July 2026 in Books

This was a pretty good reading month. Some really strong books (particularly the historical fiction), and a couple of duds. Recaps below:

Pollock's Last Lover: A Novel of Art and Deception - Stephen P. Kiernan - historical fiction - three stars - Gwen, a young associate at an auction house, is assigned the task of verifying if a painting is a genuine (and the last) Pollock painting. It was brought to the auction house by Pollock's last lover Ruth Kligman. I simultaneously enjoyed, and hated this book. I hated Ruth. The book was weird, tried to portray her as very likable and down to earth and in a few pages she becomes someone you hate. I did like Gwen a lot, and I enjoyed reading about how one goes about authenticating things, all the research, etc. Four for Gwen, one and a half for Ruth, two and a half overall, rounded to three.

The Forgotten Midwife - Laura Anthony - historical fiction - five stars - A dual timeline story, although really most of it is in the past. Riley Carmichael is about to get married and her grandmother who has Alzheimer's gives her something in a lucid moment wanting to explain, but then the moment is lost. It leads Riley down a path to discovering who she really is. In Ireland in the 1950s, Margaret Lannigan's life is turned upside down when her sister dies, and she's sent by her family to take her place in becoming a nun. Margaret's story is both horrifying, and hopeful. Really enjoyed this one.

Whistler - Ann Patchett - historical fiction - four stars - Daphne and her husband go to the museum one day, and run into Eddie Triplett, her former stepfather. Eddie played a pivotal role in the her life, and then just disappeared when her mother divorced him. This reunion opens up a floodgate of emotions, repressed memories, and opens the door to a new relationship between the two of them. An exploration of family and friendship. I did enjoy this one, although I felt like it was not as developed as my favorite Patchett books, it sometimes seemed to kind of skim the surface. Still, a very good read.

The Supper Club Saints - Claire Swinarski - fiction - four stars - Cass Simon walked out on her family two years ago to join a 'Mommune'. When the leader is jailed, Cass turns up back home just as her family is getting ready to sell the Supper Club they have owned for generations. The story alternates between present day, and what happened at the Mommune. I enjoyed the characters and the family dynamics, although the whole Mommune thing was a little too out there for me. Decent read.

The Last Good Year: Seven Games That Ended an Era - Damien Cox - non-fiction - four stars - This was my audiobook for the month. It's about the 1993 Toronto Maple Leafs who lost to the Wayne Gretzky Kings in the Stanley Cup Semifinals. Cox weaves details about the players, coaches, owners, etc. in and around the narrative of each of the games. There were definitely some interesting characters involved in the series, not the least of which was King's owner Bruce McNall who would go on to be convicted of fraud and sentenced to 70 months in prison. There was a fair amount of detail in the book, and this is one that I might have enjoyed better reading vs listening to, but still quite interesting.

This Immortal Heart - Jennifer Saint - fiction - three stars - This is the second of Saint's books in a row that was a big let down for me. It's a mythical retelling of Aphrodite's story. I feel like this one and the last books that was just so so (about Hera) are maybe a problem because the character is too well known. There is just too much mythology about the major gods/goddesses, so it is perhaps too hard to  pull off a unique retelling. It seemed at times that Saint was trying too hard to weave in too many of the myths surrounding Aphrodite. On top of that, I feel like Saint tries too hard to give the books a feminist slant. I don't think they need it, and it ends up being distracting. Not sure I'll attempt another of her books for a while.

Daughters of the Sun and Moon - Lisa See - historical fiction - five stars - I am a huge fan of See, and was thrilled for her to be coming out with another book. This did not disappoint. It's about three Chinese women in 1870 Los Angeles living vastly different lives. Dove, the daughter of an imperial scholar who has fallen upon hard times, is sent to LA to be the second wife of a merchant there. Petal, the daughter of peasants, is sold and ends up a prostitute in LA, and Moon, already in LA, is the wife of a physician who treats both Chinese and American patients and has assimilated into American life, helping her husband with his practice. The women come to know one another, and deal with competing gangs/Tongs, as well as significant anti-Chinese sentiment. A really excellent read.

Theo of Golden - Allen Levi - fiction - four stars - Theo comes to the small town of Golden, seemingly randomly. When he enters the local coffee shop, he is drawn to a series of portraits on the wall, of the towns' residents, created by a local artist. Theo decides that he should unite the portraits with their rightful owners, their subjects. He begins to purchase and gift the, slowly getting to know the people in the town, and making an impact on their lives. I enjoyed this book a lot, although it was a bit of a let down based on all the hype about the book. For me it dragged at times, but overall a really good book, and I loved how it was tied up in the end.

The Young Will Remember - Eve J. Chung - historical fiction - five stars - Ellie Chang is a Chinese-American war correspondent during the Korean war. The medical evacuation flight she is on goes down in enemy territory, and she survives after a Korean woman claims her as her long lost daughter. Ellie goes with 'Emma' staying with a Korean pastor and his family. As Ellie tries to make it back to the Americans, bombing intensifies. She and her rescuers make the decision to head south to flee the bombing and give Ellie a chance to get home. I haven't read much about the Korean war, and I really liked the characters. Excellent read.

It's really hard to pick a favorite this month, the five stars were all equally good. Least favorite was Pollock's Last Lover. What have you guys been reading?

June 2026 in Books

There were a couple of highs this month, but overall not the best reading month. Recaps below:

Lady Tremaine - Rachel Hochhauser - fiction - five stars - This is a reimagining of the Cinderella story from the persepctive of the evil stepmother. I really enjoed this. First off the stepmother is not evil, and the prince is not a prince. I had a bit of an issue with Cinderella/Elin who was so annoying and unlikeable until the very end. I feel like the author overdid it a bit there, but besides that I really enjoyed hearing about Lady Tremaine's background and seeing her struggles. I also liked that the book kept me guessing a bit. There were a few places where I felt like I knew where the story was going and those things didn't happen. Strong read.

The Program: Inside the Mind of Keith Raniere and the Rise and Fall of NXIVM - Toni Natalie - memoir - four stars -  This was my audiobook of the month. Natalie became involved with Raniere before NXIVM was a thing, back when he was running a simple multi-level marketing scheme. She upended her life, left her husband, and they became a family, or so she thought. When NXIVM began, she continued to be involved, but eventually left. Thus began years of harassment and law suits that did not end until years later when Raniere was convicted. It was interesting to listen to how Raniere's schemes evolved and grew, and how he dealt with those who left. 

This Is Not About Us - Allegra Goodman - three stars - The story starts with the death of Sylvia and Helen's sister. In the aftermath, a very trivial slight is blown out of proportion, and the sisters basically refuse to interact with one another from that point forward. Each chapter of the book is told from the viewpoint of a different person in the family. In that sense, some of the chapters I really enjoyed, others were just so so. It was an interesting way to write a book/tell a story, but at the end of the day, this book left me wanting in terms of estrangement between the sisters. Just OK.

A Fortune of Sand - Ruta Sepetys - historical fiction - three stars - This was another book that was disappointing because I always have such high expectation of the author. The story is about Marjorie Lennox, youngest daughter of a wealthy Detroit family involved in the auto industry. The family is just a mess. In the midst of this, Marjorie is accepted into an atistic fellowship which will allow here to explore her passion for fashion design. Turns out that the fellowship is not all that it seems, and her family is even more messed up than she thinks. This was another book where the plot did not feel fully fleshed out. It was a bit of a jumble, and could have done with some editing. I thought that the story was both outlandish and trite. 

Seek Immediate Shelter - Vincent Yu - two stars - This was a weird one for me. The premise was interesting. An emergency announcement goes out about an immediate missile threat and that everyone should take shelter. Each chapter in the book follows the reaction and aftermath from the perspective of different individuals who are all tangentially related. Some of the chapters/stories were stronger than others, but overall I found only one who I actually liked. The rest I was just not a fan of as characters which really colored the book for me.

The Calamity Club - Kathryn Stockett - fiction - five stars - Loved this one. Set during the Great Depression, it follows the stories of Birdie, who is dispatched to her sister Frannie's home. Frannie married up, and Birdie's mother and grandmother are in desperate straits. They owe back taxes on their home and are sending Birdie to ask Frannie for a loan. Meg's mother went out to get something just before Christmas a couple years ago and never came back. She's been stuck in an orphan home since then, and it's a pretty miserable experience. The woman in charge of the orphanage seems to have singled her out for 'special' treatment. Birdie befriends Meg when volunteering at the orphanage during her visit, and the two form a bond. When Meg's mother Charlier reappears, and Frannie's life starts to fall apart, schemes are hatched to get everyone out of the jam that they are in. Such a good read, the characters are really wonderful, and I loved how this all came together.

