The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett – A book review

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett – A book review

What better way to begin a year than a hyped book that recently secured a HBO adaptation deal? Is The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett worth all the hype? Read my book review to know more.

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About The Vanishing Half

Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett cover

Book Name: The Vanishing Half

Author: Brit Bennett

Genre: Fiction – Historical,

Characters: Desiree and Stella Vignes, Jude, Reese, Kennedy, Early

Setting: Mallard, Louisiana, The USA

Plot Summary of The Vanishing Half

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett follows the lives of the Vignes twins who decide to run away from their small town at sixteen. The identical twins are so light skinned that they could pass as “White”. When the opportunity presents one of them takes it.

Desiree Vignes always wanted to get away from her town, where skin color is all that mattered. But when she returns years later, with a black skinned kid in tow, she was sure she will get away again.

Stella Vignes did get away from their town once and for all. She has a well settled life and a family that will never know her previous life.

Do either of them regret their choices? Is passing as “White” worth losing your identity and past? Can the lives of these identical sisters ever reunite? Read more about them in The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett.

Book review of The Vanishing Half

I am glad The Vanishing Half was one of the first books I read this year as it set such a positive hope for the year. I loved it and would keep recommending it to anyone who would listen.

Set in the fictional town of Mallard, Louisiana, The Vanishing Half deals with several intense themes like race, class, identity, internalized colorism, abuse, melancholy and motherhood. It made me question the narratives about race and caste passed on over generations by our families.

Despite the heavy themes, the author ensures to present a narration that is so gripping I never put it down once until I finished it. This is will be a wonderful pick for your next book club read!

While we might judge Stella for her internalized racism, bigotry and selfish decisions, it is hard not to sympathize with her loneliness and trying to find an identity for her new self.

What worked for me

  • I loved how the author got me introspecting my own prejudice and issues with generations of conditioning about colorism.
  • The Vanishing Half is not a plot oriented book, but it is just the author’s writing style kept me hooked until the end.
  • I loved how each character was well written and had a part to play. From Early to Reese, I enjoyed the male characters as much as the strong female ones.

What may have been better

  • I wish there were a bit more about Reese’s struggle as a trans guy in transition and passing himself as guy for years. I guess his life was not smooth as a trans man in the LGBTQ – drag circle in 1970s too.
  • The second part moved a bit slower than the first. You might find yourself skipping a paragraphs.
  • If you don’t like books with multiple POV, you might wanna watch out. But it did work spectacularly well for me.

Content warning

Racism (internalized and otherwise), Domestic abuse, colorism, running away from home, gender reassignment surgery.

Bottom line

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett is a must read historical fiction that deals with intense themes like racism, colorism, abuse and melancholy. Catch this hyped book out without hesitation!

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The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett – A book review

Silent Patient, The by Alex Michaelides – A book review

How often do you agree with hype and award winning titles? I had heard so much about The Silent Patient and I was reluctant to pick it up, because I didn’t want another disappointment. But how did it fare on my scale? Read my book of The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides to know more.

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About the book

Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides Book review

Book Name: The Silent Patient

Author: Alex Michaelides

Genre: Fiction – Mystery, Thriller

Characters:  Alicia Berenson, Theo and Kathy Faber, Christian, Professor Lazarus Diomedes, Gabriel and Max Berenson, Elif, Yuri

Setting: London, England, The UK

Plot Summary

Theo Faber, a psychotherapist can’t wait for this chance to prove himself by helping Alicia, the famed silent patient. And to do that, he has begun to work at The Grove where the artist is being treated for a while now.

About six years ago Alicia Berenson, a well known painter was arrested for murdering her husband, Gabriel. Since then she has not uttered a single word. She is suicidal and unresponsive to any sort of communication.

Theo is also fighting his own demons and for his marriage. Will he be able to save Alicia or himself for that matter? Read The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides to find out more.

Book review

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides is a fast paced murder mystery/thriller. And it is definitely worth its hype. I definitely should be more open to picking hyped books hereon.

While the explosive climax is not novel, I didn’t see it coming. I had several other theories (a few more ingenious than the others ..cough.. cough) of course, but the red herrings worked perfectly. And that says a lot about the author’s ability to weave a web of tangles around it.

I had a few issues with how the “hospital was run” and that Theo’s approach to help Alicia was pretty much unprofessional. There are a few comments about therapy that misleading and harmful, and definitely reduced the credibility factor for me.

