Going to keep a log of books I’ve completed for 2023. I read across genres so it'll be varied.
Book #1 How Y’All Doing? By Leslie Jones
Really love his voice, both as a narrator & storyteller. I’m sorry that I came in late to the game. Just as I was beginning to appreciate him, he tragically died a couple of months ago. He didn’t shy away from the good or bad in his life as some actors do in a memoir. He let us into his life. It was funny & sad & sweet.
4.5/5 stars audiobook
#Books #Memoir
Book #2 A Very Merry Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams
No 5 in the Bromance Book Club series about a men’s book club who read romances It’s very sweet and, being a romance, has some steamy scenes. I enjoy these books. They’re a great respite from the realities of our world.
4/5 stars audiobook
Book #3 Mrs. Jeffries Takes Stock by Emily Brightwell
No 4 in the Mrs Jeffries cozy murder mystery series. Set in Victorian England, the household staff, led by Mrs. Jeffries, help Scotland Yard Inspector Witherspoon solve murder mysteries. If you’re looking for a sweet, non-violent mystery to read on a rainy day, this hits the spot.
3.5/5 stars audiobook
Book #4 The Measure by Nikki Erlick
Saw that so many people rated it very highly. Was so excited by the premise of adults over 22 receiving boxes with a string in them and for each person, the length varied. People came to realize that the length corresponded with lifelines. It's very much a commentary on today's world. Which could've been really fantastic. Unfortunately, I couldn't connect with the author's writing.
2.5/5 stars audiobook
Book #5 The Twist of a Knife by Anthony Horowitz
#4 in the Hawthorne and Horowitz murder series. I really enjoy how the author of these books has written himself into these books. This time out, Horowitz is accused of the murder of the theater critic who panned his play. He reaches out to Hawthorne to help him out of the sticky situation. Loved the interaction between the private detective and the author. Fun outing.
4/5 stars print book
Book #6 Disorientation by Elaine Hsieh Chou
A PhD candidate is struggling to finish her dissertation when she comes across something that could blow everything up. Ingrid, the daughter of Taiwanese immigrants, deals with racism towards Asian Americans as well as internalized racism on a university campus in NY. Going into the book thought it was going to be a light comedic read but it turned out to be so much more nuanced. Kept me engaged throughout.
4/5 stars audiobook
Book #7 Mrs. Jeffries on the Ball by Emily Brightwell
Continuing with the Mrs. Jeffries mystery series, this is number 5. Looks like there are 41 in this cosy mystery series and as long as they continue to be fun, I'll be reading (listening to) them this year. They are pretty straightforward mysteries. Someone gets killed and Mrs. Jeffries and the rest of Inspector Witherspoon's household staff help him (without his knowledge) solve the murder.
3.5/5 stars audiobook
Book #8 The Murder of Mr. Wickham by Claudia Gray
The author has taken Jane Austin's world and put many of the characters from her books in one place (Emma & George Knightley, Elizabeth & Darcy, the Wentworths, the Bertrams, Colonel and Marianne Brandon). Mr. Wickham is the murder victim. Elizabeth and Darcy's son and Catherine and Henry daughter investigate the murder. Fun. A second one should come out this year. Looking forward to it.
4/5 stars audiobook
Book #9 Coq au vin by Charlotte Carter
Number 2 in series of 3. There is a mystery at the center of it (finding Aunt Vivian) but it’s really more about Nan meandering through her trip to Paris. It’s a little bit romance, jazz, street musicians, murder mystery, love of Paris. Not Aunt Vic’s murder but someone connected with her. If you’re looking for a straight mystery, this isn’t it. But if you’re looking for a good book to read on a rainy day, try this.
4/5 stars printbook
Book #10 Broad Band: The Untold Story of the Women Who Made the Internet by Claire L. Evans
The story of how broad band came to be & the forgotten women who helped pioneer it. Thought the first half was very interesting. Gave lots of great facts. The 2nd half gave more of a hero worship vibe. The women chosen to be highlighted, though important, seemed more gossipy than fact. Unless I'm reading a memoir I'd rather my non-fiction stick to facts.
3/5 stars print book
Book #11 The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd
Who knew that a book about cartographers would be fun? For a bit I couldn't figure out why this was categorized as a fantasy but it soon became evident. I did have questions though because it wasn't really explained, just existed. A little more world building would've gone a long way towards this being a 5 star. Did have one quibble but I suppose the book then would've been an entirely different one.
4/5 stars print book
Book #12 The House of Broken Angels by Luis Alberto Urrea
A story about a patriarch who is dying and his last birthday party. A good drama of a Mexican immigrant family and everything they faced and continue to face. At times disjointed and messy, it was a bittersweet end of life story. But it wasn't all doom and gloom as it had some laugh out loud moments. Wasn't expecting those but I'm glad they were there.
