Thank you for joining me here!   I hope you enjoy this series and I’d love to hear from you about what you are reading these days.

Book #1:

As You Wish by Cary Elwes with Joe Layden (Length: 273 pages).  If you are even somewhat of a fan of the movie The Princess Bride, this is a must read! Written by the actor who played Westley, this memoir puts you right in the middle of both the pre-production and the production of this incredible movie. This is very well-written (the actor is super smart as well as being super good-looking–who knew?!) as well as very thoughtful about all of the major (and minor) actors. Full of behind-the-scenes information, this isn’t gossipy, but is just plain interesting. After reading this, I came away even more impressed about this charming movie, and I’m especially impressed with the director, Rob Reiner, who seems to be an amazing human being. The synergy amongst and the cast and crew is apparently like lightning striking, and this lightning resulted in one of the best movies of all time. In my opinion. 😉

Book #2:

When the Stars Go Dark by Paula McLain (Length: 370 pages). Wow. This is an intense, very well-written mystery/thriller, and I’m so glad I was able to pick it up. I happened upon it on the New Releases shelf when my local library finally opened to in-person browsing, and I was so excited to see it as I’ve been hearing so much about it. This is excellent!! Based around the real-life abduction of Polly Klaas in 1993 in Northern California, this novel centers around Anna Hart, a detective who specializes in crimes against children. Anna returns to Mendocino, where she spent 8 years of her childhood as a foster kid, and as an adult is escaping some (initially unknown) personal trauma of her own. The central mysteries here (involving other teen girls who are missing) are a bit thin–I guessed who the abductor was very early on–but this is still very much worth reading, for the character development, the excellent writing and for the very propulsive and exciting plot. Let me know what you think!

Thank you for joining me here!   I hope you enjoy this series and I’d love to hear from you about what you are reading these days.

Book #1:

Amari and the Night Brothers by B.B. Alston (Length: 413 pages).   This is a middle-grade (fourth grade and up) fantasy book that reminds me a lot of Harry Potter, but a bit more grounded in reality. I really enjoyed this book, and I’m not a huge fantasy reader. I believe I first learned about this novel while listening to the Currently Reading podcast (a fantastic listen for book lovers!) and I’m so glad I picked it up. The plot is propulsive as it centers around a young teen girl who goes to a type of summer school or training ground for those with supernatural powers, in hopes of finding her older brother who had gone missing from the same school. The character development is decent, and I’m hopeful there are sequels to this amazing book. The setting (the training school) is the star here. This is absolutely worth a read, for middle grade to adult!

Book #2:

Hollow Kingdom by Kira Jane Buxton (Length: 321 pages). I freaking LOVE this book!!! This is a fantastically imaginative story about an intelligent crow living in Seattle named ST (short for Shit Turd) who, along with the rest of the animal kingdom, domestic and wild, survives a zombie apocalypse triggered by a worldwide virus. This is laugh-out-loud funny (and I rarely find things funny enough to laugh about while reading), sad, very creepy thanks to some gory and scary scenes, with a hell of a plot. This is not for everyone (and admittedly the above description had kept me from picking it up for a while) but since many people whose opinions and reviews I respect highly recommend it, I finally took the leap. I’d suggest reading the first chapter and if that doesn’t hook you, don’t keep reading. I couldn’t put it down, and I am recommending it to everyone (with an open mind) I know. Five stars for sure!

Book #3:

Lonesome Cowboy by Debbie Macomber (Length: 177 pages).   I picked this one up at a library book sale, honestly just because it was cheap and I’m sometimes in the mood for novels where I don’t have to think too hard. This one is the first novel in the author’s Heart of Texas series. It’s cute, without much depth, which is typical of these types of romance novels. There is a enough plot here to keep the reader interested (will the sister of a brother/sister duo running their inherited ranch strike out on her own, personally and professionally?). The author also teases the significance of a nearby ghost town called Bitter End, in an effort to keep you reading further in the series. Since I also have the next novel in the series (Texas Two-Step) and that novel further develops characters introduced here, I’ll likely check it out. This is a quick beach read, worth at least a library check out.

Thank you for joining me here!   I hope you enjoy this series and I’d love to hear from you about what you are reading these days.

Book #1:

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab (Length: 434 pages).   I’ve been hearing about this book for a long time so I was excited to finally read it. The main character Addie sells her soul to the devil in exchange for getting to live a more exciting life than she would if she stayed in her sleepy town in France. The tradeoff is that she will never be remembered by anyone the second she leaves their sight. I will say that the character development of the titular character is excellent, as are the plot and the various settings (France and NYC). There are a few factual inconsistencies that are a bit distracting (for example, Addie says she’s never had champagne before in Chapter 20, but in Chapter 18 she mentions drinking it). I also found the writing to be a bit overwrought and overdramatic, but the novel is still a total page-turner.

Book #2:

People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry (Length: 382 pages). If you enjoyed Beach Read by this author, you will love this novel as well. It’s chick lit but well-written and the characters have emotional depth. This time around the two central characters take an annual summer vacation together, regardless of whether or not they are involved with anyone else romantically. It’s very When Harry Met Sally, with flashbacks. Poppy works for a travel magazine in NYC (and writes a travel blog) while Alex is a teacher in Ohio. The travel aspect of this novel is a lot of fun as Henry does a great job with creating a sense of place. Like with Beach Read, the dialogue is the best part here as it’s snarky and witty in parts, and actually laugh out loud funny in others. I wish all romance novels were as well-written as this one, as I’d read them a lot more. It should go without saying that this is the perfect beach/vacation read.

