J. S. Drangsholt

I received this book as part of the Goodreads Giveaway Program. My opinions are my own.

I finished this book with a furrowed brow, the truth is I wasn’t sure what I thought of it. While I could never quite get into sync with the story, it was a compelling read. I just don’t know if it went anywhere and I was certainly glad to move on to the next book on my list.

Interestingly a review by an Amazon customer of the first book in the series caught my attention and summed up my feelings for this second installment perfectly.

“The read was really interesting. It got silly at times but I honestly couldn't stop reading the book. The main character was a little bit too much of a pain. I did not like her at all - whiny, hypochondriac, not a very good wife or mother. I was really glad when I got to the end of the book.”

_____

This is the kind of book my husband calls “slice of life” and just the kind of book he lives to read, while I prefer a bit more structure to my fiction. It isn’t that I think this is a bad book, I just can’t FEEL anything for Ingrid Winters. She pops from one bad situation into a worse one throughout the story, but often it so much her own fault or from her own lack, that any sympathy I should have felt for her just evaporates and I am left simply feeling her frustration.

The author has however done a fabulous job of surrounding her heroine with complex, vibrant, often humorous or satirical characters that I would actually enjoy reading more about. I laughed more than once with Grandpa’s misadventures in the retirement home and with Alva’s solution to her own misadventures in preschool. As a wife, I could totally commiserate with a husband’s need to DIY and as a sports fan, well, let’s just say there definitely some elements to this book that will be imminently relatable to a lot of readers.

This book should find an audience with those that enjoy a dry wit and penchant for calamity.… (mehr)

A quick read from Amazon Prime First Read. Good thing I didn't spend more than 13 hours on this book. I feel let down, confused and stressed out honestly. Ingrid was insipid and completely annoying. I found the pop culture references the only decent part of the book. I'm not sure if the translation was what messed it up for me or not. There's neurotic and then theirs just lack of common sense. This was truly Ingrid's problem. I felt as if there was not a truly well built character development of all the people who are part of her world. Maybe that's because she didn't care about anyone else but herself. There is social awkwardness and then there's just selfish and mental. This is what I got from this book. I didn't find the hectic feel of the book relatable nor normal for a mother of three. I mean after all I am a mother of three with a husband with a time consuming job. This felt fake. The only realistic thing to me was loving a house so much you would do anything to get into it even if you know it isn't financial solvent.

Sorry, just my take. I guess I can't love everything I read...… (mehr)