“A warm, winning debut from a talented new Midwestern voice.” –J. Ryan Stradal, New York Times bestselling author of Kitchens of the Great MidwestA Man Called Ove meets The Rosie Project in this “delightfully off-kilter” (Rachel Yoder, Nightbitch) tale of a grumpy introvert, her astonishing lack of social skills and empirical data-driven approach to people and relationships.Is there such a thing … approach to people and relationships.
Is there such a thing as an anti-social butterfly? If there were, Greta Oto would know about it–and totally relate. An entomologist, Greta far prefers the company of bugs to humans, and that’s okay, because people don’t seem to like her all that much anyway, with the exception of her twin brother, Danny, though they’ve recently had a falling out. So when she lands a research gig in the rainforest, she leaves it all behind.
But when Greta learns that Danny has suffered an aneurysm and is now hospitalized, she abandons her research and hurries home to the middle of nowhere America to be there for her brother. But there’s only so much she can do, and unfortunately just like insects, humans don’t stay cooped up in their hives either–they buzz about and… socialize. Coming home means confronting all that she left behind, including her lousy soon-to-be sister-in-law, her estranged mother, and her ex-boyfriend Brandon who has conveniently found a new non-lab-exclusive partner with shiny hair, perfect teeth, and can actually remember the names of the people she meets right away. Being that Brandon runs the only butterfly conservatory in town, and her dissertation is now in jeopardy, taking that job, being back home, it’s all creating chaos of Greta’s perfectly catalogued and compartmentalized world. But real life is messy, and Greta will have to ask herself if she has the courage to open up for the people she loves, and for those who want to love her.
The Butterfly Effect is an unconventional tale of self-discovery, navigating relationships, and how sometimes it takes stepping outside of our comfort zone to find what we need the most.
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Rachel Mans McKenny’s debut novel, The Butterfly Effect, stayed in my brain for weeks after I read it and I could kick myself for having let it rest for so long on my bedside table. Do yourself a favor and if it is on your TBR, jump to it immediately.
Our main character, Greta Oto, is an etymologist and, quite frankly, a mess-in-a-dress. When she leaves a coveted research trip in the Dominican Republic to return home to take care of her injured brother, her mess spills over into the lives of everyone around her.
I loved Greta, even when I didn’t like her. McKenny is a hugely talented wordsmith with the added gift for beautiful characterizations. I was enthralled by the character development, wondering how she would crack Greta open and get her to pick up all the pieces to put back together in the right way.
There is a slowly developed romance in here, but the focus of the novel is Greta’s reckoning with her past and her stuttering attempts to repair and rectify her relationships with the people she cares about the most. I highly recommended The Butterfly Effect for anyone who appreciates excellent writing, wry humor, and bittersweet yet satisfying endings.
Greta is supposed to be in Costa Rica, studying butterflies. Instead, she’s flown home to Ames, Iowa, because her twin brother–her only family–has suffered an aneurysm. She doesn’t realize she’s not going back.
Greta is a tough person to love–for everyone in her life. Watching her stumble and go splat on her face again and again could be painful–but at the same time, there’s something winsome about her, for all her prickles. You can’t help rooting for her to find her way, to figure out how to stay on her feet and navigate relationships and confront the deep pain that causes her prickles.
Along for the ride is a cast of vivid characters, most of whom I adored–her ex, Brandon (what a great guy!); her only real friend, Max (even greater!); and of course, her brother Danny. As a musician, I felt for Danny, especially, in the loss of his connection with music. A couple other characters I had to learn to love, just like Greta did.
Rachel McKenny weaves a story that’s raw and vivid and often uncomfortable, and yet also beautiful in its truth.
A warm, winning debut from a talented new Midwestern voice.
What a quirky, unique debut–a redemptive story about families and healing, butterflies and brain injuries, the meaning of loyalty, and the power of Star Trek.
Greta, an entomologist PhD student at Iowa State, is a grumpy, anti-heroine with no social graces. She is the opposite of Midwestern ‘nice.’ I loved everything about her.
