TLC Book Tours Review: White Fur by Jardine Libaire (30 May-22 June)

White Fur by Jardine Libaire

Publisher: Hogarth (30th May, 2017)

Pages: 320

Rating

Disclaimer: A copy of White Fur was provided by the Publisher via TLC Book Tours to give an honest review and to take part in the tour

I just love these cover images!

Synopsis

When Elise Perez meets Jamey Hyde on a desolate winter afternoon, fate implodes, and neither of their lives will ever be the same. Although they are next-door neighbors in New Haven, they come from different worlds. Elise grew up in public housing without a father and didn’t graduate from high school; Jamey is a junior at Yale, heir to a private investment bank fortune and beholden to high family expectations. Nevertheless, the attraction is instant, and what starts out as sexual obsession turns into something greater, stranger, and impossible to ignore.

The unlikely couple moves to Manhattan in hopes of forging an adult life together, but Jamey’s family intervenes in desperation, and the consequences of staying together are suddenly severe. And when a night out with old friends takes a shocking turn, Jamey and Elise find themselves fighting not just for their love, but also for their lives.

White Fur follows these indelible characters on their wild race through Newport mansions and downtown NYC nightspots, SoHo bars and WASP-establishment yacht clubs, through bedrooms and hospital rooms, as they explore, love, play, and suffer.

Jardine Libaire combines the electricity of Less Than Zero with the timeless intensity of Romeo and Juliet in this searing, gorgeously written novel that perfectly captures the ferocity of young love.

My Thoughts

Set over the course of a year in 1986, 'White Fur'  follows in monthly instalments the highs and lows of the relationship between Elise Perez and Jamey Hyde.

Written in third person dual POV narratives I found it easy to read with short paragraphed chapters, easy to pick up and put down at any point. Not a format, I appreciate will suit everyone but then again there's a a lot about White Fur that isn't going to be to everyone liking.  More on that shortly.

Elise Perez comes from the poor housekeeping projects in New York City; doesn't know who her father is; doesn't attend school, and takes care of her half siblings while her mother shirks parental responsibilities to be with her abusive boyfriend. Elise makes a difficult decision to move out of the family home leaving her sisters in the care of her mother and boyfriend.

Jamie Hyde is a privileged rich kid attending Yale; shares a flat with his lifelong best friend and flatmate next to where Elise is now staying with a gay friend.

Jamey is rich and going places. He has class, breeding, is reserved and knows how to behave in polite company.

Elise has had a rough abusive life and lived the life of hard knocks. She is tough, a fighter, a force to be reckoned with, has no airs or graces. If someone's a dick she'll tell them they're a dick !

As a couple they're an odd mix, culturally and racially and have absolutely nothing in common, but there is a spark between them at their first meeting which continues to smoulder and flame. Their relationship is wild, explosive and sexually charged. She is wild, passionate and exhaustative sexually, a contrast to his previous inexperienced relationships.  He's never met anyone quite like Elise. She makes him feel special and that she will do anything for him whenever he wants her to. Jamey is obsessed with her but equally frustrated by his inability to ignore this attraction and seems to resent her for it.

As their relationship matures and they learn more about themselves and each other the frantic sex gives way to a deeper intensity of emotions and understanding but as friends and family become increasingly involved and determined to drive a wedge between them will they be able to remain steadfast.

By way of a warning a good first half of the story describes graphically detailed sex scenes. Some readers may have difficulty here with such explicit powerful imagery projected, however it gives a sense and perspective of the transition from impulsive lust to meaningful love that these young lovers experience. With short, sharp paragraphing the details are quickly absorbed into your head leaving sometimes rather uncomfortable indelible imprinted images.

Gritty, and raw White Fur touches on some sensitive subject matter such as child physical abuse, under aged sex (rape), drug addiction and mental health issues. A fair amount of humour is in evidence throughout making this a less dark depressing read.

This is most definitely NOT what I would call a fluffy romantic read, it is a coming-of-age character driven love story following two young lovers over the course of a year as their relationship matures. Think of it as a contemporary 'Romeo and Juliet' with explicit sexual content.  Overall, even though not a fan of the ending, I found it a compelling read and would definitely read more from this author.

About Jardine Libaire

Jardine Libaire is a graduate of Skidmore College and the University of Michigan MFA program, where she was a winner of the Hopwood Award. White Furis her second novel for adults. She lives in Austin, Texas.

