It’s time for my first half of June book review! Like last month, I’m saving my 5 star books reviews for my Favorite Books post, which will come later in the month. The Amazon links to the books I’ve read are affiliate links and if you use them and make a purchase, I may receive a small commission. If you’ve read any of these books or are interested in them, I’d love to hear about it in the comments! I also read Fifteen Hundred Miles From The Sun, which I reviewed separately.
Title: Too Good To Be True
Author: Carola Lovering
Genre: Thriller
Publisher: Macmillan Audio, 3/2/21
Source: Audio Publisher
Why I Read It: Heard it was good
My Rating: 4 Stars
Too Good To Be True is the type of thriller where you don’t know who you are supposed to believe. Told from multiple viewpoints, I find myself disbelieving everyone!
“Skye Starling is overjoyed when her boyfriend, Burke Michaels, proposes after a whirlwind courtship. Though Skye seems to have the world at her fingertips―she’s smart, beautiful, and from a well-off family―she’s also battled crippling OCD ever since her mother’s death when she was eleven, and her romantic relationships have suffered as a result. But now Burke―handsome, older, and more emotionally mature than any man she’s met before―says he wants her. Forever. Except, Burke isn’t who he claims to be. And interspersed letters to his therapist reveal the truth: he’s happily married, and using Skye for his own, deceptive ends. In a third perspective, set thirty years earlier, a scrappy seventeen-year-old named Heather is determined to end things with Burke, a local bad boy, and make a better life for herself in New York City. But can her adolescent love stay firmly in her past―or will he find his way into her future? On a collision course she doesn’t see coming, Skye throws herself into wedding planning, as Burke’s scheme grows ever more twisted. But of course, even the best laid plans can go astray. And just when you think you know where this story is going, you’ll discover that there’s more than one way to spin the truth.”
I was able to tell how the characters connected to each other but it wasn’t always easy to know whose viewpoint was real. It kept me listening and I liked the multiple narrators representing each character. This book contains the death of a child, rape, and misleading healing from OCD.
Title: The Warsaw Orphan
Author: Kelly Rimmer
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publisher: Graydon House, 6/1/21
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Loved her previous books
My Rating: 4 Stars
Kelly Rimmer is one of my go to authors for historical fiction and I was excited to read her newest. Soon after I started reading this, I realized that Emilia, who is one of the main characters in this book, is the sister of Tomasz from The Things We Cannot Say. I was excited that the two books were tied together in this way. Emilia is now called Elzbieta and is living in Warsaw with her adoptive parents. When she discovers that her neighbor Sara is helping Jewish children escape the ghetto, she feels the need to help too.
“In the spring of 1942, young Elzbieta Rabinek is aware of the swiftly growing discord just beyond the courtyard of her comfortable Warsaw home. She has no fondness for the Germans who patrol her streets and impose their curfews, but has never given much thought to what goes on behind the walls that contain her Jewish neighbors. She knows all too well about German brutality–and that it’s the reason she must conceal her true identity. But in befriending Sara, a nurse who shares her apartment floor, Elzbieta makes a discovery that propels her into a dangerous world of deception and heroism. Using Sara’s credentials to smuggle children out of the ghetto brings Elzbieta face-to-face with the reality of the war behind its walls, and to the plight of the Gorka family, who must make the impossible decision to give up their newborn daughter or watch her starve. For Roman Gorka, this final injustice stirs him to rebellion with a zeal not even his newfound love for Elzbieta can suppress. But his recklessness brings unwanted attention to Sara’s cause, unwittingly putting Elzbieta and her family in harm’s way until one violent act threatens to destroy their chance at freedom forever.”
In helping in the ghetto, Elzbieta meets Roman, whose newborn sister needs help. Roman gets involved with the uprising and faces harm and violence while trying to fight back. The book takes us through the Nazi occupation and into the Soviet regime in Poland and contains the reality that those living at the time had to face. There is violence and hurt in this book but also a look at those who did good and helped others during the Holocaust.
