Book Review: The Truth About Love and Lightning

By Melissa Amster

I think everyone lies at one time or another. If someone says they never lie, I think that would even be considered lying. Sometimes people do it to stay out of trouble; other times to protect someone's feelings. Whatever the lie is, no matter how big or little, it's still a lie. It's why Billy Joel sings about "honesty" being such a lonely word. ("Everyone is so untrue.") Is anyone ever really prepared to handle the truth, no matter what it is?

Gretchen Brink told a lie many years ago. A lie that has affected herself and her daughter, as well as some other people in her small Missouri town. On the day of a big storm, two very important people show up at her door. The first is a man with no memory, who seems familiar enough to be Sam, a dear friend of hers who was presumed dead many years ago. The other visitor is her daughter Abby, newly pregnant, and running away from her commitment-wary boyfriend. The lie Gretchen told is about to catch up with her, since Abby thinks Sam is her father and if the mystery man really is Sam, the truth could come out and hurt them all.

Like her previous novel, Little Black Dress, The Truth About Love and Lightning also has elements of magic, mystery, romance, and glimpses into the past. Susan McBride intertwines these elements flawlessly, with her gentle storytelling touch. The fact that she was newly pregnant when she started writing it adds to the emotional content. Her use of description made me feel like I was right next to the characters in each of the settings. Each of the characters was interesting in their own way. I felt I could identify with Gretchen, even though she was a lot older than me. I also felt a kinship with Abby. And learning about who Sam was in the past made me love him even more. My favorite part of the book was the historical flashback, when we get a glimpse into Sam's ancestry. It was so interesting and beautifully written, keeping me guessing as I turned each page.

As much as I love Susan McBride and her novels, I do feel it is only fair to point out what didn't work as well for me, as I think it will be food for thought when she writes her next novel. Given the theme of the story, I feel I should tell the truth, especially since I promised an honest review. First of all, some of the dialogue seemed forced or scripted, like people were reading lines from a play. I especially saw this in scenes involving Gretchen's sisters. I don't know about you, but I never call my sister, "Sister." I use her name. This dialogue issue didn't hinder the novel, but it was noticeable. Also, I was expecting the story to go on a little longer and explain some more questions that ended up going unanswered. When we get a glimpse into the story between Gretchen and Sam, we get mostly Sam's perspective and not much of Gretchen's. Since Gretchen is the main character in the story, it would have been nice to hear her side, as well. There are times when Gretchen, as an adult, alludes to her story, but seeing what actually happened through her eyes would have been helpful. That's not to say it's a bad ending because it was satisfying, overall.

The Truth About Love and Lightning is a sweet story that is appealing for readers with various tastes. It has elements of chick lit, but there are other genres, as well. I am a fan of Billie Letts' novels (i.e. Where the Heart is and Shoot the Moon) and she hasn't written anything in a while. This story comes close to something Billie Letts would write and also enjoy reading! It's a definite page turner and is not too long that you couldn't finish it in a few days.

Thanks to Susan for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. She's visiting CLC today and has some books to share!

More by Susan McBride:

Book Review: In the Pink

By Tracey Meyers

Three years ago, I found out a friend of mine was diagnosed with breast cancer.  Even though we weren't close, I can still remember hearing the news.  Everything stopped for a moment.  I couldn't believe it. The only other person I had known, up to that moment, to have any type of cancer was my father - who didn't make it.  I was scared, but not too long after her diagnosis she had surgery, follow-up treatment, and to this day is cancer free.

I have to admit, I wasn't familiar with Susan McBride, or any of her books, prior to reading, "In the Pink: How I Met the Perfect (Younger) Guy, Survived Breast Cancer, and Found True Happiness After 40." However, after reading a synopsis of the book, I was quite intrigued and knew I wanted to know more about Susan's life.

