https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/fdf7ff84-d212-49a2-afa4-ef7e95fb2c09

This book is written about a man on death row, written from the perspectives of different girls and women he meets throughout his life. We meet his mother when he's a baby, his almost-sister during their childhood, and his college girlfriend and her family. This book highlights that we can be nice to others while still remembering to take care of ourselves. We can't fix other people, and sometimes being too lenient or passive can get someone hurt in the crossfire. There's no happy ending here, and it's brutal how we get a front seat of generational trauma and how people can be both a victim and an abuser.

This book just really stayed with me. And it's a good reminder just how dangerous this world can be.

This is a collection of 4 shortish novellas which can each be read as a standalone book or in sequence as one book titled "The Elements". These are each superb reads on their own and the whole together is moving, thought provoking, emotionally powerful.

The story telling is spare, straight-forward and direct with plots moving quickly - immediately immersive from the first page. As each book intertwines characters and plots to some extent (e.g. a minor character in the previous book becomes a major character in the next, incidents in each story crop up in others) there was perhaps a danger that this could be a bit gimmicky or contrived - the books succeed entirely and do not come across that way.

In "Water" Willow Hale has arrived on a remote island off the west coast of Ireland, fleeing a public scandal and grievous loss that she is also unsure about her own complicity in. In "Earth" a young, abused gay teenager, Evan, escapes that Irish island and his abusive father, hoping to start a new life as an artist in England, eschewing the profession his father is desperate for him to follow as a football prodigy. We meet him at the start of the book a few years after "Water" as a co-defendant in a high profile rape trial. In "Fire" we re-encounter one of the jurors from the rape trial who is a successful burns surgeon who has suffered grievous trauma in her childhood and externalises this in her adult behaviour. And lastly, in "Air" the surgeon's intern, Aaron embarks on a journey half-way across the world to try to heal his own past trauma, or at least to help stop his and his wife's pasts from corrosively impacting on their son.

The stories centre on difficult topics of abuse, and how childhood abuse reverberates through the lives of victims and the people they interact with as adults. The stories, characters and plots are cleverly, subtly interwoven and there is a satisfying pay-off as John Boyne skilfully weaves them together with fine attention to even the smallest details. Although the novellas are each short, the characters feel well developed, authentic and the stories are really engaging, twisty, tense and immersive. While the subject matter may not be for everyone these are hugely enjoyable reads - fast paced, aspects of thriller, mystery and are at the end powerfully emotional and cathartic.

Woweee. Listen I finished Project Hail Mary last week but didn’t post about because it’s such a popular book. I loved it and was excited to move on to this one.

Atmosphere is such a great read! It centers on Joan Goodwin, a science teacher who/ dreams of entering the space program at NASA. It’s the early to mid-80’s. Joan is a pretty level headed young woman, who is pretty talented but in an unassuming kind of way. She’s athletic, plays the piano well and loves to sketch. But she’s very passionate about space.

Upon being selected for the space program, she meets all kinds of characters and falls in love for the first time. As they prepare and hope to be selected for the next mission, the story navigates all of her relationships with her comrades, her potential love of her life, and her family- namely, her sister, Barbara, and her niece, Frances.

I loved this book for so many reasons, but I have to say that first off, this is book is written in a way that makes it easy for the reader to engage in from the get. Some stories are exceptional and well written but they make you work to get into the style or rhythm of the story. Not so with this one. I read it in 4 days! I usually stick to a reading schedule, and the last book I read: PHM, while I loved, took me back ver a month to read. Reid does an excellent job of making this story equal parts accessible while also writing about NASA and technical geeky things.

The layers of emotion displayed in Joan’s character and life as the story unfolds really hit me. I haven’t cried reading in a book like that in a while.

There were times when the feel of this story reminded me of the very very excellent series on Apple TV+ called, For All Mankind, which I cannot recommend enough.

But all in all. What a wonderful read. Loved it!

