Real Life and Other Fictions by Susan Coll was quite interesting. I enjoyed meeting Cassie, even if she was a bit crazy. I myself am sometimes a bit crazy so it worked for me. Growing up with her aunt and uncle and cousins, Cassie has heard the same thing about her parents' death years before: they were in an accident on a bridge that collapsed. However, there was a myth that the mothman was present at the time of the accident. These myths and rumors come alive for her, as she tries to discover exactly what happened. Add in a weather obsessed husband, a crazy puppy, and a crypto-zoologist and things get even more strange.
I enjoyed the story and the narrator did a good job.

I kind of expected the idea of this book to be flipped. Instead, MC is determined to uncover information about her past that everyone has kept from her. In her travels, it seems like everything she encounters changes the story of her life in a way that she has to decide if she is going to embrace the story she's been told or the story she is living.
The book is fascinating and was really hard to put down. Even though the book ended in a great place, these were the kind of characters I want to keep coming back to visit and check in on.

#arc
#netgalley
#reallifeandotherfictions

This was not for me. I thought it would be a road trip to find answers, and in a way, it is but it’s bogged down with so much useless detail and spends so much time in Cassie’s head (not a fun place to be) which made this a chore to get through. Add in the constant moth references – I get it, it’s part of the journey – and the untrained dog (nothing annoys me more!) and I couldn’t sympathize with Cassie at all.

I thought this book was very realistic and true to real life. I thought it did drag on a bit and sort of left me feeling meh. Overall, good message and story.

Thank you to the publisher, author Susan Coll, and NetGalley for allowing me to read Real Life and Other Fictions by Susan Coll in exchange for my honest review. I selected this novel based on the colorful cover and synopsis. In my opinion, the happy cover and smiling dog do not match the melancholy tone of this book at all. I really wanted to like this novel as a fan of women's fiction, dogs, and maturing women finding their way out of loveless marriages and getting their groove back. Sadly, Real Life and Other Fictions did not hold my attention and annoyed me when it did. The narrator was monotone the duration of the audiobook. There were aspects of the story that had so much potential but were not explained or developed or wrapped up. The plot was all over the place. FMC Cassie is in her 50's and her cheating, lying, basement dwelling husband causes her to finally leave him and take a road trip to the location where her parents lost their lives in a tragic bridge collapse. Cassie at times acts unbelievably naive and downright awkward. I have driven across the Chesapeake Bridge many times, and there is NO WAY FMC Cassie stopped on the bridge to locate a cereal box to trap and deal with a moth in her car! Also, there is help for those who are afraid to drive over the bridge (and this is well known in the area). I really did not enjoy the incessant moth interjections at all or the attempts to parallel the Mothman with the protagonist's metamorphosis...if that was even what the strange moth scenes even were? They were never explained, either. Cassie's awful aunt having a job at NPR is also shocking; I could not stand her character and found her treatment of Cassie incredibly irritating. The romance After the night guard incident, if any woman ever went home and found their adulterous husband of 20+ years with their lover sitting at their table drinking champagne with their family. she would never just go upstairs and take a shower! I enjoyed the dog scenes in West Virginia, but there was so much not wrapped up. Overall, Real Life and Other Fictions leaves a lot to be desired. 2/5

This was such a fun book to listen to! I loved how it grasped my attention from the beginning and the characters were so fun! Great book. I very much enjoyed this

Maybe it's becasue i'm in my thirties and couldnt relate to the character but I found this story to be super slow. I finished becasue I'm the type of person that can't dnf but for me it was a labor of love.

Cassie is in her 50s. She was orphaned as a child and raised by her aunt and uncle. She is on the brink of a divorce. She is trying to figure out what happened to her parents. The book is all over the place and it takes forever to get to the point. I was not a fan.

Thanks NetGalley for the advanced listening copy.

I really, really wanted to like this book. There were so many near misses in the storyline. But it just never came together and once you knew the information.... It was just plopped in front of you unceremoniously. Surely, not EVERYONE was as okay with so much being left unsaid and unchallenged. There were elements of the story that just had so much potential!
Honestly, I pushed through to the end but was very, very close to not finishing it.
I was irritated by the wildly competent and successful woman's attitude that she couldn't do anything on her own or without the approval of her family. You could barely call it a romance... and the woman was in her head so much it was difficult to follow the thread of the story. Why so many extraneous details that don't add to the storyline?
The Moth/ Prophecy piece was interesting but was talked about AROUND throughout the entire book, and it wasn't wrapped up in a bow at the end either. Just kind of left like... yeah, this was a weird thing... She nearly died... but doesn't mention it to her family who are all sitting around the holiday dinner table together.

Thanks to author Susan Coll, NetGalley, and the publisher for the free copy of this Audiobook in exchange for an honest review!

I have mixed opinions about this novel. Cassie is a 50 year old woman who lost her parents when she was a child. She was raised by her aunt and uncle who wouldn't answer any questions about her parents and their tragic accident. Cassie is a writer who lives with her college age daughter, as well as her husband who stays in the basement. Their marriage is essentially over. I thought the road to Cassie's pursuit in this novel took too many turns that had nothing to do with anything. The parts about her dog were funny, but the part about her glasses seemed to take a lot longer than it needed to. I almost gave up on the audiobook as I found the narrator a bit monotone for the storyline as it was going on, but I'm glad that I didn't. As it turned out, the last 1/4 of the book seemed to pull everything together, and I ended up enjoying it. Thank you to Harper Audio and NetGalley for the advanced copy of this audiobook in return for my honest opinion.

