Book Review - Vacationland - Meg Mitchell Moore

Vacationland; Meg Mitchell Moore

William Morrow - 2022

Vacationland proved to be a delightful summer story which swept me away, once again, to the beautiful state of Maine.

The story begins with a 29 year old woman named Kristine Turner who has boarded a Greyhound bus in PA with a small suitcase, $761 dollars and a letter left for her by her recently deceased mother.  The letter shares some long withheld information and has brought Kristie to Maine.  A quick visit that turns into a what looks like a much more permanent stay in Maine.

Louisa Fitzgerald McLean is an NYU professor on sabbatical who should be working on her book.  Her husband is mostly unavailable and busy working on a new start up company in Brooklyn. So Louise packs up their (3) children ages, 12, 10 and 7 and is off to Maine to stay with her mother and father. Martin, her father, is a well respected retired judge who has Alzheimers.  He is at the stage while he has some good days, he also requires outside help.  These expenses have caused Louisa's mom to rethink how much longer she can keep their summer home and expenses associate with it.

As Kristie begins to settle in to a Maine lifestyle, meets a nice boyfriend who happens to be the caretaker at the Fitzgerald summer home, it is Kristie's life and the secrets of the past that really propel this story in an unexpected way.  This book was so well written, has great characters -- even the young children have interesting stories that are fun to read about.  I enjoyed this book so much that I immediately purchased (2) other books by this new-to-me author.  Highly recommended.  This was a combo audio book download - (read by Stacey Glemboski - very good) from the library and eGalley provided to my by the publisher. Both were so enjoyable.

Rating - 4.5/5 stars

First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros - Vacationland; Meg Mitchell Moore

                                                     

Welcome to First Chapter/Intros, hosted by Yvonne @ Socrates Book Reviews. Each week readers post the first paragraph (or 2) of a book we are reading or plan to read soon.  This one comes from my (20) Books of Summer list.

Vacationland; Meg Mitchell Moore

William Morrow - 2022

June

1.

Kristie

The Greyhound from Altoona, Pennsylvania, to Rockland, Maine takes twelve hours and thirty-three minutes with three stops, all of them where you don't necessarily want to use the bathroom but may find you have no choice.  Even so, the first part of the journey isn't too bad--Kristie Turner has two seats to herself.  But in New Haven, six hours into the journey, she gains a seat mate in the form of a sixty-something named Bob who wants to talk with Kristie about the granddaughter he is going to meet for the first time, and also about abiding love for Creedence Clearwater Revival. Never mind that the bus left Altoona at eleven at night, so by this point it's five in the morning.

Can't you see I'm tire? Kristie wants to say. Can't you see I'm grieving? But, of course, Bob can't see that.  Grief is not something you wear on a vest, like a Brownie patch.  She rolls up her sweatshirt to form a pillow and angels her body away from Bob's, falling deeply asleep.

What do you think? Read More or pass?

First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros - Nine Lives; Peter Swanson

Welcome to First Chapter/Intros, hosted by Yvonne @ Socrates Book Reviews. Each week readers post the first paragraph (or 2) of a book we are reading or plan to read soon.

 

Nine Lives; Peter Swanson

William Morrow and Harper Audio - 2022

Nine

1.

Wednesday, September 14, 5:13 p.m.

Jonathan Grant, unless he let her know ahead of time that he couldn't make it, always visited on Wednesday evening.  His wife had a standing "girls' night out" on Wednesdays--occasionally in the city, but usually in New Jersey--so Jonathan would leave the office by five and be at Alison's one-bedroom apartment in Gramercy Park by five-thirty at the latest.

Gotta tell you, I'm not too fond of this guy already.  However, I started this book, by Peter Swanson, an author I've had mostly great luck with, and I'm really enjoying this stand alone mystery so far.

What do you think?

Book Review - The Paris Apartment; Lucy Foley

 

The Paris Apartment; Lucy Foley

William Morrow - 2022

I haven't had a lot of luck with this author in the past but, I was really looking forward to this one as the setting appealed to me.

