madeline's reviews
776 reviews

An incredibly emotional and moving collection of oral histories from women who were forced to surrender their children in the 1950s and 1960s before abortion and birth control were more widely accessible - and I do mean forced, by the adoption system, by their families, and by societal pressures.

It's a really haunting read, especially right now when the overturning of Roe v. Wade will not only force hundreds of thousands of people to give birth and surrender their children to an adoption/foster care system that has somehow only become more broken in the years since, but also threatens peoples' rights to birth control, all in a nation where a minority of people are campaigning for a return to the absolute lack of sexual education these women received.

I would have liked some of the shorter oral histories each chapter begins with to have been better contextualized, historically, at some points, and I definitely think Fessler would have benefitted from either establishing her scope as white middle-class women or exploring more intersectional identities. But it's still a haunting and traumatizing read, and a warning about the for-profit adoption system that many will ignore.

hi, sorry, let me just clarify something real quick - the premise of this book is that the hero starts sexually harassing who he believes to be a wake-up call operator, not knowing he's sexually harassing his employee? and we're all just... cool with that?

i mean, in fairness, i did miss the bit in the description about the phone getting "pay by the minute hot," but i'm so disappointed that this interesting premise of an employee moonlighting as her employer's wake up call and secretly getting to know him that way was so immediately derailed by him telling a perfect stranger how they should masturbate themselves. hard pass!

i'll be honest, i went into this thinking it would be a bad book. i don't know why, but something about the plot, the way it's been marketed to me on bookstagram... i was just really sure that it would be poorly plotted and poorly written.

and i was right! this book was bad. awful writing and a non-existent plot. should have dnf'd and i didn't, just in case it got better. it didn't! oh well.

Wow, this was a perfect book.

Georgie is the kind of believable chaos and sunshine that comes from being firmly grounded in parents and a best friend who support you, no matter what. Levi is the kind of closed off and grumpy that comes from being hurt by the people you needed to love you the most. Of course their paths intersect and of course they're going to fall in love and of course they're both going to be the better for it.

This book is so tender in every sense of the word, in the way that Georgie's parents make you feel seen and loved when they're seeing and loving her, and in the way where Levi's worries about being enough for anyone, let alone expansive Georgie, prick at your heart just as much as they do his. Every character here is nuanced and imperfect and so much more lovable for it and it's such a joy to watch everyone figure themselves out.

It's a perfect read, particularly for anyone who's a little adrift or off-balance, knowing that something's got to change but not knowing exactly what that is. If you love the wickedly funny banter and deep emotions of an Emily Henry read but mourned that she writes single POV, this is the book for you.

CW:

job loss, parent with rheumatoid arthritis, non-narrative character's parent died from cancer, drug use (off-page, remembered), emotionally abusive parents, Levi is one of those awful reform school survivors, familial estrangement, non-narrative character is pregnant, Levi thinks his dog was abused before he rescued him (the dog is always fine), alcohol consumption

Thank you Kensington and NetGalley for the ARC!

I think the argument this book makes is best summed up by a quote that appears about halfway through the book, when the author is talking to a Harry Styles fan who got involved in a 2017 effort to boost his streaming numbers for his first solo single, "Sign of the Times."

EINIGFY is a lyric from a One Direction song and also a way to encapsulate their fandom - through the book, Tiffany explores the way in which these (mostly teen, mostly female) fans created community around a group they adored, for better or for worse. I'm really interested in the way people build these sort of in-groups of shared interests and/or identities online, and Tiffany does a great job in finding the different sub-communities in the 1D fandom and teasing them out.

I also really appreciated her efforts to talk about archiving what's essentially ephemeral culture, and how it was tough to find even things she remembered seeing on the internet five or ten years ago. I think this book could have been strengthened by having a digital version of her footnotes online somewhere - I spent a lot of time painstakingly typing in Tumblr URLs.

