taynement: All in all, this was a fantastic, well-written book that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Leggy: Such a fantastic book. I loved it so much and it was an easy read.

Book Related Topics, Fiction, Historical, LGBT, literary fiction, Memoirs, romance, women's fiction

3 for 1 Book Reviews

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It’s been a minute, so figured I’d do a three-fer before the year runs out. The reviews features a beloved author, a memoir and a Booker Prize winner.

Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid: If you have been a long time reader of the blog then you know how much I love me some TJR, in fact I ranked all her books here. I was excited to read this one but it pains me to say that it didn’t hit the way the other books did. One of the things I like about TJR as an author is how versatile she is and how she doesn’t have a formulaic writing style. This one centered around Joan who is an astronaut. Based in the 80’s it showed how she had to fight to be recognized in her field but it was also a book about Joan’s sexuality at a time when she couldn’t necessarily be loud and proud. In hindsight, seeing how much praise this book has received, I am wondering if I’m the problem. Now don’t get me wrong, the book was not bad at all but I do think it was all over the place. There were so many storylines and timelines and didn’t seem well put together as is typical of TJR. It took me a minute to get all the characters right and remember their respective timelines. It also felt like I was being forced or told what to feel and I’d rather it be organic.

Flesh by Davis Szalay: FOMO got the best of me, and I had to see what all the fuss was about and even after reading it, I still don’t get it. Listen y’all, I am trying to get used to this new wave of abstract writing. The book follows Istvan from when he was a teenager in Hungary where he experiences something traumatic and then we follow him to London as he gets older and lives a completely different life, almost as if the incident never happened. As he gets older and has all these different experiences, I keep thinking they would have some connection to each other but the more there didn’t seem to be one, the more confused I got about what the point was. I do think it is a very character driven book (which aren’t usually my favorite) so that could be the explanation for that but if the character didn’t seem to be processing all the things that were happening to him and doesn’t seem to care, it’s very hard for us the readers to be invested and care as well. The ending felt like walking into a glass door because I didn’t realize that was the end. It was very abrupt. Someone needs to explain to me why this was the winner of the prize.

Accidentally on Purpose by Kristen Kish: Kristen from Top Chef fame wrote a memoir and she is such a lovely person (and a hottie) and that was probably most people’s motivations for reading this book and unfortunately it was just okay. I know everyone wants to write a memoir but if you are not willing to be VERY open or share salacious details then it’s okay to just leave it in your journal. Kristen does the thing where you share but you aren’t really sharing anything. Even when she gets to certain points, she doesn’t name names. You do get the sentiment of the title where it feels like everything just fell into place for her in her career, even though she has the talent, there was still a great deal of luck on her side, and I appreciate her owning that because sometimes successful people feel like admitting luck diminishes their hard work. I also liked how she admitted not having a desire to find her bio parents (she is adopted) and not really looking into her Korean roots until later in life. Kristen does share her deep love for her wife, and you can see it come through. There is a point in the book where she is talking about her and we hear sniffles and honestly, it felt put on (don’t hate me!). I don’t think there should be one formula for a chef’s memoir, but I will say that there wasn’t that deeeeeep passion for food that you usually hear from other chefs, and it just seemed like something that’s part of her life. It felt like there was more of a passion for hosting (and that’s okay). I listened to this on audio. Overall, I don’t think it was terrible, but I don’t think it was very good either.

So there you have it. Have you read any of this? What did you think? Do you want to check out any of this after reading these reviews? Let me know!

Taynement

Chick-Lit, Fiction, romance, women's fiction

Book Review: Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry

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“It occurs to me then that in my effort to be positive, optimistic, and understanding, I might’ve made myself into an unreliable narrator of sorts, someone who can’t easily be trusted not to sugarcoat things.”

