So many words. So little time.
Category: book review
I had a productive writing week. This was my last week at my old job—leaving after six years is hard. Despite that, I wrote three book reviews, my June reading post, and my best books I read in June post. I’m hoping to do some fiction brainstorming early this week (I took a short break before starting the new job.).
Happy writing!
And, Happy July Fourth!
Twenty-five years ago, a sixteen-year-old schoolgirl and her charismatic teacher disappeared without trace…
In an elite Catholic girls’ boarding-school the pupils live under the repressive, watchful gaze of the nuns. Seeking to break from the cloistered atmosphere two of the students – Louisa and Victoria – quickly become infatuated with their young, bohemian art teacher, and act out passionately as a result. That is, until he and Louisa suddenly disappear.
Years later, a journalist uncovers the troubled past of the school and determines to resolve the mystery of the missing pair. The search for the truth will uncover a tragic, mercurial tale of suppressed desire and long-buried secrets. It will shatter lives and lay a lost soul to rest.
This was just a “meh” read for me. Gothic overtones and a lot of angst, but come on, it was the 90s. Also…I know mental health wasn’t the buzzword it is now, but shouldn’t someone have figured out some of these girls needed some help? And you’re trying to tell me that nuns at a Catholic boarding school were oblivious to the sneaking out and the evil prefects? Sorry, but the whole scenario was a bit far-fetched for me.
Rachel Donohue lives in Dublin. The Temple House Vanishing is her debut novel.
(Galley courtesy of Algonquin Books in exchange for an honest review.)
I read 22 books in June, bringing my total for the year to 129. Halfway through the year, just over halfway to my goal of reading 250 books this year. One of those reads was just bad, 5 were solidly in the “meh” category, and the rest were good reads. Except three that were excellent.
https://tamaramorning.com/2021/07/02/the-best-books-i-read-in-june-2021/(opens in a new tab)
A Court of Wings and Ruin, by Sarah J. Maas. This was one of my reads for June—from the TBR pile—and I am seriously so mad that I read the first one ages ago when it was new, then just forgot about the entire series until a few months ago, when I caught the entire series on sale in ebook. And I am so glad I did! I love this series. The ending to this one almost did me in, and I can’t wait to read the fourth one!
The Widows of Champagne, by Renee Ryan (review forthcoming). This was an excellent read! It wasn’t what I expected: the story of a family of women during the Nazi invasion of France…but there is so much more going on with these women than the surface-level details. I didn’t really care for the mother, as she was pretty aloof, and the youngest daughter was awful, but the grandmother’s struggle with memory loss and the oldest daughter’s journey were enthralling!
The Forest of Vanishing Stars, by Kristin Harmel (review forthcoming). I don’t read that much World War II fiction, much less two excellent ones back-to-back, but here we are. This dealt with something I’d actually not heard of before: the Jews that escaped Polish ghettos and hid in the forest to survive. I enjoyed this so much!
Books Read in June: 22
Books Read for the Year: 129/250
Topical Books/Monthly Goal Books:
Scientific Creationism, by Henry M. Morris (spiritual). This was a detailed textbook, but it was fascinating.
A Court of Wings and Ruin, by Sarah J. Maas (TBR). I really love this series! Although the end of this one almost did me in.
Odd Hours, Dean Koontz (re-read). Still loving these books!
The Rising, by Tim LeHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins (re-read).
Bacchanal, by Veronica G. Henry (TBR). This was…not good. Very disjointed and erratic, trying to cram too many different “cool” things into one narrative.
For Review:
The Time for Murder Is Meow, by T. C. LoTempio. This is the first book in a new series. It wasn’t bad, but I’m not sure I’ll read more. The MC, Shell, tended towards the irrational, so I wasn’t a huge fan of her.
Death on the Night of Lost Lizards, by Julia Buckley. I do enjoy this series! I love reading about the Hungarian culture traditions and the tea house, and the mystery is a nice bonus.
The House Guests, by Emilie Richards. This wasn’t what I expected at all, and I enjoyed it very much—especially all the Greek food and culture!
Sunny Song Will Never Be Famous, by Suzanne Park. This was a decent read—although the obsession with social media was a little too much for me. Character growth was on point, though.
The Abduction of Pretty Penny, by Leonard Goldberg. This was solidly in the “meh” category for me.
The Tragedy of Dane Riley, by Kat Spears. This was basically a character study. I liked Dane, but the ending didn’t sit quite right for me.
Rabbits, by Terry Miles. This was…odd. I’m definitely not smart enough to have played the game, and I never had any idea what was going on—truth—but I enjoyed the read. It was like being in the midst of Johnny Depp’s Wonderland.
Down with this Ship, by Katie Kingman. Honestly, I didn’t understand why the MC was so afraid her classmates would find out she writes a super successful blog (own it, girl), and her allowing herself to be blackmailed didn’t make sense, either.
The Keepers, by Jeffrey B. Burton. I really like this series—and its bumbling but likable MC.
A Distant Grave, by Sarah Stewart Taylor. I’ve really enjoyed both books in this series. I love the Ireland ties, and the mystery is well-done and believable.
