Tag Archives: Debut Novel

A Pho Love Story — Loan Le

“There’s so much in your life that you can’t control.… So maybe you can use this chance to do something for yourself.”

Genre: Young Adult, Romance
Actual Rating: 3.5 stars
Spicy Meter: N/A, it’s clean
Content Warnings: Discusses racial discrimination and xenophobia. Mentions war and death.

“A Pho Love Story” follows Linh Mai and Bao Nguyen, the children of two immigrant Vietnamese families who own rivaling pho restaurants. They’re on their last years of high school and are just trying to find themselves—Linh loves art and Bao loves writing, but those don’t sound like acceptable careers in their culture. Will they follow their dreams, and perhaps forget their family’s rivalry for a moment? Might they even become friends? Or more?

“A Pho Love Story” is a multicultural, sweet, high school romance story that lives up to all of its potential. Just reading the premise I knew I would be moved, and oh was my heart warmed. But here’s the thing: I knew exactly how it was going to pan out. Hence the low-ish rating.

Ignoring its predictability, this was an very entertaining read. Loan Le is an amazing writer and I can’t believe this is her debut novel. Well, she’s also an editor at Atria Books, so perhaps her love and devotion to books made her an amazing rookie.

I would recommend “A Pho Love Story” to readers who enjoy multicultural books and clean love stories. Also, if you’re just looking for a somewhat predictable, feel-good read, this book is for you.

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“But in anything you love, isn’t there always some bit of sadness, some essence of suffering? That, to me, is what makes art worth it.”

The Lost Apothecary — Sarah Penner

“Why did we suffer to keep secrets? Merely to protect ourselves, or to protect others?”

Genre: Historical Fiction
Actual Rating: 3.5 stars
Content Warnings: Discusses cheating, murder, poisons, miscarriages, suicide attempts, and insinuates about sexual assault.

“The Lost Apothecary” follows three different points of view: one in present day and two in 1791. Caroline Parcewell was an aspiring historian before she decided to follow a family life instead of a life in academia. On a now somewhat unwanted trip to London, she finds a small apothecary vial and is set on finding out where and when it came from. So in comes Nella, the owner of a hidden apothecary that at times delivers poisonous and deadly concoctions to and only to women intended to give them to men, and Eliza, a young costumer that was getting some poisoned eggs for someone else and who becomes Nella’s friend (?) following a few unexpected and unfortunate events. Will the mystery of the lost apothecary be reviewed in present day or will Nella’s secrets remain hidden.

I must admit I only grabbed this book because of the cover. I had been wanting to read it for a while just because it was so pretty but I am so glad that I actually got through it because the actual book was so much better than the cover. “The Lost Apothecary” was a fun and dynamic read, with different points of views and different timelines. Sarah Penner has done an exceptional job with this novel, AND YOU’RE TELLING ME IT’s HER DEBUT. That’s unbelievable.

I know I am singing the praise of this book while I actually only give it gave it a 3.5 stars, but the thing is that this book was wonderfully written, the characters were mostly well defined and likable, but in the end I felt like I was still missing something, and I hated that.

I would recommend this book to readers who enjoy V.E. Schwab books like “The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue” and to anyone who enjoys books told threw different timelines and points of view.

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ARC — Every Summer After — Carley Fortune

“I can’t trust that you’ll love me forever when I don’t even know if you’ll love me next month.”

Genre: Women’s Fiction
Actual Rating: 5 stars
Content Warnings: Mentions cancer, parent death, cheating, bullying, slut shaming, and panic attacks.

“Every Summer After” follows Persephone—aka Percy—and Sam—just Sam, not short for Samuel or anything like that—, two childhood-friends-turned-high-school-sweethearts who, abruptly, stopped talking 12 years prior. But now Persephone is back in the town that brought them together—the town where Sam grew up, the town where Sam’s mother’s funeral will be taking place—and she will have to face Sam again after all these years. Told through different timelines, Carley Fortune built a story that’s both heartbreaking and heartwarming (but don’t I say that about all the books I love? Apparently I’m a fan of emotional books that tear me apart). The ending was the sweetest of them all. But it wouldn’t have been as sweet if it has been an easy way there.

The characters were lovely and well-defined, all with their peculiar personalities and ways of talking and acting. I am not sure what brother I loved more, Sam or Charlie, but I must say I loved them both. I am not the biggest fan of books where cheating is involved, but in the end I was very engaged with the plot and—although unjustifiable—I could empathize with what each character did under the circumstances they did it in. We were all kids once upon a time, we all messed up.

I would recommend this book to readers who enjoy alternating timelines and to fans of Colleen Hoover books, especially those who have enjoyed books like “It Ends With Us” and the “Maybe Someday” series.

