First third reviews: nonfiction

Hi gals and pals, I hope all is well! Last year, I wrote mini reviews for all the books I read to push myself to review all the books I read. I then posted those reviews every four months in a bit of a wrap-up. So that's what we're doing today! The first couple months …

Book review: The Mars Room

The Mars Room by Rachel Kushner From Goodreads It’s 2003 and Romy Hall is at the start of two consecutive life sentences at Stanville Women’s Correctional Facility, deep in California’s Central Valley. Outside is the world from which she has been severed: the San Francisco of her youth and her young son, Jackson. Inside is …

Mini review: Red River Girl

Red River Girl: the Life and Death of Tina Fontain by Joanna Jolly From Goodreads On August 17, 2014, the body of fifteen-year old runaway Tina Fontaine was found in Winnipeg's Red River. It was wrapped in material and weighted down with rocks. Red River Girl is a gripping account of that murder investigation and the unusual …

I actually enjoyed thrillers for once: two reviews

Hello, fellow book lovers! Today I'm reviewing two mystery/thriller books: The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware and The One by John Marrs. Mystery/thriller is a genre I've struggled with in the past. I always find the plots super intriguing, but I find the execution usually lacking. I'm never scared or nervous, and the …

Mini review: The Poppy War

The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang Paraphrased from Goodreads When Rin aced the Keju, the Empire-wide test to find the most talented youth to learn at the Academies, it was a shock to everyone. That she got into Sinegard, the most elite military school in Nikan, was even more surprising. But surprises aren’t always …

Book review: Stay Gold

Stay Gold by Tobly McSmith From Goodreads Pony just wants to fly under the radar during senior year. Tired from all the attention he got at his old school after coming out as transgender, he’s looking for a fresh start at Hillcrest High. But it’s hard to live your best life when the threat of …

Last third reviews

Hello, friends and foe! I hope you had a great and SAFE New Year's Eve! This year, I decided to write mini reviews of all the books I read throughout the year, and this is my last collection of those reviews! For the rest of the month, I'll basically be talking about all the books …

Mini review: I Killed Zoe Spanos

I Killed Zoe Spanos by Kit Frick From Goodreads What happened to Zoe won't stay buried... When Anna Cicconi arrives to the small Hamptons village of Herron Mills for a summer nanny gig, she has high hopes for a fresh start. What she finds instead is a community on edge after the disappearance of Zoe …

Duology review: Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom

Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo Six of Crows synopsis from Goodreads Ketterdam: a bustling hub of international trade where anything can be had for the right price—and no one knows that better than criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker. Kaz is offered a chance at a deadly heist that could make him rich …

Mini review: She Would Be King

She Would Be King by Wayetu Moore From Goodreads Wayétu Moore’s powerful debut novel, She Would Be King, reimagines the dramatic story of Liberia’s early years through three unforgettable characters who share an uncommon bond. Gbessa, exiled from the West African village of Lai, is starved, bitten by a viper, and left for dead, but still …

Book review: The Water Dancer

The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates From Goodreads Young Hiram Walker was born into bondage. When his mother was sold away, Hiram was robbed of all memory of her — but was gifted with a mysterious power. Years later, when Hiram almost drowns in a river, that same power saves his life. This brush with …

Mini review: Say Nothing by Patrick Radden Keefe

Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland by Patrick Radden Keefe From Goodreads In December 1972, Jean McConville, a thirty-eight-year-old mother of ten, was dragged from her Belfast home by masked intruders, her children clinging to her legs. They never saw her again. Her abduction was one of the most …