Book Review: Easy by Tammara Webber

Jacqueline follows her high school boyfriend to college.  Then he dumps her at the beginning of sophomore year, and she’s not sure what she’ll do next.  When she’s assaulted by her ex’s frat brother, her rescue comes in the form of a stranger who saves her and drives her home.  All Jacqueline wants is to forget about the attack, but her savior Lucas sits behind her in one of her classes and doesn’t seem to be making it easy for her to move on.  It doesn’t help that Lucas is seriously hot and her would-be attacker seems to be almost stalking her.  Sophomore year ends up being more than Jacqueline ever could have imagined.

Gentle readers, I’m not sure about this one.  I’ve been sitting on this review for a long time, trying to figure out exactly what it is that I want to say, and I’m still unsure of how I want to review it.  While it’s certainly an enjoyable book and isn’t lacking in the heaps of praise department, something about this didn’t sit right with me from the beginning.

Using an attempted sexual assault as a meet-cute for our heroine and hero feels manipulative and wrong.  It’s possible that not every reader will view the inciting event in this way, but I couldn’t get past the feeling that Webber was pulling every string at her disposal to make the plot work.  Although the novel had some good things to offer and Webber certainly creates a compelling story with well-developed main characters, I couldn’t get past the uneasy feeling that followed me throughout.

There’s also the issue that the book is in serious need of editing and trimming down.  There was no reason for Webber to include some of the book’s elements, particularly in the case of the mistaken identity subplot.  And while Webber does indeed write some steamy scenes, there’s also so much waffling on the part of both main characters that the novel feels much longer than it should.  Some of this could have been tightened with the help of a strong editor.

That being said, this book has found an audience and will continue to do so.  The fact that it’s a self-published book that got a major-publisher pickup and features older YA characters sets it apart from other titles in the genre.  There’s certainly stuff to like here; I just wanted it to be better and not make me quite so uncomfortable.

Easy by Tammara Webber. Create Space: 2012. Electronic copy. Read for 2012 Cybils Round 1 Panel.

Book Review: Commencement by J. Courtney Sullivan

When Celia, Bree, April, and Sally are assigned to the same suite their freshman year at Smith College, the four girls couldn’t have less in common.  By the time they graduate, the girls are inseparable.  Together and apart, they experience the highs and lows of love, life, and everything else that comes with early adulthood.

Not so long ago, I read and loved Sullivan’s sophomore effort Maine.  Based on this, and the fact that Commencement seemed to feature strong female protagonists firmly ensconced in the new adult world, I should’ve really loved Sullivan’s debut.  At first, I did.  The first half of the book was strong, compelling, and interesting.  And then it lost me.  The second half dragged, strained credulity, and ultimately ended up being really off-putting.  Which is a shame, because Sullivan is a good writer and clearly has stories to tell.

The problem begins with the novel’s formula itself and only becomes worse from there.  From the start, it is clear that Sullivan is nervous to stray from a narrative that is predictable.  Although she peppers the narrative with interesting, intriguing tidbits of life at Smith College (casual lesbianism, disordered eating, strange/fun campus traditions), it’s not enough to distract from the rather bland narration of all four girls.

Each of the four main characters has chapters told from their (limited third person) perspectives, and while this is meant to illuminate them as characters and illustrate their differences, it only serves to fulfill stereotypes.  April is the liberal, militant feminist; Sally is the girl grieving the loss of her mother; Bree is a Southern belle who becomes a conflicted lesbian; and Celia is the good Catholic girl who wants to be a writer (and is, surprisingly, the least interesting of all four).  The girls never manage to break out of their casings, and while this works at the beginning of the novel, it goes on for so long that by the end readers will be sick of these characters.

A ridiculous, borderline-implausible plot-twist near the end of the middle third of the book brings the narrative to a weird place, and that’s where this novel really lost me.  It’s supposed to serve as the catalyst for bringing the girls back together, but it never feels authentic and only serves to further point out the novel’s narrative flaws.  While fans of Sullivan’s other novel still might enjoy some things here, I’d recommend sticking with her sophomore effort and waiting for whatever she has to offer next.

Commencement by J. Courtney Sullivan. Knopf: 2009. Library copy.