Alice Scott is an eternal optimist who is trying to get a big break in her writing career. Hayden Anderson is a Pulitzer-prize winning writer who wrote the biography of a very famous singer dying of cancer and is now the most sought after biography writer in the world. Margaret Ives used to be a famous tabloid star born into one of the most storied and scandalous families of the 20th century who ended up marrying a very famous rock star and then disappearing from the limelight after his death. Margaret invites Alice and Hayden for a one-month trial period at Little Crescent Island to compete to write her story after which, she will choose the person who’ll tell her story.

I was a bit hesitant to begin this one because I had come across criticism about how this one isn’t as good as the other ones, so I went into it with trepidation. A lot of people think this book should not be sold as romance but as women’s fiction because they think the romance was not the point of the book. I actually agree with them, but I also think this is why this book worked for me so much. I really enjoyed Margaret’s story a lot. I loved listening to her family’s history, how the tabloid fame came about, her sister’s story and her love life. I think balancing her story with Alice and Hayden’s interactions on the island worked for me. The mystery of why they both were selected made this book compelling to read.

Alice is the typical manic pixie optimistic female characters that we are so used to in romance books while Hayden is the typical smart and grumpy yet soft for the female, protagonist male character that we are so used to in romance books. Did I still enjoy them? Yes. But I think I enjoyed them because they were barely on the page. I enjoyed the forced proximity, the small-town temporary living, the hometown visit, and the baring their souls to each other in order to fall in love tropes. Also, Alice falls in love too quickly with Hayden and if I had to read more of their romance than what Henry gives us, I think I would have been annoyed.

Emily Henry releases a book every year and I think it might be time for her to slow down. I enjoyed this one, but I think if it was purely romance as all her other books have been, I wouldn’t have. Also, there really isn’t much to say about this book but I’m reviewing it because I have reviewed all her other books and want to stay a completist. All in all, I gave this one 3 stars on Goodreads.

Leggy

african author, african stories, Black Authors, Fiction, literary fiction, romance, We Chit Chat, women's fiction

We Chit Chat: My Parents’ Marriage by Nana Ekua Brew-Hammond

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Leggy – I’d never heard of this book before you asked for us to read this together. Also, I thought it was a nonfiction book about the author’s parents’ marriage, and I went into it without knowing anything about it.

Taynement – Yeah, I saw it on Instagram from a follower, and it looked interesting. I love me an African family drama plot. I found it quite interesting, not necessarily because of the writing but more from the human psychology aspect.

Leggy – I ended up finding it deeply fascinating. Also, this book is compulsively readable.

Taynement – Yes! I found it to be such an easy read.

Leggy – I started it yesterday and finished it in 24 hours. It’s hard to put down.

Taynement – The author kept it simple and didn’t overwrite it which I think you would expect because of the complexity of the subject matter. To break it down – the book centers around Mawuli Nuga and how his sexual indiscipline affected his many families, but the story is told through one of his children – Kokui and how her quest to beat the cycle of her father’s actions landed her into a different kind of cycle.

Leggy – Yes, she kept it simple and actually showed you the story, the family and the men without having to spell it out to the readers. She didn’t hit you over the head with any agenda.

Taynement – The book does start with a family tree which means nothing to you before you read the book but makes all the sense when you’re in it.

Leggy – Yeah, I skipped that family tree. It’s just like fantasy books that start with a map. I never study those. I think that if you do your job well, then I’ll know what is in the family tree or in the map after I’ve read your book.

Taynement – Like I always say when we do this, I always wonder how non-Africans ingest a book like this because it makes sense to us, but it must seem so strange and bizarre to them. Mawuli kept making babies and swapping wives like underwear with nary a thought of how they felt. We see the different ways the wives/mothers handled it with Kokui’s mother choosing to go back to her home country but choosing to still stay a legal wife for her children.

Leggy – And then accepting him as a husband once a year when he comes down with the kids for Christmas.

Taynement – While the current wife chose to ignore his indiscretions with the hope of getting his assets upon his death. Thing is, it’s so common for Africans to find out they have outside siblings that I can see how Mawuli didn’t bat an eyelid.

Leggy – Nothing about their dad even fazed me.

