The Husbands by Holly Gramazio

Rating: 3 of 5 stars 

Pages: 352 pages
Published: April 2024

I first learned about The Husbands by Holly Gramazio via the Modern Mrs. Darcy Book Club's Spring 2024 Book Preview, then the club chose the book as its June selection. The premise seemed intriguing and fun, so I ordered and copy and dug in so I could finish it in time to engage in the forums and listen to the upcoming author talk. 

One night, Lauren, the main character, comes home from a girl's night out and finds a man coming down from her attic who purports to be her husband. This seems innocent enough except she's never been, nor is currently, married. She's never seen this man before, and everyone in her life knows him as her husband. From there, Lauren learns that she can generate a new husband, and thus a new life, by sending the existing husband back into the attic for a random, made-up task. 

I was sorely disappointed. 

I shouldn't have gone into this book with any expectations, but I did. I thought Lauren would have experienced a handful of husbands and I, as the reader, would learn more about them and their respective relationships with her. Unfortunately, Lauren used the attic as a revolving door to overly judge and pick apart just about every husband we meet in depth. By the middle of the book, she's had over 100 husbands, but the reader has only gotten to know a fraction of them and sometimes for only a few paragraphs. The only character really featured in this book is the main one, and she's not very likable. By the midway point, I just wanted to quit because I didn't care whether she found her soulmate or not, but I persevered hoping that it would get better and so that I would have a richer experience in book club. 

It didn't get better. 

I think the problem with this book is there was no set-up for Lauren, the inciting action literally takes place on page 1. There's no build-up, no development. And from there Lauren's interactions with her husbands, friends, and family are largely superficial. I don't really feel like I got to know any of the other characters with the exception of Bohai, and he's largely a secondary character for Lauren's using to avoid potential plot holes. (And speaking of plot holes, since she was regenerating lives, like a video game, why didn't she just purchase her own air rifle? That one really bugged me.) There was just nothing to root for in this story. It was simply Lauren never ever being satisfied with her life, which, honestly, is kind of sad. 

Recommendation: Neat premise; poor execution. If the author chooses to write again, I think she could benefit from some better editing and beta readers. Overall, the plot seemed to be somewhat of a game, which makes sense because Gramazio is a game designer, even creating an interactive husband generator game on her website to promote the book. In terms of recommending this book, it's gonna be a no for me. 

Until next time ... Read on!

Regardless of whether I purchase a book, borrow a book, or receive a book in exchange for review, my ultimate goal is to be honest, fair, and constructive. I hope you've found this review helpful.

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This Spells Love by Kate Robb

Rating: 3.5 of 5 stars 

Pages: 352 pages
Published: December 2023

This Spells Love is a debut, friends-to-lovers romcom authored by Kate Robb, and I snagged an early release copy from Book of the Month in November, but the book officially releases in December 2023. I think the punnyness of the title won me over. 

The focal point of the story is Gemma Wilde who is grieving over the end of her long-term relationship. To help her recover, her sister, Kiersten, her aunt Livi, and her best friend Dax McGuire meet up at aunt Livi’s for some margarita therapy where they decide to perform a love-cleansing spell that will make Gemma forget all about her down in the dumps love life. The spell is sealed with a kiss from her platonic BFF, Dax. Much to her surprise the spell works, and she wakes up the next morning in a parallel universe where her life is flipped upside down and Dax knows nothing of her other than they work on the same street in Toronto. For the remainder of the book, Gemma struggles to decide if the life she’s been given is one she wants to keep, or if she needs to reverse the spell before the next waning gibbous phase of the moon, which will happen in about a month. But to reverse the spell, she must duplicate all the steps, including kissing Dax. 

The book moves at a fast pace, sometimes too fast for my liking. Some of Dax’s behaviors just seemed incongruent with how men and relationships work in reality. Overall, the plot is predictable and provided an easy read that I finished over the (U.S.) Thanksgiving holiday. I think it was a fair debut for this author. After finishing the book then reading her acknowledgements in the back, I learned she is a part of a so-called SmutFest 2.0 community that she deems “her people.” Had I known this, honestly, I probably wouldn’t have picked up a copy because that’s just not my genre. I guess when it comes to romance, I am more of a Hallmark girl. But to each his own, not every book is for every one. 

My other struggle with this book were some of the under-developed plot holes. Like, why didn’t it work out with her long-term boyfriend? Robb alludes to it when Gemma encounters him in her parallel universe (where he doesn’t know who she is either), but she never fully explains the reasoning. Also, did Aunt Livi know what would happen as a result of the spell. Again, the author alludes to it, but there’s never any resolution. And it all left me wondering. 

Recommendation: If you’re into the hot and heavy, this may just be the book for you. While I would classify it as chick lit, I must offer the disclaimer that it’s best read by fully-cooked chicks. There are many, steamy sex scenes and graphic details about male body parts that I’d rate R on the motion picture scale. Other than that, I’d select this book if you’re looking for some mindless entertainment over a long weekend. 

Until next time ... Read on!

Regardless of whether I purchase a book, borrow a book, or receive a book in exchange for review, my ultimate goal is to be honest, fair, and constructive. I hope you've found this review helpful.

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Black Buck by Mateo Askaripour

Rating: 2.5 of 5 stars

Pages: 381 pages
Published: January 2021

I am disappointed to report that it took me a long two weeks to complete Black Buck by Mateo Askaripour. A debut novel about a young black man currently working at one of my favorite places but also searching for himself and striving for success as eventually finds himself in a sales role in bumbling New York City.  

The book opens with Darren Vender living in a Bed-Stuy brownstone with his widowed mother surrounded and supported by his close-knit community. A chance encounter with an exectuive from the top floor of the building where Darren works as a Starbucks barista lands him the opportunity of a lifetime at a start-up company run by that executive. From there Darren transforms into Buck, and the story quickly moves from one unrealistic scenario to another ultimately falling flat. 

While I did appreciate the nods to the culture and how music was incorporated in the first half of the book, I didn't really like the premise of a novel as a sales manual. If I wanted to read a sales manual or a motivational book on how to become a salesperson, I would have done just that - not purchased a novel disguised as one. I think the biggest issue for me was the treatment of women in general, but especially women of color, as characters in the book. They were grossly underdeveloped. And the cherry on top was Soraya being depicted as his ever-devoted girlfriend even though Buck treated her and her father so horribly. I'm all about forgiveness, but I just don't see how any real woman could have forgotten his behavior in the first half of the book to the point that she stuck with him in the end. (Note: This isn't a spoiler. If interested, you'd have to read the book to understand where Buck lands at the end to get my point.) 

Recommendation: I like giving debut authors a chance, especially often overlooked authors of color, and I'm glad I gave Askaripour a chance and read his book all the way through, even the acknowledgements. This book was not my cup of tea (or cup of joe), but he promises his next one won't be anything like this one. So, who knows, I might give his next novel a try.

Until next time ... Read on!

Regardless of whether I purchase a book, borrow a book, or receive a book in exchange for review, my ultimate goal is to be honest, fair, and constructive. I hope you've found this review helpful.

Read More