The Comeback by Lily Chu

 

The Comeback is Ariadne Hui's story. She is a young, Canadian woman who lives and works in Toronto. She starts dating her roommate's cousin and grows quite attached to him before discovering he's a pop star—actually a K-pop idol. This novel could be seen as two books in one, with the first half about Ariadne before she learns Jihoon's full story and the second about her dealing with the crazy fans of a famous person.

I don't know much about K-pop so I found this book fascinating. It delves into the problems for the musicians in those groups, not only the crazy fans but also the corporate control and the lack of respect from other musicians.

I enjoyed the multiple relationship problems that occurred throughout the story. Hannah (who is Ariadne's roommate) and Hannah's mother have some issues. Ariadne has issues with her sister, Phoebe, and both Phoebe and Ariadne have issues with their father. Throw those together with the problems of dating somebody famous and you've got a lot to work through.

When the book starts, Ariadne is a successful lawyer who wants to make partner in her firm but has to deal with racism and nepotism. It's fun to see how she handles her career while in a difficult relationship.

The Comeback is an audible only book, free to subscribers of audible.com. It's well worth picking up a copy.

At the end of Beach Read, Emily Henry wrote a section she called “Reader's Guide: Behind the Book.” In it, she said if she's describing this book to someone who is not a writer she says it's about “a disillusioned romance author and a literary fiction writer who make a deal to swap genres for the summer.” She then says if she's talking to a writer she says it's a book “about writer's block.” I didn't find the writer's block discussions and the pressure from her agent to be particularly interesting. However, the concept of the difficulties with writing the two different genres was fascinating. I believe it is the best part of this book.

The basic storyline of Beach Read is that a woman, January Andrews, who just lost her father discovers that he had a second life with a mistress with whom he shared a house on Lake Michigan. January's father has left the house to her. She goes to this beach house to find a place where she can concentrate on her writing. She is being pressured by her agent to produce a book over the summer and she is having trouble getting started.

January did not know about her father's affair but learns that her mother knew everything. Every time she asks her mother about the affair her mother says, “I don't want to talk about it.” So January is shocked and confused by her father's death, his affair, the way her mother allowed their life to go on without any changes, and how she has now inherited a place she didn't even know existed. Combine all this with the fact that January ends up living next door to Augustus Everett, someone she knew in college, which is, of course, a setup for romance.

The book is a fun read as the two writers get to know each other and rehash their feelings about misunderstandings they had years ago. It's also a serious book about dealing with tragedy and with disappointment in people you love.

What a Wonderful World This Could Be by Lee Zacharias

What a Wonderful World This Could Be is a fascinating character study of a woman coming of age in the early sixties. Alex was a loser in the lottery that determines our parents. She was the illegitimate daughter of a father who committed suicide and a mother who seemed to believe parents owe their children food, clothing, shelter, and little else.

Alex becomes a young woman searching for guidance in a world where she'd always been alone. Instead of making her own choices, she follows whatever paths her life throws her way. She becomes a photographer because the first man in her life was a photographer. The second love of her life is a leader in the political counterculture, supporting civil rights and opposing the Vietnam War. She follows him into a collective where she lives with members of the Weathermen branch of SDS (Students for a Democratic Society). The Weathermen (named after a line in a Bob Dylan song: “You don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows,”) was a branch of SDS who believed in using violence to achieve their goals.

Alex is a brilliant choice for the main character. She is the perfect foil for a study of the people drawn to The Weathermen. She is also concerned about traditional values such as love, family, and kids at a time when society is moving on from the repressive fifties. This novel is not just an exploration of the politics of the time. It touches on multiple aspects of that time. 

 

Circle of Darkness is a beautifully written story set during the 1930s at an upscale Louisiana Inn, located near the site where the Norwegian Wood Plantation once existed. The spirits of the people involved in a tragedy at that plantation, decades earlier, have a presence in that area.

Sonja Shivera is a twenty-four-year-old woman who supports herself as a paid companion to a mean-spirited elderly woman. They don't like each other but Sonja needs the job and the woman, Althea Stone, needs someone to help her with daily tasks such as dressing. They are staying at the Moorcroft Inn where Althea enjoys playing cards and talking with her friends. Meanwhile, Sonja meets some people closer to her age. Among those are two men she finds interesting, Freddie Marsh, who seems to like her, and Hajime Tanaka, a mysterious figure who floats in and out of her presence. There's also a woman named Anya Cambion whom Sonja finds disturbing.

Sonja has unusual qualities. She often drifts off into her thoughts, losing touch with the world around her. Here's a section describing her first conversation with Hajime Tanaka:

My movements as well as my thoughts were burdened by a confusing fogginess. When I glanced toward the other diners, it appeared that a pale, shimmering mist separated our table from theirs. I blinked to dispel it and made an effort to focus on Mr. Tanaka's words.

Circle of Darkness is filled with complex characters and Sonja is certainly one of them. I loved her realistic relationship with her employer and with Freddie. I also loved the slow build of the writing as Sonja discovers her role in the mysterious events occurring around her.