Unwillingly.
Unwittingly.
But not unprovoked. Kit Isley is everything she's not—unstructured, untethered, and not even a little bit careful.
It could all be so beautiful...if he wasn't dating her best friend. Helena must defy her heart, do the right thing, and think of others.
Until she doesn't.
257 pages
Published December 31st 2015
Until she doesn't.
257 pages
Published December 31st 2015
Source: Purchased
*Read to the bottom for our mustreadbooksordie giveaway of F*ck Love!!
OUR REVIEW
Shel: I'm so in love with this book right now. I want everyone I know to read it and I want Tarryn Fisher to make a gazillion dollars off of it. I also want to move to Port Townsend and make my own damn magic...am I getting ahead of myself? Probably. I'm like a freaking lunatic right now and I have no idea how to make the mad mad HUGE love for F*ck Love stop. Or how to make myself focus enough to write anything relatively cogent about why I loved this book so much. I feel like I should write a review about the characters and plot, a review about how it made me feel, and a review that tries to be somewhat professional and unbiased (hahahaha who am I even kidding here? There's no way I can be unbiased about this book or this writer).
Court: I thought that Mud Vein was the love letter to my soul that I didn't know I was missing. But..no. Alas, no. This is. This is the one that really hit right to the heart of me. The words that Tarryn writes are always special and the voice of our characters is so unique, but also so effortless to read that it just flows right off the page and absorbs into my skin. Helena and Kit and company are no different, and thank you Lord I started my year off with this book.
Shel: *rolls shoulders*
*here goes nothing...*
Shel: I don't really want to spend too much time on the plot because I think that's something easy to spoil and I seriously do not want to ruin that for anyone. I guess what I can say is that the synopsis gives you a lot to go on (despite how few words there are in it) and if you're familiar with Tarryn Fisher's writing, you know that she will not disappoint you --the plot is rich and full of events; this is not one of those novels that spans 50000 pages in which you are in the same place, same day, and in same character's head the entire time. The characters are also what I've come to expect from Fisher's writing: full of life. At times the characters infuriated or confused me, sometimes they hurt me, sometimes they provoked me, and sometimes they inspired me. Court: Lots of OMG. OMG. OMG on my part for these same reasons. I never knew what to expect from the next page, and definitely not the next chapter. My angst was way higher than the novels to be honest, and for that I was glad. For the men in my life who think that everything I read is porn, well I shall hand then F*ck Love, and tell them another big fuck you because this book is so beautiful and fucked us with the words, and had fuck in the title, but alas there was no fucking on the page. And it was still so deeply intimate, exquisite and sensual. I read this one in one day, and told Shel No Sleep 'Til Brooklyn and this one is done, and that is exactly what I did.
Shel: I think what I keep coming back to when I think about this novel is how it made me feel. The things that happened to (or because of) Helena and her reactions to them felt incredibly real. There were so many instances when I identified with her awkwardness, her fear, her nervousness or insecurity, her grief or joy, or sense of curiosity or wonder, and her humor and snark. I was inspired by the way she lived in and through each of these emotions, especially because her reactions weren't always these perfectly crafted, well thought out manipulations; many times she was impulsive or not ready to face what was happening but no matter what she seemed unflinchingly honest and open.
Court: I don't think I've ever (and I've probably said this more than once, but truly mean it today...right now) related to a single character so much in all of my life. When something makes me so excited, and it confounds my husband and he just has no idea what to do with me, I am Helena. When I have interests and desires and my mother says to me "Who are you? Where did my sweet, docile, quiet child g?," I am Helena. And when I read a line that says "Let people feel the weight of who you really are and let them fucking deal with it." and I almost had an out of body experience of epiphany. Rise of the villain, y'all, hear me roar. Or "The weight of who I am. It isn't my responsibility to deal with it. It is theirs."
Shel: *rolls shoulders*
*here goes nothing...*
Shel: I don't really want to spend too much time on the plot because I think that's something easy to spoil and I seriously do not want to ruin that for anyone. I guess what I can say is that the synopsis gives you a lot to go on (despite how few words there are in it) and if you're familiar with Tarryn Fisher's writing, you know that she will not disappoint you --the plot is rich and full of events; this is not one of those novels that spans 50000 pages in which you are in the same place, same day, and in same character's head the entire time. The characters are also what I've come to expect from Fisher's writing: full of life. At times the characters infuriated or confused me, sometimes they hurt me, sometimes they provoked me, and sometimes they inspired me. Court: Lots of OMG. OMG. OMG on my part for these same reasons. I never knew what to expect from the next page, and definitely not the next chapter. My angst was way higher than the novels to be honest, and for that I was glad. For the men in my life who think that everything I read is porn, well I shall hand then F*ck Love, and tell them another big fuck you because this book is so beautiful and fucked us with the words, and had fuck in the title, but alas there was no fucking on the page. And it was still so deeply intimate, exquisite and sensual. I read this one in one day, and told Shel No Sleep 'Til Brooklyn and this one is done, and that is exactly what I did.
