Release: December 8th, 2020
Format: Ebook
Publisher: Alcove Press
Source: Suzy approved Book Tours.
Find it at Goodreads, Amazon, Kindle, B&N,
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In this tale of a grumpy introvert, a Man Called Ove meets The Rosie Project, her astonishing lack of social skills and empirical data-driven approach to people and relationships.
An entomologist, Greta far prefers the company of bugs to humans. Because people don’t seem to like her all that much anyway, except her brother, Danny. So when she lands a research gig in the rainforest, she leaves it all behind.
But when Greta learns that Danny has suffered an aneurysm and is now hospitalized. She abandons her research and hurries home to be there for her brother. Coming home means confronting all that she left behind. Including her lousy soon-to-be sister-in-law, her estranged mother, and her ex-boyfriend Brandon who has conveniently found a new non-lab-exclusive partner with shiny hair, perfect teeth, and can actually remember the names of the people she meets right away.
Being that Brandon runs the only butterfly conservatory in town, and her dissertation is now in jeopardy, taking that job, being back home, it’s all creating chaos in Greta’s perfectly cataloged and compartmentalized world. But real life is messy, and Greta will have to ask herself if she has the courage to open up for the people she loves and for those who want to love her.
The Butterfly Effect is an unconventional tale of self-discovery, navigating relationships, and how sometimes it takes stepping outside of our comfort zone to find what we need the most.
About the Author:
Rachel Mans McKenny was a graduate of the Pennsylvania Governor’s School for the Arts, a YoungArts Scholar, and a US Presidential Scholar in the Arts. She received a degree in creative writing at Creighton University and an MA in literature from Iowa State University. She teaches composition and public speaking at Iowa State.
A Midwesterner born and raised, Rachel is a writer and humorist. Her work has been published in The New York Times, McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, Electric Literature, The Rumpus, and other outlets (full list of publications). Her debut novel, The Butterfly Effect, is out from Alcove Press as of December 2020. Veronica Park represents her at Fuse Literary.
Rachel is an omnivorous and obsessive reader and reviews books on this blog (you can also find her @rachelm on Litsy). She a mom, is a decent cook, a passionate gardener, and pretty great at karaoke, specifically anything from Jagged Little Pill.
The Butterfly Effect Review:
“The Butterfly Effect” is a lovely contemporary tale about family and reconnecting, and I enjoyed reading it.
To begin with, the author has a lovely style of writing. I loved the number of details she added to the story. It was clear that she made a lot of research and effort into writing this novel. I love how it blended with the storyline. I am not an Entomology expert, but it was fascinating reading Greta’s personal comparisons to those of birds and insects. She also writes the narrative in an attractive manner, where nearly every chapter takes Greta to recall her life experiences. On a side note, I loved the Star Trek references that made my inner Trekkie jump in glee.
The characters are also well-drawn, where you feel like you are reading about your own family. Greta was impressive in the lead, and I thought the author elaborately wrote her. But, more than Greta, I loved Danny, and he made the story memorable. I loved the details that the author provides about the symptoms Danny faces before and the after-effects of surgery. Many of his scenes were unique, like how he reacts to the candle on his birthday. Or how he cannot differentiate colors when he goes to the story.
However, while I enjoyed reading this tale, at times, it was tough to support Greta. While I could relate to her emotions, at times, she was infuriating for how she reacts. Moreover, after reading about her past, I didn’t understand why she would behave that way with her family.
Apart from that, I enjoyed this book and thought it was a charming contemporary read.
Book Tour Schedule:
I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on The Butterfly Effect by Rachel Mans McKenny Blog Tour hosted by Suzy approved Book Tours.
