Latest by Caroline Leavitt

-
With or Without YouWith or Without You by Caroline Leavitt
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

“With or Without You” is the latest by Caroline Leavitt and a welcome treat.

Stella, a nurse, and Simon, an aging musician, have remained a couple for two decades. As a result, their relationship has become stale and a bit predictable. Simon gets an opportunity to open for a younger musician in Los Angeles, which could lead to more shows and a “second coming” for his band. He asks Stella to accompany him on the gig, but Stella is not so sure it’s such a great idea. She’s thinking mortgages and babies while Simon is still thinking fame and stardom. She believes the days of dropping everything to chase a pipe dream are long past them.

A storm delays their flight as they continue to debate whether Stella should accompany Simon, their conversation fueled by alcohol. Stella is also nursing a cold, but trying to be agreeable, accepts a pill when Simon offers it because it was something they used to do in the past. The next morning, Simon wakes up with a bad hang over, but finds Stella unconscious.

Simon has to decide whether to go on the road or stay with Stella who slips into a coma. When Stella regains consciousness, her perception of the world is different. While she experiences issues remembering many things, she has a compulsion and obsession to draw. The pictures that Stella draws and paints improve.

I found this novel to be a nice distraction from the typical summer thrillers, which is not to say nothing happens in this story, but this novel’s focus is on movement within the characters and not outside events. I finished “With or Without You” in a handful of sittings because the writing was so engaging. Neither Simon nor Stella is necessarily likable, but that did not stop me from wanting to find out what would happen to them. It was because of the characters’ flaws that this tale was so intriguing. Ms. Leavitt has superb mastery of character and voice; her prose is lively but poignant. I am in utter awe of the author’s graceful depiction of how Stella’s (and Simon’s) lives are transformed. You have to wonder—if Stella had not ingested the pill, would this couple have been arguing about gigs and getting married in their sixties?

I'd like to thank NetGalley, Algonquin Books and the authors for providing me an advanced copy of this novel. “With or Without You” will be published on August 4, 2020.

View all my reviews

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Great Historical Read

-
Image
The Ways We Hide by Kristina McMorris My rating: 4 of 5 stars “The Ways We Hide” is a great historical novel by Kristina McMorris. Thinking I was reading a typical Great Depression/WWII novel, I was in for a pleasant surprise. The focus of this novel is on Fenna, who, because she was poor, had to quickly develop street smart skills. Those skills lead to her working as a magician’s assistant (though she was the one developing the tricks behind the curtain). Yet, such expertise leads to her assisting Great Britain during the war. Feena was a delightful, spunky character, and I loved the friendship she had with her childhood best friend, Arie. This novel does more than tell a good story, but makes us fall in love with a woman who survives hardships is a very unique way. My thanks to the author, the publisher, and Net Galley for the privilege of reviewing this book. View all my reviews
Read more

The Twist on the FairyTale

-
Image
Not That Kind of Ever After by Luci Adams My rating: 3 of 5 stars I was asked to review “Not That Kind of Ever After” by Luci Adams. Most of us growing up believing in the fairy tale. Unfortunately, for most of us, it’s a long, difficult road to “happily ever after,” and sometimes, we do not need Prince Charming to get there. Bella, an aspiring author, is watching her friends couple up. Even her best friend, Ellie, is moving on. Yet, Ellie’s brother poses the question that many of us have asked ourselves: is it possible to happy without a soulmate? Hence, Bella starts writing twists on those enchanted tales and gains plenty of readers—and a few enemies in the process. I love the concept of a writer finding her voice while rejecting societal expectations. The story did not quite head in the direction I had hoped, but Bella, though flawed, is also quite likable. This novel was not perfect. I thought it was a bit too long, but at the same time, tried to push the characters forward a bi...
Read more

Hilarious Read

-
Image
Community Board by Tara Conklin My rating: 4 of 5 stars “Community Board” is Tara Conklin’s third novel and an enjoyable read. Darcy returns to her hometown of Marbridge after a divorce and a series of calamities that leads to a bit of a breakdown. But her parents—who have always been her shoulder to cry on—have taken off to Arizona. Darcy stays put in the house, subsiding on canned food and talking to a fern that is no longer in the house. Yet, slowly Darcy finds herself connected to the characters of Murbridge as she slowly finds her way back into how to live outside the walls of her childhood home. This is a hilarious story, though I admit Darcy can be quite frustrating at times. Yet, we all have had those days (or months) where we’ve been swimming in sadness (or, as in Darcy’s case—locked in her parents’ house because of it). I loved the posts from the community board that are interspersed through the different scenes. Does every community have someone who complains about dog po...
Read more