I actually finished two books and one audiobook last week…I’m shocked! I’m sure it’s because my kids finally finished school for the year and because both books were only around 200 pages. And, the audiobook I finished was My Year of Running Dangerously
I went to the doctor for my back and hip pain and will be getting an MRI this week. The good news is she didn’t think it was disc related. The bad news is she thinks I might have a tear or a strain in my glute connectors/attachments, which can also cause pain in the lower back area. We’ll see what the MRI says, but in the meantime, no running or swimming. I can ride my bike and do strength training, though…silver linings!
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I finished reading…
What We Lose
There were flashes of brilliance in this debut novel, but it was overall really jumpy and I had trouble getting into it. Mini review to come.
Goodbye, Vitamin
A sweet novel about a young girl who goes home to help take care of her Dad, who is suffering from Alzheimer’s. I adored Ruth’s (the narrator and main character) voice! Mini review to come.
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I’m currently reading…
Final Girls
Y’all know I’m skittish about thrillers, but Stephen King called this one “the first great thriller of 2017.” So, I’m giving it a shot. However, he also said you’d like this if you liked Gone Girl, which caused me to immediately lose a tiny bit of respect for him. Mr. King, you are too good to stoop to a Gone Girl comparison!
I tried, but wasn’t feeling…
The Outer Cape
DNF at 16%. One of the main characters is just insufferable and I couldn’t deal any longer…even though dislikable characters don’t generally bother me.
Who Is Rich?
DNF at 5%. Meg Wolitzer (who I adore) called this novel “funny, dark, big, and bold,” but there was a massive rundown of characters right out of the gates and I got bored. However, given Wolitzer’s endorsement, I’d be willing to give this one another shot if another blogger I trust likes it.
Upcoming reading plans…
Unless one of my library holds comes in…
Tornado Weather
This debut novel about a young girl who goes missing in a small town has been compared to Everything I Never Told You, which I loved. It sounds like it could be one of those books that includes a crime, but the story is about much more than the crime, which I also love.
I was reading…
One Year Ago: I read a disappointing book by an author whose previous book I loved.
Two Years Ago: I was on vacation and not writing blog posts!
How was your reading week?
I had a interesting reading week. If you don’t mind spoiled unlikable women characters then you might enjoy reading Elin Hildebrands “Identicals”. In spite of not liking something about every last main character the story itself was interesting enough that I read the whole book and liked it in spite of myself. However, I could never see myself being friends with either one of the twin girls or their mother.
Now I am on the last quarter of the book “BearTown” which, I decided to read based on all the good reviews. I found the first half to be sort of slow but then the story started moving faster and got more interesting so I decided to continue reading.
I really enjoy reading your blog and this is the first time I have left a comment. I especially enjoy your book reviews!
I’m so glad you left a comment! And I’m thrilled Beartown picked up for you. I can see how the beginning is a bit slow, especially if you’re not really into sports.
I’m reading The Women in the Castle, which is a post WWII story. It’s so beautiful and tragic. I need a rainy afternoon by myself so I can become totally absorbed in the book. Unfortunately, that’s not going to happen, so I’m reading it in dribs and drabs.
I tried that one, but dropped it about 15% in. WWII books aren’t really my thing in general, so it takes a very special one to really get me. We Were the Lucky Ones by Georgia Hunter was the most recent special one!
I have Goodbye, Vitamin coming up soon so I’m glad to hear you liked the narrator. I had planned on reading Who is Rich but after you and several other bloggers have made it a DNF I’m not sure I even want to try it! So, I’m extremely curious to hear what you think of Final Girls…I finished it last week, I’ll hold off on sharing my thoughts until you’re done and just say I’m starting to wonder about Stephen King’s judgment on some of his blurbs he puts out there. Would love to chat more when you finish:)
Yeah – I haven’t heard the greatest things from anyone on Who is Rich. Other than Meg Wolitzer…what?! I’m wondering if I need to totally re-evaluate how much stock I put in these blurbs.
I’m about 75% done with Final Girls and things have picked up a bit, but I’m still not super high on it.
I have Goodbye, Vitamin and will try to get to it soon.
Yay!
I’ve only heard enthusiastic praise about What We Lose, so I will have to check back for a more nuanced perspective.
I hope the MRI gives you some answers this week. It’s terrible to be in pain!
So had I! Like really enthusiastic…debut of the year kind of stuff. Definitely give it a shot to see for yourself since it’s less than 200 pages. I’ll be posting my mini-review closer to pub date.
Hmmm…I didn’t get an ARC of What We lose, but was planning on reading it in July, now I’m not so sure. I don’t think Who is Rich is worth going back to. As you know, I quit at 23%. Just started Goodbye Vitamin!
I’d be interested to hear some others’ perspectives on What We Lose. There’s been so much great buzz that I’m kind of wondering what I missed.
All of your books are new to me. I’m glad you enjoyed Goodbye, Vitamin. I’ve been seen that as I’ve been reading blogs this morning. Come see my week here. Happy reading!
Tornado Weather sounds good…I haven’t heard anything about it, but I like books about missing girls…especially if the book is about more than the crime.
Too bad about The Outer Cape, which has such a lovely cover…sigh. But insufferable characters often make me want to throw things.
Enjoy your week, and thanks for sharing. Here are MY WEEKLY UPDATES
One of my favorite things is “crimes that aren’t the center of the story”…more a catalyst to explore other things.
I normally don’t mind an insufferable character, but this one was a chauvinist husband and the wife didn’t do much about it, which totally annoyed me.
I really want to read Final Girls when it comes out. Looking forward to seeing what you think of it!
I’m about 75% in and not sure what the hype is all about so far…but will try to keep an open mind until the end 🙂
I’m sorry to hear your injured. I hope it all works out for the best soon. I enjoyed Everything I Never Told You. Sometimes debut novels seem very refreshing. I hope Tornado Weather is good. I’ll keep a watch out for reviews.
I hope you get some answers for your back. It’s been a busy week with a cracked toilet, day camp, and paperwork for cross country. Come see what I’m reading
Goodbye, Vitamin is next after I finish Essex Serpent (which I started then pushed aside to marathon Confusion of Languages!). HOpe your injury is actually minor and will heal quickly.
Those two finished books are so colorful, I love the covers 🙂
Who Is Rich? was on my TBR list until today. I haven’t read any reviews where the reader even finished it. Oh well, on to the next.
Yup, me neither. What a disappointment and I’m puzzled over the Wolitzer blurb b/c I love her.
What We Lose was going to be a total cover buy/read for me. Sounds like I may want to hold myself back until a few more reviews come in.
I just finished Sine We Fell. It was a page turner! I just started Behold The Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue. So far it’s good. Interested in what your thoughts on this book.
Glad you liked Since We Fell…I did too and I haven’t liked many thrillers lately! I read Behold the Dreamers last year and liked it OK, but was hoping for a bit more out of the writing (here’s my review: https://www.sarahsbookshelves.com/two-new-york-city-novels-set-during-2008-financial-crisis-bright-precious-days-behold-the-dreamers/). Did you hear it was just selected as an Oprah’s Book Club pick?
Hope you get some answers on you back soon. I know it sucks to be in pain for so long 🙁 Praying for you. I’m listening to the audiobook Burntown, Jennifer McMahon. I’m enjoying it, but I wish I was reading the physical copy because the audio version seems slow and to drag everything out (because the author is so descriptive – and I can’t handle suspense … need to skip to what’s happening).