What worked for me

  • I didn’t see the classic twist coming at all. And that’s because I was so engrossed in the narration.
  • The short chapters worked well enough to make The Silent Patient a page turner and I couldn’t just stop reading.
  • The red herrings will keep you second guessing and hooked till the end.

What may have been better

  • Theo’s breakthrough treatment was totally unprofessional and kinda lowkey annoying for me. I hated that there were misleading and harmful comments about therapy and therapists.
  • The twist has been done and tested many a times. One of the well known example is The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie.

Bottom line

If you are quite new to the murder mystery genre and you liked books like Girl on the train or The Woman In The Window by Finn A J, you will love this book. If you’ve read as many whodunnits as I have, The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides may not surprise you. But it is still worth a read.

Content warning:

Depression, multiple suicide attempts, Drug abuse, Misleading concepts about therapy, extramarital affair,

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The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett – A book review

The Guest List by Lucy Foley – A book review

It is not so common that a book that takes “a modern twist on Agatha Christie” gets rated so high and raved by bloggers I admire. So let’s review The Guest List by Lucy Foley, a book that has been on the Amazon best sellers for more than ten weeks now.

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About the book

Guest List by Lucy Foley Book Cover

Book Name: The Guest List

Author: Lucy Foley

Genre: Fiction – Thriller

Characters: Will Slater, Julia Keegan, Hannah and Charlie, Olivia, Johnno, Aiofe and Freddy

Setting: Inis an Amplóra, or Cormorant Island, Ireland

Summary

In a secluded island in the coastal regions of Ireland, the modern day power couple Jules and Will Slater are tying their knots. A couple of close friends and the wedding party choose to stay in the island the night before the wedding. The weather is not helping and storm seems to be approaching as well.

But just as the celebrations begin, a distraught waitress stumbles in and announces that she saw a body. The ushers walk into the deadly night to check it and the cops from the mainland are called as well.

Will the ‘happily ever after’ and the ‘death do apart work’ for this couple? And who kills whom forms the rest of the story in The Guest List by Lucy Foley.

My initial thoughts

This closed room murder mystery follows the usual whodunnit pattern and it works well. Despite having multiple POVs (six of them), the narration is quite simple and doesn’t confuse much.

The Guest List by Lucy Foley has a number of suspects and motives, as any good murder mystery should.

In spite of all the numerous red herrings, I guessed the murder much earlier and I am sure so would other regular mystery lovers.

What worked for me

  • The closed space murder mystery stretched over a 48 hours is fast paced and entertaining.
  • The red herrings keep the reader focused on the wrong things and would work very well if you are not a regular mystery reader.
  • The reader is unaware of the murderer is as well as the victim until almost the end making it more fun.

What may have been better

  • Except for one or two, I found all the characters annoying and/or horrible. But I don’t think these characters slowed down the whodunnit part.
  • I would have loved a bit more loose/open ending. I guessed the murderer from miles away.

Bottom line

If you are an Agatha Christie fan, The Guest List by Lucy Foley is a good read for you. But be warned that this contemporary murder mystery might prove to be a bit easily solvable, if you read whodunnits regularly.

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The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett – A book review

Self-Publishing on Amazon: 4 Tips for Indie Authors

Amazon has become almost synonymous with self-publishing. And if you are planning to or have already self-published on Amazon, I am sure you are always on the look out for more tips to reach the best seller list. Don’t you?

Let us hear from an insider from the business, shall we?

"You might assume that the quality of your book, with its riveting plotline and tightly edited prose, will speak for itself. Not so — but there are few tricks you can use to help it on its way to the top." Read tips from Lucia @reedsyhq Click To Tweet

Say hello to Lucia!

self-publishing on Amazon tips

Lucia Tang is a writer with Reedsy, a marketplace that connects self-publishing authors with the world’s best editors, designers, and marketers.

Lucia covers various publishing-related topics on the Reedsy blog. In her spare time, she enjoys drinking cold brew and planning her historical fantasy novel.

Shall we get on with it?

What’s the indie author’s answer to a spot at the head of the New York Times Best Seller list? A correspondingly lofty perch on Amazon’s Best Sellers list, of course. If you opt to self-publish, you won’t be looking to the Gray Lady but the online retail giant for proof that your book has made it.

Luckily, self-publishing on Amazon is easy and fast — and that’s exactly why everyone seems to be doing it, from savvy genre geniuses to silly secessionists and DIY coffin-builders. The platform’s accessibility means both boundless oppo rtunity and bitter competition. 

