Review: The Karmic Connection

When author Libby Mercer asked me to review her latest book, The Karmic Connection, I immediately said yes. I don't even think I really paid attention to what the book was about, to be honest. Why? Because I read and reviewed Mercer's second novel, Unmasking Maya awhile ago and loved it and knew I would love whatever she came out with next. I was right. Her most recent work is funny and sweet and thoroughly enjoyable.

Here's the synopsis:

What is the universe up to?  

Guilty of nothing more than working too much - or so they say - Adam Stowe is dumped at a "wellness center" in the middle of nowhere by a couple of concerned colleagues. When he meets Lorraine, the beautiful and bewitching yoga instructor, his spirits start to lift, but once he discovers what a flighty fruitcake she is, they drop back down to subterranean levels. 

For Lorraine Jameson, Luna Wellness Center was a beacon of solace when her life was falling apart, and she can't stand the way Adam's toxic energy is poisoning the peace. He embodies everything negative about the life she discarded eighteen months ago. Despite being fiercely attracted to the arrogant man, she's determined not to let Adam Stowe anywhere near her heart.

Adam and Lorraine couldn't be more unsuitable as a potential couple... so why is the universe so dead set on uniting these two?

This book was a quick read for me. I was actually able to finish it in one night (granted, it's more of a novella than a full length novel as it clocks in at 144 pages) while I was sitting on the floor watching my bunny run around like the maniac that she is. Since it was getting pretty late, I was glad to have an engaging and entertaining novel to keep me awake while Tonks got her exercise at her own personal gym (aka my living room). I found myself laughing out loud at numerous scenes, especially when Adam got himself into very New Age-y situations and felt incredibly awkward. I wish I had noted which scenes really entertained me but I was too busy enjoying the story to make notes!

I've found that the two books by Mercer that I've read have had similar couples. Not necessarily in personalities but in the fact that the males are more traditional with office type jobs while the females are more free spirits. This really had no impact on the story, I just found it interesting. This does make for a more entertaining story, I think. The couple seems so incredibly unsuited but there's something there (that Mercer is careful to write about in subtle ways) that makes you realize that they're actually meant to be together. I found myself rooting for Lorraine and Adam and couldn't wait for them to realize that the universe was right and they actually belonged together!

I loved all the secondary characters in this novel. I loved Lorraine and Adam too, in case you were worried. Random fact: I was immediately interested in Lorraine once I saw the book's cover because she and I have very similar hair! :) Celeste, the owner of Luna Wellness Center, seems like an awesome lady. I liked that we were introduced to the other visitors at the Center (argh, I want to type that as "Centre!" My Canadian-ness doesn't like typing it "er" hehe) through Adam's eyes. He assumes they're all hippy dippy types and we are led to assume right along with them. Of course, there's always more to someone than initially meets the eye and Mercer allows each character to show why they're at Luna and what they're struggling with. One of my favourite scenes takes place between Adam and the teenage girl who's at Luna because she thinks she's too fat. It's really sweet and helped Lorraine see that there was more to Adam than she initially thought. What can we learn from this? Don't judge someone until you really get to know them!

Overall, I loved The Karmic Connection. Libby Mercer has written another funny and entertaining novel. It has a great mix of romance and sexiness that is so much fun to read. This is a perfect read for a summer weekend for romance and chick lit lovers alike. I can't wait to see what she writes next!

And just because I can...here's a picture of my nutty bunny (though she's not being very nutty in this picture):

*A copy of this book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.*

Armchair BEA: Wrap Up

Design credit: Sarah of Puss Reboots

Well, another Armchair BEA has come and gone. I find that I'm a little frustrated with myself for my performance in this week's event because I did a lot of posts last minute and didn't even write posts for every discussion (which is because I was doing everything last minute...there are only so many minutes!) Last year I had everything all planned out the weekend before and that left my evenings free to hop around and "meet" new bloggers and comment on other people's posts. That didn't happen this year. I had great intentions, really, I did. Part of the problem with this week is that it falls on the same week as my birthday. Throw in some birthday celebrations the weekend before the event started and being busy the night of my birthday and that really cuts into blogging time. Excuses? Maybe. I like to think that I balanced everything well but the fact that I'm feeling badly about not venturing to many other blogs shows that I wish I had done more.

