In June, I finished 22 books. That brings me to a total of 114 for the year. I am shocked and pleased with this change in my life. I get so much satisfaction out of reading, reviewing, and talking about books with people. I’m so glad you’re all on this journey with me.

Although I have 22 books on the list this month, a few of them were books started earlier. I just love doing these wrap ups because I realize that I read a lot more wonderful books than I’d thought I had when I just look back in my mind. It’s also fun to see how my thoughts on a book have changed with time.

Inspection by Josh Malerman

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was drawn into this book immediately and found myself flipping pages as quickly as i could to see what happened after i reached the halfway point. I think this book is well-written and creative. There were things i suspected might go differently, but i was not disappointed. It’s a hard book to discuss without giving anything away. Yet another good book to read if you enjoy exploring gender themes.

I also want to add that I am not marking this down for its failure to even acknowledge that not all romantic relationships, or even important life relationships, are heterosexual. I enjoyed the book for what it was, and didn’t require that it cover the gamut of what is real, for these purposes. I think Malerman avoided discussion of this by having the action take place when the kids are 12, before most people start acting on their sexuality, in addition to other plot devices.

Tear Down This Wall: A City, a President, and the Speech that Ended the Cold War by Romesh Ratnesar

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I listened to this book as part of Audiofile’s 2019 Sync program. The audio version starts with Reagan’s iconic speech at the wall, which was very helpful in listening to the rest of the story. The book provided a brief overview of Reagan’s life and career, including many details which I hadn’t known about him. It also described the speechwriters and speechwriting process, which I found quite interesting. I learned a lot about Gorbachev and how good of a relationship he and Reagan had. This book is a great way for any young person to understand how change can be effected.

Mistress of the Ritz by Melanie Benjamin

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I was lucky to be able to at least begin reading this book prior to its publication date, thanks to netgalley. I wish I’d been able to prioritize better and have it finished before it was published.

This book is ultimately the story of Blanche Auzello, the wife of the manager of The Ritz in Paris. She was the title character, The Mistress of the Ritz. I knew I would like her right away, when she was introduced as a woman who was struggling to maintain her composure after some rough events in her life, but still managed to express her dissatisfaction with the way a carriage driver was treating his horse.

Blanche’s husband Claude featured heavily in this book, but I didn’t much care for him. I cannot abide infidelity, and the constant focus on his willful ignorance of the harm he was doing his wife and any sense that she should be able to have her own say about anything was frustrating. It was shocking how little respect he had for her.

The Ritz itself seemed lovely, but as someone who knows nothing about it, I don’t feel like I have a good mental picture of the place after reading this book. All I know is that it has good lighting and big tubs.

This book does a good job of explaining how complicated life was for people living in an occupied area during WWII, and how they interact with their occupiers while trying to maintain some semblance of normality. This book was also good for showing how women had to fight for their own rights (making the leadership of The Ritz open the bar to women, for example) and to help people when they needed it.

Perhaps part of my dissatisfaction came from the length of time it took me to finish this book, so that maybe I don’t remember larger moments from the story. I remember learning about how Blanche and Claude met each other, but I can’t quite remember why they left Paris before the war, where they went, or what they did while they were gone.

The most frustrating thing about this book was the constant reference to this “secret” that was completely obvious. It felt almost insulting that the author framed it the way she did; was it supposed to be a secret from the reader or just those around Blanche? Because it certainly didn’t seem like a secret to us. And yet, it wasn’t discussed until the end.

Overall, I just feel like this book could have been tightened up. It felt sort of sprawling, and there were lots of times I found myself wondering what the book was really about. It’s worth reading, but there are better WWII books out there.

The Curious Charms of Arthur Pepper by Phaedra Patrick

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I just loved Arthur and his adventure. There were times i was frustrated at him for not having asked Miriam these questions, and at her for not sharing these details, but I’m going to choose to believe that she’d have preferred him to find out this way. What a lovely story.

We read this for our library book club and I’m so happy that the discussion leader invited everyone to bring in their charm bracelets to share some personal details about themselves. It was so fun to see and hear the ways people have chosen to express themselves and what they wanted to memorialize from their lives. I talked about my tattoos and the things they stand for, and I think some of the older women in the group were surprised to hear that they were thoughtful expressions rather than terrible mistakes.

