More June Reading

The City of Brass by S.A. Chakraborty

You know those books that you sneak away to read, even if it’s only a few pages? The ones you can’t put down, that live and breathe in your brain, that envelope every moment and invade your dreams? Think Game of Thrones meeting Arabian nights, creating the most incredible Middle Eastern world. Chakraborty gives us a strong complicated female lead, a rigid yet compassionate second son, and a hot, fairly amoral djinn, tied together in a world of six unique kingdoms, some political and cultural disagreements, and some pretty cool magic tricks. I was already requesting book two from my library before I was even finished. And since then, I’ve finished the entire trilogy, all 1,800 pages, all 5star reads. This is escapist reading at its finest level!

We the Animals by Justin Torre

On the surface this is the story of three brothers, yet it is so very much more. It is 127 pages of lyrical writing that makes your heart sing, as well as break. It is the story of love and loss, poverty and want, family and warped love, of identity and finding oneself against all odds. And that’s all I’m gonna say except - take an afternoon and read this from beginning to end. It broke me in some places, left my soul aching, but also inspired me with the resilience and talent of this incredible writer. Perfect finish to my Pride Month reading.

Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall

More outstanding Pride Month reading in this adorable rom-com, read to me in the perfect British accent. Luc is the son of a very famous old rock star (think Mick Jagger-ish), so the nasty British tabloids love him, and make his life fairly miserable. On top of that, Luc is rather immature and still recovering from a nasty break up. On the verge of losing his job over his personal life, he listens to his riotously hilarious and totally wonderful friend group and goes about getting a 'fake' boyfriend. Enter Oliver, an uptight London barrister, with a super judgmental family and issues of his own. I laughed out loud so often, swooned a few times with these two lovely men as they fell in love for 'reals' and thoroughly enjoyed the entertainment.

Iron Lake (Cork O'Connor, #1) by William Kent Krueger

I know MANY of you have read and loved 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘛𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘓𝘢𝘯𝘥  and 𝘖𝘳𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘎𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘦, yet may have never read Kent’s looooong mystery series on Cork O’Connor?! I do love this man’s pen and a good mystery so of course I had to check it out. 𝘐𝘳𝘰𝘯 𝘓𝘢𝘬𝘦 did not disappoint! Take a troubled ex-sheriff, separated from his attorney wife and his children, place him in his hometown of Iron Lake, in the middle of the Anishinaabe reservation, and mix in a few murders, some politics, some money - you get the drift. Solid mystery, very intriguing characters, beautiful mix of nature and indigenous lore, I already have book two on hold. If you’re as excited as I am about Kent’s new book coming out this August (𝘓𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘬𝘦), a prequel to the Cork O’Connor series, trust me - you’re gonna want to read this first one:)

Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty by Patrick Radden Keefe

I thought I knew everything I needed to know about the opioid epidemic, the complicity of the drug companies, the bribery of the medical community, etc. But oh, how wrong I was! This deep dive into the Sackler family, from its inception to the finality of settlements in 2020 is utterly fascinating and well worth the many hours of the listen. Patrick Keefe, who also wrote Say Nothing (incredible book about the Troubles in Ireland), is a masterful author, combining long ago history, family connections, interviews with current employees, medical professionals, and FDA authorities. And yes, the Sackler family is a monstrous entity. One of the best non-fiction books of 2021!

The Soulmate Equation by Christina Lauren

My heart has been a bit heavy lately so I knew I needed a sweet lil rom-com to lighten the load and this latest from Lauren did not disappoint. My beef with rom-coms is usually the sexism in them, but not with this author! She creates a strong female lead, single mom Jess, a brilliant statistician who runs her own business. Jess meets Dr. River Pena (okay, his name is soooo cheesy!) who has created a new matchmaker app using DNA to find your 'soulmate.' (Okay, the whole soulmate term is also a lil cheesy for me but I rolled with it!). Of course, Jess and River 'match' and all kinds of romance, problems, and issues ensue. Fun escapist romance:)

Majesty (American Royals, #2) by Katherine McGee

This isn't even a potato chip book; its a cotton-candy book. I mean, so sweet, occasionally nauseating, and nothing worthwhile in it and yet...I couldn't put it down. I loved American Royalty and the way it flipped American history on it's nose, with George Washington saying "Yes" to a crown, and hence, we have an American Royal family. This sequel was not quite as good for me, maybe because it no longer felt so unique? The royal kids are still getting up to their shenanigans and I did chuckle out loud a few times, but I also gagged more than once, so there's that. If theres a third, I don't think I'll bite.