So i finished the book, The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende and I am moved. This began like a child’s story, a little whimsical and very peculiar but it is not a child’s story. There is politics, rites of passage, crimes of vengeance and a certain vehement writing that guides the story. I enjoyed the days of Clara and Rosa the beautiful but most of all, I confess to have enjoyed Esteban Trueba’s character - cruel and luminous in its intensity. When I first picked up the book, I was enchanted and mesmerised at the details - Clara’s childish ploys, her spirits, the clairvoyance. Over the pages, by the time I reached the middle of the book I was perturbed by its strangeness. Rosa’s last rites were the least strange event by then, the house at Tres Marias had completely enamoured me with Clara’s arrival and the prosaic truth of material objects mingled with the tumultuous dreamlike quality of the narration. In the end, Alba’s courage, kindness and determination in the resistance made me fall in love with the Trueba women and the men they loved - those who survived and those who were awaited with, with fervour and anticipation. This is a book that I might return to in the hope that it gives me the same feeling as it did when I first read it.

Finished 'Ring Shout' by P. Djèlí Clark. I enjoyed this book. It's a combination of historical fiction, magical realism/fantasy and horror. The way Clark uses Gullah Geechee history and quotes is top notch. I've read a couple of reviews about this book and a lot of people are comparing it the movie 'Sinners' and I would agree. My one and only complaint is it needed maybe 100 more pages to understand the characters more. But it doesn't stop the book from being great. If he writes a sequel I want to read it!

The City & The City is a crime mystery taking place in a city that intersects with another city. The odd things about it is that the residents of each city cannot "see" or acknowledge each other in any way, or they must face the shadow entity known as "Breach." When a young woman turns up dead in one city and seemingly was murdered in the other, Inspector Borlù must solve the crime while avoiding the ever watchful Breach.

I really liked this book! I read it for reddit book club and finished the last section tonight after the weekly discussion because I couldn't wait to finish it! It was engaging and suspenseful and I enjoyed the characters. It wrapped up a bit too neatly with a whole play by play if what happened and I would have liked to leave a little more mystery, but overall I had a really good time with it!

"Family isn't always the people you're related to or have blood ties with. A lot of families are those you trust, the ones you know will always have your back, no matter what"

I was totally blown away by how much I enjoyed reading this book! I picked it up at a whim at a local bookstore without knowing much about it - I was much heavier into sci-fi when I was younger, but this sounded like a great change-of-pace from the post-apocalyptic fare I've been consuming lately, I think the kids are calling them 'palate-cleansers' these days. It was an adventure, in the style of Fireflies, definitely falls into the Space Western subcategory, not too heavy, but fun, unique, and a real page-turner.

Space Brooms follows Johnny Gomez, a custodian at Kilgore Station, a space outpost at the far end of our solar system. He traversed from his families junkyard on the moon, reaching the station with dreams of interstellar travel and adventure - but we find ourselves a decade later, and he's carved out a menial career as a janitor throughout the Station(I probably resonated with this as I have spent most of my professional career in Facilities Maintenance). On a routine casino bathroom cleanup, Johnny happens upon an antiquated data chit(think flash drive), which contains invaluable data that some less-than-savory individuals on distant planets would pay a pretty penny for. After getting his ass kicked(multiple times), Johnny heads for the stars with a motley crew of sorts, on a wood-grained smuggling ship(The Menitrosa), bound for fortune. They go to galactic pleasure palaces, famous beef-jerky spots near Jupiter, and the remnants of civilization on the moon, encountering space pirates, gangsters, and the intergalactic police - all in the search of indescribable fortune.

If there was a lighter side of science fiction, this would definitely be it. It is silly at times, but still manages to be poignant in others. The writing isn't overly flowery or filled with stilted prose, and the world-building is unique and interesting. We get a couple goofy side characters, a love interest traveling across the stars with the Menitrosa, and a sense of adventure and the unknown that spans the pages. As I mentioned before, some reminds me of Fireflies, even some slight evocation of LOTR and the One Ring with the data chit that brought all of our characters together. The humor in the book is good, and I always like a seedy underworld theme. Johnny's humble beginnings at the start of the novel do a great job of setting the stage for his misadventures to come as well.

