August

Many Hands Make Light Work by Cheryl Stritzel McCarthy
The first book by Chicago Tribune writer Cheryl McCarthy is a rollicking good tale about growing up in a large family in Ames, Iowa. Told in the fashion of one of my favorite childhood books, Cheaper by the Dozen, in Cheryl's family they had a baseball team where all nine children were expected to be part of the family work crew. As each chapter spins out, displaying the life of this busy family, I was drawn in by the eye-popping organization of her two parents: the morning duty list for the many rental homes the kids were expected to work on each summer, the ingenious milk delivery system installed in the kitchen, the never-ending line of college students renting rooms in their already over-full house, and the ability to shovel snow from the front of all those rental homes, before breakfast each winter morning. Having grown up in a fairly dysfunctional family myself, I was in awe of how this family functioned, with love, humor, and song. If you need a chuckle, a pick-me-up, a reminder that hard work leads to success, that togetherness still exists, this book is a wonderful choice.

A Nearly Normal Family by M.T. Edvardsson
Mystery, Swedish, dysfunctional family...this book ticked all the boxes for me. On the surface, Stella's family is a picture of 'Normal' - her father is the town pastor, her mom is a successful lawyer, and Stella is a healthy, active eighteen year old. Yet, Stella has now been arrested for the violent murder of a thirty something year old man, the son of a prominent attorney. Each family members gets to tell their side of the story and it is all quite enlightening. Who is this paster? Overprotective father or a complete nut job? Does mom care about her family or just about her reputation? Is daughter mentally ill, abused, innocent, guilty? 'Nuff said...read it and see where this mystery takes you. It is a fabulous ride.

Keeping Lucy by T. Greenwood
Due to the compelling nature of this story, I started it in the morning and finished it that evening. After the hit last year Rust & Stardust (based on events that inspired Lolita), this time around Greenwood uses another inspiring true-life story to show a mother's devotion and love. A baby girl with Down's Syndrome is born to Ginny and Ab in 1969, a time when little was known about children with special needs and prejudice was rife. Lucy is thus taken away at birth and put into a 'school' for handicapped children. Two years hence, a news article about abuse at the school sets Ginny, her son, and her best friend off on a life-changing road trip. While I rooted for Ginny and wanted to slap her husband silly, I was also searching for more complete character development. I needed more explanation and depth as to why Ginny breaks away from the stereotypical, very protected, meek and mealy-mouthed wife of decades past and seemingly becomes Mama Bear when it is most needed. Don't get me wrong - I loved the change - but I felt as if it needed to be flushed out more. Ditto for her husband, mother-in-law, and best friend. I appreciated the happy ending, but needed to more fully see and comprehend the direction markers along the road before getting to the destination.

The Current by Tim Johnston
Johnston's first book, The Descent, was a runaway hit and he has followed it up with another incredible story. Told in two different time periods, this tale is really about the people of a town and how secrets and lies work insidiously to destroy them. Ten years ago, a teenage girl was found dead in the river. This death destroyed more than just one life; the teenage boy painted with suspicion, the mother whose family life is torn apart, the sheriff who never got over the unsolved murder, and the father who lost his only child. Yet years later, the river takes another life of a young woman, but one survives - the sheriff's daughter. As Audrey pulls together clues from years ago, we see the many pieces of this puzzle slowly build into a bigger picture as the lives of all the characters collide once more. It is a fabulous narrator on Librofm - highly recommend listening to this one.

The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware
British, Gothic, Nanny, Mystery...this book is speaking my language. I love Ruth Ware's directional change from just a basic thriller (In a Dark Dark Wood/Woman in Cabin 10) to a creepier gothic mystery such as The Death of Mrs. Westaway and now her latest, The Turn of the Key. A ghost story that gave me shivers up my spine, I stayed up waaaay too late reading this book. The entire book is supposedly a letter from a young woman in prison, seeking legal help for a murder she says she did not commit. It is classic British, as this young woman applies and gets job as a nanny at a mysterious house in remote Scotland. As the letter unspools the story, we see unruly children, a poisonous garden, creepy ancestors, predator husband, distracted wife, cranky housekeeper, and a hot but mysterious handyman. I told you, classic British Gothic. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and could not turn pages fast enough. Will it take the publishing world by storm? Doubtful. Will it entertain you and keep you guessing? Absolutely. Thanks to Net Galley for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

We Are All Good People Here by Susan Rebecca White
The premise of this story is intriguing: two girls meet in college, become friends, one is pulled toward the radical counter-culture, and then the story covers three decades of social upheaval and change in America. However, the potential was lost for me by weak character growth and shallow thematic development. Daniella, who does what society expects, and Eve who blows the doors off her southern familial expectations, are never fully flushed out, at least not for me. Why does Eve go off the rails? What inspired her? What keeps these two friends together when they seemingly have nothing in common - distinct family backgrounds, lack of mutual life goals, different taste in life partners, vastly disparate maturity levels? This story skimmed over the surface for me, water-skiing across obstacles that deserved depth, and simplistic answers given to complex questions. It does keep you turning pages, but unfortunately did not go the direction I was hoping. Thanks to Net Galley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

