JESS JUST READS

A BOOK REVIEW BLOG

Our Missing Hearts by Celeste Ng

Twelve-year-old Bird Gardner lives a quiet existence with his loving but broken father, a former linguist who now shelves books in Harvard’s library. He knows not to ask too many questions, stand out too much, stray too far. For a decade, their lives have been governed by laws written to preserve ‘American culture’ in the wake of years of economic instability and violence. To keep the peace and restore prosperity, the authorities are now allowed to relocate children of dissidents, especially those of Asian origin, and libraries have been forced to remove books seen as unpatriotic – including the work of Bird’s mother, Margaret, a Chinese American poet who left the family when he was nine years old.

Bird has grown up disavowing his mother and her poems; he doesn’t know her work or what happened to her, and he knows he shouldn’t wonder. But when he receives a mysterious letter containing only a cryptic drawing, he is drawn into a quest to find her. His journey will take him through the many folktales she poured into his head as a child, through the ranks of an underground network of librarians, into the lives of the children who have been taken, and finally to New York, where a new act of defiance may be the beginning of much-needed change.

Celeste Ng’s Our Missing Hearts is a powerful dystopian tale set in the near future where Asian Americans are scorned and feared, with ensuing and continued dire consequences.

Our protagonist is the twelve-year-old Bird, whose mother fled years earlier for seemingly no reason and Bird’s father offers little insight into the true reasons behind such a painful abandonment. When Bird receives a letter from his mother he begins to question the reasons behind her disappearance and as the story unfolds, we, the reader, learn more about the country’s vilification of Asian Americans. More specifically, a law implemented to try and preserve American culture.

“He has never heard these words before, has never even heard this language before, but it is clear from the look on his father’s face that his father has, that he not only recognises the language but understands it, understands what this man has said.”

Celeste’s latest novel explores family and responsibility, but it also delves into power, injustice and racism. An authoritative government has taken over the US and it has harsh ramifications for anyone in the country of Asian descent.

When we meet Bird, he’s living with his father – a man rather oppressed and reluctant to challenge the oppressive government. And when Bird suspects that he may be able to reconnect with his mother, a woman who may just be the complete opposite, he sees an opportunity too enticing to refuse.

Throughout the novel we come to witness an unbreakable bond between mother and child, and how much they’re both willing to sacrifice to be with each other. Amidst a society consumed by fear, we have two characters willing to risk it all.

“They could have fired me, he says. The library isn’t open to just anyone, you know. You have to be a researcher. They have to watch who they let in. The university gets a lot of leeway because of its reputation, but they’re not immune. If someone caused trouble and they traced it back to a book they got here…”

Celeste is known for her powerful novels that challenge treatment of others, and Our Missing Hearts is no different. She has captured such a large-scale dystopian setting through the lens of a very small cast of characters. The ending, in particular, will sit with you for some time.

The novel does take a little bit of time to gain momentum, and it really isn’t until Bird goes in search of his mother that the novel starts to increase in traction. Up until that moment, Bird doesn’t seem to possess much agency or drive – he is merely a player, reactive to what is happening around him.

“A game they played, he and his mother, when he was very small. Before school, before he had any other world but her. His favourite game, one he’d begged her to play. Their special game, played only when his father was at work, kept as a secret between just them. You be the monster, mama. I’ll hide, and you be the monster.”

Recommended for readers of literary fiction, and dystopian tales. Readership skews female, 30+

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

Our Missing Hearts
Celeste Ng
October 2022
Hachette Book Publishers

Bliss Montage by Ling Ma

What happens when fantasy tears through the screen of the everyday to wake us up? Could that waking be our end?

In Bliss Montage, Ling Ma brings us eight wildly different tales of people making their way through the madness and reality of our collective delusions: love and loneliness, connection and possession, friendship, motherhood, the idea of home. From a woman who lives in a house with all of her ex-boyfriends, to a toxic friendship built around a drug that makes you invisible, to an ancient ritual that might heal you of anything if you bury yourself alive, these and other scenarios reveal that the outlandish and the everyday are shockingly, deceptively, heartbreakingly similar.