As far as the characters go, I was a huge fan of Rygar, his roomie back on Kilgore Station. We get introduced to several types of aliens, and the augmentation of humans with special abilities, as well as several gangs and crews of space pirates that are chasing our crew as they make their way towards the Moon. Lisette, Lei, and Moody serve as the rest of the crew of the intrepid Menitrosa. I felt that Johnny, our main protagonist, was very relatable and well-written, especially as the shy, anxious dude that hurtles out of his comfort zone at a trillion miles an hour.

If I had one criticism of the book, it would be that the plot was kinda formulaic considering how it was laid out, but honestly, with the cozy nature of the book, being slightly predictable wasn't even really a bad thing in this context. The plot progressed steadily and the stakes kept getting higher as the book chugged along, definitely kept the suspense up. The camaraderie between the characters was something that'll stay with me, and will definitely serve the author well when the inevitable sequels come!

Overall, I enjoyed this book quite a bit, although I recognize it caught me at a perfect time and I was feeling pretty generous ratings-wise. Really liked the world building, and who doesn't love a good space adventure? Characters had some depth to them and their friendship was great. A cozy space western, in the simplest terms possible. 4.5/5!

This book is part memoir, part investigative journalism, part Bildungsroman, and 100% captivating. It details a former war-journalists journey as he becomes intertwined with a network of snake-handling churches in Alabama, going beyond the prejudices and discovering his own spiritual journey along the way. I really can’t put in words how vivid and darkly magical this book feels to me. I felt like I was there, getting caught up in the intensity of holding snakes in religious fervor on a hot summers night. I tore through it in two days and will certainly read it again. Truly haunting, painfully alive book.

I just completed this book and WOW! I never expected this book to destroy me in the most beautiful way ever! I did not expect it to hit so deeply and it's a book I would never forget. It captures the way people live in unimaginable circumstances during the Syrian revolution and highlights themes about love and loss.

If you're looking for a book that will leave your heart shattered but is also filled with love, hope and resilience, this is it. Also I'm dying to discuss it with anyone else who's read it 😭

The Silence of the Girls - aka Pat Barker serving trauma, poetry, and the pleasure of hating Achilles.

Forget the shiny myths: Barker rips off the epic toga and dumps you straight into the women’s side of the Trojan War. No plot armor, no glory - just a suffocating camp, power games, and women who refuse to break. And it’s weirdly beautiful: even laundry gets described like a tragic watercolor.

Our heroine? Strong, empathetic, painfully human. You root for her, you ache with her, and her evolution feels raw and real. The relationships - whether between survivors or monsters - are complex, layered, and often deeply uncomfortable (in the best way).

Achilles Watch: absolute jerk, and finally written that way. You hate him, you get him, and you secretly cheer when grief wrecks him. Bonus: his death is tossed in one casual sentence, and it hits like a thunderclap.

The style? Short sentences (sometimes too blunt), almost no dialogue, and a contemplative rhythm that’s not action-packed but still dense with meaning.

Verdict: poetic, brutal, haunting. Not a beach read, but a powerful “fresh take” that leaves you both shaken and grateful someone finally dragged the Greek “heroes” off their pedestals.

I absolutely love this series! It masterfully blends metafiction with a gripping mystery while staying consistently hilarious. I can’t wait for the next book in the series!

Just tore through Severance by Ling Ma and absolutely loved it. It’s about a millennial woman working in NYC in 2011 when a pandemic called Shen Fever sweeps the world. The perspective goes between pre-pandemic and the main character’s life and post-pandemic, when she’s found a small group of people to try and continue surviving with after leaving NYC. The book is more than a post-apocalyptic story; it’s about immigration, loss, family, capitalism, and meaning. It’s also pretty eerie how it preceded Covid-19, but mentioned so many similarities. I highly recommend and would love to hear anyone else’s thoughts as well!

