Nadine Feldman, Author

celebrating strong female characters and whatever else strikes my fancy

book review

Book Review: The Accidental Gatekeeper

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*NOTE: I received an advance copy of this novel in exchange for a fair review.*

Carla Rehse’s new release, The Accidental Gatekeeper, is the first of a trilogy centered around Everly, a middle-aged woman who turned her drug-dealing husband into the Feds, and returned to her Central Texas hometown for safety…only to find she’s jumped from the proverbial frying pan into the fire.

Sitting next to Hell’s Gate, the town of Crossing Shadows, Texas, isn’t your ordinary Texas town. It may look like it, but it’s a chaotic mix of angels, demons, hellhounds, and a variety of other magical beings. Everly left years ago, denying her status as a “Marked” human, so she doesn’t get the warmest of welcomes upon her return.

Her main goal is to keep her grown daughter safe, a daughter who knows nothing of the family legacy. But before saving her daughter, she’s drawn into saving the town.

I liked Everly, in part because she’s not young. She has creaky knees and hot flashes, so she’s an unlikely heroine. I also loved the cheeky, snarky humor of the story. It kept me wanting to turn the page. The major characters were distinctive and fun, and the story moves less like a freight train and more like a supersonic jet…lots of action all the time.

This isn’t the type of book I normally read, so if you love what I’ve already written, you’ll enjoy this book. And I did, too, to a point. I would have liked to catch my breath here and there. The pace was a bit too breakneck for me. It also seemed like there were too many varieties of magical beings, which got a bit confusing.

Also, I am assuming (hoping) that since mine was a downloaded advance copy, the text formatting will get fixed in the final version. The formatting is inconsistent, making the book harder to read.

As a series, this book makes a good lead-in. It’s a complete story but leaves some unresolved threads as bread crumbs for the books to follow. I will probably want to know what happens next with Everly. (I have a pet peeve when a series book doesn’t have an actual ending, but this one does.) For an author writing a series, a reader wanting to continue is the ultimate goal.

The Factory Girl and the Fey comes out October 15! Coming soon: sample chapter and cover reveal. Stay tuned!

Book Review: Joyous Lies

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A former commune, now organic farm, is at the center of Joyous Lies by Margaret Ann Spence as a group of aging hippies is forced to confront what’s next in their lives. The catalyst is the arrival of a documentary film crew, approved by the group’s charismatic leader Neil but objected to by his partner Johanna. As filming commences, old hurts and jealousies arise.

Meanwhile, granddaughter Maelle is struggling to finish her Ph.D. thesis about plant communication. Raised on the farm, she has a strong connection to the land. When Neil’s parents (who owned the land) die, and his siblings want to sell the land, many questions are raised. If the land is sold, the pristine environment would be razed for expensive real estate. If it isn’t, how can a group of old hippies, now beset by arthritis and other age-related problems, continue to support themselves?

The commune was not as idyllic as presented, and author Margaret Ann Spence unspools secrets, denials, hypocrisy, and lies. There is a huge chasm between the ideals of the commune, set up by hopeful young draft dodgers, and the harsh reality of survival.

I saw this novel as being, in part, about reflecting on one’s earlier life and choices. Are there regrets? Did we do the right thing? How can we face the big mistakes we made without being utterly destroyed by them? In other words, people are complicated…something young, idealistic Maelle will need to learn.

Thanks for reading! Starting in June, I will be adding a second blog post per week about other topics, and I hope you’ll join me! I invite you to subscribe to my blog.

Also, please consider purchasing one or more of my books. The Factory Girl and the Fey is coming this fall, so stay tuned for more details! It’s a historical fantasy, quite different from my other books. For more info on my contemporary women’s fiction, click here.

Book Review: The Henna Artist

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Lakshmi ran away from her abusive husband and used her artistic talents to become a henna artist to wealthy women. Clever and quick-minded, she built a successful business over the years, earning enough money to build a house of her own. Her life is about to be upended, though, with the appearance of a younger sister Radha, who she didn’t know she had, and her estranged husband. In The Henna Artist, author Alka Joshi transports us to 1950s India, where old cultural traditions make life difficult for women.

