This is an occasional series that chronicles my quest to read 60 books this year. Book reviews 2014: take three. Let’s see how it went, shall we?
As far as I can tell, there is only one good thing about getting a terrible summer flu/chills/nausea/thing that knocks you off your feet and onto the couch for hours upon hours upon days upon days: Reading. I haven’t done much writing in the past week (this blog is my witness), but boy oh boy have I read.
In fact, for the first time all year, I’m finally on pace to finish 60 books by the end of the year. With any luck, I’ll surpass 60 books.
Perhaps I shouldn’t get ahead of myself just yet.
(The links lead to the full reviews I wrote on Goodreads. Do you follow me there? You should!)
P.S. Book Reviews 2014: Part 1 and Part 2
Book Reviews 2014: 30/60
The Seven Year Bitch / Jennifer Belle
File under: Chick lit, beach read, mama tale
Plot: Wealthy mom isn’t happy with her life and finds about a bajillion things wrong with her husband.
Review: This is witty nitpicking that would make Seinfeld proud, if you’re into that kind of thing. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.
The Winter People / Jennifer McMahon
File under: Suspense, fantasy, horror, mystery
Plot: People uncover the secrets behind a century-old ghost story.
Review: This is a hauntingly beautiful tale that will tug on your heartstrings when you ponder loss and exactly how far you’d go to be reunited with the ones you love.
The Color Master / Aimee Bender
File under: Literature, short stories, whimsical
Plot: A collection of short stories that alternates between hyper-realistic and fairytale.
Review: Without gushing too much about the beautiful prose, I highly recommend letting the author take you on journeys that will make you feel all the feels.
All the Summer Girls / Meg Donohue
File under: Chick lit, beach read, meh
Plot: Three estranged friends re-connect for a weekend at a beach house.
Review: The beach house was really the only character worth caring about.
Courtsies & Conspiracies / Gail Carriger
File under: Steampunk, Y.A., fantasy
Plot: Sophronia is up to more hijinks in her second year at spy school.
Review: A delightful second novel in the Finishing School series, albeit one with slightly less wind in its sails than the first.
The Almost Moon / Alice Sebold
File under: Literature, suspense
Plot: Woman loses her mind and kills her elderly, ailing mom, then has to deal with the aftermath.
Review: I couldn’t help but sit on the edge of my seat as I simultaneously rooted for and against the protagonist.
Empire Girls / Suzanne Hayes, Lorette Nyhan
File under: 1920s, chick lit, beach read
Plot: Sisters set out to New York to find their secret half-brother, who has inherited their dead father’s estate.
Review: I liked this predictable country mouse-city mouse romp, but I didn’t love it.
Little Bee / Chris Cleave
File under: Literature, too many atrocities for words
Plot: An Ethiopian girl meets a British couple on the beach, and two years later looks them up after fleeing her country and seeking asylum.
Review: Little Bee’s tragicomedy narration has a Life is Beautiful kind of quality.
The Museum of Intangible Things / Wendy Wunder
File under: Road trip, Y.A., coming of age
Plot: Girl follows her bipolar BFF on a road trip to end all road trips.
Review: This is a fun ride at first, but it soon turns south, with heavy-handed metaphors and situations that require far too much suspension of disbelief.
Don’t Breathe a Word / Jennifer McMahon
File under: Suspense, fantasy, mystery
Plot: A little girl disappears to live with the fairies, and 15 years later she sends word that she’s coming home.
Review: I was biting my nails as the protagonists peeled the layers off this onion, and the end is far more twisted than I ever imagined.
In a Nutshell
Three to read: The Color Master, The Winter People, Don’t Breathe a Word (yes, I’m a big Jennifer McMahon fan after reading these two books)
Three to pass: All the Summer Girls, Empire Girls, The Museum of Intangible Things
So there you have it. Thirty down, 30 to go. Wish me luck! What have you been reading lately? I’m always on the lookout for a good book …
