Where Is Your Bookmark: My Bookish Mewsings on Murder Road by Simone St. James (& Other Friday Fun)

Along with this mini review, I am linking to both Book Beginnings, a meme in which readers share the first sentence of a book they are reading, hosted by Gillion Dumas of Rose City Reader and Friday 56 hosted by Anne of My Head is Full of Books, in which readers share a random sentence or two from page 56 or 56% of the book they are reading. 

That July night seemed full of possibility, with the empty highway stretching out before us. [opening of Murder Road]

               ★                    

I stared blindly at the printout of account activity. A week ago, there had been several thousand dollars in the account. Then, a withdrawal of all of it. And now there was nothing. [excerpt from 56% of Murder Road] 

Murder Road by Simone St. James

A young couple find themselves haunted by a string of gruesome murders committed along an old deserted road in this terrifying new novel.

July 1995. April and Eddie have taken a wrong turn. They’re looking for the small resort town where they plan to spend their honeymoon. When they spot what appears to a lone hitchhiker along the deserted road, they stop to help. But not long after the hitchiker gets into their car, they see the blood seeping from her jacket and a truck barreling down Atticus Line after them.

When the hitchhiker dies at the local hospital, April and Eddie find themselves in the crosshairs of the Coldlake Falls police. Unexplained murders have been happening along Atticus Line for years and the cops finally have two witnesses who easily become their only suspects. As April and Eddie start to dig into the history of the town and that horrible stretch of road to clear their names, they soon learn that there is something supernatural at work, something that could not only tear the town and its dark secrets apart, but take April and Eddie down with it all. [Goodreads Summary]

 My thoughts: If it hadn't been for work, I likely would have finished Murder Road in one sitting. Instead it took two. From the very first page, I was glued to the pages. April and Eddie, both with their troubled pasts and very much deserving of some happiness in their lives (but nothing can ever be easy, can it?), won me over instantly. They each suffered childhood trauma along with other hardships, including Eddie's time in Iraq. April is the perfect narrator for this supernatural thriller. She is clever, resourceful and edgy. Trust has never come easy to her, and given her history, it's no wonder why. She never expected to fall in love, much less marry anyone. And yet, she and Eddie share a bond that cannot be easily swayed. I loved how they supported each other throughout the novel, even when faced with the worst.

Simone St. James has a way of portraying a real sense of place in her novels, and it was no different in Murder Road. I felt like I was right there in that small town in Michigan. I experienced the heat and occasional stormy weather right alongside the characters.

Murder Road was creepy and disturbing, and nearly always intense. I was just as suspicious of everyone in town as Eddie and April were, and I enjoyed seeing the pieces of  the puzzle fall into place the more the newlyweds learned. I found the mystery and backstories of the murders and different characters well developed and interesting. The couple get help from a few unlikely sources--and those characters became favorites too. 

Murder Road is my third Simone St. James novel and I have enjoyed every one. I am so glad I have more of her work to look forward to. 

Does this sound like something you would enjoy? If you have read it, what did you think?

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post where bloggers discuss a wide range of topics from books and blogging to life in general. It is hosted by Linda Book Girl of Mur-y-Castell and Jen from That’s What I’m Talking About. Join in by answering this week's question in the comments or on your own blog.

Have your reading interests changed over time?

Yes! My reading interests have expanded over the years. I have always had eclectic reading tastes, but  entering the book blogging community all those years ago opened my life to many more books and authors I might not have heard of or tried otherwise. On a smaller scale, my reading interests do tend to ebb and flow, depending on my mood and what is going on in my life. I go through reading phases, sometimes ones that have a quick turnover and others that last longer. Mystery and Fantasy have long competed for the top place in my reading heart (although I very much enjoy reading other genres as well) and that hasn't changed. But I do tend to rotate through the subgenres, on which one or several appeals to me most at varying times. Although I read it again now, I went years without reading romance after burning out on the genre. A more recent example would be my gravitating more towards lighter books with humor and happy endings the last few years--thanks to the pandemic and other life events. I have only recently been finding myself enjoying darker and more serious books again.

What about you? Have your reading interests changed over the years?

Every Friday Coffee Addicted Writer from Coffee Addicted Writer poses a question which participants respond on their own blogs within the week (Friday through Thursday). They then share their links at the main site and visit other participants blogs.

