The Impossible Fortune

The Impossible Fortune by Richard Osman (2025) 352 pages

Osman keeps the activity fresh in his fifth installment of the Thursday Murder Club mysteries, starting with the wedding of Joyce's daughter, Joanna, where Nick, the best man, confides in Elizabeth that someone is trying to kill him. He hopes that the retired spy can help him. This case helps bring Elizabeth out of the numbness she has felt since her husband died. Nick and his partner Holly run a secretive underground cold storage facility utilized by people trying to keep information safe. Nick and Holly are trying to cash in on a risk they took long ago to take cryptocurrency in lieu of cash as a rental fee, and the value of the cryptocurrency has soared to 350 million. When one of them dies and the other disappears, the Thursday Murder Club members fan out to visit possible suspects.

Meanwhile, Ron's daughter has finally had enough of her abusive husband, pulling a gun on him. Now she's in hiding, and has left her precocious son, Kendrick, in the care of her father and brother, while her husband plots against her.

Another storyline has to do with Connie, a cocaine seller whom we met previously. Ron is responsible for her getting prison time, and she would like to kill him now that she's out. But she's been working with Ibrahim, Ron's best friend, who is trying to get her to mentor young people to keep them from going afoul of the law. Little does Ibrahim know that Connie's mentoring has encouraged a young woman to plan a heist!

The action keeps moving, while the characters that we know and love from this British series are on the hunt for a killer. Even some of the "bad guys" are lovable in their own way. The seemingly unrelated plots converge at times in this hard-to-put-down-book.

Death on the Island

Death on the Island by Eliza Reid, 336 pages

When a group of international luminaries gathers at a fancy restaurant on a tiny island off the coast of Iceland, they're expecting good food, experimental drinks, and politically charged conversation where everyone is angling for support of their specific cause. However, they also get a murder, as one of their number doesn't survive the post-dinner drinks. Trapped on the island by bad weather, the ambassador's wife sets out to catch the killer with the help of a couple other diners.

This book melds the locked-room vibes of Agatha Christie with the atmosphere of Nordic noir, and for the most part, it works. I don't want to spoil anything, but I will say that the end didn't really work for me. If you pick it up and want to chat though, I'm here and ready to talk. :)

Flesh

 Flesh by David Szalay (2025), 368 pages

I am not really sure the point of this book. It follows Istvan, a Hungarian, from his teenage years to old age. Normally I love a sweeping life story. This one I did not. There wasn't a lot of depth, and, honestly, it felt like it mainly dealt with his sex-life and how it affected/progressed his life. A lot of reviews have noted that the sparse dialogue provides a contemplative, detached voice that resonates with Istvan's humanity. I found it sluggish and tedious. It would be interesting to see how many times the following riveting conversations occur in the book:

"Yes?" - "yes."

"Yeah?" - "yeah."

"Ok?" - "ok."

I realize it won the Booker Prize, so obviously many folks liked it. I just wasn't one of them.

Where We Belong

 

Where We Belong by Emily Giffin (2012) 372 pages

Marian had a child when she was eighteen and gave the baby up for adoption. She kept her address up-to-date at the adoption agency. Still, she is dumbfounded when the child, now eighteen herself, shows up unannounced at Marian's NYC apartment. Kirby is going through her own teenaged angst as a high school senior and feels that her adoptive parents don't understand her. When she finds Marion, she doesn't understand why her birth mother is avoiding talking about what really matters to Kirby, and instead, takes her shopping. Kirby finally learns the astounding information that her birth father doesn't even know that she exists at all.

The story shows the back and forth of emotions in such a fraught situation. Not only Kirby, but her parents, her birth mother, and her birth mother's parents are all finding their way through the changed world that results as Kirby goes on her quest to find the other important people in her life.

I thought the story was well-handled and riveting, with chapters alternating between Marion's and Kirby's points of view. As a bonus, Kirby lives in St. Louis and there's enough local color to make the story seem more real.

Tusk Love

Tusk Love by Thea Guanzon, 288 pages

Daughter of an increasingly poor merchant, Guinevere's job in live is clear: marry up, make sure there's plenty of money to support her parents, and be an obedient wife cranking out babies. Her parents have found her a husband and beckoned Guinevere to his home, directing her to make haste and bring along their remaining riches. Unfortunately, her carriage is beset by bandits, and her life is saved by half-orc Oskar, who is on his way to visit some relatives that he's never met. But because he's a nice guy, he redirects his path to escort Guinevere, despite the fact that she clearly isn't suited to his style of travel.

This book is written to take place in the Critical Role universe, and is obviously written with those fans in mind, with locations, names, and descriptions galore — and somewhat distracting from the plot of an otherwise bog-standard romance novel. You can read it if you're not familiar with Critical Role (I'm not), but I get the feeling those of us who aren't are missing something.

A Game in Yellow

A Game in Yellow by Hailey Piper, 288 pages

Carmen and Blanca have been in a bit of a rut, sexually speaking, despite scraping the bottom of their vast barrel of kink-related twists. Blanca thinks she has the answer in a mysterious woman named Smoke, who introduces the couple to a play that is much more than it seems. Soon Carmen has been pulled under the play's influence, unable to tell what's real and what's not.