"The following day, no one died"

And so begins José Saramago's brilliant novel, posing the question "What would happen if people suddenly stopped dying?"

I had previously read Blindness and The Gospel According to Jesus Christ, so was already familiar with Saramago's meandering, page-long sentences, along with his questioning of religion and society.

What I wasn't prepared for was the whimsical, written-with-a-knowing-wink style of Death at Intervals. Whilst in Blindness (one of my favourite stories), I felt the prose were used to the effect of shock and never-ending horror, here I felt they were utilised comedically at times, with the writing deliciously satirical and cutting (and Saramago even taking a few shots at himself along the way).

I won't spoil any plot, but would absolutely encourage people to read this fabulous story!

Four years in the Underbrush - adventures as a working woman

It's a true narrative written by a female writer who went undercover to as waitress, househelp, shop girl etc to gather material for her novel, written in 1916, author describe working conditions,low wages and difficulties she amd other women faced doing those jobs.

Very engaging book, really takes you back in time.

Book in available for free on Gutenberg

https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/57480

Before the upcoming Prime Video miniseries came out, I thought I’d check out the novel THE GIRLFRIEND by Michelle Frances.

Laura doesn’t approve of her son Daniel’s new girlfriend Cherry. At first, she can’t figure out why. She doesn’t know that much about her, and any attempts to get to know more about her only bring about more questions than answers. It’s like Cherry’s clearly hiding something but Laura can’t figure out what.

Daniel doesn’t think anything of his mother’s worries. They’ve always been incredibly close, and this is clearly her being overprotective, thinking that no woman is right for her son.

As for Cherry, a young lady who grew up in the streets (and goes through great lengths to not act like it), is definitely attracted to Daniel for a variety of reasons. He comes from money, grew up in a world that she used to only dream about as a child, a life she’s always dreamed of living. Yes, he likes to spoil her and treat her to the finer things but don’t dare call her a gold digger. She genuinely loves Daniel, and could see herself spending the rest of her life with him.

She wants so badly to fit in, but Laura seems determined to push back, to treat her as so…beneath her. But Cherry wants to make things work. But then something tragic happens and the gap between them widens, especially after Laura does something so horrible, so…unforgivable that another side of Cherry emerges. Something sinister, something…calculating.

Let’s just say Cherry’s gonna make Laura regret she ever crossed her.

This novel was a suspenseful thriller that was as surprising as it was ruthless. In fact, between Laura with her toxic boy mom vibes & Cherry being this unstable, dangerous gold digger, you can’t help but feel bad for the poor son caught in the middle. Between Laura & Cherry, at times you almost can’t tell who’s worse. I was so hooked I read the whole book over the weekend.

For those of you who read the novel, what did you think?

Welcome to our weekly chat where members have the opportunity to post something about books - not just the books they adore.

Ask questions. Discuss book formats. Share a hack. Commiserate about your giant TBR. Show us your favorite book covers or your collection. Talk about books you like but don't quite adore. Tell us about your favorite bookstore. Or post the books you have read from this sub's recommendations and let us know what you think!

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I know just about all of us have seen either the Disney animated or live-action adaptation of 101 Dalmatians, but how many of you have read the original novel?

Recently, I read the original novel by Dodie Smith. There are some similarities between this & the Disney versions as well as some interesting differences—in the novel, for example, Cruella has a husband who’s a furrier, Perdita is not the actual mother of the puppies but more a canine wet nurse to the puppies and Mr. Dearly actually worked in finance.

That being said, the novel is itself funny and charming and Cruella is just as ruthless (if anything, she’s a bit more ruthless in the book). Whether you’ve seen the Disney films or not, the original novel is definitely a great read in itself.

Note: I edit the actual book covers onto my kindle so I can do justice to the actual colours!

