Tatum Grant was a child star (c’mon, Tatum?!?! ReaARC for review. To be published January 28, 2025.
This is complicated. I don’t know about this one.
Tatum Grant was a child star (c’mon, Tatum?!?! Really?), spending her formative years on location and on various film sets. Then she got pregnant, the father an older, award winning actor.
Fifteen years after the actor’s death Tatum leaves L.A., her mother and daughter and goes off on a search for her authentic self. She uses her daughter’s ID and poses as a sixteen year old high school student at Dobson High School in the hometown of the actor, living the life of a popular teen, because she is Stockard Channing. Oh, wait until the police catch on. And did I mention she is having torrid sex with teachers and MINORS? Because she is. There are predators everywhere. This is one fucked up high school, if you’ll pardon my French. I’m sorry, they don’t offer French? Or any other classes? Because they are busy with cheerleading and sex? Got it.
What, if anything, are we to take from this? Based just on the title I would say it might just be an avenue to portray illicit, predatory sex. I didn’t really see much, if any redeeming roles for any of the mothers and daughters here. There are the LOLITAS of this world, then there is….this. I did like the use of multiple POVs, including real life stars and others in the film industry…so much better than the use of made up names that have no context.
Oh, if someone is going to college on a D1 golf scholarship, maybe they should have, I don’t know, have played golf at some point in the book? Just a thought. This was a bit of a mess. ...more
ARC for review. To be published September 19, 2024.
So, I don’t know. Lester Fabian Brathwaite, a former writer for “Entertainment Weekly” (oh, how I ARC for review. To be published September 19, 2024.
So, I don’t know. Lester Fabian Brathwaite, a former writer for “Entertainment Weekly” (oh, how I miss the hard copy of that magazine) isn’t even always that mad…more despairing of some of his life choices. He’s young, queer, gifted and black and filled with gallows humor. The book is described as a memoir:cultural critique/live grenade….it’s a bit of all of these, I suppose. Social commentary and pop culture mixed with anecdotes from his life.
There’s a LOT about his desire for white men and body builders, as well as black rage, masculinity, the treatment of gay people of color and his mom who died when he was fourteen. He is an NYU dropout from Guyana, maybe in his 30s. He has some sort of weird immigration status which means he can’t get a passport? I was curious about this, but he only covered it in passing while describing how he couldn’t go abroad to visit a crush.
“I personally didn’t do shit. I didn’t march. I didn’t vote.” Originally a WTF moment, but perhaps he cannot. In the same paragraph he says he’s getting “more radical” as he gets older, whatever that means. If he can’t vote he should probably say so, instead of letting people assume it’s because of apathy. Unless it’s because of apathy, in which case, WTF???
“the role of the artist seemed to be to chase the world, the get crushed by it.” Welcome to being human, my friend. It gets us all, in the end.
He seems so very alone, and very lonely, which are not at all the same thing. He speaks of cutting ties with his remaining family then says, “I’ve walked away from relationships before….to my understanding life is ephemeral, as are bonds we make…love fades, friendships and people die and you keep moving.” This seems to be a person in desperate need of a rudder. A relationship that is real, and lasts.
Of Trump lovers, “I fear they would rather America implode then relinquish their death grip on this country.” Agreed. I think what you have is a group of people who are the least able to admit they might be wrong, led by the king of never admitting failure. That will never, ever end well.
Who is this book for? I’m not really sure. Obviously those in his demographic, but I felt there was something so very sad about the author. He was a boy who desperately needed a mother who lost his too early and he’s never been able to find any sort of replacement for that relationship. He needs stable, sustaining love. I hope he finds it. (Dr. Brewster is not, in fact, a doctor of anything except jurisprudence, and that doesn’t really count, plus she has never treated the author, but she thinks they would have fabulous brunches together. Dr. Brewster would probably have the pancakes or a nice waffle.)...more
There’s a cat named Haiku. You know he’s going to end oddly. I made that up myself. I definitely seeARC for review. To be published October 15, 2024.
There’s a cat named Haiku. You know he’s going to end oddly. I made that up myself. I definitely see a huge future for me in comedy, right?!?!?!
This book is eighty-five pages long. My synopsis might be longer. It will probably be less stupid. And that gives it a lot of room to be dumb.
Two weeks ago Derek Sinclaire died when he fell off the roof of his family home while hanging Christmas lights, so probably the best thing to do is take your young son (and your cat) and isolate for Christmas. Or maybe it is. What do I know, I don’t have kids?