I received an advanced copy thanks to net galley
Unfortunately. I did not like this book at all- it was so boring. I almost DNF however I need to see books through to the end.
The whole time I was like what is actually happening. I mean there was a chapter just on her in the store trying to get glasses!
And then it just ends? Like you’ve put in so much detail everywhere and then just end it on me. What a waste of a couple of hours listening to this

This was a great read overall. I instantly felt for Cassie and wanted to see her the answers she deserves but also the love and respect she deserves too.

2.75
There was nothing inherently wrong with this story but it was not what I expected. I went in thinking this was more of a mystery story. Which you could say it is but instead of Cassie looking for answers she is more guided or stumbles upon them without really even pondering what she is looking for. Giving this more of a speculative aspect and loses that
"what haopened" feeling you want in a mystery.

Also there way too much about "Moth Man" for my liking as it distracted from the main point of the story. I would have enjoyed it more if they kept it to why moths were showing up everywhere but wothout moth man.

Thank you to NetGalley and HaperCollins Focus for an advanced audiobook for review.

I had read Susan Coll's Bookish People and loved it, so I was stoked for Real Life and Other Fictions. I have to be honest in saying that I didn't particularly care for it....at first. I decided to research and see what others thought, and I found many other disappointed readers. Then, I found one review that changed my perspective. This review shared that the event in the book, the Point Pleasant Bridge collapse and the Mothman, is true. After I looked it up and learned about the event, I saw the book in a whole new light, and I ended up really enjoying it. I could then understand Cassie's journey.

A journey not only to find about her past but also to clear her future. Cassie a mother and wife in her mid fifties who realise that her past it’s not what she is been told all her life and needs to take control of her life and her future. Add to the mix a weird little town, a great puppy, and an original scientist and the story will catch you. The audiobook with Jane Oppenheimer is very good. She does a fantastic job with all the characters and their complexity.

There were things I enjoyed about this book, like the quirky characters and the level of details the author gave most of the time. The dialogue was realistic and the pacing worked overall. It was the plot that I didn’t love, and some of the interactions between the characters didn’t seem likely. For example, the aunt’s reaction didn’t seem realistic during a confrontation given everything we’d been told about her previously. And I didn’t care for the supernatural element, which seemed to get too much attention.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an electronic audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

This is definitely a book that I picked up because of its cover, and I definitely chose well. I mean, look at this cover! It is so happy and colourful, it has a puppy, it has moths, it has books, it has a woman clearly in some sort of distress. Just by looking at it, we know that something will be happening, but also (see the light colours), we know that all will be well. This is a cover that delivers what it promises: a charming and light-hearted story about a woman and her puppy, chasing moths (more or less). I have really enjoyed it (3*)! Thank you so much to Net Galley, Susan Coll, and Harper Muse for the advance copy!

The story follows Cassie Klein, a woman in her 50s who has had enough. So, she picks up her puppy and embarks on a road trip to West Virginia, to see the place where her parents perished when she was two, driving on a bridge that just happened to collapse. She has been looking for answers her whole life. Will this trip, and the people she will meet along her way, finally bring her closer to the solution?

I am obsessed with the puppies! And the narrator’s voice. Cassie’s voice was fun and witty and charming, especially when she herself tried to rationalise the admittedly many coincidences throughout her adventures. The audiobook narrator, Jane Oppenheimer, was amazing. It really felt like being sitting on a sofa, listening to a friend of my mom’s recounting her adventures. I loved it.

There is a very specific episode of the podcast My Favorite Murder where they talk about the Mothman and the Silver Bridge collapse (ep.183). If you liked this episode, you’ll love this book.

I would like to Thank Harper Collins and NetGalley for the ability to review an ARC audiobook copy of this novel. This was a very interesting book. I've struggled with how to review it because it doesn't feel like it fits within any specific genre. The story moves in a slow, meandering way and doesn't really have any major climaxes or big reveals. Even the "big reveal" is hinted at in so many ways that you're completely prepared for it when it comes. Now this may seem like criticism, but it's really not! I actually enjoyed the slow pace because it wasn't boring, it was comfortable. I felt like I was being take on a journey with Cassie and I was rooting for her to figure out what she wanted from her life. There was a whole host of quirky characters and unbelievable experiences and interactions but it never felt too unbelievable or too quirky. All in all, a surprisingly enjoyable book!

Great narration! Real Life and Other Fictions is a character driven, quirky storyline about a 50-something writer on the verge of a divorce who starts looking into her past.

Finding yourself later in life with a bit of magical realism/mythical creatures (moths) made this an engaging and usual story but I was hooked.
Yes, there's romance but it's not a focus of the book.

Based on true events, this story explores generational trauma, family bonds and finding who you are.

Real Life and Other Fictions is a curious and mesmerising story which skirts the divide between fiction and reality.

I really enjoyed the strong character focus, and the gentle unravelling of secrets as the threads of fiction are gradually pulled apart. The Mothman element was intriguing and the author did a wonderful job of quietly weaving reflections on trauma throughout the story. The romantic relationship development felt sweet and authentic, and I liked Cassie’s relationship with her daughter. Luna was my favourite character.

The narration was wonderfully mellow and I really felt transported into the world of the story. The characters were well articulated, and the narrator did a great job of balancing their quirkiness against their humanity, bringing a great sense of depth to the story.

Thank you Harper Muse Audiobooks and NetGalley for this audiobook. Opinions expressed are my own.