TLC BOOK TOURS Schedule for Jardine Libaire's White Fur:

Tuesday, May 30th: Books and Bindings

Wednesday, May 31st: Thoughts on This ‘n That

Thursday, June 1st: Palmer’s Page Turners

Friday, June 2nd: Nightly Reading

Tuesday, June 6th: Kahakai Kitchen

Monday, June 12th: A Bookish Way of Life

Tuesday, June 13th: Life by Kristen

Wednesday, June 14th: I Brought A Book

Thursday, June 15th: Booksie’s Blog

Wednesday, June 21st: SJ2B House of Books

Thursday, June 22nd: From the TBR Pile

Monday, June 26th: Books a la Mode

Friday, June 30th: Fuelled by Fiction

TBD: Thoughts from a Highly Caffeinated Mind

They Were Like Family To Me by Helen Maryles Shankman

The stunningly beautiful and heartbreaking novel 'In the Land of Armadillos' by Helen Maryles Shankman has been republished under the new title 'They Were Like Family To Me'

One of my 'absolute favourites' this year you can read my original review here: http://sj2bhouseofbooks.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/in-land-of-armadillos-by-helen-maryles.html

Unfortunately not yet published in the U.K.

The Atomic Weight Of Love by Elizabeth J Church

Title: The Atomic Weight of Love

Author: Elizabeth J. Church

Publisher: Algonquin Books (3 May 2016)

Pages: 320 pages

Source: ARC via NetGalley

Genre: historical fiction, womens fiction, WWII, Vietnam War, women's studies

Rating:

Disclaimer: A complementary copy of The Atomic Weight of Love by Elizabeth J Church was provided by the Publisher for an unbiased honest review.

Read in July, 2016

Synopsis:
In her sweeping debut novel, Elizabeth J. Church takes us from the World War II years in Chicago to the vast sun-parched canyons of New Mexico in the 1970s as we follow the journey of a driven, spirited young woman, Meridian Wallace, whose scientific ambitions are subverted by the expectations of her era.

In 1941, at seventeen years old, Meridian begins her ornithology studies at the University of Chicago. She is soon drawn to Alden Whetstone, a brilliant, complicated physics professor who opens her eyes to the fundamentals and poetry of his field, the beauty of motion, space and time, the delicate balance of force and energy that allows a bird to fly.

Entranced and in love, Meridian defers her own career path and follows Alden west to Los Alamos, where he is engaged in a secret government project (later known to be the atomic bomb). In married life, though, she feels lost and left behind. She channels her academic ambitions into studying a particular family of crows, whose free life and companionship are the very things that seem beyond her reach. There in her canyons, years later at the dawn of the 1970s, with counterculture youth filling the streets and protests against the war rupturing college campuses across the country, Meridian meets Clay, a young geologist and veteran of the Vietnam War, and together they seek ways to mend what the world has broken.

Exquisitely capturing the claustrophobic eras of 1940s and 1950s America, The Atomic Weight of Love also examines the changing roles of women during the decades that followed. And in Meridian Wallace we find an unforgettable heroine whose metamorphosis shows how the women’s movement opened up the world for a whole generation.

My Thoughts:
On Meri's 10th birthday her father gives her a book, 'The Burgess Bird Book for Children'.  For her 11th birthday he gives her, Darwin's 'On The Origin of the Species'. Six months later her father dies leaving both Meri and her mother utterly devastated.
At 17 years old Meri leaves her hometown of Pennsylvania and attends Chicago University with a fierce ambition to earn an advanced degree in ornithology.  She sits in on one of Professor Whetstone's physics lectures and is completely smitten by this man old enough to be her father. This is what she says about seeing him at that first lecture, ' I was in awe of Alden. I could only sense the very fringes of concepts that his intellect grasped with such easy, ready fingers. I worshipped his knowledge, his aloof independence and greater world experience. He was my teacher; he led me, and I followed gladly.'  They embark on an affair fuelled, not by passion or lustful recklessness, but of joint admiration of intellectual minds. They marry and Alden takes her away to Los Alamos, New Mexico.

At the commencement of each chapter there are ornithological terms of reference which cleverly shadow Meri's experiences within the chapter they refer to.
The writing style is gently paced, and intelligent, with beautifully constructed sentences and phrases such as,"I watched the first snowfall begin as a light, dry powder and morph into those luscious, fat, lazy flakes that sashay downward and accumulate into weighty drifts." I fell immediately under the authors spell of words and eagerly devoured the pages of the book. In another poignantly beautifully written scene where the crows say farewell to one of their own, I cried as the loss and feeling of loneliness was utterly palpable and I truly believed I understood how Meri was feeling at that particular stage of her life.