The Queen's Coronation - Jennifer Ryan - historical fiction - three stars - I generally really love Ryan's books, so this one was a bit of a disappointment. It follows several women working for the royal family in the lead-up to the coronation of Elizabeth II. Themes of friendship, loss, betrayal, etc. In general, I felt like the characters were a bit thin and the plot under developed. It was OK, but left me wanting.

The Sunset Years of Agnes Sharp (Miss Sharp Investigates, #1) - Leonie Swann - detective - two stars - Agnes Sharp runs a sort of a commune with a bunch of old folks living in her home. It's almost like a retirement home run by the retirees. When one of them turns up dead, and then two other elderly in the nearby town do as well, the police think there might be a serial killer targeting seniors on the loose. A murder mystery involving a bunch of quirky old people sounded like fun, but it really wasn't. The quirky old people were just too quirky I guess. I thought the plot didn't move quickly enough, and was very predictable. This is the first in a series, and I'm definitely not planning to read any more of these.

My favorite this month was The Calamity Club, least favorite is really a toss-up between Seek Immediate Shelter and Agnes Sharp. Both were equally bad, don't read those. So far July is looking up though. I hope to have better news/reviews for you next month. Please share what you guys have been reading!

May 2026 in Books

Better late than never right? Finally getting around to sharing last month's books. It was just a so so reading month for me. No total losers, but no big sinners either, and in general a little bit of a disapoinment just because I had really high expectations for a few of these.

Mad Mabel - Sally Hepworth - fiction - five stars - Elsie is a grumpy old lady who lives a relatively solitary life until a nosy, persistent little girl moves in next door. When the little girl notices that one of their neighbors hasn't brought in the mail in days, she convinces Elsie to go over to investigate. Elsie finds the neighbor dead, the police are called. While this should be an open and shut case, turns out that Elsie has a past and things start to get complicated. The book shifts between the past and present as we learn about Elsie's past, and how things connect to the present. There were a couple of twists that I did not expect. There were also some storylines that I wasn't crazy about, but overall it was a really good book that kept my interest.

Life: A Love Story- Elizabeth Berg - fiction - four stars - I probably had expectations that were a little too high for this book as I am a huge Arthur Truluv fan and have loved those books. This was a solid book, but didn't quite hit that high expectation. Florence Green is dying, and is planning to leave her home to Ruthie, a girl who grew up in the neighborhood who became like a daughter to her. She is writing a letter to Ruthie telling her about all of the special things in her home, the stories about them which are stories of her life. She is also trying to encourage Ruthie not to give up on her marriage as she tells her about the flaws in her own marriage. Florence also spends some of her last days making friends with and helping friends and neighbors. I thought that some of the anecdotes about the things in her home dragged a bit in places, but overall a really sweet story.

Boat Baby: A Memoir - Vicky Nguyen - memoir - four stars - Nguyen is an NBC news anchor/correspondent. This book tells the story of her family's flight from Vietnam, settling in the US, and her career journey. This is a really interesting life story, but the weird thing to me was that the writing seemed so plain and basic. I felt like some chapters sounded like a high school writing project. I really feel like it was a lot of facts and not a lot of emotion or character. It really felt like there was something lacking here.

Ape Escape (FunJungle #10) - Stuart Gibbs - juvenile detective - four stars - In this FunJungle book, Teddy and his parents head to Rwanda for the memorial service of an old friend. It turns out the old friend isn't actually dead, he is in hiding trying to catch poachers. When the poachers snatch a baby gorilla, Teddy and his parents and friend spring into action. Meanwhile, back in Texas, Summer has a case of her own. These are always fun to read.

The Last Woman of Warsaw - Judy Batalion - historical fiction - three stars - Fanny Zelshinsky, is the daughter of a well-to-do Jewish family in Warsaw. While engaged to be married, what she really wants to do is pursue a degree and career in photography. Her life becomes intertwined with that of Zosia, a Zionist from the country who has come to Warsaw to make a name for herself in the movement and hopefully secure a ticket to Israel. The book is an imagined riff on the life of the author's grandmother, but it just did not hang together particularly well for me. I wasn't crazy about the whole storyline about the wedding and Fanny's mother, some of the other pieces seemed too unlikely. Average. 

Once and Again - Rebecca Serle - fiction - three stars - I've really enjoyed Serle's earlier books, but the last one (One Italian Summer) and this one were just so so for me. In part, I feel like this plot has been overdone. Lauren comes from a family of women who get one take back in life. They can redo once instance, which colors their life forever Lauren's mom saved her father's life many years ago, and now watches him like a hawk to make sure he stays safe. Lauren is spending the summer with her parents at their place while she and her husband sublet their place. They are trying to save money while her husband is working in NY for a few months. This amid some tension over fertility treatments. Meanwhile, her high school boyfriend is also in town staying with his mother who is dying of cancer. In general, There was one big twist in the book that I definitely did not anticipate, which I thought was quite good, but I had a hard time with Lauren and her choices. Just so so.

The Traitors Circle - Jonathan Freedland - non-fiction - three stars - The story of a group of well-to-do Germans, some titled, who worked to undermine Hitler during WWII. The group was infiltrated during the war, many were sent do prison/concentration camps, others were executed. It's an interesting story, but was kind of a plodding read. Just OK.

Since it was just a so so month, I'm not going to pick best and worst. Hoping that I have some books in my pile now that are five stars. What have you guys been reading?

April 2026 in Books

This was a pretty good reading month. Some really excellent books, although one total dud. Here are the recaps:

Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI - David Grann - non-fiction - five stars - This was my Spotify Audiobook for the month. This has been on my TBR for quite a while. It's about the Osage murders in Oklahoma. The Osage were once some of the wealthiest in the nation due to the oil beneath their land, and the fact that those mineral rights could not be sold. Then, the people started dying. The newly established FBI investigated, prosecuted, and convicted a group of individuals who plotted to wipe out the family of Mollie Kyle in order to obtain their lands. The book traces how Mollie's family was targeted as well as the efforts to bring the killers to justice. The book goes beyond those convictions to investigate the fact that these plots were widespread and that many more Osage families had been targeted. There are an abundance of unexplained/unsolved deaths. Great book, and now I'm ready to watch the movie.

Julie Chan is Dead - Liann Zhang - fiction - two stars - This one started off with an interesting premise. Chloe and her twin Julie are separated as children when their parents are killed in a car accident. Julie is adopted by a wealthy couple and Chloe goes to live with an aunt because there is nowhere else to go. Julie's life is charmed and she is now a major influencer, while Chloe works a clerk in a grocery store. When Chloe gets a strange phone call from Julie, she goes to investigate and finds her sister dead. She somewhat accidentally assumes her identity and starts to live a very different life. At this point, the story was interesting, and I was curious to see what would happen, but then the book just went off the rails. And I mean, really off the rails. It just got so wacky, and really was not worth the time.

This Is a Love Story - Jessica Soffer - fiction - three stars - Jane, an artist, is dying, and she and her husband Abe, a writer, spend her last days reminiscing about their lives, much of which revolves around Central Park in NY. This book was frustrating to me. Mostly because I just did not like Jane. While she did deal with post-partum depression, she just seemed so selfish, and a terrible mother. The parent/child relationship just really colored this one for me.

The Secret Lives of Murderers' Wives - Elizabeth Arnott - mystery - five stars - Beverley, Elsie, and Margot are all wives of convicted serial killers. It's unclear how they found one another, but they are now friends and support one another in their post-marital lives. They are also somewhat fixated by serial killers, and how to stop them. When it appears that another serial killer has emerged, they try to solve the case. The storyline is a little far fetched, but there are definitely a few twists that I did not anticipate, and at the end of the day, I really liked the characters. Good, quick read.

This Book Made Me Think of You - Libby Page - fiction - five stars - Books about books hold a soft space in my heart, and this was a good one. It's Tilly's birthday, but she doesn't feel much like celebrating. Her husband Joe died las year, and she's just surviving. Then she receives a phone call from a local bookstore. It turns out that when Joe knew he was not going to beat his illness, he gifted Tilly with a year of books. She is to show up at the store each month, where she receives a book and a note from him. The books help her to grieve and heal, and learn to live again. In addition, she finds a new family in the bookstore, and work on her relationship with her sister as well. A happy read that leaves you smiling.

This Is Where the Serpent Lives - Daniyal Mueenuddin - fiction - three stars - This book was pretty frustrating. It is broken up into four parts where you learn the backstory of characters whose lives intertwine in the final part. I thought the initial parts were pretty good. It starts around 1955 and continues to present day Pakistan. The book focuses on the differences between the very well-to-do in Pakistan and the not to well off. In many ways Pakistan still functions as a feudal society, with wealthy families living almost like British nobility back in the day, having  farm/homestead/palace in the country as well as residences in the city. The book focuses on how that rural society still very much functions as it did decades ago, corruption is rampant, every so often you need to bring in some muscle to enforce the rules, etc. In general, the book kind of seemed pointless to me. It was a lot of pages to learn that life is still the same in Pakistan, you can't escape corruption, and there's little hope to better yourself. Meh.

