Once More Upon a Time

Once More Upon a Time by Roshani Chokshi
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I'm having a hard time deciding on a rating for this one because on the one hand, it was an absolutely delightful second-chance romance tale of a young King Ambrose and Queen Imelda whose love was taken away by a curse the day after they married, in exchange for saving Imelda's life. To rule their tiny kingdom, they must love each other, however, so they were forced out after a year and a day had passed. Only then, on a quest to steal a potion from one witch to give to another, do they discover that though they no longer remember being in love, there never was anything preventing them from falling in love all over again. They simply wasted that year. The journey they undertake together is both literal and figurative, with plenty of personal growth and adventurous escapes from carnivorous beds, enchanted animals, and potion-wielding witches. Both the narrator (the witch) and a cloak that thinks it's a horse provide plenty of humor along the way.

On the other hand, I somehow forgot it was a novella and was unpleasantly startled when the book ended just as it was getting going. This really would have been better as a full-length novel, in my opinion. Not because I think the romance needed to take any longer to rekindle, but because there was so much more story to be told of how they found their way once it was and adjusted to their newly realized heart's desires. Their healing from adolescent traumas was just beginning, and I wanted to stay with these characters as they built something new.

But Goodreads doesn't allow half stars, so I think I'll round up to 4 because I really did enjoy the novella until there were no more pages.

For readers' advisors: character and language doorways are primary, but setting is strong as well, since it's beautifully written, humorous fantasy based on the fairy tale of the dancing princesses. Though the target audience is adults, it works for older teens as well. It's steamy, but the one sex scene happens off-screen. No real gritty violence or profanity that I can recall.

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Book Lovers

Book Lovers by Emily Henry
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Nora Stephens has been dumped not once, not twice, but FOUR times by men who leave New York City for a Hallmark-movie-ending in the country. If her life were a romance novel trope, she'd be the "Evil City Girlfriend." Nora adores NYC, though, and has zero desire to live anywhere else. She is a classic workaholic, devoted to her clients and dedicated to securing the best publishing deals she can in her role as a fierce literary agent. She is also devoted to her younger sister, nieces, and brother-in-law, so when Libby begs her to take a month-long sisters' vacation to the very small town that's the setting of a client's best-selling novel, she acquiesces. Little does she know her sister has ulterior motives for the trip and is on a mission to give Nora her very own Hallmark movie experience. Not long after the women arrive, it's not a handsome stranger they run into, though, but the very editor who once turned down the book that put this town on the map, so to speak, and Nora begins to learn that everyone has a backstory, and sometimes first impressions are dead wrong.

I absolutely adored this book! Yes, the solution the characters struggle to see was obvious to me from the moment we learn what Libby's secret is--and it crossed my mind even before that--but the journey they took to get there was necessary, heartwarming, and sometimes even heart wrenching. Plus the witty banter was perfect, like an R-rated Gilmore Girls, and had me laughing out loud or at least grinning 'til my face hurt though most of the story.

What I don't understand is why the official synopsis of this book says Nora and Charlie are rivals. They barely know each other until Nora & Libby arrive in Sunshine Falls. The only time they've ever interacted was 2 years prior at the meeting where Nora pitched Charlie the manuscript for Once in a Lifetime, and he turned it down because he hated the setting. In fact, when Nora does spot Charlie in the coffee shop, she isn't sure it's him and has to look up his address to send an email as a test to see if the man ahead of her in line responds. Which he does, because apparently they both have email notifications turned on--something I would never do because the constant pinging would make me insane, but I suppose it makes sense for their business email accounts. At any rate, they aren't rivals; they are acquaintances who become colleagues and friends with enough electricity sparking between them to start a wildfire.

For readers' advisors: character doorway is primary, language secondary (for the banter). There is no violence, but there are a few steamy sex scenes and some profanity sprinkled throughout.

Many many thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the free eGalley copy in exchange for my honest review!

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Fly Girl: A Memoir

Fly Girl: A Memoir by Ann Hood
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was in preschool the year that Ann Hood began her career as a flight attendant for TWA, but I do remember a little bit about what it was like to fly at that time, though I most definitely never got to experience the luxuries of flying first class. Her memoir is a fascinating look at what it took to become and remain a flight attendant in the years when the airline industry was undergoing massive upheaval both culturally--the sexism is nauseating in the extreme--and financially, with deregulation bringing both positive and negative changes, and corporate greed causing widespread devastation.

My favorite parts of the book were the ones focused on her personal experiences and growth. Hood's recounting of her time at the Breech Training Academy in Kansas City was captivating. I wasn't surprised that they were trained to do all the obvious things like demonstrate how seatbelts and life vests work, but I had no idea the breadth and depth or complexity of their training, from how to carve chateaubriand (they used to do that on airplanes?!) to how to deliver a baby, and a million other responsibilities big and small. I don't know how many of those tasks are still part of modern-day flight attendant training--I'm assuming the meat carving isn't a thing any more--but I have a whole new appreciation for the men and women who have patiently offered me drinks and hot towels on past flights.

I also found the history of the airline industry itself to be fascinating, though I struggled with the lack of coherent timeline. Actually, that's true for some of her personal recollections as well--she tends to go off on tangents during anecdotes sometimes. All of which are interesting, but the non-linear detours did make it difficult for me to figure out when various events took place. The overall story arc moved chronologically, but the individual threads zigzagged.

One thing that surprised me was that for all the stories of what life was like as a beautiful, young, single woman with an adventurous spirit, and her tales of dating or refusing propositions, there is virtually nothing about meeting or marrying her husband. I thought that's what she was alluding to with her recollection of meeting 47F, but alas, no. Perhaps that means meeting her husband was unrelated to her time as a flight attendant? Perfectly fine to keep that story private, but I admit I was a little disappointed.

All in all, I very much enjoyed reading this memoir. 3 1/2 stars, but I'll round up. Many thanks to Bookbrowse and the publisher, W. W. Norton & Company, for the free ARC in exchange for my honest review.

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