Anyway, now widow Christine, fifteen year old Billy and cat, Haiku are headed to a cabin deep in the Pennsylvania woods. They haven’t been there long when Christine starts to hear strange noises in the forest and this is the problem with nature. I would be long gone at this point and in a nice Hilton, with a bar.
So, out of the last four books I have read, three of them have mentioned Stephen King. Either a character is reading one of his books or his name just comes up. Can you imagine looming that large in the culture?
This story is ridiculous. Every move Christine makes is the wrong one. I only finished the book because it was so short. No one would do what this woman does. I won’t spoil it, I guess, in case you care. ...more
This epistolary novel (one of my favorite things, so I was predisposed to liking it) is made up of letters wARC for review. Published August 6, 2024.
This epistolary novel (one of my favorite things, so I was predisposed to liking it) is made up of letters written TO serial killer Jonas Williker as he awaits imposition of his death sentence. It is believed that Williker killed at least twenty-three women, possibly more.
There are some obsessed women here, including a potential jailhouse love, an ex, his mother and a random psycho sex girl. There’s also a dogged male detective and a vast array of others, some amusing. standalone portions of the book are not particularly well written, but the letters are interesting and capture different voice well. I enjoyed the book. Would have gone with a different title. ...more
Billie Hope needs some (don’t look at me, I didn’t name her!). Then she gets an email that makes her aARC for review. To be published March 25, 2025.
Billie Hope needs some (don’t look at me, I didn’t name her!). Then she gets an email that makes her an incredible offer - for $100 she can purchase a Victorian home in Juliana, Georgia. I, would naturally assume they mean the former U.S.S.R., and, of course, they would, and that would be the end.
No, in this crazy world they mean the U.S. state of Georgia, and why you figure out in what world that could possibly happen, Billie is signing up. She had to shut down her NYC restaurant during the pandemic and she and her husband Peter are struggling to pay rent and provide for six year old Meredith. Billie decides this is exactly what they need to start over.
At first it’s great, they are only two hours outside Atlanta, she is ready to start the new restaurant and the weather is wonderful. But then Billie and Peter start to have bad dreams, they aren’t getting along and the influence e the town elders have over the town seems odd. Is there something wrong with Juliana?
Well, um, yes. This was all destined for sorrow, and only an idiot would have believed the hype. Two hours from Atlanta? Please, girl! The story was “meh.” Ending was OK. Whole thing was about a hundred pages too long. I would like to have breakfast at her restaurant, though. ...more
ARC for review. To be published September 10, 2024.
It’s CULTS! My fave! Here we are promised some of the world’s most infamous cults and the morons whARC for review. To be published September 10, 2024.
It’s CULTS! My fave! Here we are promised some of the world’s most infamous cults and the morons who love them. How many? THIRTY, my loves, so buckle up!
“Cult is a scary word. Like terrorist. Or leprosy. Sharknado.” Oh, book, you and I are going to get along just fine!
“….from cults that believe extraterrestrials control our destiny, to cults that believe feet hold the secrets to our future to cults that believe eating is unnecessary.” Wait. What? Seriously, a cult based on dieting? Oh, yes, yes, yes. Thank you, Lord, for showing that you do love us sinners.
So, then, I feel terrible, because it’s all fun and games and then people die because of these assholes. Because, as this book reminds us, “people join communities, not cults”, and really, generally, the big problem is with the horrible cult leader, who plays on people’s weaknesses.
The book covers the usual suspects (Heaven’s Gate, People’s Tenple, NXIVM, though not Scientology…maybe because author didn’t want to get sued,) then also discusses things like Raelism (take “a volcano, aliens, sex with said aliens and claimed the first ever human clone [which] eventually goes on to snare Kanye West.” Oh, yes. Please come in. Because we would LOVE to hear more about your religion,) the Divine Order of the Royal Arms of the Great Eleven (great name) and I Am (started when a guy named Guy met an immortal on Mt. Shasta. Stuff happened. Lots of merch resulted. It’s all about the merch. And it had about 10K to 50K members.)
There’s so much to learn here, but again, I don’t want to lose sight of those who lose much, even their lives to cults (including Scientology.). That said, I was delighted to read about the foot fetish cult (called Ho No Hana Sanpogyo if you are looking for it in the phone book) and its founder who opened a store that sold electric massagers. The store prospered for three years before going bankrupt. Then the founder changed career. To become savior of the human race. THE MAN WENT FROM VIBRATORS TO THE MESSIAH. Take from this what you will....more
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