Review: The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina by Zoraida Córdova

**Quick note: from September 1st-7th, I will be out of town and therefore will likely not be responding to comments on these pre-scheduled posts/blog hopping as much as usual-sorry! I will be sure to catch up once I'm back.  Happy reading!

The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina by Zoraida Córdova
Atria Books
Publication Date: September 7th, 2021
Hardcover. 336 pages.

About The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina:

"The Montoyas are used to a life without explanations. They know better than to ask why the pantry never seems to run low or empty, or why their matriarch won’t ever leave their home in Four Rivers—even for graduations, weddings, or baptisms. But when Orquídea Divina invites them to her funeral and to collect their inheritance, they hope to learn the secrets that she has held onto so tightly their whole lives. Instead, Orquídea is transformed, leaving them with more questions than answers. 

Seven years later, her gifts have manifested in different ways for Marimar, Rey, and Tatinelly’s daughter, Rhiannon, granting them unexpected blessings. But soon, a hidden figure begins to tear through their family tree, picking them off one by one as it seeks to destroy Orquídea’s line. Determined to save what’s left of their family and uncover the truth behind their inheritance, the four descendants travel to Ecuador—to the place where Orquídea buried her secrets and broken promises and never looked back."

The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina  was one of those books that I didn't know much about, but when it showed up at my door I knew it was something I had to check out. This is a beautiful story magical realism, culture, family, and it's one that ended up letting me get lost in the dream-like beauty and prose in a way that I haven't in a while. I also feel as though I should point out that this is an adult book, even though the cover does seem a bit like it could go adult or young adult in style.

Orquídea Divina lives in her house in the middle of Four Rivers where her many children and grandchildren have lived, grown up, and moved on. She now has multitudes of descendants, and it is to these descendants that she prepares special invitations to come back to their home in Four Rivers to receive their inheritance. No one is sure exactly what is going on-is Orquídea Divina ill and dying, or is this just some ploy to get them all to Four Rivers? As expected, much of the family shows up, and the story begins.

The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina is filled with colorful characters and unique personalities with a spotlight on three specific perspectives from Marimar ("Mari"), Reymundo ("Rey"), and Tatinelly (whose young daughter also plays a rather large role in this story).  Each of these characters has a wonderfully unique personality and perspective on life, and I really enjoyed getting a glimpse into each one's image of their family and childhood with Orquídea. After Orquídea's passing, Mari, Rey, and Tatinelly's daughter are left with some rather strange manifestations on their bodies that embody some form of a magical gift that they haven't quite figured out yet. I won't say too much about this component, but it's done in a very subtle yet momentous way that really adds to the beauty of Córdova's magical realism elements in this book. 

This story moves back and forth between present and past in order to tell the story of Orquídea's life from her beginnings in Ecuador to her life in Four Rivers, and I really loved how Córdova wove this story into the larger present day narrative. Orquídea's story intersect beautifully with her grandchildren's stories, although her grandchildren know relatively little about their grandmother's past. As such, they make their own journey to Ecuador in order to uncover more of her past and to put a stop to some mysterious figures that have begun harming their family as a result of their newfound gifts. I loved this visit to Ecuador where the grandchildren are able to learn more not only about their grandmother's past, but also about their own culture and the land in which their family comes from. Córdova has a beautiful connection and her sense of home and passion really shine through in her magical prose. 

I loved Córdova's focus on family and culture, and seeing how so many members of this large family are able to come together after years apart and remember who they are and the family they are from. There is, understandably, some tension and disagreement between a number of family members, but at the end of the day there is an overarching sense of family and commitment that I found to be a beautiful sentiment. It was also exciting to see how Córdova honed in on the decisions of Orquídea growing up and how each one contributed to her present day life and to the lives of her descendants, from the big to the small. There's a special magic at play in this family, and I think Córdova did a truly excellent job of seamlessly blending this dreamy magical quality with the realities of modern life, while still holding onto the beauty of one's culture and history and learning how to appreciate and respect your origins. 