Ling Ma’s speculative short story collection Bliss Montage presents eight surreal stories exploring the limits of fantasy on the everyday.

A couple of my favourite stories are Los Angeles, G and Returning. Set largely in the confines of reality, there is a small tweak to each story that introduces fantastical and speculative elements. From a housewife who lives in a mansion with 100 of her ex-boyfriends, and a woman who crafts a short story that differs from how her mother remembers the documented events, to a story of two estranged friends reuniting over a drug that turns the user invisible.

“The conversation was smooth and friendly, all surface. I told him a bit about my job now, as a copy editor at a law association. He told me about dog walking, but mostly about his monied clients. He seemed to know a lot about them, their vacation homes and travels, their careers and connections.”

Across the course of the collection, explored themes include isolation, relationships, memory, abuse and immigration. And with women driving each of these stories, they take centre stage in each of these absurd realities and act as a haunting observer.

Ling Ma’s stories capture the ongoing trajectory of the plot and are less focused on the aftermath. We meet characters in the midst of the tension that builds in their life, and with such a calm nature to Ma’s writing, our attention is maintained throughout each story.

“After my roommate kicked him out, the phone would ring periodically in the middle of the night, back when we still had a landline. When I picked up, a voice would say, ‘I miss you.’”

Arguably, some characters feel too detached from their reality – they observe but there doesn’t seem to be much engagement with the actions or characters around them. We don’t gain a full sense of how the characters feel about their circumstances. Whilst the writing is stripped and observant, sometimes I would’ve loved a bit more interaction and understanding of the protagonists.

“But that wasn’t even it, not really. There wasn’t any defining incident that convinced me to finally stop speaking to Bonnie. More that, after college, I began to notice how she increasingly critiqued me, mostly with jabby comments about my body.”

Observant and taut, Ling Ma’s Bliss Montage is a strong collection of surreal and uncanny short stories. Accessible for reluctant readers and those who aren’t overly keen on shorter fiction. Readership skews 25+

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

Bliss Montage
Ling Ma
September 2022
Text Publishing

The Paris Mystery by Kirsty Manning

Paris, 1938. The last sigh of summer before the war.

As Australian journalist Charlotte ‘Charlie’ James alights at the Gare du Nord, ready to start her role as correspondent for The Times, Paris is in turmoil as talk of war becomes increasingly strident.

Charlie is chasing her first big scoop, needing to prove to her boss that she can do this job as well as, if not better than, her male counterparts. And the best way to forge the necessary contacts quickly is to make the well-connected expats, Lord and Lady Ashworth, her business. Lady Eleanor knows everyone who counts and at her annual sumptuously extravagant party, Charlie will meet them all.

On the summer solstice eve, the party is in full swing with the cream of Parisian society entranced by burlesque dancers, tightrope walkers, a jazz band and fireworks lighting the night skies. But as Charlie is drawn into the magical world of parties, couture houses and bohemian wine bars, secrets start to unravel, including her own. Putting a foot wrong could spell death …

In this magnificent new beginning to the joyful Charlie James series, Manning beguiles with glamour and mystery set in pre-war Paris.

The first in a new historical fiction series, Kirsty Manning’s The Paris Mystery introduces us to Australian journalist – and sleuth – Charlotte, now living in Paris and determined to escape her past and carve a new life for herself in France.

With war fast approaching, the newly divorced Charlie is excited to start her new job as correspondent for The Times. She is determined to surpass her male counterparts and prove herself but covering a captivating scoop for the outlet. When she attends a party on the eve of summer solstice and a guest ends up murdered, it’s Charlie’s chance to be on the front foot of the story and uncover the truth of what really happened that night.

“At his shoulder Madame Marchand sipped her champagne, her face neutral. Charlie studied her: impeccable skin enhanced with a hint of makeup, coiffed hair, tailored couture. In her late fifties, she looked her age, and Charlie admired that – she hated hollow compliments, and none were more irritating than the suggestion that a woman who looked less than her age was to be feted.”