Initially, I assumed she was on the spectrum because she has zero empathy. But she has a sharp sense of humor, and as the story evolves, we learn about her childhood. Gradually, I decided she’d constructed a world to protect herself from being hurt. She sets high standards of what it means to be faithful, and finds it easy to shut people out. Which is how she ends up studying butterflies in the rain forest.
But when her twin brother, Danny, has a brain aneurysm, she has to drop everything, come home, and adapt to the role of caregiver. And find a job. And save her PhD. And deal with her ex-boyfriend and her brother’s fiancee (someone she hates). And figure out what’s going on with her lovely officemate, Max. And deal with calls from “Don’t Answer” aka her estranged mother.
Her evolution, as she learns to unfurl her wings and let people in, is pretty special. This would be a terrific book club pick.
Although the cover suggests a lighthearted romantic comedy, this is actually a much richer novel than one might expect in that genre. There is certainly humor, but the heroine is really suffering (and causing other to suffer) as she moves along her arc of painful emotional growth. We meet Greta as an incredibly prickly entomologist-in-training who struggles to connect with anyone other than her twin because of her stunted social skills or lack of confidence or displaced rage. Unfortunately, said twin has just suffered a brain injury that puts him in an even worse place. The book takes us along as she learns to stop pushing everyone away and develop some kindness for anyone other than her brother and her insects.
This is also an extremely very well-written book, with prose that is a real pleasure to read, inventive and sharp without slowing down the pace or distracting from the story. A new favorite. Highly recommended.
I really enjoyed reading The Butterfly Effect by Rachel Mans McKenny for one of the most unforgettable characters I have read. Greta Oto is an especially unique protagonist – an unpleasant grouch, whom I think would thrive living in this current pandemic. Greta would only be so happy with these stay-at-home orders and maintaining the 6 feet apart distance from everyone else, not having to socialize nor talk to anyone, unless you are an insect, that is. Greta’s character really appealed to me the more ornery she gets the more I adored her.
When Greta’s twin brother suffers a life threatening brain aneurysm, she abandons her PhD research in entomology in Costa Rica, flies back to the Midwest, and back to the life and people she had left behind.
Mans McKenny writes a heartwarming and uplifting story about families, people, bugs, and effects of human behavior. The writing was deft, clever, and well researched. I really enjoyed those fun facts about bugs dispersed throughout the book and the well weaved storyline that incorporates the past into the present.
IMAGINE yourself in a dome.. With a beautiful sunrise, the space starts getting warm anddd.. 300 butterflies awaken from the crevices of rocks, floor, greenery..
COLOURS & MUSIC
COLOURS LIVING… Magic
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THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT is an UNCONVENTIONAL tale of SELF-DISCOVERY, NAVIGATING RELATIONSHIPS, and how sometimes it takes stepping outside of our comfort zone to find what we need the most.
Genre: Women Fiction
28 chapters!
a fantastic new release!!
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This read is as normal & real as it can get to humans & their relationships
&
as wierd, uncomfortable it can be
The book is beautifully formatted with an AFTERWARD which left me EMOTIONAL, Acknowledgements which I Loved going through & Reading Group Discussion Questions which Left Me Pondering for quite sometime.
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GRETA & DANNY are twins who see the world differently.
WE GET TO SEE SIBLING BOND HERE.
GRETA is independent & loves insects, is passionate abt her work.
Her RELATIONSHIP/ PRIORITIES CHANGE with her brother, her mother & SISTER-IN-LAW, her love-life, her ex bf, during the course of the read, how & why, it’s very interesting to note a JOURNEY OF Self DISCOVERY.
The story also talks about SUPPORT, from Formal Support Groups & how’s it diff. from support from friends.
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IF YOU LOVED
A MAN CALLED OVE,
YOU’LL SURELY LOVE THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT
OF OUR DEAR GRETA!
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Relationships & bonds, human nature & emotional support, wit & humor, emotions & chaos– it has it all!!
Do read it, I promise, there won’t be a moment of dullness, ever!!
Are you an extrovert or an introvert
Are you a social animal
Do you consider yourself wierd/ different from others
Is it easy for you to accept new relations like sister-in-law
Have you had a tussle with your parents ever
Are you uncomfortable at funerals or even gatherings
If you said “yes” to any of these , please do read the book .