This is a very particular sort of erotic-meets-psychological horror, one that I'm sure has its fans. However, I am not one of them. This was a strange book, and while I did want to know where Carmen would end up, getting there was certainly a journey I don't want to take again. If anything about that first paragraph intrigues you, by all means, give this a read; otherwise, I have a boatload of other horror novels to recommend.

Eleanore of Avignon

Eleanore of Avignon by Elizabeth de Lozier, 320 pages

In 1437, Eleanore is a skilled herbalist and midwife who flies below the radar, but longs to get the same medical education as men. She gets her opportunity when she meets the personal physician of Pope Clement during a chance encounter, bargaining for an apprenticeship and soon becoming indispensable as both the Black Death and a pregnant (and disgraced) Queen Joanna arrive in Avignon. Of course, the more prominent her position, the more she comes to the attention of the zealots seeking someone to blame for the epidemic sweeping through the land.

This isn't a particularly new take on the idea of intelligent, medicinal-focused women being called witches and blamed for illness, but it is a captivating tale. Eleanore and her predicament are compelling, if not entirely believable at times. Still, an interesting read worth picking up.

One Golden Summer

One Golden Summer by Carley Fortune, 400 pages

When she was 17, Alice spent the summer at her grandmother's lake house and took an amazing photo of teens in a boat. As she started her photography career, she gained success, but nothing ever lived up to that one photo, in part because it was so free from the demands of commercial Photoshop-heavy photography. So when she gets a chance to return to the lake house to care for her grandmother after she breaks her hip, Alice takes the opportunity to reevaluate her life and her photography. What she doesn't expect is to fall for the insufferable man who comes roaring across the lake in a familiar boat.

This book reads like a chick flick in book form, and I mean that in the best of ways. It's a comfortable romance, full of humor and emotion, and just a wee bit of spice, and I wouldn't be surprised to see it adapted for the screen. Read it on your next lake vacation.

The Knight and the Moth

The Knight and the Moth by Rachel Gillig, 400 pages

As one of six diviners in the kingdom, Sybil drowns almost every day, reading visions sent to her by six godlike Omens while she is fully immersed in holy water. But when her divining "sisters" begin to disappear, she teams up with the new king and his mysterious (and handsome, naturally) knight, Rodrick, to hunt down the symbols of the Omens while seeking the fates of the other diviners. While she's at it, Sybil learns enough to make her question everything she ever thought she knew about the kingdom's history and belief system.

This is one of those rare books that's marketed as a romantasy, but is really heavy on the fantasy side (I'd call it more of a fantasy with a strong romance plotline). Really, the story is about Sybil's awakening to the ways that history and belief can be twisted to the uses of those in power. This is the first book of the series, and I'm intrigued to see where it goes next.

The Murderbot Diaries - All Systems Red

 All Systems Red (The Murderbot Diaries #1) by Martha Wells (2017), 160 pages

I am late to these books, but I am loving them so far. Admittedly, I watched the TV version first and was hooked. I know people always say the book is better, but I think the TV series did a pretty good job of capturing the first book. Murderbot (self-named) is a SecUnit who has managed to hack his programming so that he is no longer beholden to the company that controls him. He has gone rogue, but in a subtle way. He is still doing his security job, but with a bit more internal attitude. He is also addicted to watching Space telenovelas. He has ended-up on a security detail with free-thinking explorers who treat him more like a human than an android. This has him conflicted. The book follows the team’s planetary explorations and Murderbot's evolving relationship to himself and to the crew. Included in this is a good amount of snark. 

The Love Haters

The Love Haters by Katherine Center (2025) 302 pages

Katie Vaughn is a videographer whose boss is in the process of a dramatic downsizing. Her co-worker Cole has given her a choice assignment: to go to Key West to make a video for the Coast Guard, featuring one of its higher profile rescue swimmers—a guy who had saved Jennifer Aniston's dog—and had gotten well known on the internet as a result. While Katie is happy with the chance to shine and perhaps escape getting fired, she doesn't know at first that the job was to feature Cole's brother Hutch. Cole blames Hutch for some problems in his life, and doesn't want the assignment for himself.

Katie shows up on Key West, and meets Cole and Hutch's Aunt Rue, who owns a group of vacation cottages. One requirement by the Coast Guard requires that she know how to swim, in case the helicopter transporting the rescue team (and her) goes down. Katie doesn't want to admit she doesn't know how to swim. Rue takes charge of getting her swimming lessons and asks Hutch to help, even though Hutch is the last person that Katie wants to know about her deficiency.

Some of the plot is a bit unexpected and unrealistic, but the characters are generally well portrayed, especially Rue and her friends, and Katie's outspoken cousin Beanie. My favorite character was Hutch's dog, a Great Dane named George Bailey. The book was fine, but it's not my favorite by Center, whose work I usually enjoy more.

Chet: King Picker and Pioneer of the Nashville Sound

 Chet: King Picker and Pioneer of the Nashville Sound by Mark Ribowsky, 352 pgs. © 2026

    

Oh by jingo, this is the second! book about Chet Atkins that was published in the last year. It makes youwonder what's pushing the renewed interest--is there a viral Tik-Tok out there using Mr. Sandman in the background? Nonetheless, if you're a guitar geek or a country music afficionado, there's much to learn from this offering by Ribowsky, who published a spirited, researched bio on the legendary Hank Williams about a decade ago. 

