What a surprise this audiobook was! When I first read about it—a middle-aged woman navigates the dating world during the second Civil War—I was intrigued. 2nd Civil War? Dating during a dystopia? How will debut author Grillo make this all work?

Thankfully, she DOES make it work, & she does so with caustic humor & delicate heart. Hestia is a 42-year-old writer who lives in Baltimore, part of a politically purple state that’s part of the Union. Yes, America is in the midst of a second Civil War and a handful of states, mostly in the south, have seceded and formed the Confederated States. The world Grillo creates is our current divisive country on steroids (but, sadly, not too unfathomable). Hestia’s own adoptive parents, college professors who put academics over love, have moved to the CS, sympathizing with their cause. Hestia’s husband has done the opposite, disappearing for two years after her left to join a Union paramilitary group.

Amidst this turmoil, we have Hestia dating and conducting writing workshops for elderly residents in a senior facility. She’s not one of those “look at me grab life and make myself known” type of heroines. She’s ordinary. At first this bothered me, but when I realized the point, I was all-in. She behaves as most would in this situation...finding love and connection in a world that’s dangerous and lacking humanity. Her close bond with Mildred, a senior at the center, spotlights this overarching theme: What WILL you hold in your heart as you shuffle off this mortal coil? Politics? Resentment? Or will you, as Mildred does and Hestia learns to do, embrace the love, joys, and connections that create the core of being human?

This novel has a subtle heart beating beneath its flashy alternate reality. It’s clever, heartfelt, and funny. I loved it.

Audio shout-out! A trio of narrators contribute to this, and it’s wonderful! I adored the different voices of the seniors as they read the writings they do in response to Hestia’s questions. So inventive and fun!

I loved this book! It was a fascinating, captivating, and unusual story; I listened to the audiobook and the narrator was perfect. On the surface, the tale of a woman in her early 40s, trying to find her way after her husband leaves her, seems mundane. Hestia starts a new job, makes new friends, and begins dating again. But, she is doing this while the second US civil war rages in the (not-so-distant) background. I found the political chaos that surrounded every scene compelling and it made me think about how our lives are affected by larger events. I also loved that the scenes were bracketed by the writing prompts that Hestia assigns to the seniors in her retirement community memoir-writing class. The perspectives of these characters perfectly framed Hestia’s adventures in dating and her attempts to move her life forward. There are many aspects of the story that are sad, but I found it often very funny and very real. Hestia is a vividly three-dimensional character and I was completely absorbed in this book. Plus, the ongoing escapades with her fireplace were such a clever side note! Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this audiobook; I highly recommend it.

An interesting look into a post modern civil war. Personally, this felt so one sided and over dramatic. A great distraction to what I thought could have been a full scope look at such a situation. Complex characters were lost on me as everyone was a horrible confederate or a good American. The multiple use of, “the heart wants what it wants,” also distracted me as Woody Allen uses this to reference why he slept with/married his adoptive daughter. A lot of potential but I feel that it lost me quickly.

Hestia is dating again in her 40’s during a time when the second civil war is going on. The Union was against the Confederates in the South, and Hestia dated a lot of different men. That’s pretty much all I got from this. Hestia and her terrible dating decisions. I was so confused reading this book. For most of it I had no idea what was going on. Many parts of the story dragged on. I thought I saw this book going in a different direction at the beginning, but it proved me wrong. This book received decent reviews which is why I picked it up. With all that said, this story wasn’t for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan audio for the audiobook ARC!

Hestia Strikes a Match takes place in a not-too-far-fetched alternate reality in which there has been a second secession of the southern states, and the country is embroiled in a second civil war. The author approaches this undertaking with a lot of imagination, but also with an appropriate amount of nuance, which helps to tease out some of the things that you maybe wouldn't think about right off. Quite a fun, fast-paced read.

This alternate history/women's fiction story was unlike anything I've ever read before. I dove in pretty blind and was pleasantly surprised by just how much I liked it! Told from the first person POV of Hestia, a quasi-journalist/aspiring writer who is living remotely in a retirement community in an America that's going through another 'Civil war'.

With the country divided between the Unionists and the Confederates and her very racist parents on the opposite side, Hestia finds enjoyment (and security) living with her elderly neighbors, who she has frequent 'oral history' sessions.