The Paris Apartment opens with Jess leaving London hoping to regroup. She has no job and no money and hopes to spend some time with her half-brother Ben in his Paris apartment. Ben doesn't seem overly excited for Jess to visit but, the two have remained somewhat close despite growing up apart after their mother died when they were young.  Jess definitely drew the short end of the stick shuffled between different foster home settings while Ben's adoptive family was wealthy and able to provide him with advantages in life that Jess was not afforded.

When Jess arrives at The Bienvenue, a stately building with tall iron gates, she is unable to connect with Ben as his phone goes unanswered. When she finally does gain access to the building and inside his apartment, something seems amiss.  Ben is no where to be found, his wallet and keys are in his apartment and, most residents of the building are closed-mouthed when she seeks answers.  She has very few clues to go on and, her leads seem to go nowhere.  

What happened to Ben and why aren't those who know him willing to help her?  

Told through multiple POVs, Ben, Jess, the building Concierge, Sophie, Mimi and Nick. All of the residents of the building were odd and rather creepy.  Jess was a great character who had a hard life and wasn't afraid to take chances in getting to the bottom of what happened to her half-brother Ben. The concierge seemed to be hyper vigilant. The building itself had that secret locked room kind of feel with danger lurking close by.  My biggest complaint about this book was how slow moving the story was. There was an awful lot of filler which did little to propel the story. I eventually switched from the audio book to the eBook as I wasn't a fan of the multiple POVs on audio. I felt more satisfied when the story did begin to get more interesting even though certain parts seemed a bit too convenient.  This isn't a bad book but,  it's just one I won't be raving about.

Rating - 3.5/5 stars

First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros - The Stranger Behind You; Carol Goodman

Welcome to First Chapter/Intros, hosted by Yvonne @ Socrates Book Reviews. 

Each week readers post the first paragraph (or 2) of a book we are reading or plan to read.  This week I selected a thriller that was released earlier this month.

                                          The Stranger Behind You; Carol Goodman

                                                        William Morrow - July 2021

Prologue

"I have noticed in my professional capacity that when someone makes a point of saying they're not lying, that usually means they are.

When the realtor brags that she hasn't lied about the view, though, I have to admit that her claim is demonstrably true: the view is spectacular.  Standing at the elegant bay window it's as if I'm perched on a cliff overlooking the river.  There's nothing between me and the Palisades but water and light.  A person who was afraid of heights would be terrified, but heights aren't what I am afraid of."

What do you think - read more of pass? I've read several books by this author so hoping this new one will be a winner. I hope to start it later in the week.

Book Review - Hairpin Bridge; Taylor Adams

 

TITLE/AUTHOR: Hairpin Bridge; Taylor Adams

PUBLISHER:   Harper Audio

YEAR PUBLISHED: 2021

GENRE: Fiction / Crime Thriller

FORMAT: audio download / LENGTH: 9 hours 51 min.

SOURCE:  Library / audio download

SETTING(s):  Montana

ONE SENTENCE SUMMARY:  A suspicious death, ruled as a suicide has her identical twin sister wanting to know more about her final day.

BRIEF REVIEW:  Cambry and Lena Nguyen were identical twin sisters. Although the sisters were estranged, when Lena learns that her 24 year old twin committed suicide, 60-miles outside of Missoula, Montana, three months earlier while driving cross country, Lena finds it hard to believe. Determined to find out more Lena travels from Seattle to Montana to ask questions. She learns that her dead sister attempted to make 16 calls to 911 and also tried to send a mysterious text about the cop who found her body below the now closed "Hairpin Bridge."  Lena believes the cop, Raymond Raycavic, is somehow involved and has something to hide as it appears he stopped Cambry on the very day she supposedly committed suicide by jumping from the bridge.  As Lena begins to ask questions while speaking to Raycevic, she finds that he initially seems willing to help yet something definitely seems off as well.  Was it suicide or was something more sinister at play here?