The Correspondent - Virginia Evans - fiction - five stars - This was such a good book, and a great way to end the month. Sybil Van Antwerp is socially awkward. She much prefers to write letters to people, living through those missive rather than interact with them in person. The book is all letters from to and from Sybil, and through them we learn about her troubled relationships with others, her career as a very successful clerk for a judge, as a somewhat inadequate mother, as a friend/neighbor, and as an avid reader. Evans did an amazing job developing Sybil's character through the letters and you can see how she struggled to break out of the tightly crafted world she created for herself as she started to decline, and embrace real in-person relationships. Such a good read.

My favorite this month was Definitely The Correspondent and the least favorite was ulie Chan is Dead. I do feel like I've been reading a lot of books about old people dying lately. I'm not sure if it's partly because I'm dealing with aging parents, and have been gravitating towards those types of books, but I am feeling like I need to mix things up a bit. Would love to know what you guys have been reading!

February 2026 in Books

This was a slow reading month for me. Just a lot going on I guess combined with some books that were only so so. Recaps are below:

Bad Bad Girl - Gish Jen - historical fiction - five stars - Really loved this one. It's anautobiographical novel about her mother's life as well as, later, hers. Jen's mother grows up in a well to do Shanghai family, she leaves China to study in the US just as the Nationalist government is failing and ends up staying in the US. Jen's mother was the rebellious daughter, her father's favorite and her mother's least favorite. Much of the book focuses on the dysfuncitonal relationship b etween mother and daughter. That dysfunction is repeated in the relationship she has with her daughter, Jen. As a first generation Chinese American, many of Jen's experiences resonated with me, although thankfully, not the dysfunctional piece. Great read.

My Beloved (Mitford Years, #15) - Jan Karon - fiction - five stars - It's been quite a while since Karon wrote a Mitford book, and it was lovely to rediscover all these characters. Everyone is older. Father Tim is fully retired now, Dooley and Lace well into their marriage and careers, older folks are aging, retiring, etc. There was nothing groundshaking/earth shattering in this book, but just a fun check-in with the folks in Mitford. Left me smiling.

The Book of Lost Hours - Hayley Gelfuso - science fiction - four stars - Three and a half stars rounded up. This was an interesting premise. Kind of a historic fiction science fiction mash up. The idea is that there is a 'time place' that is accessed by using special watches. Whenever someone dies, their memories are collected and appear in a book in this time place. Countries with the technology/watches allowing them to access the time space destroy selcted memories to suit their needs/propaganda. Honestly, that idea/piece of the story was kind of weak. My practical mind didn't really get how destroying memories in the time space actually adversely/positively affected people in the real world. In any case, during Kristallnacht, a Jewish watchmaker hides his daughter in the time space to save her, and she becomes trapped there. In the time space she learns how to travel into memories, and also hide from the different timekeepers. Years later, following the war, the US/CIA is now trying to control the time space, there is animosity with the Russian timekeepers, but also a group of resistance timekeepers. Honestly, this just kind of gets messy and doesn't tie together well from a making sense kind of perspective. If you are able to let go of that part, it's a decent read, but at the end of the day it had too many holes for me to be able to really enjoy it.

The Tell: A Memoir - Amy Griffin - memoir - three stars - I have really mixed feelings about this book. I listened to it on Spotify, and I can't tell if that made me like it more or less. Griffin was abused as a child, but she has no memory of this. She just senses that she is running from something/hiding something. Eventually, her husband encourages her to undergo an MDMA counseling session, something that has helped him. When she does this, it all comes back to her. The book then transitions to her trying to decide what to do with this knowledge and then trying to get justice. Honestly, I struggle with the whole idea that you could have something that traumatic so hidden for so long, and that the only way you remember is through MDMA. I guess as a person who likes proof/verifiable information, I have a hard time with this book because while I want to believe, there is just nothing corroborating. It also doesn't help that the woman is generally somewhat annoying.

The Last of Earth - Deepa Anappara - historical fiction - two stars - This was two and a half stars, normally I round that up, but this book was just frustrating and I rounded down instead. It follows two individuals trying to get to Tibet in 1869, a time in which the country is closed to foreigners. Those caught inside are executed or deported, and those whole help them are killed or enslaved. Balram, an Indian surveyor, is helping a British Captain map the Tsangpo river, while Katherine, and English woman/explorer is trying to become the first European woman to reach the city of Lhasa. Balram's motives are to rescue his frien Gyun who he believes is imprisoned in Tibet after having been accused of being a spy. Katherin is trying to prove herself after having been rejected by the Royal Geographical Society. Overall I liked Katherine's story better, and the relationship she developed with her guide Mani. Balram just seemed completely lost and incapable at times, but in general the characters were mostly annoying and the book itself seemed somewhat pointless.

Favorite book this month was Bad Bad Girl, and least favorite was The Last of Earth. I'm hoping I can pick up the pace in March, and have a decent pile going. What have you guys been reading?

January 2026 in Books

Not as many books as I was hoping to finish this month, but a really good mix of subjects and genres. Check them out:

Family of Spies - Christine Kuehn - nonfiction - five stars - This was a really interesting book. When a screenwriter contacted Kuehn about her family's story, she was horrified to learn that her grandparents and aunt/uncles were Nazi spies/supporters. It takes her. many years to want to research and then get the full story of her family. They were recruited in Germany to work with/for the Japanese, and then sent to Hawaii, where they played a key role in gathering intelligence for the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. The crazy thing is that they really were not punished for their roles in the attack, ended up just getting deported back to Germany. Also sadly Kuehn's father, who was born in the US and had no knowledge of his parents and siblings activities essentially lost his family. He served for the US during the war, and held onto the secret until very late in life when confronted by his daughter.

The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern - Lynda Cohen Loigman - fiction - five stars - Augusta Stern has finally retired and moved to a retirement community in Florida. Who else lives there? Irving Rivkin, the boy who broke her heart years ago. The book jumps back and forth between the past and the present as you find out what went wrong all those years ago. It's a really cute story and I loved all the characters. Quick, fun read.

Yes Please - Amy Poehler - memoir - five stars - This was my audiobook for the month. It was a fun, listen/read. I really enjoy Poehler, and her wit comes through in the audiobook which she narrates, along with some audio cameos from others in the business. It was interesting to hear how Poehler started out, and all the other things she has done. I was really only familiar with her television career, so the other stuff was pretty interesting. Comedy is apparently a pretty collegial/small world, so it was interesting to see how her life/career has intersected with others. I definitely recommend listening to this one vs reading.

Buckeye - Patrick Ryan - fiction - four stars - There was so much hype around this book that maybe I had unrealistic expectations for it. It was good, but not as amazing as I had expected. It's the story of Cal and Becky as well as their complicated relationship with Margaret and Felix and the couples' sons. The storyline follows them from childhood to adulthood/death. I found the book compelling as a read, moved through it quickly and it kept my attention, I just didn't really like the characters. This was one of those books where I got annoyed with them all, what they were and were not doing. 

The Mademoiselle Alliance - Natasha Lester - historical fiction - five stars - The story of Marie-Madeleine Fourcade who ran the Alliance resistance network in France during WWII. It's a pretty amazing story. Fourcade took over Alliance network when the original leaders were caught. Alliance was working with MI6, and she was known to them initially only by her code name. Her gender was not revealed to them until she took one of the full moon flights back to Britain to strategize with them. While extremely inspiring, it's also extremely sad because of so many of the agents that you get to know in the book did not survive the war. Highly recommend.

We Are Legion (We Are Bob) (Bobiverse, #1) - Dennis E. Taylor - science fiction - four stars - I hadn't read a science fiction book in a while, and this one got really good reviews, so I thought I would try it, and I'm glad I did. It's about an extremely smart guy named Bob who has contracted for his brain/'corpsicle' to be preserved after he dies so he can essentially be brought back to life once they have figured out the tech to do that. A hundred years later, he wakes up to find that a lot has changed in the world. There are different countries/powers, and corpsicles no longer have rights. He's essentially been put into an interstellar probe looking for other habitable planets since the word is basically dying. He has the ability to reproduce/clone himself, so soon there are lots of different Bobs exploring the universe. There are also other probes from other countries too, and most of them are not friendly. It's a very clever premise. I really liked Bob as well as his clones and the differences between them. This dragged a little bit in a few places, so a four, but definitely looking forward to reading the rest of this series.

Favorites this month were The Mademoiselle Alliance and The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern. What have you guys been reading?

