The Weekenders by Mary Kay Andrews - Guest Review

The Weekenders by Mary Kay Andrews
Published May 2016 by St. Martin's Press
Source: this copy courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Publisher's Summary:
Some people stay all summer long on the idyllic island of Belle Isle, North Carolina. Others come only for the weekends-and the mix between the regulars and “the weekenders” can sometimes make the sparks fly. Riley Griggs has a season of good times with friends and family ahead of her on Belle Isle when things take an unexpected turn. While waiting for her husband to arrive on the ferry one Friday afternoon, Riley is confronted by a process server who thrusts papers into her hand. And her husband is nowhere to be found.

So she turns to her island friends for help and support, but it turns out that each of them has their own secrets, and the clock is ticking as the mystery deepens...in a murderous way. Cocktail parties aside, Riley must find a way to investigate the secrets of Belle Island, the husband she might not really know, and the summer that could change everything.

My Sister's Thoughts: 
There are certain books that I see and know that my sister will want to read them. If the author is Mary Kay Andrews, for example. So when I was offered this one for review, I knew she would be the one reading and reviewing it. Just like she did in 2014 when she read and reviewed Andrews' Save The Date.

Here's what she had to say about The Weekenders:

My sister knows my love for novels set in a beach environment. When she shared Mary Kay Andrews most recent book with me and asked me to review, I chose not to read anything about it. I wanted to open the book and try to be pulled into the story.

Ms. Andrews did not disappoint me. She once again has developed characters whom I was drawn to and whom I felt became very familiar to me. Through her descriptions she makes it feel as if I am living on Belle Isle for the summer.

The story immediately took an unexpected turn and drew me in. The story is about a marriage that was falling apart, a teenage daughter who wants to believe her father is perfect, friendship, family, rekindled love, deception, and loyalty. It was, while perhaps a stretch, and great example of the secrets all families have.

The character I most identified with was Parrish, the lifelong friend of the story's main character Riley. She steps in to help her friend through a terrible time in her life and in doing so becomes her confidant, voice of reason, and, at times, accomplice.

My only disappointment is one that I have had with other novels by this author. She slowly develops the story, and then, it feels to me, abruptly ends it.

If you share my love of beach novels I think you will enjoy this book.

Thanks, sis - see you next year!

The Woman Upstairs by Claire Messed

The Woman Upstairs by Claire Messed
Published April 2013 by Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
Source: hardcover and audiobook purchased at the library book sale
Narrator: Cassandra Campbell

Publisher's Summary:
Nora Eldridge, a thirty-seven-year-old elementary school teacher in Cambridge, Massachusetts, who long ago abandoned her ambition to be a successful artist, has become the "woman upstairs," a reliable friend and tidy neighbor always on the fringe of others' achievements. Then into her classroom walks Reza Shahid, a child who enchants as if from a fairy tale. He and his parents—dashing Skandar, a Lebanese scholar and professor at the École Normale Supérleure; and Sirena, an effortlessly glamorous Italian artist—have come to Boston for Skandar to take up a fellowship at Harvard. When Reza is attacked by schoolyard bullies who call him a "terrorist," Nora is drawn into the complex world of the Shahid family: she finds herself falling in love with them, separately and together. Nora's happiness explodes her boundaries, until Sirena's careless ambition leads to a shattering betrayal. Told with urgency, intimacy, and piercing emotion, this story of obsession and artistic fulfillment explores the thrill—and the devastating cost—of giving in to one's passions.


My Thoughts:
You'll notice I have two copies of this book. No, I did not do that on purpose with thoughts of doing a read/listen combination. In fact, I never cracked the book. Partly because I didn't even remember that I had the print copy of the book until I was almost half way through the book. But more so because I never got out of my car thinking that I just had to keep reading. Which says something, I suppose, about how I felt about this book. Except, it doesn't.

Nora is one hella angry woman.

"How angry am I? You don't want to know. Nobody wants to know about that

I'm a good girl, I'm a nice girl, I'm a straight-A, strait-laced, good daughter, good career girl, and I never stole anybody's boyfriend and I never ran out on a girlfriend, and I put up with my parents' shit and my brother's shit, and I'm not a girl anyhow, I'm over forty fucking years old, and I'm good at my job and I'm great with kids and I held my mother's hand when she died, after four years of holding her hand while she was dying, and I speak to my father every day on the telephone -- every day, mind you, and what kind of weather do you have on your side of the river, because here it's pretty gray and a bit muggy too? It was supposed to say "Great Artist" on my tombstone, but if I died right now it would say "such a good teacher/daughter/friend" instead; and what I really want to shout, and want in big letters on that grave, too, is FUCK YOU ALL."

Like I said, filled with rage. Unlike a lot of people, Claire knew what she wanted to have when she grew up, knew she would be an artist and a mother.  Her mother, who pleaded with her at one point in her youth "Don't ever get yourself stuck like this," became Claire's lodestar. But that very piece of advice also pushed Claire to make some safe choices, choices that would mean she would not have to rely on a man. And life, as life so often does, got in the way. Instead of having a family and being a world-reknowned artist, Claire is alone and only works as an artist in the spare bedroom of her home.

Nora is an unlikable character, but she's not unknowable. How many of us had dreams that never came true? And Nora, to an extent, understands why her dreams haven't come true. She knows the fault is largely her own.

“I always thought I'd get farther. I'd like to blame the world for what I've failed to do, but the failure - the failure that sometimes washes over me as anger, makes me so angry I could spit - is all mine, in the end. What made my obstacles insurmountable, what consigned me to mediocrity, is me, just me. I thought for so long, forever, that I was strong enough -- or I misunderstood what strength was.”

