Toni Jordan

Piece by Piece the Fragments make a Whole or do they?


Thank you to the author, Toni Jordan, the publisher, Text Publishing, and to Netgalley for providing me an ARC in exchange for my honest review. I have to be honest the cover is what pulled me into this book but the cover is not why I stayed. The Fragments was a slight departure from what I am normally reading. I love my mystery but the historical aspects of this are not my cup of tea. That being said this read so much like the DaVinci Code that it made it enjoyable. The book is essentially about a sequel to a bestselling book which was destroyed when the author died in a warehouse fire. Caddie sets off on a quest to solve the mystery of what happened all those years ago and if a copy of the book has actually survived. The book bounces between present day perspective of Caddie and the past of Rachel – a lady cloaked in mystery as to her identity and relationship to the case. I loved how the chapters alternated and gave good descriptions of the past and found it somewhat predictable by the end. Overall a three-star rating from me with the hopes that the next book is more interesting.
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Kurze Inhaltsangabe
Seit ihrem achten Lebensjahr zählt Grace Lisa Vandenburg die Dinge in ihrem Leben, jede Kleinigkeit: die Buchstaben ihres Namens (19), die Schritte bis zu ihrem Lieblingscafé (920), die Streusel auf ihrem Orangenkuchen ebenso wie die Borsten an ihrer Zahnbürste. Seit einiger Zeit arbeitet sie nicht mehr als Lehrerin, sie konzentriert sich ganz auf das Zählen und die Ordnung in ihrem Alltag. Nur mit einem konnte sie nicht rechnen: mit ihrer Liebe zu Seamus Joseph O’Reilly (auch 19 Buchstaben).
Seamus bringt alles durcheinander. Denn er glaubt, Grace könnte mit ihm und ohne die Zahlen glücklicher sein. Er öffnet eine Tür in ihre Seele, doch er kennt den Grund für Graces Angewohnheit nicht. All ihr funkelnder Humor und ihre kuriosen Listen halten ihn nicht davon ab, die tiefempfundene Not hinter diesem Geheimnis ergründen zu wollen. Doch so leicht lässt Grace sich nicht in die Karten blicken…… (mere)

Toni Jordan is one of my favourite authors – one of the few that never fails to elicit a laugh-out-loud moment from me. Prettier If She Smiled More was no exception to this rule, but I was left waiting a little longer for that moment than usual.

This novel’s title signals just one of the deeper societal issues tackled in this continuation of the Schnabel family’s story. This time the focus is on ever-reliable and organised eldest child Kylie, as she navigates her Week of Three Disasters. Readers also touched with the ‘dependable’ brush will readily identify with Kylie’s myriad frustrations, and potentially reflect on the observation that this character can often be her own worst enemy. But readers of the same generation or older than character Kylie (40s) will likely not be surprised by this story arc.

Prettier If She Smiled More has a relatively straightforward plot that explores both wounds and blind spots we can all in some way relate to. For me, it lacked the level of twist and surprise I have come to expect from Jordan. However, her trademark rapid-fire cutting dialogue and comedic farce shone bright in this novel’s latter half. Continue reading: https://www.bookloverbookreviews.com/2023/08/prettier-if-she-smiled-more-by-toni...… (mere)