December 2025 in Books

Twice - Mitch Albom - fiction - five stars - I love all of Albom's books and this was another great one.  Alfie has the ability to go back and change his story, he can live any moment again, but there are some restrictions. He can only go to that one moment twice, if he loses love, he cannot regain it, and he cannot stop death. The story is told at the end of Alfie's life as he recounts the mistakes he has made and the things he has changed. Alfie's greatest regret is that he had love and lost it, and has now lived a second life doing all in his power to fix as much as possible for the one he loves. Both sweet and bittersweet, loved it.

The Menu of Happiness (Kamogawa Food Detectives, #3) - Hisashi Kashiwai - fiction - five stars - I really enjoy these books. They are a great palette cleaners. They won't ever knock your socks off, but these books just leave you happy and smiling. The Kamogawas run a restaurant as well as a detective agency. You can come here and ask the chef to locate/prepare a dish you had once. The catch in the stories is that there is always a reason someone wants a dish a second time, a haunting memory that requires some amount of closure. I thought this set of stories was particularly good, and I really enjoyed how the Kamogawas were able to help each of their clients.

Patriot: A Memoir - Alexei Navalny - memoir - five stars - This was one I listened based on a recommendation from a friend. It was excellent. While I knew who Navalny was and that he was a political foe of Putin, I did not have a deep understanding of Russian politics and what Navalny's party/organization was doing. This provided a good overview of how he got involved with politics. Much of the book is focused on his poisoning, reovery, and then return to Russia and incarceration. What really struck me about all this is that Navalny knew that when he returned to Russia he would eventually be arrested, and that he would never leave jail, at least not while Putin was in power. I think he expected to grow old there and die, and not be poisoned in jail, but he went back knowingly and willingly because he loved his country and believed that this is how he would affect change. Highly recommend.

Mailman: My Wild Ride Delivering the Mail in Appalachia and Finally Finding Home - Stephen Starring Grant - memoir - four stars - This was a good read. Grant is an executive who loses his job when COVID hits. In order to maintain health insurance and make ends meet, he signs up to be a rural mail carrier. This was a really interesting description of what the job of a mailman requires, it's a lot of hard work. I really enjoyed reading about the mail parts of things, the training, his co-workers, different stops along his route, weird things he's delivered, etc. Less interesting to me were his general musings/commentary of politics etc. which is why this isn't a five star review. Still, definitely worth the read.

Shopgirls - Jessica Anya Blau - fiction - four stars - Zippy is 19 and was just hired to be a shopgirl at I Magnin, a fancy department store in San Francisco. She has recently also moved in with Raquel, who is a new lawyer and several years older than her, but they have become best friends. Zippy loves her job and is good at it, although not everyone at I Magnin is friendly. In addition, she is navigating family issues and just being out on her own for the first time. I really enjoyed the charater of Zippy, she is naive, kind, genuine. I felt like the story was a little underdeveloped, but the characters made it work for me.

Bright Young Women - Jessica Knoll - fiction - four stars - This book is loosely inspired by the Ted Bundy case. Pamela, president of her sorority, is also the sole witness to an attack at the sorority which leaves two girls, including her best friend, dead, and two others badly injured. The police bungle the case, focusing on an ex-boyfriend. Then a woman name Tina arrives. She is convinced that this is the work of a serial killer, the same man who murdered her best friend/lover. Pamela and Tina team up to take down the real killer. The book just back and forth between the present and years before when Tina's fiend, Ruth, was killed. Knoll does an excellent job creating the characters, and making the reader frustrated with the ineptitude of the authorities which allowed the serial killer/Ted Bundy, to excape custody multiple times.

Blue Christmas (Weezie and Bebe Mysteries, #3) - Mary Kay Andrews - fiction - three stars - I usually love Andrews' books, but this one was just OK for me. This is a short little novelette that focuses on Weezie, a character from two previous books. I think the issue for me was that the plot was just kind of thin, and I knew where it was going early on. It either needed a better storyline to make it longer, or it should have been much shorter. I still do like the characters, but story itself was just meh.

The Mighty Red - Louise Erdrich - fiction - three stars - This one was kind of weird. Kismet Poe is the object of affection for two boys. Gary, who is convinced that if Kismet marries him, all will be well and she will save him, and Hugo, Kismet's best friend and the one she actually does love. Meanwhile Kismet's father has disappeared and along with him, seemingly, the church's refurbishment fund.Kismet does marry Gary, but it's not a true marriage, and Hugo sets off to make his fortune and rescue Kismet from the marriage. This book was frustrating to me. It seemed like a bunch of people making ridiculous stupid decisions. On the up side, Erdrich is pretty good at creating characters and you are rooting for them. Despite the weak storyline, I wanted to know what happened, and I did like many of the characters. 

November 2025 in Books

This month's reading was not great. I got bogged down in some very long and not so good books which made me not feel like reading them which really hurt my book production. I almost never give up on a book, and this year I've now done it twice! Here are the reviews:

The Emperor of Gladness - Ocean Vuong - fiction - three stars - This one had so much hype to it, and I was really disappointed. Probably closer to two and a half stars rounded up. Hai, a nineteen year old is about to jump from a bridge, when Granzina, a widow who is starting to slide into dementia sees him and stops him. Hai moves in with Granzina and they help each other. Everyone in this book is dysfunctional. It's hard to find someone that you truly like, I suppose Granzina came the closest for me. But it was the relationships that saved the book for me. That there were decent relationships and people could still help each other despite all their dysfunction. Still, it was a long book, and there were a lot of parts where I really struggled to get through it. Not sure I would have picked it up if I knew what was in store.

In the Time of Five Pumpkins (No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency #26) - Alexander McCall Smith - detective - four stars - Another solid Mma Ramotswe story, this time investigating a couple whose stories don't align, as well as a man who has befriended Mr. JLB Matekoni. I always enjoy these books, they don't immediately grab your attention, or demand you finish them in one sitting. It's more like a conversation, finding out what's going on with an old friend. I appreciate the character of Mma Ramotswe, and she never disappoints.

Hot Wax - M. L. Rio - fiction - two stars - Another disappointing book. Reading the description, I thought this might be along the lines of Daisy Jones and the Six, and it was not. Suzanne's father, Gil, a famous rocker has just died. He leaves her his old car and a bunch of stuff, and she is now planning to drive across the country to find his partner to figure out what happened. Along the way, she meets up with a couple and they travel together. The story bounces between the present, and the last summer she really spent with her dad which ended in disaster. The general plot would be OK if it were not for the fact that present Suzanne is wholly unlikeable. Also, you throw in the fact that she has left her husband who is apparently a lunatic (this part o the storyline was entirely superfluous and frankly somewhat ridiculous). Just a hot mess of a book that I kept thinking would get better and never did.

The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny - Kiran Desai - fiction - one star - Did not finish. It used to be that I would never not finish a book. I'd stick it out to the end even if I wasn't enjoying it, but this is now the second book this year where I did not finish. I guess in my middle age I've decided it's not worth wasting precious reading time with a loser of a book anymore. I was honestly surprised about this one, it's gotten all sorts of rave reviews from people, but I just hated it. It's described as an epic tale of love about two immigrants. The book is over 600 pages, which I honestly don't mind, I love long books, but after slogging through 200 pages with no redeeming character in sight, and where the two protagonists have not yet even met, I gave up. Not worth the time, and too many characters I just hated.

Exiles - Mason Coile - science fiction - five stars - This was a fast-paced read that kept you guessing. The human colonists reach Mars. They are the first humans sent to live there, although there was an advance team of three robots sent beforehand to construct and set up their home. When they get there, the base is in disarray, one of the robots is missing, the other two seem to be hiding something. I thought this was realy interesting, and it kept me guessing. Lots of twists, and very few of them did I see coming. Will definitely try more from this author.

A Murder for Miss Hortense - Mel Pennant - detective - four stars - Three and a half stars rounded up. Miss Hortense is a retired nurse who was once part of a community 'Pardner' which is a community based savings/lending arrangement common in Jamaica. Everyone puts in a certain amount of money, and they pass that amount around to different people over the course of time...they are essenetially borrowing against one another's funds. Years ago, Miss Hortense was part of this group, they did a lot for their Jamaican community in England, purchasing a community center and such. There was a falling out, and she left the Pardner, but now the murder of a Pardner member has drawn her back into the circle, and she starts to investigate. It did take me a while to get used to the Jamaican slang/conversation in the book, but it was interesting. There are a lot of characters to keep track of and a number of twists, but overall a decent first book from this author. There is a sequel in the works that I will definitely check out.

Obviously my last favorite this month was the Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny, and favorite was Exiles. Exiles was a good book, but in any normal month it would likely not have been my favorite for the month, this month was just bad. Hoping that I'll be able to end the year on a good note! What have you guys been reading?

October 2025 in Books

This was a really good reading month, some excellent books and a nice mix of genres.