Title: The Love Song of Ivy K Harlowe
Author: Hannah Moskowitz
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publisher: Entangled Teen, 6/1/21
Source: Storygram Tours
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
This was a good read for Pride Month – The Love Song of Ivy K Harlowe is a new adult, queer, polyamorous, and unique love story. It follows Ivy and Dot, though it is told from Andie’s point of view.
“Ivy K. Harlowe is a lot of things.
She’s my best friend.
She’s the center of attention.
She is, without fail, the hottest girl in the room. Anytime. Anyplace.
She has freckles and dimples and bright green eyes, and with someone else’s energy she’d be adorable. But there is nothing cute about Ivy. She is ice and hot metal and electricity. She is the girl who every lesbian wants, but she has never been with the same person twice. She’s one-of-a-kind but also predictable, so I will always be Andie, her best friend, never Andie, her girlfriend. Then she meets Dot, and Ivy does something even I would have never guessed—she sees Dot another day. And another. And another. Now my world is slowly going up in smoke, and no matter what I do, the flames grow higher. She lit that match without knowing who or what it would burn.
Ivy K. Harlowe is a lot of things.
But falling in love wasn’t supposed to be one of them…unless it was with me.”
This was a unique love story in that it is told from the outside viewpoint of Andie, who is also in love with Ivy. The main love story is about Ivy and Dot. As stated in the author’s note at the beginning of the book, “
Title: Better Than The Movies
Author: Lynn Painter
Genre: YA Romance
Publisher: Simon and Schuster Audio, 5/4/21
Source: Audio Publisher
Why I Read It: Heard it was good
My Rating: 4 Stars
This was a rom com about rom coms featuring Liz, whose mom loved them, her crush Michael, and her next door neighbor Wes. Wes helps Liz try to win over Michael and this must be a common YA trope because I feel like I just read another book with a similar set up!
“Perpetual daydreamer Liz Buxbaum gave her heart to Michael a long time ago. But her cool, aloof forever crush never really saw her before he moved away. Now that he’s back in town, Liz will do whatever it takes to get on his radar—and maybe snag him as a prom date—even befriend Wes Bennet. The annoyingly attractive next-door neighbor might seem like a prime candidate for romantic comedy fantasies, but Wes has only been a pain in Liz’s butt since they were kids. Pranks involving frogs and decapitated lawn gnomes do not a potential boyfriend make. Yet, somehow, Wes and Michael are hitting it off, which means Wes is Liz’s in. But as Liz and Wes scheme to get Liz noticed by Michael so she can have her magical prom moment, she’s shocked to discover that she likes being around Wes. And as they continue to grow closer, she must reexamine everything she thought she knew about love—and rethink her own ideas of what Happily Ever After should look like.”
I enjoyed this book with all of its references to rom coms! It was sweet and made for a fun listen.
Title: The Forest of Vanishing Stars
Author: Kristin Harmel
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publisher: Gallery Books, 7/6/21
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
Another WWII book, I have heard great things about Kristin Harmel’s historical fiction. A young girl raised in the forest is taught how to survive there and she uses her skills to help save Jewish people hiding from Nazis.
“After being stolen from her wealthy German parents and raised in the unforgiving wilderness of eastern Europe, a young woman finds herself alone in 1941 after her kidnapper dies. Her solitary existence is interrupted, however, when she happens upon a group of Jews fleeing the Nazi terror. Stunned to learn what’s happening in the outside world, she vows to teach the group all she can about surviving in the forest—and in turn, they teach her some surprising lessons about opening her heart after years of isolation. But when she is betrayed and escapes into a German-occupied village, her past and present come together in a shocking collision that could change everything.”
I thought some of the things that happened in the story were unbelievable, but it seems that people actually did survive in the forest this story is based on. One thing I appreciated in the book is that it addresses not only how so many Jewish people were murdered, but how all of the future generations that would have come from those people were also destroyed. This is an important point that as a Jewish person I am always aware of.