The First Day of Spring by Nancy Tucker

Oh my, I felt like I needed to take a shower after this book. I mean, the premise alone is rather stomach churning: After an eight year old girl commits murder, we see her now as a young mother, trying to raise her own child. The time line moves back and forth, showing us the neglect and abuse of Chrissie, the truly devastating impact on a child, the aftermath of the years lived in custody, the attempt to assimilate back into society. This book asks some big questions: is a child responsible for horrific crimes? Is a parent responsible for those crimes? Is it possible to find redemption, remorse, a moral compass? The brilliance of this book comes in the aftermath of reading it, as to be honest, I didn't care for it much as I read it. It was just so ugly and dark. Yet...I have thought about it since, rather more often that I would like. It made me think more deeply about how our society today neglects abused children, looks away, ignores, or throws the book at them - what is the right answer?

Providence by Max Barry

The Martian meets up with the Hail Mary Project, unleashes Alien on Independence Day, and we get the ending of every Bruce Willis action film ever. Yeah, this sci-fi took me on a ride! I loved his previous book, Lexicon, also a total mind-f#*k of a plot line. This one is more straight forward: Earth has met aliens, and they’re not very nice, so in typical bull-in-a-china-shop, asshole-American style, we try to kill every one of them (unlike in Weir’s book Hail Mary Project, where they make friends!). Needless to say, this was some awesome entertainment, especially for someone who doesn’t read a lot of science fiction:) 

 

June 2.0

The Woman They Could Not Silence: One Woman, Her Incredible Fight for Freedom, and the Men Who

Tried to Make Her Disappear by Kate Moore 

How many times have you been accused of being ‘crazy,’ when you are fighting for your voice to be heard, your rights to be respected, your body to be your own to do with as you will? This is a book about a woman, Elizabeth Packard, who said enough is enough. When her husband had her imprisoned in an insane asylum, when authorities acquiesced to his decisions about her wellbeing, when doctors lied and made up diagnoses, Elizabeth never backed down. And I mean never. This non-fiction book, from the author of Radium Girls, has done the impossible - written not only another powerhouse book about women vs. authority, but in my opinion, it is even better than Radium Girls. This time in history, the late 19th century, was essential in the genesis of the fight for  women’s equality; it is a time in history that has been ignored too long. Thanks to this book and its author Kate Moore, Elizabeth Packard should be a name we ALL know, admire, and can find inspiration within. Is this book long? Yep, at 500 pages it sure is. But wow, it reads fast as you won’t be able to put it down, trust. me.

“So in the end, this is a book about power. Who wields it. Who owns it. And the methods they use. And above all, it’s about fighting back.” 

The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris

No one else could have written this book. No one. A former publishing world employee, Ms. Harris knows her setting, knows her voice, knows her audience, and knows how to connect. Damn. I picked this book up in the afternoon and finished it the next day, resentful that I actually had to sleep. A wicked tale of race in America, the story is set in an NYC office where Nella, a young Black woman, works as an assistant to an editor. Then one day, in walks Hazel, the Other Black Girl. And now I've said enough on the plot because this is a mind-bending trip down a dark, creepy hole, full of all the stupid shit white people say and do, the misperceptions that get turned into facts, the f-ed way the publishing world keeps Black writers and editors looking through the windows instead of being part of the solution, oh damn, just so much meat on this bone to chew over with your book club. One of the most provocative reads of 2021, do not miss this book.

Olympus, Texas by Stacey Swann

If you know me, you know I'm a sucker for anything steeped in mythology. So, even tho I firmly believe Romany mythology is crap (I mean, they just stole every god from Greece and renamed them using Latin), I could roll with this story. Just think Dallas (the TV show - I know, I'm dating myself) set in Olympus, Texas where every character represents a god-like critter. I mean, the patriarch of the family cheats with every woman that breathes (Hi, Zeus), his long-suffering wife likes to take revenge on the poor women (Hello, Hera), one kid builds stuff out of metal, is unattractive, and has a hot wife (Yep, you guessed it, Hephaestus and Aphrodite). Throw in the twins and a nasty sibling with a bad temper, and you've got yourself a helluva story along with a plethora of allusions. Feel free to ignore the mythology and just enjoy the melodrama - it's pretty dark, and some wicked fun literature.