What's your go-to book to start the summer, and why does it set the tone for the season? (submitted by Billy @ Coffee Addicted Writer)

I wish I could tell you I enjoy starting the summer with books featuring beach settings or snowy climates (anything to avoid the reality of summer heatwaves), but that isn't the case. And it isn't to say these types of books don't make great summer reads because they most certainly do! I have heard summer is a good time to dive into that big book or a classic, which I sometimes do, but not really because it is summer time. I am not much of a re-reader and so do not have a go-to book to kickstart the summer season (although my husband did point out that I have read the latest Electra McDonnell mystery by Ashley Weaver at this time of year for the past four years--I would argue that I have read it in the spring, not summer, so it doesn't count). My reading choices are more random than planned when it comes to the start of summer generally. I haven't decided yet which book will be my first for this summer (I can't believe it officially starts next week!). I could be one of the books I am currently reading or another book entirely. Whatever it is, I hope it will be a good one!

Do you have a go to book to kick off the summer season? 

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend! Be sure and tell me what you are reading!

---

© 2024 Musings of a Bookish Kitty. All Rights Reserved. If you're reading this on a site other than Musings of a Bookish Kitty or Wendy's feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

Weekly Mews: My Bookish Mewsings on The Kaiju Preservation Society, The Roanoke Girls, & A Good Cry

I am linking up to the Sunday Post hosted by Kim of Caffeinated Book Reviewer and The Sunday Salon (TSS) hosted by Deb Nance of Readerbuzz  where participants recap our week, talk about what we are reading, share any new books that have come our way, and whatever else we want to talk about. I am also linking It's Monday! What Are you Reading? hosted by Kathryn of Book Date where readers talk about what they have been, are and will be reading.

 

It was quite windy and chilly out today, blue skies with a few white clouds here and there. The snow capped mountains on the horizon are quite picturesque. We got a lot of rain earlier in the week. It was nonstop there for awhile. We attended an award ceremony for Mouse at her school Thursday evening and made sure she could hear us cheering for her when her name was called. There was quite a crowd, but we had good seats. Mouse has the beginnings of a cold this weekend, unfortunately. The rest of us are hoping our scratchy throats are just sympathy symptoms. 

This past week I finished reading The Kaiju Preservation Society, The Roanoke Girls by Amy Engel and A Good Cry: What We Learn from Tears and Laughter by Nikki Giovanni. My thoughts on all three are farther down in this post. 

I currently am reading an essay collection called Why We Read: On Bookworms, Libraries, and Just One More Page Before Lights Out by Shannon Reed. I am finding it easily relatable and at times funny. It's got me reflecting on my own reasons why I read. 

 

One of my bookish goals this year is to read three books recommended by my daughter. Her first pick for me is the graphic novel, Misfit Mansion by Kay Davault, a story about misfit monsters, found family, and a dark secret . . . I have just begun reading it, but I am already loving it.

Thank you to everyone who voted in my February TBR List poll! This was a close one at times, but in the end a clear winner came out on top. Slay by Brittney Morris got three (3) votes, followed by Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson with six (6) votes. The winner of this month's poll is Women of the Post by Joshunda Sanders which won with eight (8) votes! I am looking forward to beginning Women of the Post soon. 

My TBR List was the idea of Michelle at Because Reading, and while Michelle has not been hosting this monthly event for some time now, it's one of my favorite traditions that I cannot bring myself to give up. It's just too much fun! The 1st Saturday of every month, I will list 3 books from my TBR pile I am considering reading and let you vote for my next read during that month. My review will follow (unfortunately, not likely in the same month, but eventually--that's all I can promise). 

"Jamie Gray!" ~ opening of The Kaiju Preservation Society

The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi
Tor Books, 2022
Science Fiction; 264 pgs
Source: From my own TBR

In the author's note at the end of the book, John Scalzi explains that he wrote The Kaiju Preservation Society as an escape from the horror that was 2020. He likened it to a pop song, something that entertains and comforts us.

Jamie Gray loses his job right as the pandemic begins to sweep through New York City. Forced to take a job as a food delivery person, he is doing what he can to get by. A fortuitous encounter with a former acquaintance, Tom Stevens, leads to a job opportunity Jamie cannot pass up. All Jamie knows is that Tom works for an animal rights organization that everyone is very tight-lipped about. It isn't until Jamie arrives in Greenland that he discovers why. The Kaiju Preservation Society (KPS) is a top secret organization, located on an alternate Earth. While there are similarities to our Earth, there are many differences, including the existence of giant creatures who are both valued and feared. It is the mission of KPS to study these creatures and to keep them from breaking through the barrier between the dimensions. It would be quite disastrous if that happened.

