JESS JUST READS

A BOOK REVIEW BLOG

Here for the Right Reasons by Jodi McAlister

When Cece James agrees to be cast as a ‘Juliet’ on the next season of the hit television show Marry Me, Juliet, it’s certainly not for the right reasons. She’s knee deep in debt and desperate for the associated paycheck. The last thing on her mind is the hunky ‘Romeo’ waiting for her at the end of the gravel driveway.

But Dylan Jayasinghe Mellor isn’t your usual fame-hungry TV star. An Olympic gold medallist with calloused hands, kind eyes and a propensity for panic attacks, it turns out he’s not here for the right reasons either. As spokesperson for a men’s mental health foundation, and the franchise’s first non-white male lead, Dylan’s got a charity to plug and something to prove.

When Cece gets eliminated on the first night, it seems like her and Dylan’s awkward first meeting will be their last conversation. But when the TV set is shut down unexpectedly, Cece and Dylan suddenly get a little more time together than they’d expected.

Will love bloom when the cameras stop rolling?

Heartwarming fiction for the romance fans, Jodi McAlister’s Here For the Right Reasons is commercial women’s fiction taking place on the film set of a Bachelor-style reality program. Our main character, Cece, is desperate for some easy money. But when she’s eliminated on the first night and then the mansion goes into COVID lockdown, she’s forced to come up with an alternate plan to keep her on camera and on the payroll.

Anyone who has watched The Bachelor or The Bachelorette, or even the drama series UnReal, will understand almost immediately the setup of this novel. A large cast of women are searching for love…on television. Cece struggles in front of the camera and so makes quite a fool of herself on the opening night. But she’s tenacious and motivated by money, and so she’s able to find an alternate solution for staying valuable during production.

“The crowds parted in a very dramatic, very unrealistic way (had they rehearsed that while I was in with Murray?), and Lily strutted towards me, a smirk curling her lips.”

This novel has a very commercial hook, drawing readers in almost immediately from the blurb alone. The setting is familiar and so it has a very clear, established readership. Overall, the story is fun, cute and light-hearted. It’s the kind of book you take on holiday or a plane – something you read when you just need something to pick you up, nothing too heavy.

Whilst the ending felt a little predictable, the journey along the way certainly didn’t feel that way. This was an entertaining read, bringing some really colourful and at times outlandish characters to the forefront of the story and building pace with each chapter.

My favourite character was Murray. He appears largely on the periphery, but he toggles being jaded and sceptical, stressed and exhausted. As such, he adds comic value during key moments of the book and holds a steady presence in the book.

“He wasn’t wrong. It was gorgeous. A long lawn stretched out before us, bracketed on either side by rows of tall, dark hedges, straight and green like a fairway on a gold course. Downhill from us, it rolled to the edge of a sparkling lake.”

I did feel like Cece’s character possessed a lack of agency in the story – most of the time, she was simply waiting around for her time with Dylan, and it meant those in-between scenes lulled quite a bit.

Additionally, I do think there was opportunity for some more interactions and bonding between her and the other eliminated girls. We really only got small glimpses of them (usually when they were angry and only discussing Dylan) that felt largely one-dimensional. What were these girls actually like? I genuinely felt that we got very little insight into their personalities.

“Our first friend spot was early the next morning. At the crack of dawn, a couple of the camera crew came in and installed the mounted cameras in the corners of the room. Close behind them was a soundie, who strung up some tiny little mics dangling from long strings attached to the ceiling.”

Fun, readable and full of heart, Jodi McAlister’s Here For the Right Reasons is recommended for romance and women’s fiction readers. Readership skews female, 20+

Thank you to the publisher for sending me a review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Here For The Right Reasons
Jodi McAlister
July 2022
Simon and Schuster Book Publishers

The Family String by Denise Picton

Meet Dorcas, a spirited 12-year-old struggling to contain her irrepressible humour and naughty streak in a family of Christadelphians in 1960s Adelaide. She is her mother’s least favourite child and always at the bottom of the order on the family’s string of beads that she and her younger siblings Ruthy and Caleb reorder according to their mother’s ever-changing moods.

Dorcas, an aspiring vet, dreams of having a dog, or failing that, a guinea pig named Thruppence. Ruthy wants to attend writing school, and Caleb wants to play footy with the local team. But Christadelphians aren’t allowed to be ‘of the world’ and when their older brother Daniel is exiled to door knock and spread the good word in New South Wales after being caught making out with Esther Dangerfield at youth camp, each try their hardest to suppress their dreams for a bigger life. But for a girl like Dorcas, dreams have a habit of surfacing at the most inopportune moments, and as she strives to be the daughter her mother desires, a chain of mishaps lead to a tragedy no one could have foreseen.