I was lucky enough to be a winner twice this week from the wonderful crew behind Armchair BEA. I must say that it took me awhile to figure out what I wanted to win and it wasn't really because of volume (though there were a ton of prizes). No, my issue was having to weed out all of the US only prizes. Then I had to weed out all of the YA titles. Then I was left with some options. I admit, it wasn't as bad as it could be but it's still a constant frustration for myself and my fellow Canadian bloggers. I get it when it's an individual blogger making those decisions but when publishers can't send things over the border I get a little annoyed. I also won a prize from one of the giveaways on day...er...whatever day the prize day was (four?) but I have a feeling I may not actually be able to claim it. I always make sure the contest is open internationally before entering because I don't want to annoy anyone by being one of those people who can't read the rules. Checked this one giveaway, liked it, didn't see any rules on location, entered, won, and then received an email asking for my US address. Um. This is a problem. I even double checked the post to make sure I didn't miss it. I haven't heard back from the blogger yet but I'm hoping something can be worked out. *rereads paragraph* Well, that was a bit ranty, wasn't it? Sorry! I just think it's important for people to realize that there are lots of bloggers up here in Canada who can feel alienated sometimes. Just my two cents!

As much fun as I had with this event, it was bittersweet for me this year. I had said last year that if I was still living in the same city I would go to BEA (while I do live in Canada, I'm only about 40 minutes away from the Buffalo airport...it would take me almost twice as long to drive to Toronto). I'm really not that far from NYC. However, I decided to become an intern this year which means no money for fun things, like a super awesome book conference. Oh well. Next year!

I'm hoping I'll be able to find some time over the next couple of nights to visit some other blogs and see what they have to say about things - particularly on keeping things fresh and on blogger development. I have found a couple of new bloggers to follow, which is nice. There's one in particular, Melissa at Confessions of an Avid Reader, that I'm happy to have met because she's also Canadian and a Toronto Blue Jays fan, woot! Hopefully I'll find some new online blogging friends when I visit other blogs.

Overall, this was another successful Armchair BEA even if it wasn't quite as successful as I'd hoped. Life has been good but nutty over the past week so I have to be OK with how I did. Thank you to those of you who stopped by over the week. I appreciate and enjoy all of the comments.

Until next year!

Armchair BEA: Keeping it Real

Design credit: Sarah of Puss Reboots

Ah, keeping things real and fresh. I think that's something a lot of bloggers struggle with on occasion. Or maybe you have a fabulous idea but just no energy to implement it. I frequently hear about bloggers going through slumps either with their reading or reviewing. Let me set the record straight here...I'm no different.

I go through little funks just like everyone else. Earlier this year I did an internship that required me to do a two hour commute...each way. Since part of this was on a train I got a ton of reading done but I was so exhausted when I got home that I couldn't bring myself to turn on my computer and write. I was also doing an online course that cut into my free time too. I'm still trying to figure out how to get myself back into the swing of things but I'm getting there. I just started a new feature to help me read the books that have been sitting on my shelf for over a year. It's called Taking it off...the shelf and the book I read last month had been on my bookshelf for almost four years (and if you're interested you can read the review here.) I've also started doing little bookshelf "tours" because I love inspecting other people's bookshelves and I figure others do too. (My first photo tour can be found here.) I really like the idea of writing things other than reviews but I'm so behind on reviews that I need to get ahead so I can get to some other things. This week has been great for reminding me that I like writing about the book world as much as reviewing the actual books.

I've been watching what other bloggers have been doing and have been trying to get inspired by some of their stuff (and by inspired I mean I like the idea, I mention it came from them, and put my own spin on it...not plagiarising...which was probably discussed earlier this week in the ethics discussion that I didn't end up writing about!) Jamie at The Perpetual Page-Turner has been doing a lot of great stuff lately and it's been a lot of fun to read.