Title: The Maidens
Author: Alex Michaelides
Genre: Thriller
Publisher: Celadon, 6/15/21
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 3 Stars
I read The Maidens in one day which is super fast for a book that left me confused overall. The twist didn’t leave me all that surprised, although I didn’t guess what it was.
“Edward Fosca is a murderer. Of this Mariana is certain. But Fosca is untouchable. A handsome and charismatic Greek tragedy professor at Cambridge University, Fosca is adored by staff and students alike―particularly by the members of a secret society of female students known as The Maidens. Mariana Andros is a brilliant but troubled group therapist who becomes fixated on The Maidens when one member, a friend of Mariana’s niece Zoe, is found murdered in Cambridge. Mariana, who was once herself a student at the university, quickly suspects that behind the idyllic beauty of the spires and turrets, and beneath the ancient traditions, lies something sinister. And she becomes convinced that, despite his alibi, Edward Fosca is guilty of the murder. But why would the professor target one of his students? And why does he keep returning to the rites of Persephone, the maiden, and her journey to the underworld? When another body is found, Mariana’s obsession with proving Fosca’s guilt spirals out of control, threatening to destroy her credibility as well as her closest relationships. But Mariana is determined to stop this killer, even if it costs her everything―including her own life.”
I think there were parts of this book that could have been better developed. I’m sad that I didn’t like it as much as I could have.
Title: Malibu Rising
Author: Taylor Jenkins Reid
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Publisher: Ballantine Books, 6/1/21
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
For some reason I don’t love Taylor Jenkins Reid as much as everyone else does. Malibu Rising was good, but not great for me. I didn’t find myself caring about the characters. The one part that I did love was that Mick Riva was one of the husbands of Evelyn Hugo from Reid’s previous book!
“Malibu: August 1983. It’s the day of Nina Riva’s annual end-of-summer party, and anticipation is at a fever pitch. Everyone wants to be around the famous Rivas: Nina, the talented surfer and supermodel; brothers Jay and Hud, one a championship surfer, the other a renowned photographer; and their adored baby sister, Kit. Together the siblings are a source of fascination in Malibu and the world over—especially as the offspring of the legendary singer Mick Riva. The only person not looking forward to the party of the year is Nina herself, who never wanted to be the center of attention, and who has also just been very publicly abandoned by her pro tennis player husband. Oh, and maybe Hud—because it is long past time for him to confess something to the brother from whom he’s been inseparable since birth. Jay, on the other hand, is counting the minutes until nightfall, when the girl he can’t stop thinking about promised she’ll be there. And Kit has a couple secrets of her own—including a guest she invited without consulting anyone. By midnight the party will be completely out of control. By morning, the Riva mansion will have gone up in flames. But before that first spark in the early hours before dawn, the alcohol will flow, the music will play, and the loves and secrets that shaped this family’s generations will all come rising to the surface.”
It seemed like the party was building up to something big happening, although it kind of fizzled instead of exploded. It was more character driven than I usually enjoy. The audio, by Julia Whelan, was good – she is a great narrator! I read and and listened to it at the same time. Parts of the book reminded me of Little Fires Everywhere and When We Were Mermaids.
Title: On Juneteenth
Author: Annette Gordon-Reed
Genre: Memoir
Publisher: Recorded Books, 5/4/21
Source: libro.fm
Why I Read It: Buddy Read
My Rating: 4 Stars
I thought On Juneteenth would be a great book from which to learn about the commemoration of Juneteenth, but the book was not only about this day. It contained one chapter called On Juneteenth and otherwise was about the history of Texas and about the author’s family history.