A Curse So Dark and Lonely (Cursebreakers, #1) by Brigid Kemmerer
Ah, a Young Adult fantasy book that is actually YA - yes, you can put this in the hands of a middle schooler who loves magic and romance and suspense. This one is a gorgeously written retelling of the Beauty and the Beast tale, using some complex and flawed characters to update the story into the modern world. Harper is a young woman in NYC who was born with cerebral palsy, has a dying mother and a brother entangled in the drug mob, and surprisingly finds herself in the magical world of Emberfell. The triangle of Rhen, the cursed prince trying to save his country, Grey, his captain of the guard and a fairly scary man, and Harper, who must learn how to not only defend herself but how to fight for the people, kept me turning page after page. If you life YA fantasy, this is a gorgeously written and inspiring story.

July 2.0

The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead
The author of The Underground Railroad, winner of both the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award, has written another stunner of a book; Nickel Boys is my prediction for many awards in 2020. Based on the true life discovery of a Florida reform school found to be the burial group for dozens of young black boys, Whitehead uses this setting as a launching pad to develop the story of a young black boy in the early 1960's. Elwood Curtis is a good boy, a good student, a good grandson. He's never been in trouble...until the night he gets into the wrong car. His time at the Nickel Academy scars him for life, as he sees torture, unhinged racism, unspeakable acts of violence and degradation. Yet Whitehead does not stay only in this place of horrors; we see Elwood post-Nickel boy status, as he tries to build his life and forget the trauma of his youth. Whitehead moves the decades along, as we see the country change and issues of race morph with it. Whitehead asks the questions, "Can we escape the violence of years past? Must society make amends, and if so, how? What is society doing today to young black boys? Have we truly changed, or have we just changed our methods of killing?" This is a powerful, unforgettable book that should be read by everyone in this country.

Girls Like Us by Cristina Alger
Having read all four of Alger's previous books, I am in awe of her ability to move amongst genres. The Darlings takes place in the world of family privilege and high finance in NYC, This Was Not the Plan tells the story of a widowed father figuring out how to raise his child in a world turned upside down, The Banker's Wife is a thriller in the world of international money laundering, and now Girls Like Us, a page-turning novel that encompasses police corruption, family drama, and a serial killer on Long Island. I will continue to be first in line when Alger writes a book; she has yet to disappoint me, and always always entertains me and makes me think. This book will keep you up late, trying to figure out whodunnit.

Turbulence by David Szalay
This is an odd, quirky book. Short, but provocative, I am still thinking about it days later. Yet, some might see it as forgettable. I think it depends on your mood, and your purpose in reading it. Here's the premise: twelve vignettes of twelve plane rides with twelve characters telling twelve stories of interaction. That's it. No great whodunnit, no great passion, no great over-arching thematic message; it just contains the world as we pass by each other and make those small connections that make us a global society. I do think it would be an intriguing book club choices, but yes, odd and quirky.


Ashley's War: The Untold Story of a Team of Women Soldiers on the Special Ops Battlefield by Gayle Tzemach Lemmon
America is at war; we have been in Afghanistan for 18 years. We forget this pretty much every day, every year, but Ashley White's parents do not and that is the greatest impact of this powerful book. It tells the story of a group of young women - strong soldiers who can do 100 sit ups in one minute, rappel in and out of helicopters in the dead of night, and who aided Ranger troops in Afghanistan in a myriad of life-saving ways. I was fascinated with the women's motivations, their ties to both family and country, their tenacity in being the first women involved in combat with special ops teams years before women were 'allowed' to be in combat. Each time I find myself whining about some stupid moment in my privileged life, I remember Ashley White - a 24 year old spitfire, who never gave up, who loved to bake for her fellow soldiers, who could outwork, outrun, outclimb any of the men she trained with, who treated her Afghanistan-American translator with dignity and respect, who left her marriage of six months to serve her country, and who gave her life for it as well. Ashley White is a name we should all know. Read this book and you will understand my passion for this American hero.

Ask Again, Yes by Mary Beth Keane
A Book of the Month club pick, this has been a book that has received a lot of buzz. For me, it was good but not great, slow to get into, easy to put down, not as compelling as I thought when I first picked it up. The story focuses on two families who live next door to one another in a New York suburb. Both men are policemen in NYPD, but their families are diametrically opposite. Peter's family is in constant chaos, with mental illness and alcoholism. Kate's family is more stable, with involved parents and two sisters. When a tragedy erupts between these two neighbors, the fall-out lasts for years as the two children, Kate and Peter, find their way back to one another. It  is a solid story, but a bit forgettable for me. Admittedly, I'm an outlier on this one as many others have loved it, but I think I am just not a fan of her writing voice, as I did not love her previous book called Fever.

