*Where* has the time gone, friends? It’s suddenly only days until the end of 2017, and I’m nowhere near my usual goal of 150ish books read… but I feel like I’ve been reading oodles, including some titles yet to be released. Let’s see what’s been on the Kindle lately (that digital downloading for librarians is a RABBIT HOLE, my friends. The very best kind, of course.)
–Marissa
Let’s see…
The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin (to be released 1/9/18) has been getting mega press, and was named the top LibraryReads pick for January. This took me a bit to get into, but what a way to weave a story. The children of one family visit a soothsayer, if you will, and learn their death dates… but will it change how they live? Each quarter of the book focuses on a different sibling, but they are definitely all tied together. Great for fans of character-driven, decades-spanning, well-written fiction.
The Woman in the Window by AJ Finn is already a media darling, and doesn’t come out until 1/2/18… but *everyone* is buzzing on this one, movie rights already sold, etc etc. In short, Anna is confined to her New York City apartment but begins watching the family across the way… until she witnesses a crime. This is a twisty, unreliable, well-told suspense novel in the vein of the best Hitchcock movies. Read it – everyone else is!
Turtles All the Way Down by John Green is just… I mean, it’s John Green. Amazing, heartbreaking, revealing, awesome. I already want to re-read it, slower this time, to savor all the angst and pain told through the narrator…
The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen (due out 1/9/18) was un-put-downable for me! I initially picked it up because of Pekkanen’s name on the cover, but oh my word, I couldn’t stop reading! I can’t summarize this one, for it risks spoilers, but this is a fantastic, twisty, well-told suspense novel with particular appeal to women. Highly recommended!
Eternal Life by Dara Horn has also landed on the LibraryReads list for January (released on 1/23/18), and though I read it, I wouldn’t say it was a top read for me, despite the promising premise. Rachel keeps living her life over and over after promising eternal life 2000 years ago to save her son. It just… it just wasn’t what I wanted out of it, but lots of other folks are digging it!
An American Marriage by Tayari Jones (due out 2/6/18) was sooooo good and I couldn’t stop reading it. The voices of the narrators are *so* strong and compelling, as is the story… Roy and Celestial are newlyweds, when Roy is arrested for a crime he didn’t commit. If the person you love is behind bars, can your marriage survive? Told in alternating points of view (so good!), this is really fascinating, well-written reading. Highly recommended!
I Am, I Am, I Am by Maggie O’Farrell (to be released 2/6/18) is such an interesting premise for a memoir… O’Farrell details 17 times in which her life was in danger from childhood to adulthood as a way to comfort her daughter, who struggles with medical issues. Super, super fast to read, each essay reminded me that, in particular, women are vulnerable each and every day to other people, illness, and ourselves.
Educated by Tara Westover (due out 2/20/18) is already a media darling, and with good reason. This memoir details Westover’s unbelievable (that’s the only word I can think of) survivalist childhood growing up in Utah… without ever going to school. Miraculously, she escapes her childhood home and thrives in a school environment, while still struggling to still be a part of her family. I was horrified by the family dynamics and disdain for basic medical practices, and my heart broke when Tara got to college only to discover how much she *didn’t* know about the world. I stayed up late finishing this one…
Grist Mill Road by Christopher J. Yates (release date is 1/9/18) was definitely another page-turner that’s definitely dark and twisty. Alternating between childhood in 1982 and grown-up life in 2008, this novel intertwines three teens who are bound together by a senseless crime, which keeps reverberating throughout their lives. To tell anymore would spoil it, but just trust me… this is going to be a big spring title.
stubbornsunshine.com 
One Comment