She remembered her mother’s words: to always rise above. Because her family was rare. Wealthy. Beautiful. Black.
–The Davenports by Krystal Marquis
The Davenports by Krystal Marquis is a charming YA romance following four women in the early 1900s Chicago: Olivia, the eldest Davenport daughter; Helena, the youngest Davenport daughter; Ruby, Olivia’s best friend; and Amy-Rose–the maid. All four of these women have dreams, ambitions, and a swoony love story unfolding in this historical fiction novel.
Hear more of my thoughts below by listening to the latest episode:
It is rage, expanding so fast and so hot that it fuels itself beneath your skin. Grief so deep you are only an open wound, only pain. Pain so fresh that the world itself feels like it should be burning.
–Bloodmarked by Tracy Deonn
My most anticipated release of 2022 is finally here, and I couldn’t be more excited to share my thoughts! Today’s episode is chokeful of spoilers, so if you haven’t read both of these books (and you care about spoilers), then I would wait to listen to this one! The Legendborn Cycle is definitely shaping up to be one of my favorite fantasy series, for sure…
“Love wasn’t possible without a self, and nor was thinking.”
–Machines Like Me by Ian McEwan
Machines Like Me by Ian McEwan was a challenging read for one– not in the sense of it having difficult prose, but in the sense that it was frustrating. It follows the story of Charlie, Miranda, and a robot named Adam as they uncover Miranda’s secrets and become entangled in a pseudo-love triangle.
I hope if you listen to this episode, you understand that I was *not* looking for romance or a love story, but I was looking for an exploration of humanity through the subject of love, jealousy and intimacy in which a love triangle could have been a conduit for this conversation. At any rate, let me know what your thoughts are about this novel in the comments below!
“For more than half a decade he’d thought of her every day, and here she was. Ian drank her in. He found her lovely. He found her obscene. He found her. “Here you are,” he said aloud, and smiled.”
–The Huntress by Kate Quinn
The Huntress by Kate Quinn is a force of a historical fiction novel, offering a triple POV, triple timeline story of a Huntress being hunted. Oftentimes, the story is brutal, with an incorporation of real life historical influences that make you cower, and at other times, the story is relatable, funny, and heartwarming. In typical Kate Quinn fashion, this novel is immersive, accessible, and romantic—a perfect read for someone in the mood for a historical and mysterious tale.
“A clean home, a clean body, and clean company. Do you know where that leads?”
I could not have been more than five years old when she taught me this. I looked way up at her as she spoke. “Where does it lead, Gran?”
“To a clean conscience. To a good, clean life.”
–The Maid by Nita Prose
Who do you have around you?
Sometimes company is chosen, and sometimes it’s thrust upon us based on circumstances we have little control over. The people who live next door, the coworkers you work closely with (but perhaps you maybe wouldn’t have hired), the new friends and the old, and of course, family. Whoever they are, the people we interact with can have a meaningful impact on our lives, whether we choose them or not.
In The Maid by Nita Prose, a heartwarming story about an unconventional maid at an upscale hotel, Molly Gray finds herself embroiled in a murder mystery that changes her life. At the beginning of the novel, Molly is, for lack of a better word, struggling. Her grandma, who was not only her parent-figure but also her best friend, has recently died. She is in deep financial trouble. She feels misunderstood at work, lost in a world that her Gran used to help her make sense of.
For a long time, Molly’s primary company was Gran. Molly’s parents unfortunately were not in a position to raise her, and Gran, for all intents and purposes, was not necessarily the person that Molly chose. But throughout the book, we can see that Gran was the best company for her; she was loving, patient, and understanding, and even after Gran’s death, we consistently see Molly ponder upon the lessons Gran instilled within her. Even after death, Gran is still keeping Molly company.
Constrastly, the company Molly has chosen is Rodney, a slick, attractive bartender at the Regency Grand Hotel. Molly struggles to see the disingenuous nature of Rodney: his criminality, his lies, and his deceit. She makes attempts to be around him, in the hopes that they may enter into a romantic relationship. But her attempts to win his approval and to be in his orbit inevitably threaten her safety and land her in sticky situations.
The Maid has a happy conclusion of course, and in the end, Molly prevails and finds herself surrounded by the best company–such as Mr. Preston and his daughter, Charlotte–people who choose her unexpectedly. But I couldn’t help but think about the quote at the beginning of this post during and after reading The Maid. Sometimes we want certain people in our lives for shallow reasons. We try to enter into friend groups because we want to seem cool, or have proximity to power, or we try to desperately win the romantic attentions of someone because they are beautiful or talented or well-liked. Throughout life, we have moments where we are striving to belong somewhere. Sometimes it can feel like we’re knocking on doors that no one wants to answer. But I agree with Gran–clean company is integral to our lives. And sometimes it takes a while to find it, or sometimes it finds you, like in The Maid. Molly doesn’t seek help; the help comes to her.
Ultimately, being around good people, people who have pure intentions and good hearts who show up for you in unexpected ways is a gift. Like Gran said, good, clean company can be the best thing for us. Life will always have plenty of messes, but it sure helps when we have great people to help us clean them up.
She Happily Reads 