On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong
From the very first page, I could see that Vuong is at his heart a poet; this is a stunningly written book. Yet it can also occasionally get tripped up by the verbosity of the author. It is a story of a young gay Vietnamese man, son of an immigrant mother, grandson of a woman who fled the violence and war of Vietnam as it collapsed. The issues run deep in this book, and they are slowly examined as Vuong tells his story in short, poetic vignettes, showing us the life of an immigrant, of how the cultural traditions impact his family, how 'Americans' treat his mother with her strong accent during work in a nail salon, how his love affair is twisted through racism and addiction. It is a painful, raw book that turns the idea of what is a novel completely on its head. Did I love this book? No. Did this book impact me? Definitely. It is short, but not a quick read; it will provide you with some provocative ideas to mull over, that's for sure.

Alice I Have Been by Melanie Benjamin
Having read ALL of Benjamin's other books, I had to complete the set and read her very first novel. As always, Benjamin uses people in history to become her fictional characters, trying to get 'behind the scenes' of the real story. This time around she focuses on Alice Liddel (aka Alice in Wonderland) and the writer of the story, Charles Dodgson (aka Lewis Carroll). As a mathematics professor at Oxford, Dodgson befriends the young daughters of Dean Liddell, and yes, during a famous canoe ride, the story of Alice and her trip down the rabbit hole is born. However, there are dark and ugly secrets during this time period - rumors of pedophilia, obsessions with young girls, questionable photo sessions, and a lifetime of dark and ugly secrets waiting to ruin Alice's life. This was my least favorite of Benjamin's books; frankly, I wanted to take a shower after finishing it. A dark and ugly tale, full of sadness not only in Alice's childhood but her adulthood as well, it was well-researched but did not leave me satisfied.

The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks Sarah Pekkanen
You know it is an average book when you search your brain for what it was about just days after finishing it. Having thoroughly enjoyed their latest book, An Anonymous Girl, I was looking forward to reading the authors' first big hit. I find it intriguing that this due writes a story together, trading off chapters or points of view - it's a cool idea. However, this book was just fine, not great. It is about an abusive man, and his variety of wives. Some intriguing twists occur when it comes to which wife and what is the real story, yet I found it quite predictable. Perhaps I am reading too many thrillers, or my expectations are too high?

July

Whisper Network by Chandler Baker
Put four women together with an arrogant sexist boss, add in a new employee, some past history, the Me Too movement, and a lot of dark humor and you've got one helluva book. Three corporate lawyers, Grace, Ardie, and Sloane have their hands full at a large Nike-like company, juggling a new baby, a recent divorce, and issues with an eleven year old daughter. Rosalita, a corporate office cleaner, has her own issues with supporting her young son as a single mother and trying to get him into a better school. When the CEO suddenly dies and the General Council, their boss, looks to be tapped for the big shoes, the whispers of harassment get louder and louder, and the plot becomes a rolling boulder down a steep, unstoppable mountain of doubt, innuendo, and bitterness. I laughed out loud at some of the snarky comments, and at times I wanted to wring the necks of these privileged snobby women, but I also cheered them in their ancient battle for equitable treatment in a white man's world. Far too many instances of "Yep, me too" that gave this book authenticity and a strong voice. This book will get people talking with its provocative message. Thanks to Flatiron Press for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Last Collection: A Novel of Elsa Schiaparelli and Coco Chanel by Jeanne Mackin
Set in Paris at the beginning of the war years, under Hitler's rule, I wondered if this book could tell me anything I had not already read about this time period? The answer is unequivocally 'Yes' as author Jeanne Mackin is the master of research and character development. Following the couture designers Elsa Schiaparelli and Coco Chanel, Mackin divulges the inner workings, secret, and machinations of the fashion world of yesterday as well as the ties this industry had to the Vichy government and the Resistance. To be honest, I rarely think about high fashion and its place in society as it always seems rather shallow. However, in this tale one can see the cultural influences these fashion mavens had on history, as well as their own personalities, spirit, and beliefs. I thoroughly enjoyed this story of the competition and lives of these two bigger-than-life women.