Set against the backdrop of the glamorous pre-war Parisian lifestyle, Manning has brought France to life with vivid description and eccentric, compelling characters. With a mystery at its core, Manning maintains a compelling narrative that will have readers eagerly turning the pages.

Charlie is a headstrong, efficient protagonist drawn from a number of different inspirations. Manning has crafted an inspiring journalist, driven by more than just a love of the job – she refuses to be underestimated just because she’s a woman. She’s determined and fierce, goal-oriented and hungry to prove others wrong. I think a lot of (female) readers will relate to her, and this determinism is an element that I love when female protagonists take centre stage in historical fiction.

“Charlie remembered that Lady Ashworth had said Maxime Marchand was a fellow patron of the Louvre. She followed Lord Ashworth’s gaze to see a fit man, with excellent cheekbones, in a cream linen suit. Reclining at a corner table, he chatted to a blushing waitress.”

Manning provides a lot of rich detail across the course of the novel – outfits, homes, streets, food, it all helps paint a picture and allows us to imagine the setting with ease.

Something I did struggle with, particularly at the beginning and still in the middle of the book when we were still getting to know all the characters– a lot of them have names starting with M, and I would constantly mix them up: Madame Marchant, Maxime Marchant, Conrad McKenzie (often referred to as just ‘McKenzie’), Mercedes and Milly Goldsmith.

“This was Charlie’s first time in such a fancy fashion house, and she felt giddy with excitement. Though her work clothes were plain, she loved dressing up for evenings out, fixing her hair and applying a bright red lip – it made her feel vibrant, strong and attractive.”

Fun and extravagant, The Paris Mystery is recommended for readers of historical and crime fiction. Readership skews female, 25+

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

The Paris Mystery
Kirsty Manning
September 2022
Allen & Unwin

Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney

Daisy Darker’s family were as dark as dark can be, when one of them died all of them lied and pretended not to see . . .

Daisy Darker is arriving at her grandmother’s house for her eightieth birthday. It is Halloween, and Seaglass – the crumbling Cornish house perched upon its own tiny private island – is at one with the granite rocks it sits on.

The Darker family haven’t all been in the same place for over a decade, and when the tide comes in they’ll be cut off from the rest of the world for eight hours. When the tide goes back out, nothing will ever be the same again, because one of them is a killer . . .

In Alice Feeney’s psychological thriller Daisy Darker, a fractured family congregate on a secluded and isolated island to celebrate their grandmother’s 80th birthday. But with no way to escape the island and no way to communicate with the outside world, it’s the perfect conditions for a killer to strike.

One by one, members of the Darker family are murdered in incredibly personal and specific ways. With nine hours to go until low tide and the possibility of escape, who will still be alive come morning?

“She looks over her shoulder, then creeps nearer to the crib. We all seem to lean closer to the TV, as little Rose leans down over the baby, before checking over her shoulder one last time. We hang off her every word as she sings a sweet-sounding lullaby.”

Alice has set up the classic elements of an engaging psychological thriller – a secluded setting with no way to communicate with external parties, a series of murders, and a group of characters known to each other and all harbouring horrific secrets. It’s the perfect concoction for a page-turning mystery.

Whilst at times I found the dialogue to be unrealistic and over-the-top, and pretty much all of the characters to be wildly unlikeable, the strengths of the story lie in its twists and mysteries. There seems to be very little emotions in how Daisy Darker reacts to her family members’ murders, but she functions more as a narrator from afar, allowing us the chance to understand all members of the party so we can make our own opinions on who might be the killer.

Admittedly, I wish the characters possessed more agency to uncover the killer. They seem a bit slow to catch on in the beginning, happy to watch videos and wait for things to happen rather than harnessing some agency and driving the story forward themselves.

“He leaves the lounge and none of us know what to say. My father has always held his feelings hostage. His inability – or unwillingness – to express himself seemed to make my mother voice her own feelings on any subject twice as loud and twice as often.”

The ending makes up for any flaws the precede it. Because truthfully, the suspense and tension in the lead-up to the twist were starting to wane. Flashbacks break the pacing and lull the flow of the book. For a long time, I couldn’t make sense of the wacky storyline, odd murders and the seemingly non-existent motive. I was struggling to tell some of the characters apart, found the flashback videos to be a bit redundant and the poetry a little pointless.

