The Look of Love

The Look of Love by Sarah Jio

Publisher: Plume

Genre: Chick Lit

Pages: 286

Rating: 4/5

Publication Date: November 24, 2014

Summary:

            Jane Williams was born with a mysterious and rare gift; she is able to see love. She always had vision problems but shrugged it off as a medical condition. On her 29^th birthday, she receives a greeting card that tells her she must identify the six types of love before she turns 30 or else she may not be able to experience love. This romantic novel focuses on Jane’s one-year journey to find six couples that exhibit the six types of love.

Pros:

·       The book immediately sucks you in with a romantic prologue that leaves you wanting to know more.

·       Switching the focus between so many people in Jane’s life and their romantic joys and failures kept the plot moving briskly.

·       The novel has a unique plot, the gift of seeing love.

·       Teaches the reader about the six types of love.

Cons:

·       There were a few overused tropes that left me rolling my eyes. 

·       Some of the characters seemed to flat; had the plot not shifted focus as often, the reader could have developed a better connection to them.

Final Thoughts:

            The haunting losses and joys the characters experience will stay with the reader for a while. It will definitely cause a book hangover! It was a great, quick read with some memorable quotes.

“Love does not die. It lives.”

Disclaimer: I received an ARC in a Goodreads.com giveaway. This does not affect my review.  All We Have Left by Wendy Mills Published by: Bloomsbury Genres: YA Fiction Pages: 365 Rating: 5/5 Summary: This story jumps between two girls' points of view, in two different time periods. Presently, sixteen-year-old Jesse is a high school student who had lost her brother in the September 11th attacks. She starts to hang out with the wrong crowd in high-school causing her to face the past and reveal more details of her brother's death. The second viewpoint is from sixteen-year-old Alia in 2001; she is a Muslim girl who finds herself trapped inside the Twin Towers as they are attacked. The story beautifully illustrates how both girls' lives are related. Pros:  The two viewpoints work together wonderfully to illustrate one life that will impact another.  Great character development; I experienced happiness and sadness with the characters. Allows the reader to see both the fearful, prejudiced people and the wrongfully feared Muslims.  Cons: I wish it had been longer! This is the first book in a while that I could not find fault with. Last Thoughts: This novel seems to be geared towards young adults, who, like me, may not fully remember the events of September 11th. This story did a great job of reminding me of how so many people's lives changed that day and continue to be affected today.

Say Nice Things About Detroit by Scott Lasser

Published by: W. W. Norton & Company

Genres: Fiction

Pages: 267

Rating: 2/5

Summary: David Halpert moves back to Detroit after his marriage failed and his young son passed away. He is visiting his parents in Detroit at first but decides to move there permanently after his dad asks for help dealing with David’s aging mother. Shortly after returning, he reads that his childhood sweetheart, Natalie, and her brother Dirk, an FBI agent, were murdered. This murder draws Natalie’s sister Carolyn back from L.A. to Detroit. This book follows how David and Carolyn’s lives intertwine as they come back home to Detroit.

Pros:

-        The murder of Natalie and Dirk provide an interesting way to set up the return of David and Carolyn.

-        The book focuses on why someone would want to return to Detroit. I generally enjoy books that are focused on the love of a city.

-        A few bits of suspense.

Cons:

-        The story jumped between years and characters. While this was needed to an extent to tell the story, it could have been done in a less confusing way. It took me a while to fully understand the characters because of this.

-        Overall, the plot was very slow moving. Towards the end there were a few pages that had some action, but not enough to keep me interested.

Final Thoughts: An interesting book if you want a slow-paced story about a middle-class white man and rich, white woman moving back to the rough parts of Detroit after living elsewhere for a few decades.