You might assume that the quality of your book, with its riveting plotline and tightly edited prose, will speak for itself. Not so — but there are few tricks you can use to help it on its way to the top. Without further ado, here are four tips every indie author should know when they self-publish through Amazon.

Tip #1. Think about your categories before you publish

Like every indie author, you know that writing your book is just the first step to seeing it on readers’ shelves (or in their Kindles). As your word count ticks upward and your plot winds down, you might already be envisioning (with either relish or dread) the marketing phase of things.

self-publishing on Amazon tips

But the truth is marketing isn’t purely something that happens once the book is done: it’s an ongoing process that should begin before your first draft is even done.

As you write, think about your anticipated audience: what genre’s readers are you targeting, and how will they relate to your book? How is the story you’re telling similar to the ones they already love — and how does it stand apart from them all? 

Thinking about this broadly is a good starting place. But because you’ll be launching your book on Amazon, you’ll have to look beyond, to a platform-specific consideration: Amazon categories. 

On Amazon’s Kindle Store, books are divided into a number of categories, from those as broad as “Romance” and to those as specific as “Multicultural & Inspirational Romance.” Some are overpopulated, leading to cutthroat competition. Others get almost no shoppers — meaning it’s exceedingly difficult to get any actual sales volume, even for a “Best Seller” within the category. 

To strike a happy medium, your book should aim for  categories where demand is relatively high but the competition is relatively manageable.

It’s important to start thinking about these potential categories before you publish. Your book will naturally evolve over the course of the drafting process, and you might find that a plum category that was once a stretch is now a natural fit.

Tip #2. Make sure your cover isn’t too unique

Once you’ve written your book, it’s time to make sure it looks as beautiful as it reads. That means nailing the packaging. But as you craft (or commission) the perfect cover, there’s one counterintuitive tip you absolutely have to follow: make sure your cover isn’t too unique.

I know that sounds weird. Given how competitive Amazon is, shouldn’t you do everything in your power to stand out from the crowd? Well, you do want your cover to draw attention. But there are certain visual conventions you should follow.

Books draw upon an intricate visual code in their cover designs, even if they don’t belong to a highly pictorial genre like the early reader. For picture books and philosophical novels alike, there’s an established repertoire of typefaces, layouts, and other visual elements that makes each book’s genre apparent at a glance.

self-publishing on Amazon tips
The Bookish Life of Nina Hill, The Kiss Quotient, and How to Build a Heart all use romance novel conventions in their cover designs, even though each manages to look unique.

As a reader, you’ve probably used these conventions to inform your own book-buying choices. If you’re in the mood for, say, a beach-read romance, you’ll keep your eyes peeled for a whimsical, curlicued font. If you’re looking for military sci-fi, on the other hand, you’ll be primed to click on bold, sans-serif titles against cool-toned backgrounds suggestive of outer space.

Now that you’re an author, you’ll want to tap into these same assumptions to sell your book. So take a look at the top performers in the categories you chose for your book earlier. Pay attention to what their covers have in common, and think about how you can use them in your cover. 

Tip #3. Write your book description with a three-part structure

When your book is polished inside and out, it’s time to head over to Amazon and set it live. f course, that isn’t a simple matter of mashing a big “Publish” button. You also have to generate all the content readers will see on your product page. That’s right: it’s time to write a snappy book description.

To succeed, your book description has to be two slightly contradictory things at once: a sales pitch for your book and a preview of your writing skills. This can be a challenge — after all, good ad copy and good prose don’t always look very much alike. But there’s a way to nail the sale without betraying your stylistic integrity as a writer: follow a three-part formula at the structural level, while using all the literary artistry at your disposal at the sentence level.

Here’s how to approach each section:

The headline:

This section appears above the “read more” that pops up when a shopper loads your product page. You want it to grab their attention enough to click that “read more” — instead of hitting the back button. Choose a short and sweet tagline that distills your sales pitch. Has it already gotten rave reviews from a blogger you hooked up with an ARC? Is it perfect for fans of a buzzy series or hit TV show — but with much better gender politics and less shoehorned romance? 

The blurb:

Here’s the part where you tell your readers what your book is actually about — without giving away too much, of course! This is a good place to introduce your protagonist. What makes them interesting? What kind of problems will they confront over the course of the book, and what’s at stake for them?