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#noorthebookwormreviews
#thebutterflyeffect
Greta is such a unique character! She has more in common with insects than she does with humans-and life is, unfortunately, about to get very messy for her.
Even though I had a lot of trouble relating to her myself because of our personality differences, I still enjoyed her development throughout the book. There were times I was upset with the way she treated the few people who were close to her, but realized that just because she doesn’t show love like some of the rest of us doesn’t make her wrong.
side note I learned so much about butterflies, other insects, and music in the book!
Thank you for my review copy in exchange for an honest review
The Butterfly Effect is a unique romcom with wonderful characters and layers of depth to keep you turning pages. Greta was such a refreshing protagonist: complex and reserved with a tender side and an undeniable passion for her career. I learned so much about entomology by seeing the world through her eyes and was invested in her arc from the first page. She grows throughout the book while remaining true to herself, the essence of satisfying character development. Well-developed descriptions that show robust research without being heavy-handed, efficient prose, and moments of humor all weigh in to make for a delightful read.
Usually I do not enjoy books with a VERY unlikable and I mean UN. LIKE. ABLE. protagonist, but this book is the one exception. I seemed to be cheering on Greta even though I could not stand how she acted and treated people.
Suffice it to say Greta Otto is not really a people person, she prefers bugs. I actually could relate to this because there are times that I prefer my cats to people, but I hope I am more likable and treat people better than Greta did. Great is smart and capable and I do think she cares for others, mostly her twin brother.
The writing is fantastic and the character development off the charts. I really enjoyed this book and I hope you do too!
Rachel Mans McKenny, the author of “The Butterfly Effect” has written a memorable, thought-provoking, and heartfelt novel. The genres for this novel are Contemporary Fiction and Fiction. The timeline for this story is set in the present and goes to the past when it pertains to the characters or events. The author describes her cast of dramatic characters as flawed, complex, and complicated. This is a story of self-awareness, growth, communication, forgiveness, and second chances. I love the way the author visually describes the settings and the characters in this story.
Greta Oto is totally a scientist in every sense of the word. Her life revolves around the scientific method and her appreciation of insects and bugs. Greta notes the challenges that bugs respond to in the environment. If Greta could devise an approach like this to people, it probably would make her life easier. Greta is an introvert and has problems dealing with people or even showing compassion or love, unlike her twin brother Danny.
Greta is working out of the country but comes back when Danny has an aneurysm. The two had a falling out, but she wants to be there for her brother. In order to afford to live here, Greta takes a job studying butterflies with her ex-boyfriend. She also has to deal with Danny’s perfect fiancee and her mother who has re-surfaced after abandoning both Danny and Greta years before.
I would highly recommend this thought-provoking and memorable novel.
If ands are removed, there is not much to this story. Motherless children yield less than complete adults & snarky adults at best.
If Greta, the MC, had been a man, she’d be described as curmudgeon, but like many characters who might seem unlikable, I was taken with her and rooted for her all the way through. I immediately saw why the people around Greta are patient and view her with compassion. They get fed up, but they always seem to understand why she can be difficult and what it will take for her to lower her wall of defenses. Greta has work she loves and is passionate about, and I so enjoyed a book built around a passion for science–entomology in this case. I definitely recommend this book.
The Butterfly Effect by Rachel Mans McKenny a discovery of a four-star read. I had hoped this would be amazing, as it looked like it was going that way, and it was very good, but it did miss something, I don’t know if I missed something but I didn’t get Greta Oto on all levels I wondered if I missed something, or we were supposed to pick up on some sort if disability, or she was secretly a hottie who appears like a nerd, I just felt like I missed something, the rest of the story was so well done, I just felt a little lost with that. I did feel for Greta and Daniel though, as myself and my brother are far apart but I know I would drop anything for him, and the story had that feeling for me most of the time, I needed to know what was going to happen next. I would recommend this story and do recommend that you pick it up as its mostly an amazing story and I will definitely be picking up more from this author.