I read the author's previous book "No Exit" and enjoyed the fast pace and hair-raising moments, even though parts of that one were a little far-fetched, so I was pretty sure this would be a thrilling read for me.  This one definitely seemed darker, grittier and even gory in parts compared to "No Exit" but, I enjoyed the cat and mouse feel to the story.  Told from the third person POV, as well as from blog entries by Lena as well as excerpts from a book she is writing, we learn of Lena's time in Montana and also what happened on the final day of her twin sister's life.  This is one of those stories that isn't perfect but it certainly was one that is hard to put down once you begin.

RATING:  4/5

The audiobook was a free download from my library. It was read by LuluLam and Sophie Amoss who did a good job.

Book Review - Dream Girl; Laura Lippman

TITLE/AUTHOR:  Dream Girl; Laura Lippman

PUBLISHER:  William Morrow and Harper Audio

YEAR PUBLISHED: 2021

GENRE: Fiction / Psych Thriller

FORMAT:  eGalley and audio / LENGTH: 320 pp - 8 hrs. and 54 min.

SOURCE:  Edelweiss and Library download

SETTING(s):  Baltimore, MD 

ONE SENTENCE SUMMARY:  A  suspenseful yet witty thriller about an author who lacks self-awareness.

BRIEF REVIEW:   Gerry Anderson is a 61 year old author who has experienced success. His book "Dream Girl" starring a woman named Aubrey McFate made him an instant success with his fans.  The fans felt Aubrey was based on a real person the way she seemed to come alive on the pages. Gerry does have three former wives and some 37 lovers but, who's counting?  He recently moved from New York City to high rise penthouse in Baltimore to be near his mother who had dementia but, she passed away soon after the move.  Now he's trying to write the memoir his publisher is looking for but, he's having trouble focusing.

Now he finds himself confined to a bed for 8-12 weeks after tripping over a rowing machine, slipping on the concrete floor and tumbling down a floating staircase where he lay until his assistant arrived the next morning.  With an assistant with him by day, a nurse by night and lots of pain meds, Gerry is dazed and confused and confined to bed with a brace.  When calls and emails from a woman claiming to be Aubrey begin and Gerry even claims to have seen Aubrey in his penthouse he begins to wonder whether someone is playing a trick on him or was there an Aubrey in the past that really inspired the woman in his book.

As the story progresses we get a little history into Gerry's past, his issues with his father and his relationship with his mother and his relationships with women in general. It becomes clear Gerry is a cad, a misogynist and making it likely that there must be plenty of women out there who would want to get even with him.

This story is both suspenseful and witty, I caught myself frequently smiling especially with the audio version which was read by Jason Culp. He did a great job with the Gerry character.  Gerry is unlikeable for sure but he was such a fun character in that he totally lacked self-awareness.  It was hard not to feel for him at times. Honestly, all of the characters were unlikeable and that usually spoils a book for me but, not this one. It wasn't perfect but in addition to the clever storyline, I liked that there were references to other books and movies and mostly that the story just put a smile on my face. Overall, a good read and maybe a better listen!

Thanks go to  William Morrow, Edelweiss and my public library for allowing me access to this delightful book in exchange for my unbiased review.

RATING:  4/5

Book Reviews - Count the Ways; Joyce Maynard

 

TITLE/AUTHOR:   Count the Ways; Joyce Maynard

PUBLISHER:  William Morrow

YEAR PUBLISHED: 2021

GENRE: Fiction / Family Life

FORMAT:  eGalley / LENGTH: 462

SOURCE:   Edelweiss

SETTING(s):  New Hampshire (and Massachusetts)

ONE SENTENCE SUMMARY:  A beautiful story of an imperfect life: love, marriage, home, children and forgiveness.

BRIEF REVIEW:   Eleanor had never known love, as the only child of alcoholic parents who were married twenty years when she was born.  Her parents were wrapped up in each other and never seemed to want her around. She was sent off to boarding school and it was while she was at school at the age of sixteen that she learns her parents were killed in a car crash returning from a ski weekend in Vermont.   For Eleanor art, as a form of expression, was a way out her loneliness, her early passion turned into a way to earn a living.

