September

 Beautiful World, Where Are You? by Sally Rooney

I fell in love with Rooney when I read Normal People; she has a gift for making ordinary young lives compelling, frustrating, passionate, sorrowful, aggravating, and thoroughly authentic. She does the same for me in her latest book, which focuses on two college friends, stepping into a world not of their making, trying to muddle their way through it. As a young millennial in my life once told me, "Your generation pretty much F-ed up the world and left it for my generation to clean up - you broke the economy, you denied us healthcare, you overcharged us for college, and you destroyed the environment." It's tough to argue with that. And Rooney takes that all on in the lives of Eileen and Alice, in their work lives, their love lives, and their correspondence with one another. At times, I was annoyed with the stream of consciousness emails, yet as I finished the book, I realized it was their way to process out how to find their way to beauty in the world in which they lived, to clean up the muck they, and we,  had created. Sometimes these two women are whiny, needy, all together irritating; occasionally I wanted heroics from them. But is that real? Probably not. And in the end, this book is thoroughly genuine, down into its bones, at least it was for me. The audio is solid gold, with a lovely Irish lilt telling the story - highly recommend.

A Slow Fire Burning by Paula Hawkins

A new book from the author of Girl on a Train (yes, that's the only one of her's I have read and yes, I did love it), this one left me...meh. It starts with a murder, of course. A young man is found in a narrowboat in a town in England and three women connected to him tell the tale. First, there is Laura, the young woman who slept with him the night before his death; disabled from a childhood accident, Laura has so many issues and such a complex history that it was hard to keep straight. Next is Miriam, the neighbor who finds him, who has some secrets and history of her own to deal with. And then there's Carla, his aunt, with an author for an ex-husband and a dead child. While I loved the British accent and the narration by Rosamund Pike, the voices got confusing as it was just Pike's voice so if I wasn't paying close attention, I lost the plot line. Perhaps I would have enjoyed this more in physical form? Yet at times the plot line just felt very jumbled. So ultimately, I felt like this thriller was less than thrilling.

Rock, Paper, Scissors by Alice Feeney

The first two Feeney books I read were a Hit (Sometimes I Lie) and a Miss (His & Hers), so I skipped her third book. Yet her fourth book has pulled me back a bit into the Feeney fan club. Her latest is a twisty tale of a married couple, with each spouse getting to tell his/her side of the life of their marriage. Adam is a writer, dreaming of his own screen play Rock, Paper, Scissors getting produced while adapting other writer's books into huge hits. Amelia works at an animal shelter, has few friends, and comes across a bit whiny and needy. Both are completely unreliable. Or are they? Feeney has some great twists and turns in this one, leaving my jar hanging down a few times, and other times wondering about plausibility and coincidence? But I was thoroughly entertained thus making this thriller a "Win" for me.

56 Days by Catherine Ryan Howard

Hype is REAL…Intriguing to read pandemic-setting stories lately - I wonder how many of those we will get???? But this one, involving two people who decide to spend lockdown together, definitely delivered. Throw in a a dead body and a ton of secrets in their pasts, some plausible twists, some well planned rabbit holes, and solid writing, and I suspect it will keep you up as late at night as it did me. For once, a thriller that thrilled me.

Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason

This is such a unique, intriguing, creative book, with a compelling main character named Martha. Martha is...different. Some people label her weird, or crazy, or quirky, or bitchy, or all the other negative terminology one can come up with when a person doesn't fit into the prescribed set of behaviors. And when we first meet her, she's laugh out loud funny, also cringe-worthy, also maybe a bit mean. But Martha's life has gone sidways ever since her teen years when she was struck with debilitating mental illness. The author never names it; instead, Mason gives us details of how her illness manifests, never allowing us to label Martha as everyone else in her life has. We see Martha's past and all her struggles, as well as her 'now', as her marriage falls apart. As much as I enjoyed this character study and unique plot line, it was a sad read for me, filled with small bits of humor and tiny victories.

For Your Own Good by Samantha Downing

This is the most despicable, detestable, abhorrent,  yet like able, cast of characters - I know, bit of a conundrum. Yet I could not put this book down. It combined all my favorites - a school setting, an English Lit teacher, murder, and mayhem. What more could one ask for?! At times, it all hit too close to home. I mean, what teacher hasn’t had issues with entitled parents who think Johnny is the best thing since sliced bread? Or the spoiled student who seems ‘above’ doing the homework in your class as it’s beneath them. Or the headmaster who doesn’t give two shits about his staff members but sure knows how to schmooze the important people with far wallets. Yet…we don’t murder them, right? Well, in this book, all bets are off. It’s fabulous - pick it up and I dare you to be able to put it down!

The Sweetness of Water by Nathan Harris

Another depressing, yet beautifully written, Oprah book choice. Does she ever pick a book that isn't riddled with pain, death, life-challenging struggles? Don't get me wrong - I enjoy juicy books of characters arm-wrestling life, but I was just not in the right head space for this one. Set in 1865, right as the Civil War is ending and slaves are finding their freedom, Harris writes a gorgeous tale of white couple who takes in two brothers and pays them to work. What a concept back then, thus serious backlash ensues. The writing is gorgeous, yet not my particularly favorite style (verbose, descriptive, long paragraphs), and the characters are fully fleshed out and incredibly compelling. I suspect I would have liked it more if I was able to give it more attention.