The Cat Who Saved the Library

Finished May 25

The Cat Who Saved the Library by Sosuke Natsukawa, translated by Louise Heal Kawai

This thoughtful novel follows thirteen-year-old Nanami Kosaki, a girl who loves to read. Her mother died when Nanami was young and she and her father live a quiet life. She suffers from asthma, which means that physical activity is often tiring. She spends a lot of time at the library and lately she's observed that there are some blank spots on the shelves. She knows that books get taken out and returned, but this seems different. One day she sees a strange gray man near a section of books and goes there after he's moved on, only to discover the first ten books of a favourite series gone. After talking with Tiger, a nearby cat, she and Tiger follow the man. The hallway begins to glow and extends into another world, where she finds herself following him to a castle  As they follow past armies of gray blank-faced soldiers, they see evidence of book burning and book theft. When faced with danger, they find an unexpected exit manned by Rintaro that takes them into Rintaro's bookstore, Natsuki Books. 

With mentions of classic titles from east and west, this book offers lots of ideas for future reading. It also takes us into the benefits of reading from learning to empathy and connection. Issues we face now, such as censorship, authoritarianism, lack of respect for learning, and self-interest as a guiding force for those in power all come into the story in a thoughtful and meaningful war. 

The Same Backward as Forward

Finished May 25

The Same Backward as Forward by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

I picked this up in a bookstore because it is one of those novels that tells the story from two points of view, flipping the book to read the second viewpoint. It sounded intriguing and I only later realized it is the sixth book in a series. However, it appears that the actions here are before most of the other books in the series, and so it is sort of a prequel. Because I picked it off a display, I also didn't realize that it was a young adult novel, and given that the two main characters are in their late twenties / early thirties, I think that classification may be from the series and not this specific title. 

Hannah Rooney is a young woman whose mother runs a local criminal empire. Hannah moved out of her home as soon as she could and is studying to be a nurse. She interacts with her family as little as possible, with the exception of her younger sister Kaylie, a wild child, who she tries to protect and keep an eye on. Along the coast where they live is a private island, Hawthorne Island, owned by a wealthy family. As Hannah's story begins, she has stopped in at a local bar to see Kaylie and notices three obviously well-off young men who seem also wild as well as arrogant. That night there is a fire on the island with no apparent survivors, and Hannah is distraught when she finds out Kaylie was out there. 

When local recluse fisherman Jackson comes to Hannah for help, she is surprised to find that there was a survivor, one of the young men she'd seen the night before. He is in bad shape, with burns and injuries. It soon becomes apparent that he also has no memory of what happened or who he is. As Hannah works to save him, partly as a punishment for the death of her sister, she and Jackson must also work in secret, hiding him from both her family and his own. 

They dub him Harry.

Harry's story is the one I read second, and it continues in time past Hannah's. It is also a story of trauma, and one can see what the two have in common. There are many secrets in both families as well as ruthless individuals. Harry loves puzzles of all kinds, wordgames, codes, and games. As he and Hannah engage in these with each other, they come to know each other better than anyone else does, and this gives them both strength and vulnerability. 

The puzzles and games were interesting and seem to a theme of the series overall. This book went in a direction I didn't expect it to,

Crafting for Sinners

Finished May 24

Crafting for Sinners by Jenny Kiefer

When I heard about this book, I knew I had to read it. Set in small town Kentucky, around a woman, Ruth, who grew up there, it develops into a crazy horror novel with outrageous humour. 

Ruth was engaged to her high school boyfriend until her best friend Abigail asked her what she really wanted in her future and she was forced to look inward. She realized that she was bisexual and decided to be honest with her fiancé about it, but his reaction was less understanding than she expected and they broke up. 

Recently a new megachurch arrived in their town and built not only a church but also a craft store with a religious bent. Given that I work part-time at a craft store, this intrigued me. When management at the store realized that Ruth and Abigail were actually in a relationship, they fired her and Ruth was upset at their bigotry that ignored her ability to do a good job. She'd noticed that they seemed unbothered about shoplifting and she began taking rather than buying for her crafting, the way she was now earning money. When a deadline on a commissioned blanket is changed last minute, Ruth heads to the store for more balls of yarn. 

Shortly after arriving, she realizes that there aren't any other shoppers in the store, and even the usual employees at the front don't seem to be around. As she goes about her task, she finds herself being followed, and accused, and when she accidently injures the man accusing her, she panics. As she moves to the front of the store, she finds herself locked in, and the store is uncompliant with basic safety such as emergency exits. 

As Ruth's knowledge of the store layout benefits her, her diabetes causes her health to become precarious, and she must take drastic action to save herself from what she gradually learns is a more dangerous situation than she could ever have imagined. 

Working with some current issues such as growing traditionalist religious attitude in the U.S., anti-LGBTQIA attitudes, the difficulty of believing what some people are truly capable of, and the health care situation of the U.S., this novel combines humour, horror, and social judgement in a crazy way. It is around half-way through the novel that things begin to get violent. 

The Flatshare

Finished May 22

The Flatshare by Beth O'Leary

This is the first novel in a series that is also called The Flatshare. The female main character, Tiffy Moore, has been staying at her ex-boyfriend's apartment even after their breakup, but a recent encounter has convinced her that it is time to make a clean break, including paying him the rent money she owes. With her debt situation, she can't afford much, so she enters into an unusual situation.

Leon, a hospice nurse has financial obligations we only gradually learn the details of, and things are tight for him. Because he works nights, he comes up with the idea of renting his apartment, including his bed for all except for 9-6 on weekdays. He plans to spend his weekends at his girlfriend Kay's place. 

