I won this book in a goodreads giveaway, and I was excited to read it, until I read it. The Exhibition of Persephone Q by Jessi Jezewska Stephens sounded promising. A young woman, Percy (not my real name), finds herself pregnant, married, and unable to sleep because she keeps holding her husbands nose closed when he sleeps. Her husband, Misha, has no reaction, and this scares her even more than the fact that she keeps doing it. She does worry that if it keeps going she will end up suffocation him, and she keeps letting us (the readers) know that she loves him and she has no idea why she is doing it. She then finds that her picture is in an exhibition of photography put on by her ex-fiance, who she keeps referring to as her fiance. The book seems to meander back and forth through many things that happen or conversations that Percy has. With so little action I found that it felt like it wasn't going anywhere, and at the end I felt that this was true. The actions she takes against Misha aren't resolved, and we never really find out why she has been holding his nose closed. The reader going through this with her, and her hanging out with her ex-fiance (who is annoyingly referred to as the fiance throughout the entire book, which makes it become tedious), and her pregnancy, and her inability to sleep, and nothing seems to really come together.

This book seems to desire to be about the alienation of Percy, but all of this she brought on herself. She is the one who no longer sleeps with her husband because she keeps pinching his nose closed. She is the one walking around New York in the middle of the night. She is the one who chases her ex-fiance to get answers as to why her picture is in his exhibit. And, even though this takes place in post 9-11 New York, the setting doesn't seem important, and besides some conversation, this could take place at any time, anywhere. It doesn't seem to pick up on the paranoia and trauma that followed the 9-11 attacks. Although, maybe this is represented in how paranoid and disturbed Percy seems to be.

Either way, I felt this book tried to hard. The language used didn't seem realistic to me, and I didn't find Percy to be an interesting or relatable character. The language and prose was overdrawn and at times I felt the author was trying too hard to make it sound smart. Of course, if you know anything about the original Persephone, some of the story will make sense, but that is only if you know the story.

This book will be released in February of 2020, and I am glad I won a copy because now I won't have to buy one. I can't say I'd recommend this one.

I'd like to introduce you to Kim Darnell, author, wife, and mother. She recently released her debut novel Ready to Give An Answer. I was with Kim through part of this journey and trust me her book is one you don't want to miss. Her book is about life, and although many might look at it and think they don't want to read about someone's spiritual journey, trust me, you will. It is a book everyone and anyone can relate to, in several different ways. So without any more from me, let's meet Kim Darnell.

Let the internet world know what your debut novel is all about:
Ready to Give An Answer is a book I started out writing for myself and my family, but ended up wanting to share more widely once it was complete.  It’s really the story of how I came to faith and how that impacted my life in high school, college, marriage, moving across the country, and handling an early miscarriage.

What do you want people to know about you and why you write?
As a little girl, I loved to write short stories and poems, and in school, I was one of the weird people who actually enjoyed writing book reports and essays, so much so that I ended up being a writing major!  I write because it’s the best way I can express myself.  I’d like to consider myself an articulate conversationalist, but writing has always been the way I feel I can best organize my thoughts and communicate clearly.

Why do you write the genre you do?
I hadn’t even heard of memoir until I took a class in college, and it was the perfect fit for me! I felt a bit out of place in poetry and fiction classes, but memoir was a place where I could bring my own stories to life.

What is the first book that made you cry?
Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White.  It was one of my favorites as a child.  How can you not cry when Wilbur has to say goodbye to Charlotte? *I think everyone can feel the same about this one - inserts interviewer*

What are common traps for aspiring writers?
Not being in a critique group.  I was so much more productive as an aspiring writing when I regularly attended one.  Critique groups keep you bringing new material, enliven your old material, and you get to meet a bunch of great writers — it’s what Michael Scott would call a win-win-win! *Oh yes, who gets this awesome reference?!?!*

How did publishing your first book change your process of writing?
Publishing my first book hasn’t really changed my writing process. It’s made me want to do it again!  Self-publishing and marketing is a lot less fun than actually writing, but it is very rewarding to get to hear readers’ feedback. *Agreed

What was the best money you ever spent as a writer?
Probably on books.  I don’t think you can be a good writer if you’re not a reader! 

How do you select the names of your characters?
Although I write about real people, I do have to change names from time to time.  Sometimes I’ll just go with the first name that pops into my head. Other times there has been someone else that the person has reminded me of, and I’ve used that name.

Do you Google yourself?
Not until you just asked that question… I’m pleased to see that my author picture came up!
*It is surprising how many people DON'T google themselves!!!*

How can people get in touch with you?
People can get in touch with me via Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/Kim-Darnell-Author-405507216844829/?modal=admin_todo_tour. 

What are you working on now?
I’m working on a new book called No One Ever Told Me and am soliciting feedback for readers to be featured in it!  This book will be a collection of quotes and short stories from my own life and readers’ lives detailing things we had to learn on our own.  Please consider sharing:  What is it no one ever told you that you wish they had? 
*Internetland, the link to answer this question, and maybe be a part of Mrs. Darnell's next book is below. Please feel free, if you have time to help Kim out!
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/8B8B953

Kim's book can be found on Amazon, or you can click on the link below, and it is available as an eBook and a paperback:
www.amazon.com/Ready-Give-Answer-Kim-Darnell/dp/1072014866

The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn will feel familiar when you start it, especially if you read The Girl on the Train, which this can be compared to. It is not like Gone Girl, which I will admit I totally hated.

Anna Fox is a former child psychiatrist who is now an agoraphobic who can't leave her house without passing out. If you know nothing about agoraphobia it is the fear of open spaces, or spaces you can't control and is often brought on by trauma or anxiety. Her and her husband, Ed, and daughter, Olivia, have separated, possibly due to the agoraphobia, possibly due to other reasons. When the Russell's move in across the street Anna finds herself drawn to the family, especially the teenage son, Ethan, and the wife, Jane. However, nothing is as it seems with the family, and once Anna hears a scream and believes that she sees Jane murdered things go sideways. Anna finds that no one believes her, and due to her condition and her reliance on both alcohol and prescription drugs she starts to not believe herself.

The story has two twists in it. One did surprise me and I was a little shocked, because I should have seen it coming, the other was foreshadowed and I could have guessed if I wasn't so into the story. The story itself was slow at times, and the pacing could have been a little faster. There were times when I felt so bogged down in Anna's feelings and life that I wanted to skip it and get to the story. I also wish that the author had focused a little more on the other characters on the street that Anna watched.

My biggest issue with this novel was with Anna herself. She continually repeated in the novel that she knew she shouldn't be drinking while she was taking her prescription meds, but she continually did just that. I would have liked a character who wasn't drunk all of the time, and I feel that she could have been seen as unstable just with her misuse of the prescription drugs that she was prescribed for her agoraphobia issues. I feel that the alcoholic female lead who isn't going to be believed has been a little over done at this point. There are other ways to create a believable unstable character without the use of booze or meds.

My other issue was with the character of Alister Russell. He was portrayed as a hard ass man who was overprotective of his family, but neither he nor Jane were developed enough to really add to the story. When you have important main characters in a novel they need to serve a purpose, and I feel that neither Jane, who we see little of, and Alister, who we see only when he is angry, aren't used to their full advantages.

I do recommend this, it wasn't bad, and I didn't hate it as much as I did Gone Girl, nor did I dislike it as much as I did The Woman on the Train. Plus, it looks as if a movie is coming and I find it is always a good idea to read the book before watching the movie.