Review: The Sock Wars by Maia Sepp

Posted on October 16, 2014 by rolopolobookblog

Synopsis:

Lucy Tuttle is a workaholic financial planner whose biggest worry is how to line up the sticky notes on her desk just so, until her free-spirited, vivacious aunt dies in a car accident halfway across the world.With her last remaining family member gone, a landmark birthday approaching, domestication closing in, and her faltering biological clock a never-ending reminder of the time she isn’t spending building a family, Lucy attempts to make a home for herself in the house she’s inherited. But as she struggles to settle into a life of cohabitation, organic lentils, and sock thievery, she starts to wonder how she ended up there–and when she’ll feel alive again.As she works through her grief and tries to find somewhere to belong, Lucy begins to understand that sometimes, realizing one dream means giving up another. Can a person who spends her time fixing other people’s lives learn to let go enough to live her own?The Sock Wars is a poignant, funny reminder that there’s one thing harder than living up to other people’s expectations; facing your own.

Source: Purchase

My Rating: 3/5

My Review:

Lucy Tuttle’s life is neat, ordered and, perfectly aligned. She has a perfectly arranged desk, her apartment is ultra-modern, sleek and tidy and, as a financial planner, she has secured her future. The only real messiness in Lucy’s life is her über-hippy boyfriend, Oliver and her delightfully crazy aunt, Maren. The day crazy aunt Maren dies is the day Lucy Tuttle’s life turns ass over tea kettle and her neat and orderly life will never, ever be the same.

As if the loss of her aunt weren’t enough Lucy also finds out that her crazy aunt has left her house, a house that is in no way neat or tidy. In fact, the house is not in the city and it is not in good condition but, it the last place on Earth that Lucy feels close to her aunt. Though she is reluctant to leave her sleek and ultra-modern apartment in the city, Oliver convinces Lucy that with a make-over, Maren’s house could not only be livable but a place where they can have a real future together. With little to hold on to now that Maren is gone, Lucy agrees to the make-over and the move. Before long, Lucy has also agreed to Oliver moving in and the make-over being eco-friendly. Like her life, Lucy’s home is turned ass over tea kettle and the days and months wear on and on, Lucy isn’t quite sure she will ever be able to come out the other side of her grief.

The Bottom Line: I really wanted this read to be so much more than it is. With a name like The Sock Wars, I thought I was in for at least a little bit of humor but what I got was a read full of sorrow with only the tiniest bit of happiness and little to no humor. Lucy is mired in grief and while that grief is well-deserved, it also bogs down and slows down the read. By the time Lucy finally begins to pull out of her grief and accept the immense changes in her life, it is a bit too late to really salvage the overall read. To be fair, once she does begin to accept the changes Lucy also dives in and starts making some more changes to help herself find her center once again and pursue a happy future, one her crazy aunt Maren would have approved of. In all, I found myself to be completely underwhelmed by the plot of The Sock Wars but because of the strong writing style (no problems with flow, grammar, errors, etc.) and complete commitment to character development (even though I only really liked the crazy, deceased aunt), I find myself unable to go below a three star rating.

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