The Soul’s Echo

December 29, 2021March 30, 2025 / Brienna / Leave a comment

The Soul’s Echo by Jill Creech Bauer is a collection of 13 short stories Stories about memories, living, and what it means to have a soul. Like the collection’s title, the stories seem to be echos of each other, with similar or repeated themes. Overall, the concepts and ideas of the stories are above average to excellent; however, the execution is lacking.

Some of the stories are very simple and easy to read. Others are more complicated with many characters and shifting points of view. In short fiction, this makes it very hard for the reader to follow the story. Combined with the fact that some of the sequential stories in the collection seemed to be variations on a theme, it was sometimes confusing. There are two in particular, “The forgetting garden” and “Physocepahla Memoriae” which I found to be difficult when placed together in this way.

The author also uses the name Rainbow in many places; within a single story to a purposeful, well-executed effect. However, when it pops up in another story later, it’s unclear if the reader is supposed to draw a connection to the earlier uses or not.

Of all 13 stories, I enjoyed “the blue healers”, “shangri-la”, and “the soul’s echo” the most.

I received a free copy of The Soul’s Echo from Book Sirens in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

November 26, 2021March 30, 2025 / Brienna / Leave a comment

This is another superb book I’ve read recently. It’s not often that I read so many books that I absolutely love, so I’m feeling very fortunate in this regard.

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz is a modern coming-of-age story, centered around Mexican-American teenagers Aristotle and Dante. Our two main characters struggle with identity, fitting in, and learning the hard truths about life. On the surface, Ari and Dante couldn’t be more different; yet as these two lonely boys form a connection, they realize they have more in common than expected.

It’s always so hard to know how much of the plot I should discuss in my reviews; I hate giving away spoilers. Instead, let me talk about themes, hopefully without ruining any of the surprises of the plot. This novel is about love, kindness, anger, honesty, communication, self-acceptance, and so much more.

I had the pleasure of listening to this through Audible. As I may have said before, a good narrator can make or break an audiobook for me, and this is no exception. With Lin Manuel Miranda narrating, the story has a tender, heartbreaking quality to it.

With over 50 Audible books in my library waiting to be read/listened to, it will be a while before I can make time to listen to the second book in the series. However, it’s definitely on my list for next year! I look forward to following along with Ari and Dante as they mature into young men.

Under the Whispering Door

November 8, 2021March 30, 2025 / Brienna / Leave a comment

I have been extremely fortunate to read some fantastic books lately. Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune is one of them. Although, once again, this is another book that is really hard to describe without giving away too much.

When our main character, Wallace, finds himself at his own funeral, he is quite confused. Enter Mei, the reaper. Her job is to escort him to the tea house to meet Hugo, the ferryman. Seems a bit bizarre, doesn’t it? Don’t worry; it’s worth it.

Despite being a novel about death, and what (may) happen after, the heart of this novel is about living. Wallace learns lessons in death about what he missed during his life and who he wants to be going forward. It’s a story of loss, love, courage, and finding yourself.

I found this to be a compelling read; it’s heartwarming, touching, and fantastical. If you don’t mind a bit of whimsy and supernatural in your books, I highly recommend this one.

After reading this and Klune’s earlier book The House in the Cerulean Sea, I’m wondering what he has against “management”. In both novels, management is depicted in a very negative light, almost as caricatures of a stereotypical bad manager/boss. It’s comical, but a little overdone. This is perhaps the only negative I have to say about either book.

Such a Pretty Smile

October 21, 2021March 30, 2025 / Brienna / Leave a comment

Such a Pretty Smile by Kristi DeMeester, is a novel about being female in a man’s world. Caroline has a fiancé who is jealous and threatened by her artistic talent. Her shrink is patronizing and uncaring. As she tries to raise her teenage daughter alone, her sanity is jeopardized by the return of a serial killer who kidnaps young girls.

I was enjoying this book, in the beginning. The main characters, Caroline and her daughter Lila, were interesting and complex.

I felt it touched on mental illness in a compassionate, understanding way. And then, in the end, it ruined everything by claiming, in a very rushed, deus ex machina way, “oh this was never about mental illness, it’s always been something supernatural that we are shoving in here with little explanation and look it’s all tied up with a bow, the end.”

If you don’t think that will bother you, then this is highly recommended. Otherwise, skip it!

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley.com in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.