Denise Picton’s debut novel The Family String explores 12-year-old Dorcas’ childhood in 1960s Adelaide within a strict religious household. Her family are Christadelphians, a denomination of Christianity that leaves little room for fun, culture or entertainment. Dorcas is an energetic, free-spirited child who struggles within the confines of the family home, is always getting into trouble with her mother, and who doesn’t quite understand why her actions are always being punished.

Because the book is written from Dorcas’ perspective, it allows for a fun and lively perspective. Her voice is insightful and hopeful, and so even when the book takes a dark turn, we feel the heart and soul of the story permeating with each passing chapter. Not every reader will love reading from Dorcas’ perspective, but she is an intelligent and observant character and allows for an entertaining journey.

“To record our views about the order of Mum’s love, Caleb used six wooden beads he got from Mr Driver next door. Caleb nominated the best gold one as Mum and put her bead at the top of a piece of string that was thick enough to hold the beads exactly where he put them on the thread.”

The Family String does well to weave in so many overarching themes in the book without feeling contrived or rigid. A key exploration in the story is the dynamic and complex relationships between mothers and daughters, and the importance of repairing a broken relationship. The Family String also explores depression and how people regarded depression in the 1960s, as well as religion and religious constraint within the family home.

Strengths also lie in the secondary characters – the compassionate Mr Driver was one of my favourites. The community is close-knit and sometimes this causes friction within Dorcas’ family. In a town where everyone knows your business, tensions rise and arguments spark. I’m sure readers from small towns will be able to relate!

“I was still in the bad books for going down to the shop one night after school and buying ten cents’ worth of mixed lollies and putting them on the tick under Mum’s name. Mum was furious when she found out I’d charged them to her account and yelled at Mrs Abrahams in the shop as much as she yelled at me.”

Admittedly, I did feel that the turning point in the novel came a bit too late in the story. A great portion of the novel is setting up the dynamic within the family and the community and so the pacing does start to lull a bit in the middle of the book – I was starting to question the direction of the book, wondering when the climax of the story was going to near. Ultimately, the book explores a fractured relationship between mother and daughter and how they have to reconnect after a family tragedy. But this family tragedy comes quite late in the story, and I would’ve liked more time to be spent in the aftermath of that tragedy rather than the events preceding it.

And whilst I loved Dorcas’ perspective and her wild nature, it doesn’t ever feel like she learns from her mistakes or spends much time reconciling with her actions. I know she’s a child, but some of her actions are deliberately rebellious and there is quite a horrific tragedy at the end of the story, and there doesn’t seem to be much contemplation coming through from Dorcas. She simply misbehaves and then moves on to misbehave again.

“One day, Mrs Johnson had said about the most wonderful thing I had ever heard. She told me that if my mum and dad gave permission, I could have Sixpence as my very own as soon as my dad made a safe enclosure in our garden. I was so excited I ran straight home and nearly knocked Mum over when I hurtled into the kitchen with the news. Her answer was a very firm no.”

Heartfelt fiction about family, responsibility and the impressionable years of our youth, The Family String is recommended for literary readers. Readership skews female, 30+

Thank you to the publisher for mailing me a review copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Family String
Denise Picton
June 2022
Ultimo Press

All the Lovers in the Night by Meiko Kawakami

The acclaimed and bestselling author of Breasts and Eggs and Heaven returns with a blistering, shocking and poetic story set in contemporary Tokyo.

Fuyuko Irie is a freelance proofreader in her thirties. Living alone, and unable to form meaningful relationships, she has little contact with anyone other than Hijiri, someone she works with. When she sees her reflection, she’s confronted with a tired and spiritless woman who has failed to take control of her own life. Her one source of solace: light. Every Christmas Eve, Fuyuko heads out to catch a glimpse of the lights that fill the Tokyo night. But it is a chance encounter with a man named Mitsutsuka that awakens something new in her. And so her life begins to change.

As Fuyuko starts to see the world in a different light, painful memories from her past begin to resurface. Fuyuko needs to be loved, to be heard, and to be seen. But living in a small world of her own making, will she find the strength to bring down the walls that surround her? ALL THE LOVERS IN THE NIGHT is acute and insightful, entertaining and captivating, pulsing and poetic, modern and shocking. It’s another unforgettable novel from Japan’s most exciting writer.

Translated from Japanese by Sam Bett and David Boyd, Mieko Kawakami’s All the Lovers in the Night is a literary novella exploring loneliness, depression, anxiety and the strength of friendship — in this instance, between two unlikely characters.