    This book is the origin story of the original guitar hero--born in a holler in rural Tennessee, life was "Steinbeck-ian," living in a one-room country shack with a few siblings. He developed asthma early on (which kept him from entering the army during the draft), but fell in love with the guitar his older brother brought home--a beat-up Silvertone (interestingly, his older brother also had a fine career as a guitar player, performing with the Les Paul Trio for many years). He wanted the guitar so bad that all of his brother's chores in exchange for playing it, which he did until his fingers bled. He would sit at the radio and listen to broadcasts, trying to figure out what guitarists were doing in their playing. 

    His love for the music of Merle Travis influenced his unique thumb-picking style, which incorporated his other fingers to play the higher notes of a melody, something no one else was really doing at the time. He became known for lighting fast guitar licks and attention to detail. Fast-forward to his 20s and he's finally broken through in Nashville with RCA records and has become a highly-sought out producer, working with Elvis, Perry Como, Patsy Cline and countless more. His dedication to developing a "Nashville Sound" helped make Nashville the music capital is widely known as today. He was still working out licks on his guitar well into his 70s, right up until he passed away in 2001. 

Anxious People

Anxious People (2019) by Fredrik Backman, 336 pages.

Your palms are sweating; your heart is racing; you can't think straight. You are anxious. 
The bank robber stands in the apartment-for-sale--chest pounding, pistol in hand--and stares at the group of people ahead. These "hostages" include a young couple with a baby on the way, an older couple with a shared project, a banker with a haunting secret, an elderly woman, a real-estate agent, and a rabbit. Down on the street, assessing the situation, are two police officers working to diffuse this incident before backup from Stockholm arrives. Each of these people has plenty to be anxious about, even without the hostage situation. Each of these folks probably shares an anxiety with you. 

After reading My Friends--Fredrik Backman's most recent work, and loving it--I was excited to pick up this previous issue of his, and it did not disappoint. Anxious People shares many of the same themes as other Backman books, themes of loneliness and connection especially, and touches on some dark subject matter, such as suicide and addiction. Backman uses his characters to represent different anxieties that one might experience at different stages in life. He addresses the broken system in which we live but counteracts the hopelessness that it can cause with an call for community and connection. It can be a scary world, and sometimes the only way to get through is by reaching out. 

Little Witch Hazel: A Year in the Forest

 Little Witch Hazel: A Year in the Forest by Phoebe Wahl, 96 colorful pages

As my kids are all adults, I am far away from the children's book world. I checked this out because of the author/illustrator Phoebe Wahl. I have been a fan of her art for a long time, but haven't actually read any of her books. This was an enjoyable read. Will the story appeal to the under 6 set? I am not sure, but I loved the drawings. The more you study them, the more you realize how intentionally inclusive and detailed they are. That is Wahl's strength. Her images capture a world that is comforting, gentle, and welcoming. We could all use a little more of that. 

We Used to Live Here

 We Used to Live Here by Marcus Kliewer (2024), 312 pages

I blindly went into this book thinking it was a typical mystery. I am not sure how it even got onto my "to-read" list, but imagine my surprise when things started getting creepier and creepier. Unsettling even - especially when walking my dogs alone at night. I don't typically read horror, but it snuck in and, honestly, I found it pretty entertaining. 

The story follows Eve and Charlie as they renovate a newly purchased dilapidated house. The home comes with a lot of eerie baggage that culminates in visitors that (as the title states) used to live there. It is twisty plot that does rely on psychological tropes, but, who cares, as it fun to be scared a bit. 

I do want to give a shout out to the audiobook narrator Jeremy Carlisle Parker - she was fantastic and I highly recommend listening to it. 

Tailored Realities

 Tailored Realities by Brandon Sanderson, 428 pages.

This short-fiction collection contains the non-Cosmere short stories and novellas from Brandon Sanderson's entire writing history. Because these are the works that don't fit in his very wide fantasy universe, most of the stories here are science fiction. It is interesting to have a collection like this that contains as many novellas as short stories, and it gives the stories a lot of time to breathe. I also really enjoyed that every story was followed by a postscript that talked about both the story's inspirations and its publishing history. The novella "Perfect State" was a particular standout to me. I wasn't quite as impressed by this collection as his Cosmere universe short fiction collection, but I'm also a bigger fantasy fan than science fiction. This collection is still definitely worth a read. 

Divine Traitors

 So Let Them Burn and This Ends in Embers by Kamilah Cole, 816 pages.

Faron Vincent was 12 when she was granted the power of the gods to become the Childe Empyrean and fight the war to liberate her country. Five years later San Irie is free and Faron has spent the last few years frivolously using her powers and feeling purposeless. She is given sudden purpose again when her sister Elara ends up bonded to an enemy dragon, and Faron has to desperately try to find a way to sever the bond so she doesn't have to kill her sister. This desperation drives her to start something she can't stop, and the whole world may have to pay the price.

