Linking up with hosts Steph and Jana for another month of bookish show and tell.

It was a doozy of a month so I’d better just jump right in.

The First Mrs Rothschild by Sara Aharoni was a Kindle Unlimited rec for me – not my fave, it dragged in parts but provided an eye-opening look at life as a Jewish woman in the Frankfurt ghetto. This was more interesting to me than the financial machinations of the Rothschild family.

A Cold Trail, Robert Dugoni (Tracy Crosswhite #7) brings me up to date with the Crosswhite series and I am eagerly awaiting #8. In this offering, Tracy, her husband Dan and baby Dani are back in the small town where they grew up. Tracy is dealing with being a new mom and making decisions about her career and in the meantime, investigating the unsolved murder of a teenage girl years before. I love Tracy.

The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton – A murder / suicide at a grand old decrepit British mansion during a weekend party? Yes please. But not straightforward, as this story unfolds in a Groundhog Day sort of way, with the protagonist being placed in different characters as the day repeats. I liked this, and I liked the characters and the mystery, but the plot grew increasingly outlandish. Extra points for an ominous Plague Doctor making creepy appearances.

Abandon by Blake Crouch was also hard for me to put down. A journalist attaches herself to a group of hikers (including her long-distant father) striking out to explore the ruins of a gold mining ghost town in the mountains. What caused all the inhabitants of this town to disappear without a trace? The supernatural elements build with questions and atmosphere. I liked where this story was going and was totally hooked when Crouch did the bait-and-switch. (No spoilers.) I didn’t love where the story went as much as I could have if it had continued to develop a more supernatural / ghostly explanation but I tore through it, on the edge of my seat throughout.

Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata was a quick read and a good breather from more tense books. Keiko is an outsider in her Tokyo culture, and can only find a place for herself, a sense of self-esteem and purpose through her job at a convenience store. Her family and friends do not understand her lack of interest in marriage and children and her contentment in what is considered to be a lowly, dead-end job (not a “career”). This is a bit sad but also funny and daring for a Japanese female writer who shrugs her shoulders at traditional expectations & expressions of female sexuality and independence. Interesting to me as I have been to Japan and work in a Japanese company, so have seen some elements of the culture that are described here.

Verity by Colleen Hoover was another suspenseful read. An introverted writer takes the seemingly-golden opportunity to step in for a very successful author and finish her popular series after she is badly injured. She quickly becomes embroiled with the author’s sexy husband and with the author’s hidden journal, full of horrifying secrets. I didn’t like the ending, which felt like a ripoff, and although I was fully absorbed, it loses points when I don’t like any of the characters and can’t find a sympathetic viewpoint.

Anya’s Ghost by Vera Brosgol – Miss L likes graphic novels so I bought her a handful of them for her birthday. I picked this up after she was done with it and thought it was well-done – a teenage girl from an immigrant family struggling to find her place in her private school becomes involved with a ghost who seems pathetic and eager to please, but quickly turns Anya’s life upside down. I liked the overall messages in this book (being true to yourself, the traps of popularity, loyalty to friends, etc) and enjoyed discussing it with Miss L when we were done.

Opium and Absinthe by Lydia Kang was recommended by a bestie and it was my favorite read of the month (saying a lot in a month of overall great reads). In turn-of-the-century New York society, Tillie Pembroke’s older sister has wealth, beauty, heart, and an excellent match – and then she turns up dead with two puncture wounds in her neck. Tillie – younger, more headstrong, always in her sister’s shadow – sets out to find the killer, using Bram Stoker’s “Dracula” as a guidebook. Along the way, she develops addictions to heroin and morphine, and, at a cost, breaks all the molds that her family and society have set for her, finds love and a purpose in life. I liked this book so much – the characters, the atmosphere, the mystery, the setting, and definitely plan on reading much more of Kang’s work.

The Sound of Rain by Gregg Olson is Nicole Foster Thriller #1 and another absorbing, suspenseful read. Nicole Foster is a former homicide detective who’s hit bottom – thanks to her terrible taste in men and a rampant gambling addiction, she’s lost her home, her dog, and her job on the force. She’s also haunted by the case of a murdered child and a terrible family life, starring a vicious and narcissistic younger sister. Nicole has to go all the way down (which is hard to read) in order to fight her way back and work through the case – which has crazy ties to her problematic personal life. It’s always hard to read a book where none of the characters are appealing and Nicole is certainly a very ambivalent protagonist. It’s hard to root for her until about 3/4 through and even then, her choices are really not good. But she claws her way out and it’s quite a ride with an absolutely bananas ending (that seemed a little “huh” to me). But I’ll read the second Nicole Foster and hope she’s in a better place.

I hope your reading month was as excellent as mine was!