Real Life and Other Fictions

Brilliantly, brilliantly written.

Cassie Klein is 50 and life has never run smooth. Orphaned in mysterious circumstances, a failed journalist and now a teacher, hoping her novel will come to fruition, all while her husband has been cheating. Great.

It's time to do something, anything.

A moth in the back of the car, Luna (her rambunctious puppy) jumps out and Cassie chases after her only to slip on the ice.... she comes to, to a police officer shining a light in her eyes. Officer Keel...

This name engaged a switch in my brain which was long forgotten but certainly had a small glint of inspiration to this fantasically written book. The name Keel, relates back to John Keel who wrote "The Mothman Prophecies" in 1975, which were in turn inspired by West Virginian folklore and such newspaper headlines as "Couples See Man-Sized Bird ... Creature ... Something". There was also a film with Richard Gere in 2002, but a. I have never seen it and b. I am realy geting off course!

The link is an elegant nod to the inspiration for this exceptional book, but the narrative styles and stories could not be further apart. To be absolutely frank, I prefer this tale as it is more relatable in its plausibility. Woven back and forth through Cassies reality, fiction and other planes of consciousness and reflection, allowing yourself to be carried along with lifes challenges and events or directing where it takes you

This book is enchanting and a unique, immersive read. Susan Coll has an affable, engaging writing style that I find utterly captivating and had me turning page after page, never quite sure where the story was going but desperate to find out if the clues would stack up. A brilliant experience

Thank you to Netgalley, Harper Muse and the author Susan Coll for this outstanding ARC. My review is left voluntarily and all opinions are my own

I loved this book. I loved how original and quirky it was. The characters are so well developed and easy to relate to. They are also a little quirky. At first I was like what is this book but it quickly became endearing. I loved it so much I didn’t want it to end.

Cassie is in her 50s. Her only daughter has gone off to college and her marriage is in shambles. Suddenly two days before Christmas she has had enough. In a moment of sure madness she grabs her puppy and drives to her aunt and uncles house. She was orphaned at the age of two in a mysterious accident. She doesn’t know the details of her parents passing because her family refuses to talk about it. Cassie takes off on a trip to figure out what happened.

I was glued to this book. There were so many themes in this story that really spoke to me. It’s about dealing with generational trauma and healing. It will resonate with people raised by a generation that did not talk about their traumas and just pushed it under the rug. The mysterious way that her parents died will send you down the internet rabbit hole of googling everything you can find on the subject. It’s that crazy. Go get this book!


Thank you to netgalley for the opportunity to read this advanced readers copy.