Tag: reading

November 2025–Part Two:

November 30, 2025

Book #81:

The Women on Platform Two by Laura Anthony (335 pages).  This is historical fiction set in 1969 Dublin and is about their fight for women’s rights, broadly speaking. This is really well-told, through the lens of a woman named Maura who has married a well-respected doctor, and said doctor is not respectful of Maura. The right to contraception plays a big role here. I enjoyed how the tale is told here too. Maura, in the future, is on an annual memorial train ride from Dublin to Belfast where she’s telling her story to a young woman in 2023. This is totally immersive, well-written and the plot never drags. Very memorable and a perfect gift for any woman in your life. 5 stars.

Book #82:

Writers & Lovers by Lily King (Length: 333 pages). This novel is a bit polarizing–readers either enjoy it or they don’t. I’m firmly in the former camp here as I love this book! The premise is a young woman living in Boston in 1997 is trying to finish her first novel (6 years in the making), while waitressing at a high-end restaurant. Her mother died the year prior and she’s still working through her grief, while also dealing with a recent failed relationship and a few new relationships are on the horizon. This isn’t as navel-gazing as I worried it might be, and while I am well beyond this stage of life, I found points of commonality with the main character. I also really enjoyed the author’s writing style, and the ending is perfect. A memorable, well-written read, with depth and heart. 5 stars from me.

Book #83:

The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion, Vol 6 by Beth Brower (Length: 249 pages).   If you haven’t yet checked out this series, what are you waiting for? This volume is delightful, particularly because Emma has finally arrived at the age of her majority and is now the rightful owner of the Lapis Lazuli house. There is forward movement in Emma’s relationship with one of her best male friends, and she has her first job, which is as the personal secretary to a newly wealthy society lady. There are some hysterically funny scenes here. This series just gets better and better. It’s a thinking girl’s fun read. 5 stars, of course.

Book #84:

A Curse so Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer (507 pages).  This highly recommended fantasy is book 1 of the Cursebreaker series but absolutely can be read alone. I was so excited to finally read this (dark) Beauty and the Beast retelling, and it lived up to the hype for me. The author jumps right into the plot and then never lets up. The world-building is minimal so it’s very easy to follow and the romance is not the main focus here. The character “Beauty” is from present day and the “Beast” and the world of Emberfall is in another dimension and time, and I really enjoyed that juxtaposition. This is billed as being for 14 years of age and up but it didn’t read young adult to me at all. I’m totally fine ending the series here but there’s enough in this first book that may make me pick up the next in the series. A full 5 stars from me.

Book #85:

With Friends Like These by Alissa Lee (Length: 240 pages). This novel is part psychological thriller and part campus novel with a unique premise: the main characters are all grown up and are still playing an annual game they started playing in college called Circus (similar to the assassin game many high school students play). Their senior year of college one of their friends died and a few people 20 years later think they’ve spotted her prior and during their final round of this game. This is a quick, fun read with a propulsive plot. I figured out the twist a bit early on but there was enough going on that I wanted to read the resolution. I really enjoyed this one. 4 stars.

October 2025–Part Two:

November 2, 2025

Book #73:

Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid (341 pages).  I love TJRs writing. My favorite novel of hers is still One True Loves but this is officially my second favorite (with my third being The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo). I grew up loving learning about space and the astronauts, so this novel about the space shuttle in the early 1980s, featuring some of the first female astronauts is a perfect fit for my interests. The love story at the center of this book is the focus here and it’s very well-done. The dialogue and chemistry between the two female astronauts are well-drawn, and the romantic scenes are closed door. I’d say this book is 80% romance, 20% space (NASA, flight training, flight to space), and I do wish there was a bit more about space and the flight at the center of the novel, but even given that, this is a solid 5 stars from me. So memorable and TJR’s vivid writing puts the reader right there in the novel. Please read!

Book #74

Beg, Borrow, or Steal by Sarah Adams (Length: 368 pages). This is the third novel in the 4-novel When in Rome romance series. This is a popular closed-door romance series so if that’s up your alley, definitely check out these books. I adore Sarah Adams’ writing so much and this novel is my favorite so far. Focusing on Walker sibling #3, Emily, as well as her nemesis Jack Bennett, her second grade teacher teammate. Their chemistry is off the charts here, with a sweetness to the enemy to lovers trope that I really enjoyed. Witty banter feels organic and everything works. I adore the small-town setting of Rome, Kentucky and really enjoyed seeing the siblings from the first two books. This is cute but well-written and a must-read! 5 stars.

