The Wake-Up Call by Beth O'Leary

Amy       
Lynnie    

romance

Last year, Izzy put her heart on her sleeve and Lucas rejected her. Since they work together at a crumbling estate hotel, Izzy has been getting back at him by making his work life difficult. But when their enduring mutual attraction becomes unavoidable, they agree to have a strictly physical relationship founded on a set of rules. Izzy figures she can get Lucas out of her system and then she will be over him and can move on.

Amy's Review

This was a very fun romance with an extremely satisfying conclusion after a long, slow burn. Of course, you know the couple will end up together from the very beginning. But this story, overall, felt more authentic than many other romances I’ve read. I mean, there was a contrived-feeling aspect which bugged me but the overarching concept of why they were at each other’s throats and how their relationship evolved during the book was great.

What felt contrived? I am not intimately familiar with the hospitality industry practices but I’m a frequent hotel guest. I simply cannot believe there would have been SO much Lost Property (aka Lost and Found in USA lingo) and especially so many lost rings floundering unclaimed at the hotel. Surely, anyone who lost a special ring would have circled back with the hotel to ask whether it had been found. But I went with it to enjoy this story. 

I was also bummed that the title for this story, The Wake-Up Call, wasn't as perfect as the titles for all of Beth O'Leary's other novels. However, I can see that this storyline didn't inspire an obvious title as I try to think of better alternatives. I wouldn't have minded The Hotel Colleagues. But I'll admit The Wake-Up Call sounds more fun than my idea and has a more subtle meaning as well. So, I guess I've talked myself into not being so bummed about it. :) This title just stands out from O'Leary's other novel titles for not being so descriptive of the overall concept. I have enjoyed all of her cute romances, no matter the titles.

I really liked the way the audiobook production made phone conversations sound tinny (although, they did miss one line of dialogue that should’ve been “tinned up”). However, these narrators weren’t my favorites. Jessie Cave voiced Izzy's sections and Lino Facioli voiced Lucas.  Cave did a great job with the voice acting but she did not have a strong vocal repertoire so I was confused about which character was speaking sometimes. She made no attempt to voice Lucas with a Brazilian accent and only attempted to speak with a Brazilian accent when voicing a few Portuguese words.  Sadly, you could tell she had to re-record a couple of those Portuguese attempts after the initial recording. Tsk tsk. Facioli had a better vocal repertoire and Portuguese accent (and I see he was born in Brazil!) but he was extremely difficult to understand as Lucas.  Interestingly, when he voiced other characters with British accents, I could understand every word perfectly. But, as Lucas, he did not enunciate very well and, in combination with the low voice he used, I had to replay his sections for comprehension too frequently which was extremely frustrating! They get a B-.

 

Lynnie's Review

So look, if you have read one book by Beth O'Leary, you have read them all. And you know what? I don't care! I loved every predictable minute of her adorably infuriating characters.

Once again, O'Leary has created a fun rom-com setting with lovely characters, a silly misunderstanding that could be easily solved if the characters would have a conversation, and then just allows the tension to build like Augustus Gloop stuck in the chocolate room's pipe.

There are no mysteries, surprises, twists, or turns. It's not even a "will they or won't they", but more of a "when will they?" So when Izzy and Lucas finally sort themselves out is really is quite satisfying for everyone involved- including the reader.

I listened to the audiobook and Jessie Cave, who narrated Izzy's chapters, and Lino Facioli, who narrated Lucas' chapters, were lovely. It took a few chapters for me to get into Facioli's voice, but once I did, I actually think he had a better range of voices than Cave. I was impressed several times as he switched back and forth between his Brazilian accent, and British and American accents, and even an amusing impression of Cave's Izzy.

Like any book I've read by O'Leary, this would be a wonderful vacation book or just when you need a book that will make you smile. 

At the Coffee Shop of Curiosities by Heather Webber

Amy    
Lynnie 

magical realism

Ava receives a mysterious job posting in the mail and decides she needs a change. So she drives from Ohio to Alabama to apply for the job as a caretaker of a “peculiar” elderly man and his “she-devil” cat at his beach house. Ava believes her dead ex-boyfriend might have somehow sent the opportunity her way.  When she arrives, she feels immediately comfortable with the town and the residents, including the family who hires her. All agree that there has been some sort of unexplainable assistance in causing Ava to appear, but they go with it because it works for everyone and because the people in the town of Driftwood are used to odd, unexplainable things happening.

Amy's Review

Estrelle reminded me so much of Evanelle, a terrific character from Sarah Addison Allen’s Garden Spells (my favorite SAA novel which I read before we started our blog). Their names are similar which is the main reason I connected the two characters from different authors. I wonder if Heather Webber was influenced by SAA here.  All the characters in Driftwood are loveable and quirky which makes the town seem special. As Ava grows to love the community, she also develops fans and friends within the town. The big mystery for the reader is to find out who sent the want ad to Ava in the first place but other mysterious and hopeful storylines pop up too.

This novel follows the same pattern as Webber’s other novels.  In fact, all of her novels have basically the same characters with different names and quirks. The books are so similar, in fact, that I had decided not to read any more of Webber’s novels. But, the title At the Coffee Shop of Curiosities piqued my interest so I read it anyway. And, yes, it reminded me of her other novels I’ve read. There was nothing particularly new here. But I did enjoy the magical realism in this one quite a bit as well as the characters and their resolutions.

As with Webber’s other novels, the audiobook narrators are Hallie Ricardo and Stephanie Willis. They did a terrific job as always. They both have a vocal repertoire and are terrific voice actors.  They even had to pull an English accent out this time and did alright with it.  I’ll give them an A as an ensemble.

