Pretty Baby by Mary Kubica

Rating: 1.5

I really enjoyed Mary Kubica's book The Good Girl so was excited when she came out with a new book.  Unfortunately, I wasn't very far in before I realized that  

The Story:  Heidi sees a homeless teenage girl holding her infant baby and can't get them out of her head.

This book is very slow paced but I could have handled that if the character development was plausible. All of the characters had flaws and pain. I felt that the author was relying on hooking the reader for their sad circumstances, rather than doing proper character development with depth. Here are some things that I just couldn't overlook:

Heidi - Unrealistic and unbelievable behavior.  Doing things we all know not to do, no matter how much your heart is in the right place....and then things go downhill from there
Heidi's husband Chris - I don't know one man who would just go along with his wife's behavior
Willow - One minute Willow is acting like the 8 year old child she was when her family dissolved and the next she is acting like a 17 year old. I don't think the author knew what this girl's personality was supposed to be.  I understand abuse and her character was not realistic. She would revert to being 8 years old at all different tims (not just trigger moments) and her speech was sometimes very simplistic and other times very mature
Zoe - the 12 year old daughter was the most plausible character showing upset and frustration for her mother's unacceptable behavior and being a normal 12 year old

This whole plot line felt so contrived and did not have any twists. Definitely not anywhere near as good as her original book.

The Kind Worth Killing by Peter Swanson

Rating: 4.9

Completely deranged psychopaths with murder on their minds. This one is twisted and unpredictable with characters you can lovingly loathe. The chapters shift in point of view as the narrative unfolds -- teasing the reader to stick glued to the pages. 

Ted Severson, married man, meets Lily Kintner late one night in an airport bar. That's when the trouble begins... Alcohol consumed, secrets spilled, plans made. But all of the players in this complicated scheme have not been entirely truthful, and things fall apart for them in completely unexpected ways.  I devoured this book in two days.  It was so good and kept me on the edge of my seat.  Such a guilty pleasure beach read.

Once We Were Brothers by Ronald H. Balson

Rating: 4.6

Elliot Rosenzweig, a respected civic leader and wealthy philanthropist, is attending a fundraiser when he is suddenly accosted and accused of being a former Nazi SS officer named Otto Piatek, the Butcher of Zamosc. Although the charges are denounced as preposterous, his accuser Ben Solomon is convinced he is right and engages attorney Catherine Lockhart to bring Rosenzweig to justice. 

Ben insists that he can't be rushed and has to tell his story so that Catherine can understand all the background to decide if she will take the case.  As his story unfolds, he draws in Catherine as well as the reader.  I found this was mesmerizing and heartbreaking.  I agree that I could see this becoming a movie.

Benedication by Kent Haruf

Rating: 3.8

The last in the trilogy with three completely new storylines: Dad Lewis dying of cancer, the little girl next door living with her grandmother is reminded of her own mother's death from cancer and a preacher who has moved to town with his wife and son.

This continues with Haruf's beautiful slow writing style but didn't grab me as much as his previous books.

Black Eyed Susans by Julia Heaberlin

Rating: 4.9

Sixteen-year-old, Tessa Cartwright was found in a Texas field, barely alive amid a scattering of bones, with only fragments of memory as to how she got there. Ever since, the press has pursued her as the lone surviving “Black-Eyed Susan,” the nickname given to the murder victims because of the yellow carpet of wildflowers that flourished above their shared grave. Tessa’s testimony about those tragic hours put a man on death row.

IMO, this is better than Gone Girl, Girl on a Train, The Good Girl and all similar types of books. This beautifully well written book is intense, suspenseful and flows. I love the moving back in forth in time and having to piece it all together. I didn't have it figured out at all. If you like psychological thrillers, this is a definite recommend.

Eventide by Kent Haruf

Rating: 4.6

This is the 2nd book in the Kent Haruf's Trilogy. Just like the 1st book, Plainsong, I loved the Rancher brothers characters. I felt for  the mentally handicapped couple, Luther & Betty Wallace, but was equally frustrated as I was sad.

George Hearn was the perfect narrator for this book with his relaxed, throaty voice and slow pace, he captures every character perfectly with only the slightest of alterations.

I have already started the 3rd book in this series, Benediction. So far, I think that his last book, Our Souls at Night, was his best but I think Haruf's calm peaceful writing that captures the folksy lifestyle is so beautiful.