With a little money and income from her illustrations and later children's books, she falls in love with a farmhouse with lots of land and even a brook in New Hampshire. She purchased the house complete with furnishings, housewares and tools and so much - it was a house with a history.  She is immediately in love with her home.  A few years later she meets handsome Cam at a craft's fair in Vermont where he was selling his wooden wares, there is instant passion, and before long three children make them a family.  Their Bohemian lifestyle and family makes Eleanor one of the happiest of women in the world.  She even overlooks the fact Cam isn't exactly the most hardworking, helpful or responsible partner but, they have built a life together and the children seem happy and their life is everything she ever wanted.  So when something terrible happens, Eleanor is beside herself and soon life as the family has known it has changed.

Count the Ways is a story that spans decades. Eleanor is a wonderful, fully fleshed character that women who have experienced the trials and tribulations of motherhood and marriage will be able to relate to (at least I did.)  I felt her joys, her disappointments, and her sadness. She experiences possibly more than her share of life's disappointments and difficulties but, she finds a way to cope and keep going.  There are a lot of things that happen in this story and yet most everything is still vivid and etched in my mind. I don't want to say too much, I was happy I went into the memorable story without reading what the book was about beforehand. There was so much nostalgia in this story for me as I was raising my children during the same time period: the music, the movies, the news events and more. Everything about this story felt realistic and I don't think it could have been improved upon.  The author covered it all - life, family and all the detours along the way that sometimes make our lives turn out different than we imagined when we were young.  I felt like I was a close friend of Eleanor and of this family when I turned the final page. I didn't want this one to end. The book is sure to make my faves list for 2021. Highly Recommended.

Thanks go to Edelweiss and William Morrow for allowing me to download this eGalley at no cost in exchange for my unbiased review.  This book releases on July 13, 2021.

RATING:  5/5

MEMORABLE QUOTES:

"This is my radical act, she had told the young Harvard woman. "Raising three human beings, who will go out and change the world."

"For me, being a feminist means manifesting the strength and confidence and tenacity to pursue whatever it is you most want to do with your life. In my case, the goal was having a family. I'm doing that. If I don't get to make art that much at the moment, I can live with it.  Nobody gets everything in life. You have to make compromises.

"Children had to know pain, or how would they ever know what to do when they encountered it?  Trouble would come, no matter what.   The best you could do was to raise your children in such a way that when trouble found them--as it would--they's be able to survive it." (Teach your children well)

"Standing at the kitchen counter, looking out the window, Eleanor could almost feel her heart expand in her chest. Two sensations came to her. Wild happiness at the sight of her three children, terror at the thought of what it would be to lose one of them. If it was possible to love someone any more than this, she could not imagine how."

EPIGRAPH (Ho'oponopono prayer, phrases spoken in any order, for reconciliation and forgiveness.)

I'm sorry.

   I love you.

   Thank you.

   Please forgive me.

First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros - Count the Ways; Joyce Maynard

Welcome to First Chapter/Intros, now hosted by Yvonne @ Socrates Book Reviews. 

Each week readers post the first paragraph (or 2) of a book they are reading or plan to read.

Count the Ways; Joyce Maynard

Harper Collins  (William Morrow) - 7/2021

Prologue

"Toby was just a baby--Alison four years old, Ursula not yet three--the first time they launched the cork people. After that it became their annual tradition.

Eleanor had always loved how, when the snow melted every spring, the water in the brook down the road would race so fast you could hear it from the house, crashing over the rocks at the waterfall.  A person could stand there for an hour--and in the old days before children, when she would come to this place alone, she had done that--staring into the water, studying the patterns it made as the brook narrowed and widened again, the way it washed over the smaller stones and splashed against the larger ones.  If you felt like it, you might trace the course of a single stick or leaf, some remnant of last summer, as it made its way downstream, tossed along by the current,"

I didn't read the description of this but, does anyone feel the tone to be a bit ominous?  I love this author so can't wait to start this one in a few days. What do you think, read more or pass?