Unlike other memoirs I've read, from the very start I felt as though I was sitting in a coffee shop, sipping my favorite caffeinated beverage with a new friend, hearing her tell me all about the adventures life has taken her on over the past couple of years. Her stories included how she met her husband Ed and their amazing courtship, her experience with breast cancer and all that she learned from it and all about the other surprises (some bad and some great) life had for her in the years after she kicked cancer's ass.

Aside from sharing her story, Susan has also shared with readers of this book three supplement sections at the end. They cover:

•  "In the Pink" Q&A
•  Tips on Dating After Forty
•  What I Learned from My Diagnosis

Recently, I saw something that said, "40 is the new 30."  For Susan McBride, this is so true!  Aside from the conversational tone of this memoir and Susan's amazing story, what I love about this book is that it not only shares how she survived cancer, but also shows readers that 40 isn't the end like many want us to believe it is and that it  really can be just the beginning of many great things.

Special thanks to HarperCollins for the e-galley in exchange for an honest review. "In the Pink" will be available on e-book October 2 and paperback November 7th.

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Book Review: Little Black Dress

By Melissa Amster

Have you ever worn a dress that just fit you perfectly and made you feel beautiful both inside and out? What if your dress could show you the future too? Would you still want to wear it? This is the question that's at the very heart of Susan McBride's latest novel, "Little Black Dress."

Evie has grown up in the shadow of her dynamic and beautiful younger sister, Annabelle (also known as Anna). Then Annabelle buys a little black dress from a gypsy and it turns her world, as well as Evie's, upside down. Years later, Evie has a stroke while wearing the dress. Her daughter, Antonia (also known as Toni), leaves her life in the city behind and returns to her hometown to keep watch over Evie and clean up the mess she has created since her father's death. While doing so, Antonia finds out new truths about her mother and the aunt she never met, as well as about herself, all thanks to the help of the little black dress.

After thoroughly enjoying "The Cougar Club" last year (see review), I was eagerly anticipating Ms. McBride's new novel. Not only was I not disappointed, but I liked it as much as her last novel, and perhaps even more! This story was engaging from beginning to end. It was easy to follow, thanks to Ms. McBride's psychic ability to pick up on my desire to have one character in first person and one in third person. I also love when books alternate between present and future stories and this one had a feel similar to "The Violets of March" by Sarah Jio, while also being original and clever. Like with "The Cougar Club," Toni was about 11 years older than me. However, she was still easy to relate to from any age. (Seeing that Evie was 11 years younger than me for most of the story, it worked in that direction, as well.) There was the suspension of disbelief factor in this novel, but I love how believable she made everything feel. There was a sense of eeriness from what the dress was able to do that even sent tingles up my spine! The dialogue was realistic and flowed nicely and the descriptions made me feel like I was in the same room as the characters in both time periods.

The main concern I had was about subject matter. It seems like a lot of books these days discuss fertility issues and this was no exception. I would put that warning label on the story for those readers who are sensitive about this topic. The story also had a level of predictability, but since it was about a dress showing women their future, it was bound to happen that way. I like what she does with the predictable factors and she still manages to toss in some surprises along the way. I also liked seeing how she got from the point of the visualization to the point of it coming true. There are two things I would have liked her to include in this novel: Anna's perspective and more of the history behind the dress itself. I would have enjoyed seeing what happened to Anna after she had her visualization and joining her on her adventures instead of hearing about them later on (and not in much detail). Also, once the dress was in the sisters' possession and working its magic, there weren't any answers as to why it possessed such unusual powers (fortunetelling not being the only perk). They had received a warning about it before buying it, but not much history behind such a warning. (There may have been one example, but it was fleeting.)

Overall, this was a wonderful story and I've been recommending it to everyone I know. I will continue to recommend it, as it is beautifully told and suspenseful at times. It has elements of a fairy tale, as well as of romantic fiction; enough to appeal to anyone who wants a truly entertaining story with a "comfort food" feel.

Thanks to Susan McBride for giving me an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

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