She also has a series of relationships with men that I could have done without if I'm honest but it did inject some levity into the story. Good on audio narrated by a full cast this book was poignant, funny and unique! Recommended for anyone looking to try something different. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review!

This review is a challenge to write. At the start of the book, everything was spot on. It was a quirky, timely snapshot of all the reasons I don't date. The cultural/political divide of where I live places this book closer to the non-fiction category than I would like to admit. Part of me wanted to buy the book for my parents and cheer "Look, page after page of the reasons I don't date."

Then the pacing dragged, and Hestia was dating someone new, and the plot dragged, and Hestia dated someone new. When I got this bored with the dating scene I stopped. And really, I can't see why Hestia kept trying, even her descriptive terms selected for her dates doesn't seem like she is building the connections she wants.

If I'm honest I nearly didn't finish the book. I think I did out of spite. If you are looking for a slice of life in dating in present-day America, this is a great book. if you want to be hopeful, or at least not bored with romance, find a different one.

Thank you NetGalley for the ability to listen to this book for an honest review.

I loved this! It reminded me of American War by Omar El Akkad but much lighter and funnier. I, like Hestia, live in Maryland and so much of this story rang so true. This is definitely some darkly comic political commentary, but it's also a screwball romp about a middle aged woman coming into her own while the world falls apart around her. Hestia's romantic entanglements, friendships, and sincere connection with an old woman at work are all riotous. I laughed. I cried. I re-read the book. Pick it up as soon as you can!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. And mostly thank you Christine Grillo for being so freaking funny and writing my new favorite novel.

I DNFed this one. I did enjoy the audio version and think I made it farther than I would have in the print version, but as a Southerner, I just felt mocked the whole time. I get that the point of view is from the other side and I think non southerners might enjoy it. It just felt a little like a bunch of old people on Facebook spouting off one sided political opinions all day interspersed with a shallow woman who want to get laid, but doesn't really care about the guy.

I really enjoyed Hestia Strikes a Match. I liked the insight into what the country would be like if we had another civil war. I also liked the character studies, and how the whole book was focused more on Hestia than the actual war. I liked her dating struggles and they were funny at times.

Eeekkk I really wanted to like this one, but it just didn't work for me. I even listened to parts and read parts... and neither worked. Maybe I am too old - maybe it is targeting a younger crowd, but I found this story to be all over the place and the main character to be annoying. I found that the political part was surprisingly real and not over done. The search for love - and challenges along the way were just too over the top for me. I also found that the book bounced all around leaving me lost and uninterested during many parts. Maybe for a younger crowd - or someone deep into the dating world, but I just couldn't identify with the character at all.
Thank you netgalley for my advanced reader and audio copy.

"Let’s be honest Loneliness is its own form of brain damage"

This story takes place in the midst of a new US Civil War. The Confederacy is back. And people are picking sides between the liberal United States and the conservative Confederates. When our protagonist loses her husband to the cause--no, he doesn't die, but he does leave for his chance to be a revolutionary--she must navigate her own problems with intimacy, loneliness, and dating in this new reality.

I appreciate the honest conversation about family values and how our values can differ from those of our families. We can choose who to give our time and energy to. And settling for things you know aren't what you ultimately want just to mitigate your immediate loneliness......is still lonely. The messages of the story are worthwhile for all audiences. Grief is worth the love and friendship that lead up to it. You can choose to create a new family. We all want, desire, need love, but it doesn't have to be romantic love all the time.

“When people want to do nice things for you, just let them. [...] It’s just nice when people are nice, let it happen."

I found the ending a little jarring. but the story is an interesting concept. The characters ebb and flow. They grow; they are bold and then they retreat. It’s very human. Reminds me of My Thirty-First Year by Emily Wolf.

The main character in this novel, Hestia, finds herself dating again in her early forties in the midst of a recently rekindled civil war. Her husband has fled to join the Union cause, her parents are fleeing to the Confederate south, and Hestia is looking for love and companionship at home.

While I loved the absurdly mundane nature of the dystopian world and the found family Hestia fosters throughout the novel. I struggled with listening to some of the voice acting.The text is read word for word including “he said” and “she said” so excessively it was difficult to stick with.

I wanted to love this book but ended up just liking it.

Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for this ALC!

Love this book. Great narration and main characters. The ending was really good. Shout out to netgalley and publishing for allowing me to listen and review this story!

4 stars!

