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Thursday, August 22, 2013

REVIEW: ALL MY RESTLESS LIFE TO LIVE by DEE DeTARSIO

All My Restless Life to LiveGenre: Women's Fiction
Publisher: Just Publishing
Publication Date: 5/22/13
Format: Kindle
Pages: 306
Source: Received from author for review
Rating: 3 stars



Fans of Marian Keyes and Jennifer Weiner will delight in Dee DeTarsio’s sparkling prose and lively dialogue as she takes readers into the heart of women’s lives.

Life is a soap opera, especially for Elle Miller, who writes for one. (Ellen dropped the “n” in her name in hopes of finding a better ending for herself.) When her laptop crashes, she borrows her recently deceased dad’s computer and gets way more than she bargained for.

Elle unravels mysterious communications from his computer, while her mom decides to give Internet dating a try. As Elle tries to save her career at I’d Rather Be Loved with a storyline featuring a trip through Atlantis, she takes a trip to the Emmys, and finds herself in the middle of a romance between a real doctor and a hunk who just plays one on TV.

Friends, family, and clues from “the other side” all help Elle figure out the difference between living the good life and living a good life.

Filled with friendship, love, loss, betrayal, and challenges that force her characters to find their place in the universe, Dee’s novels give us that hopefully-ever-after we're searching for.

Dee DeTarsio is a Winner of The 2013 San Diego Book Awards, Romance category, for Haole Wood, as well as a 2013 Next Generation Indie Awards Finalist.





Confession: My name is Andrea, and I was raised on soap operas. Seriously, I probably knew who Erica Kane was doing before I could talk. Soaps were my mom's thing, namely, All My Children. I can tell you pretty much anything that happened on that show from about 1982 until it ended. I also liked One Life to Live and General Hospital. I even dabbled in Days of Our Lives off and on (who can forget Marlena being possessed by the devil?) . Oh, I even watched Port Charles. That weirdly awesome show was trying to bring back vampires before Twilight made them cool again. Sadly, I just had to give up soaps because the lack of forward movement finally frustrated me to the point of apathy. 

Why am I telling you this? Because my life-long love for soaps, and the pretty cover, is what made me want to read All My Restless Life to Live. This book, it was cute and quirky, not really what I was expecting. And honestly, it is as advertised in the synopsis.

So, the writing in All My Restless Life to Live is good. Really good.  I love that the prose  was seamless and takes little effort to fall into. For that I give the author big praise. 

It's just...I never really got into the story liked I'd hoped to. I think this is because I never felt the whole bit with Elle's dad communicating with her from beyond, via his old laptop. I kind of shrugged at this. Because of the communication from beyond, a good portion of the story revolves around different theories of the afterlife. Between this and Elle obsessing over her dad's laptop, it all became a bit much for me. I will say this was all handled in a light and fun manner, never heavy, so that's fine. I'm not sure if it was my mood, but I just didn't feel it. 

There's also Elle dealing with potential work and new relationships, one with a doctor and the other with a co-worker. I think if the story had begun with more focus on the relationships more, or her job, I would have enjoyed that. There was just so much back-and-forth with Elle's relationships, her struggles with her mom, keeping her job, and the darn laptop, that I never settled into the story.

All My Restless Life to Live was a neat story, and despite my gripes, I didn't dislike it. At another point, I may have even enjoyed it a lot. I think readers looking for a nice dose of quirkiness might like it.


 
Purchase All My Restless Life to Live at Amazon 
 
 
 
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18 comments:

  1. PORT CHARLES!! Omg you watched it too?? I adored that show and even have some old episodes on dvd! That show pulled me out of a funk at one point in my toilet bowl life. Great review babe, I have this one too so I can't wait to see if I feel the same way.

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  2. I watched Days of Our Lives with my mom. OMG I love that you referenced Marlena being possessed. That was terrifying for me! And Lol! I skimmed by it on TV the other day and was like, "OMG they look the same as they did like 20 years ago!"

    Anyways, I don't know if this is a book for me, but it sounds interesting. I'm glad you got some enjoyment out of it.

