Book Review: Laws of Love and Logic

By Sara Steven

In the serene town of Portsmouth, Rhode Island, Lily Webb is deeply in love with a charismatic boy, a college-bound quarterback whose spectacular athletic talents are matched only by his fierce devotion. But their dreams of a life together are cut short one night in 1977 when his passionate protectiveness leads to an irrevocable choice—one which tears them apart and leads Lily down a path of heartbreak from which she may never recover.

Lily has already known the sting of loss, beginning with the death of her mother—a tragedy that left deep scars on both her and Jane, her gifted younger sister. Jane seeks escape in the abstract world of mathematics and quantum mechanics; that is, when she can keep the demons that fuel her addictions at bay. As the years pass, Lily buries her twin griefs deep in her heart, finding solace and a new beginning with Marshall Middleton, a renowned ornithologist whose love is as steadfast as the migration patterns he studies. Yet, the shadows of her past linger.

When the boy who was once everything to Lily reemerges, she struggles with questions around that terrible night in high school. Can she reconcile the wild wonderment of her first love with the comfort and safety of her second? Laws of Love and Logic explores love's enduring power and the human spirit's capacity for forgiveness and redemption. (Synopsis courtesy of Goodreads)

Laws of Love and Logic is an epic love story; it is the love of family, and first soulmate connections. It is the love between two sisters who have a tight bond that spans decades, and the deep love a mother has for her children. I enjoyed learning about Lily, and discovering the levels and shades of love that propel her forward in her life, beginning with the foundation her mother has provided her. Lily’s mother is the type of mother I wish I’d had. Someone who wanted her daughters to rely on their minds and hearts to guide them, during a time when it wasn’t traditional or even accepted.

Later, Lily bonds with “the boy,” her first crush. After several chapters, it’s understood that “the boy” is the one who got away, despite Lily’s choices in moving forward and connecting with Marshall, a much safer option. “The boy” reminded me of how Carrie Bradshaw used to refer to “Mr. Big” in Sex and the City; at the time, Mr. Big was such a magnanimous relationship in her life, it made sense to keep him in the shadows while she figured things out. That’s how it is for Lily and her childhood first love. When the event happens in 1977, all hell breaks loose, and it’s hard to know for sure if it’s ultimately for the better, or for the worse.

My favorite love story is the one between Lily and her sister, Jane. Jane is that wild, free-spirited character you only wish you could get to know and get close to, but as can be expected, it comes with major strings attached. Following their relationship throughout the years reminded me of the one I have with my own sister, particularly because our own beginnings were marred a bit with certain tragedies and hardships. That kind of life can really help to form deeper connections, and that is really showcased well between Lily and Jane. One particular moment between them is truly heartbreaking and has stayed with me. 

Laws of Love and Logic is a beautifully written story, dealing with some pretty rough subject matter that makes it even more worth the read. It’s real and honest, not pulling any punches–love can hurt at times, and sometimes the deeper you love, the deeper the pain. It was a definite five-star read!

Thanks to Random House for the book in exchange for an honest review.

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Book Review: Husband of the Year

By Melissa Amster

**This is a sequel to Teacher of the Year (reviewed here). There may be spoilers for that book. Proceed with caution.**

Family isn't only about blood. It's about the people we choose. 

Olan Stone wants nothing more than to spend the rest of his life with kindergarten teacher Marvin Block. And his daughter, Illona, can’t wait to call Marvin her stepfather. They’re bashert—meant to be. However, as the big day approaches, family tensions and unresolved issues put their future together in jeopardy. 

Marvin thought he and Olan had everything all figured out. But he’s realizing that their whirlwind romance may not be the foundation for a lifetime commitment after all. As they struggle through the changes that life is throwing their way, will they be drawn closer together or farther apart? (Synopsis courtesy of Amazon.)

I am so thankful I found out about M.A. Wardell's Teachers in Love series through The Jewish Bookstagram Tour a few years ago, but also I am sad to be done with this series and wish it could keep going. It was great to reunite with Marvin and Olan (from Teacher of the Year) and remember why I adore them so much. And Illona and Gonzo are the icing on the delicious wedding cake. 

Husband of the Year is a sweet (and very, very spicy) comfort read. I was verklempt many times. It was great seeing the couples from the other two books, as well. There was just so much to love about it. Plenty of laugh-out-loud moments, as well as ones of sincerity and emotion. Even though part of the story presented a difficult situation, Marvin and Olan worked though it with love and patience. They also had strong support networks. I kind of had a feeling one part of the story would go a certain way and I was so glad that I was right! 

I enjoyed the moments with Marvin's students, as they were such a sweet group of kids. I also love how everyone was so accepting of him being gay and so supportive of his relationship and upcoming marriage. It reminded me of Schitt's Creek in this way. If only everyone could be like that in real life. While a lot of aspects of this novel felt too good to be true, it was comforting given all the instability going on in the real world. And, of course, all the Jewish joy was a mechaye.