Book #75:

Empty Mansions by Bill Dedman and Paul Clark Newell (Length: 576 pages).   One of my favorite TV series is HBO’s The Gilded Age and this well-written non-fiction narrative account of Huguette Clark is a perfect complement to that series. Huguette’s father was W.A. Clark, the copper mining magnate who rubbed elbows with the Astors and the Rockefellers, and who built the largest house in New York City (121 rooms for a family of 4). Huguette lived to 104 years of age, with the last 20 years of her life living in a small hospital room, by her choice, while owning three empty mansions. This is a fantastic story with so many vivid details of the wild west mining towns, the uber-wealthy families and the sad tale of Huguette, a lonely heiress. A long read but well worth the effort here. 4.5 stars.

September 2025 Part Two:

September 30, 2025

Book #64:

The Identicals by Elin Hilderbrand (Length: 433 pages).  I really enjoyed this one! Set in both Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard, the two main characters are identical twin sisters: Harper and Tabitha Frost. They are estranged, due in part to Parent Trap-style machinations years ago and part due to emotional traumas. This is a very fun read, with Hilderbrand’s strong writing per usual; it is a bit cheesy in parts but the propulsive plot and writing style makes this one more memorable than most of her books. 4.5 stars from me.

Book #65:

The Carpool Detectives by Chuck Hogan (Length: 336 pages). I’m OBSESSED with this non-fiction book! I listened to this one on audio, and it’s definitely the way to go here. At the beginning of the pandemic in 2020, four stay at home moms investigated a cold case murder of a couple whose car had gone over the guardrail into a deep ravine outside of Santa Monica, California. Because it was COVID lockdown, everyone who was a potential witness (including the case detectives) were at home and the women just cold-called them, starting to break this complex case open. This is so well-written and reads like a murder novel. It’s propulsive and you won’t be able to stop reading or listening. The audio was excellent here, with the reading of the group chats adding extra interest. This is absolutely a five-star book. Let me know if you pick this one up!

Book #66:

The Lost Bookshop by Evie Woods (Length: 448 pages).   There seem to be so many fiction books with the words “Bookshop” or “Bookstore” in them and apparently, I’m on a quest to read all of them. This particular novel has a blend of magical realism and romance and is set in two time periods: the 1920s through 1950s and present day. Opaline Carlisle is a woman in Ireland who opens a bookshop in the 1920s, which was very unusual for the time period. And in present day, Martha and Henry are two young people in Ireland who are connected to and are looking for this bookshop which has mysteriously vanished. This is a sweet story with likeable characters, but it’s a bit over-dramatic in parts. I enjoyed the focus on books here, especially those written by the Bronte sisters. This is a memorable, fun read. 4 stars.

Book #67:

Is She Really Going Out With Him? by Sophie Cousens (Length: 367 pages). Romantic comedies with older protagonists are rare, and I’m so happy when I pick one up that’s actually really well written, as this one is. Anna Appleby is 38, freshly divorced with two kids, and works as a journalist for a local magazine called Bath Living, about the goings on in Bath, England. To save her job, Anna agrees to write a dating column with the premise of her kids choosing who she dates and what they are to do on the date. There is of course, a separate love interest, and the chemistry between Anna and this person is fantastic. The dialogue is witty and charming, and I thought about these characters even when I wasn’t reading this. 5 stars.

Book #68:

A Marriage at Sea by Sophie Elmhirst (Length: 251 pages). This non-fiction account of an English couple, Maralyn and Maurice, who were lost at sea in 1973 after their boat capsized en route to New Zealand, thanks to a breaching whale. Forced to survive on an inflatable raft and small dinghy, this is partially an adventure story but it’s mostly about them as people and as a couple. This is a riveting, fast read and well-paced (although it does slow down a bit in the last third). 4 stars from me.

Book #69:

The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion by Beth Brower (Length: 208 pages). This volume is the best volume so far! Emma is trying to figure out options for her financial future, but this takes a backseat as her friendship with a trio of 3 different men continues to deepen. This quartet recognizes they have a unique chemistry together and it’s fun to see this develop. Emma, of course, gets into more hilarious adventures and her witty repartee shines even more here. These are so well-written and just so funny. I find myself smiling as I read them. 5 stars, of course.

September 2025–Part One

September 15, 2025

Book #59:

The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion Vol. 2 by Beth Brower (Length: 164 pages).  Clearly, I’m loving this series that seems to be everywhere on Bookstagram and various book podcasts. Here, in the second volume, Emma is getting more settled into her life at Lapis Lazuli house. The same characters that were in the first volume are here which is nice, as the focus in this volume is more on the plot. Now the plot is essentially Emma’s daily life but her antics are still on full display here. Emma doesn’t feel the need to act as a typical woman would in 1880s London; for example, she doesn’t have a chaperone, as she doesn’t feel the need for one. The writing is excellent, and the character development is where this author truly shines. Another 5 stars from me.