When the Shahids come into her life, Nora falls in love with each of them separately, for the very piece of her dreams that each of them represent. Reza, the child she never had; Skandar, the intelligent man who is interested in her opinions; Sirena, who has the big artist's life that Nora so wanted. Interesting enough. But about that time, I started to get confused about where Messed was going with the book. Was she going to make this a book about what happens when someone becomes as obsessed as Nora had become. To be honest, I got a little bit bored, too. I got it, I got it - Nora's world was tiny, Sirena's world was bigger and getting bigger all of the time.

When it became obvious where Messud was going with the story, it picked back up again and the last third of the book picked back up again for me and the ending felt perfect. Back to an angry Nora. This time deservedly so. This time with an goal. I liked that.

Happy Fourth of July, U.S.A.!

For all that the members of the Continental Congress of 1776 looked alike (and they were, of course, all white and all men), they did not enter that assemblage at all united in their beliefs about what was best for the lands they served. There were valid arguments to be had on both sides and repercussions to be considered from countries beyond just Great  Britain. No doubt voices were raised, fists were waved, threats to walk out were made. But, in the end, the delegates to that Congress, through discussion, consideration of what their constituents wanted, and compromise, voted to band together to break away from Great Britain.

Compromise is a word we seem to have forgotten in politics these days. Civil debate has all but gone by the wayside. Disrespectful actions by those we've elected to represent us abound. When we look back 240 years this Fourth of July, we'd be wise to consider the lessons of the members of the Continental Congress who, despite their differences, voted that this group of colonies should unite. I would love to see us all remember that word on this day. We are, after all, the United States of America.

Life: It Goes On - July 3

When we first moved into this house twenty years ago, we were on the edge of town. Reasonable to expect that there might be some wildlife nearby but with no mature trees and very little other landscaping, we hardly had birds let alone raccoons.

Yesterday I looked out my window to see an opossum making it's way along the back fence line. While my cats were out in the backyard. Freaked the f out. Luckily, my cats were smart enough to stay back and were easily herded into the house. Less than an hour later, I looked out to see a mama opossum making her way, loaded down with babies, making her way back across my lawn. They are such ugly creatures and we really don't want a family of them living in our yard. But, I must say, there was something pretty cute about those babies clinging to their mama's back. I ran to get my phone to get a pic but by the time I got it, she had disappeared. Hopefully never to be seen again.

This Week I'm:

Listening To: I finished Claire Messud's The Woman Upstairs (review Tuesday) on Thursday and decided not to start my next audio book until Tuesday. Listened to NPR on my drives the rest of the week and remembered how much I prefer to get my news from them.

Watching: U.S. Olympic Swim Trials every night and some of the track Olympic qualifying races as well. So love the swimming and it was fun to see a couple of "old" guys make the team in the 50 meters race but also see so many new faces on the team.

Reading:  I'll finish Graham Swift's Mothering Sunday tomorrow; really liking it a lot. Also reading Eleanor Brown's latest The Light of Paris. I'm early into that one yet, no opinion yet on it. It's from Netgalley so I need to get it read before it archives but...I'm really hankering for some nonfiction.

Making: Still summer foods. Yesterday I did slow cook a pork roast for pulled pork sandwiches tomorrow and today I'll make dessert for tomorrow. On the fence about what that will be. Homemade ice cream and red velvet cake are traditions but strawberry shortcake is sounding so good. Which would you do?

Planning: A trip to Milwaukee the end of the month. So excited to get up there and see where Miss S is living (and where Mini-me will be living in a couple of months). We'll take in a Brewer's baseball game, spend time on the lake, explore their neighborhood and enjoy German Fest which will be going on the weekend we're there.

Thinking About: Spending the day reading. It won't happen but it's a nice idea!

Enjoying: Evenings with friends.

Feeling: Better today - yesterday was a day long headache that would not be defeated by ibuprofen or naps. Ugh - I hate days like that.

Looking forward to: Having family and friends over tomorrow to celebrate the Fourth. We'll keep it low-key but Mini-me and his grandpa have a lot of fun blowing "sh*# up together every year.

Question of the week: Do you have fun Fourth of July plans?

Lit: Uniquely Portable Magic - Reading Habits

I recently saw  a comment on Twitter about someone's reading habits. We often comment about our habits (eating habits, sleeping habits) but I began to wonder what the phrase "reading habits" even means.

Merriam Webster defines "habit" as:

A usual way of behaving: something that a person does often in a regular and repeated way

I'm a reader. I read a lot by most people's standards, at least a book a week (although I pale in comparison to a lot of my blogging friends!). But I'd be hard pressed to tell you what my reading habits are.

I generally read while I eat breakfast...except on weekends or when there's something especially interesting on the morning news, or when one of my family comes down for breakfast early and we're talking.

I usually read over my lunch hour...except on my half day or if I need to run an errand and not always on the weekends.

I nearly always read for a while when I crawl into bed. But that could mean anywhere from a few minutes to an hour or more depending on how tired I am, how late it is, or how compelling the book I'm reading is.

None of those things really feel like habits when I look at them more closely.

Maybe I'm overthinking this. If you're a person who only reads a couple of books a year, these almost certainly feel like reading habits. Still, I tend to think of the act of brushing my teeth as a habit, something I always do and always at a particular time and place. 

I definitely don't read like that. I don't read the same kind of "books" all of the time any more: audio, Nook, iPad, and physical books all play a part in my reading. I don't even read regularly in the same place. 

So, I'm a reader. Who, apparently, has no reading habits. I guess that truly does make me a free-range reader. What about you? Do you have any reading habits?