The Henna Artist has been a hugely successful book that has justifiably earned praise from Reese Witherspoon’s book club, so it doesn’t need the endorsement of a little book blogger like me. However, if I love a book I’m going to recommend it, so here we are.

Lakshmi’s emotional journey is absorbing. After all, how does an already successful businesswoman, making her way in a society that is suspicious of unmarried and childless women, grow? Yet Rahda, as an emotional and precocious teenager, becomes a catalyst for the big changes in Lakshmi’s life.

The details of Indian culture, from food to the societal rules, held my interest. And though the story is set in what for us is an exotic locale, there is much for women to relate to in terms of the challenges we face and how we survive.

There is a level of predictability in the story, and some of the resolution seemed a bit too pat for me. It builds beautifully but seems to wrap up too quickly. Also, there were a number of editorial and proofreading errors that I found disappointing. However, the story of the two sisters is brilliant overall, and it’s a wonderful, enjoyable read.

TRIGGER WARNING (NOTE: CONTAINS SPOILER)

If you have an aversion to abortion, you may not want to read this book.

Please feel free to subscribe to my blog below. I review books on Wednesday and starting in May will have a second post during the week on other topics.

If you enjoyed this review, please consider purchasing one of my books. Details can be found here.

Vertical: Passion and Pinot on the Oregon Wine Trail

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If you loved the novel Sideways by Rex Pickett or saw the movie of the same name, you know the story of Miles, a frustrated novelist, and his devil-may-care buddy Jack. In Sideways, Miles and Jack go on a road trip to explore the California Wine Country. Jack’s about to get married and wants a wild week before he hangs up his bachelor shoes. Miles, down and out two years after a divorce, just wants to drink wine and play golf. Jack manages to create chaos wherever he goes. The strength of Sideways is this friendship between opposites. Sideways is one of my favorite movies and stays true to the book.

Vertical: Passion and Pinot on the Oregon Wine Trail brings back Miles and Jack for another road trip, this time to Oregon. Miles has found success as a novelist and is riding a wave of fame after a successful movie version. He’s getting paid big bucks to talk at wine conventions, and women are throwing themselves at him. Yes, he and Maya have broken up — something that made me not want to read this book. However, Pickett handles the situation well, and Maya makes a few appearances in Vertical. I ended up forgiving Pickett for this and agreeing with him that it’s the right move for both characters.

With all the free wine, Miles is also making a fool of himself and becoming a caricature. He’s all too aware that he’s not working on his next book. Those of us who write and get distracted from our work can relate!

Jack’s marriage has fallen apart, and so has his acting career, and he’s now bumming money from Miles. Miles gets the idea they should go on the road together — Miles has speaking commitments in Oregon. He wants to pick up his mother, who has been living in assisted living post-stroke, and take her to Wisconsin after the Oregon gigs to live with her sister.

As with the first book/movie, all the characters manage to get into some hilarious scrapes. Jack is as outrageous as ever. Underneath the mayhem, though, this is a more serious book. All of the characters except for Mom’s nurse are descending deeper and farther into alcoholism, and there are a number of cringeworthy moments courtesy of Miles’ favorite grape, Pinot.

This is really a story about a mother and son whose relationship has never been close. Near the end of her life, she and Miles are really just getting to know each other. There’s a sense Miles might finally grow up — though we don’t know that for sure (there’s a third book, so I’m withholding judgment). There is a lot of heartbreak along with the humor.

If I were conducting a novel-writing class, I could find a lot wrong with this story. It could be better edited and in particular, Pickett’s overuse of clunky adverbs is a distraction (hypochondriacally, as an example). However, he’s a good storyteller, with an ability to create empathy for characters who by all rights, we shouldn’t like very much. I spent many years around alcoholics, so this is no small accomplishment. And readers who aren’t writers, who don’t know all the “rules” of writing a novel, most likely won’t care. I still wanted to turn the page.

