A fresh, not-yet-perfected approach to the New Age book.
An affluent, unhappy woman heals her psyche and spirit by finding her purpose in Murgel-Subotic’s debut novel.
Ysabel Meyer lives a life suited for the Real Housewives franchise: Her husband, Christian, is a successful businessman, and she writes for a respected magazine, going to weekly lunches with her girlfriends to discuss their new designer handbags. But she knows that, beneath all the artifice, she’s suffering, going through life “utterly detached” and “wandering aimlessly with no purpose” while dealing with an undiagnosed chronic illness. A fainting spell lands her in the hospital, and her young, precocious son, Elijah, begs her to try a different approach to her endless treatments. A visit to her psychologist, Dr. Ravi, reveals to Ysabel that her malaise is due to a spiritual deficit and a severed connection to the “Divine”; only through internal healing and embracing her spirituality might she find purpose and, by extension, happiness. This sets Ysabel on a new path: She attends cacao ceremonies, meditates, and spends quality time with her family rather than gossiping over salads and concerning herself with black-tie fundraisers and galas. Her latest magazine assignment is covering a new exhibit of Dark Ages and Renaissance artworks, and Ysabel begins to see parallels between the shifting artistic practices and her own desire “to be set free and emerge from the dark, and be reborn into the light.” Soon, she feels her personal changes and spiritual growth begin to reverberate through her relationships with family, friends, and work.
The author has not so much written a novel as constructed an allegory around the pillars and teachings of her own Divine awakening and the possibilities that await others who endeavor to look inward. As a result, the characters are essentially vessels for information as they come in and out of Ysabel’s journey when she needs guidance (“ ‘Tell yourself a different story,’ he suggests. ‘I learned on the internet everything in life is energy…so…change your thoughts to change your energy. Positive thoughts equal positive actions and positive actions equal positive feelings! Change your story. It seems simple to me’ ”) and for Divine spiritual teachings, often speaking in pageslong educational monologues. The book is not overly concerned with plot, as much of it explores the evolution of Ysabel’s search for her purpose while demonstrating that this goal can be attainable for readers who find themselves in similar ruts. This framing makes the text seem less intimidating, and perhaps more accessible, than a straightforward self-help or New Age book. There are small moments of tension when Ysabel’s friends and husband doubt the efficacy of her new practices and question her shifts in priorities, which lend the book a sense of realism that works to its benefit. While Ysabel’s internal and external work prove fruitful, the ending feels a bit far-fetched considering Ysabel’s initial ambitions. As a stand-in for the reader, she is easy to empathize with despite her privileged position, though the book does not address the personal and external obstacles that might prevent someone without Ysabel’s resources from achieving the same breakthroughs.
A fresh, not-yet-perfected approach to the New Age book.Pub Date: March 17, 2023
ISBN: 979-8887595559
Page Count: 278
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: May 29, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
An affecting portrait of a prickly woman.
A lifetime’s worth of letters combine to portray a singular character.
Sybil Van Antwerp, a cantankerous but exceedingly well-mannered septuagenarian, is the titular correspondent in Evans’ debut novel. Sybil has retired from a beloved job as chief clerk to a judge with whom she had previously been in private legal practice. She is the divorced mother of two living adult children and one who died when he was 8. She is a reader of novels, a gardener, and a keen observer of human nature. But the most distinguishing thing about Sybil is her lifelong practice of letter writing. As advancing vision problems threaten Sybil’s carefully constructed way of life—in which letters take the place of personal contact and engagement—she must reckon with unaddressed issues from her past that threaten the house of cards (letters, really) she has built around herself. Sybil’s relationships are gradually revealed in the series of letters sent to and received from, among others, her brother, sister-in-law, children, former work associates, and, intriguingly, literary icons including Joan Didion and Larry McMurtry. Perhaps most affecting is the series of missives Sybil writes but never mails to a shadowy figure from her past. Thoughtful musings on the value and immortal quality of letters and the written word populate one of Sybil’s notes to a young correspondent while other messages are laugh-out-loud funny, tinged with her characteristic blunt tartness. Evans has created a brusque and quirky yet endearing main character with no shortage of opinions and advice for others but who fails to excavate the knotty difficulties of her own life. As Sybil grows into a delayed self-awareness, her letters serve as a chronicle of fitful growth.
An affecting portrait of a prickly woman.Pub Date: May 6, 2025
ISBN: 9780593798430
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2025
A dark and twisty look at just how far one woman is willing to go to find inspiration.
A struggling writer finds an unexpected muse when a mysterious man shows up at her cabin.
Petra Rose used to pump out a bestselling book every six months, but then the adaptation happened—that is, the disastrous film adaptation of her most famous book. The movie changed the book’s storyline so egregiously that fans couldn’t forgive her, and the ensuing harassment sent Petra into hiding and gave her a serious case of writer’s block. Petra’s one hope is her solo writing retreat at a remote cabin, where she can escape the distractions of real life and focus on her next book, a story about a woman having an affair with a cop. When officer Nathaniel Saint shows up at her cabin door, inspiration comes flooding back. Much like the character from Petra’s book, Saint is married, and he’s willing to be Petra’s muse, helping her get into her characters’ heads. Petra’s book is practically writing itself, but is the game she’s playing a little too dangerous? Does she know when to stop—and, more importantly, is Saint willing to stop? Hoover is no stranger to controversial movie adaptations and internet backlash, but she clarifies in a note to readers that she’s “just a writer writing about a writer” and that no further connections to her own life are contained in these pages—which is a good thing, because the book takes some horrifying twists and turns. Petra finds herself inexplicably attracted to Saint, even as she describes him as “such an asshole,” and her feelings for him veer between love and hate. The novel serves as a meta commentary on the dark romance genre—as Petra puts it, “Even though, as readers, we wouldn’t want to live out some of the fantasies we read about, it doesn’t mean we don’t enjoy reading those things.”
A dark and twisty look at just how far one woman is willing to go to find inspiration.Pub Date: Jan. 13, 2026
ISBN: 9781662539374
Page Count: -
Publisher: Montlake
Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2025
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