ARC REVIEW

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

I’m having difficulty parsing my feelings about the book itself with the very distinct possibility of this alternate timeline becoming real. Hestia wasn’t a terribly likable MC but I’m not sure she was supposed to be. She’s just doing the best she can in an impossible situation.

There is one tangible thing about her that did rub me the wrong way which was her treatment of her coworker Sarah. I think it represents the politics of respectability when she feels Sarah is rude for speaking her mind in a meeting and that she won’t suffer fools. For all of her grandstanding with her parents, Hestia is not a great representation of an intersectional feminist and doesn’t truly seem to care enough to make changes to herself for the “American” cause. Again, she’s kind of just doing her best but I found her wanting.

One critique on the writing… the dialogue doesn’t flow because the author constantly uses “he said” or “she said”. It felt stilted and unnatural to constantly hear that.

Hestia Strikes a Match takes place in the very new, scary, future, where the US is in the throes of their second civil war. The basis of the novel is what intrigued me, because unfortunately, it is a real possibility. What happens if the MAGA extremists took things even further?

In the midst of all of this is Hestia, in her early 40s, and newly separated from her husband that joins the front. Hestia is working in a nursing home and trying to navigate online dating.

The most interesting part of the book is the idea of the war, and I think this book would be more successful if that part was fleshed out more.

I adore this cover and the allusions to greek mythology but it was really heavy really fast. It is an interesting story about a realistic dystopian future and how we would live in it.

This book being set in the middle of the second US Civil War hit a little too close to home and made me so anxious. I liked all of Hestia’s dating mishaps, hello Johnny Puppets, but man did the politics make me sweat.

This is a tricky book for me to review, as I found my feelings changing throughout "Hestia Strikes a Match." First, I feel I have to get the not-so great out of the way: Christine Grillo uses the "he/she said" dialogue tag in conversation so frequently that I almost put this book straight into the DNF pile. I listened to it on audio, so perhaps it stood out more there, but I found it very distracting and used to a degree that I was surprised got past editing. I know that likely sounds like a small thing, but it was so prominent that it was hard to overlook.

Thankfully, my brain started to tune it out and that was when I could really sink into the plot. Hestia Harris is a 40-something looking for normal life in not-so-normal times. The United States is knee-deep in its second civil war, with unionists against the nationalists, and several states already defecting into their own union. Under this political strain, her (abandoned) marriage, relationship with her parents, and dating prospects all are affected, leaving Hestia unmoored and unfocused. Fundamentally, this is a story of a woman finding herself in turbulent times, not at the start of adulthood but at the age of 44.

Perhaps not surprisingly, this is not a politically neutral book, and I think it will be strongly disliked by some. That said, I found the book to predominantly explore her dating life. The civil war thread provided a unique spin on average dating, though, and I found myself wanting more of it than the tidbits Grillo wove in.

The book's title led me to believe there would be a pivotal moment when Hestia strikes her match, but instead, it was a more gentle, meandering path to finding herself ... and when it's all said and done, isn't that the way we all accomplish the task? As Hestia grew, I found her growing on me, too. This book was realistic on many levels, and I enjoyed it overall — just, please, tighter editing next time!

This book hit a little too close to home for me, and that’s what makes this book so brilliant. I was pleasantly surprised with how well the author represented a world that could be a mirror of real-life. It’s actually scary to see how this could be a real future for the country.

I found the book to be so refreshingly bold, and I just know this will be considered a “controversial” book when disgruntled Confederate readers come out of the woodwork to voice their complaints about how they’re portrayed.

My main complaint about the book is that I didn’t feel like it needed the romance plot points. I’m thinking the author used these as a tool to propel the story forward, but Hestia instead comes off as “man-crazy,” constantly in some kind of situationship.

Hestia claims she doesn’t need a man, but then her actions exhibit the exact opposite. She is very obviously in denial, and it got rather repetitive with the string of men that came in and out of the story.

It would have been a more well-rounded story if the author had Hestia come to terms that she doesn’t need to be in a relationship to be happy, or perhaps have developed more relationships with the residents that live at the retirement community she works for.

I also felt that the ending was a bit abrupt. I thought it would have been wrapped up in a neater way to indicate the end of the book. Maybe there could be a sequel?

Nevertheless, I was surprised this was a debut novel, and I can’t wait to read more by this author.