As usual, I’m a little behind on sharing my latest book reviews. But, I’m happy to say I’ve been reading more. The list of what I read in March and April includes some historical fiction, some romance, and a couple of thrillers. I’m pretty generous with books, but there were actually a few that I didn’t love this time around. If you only read one of them, I suggest Instructions for Dancing. Let me know what you’re reading, and check out previous posts for more recommendations.
Things We Hide From the Light by Lucy Score
Nash Morgan was always known as the good Morgan brother, with a smile and a wink for everyone. But now, this chief of police is recovering from being shot and his Southern charm has been overshadowed by panic attacks and nightmares. He feels like a broody shell of the man he once was, and he won’t let anyone in…until Lina moves in across the hall.
This was the second in a series, and it focuses on the brother of the main character in the first book. Just like the first one, this was clever and cute. The family dynamics are interesting, and I liked the storyline. I would recommend reading the first book before this one because the storylines do tie together.
Our Woman in Moscow by Beatriz Williams
In the autumn of 1948, Iris Digby vanishes from her London home with her American diplomat husband and their two children. Were they eliminated by the Soviet intelligence service? Or have the Digbys defected to Moscow with a trove of the West’s most vital secrets? Four years later, Ruth Macallister receives a postcard from the twin sister she hasn’t seen since their catastrophic parting in Rome in the summer of 1940, as war engulfed the continent and Iris fell desperately in love with an enigmatic United States Embassy official named Sasha Digby. Within days, Ruth is on her way to Moscow, posing as the wife of counterintelligence agent Sumner Fox in a precarious plot to extract the Digbys from behind the Iron Curtain.
Beatriz Williams is queen of historical fiction. This story was fascinating and it kept me engaged. The twin sister relationship was especially dynamic, and I liked the strong female leads.
The Infinity Between Us by N.S. Perkins
For two perfect, beach-filled months every year, Violet Mitchell and Will Seaberg spent every waking minute together. First as friends, until one summer changed everything. But before the two even had a chance to claim the love they’d spent their entire lives creating, disaster struck, tearing the two lovers—and their families—apart. Heartbroken and haunted by the memories of that fateful summer, Violet struggles to move on from the past. Still, she promises herself to never contact Will again. But five years later, when Violet arrives to finalize the sale of the property, she finds Will right where she left him: sun-kissed, loving, and so incredibly sorry.
The premise of this book reminded me of Every Summer After, which I absolutely loved. I liked this one, probably in part because it takes place in Ogunquit, Maine, where I’ve spent many summers. But while it was a good story, it wasn’t as strong.
Nothing More to Tell by Karen M. McManus
Four years ago, Brynn left Saint Ambrose School following the shocking murder of her favorite teacher—a story that made headlines after the teacher’s body was found by three Saint Ambrose students in the woods behind their school. The case was never solved. Now that Brynn is moving home and starting her dream internship at a true-crime show, she’s determined to find out what really happened.
I’ve read a bunch of her books and enjoyed them all. They’re YA, and the main characters are teens, but the plot and the characters are complex in the best way.
Instructions for Dancing by Nicola Yoon
Evie Thomas doesn’t believe in love anymore. Especially after the strangest thing occurs one otherwise ordinary afternoon: She witnesses a couple kiss and is overcome with a vision of how their romance began . . . and how it will end. After all, even the greatest love stories end with a broken heart, eventually. As Evie tries to understand why this is happening, she finds herself at La Brea Dance Studio, learning to waltz, fox-trot, and tango with a boy named X. X is everything that Evie is not: adventurous, passionate, daring. His philosophy is to say yes to everything–including entering a ballroom dance competition with a girl he’s only just met.
This was so good. What powerful lessons and beautiful love stories. I related a lot to the main character as she was dealing with all of the emotions around her parents’ divorce, and I found myself nodding along with her at many different points. The message of enjoying the present instead of dwelling on the past or worrying about the future is one we could all use.
Park Avenue Summer by Renée Rosen
New York City is filled with opportunities for single girls like Alice Weiss who leaves her small Midwestern town to chase her big city dreams and unexpectedly lands the job of a lifetime working for Helen Gurley Brown, the first female Editor-in-Chief of a then failing Cosmopolitan Magazine. But, nothing could have prepared Alice for the world she enters as editors and writers resign on the spot, refusing to work for the woman who wrote the scandalous bestseller, Sex and the Single Girl.
I liked this, but I didn’t love it. I’m a sucker for a New York City story, and this one was definitely interesting. But, I did find myself getting tired of the characters toward the end.
A Slow Fire Burning by Paula Hawkins
When a young man is found gruesomely murdered in a London houseboat, it triggers questions about three women who knew him. Laura is the troubled one-night-stand last seen in the victim’s home. Carla is his grief-stricken aunt, already mourning the recent death of yet another family member. And Miriam is the nosy neighbor clearly keeping secrets from the police. Three women with separate connections to the victim. Three women who are – for different reasons – simmering with resentment. Who are, whether they know it or not, burning to right the wrongs done to them.
