North Woods

 

Title: North Woods

Author: Daniel Mason

Publisher: Books on Tape

 
ISBN: 9780593790519

 

Thoughts: A unique saga that follows a plot of land for generations.

Rating: 3/5

The Searcher

 

Title: The Searcher

Author: Tana French

Publisher: Viking

 
ISBN: 9780735224650

 

Thoughts: French excels at the slow burn mystery, and this first installment in her newest series is no exception, plus is filled with the atmosphere of the Irish countryside.

Rating: 4/5

Controller

 

Title: Controller

Author: Jesse Kellerman

Publisher: Amazon Original Stories

 
ISBN: 9781542041362

 

Thoughts: I had a visceral reaction to this story, but the ending left me confused.

Rating: 2/5

The Divorcees

 

Title: The Divorcees

Author: Rowan Beaird

Publisher: Flatiron Books

 
ISBN: 9781250896582

 

Thoughts: The premise interested me, but I found the story rather boring and the ending unneeded.

Rating: 2/5

People Person

 

Title: People Person

Author: Candice Carty-Williams

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

 
ISBN: 9781797100999

 

Thoughts: Very character-driven story of five half-siblings who start to become family after a strange incident.

Rating: 3/5

Stacking the Shelves: 3/31-4/13

Received from a library program:

 

Hunting Whitey: The Inside Story of the Capture & Killing of America's Most Wanted Crime Boss by Casey Sherman & Dave Wedge

 

I Am Not Alone by Francisco X. Stork

Back to You

 

Title: Back to You

Author: Lauren Dane

Publisher: Harlequin HQN

 
ISBN: 9780373779581

 

Thoughts: This book confused me because it was less steamy (but still steamy) than I feared from looking at the cover, but more importantly, it does not follow the typical romance formula.

Rating: 3/5

Happiness Falls

 

Title: Happiness Falls

Author: Angie Kim

Publisher: Random House Audio

 
ISBN: 9780593790427

 

Thoughts: Unique missing persons novel where the only witness is unable to tell what really happened.

Rating: 4/5

Good Night

 

Title: Good Night: Your Holistic Guide to the Best Sleep of Your Life

Author: Julia Blohberger & Roos Neeter

Publisher: Quirk Books

 
ISBN: 9781683693345

 

Thoughts: Guide for good sleeping that seemed to me rather biased.

Rating: 2/5

The Fortune Seller

 

Title: The Fortune Seller

Author: Rachel Kapelke-Dale

Publisher: St Martin's Press

 
ISBN: 9781250286130

 

Thoughts: Very atmospheric novel mixing dark academia with ruthless ambition.

Rating: 4/5

The Desert Prince

 

Title: The Desert Prince

Author: Peter V. Brett

Publisher: Del Rey

 
ISBN: 9781984817082

 

Thoughts: Very rich and well-built fantasy world with some unique aspects that make it stand out in the genre.

Rating: 4/5

Horse Girl

 

Title: Horse Girl: A Journey Home

Author: Susanna Newsonen

Publisher: Audible Audio

 
ISBN: n/a

 

Thoughts: Interesting memoir that discusses the author's life in terms of the horses she has had through the years, but the audio was echo-y.

Rating: 3/5

Stacking the Shelves: 2/25-3/30

 

LibraryThing Early Review:

 

Horse Girl by Susanna Newsonen

On the Rooftop

 

Title: On the Rooftop

Author: Margaret Wilkerson Sexton

Publisher: HarperAudio

 
ISBN: n/a

 

Thoughts: Well-written with fully fleshed-out characters, but it just didn't grip me as much as some historical fictional novels with similar themes.

Rating: 3/5

Twice in a Lifetime

 

Title: Twice in a Lifetime

Author: Melissa Baron

Publisher: Alcove Press

 
ISBN: 9781639101368

 

Thoughts: Emotionally resilient novel with overlapping timelines.

Rating: 4/5

Boca Raton

 

Title: Boca Raton

Author: Lauren Groff

Publisher: Amazon Originals

 
ISBN: n/a

 

Thoughts: Short story with an environmentalism bent that is disturbing in an visceral, empathetic way.

Rating: 3/5

Whisper Me This

 

Title: Whisper Me This

Author: Kerry Anne King

Publisher: Lake Union Publishing

 
ISBN: 9781503955752

 

Thoughts: This started out feeling like a psychological thriller, but then it turned into a rather typical story about abuse.

Rating: 2/5

Acts of Forgiveness

 

Title: Acts of Forgiveness

Author: Maura Cheeks

Publisher: Ballantine Books

 
ISBN: 9780593598290

 

Thoughts: This alternate history book really makes you think about collective forgiveness and what that would looks like in practice.

Rating: 4/5

After I Do

 

Title: After I Do

Author: Taylor Jenkins Reed

Publisher: Atria Books

 
ISBN: 9781476712840

 

Thoughts: A fun chick lit filled with great, relatable characters and a main character that you can really root for.

Rating: 4/5

Grief Is for People

 

Title: Grief Is for People

Author: Sloane Crosley

Publisher: MCD

 
ISBN: 9780374609849

 

Thoughts: Having recently read Crosley's Cult Classic, I could not help but compare the two, despite that being fiction and this being non-fiction; while I fell that her friend was the inspiration for the catalyst in Cult Classic, this book is far superior with compelling writing with many nods to Joan Didion.

