The Vibrant Years

Author: Sonali Dey
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: Amazon Publishing, 2022
Pages: 316
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: When sixty-five-year-old Bindu Desai inherits a million dollars, she's astounded - and horrified. The windfall threatens to expose a shameful mistake from her youth. Desperate to keep her secret, Bindu quickly spends it on something unexpected: a condo in a posh retirement community in Florida.

The impulsive decision blindsides Bindu's daughter-in-law, Aly. At forty-seven, Aly still shares a home with Bindu even after her divorce from Bindu's son. But maybe this change is just the push Aly needs to figth for the segment she's been promised for years at the news station where she works.

As Bindu and Aly navigate their new dynamic, Aly's daughter, Cullie, is faced with losing the business that made her tech-world star. The only way to save it is to deliver a new idea to her investors - and of course they want the half-baked dating app she pitched them in a panic. Problem is, Cullie has never been on a real date. Naturally, enlisting her single mother and grandmother to help her with the research is the answer.

Review: I liked this story immediately, but then it lost me for a bit. I didn't connect with any of the characters, and the plot was a long and winding road. Aly's story didn't seem necessary, and I think Bindu and Cullie could have stood on their own with Aly in the background. There were moments I enjoyed this novel, but for the most part, I'm just glad I finished it and can move on to something else.

Maame

Author: Jessica George
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: St. Martin's Publishing Group, 2023
Pages: 320
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: It's fair to say that Maddie's life in London is far from rewarding. With a mother who spends most of her time in Ghana (yet still somehow manages to be overbearing), Maddie is the primary caretaker for her father, who suffers from advanced stage Parkinson's. At work, her boss is a nightmare and Maddie is tired of always being the only Black person in ever meeting.

When her mum returns from her latest trip to Ghana, Maddie leaps at the chance to get out of the family home and finally start living. A self-acknowledged late bloomer, she's ready to experience some important "firsts:" She finds a flat share, says yes to after-work drinks, pushes for more recognition in her career, and throws herself into the bewildering world of internet dating. But it's not long before tragedy strikes, forcing Maddie to face the true future of her unconventional family, and the perils - and rewards - of putting her heart on the line.

Review: There were themes in this book that I found interesting, and felt were explored well such as race, family relationships, and friendship. The novel also ended well.

However, throughout much of the book, I found it hard to relate to Maddie on the subjects of dating, sex, and her own insecurities.

Did the author have a target audience? I'm not sure.

Jessica George is a gifted storyteller, and I would read more books she writes, but this won't be one of my favorite books this year or even one I remember long term.

The Villa

Author: Rachel Hawkins
Genre: Thriller
Publisher: St. Martin's Publishing Group, 2023
Pages: 288
Rating: Highly Recommend

Synopsis: Emily and Chess were inseparable. But by their 30s, their bond has been strained by the demands of their adult lives. So when Chess suggests a girls trip to Italy, Emily jumps at the chance to reconnect with her best friend.

Villa Aestas in Orvieto is a high-end holiday home now, but in 1974, it was known as Villa Rosato, and rented for the summer by a notorious rock star, Noel Gordon. In an attempt to reignite his creative spark, Noel invites up-and-coming musician, Pierce Sheldon to join him, as well as Piece's girlfriend, Mari, and her stepsister, Lara. But he also sets in motion a chain of events that leads to Mari writing on of the greatest horror novels of all time, Lara composing a platinum album - and ends in Pierce's brutal murder.

As Emily digs into the villa's complicated history, she begins to think there's more to the story of that fateful summer in 1974. That perhaps Piece's murder was just a tale of sex, drugs, and rock & roll gone wrong, but that something more sinister might have occurred - and that there might be clues hidden in the now-iconic works that Mari and Lara left behind.

Yet the closer Emily gets to the truth, the more tension she feels developing between her and Chess. As secrets from the past come to light, equally dangerous betrayals from the present also emerge - and it beings to look like the villa will claim another victim before the summer ends.

Review: The Villa is my first book by this author, but I will read more. Every twist and every turn made sense and was relevant to moving the plot forward. 

The author brought in some clever or ironic details that weren't obvious at first, but well done. I like those subtle hints and foreshadowing. The ending was satisfying. This is a solid thriller.

Just the Nicest Couple

Author: Mary Kubica
Genre: Thriller
Publisher: Park Row Books, 2023
Pages: 320
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: Jake Hayes is missing. This much is certain. At first, his wife, Nina thinks he is blowing off steam at a friend's house after their heated fight the night before. But then a day goes by. Two days. Five. And Jake is still nowhere to be found.

Lily Scott, Nina's friend and coworker, thinks she may have been the last to see Jake before he went missing. After Lily confesses everything to her husband, Christian, the two decide that nobody can find out what happened leading up to the Jake's disappearance, especially not Nina. But Nina is out there looking for her husband, and she won't stop until the truth is discovered.

Review: I like Mary Kubica, not because she writes the most suspenseful, intense, or well-developed thrillers, but because her novels are fast-paced and entertaining. Three stars for plot; five stars for entertainment value.

Transcendent Kingdom

Author: Yaa Gyasi
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 2021
Pages: 304
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: Gifty is a sixth-year PhD candidate in neuroscience at the Stanford University School of Medicine studying reward-seeking behavior in mice and the neural circuits of depression and addiction. Her brother, Nana, was a gifted high school athlete who died of a heroin overdose after an ankle injury left him hooked on OxyContin. Her suicidal mother is living in her bed.

Gifty is determined to discover the scientific basis for the suffering she sees all around her. But even as she turns to the hard sciences to unlock the mystery of her family's loss, she finds herself hungering for her childhood faith and grappling with the evangelical church in which she was raised, whose promise of salvation remains as tantalizing as it is elusive.

Review: Despite it's lofty name, Transcendent Kingdom is suprisingly readable. Gyasi explores many current issues through her characters, and I found myself drawn into the narrative quickly. It was difficult to not read this as a memoir, but it's a work of fiction.