Review: The Rules of Magic
Thanks to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for providing me with a digital galley of this book – all opinions are my own!
The summer had started them thinking: If they were not like everyone else, who, then, were they?
Y’all, my love for Alice Hoffman runs deep. I’ve been reading her books since high school, and she writes magical realism like no one else. I recently re-read Practical Magic
In Practical Magic, Gillian and Sally live with their aunts, Franny and Jet, after their parents die. They spend much of the book denying their ancestry and both being fascinated by and trying to ignore the strange things the aunts do to help the women in their small town. The Rules of Magic is about Franny and Jet, their childhood, and how they came to be the women of Practical Magic. Franny, Jet, and their brother, Vincent, live in New York City, where their mother sets strict rules for them. But once a year, they visit their aunt Isabelle in a small Massachusetts town where their family has lived for centuries, the house on Magnolia Street. They, too, are trying to escape the Owens’ family curse, where magic rules and love leads to misfortune. But as Franny and Jet grow up, and Vincent makes his own way, they discover that you can’t outrun your destiny.
This is more blatantly magical than the first book, where magic is talked about and hinted at, and I have to say that I loved that. I loved seeing exactly what the Owens siblings were capable of, and how they dealt with that from youth into adulthood. I don’t want to say that I liked this better than Practical Magic . . . but I think I did. The characters are so well-written I felt like I knew them, and I wanted to hug all three siblings and help them somehow. I also really appreciated the added suspense in this novel. Hoffman is a beautiful writer, and I will read anything she writes, but The Rules of Magic contains an element of suspense that she doesn’t usually include, and it worked really well. The beginning story is interesting and will keep your attention because of the characters, but the end of the book will have you reading as fast as possible to find out what happens.
Like in her other books, Hoffman sticks with some tried and true themes: family is family, being an outsider is hard, and being true to yourself is important. She uses these in a lot of her books, but never feel tired because she introduces new ideas in every story, and this one felt fresh too. I think she takes a lot of things from her own life and weaves them into her stories. Hoffman used to be notoriously private, preferring people to just read her books and ignore her, leaving her alone at home. If you read The Rules of Magic closely, that theme of the importance of home is loud and clear. No matter where the characters go, or what they go through, they always go back home. The house on Magnolia Street draws everyone back in, and remaining close to home becomes very important to all of the Owens women.
The Rules of Magic is one of Hoffman’s best works yet and, selfishly, I hope she writes more about the Owens family, because I cannot get enough. This is great all year, but especially perfect for your nightstand in October!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Review: Romancing the Throne
As an American, I’m thoroughly obsessed with all things royal. William and Kate, Elizabeth, Diana, those castles. I love all of it. However, most of the books I read surrounding those subjects are non-fiction. I love the history of it all too! But I was ready for a light and fluffy book to break up my reading pile, and I knew it had to be Romancing the Throne
Two sisters, the fashion-conscious Charlotte and studious Libby, are away at separate boarding schools after their family moves up in the social world thanks to their mom’s shoe company. Charlotte’s school, Sussex Park, is prestigious, and her group of friends includes socialites and the next King of England, Prince Edward. When an administrative scandal at Libby’s school forces her to transfer to Sussex Park, Charlotte brings her into the group. By this time, Charlotte and Edward are dating, and she wants nothing more than for her boyfriend and sister to get along. But when they start getting along a little too well, friendships and relationships are broken up, and Charlotte isn’t sure if her happily ever after will ever come.
This is a fun, light book, and if you are a fan of all things royal, you’ll probably enjoy this. It’s not as good as The Royal We, but it was still a great escapist read for this category of book. (And if you haven’t read The Royal We, add that to your list immediately! It’s basically royals fan fiction, but it’s great.) The plot is predictable, but well-written, and I read it in a couple of days because I couldn’t put it down.
While this is a fun, total escapist read, the female characters are surprisingly strong and well done. Yes, they like boys (ok, a prince), and Charlotte loves clothes and makeup, but they don’t let boys dictate their decisions or their futures. Both Charlotte and Libby are strong, smart, and ambitious, and I appreciate that in any form!
If you like women’s fiction and stories about the (fictional) royal family, definitely add Romancing the Throne
⭐️⭐️⭐️
[Top]Review: Practical Magic
There are some things, after all, that Sally Owens knows for certain: Always throw spilled salt over your left shoulder. Keep rosemary by your garden gate. Add pepper to your mashed potatoes. Plant roses and lavender, for luck. Fall in love whenever you can.
Alice Hoffman is one of my favorite authors of all time. If her name is on the cover of a book, I will read it, and I have yet to find a book of hers that I don’t love. Practical Magic
Some fates are guaranteed, no matter who tries to intervene.
Gillian and Sally are members of the Owens family, a Massachusetts family known for being surrounded by odd happenings. The sisters grew up being surrounded by rumors, fear from other kids, and a bit of fear from themselves over their own untrained powers. But while the entire town seems to be afraid of the Owens family, women still show up in the middle of the night to request magical help from Gillian and Sally’s aunts, and the sisters want no part of it. But even as they try to run away from their family (both literally and figuratively), they discover that their connection to magic and each other cannot be outrun.