This was such a fun book to read. There are a lot of pop culture references to movies and fantasy novels. The author's wit comes through on just about every page. There were characters I could root for, bad guys to root against, suspense that had me sitting up in my chair, and a setting that took me out of my own world for a little while. The kaiju are fascinating creatures with their very own ecosystems. There was a moment or two when the scientific explanations were a bit much for me, but I found it all interesting.  I think the author accomplished what he wanted and then some with The Kaiju Preservation Society. I thoroughly enjoyed it and look forward to reading more by John Scalzi. 

*

The first time I saw Roanoke was in a dream. ~ opening of The Roanoke Girls

The Roanoke Girls by Amy Engel, narrated by Brittany Pressley
Random House Audio, 2017
Mystery/Suspense/Thriller; 288 pgs (10h 41 min)
Source: From my own TBR

This was my first novel narrated by Brittany Pressley and I think she did a great job. Her tone and reading style fit Lane's character so well. 

Lane Roanoke returns to Osage Flats, Kansas after eleven years after learning her cousin, Allegra, is missing. She had sworn she would never go back after that one terrible summer she had lived there but she feels she owes it to Allegra. 

Author Amy Engel takes the reader back and forth between the present and the past as Lane searches for her cousin and remembers that long ago summer in Kansas. She was fifteen when her mother died and she was sent to live with the very people her mother had cut off all contact with. Lane's cousin, Allegra, abandoned my her own mother, introduces Lane to small town life and the advantages to having money. Lane's return after all these years means facing a past she longs to forget, including an ex-boyfriend who never quite got over her. 

Early on we find out the darkest secret of the Roanoke family. When a teen-aged Lane comes to live at the Roanoke estate, she is immediately drawn to her grandfather, whose kindness and attention she craves. Her own childhood was a difficult one, having been raised by a mother who seemed to hate her. As the past comes to light, the reader can better understand why Lane's mother behaved the way she did--the trauma she endured, why she ran, and how that impacted the way she parented her daughter. The impact extended to Lane's own relationships, past and present. Her lack of trust. Her self-hate. Her inability to form attachments. No one in this novel is without their own trauma and wounds. The history of abuse and the way the family normalized it over the years is extremely disturbing. 

I liked that the author included snippets from past Roanoke girls of previous generations, all of whom had disappeared or died young. It gives the reader a more fuller picture of just how dysfunctional this family was and how deeply the manipulation and trauma went. In some ways, this novel felt like a character study in how familial sexual abuse can affect one generation after another. There was no romanticizing of the abuse in this novel. I focus a lot here on the family's dark secret, and the novel does too. But there's still the mystery of what happened to Allegra, and whether she's alive or dead.

Did I like this book? I have mixed feelings about it, but I know that has more to do with the subject matter than it does with the execution. I generally avoid books (with a few exceptions) that delve into incest or child sexual abuse and probably would not have picked this one up had I known what it was about. Still, it says something that I kept listening. I was invested enough in the characters and their fates to continue to the end. 

A Good Cry: What We Learn from Tears and Laughter by Nikki Giovanni

William Morrow; 2017

Nonfiction/Memoir/Poetry; 128 pgs

Source: From my own TBR  

I started to read this poetry collection a year or so ago, set it aside, and it got lost under other books. I discovered it again recently and decided the time was right. 

Nikki Giovanni is an award winning poet, one I had not had a chance to read before. I enjoyed reading her poetry for its simplicity and depth. She writes about every day tasks from childhood and present, growing up in a home with domestic violence, her love for her grandparents, about the Civil Rights Era, and Denmark Vesey and the outlawing of the drum, just for starters. She pays tribute to people who have touched her life, including Maya Angelou, one of my favorite poets and her dear friend. Just as the subtitle says, I found myself laughing and tearing up. 

I often struggle over what parts of poems to share. Sometimes there are favorite verses that pop of the page. With this collection it was entire poems that captured my heart. I cannot share them in their entirety, but here are some excerpts from a few of my favorites. 

