I am very excited for all of the books I will read in 2024, it is shaping out to be a year of great new releases coming out. And like I have done in the past, I have listed my 2024 Reading Goals & Hopefuls. I have done this the past few years and it really helps me stay on track with my reading, not get too distracted and in the end – I have had much better reading years filled with great books since I started doing this.
I did kick off 2024 with some great reading, that is for sure. My kiddos were both home for the holidays but the nest is empty again and it was time to get cracking with my reading. I read three books that I loved and there were a few other goodies as well. Nine seems to have become my magic number, many month have nine books read as my total – and that is the case once again.
The Frozen River – Ariel Lawhon
The Frozen River is a beautiful yet suspenseful historical fiction novel. Lawhon features midwife Martha Ballard, a woman plucked from history who loves her family and her community. There is great character development throughout and I loved Martha’s family who will do anything to protect each other. The premise is, Martha is called to pronounce a man dead after he is found under the frozen river. Was it an accident and he fell in, or is there more to it? The harsh Maine winter is a character as well and I hope you love this one as much as I did. If I had to critique one tiny thing, there are so many characters and at times it was a tad hard to keep track. Otherwise – near perfection!
🍷🍷🍷🍷1/2
First Lie Wins – Ashley Elston
This is a fun con artist / thief story that had a twist at nearly every turn. First Lie Wins was one of my first books of 2024 and it was a fun, (in a dark kind of way) twisty tale that kept me turning the pages from beginning to end. Evie Porter seems to have it all, but we quickly learn that she is an interesting combination of a con artist and thief. She has a mysterious boss that assigns her a name, and then her target. She is to learn everything she can about the target and eventually she learns her job. In this case, the target is Ryan Sumner, who becomes her boyfriend. Elston kept the pace quick and threw things at us left and right. It was the perfect book to start off my 2024 reading! This is a Reese’s Book Club pick in January and I think she picked well to start off the year.
🍷🍷🍷🍷1/2
Wrong Place, Wrong Time – Gillian McAllister
Wrong Place, Wrong Time is a Ground Hog Day style mystery, but not nearly as annoying as most Ground Hog Day plots. McAllister pulled this off without the dreadful repetition that usually ensues with this type of structure. We learn immediately that a murder has been committed and we work backwards to solve the crime. It was done incredibly well, but maybe just a tad too long.
🍷🍷🍷🍷
Horse – Geraldine Brooks
This is a hard one. I loved the second half of the book but it is a fairly long, ultra slow book and the first half was so slow for me that it took me a long time to get to the point where I really found a rhythm. Once I did, there was no looking back. I enjoyed this one with one of my local in-person book clubs.
🍷🍷🍷1/2
Come and Get It – Kiley Reid
Heavy character driven coming of age novel about a group of women at college and their challenges and conflicts as well as a visiting professor. Overall, way too many characters and it became too drawn out for me. Overall, just ok. Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for an advance e-copy in exchange for my honest opinion, Come and Get It is now available.
🍷🍷🍷1/2
Everyone Who Can Forgive Me Is Dead – Jenny Hollander
Everyone Who Can Forgive Me is Dead is a tense thriller and the panic that our main character, Charlie, feels set in very quickly. She was a survivor in a gruesome murder at Carroll University and is filled with stress and anxiety still even though she’s done a good job of rebuilding her life. A film is being made regarding the murders and its been promised the truths of what happened will be revealed. As Charlie’s panic and dread increase things very slowly unfold. Overall I enjoyed this one but it is a very slow burn, at times too slow. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an early copy in exchange for my honest opinion. Everyone Who Can Forgive Me Is Dead is now available.
🍷🍷🍷
Family Family – Laurel Frankel
Great, important topic(s) but for me the writing style didn’t work. The repetitive reminding nature of what was coming didn’t live up to what I was anticipating. Overall, it was ok. I do seem to be in the minority here as many of my book friends have loved this one. Thank you to NetGalley and Henry Holt & Company for an early e-copy in exchange for my honest opinion. Family Family is now available.
🍷🍷🍷
Mockingbird Summer – Lynda Rutledge
Mockingbird Summer is a coming of age novel set in the 1960’s that I was very excited to read. While Rutledge’s West with Giraffes is still on my TBR, I have heard so many rave reviews of it. Unfortunately, Mockingbird Summer fell a bit short of my expectations. I wonder if upon the pub date it will be classified as a YA book perhaps? It is set in Texas with 13 year old Corky becoming friends America, whose mother works for Corky’s family. The story kept me going and it wrapped up well but overall it was just ok. There are many serious issues within and the book softly touches To Kill a Mockingbird, which does add to its appeal. Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for a free e-copy in exchange for my honest opinion. Mockingbird Summer is now available.
🍷🍷🍷
Only If You’re Lucky – Stacy Willingham
I have become a fan of this author’s books however this one fell short of the others. It came across to me as almost young adult but it was also so drawn out and a bit boring as well as unbelievable. I said “Oh, Come On!” a number of times out loud. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an early copy in exchange for my honest opinion. Only if You’re Lucky is now available.
🍷🍷🍷