The Amalfi Curse - Sara Penner - historical fiction - three stars - This one was a bit of a disappointment. Haven Ambrose is a nautical archaeologist like her father. He recently died, but told her about a treasure he had discovered, but didn't have a chance to go back for. She is in Positano to disover/retrieve it. While there, she meets a man, but also discovers some women who appear to be able to control the waters in the area. This is a dual timeline story, and fell flat for me. I was much more interested in the historical story, the present day timeline didn't hold my interest as much.

Under the Stars - Beatriz Williams - fiction - five stars - Audrey Fisher's mom is a famous movie star who has just completed rehab and needs to stay sober until her next movie starts filming. Audrey, whose husband has just just cleaned out their bank accounts and disappeared is the lucky individual who gets to chaperone her mom until then. They head to the old family home on Winthrop Island. There, Audrey reconnects with her father, and discovers a trunk that contains a key to her past. The book alternates between current day, Audrey's Mom's story, and the story of Providence Dare, a woman who shipwrecked on the island in the 1840's. I really enjoyed Williams' previous book Husbands and Lovers, and an added bonus is that here are some characters from that book that appear in this one as well.

The Elements (The Elements, #1-4) - John Boyne - fiction - five stars - This is an excellent book, but covers the difficult subject of abuse. It consists of four novellettes which are indirectly related. Boyne does an excellent job creating complex characters and tackles the subject with great care and finesse. You see the effects and results of abuse from the perspectives of indirect victims, direct victims, and abuser. This one took a while to get through, but well worth it. 

Bright Lights, Big Christmas - Mary Kay Andrews - fiction - five stars - I really enjoy Andrews' books, and this was a quick fun read. Kerry Tolliver's family owns a tree farm, and each year they set up a stand in NYC. This year, Kerry's Dad can't go due to health issues, so she's coopted into helping her brother at the stand. There she meets a variety of regulars and friends the family has made over the years, and of course meets a special someone. Sweet Christmas story.

Daughters of the Bamboo Grove: From China to America, a True Story of Abduction, Adoption, and Separated Twins - Barbara Demick - nonfiction - four stars - I was really interested in the story behind this book. It's about twins who were separated when one twin was taken by the Chinese Family Planning group after their parents broke the rules of the One Child Policy too many times. The book uncovers the truth about child abductions under the guise of enforcing the One Child Policy, which fueled an international adoption business. Demick overlays the story of this particular family with reporting about the system and historical context. My interest was mostly in the story of the family, which I found fascinating. I would have liked to have had more of that aspect, but the other pieces provided really interesting background as well.

The Lies They Told - Ellen Marie Wiseman - historical fiction - four stars - An interesting read following the previous book. This tells the story of Lena, who emigrates to the US from Germany for a better life. She goes to work for a distant cousin, Silas, helping him care for his children in the Shenandoah. Unfortunately, the government of Virginia is trying to take away Silas' land. They want to create a park, and are forcing out Appalachians who have lived on the land for generations by deeming them unfit, immoral, and backwards with the help of the Eugenics Office. Lena finds herself institutionalized, separated from her daughter as well as Silas' children. When she is finally released, she learns the children have all be adopted into better homes. A look at an appalling part of history. 

Life in Two Worlds: A Coach's Journey from the Reserve to the NHL and Back - Ted Nolan - Autobiography - four stars - I was a big fan of Ted Nolan when he coached the Sabres and thought it somewhat crazy that they let him go after winning the coach of the year award. I also thought it odd that he really didn't coach much after that. Nolan tells his story here. I thought his playing career was really interesting, he had to overcome a lot to even get into the NHL, and had a career shortened by injury. I enjoyed hearing about his coaching philosophy, and the connections he made with players. Of coruse ther eare two sides to every story, but it seemed like he provided a pretty fair explanation of his experiences as a coach. I do think that it's too bad others didn't take a chance on him. He would have been a far better coach for the Caps than Bruce Cassidy was.

When the Cranes Fly South - Lisa Ridzén - fiction - five stars - This was a fantastic book, but a total tearjerker. It's about Bo, whose wife has dementia and is living in a facility. Meanwhile, his health is failing. He lives at home with his dog Sixten, and is helped by a variety of caregivers as well as his son Hans. The story is told by Bo interspersed with the notes that the caregivers leave one another as to his status during each visit. It's a short read, but really gets you. Must read, but be prepared.

Favorite this month was When the Cranes Fly South, and least favorite was The Amalfi Curse. I've got a whole bunch of hold books that just showed up, so I've got a lot of reading work to do this month. What have you guys been reading?

September 2025 in Books

This was an OK month of reading.  I was able to get a lot of books in, and some pretty good ones, although no five star ratings this month.  Here are the recaps:

The Broken Circle: A Memoir of Escaping Afghanistan - Enjeela Ahmadi-Miller - memoir - four stars - The book tells the story of Ahmadi-Miller's flight from Afghanistan following the Russian invasion/Afghan Civil War. Ahmadi-Miller's family was well to do and worked with the British. She tells about life prior to the Russians and how it changed. Her mother left before things got very bad for. medical treatment, and Ahmadi-Miller and her remaining siblings were smuggled out after. Their journey out of Afghanistan was one thing, but then there was a bit of purgatory as they waited to be able to join her mother due to a lack of travel documentation/passports. Very good read.

David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants - Malcolm Gladwell - nonfiction - four stars - I listened to this one on Spotify. In this book Gladwell discusses underdogs and what actually makes them special. This was a book about embracing your challenges, and that to do so often leads to great success. For example, many of successful entrepreneurs are dyslexic. Gladwell posits that they succeeded not in spite of, but because of this challenge. That it forced them to behave differently and act differently. Another really interesting premise and I enjoyed the different examples Gladwell provided.

Jane and Dan at the End of the World - Colleen Oakley - fiction - three stars - This was a cute book. Not bad at all, but not necessarily particularly substantive. A really good palate cleanser. Jane and Dan are at the fanciest restaurant in CA for their 19th anniversary meal. Everything goes awry when Jane tells Dan she wants a divorce...she saw some texts on his phone...and Dan tries to explain that she misunderstood, but then chaos ensues. Terrorists take over the restaurant. This is kind of a cute mid-life crisis story with some interesting twists and turns. Quick fun read.

The Homemade God - Rachel Joyce - fiction - one star - I rarely drop books halfway through, they have to be really bad, and this one was. It's about the children of Vic Kemp, a famous artist who dies shortly after. marrying a much younger woman the kids suspect was just after his money. At heart it's about the relationship the kids have with their father and apparently breaking away from it, but the kids are so annoying, it's a whole lot of introspection of ridiculous people, none of which you like for them to just discover he was a bad father. Waste of time.

L.A. Women - Ella Berman - fiction - three stars - The story of two women in LA whose lives intersect. They are at the same time friends, rivals, muses, encouragers, but their lives take on very different trajectories. The story is told looking back as Lane is trying to discover what happened to Gala who has disappeared. I feel like the story was searching for a strong storyline/thread. Some parts really had me looking forward to what came next, and other parts just fell flat. Add to this that neither of the main characters was particularly sympathetic, and you get a book that is just OK.

With a Vengeance - Riley Sager - detective - three stars - A murder mystery. Anna Matheson has assembled all those she hold responsible for the destruction of her family on the very train/railway that was taken from her family. Her plan is to turn them all over to the FBI at the conclusion of the ride, but things go wrong as the passengers start to die. It was an interesting premise and I think it could have been very good, but it was overly twisty. It was a little bit of a whiplash effect. I love a good twist or two, but at some point it got to be too much and took away from the impact of what could have been.

Ten Incarnations of Rebellion - Vaishnavi Patel - fiction - three stars - This one definitely did not live up to my expectations. I really enjoyed Patel's earlier books, retellings of Indian mythology. This one was very different. It imagines that India never achieved freedom from Britain and the society that emerged. It's a revolution story, but just wasn't as well developed as I thought it should be. A really interesting premise, and flashes of excellence, but whereas a lot of times I think books should be shorter, this one I think needed more fleshing out.

The Maid's Secret (Molly the Maid, #3) - Nita Prose - detective - four stars - Another Molly the Maid story. This one focuses a lot on Molly's Gran's backstory, told in a journal/diary that she leaves for Molly. The book is given to her against the backdrop of some more upheaval at the Regency Grand. An Antiques Roadshow type production is taping a show there, and the staff have been invited to bring items for appraisal before the actual taping starts. When Molly's item is discovered to be worth millions, things get a little crazy. Fun read.

Wild Dark Shore - Charlotte McConaghy - fiction - four stars - Dominic Salt and his children are caretakers at a remote island which houses a seed bank to help repopulate the world with plants. In this dystopian story, the world is changing, sea levels are rising, the island is no longer stable and the seeds must be moved. As the Salts prepare to move the seeds, a mysterious woman, Rowan, washes onto shore. She is searching for something, and they are wondering what her motives are. This was a good one, I enjoyed how the characters and relationships developed, excellent storytelling.

Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly - Anthony Bourdain - nonfiction - four stars - I listened to this one on Spotify (biographies/memoirs are some of my favorite books to listen to). This covers Bourdain's early years, how he started as a chef, where he trained, etc. It's fascinating to hear about how restaurants get started, the things that go on in the kitchen, etc. This focuses on Bourdain's pre-television years. A really interesting read. There was one part that stuck out in particular, when Bourdain discusses the suicide of a sous chef. Really interesting book.

Isabella's Not Dead - Beth Morrey - fiction - three stars - Another disappointment. Years ago Gwen lost contact with her best friend Isabella. She decides she wants to reconnect and goes about trying to locate her, unfortunately Isabella has cut ties for a reason and is not easy to find. I thought this could have been interesting, but at the end of the day the reason and conclusion of the reason why Isabella left just seemed a little ridiculous to me.  Meh.

It's hard to pick a favorite this month. There isn't a book that clearly stood out.  The Handmade God was definitely my least favorite. Any five star reads for you guys?

August 2025 in Books

I was happy to cross a lot of books off my list this month, and I had a very healthy dose of five star books as well as a good mix of genres.  Here's the rundown:

Station Eleven - Emily St. John Mandel - science fiction - five stars - This one has been on my to read list for a while, and I wasn't quite sure what to expect, but I loved it.  It's a post-apocalyptic story which was published in 2014, so interesting in light of recent events. There has been some sort of pandemic which has led to the collapse of society and loss of the majority of the world's population.  In this new world, Kirsten Raymonde is a member of a group of traveling actors/musicians who move from community to community performing.  The story bounces between pre- and post-pandemic, weaving together the stories of the characters.  I really loved this book, so well written and told.  Highly recommend.

When Sleeping Women Wake - Emma Pei Yin - historical fiction - five stars - This book follows the story of three women in Hong Kong during the WWII Japanese occupation.  Mingzhu is the first wife of a wealthy family, Biyu is her handmaid from childhood, and Qiang is her daughter.  When the Japanese take over, the women are separated, each must survive on her own.  The book provided a look into an aspect of WWII that I haven't read about before, and I thought it was quite well done.  The characters and storyline are compelling, and there were definitely parts that I did not expect.

Outliers: The Story of Success - Malcolm Gladwell - nonfiction - five stars - This book is a little out of my norm. It's been one that has been recommended/referenced to me for a while now, and I ended up deciding to listen to it on Spotify.  Gladwell's premise is that extraordinary people, outliers, aren't actually special,  they just put in a lot of effort, and are also the product of fortuitous circumstances.  He provides numerous examples of this, and I found the book fascinating.  In fact, I made both of my kids listen to specific portions of the book. Excellent read/listen.

The Names - Florence Knapp - fiction - four stars - This was a really interesting concept.  It tells the story of a woman and her children in three versions, based on the name she chooses for her son.  Her husband is abusive, and in the three versions of the story she makes three choices: 1) names the child Gordon after her husband as he wishes, 2) names the child Julian (her choice), 3) names the child Bear at the suggestion of her daughter.  The resulting stories/timelines are vastly different, but all have tragedy and sadness.  Really intriguing and interesting read.

The Girls of Good Fortune - Kristina McMorris - historical fiction - four stars - This one was more like three and a half stars rounded up.  The story of Celia, who is half Chinese, but passing for white in Portland in the late 1800s.  Working for the mayor's family as a maid, she falls in love with the son of the family and ends up pregnant just after he leaves to study in Europe.  She's summarily fired and finds work cleaning at a brothel.  At the same time, she begins investigating the murder of her father and a group of Chinese gold miners.  While I enjoyed the characters, in general it felt like McMorris tried to include too many things in the storyline.  Much of it also just seemed unbelievable as well.  OK.

Care and Feeding: A Memoir - Laurie Woolever - memoir - three stars - More like two and half stars.  Basically, Woolever is not a great person.  The parts of the book that covered the work she did for Mario Batali and Anthony Bourdain was interesting, but the parts that were actually about her were not, in fact that make you just not really like her at all, she's a completely unsympathetic individual.

The Magic Strings of Frankie Presto - Mitch Albom - historical fiction - five stars - Another book that I absolutely loved.  Frankie Presto is a (fictional) musician that has done it all.  The book follows him from the beginning, from his birth during the Spanish revolution, to his escape from Europe during the war, to his musical career.  Albom is such a great storyteller, and I love how he wove the story together, especially Frankie's parentage.  This reminded me a bit of The100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared in terms of how the book tied in so many historical characters and events.  Such a good read.

Dear Miss Lake (The Emmy Lake Chronicles, #4) - AJ Pearce - historical fiction - five stars - The final book in the Emmy Lake series was another great read.  In this book, the end of the war is near, and the staff of Woman's Friend relocates to the countryside for the summer to get away from the bombing in London.  This book does an excellent job of tying up the characters' stories, and was the perfect way to end the series.

The Goddess of Warsaw - Lisa Barr - historical fiction - three stars - Lena Browning, a famous Hollywood star, is actually Bina Blonski, a Polish Jewish actress whose family was forced into the Warsaw ghetto.  Blonski becomes involved in the resistance there, and escapes the ghetto after the war.  After becoming famous, Browning/Blonski exacts revenge on Nazis who survived the war.  This was another book that just fell off the rails for me in terms of believability.  The WWII portion of the story was more like four stars, but the post-war story just too unbelievable bordering on ridiculous, so two starts for that.  Meh.

We Solve Murders (We Solve Murders, #1) - Richard Osman - detective - four stars - I listed to most of this on Spotify on the way back from dropping off my daughter at college, and then found out that I only have a certain number of hours per month for audiobooks.  Oops.  At that point, I really only had a little left to go, so I stopped by the library to pick up the hard copy book and finished it off.  I thought this was quite well done.  Amy Wheeler is a bodyguard/personal security officer who is being framed for a series of murders.  Her father-in-law Steve is an ex-cop who she enlists to help her clear her name and solve they mystery.  They are joined by Rosie, a famous writer, who Amy was guarding when everything started to fall apart.  This was a fun one.  I really loved how Osman pulled together all the many threads of the story, and the characters were quite well done.  Definitely going to try another book by this author.

Favorites this month were Outliers and Station Eleven, least favorite was Care and Feeding.  What have you been reading?

July 2025 in Books

This was an interesting reading month.  Some really excellent books, but also some big disappointments where usually reliable authors did not meet my expectations.  

Insignificant Others - Sarah Jio - fiction - three stars - I generally enjoy Jio's works.  They are quick, easy palette cleansing reads.  I thought this one was one of her weaker books, the idea seems a bit too familiar/overused.  Lena is a hardcharging, focused individual who has just broken up with her boyfriend on the evening she thought he was going to propose.  She heads to her aunt's house to recover, and ends up in a strange time loop where she wakes up each day with a different man.  She sees what different lives she could have with different types of individuals, teaching her that what she has looked for in the past isn't necessarily something good.  Again, I thought this was kind of a retread in terms of plot. 

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow - Gabrielle Zevin - fiction - five stars - I loved this one.  It's about an industry that I honestly don't know much about, video games and when I started I thought it might be a bit over my head, but it wasn't.  It's about Sam and Sadie, best friends from childhood who fall away, come back together, fall away again and agin, and in the process build a video gaming empire.  I really enjoyed learning about the industry and what goes into creating video games.  This book had a little bit of everything, highs, heartbreak, frustration.  At it's heart it's a story about friendship and love.  Must read.

Horse - Geraldine Brooks - historical fiction - five stars - Another fantastic read.  It's based on the true story of Lexington, a record-breaking American thoroughbred in the mid-1860s.  Lexington left a huge legacy, his bloodline runs through most of the winning horses since his time.  The story of Lexington focuses on the relationship between Lexington and his groom/trainer Jarret. There's a modern day storyline as well which honestly I thought the book could do without. It's about Jess, a scientist at the Smithsonian, and Theo, an art historian.  Again, that storyline was pretty extraneous and unnecessary in my opinion.  It got into the political and the historical storyline really stoond on it's own.  Still, a five star read.

How the Light Gets In (Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, #9) - Louise Penny - detective - five stars - I've had a few folks recommend Louise Penny, so she's been on my list to try.  Normally, I like to start at the beginning of a series, but I found this book in a little library near me, so figured that I would go ahead and jump in in the middle.  Penny has written a whole series of books about Inspector Gamache, in charge of homicides in Montreal.  The book occurs at a time where Gamache has been isolated, his handpicked squad has been broken up and distributed across other departments and others have been brought in who are actively trying to undermine him.  Amid this backdrop, Gamache's friend Myrna asks him to investigate the disappearance of her friend.  When her friend is discovered murdered, Gamache begins to investigate, at the same time he is trying to determine who is trying to drive him out of the department.  Penny does an excellent job tying together multiple threads.  While it would have been helpful to have some background/backstory on the characters, I really didn't need that, the book stood well on it's own.  Really compelling read, and I'm looking forward to going bavk to start from the beginning of the series.