Taynement – Children are a sign of success.

Leggy – And he accepted and trained every single child, even the older Antony guy who he disowned. He still paid his way to London and paid his fees till he dropped out.

Taynement – The main fascination of this book was Kokui. Before we get into her, I did wonder why the author chose to make her sister a side character and not do a side by side.

Leggy – I’m glad we just focused on one person. I think a side by side might have made the book more bloated, but I also think she just wanted us to follow one person and see if the person can break the cycle.

Taynement – That’s fair. It was just a floating thought.

Leggy – It’s so easy to run your mouth about all the ways your parents are doing life wrong until you’re having to make those same choices.

Taynement – Kokui was so determined to not be her mum and thought her mum was basically an idiot which I understand, but what I didn’t understand was the swiftness in which she wanted to marry her husband. It was so immature and… idiotic?

Leggy – I actually didn’t think her mum was an idiot. I understand why her mum stayed. Her mum thought her staying would secure her children’s inheritance. Their mother told them that their dad promised her that one of the two of her girls would be appointed to run his company. She felt like she had made a shitty choice in marrying him and was trying to salvage it as best as she could. But yes, I found Kokui to be such a dumb and stupid character. I also went from not liking Boris to being as irritated as him about Kokui’s decisions and naivete.

Taynement – I think she was immature and tunnel visioned. You have to remember that she was privileged. A privileged kid who didn’t seem to realize how privileged she was. She thought her father’s indiscretions gave her a ticket to say she had a hard life. Which part annoyed you the most?

Leggy – The way she kept saying she wanted a job that would give her a spark. Like girl, you are working in New York illegally. Where would you get that job?

Taynement – Lol. Again, naive. What did you think of Boris in the NYC days?

Leggy – I understood him completely. He was being realistic about their lives. They needed to save. Also, he made the right decision not to rent an apartment for those first 6 months before they left for school but to stay on Sammy’s couch. That’s how they saved so much money. Also, Kokui staying and helping out with babysitting was always the logical thing to do.

Taynement – So even before they left for New York, I think there was an underbelly to Boris. He wanted the benefits of her dad but was uncomfortable with it.

Leggy – I felt that from the second they met. That’s why I was so annoyed by her being so fascinated with him. You could tell there was an anger at her for having an easier life. Also, her desperation to marry him and to have a better marriage than her parents was insane. I would think the more logical thing would be not to marry at all. Why did she not dread getting married? Why did she run so fast towards it?

Taynement – Indoctrination. She thinks she’s so above it all but could not fathom rebelling against the norm by just not getting married. Another aspect I found fascinating is they both disagreed on a lot of things but were on the same page when it came to kids.

Leggy – That was such a relief that they were on the same page with kids and even birth control. Imagine bringing a kid into that and overcomplicating the relationship before you’ve had a chance to figure out how it’s all supposed to work. Also, at least Boris was hardworking and smart. Honestly, my fear was that he would become abusive. That’s also why I liked this book so much. It wasn’t cliche in the way I was expecting.

Taynement – Yes, exactly. His deference to Sammy annoyed me.

Leggy – I think he was just grateful to how much Sammy helped them those first 6 months in New York City. Do you think Kokui succeeded in having a marriage better than her parents?

Taynement – I think it was too soon to tell and another tick for the author for me. I like how she didn’t make Boris bad or good and truly showed the complexities of a relationship. I was fully with Kokui wanting to leave but then her seeing that he was ambitious and was there for her through the big thing that happened, it wasn’t so clear cut. I honestly didn’t consider her parents’ marriage a marriage. It was an arrangement. At least Kokui and Boris cared for each other.

Leggy – I think it was a marriage. Remember they were together for 12 long years before the big reveal which then led to the rift that we see in the book. I agree with you about Kokui and Boris’ marriage. I like that it wasn’t black and white, it was very complex. And nobody is ever going to give you that perfect marriage. There are things that should be deal breakers and then you should just try to live with the ones that are not.