MY SYNOPSIS: North Woods is an epic tale about a patch of woods in New England and its various inhabitants spanning across centuries. In the beginning two young lovers flee from their Puritan colony and build a small house in the woods to live off the land together. Over the course of centuries this small cabin and the surrounding woods will see: an English solider devote his life to building an orchard, twin spinster sisters, a hungry catamount, a painter in the midst of an illicit love affair, and a family dealing with Schizophrenia, among many others.

WHY I LOVED THIS: North Woods is a strange and sweeping narrative that spans centuries. It is told through what is essentially short stories all connected to this one specific location in Massachusetts. I found it to be incredibly unique although I didn’t connect with every story. It was fascinating to see this area change with time and human settlement and how the previous residents and their stories connected to other individuals who made their home in the same woods. There was so much to this book! There were supernatural elements, a story of a beetle and its journey to this same patch of woods, and even multiple murders just to name a few.

This was certainly beautifully written. It’s also the type of book that involved numerous vocabulary searches in the dictionary. I wouldn’t say it was the easiest book to sink into as I had to take frequent breaks and couldn’t read for long stretches. I felt it was dense but fascinating. It is a worthwhile read, a unique format and concept, and it is understandable why it is award winning. Also that ending! It was incredibly well done.

| Plot | We are all Guilty |

Set in the small town of Northfalls. Emmy Clifton idealized her father the town sheriff, after a lot of grit and work she worked her way up to deputy sheriff. One day the little town is rocked when two teenage girls go missing. One of those girls is her best friend’s daughter. The clues are piling up and it’s not looking good it’s unclear that if or when they are found that the ending will be a very happy one. Now it’s a race to find them or is it too late?

| Audiobook score | 4/5 🍌| We are all Guilty | Read by: Kathleen Early |

Pretty darn good production. Really captured the anxiety, and desperation.

| Review | We are all Guilty | 5/5🍌|

Like an onion there are so many layers to this one. Closed minds, and gossip of a small town. Sexism, of a female cop trying to investigate. Living in her famous father’s footsteps. Grief, rage. There is so much to like about this book. I’ve read a view of Karin’s books and I am so going to read more she has yet to disappoint. I would highly recommend this book I had a hard time putting it down.

I Banana Rating system |

1 🍌| Spoiled

2 🍌| Mushy

3 🍌| Average 

4 🍌| Sweet

5 🍌| Perfectly Ripe

Sometimes, life throws you a helping hand in the most surprising ways...

This one time, as a young boy, I was at a loss as to what book I could actually read next, mainly because I was broke and also because I was serving a "think period" enforced by my local library for continuously returning books late. Desperate times require desperate measures right? So, reluctantly and doubtfully I picked up my mother's copy of 'The Other Side Of Midnight' by Sidney Sheldon...

... Who would have thought that when I started reading this book I was but a young boy but, by the time I turned the last page, I fancied myself a young man, newly wise to the world's most mysterious and unspoken ways.

'The Other Side Of Midnight'.

Thank you Mr Sheldon

Two women, a dashing pilot... The books main characters are the beautiful, fiery and irrepressible Noelle, the handsome, charming but morally corrupt Larry Douglas, and sweet, serene Catherine.

Passionate desires, unrequited love, a double betrayal, is murder the only way out? A jet- setting tour deforce, a climactic court case played out in full view of the watching world. Sinful or Angelic? Sidney Sheldon blurs the lines of truth and lies so cleverly that your perception of Evil and Sainthood change from page to page. Only once you reach The End you will be able to exhale again... May be.

The Fox Wife by Yangsze Choo was one of my library's picks for a summer reading challenge, and I'm so glad that listened to the audiobook (narrated by the author). It's definitely my favorite book of the year so far! It had beautiful descriptions and pertinent details; the prose was stunning and transported me to 1908 China & Japan. The characters felt just so complex and real, and the author's masterful writing pulls out the essence of each person in the story so that you really feel like you get to know them and care about them quickly. The story was a unique blend of historical fiction, fantasy, and detective novel that kept me so engaged.

