Summer Reading Recommendations

It's really trendy to read contemporaries in the summer, and I admit, there's something about them that reminds me of summers when I was kid and my mom would take us to the library or the park or my sister and I and the neighborhood kids would have water gun fights. That's what all the best contemporaries should be reminiscent of. And that's the criteria I went for when looking for recommendations. This list is mostly contemporaries, but there is one historical fiction series. Enjoy these fun beachy reads!

Graffiti Moon and Words in Deep Blue by Cath Crowley

  When I sat down to create this list, Cath Crowley's novels were the first to come to mind. They are summer incarnate, the kinds of chick lit-y YA I should hate but love despite everything- Aussie contemporaries can do that to me. I paired these books together because they have the same author, but I do prefer one to the other, and it's Graffiti Moon. I loved Graffiti Moon so much that it landed in my contemporary top five almost immediately after I read it. I wrote about this book at length, first in its own review, then in my wrap-up, then in my Five Favorites, and now here, so you're probably sick of seeing it. It's about a group of three boys and three girls who fall in love over the course of one summer night, and also about art and life and it's funny as all hell. I gave it a 9 out of 10. Words in Deep Blue is about a girl who, after losing her brother, moves in with her aunt and starts working at a bookstore with one of her childhood best friends. The two reconnect and find love while also trying to save the bookstore from going out of business. It's definitely not the kind of book I'd usually pick up, and it is a little cheesy and the two main characters sound almost exactly like each other, but it's such a cute romance, and solidified Cath Crowley's place as one of my newest favorite authors. It got a 9 out of 10. 

Invincible Summer by Hannah Moskowitz

  Hannah Moskowitz isn't exactly a very popular author, and frankly, it seems like this is the only book of hers that has mostly positive reviews. I would say this novel is on par with The Lies About Truth, which I will write about more below. Both are beachy summer reads with a bit more depth to them then your usual summer books, but make no mistakes, they are romance heavy. Still, it does heavily evoke the feeling of summer, and I loved following the two families through these four summers at the beach, and the prose is beautiful. I mean, are there flaws, sure. Like, what 8 year old can read and comprehend Camus, even if The Stranger is a short book? But it's an enjoyable, quick read for those who want a bit more depth in their vacation reads. I gave it an 8 out of 10.

I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak

  I've written about this novel  before, first in my Five Favorites Contemporary list and then in my wrap-up as I reread it fairly recently. So I'll be short here. I first read this book in a New Jersey beach house my family rented one summer, and I loved it. It was so easy to fall in love with this beautiful, beautiful novel, and I can't believe how underrated it is. It's about a boy who gets playing cards in the mail with addresses written on them, telling him where to go in order to make people's lives better. That's a horrible summary, especially when this novel is one of my favorite books of all time. Highly, highly recommended. It got a 9.5 out of 10.

Bright Young Things by Anna Godbersen

  No, this is not contemporary. But it is a damn good series following three flappers through the last summer of the Jazz Age. Cordelia, who has my least favorite plot line, discovers she is the long lost daughter of a famous bootlegger and moves to New York, where she finds and falls in love with two guys over the span of what seems like 3 weeks. Letty, her best friend, comes to New York with her in order to become a star (baby). She's okay, but I love her F Scott Fitzgerald-expy of a love interest. And lastly, there's my favorite brainless blond, Astrid, who's a flapper through and through, the daughter of an aging grand dame and one half of a relationship with Cordelia's brother, one so tumultuous it makes Scott and Zelda look downright compatible. This is the perfect beach read for any history lover, or maybe someone who just wants a bit of historical escapism. The writing's also a lot of fun, as it's written in that kind of Lost Generation style. Anna Godbersen's my favorite guilty pleasure author, and this series is the reason why, even though the last book is, in a word, a disappointment. The series got an average of an 7.5-8 out of 10 from me, with the first two books getting an 8, and the last book getting a 7.5. Those more interested in the 1890s might also be interested in her other series, The Luxe.

The Lies About Truth by Courtney C Stevens

This is another book that is summer. I read it on a cold, January day and, for the first and only time in my life, wished I lived in Florida. I wanted to hang out with Sadie and her friends, I wanted to play Pirates and Paintball, because it reminded me of when I was little and did all of that stuff with my friends. This book called forth some of the strongest feelings of nostalgia I've ever felt, which is especially amazing from a book I had no strong childhood connections with. So what is this book about? It's about a girl whose group of formally inseparable friends have split up after a bad car accident in which one of them ended up dead. It's about her reconnecting with her friends, them all going through the grief process in their own way, and how to attain forgiveness when the one person who you need it from is dead. It's a sweet, perfect contemporary, and one that made my Favorite Books of 2016 list. I gave it an 8.5-9 out of 10.