This probably isn't too helpful for other blogger's looking to pick up some tips but it shows you how I'm feeling about blogging at the moment and some thoughts I have to keep things interesting and fun for me. It's all about finding what works and what makes you happy. The minute it stops being fun is when you need to rethink what you're doing. Let me know if you have any fun tips or tricks. I'm open for suggestions! As for right now, I have a bunch of other reviews to go write so I can enjoy the rest of my Saturday! :)

Rereading Sarah Dessen: The Truth About Forever

Hosted by I Eat Words

Welcome to month four of the I Eat Words Sarah Dessen Read/Reread Challenge! Check out this post that explains the details about the awesomeness that is this challenge. This month we read The Truth About Forever. This is the book that gets recommend the most to Dessen newbies and since I didn't remember loooooving it when it first came out I was interested to find out what I thought after the reading it again. Read on to see what my friend Sandy and I thought of this month's reread.

Synopsis:

A long, hot summer...
That's what Macy has to look forward to while her boyfriend, Jason, is away at Brain Camp. Days will be spent at a boring job in the library, evenings will be filled with vocabulary drills for the SATs, and spare time will be passed with her mother, the two of them sharing a silent grief at the traumatic loss of Macy's father.
But sometimes unexpected things can happen—things such as the catering job at Wish, with its fun-loving, chaotic crew. Or her sister's project of renovating the neglected beach house, awakening long-buried memories. Things such as meeting Wes, a boy with a past, a taste for Truth-telling, and an amazing artistic talent, the kind of boy who could turn any girl's world upside down. As Macy ventures out of her shell, she begins to wonder, Is it really better to be safe than sorry?

About the Story

Main  Character: Macy Queen

Age: 17 (I think...she's going to be going into her senior year)

School Year or Summer?: Summer

Boy: Wes

First description of boy: “Now that he was right in front of me, I could see that he was tall and had brown hair that was just a little bit too long. He was also strikingly handsome, with the sort of sculpted cheekbones and angular features that you couldn't help but notice, even if you did have a boyfriend.” (page 23)

Crushable?: Oh, goodness, yes.

Big Secret?:  No.

Heavy Storyline?: Sort of...see below.

Parents Together?: No...we find out early on in the story that her dad died a year and a half ago.

Siblings: One sister, two or three years older.

Takes Place In: Lakeview (with some parts in Colby, the beach town)

Cameos: This one required some Google research. Lorna McPhail, weather girl, is mentioned and I couldn't recall if it was That Summer or Someone Like You that she was from (the movie How to Deal screws me up). Turns out she's from That Summer! Thank you to Sandy for finding that one. Also, Wikipedia tells me that Stella, Kristy and Monica's grandmother, is reading a book by Remy's (This Lullaby) mother. Neat!

About the Book

Released: 2004.

Epigraph?: No.

Format (of the copy I read): Hardcover.

Own?: Yes.

Signed?: No. (I'm now kicking myself for not bringing it to get signed.)

Read or Reread: Reread

Age when first read: 17-ish.

New cover vs older cover: Definitely old. I don't understand the point of that bracelet. Or the flower, come to think of it. The bracelet is just weird to me. I do like those turquoise colours more though.

My Thoughts
How did I not love this one when I first read it? I know I said the other month when I read This Lullaby that I wasn't going to pick favourites but I think this one is winning. No wonder everyone recommends starting with this book. I fell head over heels in love with The Truth About Forever this time around. I don't really know what was different. Perhaps it was because I couldn't understand why it was better to be imperfect when I was 17. After all, Macy was about that age and she was struggling. I guess I identified with her so much that I wasn't able to see the benefits for the changes. Does that make sense? It's hard to remember exactly how I felt almost ten years ago!

In case you couldn't tell from the above, I loved this book. I'm so so so glad that I did a reread of this (which seems to be a common theme in my reread reviews, yes?) because I think I understood it a bit better. I think part of what makes this such a popular book to recommend to Dessen newbies is that it includes all of the things that make Dessen's books so amazing - an incredibly real teenage girl, summer, some serious life changes, and a sweet but amazing and funny guy. I also find that siblings (especially sisters) play into her novels quite a bit and they're almost always older and were a bit wilder when they were the age of the main character.

