Book reviews are subjective. I tend to rate books not according to how “perfect” they are, seem to be, or are said to be in general but rather to how perfect they are to me.
Finding Miranda by Iris Chacon
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Miranda is a shy librarian who’s new in town and chronically invisible. So it’s ironic when her handsome neighbor, Shepard, sees her–even though he, well, doesn’t. And not to mention that now there are some men around who see both Miranda and Shepard and apparently want them dead in Finding Miranda, a novel by author Iris Chacon.
I wasn’t sure what this book was, exactly, when I picked it up. A cozy mystery? A romance? Chick lit, maybe? Well, no, not chick lit. But now that I’ve read it, I can’t say as I truly know what to call this romantic comedic mysterious heart-tugging thingamabob of a book. But I enjoyed the heck out of it!
I thought the read would be more Miranda-central than it is, but it includes other characters’ perspectives, and that’s okay. Miranda is one unique cookie, the romance is too cute, and though I (lover of love that I am) very, very rarely ever read of a hero I’d call swoon-worthy, I might call Shepard that. Not because of his long hair or muscly build (honestly, the more it seems a story is trying to make me swoon over a romantic hero’s looks, the more it annoys me.) But Shepard shines as a layered, likable, flawed, and interesting person, not just the dashing or lovey-dovey figure the heroine falls for because that’s what’s “supposed” to happen in romances.
And the mystery. It’s not a whodunit or sleuthing type of thing, but it includes some politics, corruption, enough danger to keep you suspicious, and it actually escalates to the gripping level of a thriller.
Yet, the story remains its own, remarkable something, where the humor is quirky but the tale isn’t silly. The characters aren’t just caricatures that stuff happens to, and the story doesn’t pull punches and let everyone off easy. It came to a point or two when I had to set the book aside and give my affected heart a break for a minute.
Oh, and for the dog lovers, did I mention the cast of characters includes an awesome dog?
Here’s a winning tale with a bespectacled woman in the bushes and a great message on where courage comes from. I’d highly recommend this book to fellow readers who can rightly appreciate a thingamabob.
Note to my blog readers: This novel contains just a smidgen of crude humor and minimal profanity.
Prismatic Prospects 