More January Reading

A Very Punchable Face by Colin Jost

The last 'celebrity' memoir I read was Born a Crime; I tend to go more for gritty, real-life memoirs. After reading rave reviews though, I wondered if this audio book would live up to Trevor Noah? Yep, it sure did. Admittedly, I adore Colin Jost on Saturday Night Live and often tape the show just to fast-forward to Weekend Update to see Colin and Michael Che. The story of Colin's childhood, his journey to become an SNL writer and actor, his family on Staten Island, is highly compelling, heartfelt, and gave me some uproarious laughter. Definitely listen to the audio of this one - it is MONEY.

Every Heart a Doorway (Wayward Children #1) by Seanan McGuire

Where has this book been? As in, HOW did I miss it earlier?! What a delightfully dark, creepy, warm, engaging, heartfelt story. I know, those are contradictory definers, but this book is a bit like Tim Burton meets Harry Potter. A boarding school for teens who have spent time in another world (some Nonsense worlds, some Fairy lands, some in the land of the Dead); an ancient woman runs the school, after her own time in another Land, and tries to help them come to terms with living in normalcy again. Unfortunately, some 'issues' arise and there's a bit of murder, blood, gore, you know, the normal stuff. This is a short story at just 260 pages and it is utterly magical.

The Minders by John Marrs

Is this new John Marr’s book a compulsive, propulsive read, as usual? Yes. Is it confusing and implausible? Yes. Will it inspire you or depress you? Definitely depress. It builds on conspiracy ideas of the Deep State, the government is out to get us, life is hopeless, you know, all the good stuff. In this one, post his previous book The One, the government has hidden all their secrets in the brains of five Minders, and the Hackers want to find them. Yeah, fun stuff. I’m not a believer in all that conspiracy bullshit - it reminds me of the Trump cult and their inability to understand truth and facts. I’m not a nihilist. I like to hope and believe in the inherent goodness of others. While I thought this book could be mindless entertainment, instead it just put me in a deep dark hole. This book just was not for me yet I’m sure others will enjoy this page turner. 

Under a Gilded Moon by Joy Jordan-Lake

I love a good historical fiction, and adored this author's previous book, A Tangled Mercy. However, this one just did not do it for me. The premise was intriguing: set in the Gilded Age, a young woman reluctantly returns to Asheville to help her family, as the building of Biltmore mansion disrupts the surrounding mountain people and their lives. However, too much was thrown into this plot for my brain...anarchists, hill feuds, past love stories, current love stories, New Orleans mafia and murder, bootleggers, you name it. I just could not keep track of it all.

The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins

This book was funny. As in hysterically funny. As in...really not good. How do some of these ridiculous thrillers soak up all the publisher's attention, with huge marketing campaigns while other really thoughtful books get missed? I will never understand. Put simply, poor girl walks rich guy's dog, they fall in love and she moves in, hears weird noises, yeah, wife is upstairs and not dead. I shrieked with laughter over this one, and I"m pretty sure a thriller is not supposed to do that. That was a waste of a few hours.

The Last Girl (Maeve Kerrigan, #3) by Jane Casey

If you like police procedural mysteries, especially ones set in the UK, you need to check out this series by Jane Casey. Most of them stand alone, as does Book #3, but taken as a series, it is fun to see how the characters develop. There's always a murder, some wonderful twists and turns, seeing how Maeve deals with the rampant sexism and misogyny in the police station, and always, a satisfying ending. Highly recommend to mystery lovers:)

The Narrowboat Summer by Anne Youngson

Youngson's previous book, Meet Me at the Museum, was a big favorite of mine two summers ago, so I was excited to pick her new book up. While it was a pleasant read, it ultimately did not have the same impact as her first. I do love a book peopled with older characters, maybe because I'm of that age group, or because I'm just tired of everyone being in their twenties? This story revolves around three women: Anastasia, the owner of a canal boat in the English countryside, suffering from cancer; Sally, an unhappy housewife, wondering if she took the wrong path years ago; and Eve, an engineer who just lost her job of thirty years, struggling to see her next steps. As Eve and Sally agree to sail Anastasia's boat across the English canal system in order to get repairs done, we see their pasts lives in their conversations, their memories, and the stories they tell with the strangers they meet on the canals. This is a beautifully written book, slow in its exploration of life's choices, a bit too descriptive in the canal system, a pleasant journey but not one that will linger.