Among my favorite poems in this collection is "Summer Storms":

There are those who say 

We should run

inside from the storm

But that would be 

like leaving Grandmother

at the kitchen table

alone and sad 

A tribute poem to Maya Angelou called "At Times Like These" also moved me. It begins:

At times like these

We measure our words

Because we are

Measuring a life

My heart ached for a young Nikki in her poem called "Surveillance" as she witnessed her father beat her mother:

I am a camera

I am the silent film

It was recorded because

I surveilled

Another favorite of mine is "We Marched", in celebration of the 100th Anniversary of the founding of the Sisterhood of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority:

    The Suffragettes did not want us

Offering only the back of the March

Our other did not understand us so we went

Our separate ways

    But The Time Had Come

Black Women would no longer Wait

    We Marched

I often dogear pages in my poetry books when I come across a poem I especially like, and A Good Cry has quite a few. I enjoyed this collection of poetry and am so glad I finally pulled it off my shelf to read. 

I hope you have a great week! Let me know what you have been reading!

---

© 2024, Musings of a Bookish Kitty. All Rights Reserved. If you're reading this on a site other than Musings of a Bookish Kitty or Wendy's feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

Weekly Mews: My January Wrap Up & My Bookish Mewsings on The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years (Vote in my TBR Poll!)

I am linking up to the Sunday Post hosted by Kim of Caffeinated Book Reviewer and The Sunday Salon (TSS) hosted by Deb Nance of Readerbuzz  where participants recap our week, talk about what we are reading, share any new books that have come our way, and whatever else we want to talk about. I am also linking It's Monday! What Are you Reading? hosted by Kathryn of Book Date where readers talk about what they have been, are and will be reading.

I have the fire going in our gas fireplace, the heat turned up. I always seem to be cold these days and keep a blanket close. The area is expecting a big storm again this coming week, starting tomorrow night--oh, but wait! I hear rain outside as I sit and type this. I love falling asleep to the sound of rain and hope it keeps up for awhile. 

It was a relatively average week. Work kept me busy as did getting Mouse to her extra curricular activities. We were able to deliver a couple of Girl Scout cookie orders to local folk as well. We stopped at Barnes and Noble today while out running errands. I came away empty handed, although admittedly, I was not looking to buy anything. I forgot to get a photo of Mouse's finds to share. She used up the last of her Christmas gift cards. 

January turned out to be an exceptional reading month for me. I try to average a book and a half a week, but I was able to read nine books all told. I read a combination of e-books, print books, and audiobooks. There was a good mix of mystery/thriller, fantasy and historical fiction. 

Books Read in January

• On The Bandit Queens by Parini Shroff
• The Storm We Made by Vanessa Chan
• Ceremony in Death by J.D. Robb
• Hammers and Homicide by Paula Charles
• The Masterful Cat is Depressed Again, Today Vol. 2 by Hitsuji Yamada
• The Masterful Cat is Depressed Again, Today Vol. 3 by Hitsuji Yamada
• The Witch With No Name (Hollows #13) by Kim Harrison
• The Japanese Lover by Isbabel Allende
• Legends & Lattes (#1) by Travis Baldree

Of my January reads, Legends & Lattes was my favorite. My least favorite, although by no means disliked, was Ceremony in Death. 

What was your favorite book read in January? Did you have a good reading month?

My daughter was disappointed John Scalzi's Kaiju Preservation Society did not win last month's TBR List Poll because she wanted to know more about the giant pandas from an alternate dimension, and so I promised her I wouldn't put off reading it. I started reading it last night. I also started an audiobook, The Roanoke Girls by Amy Engel, narrated by Brittany Pressley yesterday on my drive to and from work. I am only about 40 minutes into it, but I like the narrator's reading of it. This mystery/thriller was among my small collection of audiobooks sitting on my phone for the past few years, waiting patiently for me to get to it. 

What are you reading right now?

My TBR List was the idea of Michelle at Because Reading, and while Michelle has not been hosting this monthly event for some time now, it's one of my favorite traditions that I cannot bring myself to give up. It's just too much fun! The 1st Saturday of every month, I will list 3 books from my TBR pile I am considering reading and let you vote for my next read during that month. My review will follow (unfortunately, not likely in the same month, but eventually--that's all I can promise). 

I could use your help deciding which book to read next! I struggled with whether to select all historical novels this month, but in the end chose three very different books for you to choose from. Which of these do you think I should read next? Have you read any of them? If so, what did you think? 

