Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood

Love on the brain is silly at times but if you're looking for a light, fun read, it will do. The main character, Bee Königswasser, is a neuroscientist who also seems to be a space case. That term is appropriate, I suppose, since she is assigned to co-lead a NASA project with Levi Ward, an engineer. Levi is someone she believes hated her when they knew each other in college. She is always getting into situations requiring help from Levi and regrets each time he saves her.

"Lust" on the brain would be a more accurate title for the book since the story is about two people who find each other very attractive but have a difficult time communicating. The book has some graphic sex scenes but lacks the small things that lead to love. Still, the mishaps the characters get into are fun.

Normal People by Sally Rooney

Calling this book Normal People is like calling Picasso's Guernica a painting about people not getting along. Sally Rooney follows the relationship between Connell and Marianne, two young people living in Ireland who are attracted to each other but can't seem to commit. There are issues, Connell's mother is single and makes her living cleaning homes, one of which is Marianne's and Connell's mother is a kind and loving parent while Marianne's parents are not. But the main issue is their lack of ability to communicate. They are both constantly hiding their feelings and misinterpreting what the other says.

Although their relationship is too extreme for what I would call normal, I loved Rooney's writing and the depth of the character study. This is a book worth reading.

Horse by Geraldine Brooks

Geraldine Brooks' novel, Horse, is an amazing work. I felt the emotions of all the characters in both the 19th century and modern sections. The topics the novel covers include art, horse racing, Osteology (the scientific study of bones), and racism in both antebellum America and current times.

In her afterward, Brooks mentions how she started to write the book about Lexington, the greatest stud horse in American history, but soon found she could not ignore the racism in the horse breeding and racing industries before emancipation. Many of the greatest horse trainers of the time were enslaved people. I knew indoor slaves were treated better than those in the fields but I had never thought of the treatment of slaves who had skills in high demand. Those people were respected at the tracks and sometimes put in positions of authority at the breeding farms but they were still owned and still had to navigate in a world where they were considered little more than livestock.

Although, I did find some of the interpretations of modern-day racism as seen through the eyes of Jess, one of the main characters, seemed simplistic, overall, Horse is a great read!

Let Me Die by Virginia Babcock

The best Sci-Fi novels are based on fascinating ideas. Let Me Die certainly fits that criteria. The novel's “what if” question is: What if a scientist figured out how to digitize a person's entire being, not only his memories but also his emotions and his capacity to create new emotions? Virginia Babcock's book has been compared to Mary Shelley's Frankenstein but this novel is more about relationships than the creation of a monster, especially the role of sex in relationships.

Nicoleta, the story's main character, experiences a relationship where sex is impossible, then moves on to other relationships where sex is tied to everything from love to sacrifice to rape. I could envision this book opening the door to some important questions in a book club. There are, however, some fairly graphic scenes. The book-club members should be aware of that before taking it on.

The title doesn't seem to fit the way the book plays out. It's as if the author chose a working title then, as novels often do, the story took off in an unexpected direction. However that happened, I'm glad it did. Let Me Die is better for its unexpected turns.

The Geomancer's Apprentice by Yin Leong

If you are a horror fan, The Geomancer's Apprentice is a perfect read for you. It's a well-written novel that includes graphic fight scenes against a horrible shape-shifting creature called a Yaoguai. Yet the book also has well-developed characters in relationships that are thoroughly explored. There's a middle-aged man who always thought he didn't live up to his father's expectations and a young romance that's beginning to take shape.

The book covered subjects I wasn't familiar with in an interesting way. These are feng shui and geomancy. I had heard of feng shui (a system of laws considered to govern spatial arrangement and orientation in relation to the flow of energy) but I did not know the related term geomancy (the art of placing or arranging buildings or other sites auspiciously). It was fun to learn a little about these topics.

The story begins when a young woman, Junie, approaches her uncle. His profession is to bless houses and offer advice about furniture arrangement and color choices. Junie's mother has convinced him to hire Junie, provisionally. Once Junie discovers what the job entails, she finds it interesting, researches the subject, and comes to her uncle with some basic knowledge. As time goes on they find she is a good fit to work with him.

Then they get a job at a house with more problems than they expected. Millie, the woman who owns the house, has had a frightening experience with something in her cellar, something she cannot explain. What happens after that is an adventure worth reading.

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.