The takeaway:

Your book description is, ultimately, a call to action. You don’t want your readers to merely luxuriate in your prose and move on — you want them to buy the book. Explain why they should pick it up. 

self-publishing on Amazon tips
A Quiet Kind of Thunder mentions comp titles and quotes positive reviews in its book description headline.

At the end of the day, your book description should still sound like you, albeit at your punchiest. You don’t reader to feel disoriented and wonder whether you engaged a ghostwriter once they actually start reading your book.

Tip #4. Use HTML to make your product page pop

Over the course of self-publishing your book on Amazon, you had to grapple with a number of big-picture considerations, from the importance of visual convention to the dilemmas posed by commercialism in art. I’m delighted to end on a much lighter note, with a tip that’s far less philosophically fraught. 

Now that you’ve got a punchy, three-part description that wraps your unique literary style in a charmingly commercial package, you’ll want to optimize how it looks on your product page. To really make your description pop, mix it up with some HTML. You’ll be able to add visual interest — important for your headline especially — with the following HTML styles:

  • <b>Use this for bold text<b>
  • <i>Use this for italicized text</i>
  • <u>Use this for underlined text</u>
  • <q>Use this for block quotes</q>
  • <ol>Use this to create a numbered list
    • <li>Each element of the list will start with this tag
  • <ul>Use this to create a bulleted list— just like this one!
    • <li>Use this, again, for each element in the list>

With a book description full of vim, verve, and visual interest, you’re ready to start reeling in sales. Now, off to write your next book!

Thank you, Lucia!

And I am back to thank her for taking time off her busy schedule to write us a guest post. You can follow and contact her through these links. 

Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Blog | 

If you have something to add to Lucia’s story, drop a comment here or send her a word of thanks on the social media. Both of us would love that.

Also, if you are interested in writing a guest post for the independent publishing community, write to me right away. I am still accepting guest post submissions.

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Have you published on Amazon? Or do you prefer traditional publishing? As a reader, does the publishing method make a difference to you? Let us chat!

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett – A book review

Spotlight Sunday: #03 One with ‘I am too excited to think of a title’

I am so excited that I can’t even type this post. Yes I am going on a vacation to Georgia (the country) in a day. Living in a country where the temperature shoots up to 48 degree Celsius in summer, I will be seeing the snow for the first time in my life. Yay me. So expect me missing a post or two this week (not really I will try my best to schedule them).

Excited

Around the blogosphere

So ready for the gossip from round the blogosphere?

1) I am a Spreadsheet enthusiast, but even for me All about book’s attempt to track everything and everything about the books read and challenges taken part is crazy. Just take a look her spreadsheet. Damn, this is so good and it is like a spreadsheet-heaven.

2) Much like the movies, there are books that objectify women and portray them as just symbols of sex and beauty. I found this gem on Write Women Right at Shruti’s blog – a perfect combination of satire and frustration.

3) Why does our TBR shelf hate us? That is because we keep adding books to it and never go back to them. Well, I can’t help you reduce the number of books but this list from Amazon on the 100 books you have to read in your lifetime will definitely add some more.

Excited

4) Yeah yeah we all hate stealing, lying and other vices but why do the laws change when it comes to piracy of books? Marta from The Cursed Books puts forth an argument in this post, playing the devil’s advocate. Check it out.

5) I know you all love quotes and here are a few I stumbled upon this week and they are about feminism. There can never be too many of them right?

6) I am sure most of you would have heard about this – The news about another Harry Potter mobile games is here. Are you excited for it? Let me know.

7) Last week we also saw the nominees for Edgar Allen Poe awards announced. And guess what, The Hate U Give is on the list. Yay!

The Hate U Give review

8) Do you publish everything you write? Pl say me that there are a about 25+ unpublished drafts in your blog. The Orangutan Librarian posted the hilarious details about what is lying in her drafts. I promise it is a roller coaster ride there.

9) I found this list of imaginary online dating profiles of awesome book characters and it cannot be more accurate.

10) The sad news of the week is the Broke and the bookish posted a sort of goodbye message on their blog and it was heartbreaking to read that. These amazing ladies will still be online and their top ten tuesday meme will be hosted by that artsy reader girl.

On my blog

Missed any post from my feed?

  • Catch up with the review of Crooked House, an Agatha Christie novel
Crooked House
elgeewrites Spotlight Sunday: #03 One with 'I am too excited to think of a title' followF 1
Characters

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Excited

Let us talk

What happened with you this week? Did you reach your goals? Did you enjoy these links? Let me know.