Slay by Brittney Morris ~ I heard a lot of good things about Slay when it first came out but haven't managed to get to it yet. I loved both Ready Player One and The Hate U Give so am anxious to read this one. 

Ready Player One meets The Hate U Give in this dynamite debut novel that follows a fierce teen game developer as she battles a real-life troll intent on ruining the Black Panther–inspired video game she created and the safe community it represents for black gamers

By day, seventeen-year-old Kiera Johnson is an honors student, a math tutor, and one of the only black kids at Jefferson Academy. But at home, she joins hundreds of thousands of black gamers who duel worldwide as Nubian personas in the secret multiplayer online role-playing card game, SLAY. No one knows Kiera is the game developer, not her friends, her family, not even her boyfriend, Malcolm, who believes video games are partially responsible for the “downfall of the black man.”

But when a teen in Kansas City is murdered over a dispute in the SLAY world, news of the game reaches mainstream media, and SLAY is labeled a racist, exclusionist, violent hub for thugs and criminals. Even worse, an anonymous troll infiltrates the game, threatening to sue Kiera for “anti-white discrimination.”

Driven to save the only world in which she can be herself, Kiera must preserve her secret identity and harness what it means to be unapologetically black in a world intimidated by blackness. But can she protect her game without losing herself in the process? [Goodreads Summary]

Women of the Post by Joshunda Sanders ~ I do enjoy a good World War II novel, especially one that touches on a part of that time period I haven't yet read about or am not familiar with. This fits both of those categories. 

An emotional story, based on true events, about the all-Black battalion of the Women's Army Corps who found purpose, solidarity and lifelong friendship in their mission of sorting over one million pieces of mail for the US Army.

1944, New York City. Judy Washington is tired of working from dawn til dusk in the Bronx Slave Market, cleaning white women’s houses and barely making a dime. Her husband is fighting overseas, so it's up to Judy and her mother to make enough money for rent and food. When the chance arises for Judy to join the Women’s Army Corps (WAC) and the ability to bring home a steady paycheck, she jumps at the opportunity.

Immediately upon arrival, Judy undergoes grueling military drills and inspections led by Second Officer Charity Adams, one of the only Black officers in the WAC. Judy becomes fast friends with the other women in her unit—Stacy, Bernadette and Mary Alyce—who only discovered she was Black after joining the army. Under Charity Adams’s direction, they are transferred to Birmingham, England, as part of the 6888th Central Postal Battalion—the only unit of Black women to serve overseas in WWII. Here, they must sort a backlog of over one million pieces of mail.

The women work tirelessly, knowing that they're reuniting soldiers to their loved ones through the letters they write. However, their work becomes personal when Mary Alyce discovers a backlogged letter addressed to Judy that will upend her personal life. Told through the alternating perspectives of Judy, Charity and Mary Alyce, Women of the Post is an unforgettable story of perseverance, female friendship, romance and self-discovery. [Goodreads Summary]

Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson ~ I saw this one on a lot of people's favorites list from this past year. I had added a copy to my TBR soon after it came out and keep eyeing it on my shelf. 

We can’t choose what we inherit. But can we choose who we become?

In present-day California, Eleanor Bennett’s death leaves behind a puzzling inheritance for her two children, Byron and Benny: a black cake, made from a family recipe with a long history, and a voice recording. In her message, Eleanor shares a tumultuous story about a headstrong young swimmer who escapes her island home under suspicion of murder. The heartbreaking tale Eleanor unfolds, the secrets she still holds back, and the mystery of a long-lost child challenge everything the siblings thought they knew about their lineage and themselves.

Can Byron and Benny reclaim their once-close relationship, piece together Eleanor’s true history, and fulfill her final request to “share the black cake when the time is right”? Will their mother’s revelations bring them back together or leave them feeling more lost than ever?

Charmaine Wilkerson’s debut novel is a story of how the inheritance of betrayals, secrets, memories, and even names can shape relationships and history. Deeply evocative and beautifully written, Black Cake is an extraordinary journey through the life of a family changed forever by the choices of its matriarch. [Goodreads Summary]

Thank you for voting!

My family has suffered through my talking about the books I have read in more detail than they probably care to hear lately. The latest was The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years which I finished reading Friday night. 