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  3. I was never really into soaps (very few of those that you mentioned sound familiar to me!) and I still don't think I am. :D Although this book didn't quite grip you the way you wanted it to, I'm glad thought it was a decent story. Lovely review!

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  4. My mom used to watch a lot of soaps when I was younger too, so I was pretty much raised on them too. I eventually stopped watching them because I had other hobbies.
    I think the cover of this book is cute and it looks like something that would interest me. It's a shame about you not getting into the book though. The focus on the after life concept and the MC's obsession with the laptop would bother me a little as well.
    At least, it's well-written! Lovely review, Andrea.

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  5. Oh my lord! I watched ALL the soaps with my mom - then all through high school.

    I just turned on Days of Our Lives a few days ago and all the babies are grown up cheating and scheming themselves lol

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  6. Not sure about the chat w/ the dad but I can relate to your love of soaps. Drama is so addictive regardless if its fictional and over the top. It got so bad I even got into telenovelas! I draw the line on Korean soap though LOL.

    Braine

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  7. I really like the cover, altho the story doesn't sound all that great. I did used to love watching Passions back in the day, lol. Great review!

    Vi
    Confessions of a Vi3tBabe
    Deity Island

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  8. Sounds just like a soap opera, Andrea! :) I was raised on The Young and the Restless. LOL Sorry it didn't really work for you - you did a great job explaining why. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

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  9. Thanks for the honest thoughts! It certainly sounds like a quirky read. I never watched a lot of soap operas. I saw random things because my mom watched, but when Passions came on, I LOVED that show for awhile. Eventually, I stopped watching too though. I'm obsessed with a UK soap opera called Hollyoaks though!! Well, I love it, but I haven't watched much in awhile. I followed one guy's storyline for a long time though until he left the show. :)

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  10. I did go through a bit of General Hospital but it didn't last long. :D

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  11. Based on the description I think I would like it! My Mother and I used to watch what we called "days"! ;) Marlena possessed scared the living hell out of me when I was young, but I couldn't look away! ;) I need to go search for clips on YouTube now!

    Love your review - I might still want to check this one out though and see what I think! :)

    Liza @ Book Crook Liza

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  12. I watched soaps a little, but not much. It just seemed like you could turn one on after not seeing it for 6 months and you were able to pick right up where you left off. The book sounds fun, but I don't know if I would be crazy about the communicating with the dead dad part. Thanks for the informative and fun review.

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  13. LOL, this one sounds great. I am in absolute love with that cover, too. So pretty. I was raised on soap operas too and still watch them to this day. It does kind of seem like the dead dad thing belongs in a different story, but if it's tolerable then I might be able to deal. Great review :)

    Alise @ Readers in Wonderland

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  14. It does sound like the kind of book you have to be in the right mood for. I, too, was a soap addict. My mom was big on GH FOREVER, so I watched them too. She also liked Ryan's Hope (remember that one? On before All My Children.) and All My Children. I think I stopped watching GH about 4 years ago. I just couldn't stand the monotony. Thanks for sharing.

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  15. I honestly never watch soaps, but I know all of those you mentioned. I don't know...I think they are just too dramatic for my taste. lol ;p Its too bad you didn't quite enjoy this as much as you would have liked too. I think I would be hung up on the whole laptop situation too. :( Its hard to read a book when you aren't fully invested in the story, but I am glad you at least liked it a little bit! lol ;p Great review, Andrea! :D

    ~ Maida
    Literary Love Affair 

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  16. Hi Andrea! Thanks so much for taking time to read and review All My Restless Life to Live! I love your thoughtful take on it and really appreciate your kind words! It is a different book (I will take your quirky!)and I hope your readers do give it a whirl--I would love to hear their feedback, too! Thanks and take care,
    Dee

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  17. Hi Andrea! Thanks so much for taking time to read and review All My Restless Life to Live! I love your thoughtful take on it and really appreciate your kind words! It is a different book (I will take your quirky!)and I hope your readers do give it a whirl--I would love to hear their feedback, too! Thanks and take care,
    Dee

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