The Boy in the Black Suit by Jason Reynolds

  The Boy in the Black Suit is one of those books that seemed to be everywhere when it first came out, always on the tops of shelves or its cover on display in bookstores and libraries. But it seemed like nobody's ever actually read it. Me included. It took me over a year to pick this one up, and when I did, I loved it. Basically, it's about a boy named Matt whose mother died recently, and he needs to get a job because his father fell into the bottle after her death. So he gets a job at the neighborhood funeral home, befriending the guy in charge. He also meets a girl named Lovey, who he immediately becomes attracted to. His life's kind of a mess, but he's an endearing and lovable hero with a great cast of characters behind him. The book's also written in a New York African American patois, which I love because I love books written like that, and it's just really, really good. I gave it an 8 out of 10.

The Dead I Know by Scot Gardner

  This book pairs nicely with the above one, in case you were wondering. Both are very different takes on the funeral home plot line (funeral homes are one of my favorite places for books to be set, as I have a very dark sense of humor), and this one is a bit creepier. The Dead I Know, like Burial Rites, is one of those favorite books in retrospect, and it contains one of my absolute favorite male leads in the form of Aaron Rowe, who is a sleepwalker suffering from reoccurring nightmares he can't figure out. He takes a job with a funeral director and finds himself connecting with the family of the funeral director while trying to understand his dreams. It's dark and funny and one of Australia's most underrated exports. I gave it an 8.5 out of 10.

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl and The Haters by Jesse Andrews

  I grouped these books together because they're both by Jesse Andrews. Like Cath Crowley's books above, I do like one over the other, but in this case it's a clearer distinction as I much prefer Me and Earl and the Dying Girl over The Haters. That being said, Both are laugh out loud funny books, one about a girl dying of cancer, a boy whose mom is making him become friends with her because, again, she's dying, and his best friend, Earl, who has serious anger management problems. Despite this, it's both funny and deep at the same time, and also not The Fault in Our Stars, which is always a plus. It even made the bottom of my Best Of 2016 list, and I gave it an 8.5 out of 10. The Haters is basically the book version of One Time at Band Camp, in which the usual YA trio of two guys and a girl break out of jazz camp and form a band. It's not as great as Me and Earl and the Dying Girl- it doesn't hit as hard and I never really liked any of the characters- but it's still funny and almost Spinal Tap-esque. I'm sure music nerds would love it. I gave it a 7 out of 10 (more like out of 11).

So what kinds of books do you like to read in the summer? Do you agree with any of these choices? Let me know in the comment section below!

Little Monsters by Kara Thomas Review

WARNING: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS BELOW

“Jade was the best friend, and I was the extra friend. There are things you tell your best friend that you don’t tell the extra friend.”- Little Monsters, Kara Thomas

Kacey is the new girl in Broken Falls. When she moved in with her father, she stepped into a brand-new life. A life with a stepbrother, a stepmother, and strangest of all, an adoring younger half sister.

Kacey’s new life is eerily charming compared with the wild highs and lows of the old one she lived with her volatile mother. And everyone is so nice in Broken Falls—she’s even been welcomed into a tight new circle of friends. Bailey and Jade invite her to do everything with them.

Which is why it’s so odd when they start acting distant. And when they don’t invite her to the biggest party of the year, it doesn’t exactly feel like an accident.

But Kacey will never be able to ask, because Bailey never makes it home from that party. Suddenly, Broken Falls doesn’t seem so welcoming after all—especially once everyone starts looking to the new girl for answers.

Kacey is about to learn some very important lessons: Sometimes appearances can be deceiving. Sometimes when you’re the new girl, you shouldn’t trust anyone.

At this point, I wouldn't blame you if you thought I was some sort of masochist. Especially if you noticed how much I bitch about YA mystery novels and yet I continue reading them. 95% of the time, I don't have an answer for you. And then, I read a book like Little Monsters, and I do.

This is a damn good YA mystery novel. It's smart, it keeps you on your toes, it actually pulls the rug out from under you. It is everything books like A Good Idea wish to be. Don't be fooled by the summary- it was the reason I dodged this book since it came out. I was tempted on Thomas' debut, especially since it had such an enigmatic, cover, but got really burned out on YA thrillers around the same time it starting appearing on the shelves everywhere. I should have given it a chance.