Lynnie's Review

This is the second book I've read by Heather Webber and while I enjoyed it quite a bit, there were a few times where I actually looked up the previous book I read (Midnight at the Blackbird Cafe) to verify that some of the characters and locations were not, in fact, the same. Cute coffee shop/cafe, check. Missing mother, check. Family drama, check. Meddling townspeople, check, check, check. Meet-cute romance you can see coming from a mile away, check.

I don't want to say that Webber wrote the same book, but also ... it is kind of the same book in a slightly different setting with slightly different characters who could easily fit into each other's books and stories and I'm not sure a reader would notice the difference. Does that make it less enjoyable? Ultimately, no- unless, I suppose you are reading all of Webber's books in short order and then I think it would be dull. But with a year of distance, another sweet magical story was exactly what I needed to dive into fall.

Just like Midnight at the Blackbird Cafe, I was enchanted by the characters in At the Coffee Shop of Curiosities. They were eccentric, interesting, and wonderfully charming and I found it impossible not to cheer for them and anticipate the happy endings I knew Webber would deliver. I would have been sorely disappointed if Ava, Maggie, and the rest of the folks in Driftwood, Alabama hadn't found their way to happiness.

Webber's books are a wonderful break when you need a book that is guaranteed to bring a smile to your face. These days, there is something to be said for that.

   

None of This Is True by Lisa Jewell

Amy  

mystery, psychological thriller

None of This is True is a twisty psychological drama by Lisa Jewell.  When Josie encounters a woman, Alix, celebrating her birthday at the same restaurant in which Josie is celebrating her own birthday, they discover that they were actually born on exactly the same day in the same year at the same hospital.  Josie cyber-stalks Alix to discover that she’s a well-respected podcaster. Josie decides she wants to tell her story and make some life changes and Alix agrees to make a podcast about it. From then on, as we learn more about both women little by little, it is obvious that these two families have some serious, disturbing issues that are not being addressed sufficiently.

This book was almost un-put-downable. Initially, Josie’s family was so sad and tragic that I was compelled to find out more (as was Alix). But as more was revealed through both women’s actions, their conversations, and snippets of some sort of retrospective analysis taking place at some point in the future, I had to keep turning the page (or, rather, listening to the audiobook) to find out not only what tragedy occurs but the truth about Josie’s situation.

The unreliable characters kept the mysteries interesting. As the title warned the reader that nothing is true, I had my antennae up the entire time trying to figure out the lies from the truths. It was fascinating. The other four books I’ve read by Jewell all involved disappearances and this was no exception. However, the disappearances in this novel did not have the central focus of the story.

Trigger warning that this book covers pedophilia and is very disturbing at times.

The audiobook had ELEVEN narrators! But it was primarily just two narrators, one voicing Alix (Nicola Walker) and one voicing Josie (Louise Brealey).  They did a terrific job with perfect voice acting and nice vocal repertoires.  However, the production itself, with the outside interviews sounding tinny and investigative, and the way they differentiated conversations and witness statements made the whole audiobook a terrific experience. They even had creepy music between sections which, surprisingly, worked well with this book.  I give the entire production an A.  

  

Doomsday Book by Connie Willis

Amy  

science fiction, historical fiction

Doomsday Book is set in the future when time travel is a method of learning about history. As Kivrin is sent back to a small town in England in 1320 against her mentor’s wishes, a virus breaks out, seemingly from the very room from which she was sent.  As her mentor, Professor Dunworthy, worries compulsively about his favorite student, he attempts to work out whether Kivrin arrived as planned and whether she might be suffering from the virus in the past (and spreading it). Meanwhile, Dunworthy is frenzied dealing with real-time quarantines and medical testing for himself and those for whom he is responsible. (There are many).  He can’t get answers or get anything accomplished due to the virus-related closures and quarantines. From Kivrin’s point of view in the 14^th century, she’s fighting illness and worrying about getting home because she cannot locate the jumping back place.

Told from the two different points of view/timeframes, the characters in this novel are all facing serious issues--illness, detachment, and lack of control. Their struggles continue and worsen for the entire duration of the book. And that is the whole plot. 

Connie Willis added a whole bunch of annoying side characters to get in the way of both Dunworthy and Kivrin in their respective situations, but they and their excruciating, meaningless details only served as irritants to this reader.

I know this is a beloved, award-winning novel but I didn’t really appreciate it.  Willis’ writing is so wordy with too much going on, lots of repetition, and every single inner thought of the characters being shared. It was tedious, aggravating, and exhausting. I skimmed a lot during the second half. At least I did come to care about Kivrin after about 1/3 of the novel and wanted to know whether she’d get back home. 

   

Mind the Gap, Dash & Lily by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan

 

Lynnie 

young adult, series

 

I ADORED Dash & Lily's Book of Dares. I hated the second book, The Twelve Days of Dash & Lily so much I didn't even finish it. But I took a risk on Rachel Cohn and David Levithan's latest entry into the Dash and Lily oeuvre, Mind the Gap, Dash & Lily, because I generally enjoy the books they write together and I still have a fondness for those quirky kids from the first book. This book falls solidly between the two previous books in the series. It goes back to quirky characters, but never really recaptures the magic.

This book finds Dash and Lily still in love, but physically apart as Dash attends his dream school in Oxford and Lily takes a gap year to build her dog walking and Instagram business (I wish I was kidding). I still think Lily is constantly infantilized throughout the book and even in the way she's written; it's challenging to remember that she's over 18, which is probably why the character feels the need to remind us all the time that she is old enough to make decisions for herself.

It's clear this book was written in the hopes the the Netflix series would continue and need more material and, as I was reading it, I could see the filming locations and the scenes in my mind. Did Dash and Lily need this extra adventure? Probably not. But I'm glad it was written because I'm happier leaving their story here than I was after the last book.