Book #60:

Bento Box in the Heartland by Linda Furiya (Length: 321 pages). This is a food memoir I’ve had on my bookshelf for quite a while and in the interests of clearing my shelves, I finally picked it up. The author writes about growing up in Versailles, Indiana, in the 1960s and 1970s, a town so small, she and her family were the only Japanese-Americans who lived there. Told through the various meals and foods her mother made for the family, Linda explores what it was like growing up during this time period in middle America, including the racism she and her family experienced. The writing quality here is mid-level but it’s still an interesting read. I enjoyed her food descriptions the most, and I am passing the book on to someone I know who would enjoy this account. Three stars from me.

Book #61

The Hungry Ocean by Linda Greenlaw (Length: 286 pages).   This is a non-fiction account written by the only female swordfish captain in America, the captain of the Hannah Boden. The author and her ship were referenced in Sebastian Junger’s The Perfect Storm (an account of the tragic loss of the Andrea Gale fishing boat). Here, the author intersperses an account of a “typical” 30-day swordfish run in international fishing waters in the Atlantic Ocean with snippets of her personal history. This is very well-written and very propulsive. She gets into the nuts and bolts of what it takes to operate a fishing boat, and her perspective as a female captain is riveting. She is a phenomenal writer (taking a year to write this book, she comments that running a fishing boat is actually easier than writing a book) and I enjoyed every page here. 5 stars.

Book #62:

One’s Company by Ashley Hutson (Length: 272 pages).  I listened to this one and the narrator is great. Now, this is a bleak book with a strange premise. A young woman win’s the nation’s largest lottery in history and uses the proceeds to reconstruct the entire “world” of the TV show “Three’s Company”, down to the entire apartment building, furnished exactly as it is in the show, down to period-specific daily newspapers. There is some traumatic history here which is obviously driving this, but the pacing and writing are top-notch. Ultimately, the narrator Bonnie isn’t causing harm to anyone else by doing this and we are along for the ride. Riveting account but it’s a bit unnerving to follow along at times. 4 stars.

Book #63:

The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion Vol. 3 by Beth Brower (Length: 229 pages). Clearly I’m a fan of this series and it just keeps getting better. In this installment, Emma gets invited to a society ball on her own and not as a foil to help her better suited cousin find a husband. There are so many laugh out loud lines here, and Emma’s innate intelligence and her grit make her a truly well-rounded and likable heroine. There are 5 more volumes in this series so far, and I’m intending to read all of them so fair warning. 😉. Five stars, once again.

August 2025–Part One

August 28, 2025

Book #52:

The Grey Wolf by Louise Penny (Length: 425 pages).  This is Book #19 of this author’s Three Pines mystery series featuring the esteemed head of homicide in Quebec: Armand Gamache. I’m obsessed with this series and this author and while this isn’t my favorite of the series (by a long shot), I never regret reading one of Louise Penny’s novels. This particular novel involves eco-terrorism, specifically the aspect of poisoning the domestic water supply. There are entirely too many characters to keep straight here, for my liking, so I’m glad I read this one in print instead of struggling through the audio version. The build up to the action is slow here, but the ending is very exciting with a cliffhanger. (Her 20th novel in this series is The Black Wolf). Not a lot of time is spent in Three Pines here, which makes me sad, but a few of the characters DO visit the monastery featured in my favorite book of the series, #9: A Beautiful Mystery. Overall, I’ll give this a solid 4 stars from me because Louise Penny can do no wrong, in my eyes.

Book #53:

Murder in the Dollhouse by Rich Cohen (Length: 353 pages). I had heard about this book being an excellent true-crime book and what I heard is correct. This is fantastic, but so, so sad. Jennifer Dulos was the uber-wealthy heiress who married Fotis Dulos, a Greek immigrant who didn’t come from money, but who was charming and charismatic. You learn in the first few pages that Fotis murdered Jennifer so there’s no mystery here. Instead, the author sets the scene and tries to determine the why of what happened, to the extent anyone can truly do this. The author does a fantastic job of setting the scene and giving the reader the backgrounds of this couple. This was very well-paced and hard to put down. The couple left 5 children behind, and Jennifer’s body still hasn’t been found, which are just 2 reasons why this is so heart-breaking. Solid 4.5 stars from me

Book #54:

Leave Only Footprints by Conor Knighton (Length: 322 pages).   In my quest to read all of the good books involving hiking, the outdoors and national parks, I listened to this fantastic read on audio. This is the very interesting account of the author’s visit to every national park in the United States in his attempt to get over a failed engagement. While his accounts are surface level on many parks, likely due to space and time constraints, I really enjoyed his stories, anecdotes and historical tidbits he included throughout this book. This is great on audio and would make excellent listening during a road trip, or even a walk or hike. 4 stars.