“Weaving together American history, dramatic family chronicle, and searing episodes of memoir, Annette Gordon-Reed’s On Juneteenth provides a historian’s view of the country’s long road to Juneteenth, recounting both its origins in Texas and the enormous hardships that African-Americans have endured in the century since, from Reconstruction through Jim Crow and beyond. All too aware of the stories of cowboys, ranchers, and oilmen that have long dominated the lore of the Lone Star State, Gordon-Reed―herself a Texas native and the descendant of enslaved people brought to Texas as early as the 1820s―forges a new and profoundly truthful narrative of her home state, with implications for us all. Combining personal anecdotes with poignant facts gleaned from the annals of American history, Gordon-Reed shows how, from the earliest presence of Black people in Texas to the day in Galveston on June 19, 1865, when Major General Gordon Granger announced the end of legalized slavery in the state, African-Americans played an integral role in the Texas story. Reworking the traditional ‘Alamo’ framework, she powerfully demonstrates, among other things, that the slave- and race-based economy not only defined the fractious era of Texas independence but precipitated the Mexican-American War and, indeed, the Civil War itself. In its concision, eloquence, and clear presentation of history, On Juneteenth vitally revises conventional renderings of Texas and national history. As our nation verges on recognizing June 19 as a national holiday, On Juneteenth is both an essential account and a stark reminder that the fight for equality is exigent and ongoing.”
This was a short but enlightening book about American history as seen in Texas.
Title: The Elephant In The Room
Author: Holly Goldberg Sloan
Genre: Middle Grade
Publisher: Listening Library, 3/2/21
Source: Random House Audio
Why I Read It: Buddy Read
My Rating: 4 Stars
This was a sweet middle grade book that covered a lot of big issues including the treatment of animals, immigration, workplace equality, and Autism.
“It’s been almost a year since Sila’s mother traveled halfway around the world to Turkey, hoping to secure the immigration paperwork that would allow her to return to her family in the United States. The long separation is almost impossible for Sila to withstand. But things change when Sila accompanies her father (who is a mechanic) outside their Oregon town to fix a truck. There, behind an enormous stone wall, she meets a grandfatherly man who only months before won the state lottery. Their new alliance leads to the rescue of a circus elephant named Veda, and then to a friendship with an unusual boy named Mateo, proving that comfort and hope come in the most unlikely of places.”
The friendships in this book were great. I thought the children were portrayed well. The book is mostly told from Sila’s viewpoint, with some other viewpoints added in, included that of the elephant. Everything wrapped up in a slightly magical way, but being that the book is middle grade, it made sense that things went well!
Title: Hairpin Bridge
Author: Taylor Adams
Genre: Thriller
Publisher: William Morrow, 6/15/21
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
With very few characters and a very small setting, I was reminded of Adams’s previous book, No Exit. This one is just as gory and violent as No Exit was too.
“Three months ago, Lena Nguyen’s estranged twin sister, Cambry, drove to a remote bridge seventy miles outside of Missoula, Montana, and jumped two hundred feet to her death. At least, that is the official police version. But Lena isn’t buying it. Now she’s come to that very bridge, driving her dead twin’s car and armed with a cassette recorder, determined to find out what really happened by interviewing the highway patrolman who allegedly discovered her sister’s body. Corporal Raymond Raycevic has agreed to meet Lena at the scene. He is sympathetic, forthright, and professional. But his story still seems a bit off. For one thing, he stopped Cambry for speeding just an hour before she supposedly leaped to her death. Then there are the sixteen attempted 911 calls from her cell phone, made in what was unfortunately a dead zone. But perhaps most troubling of all, the state trooper is referred to by name in Cambry’s final enigmatic text to her sister: Please Forgive Me. Lena will do anything to uncover the truth. But as her twin’s final hours come into focus, Lena’s search turns into a harrowing tooth-and-nail fight for her own survival—one that will test everything she thought she knew about her sister and herself…”
Lena is confronting the police officer who found her twin sister’s body when she killed herself – at least that’s what the medical report says. Lena has her own theories of what happened to Cambry and her ideas are included throughout the book. This style makes you wonder what actually happened and if you will ever find out the truth. It was a unique take on the unreliable narrator. I will say the middle got a bit slow for me and this book is full of car chases and gun fights. And a snake. If you can deal with violence you may appreciate this one.
There you have it – 10 of the books I read this month. Of these books, 6 were print and 4 were audio books. One was new adult, one was YA, one was middle grade, and the rest were adult. Genres included thriller, romance, historical, and contemporary.
Have you read any of these books or do you want to? What have you been reading lately?