This Jamaican-inspired anti-colonial fantasy novel started pretty interesting. I liked the tension between Elara's plot at the dragon academy and Faron's attempts to uncover ancient secrets. Unfortunately, the second book was much harder to buy into, partially because many of the characters' actions were so unfathomably selfish. I also found the magic a little simplistic, especially given then real world countries with the thinnest possible coat of fantasy paint. If you're looking for a young adult novel where a young woman from a (formerly) colonized people has to go to a dragon academy run by her colonizers, set in a world with clearly identifiable real world countries, I would recommend To Shape a Dragon's Breath by Moniquill Blackgoose instead. 

The Silence of Our Friends

 The Silence of Our Friends by Mark Long and Jim Demonakos with art by Nate Powell (2012) 201 pages

This is semi-autobiographical based on events that occurred in Houston, TX in 1968. Author Mark Long's father was a television reporter who observed the pushback to SNCC (Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee) organizing Civil Rights protests on Texas Southern University campus. An organizer of the protests, Larry Thompson, his family, and all the African American community in the poorer Wards of Houston face regular racism from the white community. A brutal police response to a protest and a court case provide the climactic events to this conflict. Visually I really appreciate the design of the panels and speech bubbles on each page, the dramatic motion is strongly conveyed.

Automatic Noodle

 Automatic Noodle by Annalee Newitz (2025), 163 pages

There is a lot to unpack in this short book. It is hard to even know where to begin, but I very much enjoyed the concept. A group of restaurant service robots in the not-so-distant future find themselves abandoned by their owners. They decide to take their future into their own hands and re-open the restaurant, but with better food. And they succeed! Except, as in real-life, there are those who want to spoil a good thing through their own xenophobia and biases. This is a thought-provoking look into the future of technology while also touching upon current day issues of immigration, economics, and resilience.

Bootblack

 Bootblack by Mikaël (2022) 128 pages

I enjoyed the realistic art. Ultimately Al is a kid who is so patriotic, claiming his American-ness, that he turns his back on his immigrant parents. When they die and he ends up an orphan on the streets of New York City in the '20s, he becomes a bootblack with a gang of young friends. He develops a young crush. He further develops his hatred for newer immigrants. He moves money for organized crime families. He goes to prison then gets out just before WWII. All these stories are told as flashbacks from G.I. Al serving overseas in Germany. There are some details from his life that connect in unexpected ways, but fate is cruel and his life ends ironically.

Gods of Jade and Shadow

 Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (2019) 340 pages

I really enjoyed this fairy tale adventure. It begins with some Cinderella vibes, but quickly veers onto its own path. The setting of 1920's Mexico was fun. Our heroine Casiopea Tun, who restores Mayan god of death Hun-Kamé to life, has the perfect blend of personality traits to take us along on a quest. Casiopea and Hun-Kamé are magically linked for the duration of the quest. She is gradually dying and he is gradually becoming more mortal. It feels natural that they slowly fall in love too. Hun-Kamé's brother dismembered him and stole his throne decades ago. The quest is to restore Hun-Kamé's missing body parts and a necklace, then recover his throne, so his brother doesn't return the world to the old ways of blood sacrifice as tribute to the gods. On the cross-country trek, Casiopea meets many magical beings known to Hun-Kamé. It reminded me of Gaiman's American Gods, the book or the TV show.

The Last Remains

The Last Remains by Elly Griffiths (2023), 361 pages 

The end. What else is there to write when a beloved series is over? I will miss the characters, the mysteries, and the history lessons. The series ends exactly how it should. Thank you Elly.

Man's Best

Man's Best by Pornsak Pichetshote, illustrated by Jess Lonergan, 160 pages

Earth is long dead and Dr. Winters has set out to find a new home for humanity, aided by robotics-enhanced animals Athos, Porthos, and Lovey. When giant robots attack their ship, the two dogs and cat are separated from Dr. Winters, and must fight through robots and strange alien lands to find her.

OK, have you ever wanted to read Homeward Bound set in space? If you have, this is the book for you! Honestly, that's really the best way to describe this fun, silly, and somehow still touching graphic novel. Crazy art, loving creatures, fun story. Give it a whirl!

The Teller of Small Fortunes

The Teller of Small Fortunes by Julie Leong, 336 pages

Tao has long been estranged from her mother and stepfather, choosing to wander the countryside telling "small fortunes" instead of facing a constrained life of magical education. As an immigrant, she's gotten odd looks as she travels farther from the border to her homeland, but it never really bothered her. Still, when an almost-former thief and a man looking for his kidnapped daughter join her on her travels, she welcomes the company and security they provide. Soon they pick up an apprentice baker and a vaguely magical cat, and begin searching for the man's kidnapped daughter in earnest. However, interference from government magicians and the threat of war with Tao's home country force Tao to return home and face her fears with her estranged mother.

This is a lovely found-family cozy fantasy, and just right for an escape from *waves hands broadly at the world*. Did it all make a lot of sense? Not necessarily. But it sure was fun anyway. Definitely reading more of Leong's books.

The Tea Master and the Detective

The Tea Master and the Detective by Aliette de Bodard, 86 pages

We read this for Orcs & Aliens in January, and Regan did a much better job summing it up than I ever will. While the world was intriguing, the story was too short and felt too much like a writing prompt (assignment: write a Sherlock & Watson tale set in your fictional universe). This somehow won the Nebula Award for best novella, and I'm not entirely sure how, unless it was a bum field that year. Meh.

