Month: July 2024

The Jane Austen Society by Natalie Jenner

Read by Richard Armitage. This was a nice novel. I liked all the eight main characters. The writing was fine and the historical aspect felt accurate. I am a Jane Austen fan too so the premise and Austen discussions worked for me. There were times when I thought I could really like this book more, but there was something that held me back. As a character reader, I think I wanted more from the characters. Jenner did a good job with eight leads though. A lot of people I know liked this more than me so I recommend if you enjoy a light historical fiction novel.

1.25-1.5x. July 1-8, 2024.

This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone

There was some interesting writing in this sci-fi short novel. One of the authors is local and there were a couple of references to my hometown. I like a short book and confident world building when done right. I could did not connect to some aspects of the story. I liked Red and Blue from what we saw of them but the war and the amorphous sci-fi setting felt garbled and cold. It was like recalling a very blurry dream. I couldn’t be fully invested. Not bad though and I appreciated the language and the character work.

July 8-15, 2024 over two sittings.

The Nineties by Chuck Kosterman

Read by the author Chuck Klosterman and Dion Graham. This was fun. Klosterman did research but does not claim it is a history book. It is more essays about various topics from 1990s including pop culture, politics, and technology. It’s similar to John Green’s The Anthropocene Reviewed. It was enjoyable to reflect on the decade that I grew up in. I like thinking about recent history even though the 90s were 30 years ago now! Recommended for those looking to revisit that time.

1.25x. July 10-18, 2024.

The Husbands by Holly Gramazio

There has been some hype for this book particularly in the Reading Glasses Slack. The book was perfect timing as I had been contemplating similar themes. The book was also set in June as well. One of my wheelhouses seems to be novels where protagonists tries other or parallel versions of their lives. It lived up to the hype for me. It was darkly funny. I liked Lauren. I found her relatable and all the things she did to try and live with her situation were probably what I would have done. I was emotionally invested with her for that one good romance. I liked the judicious use of her family and friends in the plot. I found the ending satisfying albeit bittersweet. This novel was quite long but it did not drag and I finished it in a couple sittings. The GoodReads rating is surprisingly low given the hype. I can see why it would be too long, overwrought, or strange for others but I had such a good time. It also made me reflect about the choices we make. I genuinely laughed out loud a couple times which is rare. It reminded me how much I hated dating. Fun book. May grab a copy.

Read June 22-23, 2024 on Kobo Libra 2.

The Balcony by Melissa Castrillón

Lovely children’s picture book about a girl who moves from the country to the city and starts gardening on her balcony. As another balcony gardener, I liked the art work.

Read June 25, 2024.

North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell

Narrated by Juliet Stevenson. Audiobook for about 30%. As always, Stevenson was terrific as a narrator. I still prefer to read print. For many years, I actually thought I had read this book because of the splendid BBC adaptation starring Richard Armitage and Daniel Denby-Ashe. I’ve enjoyed Gaskell before with Cranford and the romance here hooked me. I am very picky about romances. I do not really like most contemporary romance novels, but I seem to appreciate them more in classics and genre fiction. Gaskell was able to write from both lead characters with depth on their opposition and attraction to each other. I think John Thornton is one of the best Victorian romantic male leads. There was a lot of angst and longing and a satisfying ending. I rewatched the mini series, admired the acting, music, and direction once again. The book and the TV series are different. The book does do some things better than the TV script but the production of the series really elevated it. I then read some fanfic as I did not want the story of John and Margaret to be over. Will definitely keep my battered Wordsworth paperback edition and be on the lookout for a hardback in the future.

1.25x. Read June 23-29, 2024.

Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt

Read by Marin Ireland and Michael Urie. Listened to almost 2/3 on audiobook and finished the rest on library hardcover. Marcellus and Tova were lovely. Less interested in Cameron. Called the twist really early on. As much as I adored the narrator for Marcellus and the overall narration was fine, I wish I had time this week to read more from the text. Lovely novel.

1.2-1.6x. June 11-14, 2024.

Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montimore

Narrated by Brittany Pressley. Audiobook for the first 35%. Narrator was not for me so I preferred to read this one on print. One of my selective book friends really liked this novel. It was fun. Oona was a bit of a mess at the start. As a fantasy reader growing up, I had wondered about this scenario happening to me before so I was already judging her a little. It would have been very scary though and Oona was grieving. By the end, I almost didn’t want this book to end. I grew to like the characters and wanted to see what else Oona did with her family. Good read.

1.5x. June 14-15, 2024.

The No-Show by Beth O’Leary

Narrated by Evanna Lynch, Heather Long, Kathryn Drysdale, and Luke Thompson. 20% on audiobook. I have mixed feelings about this one. At least I didn’t dislike it as I did the last one The Road Trip. As usual, O’Leary is good at giving her characters depth and not the typical romance. This novel had four leads. I did care about most of them. That is not easy for an author to balance. I saw one of the twists early on. My main issue with the novel is that it was really sad. The male lead’s trauma made him a basket case for most of the novel and it was not fun to read. As with The Road Show, the character development felt a little rushed at the end given the gravity of the situation. This finished the last Beth O’Leary book that I have on my physical shelves. I will hold off on reading her for awhile because even though I liked aspects of this novel and the Switch, I didn’t find them overall as good as The Flatshare.

1.25x. Read June 15-16, 2024.