While I would have liked Marvin and Olan to take turns narrating, like in the middle two books of the series where we get both mens' perspectives, it was nice to get to know Olan better through his long emails to Marvin throughout the novel. 

I really, really don't want this series to end, but it ended on a good note and maybe there will be room for a reunion in the future? If you haven't read the Teachers in Love series yet, it's never too late to get started!

I don't cast the books in this series because it's too hard to find the right fit for the main characters, but I'd love to see Carol Kane as Marvin's mom.

Thanks to Forever for the book in exchange for an honest review.

** Intended for mature audiences only. 18+ **

More by M.A. Wardell:
Marshmallow Mountain (with A.J. Truman)
Stirring Spurs
Mistletoe and Mishigas (also from Teachers in Love)

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TW: Alcoholism/substance abuse (from supporting characters but mentioned a lot), death from overdose (mentioned but not detailed).

Lindsey Goldstein's year to remember...plus a book giveaway

 

We're excited to have Lindsey Goldstein at CLC today to talk about her debut novel, Gap Year. It sounds like a clever and unique story, perfect for fans of Amy Poeppel. Thanks to Egret Lake Books, we have one copy to give away, along with a signed bookplate!

Lindsey Goldstein has always loved coming-of-age stories, from A Tree Grows in Brooklyn to many of Judy Blume’s novels. After redefining herself several times, Lindsey wanted to tell a fresh coming-of-age story about someone in her forties  who sees a chance to start over and takes it. In general, she enjoys writing about Gen X characters who find themselves at a crossroads in their lives. She lives in Southern California, and when she’s not writing, she works as a physical therapist and as a chauffeur. Ahem, kidding. She shuttles her kids around.  

Visit Lindsey online:
Website * Instagram * TikTok

Sign up for her newsletter.

Synopsis:
It’s her turn to have the adventure of a lifetime… 

Jane’s life is turned upside down within forty-eight hours: her only child leaves for a year  abroad, her husband abandons her for another woman, and her boss issues her an  ultimatum. She makes a bold, impulsive choice—she’s leaving it all behind for an adult  version of her daughter’s “gap year.”  

Once a hopeful young ecologist, Jane dreams of climbing a volcano and working in the Galapagos—but life got in the way. Now, nothing stands between her and the adventure she abandoned years ago.  
Sleeping in a hostel bunk bed surrounded by people at least twenty years younger, she befriends Laura, a fellow traveler determined to scale the volcano. Together, they doggedly train for the summit. Jane also meets Mark, a charming tour guide whose quick wit and sparkling eyes threaten to derail her identity quest. 

As Jane pushes her physical and emotional limits, she seeks answers to the burning question: “What the hell should I do with the rest of my life?” 

Jane navigates the world of travel to repair her broken heart. 

"Jane's quest to find herself and her place in the world will fit in nicely with relationship fiction collections." - Booklist 

"I couldn't put this book down." - Shayla Dugan, Author

In one sentence, what was the road to publishing like for you?
The road was rocky with many hills and valleys, but ended with a contract and a publication date!

How is Jane similar to or different from you?
Jane is definitely more adventurous than I am. We are similar in that we handle hard times with humor, injecting a little levity into otherwise difficult situations.  But she is so brave to seize the opportunity to pursue her dream in Ecuador, especially to climb a volcano. 

If Gap Year was made into a movie, who would you cast in the lead roles?
My top picks for Jane would be Kathryn Hahn or Rose Byrne. They are both so adept with comedy and poignancy. Pedro Pascal would make a great Mark. And Jude Law would be great as Clark. And Iris Apatow would nail the character of Liza!

Share a favorite Valentine's Day memory with us.
Valentine’s Day has never been a big thing for me. And my husband feels the same way. Our birthdays are the week before, so we always do something special for our birthday and then have a low-key evening in on Valentine’s Day. 

If your life was a TV series, which celebrity would you want to narrate it?
I would love for Cate Blanchett to narrate. I love her as an actress and her voice is calming. 

If we were to visit you right now, what places would you take us to see?
I’d take you to Crystal Cove for a walk on the beach followed by dinner in Laguna Beach. Two of my favorite places. 

Thanks to Lindsey for visiting with us and to Egret Lake for sharing her book with our readers.

How to win: Use KingSumo to enter the giveaway. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us. If you have trouble using KingSumo on our blog, enter the giveaway here.

Giveaway ends February 17th at midnight EST.

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Book Review: One Night on the Island

By Melissa Amster

Spending her thirtieth birthday alone is not what dating columnist Cleo Wilder wanted, but she plans a solo retreat―at the insistence of her boss―in the name of re-energizing herself and adding a new perspective to her column. The remote Irish island she’s booked is a far cry from London, but at least it’s a chance to hunker down in a luxury cabin and indulge in some self-care while she figures out the next steps in her love life and her career.

