Blue

I was sent a copy of Blue by Lou Aronica for review.

Blue is a YA fantasy that introduces us to a family that's been broken by a child's serious illness, divorce, and a loss of communication. Becky, daughter of Polly and Chris, battles her way through a horrible illness as a young child. Her father, Chris helps her through this time by helping her to create a fantasy world, Tamarisk, to mentally escape to. The details of this world they build together is amazing and I loved watching Becky discover all the games, creatures, smells, and sounds that she and her father created once she discovers that she can actually go to Tamarisk, that it, in fact, exists. Sadly, however, the real stress of dealing with this illness has caused Becky's show more parents' marriage to reach its breaking point and somehow Becky and her father lose that connection they had with each other as well as Tamarisk.

I didn't like the parents, Polly and Chris. Polly was an overbearing, hypocritical, controlling toad of a woman and Chris was a weak, pathetic, clueless mess of a man. These two were such perfect caricatures of so many divorced couples that I've seen, the power and control games that get played and nobody bothers to notice that the child gets caught in the middle and ends up lost and confused. Polly and Chris couldn't have been more true to life, and while I didn't really like either of them, I understood them and their place in this story. Their one redeeming quality was that they did genuinely love their daughter. Becky was such a brilliant character. The depth of friendship she shared with Lonnie, the easy relationship she had with step-father Al, and the hope she was always willing to reach for made me really connect with her. I loved reading the slow process of Becky's reconnection with her father and the surprise and delight Chris felt at having that communication with his daughter back again. It was beautifully written.

I absolutely loved this story. I was hooked from the very beginning and there wasn't a single point where I ever lost interest in what I was reading. The novel flows easily from one chapter to the next, the plot is clearly laid out, and while I figured out long before the ending where it was headed, it didn't take away from how much I enjoyed getting there.

I found only one fault with Blue, there were a couple of chapters about Gage, seemingly some sort of God-like being maybe. These chapters were a little awkward and confusing and personally I just didn't get it. But they were a very small part of the story and overall I loved this book so much that it didn't even matter that I didn't understand Gage.

Blue is definitely an emotional roller-coaster, with flawed realistic characters, an extraordinary elaborate fantasy world, and a plot that will tug at your heart strings, this novel is one that I will certainly read again. I hope that Lou Aronica returns to the world Tamarisk for future novels.

Rating 5- Amazing, beautiful touching story. show less

My father was first introduced to Aronica’s work through a Free Book Friday for the Nook, and as soon as he’d finished reading Blue, he urged me to do the same. I was a little more hesitant, my shelves already filled with books I hadn’t read yet and no time to pick up another one. But finally, as I started into book reviews and being serious about this side of my life, I finally took my father’s advice and had him LendMe the two books from his Nook.

I can’t say as I’ve ever been more pleased about a choice of reading material.

Aronica takes two very different worlds – the “real life” view of Connecticut and a family that’s falling apart, and the “fantasy” world of Tamarisk with a queen seated too young facing over show more a catastrophe too big – and meshes them together seamlessly. The narrator switches between Chris, an aimless man divorced (badly) from his wife and estranged from his daughter; Becky, Chris’ daughter who has more imagination than the next six people combined and is dealing with not only all the troubles that come with being a fourteen-year-old but also the remission of her leukemia; and Miea, the queen of Tamarisk by her early twenties and faced with the largest disaster her kingdom has faced in decades.

With so many plot lines, it seems like it would be easy to lose track of the narrative and what is happening where – but Aronica’s storytelling never lets you get lost. You wander with Chris, desperate to save his relationship with Becky even after his divorce sent a monkey wrench into its gears. We relive high school with Becky, who still after four years doesn’t understand what happened with her parents and just wants to make her way through her freshman year without remark. We mourn with Miea, as she grapples with the difficulties of being queen and making decisions she doesn’t – and can’t – entirely understand. And we flip between the three with ease.

And as the paths begin to intersect in ways that no one would have expected, it’s easy to sit in your armchair with a grin on your face, cheering them on every step of the way. I know that I did.

The fact that I personally sat down and devoured Blue whole in a matter of hours is testament to how superb the writing of this book is, and how well it draws the reader in and makes the world real in their mind. And though I can’t “darken” like Chris and Becky do in the book and find myself in one of my own fictitious worlds (or possibly not so fictitious…), I can certainly imagine how that might feel.

Definite five-star rating for both Blue, and its prequel, Until Again. Must-read, on both counts.

