by Elise Alden ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 20, 2014
Alden’s smart, savvy writing, blended with the traditions of the Scottish moors, creates a charming, multifaceted narrative...
Awards & Accolades
Our Verdict
GET IT
In Alden’s (Hate to Love You, 2014) romance novel, a woman returns to her Scottish hometown and to an old flame she had spurned.
Anjuli Carver left the small town of Heaverlock years ago to pursue a singing career, and she achieved fame and wealth. Her guilt over a tragic loss drove her to retreat from the limelight, and she returned to her hometown. She impulsively bought a crumbling manor there, and shortly afterward, she lost her fortune to a crooked financial adviser and a deadbeat ex-husband. Now, to restore the house, she must negotiate a deal with the local architect, Rob Douglas—who also happens to be the same man she left standing at the altar years ago and whose heart she stomped on anew three months ago. The novel sometimes shifts to Rob’s third-person perspective as he pretends to be over his heartbreak and only mildly interested in Anjuli. Soon, however, both of them ache to be together as they confuse and torment each other with mixed signals. Meanwhile, the village’s energetic rumor mill doesn’t help matters. Readers will appreciate this book’s sassy, romantic heroine, even with her tendencies toward self-sabotage. Rob, meanwhile, is an enjoyably dark, brooding, and kilted Scot with a heart of gold. Alden’s use of a quaint Scottish village as her setting allows her to explore the culture’s mix of the old and the new; characters engage in modern pursuits, such as sustainable architecture, but also continue to sport kilts for traditional festivals. The modern aspects provide the book with humor and relevance, while the historical details contribute nostalgia and romance. The novel’s explicit sex scenes, meanwhile, are in keeping with the refreshingly modern tone. The supporting characters also add color, although some of their actions during the climactic parts of the book seem a little forced, apparently to create additional drama as the main players face sudden obstacles.
Alden’s smart, savvy writing, blended with the traditions of the Scottish moors, creates a charming, multifaceted narrative that’s rife with sexual tension.Pub Date: Oct. 20, 2014
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: 225
Publisher: Carina Press
Review Posted Online: April 8, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2015
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Share your opinion of this book
More by Elise Alden
BOOK REVIEW
by Elise Alden
by Max Brooks ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 16, 2020
A tasty, if not always tasteful, tale of supernatural mayhem that fans of King and Crichton alike will enjoy.
Awards & Accolades
Likes
143
Our Verdict
GET IT
New York Times Bestseller
Are we not men? We are—well, ask Bigfoot, as Brooks does in this delightful yarn, following on his bestseller World War Z(2006).
A zombie apocalypse is one thing. A volcanic eruption is quite another, for, as the journalist who does a framing voice-over narration for Brooks’ latest puts it, when Mount Rainier popped its cork, “it was the psychological aspect, the hyperbole-fueled hysteria that had ended up killing the most people.” Maybe, but the sasquatches whom the volcano displaced contributed to the statistics, too, if only out of self-defense. Brooks places the epicenter of the Bigfoot war in a high-tech hideaway populated by the kind of people you might find in a Jurassic Park franchise: the schmo who doesn’t know how to do much of anything but tries anyway, the well-intentioned bleeding heart, the know-it-all intellectual who turns out to know the wrong things, the immigrant with a tough backstory and an instinct for survival. Indeed, the novel does double duty as a survival manual, packed full of good advice—for instance, try not to get wounded, for “injury turns you from a giver to a taker. Taking up our resources, our time to care for you.” Brooks presents a case for making room for Bigfoot in the world while peppering his narrative with timely social criticism about bad behavior on the human side of the conflict: The explosion of Rainier might have been better forecast had the president not slashed the budget of the U.S. Geological Survey, leading to “immediate suspension of the National Volcano Early Warning System,” and there’s always someone around looking to monetize the natural disaster and the sasquatch-y onslaught that follows. Brooks is a pro at building suspense even if it plays out in some rather spectacularly yucky episodes, one involving a short spear that takes its name from “the sucking sound of pulling it out of the dead man’s heart and lungs.” Grossness aside, it puts you right there on the scene.
A tasty, if not always tasteful, tale of supernatural mayhem that fans of King and Crichton alike will enjoy.Pub Date: June 16, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-9848-2678-7
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Del Rey/Ballantine
Review Posted Online: Feb. 9, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2020
Share your opinion of this book
More by Max Brooks
BOOK REVIEW
by Max Brooks
More About This Book
BOOK TO SCREEN
by Colleen Hoover ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 2, 2016
Packed with riveting drama and painful truths, this book powerfully illustrates the devastation of abuse—and the strength of...
Awards & Accolades
Likes
385
Our Verdict
GET IT
New York Times Bestseller
IndieBound Bestseller
Hoover’s (November 9, 2015, etc.) latest tackles the difficult subject of domestic violence with romantic tenderness and emotional heft.
At first glance, the couple is edgy but cute: Lily Bloom runs a flower shop for people who hate flowers; Ryle Kincaid is a surgeon who says he never wants to get married or have kids. They meet on a rooftop in Boston on the night Ryle loses a patient and Lily attends her abusive father’s funeral. The provocative opening takes a dark turn when Lily receives a warning about Ryle’s intentions from his sister, who becomes Lily’s employee and close friend. Lily swears she’ll never end up in another abusive home, but when Ryle starts to show all the same warning signs that her mother ignored, Lily learns just how hard it is to say goodbye. When Ryle is not in the throes of a jealous rage, his redeeming qualities return, and Lily can justify his behavior: “I think we needed what happened on the stairwell to happen so that I would know his past and we’d be able to work on it together,” she tells herself. Lily marries Ryle hoping the good will outweigh the bad, and the mother-daughter dynamics evolve beautifully as Lily reflects on her childhood with fresh eyes. Diary entries fancifully addressed to TV host Ellen DeGeneres serve as flashbacks to Lily’s teenage years, when she met her first love, Atlas Corrigan, a homeless boy she found squatting in a neighbor’s house. When Atlas turns up in Boston, now a successful chef, he begs Lily to leave Ryle. Despite the better option right in front of her, an unexpected complication forces Lily to cut ties with Atlas, confront Ryle, and try to end the cycle of abuse before it’s too late. The relationships are portrayed with compassion and honesty, and the author’s note at the end that explains Hoover’s personal connection to the subject matter is a must-read.
Packed with riveting drama and painful truths, this book powerfully illustrates the devastation of abuse—and the strength of the survivors.Pub Date: Aug. 2, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-5011-1036-8
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: May 30, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2016
Share your opinion of this book
More by Colleen Hoover
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
More About This Book
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.