A Duke in Time, by Janna MacGregor. This was a solid romance read. The MC is likable and unique enough to make the read stand out.
Pup Fiction, by Laurien Berenson. This was just “meh” for me. It felt very low-stakes, and, while I enjoyed reading about the dogs, the real culprit(s) were above reproach until about the 85% mark…without the slightest hint of suspicion (despite all the red herrings for other random characters), then suddenly the bad guys. Very clunky and convenient, not believable at all.
The Temple House Vanishing, by Rachel Donohue (review forthcoming). I wasn’t really a fan of this. I liked the Gothic vibe, but I didn’t like any of the characters—or their pretentiousness.
Pug Actually, by Matt Dunn (review forthcoming). This was a cute read! Told from the dog’s POV—fortunately, as I wasn’t really a fan of the MC.
The Right Side of Reckless, by Whitney D. Grandison (review forthcoming). I enjoyed this quite a bit. I loved the diverse characters and just how different their personalities were—yet they just worked together.
The Widows of Champgane, by Renee Ryan (review forthcoming). I loved this read! I like family sagas, and this had shades of that, along with just three women keeping secrets from each other as they tried to protect each other. I loved the storyline and the writing was excellent as well.
The Forest of Vanishing Stars, by Kristin Harmel (review forthcoming). I thought this was fantastic! A girl is stolen from her parents and raised in the woods. She’s taught how to survive and to avoid people, but during the havoc of World War II she must decide whether to make herself known to others—because they have no idea how to survive.
Left Unfinished:
Murphy’s Slaw, by Elizabeth Logan. I just didn’t feel any connection (or interest) in the characters.
Murder She Wrote: Killing in a Koi Pond, by Jessica Fletcher and Terrie Farley Moran. I made it about 15% of the way through this, but it just wasn’t for me.
While usually protective, Melanie feels comfortable sending her sons to the Graceland School’s summer camp for two reasons: The institution is well-regarded and proprietor Emily Grace is a trusted friend. But Emily has been acting strange since three rambunctious Dalmatian puppies suddenly appeared on her doorstep. The unusual arrival marks the first of several mysterious happenings at camp, each more intense than the last. Emily’s rough streak takes a frightening turn with a discovery in the nearby woods—the body of her estranged ex-husband.
As suspicions rush in, proving that Emily didn’t murder her biggest mistake will be about as easy as raising prize-winning show dogs. Realizing she’s the only one who can prove her friend’s innocence and keep the Graceland School from shutting down, Melanie dives into an investigation on the victim’s whereabouts leading up to his demise. With a few spotty clues and Aunt Peg’s growing curiosity about the Dalmatian pups’ origins, Melanie must name the culprit before good intentions come back to bite!
Is it bad if I say the thing I enjoyed the most about this book was the dogs? Because it was. Solid writing and storytelling, but I was never that invested in what was going on—and the stakes really didn’t seem that high. I never felt any tension in the mystery. Also…there were all these red herrings about other characters, but the real culprit(s) weren’t the slightest bit suspicious until about the 85% mark, so the reveal felt a bit forced and out-of-nowhere. Just my two cents, though. This wasn’t a bad read. Just not a good fit for me.
Laurien Berenson is a bestselling author. Pup Fiction is her newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of Kensington Books in exchange for an honest review.)
Katherine Vareck is in for the shock of her life when she learns upon her husband Meri’s accidental death that he had married two other women. Her entire business, along with a once-in-a-lifetime chance to be a royal supplier, is everything she’s been working for and now could be destroyed if word leaks about the three wives.
Meri’s far more upstanding brother, Christian, Duke of Randford has no earthly clue how to be of assistance. He spent the better part of his adult years avoiding Meri and the rest of his good-for-nothing family, so to be dragged back into the fold is…problematic. Even more so is the intrepid and beautiful Katherine, whom he cannot be falling for because she’s Meri’s widow. Or can he?
With a textile business to run and a strong friendship forming with Meri’s two other wives, Katherine doesn’t have time for much else. But there’s something about the warm, but compellingly taciturn Christian that draws her to him. When an opportunity to partner in a business venture brings them even closer, they’ll have to face their pasts if they want to share each other’s hearts and futures.
This was a solid romance read, and I plan to read the other books in this series. I liked Katherine—determined to do the right thing, but still afraid of losing everything. She was fun to read, although a bit more risqué than I would have imagined. Her relationship with the other two wives was sweet, too. If you’re looking for a way to spend a couple of hours being entertained, this is a good choice.
Janna MacGregor was born in Missouri. A Duke in Time is her newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)
Title: The Keepers
Author: Jeffrey B. Burton
Genre: Thriller
Rating: 4.5 out of 5
Mason “Mace” Reid lives on the outskirts of Chicago and specializes in human remains detection—that is, he trains dogs to hunt for dead bodies. He calls his pack of cadaver dogs The Finders, and his prize pupil is a golden retriever named Vira.