The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave

You know when you just need some mindless entertainment and you want a thriller that actually works?! This book is it. Read it in a day, turned pages obsessively, couldn't put it down. The premise...Hannah's husband is a hotshot tech guy, waiting for the big IPO offering to hit. Yet scandal hits instead, the husband goes AWOL, and Hannah is left with the daughter to find out wtf is happening. Just rollicking good entertainment!

Punch Me Up to the Gods: A Memoir by Brian Broome

As an'aged' heterosexual white woman who lives in one of the whitest towns in America, it is books like this that are so important for me to pick up. Brian Broome's story of his life as a Black gay man is like visiting another universe for me; it opened my eyes in powerful and profound ways. His childhood in Ohio, his move to Pittsburgh, his relationship with his parents and siblings, Brian took me into his world and allowed me to see that world through his eyes. Interspersed through Brian's own childhood and youth, is the tale of Tuan, a young Black child he first sees on the playground. Tuan shows us the societal constructs that create a Black boy in America, that turns boys into people to be feared years before they are even grown, that shows the power of parenting, and how influential stereotypes, biases, and long-held false beliefs can shape a child. Broome reminded me how far we have come in our LGBTQIA views and actions in America, and yet how far we have to go. I won't forget this book anytime soon, the perfect way to begin my Pride month reading.

The Maidens by Alex Michaelides

Yikes, this one is hard for me to review. I loved his debut novel, The Silent Patient; it was a brilliant, dark, psychological thriller that would be hard to surpass. I went into this one trying to lower my expectations, knowing it was a ridiculously high bar. Tho it had potential (college campus murder, female therapist involved in solving whodunnit, weird cult-like crew), it sadly lived down to all my fears. All kinds of literary references and mythology allusions should have made my heart sing, yet the high melodrama and implausibility factor got to me, as did the misogyny and sexist tropes used. And the finale which used some offensive 'blame the victim' bs, blech blech and blech. It went off the rails fast and just never came back.

One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston

Another Pride month read for me, I had high hopes for this one as well. I adored Red, White and Royal Blue, which was a sweet romantic story of two gay sons of world leaders, trying to make their romance work. This one didn't hit the same mark for me. And yet McQuiston gets high marks for using such a wide cast of diverse, LGBTQIA characters - honestly, one of the best I've seen. The plot line is also unique (a girl stuck in time on a subway, not able to leave the Q-Line for over forty years, and new NYC girl August falls in love). However, I think I was not the target audience as I just found all these twenty-somethings annoying and silly. I suspect thousands of other readers will fall in love with this diverse, eclectic crew!

June

 

Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid

First, let's just address the elephant in the room...everyone, but everyone loved Reid's last two books (The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and Daisy Jones and the Six) so it is fair to compare? I don't think so, so here's my thoughts on her latest... One, she's created some lovely characters in the four Riva children, who were abandoned by their famous singer of a father, raised by their alcoholic mother and oldest sister, these four are magical. Oh, how I wish I had siblings this loyal, this fierce, this passionate. Second, I did love the Malibu 1983 setting, as well as the slow march through the decades that involved the Riva's parents and their love story. Reid addresses some deep family issues, as well as what was going on in society during those crazy 1980's. Ultimately, I did enjoy this book (especially the final 30 pages), but I'm not sure it will be memorable? Yet, is that necessary? It was entertaining, thoughtful, had some strong women, but a bit fluffy for my taste. A around a good summer read. I think.  

Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley

I am still trying to wrap my brain around the fact that this is a DEBUT - seriously? This book is just so damn good, one of my favorite YA books I have read in years. A mystery set in the upper peninsula of Michigan, this story encompasses so much but never seems to over do it. The main character, Daunis, is just starting college, having chosen to attend the local state school rather than the University of Michigan. Torn between her mother's family of French background and her father's Native tribe, Daunis is just simply a stud. Smart, strong, courageous, loyal, and deeply committed to her indigenous roots, she chooses to work with the FBI to uncover the meth network wreaking havoc on her tribe, and her own family life. I learned so much from this book about traditional medicine as well as lifestyle, but also was so thoroughly entertained by the plot line and characters that I never wanted to put book down. Highly recommend the audio as the narrator is spot on. Wow, just wow - this book will give you one huge, five-martini book hangover! (PS the author is a serious badass, having been Director of the Office of Indian Education for the U.S. Dept of Ed., and this book has already been optioned by the Obama's for a Netflix series, so yeah, read this book!)