Mack Sullivan is also looking forward to some time to himself. With his life in Boston deteriorating in ways he can’t bring himself to acknowledge, his soul-searching has brought him to the same Irish island to explore his roots and find some clarity. Unfortunately, a mix-up with the bookings means both have reserved the same one-room hideaway on exactly the same dates.

Instantly at odds, Cleo and Mack don’t know how they’re going to manage until the next weekly ferry arrives. But as the days go by, they no longer seem to mind each other’s company quite as much as they thought they would.

Written with Josie Silver’s signature charm, One Night on the Island explores the meaning of home, the joys of escape, and how the things we think we want are never the things we really need. (Synopsis courtesy of Amazon.)

I somehow missed One Night on the Island when it first released, but I am glad I finally got a chance to check it out! If you are looking for a cozy read while stuck indoors during a snowstorm, you can't go wrong with this one. Perfect for reading under a warm blanket with a cup of hot cocoa!  It's not about a tropical island, like the title leads you to believe. It takes place on a small island in Ireland, and there is a village with wonderful, friendly people right down the road. 

This was a sweet story. I loved the setting and there were great supporting characters in the nearby village. I wasn't sure where things would go over time and was pleasantly surprised. The dialogue and banter flowed nicely and there was a good range of emotions. I loved the concept of self-marriage in the way of just loving yourself first and foremost. 

I had a couple small concerns. One was strange timing at one part, as Mack's kids went to the lake for a week in the middle of autumn during the school year. I don't know of schools that give a fall break in the US and how would it be warm enough to swim in the northeast? Also, something worked out too neatly for one of the characters and it didn't feel as realistic to me. 

Overall, this was a really enjoyable novel and I'm glad I read it. It made me realize that I need to read the rest of Josie's books now. 

(Trigger warnings at the bottom of this post.)

Movie casting suggestions:

Cleo: Mollie Winnard

Mack: Brandon Sklenar

Delta: Charlie Murphy

Dolores: Michelle Fairley

Raff: Ian Beattie

Susie: Britt Robertson

More by Josie Silver:

One Day in December

A Winter in New York

Slow Burn Summer

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TW: Death of parent (off page), parental neglect (off page), divorce

Spotlight and Giveaway: I'm Looking for a Man in Finance

Introduction by Melissa Amster

I will admit that when I first heard about Sabrina Waldorf's debut novel, I'm Looking for a Man in Finance, my interest in it stemmed from my Ghosts crush, Trevor, a Wall Street finance bro who died in 2000. However, it sounds like a fun enemies-to-lovers read and we're excited to celebrate the publication today! Thanks to Alcove Press, we have TWO copies to give away!

Sparks fly when a journalist seeking the most eligible man on Wall Street goes head-to-head with the finance bro determined to get in her way. 

Journalist Hallie Woods has a new assignment: date the hottest guy on Wall Street and document every moment for the magazine she works for. The only problem? Finance bros couldn’t be further from Hallie’s type. 

But as Hallie reluctantly flirts her way through the Financial District, there's one annoyingly handsome 6'5", blue-eyed man who keeps getting in her way. 

James Rossi is a typical finance bro on paper, but a hopeless romantic at heart. After being burned by an ex-girlfriend who used him for his money, he's also fiercely protective of himself and his friends. So when he realizes the new regular at his favorite bar is flirting with his colleagues as fodder for an article, he decides to sabotage her plans. 

Hallie and James clash at happy hour every week. But soon their dislike for each other turns into something unexpected, and Hallie questions whether she wants her personal life spread across the pages of a magazine. 

Hallie might have found her man in finance, but she also has a choice to make: publish the article or risk her career and invest in true love. 

“Balancing playful banter and steamy moments . . . The result is a flirty rom-com.”
—Publishers Weekly

“Heartwarming and fun.”
—Red Carpet Crash

Sabrina Waldorf is a hopeless romantic. After years of looking for her real-life man in finance, she decided to put pen to paper and create her own. When she’s not busy dreaming up new story ideas, she can be found curled up in her apartment with a coffee and a good book. 

How to win: Use KingSumo to enter the giveaway. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us. If you have trouble using KingSumo on our blog, enter the giveaway here.

Giveaway ends February 15th at midnight EST.

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Book Review: The Better Mother

By Jami Denison

Women surrender their bodily autonomy when they become pregnant. From strangers patting their belly without permission, neighbors asking about the cat, in-laws weighing in on daycare decisions, mothers are considered public property and everyone has an opinion. The best-case scenario is nosy baristas commenting on coffee orders. The worst case is women like Adriana Smith, whose doctors ignored her headache until she was braindead, then used her corpse as an incubator until the baby was born months later, premature and desperately ill. No wonder motherhood is prime real estate for fiction, from historical to horror and every genre in between. 

