June was an interesting reading month for me. I did complete a good number of books but started to feel more pull away from my early releases. I get so caught up in requesting them at times, and then I often wish I was reading something else. There are exceptions however. Just when I am feeling like giving up on ARCs, Bam! – I pick up something like Look Closer and love that I was able to be a part of reading this before publishing and help develop an interest in the book.
June is often the month people refer to as the beginning of “beach read” season and I definitely had a few of those as well. I plan to keep turning the pages in July and hope for my next amazing read! I did not complete any books this month from my Goals & Hopefuls list. I am planning to get back to that in July or I will never finish that up this year. I do have a good number of ARCs to read in July as well, so I will need to strike a balance.
Here’s what I read in June:
Look Closer – David Ellis
I had to marinate on this one for a few days before writing my review. I tend to be stingy with my 5🍷 reviews, and rarely will give one for a thriller/psychological suspense mystery – even though they tend to be some of my favorites. But in the end, yes, it is a 5🍷 from me! Look Closer is a smart, clever, twisty, dark one that follows Simon and Vicky who seem to be a lovely married couple living in Chicago. He’s a law professor and she works at a domestic abuse shelter. Enter all the craziness, twists and turns galore! Kudos to David Ellis – you had me entertained, guessing and not caring if I was wrong. I can’t really tell you more about it – it is best you just not know. The format is short, descriptive chapters that switch points of view and timelines. If you like dark, sometimes gritty thrillers that will keep you guessing until the end – just get this one the moment you can!
This is the kind of book that I immediately looked to see what else the author has written and plan to dive into his backlist. I also was surprised to learn that not only is he a lawyer (the House Prosecutor who tried and convicted Illinois Governor Blagojevich in the Impeachment Trial before the Illinois Senate) but has been elected and now serves on the Illinois Appellate Court. Very impressive! Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin Group Putnam and David Ellis for my advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion. Look Closer will be available on 7/5/22.
🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷
The Bodyguard – Katherine Center
The Bodyguard is a cute rom-com-ish dabble into the life of Hannah Brooks, a petite, female executive protection agent – or bodyguard. Hannah’s life is a bit of a transition and chaos – her mother has passed away, her loser boyfriend dumps her and things at work are complicated. Enter Jack Stapleton – movie star extraordinaire, that needs a bit of protection from a stalker while he is in town. I thought the author did a great job of building character development just enough to make it a bit deeper than a complete potato chip book. There are several funny parts and the romance was light (nothing too steamy) – a great beach read. Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an advance copy of the audio edition in exchange for my honest opinion. The Bodyguard will be available on 7/19/22.
🍷🍷🍷🍷
Two Nights in Lisbon – Chris Pavone
This one was a case of Bookstagram made me pick it up. I kept seeing this bold, beautiful purple cover and fantastic reviews so I loaded it in audio. I was sucked in quickly and kept those earbuds in as I cleaned and dusted my house just to keep listening. This is a very smart suspense/mystery as Ariel Pryce wakes up in her Lisbon hotel room and her new husband John is missing. She is racing the clock to find John and has to convince the local authorities he is actually missing after mere hours. I found this one to be sharp and clever and stands out to me amongst some of the other suspense books I have read.
🍷🍷🍷🍷
Meant To Be – Emily Giffin
Once upon a time I devoured everything Giffin wrote in record time, and then kept up with new releases. Until her 2020 book, Lies That Bind. That one rubbed me very wrong and I wasn’t sure how this one would sit with me. Meant to Be is a contemporary fiction story that is somewhat loosely based on JFK & his wife Jaqueline Bissett. Joe has it all – raised in a Kennedy-esque family and falls in love with a stunning model, Cate. Meant To Be mostly worked for me as entertainment, minus the ending. It’s not deep – it’ an escape. I did have a rough go with the ending, I almost felt like it was written by someone else and the characters lost their voice. Otherwise, good summer fun.
🍷🍷🍷🍷
Great Circle – Maggie Shipstead
Despite its length, Great Circle is a lovely dual timeline tale of Marian Graves, an unlikely pilot facing an insurmountable task and Hadley Baxter, an actress cast to play Marian. This one was very slow for me to get started but once I got through the first 100 pages I couldn’t put it down. I do tend to struggle with longer books so I was determined to push through. A lovely strong-woman-centered book and I felt like I read it at the right time when I was needing to fuel my female strength flame.
🍷🍷🍷🍷
One of The Girls – Lucy Clarke
3.5 This is a drama with dark secrets that falls a little short of being described as thriller. Lexi is getting married and she and her 5 friends go off to a secluded Greek island for a hen (bachelorette) weekend. Everyone has secrets and their lives intertwine in interesting ways. There is to be no contact with Ed, Lexi’s fiancé and what starts as fun, sun, swim, drinks and relaxing getaway really ramps up into a higher stress environment. One of the Girls was fairly entertaining but a bit on the unbelievable side for me. I like my fiction best when sprinkled with a dose of reality. Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for an advance copy in exchange for my honest opinion. One of the Girls is now available.
🍷🍷🍷1/2
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow – Gabrielle Zevin
This is a tough review to write. I am clearly not the audience for this book, however much has been said that it is about so much more than gamers and videos games and it is for everyone. That is true, about being about more, however it is still not for me. I am going to give it a somewhat neutral 3 as the writing was strong, but it did not hold my interest at all and was tedious for me to get through. Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion. Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow will be available on 7/5/2022.
🍷🍷🍷
Every Summer After – Carly Fortune
2.5 Rounded up.
This is a tough one. The hype on this one is huge, but ultimately fell short for me. I do think this may be a case of, it’s not you, it’s me. I think I am just too old and cynical for this book. I considered DNF’ing a couple of times but finished it through – as predictable as it was. It is a young love, coming of age romance with immature characters that just didn’t really work for me. All of the parents drove me crazy too – very unrealistic. I do think the author is a pretty good writer and while I didn’t connect with the story, I would be interested in seeing what else she writes down the road. I have seen a good deal of commentary that this book is too similar to another popular one, so I am hoping she blows it out of the water with a completely unique novel next time. She definitely has the chops to write a great story. (And if that other book is really too much like this one – I think I will skip it – Ha!)
As for this one, I’ll be dropping it off at my 20-something daughter’s house. She will likely enjoy it more than I did.
🍷🍷 1/2
Reputation – Sarah Vaughn
2.5 rounded up.
Reputation is a political/courtroom/domestic suspense/thriller that centers around Emma, a female politician and her young teen daughter Flora. It is definitely a slow-slow burn and I found myself often having to re-read sentences and entire paragraphs as it was so slow I wound wander continuously. I did not particularly like Emma, which sometimes works for me (not liking the main character). I expected to enjoy it more as Emma is a strong female in favor of women’s rights but I really could never get invested enough for this to have any kind of wow factor. If you enjoy slow-burn British thrillers, it may work better for you. Thank you to NetGalley and Atria books for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion. Reputation will be available on 7/5/22.
🍷🍷1/2
DNF – Acts of Violet
Reviewed based solely on audio version. I received an arc from Netgalley and Macmillan Audio in exchange for my honest opinion. When I listen to a book, which I love to do, I just want someone to read me a book. This is music, sound effects, drama, theatrics, and I just couldn’t take it. I tried five different times to listen to this book and I just can’t do it. I am a tad bummed as I loved Oona Out of Order and I was really looking forward to Acts of Violet. I may try reading the actual book at a later time. Acts of Violet will be available on 7/5/22.
