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Posts by Jane J
In a time not too far in the future in an America that seems all to scarily possible at times, half the population has been silenced. For fans who have binged through The Handmaid's Tale (and/or read the book) Vox can be your next dystopian read.
I've mentioned before that I'm a fan of podcasts, particularly ones about books and true crime. So Megan Goldin's newest standalone was a natural next read for me as it's a book about a true crime podcaster. Tada! Thank you Megan Goldin. But seriously, and not just because the book is about a true crime podcast, this is a great crime thriller by an author I think is one to watch.
Nigerian-Canadian immigrant Azere has known since she was a child that she would marry a Nigerian man. This is something she promised her dying father when she was twelve years old after her family had newly arrived in Canada. This promise and her mother's ongoing fear that their Nigerian culture will be lost has been a driving force in Azere's entire life. Though she is now a successful copy writer in an advertising firm and lives an independent, adult life in every other way, she continues to go on dates with the men her mother picks.
Milla Vane takes the reader deeper into the realms she has created with her second in her Gathering of Dragons fantasy/romance series and I couldn't be more thrilled. This is both a tightly written, imaginatively drawn fantasy novel and a deeply angsty romance between two extremely honorable people. And the cover isn't bad either.***
This isn't your typical mysterious death mystery. The death that starts the book off is explained in the first chapter, so now what? Turns out the now what is quite a lot and all of it good.
I knew nothing about Ruocchio's debut, first in the Sun Eater series, other than it's pretty long, it's going to take a long time to read. If I say I finished it in a couple days, you'll get an idea as to how exhilarating it was and how much I loved it.
I've been delving into Overdrive for titles that are a little older (so they don't have a long wait list) and re-discovered Amanda Kyle Williams and her Keye Street series. And a happy discovery it was! Keye is an investigator/consultant running her own office in Atlanta. She does a little bit of everything; including background checks, catching bail jumpers, and because of her former job as an FBI profiler, sometimes consulting with local police when a serial killer may be working. The most recent request comes from the small town of Whisper, Georgia.
Alyssa Cole has become an auto-read for me since I discovered her Reluctant Royals series and this start to a new, tangential series, Runaway Royals, keeps the streak going. Though How to Catch a Queen isn't my very favorite of her books (A Princess in Theory), it has two great things going for it.
My reading these past few months has gone in fits and starts as life and world events have had a major impact on just what can grab and hold my attention. And when nothing can hold my attention for longer stretches of time, I turn to writing and podcasts about books rather than to the books themselves. If you're like me, then I offer some options for your shorter reading attention needs.
Overdrive has a new Big Library Read title, The Darwin Affair by Tim Mason, and you can find a copy to borrow August 3-17th. The Darwin Affair is an historical mystery set in 1860 London with a mystery that has assassination attempts, murder, and a conspiracy centered on the publication of Charles Darwin's controversial On the Origin of the Species. Sounds like the perfect escape for these the doldrums of our summer.