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ClareR (5874 KP) rated We All Want Impossible Things in Books

Feb 17, 2023

We All Want Impossible Things

Catherine Newman | 2022 | Contemporary, Fiction & Poetry

10.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

What a wonderful book this is! I started reading with trepidation, but as I read, I realised that this isn’t just a book about dying, it’s about the living right up until you die. It’s a book about life - and about having a good death. It’s incredibly moving, I wouldn’t say it’s depressing or morose at all, in fact I would say that it’s life affirming.

Edi and Ash have been best friends since childhood. When Edi is diagnosed with terminal cancer, Ash offers to take her home to where she lives, so that her young son doesn’t have to watch her final weeks.

The hospice that Edi stays in is full of interesting characters: from the patient who plays Fiddler on the Roof at full glorious volume, to the doctor who reminds Ash of one of the Sopranos, and a musician who can play any song you request.

This is a book of laughter and sadness, of letting go and moving on. Ash is a wonderful friend with a rather messy, frankly hilarious, sex life. Ash and Eli’s relationship is truly special.

We All Want Impossible Things is a touching novel that had me laughing and crying in equal measure, as well as bringing back memories of my own experiences.

This book really is worth reading. Utterly beautiful.

Kudos

PIPKAT (4 KP) rated Manhunting in Books

Mar 4, 2022

POV: Dual.
Descriptive Sex: Yes.
OW/OM: No.
Separation: Yes. <spoiler>6 weeks</spoiler>
★★★★ ½

It's been a while since I've laughed out loud while reading. Crusie always delivers an interesting, kind of quirky story, so I expected nothing less here. However, [b:Manhunting|33737|Manhunting|Jennifer Crusie|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1392156095l/33737._SX50_.jpg|726931] has become a favorite of mine purely because of the wit. Gosh, the wit. Sometimes you can tell when an author is trying too hard for "banter". The conversations are just too stilted and forced. But that is not a problem here. All of the characters here are sharp and entertaining, the exchanges just flowed with ease.

The biggest issue, which I've seen mentioned already, are the POV changes. If you've read any of Crusie's work you'd know that POV changes aren't marked or indicated, they just happen. It's usually not an issue because they were easy to figure out, but I felt the POV changes here were... odd. Sometimes misplaced, often short and switching back and forth within just one paragraph. Obviously, it didn't interfere with my entertainment, but I felt it should be mentioned for others who might be bothered by it.

Kudos

Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) created a post

Jul 7, 2022

Author Thomas H. McNeely visits my blog to discuss what it means to lose where we live in an emotional yet touching guest post. Read up on his coming of age/short stories fiction book PICTURES OF THE SHARK while you're there. Be sure to enter the giveaway for a chance to win an editorial critique of an excerpt from an unpublished short story or novel and/or an autographed copy of Pictures of the Shark.

https://alltheupsandowns.blogspot.com/2022/07/book-blog-tour-and-giveaway-pictures-of.html

**BOOK SYNOPSIS**
A sudden snowfall in Houston reveals family secrets. A trip to Universal Studios to snap a picture of the shark from Jaws becomes a battle of wills between father and son. A midnight séance and the ghost of Janis Joplin conjure the mysteries of sex. A young boy’s pilgrimage to see Elvis Presley becomes a moment of transformation. A young woman discovers the responsibilities of talent and freedom.

Pictures of the Shark, by Houston native and Dobie Paisano award-winning author Thomas H. McNeely, traces a young man's coming of age and falling apart. From the rough and tumble of Houston's early seventies East End to the post-punk Texas bohemia of late eighties Austin, this novel in stories examines what happens when childhood trauma haunts adult lives.

Kudos Comment

Nightcrawling

Leila Mottley

10.0 (1 Ratings) Rate It

Book

When there is no choice, all you have left to do is walk. Kiara Johnson does not know what it is...

Trigger warning: sexual assault Trigger warning: rape Trigger warning: underage sex

Sloth (Seven Princes of Sin #3)

S.N. Hunt

10.0 (1 Ratings) Rate It

Book

Love is the purest of all emotions. It's sacred... Torn away from everything she has ever known,...

Dark Contemporary Fantasy Erotica Romance TRIGGER WARNINGS: Profanity

ClareR (5874 KP) rated Bored Gay Werewolf in Books

Jun 19, 2023

Bored Gay Werewolf

Tony Santorella | 2023 | Contemporary, Fiction & Poetry, Horror, Humor & Comedy, LGBTQ+

8.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

There’s not a huge amount left to the imagination in this book. It does exactly what the title says: Brian is bored, he’s gay and he’s a werewolf. However, he is a werewolf who is out of control during the full moon - as the dead joggers will attest to - and out of control as a man the rest of the time (too much alcohol, a lot of casual sex, not taking care of himself).

Enter Tyler. He’s also a werewolf, and he wants to create a pack for the 21st century, along with a website and an app. He’s not the nicest of characters, unlike Brian’s work colleagues who are both lovely!

It’s a great cast of characters, and a rather amusing tale on modern life, with toxic masculinity, capitalism and the culture of Wellness - along with some of the most disgusting sounding smoothies and fitness regimes - front and centre.

If there’s another book coming up in a series, I’d love to know if Brian is still in his dead end job, drinking too much, or whether he has decided to take up the job offer at the end of the book.

This book made me laugh out loud on more than one occasion - and this is surely as good a reason as any to want more!!