Tag: Harper

What I Read: June 13-19

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Aurora by David Koepp: This was a read-in-one-day sort of book – fast-paced and interesting, without being TOO heavy (although focused on an apocalyptic-adjacent event). Koepp wrote the screenplay for Jurassic Park, so this reads very much like a movie. Thank you Harper Books for the finished copy! | My Aurora review on Instagram

The Body in the Library (Miss Marple #2) by Agatha Christie: I enjoyed this more than the first book, but I don’t know if Miss Marple and I can be friends. I’ll probably read the remaining four books I have in this series, but I’m not sure I’ll go beyond that. Looks like I’ll be scurrying back to Poirot in a few months…

Dating Dr. Dil by Nisha Sharma: This started off incredibly promising and fizzled out, FAST. Between interesting (read: embarrassing and immature) names for body parts and a male lead who actually turns out to be a pretty big jerk, you’re not missing much if you decide to skip this one.

Witch and Famous (Witch Way Librarian Mysteries #3) by Angela M. Sanders: Witchy books can be really hit or miss for me, and this series continues to be a favorite! Sanders perfectly balances the magical and witchy elements with real life. The mystery in this one had me guessing until the very end, and I was thrown off by some very clever red herrings. Thank you Kensington for the ARC! | My Witch and Famous review on Instagram

Deal Breaker (Myron Bolitar #1) by Harlan Coben: I’m no stranger to Harlan Coben, having read a handful of his books over the past few years. After catching up with Karin Slaughter’s backlist, I decided to shift my focus to starting the Myron Bolitar series from the beginning. Myron and Win are some of my favorite characters to revisit, and this series does a decent job of filling the Karin Slaughter void in my reading life. And for a book published in 1995, this didn’t feel TOO dated which is an achievement on its own.

CURRENTLY READING: Getting back into historical romance and finally reading All the Duke I Need by Caroline Linden. Thank you Avon for the finished copy!

What I Read: April 18-24

Aimeeeliz

The Cherry Robbers by Sarai Walker (available 5/17/2022): This was a really interesting read, about a family of (seemingly) cursed sisters who are heiresses to a firearms fortune. I thought this would be a fictionalized version of the Winchester House story (seriously, look it up, it’s wild) but it was more of a gothic, 1950s version of The Virgin Suicides. It’s a slower burn at times (with some shocking moments sprinkled throughout) and it ends on a somewhat vague note and leaves a lot of unanswered questions. However, the atmospheric reading experience, cast of sisters and unsettling “wedding cake” house kept me interested from start to finish. Thank you Harper Collins for the ARC!

Chef’s Kiss by TJ Alexander (available 5/3/2022): Sometimes readers will complain that a book is all romance and no plot – well, Chef’s Kiss was somewhat of the opposite for me (but not necessarily in a bad way). Think of this more as contemporary fiction with a slow-burning romantic subplot. Simone and Ray are SO lovable (Ray is the epitome of SUNSHINE). I loved the cookbook/magazine publisher workplace setting (America’s Test Kitchen fans, this book will interest you!) and the overall plot was rich and well-developed. I think this was my first romance read with a nonbinary lead, and the representation is what matters most here. Thank you Atria for the ARC!

The Silent Wife (Will Trent #10) by Karin Slaughter: There was a point in this book where I had an idea of where Karin was taking the plot and I was so distressed and heartbroken about the mere idea of where it was going, and then SHE WENT THERE and for some reason, i’m not mad about it? After 16 books in two series that include a few overlapping characters, I think i’ve made it to the point where I would follow Karin over a cliff (metaphorically, of course). This book can be read as a standalone, but you’d be missing out on so much if you didn’t go back to the very beginning and start with the Grant County series. Did I just give you a 16-book tbr? Yes. Am I sorry? Not at all. Unfortunately, I am completely caught up with the Will Trent series now, and I only have one more Karin Slaughter book to read before I have to find another author to obsess over for a bit (Harlan Coben, you’re up next!) Thank you William Morrow and Bibliolifestyle for the finished paperback copy!

CURRENTLY READING: I’ve decided to do the simultaneous fiction/nonfiction reading thing again, so i’ve picked up The Captain of All Pleasures (Sutherland Brothers #1) by Kresley Cole alongside The Nineties by Chuck Klosterman.

What I Read: April 11-17

Aimeeeliz

The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot by Marianne Cronin: This is an absolutely lovely book about friendship and life and death. Have some tissues ready, but also be prepared for a heartwarming, sweet read.

Come With Me by Ronald Malfi: This book is interesting and well written, but completely misrepresented. Come With Me is classified as horror, but (in my opinion) it read more like a mystery/thriller with a handful of spooky elements. There’s a little bit of a twist at the end that’s clever, but ultimately this didn’t really serve up what I was looking for.

A Thorn in the Saddle (Cowboys of California #3) by Rebekah Weatherspoon: This came highly recommend and for good reason – it’s an absolute delight! This is my second Rebekah Weatherspoon book (I read Rafe a few months ago) and I appreciate the minimal angst and drama between the main characters (minor spoiler: no third-act breakup here, and it’s refreshing!) Thank you Kensington for the ARC!

CURRENTLY READING: I picked up The Cherry Robbers by Sarai Walker (available 5/17/2022) last night. I’m only a handful of pages in but i’m always down for a good gothic novel. Thank you Harper Collins for the ARC!

REVIEW – The Officer’s Daughter by Elle Johnson

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The Officer’s Daughter is deeply sad and uncomfortable. Elle Johnson outlines how the murder of her cousin in 1981 shaped her life. Both girls were 16 at the time of the murder, and you can tell that the event still has a profound impact even now.