I mentioned the realness of the character and that's probably my favourite thing about Dessen's books. Macy is perfectly imperfect and that's what she needs to learn to accept. What I love about the guys in Dessen's novels (for the most part, anyway...I think in her later novels she allows the romance to end happily more than she did initially, like in, say, Someone Like You) is that they see the best in the girls. They also seem more mature and able to guide the girl into a better life. The two I'm thinking of in particular are Wes in Truth and Dexter in This Lullaby (and I think there's this kind of aspect in Lock and Key but I can't really remember). That seems a little...I'm not sure how to describe it...controlling? That's not the way it is though. They're more like...positive wake up calls. And are usually incredibly swoonworthy. I need a Wes. I mean...I love my boyfriend *waves* :)

Overall, this book is a winner. If you STILL haven't read a Sarah Dessen book (and I'm constantly amazed at how many YA fans out there haven't read her books), you need to run, not walk, to your bookstore and buy this one. And then go back and start with That Summer and work your way up to the one being released on Tuesday. Not a YA fan? Read it anyway. Trust me. This quote alone should be enough to make you want to read it. It's perfection on a page.

Sandy's Thoughts

This is the perfect Sarah Dessen book! The Truth About Forever is full of well-defined and remarkable characters; even the mean girls are interesting. The writing itself, as per usual, is on point with unexpected twists that just appear and are not shoved in the readers face. Some teen novels can talk down to their intended audience and that gets frustrating for the reader and discourages them from reading. Sarah Dessen never does that! Her ability to write from a realistic perspective is why I continue to read her books long into my twenties. She always writes about real life situations and dramas that have real life resolutions by the end of the novel.

In Truth, Macy is stuck between two paths and at first she tries to follow both. But as in life, at some point those paths fork and she has to choose between being “perfect” and being her real self. Macy has to pick between snarky librarians and the life that she built around her boyfriend or chaotic caterers and a new guy with friends that accept her. She is unhappy from the moment her boyfriend leaves and she is forced into a job she has no passion for. When her path intersects with Wish Catering and she learns the stories of its employees her choice is made for her.

She finds kindred spirits amongst Delia, Wes and Kristy. They fill the silence left behind by Jason. From the moment these characters appeared in the novel I loved them. Kristy and Monica (even with her monotone) give Macy more confidence than Jason ever could. Wes is the pinnacle of a literary guy you want to date or even just meet, be his friend, buy a sculpture, anything. Deep down all of us girls pray that this boy exists and Sarah Dessen knows how to write them, so thank you very much to her! She gives us hope. Within a few pages I immediately hated Jason and loved Wes, she writes her characters that vividly. His best line is, and I quote, “ I like flaws they make things interesting.” (page 192) Followed closely by, “ I’m not into appearances.” Sawoon, indeed!

There is a sad undertone to this novel. The death of Macy’s father sends a wrecking ball through her life and the life of her mother and sister. The sudden death of a loved one has a way of doing that. This book is very good at showing all the different ways people grieve. Grief is an innate and natural instinct, just as an individuals reaction to that grief is. Some people hide and deny that anything is different (Macy’s Mom), some choose to plan and focus to control what is left (Macy), some openly grieve and feel free to move on mindful of what they have lost, (Macy’s sister Caroline), some rebel and then step up when they are ready (Wes), and others try to keep the memory alive (Delia). I found it very interesting that each character that had suffered a loss dealt with it in their own way but they did all have to deal with it in the end. I loved this novel and would recommend it to anyone who has lost a loved one. Sarah Dessen breaks down grief and makes it clear that everyone goes through it but with help you can come out the other side.

Macy learns a valuable lesson. The truth about forever. That truth is simple. Forever could end at any time so treat every second like it could last forever. The potential of forever is vast for all of us, how we spend our forever is what defines us.

Next Month:

We're reading Dessen's upcoming book The Moon and More. I CANNOT WAIT!!! This will also be the only "read" for this read/reread challenge!

Armchair BEA: Non-Fiction

Design credit: Sarah of Puss Reboots

When I’m looking for a book to read I don’t normally reach for non-fiction. In fact, I could probably count on one hand the number of non-fiction books I’ve read in the last couple of years. OK, I just created a non-fiction shelf for Goodreads and it appears I have read eight non-fiction books in the past two years. Because there are so few titles I thought I’d list them for you! (Links lead to my reviews.)

