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High school students Laura, Daniel, and Mo have died. They don’t remember how and they certainly don’t know what they are now doing standing in their music teacher Mr. Anabin’s classroom, with a fourth young man they don’t recognize, who doesn’t even seem to know who he is. Upon detecting their presence, Anabin verifies that they have each indeed perished and have spent a year trapped in the realm of Bogomil from which people typically don’t return. Bogomil himself appears and the pair agree to let the quartet return to their normal lives as if nothing had ever happened, under the condition that while there they must complete a series of tasks, including discovering what caused their deaths, and at the end of the assignment, only two of the four will be allowed to remain alive.
Laura finds herself back at home with her single mother and sister Susannah, with whom she shares a sort of love/hate relationship. Daniel returns to his large family just across the street from Laura, and his on-again/off-again relationship with Susannah. Mo finds himself back at the home of his grandmother, a successful romance novelist who basically raised him, only to discover that while the trio were missing she had passed away, leaving him in the care of her long-time assistant. Everyone believes that the group had simply been studying abroad for the past year and each finds that they have memories of doing so despite it not being true, and so they attempt to assimilate back into their previous existences while trying to solve the mystery of their demise and learning to use the magic that allowed them to return.
As you would expect from the title this book really is about love in all its many forms, and the ways it shapes and guides us through our lives. Family, friends, and lovers all come into play, as does learning to love and accept oneself, and Link’s often gorgeous prose brings the many intertwined relationships to life. She has a talent for developing people that feel real, imbuing even minor characters with enough personality to make it hurt a little when they suffer. There are moments that feel slightly hokey every now and then, but they are easy enough to look past.
Link mostly handles the plot of her sprawling, supernatural, small-town saga well, making it easy enough to keep track of everyone and everything, though some events can occasionally feel repetitive. Rather than use chapter numbers the breaks are delineated with headings reading “The Book of Daniel”, “The Book of Laura”, and so forth, highlighting some of the religious subtext scattered throughout. Despite the fantastical events that surround the story, a lot of the little moments the characters experience feel eminently relatable, and there are several moments that pack an emotional punch, though none of them are allowed to really live long enough to settle in. I really enjoyed The Book of Love and would happily spend time with these characters again, but I was left with the weird feeling that I should have felt something more than I did. ★★★★
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in honor of St. Patrick’s day, i just finished this book about unrequited love, love at the wrong time, love again at the right time, requited friendship that ebbs and flows, etc., set in Ireland in the early aughts. and i am weeping! it’s very funny and heartwarming and precise, definitely one of the better contemporary lit books i’ve read in the past year
of course, read if u like Sally Rooney…
Mar 17, 2024
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popcorn gives this poison heart by kalynn bayron three stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️
popcorn really loved the characters in this book. popcorn loved the main character briseis and her cool plant powers, but the real stars were her moms known as mom and mo. popcorn loves them.
the pacing of this book felt off. the first 75% honestly felt like an info dump that lead to the actual plot that happened in the final pages of the book.
if you like a book that’s heavy on descriptions, this poison heart may be for you.
follow for more recommendations by popcorn.
Apr 1, 2025
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I listened to this book because I saw it recommended on youtube, a small book that packs a punch. A girl is fostered by an extremely caring and wholesome family, the Kinsellas, while back home her struggling mother is giving birth to yet another child, piling on top of her existing struggles. It doesn’t take much time for the girl to adjust to the idyllic Irish farmgirl lifestyle, helping to fetch the water, racing to beat her own time fetching the mail, and accompanying the Kinsellas to church and get togethers. Hidden somewhere behind all the idealism is a secret, carefully revealed – making the characters both extra lovable and heartbreaking.The book isn’t much of a commitment at sub 100 pages, and it sticks around in your mind forever.
Sep 17, 2023
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Apr 27, 2024
Mar 2, 2024
When Terry Hayes’ debut novel I Am Pilgrim burst onto the scene a decade ago, it seemed to announce the arrival of a major new talent in the thriller scene. I absolutely loved the book and was very excited to see what he would come up with when his next title, The Year of the Locust, was announced for release in 2016. Unfortunately, the year came and went without the book, as did several more, making it seem as if it might never be published. Lo and behold, 8 years later, it’s finally here, and as it turns out it was worth the wait.
The book is written from the perspective of Kane, a Denied Access Area spy for the CIA. His job is to get into the places that Americans aren’t supposed to go and get back out again without being caught, and he is one of the best in the business. When we meet him, he is being sent to the borderlands of Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iran to try to gather information about an increasingly powerful terrorist group known as the Army of the Pure. Intel has suggested that they are planning a major attack that will endanger countless people around the world and so it is imperative that he can learn more about the organization so they can be stopped before it is too late. Of course, with these kinds of missions there is a lot that can go wrong, and Kane finds himself in some very bad scenarios, with only his wits and training to help him survive.
Written in a conversational tone and short, punchy chapters (some barely a page long), the novel’s roughly 800 pages fly by. Kane is an easy character to like, and the book can sometimes feel like he’s a friend telling you a story. That story happens to be relentlessly suspenseful though, filled with some of the tensest moments of any book I’ve read in years. I would frequently find myself feeling a palpable sense of relief at the conclusion of a mission, having been every bit as invested in its outcome as the characters involved. Speaking of which, while Kane is the star, the other characters are equally enjoyable to spend time with and help to further draw in the reader.
Hayes has clearly done his homework when it comes to spycraft, providing fascinating insights into that world throughout. Everything is so convincing that it can be hard to tell what’s in actual use or the author’s invention, and while it is all thoroughly explained it never gets boring.
The finale takes the story into some truly surprising territory that readers will never see coming and which raises the stakes to truly astronomical levels. Parts of it require some suspension of disbelief, but Hayes pulls off the shift so well that most readers won’t have any problem going along for the ride. 10 years between books is a long time to wait, but when the result is this thrilling, inventive, and even surprisingly emotional it seems like it paid off. Though, it’s still very early into the year, I’d be surprised if I read a more entertaining book than this one in 2024. ★★★★★
Feb 5, 2024