In an old wardrobe a djinn sits weeping. ~ Opening of The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years

The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years by Shubnum Khan
Viking, 2024
Thriller/Horror/Historical; 316 pgs
Source: Source: Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

This dual timeline novel takes readers back and forth between 1932 and 2014, set among a Muslim Indian community in Durban, South Africa. 

Akbar Manzil was once a grand estate off the coast of South Africa. Nearly a century later, it stands in ruins: an isolated boardinghouse for eclectic misfits, seeking solely to disappear into the mansion’s dark corridors. Except for Sana. Unlike the others, she is curious and questioning and finds herself irresistibly drawn to the history of the mansion: To the eerie and forgotten East Wing, home to a clutter of broken and abandoned objects—and to the door at its end, locked for decades.

Behind the door is a bedroom frozen in time and a worn diary that whispers of a dark past: the long-forgotten story of a young woman named Meena, who died there tragically a hundred years ago. Watching Sana from the room’s shadows is a besotted, grieving djinn, an invisible spirit who has haunted the mansion since her mysterious death. Obsessed with Meena’s story, and unaware of the creature that follows her, Sana digs into the past like fingers into a wound, dredging up old and terrible secrets that will change the lives of everyone living and dead at Akbar Manzil.

Sublime, heart-wrenching, and lyrically stunning, The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years is a haunting, a love story, and a mystery, all twined beautifully into one young girl’s search for belonging. [Goodreads Summary]

The writing is lyrical and descriptive, haunting in parts, giving the reader a real sense of place. The estate feels like a character of its own, at times blurring with the djinn, whose grief is so great that it makes the mansion seem alive. Secrets are meant for staying hidden and the past is best left buried, or so the djinn would like us to believe. And as the truth comes out, the house begins to fall into even more disrepair. The djinn in Shubnum Khan's novel is not the wish granting kind like you find in pop culture. He is more of a spirit who can assume various forms and has supernatural powers. In this story, he is always present, most often as an observer, although occasionally taking a more active, yet still subtle, role.

There was much I liked about The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years. Sana and her interactions and influence on the residents of Akbar Manzil were a particular favorite. I really enjoyed the backstories of the secondary characters. Sana is a curious young woman of 15, but doesn't feel as if she fits in anywhere. It isn't just the forgotten places in the house she explores, but the lives of the other residents. She is a catalyst in bringing about reflection and change even for herself. Meena's story was equally as compelling, although more tragic. I was just as taken in by Meena and Akbar's love story as Sana was as she read Meena's diaries. I loved Meena's fierce independence and self-confidence. Akbar's mother and first wife did not make Meena's life at Akbar Manzil easy. They looked down on her because of the color of her skin and her common working class status. Although I initially felt somewhat sorry for the first wife--living a life she did not want and then her husband taking a second wife--I never grew to like her nor Akbar's mother. Both were not very nice people. 

I was not as completely taken with the novel as I might have liked. There were portions of the novel I enjoyed more than others, and, while I liked the climax and ending on one hand, there were aspects of it I found unsatisfying as well. It is impossible to really go into exactly what without spoiling anything, so I will leave it at that. Overall though, I did like The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years. Shubnum Khan does a good job weaving Sana and Meena's story together through the use of the djinn character, and the setting really came alive for me. I look forward to seeing what Shubnum Khan writes next. 

Have you read The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years? If so, tell me what you thought!

I hope you have a great week! Let me know what you have been reading!

---

© 2024, Musings of a Bookish Kitty. All Rights Reserved. If you're reading this on a site other than Musings of a Bookish Kitty or Wendy's feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

Weekly Mews: Bookish Mewsings on The Storm We Made by Vanessa Chan/Thoughts on Recent Audiobook Reads/January's TBR Winner

I am linking up to the Sunday Post hosted by Kim of Caffeinated Book Reviewer and The Sunday Salon (TSS) hosted by Deb Nance of Readerbuzz  where participants recap our week, talk about what we are reading, share any new books that have come our way, and whatever else we want to talk about. I am also linking It's Monday! What Are you Reading? hosted by Kathryn of Book Date where readers talk about what they have been, are and will be reading.

I am linking up Stacking the Shelves hosted by Marlene of Reading Reality a meme in which participants share what new books came their way recently.  

Hello again! It was a difficult week at work and the weekend couldn't get here fast enough. Can you believe we have nothing planned for this weekend? It's a blank slate. The best kind. I have finally started taking down the Christmas decorations. I may or may not get the tree down this weekend though. Mouse headed back to school this past week after her winter break, and so we are back into her regular routine. What have you been up to this weekend? 