Book Review - Mother May I; Joshilyn Jackson

TITLE/AUTHOR:  Mother May I; Joshilyn Jackson

PUBLISHER:  William Morrow and Harper Audio 

YEAR PUBLISHED:  2021

GENRE: Fiction / Mystery

FORMAT:  combo (eGalley/ audio) LENGTH: 336 pages and audio (12 hrs 51 min.)

SOURCE: Net Galley

SETTING(s):  GA

ONE SENTENCE SUMMARY:  Just how far will a mother go to get her abducted child back?

BRIEF REVIEW:  Bree Cabbat grew up poor in Georgia but, that seems to be all behind her now.  She lives in a beautiful home, is married to a successful lawyer from a powerful family and is the mother to two teenage daughters and a beautiful baby boy.  She should be happy and calm but, one day all that changes.  She thinks she has seen an old woman resembling a proverbial witch peering in her window.  She brushes it off but later the same day she thinks she sees the same woman when she is at her daughter's school event.  What happens next is every mothers worst nightmare. Her infant son who is asleep in his carseat disappears when she takes her eyes off him just for a minute.  A note is left instructing her to avoid contacting the police and to follow instructions she will be given.  Who has taken her child and why was her child targeted?  

As the story progresses we learn this abduction was personal and not the type of for ransom kidnapping we more commonly might read about, the motivation is very different.  Bree has a task to perform if she wants her son back but, doing so could put an end to her once happy life. This story starts out as a mystery and before long becomes something with another serious subject matter.  I started listening to this one on audio (read by the author) but, I hard a little trouble following the POV so I switched to my eGalley copy which worked out much better.  I've read many books by this author and she does knows how to draw the reader in. This book as well as her last one have ventured into the mystery or crime genre. I thought she did a decent job but,  I found myself much more invested in the first half of the story.  

RATING: 3.5/5 stars

Book Review - Every Vow You Break; Peter Swanson

TITLE/AUTHOR: Every Vow You Break; Peter Swanson

PUBLISHER: William Morrow

YEAR PUBLISHED:  2021

GENRE: Fiction / Thriller

FORMAT:  eGalley PP/LENGTH: 320 pp.

SOURCE:  Edelweiss

SETTING(s):  Maine

ONE SENTENCE SUMMARY:  A new bride quickly learns that the perfect husband may not be as perfect as she thought.

BRIEF REVIEW:   Abigail Baskin is about to marry Silicon Valley millionaire Bruce Lamb but, a brief drunken fling with a man called Scottie, right before the wedding, threatens to ruin everything.  Scottie contacts Abigail before the wedding suggesting she cancel her wedding plans. However, just because she decides to go through with the wedding as planned, it doesn't mean her indiscretion won't come back to haunt her.  When husband Bruce surprises her with a honeymoon at a remote resort on an island in Maine,  a resort inhabited by primarily men, something doesn't feel right.  Her new husband seems to be acting differently as well and soon things go from bad to worst. Abigail will be lucky to get off the island alive.

First, Peter Swanson is a favorite author of mine and a master of fiction thrillers. His last book, Eight Perfect Murders, made my top 10 list for 2020. Unfortunately,  this one took a while for me to get into and I kept wondering where it was headed. This is one of those far out there thrillers that did not have one redeeming character and some implausible twists as well. I was actually quite disappointed in this one. 

RATING: 2.5/5

First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros - Father Melancholy's Daughter; Gail Godwin

Welcome to First Chapter/Intros, now hosted by Yvonne @ Socrates Book Reviews. . Each week readers post the first paragraph (or 2) of a book they are reading or that they plan to read soon.

