I crave books

This is a set of interconnected stories of the ex-wives and new wives of a set of men. Each vignette offers a glimpse at the life of a blended family. The title comes from Lu’s post, which got her banned from secondwivesspeakeasy.com, complaining that Stepmom is not a realistic portrait of a blended family.

This was humorous at times, but because the narratives shift in each chapter/short story, I was left feeling dissatisfied by the entire book, asking myself - what’s the point?

This was my YA read for the week. I’ve been traveling for work so not much time for reading lately. I picked this slim book to keep me occupied, and was actually quite disappointed. This was billed as a mystery. Set in Britain. Immediately after 16 year old Scarlett’s first kiss, the object of her affection, Dan, mysteriously falls to the floor and dies. Scarlett must transfer out of her posh girls school, to the school her grandmother runs. A mysterious note (which I found implausible) spurs Scarlett to investigate Dan’s death. And right when she discovers an important clue, the novel ends (at 260 pages). Did the publisher forget the last 40 pages? Or is Ms. Henderson writing a series and wants to keep readers riveted? Either way I was incredibly disappointed with this novel. I wasn’t vested enough in Scarlett, (although I was interested in a secondary character and wanted to know more) and I found the mystery element to be completely lacking and not engaging or plausible.

So it’s been awhile since I read a dud. I guess it was time. Perhaps now I need to create a not recommended category?