Overall, I've given The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina 4.5 stars. I had an incredible time on this journey from Zoraida Córdova and am still thinking about how beautiful and dream-like her prose was in this story, and how much meaning and passion this story had. If you are at all interested in magical realism, then I highly recommend you give this book a read. 

*I received a copy of The Inheritance of Orquidea Divina courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*

Buy the book: Amazon | Indiebound 

Smoke by Dan Vyleta

Smoke by Dan Vyleta will be released on Tuesday, May 24th!

**I received an ARC of Smoke courtesy of Doubleday Books in exchange for an honest review**

Smoke by Dan Vyleta. Doubleday, 2016. 448 pages. Paperback/softcover. 

(Note: This was not the cover of the ARC I received [this is the cover I received], and to be honest I'm not sure I like this final one too much. I feel that a more monochromatic/black and white cover would have been much more dramatic and stark and thus more fitting to the story. But anyway, on to the review!)

About a month or two ago I received a package that contained an ARC of Smoke, which I had never previously heard of, and within that package was also an adorable little tin of sweets (pictured below) that I assumed had to do with the content of this book (it did). I thought it was incredibly clever marketing and a fun addition to the story, and it made me that much more excited to dive into this book.

I'm honestly not sure where to even begin describing a novel such as this one. The basic premise of Smoke is both complex and simple at the same time: when people 'sin' (though 'sin' is a very vague and broad word, but I don't have another word to use), they emit smoke and soot that dirties themselves and their surroundings. The varieties of smoke differ according to each person and each particular crime or misdeed that a person commits.

Smoke takes place in a Victorian England type of setting, and the story begins at a boarding school in which young boys are sent to learn to control themselves in order to continue on with their elite, aristocratic families and political wealth. The plot lies in the inevitable doom that Thomas believes lies in wait for him, the rebelliousness of certain characters that want to 'rid' the world of smoke, and the adventures that take place as a result of these varying circumstances.

The multiple points of view in which Vyleta writes was rather unexpected, and although it at first seemed like it would bother me, it actually kept me quite engaged. There are switches between a third person POV and the POV of main characters, such as Charlies, Thomas, and Livia, as well as various other brief minor characters, which adds even more depth and intrigue to the many events and scenes of the story.  Howeverm I did encounter difficulties discerning between the POVs of Charlie and Thomas in the first few chapters. At the beginning of the story, both boys are somewhat similar in their mannerisms, but I largely think that is the expected effect of growing up in such a strict environment such as the one they did. As the novel progressed, the distinctions between each boy began to grown and further push their personality traits away from one another. Charlie begins to distinguish himself a somewhat more controlled and level-headed boy, whereas Thomas is portrayed as more of a 'loose canon,' so to speak. Livia was also a very dynamic character who begins as rather uptight and struggles with her natural urges, or 'sins,' as she begins to develop and move away from her sheltered and strict life.

One area in which I think Vyleta excelled was in the dynamic transformation (though transformation may be a bit too strong here) of each character, which were wonderfully drawn out and detailed. Every change within a character happened very slowly, but very distinctly. One minor gesture or thought would occur, one minor emitting of smoke, and it is immediately apparent that that was a big moment for that character's change in this story.

Vyleta's writing is fairly consistently bleak and dark, which creates an atmosphere that I found immensely compelling and immersive. It became almost to heavy at times, as there is very little relief from the relentlessly dark atmosphere. However, this also keeps the entire storyline consistent - there is no chance to escape to another more hopeful or optimistic world.

Here's my main problem with this book: although I understood the process of smoking and what Livia's mother wanted to do (I won't say more because of spoilers), I always felt like I was missing something. Why exactly was everyone acting so dramatically? Why did the three children feel that they needed to hide out? Everything just felt a bit too drawn out and overly compensated for what the truth drama was. The writing wasn't necessarily disjointed, but every once in a while I had this sense that I was missing something important - and not in a good, mysterious way.