Under the Tuscan Sun – Frances Mayes

Bitter is the New Black – Jen Lancaster

The Book of Awesome – Neil Pasricha

The Tall Book: A Celebration of Life from on High – Arianne Cohen

All Roads Lead to Austen: A Yearlong Journey with Jane – Amy Elizabeth Smith

Happier at Home: Kiss More, Jump More, Abandon a Project,Read Samuel Johnson, and My Other Experiments in the Practice of Everyday Life – Gretchen Rubin

Mick Jagger – Philip Norman

The End of Your Life Book Club – Will Schwalbe

They’re all pretty similar, right? Some travel, memoirs, biographies with a couple research type books thrown in there too. Obviously I don’t really stray from what I like when it comes to non-fiction. Which, I suppose I sort of knew when it comes to wandering bookstores. I’ll always look in the same few sections.

One of the reasons I don’t read a lot of non-fiction is because I’m really slow at reading them. This is odd and frustrating because I’m such a fast fiction reader. About half of the above books took me forever to read, even though I liked the majority of them. The ones that I gobbled up were The Tall Book, Happier at Home, and The End of Your Life Book Club. (The Book of Awesome is one of those books that I read a few pages at a time over a few months but it could easily be read in an afternoon.) I loved The Tall Book because it was interesting and relatable to me (I’m 6’ tall!) and was full of interesting stats and research. I love the way Rubin writes and combines her research with personal experience and have thoroughly enjoyed both her Happiness Project books. The End of Your Life Book Club was such a moving story and I highly recommend it to everyone.

What I discovered with Mick Jagger was that I’d rather read memoirs than biographies. It also didn’t help that I didn’t like the way Norman wrote or that Jagger didn’t have anything to do with the book. Sure, memoirs may not be super objective but I didn’t feel like this particular bio was objective either (Norman thought the sun rose and set with Mick, I think).

So those are my thoughts on non-fiction! I know I was very specific in titles but I think it does show what kind of books I like when it comes to non-fiction. What about you? Do you read any non-fiction? What are some of your favourite titles?

Armchair BEA: Literary Fiction

Design credit: Sarah of Puss Reboots

When I’m searching for books to read, I don’t normally turn to literary fiction. The silly thing is that I do enjoy the odd literary novel. I just don’t give enough of them a chance. As I mentioned yesterday, I love chick lit and women’s fiction so those are the books I turn to because I know I’ll enjoy them. I want to focus on one particular part of literary fiction: Canadian fiction. (In case you didn’t know, I live in Ontario.)

Confession: I never used to read much Canadian fiction. Why? In part it’s because I like my chick lit and there aren’t many Canadian chick lit authors out there. Happily, since I’ve started blogging and reading self published works, I’ve come across more chick lit authors (Heather Wardell, Kathleen Kole, and Samantha Stroh Bailey are just a few amazing Canadian chick lit authors).

Another reason is that I had a stereotype in my head that I’m sure is shared by many others: that Canadian fiction is boring. I had kind of bad experiences in English classes in high school and read two really uninteresting Canadian novels (Shhhh…don’t tell anyone but one was a Margaret Atwood novel!)

Now, you’re probably wondering what I’m getting at with this post. I’m here to tell you that I was wrong about Canadian fiction. I will also say that I would not have come to this conclusion had it not been for my current internship. Right now I’m working for a non-profit called ProjectBookmark Canada and this is what they’re all about:

Project Bookmark Canada is a national, charitable organization that places text from stories and poems in the exact, physical locations where literary scenes are set. We’ve established 12 Bookmarks (poster-sized ceramic plaques bearing up to 500 words of text) since 2009, with installations in Ontario, Newfoundland and British Columbia.
Our vision is a network of hundreds of Bookmarks around the country, so that Canadians and visitors can read their way across Canada. Our mandate is to establish a permanent and prominent presence for literature set in Canada—enhancing Canada’s reputation as a nation of storytellers; expanding the readership for fiction and poetry set in Canada; and encouraging residents and visitors to see our literary landscapes, adding to local and national tourism.

Pretty cool, eh? (I figured I may as well play up the whole Canadian thing.) Part of my job right now is to read up on Canadian books – specifically ones set in Calgary, Alberta. I’ve also read two of the books that have already been Bookmarked – one in Ottawa and one in my small hometown. Even though some of them have confused the hell out of me, a lot of them have been really enjoyable. I’m so glad that I’ve gotten the chance to be exposed to so many great Canadian reads and authors through this internship. And, hey, if you’re feeling particularly charitable and think Project Bookmark Canada is a good cause, we’d love donations. (If I can’t use my blog for good, what’s the point? Hehe) I’ll even make things easy…all you have to do is click right HERE to be taken to the donation page. 