The Atomic Weight of Love is primarily a love story written and voiced by Meri about the ever changing, evolving love she feels for Alden, and then in her 40's of her love for a much younger man.  I found it in turns to be heartbreaking, and infuriating due to the out dated attitudes of the times, but above all an uplifting read.  There is a bittersweet quality to the story and at times it simply broke my heart.

Elizabeth Church’s debut novel is an exquisite poignant tale of loyalty, trust and knowing when to let go. I truly hope there's a lot more to come from her as a writer.  I'd recommend it for readers who love beautifully written literary historical fiction that will make them question their own sacrifices and accomplishments.  I would also suggest it for book group readers as the multitude of topics raised throughout the book could generate some lively discussion.

The Crow Girl by Erik Axl Sund

The Crow Girl by Erik Axl Sund

Publisher: Random House UK Vintage Publishing (14 April 2016)

Source: Publisher via NetGalley

Genre: Scandi-crime, Adult, Thriller

Pages: 768

Rating:

The International Sensation
It starts with just one body – tortured, mummified and then discarded.
Its discovery reveals a nightmare world of hidden lives. Of lost identities, secret rituals and brutal exploitation, where nobody can be trusted.
This is the darkest, most complex case the police have ever seen.
This is the world of the Crow Girl.

My Thoughts:
Now for a crime story which, unlike Fiona Barton's 'The Widow', definitely is not so simply told, or lacking in nasty scenes. This one contains a multitude of extremely violent scenes of torture, child abuse, child trafficking and murder so definitely NOT for everyone.

At over 750 pages this is a huge tome which I devoured in just a few days. Written in short easy to digest chapters I had no problem keeping track of who was who; who did what to who; etc., etc,. Not since reading Stieg Larsson's 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo' have I been so enthusiastic about reading or recommending a Scandi/Nordic crime novel.

The Crow Girl by Erik Axl Sund is a very dark, violent and intensely disturbing read with in-depth descriptions of suffering, abuse and rape, and a plethora of shocking scenes. This most certainly won't be a book for everyone, and definitely not for those upset by such scenes.

I am not going to say anymore about this one except that if you are not one of the above then 'just read it'.

Shamelessly twisted and at times sensationally over the top, The Crow Girl was for me a hugely enjoyable, addictive read.  Perfect for fans of, Stieg Larsson, Jo Nesbo, and David Lagercrantz.

Disclaimer: A complementary proof copy was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

About the author:
Erik Axl Sund is the pseudonym for 2 authors who have been friends and collaborators for years: Jerker Erikson and Håkan Axlander Sundquist.
Håkan was a sound engineer, musician and artist, while Jerker was a music producer and worked as a librarian in a prison. Both live in Sweden where they are now full-time writers, and also run an art gallery together.
Originally written as a trilogy before being re-worked for the English language markets The Crow Girl is their first book. The complete trilogy received the 'Special Award' from the Swedish Academy of Crime Writers in 2012, with the academy highlighting the trilogy's "hypnotically captivating psychoanalysis in crime fiction form."

In The Land of Armadillos by Helen Maryles Shankman

In The Land of Armadillos by Helen Maryles Shankman

Pages: 304 (Hardback)

Genre: Magical Realism, Folklore, Holocaust, Short Stories

Publisher: Scribner

Source: Publisher via NetGalley

Recommended for fans of:

David Mitchell's Cloud Atlas, Sun-Mi Hwang's The Hen who Dreamed She Could Fly

RATING:

Synopsis:

A radiant debut collection of linked stories from a two-time Pushcart Prize nominee, set in a German-occupied town in Poland, where tales of myth and folklore meet the real-life monsters of the Nazi invasion.

1942. With the Nazi Party at the height of its power, the occupying army empties Poland’s towns and cities of their Jewish populations. As neighbor turns on neighbor and survival often demands unthinkable choices, Poland has become a moral quagmire—a place of shifting truths and blinding ambiguities.

Blending folklore and fact, Helen Maryles Shankman shows us the people of Wlodawa, a remote Polish town: we meet a cold-blooded SS officer dedicated to rescuing the creator of his son’s favorite picture book, even as he helps exterminate the artist’s friends and family; a Messiah who appears in a little boy’s bedroom to announce that he is quitting; a young Jewish girl who is hidden by the town’s most outspoken anti-Semite—and his talking dog. And walking among these tales are two unforgettable figures: the enigmatic and silver-tongued Willy Reinhart, Commandant of the forced labor camp who has grand schemes to protect “his” Jews, and Soroka, the Jewish saddlemaker and his family, struggling to survive.