Until again, Mr. Aronica. I’ll be waiting for your next book. show less

Getting into this book was a tad slow since there was alot of back story to get through before I felt like I understood what was occurring in the present time of the book. Once I got through that, there were a few things that I could easily predict about the plot. First, the plot would very much favor the father over the mother in regards to the relationship shared with the main character, fourteen-year-old Becky. Second, it is inevitable that Becky's leukemia is going to relapse. Third, this fantasy world of Tamarisk would somehow play a part in both Becky's disease and her parent's ugly divorce.
What I could not predict was how absolutely fascinating the world of Tamarisk is. I actually thought about researching all of the made-up show more names of the plants, animals, and geology before I completely realized the depth of creativity to which Becky and her father Chris went in the creation of this fantasy world. What began as a coping mechanism for a young child going through the rigors of chemotherapy became a world in an alternate universe that existed with its own laws of physics. I was completely enthralled by this unbelievable world of blue foliage, black dirt, microfarming, moldable crystal, smelling of chocolate and raspberries, and featuring transportation in the form of giant flying birds - and that is only the beginning of all that this world holds to tantalize the senses and ignite the imagination. Becky's voyages into Tamarisk alone are enough to fill countless children's stories that would hold any grown adult rapt with wonder.
On the alternate side of this fantastic world is the grievous reality of the ongoing feud between Chris and Polly, Becky's divorced parents. Even though Polly has remarried, she still harbors intensely negative feelings towards Chris. In addition, Chris's whole life is about finding ways to connect with Becky better, as the reader watches him fail at blind date after blind date. Becky wants so badly to hang onto her life that she lives in denial of her increasingly-severe symptoms. My heart went out to all of the characters at different points as I connected with the different emotions and situations. As a mother, I can not even fathom one of my children going through the horrors of childhood cancer, and as a wife, the thought of abandoning my spouse is inconceivable, especially during such a difficult time. My heart broke for Becky's best friend Lonnie, and I felt the awkward sadness of Becky's stepfather Al. These characters are as real as if this story were not fiction, but a memoir or biography.
I could not help noticing the parallels between belief in Tamarisk and the beliefs of Christianity. Polly either could not or would not believe in Tamarisk, and many of her arguments against it matched the common ones against a belief in the existence of God and Heaven.
The ending was bittersweet, but light on bitter and rich on sweet. I shed a tear, but Chris's perspective was very fitting for how I felt about this conclusion. This was a very, very good read that would enrich any reader's book collection. What I gained from this book will stick with me for a long time to come. show less

I was sent a copy of Blue by Lou Aronica for review.Blue is a YA fantasy that introduces us to a family that's been broken by a child's serious illness, divorce, and a loss of communication. Becky, daughter of Polly and Chris, battles her way through a horrible illness as a young child. Her father, Chris helps her through this time by helping her to create a fantasy world, Tamarisk, to mentally escape to. The details of this world they build together is amazing and I loved watching Becky discover all the games, creatures, smells, and sounds that she and her father created once she discovers that she can actually go to Tamarisk, that it, in fact, exists. Sadly, however, the real stress of dealing with this illness has caused Becky's show more parents' marriage to reach its breaking point and somehow Becky and her father lose that connection they had with each other as well as Tamarisk.I didn't like the parents, Polly and Chris. Polly was an overbearing, hypocritical, controlling toad of a woman and Chris was a weak, pathetic, clueless mess of a man. These two were such perfect caricatures of so many divorced couples that I've seen, the power and control games that get played and nobody bothers to notice that the child gets caught in the middle and ends up lost and confused. Polly and Chris couldn't have been more true to life, and while I didn't really like either of them, I understood them and their place in this story. Their one redeeming quality was that they did genuinely love their daughter. Becky was such a brilliant character. The depth of friendship she shared with Lonnie, the easy relationship she had with step-father Al, and the hope she was always willing to reach for made me really connect with her. I loved reading the slow process of Becky's reconnection with her father and the surprise and delight Chris felt at having that communication with his daughter back again. It was beautifully written.I absolutely loved this story. I was hooked from the very beginning and there wasn't a single point where I ever lost interest in what I was reading. The novel flows easily from one chapter to the next, the plot is clearly laid out, and while I figured out long before the ending where it was headed, it didn't take away from how much I enjoyed getting there.I found only one fault with Blue, there were a couple of chapters about Gage, seemingly some sort of God-like being maybe. These chapters were a little awkward and confusing and personally I just didn't get it. But they were a very small part of the story and overall I loved this book so much that it didn't even matter that I didn't understand Gage.Blue is definitely an emotional roller-coaster, with flawed realistic characters, an extraordinary elaborate fantasy world, and a plot that will tug at your heart strings, this novel is one that I will certainly read again. I hope that Lou Aronica returns to the world Tamarisk for future novels. Rating 5- Amazing, beautiful touching story. show less

I was sent a copy of Blue by Lou Aronica for review.