You Weren't Meant to Be Human

You Weren't Meant to Be Human by Andrew Joseph White, 336 pages

After presenting as a peppy cheerful girl for most of his life, Crane had trouble fully being himself. So when Levi, a handsome ex-Marine, lures him to mysterious hive-centric cult in Appalachia, Crane finds that, for the most part, they're OK with him being a silent man. However, when Levi gets Crane pregnant, the hive forces him to go through with the pregnancy, despite all of Crane's attempts to MAKE. IT. STOP. Can this really lead to anything but horror?

The answer, of course, is no. However, the horror of this book — Crane's forced pregnancy and captivity, the lengths to which he tries to end the pregnancy and escape — is so brutally and unflinchingly told that it's a very hard read and made me want to just reach into the book and give Crane a hug (as little as he'd like that). Indeed, while reading this, there were several times that I had to set this aside and pick up something lighter, and I probably wouldn't have finished it at all if I didn't have to. There was a chance to go for something easier to read by focusing on the hive — which seemed ripe for more exploration in the text — but unfortunately for readers, White chose not to go in that direction. Not my favorite, and I wouldn't recommend it.

Arsenic and Adobo

Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala (2021, 336 pages) 

Life happens and Lila moves back to her midwestern hometown of Shady Palms for a bit of a reset and to help with her aunt's restaurant, Tita Rosie's Kitchen. Her ex Derek has become a food critic that's making his way around the local restaurants, and her best friend Adeena is a barista at the cafe next door. With an untimely death, Lila and Adeena become detectives to solve a small town murder. There's a cast of characters with varying involvement, small businesses, and family drama. With Tita Rosie's Kitchen closed until the murder has been solved, Lila has nothing but time on her hands to snoop!

What I liked:
✨Cute cozy mystery! Love a small midwestern town with a murder rate of 1 per capita.
✨Filipino culture, food, and language lessons!
✨Just straight up fun! I love watching a pair of besties solve crimes. They have dreams to open their own cafe, have their own dreams and desires, and have the best friend fights like anyone else. I love these two!
✨Realistic characters in this silly world: they had outbursts, acting outside of their norm, but coming back into themselves logically.


What I didn't like:
💤Pretty love triangle-y, or maybe even a square! At one point I swear there were three men interested in our main character. Just felt a little excessive, like every man was a potential love interest.
💤A lot of characters, got a little confusing at times
💤Some high school level drama

Favorite quote: "But knowing something logically, doesn't take away the guilt."

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Project Hail Mary

 Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir (2021, 476 pages)

Imagine you wake up on a... space ship? With a robot nurse and no idea who or where you are. You can barely move, yet your muscles haven't atrophied. You slowly start to remember the impending disaster on Earth, and what your mission is.

INSTANT classic sci-fi for sure!!! Heartwarming, funny, emotional, scientifically mysterious. I absolutely love all the characters. It goes into the depths of science, but in a non pretentious way. You won't miss the plot if you don't understand it. My favorite bit is how the main character is a renowned scientist, but still makes silly mistakes. As he says: "At least being stupid isn't permanent. I'll press on. I know I shouldn't, but I'm too stupid to take that into consideration."

Do NOT watch the trailer for the movie before the read the book! It has a major spoiler that I think would take away from reading the book.

Sat on the couch crying after I finished it for a bit. I highly recommend this book to anyone regardless of their background.

What I liked:
✨Incredible speculation on space travel and more
✨Lovable characters with great backstories
✨Flipping narrative between present and past -- you get to figure out parts of the journey as you read. Adds a layer of mystery!
✨Goes into detail about some science, but in a non-pretentious way

What I didn't like:
💤Some parts felt a little over the top with trying to be funny
💤Bit of an emotional roller coaster near the end

Favorite quote: "This is astronavigational equivalent of doing donuts in the 7-Eleven parking lot."

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
 

With the Fire on High

 With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo, 395 pages.

High school senior Emoni Santiago has what feels like an impossible amount on her plate. She has a daughter to raise, a grandmother to support, and no idea what she's going to do with her life after high school. The only things on her plate that don't stress her is the actual food. Emoni is magical in the kitchen, with an instinctual understanding for what goes together and a gift for making people feel things with her food. A culinary arts program at her school (complete with a trip to Spain) could be completely life-changing for her, but can she afford to care about what she wants with so many people depending on her?

This book by the same author as The Poet X had many of the same things I loved about that book. In some ways they are similar books, with Afro-Caribbean protagonist dealing with complex family relationships that are still very rooted in love, but they are also different enough characters and problems that it didn't feel like reading the same book again. Emoni's problems feel very real, and it would be hard not to get deeply invested in her. The imagery in this book is vibrant, and the voice is deeply engaging. This was probably further strengthened by the fact that I listened to the audiobook, which is narrated by the author and helps Emoni feel very real. This is an excellent young adult novel, I would recommend it widely, but especially to teens. 