Because we all love book recommendations, I’m going to give you a little list of books that I’ve read recently for Bookmark. I realized after I'd posted this that I definitely listed a couple of books than aren't technically literary fiction. Silly me. I've left them in because I think they're good reads!

The Bone Cage – Angie Abdou. Do you love the Olympics and sports? Read this one. It’s about a swimmer and a wrestler who are off to the Sydney Olympic Games. (Amazon.com, Amazon.ca)

Swallow – Theanna Bischoff. Darcy has to deal with the aftereffects of her younger sister’s suicide. It’s not what you’d call a light and fun read but it’s a really good story. (Amazon.com, Amazon.ca)

The Enchantment Emporium – Tanya Huff. This book is for the fantasy fans. Alysha inherits a junk shop from her grandmother but there’s a whole lot more going on than meets the eye. (Amazon.com, Amazon.ca)

The Space Between Us – Jessica Martinez. YA fans, this one’s for you! Amelia is always covering for her younger sister Charley. Those antics go a little too far and the girls are forced to move from sunny Florida to wintery Banff, Alberta. (Amazon.com, Amazon.ca)

The Queen of Unforgetting – Sylvia Maultash Warsh. This is the one that’s set in my hometown and was really great. I had no idea how it was going to end and I loved the little history lessons throughout (the main character is researching a Jesuit priest who tried to convert the natives in the area.) (Amazon.ca)

Of course, I’m also a huge fan of Anne of Green Gables and I’ve loved all of Catherine McKenzie’s novels. I also cannot wait to read The Painted Girls by Cathy Marie Buchanan and Studio Saint-Ex by Ania Szado – two books that have been on my shelf for far too long.

What are your thoughts on literary fiction? How about Canadian fiction? Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to go check on my igloo and pet moose and have some maple syrup :)

Armchair BEA: Genre Fiction

Design credit: Sarah of Puss Reboots

Because of birthday celebrations over the weekend and last night, I'm only just now finding the time to write about the second topic for today - genre fiction. These are the books that the snooty English majors wouldn't be caught dead reading, you know, romance, sci fi, fantasy, horror. All that good stuff. (Please note: I know not all English majors are snooty. I know several and they're lovely people with interesting reading tastes. So please don't hate me.) I don't read any of those genres but I do love one that is constantly being ridiculed: chick lit.

I love chick lit and I'm one who doesn't mind calling it that. True chick lit lovers know there's more to the genre than bubblegum pink covers adorned with shoes and cupcakes. Personally, I'm glad the covers are all so bright and distinctive as it's immensely helpful when sifting through books at a used book sale! (True story. Recently I snapped up a copy of I Heart New York because the pink stood out against the books.) Back to what the books are all about...when I think of chick lit, I think of funny, feisty, and occasionally flighty, heroines. They could be in their twenties or their forties. They could be single or married. They could have kids or they could stress about even looking after a plant. They're your every day woman and could easily be your friend (Let's not get into the whole "likeable" debate right now, k?). A romance is usually present, that's true, but it's not really the main point of the book. There could be a career issue, family drama, or backstabbing best friend. Or all of the above. The story is usually light but that doesn't make it mindless.

I've written about chick lit before, on a few occasions, so I don't really want to repeat myself. A year ago I wrote a post about the genre in honour of International Chick Lit Month, which is just wrapping up. The post, which you can read here, talks about why I read the genre and why I don't make excuses for liking it. A week or so later I wrote about the "queens of chick lit" - the authors who immediately come to mind when talking about this genre. For a recent Top Ten Tuesday post, we listed ten books we turn to when in need of light reading. Seven of the ten authors I chose are chick lit authors.

You can see many authors in the links I listed about but I'll give you a quick list here: Emily Giffin, Sophie Kinsella, Jennifer Weiner, Cecelia Ahern, Carole Matthews, Beth Kendrick, Heather Wardell, and Talli Roland.

What genres do you like to read? Do you ever find yourself defending your choices or judging genre readers?