Taynement – I actually think they can make it work. They need time, maturity and money.

Leggy – Yes, I think their marriage is going to be fine. It won’t be the fairytale marriage she envisioned but it will have the messiness of what a real life actually consists of.

Taynement – Were there aspects of the book you didn’t like?

Leggy – Honestly when I started this book, I was so annoyed by the characters but after finishing it, I just felt like there was no misplaced word. All the things I thought I did not like from the beginning became a piece to the puzzle that we could not do without. I didn’t think it was the best written book ever, but it told a very simple story in a compelling way.

Taynement – Yes, the bones of the story were good enough to get away with such simple writing. Would you recommend this to someone?

Leggy – Yes but honestly probably just to other Africans.

Taynement – Ha. If we do have any non-African readers, I’d love to know your thoughts on this book.

Black Authors, Chick-Lit, Fiction, literary fiction, race, romance, women's fiction

Book Review: Can’t Get Enough by Kennedy Ryan

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“The world isn’t designed for women like me. Women who’d rather be single literally for years than settle for a partner not worthy of her”

The third of the Skyland series, this story focuses on Hendrix Barry. Hendrix is a great friend, a good daughter, thriving in her career in the entertainment industry and is also happily single with no interest in having kids. Everything is going well until her mom is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. As Hendrix is trying to adjust to this new reality she meets Maverick Bell.

Maverick Bell is a tech billionaire fresh off a public breakup from a relationship that ended because he doesn’t want any more kids. He is also still grieving the loss of his grandfather to Alzheimer’s as well. The two meet at a party hosted by his ex-girlfriend and it’s an instant connection and attraction. Seems easy but one catch is Maverick’s ex-girlfriend, Zeze have a budding friendship and is Hendrix’s business partner for an upcoming TV show. Does Hendrix stay loyal to a new friend or pursue this once in a lifetime connection? (spoiler alert: she chooses the man)

“Last night, was Maverick asking me to give up my dreams? Or asking to run with me while I chase them?”

I like Kennedy Ryan’s writing and this was no different. Ryan finds a way to infuse real life into romance with a sprinkling of steamy and a dash of fantasy living and this book is no different. As someone who doesn’t really read romance, she serves it in a way that I can digest. We get to read the book from both Maverick and Hendrix’s view point and it was good to know what the other was thinking. Ryan made sure to let us know that she had first hand experience with Alzheimer’s and I think she did a good job of showing how much this disease affects a family both from the person who has it and the caretakers involved. I appreciated how much care she took with the subject matter.

“You said being whole means acknowledging all our parts. And that there were parts of me that wanted to be held, want to be needed and loved.”

Ryan has always been consistent with her characters cherishing strong friendships where the women are always there for each other and encourage each other and I appreciate it. Another thing she did in this book was provide representation for curvy women who are confident in their body and a man who appreciated it. Hendrix is also a woman who was not opposed to being partnered and lived a full life and I liked how it was okay for her to pursue that when she met someone she considered a partner. Her choice to not have children was also good to remind people that it is possible to have that choice.

“I want you to believe that. Every love isn’t forever. We can love people along the way. Relationships can begin and then end.”

Now I liked this book and as a stand alone it is good but I think I’ll say this was the weakest of the trilogy as it was formulaic for me. I am not knocking Ryan for finding a formula that works – Protagonist meets man, there is mucho attraction, they overcome obstacles and decide to jump in, they have hot sex, there is usually an illness/death (which I know she draws from personal experience) and then they live happily ever after with lots of hot, steamy sex. But not without the love and support of good family and good friends – but by the third book the novelty has worn off for me and I know what to expect.

As with most romance novels, I think you have to suspend disbelief for certain things for the story to move along. Some may consider dating the ex of an associate a little messy but maybe the whole point was sometimes you have to be selfish and go for what you want. Overall, it’s a book with a lil’ something for everyone and it works. It’s just that I wanted to love it but only ended up liking it enough.

Taynement