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ARC provided by NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: May 10, 2022

“Betrayals don’t cancel each other out. They just hurt more.”

The Spanish Love Deception — Elena Armas

Genre: Romance
Actual Rating: 4.5 stars
Content Warning: Mentions sexual assault, power-imbalance couples, and cancer.

“The Spanish Love Deception” follows Catalina—a.k.a. Lina—Martín, as she sets to find a fake boyfriend that’ll follow her all the way to Spain, to her hometown, for her sister’s wedding. Then bring on her only candidate: Aaron Blackford, her annoyingly smug coworker. Ever since Aaron’s been in the office, Lina’s had the impression he doesn’t like her that much, and so she’s skeptical, to say the least, about him being her fake boyfriend. Set mostly in New York and the northern coast of Spain, this book will engulf you between two cultures and a not-so-deceptive love affair.

First things first: HOW IS THIS ELENA’S DEBUT NOVEL? It’s so well-written, her storyline was clear and well-constructed, and her characters were unique and lovely… Most writers don’t get it this right this early on in their careers. I can’t wait to read her second book, that’s coming out in August 2022—although it won’t follow Lina and Aaron, it’ll be following Rosie (Lina’s friend and coworker) and Lucas (Lina’s cousin) instead.

I would recommend this book to anyone who liked The Hating Game (book or movie, doesn’t matter), or anyone who’s fond of the enemies-to-lovers troupe. It’s a semi-lengthy book (almost 500 pages) but oh God, did I not get enough of those two and their story. I can’t recommend this book enough.

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Shipped — Angie Hockman

Genre: Romance
Actual Rating: 3 stars
Content Warnings: None that I can think of.

This book follows Henley and Graeme, two coworkers who go off on a cruise to get an immersive experience of the company they work for, as they’re both competing for a promotion. Mostly set in the Galápagos Islands, this is a tropical, entertaining read.

I wouldn’t call this a romance book, not even as a joke. It’s fiction (Women’s fiction, if you will) and it might’ve even been a good fiction book at that, it’s just not a good romance book. The plot is engaging, especially for people who are intrigued by nature and wildlife. Nonetheless, the character development was horrible. Actually, it’s so bad that it didn’t make sense at times. The relationship between Henley and her sister fluctuated so much and without reason. Henley and Graeme fell in love through lustful eye contact, I guess? Because they barely talked in the beginning. I don’t know. The characters weren’t it for me, but the plot was different and so I enjoyed it and that’s the only reason why I rated it the way I did.

I would recommend this book to conservation and biodiversity enthusiasts and someone up for a nice, filler book. This will not satiate your need for romance, take my word on it.

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p.s.: It’s described as “The Unhoneymooners meets The Hating Game”? Really? This book reminded me of anything but those books. I guess they’re comparing it to them because the characters are competing for a promotion (The Hating Game) and because they’re forced to go on a vacation together (The Unhoneymooners)? But, like, in The Hating Game the dynamic between the characters was wildly different and in The Unhoneymooners they shared a room in their vacation and were legit pretending to be together. If Henley did not want to interact with Graeme while they were on the big-ass cruise, she could’ve done that. I don’t know, maybe it was just me.

ARC — This World Does Not Belong to Us — Natalia García Freire, translated by Victor Meadowcroft

“Don’t you think that, after our deaths, after everything, it is they who are the stronger ones? And that, all things considered, perhaps this world does not belong to us, but to those miniscule beings, so numerous that they could bury us completely if they ever came together.”

Genre: Fiction
Actual Rating: 4 stars
Content Warnings: Discusses death. Also, insects and dead animals are prominent topics, if you have a phobia related to any insect, don’t read this book.

“This World Does Not Belong to Us” follows Lucas as he visits his childhood home after he was sent off and sold into slavery. Since then, his father has died and his mother has been labeled a madwoman—oh, and two strangers they had invited into their home years back are now permanently living it.

This book is deeply troubled and yet somehow beautifully poetic. It feels like it’s Lucas’s way of grieving not only his father’s death but all he lost when he was sent away. Between a series of flashbacks, Lucas relives the days he spent in the home that is no longer his.

I would recommend this book to people who like magical realism. So, people who have enjoyed books by authors like Gabriel García Márquez, Carlos Fuentes, and Isabel Allende. These books are filled with absurd circumstances that are portrayed as if they’re not absurd at all. I can see why this debut novel is so highly acclaimed in its original language, congratulations to Natalia García Freire and thanks to Victor Meadowcroft for this beautiful translation.

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ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: May 03, 2022

ARC — Long Story Short — Serena Kaylor

“What must it be like to feel so confident in your own skin that wearing another person’s seemed like nothing at all?”