An Enemy of the People by Henrik Ibsen

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I listened to this book as part of the 2019 Audiofile Sync program. It was acted out by a full cast. At first, I was put off by what I perceived to be bad acting, but as the story went on, I stopped thinking about the acting and started listening to the story.

I think this story is particularly interesting for Michigan residents and those who are otherwise aware of the Flint water crisis. I kept thinking about how very similar conversations probably happened there.

I found it frustrating that the play had clearly been written in another language and country, but then with everyone speaking English, one man said that he didn’t read a word of English. I think the adapter could have used some license and substituted a different language so it didn’t sound so preposterous. It was the same with references to coming to America to escape the tyranny of whatever country the play was originally set in, of which I have no idea, because it was never mentioned. They could have changed it to another city at least. I understand that it may have been intentional not to state clearly where the story was set, because of the universal nature of the truths it reveals, but I wish they’d done something different with the setting or references.

I also did not understand the ending of the book. I kept waiting for something to happen that didn’t.

Overall, this is a great view of how quickly your motives can be questioned and turned against you when what you’re saying isn’t popular. I recommend it for those who think they have nothing to hide when talking to police, or want to challenge a political system on principle alone.

Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I can see why this book has been in such high demand and so beloved. I thought it was absolutely fantastic from beginning to end. The only reason i didn’t give it 5 stars is because i struggled with some of the courtroom things, which is just personal to me as a lawyer.

I do not usually love reading through descriptions of settings, but Owens did such a good job weaving the locals in with Kya’s story that i never thought twice about it.

I read this book without knowing what it was about, and i think that was best, so i won’t say anything about this book except that you should read it.

Weeks later, I have thought about this book so many times. I believe Kya will stay with me forever, influencing the way I look at the world around me.

Doing Justice: A Prosecutor’s Thoughts on Crime, Punishment, and the Rule of Law by Preet Bharara

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A nice overview of our criminal justice system and some of the considerations to be taken into account. I enjoyed the author’s reading of the audiobook. It seemed like having a conversation with a boss or mentor.

Faithful by Alice Hoffman

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

As soon as I saw this book come up on my past reads, I rolled my eyes. I didn’t even want to read this review or discuss this book one more time. Annoying.

I read this book as part of a book club but would not have finished it otherwise. I did not like the characters or the storyline. I kept expecting it to go somewhere that it didn’t. With a title like “Faithful,” I thought it was going to focus on the miracles, but in the end, there was nothing resembling faith at all, in my opinion.

I can’t figure out if this book is beyond me or if it’s too simple. Overall, I felt at times like I was reading a summary of a book instead of an actual book. Actions and relationships were described in overarching language as opposed to just watching how things played out. At one point, the author actually said about two very good friends who were in the midst of saying goodbye to each other, “They were going to miss each other like crazy.” Really? You needed to say that instead of just letting the reader observe that through the power of your written relationship?

I never found myself immersed enough in the story to become emotional. There were times when I thought about crying, but then the situation was over and we were moving on again.

This book would have been better if it had been longer or if many of the side stories had been removed; the author was trying to do too much in too short a time frame. For example, what the hell was the point of talking about the miracles? What was the point of talking about the homeless kids? Why did Shelby constantly steal animals? Why was she such a shitty person most of the time but that could just be okay?

I also find it pretentious and a recipe for disaster when a book is described as “profoundly moving” or some of those other epic phrases used to describe mediocre books. If it’s profoundly moving, I’m going to be moved, not told to be moved.

Thankfully, the book was short and therefore didn’t waste much of my time.

You, Me, and the Sea by Meg Donohue

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Apparently, this book is a retelling of, or fanfiction about, Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte. The first thing i want to say is that i have not read Wuthering Heights. I hadn’t know anything about it until i looked at the cliffs notes today because i had no clue what to expect from this book. So that may affect my opinion of this book.

That and i don’t like romance novels.

I read this book as part of the summer reading campaign for booksparks.

It wasn’t poorly written, but i just don’t know why anyone would enjoy it. It was a story involving a ton of abuse and darkness, followed by the protagonist vacillating between being in love with these two guys that are basically her brothers, one of whom is also almost a pedophile. Marrow also doesn’t do anything for herself in the book – she just happens to get incredibly lucky with other people taking care of her. Where is the redemption in this story? What is the point?

I kept reading this book thinking that she was actually going to be a mermaid or somehow related to the sea, because of the constant references to the sea. Nope. That would have been a much more interesting story, imo.

