Book #69:
The Secret of Secrets by Dan Brown (678 pages). I listened to this novel on audio, narrated by Paul Michael, and it’s a fantastic listen! I haven’t read Dan Brown since his first novel in this series of 6 books: The Da Vinci Code. I was inspired by a friend to pick this one up, specifically on audio, and I really enjoyed it. This one, I’m told, is more closely aligned with the first book, in terms of how well-written it is. Just as with The Da Vinci Code, this mystery thriller is fast paced has lots of interesting history packed within and here, the plot focuses on cognition and consciousness. Set in the gorgeous setting of Prague, Robert Langdon and Dr Katherine Solomon work together to solve the mystery and save humanity, or at least some people in Prague. This is a great read/listen with several fun twists and turns. 5 stars.
Book #70:
When You Loved Me by Beatriz Williams(Length: 433 pages). I adore this author’s One Hundred Summers, so when I heard her newest contemporary fiction offering is found to be just as good, I had to pick it up. This novel is set on Winthrop Island in New England and alternates between modern-day and 1717, jumping between a modern day and a pirate romance. The author skillfully ties the island the estate in which both timelines are set together, with a through-line about buried treasure. My favorite character here is the precocious Punkin as well as the characters of Lucy and Ben, the modern-day couple. This is a fun, fast-paced read and would be perfect for a long airplane ride. 4 stars from me.
Book #71:
Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood (Length: 363 pages). This is the third Ali Hazelwood novel I’ve read and this rom-com focuses on an NIH neuroscientist (Bee) and her long-time enemy, a NASA engineer (Levi). This enemies-to-lovers trope features the same clever banter and electric chemistry on the page that the other two novels I’ve read by this author, but in this book, there’s a miscommunication subplot that is not my favorite. I also became annoyed with how angsty and in her head Bee is throughout the novel, especially as we are led to believe she’s an incredibly smart woman. Having said all of that, this was hard to put down and I did enjoy my experience reading this. 3.5 stars from me
Book #72:
1929 by Andrew Ross Sorkin (Length: 591 pages). I’m a fan of narrative non-fiction on audio, so that’s how I read this chunky book. The author explores the year of the stock market crash that triggered the Great Depression in this expansive book by focusing on specific people who had a stake in the stock market, or who were titans of industry and controlled the stock market as well as various historical figures in this time period. The audio is fantastic, the narrator does a fantastic job of keeping the listener’s attention, the narrative is very skillfully drawn out and even given its length is perfectly-paced. 4 stars from me!
Book #73:
Waiting for Tom Hanks by Kerry Winfrey (284 pages). I’ve had this paperback sitting on my bookshelves for a while, so I decided to finally pick it up, and once I did, I just never put it down. This cute romance is set in Columbus, Ohio, and features Annie Cassidy (an aspiring screenwriter) who scores a temporary job on a movie set in her town, a romantic comedy featuring the very hot Drew Danforth. Annie has been waiting to meet a Tom Hanks movie lead, like in her favorite rom-coms she watched with her now-departed mom, and in this quick-read, similar rom-com hijinks ensue. There are cute supporting characters (2 of them appear in the second novel in this duology), there is solid writing and lots of fun banter (my favorite). I give this closed-door romance with a cute premise 3 stars.