Genre: Young Adult, Fiction
Actual Rating: 5 stars
Content Warnings: None that I can think of.

“Long Story Short” follows Beatrice as she embarks on a Shakespearian summer camp adventure in order to show her parents she’s mature enough to move to another continent in order to attend the university of her dreams. Branching out from a to-do list, she makes friends, breaks rules, and, surprisingly, has some fun in the process.

I found Bea’s inner voice to be very engaging and I absolutely loved the friendships she built as she broke out of her shell. Mia and Nolan were the perfect summer camp friends, and they kind of made me reminisce all the friends I made in summer camps when I was younger. Slow-burn crushes usually aren’t my favorite, but I must say I enjoyed this one very much.

I would recommend this book to anyone who likes nerdy YA novels, because oh- does this book get down and nerdy about Shakespeare. But really, you don’t have to know much about Shakespeare to enjoy this book (take it from me, I’ve only really read Twelfth Night and I still thoroughly enjoyed this book). Do not hesitate to pre-order this book, so you’ll get it as soon as it’s published. You will not regret it.

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ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: July 26, 2022

p.s. Nik is essentially Mr. Darcy from Pride and Prejudice, and I was there for it.

ARC — The Lives of Diamond Bessie — Jody Hadlock

“Do you know why most of us are here? Because we’ve been betrayed by the men who wanted to enjoy the pleasure of our company, who lead us down the primrose path, promising to defend our reputations, to marry us, but then abandon us because they’re engaged or married to someone else. Then they claim they’ve never known us (…).”

Genre: Historical Fiction, Mysteries and Thrillers, Women’s Fiction
Actual Rating: 4.5 stars
Content Warnings: Domestic violence, mentions death, sexual assault, suicide, and drug abuse.

“The Lives of Diamond Bessie” follows the story of Annie Moore, a woman in the 1860s who, after getting pregnant out of wedlock, is sent to a convent to pay for her sins and not bring shame upon her family. After giving birth and having the baby taken away from her by the nuns, she runs away in hopes of being reunited with her daughter. With no references, she can’t find a decent job and is left with no other option but to resort to prostitution. This is essentially what’s given to us by Jody Hadlock through the book’s description, but I must say this isn’t even one-eighth of the story.

You build so many preconceptions about what will happen in this book based on its summary… and then Jody takes them all and rips them apart. Annie, Elisabeth, Bessie, you were such an amazing character, such a resilient woman. Once you learn why they call her Diamond Bessie, you’ll be devastated and hoping it’s all a dream or some kind of premonition.

This book is very fast-paced, and maybe to a reader that enjoys extensive details and narrative it may seem like it skips through some steps. I think it was paced differently from other books I’ve read, and so I enjoyed it very much.

I would recommend this book to any reader who thinks sex work is real work (because it is) and to readers who like historical fiction and true crime.

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ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: April 5, 2022

Inconvenient Daughter: A Novel — Lauren J. Sharkey

Genre: Coming-of-age, Fiction
Actual Rating: 3.5 stars
Trigger Warnings: Dating/domestic violence, r*pe

I really liked the writing but didn’t fully get into the story. This book follows Rowan, a girl who was adopted from South Korea by white parents. We see her struggle with her identity, make dubious life choices, and then finally come back to herself.

I loved Rowan’s inner voice. Absolutely loved her as a character. I just couldn’t empathize with how she managed the situations she was in. I feel bad for all she went through by the end of the book, but I’m sorry, her mom still didn’t deserve that.

Overall, it’s a good book and I can’t wait to read more from Lauren J. Sharkey. I would recommend this book to people who liked “A Little Life” by Hanya Yanagihara.

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A Woman Is No Man — Etaf Rum

“To want what you can’t have in this life is the greatest pain of all.”

Genre: Cultural heritage fiction
Actual Rating: 5+ stars
Trigger Warnings: Death, domestic violence, r*pe

It took me a long time to finish this book, but only because it carried such a heavy message. It has absolutely no reflection on the masterpiece of a debut this book was.

“A Woman Is No Man” follows three generations of Palestinian women; all in different stages of their lives, all trying to do their best within their possibilities, all linked by the tragedy of being alive in a society that wants to silence them.

Every time the title of the book was mentioned within its chapters it just absolutely tore me apart. My heart broke for Deya, Isra, Fareeda, Sarah, and every woman that’s ever felt like they have no voice and no choice.

This book is an absolute must-read. I can’t recommend it enough. It’s so well written and it shares a story that isn’t showcased enough in mainstream writing. If you’re able to get a hold of this book, do it. I tried listening to an audiobook but it wasn’t the same. Reading the words to this book is absolutely necessary.

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