2023 is off with a Big Bang for me in the reading department. Our home was back to the empty nest after the holidays with a good deal of reading time, especially at night. I finished 11 books this month and a few were absolutely outstanding. Go as a River was my favorite book this month and I have to wonder how high it will rank for me at the end of the year. Perhaps I read my #1 of 2023 in January, which also happened to me last year.
I had a few books that I didn’t finish (DNF) and put down this month. While I have long been a fan of the DNF, I think this year I may be even more brutal as I just have lost interest in trying to plow through a book I am not enjoying. Every now and then I know it is more about me than the book, or I am just not in the right mood or frame of mind to read something. In that case I may DNF with the intent of trying at a later time. I don’t think I am going to list my DNFs here anymore but I do have a shelf on my Goodreads account where they can be viewed.
Here is what I read in January.
Go as a River – Shelley Read
If you follow my page on Instagram (@NextChapterMoms), Facebook or Goodreads you have already seen me review this book or perhaps you read my full review right here. I think instead of repeating what I have already said several times you should just read the full review. In short, this one gets 5 beautiful stars, (or wine glasses, as I like to do here). It’s a coming-of-age historical fiction novel that is set on the western slope in Iola, Colorado – a now extinct town that was submerged with the creation of the Grand Mesa Reservoir. The writing is perfection. Thank you to NetGalley, Shelley Read and Spiegel & Grau for an advance e-copy in exchange for my honest review. Go as a River will be published on 2/28/2023. For my local friends, I intend/hope to visit with Shelley Read on 3/8/23 at her Tattered Cover – Colfax event. Let me know if you would like to join me.
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A Quiet Life – Ethan Joella
A lovely, profound, beautiful book about grief and hope and finding a path forward. The author has a distinct writing style full of empathy that deeply connects emotion and the human experience.
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Maame – Jessica George
Maame is a lovely coming of age story that is a debut by a clearly gifted writer, Jessica George. Maddie is a 25 year old Ghanian woman, nicknamed Maame by her family, living in London . She is finding her footing a bit later than her peers due to her devotion to care for her father who has Parkinson’s. Her brother is completely self absorbed and offers no assistance except empty promises and while her mother has been gone she is about to return to London. Maddie takes this opportunity to finally move out and start carving her own path. There is a little bit of everything in here from figuring out how to live with roommates, bosses that are horrid, bosses that are supporting, familial guilt, and some really solid friends. There is definitely grief, guilt and sadness here, sprinkled with some humor – hey its a pretty realistic story of life during that phase – but in the end you will cheer for Maddie to find her path and voice and venture forward. I will be keeping an eye out to see what Ms George releases next.
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an early release e-copy in exchange for my honest opinion. Maame is now available.
🍷🍷🍷🍷1/2
All the Dangerous Things – Stacy Willingham
4.5 round up. Stacy Willingham just became an auto-read author for me. I read her debut in ’22 and it ranked among my favorites of the year. This was a strong follow-up for her. Isabelle Drake is living a nightmare, literally. Her 18 month old son was taken from his crib one year ago and she hasn’t slept since. I learned so much about sleep deprivation, the real type of sleep deprivation when you never sleep and the changes your body goes through including micro-sleeps. I could literally feel the scratchy red eyes as I read into the night. Willingham has produced a tension packed page turner that had me guessing until almost the end. Bravo! Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an early release e-copy in exchange for my honest opinion. All the Dangerous Things is now available.
🍷🍷🍷🍷1/2
For the Love of Friends – Sara Goodman Confino
Fun, mostly light read about some seriously comical bridezillas & horrid bridesmaids. Would be a great beach read.
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The Undocumented Americans – Karla Cornejo Villavincenio
A memoir written by the one of the first undocumented immigrants to graduate from Harvard. She shares the lives of fellow undocumented immigrants as well as her own. I found this one sad, inspiring and provoked a wide range of emotions.
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Part of Your World – Abby Jimenez
A light rom-com coupled in with serious issues of domestic abuse. While I think it handled that tough topic well, I would have like to have seen some further resolution. That all sort of got swept under the rug in my opinion. Part of Your World does get a little spicy a few times, but nothing too over-the top. I listened to this one with an audio checkout from my library through Libby.
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Hamnet – Maggie O’Farrell
Devastating. This one just ripped my heart out. Sometimes that will make a stunner, but in this case it did not for me. It just left me sad. Hamlet is based on the historical facts of Shakespeare and his family. Hamnet = Hamlet.
🍷🍷🍷1/2
The Housemaid – Freida McFadden
This is a very hyped thriller that wasn’t even on my radar until I kept seeing review after review – all being very high. I took the plunge and it was just “fine” for me. I liked it, as I was entertained and it kept me turning the pages, however it wasn’t extremely original and the writing was not as polished as some other options out there. If you are looking for a twisty page turner without high expectations, you might like this one more than I did. I probably would have enjoyed it more on a mindless day at the beach or a plane ride.
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You Must Remember This – Kat Rosenfield
You Must Remember This is a very, very slow burn domestic suspense that I was expecting more from. The description made it sound much more thriller-like and the pace and multiple time line didn’t work for me this time. I found the 2nd half of the book better than the first and almost gave up a few times at the beginning. We know from the first pages that 85 year old Miriam has walked out on the ice of the lake below her estate and tragically falls through. Those pages were the only part of the first half that really hooked me. After that, it all went downhill. While I didn’t guess the ending as other reviews have said, it didn’t matter. It was so hard to get there. Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for an advance e-copy in exchange for my honest opinion. You Must Remember This is now available.
🍷🍷1/2
Fairy Tale – Stephen King
2.5 rounded up only due to liking the beginning. I really wanted to love this book, but I really did not. It’s a 600 pager and I did like the first 200 pages of Charlie and Mr. Bowditch, although I still saw some issues there. But after that, it all went down hill and fast. I struggled through the last 60% of the book and it was a mess for me. I loved 11/22/63 and Billy Summer so I was hoping it would be a good fit as well, but alas it was not. I both read and listened to this book, about half and half.
🍷🍷1/2
