My quest to read outside my bubble continues. I've dabbled in sci-fi. I've tried fantasy. I've even recently finished a few YA novels. Virgil Wander brings me something completely different. Very, very rarely do I read anything with a contemporary label. The book club label is a huge deal breaker for me. While this book checked both of those boxes, I found myself drawn to it. For starters, I've read Peace Like a River by the same author. I highly recommend it. Secondly, the book is set along the North Shore in Minnesota. Typically I stay away from books set in my home state of Minnesota. Minnesotans tend to be over stereotyped and given a cartoon-like treatment no thanks to Fargo. The North Shore setting called to me. If you've never been to the North Shore (i.e. Duluth), make the trip. Make it four times so you can experience each of the season.

The title suggests this book is about one man, Virgil Wander. However, Virgil Wander is just one man. The town of Greenstone is the real star of this book. The book opens with Virgil being released from the hospital after driving his car over a cliff in an accident that should have killed him. Instead, he is back living above his old movie theater, trying to establish some normalcy (and language skills). Shortly after Virgil returns to town, a stranger appears bringing with him an old VW van and an assortment of kites. Virgil and the town take the stranger in. Rune becomes sort of a rock star in Greenstone. 

Greenstone is a fictional town. Anyone who lives in Minnesota or is familiar with the area would tell you it feels real. You could drive along the North Shore and find ten towns just like the fictional Greenstone. A quick Google search tells me there is a Greenstone Lake near Ely, Minesota. That's not surprising considering Minnesota is the land of 10,000 (actually more) lakes. They can't all be named Round Lake or Long Lake. 

It seems a little cheesy to say the story that follows Rune's arrival is heartwarming. I'm going to say it any way. It just seems to be the only word that fits. It is obvious the author is from Minnesota. He manages to weave Minnesota's small town charm into every page. I found this book comforting. It felt like home. As someone who has spent her entire life in one Minnesota small town or another, I felt like I could easily name people in my own life who mirrored characters in the book. 

This book is easily one of the best books I have read all year. I would recommend it to anyone, anywhere in the world. 

I feel like I need to start this review by saying sci-fi is not my genre of choice. The vast majority of what I read is historical fiction with the occasional fantasy novel thrown in for something different. 

I read the first novel, Sleeping Giants, last August. For anyone interested in this series, I would recommend reading the two books a little closer together than I did. I ended up going to the library to check out Sleeping Giants because I had forgotten a few things. Keeping in mind that sci-fi is not my wheelhouse, I was surprised at the lack of sci-fi in the first one. Sure there was a giant robot and some big science-y words I didn't understand. Honestly, the giant robots aren't really that unbelievable and me not understanding science-y words is a fairly common occurrence. 

The second novel amped up the sci-fi. The novel follows the format of the previous one. The writer uses a series of transcripts and diary entries to take the reader through the series of events that follow the appearance of a second robot. If that style of writing/reading doesn't appeal to you, I would skip this series. 

Once the action started, I was a little concerned the writing style would take a little bit away from the plot. I was wrong. Once the action started, I didn't even notice. That second robot appeared in London (not a spoiler since it happens about two paragraphs into the book) and the book continues non-stop. 

Does this series have me convinced I should make sci-fi a regular part of my reading rotation? Not quite. Am I going to read the third book? Yup. I already have it on order from the library. However, I might end up owning the series before the library can get them from me. An internet search from my husband shows the writer has been involved in some Star Wars works. Naturally his interest is peaked and I will run the risk of never actually getting my copy when it comes from the library. 

A list of things I am suppose to be doing instead of this:

1.) Laundry- Always laundry

2.) Potentially paying attention to my children- They have Legos and Play-Doh. They don't need me

3.) Finishing invoices and taking inventory after being at sales events all weekend

4.) Figuring out how badly all of these new f'n tax laws are going to screw me over- My accountant is probably going to kill me

Other things I will probably do instead of any of the above things:

1.) Make another pot of coffee- How am I suppose to do any of the other things without more coffee?

2.) Update all of my reading challenges

3.) Schedule Facebook posts for my business

4.) Take a look the spirit schedule for the week and figure out how to wear yoga pants to work for the next four days

Anyway. 

Let me start by saying this book is not anything I would normally pick for myself. It has all of the characteristics of a books I avoid. Some of those things include over-promotion on sites like Amazon and Goodreads (which makes sense because they are the same) or books classified as romance. I'm not a huge romance reader. I'm just not. 

So then why did I read this book? It was gifted to me two years ago in a secret Santa book swap. One of my reading goals this year is to read more of my unread books on my physical bookshelves. I'm plotting a trip to my favorite used bookstore in the near future. Worst case scenario, I don't like the book and I can trade it for something else on my trip. 

This wasn't a bad book. I have definitely read worse and I have most definitely read better. However, I made the mistake of reading reviews at about the halfway mark. I try really hard not to read too many reviews about a book I am currently reading. Occasionally when I am on the fence about if I want to finish a book, I will see if any friends have read the book and read their reviews. In this case a lot of friends have read this particular book. Most of them mentioned how this novel was a re-telling of the Beauty and the Beast story. After digesting this nugget of information, the story telling became predictable. I was hoping for at least one plot twist but it never came. I was hoping that with this book being part of a larger series, the end would not be one of those happy endings wrapped with a big bow. This bow was big and it glittered. 

Maybe at this point you are asking yourself "How did you give a book three and a half stars when it doesn't sound like you really liked it?" 

That's an excellent question. Here's my answer- The writing wasn't terrible. Once I was through the first 100 pages, things took off. The plot moved along quick enough to keep my interest. The heroine wasn't overly whiny but at the same time she wasn't really anything special. Although I found myself confused about why she would find herself attracted to Tam in the first place. In my defense, I wonder that every time my children watch Beauty and the Beast. Don't get me wrong, gifting me a library would probably get you something but not a life long-head over heels-leave my family- kind of commitment. At the end of the novel, I found myself wondering why this book hasn't been created in to a cheesy movie franchise. It certainly has all of the necessary requirements along with the potential for Hollywood to get it all wrong. 

At the end of the day what does all of this mean? Not much. Will I pick up the next book in the series? Maybe when the day comes that my oldest daughter wants to pick up this series. It seems like it could be an entertaining mother/daughter buddy read. For now, I'm returning to my regularly scheduled mystery and historical fiction reading channel.