Overall, I am giving Smoke four stars for its unprecedented plot and immersive storytelling. I would have loved to give Smoke five stars, but there was just a bit too much uncertainty and lack of explanation that made this difficult to follow at times.

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Anna and the Swallow Man by Gavriel Savit
Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World by Haruki Murakami
Black Chalk by Christopher J. Yates

A Fierce and Subtle Poison by Samantha Mabry

A Fierce and Subtle Poison will be available for purchase on Tuesday, April 12th!

**I received a physical advance review copy of A Fierce and Subtle Poison courtesy of Algonquin Young Readers in exchange for an honest review**

A Fierce and Subtle Poison by Samantha Mabry. Algonquin Young Readers, 2016. 288 pages. Softcover/paperback.

First, I have to say that A Fierce and Subtle Poison has, hands down, one of the most gorgeous covers that I've seen so far this year. I distinctly remember opening the package from Algonquin, unsure of what book lay inside, and pulling out this incredibly enticing and gorgeous book.

A Fierce and Subtle Poison centers around the story of Lucas, a seventeen-year-old boy who spends his summers with his father in beautiful Puerto Rico. Growing up, he has been surrounded by stories about a cursed girl with green skin and grass hair. Lucas' girlfriend goes missing one day, and he is then inexplicably drawn to Isabel, a girl filled with poison who cannot so much as touch someone - the cursed girl.

This was an extremely enjoyable and rather quick read, as I was immediately hooked and thus able to power through it in only a couple days. The premise of the story itself is fresh and remarkable, and I loved the setting of Puerto Rico. Mabry brought the entire island to life with its rich characters, culture, descriptions, and overall atmosphere - I definitely now have the urge to visit.

A Fierce and Subtle Poison is beautifully written with a fluid, almost lyrical-like prose at times that made this book a breeze to read through. Regardless of the plot or characters, the writing style itself is well-developed and displays talent. The pacing is not very consistent, however, as it moves rather slowly at times, then suddenly fast and rushing, almost leaving me behind wondering what was happening.

The characters are all very distinct in their personalities, but there is a lack of fleshing out that caused them to suffer. A few characters appear too one-dimensional, while others, such as Lucas, are much more developed, which created a sort of double layer in which part of the book was well-developed and strong, while the other part appeared weaker. There was also a lack of chemistry between many important characters, and I failed to see how such strong relationships could have formed between various people in such short amounts of time. Lucas' actions are a bit random at times as well; I wasn't entirely sure what his motivation was, besides the obvious attempts to find his girlfriend, but even then it just didn't account for all of his actions.

This book fell short in its lack of explanation. The storyline has much promise and potential,  but I feel like Mabry didn't quite delve as deep into the elements of the story as she could have. While there is an abundance of folktale and myth-like stories that add a deep level of culture and atmosphere, I think she spent too much time on those and not enough on the present day issues. I understood that Isabel was born with poison inside her that makes others sick - but how exactly? There is a backstory, but it only left me with more questions. The ending is open-ended, which I do enjoy in books, but I felt sort of jilted when I finished, and I haven't yet decided if it was a good feeling or a bad one.

Overall, I found this to be an exceptional magical realism book that was very compelling and entertaining to read, so I will be giving A Fierce and Subtle Poison three-and-a-half stars.

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Sun-Kissed by Coco Nichole
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Two Years Eight Months and Twenty-Eight Nights by Salman Rushdie

**Two Years Eight Months and Twenty-Eight Nights by Salman Rushdie is out in two weeks on Tuesday, September 8th! Don't forget to pick it up from your favorite bookseller!**

Two Year Eight Months and Twenty-Eight Nights by Salman Rushdie. Random House Publishing; 2015. 304 pages. Ebook. 