At just over 200 pages, Mieko Kawakami’s All the Lovers in the Night tackles societal expectations and interpersonal relationships between friends and lovers. The writing is insightful and the translation is expertly accomplished.

“Hijiri puckered her lips and looked at me like she was sorry. Even though it was dark, the ambient lighting defined the contours of her plump, shapely lips, which looked so full of life that they could have hopped off her face and walked around at any moment.”

All the Lovers in the Night examines the role of women in contemporary society, and how they choose to live their lives.

Fuyuko is an isolated recluse, working from home as a freelance proofreader — there are moments in the book where she feels at odds with others around her, particularly women, and how they choose to fill their spare time. We come to realise, over the course of the novel, how lonely Fuyuko really is and how much richer her life becomes once she starts to form stable friendships.

“A few minutes later, the man was still looking at me, which made it hard for me to stay calm. I had no idea where I should look and I was beginning to feel helpless when it hit me…”

One of the strongest messages in the book is that of beauty standards, and the impossibility of meeting society’s expectations of women and how they’re presented. Furthermore, the novel explores the relationship between women, and how women can both build each other up and tear each other down — sometimes in the same sentence.

After spiralling into a period of depression and increased solitude, Fuyuko’s chance meeting with Mitsutsuka allows Fuyuko to examine her relationship with self and her relationship with those around her. Intermittent insights into Fuyuko’s past provide clarity around her anxieties and her inclination towards isolation. Surprisingly, a conversation towards the end of the book brings past trauma into the forefront again, reminding Fuyuko of people’s true intentions.

“I thought about the walk I took that winter on my birthday. I remembered that night, how I counted the lights, walking through coldness so profound that I could almost hear it, through that dry air slickened with so many special things. Before long, the hottest part of summer would be here, which would then give way to fall, followed by winter.”

Observational,tender and poignant, All the Lovers in the Night is recommended for readers of literary fiction, novellas and short stories. Readership skews 30+

Thank you to the publisher for mailing me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

All the Lovers in the Night
Mieko Kawakami
May 2022
Pan Macmillan Publishers Australia

WAKE by Shelley Burr

WHAT REALLY HAPPENED TO YOUNG EVIE McCREERY?

Evelyn simply vanished. The small town of Nannine lies in the harsh red interior of New South Wales. Once a thriving outback centre, years of punishing drought have whittled it down to no more than a couple of pubs and a police station. And its one sinister claim to fame: the still-unsolved disappearance of Evelyn McCreery nineteen years ago from the bedroom she shared with her twin sister.

Mina McCreery’s life has been defined by the intense and ongoing public interest in her sister’s case. Now an anxious and reclusive adult, Mina lives alone on her family’s sunbaked destocked sheep farm. The million-dollar reward her mother established to solve the disappearance has never been paid out.

Enter Lane Holland, a private investigator who dropped out of the police academy to earn a living cracking cold cases. Lane has his eye on the unclaimed money, but he also has darker motivations for wanting to solve the case.

Shelley Burr’s debut crime novel WAKE is rural fiction about the 20-year old cold case of a missing young girl in a secluded, remote Australian outback town.

Evelyn McCreery disappears from her bed in the evening one night, and there aren’t any clues as to what happened. Her twin Mina, sleeping in the bed beside her, hears and sees nothing, and struggles to comprehend what happened that night. As with most rural crime, a morally ambiguous and emotionally scarred private investigator — this time named Lane Holland — arrives in town determined to solve the case.

“He was surprised by how close it was to the house. Anyone who had even the slightest interest in the case knew about the McCreery dam, because it was a popular suggestion for where the body may have been hidden. It was strange to suddenly be faced with it in real life.”

Cleverly, WAKE explores what it’s like to have such widespread media coverage of an unsolved crime, and how that public scrutiny can affect those left behind — even years later. Every time someone arrives in town determined to solve the crime, a new film crew arrives ready to re-live what happened in the town, Evelyn’s family is subjected to prolonged trauma.

Intermittent forum posts further illustrate this theme of unrelated members of the public who obsess over well-known cold cases. Private tragedies become public property, and suddenly everyone thinks they know what happened to Evelyn McCreery. Most people are convinced it was Mina or her mother…

Of course, Lane does have history that seems to interrelate to this crime, and as Mina starts to open up to Lane, he makes unwelcome progress in solving the mystery surrounding Evelyn’s disappearance.

Shelley’s writing is tight, and the novel suspenseful. I appreciated that there’s actually a second crime that Lane solves in the novel — it’s not planned, but it adds depth to the story and provides what feels like a satisfying result early on in the story.

