Though this appears to be a departure from Metz’s YA fiction, which is often based on television shows such as Buffy the...
The surpassingly cute story of a matchmaking cat determined to pair off his human with a neighbor through the power of stinky laundry.
Done with the poor quality of men in her life and done with the search for the right one, Jamie Snyder takes the ultimate risk. She quits her teaching job, moves to LA, and tries to figure out what would make her happy. Using savings from her mother’s estate, Jamie embarks on the “Year of Me,” writing a journal that focuses on how to be happy and spending time with her favorite companion, her cat, MacGyver. Though Helen and Marie, two nosy neighbors, can’t stop trying to set Jamie up, each claiming to have the perfect man, Jamie thinks her perfect man for now is a cat. Rounding out her life is Ruby, another neighbor, whose positive personality inspires Jamie. But Mac thinks there must be something more, and he smells the loneliness of Jamie when she comes home to no one but him each night. Meanwhile, David, another of Jamie’s new neighbors, is undergoing a parallel experience. His good friends Adam and Lucy can’t stop insisting that David, who’s mourning the death of his wife, Clarissa, start dating again. David would rather give up and settle in with his pup, Diogee, who doesn’t seem to pick up on David’s loneliness (typical dumb dog, Mac would say). Mac, who thinks that David is the perfect mate for Jamie, comes up with a plan: he’ll grab some of David’s lonely-smelling clothing and leave it for Jamie. Naturally, she’ll come to the same conclusion as Mac and get together with David. But humans can be sadly dense, and Jamie doesn’t understand when tea towels and single socks seemingly make their way to her house. Though she finally figures out that the missing laundry is David’s, she sees him just as a friend. Can she expand the “Year of Me” to include a possible partner, and can David recover from his grief enough to see Jamie as more than a neighbor? Mac never wavers.
Though this appears to be a departure from Metz’s YA fiction, which is often based on television shows such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer, it has the same TV structure and sitcom beats, and they work perfectly well in a departure that wraps up just so.Pub Date: Jan. 30, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4967-1216-5
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Kensington
Review Posted Online: Dec. 11, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Packed with riveting drama and painful truths, this book powerfully illustrates the devastation of abuse—and the strength of...
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
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
A fascinating, thought-provoking, genre-bending romantic read.
When Solène Marchand takes her 12-year-old daughter to a concert by the hottest boy band on the planet, she doesn't expect to fall in love with one of the singers.
Middle-aged art gallery owner Solène hasn’t dated since her divorce, but when her ex-husband buys their daughter and a group of her friends tickets to Vegas and a backstage concert experience, then backs out at the last minute, she steps in as escort. The five guys in the wildly popular English boy band August Moon appeal to women of all ages, but Hayes, the brains behind the group’s success, flirts with Solène at the concert meet and greet, invites them to a party after the show, then pursues her once she gets back to Los Angeles. He’s only 20 and he’s incredibly famous; his attention is flattering and heady. The two fall into an affair that’s supposed to be light and easy, but before long they can’t ignore their intense emotional attachment. Solène is hesitant to tell her daughter, but when she procrastinates, Isabelle learns about it through an online tabloid, which damages their relationship and leaves Solène open to censure from her ex. Then, once the affair goes viral, she experiences the darker side of Hayes’ fan base. What started out as a jaunty adventure turns into an emotionally fraught journey, and Solène must decide what she’s willing to risk for her happiness and what she won’t risk for her daughter’s. Actress Lee, who appeared in Fifty Shades Darker, debuts with a beautifully written novel that explores sex, love, romance, and fantasy in moving, insightful ways while also examining a woman’s struggle with aging and sexism, with a nod at the tension between celebrity and privacy.
A fascinating, thought-provoking, genre-bending romantic read.Pub Date: June 13, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-250-12590-3
Page Count: 384
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Review Posted Online: April 3, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2017
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
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