China Rich Girlfriend - Kevin Kwan

Title: China Rich Girlfriend (Crazy Rich Asians #2)
Author: Kevin Kwan
Published: 2015
Pages: 400
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Edition: Hardcover
Source: Library

Description:
On the eve of her wedding to Nicholas Young, heir to one of the greatest fortunes in Asia, Rachel should be over-the-moon. She has a flawless Asscher cut diamond from JAR, a wedding dress she loves more than anything found in the salons of Paris, and a fiancée willing to sacrifice his entire inheritance in order to marry her. But Rachel still mourns the fact that her birthfather, a man she never knew, won't be able to walk her down the aisle. Until: a shocking revelation draws Rachel in to a world of Shanghai splendor beyond anything she has ever imagined. Here we meet Carlton, a Ferrari-crashing bad boy known for Prince Harry-like antics; Colette, a celebrity girlfriend chased by fevered paparazzi; and the man Rachel has spent her entire life waiting to meet: her father. Meanwhile, Singapore's It Girl Astrid Leong is shocked to discover that there is a downside to having a newly-minted Tech Billionaire husband. (via Goodreads)

Thoughts: While I enjoyed this book, I didn't enjoy the book as much as I did the first one in the series.  It took me longer to get into the book and I really didn't get the point of it.  I really didn't like the focus on Kitty but when the book focused more on Rachel and Nick, I felt that the book was better.

Bottom line:  I felt it was a decent sequel to the first book Crazy Rich Asians, but it suffered from what most second books do in that it was flat in areas.  Sure there were areas that were funny, but it didn't have the introduction that Crazy Rich Asians had and it didn't really wrap any of the lingering story lines that the third book will likely have.  And yes, I will be reading the final book in the series.

Rating: 3.5/5

Bellevue Square - Michael Redhill

Title: Bellevue Square
Author: Michael Redhill
Pages: 262
Published: 2017
Awards: Scotiabank Giller Prize (2017)
Genre: Fiction
Edition: e-book
Source: Personal Library

Description: From award-winning and bestselling author Michael Redhill comes a darkly comic literary thriller about a woman who fears for her sanity--and then her life--when she learns that her doppelganger has appeared in a local park.

Jean Mason has a doppelganger. At least, that's what people tell her. Apparently it hangs out in Kensington Market, where it sometimes buys churros and shops for hats. Jean doesn't rattle easy, not like she used to. She's a grown woman with a husband and two kids, as well as a thriving business, and Toronto is a fresh start for the whole family. She certainly doesn't want to get involved in anything dubious, but still . . . why would two different strangers swear up and down they'd just seen her--with shorter hair furthermore?

Jean's curiosity quickly gets the better of her, and she visits the market, but sees no one who looks like her. The next day, she goes back to look again. And the day after that. Before she knows it, she's spending an hour here, an afternoon there, watching, taking notes, obsessing and getting scared. With the aid of a small army of locals who hang around in the market's only park, she expands her surveillance, making it known she'll pay for information or sightings. A peculiar collection of drug addicts, scam artists, philanthropists, philosophers and vagrants--the regulars of Bellevue Square--are eager to contribute to Jean's investigation. But when some of them start disappearing, it becomes apparent that her alleged double has a sinister agenda. Unless Jean stops her, she and everyone she cares about will face a fate stranger than death. (via Goodreads)

Thoughts:  I had purchased this book back in late 2017 after it had won the Giller Prize last fall.  I bought it because it had won a literary award, not because I was interested in the book, and because it was something I had kept returning to the library unread.  So fast forward to July of this year when my library book club picked this book as the book to read for our August meeting and I thought great; I can get one off my TBR pile

Well, I really didn't like it.  The writing was very good and very descriptive, but quite honestly I couldn't quite get the story that the author was trying to tell.  It felt convoluted, but I guess when you have a brain tumor, you do get convoluted and since this is to be part of a trilogy, maybe the answers will eventually come.  I just had a hard time understanding what the premise of the story was and therefore didn't really enjoy it.

Bottom line: While the writing is good, I just didn't understand the story.  The book really needs a reread at some point, but with books that I probably will enjoy more on my TBR list, I don't see myself getting back to this book, unless I am on a trip somewhere where I am desperate for a book. 

If you enjoy books where the protangist is a bit loopy and trying to discern what is and isn't real, then I would recommend it.

Rating: 2.75/5

Bout of Books 23

Well it is that time again and I am planning on doing this this time around, as I haven't done the last few for whatever reason.

If you have forgotten what it is, here is an explanation:

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda Shofner and Kelly Rubidoux Apple. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, August 20th and runs through Sunday, August 26th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 23 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

If you can join me, that will be great and you will need to sign up over at their site.

As for the books that I will be working on then, I don't really know, but I should have a list up the weekend before the read-a-thon starts.

If you wish to follow me during the readathon, I will be tweeting reading updates on my main twitter account, @melissawiebe.

Happy reading!

Heart Berries: A Memoir - Terese Marie Mailhot

Title: Heart Berries: A Memoir
Author: Terese Marie Mailhot*
Pages: 160
Genre: Non-fiction, Biography, Memoir
Edition: Hardcover
Source: Library:

Description:
Heart Berries is a powerful, poetic memoir of a woman's coming of age on the Seabird Island Indian Reservation in British Columbia. Having survived a profoundly dysfunctional upbringing only to find herself hospitalized and facing a dual diagnosis of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Bipolar II, Terese Mailhot is given a notebook and begins to write her way out of trauma. The triumphant result is Heart Berries, a memorial for Mailhot's mother, a social worker and activist who had a thing for prisoners; a story of reconciliation with her father--an abusive drunk and a brilliant artist--who was murdered under mysterious circumstances; and an elegy on how difficult it is to love someone while dragging the long shadows of shame.

Mailhot "trusts the reader to understand that memory isn't exact, but melded to imagination, pain and what we can bring ourselves to accept." Her unique and at times unsettling voice graphically illustrates her mental state. As she writes, she discovers her own true voice, seizes control of her story and, in so doing, reestablishes her connection to her family, to her people and to her place in the world. (via Goodreads)

Thoughts:  I really enjoyed this straightforward memoir of Ms. Mailhot's life up until this point.  While the book isn't presented in a straightforward manner, it is straightforward in that you know what she is talking about in each chapter, as each chapter has a certain focus.

I also liked that she didn't sugarcoat her life in British Columbia (she grew up on the Seabird Island Indian Reservation not far from where I grew up and live; it is probably about an hour drive from my place) and that she acknowledges her dysfunctional as a cause for her depression.

Bottom line: It is very short (under 200 pages) and very poignant.  Warnings for description of suicide among other things.  Highly recommended.

Rating: 4.25/5

* the copy I had didn't include the introduction nor the afterword