Little Monsters actually came so, so close to being the kind of book I hate. The revenge thriller, with the obvious good guy and obnoxiously obvious bad guy. I brought up A Good Idea earlier because I thought that that was where this book was going. Bailey's ex hook-up was the kind of douche ex with connections that's appeared as the culprit in dozens of other YA books, usually caught by the heroine and not the police, somehow, who are all either corrupt or stupid. Not in this book. I kept telling myself, he was too obvious, he wouldn't have actually done it, and he didn't do it. In fact, I ended up actually liking that part, because it showed that Thomas wasn't so attached to Kacey she was going to make her some genius protege detective, and also that the cops, trained crime fighters, were in fact smart enough to rule out almost immediately a false lead. It made this novel come across as more believable than your typical YA mystery novel.

I think my favorite thing about this novel, though, was the fact that it reminded me of an episode of some ID channel show. I could see it on Murder Among Friends, especially. It had plenty of twists and turns, and at the same time was formulaic enough to make it easy to read and to make me want to read more. I wanted to find out what was going to happen next, but at the same time I was savvy enough in the genre to know that the real killer isn't going to be revealed until the end. And when the killers were revealed, I was surprised at one, and even though I pretty much figured out who the other one was, I was still pleasantly surprised she made that decision. I like authors who take risks, and this one pays off. As a YA mystery novel, this book is one of the best of the genre, no questions asked. 

Is there some weak points in this book? Sure. The family dynamics weren't great, and if Thomas hadn't been such a great mystery writer I would have taken more off because of this. Her attempts at family drama felt rather melodramatic, though I did like the positive portrayal of stepmothers. I wished Kacey's father had a bigger role in the story, then she could go into all kinds of interesting ideas about fatherhood and the whole disappeared dad thing, or maybe the mothers keeping fathers away from children thing. But at the same time, maybe Thomas did right to quit while she was ahead in the familial relationship department, and I did like some of the decisions she made on the part of the parents. It was a believable family dynamic as a whole.

So yes, I really, really liked this book. I want to pick up Darkest Corners maybe sometime next month, because I really want to read more by Kara Thomas. Hopefully, I will like it just as much. It's not everyday a good thriller writer stumbles onto my lap just like that, and I think she has the potential to be another favorite author.

8.5 out of 10

The Girl Who Fell by SM Parker Review

WARNING: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS BELOW

“Lying on my bed, my brain cyclones with thoughts of men and boys and boys and men. All making the wrong choices.”- The Girl Who Fell, SM Parker

High school senior Zephyr Doyle is swept off her feet—and into an intense and volatile relationship—by the new boy in school. 

His obsession.
Her fall.

Zephyr is focused. Focused on leading her team to the field hockey state championship and leaving her small town for her dream school, Boston College.

But love has a way of changing things.

Enter the new boy in school: the hockey team’s starting goaltender, Alec. He’s cute, charming, and most important, Alec doesn’t judge Zephyr. He understands her fears and insecurities—he even shares them. Soon, their relationship becomes something bigger than Zephyr, something she can’t control, something she doesn’t want to control.

Zephyr swears it must be love. Because love is powerful, and overwhelming, and … terrifying?

But love shouldn’t make you abandon your dreams, or push your friends away. And love shouldn’t make you feel guilty—or worse, ashamed.

So when Zephyr finally begins to see Alec for who he really is, she knows it’s time to take back control of her life.

If she waits any longer, it may be too late.

Why am I reading another SM Parker novel two days after I gave her first book the low low rating of a 3.5 out of 10? I mean, in star ratings that's like 2 stars. Because, I wanted to see if her writing was even worse in her debut than it was in her sophomore novel, because if she managed that I'd be impressed.

Also, sometimes I feel bad completely trashing an author when I've only ever read one book by them. Except John Green. I will never feel bad about him.

So I picked up The Girl Who Fell, expecting a fairly run of the mill abusive relationship story, and that's basically what this book is to some extent. Interestingly, the writing didn't annoy me as much as the writing in The Rattled Bones did. I mean, it's not good by my standards, but it's inoffensive. Parker does have the same irritating repetition problem, and in this case it's the word flirt. It's also the way she uses flirt. Yes, the word is a verb, but that doesn't mean she can use it like this: "she flirts the cup from his hand" or "she flirts with her curtain of blond hair" and still have it make sense. Especially the first one, when it was so out of context I thought it was a typo (there's a fair amount in this book) and she meant to say flits or something like that. I get what she's trying to say, but it quite frankly sounds stupid. 

I also found her dialogue to be cheesy, the same way it was in The Rattled Bones. I didn't think it was possible to have such unfunny banter, but SM Parker achieved it. I didn't even crack one smile during all these supposedly funny, flirty exchanges. Of course, maybe I wasn't supposed to because the guy's an abusive dick, but even if he wasn't, I think all those supposedly witty jokes would still fall flat.

