Hello, 2021! I know it looks like this year has started off with a bang – but only a few of these were really enjoyable! There were a few big letdowns. I’ve also read more backlist (older books, not published this year) so far this year than all of last year. Here are my faves:
Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks. Set in 1660 and about the Plague – doesn’t maybe seem like the best book to read during a pandemic but sheesh I really liked it! It’s the story of a small town that decides to quarantine themselves from the rest of the world and let the plague run its course – an unheard of decision in that time. Had a good twist at the end – lots of strong women, a little bit of witch-suspicion…I liked it. 4.5 stars!
Early Morning Riser by Katherine Heiny. This one doesn’t come out until April – but trust me you’re going to want to put it on your library queue or pre-order it now. So good and uplifting and funny – it’s the story of a teacher in a small town who falls for this cute older guy Duncan. The only downside to being in love with him is that he’s had “relationships” with nearly every other woman she comes across! Oh and he has an ex-wife who is super involved in his personal business. The characters (there are lots) are endearing and humorous…universally good read. 4.5 stars!
Thirdly, another backlist title – Kristin Hannah’s The Great Alone. I know I’m late to this and people have been recommending it for a long time. I found it so engrossing. I have a friend who found it to be super slow – but for some reason I flew right threw it. Set in Alaska, this one is about a young girl who lives with her mother and father. Their relationship is…well…awful. Her father is abusive, he clearly suffers from PTSD from his time in Vietnam. He moves them to this remote town in Alaska…things go from there. Definitely not Literature, but more like “beach read – but make it cold and dark with some serious depression.” 4 stars
Landslide by Susan Conley is out 2/2/21 and I really enjoyed this one too – another cold setting but Maine this time. This reminded me of J Courtney Sullivan (weirdly remembering now she had a book titled Maine) and a little bit of early Maggie O’Farrell. This is the story of Jilly as she tries to balance life between her two (needy, troubled, normal) teenage sons and her injured husband. This one felt like such a real portrayal of what life with teenagers must be like! 4 stars
Now we’re to the “meh” books I’ve read so far this year. I’ll try to briefly sum up:
The Duke and I – clearly I’m on the Bridgerton bandwagon and had to read this book before watching the series. It’s the first in a long series and I have to say – the show was better/different/less annoying. I don’t mind a good romance novel once in a while – I found the issues in this to be silly/irritating. There are NO other stories lines outside of Daphne and the Duke. No Eloise, no Penelope, no Queen or Prince or seamstress or brother’s mistress. Just Daphne and the Duke. I enjoyed the first half while they were pretending to be together – everything after they marry was cringe-worthy. 3 stars
The Prophets – just came out and is getting lots of buzz. I thought it was too Literary for me – I struggled to keep up and didn’t really feel connected to any of the characters and I think I’m a character person at heart. 3 stars
The Midnight Library – such a clever/new premise about a library in the moment between life and death where you can see what your life might have looked like if you’d made any single choice differently. Reminded me of Oona Out of Order but I think I liked that one better – this one had toooooo many life cycles in it. 3.5 stars
Send for Me is also out 2/2/21 – a WWII story that is not quite a WWII story – or at least not in the way you think. It’s the story of three generations of mothers and daughters and the sacrifices they all make for love.
The Wives I inhaled in a night – suspense but, I thought, overall kind of mindless. If you like a good thriller this one would definitely suck you in. My book club has been passing it around and it’s been liked by everyone so far – just not a lot of substance. 3 stars
And then there were the Agatha Christies. My grandmother passed The Murder of Roger Ackroyd on to me and I thought it was great. She was such an innovator in terms of plotting. Then I followed that up with a contemporary novel about Agatha Christie (The Mystery of Mrs Christie) – one that goes back and forth between her falling in love with her husband and the time years later that she disappeared for 10 days. DON’T google her to find out what really happened, it ruined the suspense for me. Both of these are in the 3.5 to 4 star range.
Phew that was a lot.
Lit Picks. 