Johnson also spends a lot of time talking about her complicated relationship with her father, who worked as a parole officer. There are really two different stories here – but both feature a theme of healing and forgiveness.

Thank you Harper Books for the ARC.

REVIEW – A Thousand Ships by Natalie Haynes

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I had incredibly high hopes for this book and it delivered (and then some). A Thousand Ships is absolutely stunning right from the first chapter. It toggles between different perspectives, all of which are women affected in some way by the Trojan War. We get to visit some characters a few times, and others are only mentioned once – but the impact is never diminished. These are stories of grief, loss, strength, grace, pain and revenge. If you’re a fan of Circe or Song of Achilles, this is an absolute MUST read for you.

Thank you Harper Books for the ARC!

REVIEW – Goodnight Beautiful by Aimee Molloy

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Before you read any further, this is important: go into this book as blind as possible! Reading the synopsis is okay, but i’d avoid any thorough reviews until you’re done. I’ll tell you my thoughts without giving anything away:

  1. This book surprised the heck out of me.
  2. I really enjoyed reading it!

That’s kind of it. It’s a solid, classic thriller/suspense novel and a quick, fun read.

Thank you Harper Books for the ARC (and finished copy) of Goodnight Beautiful!

REVIEW – The Better Sister by Alafair Burke

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Phew, what a premise! Our main character Chloe is married to her sister’s ex-husband, Adam, and is raising her nephew/stepson, Ethan. Got that straight? When Adam is murdered, suspicions quickly turn to Ethan and we follow a twisty narrative that includes family drama, secrets and a court case.

This story did not go in the direction that I expected, and I really enjoyed it! It gave me some Jodi Picoult vibes – a court battle, moral ambiguity, family secrets, etc. It really comes down to this – how far would you go to protect the people you love?

I think this is a great summer mystery for thriller lovers and newbies alike. Burke’s writing keeps the reader interested, and the short, punchy chapters made for an incredibly fast reading experience.

Thank you Harper Perennial/Harper Books for my copy of The Better Sister!

REVIEW – The Boy Who Followed His Father into Auschwitz by Jeremy Dronfield

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“The boy is my greatest joy. We strengthen each other. We are one, inseparable.”

This is probably one of the most incredible WWII stories I’ve ever read. I’ll admit, I was hesitant to pick this up – not because I didn’t want to read it, but because life is weird and difficult right now and I wasn’t sure I wanted to dive into something so heartbreaking. This book is nonfiction, but it reads like fiction most of the time – the writing flows easily and the people Dronfield writes about leap off of the page. I loved reading about each family member – while the story is primarily about Gustav and his son Fritz, we do get a glimpse into what life during the war was like for the rest of the family. They all end up on different paths, and some endings are horrific.

“It took strength and character to share and love in a world where selfishness and hate were common currency.”

I was right, this book is incredibly heartbreaking. But it’s also joyful. And hopeful. The love between Gustav and Fritz kept them going. Their resilience is inspiring and, at times, it’s almost unbelievable. Their bravery was just one small factor in their eventual survival – they also experienced incredible luck (which is so hard to say, given the circumstances) and they ended up building a small community of friends within the camps who lifted them up and pushed them through. This book examines the absolute worst of humanity but also highlights some of the best. The sacrifices people made (and were willing to make) for the good of the cause. The danger they put themselves in to save others.

“No matter what occurred in the world, no matter how near danger might be, life went on, and what could one do but live it?”

Something that I feel is glossed over sometimes when it comes to WWII books – nonfiction and fiction alike – is what the survivors experience once they are back home and safe. Even though Gustav and Fritz survived many years in unimaginable, cruel conditions, they still struggled when it came time to rejoin society and get “back to normal.” There truly was no normal after WWII for many survivors, and the trauma and pain of those years in the camps impacted the rest of their lives.

Thank you Harper Perennial/Harper Books for the ARC!

REVIEW – Have You Seen Me? by Kate White

Aimeeeliz

This has such a great premise – Ally shows up at work one morning, only to be told she hasn’t been employed there for five years. She spends the entire book piecing together the bits of her lost memory. There’s a cold case from her childhood that plays a role here, and overall I was interested to see where the story ended up.

However…it didn’t really end up anywhere. Do we figure out where she was? Yes. Do we find out what triggered her memory loss? Also, yes. (I don’t see these as spoilers, as it’s pretty much explained in the synopsis.) However, the tone of the book shifts in the last 100 or so pages and I found myself going “seriously?” during a few parts.

I think there’s an audience for this book – those who are new to the thriller genre or those who want to read a thriller without too much complexity or gore.

Thank you Harper/Harper Perennial for sending me a copy of this book!

REVIEW – When You Read This by Mary Adkins

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“This whole time I thought my real life hadn’t started yet. Turns out that was my life. I have six months or so to make that okay, somehow.”

Oh, this book. I was intrigued by the premise initially, but I loved this book so much more than I would have anticipated. We follow our three main characters – Iris (recently deceased), her boss Smith and her sister Jade – through a series of emails, text messages and blog posts. The format of this novel made it a very quick and easy read – I flew through the majority of this book in a matter of a few hours.

“We are not special. We do not survive death. We only think we are, and do.”

This is an amazing portrayal of grief, presented in snippets. Smith is grieving the loss of his friend and coworker. Jade is grieving the loss of her sister. And through Iris’ blog posts, we witness her grieving the loss of “what could have been.” It’s sad and it’s funny (like, laugh out loud funny). It’s cliche to say “I laughed, I cried,” but, truly…I laughed. I cried. There are a few notable side characters, like Carl (you’ll hate him, then you’ll kind of love him).

“‘We die as we lived,’ some guy wrote. But how did I live?”

Thank you Harper Books/Harper Perennial for sending me a finished paperback copy of this book!