When his work requires him to stay late on the day he is scheduled to meet Tiffy to see if they feel comfortable to move forward with the shared space agreement, Kay goes in his place and gives her approval.

The two develop a routine where they leave sticky notes for each other asking questions and giving answers as well as letting each other know things. Sometimes there are a lot of notes around until one of them does a clearout of them. Through these notes they begin to get to know each other, learning each other's stories, and getting a sense of who their flatmate is. 

Leon is a person who really cares about people, from his family to his patients, and we see him go beyond what is expected when he thinks it makes a difference. We begin to see the bigger picture, as we learn about their romantic and family relationships, their friendships, and the way they approach life and community. The characters have depth and the plotlines are interesting and move the story forward nicely. A very enjoyable read. 

The Everlasting

Finished May 21

The Everlasting by Alix E. Harrow

This fantasy book tells an interesting story. In the country of Dominion, Sir Una Everlasting is the greatest historical hero, a young woman who took revenge on those who killed her own father after drawing a sword from the trunk of a tree. She was then recruited by a queen for whom she fought many battles, overcoming other threatening nations, and killing all the remaining dragons in the world. 

Owen Mallory is a boy who grew up in Dominion, playing in the woods and reading. He joined the military inspired by Sir Una Everlasting and came home a hero, but changed. He became an historian and when a fabled book about her last quest came into his hands he finds himself transported to her time and a motivating factor in the quest. 

Owen falls in love with Una, not the hero of tales, but the actual woman. She is a physically dominant woman and he is a scholarly man, and the gender roles blur here. Every time their story seems to end, Owen finds himself brought back to the same place in Una's life for a redo, asked to make the story better, the ending more climactic, the legend more legendary. 

But the woman behind this is one without empathy, without thought for the people. The people of Dominion, the people of the other nations Dominion wars with, the ordinary people whose lives are changed for the worse. Una and Owen begin to have memories of their stories and find themselves wanting to own their own stories and not be merely actors in the drama. 

This story speaks to the mindset of colonialism, the lack of empathy for others, and other dramas playing out in our world as well. A thoughtful story that caused me as a reader to pause and consider. 

Can't Help Faking in Love

Finished May 18

Can't Help Faking in Love by Swati Hegde

This contemporary romance novel takes us to India. Harsha Godbole is the child of wealthy parents and niece to a major Bollywood producer, but she never felt close emotionally with her parents. After getting her degree in the United States, Harsha decided to settle in Bangalore rather than her parents' city of Mumbai, and make a living as a photographer. She also decided to leave her trust account untouched and only live off what she made. She goes to Sunstag Café every day for a special drink and to do some work. Her apartment is small and not a place she wants to spend more time in than necessary. She did have a boyfriend from a similar wealthy background, but he has recently dumped her to marry someone his parents chose. There are a couple of family events coming up that she will attend: her aunt and uncle's 25th anniversary party and her cousin Nela's wedding. When she meets Nela and her fiancé by chance one night, she spontaneously introduces Veer Kannan as her boyfriend. Veer is actually a barista as Sunstag who she has a friendly relationship with.

Veer has helped support his family all his life after his father walked out when he was a child. He did go to acting school and worked in Mumbai for a while, even getting a job on a pilot show, but it wasn't picked up. Now he is working to help his mom and his younger brother Arjun. Arjun was accepted into a good business school, but they have cancelled his scholarship without warning and Veer is trying to figure out a way to come up with the tuition money in just a few days. 

So when Harsha asks him to pose as her boyfriend through the next few weeks, offering to pay him, the amount he asks for matches the tuition need. Harsha must use her trust money to pay him, but thinks it is worth it. They agree on a plan of payments and begins spending time together to get to know each other and feel comfortable interacting with each other.

As they grow closer and get to know each other, they also begin to learn more about each other's lives and feelings and the chemistry between them has time to work on them. They learn each other's vulnerabilities and find themselves becoming champions for each other in ways that feel real.

I liked the way the culture was shown without being focused on in a purposeful way. We learn about food, about social worlds, and about their family dynamics. 

Seeing Red

Finished May 14

Seeing Red by Dana Dratch

This is the second book in the A Red Herring Mystery series set around journalist Alex Vlodnachek in New York City. Alex works freelance and she has a new contract covering the leave for one of the city's most read advice columnists. Her new neighbour Ian Sterling who runs a B&B seems to be interested in her on a personal level, and her brother Nick, currently living with her is getting his new bakery business on its feet. When Nick's bakery business is shut down because the kitchen in the house they share doesn't meet commercial standards, she encourages him to approach Ian about using the kitchen at the B&B, and Ian is more than accommodating. 

But then Ian's father goes missing, and Alex wakes up one morning to find a baby in a carseat on her kitchen table. She and Nick don't know who would have broken into their home to do this, but decide to wait and see before involving the authorities. They shop for baby needs and try to keep up with his care, and even come up with a temporary name for him, JB (short for James Bond). But their other responsibilities are still there, and so Nick gets Baba, their grandmother, to come and help with JB. With the advice columnist now camped out on Alex's couch, they have a houseful, and Lucy the dog is involved with all of it. 

As Alex tries to help Ian find out what is happening with his missing father, other people go missing and bodies start appearing in Ian's basement chest freezer. 

I love the crazy antics, the humour, and the moxie of Alex. This was just as good as the first book, and I'm glad I found this fun mystery series.