“Lane kneeled down and ran his fingertips over the dates listed for Evelyn. The date for her death was the day after the last time she was seen alive, when the two girls went to bed at 8pm. It seemed an odd choice to set something in stone — literally — when it was unknown.”

Without giving too much away, I didn’t love the ending. The truth about Evelyn’s disappearance felt a little too…convenient. Too neatly wrapped up in a bow. Whilst I liked how the two disappearances in the town were connected, because it felt unexpected yet plausible, I felt let down by the person responsible for Evie’s disappearance because they didn’t hold enough presence in the novel.

Despite this, WAKE is atmospheric and engaging. Readers will power through this rather quickly, which is always the sign of an enthralling read. With each chapter, Shelley keeps you wanting more.

“The signs to look out for, when searching for a body, were discoloured soil, unusual patches of vegetation, and sections of earth that were higher than the surrounding ground, or oddly sunken. Looking at the Martian landscape, the random hillocks and gullies, the patches of saltbush and scrub, she had no idea how any of that could be spotted.”

Fast-paced, high-stakes and surprisingly emotional, WAKE is recommended for readers of crime and rural fiction — mystery and thriller readers will also enjoy this. Readership skews 25+

Thank you to the publisher for mailing me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

WAKE
Shelley Burr
May 2022
Hachette Book Publishers Australia

Into the Dark by Fiona Cummins

THE PLACE: Seawings, a beautiful Art Deco home overlooking the sweep of the bay in Midtown-on-Sea.

THE CRIME: The gilded Holden family – Piper and Gray and their two teenage children, Riva and Artie – has vanished from the house without a trace.

THE DETECTIVE: DS Saul Anguish, brilliant but with a dark past, treads the narrow line between light and shade.

One late autumn morning, Piper’s best friend arrives at Seawings to discover an eerie scene – the kettle is still warm, all the family’s phones are charging on the worktop, the cars are in the garage. But the house is deserted.

In fifteen-year-old Riva Holden’s bedroom, scrawled across the mirror in blood, are three words:

Make 
Them 
Stop.

What happens next?

Fiona Cummins’ Into the Dark is a fast-paced, high-stakes psychological thriller centred around the disappearance of a family. The state of the house suggests that the family did not plan to leave, and that perhaps they did not leave of their own choice. What ensues is a unexpected series of twists as we learn the truth of what happened to the Holden family.

Stylistically, Into the Dark moves between the past and the present — in the past storyline, we come to understand bits and pieces that explain what the Holden family were going through in the days preceding their disappearance. In the present storyline, we come to understand the role that Julieanne plays in this mystery and how she feels about the Holden’s disappearance.

“None of the teachers ever pressed Emelie into taking their subjects because of her natural talent. She was proud of her friend but sometimes it was a little exhausting to bear witness to Riva’s continued brilliance.”

Whilst the book is populated with rather unlikeable characters, Fiona crafts a compelling psychological thriller. The history of the friendship between Julieanne and Piper evolves over the course of the novel — they bonded over motherhood and parenting, but over time we realise how interconnected their lives now are. What is Julieanne willing to do for Piper, and what is Piper prepared to do for herself?

Into the Dark will please fans of psychological thrillers — Fiona maintains consistent pacing and high stakes throughout the novel, keeping readers engaged. Fiona offers surprises and twists with each passing chapter, turning the initial premise on its head and ensuring readers stay absorbed throughout the novel.

“The most pressing question is not the origin of the blood used in that message — she smiled at hime and he was lost — but finding the person who wrote it.”

Into the Dark illustrates quite an unconventional relationship between Julieanne and Piper — a toxic, co-dependent friendship that holds disastrous consequences for all. Whilst the ending of the novel does feel rather farfetched and unbelievable, it still provides entertainment for the reader. I did feel like the detectives in the novel weren’t overly present – their investigation feels like it holds slim presence in the book.

There is a sub-plot that follows Julieanne and Piper’s daughters, as they navigate their friendship at school and how those events intertwine with the disappearance of the Holden family. I did find this particular sub-plot less engaging that Julieanne and Piper’s storyline, although it does serve as a bit of a red herring as we start to piece together the truth behind the mystery.

“DC Williams fired off many questions. What was Piper’s usual routine? What about the rest of the family? How long had they lived here? Did they have other properties elsewhere? What about extended family?”

Punchy and pacy, Into the Dark is recommended for readers of crime, thriller and mysteries. Readership skews 25+

Thank you to the publisher for mailing me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

Into the Dark
Fiona Cummins
April 2022
Pan Macmillan Publishers Australia