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mindfullibrarian's review against another edition
5.0
(AUDIOBOOK) OH MY LORD THIS IS ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS I HAVE READ/LISTENED TO ALL YEAR!!! Okay, enough with the shouting, but for real. I listened to this one and it was FABULOUS. Absolutely fabulous. Heartbreaking and hopeful and sweet and spiritual and musical. I'm sure it's just as good on the page, but the narration was fabulous and definitely added to the story for me.
robynryle's review against another edition
5.0
Prepare to go slow. Prepare to meander through this novel. Take your time. Settle in like a snow day. Get comfy with tea and whiskey and good food and characters having conversations that sound just like yours. Get ready for delicious little word morsels and a perfect rendering of love, in all its manifestations. Know that when you're done, you'll miss living inside this novel. You'll want to go back.
lneff514's review against another edition
5.0
So beautiful. It only took reading one sentence* in a book review to make me buy this book... and I'm so glad I bought it. Beautiful writing - different metaphors that were lovely and unexpected, but not drippy-sweet.
It did have a lot more profanity and sexual content than I expected. But, it was not over the top.
And, I cried my eyes out at the end. Always a good thing, in my mind! :)
*"I was a widow - a word so ghostly and hollow, a word that should've been a palindrome but wasn't, those w's with their arms stretched wide, begging for mercy."
...I mean, COME ON. I will (almost daily) whisper that sentence to myself and just sigh at the power and beauty of it.
It did have a lot more profanity and sexual content than I expected. But, it was not over the top.
And, I cried my eyes out at the end. Always a good thing, in my mind! :)
*"I was a widow - a word so ghostly and hollow, a word that should've been a palindrome but wasn't, those w's with their arms stretched wide, begging for mercy."
...I mean, COME ON. I will (almost daily) whisper that sentence to myself and just sigh at the power and beauty of it.
kerickertful's review against another edition
3.0
3.5. Easy fluff. The audiobook was great. Don’t think i would’ve made it through reading this.
lesliemoore72's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I found myself thinking about Evi, Eamon & Dalton for days after I finished reading. The morning after I finished I couldn't wait to get back to their story, and then I realized there wasn't more to read, and it made me kind of sad. What first attracted me to this book was the title and location - Kentucky. A chunk of my heart is in Kentucky. As I was drawn into the story, I discovered parts of it take place in the U.P. What?!! My two favorite places in one book. Whiskey & Ribbons is told from three perspectives. The writing is really beautiful. I'm very happy I finally gave this one my time after sitting on my TBR the longest of any other book.
bericson13's review against another edition
4.0
an achingly beautiful story of love and grief and hope and healing and family. this was gorgeous and hopeful.
margaretefg's review against another edition
2.0
There were many things I liked about this book...the different narrative voices and the way the story came together by interweaving the past with the longest snow day ever. But I thought it was going to be a powerful adoption story, and then when it turned out that Dalton and Eamon share the same biological father and that father goes from being a gentle, loving role model to a despicable philanderer in his sons' eyes, I found it jarring. Didn't seem to fit and in other ways, seemed like too simple a telling for an otherwise more complicated story.
lingfish7's review against another edition
4.0
I loved Leesa's book "This Close to Okay" and that book made me curious to read her debut novel - Whiskey & Ribbons. Although I prefer This Close to Okay, this book was just shy of a masterpiece in terms of prose, deep emotions, processing grief, and redemption.
If you're not into prose then you probably wouldn't like it as much as I did because the plot was a little laggy and slow. It's super artsy though, so I read it slowly and relished each sentence and artistic expression.
1. She has 3 interweaving timelines which makes the book feel like you're constantly going back and forth from present to future, but in a way that makes it mysterious and beautiful. This might drive some people crazy but I loved it.
2. The book is structured around the theme of music and each chapter is like a part in a symphony.
3. The main characters are super artistic, from Evangeline's ballet to Dalton's piano playing. I appreciated how art was woven throughout the book in all of these creative ways.
If you're not into prose then you probably wouldn't like it as much as I did because the plot was a little laggy and slow. It's super artsy though, so I read it slowly and relished each sentence and artistic expression.
1. She has 3 interweaving timelines which makes the book feel like you're constantly going back and forth from present to future, but in a way that makes it mysterious and beautiful. This might drive some people crazy but I loved it.
2. The book is structured around the theme of music and each chapter is like a part in a symphony.
3. The main characters are super artistic, from Evangeline's ballet to Dalton's piano playing. I appreciated how art was woven throughout the book in all of these creative ways.
dwcofer's review against another edition
1.0
Oh my gosh, where do I start. "Whiskey & Ribbons," by Leesa Cross-Smith was just horrible.
First, the writing. Ms. Cross has obviously never studied writing seriously. The book is all telling, no showing. I wanted to scream, "Show me, please!" The book could have been improved so much by showing me the action instead of a flat telling me what happened.
Second, the characters are so flat and not developed. They are not even underdeveloped. They are not developed at all. By not showing us their action and providing enough dialogue, I never felt like I got to know and relate to them. The characters were nothing more than just names. They all had the same voice, and all spoke alike.
Thirdly, the premise was a good one, but fell way short due to the inadequacies of the author. Who at the publishing house told her this was a good book? They lied to her. Again, the premise of grief, love, and memory are good ideas, but they needed the hand of a skilled craftsman to bring it alive for the reader.
Finally, Ms. Cross tries to hard to make this a literary piece of work. She uses flowery language when it is neither needed nor appropriate. The "romance" story is so cliché it is sickening. Ms. Cross is trying to create something (a work of literary fiction) in which she is incapable of doing.
Save your money and skip this book.
First, the writing. Ms. Cross has obviously never studied writing seriously. The book is all telling, no showing. I wanted to scream, "Show me, please!" The book could have been improved so much by showing me the action instead of a flat telling me what happened.
Second, the characters are so flat and not developed. They are not even underdeveloped. They are not developed at all. By not showing us their action and providing enough dialogue, I never felt like I got to know and relate to them. The characters were nothing more than just names. They all had the same voice, and all spoke alike.
Thirdly, the premise was a good one, but fell way short due to the inadequacies of the author. Who at the publishing house told her this was a good book? They lied to her. Again, the premise of grief, love, and memory are good ideas, but they needed the hand of a skilled craftsman to bring it alive for the reader.
Finally, Ms. Cross tries to hard to make this a literary piece of work. She uses flowery language when it is neither needed nor appropriate. The "romance" story is so cliché it is sickening. Ms. Cross is trying to create something (a work of literary fiction) in which she is incapable of doing.
Save your money and skip this book.
librarystan4lyfe's review against another edition
4.0
Beautiful, all-consuming, real. Such an unusually written, stunning book.