At times, Tiffany is perhaps too invested in the story she's telling. She's clearly got opinions on the whole Harry x Louis situation (which I think she's right about) and Harry's song "Woman" off his 2017 eponymous solo album (which I think she's wrong about). Still, this was a really fascinating and validating look at a powerful fandom often written off for seemingly being populated by entirely white teenage girls, the ramifications of ignoring those fandoms, and the way fandom continues to evolve online. 

Thank you Farrar, Straus, & Giroux and NetGalley for the ARC!

I'm a sucker for anything set on Lake Michigan, even if it is the wrong state (kidding), and this was super fun - Morgan Carter runs an oddities shop and is the daughter of two deceased famous cryptid hunters, hired on by a new police chief to help investigate some mysterious deaths happening in the area. Certainly check trigger warnings if you feel like they're something you appreciate: both Morgan and Flanders have experienced personal situations that are relevant and well-done but not something you'd necessarily expect in a murder mystery.

I think there's some stylistic choices in the cozy mystery genre as a whole that I don't love - some information is definitely repeated to ensure the reader picks up on clues, and Morgan is 32 but talks like she's 82 (I'm not that much younger than her and I would never refer to a group of men as "fellows"), but the more I read them, the less I care as long as the story is good. And this is well-plotted and fairly well-paced, with an ending that's surprising but still believable. 

Shockingly, I'm very interested in a budding romance subplot, but I'd still pick up the next one in this series even without it! I can't wait to see what mysterious creature Morgan investigates next.

Thank you Berkley and NetGalley for the ARC!

CW:

Morgan's parents were brutally murdered (remembered in detail) and she was once a suspect. She believes her former fiance who was interested in her for her money to be the killer. Flanders lost his toddler son and wife to a drunk driving accident (off-page, remembered in some detail). Regular murder mystery stuff includes dead bodies, deadly injuries, gore, kidnapping, guns (no gun injuries), blood, alcohol consumption, monsters, and a brief domestic violence subplot for a minor non-narrative character

incredible. perfect. no notes.

lady charlotte is her father's only child from his first marriage and raised more like a son than a daughter. she's hiding what feels like a horrible secret, and thus is an expert at not getting married so as to avoid revealing it. darius carsington just wants to rake about england and publish scholarly papers, but his father has other plans for him, tasking him with returning a country estate to profitability - an estate that happens to border lady charlotte's father's. the two meet, they of course butt heads, but they each realize there's something deeper to the other that's simply irresistable.

these two are a perfect romantic hero and heroine. charlotte is funny and smart and manipulative and just wants someone to see her fully, but can't risk anyone finding out the secret she holds closest to  her heart. darius is <i>also</i>funny and smart and manipulative and when he screws his head on straight and realizes there's more to charlotte than just being a society ninny, he cannot help but fall in love with her.

the revelation of charlotte's secret is also perfect - this book isn't ancient but it isn't new, and i think it had a real chance to go sideways. but darius couldn't have reacted better. he comforts her and supports her and realizes he'll never know the full extent of what it means to carry this trauma, but wants to be there for her all the same. it's incredible.

this can definitely be read as a standalone, and i think it could be a great first historical romance for someone.

cw:

charlotte was ruined at age 16 and had a baby out of wedlock. the baby was given up for adoption and made it through a few homes before landing in a workhouse briefly and then coming to live with a local family, where he's eventually reunited with charlotte. it seems like charlotte experienced postpartum depression, and her family was very supportive through it

All of Tessa's books are a rollicking good time - the woman does not know how to write a boring book. And this book is no different! Julian is a college professor forcing himself to take some time off after a colleague's mental breakdown forces him to realize that he's dangerously close to his own. Hallie's adjusting to life without her beloved grandmother and trying to save a wine bar that's overshadowed by its flashy neighbor. It's a real opposites-attract situation as uptight Julian tries to release his death grip on schedules and known entities and free spirit Hallie is working on doing the opposite to grow her landscaping business and they're each also writing secret letters to each other.