A Philosophy of Ruin by Nicholas Mancusi

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I won an ARC of this book in a goodreads giveaway, and figured i should read it prior to publication. It was a short book, only about 250 pages, so it didn’t take long. It’s also a very straightforward story, and opens with a great line. There were some interesting moments in the story, but by the end i just couldn’t quite figure out the purpose behind it. Why was it written, why was i reading it, and why was Oscar doing some of the things he was doing? There is certainly a connection to Breaking Bad, which was what caught my attention initially, but that only takes up maybe 20% of the storyline. The rest is just a guy who isn’t particularly well prepared for the world just trying to make his way through some unpleasant situations. I guess it is nihilistic, as promised. Not my cup of tea.

The Farm by Joanne Ramos

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I finished this book about an hour ago and have been trying to pinpoint what it was lacking. I can’t tell if it was too big or too small. The only character that i really felt was well-fleshed out was Mae, but she was very fake so i can’t even call her real. I never felt connected to Jane, but i think that may have been because Jane wasn’t really even connected to herself.

Some good, sad, and bad things happened in the book, but i never experienced a single emotion about any of it. For awhile i was nervous as the book reached its climax, but then things got complicated and then it was weird and then it was over.

I appreciated what the author was trying to do, but I’m just not sure it hit the mark. There are things to think about here, as we move into the future of procreation among the wealthy and privileged.

This is also a book where I think being a mother would probably alter my reading experience. When I was listening to some podcasters discussing it, I heard one of them verbally cringing about the thought of not knowing whose baby you were carrying. I just didn’t see it as that big of a deal. If you’re turning your body over for use by another, why did it matter so much who was carrying what baby? It’s not like they were aliens or something, and they weren’t going to maintain a relationship with the child after birth anyway.

There was also one line that really threw me off in this book. Well, there were two, but i wasn’t paying enough attention to write down the first one. I felt like the author made a pro-life play early in the book by saying something about life beginning when the heart beats or something like that. Later, Mae said she “let” her fiancé have a quickie (presumably with her) because she was in such a good mood. I just thought that was such a strange way to describe an engaged couple’s sex life. Said a lot about the author’s perceptions of sex.

Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

It took me a very long time (like, years) to finish this book but i finally did. It reminded me of why I don’t buy books; I got this for free during a libro.fm book giveaway years ago, started reading it then, and then I guess I set it aside because I was so into podcasts I could barely stay on top of those, and just recently picked it back up.

What an adventure! I am in love with Taylor’s world and character building. I am very much looking forward to seeing where the next book takes us.

The only reason i couldn’t give 5 stars is there was a bit more focus on romance than I’d prefer, especially because i listened to this one and at one point i was in a drive thru with a steamy scene playing through my car speakers. Yikes! I also didn’t love that it ended on a complete cliffhanger, so it is not a stand-alone by any means.

The Stranger Beside Me: Ted Bundy: The Shocking Inside Story by Ann Rule

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I picked this book up because i needed a true crime book for The Book Community True Crime Read-a-Thon. I had not counted on it being so incredibly thorough. But even more, i hadn’t counted on how well it was written. Rule clearly leads the reader from the beginning of Ted to the end. There wasn’t so much detail that it was boring, and there wasn’t so little that i didn’t have a clear picture of what was happening. I was also surprised to see the depth of her relationship with Bundy.

When i first started reading, i was surprised to learn that his birthday was the day before mine, that we both studied psychology in undergrad before attending law school, that we both lived in the PNW for some time, and that we were both illegitimate and eventually raised by stepfathers. But by the end of the book, i was trying to put those similarities as far out of my head as possible. I no longer felt a connection to this person who clearly wasn’t even human.

Those poor women, from the ones he killed to the ones he simply manipulated into believing he was human by being handsome and charming.

Providence by Caroline Kepnes

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

To start with, I’ll say that this is my first book by this author. Surprisingly, i have not picked up “You,” despite all the hype. So i was curious what i would think of this book, coming at it with little in the way of preconceptions.

I had no idea what this book was going to be about, but even if I’d had an idea, it would not have been what the actual book was about.

This book is essentially a retelling of Frankenstein. But way less interesting and, surprisingly, more drawn out. The biggest question i had at the end, as i actually had throughout the book, was “why?” Why was this story told from these three perspectives? Why did the author leave out so many details in the telling (how old the kids were at the beginning, what Lo’s actual job was, and probably other stuff i can’t think of right now)? What was the value in talking about Eggs’ kid so goddamned much?