Even though the writing doesn't quite suck as much, the characters are even worst than the ones in The Rattled Bones. Zephyr (gag) is, of course, a pretty, athletic, intelligent, perfect girl who supposedly wants to study marine biology at Boston College, despite the fact that she's never expressed an interest in marine biology throughout the course of the novel. Her only flaws are her abandonment issues coming from her father leaving, her curly hair, and her "too long legs". Yes, because too long legs is a real flaw, one that supermodels definitely don't have. Oh bite me, Parker, if you think that's actually a blight on someone's self esteem. I can buy the too curly hair thing, because most people with curls unfortunately hate their hair (I love curls, personally, and always wish I inherited my mother's naturally curly hair), but not long legs. So basically, she's perfect.

Then we have Alec. Alec is a very badly drawn caricature of an abusive boyfriend, who starts off perfect and ends up a monster. There is no subtlety to him whatsoever, and in this case I give Heather Demetrios credit. I wasn't too crazy about Bad Romance, but at least her abusive boyfriend was believable. 

There's also her friends Lizzie and Gregg (no that's not a typo, he really has two gs in his name) (His nickname's even stupider- The Slice. I think they should call him Triple G, you know, like Double D). Lizzie is there because you need a best girl friend in every YA novel nowadays, and Gregg is there because, I don't know, we have to show Alec's jealousy somehow. 

The plot's... well, it's kind of boring, to be honest. The introduction is actually good, gripping, like the beginning of a horror movie. You want to know what's going on. And then it slows down so much, that I found myself getting bored. You can't tease us like that, Parker! I almost lost the will to go on in the middle. It's unbearably predictable, and it's easy to tell who's behind every single bad thing that happens to Zephyr and her friends. 

So, if I was bored in the middle, then I should like the ending, right? Because it actually has action? Wrong. The ending is when Alec truly became a Disney villain, which might actually be an insult to Disney villains. He reminded me of Clover from The Cellar, or the husband in Silent Child. I mean, what's happening should be scary and I should be at the edge of my seat, but it just struck me as being so unrealistic. It should have reminded me of that scene in Twin Peaks when Leo was trying to kill Shelly with a fucking ax, which actually did scare the shit outta me, but I couldn't care enough. 

So yeah, somehow I don't think I will be reading anymore SM Parker books. Her books aren't even the enjoyable bad, they're just bad bad. I suppose I can kind of see her appeal, but as a whole, she's just not for me.

3.5 out of 10

If you liked this book, you may also like:

Bad Romance by Heather Demetrios

Breathing Underwater by Alex Flinn

The Rattled Bones by SM Parker Review

WARNING: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS BELOW

“But I think this island holds more history than the university could ever uncover. And there are endless ways for secrets to slip out into the world.”- The Rattled Bones, SM Parker

Unearthing years of buried secrets, Rilla Brae is haunted by ghostly visions tied to the tainted history of a mysterious island in this haunting novel from the author of The Girl Who Fell.

Maine-bred, independent Rilla Brae is no stranger to the deep. She knows the rhythms of hard work and harder seas. But when she experiences the sudden death of her father, the veil between the living and the dead blurs and she begins to be haunted by a girl on a nearby, uninhabited island. The girl floats a song over the waves, and it is as beautiful as it is terrifying. Familiar and distant.

Then Rilla meets Sam, a University of Southern Maine archeology student tasked with excavating the very island where the ghostly girl has appeared. Sam sifts the earth looking for the cultural remains of an island people who were forcibly evicted by the state nearly a hundred years ago. Sam tells Rilla the island has a history no locals talk about—if they know about it at all—due to the shame the events brought to the working waterfront community. All Rilla knows for sure is that the island has always been there—an eerie presence anchored in the stormy sea. Now Sam’s work and the ghostly girl’s song lure Rilla to the island’s shores.

As Rilla helps Sam to unearth the island’s many secrets, Rilla’s visions grow—until the two discover a tragedy kept silent for years. And it’s a tragedy that has everything to do with Rilla’s past.

Normally, when I dislike the book, I dislike all sorts of things by it, the plot, the characters (especially the characters), hell, usually the writing is the thing I have the least problem with. Not in this case. Okay, the characters weren't the best, but the writing was just... bad.

The annoying thing about the writing is that it could almost be actually kinda good. And I tried to see that. But there's just something about it that just grated me. The writing is, well, a lot of things. It took me quite a lot of reading to figure out exactly what offended me so much about it. And then it hit me. I think the problem is that Parker doesn't know how to transition from one action to another, so it sounds kind of stilted and choppy, and that combined with the elaborateness of the sentences she's writing makes for a very debut-y writing style. This would be fine, EXCEPT SHE'S NOT A DEBUT AUTHOR. This is kind of a good example of what I'm talking about: "I'm grateful when the doorbell announces Brenda Sherfey on the step offering tuna casserole and condolences. I abandon Brenda's food to the counter because the fridge is already crammed with sorrow."