This week I finished reading The Storm We Made by Vanessa Chan and Ceremony in Death (#5) by J.D. Robb. See below for my thoughts on both. 

I am still enjoying my bedtime reading, Kim Harrison's The Witch With No Name, the 13th book in the Hollows series. It feels like I have been reading this one forever, but I have been saving it to savor before bed each night, and sometimes I am just too tired to read much of it at all. You know. That kind of tired where you try to keep your eyelids open but they fail to stay open no matter how hard I try--and believe me, I try! It's an intense book!

I recently started Hammers and Homicide, the first in a new cozy mystery series by Paula Charles, featuring an older widowed protagonist who owns a hardware store. I liked it right from the start. 

What are you reading now? 

*                   *                *

Thank you to everyone who voted in my  January TBR poll! I am excited about reading all three from my TBR List poll, but which one will I be reading this month? Let's find out! 

Coming in with four (4) votes, is The Monsters We Defy by Leslye Penelope. The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi received twelve (12) votes. Winning with seventeen (17) votes is Legends & Lattes (#1) by Travis Baldree, which will be my next read. Thank you again to everyone who voted!  

My TBR List is hosted by the awesome Michelle  at Because Reading. It’s a fun way to choose a book from your TBR pile to read. The 1st Saturday of every month, I will list 3 books I am considering reading and let you vote for my next read during that month. My review will follow (unfortunately, not likely in the same month, but eventually--that's all I can promise). 

Teenage boys had begun to disappear. ~ Opening of The Storm We Made

The Storm We Made by Vanessa Chan

S&S/Marysue Rucci Books, 2024

Fiction/Historical; 350 pgs

Source: Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book. All opinions are my own. 

The Storm We Made is a heartbreaking and poignant novel about the Japanese occupation of Malaya during World War II. Cecily is taken in by General Fuijwara's charm, his talk of an "Asia for Asians" and the liberation of Malaya from British colonialism. Cecily has long felt discontented with her life, and working with Fuijwara awakens something inside her that gives her a sense of purpose. She thinks nothing of spying for him, believing the outcome will prove worth it in the end. 

The ousting of the British by the Japanese did not bring the rewards Cecily hoped for. If anything, it brought with it more suffering, fear, and violence. Cecily's guilt weighs heavily on her and only grows when her fifteen-year-old son, Abel, disappears. The family fears for the youngest daughter, Jasmin, dressing her in boys' clothes and locking her in the basement during the day for her own safety. Cecily is barely able to hold it together, and much of the household responsibilities fall on her daughter, Jujube, when Jujube is not working at the teahouse fiending off drunken Japanese soldiers. 

The strength of the novel is in the characters who are all fully developed, flaws and all. The Storm We Made follows four different characters and spans over a decade of time, from British occupied Malaya to Japanese occupied Malaya. While I did not warm to Cecily as much as I might have liked, I could understand where she was coming from and why she made the choices she made. She wanted more from life, more as a woman, and more for her family. Reading the novel, I could feel her guilt and self-blame. It felt so raw. My heart broke for all three of Cecily's children and what they suffered. I loved Jujube for her strong will and fortitude, but I also really felt for her. She takes so much on her shoulders over the course of the novel, and has to endure abuses at work and still maintain a facade, stuffing down her anger, fear and sadness. Then there is Abel, once so full of life, whose spirit is destroyed over and over due to the brutality he endures. The youngest, Jasmin, is so innocent, the joy of the family, who longs for freedom to come and go as she pleases.

It was hard to find the hope in such bleak circumstances, and yet it was there now and then, glimmers of light in the form of family bonds, friendship and connection. I often found myself cursing humanity for our cruelty and lack of compassion for others as I read the pages of The Storm We Made. People are monsters. But then reading about how Abel and Freddie were there for each other, Takahashi's occasional small acts of kindness toward Jujube, and the joy that Jasmin and Yuki found in their friendship would remind me that kindness can exist, even in the darkest of times.

The Storm We Made was not an easy read in terms of subject matter and had me in tears throughout, and more so by the end. I will not soon forger this novel or its characters. 