Alice Hoffman is such a talented writer, and she knows how to bend the rules of the real world in just the right way. Sally and Gillian are relatable, even though they’re witches, and their world seems very real, even though magic reigns. And I don’t mean pointing a wand and yelling spells magic. The magic in this book (strange concoctions, incantations, herbs) is really a way to show that these women are special, and intuitive. Hoffman uses it as a way to show how women bond together in ways not everyone understands. This is a grownup fairy tale, but more along the lines of Grimm than Disney.
While some might consider this an escapist read, I really don’t. Yes, magic is woven into the story, but there is a real theme of survival as well. The sisters and their aunts have struggled with abuse, bullying, and never really being able to fit into society, yet they continue on. They keep finding ways to get around all that and to keep living, something I think most people can relate to. And Hoffman’s writing is so beautiful that you almost forget you’re reading about tragic situations.
If you like magical realism, you will love Practical Magic
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
[Top]Review: The Marsh King’s Daughter
Thanks to Netgalley and Putnam for providing me with a digital galley of this book – all opinions are my own!
Memories can be tricky, especially those from childhood.
Ripped from the headlines stories can be tricky. Too much detail, and it seems indulgent and grotesque. Too little and it can be, frankly, boring. Karen Dionne’s The Marsh King’s Daughter
Helena Pelletier has an idyllic life in the UP (Michigan’s Upper Peninsula). A loving, supportive husband, two daughters, and a jam-making business that is flourishing. What no one, including her family, knows, is that her mother was a famously-abducted teenager, and her father, the abductor, has been in prison for 20 years. Helena’s childhood was spent in a cabin deep in the woods of the UP, unaware that a society existed outside of her small world. When she and her mother escape, she acclimates to the “new” world and sheds her past as soon as she is old enough to change her name and leave it all behind. Now her father has escaped, and Helena has to face both her fear and childhood love of him, all while trying to find him before he finds her family.
This is one the best, most well-written books I’ve read this year. I absolutely loved it, and Dionne’s storytelling abilities are out of this world. There is definitely suspense and mystery in this book, but I also found a lot of fairy tale elements woven in. A young girl kept captive, unaware of the outside world. An evil male figure and his cowed counterpart. There are some mystical aspects of Native American culture woven in, rather than real magic, but they serve as the magical element of this suspenseful fairy tale. What I really enjoyed most was the dichotomy between Helena’s hatred and love for her father (and her mother). As a child, she revered him. She knew he could be mean and harsh, but he was still her father, and he taught her how to hunt and fish, and she loved him fiercely. Once she discovered the truth about her mother’s kidnapping, she hated him for it, but that familial love never really goes away. Even after 20 years, she knew her father well enough to know exactly where he would go after escaping prison, and even though she is hunting him down like prey, it also feels like a game of hide and seek between father and daughter.
The book also mixes in excerpts from Hans Christian Andersen’s short story The Marsh King’s Daughter
If you like suspense, mystery, or fairy tales, this is a truly compelling story that combines all three into an amazing book. I cannot recommend The Marsh King’s Daughter
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
EXTRA!
I haven’t read or watched Room
EXTRA! EXTRA!
Although I was provided with a review copy of this book, I ended up listening to a lot of it on audio and the narration was extremely good! I listened every chance I got, and at one point hid in my room away from my family so that I could finish it. So whether you use your eyes or your ears for this one, you can’t lose!
Review: Forks, Knives, and Spoons
I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own!
There are three types of guys: forks, knives, and spoons.
Women’s fiction sometimes gets a bad rap. Chick lit is often used in a derogatory way; the books we aren’t supposed to like. I don’t agree with the negative stereotypes associated with it, and if you ever meet me in person I’ll give you my whole diatribe about it. There are poorly-written pieces of literary fiction and great chick lit books. I will read it all! As much as I enjoy a well-placed women’s fiction novel, I hadn’t read one in awhile. Then Leah DeCesare’s Forks, Knives, and Spoons
Amy York is starting her freshman year at Syracuse University in 1988. Her father, concerned about the potential college boys that will cross her path, sends her off with a lecture about how to categorize guys: forks, knives, and spoons. In addition to a degree and career, he wants Amy to find her perfect steak knife. Amy and her roommate Veronica navigate the next four years and beyond together, meeting all categories of boys and men, and finding themselves in the process. Woven into the story are all manner of 80s and 90s references, which, while blatant, are fun.
As many people have said, this book is a total nostalgia fest, and it was a lot of fun to re-visit college (in a different decade), but not why I loved Forks, Knives, and Spoons. The initial utensil labeling system (or UCS in the book-Utensil Classification System) is a little silly, but DeCesare uses it as a jumping off point for the rest of the book. It is referenced throughout, but the relationships between Amy and Veronica and the girls and their boyfriends are the main event. There is some mild-mannered romance, of course, but the female relationships are just as important to the story. That being said, I did find myself, surprisingly, drawn into the college romances and drama, as well as the friendships, as if they were my own, and once I got into it I couldn’t put the book down.
If you enjoy reading women’s fiction or watching romantic comedies like Love Actually and When Harry Met Sally, I really think you’ll love Forks, Knives, and Spoons