Girl's Girl

Finished March 25

Girl's Girl by Sonia Feldman.

This coming of age novel follows fifteen-year-old Mina over the summer as she navigates first love and friendship complications. It's a debut novel, and I quite enjoyed it. 

Mina has two best friends. Her first friend was Margaret, whose parents have recently divorced and who often spends time with her slightly older cousin. As the book begins, she is sharing her first sexual encounter with the friends. 

Eleanor is the other friend. She moved to the community later, but the three friends are a cohesive group. 

Mina's mother is an involved parent, and she asks that Mina let her know where she is and who she is with, and Mina is a rule follower. She feels close enough to her mother to confide in her. Mina has suddenly realized that she feels differently about Eleanor than about Margaret. She finds herself attracted to Eleanor, but isn't sure that the feeling is mutual, and doesn't know what to do about it. 

As it is the summer, the girls are spending a lot of time together, including having sleepovers. When Mina breaks one of the rules her mother set and confesses, she is grounded and worries that this will affect her place in the friendship.

This book brings to life so many things that happen around this age. In terms of sexuality there is curiosity, trepidation, and exploration. There are also feelings around so many things that are changing. For her friend Margaret, the divorce of her parents means another change that is having an influence on their situation, one that is outside of their age-related changes. They have more independence, but that independence isn't complete. This story felt very real to me, 

Love at 350°

Finished September 21 

Love at 350° by Lisa Peers

This lesbian romance revolves around a competitive baking television show. The two central characters are one of the competitors and a judge on the show. The food definitely takes prominence here, with the romance always on the edge. 

Tori Moore is a high school chemistry teacher who has, along with another teacher at her school, taught a class combining chemistry and baking that considers the scientific aspects of baking while teaching the kids kitchen skills too. It actually sounds like a pretty cool course and reminds me of the recent novel Lessons in Chemistry. She is fairly recently divorced from her wife, after he wife left her to "pursue her dreams." She has twins who are in the senior year of high school and who worry about her being on her own after they leave for college. They have entered her in the competition to be on the reality television show Bake-O-Rama without her knowledge. When she finds that she's made it to the level of being asked to tryout for the show, she doesn't hesitate long. 

Kendra Campbell is one of the two hosts on the show, and definitely the more critical one, with her ruthless critiques driving some previous contestants to tears. She owns a chain of upscale cookie outlets, and a high-end restaurant. Her agent (who is also her brother) has encouraged her to soften her approach as a way to make the show's producers more likely to keep her on as a judge. 

When Tori makes it to the final selection of contestants who will appear on the upcoming season's shows, she is both excited and nervous. Her friends and children all are encouraging and supportive. 

Both women notice a spark between them, but their contracts stipulate no fraternization for a year after the show airs, which means that they can't act on those nascent feelings without jeopardize Tori's spot in the competition, or Kendra's job. They do manage to find some ways to let each other know there is interest and hope for a future. While this limited the romantic aspect of the book, I found it realistic. The women are mature, and able to consider the pros and cons of reacting to their feelings on a more immediate basis. 

I learned a lot about different kinds of baking, and there is a recipe included at the end of the book. 

The characters are appealing and vulnerable and I really was captured by the book. Some of the other contestants in the contest were interesting as well and had a little depth that grew through the plot. 

A definite winner. 

Patricia Wants to Cuddle

Finished May 24

Patricia Wants to Cuddle by Samantha Allen

This totally captivating novel is set on one of the San Juan islands in Washington state. A reality television show called The Catch, similar to The Bachelor, is planning to film their penultimate episode on the island. Otter Island is a smaller island, with a mountain at its heart. With a lot of forest, hiking trails, and sheep farmers, we also learn that the island has had some tragedies in the past where people disappeared. The island also has a reputation for being a refuge for lesbians.

The last four women in the running on The Catch are a mixed group: a black human resources professional, a car show model, a Christian influencer, and a fashion vlogger. 

The story moves between these four, the show's producer, Casey, a chat group dedicated to the show and blog posts from the past. The cover gives us a hint to part of the plot that doesn't get brought out into the open until much later in the novel. 

The women's voices show their inner thoughts, and we see how they differ, or not, from their outer personas. As they travel to the island, we get a glimpse into their motivations, what brought them to this point in their lives and what they hope for. We also see how they interact with each other and the man at the center of this season's story, Jeremy, a sleazy tech entrepreneur. 

On the island, we see little of the natives except the woman who owns the B&B where the four women contestants are staying.  

There is a sly humour underlying the whole story, from the reality television premise, to the island and its secrets. 

This was a fast read, that kept me totally engaged with the story.