A Scarlet Death

 

A Scarlet Death by Elaine Viets (2024) 231 pages

Angela Richman is a Death Investigator who gathers a slew of information at the scenes of murders and hands off the info to the county's medical examiner. Like other stories in the series, which is set in a fictional area described as 40 miles west of St. Louis, Angela is working with Jace, a police detective at the scene of a murder. An older man of wealth and respectability has been found dead in his love nest—an apartment over a chocolate shop—on a 9-foot square "Alaskan" king-sized bed with black silk sheets. He is naked, except for a blue tie and a woolen letter "A" on his chest. This is the first of a few cases they handle in this book, and if you like details about what death investigators look for, this is a book that will hold your interest. Angela works with Jace to help solve the cases, as well.

Additionally, Angela's relationship with Chris, a policeman in the same department, advances when Chris asks Angela to marry him. Like a stunned rabbit, she avoids answering, not sure if she wants to marry again after having lost her first husband at a young age. When Chris is badly injured in an area far from his usual beat, his coma turns their lives upside down..

The antagonists in Viets's stories might be slightly caracatured, but she creates characters one loves to hate. Her protagonists always seem relatable, with dialogue that feels natural. The solutions of the murders felt right, but after that, there was an ending I didn't expect.

Nobody's Girl

Nobody's Girl: A Memoir of Surviving Abuse and Fighting for Justice by Virginia Roberts Giuffre (2025) 367 pages

I wanted to read this memoir to get a better sense about how abominable Jeffrey Epstein and his partner Ghislaine Maxwell were to hundreds (and maybe a thousand or more) of mostly teenaged victims. The book is especially timely as the U.S. Justice Department has been (slowly) releasing redacted parts of the information that had been collected, and some men (and women) are just starting to be held accountable for the trauma they inflicted—or failed to call attention to—during the many years that Epstein and Maxwell found vulnerable teens and groomed them for sex with both themselves and others, often men of great wealth and power.

Giuffre shares the trauma she went through beginning with her own father, and continuing with abuse by Epstein and Maxwell, which went on for years.

I recommend this book, but also suggest not reading it before trying to sleep.

Project Hail Mary

 Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir, 476 pages.

This was my third time reading this sciencey space adventure (and my second time reading it for a book club) and I continue to be surprised at how well it holds up to further scrutiny! I first wrote about this book in 2021 here, and I still stand by most of those first impressions. However, to keep things fresh I decided to try the audiobook this time! I found it remarkably well-done. Grace's sense of humor comes across well with the audiobook narration, and the addition of sound added some really interesting elements to communication with Rocky. My book club ended up chatting about this book for nearly two hours, which proves to me that there's quite a lot to chew on for such a fun book. Definitely check out the book before the movie comes out next month!

Wylding Hall

 Wylding Hall by Elizabeth Hand, 176 pages.

Windhollow Faire is sent to the country by their manager to try and record a new album in the wake of a personal tragedy in London. The acid-folk band is initially delighted by Wylding Hall, the extremely old manor they have rented, and by the isolation that allows them to totally focus on their music. But the strange and unexplainable occurrences keep piling up, until they culminate in the disappearance of Julian Blake, the band's heart and lead singer. Now, decades later, a documentary filmmaker is trying to recreate what happened that summer, and everyone has their own stories.

I listened to this book, and I think the full-cast audiobook did a great job making this feel like a real retrospective. The strange incidents sometimes felt a little too episodic, as most of the characters never talk to each other about anything strange that happens, but they still come together to form an ever-heavier sense of unease. This felt quite a bit like Daisy Jones and the Six, except in this case the bad thing that everyone is talking around feels like it is terrible enough to justify the tension. I would definitely recommend this for fans of that book that want something a little darker, or for people interested in something a little bit gothic and modern-ish. I thoroughly enjoyed it. 

My Sister, the Serial Killer

My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite (2018), 223 pgs. 

Korede has always taken care of her younger sister, Ayoola. They are best friends and have always been, despite everyone constantly comparing them to each other, and their lives are completely entangled. When Ayoola makes a mess, Korede is always there to clean it up, and Ayoola seems to keep making messes. Working at the hospital is the only time that Korede has away from her sister, whom she loves dearly but who also causes her a lot of stress, and soon Ayoola starts messing that up as well. How much longer can she keep this up before both of their lives are ruined? How much help is too much? 

I read this book very quickly. Each chapter is short and leaves you wondering what will happen next, so you can't help but read just one more...and then another...and another. Oyinkan Braithwaite writes her main character, Korede, as a complex person who you don't quite know how to feel about. One minute you're frustrated with her, and the next, completely sympathetic. Overall, this book is a quick, interesting read that will keep you guessing. It isn't quite as action packed as the title may lead you to believe, but the characters are so compelling that it holds your interest. I personally was not a fan of the ending, but up until then I was all in.

The Locked Room

 The Locked Room by Elly Griffiths (2022), 368 pages

I love this series. I love the characters and I love the cozy mysteries that take place in coastal Norfolk, England. If you are new to the series (which has been around since 2019), it follows forensic archeologist Ruth Galloway and the interesting cast of characters that live in the fictional town of King's Lynn. Sadly, this is the penultimate book in the series and I am not sure what I will do when it ends. Probably start a campaign for Griffiths to re-start it, maybe do a time-jump and have Kate, Ruth's daughter, be the new focus. I am flexible on this. 