The Most Fun We Ever Had - Claire Lombardo - fiction - three stars - This was OK.  One of my biggest issues was that it could have been 100 -200 pages shorter than it is.  It really needed some editing.  Marilyn and David have a marriage that many would envy.  They are so into each other and while they have had some difficult times, they have always been united.  Somehow their kids are a hot mess.  THe story starts with the appearance of a long lost child/grandchild.  Daughter #2, Lila secretly gave up a child for adoption years ago.  His parents were killed in a car accident and he's been bouncing around foster care.  When they realize this, the clan jumps into gear, incorporating him into their messy family.  Meanwhile, each of the four daughters is struggling in some way, and trying to hide it from everyone else.  The book was OK, but just seemed so unfocused and seemed to ramble at times.  I also never really felt connected to any of the characters.  So so read.

The Martha's Vineyard Beach and Book Club - Martha Hall Kelly - historical fiction - three stars - Ironically, what I didn't like about the previous book is what I missed here, the length.  I've been a huge fan of Kelly's previous books.  They aren't short, they are on the longer side, and extremely well developed.  I was honestly a little surprised when I saw the thickness of this book.  It's about the Smith family who own a farm on Martha's Vineyard during WWII.  Their brother goes of to war, and the girls and their grandmother are working to keep the farm afloat.  Cadence dreams of becoming a writer, while quirky Briar is convinced that she's seen a German sub off the coast.  I felt like the book was a little bit all over the place, trying to tie together too many different historic anecdotes/ideas while not fully fleshing things out.  It was OK, but nowhere near the caliber of Kelly's previous writing.

My Friends - Fredrik Backman - fiction - four stars - I love Backman, but this book was very uneven for me.  It kind of reminded me of My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry.  I spent a large part of the book kind of wondering where things were going, and not necessarily enjoying the story, but Backman really brought it all together in the end, with some unexpected twists.  The story centers around the first painting of a famous artist.  A chance encounter between the artist and an orphan leads to a connection between the orphan and the artist's best friend.  While they travel back to the artist's hometown, the friend tells the orphan the story of the painting.  The story wandered a lot, it wasn't as bad as the first 100 pages of My Grandmother, but I was definitely questioning the book.  As I mentioned, it all came together in the end but was a bit of a chore to get there.  Four starts balancing the three star majority of the book with a five star finish.

Atmosphere - Taylor Reid Jenkins - fiction - three stars - This was another very uneven book for me from a an author that normally knocks it out of the park.  Joan is a scientist who applies to and is accepted into the astronaut corps. I loved all the space portions of the book - applying, interviewing, training, mission itslef, etc.  It was the other part of the book, which unfortunately for me was the majority of the book, that fell flat. The extremely annoying relationship between Joan and her sister, the relationship with Vanessa, I guess I was just expecting more of what I thought was the focus of the book, the space stuff.  I also felt like the ending was too unbelievable.  Just OK.

Favorite this month was Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, while my least favorite was Insignificant Others.  Hoping that August is a little better in terms of quality!

June 2025 in Books

This one just an OK reading month.  Only one five star book this month, but it was a good one.  Here are the recaps:

The Original Daughter - Jemimeh James Wei - fiction - three stars - This was a disappointment.  It had a promising beginning.  Genevieve Yang's family takes in Arin, the granddaughter of the the Genevieve's grandfather who abandoned the family years ago.  I enjoyed learning about the family, and seeing the relationship develop beween Arin and Genevieve, but then things went off the tracks.  Arin and Genevieve grow apart and frankly it's not even for a real and decent reason and then it's just all not workable.  Genevieve is wholly unlikeable and somewhat unhinged such a letdown.

The Library of Lost Dollhouses - Elise Hooper -  three stars - Tildy Barrows is the curator for a historic library in San Francisco.  She stumbles upon a secret room with two amazingly detailed dollhouses inside, and begins investigating their origins, which have a strange connection to her.  At the same time, the library is facing serious financial difficulties, and Tildy is hoping that the publicity around the dollhouses will help save it.  The storyline bounce between present day and WWI.  This was OK, the historical storyline was very interesting to me, although there were a lot of things that just didn't seem particularly feasible.  

The Bright Years - Sarah Damoff - fiction - four stars - Generational story of a family and how weaknesses are passed down from one generation to the next.  Ryan and Lillian Bright are young, happily married, and parents to a sweet new baby, Georgette.  But life gets complicated, and the family struggles throughout Georgette's life.  Many ups and downs in this one, but a good read.

The Jackal's Mistress - Chris Bohjalian - historical fiction - five stars - Libby Steadman has been running her husband's mill in Virginia as he left to fight in the Civil War.  He has been captured, and she hasn't heard from him in months.  Then she finds a seriously wounded Union soldier, and decides to take him in.  Her goal is to get him healthy enough to travel and then to safety at Harper's Ferry.  This one was excellent.  Bohjalian did an excellent job creating the characters, and the storyline/plot pacing was excellent.  This one is loosely based on a true story, highly recommend.

All Ears (FunJungle #9) - Stuart Gibbs - juvenile fiction - four stars - The latest in the FunJungle series sees Teddy and friends on the hunt for Tanzy, an elephant who has been stolen.  In addition, Teddy's best friend Xavier has been accused of vandalism.  Teddy's racing to solve both cases, but having trouble balancing things.  Another fun episode in the series.

My Name Is Emilia del Valle - Isabel Allende - historical fiction - two stars - This was the worst Allende book I have ever read, which is pretty disappointing because I generally love her books.  Emilia del Valle is a young girl in the latter half of the 19th century.  She has to publish under a male pen name when she gets started, but eventually convinces her paper to allow her not only to travel to Chile to cover the civil war there, but also to use her real name.  This was honestly a weird read for me, it didn't even feel like an Allende book, it's almost like it was a watered down version written for a high school audience.  The only interesting part was her back story, but as soon as she started writing for the paper and headed for Chile, it was a slog.  I particularly did not like the inclusion of her articles.  

Run for the Hills - Kevin Wilson - fiction - four stars - This was a cute book.  Madeline 'Mad' Hill's brother shows up at her farm in Tennessee one day.  Reuben 'Rube' is years older than her.  Their father had a family with Reuben's mom in Boston, and one day suddenly disappeared...to Tennessee where he created a family with Mad's mom.  Apparently, this is his M.O., and Rube is trying to reunite all the kids to go and see their father in California (he hired a PI to trace his father's set).  The book follows their journey across the country as they retrieve their other siblings and confront their father.  I thought it was a unique premise, and I enjoyed getting to know each of the kids.  

Clearly The Jackal's Mistress was my favorite this month, and Emilia del Valle was the least favorite.  I'm looking forward to catching up on some older books in July.  I'll be on vacation, so I've been picking up books from my neighborhood Little Libraries and Buy Nothing group.  I take all the books with me, and then leave them where we are visiting for others.  What have you guys been reading? 

May 2025 in Books

Pretty even reading month, with some very good books and some OK, some not as much, but it was nice to get a bunch of books under my belt!

Maya & Natasha - Elyse Durham - historical fiction - four stars - The story of two sisters who are ballerinas in Russia at the height of the Cold War.  After an act of betrayal, their lives are drastically changed.  One goes on to tour in the US, the other must rebuild her life in Russia.  It was interesting to see all the social and political changes that occurred during this time through the lens of this story.  I enjoyed the storyline, but the girls' personalities, particularly Natasha's were annoying to me.  

Famous Last Words - Gillian McAllister - mystery - three stars - It's Camilla's first day back to work after maternity leave.  It's also the day her husband take a bunch of hostages and disappears from her life.  She's still trying to make sense of it years later.  This was another book where the resolution did not live up to the promise of the story.  The hostage scenario and immediate aftermath were really interesting, and I was excited to see where it was going, but what actually happened and the reason why fell very flat for me.  It all just seemed a little ridiculous and far fetched.  Meh.

Our Infinite Fates - Laura Steven - science fiction - four stars - Arden and Evelyn are two beings who have existed through time together.  They love each orther, and are tethered together, if one dies, so does the other, and they must do so by their 18th birthday.  This means that every time they reincarnate, Arden must find his way to Evelyn and kill her before that birthday, or something bad will happen.  Evelyn doesn't know why they have this relationship, and Arden won't tell her why.  This was an interesting premise, and I was intrigued by it.  The ending/resolution/reason behind the whole scenario ended up being kind of a disappointment, just didn't measure up to the rest of the book, but still a good read.