Blue is a YA fantasy that introduces us to a family that's been broken by a child's serious illness, divorce, and a loss of communication. Becky, daughter of Polly and Chris, battles her way through a horrible illness as a young child. Her father, Chris helps her through this time by helping her to create a fantasy world, Tamarisk, to mentally escape to. The details of this world they build together is amazing and I loved watching Becky discover all the games, creatures, smells, and sounds that she and her father created once she discovers that she can actually go to Tamarisk, that it, in fact, exists. Sadly, however, the real stress of dealing with this illness has caused Becky's show more parents' marriage to reach its breaking point and somehow Becky and her father lose that connection they had with each other as well as Tamarisk.

I didn't like the parents, Polly and Chris. Polly was an overbearing, hypocritical, controlling toad of a woman and Chris was a weak, pathetic, clueless mess of a man. These two were such perfect caricatures of so many divorced couples that I've seen, the power and control games that get played and nobody bothers to notice that the child gets caught in the middle and ends up lost and confused. Polly and Chris couldn't have been more true to life, and while I didn't really like either of them, I understood them and their place in this story. Their one redeeming quality was that they did genuinely love their daughter. Becky was such a brilliant character. The depth of friendship she shared with Lonnie, the easy relationship she had with step-father Al, and the hope she was always willing to reach for made me really connect with her. I loved reading the slow process of Becky's reconnection with her father and the surprise and delight Chris felt at having that communication with his daughter back again. It was beautifully written.

I absolutely loved this story. I was hooked from the very beginning and there wasn't a single point where I ever lost interest in what I was reading. The novel flows easily from one chapter to the next, the plot is clearly laid out, and while I figured out long before the ending where it was headed, it didn't take away from how much I enjoyed getting there.

I found only one fault with Blue, there were a couple of chapters about Gage, seemingly some sort of God-like being maybe. These chapters were a little awkward and confusing and personally I just didn't get it. But they were a very small part of the story and overall I loved this book so much that it didn't even matter that I didn't understand Gage.

Blue is definitely an emotional roller-coaster, with flawed realistic characters, an extraordinary elaborate fantasy world, and a plot that will tug at your heart strings, this novel is one that I will certainly read again. I hope that Lou Aronica returns to the world Tamarisk for future novels.

Rating 5- Amazing, beautiful touching story. show less

Going into Blue I honestly really wasn't sure what I should expect. I knew that the main character's daughter was ill, and I was hoping that this wasn't just a sad book. I've never minded a bit of a tearjerker, but books like that are always a tough read. Happily, I was genuinely surprised at the way that Blue is actually written. Lou Aronica doesn't really dwell on the fact that Becky is sick, but instead uses it as a jumping off point for the rest of this beautifully written story. I read this 400 page book in one night. I just couldn't bring myself to put it down.

Story wise, this book is an absolutely superb mixture of realistic and fantasy elements. The world of Tamarisk is stunningly imagined, and Aronica's writing draws you right show more in to this fantasy world. The characters, the landscape, even the melodies that were said to exist in this land, were right there in front of you. I fell in love. Still, there is enough realism about the problems that Meia and her subjects face that you really begin to care for them as much as Chris and Becky. Did I mention this was superb? Really, I was so truly impressed.

Character wise, Becky is such a fantastic character in this book. She is extremely strong, kind and extremely likeable as a main character. Her interactions with the characters around her was what I enjoyed the most though. Becky's ability to be sweet one moment and snide the next is exactly what I would expect from a young adult character. As for her father, Chris was also extremely well written. Although I couldn't connect with him as much as I did with Becky, since I haven't been through parenthood or any of the trials that Chris had to face, I did appreciate how realistically he was portrayed. Watching him rebuild his relationship with Becky was heartwarming, and yes, I did need those tissues for a bit.

Blue is a book that really spoke to me. It is very much about rekindling relationships, and building them even stronger around a shared understanding. It is about hope, and remembering that imagination is everything. Blue somehow manages to be sad and yet uplifting at the same time. I definitely recommend this to all my readers. If you are a lover of the fantasy genre, you'll find Tamarisk fascinating. If you are not, you'll still fall in love with Chris and Becky. There is something to enjoy for every reader in this book. Guaranteed to leave you breathless. show less

I downloaded this book from Amazon because 1) It had a pretty good rating and 2)It was free, and I am a big fan of free. Based on those two things, I figured I would like it enough to read it when I was bored, with my phone kindle app (I am too much in love with paper books to make the permanent crossover to kindle). I was not expecting, however, to be so addicted to it that putting it down became a painful process.This story follows Becky as her world is turned upside down, her father, and Meia on an unbelievable journey of hope, wonder, and acceptance. This is genuinely one of the best crafted stories I have read in a while. Each character feels so real, and I couldn't help but find myself lending them my heart. The story line, while show more heartbreaking, was beautiful. This is a book I may never have picked up if not for the above two reasons I mentioned, but now that I have read it, I can't imagine having not read it. It was amazing, I loved it. I recommend everyone drop whatever it is they are currently reading, and pick this story up....along with two or three boxes of tissues! show less