Rating: 4/5

How Not to Drown in a Glass of Water

 

Title: How Not to Drown in a Glass of Water

Author: Angie Cruz

Publisher: Macmillan Audio

 
ISBN: 9781250868817

 

Thoughts: Listening to what ostensibly 12 monologues made this feel like a one-woman play that covers the gamut of emotions while portraying the life of a middle-age immigrant mother.

Rating: 4/5

Fellowship Point

 

Title: Fellowship Point

Author: Alice Elliot Dark

Publisher: Simon Schuster Audio

 
ISBN: 9781797135946

 

Thoughts: A rich story of friendships bound by a special place.

Rating: 4/5

The Final Strife

 

Title: The Final Strife

Author: Saara El-Arifi

Publisher: Anchor

 
ISBN: 9781400096206

 

Thoughts: Very engaging fantasy with a lot of world to get lost in, but a few elements just needed a little more polishing.

Rating: 4/5

The Palace of Illusions

 

Title: The Palace of Illusions

Author: Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

Publisher: Anchor

 
ISBN: 9781400096206

 

Thoughts: Too many unformed characters and a lot of telling instead of showing made this myth retelling very boring.

Rating: 2/5

A Darker Shade of Magic

 

Title: A Darker Shade of Magic

Author: V. E. Schwab

Publisher: Tor

 
ISBN: 9780765376459

 

Thoughts: Schwab is a master of creating unique fantasy elements with perfect world-building, both of which are fully displayed here.

Rating: 5/5

Girl, Serpent, Thorn

 

Title: Girl, Serpent, Thorn

Author: Melissa Bashadoust

Publisher: Flatiron Books

 
ISBN: 9781250196149

 

Thoughts: Very unique and gripping retelling of some Western and Middle Eastern fairy tales.

Rating: 4/5

Nora Goes Off Script

 

Title: Nora Goes Off Script

Author: Annabel Monaghan

Publisher: Penguin Audio

 
ISBN: n/a

 

Thoughts: Fun rom-com with a bit of an unpredictable second half.

Rating: 4/5

Stacking the Shelves: 1/7-2/24

 

Bought on Amazon:

 

Between Me and You by Allison Winn Scotch

Wish You Were Mine by Tara Sivec

Just Pretend

 

Title: Just Pretend

Author: Tori Sharp

Publisher: Little, Brown Ink

 
ISBN: 9780316538855

 

Thoughts: Graphic memoir dealing with divorce, friendships, and find your voice through storytelling.

Rating: 3/5

Blackout

 

Title: Blackout

Author: Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk, and Nicola Yoon

Publisher: Harper Audio

 
ISBN: 9781665098274

 

Thoughts: Six loosely interconnected and incredibly engaging stories about Black teens finding loving amidst a blackout in New York.

Rating: 4/5

Let Us Descend

 

Title: Let Us Descend

Author: Jesmyn Ward

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

 
ISBN: 9781797161518

 

Thoughts: Very character-driven magical realism historical fiction story with lyrical prose but very little plot.

Rating: 3/5

I Like You Like That

 

Title: I Like You Like That

Author: Kayla Grosse

Publisher: self

 
ISBN: 9798841432630

 

Thoughts: Fun romance with a little mystery, but I prefer more suspense and less steam.

Rating: 3/5

Heard It in a Love Song

 

Title: Heard It in a Love Song

Author: Tracey Garvis Graves

Publisher: Macmillan Audio

 
ISBN: n/a

 

Thoughts: Sweet and gentle romance about two relatable people going through divorces and finding themselves and each other.

Rating: 4/5

Call You When I Land

 

Title: Call You When I Land

Author: Nikki Vargas

Publisher: Hanover Square Press

 
ISBN: 9781335455093

 

Thoughts: Part travelogue, part memoir, this book tells the author's story of finding herself and her passion.

Rating: 3/5

Cult Classic

 

Title: Cult Classic

Author: Sloane Crosley

Publisher: Macmillan Audio

 
ISBN: 9781250856517

 

Thoughts: With such a cool title, I expected more from this than flat characters and a minimal plot.

Rating: 2/5

The End of the World is a Cul de Sac

 

Title: The End of the World is a Cul De Sac

Author: Louise Kennedy

Publisher: Riverhead Books

 
ISBN: 9780593540923

 

Thoughts: Kennedy's writing is very fluid and evocative, but every single one of these stories had the exact same tone, and it was a depressing one.

Rating: 3/5

A Dangerous Business

 

Title: A Dangerous Business

Author: Jane Smiley

Publisher: Knopf

 
ISBN: 9780525520337

 

Thoughts: A very well-written historical mystery that is more character-driven than suspense-driven.

Rating: 4/5

The Foundling

 

Title: The Foundling

Author: Ann Leary

Publisher: Simon Schuster Audio

 
ISBN: 9781797141473

 

Thoughts: Not really a suspense, although the cover makes it seem gothic, but this historical fiction novel is definitely fascinating and keeps the pages turning.

Rating: 4/5

Hunted by the Sky

 

Title: Hunted by the Sky

Author: Tanaz Bhathena

Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux

 
ISBN: 9780374313098

 

Thoughts: Rich world with lots of magic and political intrigue.

Rating: 4/5

Hope Was Here

Title: Hope Was Here

Author: Joan Bauer

Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group

 
ISBN: 9780739359983

 

Thoughts: Uplifting realistic teen fiction that focuses on community, politics, and found family.

Rating: 4/5