Pretty good lineup this month! I liked most of what I read, but there were a couple I listened to that weren’t my favorites, keep reading to see why!
Y’all, I love Nancy Thayer. She’s probably my favorite Nantucket beach read author. I enjoyed reading “Island Girls,” where three sisters who all shared the same father but had different mothers (I know, haha, what in the world) are all thrown together to stay in the same house in Nantucket together over the summer. Their father had passed away and left these instructions as a condition of their inheritance. Of course, they don’t care for each other at all because of their history, but over the summer they work through their issues and grow to really care for each other and become friends. Entertaining and light-hearted.
I really like Liv Constantine too, I have enjoyed every book I have read by this author duo, and “The Stranger in the Mirror” did not disappoint. Addison is picked up on the side of the road by a kind trucker, beat up and bleeding, with absolutely no memory of what happened or how she got that way. The trucker takes her in with his wife, and they take care of her, help her get a job… she even meets someone and falls in love. Her husband eventually tracks her down and brings her home, and what happens next is crazy. I like these psychological thrillers because there is always a good twist sometime near the end.
I listened to “Talking to Strangers,” and it was nothing like I thought it was going to be. I expected a lot of good tips on talking and engaging people you don’t know, but really it was more about why we are easily deceived by people we don’t know well…why people get away with lying, why situations escalate that should have been easily handled, why we are more likely to trust and believe people we don’t know and give them the benefit of the doubt, but also why we do not trust people we don’t know and assume the worse…it was a lot of interesting information, especially some of the historical scenarios, but there was a LOT of mature content in this book. Granted, it was all true stories, but I just could not listen to some of it, especially the parts regarding the gymnast girls that were abused by their coach and the Sandusky trials, it was just too graphic, too much. I cannot imagine going through what those young people went through, it just broke my heart.
I don’t know that I would recommend this book, it made me think a lot, it made me consider my approach with other people I don’t know well, but it also just was hard to take in. I also felt like the author shared too much of his opinion at times on things that have happened, rather than just stating facts about what happened, he had to interject his biased thoughts on why they happened. Anyway, you have been warned on this one hah!
I loved “When Crickets Cry.” I love the way Charles Martin writes, just so much emotion, the rawness of life, the presence of God…he does an incredible job of describing scenery and navigating stories of life. A man saves a young girl’s life, and then tries to disappear back into to a place where he has tried to escape so much guilt and pain from this life. Their relationship grows, he gets to know her story and her aunt who she lives with, and potentially he may be able to save her from the heart condition she has. I loved how he loved rowing, and the scenes in the book where he rowed with his brother in law, and what it was like living on the river. Lots of medical information regarding the human heart, which was so interesting too. I’m not explaining this well, so just trust me and read this one haha…
There has only been one book by B.A. Paris that I did not enjoy, “The Dilemma,” but aside from that one she writes great psychological thrillers. In “The Therapist,” Alice moves into a new home with her boyfriend Leo, and while things first appear perfect, random things start happening and she starts to feel like she’s going crazy. She finds out more about what happened in her home before they moved in, and becomes obsessed with figuring out what happened to the previous owner. It’s set in England, which I always appreciate, and was just a good little read in general.
I listened to “Murder at Mallowan Hall,” and officially I think I just do not care for listening to fiction haha. I think I’m going to stick to non-fiction or self help books! This one peeked my interest because it was a murder mystery set at the home of Agatha Christy, so I thought it might be a good read. The housekeeper narrates this, and I think that mainly, that was what I disliked the most about the book. I just didn’t care for her “know it all” outlook and her attitude towards everyone else in the house. Also the motives of the murder that came out were just kind of obscene in my opinion, I just overall thought it could have been done better. This was probably my least favorite read this month.
Aww I love these little British ladies’ guide books! I have read four of them now in the series and they are interesting, quirky and fun. Frances is now engaged to George in “A Fiance’s Guide to First Wives and Murder”, and once again, they have a mystery to solve together. A young woman comes to their home, professing to be George’s wife, and then a little later found murdered in the garden behind Frances’ home. Of course, all of this is quite scandalous for British society during this time period, so Frances and George have to work quickly to solve the murder and clear their name.
Whew! That’s it for May! I hope you found something that interested you! I giggled so much when I saw this meme, I loved Mulan growing up so this whole sentiment just hit home with me. Jacob doesn’t really care for reading for entertainment and I tell him all the time I don’t know how I accepted his marriage proposal and married him in spite of that haha… Happy reading friends! If you’re interested in seeing what else I have read this year, check out my links to other months below and lots more book reviews under my Book tab!
What I’m Reading – January 2022