 A huge bonus to having a forensic archeologist as the protagonist is that you get to learn a lot of interesting history about very early England. The novel includes old castles and locked rooms, but is set during the Covid pandemic. It is a pet-peeve of mine when authors completely ignore the pandemic while setting a book right in the middle of it. I appreciate Griffiths for tackling it head-on. As usual, the mystery is fine, but what I really appreciate is how Griffiths moves the character's lives forward. When we first met Ruth in 2019, she was a late thirty-something. Now she is in her early fifties with a child. Her friends and friendships have also come and gone, but the core group has matured and grown. It feels like we have been on a journey together and I will miss it. If there is a downside to the novel, it is the revelation of a trope that is just unnecessary. 

Theo of Golden

 

Theo of Golden, by Allen Levi (2023), 400 pages

Theo is an elderly Portuguese man that seemingly appears out of nowhere in Golden, Georgia. He quickly charms the locals and begins a quest to hand deliver portraits that are displayed in the local coffee shop back to the subjects of those portraits. Through the process, Theo gradually reveals a bit about himself while taking in the stories of the people behind the art. A deep narrative is revealed and secrets uncovered. 

In some ways, this is a lovely story of a long life, regrets, and renewed purpose. In other ways, it reads like "Chicken Soup for the Soul". I listened to the book and, at some points, had to stop because it just got too saccharine. I enjoyed the premise of the novel, but the perfect, continually heartwarming endings of each story put a damper on any sort of ability to connect with the characters. There is a "surprise" at the end of the book. Careful readers, though, will not be shocked.

To Broadway

 To Broadway by Maurane Mazars (2025) 248 pages

This is historical fiction set in the late 1950s about a young gay German man studying modern dance who dreams of Broadway or Hollywood in America. The watercolor art is brilliant. We ride the ups and downs of Uli's career, love life, and friendships. Fantastically emotive with the use of visuals without too many words. And the Epilogue reveals some of the real people involved in the story. Translated from French.

Sula

 Sula by Toni Morrison (1973) 174 pages

I previously listened to Morrison's Beloved, but didn't grasp much of what it was trying to say. When The Atlantic published a "The Great American Novels" list in 2024 including Sula, I decided I should read another of Morrison's books. I'm from Ohio too. Medallion, Ohio is a fictional town, but I read it could be based on Lorain, Ohio to the west of Cleveland where Morrison grew up. Morrison explores the social changes in a black community called the "Bottom" between 1919 and 1965. There is a good bit in the beginning and end of the novel that does not focus on the title character, Sula. Instead, we meet Shadrack, who is a traumatized WWI veteran. He cannot readjust to living in "normal" society. Morrison's descriptions of the community are vivid. She then traces the lives of four women that are central to the relationships of the "Bottom." Eva is a mysterious figure who has a promiscuous daughter named Hannah amongst many other children. Hannah is the mother of Sula, who dies when Sula is still young. We spend quite of bit of time getting to know Sula and her friend Nel, but also Sula leaves for ten years for college. After college, Sula passes through many big cities, but is unable to find a man that she feels really connected to, so she returns to the Bottom. There is no straightforward plot, but a loose set of occurrences that resist simplistic notions of heroes or villains.

The Maze Runner Trilogy

The Maze Runner series by James Dashner

The Maze Runner by James Dashner (2009), 375 pgs.
Imagine waking up in a dark elevator, ascending to God-knows-where, with no memory of how you got there or--more importantly--who you are. That is what happened to Thomas when he entered the Maze. After arriving in "the Box," as the other boys called it, Thomas stepped out into a world entirely new to him, but somehow slightly familiar. The group of guys who greeted him explained that he was the newest member of the Gladers, a group of teenagers who lived in the center of a huge maze with no memory of why they are there. Thomas knew he must have a purpose, and when the newest arrival came up in the Box, that purpose became all the more clear: he must escape the Maze. 

The Scorch Trials by James Dashner (2010), 360 pgs.
After the dramatic conclusion to The Maze Runner, Thomas and his closest friends find themselves once again trapped in another large test, grasping for ways to survive. This time, the team of teenage boys--and some new friends--are given a mission: cross the desert and receive the cure for a deadly disease to which they have all been exposed. As the friends fight their way across the "Scorch," encountering other desperate, infected people, they begin to see more clearly the terrible state of the world outside of the Maze, and they start to uncover more about the mystery of why they were put there.

The Death Cure by James Dashner (2011), 325 pgs.
In this third and final installment of The Maze Runner series, Thomas faces all that has happened. He must finally confront the corporation which has been running experiments on him and his friends in the name of scientific discovery. He must determine what his role will be going forward, and how he will save his friends--those who are still alive--and the rest of society. It all comes down to Thomas, and after the trials he has been put through, he better be ready.

