Here's what I read this month:
Beautiful Bad by Annie Ward | 1.5 stars. This was definitely a fast-paced thriller and suspense novel, and I read it in two days, but there were too many things that had me suspending belief a bit that I ended up only giving it 1.5 stars. One of the problems I think I had with it is, (spoiler alert) it's another case of an unreliable narrator, and lately I've been reading a lot of those type of books. Unfortunately, I didn't think Ward pulled it off as well. I felt like the narrator was constantly trying to get me to believe her, to convince me her story was right, and after a couple hundred pages it became pretty evident that she wasn't to be trusted. But more than that, which is mostly a personal preference, there were some other parts of the story that didn't seem credible. Sending text messages after 9/11 (when most people, and probably the people she was sending to, wouldn't have really done this - it wasn't as prevalent back then as it is now so it seemed unlikely), having a cell phone and reliable cell phone coverage in Bulgaria and Macedonia during civil unrest (seriously? I live in a peaceful "third world" country, and it wasn't until the last couple of years that we've even had somewhat reliable and decent coverage), binge watching Game of Thrones on Netflix in something like 2005 (was that even possible? And binge watching wasn't even really a thing, was it?)... there were quite a few other things that had me raising my eyebrow. I felt like the author was trying so hard to write a back story while remaining relevant to today's readers, but if you're going to write in the past, your story has to make sense for the times. I tried fact checking some of the things that were bothering me, so it isn't like the author didn't do her homework, it just didn't seem believable (an English teacher in the third world during a time of political unrest making cell phone calls in the mid to late 90s? Uh-uh, not having it, even if "technically" it is right.)
Every Last Word by Tamara Ireland Stone | 5 stars. A friend of mine read this with her daughter, and then they recommended it to me. I love getting book recommendations - it's a bit of a guilty pleasure, although it's not really anything to feel guilty about - so I checked it out from the library. I never got around to reading it, however, until I was in the hospital this month and decided to "pick it up" (it was on my Kindle). It's YA (young adult), but I immediately got into the story and really enjoyed it. I thought it was written really well - good plot, a little romance, solid narrative voice, a little bit of mystery for fun. Really enjoyed it.
Ginny Moon by Benjamin Ludwig | 5 stars. Another YA novel. I heard about this one on the What Should I Read Next podcast (which I've only just started listening to and am loving). Let me just say that this book was probably my favorite of the month. Wow - it was totally unexpected but I really loved it so much. Highly recommended.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows | 5 stars. I'm a big Harry Potter fan (the books, not necessarily the movies). I'd been reading this aloud each night with Nico (all seven in the series), so of course it was sad to come to the end. There isn't much else out there at the moment, in my opinion, that can compete with Harry Potter. I have to say, the first time I read this book I didn't enjoy it much. It's dark and depressing, I was in constant worry for the characters, there's no Hogwarts, too many people die... and the simpering thing at the end under the chair was just too weird (I'm not sure I get it yet). This time around, however, I enjoyed it so much more, because I got the running commentary of Nico. Anytime I was confused, he would try to explain to me what was going on. He was also good at giving me spoilers that prepared me for a death or a scary moment. (He loved spoiling a lot of the plot lines in HP for me, even though I'd already read the series. I didn't really care, though. HP is one of those books that keeps you reading, even when you know what's going to happen. And spoilers don't bother me as much as they do others.) Anyhow, we're on to another book, and both of us are a little sad HP is over for the time being.
People I Want to Punch in the Throat: Competitive Crafters, Drop-Off Despots, and Other Suburban Scourges by Jen Mann | 5 stars. One of the things that kept me on a reading roll this month was getting my hands on some "light" reading. By no means is this a criticism of a book for me. In fact, sometimes it's just what I need to keep reading - something funny, light, that I can read in a few days and I don't have to try to keep track of a million characters or plot lines (which I still find a bit difficult to do digitally). Jen Mann has a blog by the same title that my sister introduced me to years ago, and I remember loving her sense of humor, so when I saw she had written a book I immediately downloaded it. It was so good - I laughed out loud at so many parts, and could identify on so many levels. Really funny - a great read!