I also got a bit of a paranormal romance novel vibe, though I'm not quite sure why, especially since I've only ever read a grand total of one paranormal romance novel. 

Parker also does little annoying things, like narrate every action, make everything sound overly dramatic as if every little things has a deeper meaning, and, the most annoying thing out of all of it, stating the obvious. Like in this case: "His words confirm that he's 'from away'- a transplant to our state." No shit, I got that because the sentence before he commented about the directness of Mainers. If I said I like how nice people from the Midwest are, would you think I was from the Midwest? No, of course not. I despise it when people waste words. 

In fact, the writing reminds me of a point and click game, or more specifically, one of those Her Interactive Nancy Drew games. I was have expecting some sentence like "I jiggle the door handle. It's locked." to turn up at one point. Actually, if I'm mimicking her writing style, it'd probably be something more along the lines of: "I jiggle the door handle. It won't open. It's locked.". Look, okay, I have a strong nostalgic connection the those games. My sister, best friend at the time, and I all used to crowd around my sister's laptop or one of our two old desktops on some Saturday afternoon back in middle school and play them. I think we only ever actually finished one or two of them, but we still loved them. But that doesn't necessarily mean the narrative style of the games translates well over to print media.

One last point about the writing. I think Parker really needs to stop adding over the top metaphorical imagery to every goddamn sentence. Like this one: "I felt a shiver crawl up the ladder of my spine". Sure, if it had just said "I felt a shiver crawl up my spine" I might have thought it cliche, but I wouldn't hate it. For some reason, the addition of the ladder just irritated me. It still doesn't make it original, and just adds unnecessary weight dragging the sentence down. She really can't leave well enough alone, can she?

So what else is bad about it? The characters are extremely unoriginal. Rilla is your typical Strong Independent Womyn, who comes from a long line of Strong Independent Womyn- including her grandmother, who somehow managed to be a voluntary single mother despite growing up in a time where voluntary single motherhood was not a thing. Sam is like a watered down Augustus Waters, one who doesn't have a romantic attachment to Rilla. He's passionate about things, gives long, poetic speeches, and has quirky exchanges with our main character. He's also basically the personification of the male version of the much-hated Not Like Other Girls trope. Rilla constantly reminds us how he's Not Like Other Boys, he apologizes for interrupting her, he doesn't sit too close to her, he's smart and driven, and forgive me for saying this, but it seems very sexist. Like, a lot of people complain about how sexist the Not Like Other Girls trope is, because it puts down other women or whatever. The Not Like Other Boys is kind of like that, but in a different way, painting men as being idiotic, macho pigs, but not Sam because he's a gentleman. If you are going to condemn one, you must also condemn the other. 

There's other cliched characters, the wise, old, and spiritual grandma (where do all these wise old grandmas come from? Most of the sweet old ladies I know do things like go to church every Sunday, talk about their grandkids, and make sure nobody leaves before they've all gained at least ten pounds), and the old stodgy villain, who goes by the name of Old Man Benner because this is a bad mystery novel, we need a sexist old codger. There's also, in a nice change of pace, a dead dad and a missing mom instead of the opposite. This would be better if the mom's leaving wasn't excused. Interestingly, she seemed kind of unaffected by both. Frankly, if she didn't always explicitly always remind us how much grief she felt, I wouldn't have known at all that she felt any. In fact, the author is so bad at showing things she has to tell us things directly because if she didn't, I would think Rilla is either a robot or a sociopath.

All of this is a shame, because the plot really was a good one. The island of Maluga was an interesting place to set a book, and one with a fascinating history. If Parker had been a more original character creator or a much, much better writer, this book could have really shone. In fact, it probably would have reminded me much more of the Her Interactive Nancy Drew games. I kind of wish it was, called something like the Ghost Girl of Maluga Island because that would have been way more fun than this book ended up being.

2.5 out of 10

Five Favorites- Nonfiction

I love nonfiction. Despite this, I don't really reach for it a lot, and my nonfiction favorites have pretty much stayed the same since I first started seriously reading the genre. In fact, I kinda wish I could add more than five to this list, because if I could books like Dave Cullen's Columbine or Elie Wiesel's Night or even Legs McNeil and Gillian McCain's Please Kill Me would make the list. But alas, it must only be five. 

So here are my five favorites in nonfiction, in no particular order.

1. Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt

   This is not only my favorite nonfiction novel, but also one of my favorite books of all time. I know this isn't the most factual book ever, and a lot is switched around or fabricated for the sake of the story, but I loved it regardless. The characters, the mystery, the fact that it takes place in one of my favorite cities ever all make this book a really, really great read. It's about a New York journalist who falls in love with the city of Savannah, Georgia, and ends up temporarily moving there, meeting all these unusual people and ends up getting involved with a crime taking place there. It's at times both sad and laugh out loud funny, and has such a diverse cast of characters, including The Grand Empress of Savannah, The Lady Chablis, who unfortunately died last September. 

2. The Diary of a Young Girl (definitive edition) by Anne Frank

   Of course the diary of Anne Frank would have to be on this list. I read this one when I was about 12 or 13, because my mom told me to. I didn't feel compelled to pick it up until my seventh grade class read her diary without actually reading it if you can believe that and my mother told me I should read the actual book. And I really, really loved it. It's not really a preachy or moralistic book about loving everyone, the way those selected quotes from it might make you think. In fact, reading her book kind of brings her back down to Earth. She isn't some legendary, visionary girl. Instead, she's a teenager, a girl who's sometimes moody, sometimes funny, sometimes insightful. I was surprised by how deeply I could relate to her diary, to the loneliness she felt and her longings for a best friend or a boyfriend. If anyone is curious at all into the inner workings of the mind of a teenage girl, they should read this novel. I specified the edition I own and love because it's the book that mirrors her own edits of the book as opposed to the ones done by her father, which heavily censored many aspects of the diary. If you haven't read this book yet, please do.

3. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote

   Little known fact about me, Truman Capote is one of my favorite authors. He is the master of the short story, and Breakfast at Tiffany's is a novella I hold dear to my heart- I'd recommend it provided you don't hold any particular attachment to the movie. Truman Capote is also a pretty interesting guy himself, and the backstory behind In Cold Blood has filled books and provided fodder for two pretty phenomenal movies (of those Capote is the deeper, better movie, but Infamous is worth watching for a more skin deep take on the story- and also for the sheer amount of talent in that movie: Sandra Bullock, one of the James Bond guys, Isabella Rossellini, etc). But anyway, In Cold Blood. This book is a must read for any true crime fan, a phenomenal exploration into the minds of two criminals who killed a family in Kansas for fifty bucks. The horrors of their crimes are not shied away from, but there is an undeniably human side to them portrayed. This is a truly revolutionary work, and one many crime novels have endeavored to emulate. Again, any nonfiction lover, and especially nonfiction crime enthusiast, should read this book. 

4. The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid by Bill Bryson

   This appears to be Bill Bryson's least known book, which depresses me. I'm not one for memoirs, but this book is truly wonderful. It's about Bryson growing up in the 50s in Des Moines, Iowa, and is both educational and personal. It's one of the funniest books I've ever read- my mother and I quote still quote from it- including one of my favorite scenes in the history of literature- I'd type it here, but it involves a racial slur- thought NOT IN A RACIST CONTEXT. I did, however, almost piss my pants when I read it the first time. Still, this book has the same effect on me that my favorite Woody Allen movie, Radio Days, had, funny, sweet, and an ending that never fails to bring me to tears all in one book.

5. The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson

   Here's another true crime classic, The Devil in the White City. This is history told in an accessible way, one that seamlessly blends fact and narrative to create a wonderful story about both an architect, the visionary behind the 1892 Chicago World's Fair, and America's first serial killer, whose chosen victims came from the fair. Naturally, to me the serial killer's parts were more interesting, but the actual coming together of the fair and the history of Chicago, that turbulent city on Lake Michigan, and one I personally love, is quite fascinating in its own right. If you haven't read this book yet, please pick it up.

What are some of your favorite nonfiction books? Have you read any of these books? What do you think about them? Leave your thoughts below!

August 2017 Wrap-Up

Another month of slump, mostly because of the computer thing and vacation and also I kind of moved and still need to get my bearings and figure out where the library is and how often I can go. No new reading material means no new books and no new reviews. But I have been in a rereading mood, so I probably won't be posting very many reviews in the coming months in favor of just writing smaller reread reviews on my wrap-ups. So that's the plan at least. 

Anyway, let's get into it.

The Romanov Sisters by Helen Rappaport 9/10 (544 pg)
My Review: The Romanov Sisters by Helen Rappaport
  The Romanov Sisters is exactly what it says on the tin- a book about the Romanov girls. It's an entire book dedicated to just them, as opposed to their mother or father or brother or Rasputin, who must be one of the most written about men in history, right up there with Hitler and Napoleon and Henry VIII. And Jesus. Can't forget him. Anyway, this is an excellent book for anyone interesting in the Romanov girls, or someone who just wants a different take on the Romanov family.