Father Melancholy's Daughter; Gail Godwin

William Morrow - 1971

Sept 13: Cyprian, Bishop and Martyr of Carthage, 258

--The Calendar of the Church Year

1 - MORNING

"Although I did not know it then, my life of unpremeditated childhood ended on Wednesday, September 13, 1972.  The weather that day in Romulus, Virginia was warm and sunny; the sky an unclouded Shenandoah blue.  I had been in first grade for three weeks.  The schoolwork I found easy, insultingly so.  It was the social side of things, the winning over of other children that was going to demand my subtler energies. I was, and was destined to remain, an only child, and was more practiced in the management of adults."

I've had this 1971, first edition on my shelf for many years and recall purchasing it used more than 10 years ago because it sounded good and I've enjoyed other books by this author. Finally, when looking for my next book, this one spoke to me. I like the first person narrator, a child already.

Read more of pass?

Book Review - My Dark Vanessa; Kate Elizabeth Russell

TITLE:  My Dark Vanessa

AUTHOR:  Kate Elizabeth Russell

PUBLISHER:  William Morrow

PUB. YEAR: 2020

Setting: Maine

Format: eGalley

Rating - 5/5

Vanessa Wye is a lonely 15 y/old scholarship student at a boarding school in Maine.  She's never even had a boyfriend so when her English teacher, 42 y/old Jacob Strane begins to show interest in her, initially by complimenting her writing ability she's thrilled.  Little does she realize it's more than her writing ability that interests him. Drawing her in first with poetry and stories by Nabokov, she is soon lured into a sexual relationship that is about to ruin her life.

The story begins in 2017 in the midst of the #metoo movement when Vanessa, now 32, learns via social media that her former teacher has been accused of abuse by another student. Vanessa can't believe that this is true of her first love, a man she's been obsessed with for years.

Written from Vanessa's POV and alternating from her days as a student and the present where she's living an unfulfilled life without realizing she's been victimized. Vanessa comes across as a sympathetic character while at other times she seems confused or unreliable.  This story was unputdownable and tough to read at times but, it was also an amazing debut.  It was easy to see how a girl like Vanessa might fall victim to a pedophile by just wanting to believe that she was loved.  A wonderful character study, suspense-filled debut novel that is sure to be on my Top 10 list for 2020.  

Have you read it?  NOTE: Possible trigger warnings for anyone who may have been abused.

Book Review - Eight Perfect Murders; Peter Swanson

TITLE:  Eight Perfect Murders

AUTHOR:  Peter Swanson

PUBLISHER:  Harper Audio / William Morrow

PUB. YEAR: 2020

SETTING: Boston, MA - ME
FORMAT: eGalley/audio combo
RATING: - 5/5

Malcolm (Mal) Kershaw is the owner of Old Devil's Bookshop in Boston.   It's a bookshop that specializes in old, hard to find books and Mal knows mysteries better than most in the business. Years earlier this mystery lover wrote an article in which he compiled a list of murder mystery book titles which he believed to be the perfect murders and impossible to solve.

When an FBI agent appears at the bookshop one day asking him lots of questions, he learns she is working on unsolved cases that appear to be based on the list that Malcom had created years earlier. The more the agent digs, the more we learn about Mal and the secrets he's kept along the way.

Peter Swanson is a mystery author that hasn't disappointed me yet and this book was another winner. It was the perfect reading/listening experience for me (my husband found it quite engaging as well). I loved how the protagonist's personal life gets exposed the more authorities dig into unsolved cases. Malcolm is a terrific, flawed, fully-fleshed-out character. This book had it all for me: intelligent mystery, lot's of clues, twists, a memorable protagonist and walk around Boston and New England and even a bookstore cat named Nero.  I came out feeling exhilarated because now I have a list of some great mystery classics to try as well.  The audio book was read by Graham Halstead and it was pitch perfect audio experience. 

