In a Nutshell Reviews

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The Lost Story by Meg Shaffer
Published by Ballantine Books  on July 16, 2024
Age/Genres: Adult, Fantasy

Goodreads

Inspired by C. S. Lewis’s The Chronicles of Narnia, this wild and wondrous novel is a fairy tale for grown-ups who still knock on the back of wardrobes—just in case—from the author of The Wishing Game.

As boys, best friends Jeremy Cox and Rafe Howell went missing in a vast West Virginia state forest, only to mysteriously reappear six months later with no explanation for where they’d gone or how they’d survived.

Fifteen years after their miraculous homecoming, Rafe is a reclusive artist who still bears scars inside and out but has no memory of what happened during those months. Meanwhile, Jeremy has become a famed missing persons’ investigator. With his uncanny abilities, he is the one person who can help vet tech Emilie Wendell find her sister, who vanished in the very same forest as Rafe and Jeremy.

Jeremy alone knows the fantastical truth about the disappearances, for while the rest of the world was searching for them, the two missing boys were in a magical realm filled with impossible beauty and terrible danger. He believes it is there that they will find Emilie’s sister. However, Jeremy has kept Rafe in the dark since their return for his own inscrutable reasons. But the time for burying secrets comes to an end as the quest for Emilie’s sister begins. The former lost boys must confront their shared past, no matter how traumatic the memories.

Alongside the headstrong Emilie, Rafe and Jeremy must return to the enchanted world they called home for six months—for only then can they get back everything and everyone they’ve lost.

After learning about her biological sister, Emilie is determined to find her. She enlists the assistance of famed finder, Jeremy. Fifteen years prior, Jeremy and his estranged friend, Rafe, had disappeared, and it seems they must return to the Crow for this mission. Though they are searching for a lost woman, this may actually help them find their way back to themselves and each other.

The Lost Story was everything that was promised in the book summary. It was indeed a fairytale for grown ups with nods to classics such as The Chronicles of Narnia. It was magical with a fully formed enchanted land. It was there, in Shanandoah, where we find all the action, adventure, and magic that we loved in the fantasy novels of our youth. But I found myself more invested in the relationship between Rafe and Jeremy, and the circumstances and fallout surrounding their disappearance as teens.

We learn of this beautiful friendship that was shared between Rafe and Jeremy, but after they were found in the forrest following their disappearance, the relationship was strained, and eventually, non-existent.

The search for Emilie's sister drove Rafe and Jeremy back into each other's worlds, as Jeremy cannot make the journey back to Shanandoah without Rafe's help. Slowly, I learned what drove the boys into the woods, where they went, what they did, why they returned, and also why their friendship fell apart. It was all sort of sad, but being back in Shanandoah brought back the memories that Rafe had lost, and it was beautiful seeing their friendship heal and grow stronger.

There were quite a few weighty topics at the center of this tale, but Shaffer managed to balance that out with humor and a touch of playfulness. I was a big fan of the storyteller who injected their thoughts into the story from time to time. The voice was pitch perfect for a fairytale narrator, and often filled in some gaps in a way that I thought was efficient and entertaining.

I didn't quite get the closure I was looking for from the ending, but the story was filled with so much emotion and nostalgia that I was not too disappointed. 

Overall, this was a beautifully told story of friendship and love that was made even better with a bit of magic and whimsy.

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Errands & Espionage by Sam Tschida
Published by Forever on August 6, 2024
Age/Genres: Adult, Actiion/Adventure

Goodreads

Meet Gabby Greene: Housewife. Glorified taxi driver and maid. Burner of meatloaf.

Recently divorced Gabby Greene spends most of her days listening to self-help books while wrangling her loving yet erratic kids. During a decade of marriage, Gabby shoved aside her own career and ambitions to make room for mountains of laundry, running errands, and investigating the case of the missing socks. Her number one suspect: their Bichon Frise, Mr. Bubbles.

All that changes when a secret government agency comes knocking on Gabby's door, asking her to go undercover. At first, she thinks some reality show is pranking her, but apparently, she bears a striking resemblance to an agent recently murdered, and… well, desperate missions call for desperate measures. Soon Gabby is juggling motherhood and a crash course in Spying 101, led by a handsome James Bond-type who has secrets of his own.

As Gabby embarks on a dangerous mission involving money laundering, a Russian oligarch, and an unfortunate incident with a prosthetic nose, she begins to realize that she is far from the invisible housewife she once believed herself to be, and that maybe, just maybe, she might be capable of saving the day.

While trying to find her footing as a recently divorced single mom, Gabby was approached by the CIA after facial recognition software determined she was a match for a murdered field rep. Needless to say, becoming a spy was definitely one way for Gabby to break out of her stay-at-home-mom rut.

I have to admit, the premise was totally outlandish, but this book was a lot of fun. This is not the first (or second, or third) time I have read a book like this, but I can honestly say that I enjoyed getting to be part of Gabby's chaotic world. Tschida put Gabby in some hilarious situations and padded the story with a great supporting cast who added to my amusement. I loved Gabby's voice and all her internal dialogs, and grandma and Justin were total scene stealers.

Gabby's new career path may have been fairly unbelievable, but many other aspects of her life were absolutely relatable. The story touches about common life woes such as fighting to find that life-work balance as well as trying to be super mom while also attempting to satisfy your own needs. It's not easy for anyone, nor was it easy for Gabby, but it was rife with comical situations. It was a fun trip down memory lane for me which was made even better with the shenanigans turned up a notch.

I spent a lot of time laughing and feeling second hand embarrassment for Gabby, but I was also cheering for her as she began to grow into her role as a CIA operative. Breaking from who she had been for so long was no easy task, and Gabby was thrown straight into the deep end on this one, but she ended up being really resourceful when her feet were held to the fire.

I have mixed feelings about this being labeled a rom-com though. It was tons of fun, so YES to the comedy label, but the romance was rather light. There were some sparks, here and there, but the main focus was definitely Gabby and her growing pains as a single mom and field agent. The romance may not have been the star of this story but it was very sweet, and again, I found myself rooting for Gabby.

Over, this was a delightful comeback story which delivered lots of laughs.

*ARCS PROVIDED BY THE PUBLISHER

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