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BOOK REVIEW: Varation by Rebecca Yarros

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In the romance novel Variation, Rebecca Yarros explores the very real scourge of bigotry against ballerinas. I’m only being halfway tongue-in-cheek for this is a major source of stress throughout the novel – ala Capulets and Montagues. The protagonist Alyssa, the daughter of the Miranda Priestly of ballerinas, paradoxically can best be described as a principal ballerina with everything to prove. After an injury sets her back, she retreats to recover in private, but an irresistible coast guard from her past (Hudson Ellis) and a bad little girl with wild accusations (Juniper) turn her world upside down. WRITING: The writing doesn’t particularly grip me however Yarros does a lovely job of providing a cliffhanger or revelation at the end of every chapter, making it a real page turner or whatever the equivalent is for the audio version. This seems like such a small thing, but you would be amazed by how many authors end their chapters with bland, uninteresting occurrences like “and then he a...
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Art Corner

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  This painting to the left looks like someone forced Taylor Swift to become a 1980s rapper and now she's mourning her miserable existence. but apparrently it's not. Instead it's nostalgic take on Rock and Roll and the adolescent relationship with it. How we would get dressed up in our bright orange get-ups (for some reason) so we could sit around listening to the artful flow of music. With department stores and coffee shops music is everywhere and it's easy to let it blend into the background. This painting represents a lifestyle -- that all consuming lifestyle that turns us into a slobs. I mean honestly, I know you're wearing sunglasses, but the paper's right in front of you Tay. I give this painting a hard time, but if I had disposable income and a big house with walls that needed filling, this would be first on the docet. Though it is a realist painting it definitely evokes a strong emotion and if anyone asks I can always say it was given to me by my good bu...
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Perfect Stangers by Carly Phillips

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Perfect Strangers by Carly Phillips is a brisk romantic novella about that one night stand you just can't let go. As her occupational title intimates, Dr. Alexa Collins is too busy for relationships and prefers interactions of the single-day variety. But what happens when the guys stop seeming like a soulless stereotype and more like the adventure you always needed?  This smooth adventure goes by the name of Luke Thompson and he sweeps Alexa off her feet.  Unfortunately, Alexa has plans. You see when the people of Serendipity, the fictional town the story takes place in, call her the "best doctor we have" with expectations of her taking over the University Hospital eventually, this comes with certain responsibilities. Alexa obviously doesn't have time for anything greater than a fling when it comes to Luke. However, as the story unfolds it becomes clear that maybe running University Hospital isn't  just her plan. With an overbearing father who is the hospital...
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The Book Club Hotel - Women's Fiction Done Right

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  The Book Club Hotel is Women's Fiction done right. The gorgeous pastel-dominant book cover captures the overall light tone accented by real-life issues. One thing I hate in books is multiple main characters with multiple subplots. However, the book club hotel handles this element masterfully as it weaves in and out of each the individual woman's life with effortless agility. Erica, Anna, and Claire are three women at crossroads in their lives: Anna, the homemaker, is feeling anxious and unappreciated with her kids leaving the house and going off to college. Clair the Chef just lost her job and her passion and is not even sure if she wants to cook anymore. Finally Erica, the risk management agent who is married to her job, is about to get her world turned upside down.  In the meantime, the owner of the hotel they decide to have a getaway at has her own problems trying to live up to the ghost of her dead husband who ran the hotel before her. Fittingly the romantic element is m...
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Elle's Magazine Minute: Gravitating to Rebellious Womanhood

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Let me save you some time. The October Issue of Elle is like all ads. Like entirely. There are some concept pieces that try to trick us into believing they're ads, but we're not stupid. They're ads. The only thing worth reading is the article about Bridgeton Alum actress Phoebe Dyvenor. A last name cloaked in allure and mystery -- mainly because none of us know how to pronounce it. Thanks, Letter Y, your Double Agentry was the worst grammatical decision in history. But aside from her meteoric rise and her six month stint dating Pete Davidson (which apparently everyone has done nowadays. It's almost a requirement for getting your drivers license) the theme of her attraction to playing rebellious women. The book 45 Master Characters by Victoria Lynn Schmidt calls this character The Maiden or (the more villainous rendition) The Troubled Teen.  So, right after we learn how to pronounce her name, lets unleash our inner Phoebe Dyvenor today. Rebel ...
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The Art Spotlight

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  In today's Art Spotlight, we look at Art By Megan. Megan describes her art as such:  "Reflections of light on water, shadows created by trees, and fallen leaves, as well as petals on contrasting surfaces inform my subject matter. I paint these fleeting moments, so they are noticed." Her paintings remind me of the goddess Athena: the goddess of wisdom and art. They seem like two starkly different components but philosophers have long talked about the connection between the two. How you can tell a lot about the morals of a community by the type of art they consume.     One looks like a collection of leaves of varying colors flowing in a twist of wind. They evoke happiness. Joy. A beauty that women have had to learn to see in the face of obstacles. A beauty men have had to learn to slow down and see. A baby's laugh. A beautiful sunset. On the other end are her sea paintings which evoke something completive and wise. The deep blue reminds me of long deep talks about fee...
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If the Shoe Fits: A Meditative Book Review

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  OVERVIEW:  Cindy Elanor Woods is a Plus-sized fashionista with an underlying cynicism due to losing both her parents at a young age. Despite having a degree in fashion design, she is currently jobless until opportunity knocks in the form of a reality dating show -- Before Midnight . Cindy accepts the offer and joins the show looking for the chance to show off her fashion chops but (as the book cover blatantly intimates) she may end up finding love in the process. COMMENTARY: When you have to endure the pain of a loved one dying at an early age, fairy tales are basically bullshit to you. Because of this perspective, Cindy essentially embodies the experience of the reader and all of us who roll our eyes at Reality Show "Romance". Yes, these shows are an essential papering over of some harsh realities in the world and how love truly comes about. But in that same way, isn't that silhouetted dress, those painful high heels, that brilliant shade of red lipstick? Is it an unt...
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