When Mace Reid and Vira are called in to search Washington Park at three o’clock in the morning, what they find has them running for their very lives. The trail of murder and mayhem Mace and CPD Officer Kippy Gimm have been following leads them to uncover treachery and corruption at the highest level, and their discoveries do not bode well for them . . . nor for the Windy City itself.
I really enjoyed the first book in this series, and I enjoyed this one as well. The dogs are great characters, of course, but I like bumbling Mace, too. This one got a little bit dark, but I was fully invested, wondering how Mace and Kippy were going to get out of such a mess. I love how the author ups the stakes and the tension, keeping the reader in the palm of his hand, racing to find out what happens. I’ll definitely continue to read this series!
Jeffrey B. Burton was born in California. The Keepers is his newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)
Kole Miller does one thing really well: write fanfiction for the show The Space Game. Everything else is a struggle: like managing her anxiety, frequent crushes, and plans after high school. But when her blog, Spacer, wins a major fanfiction contest, her traffic soars.
With massive readership comes criticism Kole isn’t prepared for, including getting stuck in the heated ship wars surrounding the show. And then an invitation to speak at The Space Game’s official convention arrives in her inbox.
When the most competitive kids in her Creative Writing class discover Kole’s writing Spacer, her blog is taken hostage and she risks them hitting ctrl+A+del on Spacer. To win it back, Kole must face both her inner demons and the ones at Crystal Lake High before they make the drama not just about The Space Game, but about Kole herself.
I love to read YA fiction. I do. But I think maybe this wasn’t the best fit for me. I’m not knocking her being obsessed with a TV show or writing fanfiction at all, but she just didn’t make sense to me. Why is she hiding her identity so hard? Why does she not want anyone to know she writes a hugely popular blog? Why does she even care what her ex-friends think of her? And why does she care about all of those things so much she lets herself be blackmailed? Multiple times, no less. If you care that much about something, own it. Don’t let someone make you feel less-than because of it.
Bits of this were pretty cliched (the boy next door crush) or blown out of proportion (Are you telling me someone with such a successful online presence doesn’t know how to protect her own blog?), and it felt like that stuff happened just to add drama—without being believable. In the end, this tried just a little bit too hard, without fully delivering a believable story or characters.
Katie Kingman lives in Phoenix. Down with This Ship is her newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of Flux in exchange for an honest review.)
Long Island homicide detective Maggie D’arcy and her teenage daughter, Lilly, are still recovering from the events of last fall when a strange new case demands Maggie’s attention. The body of an unidentified Irish national turns up in a wealthy Long Island beach community and with little to go on but the scars on his back, Maggie once again teams up with Garda detectives in Ireland to find out who the man was and what he was doing on Long Island. As the strands of the mystery lead Maggie to a quiet village in rural County Clare and back to her home turf, they also lead her in range of a dangerous and determined killer who will do anything to keep the victim’s story hidden forever.
I’ve really enjoyed both books in this series! Maggie is a great character, a flawed character, making her head a fascinating place to live for a while. Of course, I love the Irish connection, but there were so many layers to this mystery! I read this, thinking, “I’m not smart enough to have figured that out!” all through the book.
The characters are great, even the secondary ones, and the settings are so vivid I felt like I was there—and I’ve never been to Ireland or Long Island. I will definitely continue reading these books!
Sarah Stewart Taylor lives in Vermont. A Distant Grave is her newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)
It’s an average work day. You’ve been wrapped up in a task, and you check the clock when you come up for air–4:44 pm. You go to check your email, and 44 unread messages have built up. With a shock, you realize it is April 4th–4/4. And when you get in your car to drive home, your odometer reads 44,444. Coincidence? Or have you just seen the edge of a rabbit hole?
Rabbits is a mysterious alternate reality game so vast it uses our global reality as its canvas. Since the game first started in 1959, ten iterations have appeared and nine winners have been declared. Their identities are unknown. So is their reward, which is whispered to be NSA or CIA recruitment, vast wealth, immortality, or perhaps even the key to unlocking the secrets of the universe itself. But the deeper you get, the more deadly the game becomes. Players have died in the past–and the body count is rising.
And now the eleventh round is about to begin. Enter K–a Rabbits obsessive who has been trying to find a way into the game for years. That path opens when K is approached by billionaire Alan Scarpio, the alleged winner of the sixth iteration. Scarpio says that something has gone wrong with the game and that K needs to fix it before Eleven starts or the whole world will pay the price.
Five days later, Scarpio is declared missing. Two weeks after that, K blows the deadline and Eleven begins. And suddenly, the fate of the entire universe is at stake.
I’m not sure what to say about this book. It was kind of like watching Alice in Wonderland—the Johnny Depp version. I never had any idea what was actually going on, but I was completely fascinated. The patterns and logic leaps involved in the game were a bit mind-boggling, but again, fascinating (in a now-I-feel-dumb sort of way). I wouldn’t say this is a well-rounded novel, but it’s definitely entertaining.
Terry Miles was born in Saskatchewan. Rabbit is his newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of Random House/Del Rey in exchange for an honest review.)
Tomorrow Is Another Day 