Category — Book Reviews

As I say every month, I’m shamelessly stealing this idea from Jessica Lahey. She has a recurring monthly date where she reviews all the books she reads that month. Book reviews are important for authors, and I want to get better at doing this.

So. I’m going to review them here and also online, but I’m going to do it a little differently. I’m only going to review the stuff I really liked. I don’t see a reason to spend my time writing about something I didn’t love; it’s just using up more of my energy. So only positive reviews.

These are the books I liked (or mostly liked) from August.

Strange Sally Diamond (Liz Nugent): I wrote on Goodreads that “this is a complicated review. It is a five-star book. The writing is incredible. I’ll admit that I didn’t know a lot about the book, and I read it because Anthony Horowitz mentioned how much he liked it at a reading for his book. But it was deeply deeply disturbing, and I felt uncomfortable and upset reading it. So beautiful writing, but go into it knowing it is a very upsetting story.” I still have regrets about reading this book despite it being great writing.

Death at the Chateau (Ian Moore): The third cozy mystery in the series. They’re funny and cute and you won’t tax your brain reading it. It was exactly what I needed in August.

The Skeleton Key (Erin Kelly): I was blown away by this story. If you love the idea of Masquerade by Kit Williams, you need to read this book about a family that unravels as the world chews through its obsession with the treasure hunt. So so so so so good.

Just Another Missing Person (Gillian McAllister): It was a good thriller, though I fulfilled the prediction I made on Goodreads: “I don’t know if I’ll remember a lot about this a few weeks from now, but it was super engaging while I was reading it.” I don’t remember most of it, but I remember enjoying it while the book was in my hands. Sometimes that’s enough.

What did you read last month?

As I say every month, I’m shamelessly stealing this idea from Jessica Lahey. She has a recurring monthly date where she reviews all the books she reads that month. Book reviews are important for authors, and I want to get better at doing this.

So. I’m going to review them here and also online, but I’m going to do it a little differently. I’m only going to review the stuff I really liked. I don’t see a reason to spend my time writing about something I didn’t love; it’s just using up more of my energy. So only positive reviews.

These are the books I liked (or mostly liked) from July.

My Murder (Katie Williams): Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. I didn’t think a lot could top her other book, Tell the Machine Goodnight, but this managed to top that story. It’s about a woman brought back to life after her murder and how she processes moving through a world where she is both alive and not alive. I could not stop thinking about this book whenever I put it down, and I highlighted so many amazing sentences that half the e-book was yellow by the time I finished.

The Brutal Telling (Louise Penny): I finished this book while in Montreal, which gave me a chance to visit the Emily Carr statue and walk the same streets as the characters. Reading these books is like spending time with old friends.

The Magicians (Lev Grossman): The ChickieNob and I live in a perpetual state of listening or reading this trilogy. As much as we’ve memorized the story, I still notice new things with each re-reading. I love this trilogy so much.

Bury Your Dead (Louise Penny): I started this book the night before we went to Quebec City, the setting for this story. What luck! I got to see so many of the streets referenced in the novel. Each book gets better and better, and this one was moving and interesting and touching and thrilling. It was everything. I think it’s my favourite one so far.

The Hangman (Louise Penny): It was a Three Pines-heavy month. This story was fine. I guessed the ending, which I can’t even remember a few weeks later, which is odd. Maybe Three Pines works better as a novel than a novella.

Zero Days (Ruth Ware): I guessed the killer and motive 25% of the way through the book, which was disappointing because I shouldn’t notice more than the main character, who is a penetration tester. But I gave this five stars because it was a great thriller that felt like a movie in paper form.

What did you read last month?

As I say every month, I’m shamelessly stealing this idea from Jessica Lahey. She has a recurring monthly date where she reviews all the books she reads that month. Book reviews are important for authors, and I want to get better at doing this.

So. I’m going to review them here and also online, but I’m going to do it a little differently. I’m only going to review the stuff I really liked. I don’t see a reason to spend my time writing about something I didn’t love; it’s just using up more of my energy. So only positive reviews.

These are the books I liked (or mostly liked) from June.

Death of a Bookseller (Alice Slater): I started out loving this book. Interesting situation with vivid writing and great characters. But somewhere along the way, it moved from pleasurably creepy into just creepy, full stop. I can’t recommend it, but I also liked parts of it. It’s complicated. But only read if you’re looking for something super unnerving.

