The calendar has turned over into a new year, so I’m tardy on putting up my reviews of my final reads of the year – the annual roundup is coming soon – so let’s get to it!
–Marissa
The Wedding People by Alison Espach is definitely going on my list of favorite reads for the year! I lovedloved this novel! Phoebe has arrived at a tony hotel in Newport to have one last splurge after her marriage is over, but as no idea the rest of the hotel is booked for an extravagant wedding – and the bride does NOT want Phoebe to sour her wedding week. What follows are fragile friendship, a bit of romance, and a rediscovery of how to move on from your lowest point, and the friends – and strangers – who might be help. This was filled with fantastic characters, a beautiful setting, bridezilla antics, romance, humor and heart. I loved this novel so much.
The Serviceberry by Robin Wall Kimmerer is subtitled “Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World”. This slim tome – 128 pages – is a lovely meditation on how we can echo nature in with reciprocity, gratitude, and the forming of community. I read this in small bursts when I needed a lift that the world is not just a dumpster fire…
Only One Survives by Hannah Mary McKinnon was an audiobook listen about a girl band caught up in a horrible car accident during a blizzard, and over the course of a night, several of them perish. This is told in alternating timelines from the viewpoint of Vienna, the drummer about her beginnings, the group formation, and then what happened on that fateful night. There was a twist I definitely didn’t see coming, and this was a fun suspense listen.
Hygge Holiday by Rosie Blake scratched my itch for a holiday romance read, while also being filled with hygge (I love anything hygge!). We’ve got a mysterious stranger, a near abandoned toy shop, a town full of quirky characters, and an irascible son who has come home for the holidays. This was sweet and cozy and romance-y and warm. A great Saturday morning read!
Blue Sisters by Coco Mellors was everywhere this year, so I had to nab a copy from the library to read. Told from the viewpoints of the three very different sisters – Avery, Bonnie and Lucky – the reader learns they are all mourning in their own way the death of the fourth sister, Nicky, as well as trying to find their ways in their own worlds, and a world back to each other. This is definitely a solid women’s fiction pick with lots of characterization built in.
More or Less Maddy by Lisa Genova is the upcoming title from fan favorite Genova, and this time, the neuroscientist/author tackles bipolar disorder from the perspective of Maddy, a college student. Genova does a *masterful* job of putting the reader in Maddy’s mind, and also showing the subtle shift from the high to the low and back again in heartbreaking fashion. I devoured this novel, and was completely absorbed. Another solid winner from Genova!
A Year of Living Curiously by Elizabeth Foley was a great book to dip in and out of for the last few months (I got a prepublication copy!). With 365 entries that are each about 2 minutes long, you meander through a curious collection of facts, fascinations and stories that you may know, or most probably, don’t. I really loved learning a little something new every time I picked this up. 🙂
You’ll Never Believe Me by Kari Ferrell is her autobiography of her time as the ‘Hipster Grifter’, from her beginnings in Utah to her continual monetary crimes to her time in prison and after. The best word I can land on for this is ‘coarse’ – coarse language, coarse attitude, coarse story. I’m sure it’ll be buzzy when it is released soon, but it overall wasn’t for me.
From Here to the Great Unknown by Lisa Marie Presley and Riley Keough was a memoir in two voices – Lisa Marie’s prior to her death, and her daughter Riley, and told Lisa’s life from growing up at Graceland through her tumultuous marriages, drug use, and relationships with those around her. This was so easy to read and compelling and fascinating, I even shoved it over to Wes and insisted he read it so we could talk about it (he also found it fascinating and interesting!). Though not much of an Elvis fan prior, I really enjoyed this “glimpse behind the curtain”.
Lies He Told Me by James Patterson and David Ellis was a fun, fast audiobook listen. A husband’s secret is exposed when he saves a dying man from a rushing river, and his wife spends the book trying to unpick everything she *doesn’t* know about her husband. In typical Patterson fashion, the chapters were short, the action quick, the story resolved. An easy suspense listen!
The Astrology House by Carinn Jade was another satisfying audiobook listen. We have several couples spending a retreat weekend at an astrology-themed B&B in New England, and each have their own dramas. We have infidelity, the desire for a child, a long ago death being avenged, and interpersonal conflicts and dynamics throughout. I loved the setting, the astrology included for the characters, and the shifting chapters from different points of view. Satisfying suspense!
The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year by Ally Carter is mostly a mystery novel that I would say is Christmas-adjacent, rather than being a “Christmas novel”. We have two warring authors both invited to the English home of famous author Eleanor Ashby, but when Eleanor goes missing during her annual Christmas party, they have to work together to find out what happened. This was a fun, easy read with a blend of enemies-to-lovers romance, clue finding and answering, a great setting and of course, Christmas. Fun!
Honey by Isabel Banta is a novelization of girls and girl groups that swiftly rose in the late 1990s (think Britney or Christina), tracking from early beginnings to girl group formations, dissolutions, and Amber (our protagonist) going solo. We see interpersonal conflicts, romances come and go, and the constant pressure to succeed and stay on top during this cutthroat era in pop music. A “peek behind the curtain” for sure!
Worst Case Scenario by TJ Newman is the latest of his “something bad happens on a plane” novel, and it’s another fast-paced, nailbiter, “OMG WHAT?!” novel, and I was here for every minutes of this audiobook listen. If you loved Newman’s other novels, you’ll love this, but the hook this time is a gas-filled jetliner…and a nuclear power plant. Chilling and engaging as hell!
Beautiful Ugly by Alice Feeney is her latest suspense novel taking place in the wilds of Scotland when author Grady Green retreats a year after his wife went missing, in the hopes of completing his next novel. But, on this small, isolated, kinda freaky island, he begins… to see his wife everywhere. This was typically twist and turny and easy to read, but wasn’t my favorite of her novels (though she is always a solid read, so the bar is high!).
I also read A Brief History of the Midwest by Andrew Grace, a collection of poems about, yep, the Midwest. Not my taste, but I tried (since y’all know I’m not the biggest poetry fan out there). 🙂
stubbornsunshine.com 
One Comment