The Liar's House (Detective Gina Harte #4) by Carla Kovach
Having discovered this detective series just a few months ago, I have raced through all four of the books in record time. Here's why: 1) the head detective is a woman, a very human, hot mess at times, kind of woman, who is smart, strong, anxious, guilt-ridden, just so authentic. Gina reminds me a bit of Olivia Colman's character in BBC series, Broadchurch. 2) the wingmen/women in the country police station are flushed out and interesting 3) the plot is constructed well, with appropriate red herrings, and plausible complexities 4) the mystery keeps me guessing until the very end, which is saying a lot considering how many mysteries I read. The first book in the series involves an abandoned baby with DNA from a woman missing for four years. The next deals with women found dead and the ring of violence that surrounds the town. The third book takes on the idea of domestic slavery, and this book, #4, draws Gina back into her past amidst the disappearance and murder of multiple women. If you're looking for a cracking good British mystery series to dive into, you won't go wrong with this one. Thanks to Net Galley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Lock Every Door by Riley Sager

I have been a big fan of Sager since her first big hit, Final Girls, as well as her second book, The Last Time I Lied. However, I was rather underwhelmed by her latest. Set in a snooty but mysterious old condo building called The Bartholomew (think The Dakota but with gargoyles), the young, penniless orphan named Jules moves in to apartment-sit for a lucrative pay-out, but finds it less than inviting. Girls disappear, crotchety old author befriends Jules, hot doctor flirts and pursues her - too many implausible happenings, too many predictable 'coincidences,' weak main character whose back story did not completely add up to me, and a 'twist' that seemed made for a 80's era slasher film. I just felt as if this book was forced, and not Sager's previous solid plotting and character development. Bit of a miss for me. Thanks to Net Galley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Furious Hours: Murder, Fraud, and the Last Trial of Harper Lee by Casey Cep
This book title had me at 'Harper Lee,' author of my favorite book in the world, if you forced me to choose. I mean really, if you love To Kill a Mockingbird, didn't you always wonder why Lee never wrote another book? Was it because she was not that talented and it was a one-hit-wonder? Was it because of mental illness, or addiction, or writer's block? Or was it because of her close friendship with Truman Capote? This book has the answers for you and it is a compelling listen with a great narrator. One third of the book focuses on the murder victim, though he's not much of a 'victim' as he's credibly accused of killing or orchestrating the murder of six people. The middle of the book covers the actual trial, and the final third delves into Harper's Lees interest in the case, as well as her own past history and the relationship with Capote. I voraciously listened to this one, grabbing every minute I could get. Highly recommend if you're a TKAM fan as I am.

The Scholar (Cormac Reilly, #2) by Dervla McTiernan
If you have been looking for a shorter version of Tana French, this is your writer: McTiernan is Irish, sets her series in Galway, has built an intriguing police unit with compelling characters, and always has a twisty, turny well-developed mystery that satisfies. This time around the book begins with a murder involving the mistaken identity of a wealthy research scientist's granddaughter. As head detective Cormac Reilly stumbles upon the case thanks to his girlfriend, a researcher in the grandfather's lab on a college campus, Reilly slides down a rabbit hole of corporate greed, the search for 'cures' and the profit surrounding them, and the hierarchy of a tight-knit police department. And just when I thought I had it all figured out, McTiernan yanks me another direction. Solid police procedural mystery with good writing and intriguing characters. 

The Absolutist by John Boyne

I have always said John Boyne (Boy in the Striped Pajamas, The Heart's Invisible Furies, A Ladder to the Sky) could write a grocery list and I would plunk my money down on the counter for it. Therefore, I felt compelled to go back aways into his writing life and pull out this WWI-set book published seven years ago. Was I right? Yep, this man can write. His main characters, Tristan, is a young WWI veteran, on a train ride to find the family of his friend killed in France as they served together. Through flashback of the war years during his search for the family, Tristan relates a tragic tale of war, love, honor, and deception. This is not a light and hopeful beach read, but it is a compelling tale of what war does to a human, how marginalization warps a person, and how death is the ultimate finality, a place where forgiveness and redemption cannot reside. This is a story I will not forget easily.

The Rules of Civility by Amor Towles
After falling madly in love with A Gentleman in Moscow last year, I thought it would behoove me to go back to Towles' first book as this man is a true magician with words. And to be honest, I was underwhelmed. Not by the writing - it is spectacular, with so many lines and sentences I had to read aloud to my ever-patient husband. Yet the characters fell flat for me.  I could not connect with any of the threesome: Kate, daughter of a Russian immigrant, trying to make her way into high society and enough money to cover rent; Eve, beautiful transplant from Indiana, free spirit, victim of an accident; and Tinker, wealthy scion of NYC, or so he seems. As these three dance with one another through 1937-38, I felt no compulsion to keep reading. Their shallow goals and dreams were just that to me...shallow, which I suspect was the point? But it felt a little plot-less to me, which can be fine if I am intrigued by the characters. I am an outlier on this one as many many people loved Towles debut - I do think it would make an intriguing book club choice. However, I still adore Count Rostov of the Metropol Hotel a thousands times over:)