***I received an advanced copy of this book to read and review courtesy of NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group***

I consider myself to be a rather eclectic reader; I can enjoy something in almost any genre, and I can, in a rather chameleon-like fashion, alter my state of mind to various styles of writing. Unfortunately, I couldn't get myself to enjoy this particular novel.

As a result of this, I have officially decided that Salman Rushdie's writing is simply not for me. That is not to say that it is not wonderful writing, as Rushdie has a lovely prose with intricate stories and details, but rather that his writing is just not my type of writing. I have read Midnight's Children and I began (though was unable to finish) The Satanic Verses. I did enjoy Midnight's Children, but I never really fell in love with either of his works. I read both of those a while ago, so I figured I would give Rushdie one more go. Unlike Midnight's Children, there are not hundreds of made-up words that will confuse you - a huge relief to me, I assure you. Two Year Eight Months and Twenty-Eight Nights is classified as magical realism, but it has plenty of much more fantastical elements to satisfy any fantasy-lover out there.

In brief, Two Years Eight Months and Twenty-Eight Nights follows the story of Dunia, a jinn princess who, unlike normal jinn, falls in love with a mortal man and produces an abundance of offspring with him (seriously - we're talking births of ten to twenty kids at once here, supposedly) over two years, eight months, and twenty-eight nights. Eventually, years and years later, there is a great, unprecedented storm in New York that leaves the descendants of Dunia and her mortal man with strange powers: one man discovers he has begun to levitate off the ground and can longer put his own feet on solid ground; a baby is able to detect the corruption of any one person by merely touching them. All of this culminates in a struggle between dark and light forces, in which her descendants play a large and important part.

There are countless metaphors, symbolism, themes, and underlying messages that I think gives each reader the opportunity to dissect and devour it in their own way. Rushdie's prose is magical in itself: his words float along, perfectly capturing each moment before flowing smoothly into the next. Even in his long (very long), drawn-out informational lectures about the jinn, his words still read in a very lovely and elegant manner. It truly is magical novel, and the overall foundation of the novel is actually rather exciting and intriguing. I love hearing the details of the jinn and the overall fantasy/fairy story elements. Oh, and if there's one thing that one hundred percent, without a doubt understand and can take away from this story? The jinn really, really love sex.

The characters were hard for me to relate to. I felt a rather constant disconnect, and I felt more like an outsider viewing their stories from a great distance than actually being in and a part of their lives as I read along to find out what happens. Dunia is an intriguing character; the jinn don't normally feel many human-like emotions, nor do they generally consort with them, so she becomes unique in her relations with Ibn Rushd, her mortal lover. She tends to float back and forth between worlds, and provides a rather mysterious and complicated character for us to follow.

This is a dense book; the stories intermingle, the writing intermingles, and it continues to become more and more complex as it carries on. I found myself feeling confused and lost at multiple instances throughout the book. I honestly struggled to finish this, but something was tugging at me to carry on (plus, I knew I really wanted to write a review for it). The abundance of metaphors quickly become tangled up in one another, and I soon found myself losing interest at various points. The best way to describe my enjoyment of this novel is with the notion of random spurts of enthusiasm. I would be slogging through a particularly dense or uninteresting part, only to suddenly find myself enraptured in what was happening (I particularly enjoyed reading scenes with Mr. Geronimo). To me, this is a rather accurate depiction of the entire book: it has a somewhat random setup of involved scenes mixed with drier, more textbook-like informational writing. (Side note: I really love this cover, I think it adds a very simplistic yet symbolic image of the contents of the novel. It fits wonderfully - good job, designers!)

Overall, I am giving Two Year Eight Months and Twenty-Eight Nights  three stars, as it was both intriguing and beautifully written, but also confusing and lacking in engagement. I would recommend this to any who loves mythology, fairy tales, fantasy, magical realism, or deep, complex novels that seem to thrive on in-depth story lines. However, as I mentioned above, I do think this particular novel requires a certain type of reader, though I would encourage anyone interested to give it a try - you might just love it.

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