The Killing Lessons by Saul Black 8/10 (400 pg)
My Review: The Killing Lessons by Saul Black
  And then, after the educational book about the Romanovs, I immediately went for the sex-filled and violent murder mystery. And this book was a fun distraction from a long plane ride, not necessarily my favorite mystery ever, but it was really nicely written and engrossing-though a bit slow, and the character's personal lives sometimes drag it down- and I liked it enough to pick up the sequel, LoveMurder, which I read later this month. This book is about a serial killer, who leaves clues in the bodies of women he rapes and mutilates. Recommended.

Pointe, Claw by Amber J Keyser 4/10 (275 pg)
My Review: Pointe, Claw by Amber J Keyser
  I always choose a least favorite book of the month (I also choose a favorite book of the month, lest you think I was too obsessed with the negative) and Pointe, Claw, bears the dubious honor of being my least favorite book of August, 2017. Basically, this book is about a pair of childhood best friends (more like codependents) whose lives have moved in drastically different paths since being separated at the age of nine. One is a ballet protege, the other is a supposed intelligent perpetually ill chick with probably some major mental disorders. What can I say about this book, except it was written like the author was practically jerking off as she was typing, one character was obnoxious, the other had no personality, and it was just bad, trying too hard garbage all around. Pass.

The Lost Crown by Sarah Miller 8.5/10 (401 pg)
My Review: The Lost Crown by Sarah Miller
  I doubted I would like this book. Mostly because this is the kind of ultra feminine, romance-y historical fiction I normally steer away from. But I like the Romanov sisters, and I read a nonfiction book about them earlier in the month so I decided to give it a try. And I ended up really liking it, even if it was a bit juvenile. It was very historically accurate and perfect for a middle grade reader going through a royalty phase.

Girl in Snow by Danya Kukafka 7-7.5/10 (368 pg)
My Review: Girl in Snow by Danya Kukafka
  Finally, a new release I'm not disappointed with! And honestly, if it wasn't for the ending, I think I might have actually liked it. This book is a mystery-thriller with a lot of contemporary, character study elements, gorgeous, gorgeous prose, and a really nice, almost magical realism-y feel to it. It's about a popular girl who ends up dead, and three characters who were impacted by her death in various ways. I love character studies, and this one doesn't fail to disappoint in that nature. Those who were expecting a more traditional thriller should skip this one, but frankly, it's worth a read. Despite the ending.

A Night Divided by Jennifer A Nielsen 6.5/10 (317 pg)
My Review: A Night Divided by Jennifer A Nielsen
  What? A middle grade novel? Say it ain't so! No, but really I liked this book. I mean, was it maybe a bit too simplistic, especially in explaining the Cold War? Was the heroine a bit too stereotypical? Sure. But it's historical fiction middle grade, what do you want? This book was about a girl whose father and middle brother were trapped on the other side of the Berlin Wall- they are in the West Berlin side and she, her mother, and older brother are in the East Berlin side. It's very Elizabeth Wein-esque, and quite a bit of fun, especially for a middle grade history lover. Recommended to ages 10-13.

Bear in the Streets by Lisa Dickey 9/10 (325 pg)
My Review: Bear in Streets by Lisa Dickey
  This is a nonfiction travel account of the author's three trips through Russia over the span of 30 years. I don't really have much else to say about it except I really liked it and would recommend it.

Little Girl Gone by Gerry Schmitt 6.5/10 (325 pg)
My Review: Little Girl Gone by Gerry Schmitt
  This is like a cozy mystery that doesn't want to admit that it is. It's a cute mystery with some dark parts, a heroine with a wonderfully cheesy name, and just enough action to keep me entertained. So what is this book about? A baby who goes missing, and a intrepid young female not detective who wants to find out what happened to the baby. It's the kind of book you could give to your grandmother when you're done with it and she'd probably discuss it with her book club. So I guess I'd recommend it to that particularly small demographic.

Under Rose-Tainted Skies by Louise Gornall 6/10 (336 pg)*
My Review: Under Rose-Tainted Skies by Louise Gornall
  I picked this book up on a whim, expecting, mostly because of the reviews and how personal the story apparently is, a beautiful Challenger Deep-esque story about love and mental illness. Instead, this book ended up being Everything, Everything 2.0, and you can't accuse it of being so because it's a personal story. I mean, it was okay, just not very original. Feel free to call me an asshole in the comments below- I'm a big girl, I can take it.

I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak (reread) (still 9.5/10) (360 pg)
  I still love this book. It had been a few years since I last reread it, and frankly I missed it. Also, I wanted to see if it still hold the number one contemporary spot. It does. I still love Ed Kennedy and Audrey and Ritchie and Marv. And the people Ed helps, too. I found myself being brought to tears in some places and laughing my ass off in others. Markus Zusak is genuinely a genius, and I wish he'd get somewhere in Bridge of Clay because I need more of his writing.