Tessa's heroes have really been the standouts for me recently, and Julian continues that trend. He's an anxious nugget realizing his coping strategies maybe no longer work, and is more than willing to try and find new ones. Hallie's lack of schedules and plans stresses him out, but it's always important to him to emphasize to her that this is his problem and not hers. We love a man who 1 - is working on his mental health and 2 - makes sure that his love interest knows that their differences are not a character failing on her part.

Hallie's also a real delight, but her end of the story is where things fall apart for me a bit, I think. Tessa writes books that really fly by, and I think this could have been 25 pages longer with a little more backstory for her and I would have been satisfied - I just would have liked her to be a little more fleshed out. To me, her reasons for not telling Julian she was behind the letters were a bit weak, but his reaction when he finds out she's his secret penpal is absolute perfection. Another ending that Tessa 10 years ago wouldn't have written the same way, and a great example of how authors grow.

As always, I am ready for Tessa's next book the second I close her latest one. Never stop, Tessa.

Thank you Avon and NetGalley for the ARC!

CW:

Hallie's mom is also a free spirit and kind of dumped her with her grandmother, unsupportive father, recent death of a grandmother (off-page), wildfire that put a sibling in danger and caused financial losses (off-page, remembered), panic attacks (off-page, remembered, and on-page)

This book made me cry on an Amtrak. It's one of my favorite books I've read all year.

Hart is a marshal in a strange part of the world where corpses, if not properly buried, can become reanimated into drudges, which are essentially zombies. In order to prevent these corpses from becoming drudges, he's got to bring them to a funeral home to ensure their safe disposition. Mercy is the unofficial undertaker at her family's funeral home, and she and Hart are each other's least favorite people. But one night, Hart's feeling lonely and sends off a letter addressed to no one but "A Friend"... and several days later, that same letter shows up in Mercy's hands. The dangers of Tanria grow, as does their affection for their anonymous pen pal, but when everything boils over, Hart and  Mercy might just find some common ground.

This is like the fantasy western folklore zombie cowboy mashup of my dreams, and I didn't even know I was in the market for one of those. The whole book is <i>fun</i>: Hart is a lovable grump with the gooiest of marshmallow centers, and Mercy is desperately trying to keep the wheels on the bus for her family. The two bring out the worst in each other in person, but in their letters and then when they realize who their correspondent is, gently tease out the best. It's tender and delicate and funny and sweet and such a joy to read.

Hart, in particular, is a real stand-out character here. He's dealing with personal loss and insecurity about his parentage and the last thing he wants is anyone paying attention to him, and then he gets Mercy and an apprentice, Duckers. Duckers is so key to Hart's growth without ever feeling like the wise assistant or anything, and also just a freaking delight. 

There's a lot of death in this book (see above re: zombies), a lot of thinking about how we care for the dead and where the dead go in this world. I feel like I'm sensitive to that sort of discussion and I think all of it was really careful and well-done.

After I finished this book, I had to stop myself from starting the whole thing over immediately because I loved it so much. I'd read anything else in this world. 

Thank you Orbit and NetGalley for the ARC!

I was so excited for this based on the cover alone, and while it didn’t disappoint, it definitely didn’t live up to any expectations I had for it.

I think my biggest issue with this book is that there’s just too much going on. This is clearly a world the author has fully fleshed out in their head, but there’s still some missing pieces on the page. The different ways to be magic (produce magic?) and their hierarchy are underdeveloped, there’s a secret cabal kind of thing whose raison d’etre I was kind of lost on, there’s some banishments… there’s just a lot. Additionally, I really hate a plot that hinges on “we didn’t tell you, our family member, this giant secret that is important to you for reeeeeasons.” Everyone’s an adult! Give them the information necessary to make their own choices for their future and safety. 

I was way more interested in Tilda’s group of like magical outcasts than I was in her relationship with Gil or the actual plot of the book, which I guess doesn’t bode well for me liking the rest of the series. I’ll give the next one a try, though!

Thanks Berkley and NetGalley for the ARC!