Book Review: 'Q: A Love Story' by Evan Mandery

So one of the things I enjoy doing, when I have a few free minutes, is to watch Youtube. With limited time, I don't follow many channels on a regular basis, but probably the only person who I have watched every single one of their videos is Carrie Hope Fletcher. An actress, singer, writer and avid reader, I really trust her book recommendations.

I have a list of books she's mentioned in videos and so when I fancy reading something I know nothing about, I take a title from the list and order it on my library app.

It has taken me stupidly long to get through this relatively average sized novel..  mostly because I've had NO TIME and not enough motivation to read.

It doesn't mean the book was bad, because it wasn't. But it wasn't the cute easy-read love story I was expecting and I've also had a tough few weeks motivation-wise in general.

But it has finally been completed and enjoyed.

I chose this book because the blurb intrigued me. The lead female's name is Q, and the reviewers comments suggest it would appeal to anyone who enjoyed 'The Time Traveller's Wife', which I really did.

Despite it's title, this novel hardly contained Q at all, and wouldn't really be what I would class as 'A love story'. The book was more about self-discovery and the interesting concept of time and day-to-day decisions.

I liked the use of real-life science and philosophy because it linked nicely to my RMPS course and therefore I could appreciate it. However, it did make it a little more of a confusing read than I'd initially been expecting.

The principle character (whose name I must know, or have known, but honestly cannot remember in this moment because it was written in first person and consequently of very little importance) is a little frustrating for me at times, as he is so easily led by his 'future selves' and cannot make his own decisions, even when he notices the pattern of impossible solution which was excruciatingly obvious to me as a reader from a very early stage. I therefore became a little bored with the penultimate section of the book because it was overly repetitive and therefore kind of predictable

But, as a whole, I really enjoyed the book. The characterisation, particularly of the hero, was .well created and I felt I could relate to the idea of wanting the best possible outcome but hating the process of altering your lifestyle in order to make that happen.

So, although a few of the ideas were a bit far fetched and long-winded, I really enjoyed this book. It was the complete opposite of what I expected, so may be for any of you too, but worth a read anyway!

Was it really 'meant to be'?

So, back at the beginning of the January, I produced a post I was proud of and I was fairly devastated when it didn't save. I've got over it now but, at the time, it did get me thinking.... maybe that post just wasn't meant to be?

When we say 'meant to be', we presumably refer to fate. As though the right thing to happen is pre-decided, and when things don't go the way we want or expect them to, it's because some greater being or pull within the universe hasn't planned it that way.

For some people, this being is a God or holy figure of some description, for others stars or angels or intergalactic pixies, I don't know. The question that has me puzzled isn't one of the validity of religion, because that's not something I feel in the right place to write about yet, but about the validity of believing that things can be meant, or not, to happen, in general.

If we are decided that what is supposed to happen always will and that everything therefore has a happy ending, we can optimistically navigate our way through life and can theoretically take every blow with a smile because, it wasn't 'meant to be'. OR: perhaps what is meant to be for some people isn't always happy, perhaps some people are 'meant' to have bad things happen to them. In which case, why?

Or perhaps we use 'meant to be' as an excuse or, more realistically, an explanation and motivation to keep our heads held high.

That's really all I had to say on that for now. Maybe people will read this, maybe that's not the outcome of this post which is 'meant to be'.

I doubt I'll stop using the phrase, but it'll accompany a whole train of thought from now on!

Let me know what you think about fate and the idea of things happening because they're 'supposed to', in the comments below!

Catriona xx