LoveMurder by Saul Black 8-8.5/10 (352 pg)
My Review: LoveMurder by Saul Black  Finishing out the month with LoveMurder, a book I picked up mostly because I didn't feel much like starting anything I had to think too much about. This was the sequel to The Killing Lessons, and I liked it a bit more than the first book because I felt like it was a bit more centered. This series is still not the best mystery series I've ever read, but it's quite gritty and sexy and a good pick for anyone who wants a dark read on a rainy day. 




Page total: 4,003
Average rating: 7.5/10 (rounded up by not much)
Genre breakdown: 4 mystery-thrillers
                 3 contemporaries
                 2 historical fiction
                 2 nonfiction (one historical and one travel)
Of those 6 were adult, 4 were YA, and 1 was middle grade

I read 11 books this month, but I'm hoping to bring it back up to my usual numbers in September. But again, I probably will be doing plenty of rereading, because I feel like revisiting some of my old favorites, so even though I may not seem like I'm reading a ton due to a dearth of reviews, I still am. My current goal is rereading one of my favorite series, so that should be fun for me. We'll see how things go.

*e-books

LoveMurder by Saul Black Review

WARNING: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS BELOW

When she is called to the murder scene, the last thing San Francisco Homicide detective Valerie Hart is expecting is for Katherine Glass to walk back into her life. Six years earlier, revulsion and fascination had gripped the nation in equal measure, as beautiful, intelligent, charming and utterly evil Katherine Glass had been convicted on six counts of Murder One. But the freshly-mutilated corpse in the ground-floor apartment bears all the hallmarks of Katherine s victims. And then there s the note, with its chilling implications. Addressed to Valerie.

To stop the slaughter, Valerie has no choice. She must ask Katherine Glass to help her decipher the killer s twisted message. But that means re-entering the pitch-black labyrinth that is Katherine s mind, and this time Valerie isn't so sure which one of them will survive.

It was just earlier this month I reviewed Saul Black's debut, The Killing Lessons. While it wasn't my favorite mystery- there was a little too much going on and it had a dragging problem- it was still a good, solid debut thriller that showed a ton of promise. I liked Black's writing, and the ideas he came up with. 

And this novel is much tighter than his first. It was more focused by far- the only thing going on was the central case, there wasn't a million other little threads to follow up on. I mean, not everything was fixed- sex was still a big part of the book, but I'm starting to think this is something that's just going to become a part of reading Saul Black's books. The vibe he's clearly going for is dark and twisted and sexy, and I'm cool with that. Especially when this book is even more fucked up than the first.

The characters came across as a lot stronger, too. Valerie is still the smart, capable detective, but without the extra melodrama of being both an alcoholic and lovesick for her ex. Nick proved a welcome addition to the plot, and his banter-heavy dialogue ended up being my favorite. I also think Will especially shined in this novel, and I ended up not hating most of the side characters, which is amazing for me. 

The villains were interesting, although while I wanted to like Katherine Glass- and she was the kind of Elizabeth Bathory evil that I like- she grated on me after a while. I wished she could have a scene in which there was no unnecessary sexual tension between her and Valerie, or in which people would stop mentioning her beauty because it got old and tiring fast. But I suppose it's meant to enhance the dark and sexy aspects of the story, so that's a purpose. From what I understand, this guy writes werewolf novels under his real name (I didn't discover this until I Goodreadsed the author; he refreshingly doesn't make any mention of it- but then again, if I wrote werewolf novels I'd want to keep that hidden, too), so that might explain the preoccupation with sex. It's funny, though, his writing reminds me almost of Tana French's, but reading his books reminds me of how refreshingly little sex there is in hers. I'm not against sex in books, but it's such a big part of many books, especially thrillers, it's nice that a popular author hasn't fallen back on that trope.

I would say this book's biggest flaw is that it was surprisingly reluctant to kill people off. I think the subject demanded a higher body count than what was actually given to us, and I also think that Black was skating on thin ice with me with two of the people that he had the Man in the Mask capture. I mean, did anyone actually think those two characters would be killed off? I mean, one, fine sure whatever, but two in one book? That does nothing but waste time. One of them should have been killed off or, heck, maybe that particular subplot just shouldn't have been in the book at all, in favor of one that could have actually been killed. In the end, it felt like shock value, and I despise shock value. 

So those are my thoughts on LoveMurder, a title my spellcheck hates. It was good, and a strangely addictive little book that is sure to keep you interested, provided you don't hate a little shock value or unnecessary sex. And hey, if you do love that shit, well, all the more power to you.

8-8.5 out of 10