My Rating:

Favorite Quote:

“Why did that woman run from you?”… “She developed a sudden case of diarrhea.”

My Review:

What Matters Most was the first book in a new series and while it wasn’t a cliffhanger, it did leave several baited hooks in play for subsequent installments, and I’d like to see where they go. The second half of the book was easier to follow and achieved a smoother flow to the writing than the first half – as if the writer had found her muse. The earlier portion had felt a bit choppy and could have benefited from a bit of polish and additional transitions and segues, yet the tale had good bones and the underlying storylines were interesting with unpredictable twists and clever hits of humor tucked in. The characters were markedly quirky and not always likable or admirable, but then, I don’t actually know anyone who approaches that in real life either. I frequently reflected back to the beginning of this book and smiled at the memory of the author’s Acknowledgment page on which she thanked her family as well as “old bones and cancer,” as the book was written while recuperating from surgery. Crediting and appreciating cancer as a creative impetus has to be a first.