Bad Summer People (Emma Rosenblum): They were all the worst people, which made this the best possible fun. Like White Lotus in Fire Island homes instead of Italy. The book has gotten much buzz because some characters are based on real people in a Fire Island town. So you may feel a bit dirty reading it, but it’s so enjoyable.

The Endless Vessel (Charles Soule): What an incredible book about love and mattering and connection. It will make you think, cry (that last page!), and smile. What more can you possibly want in a story? This was a top read of the year for me.

The Wishing Game (Meg Shaffer): To enjoy this book, you need to go into it understanding that nothing about the situation is realistic or healthy. Like relationships you’re supposed to admire and cheer for are dysfunctional and inappropriate. BUT I still loved being in this world while I was in the world. It’s best described as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory but with a book instead of candy.

Death Comes to Marlow (Robert Thorogood): If you like Richard Osman, you will likely enjoy Robert Thorogood. Three friends, running around Marlow, solving crimes and crossword puzzles. I am so happy whenever another one of these books comes out, similar to Osman.

What did you read last month?

P.S. I think I’m going to skip the Roundup this week. See you again this weekend.

As I say every month, I’m shamelessly stealing this idea from Jessica Lahey. She has a recurring monthly date where she reviews all the books she reads that month. Book reviews are important for authors, and I want to get better at doing this.

So. I’m going to review them here and also online, but I’m going to do it a little differently. I’m only going to review the stuff I really liked. I don’t see a reason to spend my time writing about something I didn’t love; it’s just using up more of my energy. So only positive reviews.

These are the books I liked (or mostly liked) from May.

The Soulmate (Sally Hepworth): Hepworth books are hit-or-miss. They’re always well-written, but the plot is sometimes so farfetched that I can’t suspend disbelief. This was one where I also guessed the ending early on. It’s okay that it was forgettable because I enjoyed the act of reading it at the moment, which is a long way of saying that I’ll read her next book, too. They’re all solid four-star reads.

In the Lives of Puppets (TJ Klune): I bought his first book (first book that I read, that is) for everyone. I thought it was amazing. I recommended his second book to a bunch of people. I thought it was moving. I am on the fence about how I feel about this book. It is complicated, and as you’re laughing over the robots’ conversations, the author presents some uncomfortable answers to the questions at the heart of the book: Can we love beings who do terrible things? What if they don’t have free will and are forced to do terrible things? What if they do have a choice and make a terrible one?

A Rule Against Murder (Louise Penny): The books in this series just get better and better and better. This one was even better than book three, and I loved book three. It’s a great mystery, and while I ended the book with a few questions I’d love to discuss with someone else who read it, I leave the story super impressed with Penny. Again and again and again.

La Belle Sauvage (Philip Pullman): I listened to this as an audiobook. Michael Sheen is one of the most talented book readers on earth. I rarely have time to listen to audiobooks, but I would make time to listen to this one again.

What did you read last month?

As I say every month, I’m shamelessly stealing this idea from Jessica Lahey. She has a recurring monthly date where she reviews all the books she reads that month. Book reviews are important for authors, and I want to get better at doing this.

So. I’m going to review them here and also online, but I’m going to do it a little differently. I’m only going to review the stuff I really liked. I don’t see a reason to spend my time writing about something I didn’t love; it’s just using up more of my energy. So only positive reviews.

These are the books I liked (or mostly liked) from April.

A Flaw in the Design (Nathan Oates): I raced to finish this thriller because I wanted to know what would happen, and it definitely didn’t go where I thought it would go. The author did a really good job keeping the reader off-balance without feeling like you’re about to fall. It’s a great book if you like unreliable narrators and open questions.

The Golden Spoon (Jessa Maxwell): This book was going along so well and completely fell apart at the end. Just like a cake on the Great British Bake Show, which is the setting (a fictitious version) for this mystery. I wish she had stuck the landing, but the book was so enjoyable up until that point that I would give it a chance.

The Cruelest Month (Louise Penny): This is the third Inspector Gamache, and it’s the book where I felt Penny ease into her series. The first two books are good but not great. But the third book (and points beyond) are not only great mysteries but also fantastic world and character-building. I love Three Pines and will keep reading until the end of the series.

A Tidy Ending (Joanna Cannon): I bumped this book up to the top of my TBR list on the strength of a bookseller’s bestseller list, and it did not disappoint. It is bonkers, similar to a Samantha Downing book. It was a very clever read.

What did you read last month?