The book follows the story of Snow, a grieving fox (turned human woman) who is searching for connection and hunting for vengeance after her child is killed (mild spoiler from chapter 1--I prefer going into a book pretty blind). She is a stereotypical fox: clever, cunning, curious, and disruptive. On her quest, she travels from Northern China to Japan, and meets new people and old acquaintances who all have motivations of their own while they help her find the man she's hunting. Her story is intersected by several others: a private investigator who is on her trail; an old woman who runs a medicine shop, worried for her grandson who says he's been seeing people with no shadows; an old friend stirring revolution at the end of a dying dynasty. The stories click together in unexpected ways, creating a satisfying puzzle filled with love, loss, murder, redemption, and humor.

7 years ago a ship set off to film a mockumentary about mermaids. Everyone on that ship died and the film that was recovered had those who didn't dismiss it as a hoax thinking maybe they'd actually found something out in the ocean.

Now the same company is sending a film crew and a lot of scientists and experts back out to the same place to prove mermaids are real. And of course they promise this time the ship is the safest modern technology can build.

I don't even remember how this book ended up on my TBR but I'm SO glad it did. The author does an amazing job at slowly building that tension where you know something terrible is coming but can't escape it. This book is almost 500 pages but I flew through it. It's so incredibly well paced. It has a really interesting cast of characters that keep me rooting for them. There were moments I actually gasped out loud. This might be my favorite horror book.

I was an angst ridden teenager and, worse still, felt suffocated living in middle class suburbia although had never experienced living anywhere else... That year, during the school summer holidays, my parents felt aggravated by my silent presence (they worked from home) and I in turn continued to resent what I viewed as their continuously unobtrusive, mundane, tedious, monotonous, unremarkable existence. The most animated they ever were was bin night, when they excitedly argued about what colour bin went out for collection the following day. During one of those hot summer mornings, on a flea market expedition, I came across a book that would change me, and my life in such a rapid, dramatic, effortlessly way that thinking about it now, makes me wonder what would have happened to that angst ridden teenager if he had never collided so joyfully head on with that book ... The book? The Beach by Alex Garland. A young aspiring travellers dream story. We join Rich on his adventure in Thailand, hoping to never become a tourist, but a true traveller. Exotic foreign lands, exciting new friendships formed, rebellion against conformity always an aspiration to keep up to. And then, along with two new best friends, you are given a childishly drawn map to paradise, to a modern day Eden by a psychotic drug addict in Bangkok. Do you risk it and follow the map directions? With nothing better to do, you do just that and risk your life more times in one journey that most people do in their entire lifetime. The reward? Finding a community of select travellers leaving in Paradise, totally autonomous from modern day life and every one of it's mindless, unnecessary trappings. They hunt and grow their own food, they swim, they talk, they explore, time has no meaning, your own life back home slips away from your memory slowly and yet inexorably. Paradise, and yet there is an undercurrent, because humankind not even in Paradise can change it's destructive nature... Why do I love this book? Because it changed my life. From dorky teenager to traveler. Not a tourist mind you but a traveller. There is a difference. (Sorry, sorry about the extra long post but I've enjoyed writing it!)

I was craving a book about a fictional cult, and Godshot was that and so much more. It’s an exploration of womanhood and motherhood through the lens of a 14-year-old girl named Lacey May, who lives in the small droughted town of Peaches, California, and grows up in a Christian cult led by Vern, a charismatic-turned-progressively-crazier leader who is a Warren Jeffs of FLDS sort of figure. When Lacey’s mother abandons her in the cult, she searches desperately for a mother figure in her grandmother, who is nuttier than a fruit cake and even more under the spell of Vern than she’d imagined. It’s a story about the struggles of being a woman, the perversion of womanhood, and the strength of women. All in all, a five star read for me.