Into this fertile territory, debut author Jennifer van der Kleut has delivered her first thriller, The Better Mother. The mom is question is Savannah Mitchell, a 34-year-old marketing account executive in San Francisco. She was ready to become a mom, but her longtime boyfriend balked at the prospect and left her. Months later, she finds herself pregnant by a casual fling, Matt… and when she gives Matt the news, he announces that he just reconciled with his ex-girlfriend Madison. Instead of being angry at Matt’s infidelity, Madison is excited about the baby and wants to help Savannah in any way she can.

Madison is a perky Stepford wife in green-and-pink plaid and headbands. She criticizes Savannah’s eating and exercise habits, the state of her apartment, and her job, insisting that all she cares about is the health and well-being of “their” baby. At first Savannah is merely annoyed, but when someone breaks into her apartment and important text messages disappear from her phone, she starts to suspect that Madison has more sinister motives in mind. If Madison can prove that she’s the better mother, will Savannah lose her baby to her? 

The Better Mother has the elements that domestic suspense fans love: babies, boyfriends, best friends, and the slow burn in the beginning where the protagonist questions her own reactions.  The twist is in its perspective: ordinarily, this book would be told from the point-of-view of the cheated-on wife/girlfriend, with the pregnant mistress the villain character. Flipping this genre expectation on its head provides a refreshing take.

While the tone was off at times—the first scene is funny, not scary, and later on characters go so far off the deep end that it becomes comical—the book delivers the roller coaster ride that readers want. It’s predictable, but that doesn’t lessen the fun. The only thing that was missing for me was an “a ha” moment for Savannah and a confrontation. 

Sadly, the current political environment toward pregnant women provides ample material for thriller writers like van der Kleut. At times, Madison seemed like a stand-in for big government, wedging itself into a woman’s most personal choices and judging her for them. Unfortunately, domestic suspense writers can continue to get inspiration from government and health policies that treat women like possessions. For women like Adriana Smith, their real-life horror is more terrifying than anything that fiction writers can create.  

Thanks to BookSparks for the book in exchange for an honest review.

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Book Review: This Book Made Me Think of You

By Allyson Bales

Twelve books. Twelve months. One chance to heal her heart…

When Tilly Nightingale receives a call telling her there’s a birthday gift from her husband waiting for her at her local bookshop, it couldn’t come as more of a shock. Partly because she can’t remember the last time she read a book for pleasure. But mainly because Joe died five months ago....

When she goes to pick up the present, Alfie, the bookshop owner with kind eyes, explains the gift—twelve carefully chosen books with handwritten letters from Joe, one for each month, to help her turn the page on her first year without him.

At first Tilly can’t imagine sinking into a fictional world, but Joe’s tender words convince her to try, and something remarkable happens—Tilly becomes immersed in the pages, and a new chapter begins to unfold in her own life. Monthly trips to the bookstore—and heartfelt conversations with Alfie—give Tilly the comfort she craves and the courage to set out on a series of reading-inspired adventures that take her around the world. But as she begins to share her journey with others, her story—like a book—becomes more than her own. (Synopsis courtesy of Amazon.)

“The right book in the right hands of the right person at exactly the right moment can change their life forever.”

What a thoughtful, emotional, and thought-provoking opening line to a story.  I spent last weekend completely immersed in Libby Page’s newest book and to say it was a warm hug that I am still thinking about would be an understatement.  This story touched my heart, and will be one I will think of for some time. I definitely think it should be on your February TBR immediately!

You get to meet Tilly, a lovely woman that just lost her husband and doesn’t really know what to do with that grief.  Her fiance leaves her the best gift at a local bookstore, where you also get to meet Alfie, the bookstore’s owner.

I was immediately invested in Tilly’s character.  I found her to be so relatable and vulnerable.  I really, really connected with her struggles and triumphs and can’t remember the last time I rooted so hard for a character.  Tilly gave me a lot of hope and I know she’ll be a character I will want so many others to meet!  I also really loved the flashback scenes where you get to know her fiancé Joe better.  This really added so much depth to the story and made me really think about my own wife and relationship.

This story reminded me why I am a book lover and why I love indie bookshops so much.  This is more of a predictable read, but one that will make you feel uplifted and inspired.  I loved so many of the characters and love all of the book recommendations that you get with each chapter!

I would also really recommend the audio version of this one. Zadeiah Campbell-Davies narrated the story beautifully and I loved how she brought Tilly to life.

Thanks to Berkley for the book in exchange for an honest review. Purchase it here.

More by Libby Page:
Mornings with Rosemary
The Lifeline
The 24-Hour Café

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