Book Review: All the Better Part of Me by Molly Ringle

This was SO not what I was expecting after the Goblins of Bellwater… I don’t know why I expected magic again, or the lyric prose of GoB. I read the blurb, I knew what this one was about – and it was decidedly NOT the same type of story. Still, I loved the writing in Goblins so much that I would pretty much have agreed to read Ringle’s grocery list just to fall back into one of her lushly crafted, wholly original worlds.

This one is VERY different. Not in a bad way. Not in a good way. Just very different. This is a wholly realistic, utterly grounded-in-reality tale about realizing who you are and what you want out of life, and realizing that the labels that people (both you and others) want to put on those things don’t matter in the end – what matters is being who you are.

Sinter’s world was as well crafted as that of Goblins, but in the way that made sense for him/his story. Ringle is great at the little details – the smudged eyeliner, the text-speak, the awkwardness of self realization – and those are what made this such a resonant story I think. It felt melodramatic at times – but then again, melodrama comes with the territory at 25, so even when I found it vaguely eye-rolling to my 45-year old self, I recognized that it was a wholly realistic detail that kept the story firmly grounded in its own relevance.

Ringle writes a great story. And she can write a great story across genres, personalities, realms, and perspectives. This one was not my favorite of hers, but it was still a great story.

My review copy was provided by NetGalley.