But that twist is a redeeming element to the story and was an actual gasp-aloud moment for me as the reader. Suddenly, a motive is clear and so are Alice’s stylistic devices and plotting choices.

“My father is the first to arrive. Being punctual is his only way of saying I love you. For as long as I can remember he has expressed emotions through timekeeping, unable to demonstrate affection in the ways most other fathers do.”

Utterly compelling with a cracker of an ending, Daisy Darker is recommended for fans of psychological thrillers and murder mysteries. Readership skews 20+

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

Daisy Darker
Alice Feeney
September 2022
Pan Macmillan Publishers

Electric and Mad and Brave by Tom Pitts

Matt Lacey is in a mental health facility recovering from a breakdown.

In an attempt to work through a mess of conflicting thoughts and feelings, he writes, unwinding the story of his adolescence with the beautiful, impassive, fierce Christina.

As Matt delves into the more agonising moments of his past, he has to learn to look directly at the pain and love that have made him who he is now.

Brazenly wearing its heart on its sleeve, Electric and Mad and Brave is a heightened and technicolour story about the soaring joy and numbing nightmare of being young and hopelessly in love.

Tom Pitt’s literary debut Electric and Mad and Brave centres around twenty-eight-year-old Matt Lacey, living in a mental health facility in Melbourne and struggling to confront and reconcile with events from his past. When Matt’s therapist suggest he keep a journal to reflect on his childhood and the events that led to his admission into the facility, we are immersed in a compelling and tender history.

Narrated in first person, the book’s stylistic devices allow for an immediate sense of Matt’s mind frame and his willingness (or rather, unwillingness) to confront the truth about his past. We come to realise early on that Matt is an incredibly unreliable narrator – at first, his journal entries are clear and concise. Over time, they become chaotic, they double-back, they re-write events we thought we’d already learned. Matt is being untruthful with the reader and it isn’t until the final chapters that we find out how certain events actually unfolded in Matt’s childhood.

“No – that can’t have been what she’d meant to say. There’d been something else on her lips. Hadn’t there? Yes. In that pause, she’d almost said it: something mad and terrifying. Although maybe she couldn’t say. Maybe to say meant stepping off a ledge into…”

Moving between past and present quite frequently, Matt meets Christina when he is 11 and she is 12. We follow them over the course of their adolescence as their connection grows and attraction develops. Both Matt and Christina’s families are unhealthy and dysfunctional, but in rather different ways. These two kids coming together forces these two families to intersect which sets into motion a string of avoidable events leading to Matt’s breakdown and admission into the mental health facility.

Tom Pitts builds tension and pacing throughout the book, but it’s most notable in the final chapters as the truth about Christina and Matt’s relationship is revealed. Their love is a destructive one, and so we can feel the tension build between them as we move closer and closer to the reveal. Stylistically, there’s a quicker nature to the writing. Shorter chapters, more abrupt observations and descriptions. We’re suddenly moving through at a much faster pace to build and maintain momentum.

“In the days after, I began to view things differently, my memories becoming distorted. I would think of Alek at the dining table with his shiny head, only to suddenly recall that his eyebrows had been skin too – that he’d sat upright in hospital only because he was too weak to stand…”

Electric and Mad and Brave sensitively portrays mental health and trauma, and the process of confronting traumatic events from one’s past.

The book moves between past and present so frequently, sometimes in the middle of a chapter, and I’ll admit I sometimes struggled to follow the flow of events. It was often hard to immediately determine what was past vs. present, what was a memory and what wasn’t. I often found myself having to flick back and re-read certain sections.

“Now I was in the back seat, having still not replied, and my hands were sweating. I looked outside and the landscape was enchanting and warped. Somehow this morning dusk was causing the landmarks to become strange imitations of themselves.”

Poignant, moving and observant, Tom Pitts’ Electric and Mad and Brave is recommended for literary readers. Readership skews 30+

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

Electric and Mad and Brave
Tom Pitts
August 2022
Pan Macmillan Publishers