3/5 stars print book
Book #13 A Peculiar Combination (Electra McDonnell #1) by Ashley Weaver
A fun mystery/spy book set during WWII London about a thief who gets "drafted" into service for her country. Although it touches on some heavy subjects, it does read lighter. Really enjoyed the author's writing. Having read both books in the series, I'm looking forward to the third (mixed up #1 and 2).
4/5 stars audiobook
Book #14 5 Fly Girl A Memoir by Ann Hood
A fun memoir by a former flight attendant turned author. We see how she decided that she'd like to be a flight attendant to the work that it took to become one. She discussed the changes that have taken over the years. Personally, I would've loved to hear a little more about her adventures on the plane and off of the plane. Would recommend it.
3.5/5 stars print book
Book #15 Mrs. Jeffries on the Trail by Emily Brightwell
#6 in the Mrs. Jeffries series. I'm really enjoying this cozy mystery series about a Scotland Yard Inspector's household staff who investigate his murder cases behind his back and help him without his knowledge. This one is about a young flower seller who gets murdered. Who wanted her dead? And why? The narrator, Lindy Nettleton is quite good.
3.5/5 stars audiobook
Book #16 Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries (Emily Wilde, #1) by Heather Fawcett
Emily Wilde's mission in life is to gather information of all the fairy folk and put them in an encyclopedia. At first, I thought this was going to be a romance, and it is, kind of but it's more of a fantasy involving the fey. A bit uneven throughout and there's a definite change in the second half. Looks like the author is working on book 2.
3.5/5 stars audiobook
Book #17 Bad Cree by Jessica Johns
I am not a fan of horror since I'm the biggest scaredy cat out there but wow! At the heart, this is a book about grief and dealing with it. It's also about supernatural beings and prophetic dreams. Spent most of the book dreading what would happen next. Kept me in suspense. I really don't want to say more than this other than, you should read it.
5/5 stars print book
Book #18 Here Goes Nothing by Steven Toltz
Huh. Remember really liking his previous book, A Fraction of the Whole, but this was not my cup of tea. A man is murdered and in purgatory. We follow him as he tries to figure out how to survive there. Meanwhile, his widow is busy living her own bizarre existence. I don't know. It was ok, I didn't hate it. That's all I have.
2/5 stars print book
Book #19 Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn
I've read previous books by Deanna Raybourn and I liked them but this one is the best. Four women assassins, who are about to retire, have a hit out on them. Why? What did they do? Can they find out before they're killed? There's humor and backstory and relationships explored and killing. So much killing. Now this is a group of women I wouldn't mind reading more books about.
4.5/5 stars audiobook
Book #20 The Guncle by Steven Rowley
I want to use sweet to describe this book but it feels like the wrong word because it is about grief. A man takes his young niece and nephew for the summer after the death of their mother so their father, his brother, can go into rehab. It's a good story of learning how to cope in the face of death, how to move forward.
4/5 stars print book
Book #21 A House at the Bottom of the Lake by Josh Malerman
The premise is so good, a young couple discover an intact house in the lake they're exploring while on their first date. Unfortunately, it devolves into a weird story because it can't decide whether it's a teen love story or a horror story. Further, it does neither one well. I didn't hate it but I was left confused. Maybe because it's a novella, the author wasn't able to fully realize his story?
2/5 stars print book
Book #22 Mrs Jeffries Plays the Cook by Emily Brightwell
Another fun installment (#7) of the Mrs Jeffries cozy series. As in the ones before this, Mrs Jeffries and the rest of Inspector Witherspoon's household staff investigate a murder, this time of a universally despised gentleman.
3.5/5 stars audiobook
Book #23 Renascence and Other Poems by Edna St. Vincent Millay
A very slim book of poems by Edna St. Vincent Millay, an American poet of the early 20th century. I liked them but I think I need to find another collection to see if all she writes about is death. Good grief. It was a lot.
3/5 stars print book
Book #24 The Marlow Murder Club by Robert Thorogood
A cozy mystery set in England with older women sleuthing/helping the police find the murderer of an art dealer. Thank you friend for recommending it! Though not exactly similar in set up to the Thursday Murder Club series, it has a similar vibe. Looks like this is the first in the series and, I, for one, can't wait to get my hands on the second one.
4/5 stars audiobook
Book #25 One-Shot Harry by Gary Phillips
Set in 1963 LA, a Black Korean War veteran who's a photographer, starts to investigate the murder of his army buddy who had just relocated to LA. This a hard boiled mystery, a subset of the mystery genre I don't usually read. There's so much here, racial injustice, shellshocked/ptsd, crime and trying to find out why his buddy had been murdered. Hope it's the start of a series bc I'd like to see more of Harry
4/5 stars audiobook
Book #26 The Christie Affair by Nina de Gramont
How I wanted to throw this across the room! The whole book is a fictionalized account of Agatha Christie's missing days from the point of view of her husband's mistress. Call me judgmental but I don't like books with affairs being justified. A trope that doesn't work for me. I kept hoping it would get better. It didn't.
1/5 stars audiobook
Lillias