Book #3:

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir (Length: 482 pages).   If you loved The Martian, this is the book for you! I think this is even better than Weir’s first book . . . it’s got the same very witty dialogue/thoughts, and a propulsive plot, but this one goes even further creatively than The Martian, and is a total joy to read. Just as with the first, I tuned out a lot of the scientific (and mathematic!) details but it’s all still incredibly interesting. My favorite part of the novel, and when it really gets interesting, is jazz hands! (When you know, you know.) This would make an excellent Father’s Day gift as well–even non-readers will enjoy it because it’s so fun to read.

Thank you for joining me here!   I hope you enjoy this series and I’d love to hear from you about what you are reading these days.

Book #1:

No Bad Deed by Heather Chavez (Length: 325 pages).   This is a thriller set in Northern California that starts with a woman rescuing another woman she sees being chased by a scary-looking ex-convict. Complications ensue, and this is a nail-biter that’s difficult to put down. While it’s a bit graphic in terms of violence, I didn’t find the violent scenes to be gratuitous so they didn’t bother me very much. The central mystery is well-crafted even if it’s a bit formulaic (I felt like I’ve read something similar to this, but in a less well-written novel). The writing here is strong, as are the plot and the sense of place, but the character development is pretty thin–perhaps to preserve the mystery? Overall, it’s worth a read (a library check out for sure).

Book #2:

Smile: The Story of a Face by Sarah Ruhl (Length: 256 pages). This is an ARC of a memoir which comes out in October of 2021 I believe, and is written by a Broadway playwright living in NYC who suffers from long-term (over a decade) Bell’s Palsy, the onset of which occurred after she delivered twins. I was interested in this because a good friend also has the same diagnosis. This memoir traverses the past decade as she deals with this very obvious facial paralysis, first with intense frustration and depression, and eventually with grace and equanimity. The writing is excellent (as befits an award-winning playwright), but I do think the focus on Bell’s Palsy is a bit a too specific for most. I, for one, am glad I took the time to read this book as it gave me even more empathy for those who struggle with this disease, and I think I will always remember it.

Book #3:

Good Company by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney (Length: 314 pages).   The familial saga was written by the author of The Nest (which I’ve reviewed here previously). This novel is based on the world of theater in NYC as well as in television in Los Angeles and is based on two different couples, along with the daughter of one of the couples. The novel opens with one of the women finding a wedding ring her husband claimed he had lost almost two decades earlier, and the rest of the book attempts to answer the question why. This is very character-driven, and is told mostly in flashbacks. Since there is not much plot, this won’t be for everyone, but if you enjoy excellent writing and in-depth character development along with entangled family dramas (as I do), this is for you!

Book #4:

We Came, We Saw, We Left by Charles Wheelan (Length: 290 pages).   I LOVED this book! This is a family memoir/travelogue written by a Dartmouth professor about the nine months he and his family (three teenagers and his wife) all traveled to six continents in the span of nine months. He includes all of the nitty-gritty details of the planning, their daily budget, and how they decided where to visit. His writing style is very entertaining–witty, charming, and very real. He writes with honesty about his teenagers’ behavior and is also very self-deprecating. I loved reading about all of the places around the globe I’ll likely never get to visit–especially in South America. I never wanted the book (or their travels) to end. Definitely worth a read, and after you are finished, check out his family blog on Blogspot for more photos (he includes a handful in the book).

Thank you for joining me here!   I hope you enjoy this series and I’d love to hear from you about what you are reading these days.

Book #1:

Did I Say That Out Loud? by Kristin van Ogtrop (Length: 192 pages).   This book of essays on middle age is written by the former editor of Real Simple magazine, one of my favorite magazines ever. Each essay has something oddly relevant to my life as a middle-aged (but in my mind I’m 29!) woman. They are all witty, profound and interesting enough to read the entire book in one sitting. This is a must read for any woman born in the 1960s or 1970s!

Book #2:

28 Summers by Elin Hilderbrand (Length: 433 pages). I find Hilderbrand’s novels to be consistently enjoyable–they’re not high-brow literature by any means, but she’s a decent writer and I never fail to finish a novel she’s written, so there’s that. This one is set in Nantucket, per usual, but the set up is a bit different in that two lovers meet once a summer during Labor Day weekend, for 28 years. (A la the Same Time, Next Year movie.) I found the writing to be stronger than her usual novels, with excellent character development. (The plot and setting take a back seat, predictably so). There is a tear-jerker of an ending, however, so be forewarned.

Book #3:

What Comes After by Joanne Tompkins (Length: 429 pages).   This novel was written by a judge and a former family law mediator about the aftermath of a teen homicide/suicide in a community in the Pacific Northwest. I listened to an interview of the author on a book podcast and she explained that she lived in a Quaker community for a month in order to understand that religion and culture, and I found the Quaker characters in this book to be the most interesting. This quote from the novel about Quakers really struck me: “. . . those who believed that loving presence and listening hearts saved far more souls than the millions of words written by man in God’s name”. The writing is fantastic here, as are both the plot and the depth of the character development. (The dog Rufus is one of my favorite characters in the book–apparently he’s modeled after her family dog). This novel is also quite the page turner as a few mysteries are revealed. This is absolutely a must read, and would make a fantastic book club choice!