For mystery lovers interested in the perfect murders list ---

• ABC Murders; Agatha Christie
• Strangers on a Train; Patricia Highsmith
• Death Trap; Ira Levin (a play)  (saw the play)
• Red House Mystery; A.A. Milne
• Malice Aforethought; Francis Iles (AKA: Anthony Berkeley Cox)
• Double Indemnity; James Cain
• The Drowner; John MacDonald
• A Secret History; Donna Tartt (read it)

Never Have I Ever; Joshilyn Jackson

TITLE: Never Have I Ever

AUTHOR:  Joshilyn Jackson

PUBLISHER: William Morrow

PUB. YEAR: 2019

SETTING: Florida
FORMAT:  eGalley

RATING - 4/5

Jackson's newest book, Never Have I Ever,  was somewhat of a departure from her earlier southern fiction novels.

This story starts out innocent enough as Amy Whey hosts the book group gang. However, when an unexpected newbie, Angelica Roux (Roux), who is new to the neighborhood shows up, the evening takes a darker turn.

Roux quickly takes over and, as the wine keeps flowing, the guests begin to feel a bit loose-lipped. Roux initiates a game, "Never Have I Ever",  where each person confesses the worst thing they've done that day, past week, past month or in their entire lives.  As uncomfortable secrets are revealed, the game takes a darker turn.

It seems Roux knows a lot more about the hostess, Amy's past than what she has revealed. to those closest to her. Amy has built a nice comfortable life and intends to keep it that way. Just how far will Roux go and just how will Amy deal with her blackmailer?

Told primarily from Amy's POV and moving back and forth in time, this is a psych thriller that moved at a good pace. They story was suspenseful and although some parts seemed a bit unrealistic, the story kept me reading and curious. 

Searching for Sylvie Lee; Jean Kwok

TITLE: Searching for Sylvie Lee

AUTHOR:  Jean Kwok

PUBLISHER: William Morrow

PUB. YEAR: 2019

SETTING: Queens, NY and Netherlands
FORMAT:  - eGalley

RATING - 3.5/5

Part mystery, part immigrant story, Searching for Sylvie Lee, introduces us to the Lee family, specifically the mother, a Chinese immigrant and daughters. Sylvie, the oldest by 7 years, is brilliant and has benefited from an elite education. Amy is 26 and still living at home with her parents in their tiny Queens apartment. Amy is shy and has been sheltered as the baby of the family but she adores her older sister Sylvie who was raised by another family until the age of 9, 

Amy receives a phone call from a distant cousin in the Netherlands to say the Sylvie has seemed to have vanished while visiting her grandmother who was dying of cancer. Amy and her parents are desperate for answers and Amy is determined to get to the bottom of it all.  As she begins her quest for answers by contacting individuals in Sylvie's life, she uncovers some surprising and at times troubling information about her sister and about the family as well.

I liked that this story was set in both Queens and the Netherlands but, must admit it was a very slow read at times. Fortunately, the story did pick up towards the end but, it is just not an upbeat or hopeful story and, I guess I hadn't realized that when I began..

First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros - Searching for Sylvie Lee; Jean Kwok

On Tuesdays, Vicki, ( I’d Rather Be At The Beach)  hosts First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros where  readers post the opening paragraph (or 2 ) of a book they are reading or that they plan to read. (Today's pick is a new release by an author I've enjoyed in the past)

 Searching for Sylvie Lee; Jean Kwok

William Morrow - 2019

Part 1

Chapter 1

Amy - Monday May 2

"I'm standing by the window of our small apartment in Queens, watching Ma and Pa leave for their jobs.  Half hidden by the worn curtains Ma sewed herself, I see them walk side by side to the subway station down the street.  At the entrance, they pause and look at each other for a moment. Here, I always hold my breath, waiting for Pa to touch Ma's cheek, or for Ma to burst into tears, or for either of them to give some small sign of the truth of their relationship.  Instead, Ma raises her hand in an awkward wave, the drape of her black shawl exposing her slender forearm, and Pa shuffles into the open mouth of the station as the morning traffic roars down our busy street.  Then Ma ducks her head and continues her walk to the local dry cleaners where she works."

What do you think? Pass or read more?