Spending the Holidays with People I Want to Punch in the Throat: Yuletide Yahoos, Ho-Ho-Humblebraggers, and Other Seasonal Scourges by Jan Mann | 4 stars. I looked at my library and was a bit disappointed that they only had one of the other Jen Mann books, because I was ready to read them all this month. This one was also laugh-out-loud funny, although I did enjoy the other one a bit more. This woman is seriously funny though.
I'd Rather Be Reading: The Delights and Dilemmas of the Reading Life by Anne Bogel | 3 stars. I like reading books about reading, or reading books about books, and as I've recently gotten into the What Should I Read Next podcast, I decided to try out Bogel's book (she's the host of the podcast). It was decent - a quick read, with lots of things I could identify with. I would have liked a bit more in terms of recommendations, more "book talk" so to speak, than the novel actually gave, however. I do recognize that that might not have been the author's point.
Red Clocks by Leni Zumas | 5 stars. I saw this book on an Instagram feed a few months ago and got interested. I had tried to get into it back then, but for some reason couldn't. This time I forced myself to get past the first few pages, and then I couldn't put the book down. It was more literary than some of the books I've been reading lately, and that's a good thing. It was just exactly the type of thoughtful and beautiful reading that I've been looking for in some contemporary reading that I just haven't been finding. The language, the imagery, the way the author approaches sensitive topics - it was so, so good. It wasn't an easy read at all, and some parts were, quite honestly, disturbing. But it was one of my favorites of the year so far, in the sense that I could go back and reread this again and again, and probably get something new out of it each time. A bit reminiscent of The Handmaid's Tale (a personal all-time favorite), but more modern.
The River by Peter Heller | 5 stars. Another solid, great read. I read Peter Heller's The Dog Stars back in 2013. I picked it up on a whim when I was in the airport going to my sister's wedding. It was one of those books that took me totally by surprise, and I loved it so much that I recommended it to my brother-in-law (and never saw it again). So when Anne Bogel recommended this book again and again on her podcast, I thought I'd better check it out. It was very good, albeit slow-paced and technical in some spots, kind of like the river itself (I liked that part but I can see it wouldn't be for everyone). Also much more literary than anything I've been reading (a plus). I didn't, however, appreciate the end. It was so sad and I didn't feel uplifted at all (which shouldn't be a surprise after reading The Dog Stars but still...). I really really liked this book, though, so I'll forgive the author for that ending.
Searching for Sylvie Lee by Jean Kwok | 4 stars. This book was picked for the Today Show book club, Read with Jenna. I'd never read anything by Kwok before, and plan to pick up some of her other novels. This one was a page turner, a mystery, maybe a bit of a romance. Not something I would have read on my own, but super fun. The author does a great job of describing the different places in the novel, so that was fun. And she interacted on the Read with Jenna Facebook group all month, sharing her inspiration for characters, places, photos, interviews, etc., which actually made the whole experience really cool.
The Valedictorian of Being Dead by Heather B. Armstrong | 3 stars. I have conflicting emotions about this one. First, let me just say - that title! Disturbing and annoying in a really cool way, which totally grabbed my attention and made me need to read this book. Second, I read this book pretty quickly. It was definitely a topic (mental health) that I haven't read a lot of, and since it was a first-hand account it offered a lot of insights into it that a thriller wouldn't. I wanted to know what happens. But...there was just something about the writing, the author, that I couldn't get around. Sometimes the author seemed a bit like she was trying to convince me too much. Melodramatic. I mean, she was melodramatic and that was the point - she was suffering from severe depression. But I found myself a bit skeptical at times, and then feeling guilty because what do I know about her experience? What do I know about depression and suicidal tendencies? Really nothing, so I hate to pass judgment. I just wanted to love this book when I really only just kind of liked it.
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