February

Things in a Jar by Jess Kidd
Oh my, this is a weird and wonderful book, full of weird and wonderful characters: Bridie, the red-headed Irish detective who can 'read' the dead: Bridie's seven foot tall maid rescued from a circus; the disreputable freak show owner who will do anything for a new specimen; the snake woman with a heart of gold; the titled father missing his 'child,' and Christabel, the 'child' in question who Bridie must find/rescue/release? The underbelly of Victorian England is not pretty - it is dirty, ugly, dangerous. It is a place where freak shows will kidnap children to put on display, where people wind up dead due to medical experimentation, and where things in jars can cost a pretty penny. Jess Kidd is an extraordinary writer who takes all these weird and wonderful ingredients and mixes them into a spectacular story.

Mercy House by Alena Dillon
Evelyn was 'given' to the Catholic Church by her father, in return for her brother's safe return from WWII. Trained as a nurse, and now in charge of Mercy House in Brooklyn, a refuge for abused women. Sounds so ordinary, doesn't it? But you've never met a woman like Sister Evelyn, who will face down any dangerous situation in order to give someone a hand up, who has faced demons in her religious life, and who now faces the fight of her life as a bishop of the church looks to shut her down. I fell madly in love with Evelyn, and each of the young women who live at Mercy House: the sassy prostitute, the gentle girl who escaped her abusive home, the tough girl whose drug-dealing boyfriend terrorizes the house, and a quiet girl who knits. The women in this House will give you inspiration that yes, right matters, honor and truth matter, and good wins.

Still Life by Louise Penny
As a lover of a good mystery, how have I missed the famous Louise Penny? Still Life is the first in her long series about Inspector Gamache, in Three Pines, Quebec. A retired teacher, beloved friend and all-around lovely human, goes out for a snowy walk and winds up killed by an arrow. Whodunnit? Gamache and his team come to the scene, a small town outside of Quebec, where everyone knows each other; it is peopled with intriguing characters such as the son of the wealthy landowner, a famous sculptor, the gay owners of the local diner, the cranky old woman who speaks home truths.  Louise Penny is a master at plot construction, character development, and tension. I could spend weeks in Three Pines, and plan to as I slowly work my way through this series. Highly recommend if you like a captivating mystery:)

Twice in a Blue Moon by Christina Lauren
Do you ever need a palate cleanser of a book? When the news gets too disheartening, the weather Is just plain ugly, and life looks rather bleak? If so, I highly recommend this one. It's not my usual genre (yep, sweet romance - who knew?!) Sam and Tate meet in London as Sam is a college student, and Tate is about ready to begin her life at Sonoma State. A hidden secret in Tate's life throws her into the world spotlight, and fourteen years later she and Sam find themselves on the same film location...you can see where this is going, right? Yet it didn't matter - it is a sweet, well-told tale of young love, betrayal, family secrets, and hope in the future. Just what I needed, at this moment in time:)

Middle England (Rotters' Club, #3) by Jonathan Coe
Do you ever wonder, as I do, what the hell happened in this world a few years ago? European countries turning right-wing nationalist, England saying 'good-bye' to the post WWII world of the European Union, and America electing a reality tv star to occupy the oval office? Well, this book will explain it all. It follows a middle class English family, living in Birmingham and London, from 2010-2018, covering the influence of Brexit from beginning to end. Yet, it is not political, per say; it is a deep dive into family/friend relationships and how our shifting views of immigration, the economy, the government, all play into our feelings for one another. It is snarky, witty, informational, highly addictive. Middle England won the Costa Award of 2019, best book written in the UK - well deserved.

A Heart So Fierce and Broken (Cursebreakers #2) by Brigid Kemmerer
Did you read A Curse So Dark and Lonely? Do you like YA fantasy? Books that take you away to another world? If so, this series is for you. I like the fact that it has one foot in real life (ie. Washington DC, where the real-world characters originate) and then the fantasy world of Emberfall. In the first book Curse, it's basically a Beauty&the Beast retelling, but with a girl who deals with cerebral palsy and who gets very good at knife-throwing. Yeah, I kinda loved Harper. But in this spectacular sequel, the story focuses more on Grey, the head of the Guardsmen who disappears at the end of Book 1 and has a few secrets to deal with this time around, as well as a new love interest. This is literally the best escape from the dreary world of impeachment, corruption, and medals of freedom being given to racists. Highly recommend!

How We Fight For Our Lives by Saeed Jones
An award-winning and talented poet, Saeed Jones grows up as a poor black boy in the south, and on top of that, he is gay. Between Saeed's own challenges, combined with his family's dysfunction and health issues, this should have been a compelling read. However, I wanted to hear more about Saeed's own struggles in his childhood and youth, and those seemed skimmed over to me. Too much on his sexual experiences, some involving rape and abuse, and some jumping around with time lines lost me. Beautiful writing, but a memoir that missed for me.