"Half a World Away" Book Review

 Half a World Away

Written by Mike Gayle

Reviewed by Diana Iozzia

 

Half a World Away happens to be a novel that I had looked forward to for months. After misplacing my secondhand copy, a day after finding it, I longed to find it once more. I returned back to the United States after staying with my fiancé for a good majority of 2020, I found a new hardcover copy of it on my bookshelf, thanks to the lovely publisher.

Half a World Away was written from two perspectives: of tired, overwhelmed single mother Kerry and her long-lost brother, Noah, who is struggling with an impending divorce. The two characters were separated by the English foster care system. Kerry grew up in a home and eventually aged out of the system, while Noah was adopted by a kind, large family. Although they were not connected until mid-adulthood, Kerry has written to Noah so they can meet and become reacquainted.

The premise itself is not one that I would typically be drawn to, but the allure of the long-lost novel and the long-lost plot intrigued me. I personally felt that the premise itself was executed well, but my enjoyment while reading was lackluster. First and foremost, Mike Gayle’s writing style is extremely lengthy and excessive. Nearly every paragraph has at least four lines, and at one point I counted one paragraph to be twenty-three lines long. The characters ramble within their own thoughts, and the dialogue is just as ridiculous. Kerry and Noah’s dialogue, as well as other characters, is presented more as a monologue or a speech, as if each paragraph is meant to be a groundbreaking, plot-revealing moment. I felt that most of the time, many chunks of dialogue were unnecessary.

Additionally, I found it extremely difficult to decipher any differences in the way each perspective was told; Kerry’s and Noah’s prose was nearly identical, without any different calling cards to spice up the prose.

I found it incredibly difficult to like Kerry and Noah. Kerry loses her temper often, she smacks her child, and consistently lies so that her life runs more smoothly. Are we supposed to pity and / or sympathize with her? Noah is a better person, but I still find him tiring to read. His entire commentary seems to be ‘I don’t know how to trust people, because I was adopted. Did you know? Did you know that I was adopted? I’ll tell you nine more times in this chapter, in case you forget.’ Many of the decisions Kerry and Noah make seem rushed and immature, which makes me lose my interest in them almost immediately after I find some.

 Lastly, I felt there were too many scenes that were too short. Imagine, having paragraphs so long that they fit half a page, but half a chapter is dedicated to an interesting location or adventure, like when they went to Brighton together. It felt so disappointing to have the characters travel there, eat a cone of chips, and head home. Then, we learned much of the conversation that was had through the other character’s perspective, in the next chapter. Too much of the novel just gives away exposition without actually providing an interesting plot or sequence of events.

However, there are some positive aspects to the novel. I enjoyed the idea of the separated siblings becoming close once again. Their plot lines of struggling with their marriages and children felt very natural, and I appreciated the inclusion of them to flesh out the characters. As someone who has a personal connection to separated relatives, I felt it interesting to see how these characters reacted to similar events. I could see why some readers may recommend this novel to fans of This is Us, Gilmore Girls, and Parenthood for the tough but sentimental family drama. The ending felt incredibly predictable, but I was still not really interested in its execution. I feel that most readers and writers could have predicted each plot point in order.

Unfortunately, I disliked this novel more than I liked it. I would consider reading another novel by this same author, but I just cannot speak to the brilliance of this one. The lackluster plot and writing style brought the novel down for me, lessening my enjoyment.

 

I rate this book at three stars out of five stars. Thank you to Hodder and Stoughton for sending along a finished review copy.

"Bottled Goods"

“Bottled Goods”

Written by Sophie van Llewyn

Reviewed by Diana Iozzia

A tale of political revolution mixed with magical realism could be a cocktail for a great novel, with lasting power and relevance to today’s climate. Admittedly, Bottled Goods is a fantastic look into the Romanian Revolution, how defecting your government and escaping would look in that era. Our main characters are Alina, Liviu, Alina’s mother, and her Aunt Theresa. Conversely, the plot barely relied on the magical realism aspect, being able to shrink people to fit in a bottle, until the last act of the story.

Alina’s narrative voice interested me. I loved learning more about the Romanian Revolution in simplistic and realistic views, letting us see how it affected everyday citizens, like a favorite of mine Persepolis. Her unhappy marriage and her strong dislike towards her parents led to an unsympathetic choice she makes, but it does not lead to a perfectly happy ending. Personally, I became invested in this novel for the wrong reasons. I imagined it to be more like Snow in August, Pan’s Labyrinth, Exit West, and more, in which the magical realism relates politics to magical elements in a symbiotic way. However, I felt that the plot was not propelled by the shrinking magic, where I thought it would have more of an influence.

Additionally, this book was only 180 pages. Due to its small size, it includes chapters that are more vignettes and were serialized by the author. This lends the book to feel too short and hardly developed, without us learning much about each character. I do recommend this novel, but I just wish that the story would have been longer and fulfilled my expectations more.

I rate this novel at 3 out of 5 stars.

Thank you to Harper Perennial for the advance copy, sent to me in exchange for a reading and reviewing purpose.

"What She Knew"

"What She Knew"
Written by Gilly Macmillan
Reviewed by Diana Iozzia

"What She Knew" is the second mystery thriller by the author, Gilly Macmillan, that I decided to read. After relatively enjoying the first one, I was curious to see how her writing style, creativity, and plot uniqueness transferred into this book.

"What She Knew" was written prior to "The Nanny", which was the first I read. Both books have very strong points of interest, great plot devices, well-crafted characters, appealing settings, and a great overall voice. Unfortunately, the villain and the reveal have tapered off and were ineffective, in my mind. This in no way ruins the book, but that definitely would bring my enjoyment level down, creating a less successful read.

The story follows an interesting set of characters. We meet Rachel, a divorced mom, whose son has disappeared after running ahead in the park, with her permission. John is her ex-husband, who with his new wife Katrina, blames Rachel for Tom's disappearance and possible kidnapping. Additionally, the detective following the case is named Jim, who interestingly tells the story through a first person perspective. Including this narrative style allows us to sympathize more with Jim, even though the story is told after the fact, explained to his therapist to help him cope with possible post-traumatic stress disorder. Nicky, Rachel's sister, has also come to help Rachel with the investigation and news storm.

Additionally, the story allows includes smaller characters, such as Rachel's best friend, Tom's teacher, Tom's teacher's assistant, Emma, a secondary detective, and Dr. Manelli, Jim's therapist.

The storytelling technique reflects the current technology inclusion in modern thrillers and mysteries. The author creates e-mails, transcripts, quotes and facts from law enforcement books, Facebook posts, Wordpress blog posts, and newspaper articles. Prior to each chapter, the quotes and facts allow for red herrings and predictions for the section. Additionally, the count of the days since Tom has disappeared also adds tension.

I absolutely enjoy Macmillan's stories, but the endings are truly ruined by the villain. Creating two major characters in this story that could be the villain, could be behind the disappearance, was wonderful! The suspicion due to the backstories behind each character easily led to tension and worry building. However, revealing a tiny character as the villain allowed my disappointment to fully bloom. The heavy red herrings were well-implemented, but they also lead to a less than perfect ending. Although the motive of the character was well planned, the climax barely existed.

In conclusion, I would absolutely read another book by this author. In the future, I would hope that Macmillan changes the way she writes endings and chooses her villains. I rated this book at four out of five stars. I actively look forward to reading her next published novel.