Fiction
2020 Grove Press
Finished on August 8, 2021
Rating: 4.5/5 (Very Good)
Publisher's Blurb:
Following the breakout success of her critically acclaimed and award-winning novel Euphoria, Lily King returns with an unforgettable portrait of an artist as a young woman.
Blindsided by her mother's sudden death, and wrecked by a recent love affair, Casey Peabody has arrived in Massachusetts in the summer of 1997 without a plan. Her mail consists of wedding invitations and final notices from debt collectors. A former child golf prodigy, she now waits tables in Harvard Square and rents a tiny, moldy room at the side of a garage where she works on the novel she's been writing for six years. At thirty-one, Casey is still clutching onto something nearly all her old friends have let go of: the determination to live a creative life. When she falls for two very different men at the same time, her world fractures even more. Casey's fight to fulfill her creative ambitions and balance the conflicting demands of art and life is challenged in ways that push her to the brink.
Writers & Lovers follows Casey--a smart and achingly vulnerable protagonist--in the last days of a long youth, a time when every element of her life comes to a crisis. Written with King's trademark humor, heart, and intelligence, Writers & Lovers is a transfixing novel that explores the terrifying and exhilarating leap between the end of one phase of life and the beginning of another.
I was very excited to read Writers & Lovers (who doesn't love that cover art?!), but the opening chapters (ok, if I'm being honest, it was the first 100 pages) didn't win me over. The writing is very good, but the story failed to pull me in. I finally got hooked when Casey met Oscar and his two young sons at the restaurant at which she works as a waitress. The dialogue in that scene between the children and Casey won me over. I enjoyed the passages centered around Casey and her coworkers, but once her relationship with Oscar began to move forward, the story did as well. This was a slow burn of a read, but worth the effort. As the final chapters drew near, I began to read more slowly, savoring the prose, trying not to finish too quickly. At times humorous and touching, this was a winner! It would be a 5-star read if it hadn't had such a slow beginning. It was so good that I was tempted to reread it as soon as I finished. I didn't care for King's debut novel, The Pleasing Hour, but I'm looking forward to Euphoria.
Highly recommend.
Interesting! This book pulled me in from the very first page (or minute... I was listening then) and agree that the restaurant scene was one of the best. I'd hoped to read The Pleasing Hour for Paris in July, but didn't get to it. I'm in the minority when it comes to Euphoria... it wasn't a favorite.
ReplyDeleteInteresting, indeed! I also loved the conversation between Casey and one of the little boys when she was staying with them for a weekend. She definitely had a loving, maternal instinct with both boys.
DeleteI wonder how I'll like Euphoria. I have the audiobook, so I'll get to it sometime in the next few months.
I recall some of this which I listened to on a walk last summer when it was first released. I just checked my review and I rated it 4.5/5. I never read The Pleasing Hour but was alway curious.
ReplyDeleteHere is a link to my mini review of Wives and Lovers:http://bibliophilebythesea.blogspot.com/2020/07/2-mini-audio-book-reviews-murder-of.html
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DeleteThanks for providing the link to your review, Diane. I agree with your thoughts and your rating. I deleted a previous reply because I was wrong about listening to the audio! Don't know what I was thinking. ;)
Deletewhat a great cover! I'm glad you mentioned the slow beginning eventually hooking you. Any book that makes you feel like rereading when you finish is a good one!
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DeleteI have a feeling this will make my Top Ten list for 2021, Jenclair. It was really very good!
DeleteI received a review copy of this one ages ago but I could never get into the mood to read it. I still will. I do enjoy this author. I just need to find the right time to work it in.
ReplyDeleteTi, it's a winner!
DeleteI read this and shared it with a friend who teaches writing. She proposed it for our book club, but I didn't think others would like it as much as we did. Maybe I'm wrong!
ReplyDeleteDeb, I thought about sharing the book with my husband (who taught writing and is an author), but I don't think he'd care for the romantic threads of the story. Maybe I'll suggest it to my book club for next year's list.
DeleteThank you!! I can't tell you how many great recommendations I've gotten from you. I'm glad I know that I need to be patient with this one. :-)
ReplyDeleteLaurel, I hope you enjoy it!
DeleteIt's so difficult when a book doesn't pull you in right away and 100 pages is quite far to have it happen. But, 4.5/5?! The rest of the book obviously makes up for it.
ReplyDeleteHelen, I have a few books on my lifetime top ten list that took between 80-100 pages before I felt hooked. I remind myself of this whenever I start to feel like giving up on a novel.
DeleteI started The Pleasing Hour last month and haven't made much progress. I'm actually tempted to DNF at this point but this other book of hers sounds so good. I'll probably continue with this one as there are some things I do like. And, yes, really like the cover art for this one!
ReplyDeleteIliana, I can understand why you'd want to quit reading The Pleasing Hour.
DeleteI'm glad this novel won you over in the end. I guess I thought it relatable all the struggles Casey goes thru in this story ... it's like a good young person kind of tale ... i wasn't over-wowed by it but just found it enjoyable. It seems I got to it in May 2020. I have read her novel Euphoria ... which is totally different & more serious in nature but liked parts of it too.
ReplyDeleteSusan, I'm looking forward to listening to Euphoria. I thought I selected it for my 20 Books of Summer list, but I guess not. I'll work it into my "schedule" later this fall.
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