Deep River by Karl Malantes

Yikes, this book was looooong at over 700 pages. Set in the PNW where I was raised, it covers the first thirty years of the twentieth century from the lives of Finnish immigrants. Logging, fishing, farming, unionizing, family, life, death, it is an epic story of an epic time here in my neck of the woods. This story visited places of my childhood where I camped and fished, used real characters from my WA state history class in high school, and helped explain why I look at old railroad ties still in the lake on which I live, as they led to the timber baron’s camp further up Lake Whatcom. So for me, it was in many ways a story of my own ancestry in my small PNW world - I loved it. Would others from a different background and homeland? Unsure. It is epic, a bit too preachy with the union battles, but ultimately I thoroughly enjoyed this tale loosely based on Finnish folklore and my own home state.

One Two Three by Laurie Frankel

Laurie Frankel (This is How It Always Is) is back with a new book! Three is a magic number in fairytales, but this story is not fairytale. Triplets Mab, Monday, and Mirabel (yes, corresponding syllables for their birth order) are quite the trio in their birthplace of Bourne, a town ruined by a chemical company years ago. Since the river turned green, their mother Nora gave birth to these girls, one who is hangs with the high-achievers in their high school, one who is somewhere on the spectrum and has a deep love for libraries and the color yellow, and the final girl, Mirabel, who is wheelchair bound, using a voice amplifier that translates her typed words, and is brilliant and wise beyond belief. As the new boy in town throws all three for a loop, seeing as he is the grandson of the owner of the original chemical plant, the story plays out. Can the town be reborn (yes, the pun is apropos). Can their mother win the class action law suit? Can the girls come together or will they be torn apart by opposing goals? I laughed out loud so many times; the audio is money, with the three girls’ voices. This is a book that makes you think about the environment and its impact on personal health, of how towns live and die due to the industry that is a vital part of their being, of how public perception of ‘normal’ is so f-ed up and inaccurate, and how three girls can squeeze your heart so hard, that you will never forget them. 

Who Is Maud Dixon? by Alexandra Andrews

Another thriller about an author, an assistant, a stolen idea, a traded identity? Is it worth your time? Hell yes! The fun piece of this novel is the characters - they are all heartily detestable. As in, I couldn’t root for any of them but good grief, I was curious to see where this story was going? Florence Darrow, a young woman who aspires to writing but writes pretty much crap that no one likes, is arrogant, prickly, and all together unpleasant. She leaves her editing job and becomes an assistant To Maud Dixon. Who is she? Just the author of the biggest book of the year, but who lives incognito and writes under a pseudonym. She’s also weird as hell. And that’s all you get as I wouldn’t want to give more away. Definitely a thriller that satisfies!!

Landslide by Susan Conley

Many trusted book sources raved over this novel, and granted, I did find it to be very well-written. However, I also found it to be rather boring. It is the story of a mother with two teenage sons, whose fisherman husband has been hospitalized due to a boat explosion. An introspective character study of motherhood, focused solely on sons, is the entirety of the book. For me, it felt too narrow. I found myself being judge-y, but then also apathetic about some life decisions. Yet in the end, it felt like nothing changed from the beginning of the story to the end. Perhaps that was the point? Ultimately, this book was just not my cup of tea. Just keeping it real so you always know I'm honest:)

The Blue Between Sky and Water by Susan Abulhawa

A multi-generational story of a Palestinian family, whose beginning story comes from the inception of Israel in 1948 and the unceasing violence between the two cultures since then. I do not pretend to know all the many details, the years-long clash, the political overview of this region. What I do know is that each side is deserving of its story to be told. Palestinian-American writer Susan Abulhawa gives us a family for the ages, of women who see beyond life into a world beyond, of family ties that cross continents, of children who are traumatized and shaped into adults. Once I began this book, it was literally impossible to put it down. So many complex characters and situations, with a myriad of opinions, choices, possibilities. This book will make you think, to question, to be angry, to be sad, to be joyful, to feel all the feels. Cannot recommend it highly enough.

Hairpin Bridge by Taylor Adams

I loved No Exit, Adam's huge hit two years ago, so I was excited to get my hands on this early copy of his latest. Ultimately, however, I was pretty disappointed. It read like a rough, rough, rough draft with inconsistent POV, weird plot movement, and needing a lot of patience to get to the satisfying ending. I wish he had switched up genres a bit, instead of trying to replicate the success of No Exit.