Long Time, No See...

It's been a long time since I've posted anything on my blog, so it's time to get back in the swing of things with a list of the books I've read since the end of September. The main reason I'm going back to late September is because I want to make sure I get a chance to mention THE BANDIT QUEENS by Parini Shroff (hat's off to Cecilia Lyra for reminding me how important it is to say the author's name when referencing their great work). I haven't gone back through my entire 2023 reading log yet, but if THE BANDIT QUEENS isn't the best book I've read all year, it's certainly on the short list.

My pace of reading has slowed down considerably since summer ended - my kids have a shorter commute to school, I haven't been traveling as much, and during late summer and early fall I tend to listen to football podcasts as much as I listen to audiobooks. November was a big catch-up month for me.

Anyway, here's the last nine books I've read:

THE BANDIT QUEENS by Parini Shroff - this novel's dark humor is absolutely off-the-charts hilarious, while also dealing with some pretty serious topics. Can't recommend highly enough.

PRINCIPLES OF (E)MOTION by Sara Read (via NetGalley, release date January 2024) - romance with a STEM female lead; the first and only book I've written a Goodreads review for so far. You'll definitely want to read this book when it comes out, if not before.

VAMPIRES OF EL NORTE by Isabel Canas - I loved how this book inserted a great dual-POV romance arc in the middle of a book theoretically about bloodthirsty vampires. Reading this book actually gave me inspiration to adjust the backstory of the primary characters in one of my own manuscripts.

THE HOUSE OF BROKEN ANGELS by Luis Alberto Urrea - this more literary novel paints a rich portrait of a Mexican-American family, focusing on the patriarch. The plot really kicks into gear at the end.

EVERYONE HERE IS LYING by Sheri Lapena - a page-turning (I listened to it on audiobook but you get the point) domestic thriller that lives up to its name, focusing on every parent's nightmare - a missing child.

ASSISTANT TO THE VILLAIN by Hannah Nicole Maehrer - this was my most polarizing read of the year. Like VAMPIRES OF EL NORTE did with horror, this book takes a typical slow burn office romcom and slaps it inside a fantasy world in a clever and humorous way. I loved this book until I got to the end, then was extremely frustrated by the cliffhanger ending. This romance arc is such a slow burn that it's going to bleed to (at least) a second book.

THE 7/12 DEATHS OF EVELYN HARDCASTLE by Stuart Turton - a murder mystery with a speculative twist.

THE GOOD PART by Sophie Cousins - a lightly speculative novel borrowing elements of movies like Big and 13 Going on 30 as a broke 26-year-old woman who's been unlucky in love makes a wish to skip to "the good part" of her life. She wakes up the next morning inside her 42-year-old body with a husband and two kids and the job of her dreams - she doesn't remember anything about them.

TALK FLIRTY TO ME by Livy Hart - a book about estranged high school sweethearts who reunite in their small town to record a steamy audiobook together.

IN PROGRESS:

UNBOUND by Christy Healy (on NetGalley) - I don't have as much time to read e-books as I do to listen to audiobooks, but I'm hopeful to finish this gender-swapped Beauty and the Beast Irish folklore novel before the end of the year.

THE LAST DEVIL TO DIE by Richard Osman - the latest installment in the always fun Thursday Murder Club Series

I DIDN'T SIGN UP FOR THIS by Dr. Tracy Dalgleish - Julie ordered this for us to co-review on our nascent joint Bookstagram account, but I'm assuming there's a hidden message in here somewhere and I'm going to find it.

Here's hoping for more frequent updates in 2024!