Valencia and Valentine

Written by Suzy Krause

Narrated by Janet Metzger

For readers of Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine, debut author Suzy Krause delivers a quirky, colorful story about love, loss, second chances, and what it means to truly live.

Valencia, a timid debt collector with crippling OCD, is afraid of many things, but the two that scare her most are flying and turning thirty-five. To confront those fears, Valencia’s therapist suggests that she fly somewhere—anywhere—before her upcoming birthday. And as Valencia begins a telephone romance with a man from New York, she suddenly has a destination in mind. There’s only one problem—he might not actually exist.

Mrs. Valentine is an eccentric old woman desperate for company, be it from neighbors, telemarketers, or even the funeral director (when you’re her age, you go to a lot of funerals). So she’s thrilled when the new cleaning girl provides a listening ear for her life’s story—a tale of storybook love and incredible adventures around the world with her husband before his mysterious and sudden disappearance.

The stories of Valencia and Mrs. Valentine may at first appear to have nothing in common…but then again, nothing in life is as straightforward as it seems.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Brilliance Audio
• Release date: Jun 1, 2019
• ISBN: 9781721367337

Suzy Krause

Suzy Krause is the author of Valencia and Valentine. She spends her days with her kids and writes when they sleep. She still occasionally finds time to blog just for fun at www.suzykrause.com. She lives in Regina, Saskatchewan.

Reviews for Valencia and Valentine

[brokenteepee · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Valencia and Valentine is a tricky book to try and review without spoiling the story. It’s the story of – don’t be shocked now – Valencia and Mrs. Valentine; two women who are sharing the stories of their lives. Valencia is young and looking forward and Mrs. Valentine is old and looking to her past.Valencia works at a call center as a bill collector. She is OCD and worries constantly that she is going to burn down her apartment building by leaving her stove lit. She is having a pseudo-romance with one of her creditors, or at least she thinks she is. She is afraid of flying and of highways so she lives a very sheltered life. Her therapist is trying to get her to do something bold for her upcoming birthday. Very bold – she wants Valencia to fly somewhere.Mrs. Valentine is very old and appears to be suffering from dementia, She talks to people who aren’t there. She has recently hired a young lady to clean her house and has started telling this new visitor the story of her life. How she met her beloved husband, how they traveled and how he just disappeared one day.This was definitely a book that required attention. It also took a little bit to get into and to understand the author’s rhythms and writing style. But it’s worth the effort as you will find yourself lost in the stories of Valencia and Valentine. The frustrations of finding love and understanding. The facts of aging and loss. It’s not always easy to read because of the truths laid bare by the characters. Valencia and Valentine is the kind of book that keeps you thinking long after you have finished reading. I also think it would be well served by a second reading with that fuller understanding of the ending in place as you start again from the beginning.

[managedbybooks · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Valencia, a timid debt collector with crippling OCD, is afraid of many things, but the two that scare her most are flying and turning thirty-five. To confront those fears, Valencia’s therapist suggests that she fly somewhere—anywhere—before her upcoming birthday. And as Valencia begins a telephone romance with a man from New York, she suddenly has a destination in mind. There’s only one problem—he might not actually exist.

Mrs. Valentine is an eccentric old woman desperate for company, be it from neighbors, telemarketers, or even the funeral director (when you’re her age, you go to a lot of funerals). So she’s thrilled when the new cleaning girl provides a listening ear for her life’s story—a tale of storybook love and incredible adventures around the world with her husband before his mysterious and sudden disappearance.

The stories of Valencia and Mrs. Valentine may at first appear to have nothing in common…but then again, nothing in life is as straightforward as it seems.

This was really confusing to read and the narration was all over the place.

*Book received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

[girlwellread · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A special thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.Valencia has been working as a debt collector for the past 17 years. She suffers with crippling OCD and is incredibly timid. Of all her fears, it is both flying and turning 35 that are her worst. To help her break free from the constant trepidation that she feels, her therapist suggests that she fly somewhere before her birthday. After speaking with repeat caller James Mace from New York City, and developing feelings for him, Valencia thinks she has the perfect destination. The only problem is that he may not exist.Mrs. Valentine is 87-years-old and fears her time is coming to an end. She has a mild fascination with death (after all she frequents the funeral home a lot) and is desperate for company of any kind. When her new cleaning girl, Anna, provides an ear, Mrs.Valentine recounts her life story which includes a love story and adventures with her husband before his mysterious disappearance.Valencia and Mrs. Valentine appear to have nothing in common and are worlds apart, but life is never predictable.Krause's debut effort is an unconventional love story with themes of loss, and second chances. Unfortunately it is not without issues. Not only did it take a while to get into the story, but I struggled with both characters—what was with their mild obsessions with death? I love quirky characters, but Valencia was exhausting.The plot was convoluted at times and other times it was repetitious and circular. There was a pivotal event in high school—which was I assume the catalyst for Valencia's downward spiral—that should have packed more of an impact, but instead it left me with more questions. Also, there were some issues with timeline and the only thing I can come up with is that this was done on purpose to mislead the reader.Surprisingly this book was a bit dark and depressing and I was expecting more of a feel-good story rather than a character study. But please don't let this review sway you away from reading it, Krause's writing is quite good, I just don't think the book was for me.

[furrykidz · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

Did not grab my attention. Read about 18%. Too much disjointed thoughts from two unrelated plot lines. OCD musings did not interest me.

[bookscookslooks · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Valencia and Valentine is a tricky book to try and review without spoiling the story. It’s the story of – don’t be shocked now – Valencia and Mrs. Valentine; two women who are sharing the stories of their lives. Valencia is young and looking forward and Mrs. Valentine is old and looking to her past.Valencia works at a call center as a bill collector. She is OCD and worries constantly that she is going to burn down her apartment building by leaving her stove lit. She is having a pseudo-romance with one of her creditors, or at least she thinks she is. She is afraid of flying and of highways so she lives a very sheltered life. Her therapist is trying to get her to do something bold for her upcoming birthday. Very bold – she wants Valencia to fly somewhere.Mrs. Valentine is very old and appears to be suffering from dementia, She talks to people who aren’t there. She has recently hired a young lady to clean her house and has started telling this new visitor the story of her life. How she met her beloved husband, how they traveled and how he just disappeared one day.This was definitely a book that required attention. It also took a little bit to get into and to understand the author’s rhythms and writing style. But it’s worth the effort as you will find yourself lost in the stories of Valencia and Valentine. The frustrations of finding love and understanding. The facts of aging and loss. It’s not always easy to read because of the truths laid bare by the characters. Valencia and Valentine is the kind of book that keeps you thinking long after you have finished reading. I also think it would be well served by a second reading with that fuller understanding of the ending in place as you start again from the beginning.