*

New York Police Lieutenant Eve Dallas is tenacious, strong-willed and extremely independent, and by her side is the filthy rich self-made businessman love of her life, Roarke. The two are quite the pair. He is extremely protective (but respectfully so) and she doesn't always take that very well. Eve is surrounded by competent and loyal friends and colleagues who are just as skilled at their jobs and she is. Peabody is one of my favorite characters, aside from Eve and Roarke. 

I am coming into the In Death series later than most, and have (very) slowly been making my way through the series. In December I was able to fit in two J.D. Robb novels, Immortal in Death and Rapture in Death, and this month I listened to Ceremony in Death. It is a fun series with a good mix of suspense and romance. Given the 2058 setting with some of the scientific advancements in the book there is a bit of science fiction added in too.  I enjoy Susan Ericksen's reading of the books. She is the voice of Eve and Roarke for me, and I wouldn't have it any other way. 

Immortal in Death (#3) by J.D. Robb, narrated by Susan Ericksen (Brilliance Audio, 1996; Mystery/Suspense/Thriller/SciFi/Romance) 

Getting married was murder. ~ Opening of Immortal in Death

Immortal in Death takes Lieutenant Eve Dallas deep into the high fashion industry in search of a killer who took the life of a top model. With her best friend as the prime suspect, Eve will stop at nothing to get to the truth. I enjoyed getting to know Mavis a little better in Immortal in Death. The whodunit came as no surprise, but it was still fun to see Eve and her team connect all the dots and figure it out. There was spice and plenty of suspenseful action scenes to keep me listening.  

Rapture in Death (#4) by J.D. Robb, narrated by Susan Ericksen (Brilliance Audio, 1996; Mystery/Suspense/Thriller/SciFi/Romance) 

The alley was dark and stank of piss and vomit. ~ Opening of Rapture in Death

Suicide or murder? Lieutenant Eve Dallas suspects the recent suicide of three prominent people who seemingly go happily to their deaths are not what they seem, and the small burns on a couple of the brains confirm her suspicions. Eve and her team are on the trail of a dangerous killer--trying to find out who is behind the murders and exactly how the killer strikes. 

Leave it to Eve to make work for herself on her honeymoon. In Rapture in Death, there is more focus on Eve's childhood, which we already know was an abusive one. J.D. Robb pulls no punches in describing the horribleness of it all. It's all the more clear why Eve is the way she is and why she doesn't trust so easily. There was one scene involving Roarke that had me cringing in particular, especially given Eve's past--when he gives her a tranquilizer without her consent. Yes, she really needed the rest, but it doesn't make it okay. I guessed the who from the moment of introduction, which seems to be a given with this series. Still, it was an enjoyable read overall. 

Ceremony in Death (#5) by J.D. Robb, narrated by Susan Ericksen (Brilliance Audio, 1997; Mystery/Suspense/Thriller/SciFi/Romance) 

Death Surrounded her. ~ Opening of Ceremony in Death

Lieutenant Eve Dallas is assigned to investigate the death of a fellow police officer. Her investigation leads her into the world of Wiccans and Satanists and the stakes have never been higher for Eve. I enjoyed Ceremony in Death a little less than I have the others, but I still enjoyed it. It was action packed with some spice interspersed here and there. I really don't want to like Roarke as much as I do sometimes, but he certainly is charming and good for Eve. Considering how much trouble she finds herself in, it's good he's around to help. 

Have you read any of these books? If so, what did you think?

New to my shelves:

Recent e-additions to TBR:

The Echo of Old Books by Barbara Davis (gift card purchase)

Babel by R.F. Kuang (gift card purchase)

Lies and Other Love Languages by Sonali Dev (gift card purchase)

Dead Before Dinner (Maddie Swallows #1) by Kat Bellemore (free)

Dead Upon Arrival (Maddie Swallows #2) by Kat Bellemore (free)

My latest TBR additions:

Above Ground: Poems by Clint Smith

The Fragile Threads of Power (#1) by V.E. Schwab (gift card purchase)

Galatea by Madeline Miller (gift card purchase)

Mouse's latest additions to her TBR:

Ace of Spades by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé

Blood Debts (#1) by Terry Benton-Walker

I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys

What new books made it onto your shelf recently? 

 I hope you have a great week ! Let me know what you have been reading!

---

© 2024, Musings of a Bookish Kitty. All Rights Reserved. If you're reading this on a site other than Musings of a Bookish Kitty or Wendy's feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.