Shel: I think what I keep coming back to when I think about this novel is how it made me feel. The things that happened to (or because of) Helena and her reactions to them felt incredibly real. There were so many instances when I identified with her awkwardness, her fear, her nervousness or insecurity, her grief or joy, or sense of curiosity or wonder, and her humor and snark. I was inspired by the way she lived in and through each of these emotions, especially because her reactions weren't always these perfectly crafted, well thought out manipulations; many times she was impulsive or not ready to face what was happening but no matter what she seemed unflinchingly honest and open.
Court: I don't think I've ever (and I've probably said this more than once, but truly mean it today...right now) related to a single character so much in all of my life. When something makes me so excited, and it confounds my husband and he just has no idea what to do with me, I am Helena. When I have interests and desires and my mother says to me "Who are you? Where did my sweet, docile, quiet child g?," I am Helena. And when I read a line that says "Let people feel the weight of who you really are and let them fucking deal with it." and I almost had an out of body experience of epiphany. Rise of the villain, y'all, hear me roar. Or "The weight of who I am. It isn't my responsibility to deal with it. It is theirs."
Amen. A-fucking-men. I'm not the only one who has ever felt this way about the ones who are supposed to hold me dearest, right? Right. And, Tarryn Fisher, we love you.
Shel: Tarryn Fisher via Helena and Kit and Greer and Muslim gave me many things to think about but I think most importantly (for me) she/they inspired me be who I want to be, to try to be who I think I'm supposed to be..not who others think I am or should be. This novel reminded me of something important--something I'd forgotten in recent months- and that's that I have this one life and it's mine to live and I need to freaking live it, for fucks sake. So Tarryn Fisher, if you happen to read this review I hope you feel my gratitude all the way down to the cellular level; thank you for inspiring me to live fully...to make my own magic and to find my little piece of Port Townsend (aka NoLa).
Court: God, Shelley. Isn't that so true. After everything we've been through in the last year, and all of the tears that have been shed....to read a book and it hit so damn hard that it might've shifted a few of those cracks in my soul back together. We are in TF debt, forever. I shed tears of gratitude, and hope it doesn't seem too melodramatic, because well I do cry a lot...but I can't fully convey how much I feel for this book. It is everything I've ever wished to read. And lofty to say this will be my top read for 2016 3 days in, but damn it...it is.
Shel: And the Harry Potter. I feel my soul connected to people who feel Harry Potter in their bones. And I wouldn't even mind being a muggle, just to be able to live in that world with her. Or a house elf. I would totally be Tarryn's house elf. Yeah.
Shel: I cannot wait to read this novel again and to find all of the things I missed the first time and I promise that when I do read it again, I'll share my newest thoughts (but I have no doubt it'll be equally, if not more, fantastic). Court: We've already made plans. I am in such a book hangover, I have wondered how I will read the next thing, and the next...so I told Shel we're going to re-read this one...a lot. I can't wait until it comes out in paperback so I can get that too, and notate all of the highlights I made. Because I never highlight. And I lit this baby up like a Christmas tree. It is so good, and I hope that you get it right this instant! Devour it. Be Helena. Love Tarryn. Take Chances. All that shit. *fist bump*
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Shel: I cannot wait to read this novel again and to find all of the things I missed the first time and I promise that when I do read it again, I'll share my newest thoughts (but I have no doubt it'll be equally, if not more, fantastic). Court: We've already made plans. I am in such a book hangover, I have wondered how I will read the next thing, and the next...so I told Shel we're going to re-read this one...a lot. I can't wait until it comes out in paperback so I can get that too, and notate all of the highlights I made. Because I never highlight. And I lit this baby up like a Christmas tree. It is so good, and I hope that you get it right this instant! Devour it. Be Helena. Love Tarryn. Take Chances. All that shit. *fist bump*
I feel at peace in the Caribbean (probably Jamaica is the best). Unfortunately I haven't been in many years. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteCape San Blas, Florida...out on The St. Joseph Peninsula...especially if the sea turtles are burying their eggs at the time...very cool.
ReplyDelete