I was really looking forward to Other People’s Houses. I ended up getting an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher but I had pre-ordered it because my local libraries don’t always carry her books. I really enjoyed the first (and second!) book in this series (and her other books) but this one was a little … Continue reading
Mad Mabel was a delight! I was hopeful because I loved the cover and I’ve enjoyed other books by Sally Hepworth. I was not disappointed. The side characters from her aunt and her neighbors were a lot of fun. They all felt fully fleshed out and just odd enough to be interesting but not too … Continue reading
If it wasn’t for some dark themes I would have thought this book was written for children. The writing is very simplistic. Everyone’s thought process is very black and white. The bad men are very bad. The influencers are all liars. The prairie is vast. It is an odd choice to write about influencers when … Continue reading
This may be my favorite book of 2025 so far! I loved the New Zealand setting. I felt like I was eating sausages right along with them. It did a great job of having a child narrator without it feeling childish or too all knowing. It really hit all the parts of childhood—family dynamics and … Continue reading
I enjoyed We Don’t Talk about Carol but at times it was a bit convoluted and sprawling. I’m not sure if the pregnancy storyline was needed or fit. It took away momentum from her family of origin story, the story of these missing Black girls and the investigation. I liked the main character and she … Continue reading
Laura Lippman’s fixation with weight is in full effect in Murder Takes a Vacation. It was brought up so many times. It was a major feature of her Tess Monaghan books as well but it seems to have escalated. Who talks about their weight that much to strangers? And friends? She had virtually no other … Continue reading
I really enjoyed the first book in this unexpected series. I always like when the characters aren’t just doctors, lawyers and soccer moms but people cobbling life together a little more. I also like the aspect of having friends that maybe you wouldn’t chose if you met them today sticking around. I felt like Brooklyn … Continue reading
I listened to all of the Ann Cleeves Vera, Shetland and Two Rivers novels and then moved to the Karen Pirie series by Val McDermid. Some themes, like fatphobia re: the main character are similar and for both Vera and the first book barely mentioned the detective until most of the book was over and … Continue reading
The mystery in You Should Have Told Me was pretty solid but I wanted to say that I enjoy reading a book where the people aren’t just upper middle class or wealthy moms, lawyers, writers, doctors etc. Janie is a reluctant unemployed mother and her partner is a guitar teacher with a low paying indie … Continue reading
I had requested this from NetGalley but wasn’t selected so I am happy the library ordered it. The Night of the Storm was a mixed bag. The setting— a hurricane headed for and then hunkering down in Houston, Texas—was fun and different. I liked the time spent on family and cultural dynamics. However, there were … Continue reading
Rachel Reads Books 