Really, this book was just way too long and, in my opinion, focused way too much on stuff i could not have cared less about and left out the things i was interested in. I actually went and picked up The Dunwich Horror by HP Lovecraft off my shelf and read it because the author focuses on it so much. It seemed important to understand the extreme focus the author places on that story and Lovecraft in general. But nope. Was barely relevant. It’s like the author had a vague idea of what happened in that story and decided to focus on that idea so she didn’t have to reference Frankenstein in this story. Because what happened in Dunwich was literally nothing like what happened in this book. So if anyone loves Lovecraft and thought they’d pick up this book as part of that love, just keep on moving.

There was so much opportunity for the author to do something wonderful here, but instead, she wrote a book that was a jack of all trades and a master of none. It’s a love story, without the romance. It was a supernatural thriller without the thrills. It was a mystery without the need for the police to do anything.

There were so many better books i could have been reading. What a bummer.

The Dunwich Horror by H.P. Lovecraft

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I had to take a break from Providence to read this Lovecraft story so prominently featured therein. I’m rather surprised by its content and have renewed energy to see where Providence is going now.

This story is short and scary. All the necessary information is there and nothing more. And who doesn’t love a tale where librarians are the heroes?

Olivia Twist by Lorie Langdon

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A fun take on Oliver Twist. Mostly a love story between Olivia and Dodger. A young adult book offered as part of Audiofile’s 2019 sync program.

The Book Charmer by Karen Hawkins

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Thank you to Bookish and the publisher for an advanced reader copy of this book.

I chose this book based on the excerpt that Bookish allowed me to read. I was immediately drawn into a story about two little girls, one of whom could communicate with books and the other who was a misunderstood foster child taken in by a fantastic foster mother. However, the book only gives one chapter each to these little girls and then moves into the future, where everyone’s grown up and living in Dove Pond.

This is another loveable curmudgeon tale, where the town comes together to make the grinch’s heart grow three sizes. It includes themes of raising children while taking care of parents with dementia, along with small town life. The only difference is that there’s a bit of magic. Lots of things went unexplained, but since this is marked as #1, it appears that those things were set up for continuation in a later book.

The middle of this book was a little long, and the dialogue was a bit tedious. It seemed like some things were repeated, and that may be edited down in the final version.

Overall, it’s a fine book if you’re looking for something light. I can’t quite put it in the heartwarming category though because I’m not sure I connected enough with the curmudgeon to be excited about her turnaround.

FBI Myths and Misconceptions: A Manual for Armchair Detectives by Jerri Williams

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book is a fantastic resource for writers, readers, movie-watchers, and anyone interested in the FBI in general. The author has generated a list of 20 myths and misconceptions about the FBI and then presents factual and anecdotal support for the reality behind those beliefs. One of the best things about this book is that the author combines resources from fbi.gov, stories from agents who have been on her podcast, stories from her own FBI career, and books and movies to illustrate the points she is making in each chapter. This is the kind of book you want to buy and stash near the TV remote, so if you’re watching a TV show or movie and want to know if that’s realistic, you can flip to the corresponding page and check it out. A must have for the FBI enthusiast in your life.

Five Presidents: My Extraordinary Journey with Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, and Ford by Clint Hill

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Clint Hill performed an incredible service for our country and he has done an excellent job detailing it in this book. He brought several presidents, and those closest to them, to life, giving us a perspective unknown by many. I will never think of Eisenhower, President or Mrs. Kennedy, Johnson, or VP Agnew the same way again.

Arcana Rising by Kresley Cole

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is the book I’ve been waiting for from this series. I have been waiting to see the different cards begin to come into their own and use their powers against or with each other. Can’t wait for the next installment in the series after that ending!

The Cruelest Month by Louise Penny

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I finished this book and tried to think of a reason not to give it 5 stars and couldn’t come up with one. I just love the people of Three Pines and Inspector Gamache. Penny has a real way of spinning the story and incorporating deep insights into the human condition. On to the next one!

“I Heard You Paint Houses”: Frank “The Irishman” Sheeran & Closing the Case on Jimmy Hoffa by Charles Brandt

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A well-written and interesting story about mob life and the death of Jimmy Hoffa. I listened to this on audiobook and the narration was impeccable. I do wish there had been audible clues to the changes between the storytellers though, since it was all narrated by one person.