Today’s Steals and Deals at AAR…..
Cecelia is an excellent heroine, and I loved how sensible and down-to-earth she is. Cecelia is incredibly aware of her value and doesn’t let anyone treat her poorly. She refuses to take guff from James, which really shows us her backbone, and asserts herself well throughout the book. The only place she has difficulty with that is in her relationship with her father and aunt, but by the end of the story she comes to a better place with that as well. James is great too; his transformation from dandy about town to a man coming to terms with his new responsibilities is excellent. And that happens realistically, following an epiphany about his place in society and how others see him. James also slowly comes to grips with changes in himself and what he wants, which is compelling and feels honest. I loved the secondary characters, who all do a good bit of heavy-lifting in terms of moving the plot along. The family members are distinct and often eccentric, the villain is eminently hateable, and the protagonists’ friends feel well-fleshed out. For a book with a lot of characters, this story does a great job differentiating between them.
It’s on sale for 1.99 here.
We gave this recent contemp a B+.
This very fun story is a slow burn romance featuring the beloved tropes of grumpy meets sunshine, fake engagements, and a small town guy/big city girl. It’s set in gorgeous Nova Scotia–the scenery is beautiful! It took me a little bit to get hooked into the book but once I did, I couldn’t put it down.
It’s on sale for 1.99 here.
This book is one of my personal favorites.
Ms. Egan prose immerses you in Phoebe, in her thoughts and her emotions. Phoebe travels the places her sister did in the months before her death and the each locale is vividly described, tinctured by Phoebe’s slow understanding of who she is. Halfway through the book, in Munich, Phoebe finds her sister’s old boyfriend, Wolf. The Invisible Circus isn’t a love story, but Phoebe’s and Wolf’s relationship is mesmerizing to read.
Readers who expect the modern storytelling Ms. Egan utilized to great effect in The Keep and in Welcome to the Goon Squad will not find that here. Phoebe tells (though the book is not a first person narrative) her story straightforwardly. The Invisible Circus is an elegant novel about love and loss. It remains one of my favorite books.
It’s on sale for 1.99 here.
Worth the Fall was a sweet sexy romance and it worked well on audio. It sounds like a lot, to take on a woman and her five children, but Matt never batted an eyelash about it and the way it was presented in the book, it felt as natural as breathing. I thought the premise might be a bit difficult to pull off successfully and I found the ending a little drawn out but I was pretty much charmed by this one.
It’s on sale for 1.99 here.