If you like wine, or if you like Miles and Jack as I do, you’ll enjoy this book. Flawed as it is, there’s a lot to love about it.

NOTE: This book is a rerelease. It’s been revised and updated, and some of its original fans are not happy with the changes. Since I didn’t read that version, I cannot comment. I was provided a copy of this book in return for a fair review.

 

Nadine Galinsky Feldman is the author of What She Knew and The Foreign Language of Friends, as well as the nonfiction When a Grandchild Dies: What to Do, What to Say, How to Cope.

When Breath Becomes Air #bookreview #memoir

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Yes, this is primarily a blog about fiction, but every now and then I gravitate toward memoir. This one is short, sweet, and too lovely not to share.

I knew this would be a tough read. As a neurosurgery resident, Paul Kalanithi was looking forward to graduating when he learned he had lung cancer. It’s not a spoiler alert to tell you he died from the disease.

What is astounding — miraculous, in my opinion — was his ability to write this book while in the process of dying. When Breath Becomes Air is a short book that is padded somewhat with a foreword by Abraham Verghese and an Epilogue by Kalanithi’s widow, Lucy. It seems to stop, largely because life stopped…this is not a flaw, but an achingly poignant end to a valiant effort.

Kalanithi writes about his path to becoming a doctor, something he never thought he would do, and shares honest stories of the joys and challenges of the difficult specialty of neurosurgery. As he navigates his way through diagnosis and treatment without any real knowledge of the time he has left, he examines his life closely to make the choices he feels are best for the remainder of his days, months, or years.

Born with a philosopher’s heart and soul, Kalanithi finds a way to live fully, and this book is a powerful affirmation of how we can live when we understand the finite nature of life.

When Breath Becomes Air is a meaningful book for anyone who may have to face difficult choices. It’s also a wonderful book for anyone in the medical profession who may feel tempted to lose sight of the humanity of their patients. Kalanithi, who continued to operate during part of his illness, finds himself learning how different life looks from the patient’s point of view.

Though this is a sad book, it is really a book about the fullness of life and about what we give to every moment. Kalanithi’s book is a brilliant legacy for a brilliant man who is gone too soon.

NOTE: I wrote this review before the sad and untimely death of author Brian Doyle. Doyle spoke frequently at the Chuckanut Writers Conference, and I had the great fortune to sit in the audience as he enthralled us, coaxed us, made us laugh, and shared his heart. He was another man who lived with fullness and generosity. He will be greatly missed.

 

Nadine Galinsky Feldman is the author of What She Knew and The Foreign Language of Friends, as well as the nonfiction When a Grandchild Dies: What to Do, What to Say, How to Cope.

The Queen of the Night #bookreview #fiction #opera #historical

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The Queen of the Night by Alexander Chee is a tale of an opera singer, told in an operatic style. A work of fiction that includes real historical figures, The Queen of the Night features Lilliet Berne, an opera singer with a powerful but delicate voice. She is given an opportunity to perform an original role, but realizes it is written by someone who knew her, complete with her difficult past. Only four people could have betrayed her, and she sets out to find out who that is.

While Lilliet seeks out her betrayer, we learn what a survivor she was. A lesser woman would have broken down at many points along Lilliet’s journey, but she prevails, over and over and over again. She finds her way through constant reinvention, including her name, which she took to erase her humble roots. Chee expresses with great tenderness the difficulties of being a woman in Lilliet’s time. In fact, I was astounded at how well Chee seems to understand a female’s plight.

I’ll confess to some disappointment at the ending, but it is…well, operatic. It’s not the ending I would have chosen, but it feels right for the story, and kudos to Chee for staying true to what needed to happen. I’m no expert on opera, but I have seen a few productions, and The Queen of the Night has influenced me as I now seek out more opera, and books to learn more about the craft of opera as a storytelling medium.
My disappointment aside, I loved this book. Lilliet is a fascinating woman of incredible strength and fortitude. The tone is luxurious, the language as lovely as Lilliet’s voice. Though I finished this book several weeks ago and have read many novels since, it has stayed with me. I strongly recommend!