This series very much runs in the same vein as other YA dystopian novels-turned-movies from the early 2010s like Hunger Games and Divergent, but beyond similarities in terms of setting and overall themes, The Maze Runner books are nowhere near as good as those other genre legends. The first book is the strongest, with the most interesting and well put-together plot, but after that the series loses focus and wanders in different directions, seemingly without a point or destination in sight. The characters and their relationships are pretty shallowly written. The main character especially is also reallllyyy annoying in my opinion. Dylan O'Brien plays him much more likeable in the movies than he is written. I was not a big fan of this series on my re-reading, but the first one is still a fun pick if you're craving a nostalgia read from that era of YA dystopia (although you would be much better off just reading The Hunger Games).

Unwieldy Creatures

 Unwieldy Creatures by Addie Brook Tsai (2022) 296 pages

"Unwieldy Creatures, a biracial, queer, gender-swapped retelling of Mary Shelley's classic novel Frankenstein, follows the story of three beings who all navigate life from the margins." So starts the synopsis that caught my interest. I love the cultural influence Mary Shelley's Frankenstein has had, but it was a novel I didn't finish in high school. I made slow progress through this retelling. The style and method of three people telling us the story is very similar to how Shelley's novel is presented. Dr. Z's dangerous ambition takes up the most pages. Plum, the protege, commands considerably fewer pages. And Ash, the creature, only shares their voice briefly toward the end. Tsai includes some bilingualism with Mandarin characters in Plum's story, so I had to flip to the end of the chapters for translation footnotes. The author also lifts some sentences straight from the original Frankenstein novel. The story is set now, or in the near future, so the science is more up-to-date involving in vitro gestation. However, there are still plot holes that didn't totally make sense to me. I'm glad this version exists. The rejection faced by some queer people from their families is a theme that fits well in this "creature feature" framework. Themes of estranged parents and children still resonate in this context. Tsai writes like the Romantic writers of Mary Shelley's era, and this is the part I struggled with the most. There is a lack of energy moving the plot along in the later part of this book.

Surrounded

Surrounded: America's First School for Black Girls, 1832 by Wilfred Lupano (2021), Illustrated by Stephane Fert, 142 pgs.

In 1832, Sarah Harris entered the all white class of Prudence Crandall's boarding school. As a young Black girl in a time when slavery was only abolished in some states--like her home state of Connecticut--a formal education had not previously been available to Sarah, until she asked to join this class. After racist outrage followed Sarah's admittance, Ms. Crandall made the decision to make her boarding school for Black girls only. Girls from across the state traveled to learn together, and they faced many barriers from the white community, who stopped them from getting school supplies or other items in town, and from the local legislature, who passed laws making it illegal for Black girls to travel to the Crandall school. Nevertheless, Sarah and her classmates continued to learn and grow and challenge the stereotypes they had been taught.

This beautifully-drawn, fictionalized account of a true story is a quick, yet impactful read. The art style is very whimsical, but it also does a good job of emphasizing the gravity of dark moments. The story, at times, felt like it was teetering on the edge of being a white savior story focused on the teacher, but I do think the white author tried to avoid going that way entirely by including more moments focused entirely on the Black students. Overall, I would definitely recommend

Dark Ride

 Dark Ride by Lou Berney (2023), 256 pages

Hardley is an early 20-something stoner floating through life as a "scarer" in a haunted-themed amusement park. He is likeable in that there is really no reason not to like him way. While paying a ticket at the local court house, he comes across two children that are in obvious need of help. He calls and visits Children's Protective Services, but they are overwhelmed and of little help. This is when he realizes his purpose in life: he WILL save these two kids. Of course, there is a lot more back story, but it is heartening to see a person who is drifting realize his potential. 

Previous summaries regard this novel as an intense thriller. I would call it a Janet Evanovich "Stephanie Plum" level of thriller. There are likeable characters, funny side quests, but still enough plot and heft to make it worth reading. That is until the end. Then it went off the rails into unbelievable land
and had me questioning why?!?! If you have read this book, please let me know your thoughts as I am still shaking my head.

Husbands

 

Husbands by Holly Gramazio (2024)  338 pages

In a "Groundhog Day" manner (as the movie goes), Lauren‒who is single‒experiences husbands coming out of her attic. If the husband returns to the attic, he is repaced by another one. Everything is reset (except time) by the husband's return to the attic and the appearance of the next one. Their personalities vary widely. Each time there's a new husband, the flat that she lives in is decorated somewhat differently, a testament to the fact that she and this husband have had a history together before she meets him.

This is an extremely weird novel! I will eventually love it or else I will continue to feel somewhat cringy about some of the things that occur. Or both. I think both!

End Times

End Times: Elites, Counter-elites and the Path of Political Disintegration by Peter Turchin (2023) 352pp 

Turchin, a scholar in ecology and evolutionary biology, has a cross-disciplinary approach to the study of history which he labels “cliodynamics”. In a nutshell, the author is analyzing history using a large historical dataset to identify patterns. The author presents a variety of anecdotes from ancient times to the present using the concepts of out-of-control “wealth pumps”, overproduction of elites, and general immiseration; leading to instability, revolution, civil war and all things unpleasant. But I kept thinking, isn’t he neglecting too many variables and what confounding factors make this a fool’s errand? Nonetheless he forges a cogent argument that vast inequalities are destabilizing and, most interestingly, he posits that an overproduction of elites is just as threatening. Recommended to readers with a passion for history and those who appreciate novel approaches to complex and chaotic problems.