Channeling the mythic magic of classic storytellers like Sholem Aleichem and Isaac Bashevis Singer and the psychological acuity of modern-day masters like Nicole Krauss and Nathan Englander, In the Land of Armadillos is a testament to the persistence of humanity in the most inhuman conditions.

What I Thought:
These intertwined short stories take place in Wlodawa, a small village in Poland during WWII during the nazi occupation and include:

1 In the Land of the Armadillos, narrated by a nazi officer;
2 The Partizans;
3 The Messiah;
4 They Were LIke Family to Me;
5 The Jew Hater, the second story narrated by a nazi officer.

I adored everything about this book from the cover artwork (the author's own) depicting two of the 'fictional' characters from the titular story of the book, to the exquisite prose and narrative of each of the interconnected short stories.

Holocaust written as magical realism fiction ! ... Surely that cannot do justice to the horrific mass murder of so many during this evil period in history.  However, Helen Maryles Shankman has written a beautiful rendition full of mysticism and religious folklore about her characters and married the horrific reality with magical realism perfectly. In an interview with review blogger, Jeffrey Keen, she says; "...Magic is the only way I can approach the horror of what happened across Europe in 1945. Without it, all that is left is grim, inexplicable reality..."

Source: Review and interview: http://jeffreykeeten.booklikes.com/post/1291928/in-the-land-of-armadillos-by-helen-maryles-shankman).

The stories in this book so affected me that they tore a hole in my soul and I literally cried as the emotive scenes played out, but ultimately I also felt a spark of hope and faith in the eventual power of good triumphing over evil. I held my kindle to my chest on numerous occasions after reading such powerful passages.

In The Land of Armadillos is a book that sucked me in, halted me in my tracks and made me think and evaluate, even reevaluate the actions of certain individuals ... simply stunning, moving, and uplifting ... I want everyone who has a heart to experience this masterpiece. An awe inspiring book that will stay with me for a very long time.

You can read more about In The Land of Armadillos and Helen Maryles Shankman here: http://helenmarylesshankman.com

Disclaimer: A complimentary copy of In The Land of Armadillos was provided by Scribner via Netgalley in exchange for an honest unbiased review.

The Improbable Wonders of Moojie Littleman by Robin Gregory

The Improbable Wonders of Moojie Littleman

Robin Gregory

Genre: Teenage/Young Adult, Magical Realism & Coming of age

Publisher: Mad Mystical Journey Press

Source: Digital ARC via instaFreebiedotcom

Pages: 310 (Paperback)

Unfinished - DNF at 38%

Synopsis:
Moojie Littleman has never been much good at controlling his spiritual healing powers. Abandoned at birth to a convent in 1892, he amuses himself by magically snuffing out candles with the blink of an eye, or by sending objects into flight with the power of his mind. When he doesn't get his way, he causes the wind to rip off the nuns' veils and flash their knickers. He is not much good at being part of a family either.

Adopted before his first birthday, his parents soon realize that he cannot walk or talk or learn like most children, and he has a whopping temper. When Moojie is eight years old, he performs a healing miracle, and also loses his mother to a freak accident. His disapproving father sends him to live at St. Isidore's Fainting Goat Dairy with his grandfather, and then disappears.

Moojie's outcome lies in the balance as he strikes up a forbidden friendship with an otherworldly clan of outcasts who call themselves the Light-Eaters. When a natural disaster strikes, Moojie must decide whether to escape through a portal into another universe with the clan and the girl he loves or save the only family he has, therefore fulfilling a surprising destiny.

What I thought:
I loved the eye catching beautiful cover for this one and thoroughly enjoyed the first few chapters. The characters were well penned and an intreaguing plot-line looked promising. I prepared myself for full immersion into Moojie's magical realm.

Moojie's character developed from being a disabled and weak child into a more mature, much stronger individual drawing strength from his weaknesses. At about the 100 page mark the narrative seemed to lose its way becoming disjointed and began to drag. Conversations between the Light-Eaters and Moojie I found perplexing and rather irritating. I didn't 'get' the Light-Eaters...either what they were or what their purpose was, and quite frankly I felt alienated to such an extent that I lost interest in reading any further.

It maybe that had I persevered with the story I would have been rewarded with a truly magical fantastical adventure just as the majority of readers say they had. However due to my lack of involvement with certain characters and the puzzling elements of the storyline I aborted my reading of it around 38%.

Disclaimer: I'd like to thank the author for providing me with a complementary digital copy for my honest thoughts on this book. Although not entirely to my liking I believe it will be a real treat for other readers.

