Search This Blog








2023 Literary Escapes Challenge
- Alabama (1)
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California (1)
- Colorado (1)
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia (1)
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana (1)
- Maine (1)
- Maryland (1)
- Massachusetts (1)
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York (2)
- North Carolina (1)
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina (1)
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont (2)
- Virginia
- Washington (1)
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
- Washington, D.C.*
International:
- Australia (1)
- Ireland (1)





2023 Build Your Library Reading Challenge







Thursday, October 08, 2015
Wickedly Funny Family Secrets Novel Surprisingly Poignant
1:00 AM
(Image from Barnes & Noble)

The good news: Mattie has inherited her mother's family home. The bad: she can't take possession of it for several months. With the Malibu out of commission, she's stuck in Gandy until she can find the money to get it repaired. A kind paralegal allows her to squat in her grandmother's house, but that only solves one of Mattie's problems. As she tries to straighten out her many dilemmas, Mattie settles into the rhythm of life in Gandy. Thanks to the quirky townspeople, her days are filled with plenty of drama and entertainment. Still, the only story she really wants told is that of her mother. Why did Genie Wallace, a pretty young woman with a bright future, suddenly up and leave Gandy? Why did she never return? How did the popular, well-loved Genie turn into the broken, boozed-up woman who raised Mattie?
With more questions than answers, Mattie determines to shake the truth about her mother out of the reticent Gandy-ans. Considering how shaky her relationship with Genie was, Mattie's surprised by how much she wants to know who her mother really was. But how many people will she have to hurt in order to get the real story? And what does it matter, after all, when the real problem is what to do about Mattie's own downward spiral? As Mattie unearths clues about her family's past, she finds shocking revelations—astonishing truths that might be the keys to salvaging her own future.
As you probably know by now, I'm a sucker for a good homecoming/family secrets story. The Art of Crash Landing, a debut novel by Melissa DeCarlo, certainly fits the bill, although it's a far cry from the Kate Morton-ish fare I usually read. Feisty Mattie is the kind of irascible character that shouldn't be as likable as she is. Still, her wicked sense of humor; her bold, reckless personality; and her refusal to back down make her a fun heroine. Her pain, so authentic and raw, makes her sympathetic. I couldn't help but love her. Mattie's madcap adventures made me laugh, while her family mystery made me race through the pages, eager to see how the puzzle pieces all fit together. Although our heroine (anti-heroine?) is undeniably hilarious, The Art of Crash Landing isn't a light, fun kind of novel. Not by a long shot. It's a sad, poignant read, but one that manages to be both real and hopeful. Despite the excessive profanity and other R-rated bits, I surprised myself by enjoying this novel quite thoroughly.
(Readalikes: Hm, I can't really think of anything. Can you?)
Grade:
If this were a movie, it would be rated:
for strong language, sexual content, violence, and depictions of underage drinking and illegal drug use
To the FTC, with love: I received an ARC of The Art of Crash Landing from the generous folks at HarperCollins via those at TLC Book Tours. Thank you!
3 comments:
Comments make me feel special, so go crazy! Just keep it clean and civil. Feel free to speak your mind (I always do), but be aware that I will delete any offensive comments.
P.S.: Don't panic if your comment doesn't show up right away. I have to approve each one before it posts to prevent spam. It's annoying, but it works!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments
(Atom)




Reading
All the Dangerous Things by Stacy Willingham

Listening
The War Librarian by Addison Armstrong



Followin' with Bloglovin'



-
-
Monthly Round-up: January 202311 hours ago
-
Finlay Donovan Jumps the Gun by Elle Cosimano11 hours ago
-
Top Ten Tuesday ~ Just for Fun Quotes11 hours ago
-
-
January Reflections13 hours ago
-
Top Ten Book Twins (Part III)14 hours ago
-
-
-
Books read in January16 hours ago
-
Coetzee, J.M. "Waiting for the Barbarians"16 hours ago
-
Top Ten Tuesday! Wintery book covers17 hours ago
-
-
Top Ten Tuesday18 hours ago
-
-
-
-
Top Ten Tuesday: Bookish Confessions20 hours ago
-
Top Ten New-to-me Authors in 202221 hours ago
-
TTT – My Favorite Black Authors21 hours ago
-
-
-
-
-
-
A Novel Disguise by Samantha Larsen1 day ago
-
Book’d Out [January 2023]1 day ago
-
Sunday Salon: January 29, 20232 days ago
-
-
Sunday Salon2 days ago
-
-
Sunday Post #4894 days ago
-
-
Review of Matilda5 days ago
-
-
-
-
My Bookish Goals for 20231 week ago
-
Top Ten Books of 20223 weeks ago
-
Books Read in 20233 weeks ago
-
December Monthly Wrap-up3 weeks ago
-
-
-
Thinking Out Loud: Our Wives Under the Sea2 months ago
-
Are you looking for Pretty Books?3 months ago
-
-
HEARTS OF BRIARWALL by Krista Jensen5 months ago
-
-
-
-

Grab my Button!



Blog Archive
- ► 2021 (159)
- ► 2020 (205)
- ► 2019 (197)
- ► 2018 (223)
- ► 2017 (157)
- ► 2016 (157)
- ▼ 2015 (188)
Thanks so much for the nice review! It made my day!
ReplyDeleteThis one sounds good. I do worry about the r-rated stuff but only because I hate when it takes over the story. It doesn't sound like that's a problem here though.
ReplyDeleteThat balance of sadness and hope is one of the things I love most in a book. I'm glad you enjoyed this one!
ReplyDeleteThanks for being a part of the tour.