Book Review: Holier than Thou by Laura Buzo

Holly Yarkov has a fairly charmed life at first glance. She’s just moved in with her boyfriend, who seems to be the perfect man, and she works a job that she loves (even though it wears on her).  Her group of friends is steady and strong, and she’s always prided herself on having a heart of steel.  But as she begins to think about the future, she finds herself ruminating on the past, and it isn’t long before that steel heart starts to show some wear.

I was a big fan of Buzo’s first novel, originally titled Good Oil (and being published under the new name Love and Other Perishable Items in the United States on December 11th).  I blogged about it, even though at the time it didn’t have a U.S. release date.  Then I went to great lengths to get this one shipped to me from Australia, as it isn’t available in the states (here’s to hoping that changes).  I got the book, read the first 30 pages…and let it sit on my shelves, untouched, for over a month.  It wasn’t until I took a vacation in August that I finally sat down with this book, and I’m so glad I did.  Buzo’s second novel is meant for a slightly older audience and falls firmly in the new adult genre, and it’s a standout.

Moving fluidly from the present to the past, Buzo allows Holly’s story to unfold slowly.  Holly is a difficult character to get to know, and some readers are likely to struggle making a connection with her.  However, by the end of the novel, Holly’s story becomes clear and her tendency to keep people and things at a distance makes perfect sense.  Buzo has created a memorable, flawed heroine in Holly, and her voice is exceedingly authentic.

Less successful are the secondary characters in Buzo’s novel.  While Holly’s coworker Nick is well-drawn, interesting, and wholly relatable, Holly’s supposed-to-be-perfect boyfriend Tim never feels fully fleshed-out.  Also problematic are Holly’s high school friends, who are featured in the beginning and then fade to the background (this feels intentional on the part of Buzo, but it was still disappointing).  This feels like a case where the novel could have been longer to fit in more of the characters.

There’s lots of great stuff here, but what Buzo excels at is not giving Holly, or her readers, any of the easy answers.  She raises a lot of questions about love, loss, family, and what it means to realize the job you’ve worked so hard for might not be right for you.  All of the stuff in this novel will resonate with readers in their twenties who might feel as lost as Holly.

Highly, highly recommended.  If you can get your hands on a copy, do so.

Holier Than Thou by Laura Buzo. Allen & Unwin: 2012. Purchased copy.

Book Review: Come See About Me by C.K. Kelly Martin

When Leah answered the knock on her door only to find police informing her that her boyfriend Bastien was killed in a car accident, she’s been in a state of suspension.  Unable to function, she flunks out of university, loses her job, and cuts herself off from most of her friends. When Bastien’s aunt offers her a place to stay, rent-free, in a nearby suburb, she jumps at the chance.  It’s there that she finds life has to move forward, whether or not she’s ready for it to.  It’s also there that she meets Liam, an Irish actor with his own set of baggage.  As the two enter into a steamy, complicated relationship, she starts to realize that she has a lot of learning to do–about herself and about others.

Come See About Me is C.K. Kelly Martin’s first adult title and falls firmly in the “new adult” camp of literature.  It’s also self-published, for a number of reasons that Martin outlines on her website.  Don’t let the self-published aspect of this book dissuade you, because you’ll be missing out on something really special: Martin’s book about grief, loss, and moving forward is a stunner and a must-read for fans of contemporary fiction.

Martin’s pitch-perfect prose is enriched by the fact that Leah is a quiet, completely authentic heroine.  Although the book starts off rather slowly and takes a while to let the story really unfold, it never feels like it’s dragging.  Rather, it seems like a calculated move to allow Leah a natural progression in her thaw after being frozen in her own grief for so long.  Once Leah gets out of her head and starts interacting in the world again, the story leaps to life.

Sad, sensual, and emotionally raw, this novel doesn’t shy away from its heroine’s darkest moments.  Martin also allows her twenty-year-old heroine to be a sexual being, and the novel offers some pretty sexy scenes for readers.  Never gratuitous, this novel is as authentic a coming-of-age as I’ve ever seen.

Highly, highly recommended.  Come See About Me is out now.

Come See About Me by C.K. Kelly Martin. 2012. Borrowed copy.