The Improbable Wonders of Moojie Littleman is Robin Gregory's debut offering and although I didn't finish reading it, I did think it shows huge potential and would certainly like to see what she writes next.

The Lemoncholy of Annie Aster by Scott Wilbanks

The Lemoncholy of Annie Aster by Scott Wilbanks

Genre: Magical Realism, Historical Fantasy, Literary Fiction,
Time Travel, Contemporary

Pages: 400

Format: e-ARC

ISBN: 9781492612469

Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark (Aug 4, 2015)

Source: Publisher/Netgalley

Rating:

Synopsis: 

Annabelle Aster has discovered a curious thing behind her home in San Francisco--a letterbox perched atop a picket fence.  The note inside is blunt—trespass is dealt with at the business end of a shotgun in these parts!—spurring some lively correspondence between the Bay Area orphan and her new neighbor, a feisty widow living in nineteenth-century Kansas.

The source of mischief is an antique door Annie installed at the rear of her house.  The man who made the door—a famed Victorian illusionist—died under mysterious circumstances.

Annie and her new neighbor, with the help of friends and strangers alike, must solve the mystery of what connects them before one of them is convicted of a murder that has yet to happen…and somehow already did.

"Annie wandered past a weather-beaten signpost in the wheat field
where her backyard used to be. "

My Thoughts:
I really wasn't expecting The Lemoncholy of Annie Aster to be as good as it was.  I'd initially requested a review copy based on the gorgeous looking front cover, and intriguing title, but put it on the back burner to read later.  However the publisher asked me if I'd like to take part in a 'book tour' for the title and I said that I would.  I'm so glad the book leaped to the top of the list as I simply loved its charm and innocence from the outset.

The characterisation in The Lemoncholy of Annie Aster is fabulous. The characters are fabulously-drawn, and so vivid they are easy to picture as real people. I found them and the story totally charming and compelling.

The Lemoncholy of Annie Aster is set in two time frames, the present and the early 1900's.  It is a delightful tale about true friendships and finding your place in the world, with magic, time travel, a murder mystery, oh and a romance, or two along the way.  The Lemoncholy of Annie Aster had me reading well into the early hours and I just hated to put it down.

The characters are a mixed band of misfits, from Annie, a throw back to the Victorian era with a dress style and lifestyle to match; her best friend Christian an amnesiac with a severe stutter; Elsbeth the widower in Kansas to whom Annie corresponds via time-travel mailboxes; Cap'n, a street-wise urchin, and the dastardly Mr Culler with his psychotic sidekick Mr Danyer.

Annie, gets more excitement and adventure than she ever dreamed imaginable with her impulse purchase of an antique door she installs as her back door.  A door with magical properties ... a time travel portal passing through Annie's San Franciscan back yard to a wheat field in Kansas from a century before.

With help from her best friend Christian and some lively compatriots they meet along the way, they endeavour to solve the problematic mysteries which present themselves at practically every turn.

As for my favourite character I would find it difficult to choose between Annie, Elsbeth and Christian as they were all equally endearing and compelling in their own right.  I loved them all for their unique and peculiar traits: Annie for her vulnerability but no messing strength of character and drive, Elsbeth for her initial feistiness who then transforms into a caring motherly figure, and Christian for his sensitivity.  He is perhaps the most complex character. Fiercely loyal to his friends he also a loner and lacks confidence in himself and is torn about what he should do regarding his personal relationships. Christian is definitely a character I'd like to know more about.

There are a number of supporting characters and so much going on that I had to, at times, give it my full attention or lose track of the relationships and events occurring due to the complexity of the story line.

The Lemonscholy Life of Annie Aster is a delightful, feel-good, heart-warming tale.  Thoroughly entertaining, and enchanting, it is the perfect Summer read.

I look forward to seeing what Scott Wilbanks comes up with next. Another instalment of Annie Aster perhaps, but whatever it is I'm sure it'll be another gem I'll not want to miss.


Disclaimer: A complimentary copy of The Lemoncholy of Annie Aster was provided by Sourcebooks Landmark via Netgalley in exchange for an honest unbiased review.



Images: Art work used with kind permission of Scott Wilbanks
1. Annie, 2. "Cap'n, before orphanhood", 3. Elsbeth's cabin and wheat-field.

About The Author: Scott Wilbanks graduated summa cum laude from The University of Oklahoma and went on to garner several national titles in the sport of gymnastics.

Scott's husband, Mike, is a New Zealander by birth, and the two split their time between the two countries while Scott is at work on his next standalone novel.