You'll Never Believe Me: Before Anna Delvey, before the Tinder Swindler, there was 'Hipster Grifter' Kari Ferrell... - Kari Ferrell - memoir - two stars - Basically Ferrell is kind of a terrible person and I just did not like her.  Ferrell was adopted by a Mormon family in Utah and eventually falls in with a bad crowd.  She starts stealing from stores, then friends, and ends up on Utah's most wanted list.  She goes to New York for a fresh start where she does the same and worse.  Eventually she ends up in jail and becomes an advocate for judicial reform.  I guess, it's hard for me to take that second part of her life all that seriously based on her past, it just didn't seem like she had actually changed that much based on her tone in the book.  Really don't recommend this one.

There Are Rivers in the Sky - Elif Shafak - historical fiction - five stars - Really loved this one.  It follows there individuals in varying times: Arthur a dirt poor kid in Britain in the 1840s who makes something of himself due to his amazing intellect and goes on to study the lost city of Ninevah; Narin, a Yazidi girl in from this century caught up in the rise of ISIS; and Zaleekah, also from a present-day timeline, hydrologist who was orphaned and raised by her uncle. I loved how the story evolved and came together, as well as each of these main characters.  Excellent book.

Eights - Joanna Miller - historical fiction - five stars - This book follows four fictional women who are among the first to be enrolled at Oxford in 1920.  They have to deal with strict rules, lots of mysogyny/sexism, as well as the aftermath of WWI.  The women come from very different backgrounds and walks of life, but become best friends.  I really enjoyed teach of the characters as well as their strong friendships.  Great book.

Soldiers and Kings: Survival and Hope in the World of Human Smuggling - Jason De Leon - nonfiction - four stars - De Leon is an anthropologist studying human smuggling.  He gets to know a group of Hondurans who are involved in the trade.  You see that they themselves have escaped from untenable situations in Honduras and either can't get into, or have been deported from the U.S.  They are now surviving by living in Mexico and guiding others through Mexico to the U.S. border. De Leon tells the backstories of this group of smugglers, and you also see how the trade has evolved over the years, not run primarily by gangs/cartel. A really interesting read.

The Lost Passenger - Frances Quinn - historical fiction - four stars - The story of Elinor Coombs, who is unhappily married to an English aristocrat.  When her father treats their family to a trip on the maiden voyage of the Titanic, she takes the opportunity to change her life. Elinor's life in England was frustrating to me, viewing it from a modern perspective, but I loved how Elinor created a new life/home in the U.S. An interesting take on the Titanic tragedy.

I Am the Storm: Inspiring Stories of People Who Fight Against Overwhelming Odds - Janice Dean - nonfiction - three stars - Dean is a weather person at Fox.  After the deaths of her parents in-law in nursing homes in New York during COVID, she went up against Andrew Cuomo due to his role in the deaths of many in those homes.  This book talks about that, as well as many other 'David and Goliath' stories.  This is one that I listened to and I'm not sure if I would have liked it more if I had actually read it.  Dean reads the book herself, and I wasn't crazy about her voice/narrative style.  In addition, while I sympathize with her situation and applaud her efforts, she seemed to bring up the Cuomo situation in her discussion about almost all the other stories.  At some point that got kind of old.  I really enjoyed learning about many of the individuals she showcased, but the presentation/format left something to be desired.

The Great Hippopotamus Hotel (No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, #25) - Alexander McCall Smith - detective - four stars - It's hard to beliee that this is the 25th Mma Ramotswe book!  This one is centered around acts of sabotage occurring at The Great Hippopotamus Hotel. Mma Makutsi actually does the lion's share of this investigation, so that was interesting.  There were also a couple of twists that I didn't expect.  I will say that the Violet Sephotho angle was a little annoying, I wouldn't mind having a book without her at some point, but it was a very minor storyline, so not a huge deal.  Always fun to check in with the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency!

My favorite this month was There Are Rivers in the Sky, and least favorite was obviously the Hipster Grifter one.  I'm currently reading The Original Daughter which is quite good so far.  What are you guys reading?

April 2025 in Books

Pretty good reading month for me, especially on the historic fiction front.  Here are the recaps:

Red Clay - Charles B. Fancher - historical fiction - five stars - Loved this one.  It's a generational story that takes a black family from slavery to freedom.  When the Felix Parker, the patriarch of the family dies, a white woman who no one knows comes to pay her respects, and tells the family about her life, as the daughter of Felix's former owner.  Together, she and Felix's daughter and granddaughter, trace their stories back to learn the full truth of their stories.  Fantastic read.

One Good Thing - Georgia Hunter - historical fiction - five stars - I loved We Were the Lucky Ones, and was so excited to read Hunter's new book.  This one was not quite as impactful than the first, but that bar was very high.  This is the story of Lili and Esti, two Jewish friends in Italy trying to survive WWII.  Esti is involved in the Underground, but become injured, and asks Lili to flee ahead of her with her son Theo.  She will catch up with them later.  Esti and Theo head towards the Allies, finding refuge with many along the way, and hoping that Esti and Theo's father will find them.  Excellent read. 

Black Woods Blue Sky - Eowyn Ivey - fiction - three stars - This was my least favorite book this month, more like two and a half stars rounded up.  It really fell kind of flat for me.  Birdie has been floundering.  She's a single Mom living in Alaska waiting tables at a roadside lodge.  When mysterious Arther offers her a life living out much further from civilization, closer to the land, she is anxious to go.  Arther is not what he seems, and she and her daughter Emaleen are pulled into a dangerous situation.  This was just kind of a weird book.  Kind of science fictioney.  In general though Birdie bothered me, and I had a hard time with her as a parent.  Meh.

The Woman in Me - Britney Spears - memoir - three stars - I listened to this one in the car to and from Boston for a hockey roadtrip.  I haven't listened to a book on tape in a while, and I thought this was interesting.  Michelle Williams read it, and I thought she did an excellent job.  I enjoyed the look at Britney's life, how she became famous, and also the conservatorship.  I think she harped too often on the fact that she was not treated fairly simply because she was a women.  It's a fair point, but I feel like it would have been just as if not more impactful to tell the story, and then circle back and show the list of reasons/examples all together.  In either case, helped me pass the time in the car.

London Calling (City Spies #6) - James Ponti - juvenile fiction - five stars - Our family loves the City Spies series, and this one was quite enjoyable because it draws in Mother's biological daughter Annie as well as his wife Clementine. The is set against the backdrop of a royal wedding, where much of the team is providing security.  Annie, meanwhile, is in danger.  The rest of the team must go rescue her.  Throw in an attack on their home base, and the wedding itself, and you get another great book.  I really enjoyed how this book wrapped up several ongoing story threads, but also opened up a few more.

The Quiet Librarian - Allen Eskens - historical fiction - five stars - I'm a huge fan of Eskens books.  This one is a bit of a departure because it's not one of his legal mystery books.  Rather, it's a look at the Bosnian war.  The main character is Hana, a survivor of the war who is living in Minnesota and has hidden her true identity.  When her best friend, also Bosnian, is murdered, she realizes that it is ethnically related, and she is in danger as well.  Really well done.

Crow Mary - Kathleen Grissom - historical fiction - five stars - This is another book I was really excited about because I love the author.  Her previous books followed a family during slavery, and this is a much different time period.  Mary, from the Crow tribe, marries Abe Farwell, an American trader.  The book does an excellent job of depicting the difficulty in adapting to non-native culture, and also deals with issues of alcoholism and violence.  Mary and Farwell courageously testify in court, both in the US and Canada, to try and convict a group of men who massacred a tribe.  Loved this one.

Kills Well with Others (Killers of a Certain Age, #2) - Deanna Raybourn - detective - four stars - Raybourn's second book depicting a group of female assassins who are getting up there in years.  This time they are drawn in when someone starts killing individuals associated with the Museum (their organization).  The cases are ones they were involved with, and it's also discovered that someone hacked into their system to access/steal some files.  I enjoyed that this book involved their significant others.  I thought Raybourn did a good job of tying together several different storylines, and enjoyed the historical details from their past lives that were added.

On the Hippie Trail: Istanbul to Kathmandu and the Making of a Travel Writer - Rick Steves - memoir - four stars - We've definitely watched some of Rick Steves on television as well as used his guides in the past, so I was intrigued by this book.  It wasn't exctly what I thought it was - a memoir written looking back.  It was actually one of his old travel journals, published in whole, with light editing, from a trip he took in 1978.  It's somewhat fascinating, to read what he was able to experience back then, the world is a lot different now, and it would be much harder, if not impossible, to take this trip now given the fact that it stretched through Iran and Afghanistan.  A really interesting snapshot in time.

Least favorite this month was definitely Black Woods Blue Sky.  Favorite was harder to pick, either Red Clay or Crow Mary.  How about you guys?