The Garden of Letters by Alyson Richman

Rating: 2.8

This is about a girl who is an Italian cello player who joins the resistance movement during WWII.  I enjoyed the first portion of the book but then it incorporated a lot of romance and it felt like typical chick lit.  It is too bad as it had potential.

After Her by Joyce Maynard

My Rating: 4.4

So enjoyable. This book captures two young sisters, Rachel and Patty, and their relationship.  It is a coming of age story that captures the quirkiness of being a young girl, their adoration of their police detective father, life in the late 70's and growing up in California. Despite their father pursuing a serial killer in the mountains of Marin County, right in the family's back yard, this is not a mystery (that confusion/expectation accounts for almost all of the lower ratings you see on any site).  

I listened to this book and thoroughly enjoyed the voice of Rachel and how Maynard captured her and Patty. I have enjoyed other books of Maynard's and this definitely won't be my last.

My Future Reads from Bookmarks Magazine for Sept/Oct

I just got my latest Bookmarks Magazine - WOOHOO!  If you aren't familiar with Bookmarks, I consider it a "must have" magazine for any reader (and I don't like magazines).  If you are interested, I did a video on it:

This is perfect timing as I will take the magazine with me to the beach in Maui and comb through it some more but, right now, here are the reads that really jump out at me:

        

I already have these on my kindle:
   

These are only the books at first glance....now you see why I love Bookmarks!  What books are on your radar?  Also, let me know if you want me to do these posts when I get my bi-monhtly Bookmarks magazine.

The Days of Abandonment by Elena Ferrante

Rating: 4.9

Wow. Uncomfortable, distasteful, gritty and raw. After being left by her husband, this is Olga's descent into madness.  This got so dark and uncomfortable that 60% of the way through (during the scene where she can't focus on her dog or her children), I was going to stop reading. I am glad I didn't but this was not a fun or easy read. 

Watching someone's life fall apart is never easy but, feeling it with such powerful force is extremely uncomfortable. Olga came completely undone when her husband left her and you feel it. Ferrante is a writing force that doesn't pull any punches. 

This is definitely not for everyone. I am not rating it this high due to the story or even saying I recommend it but you have to give kudoes to Ferrante for being able to write so impactfully.

Warning: extreme raw graphic language

Little Black Lies by Sharon Bolton

Rating: 4.6

I don't generally read mystery books so am not sure how this ended up on my Kindle but, if you were the person who recommended it to me then, 'thank you!'.  This story revolves around the central characters, Catrin, Callum and Rachel, all living on the Falkland Islands. Each character tells one of the three sections.  

Bolton does a fabulous job of capturing the Falklands and Island life as well as making each of the characters come alive.  I had no idea of who did it until the very last page.  If you like mysteries, I am sure you will enjoy this well written book.

Mean Streak by Sandra Brown

Rating: 1.5

This is the first and only Sandra Brown book I have read.  It was very flat with one dimensional characters and absolutely no depth. Maybe it was the audio version that made it horridly flat but, I couldn't get past the flat characters to even give the horrific plot line a chance (predictable, cheating husband, recluse who comes out to find her, yadda yadda yadda).  Definitely not my cup of tea.

As another reviewer said "the only suspense was in when to stop reading".

The Bone Gap by Laura Ruby

Rating: 4.4

Another one that was very difficult for me to rate/review. A huge part of me loved this book.  It was so unique and unlike anything else I have ever read. For most of it, I felt like I was in a dream and wasn't sure what was real and what was the dream. 

This book was about so many things but, the general story line is that after being abandoned by their mother young Sean O'Sullivan is taking care of his teenage brother Finn when a beautiful girl Roza shows up in their barn. Roza is kidnapped away from them and young Finn sees it happen but no one believes him.

Beyond this surface storyline is how women are perceived in the world, how you have to deal with men...their looks at your looks, having your guard up, love and so many other layers that I probably didn't grasp.

I don't generally care for magical realism so I wasn't thrilled with the ending but I have to give the author huge kudos for such an original piece of work told in such an ingenious way. If you care for magical realism at all, I bet you would love this book even more than I did.

Plainsong by Kent Haruf

Rating: 4.8

I had to noodle on this one for a few days to decide how I felt. It was beautiful writing that flowed so easily. It was sparse and yet captured so much.  

The conflict was that I didn't realize how much I cared about the characters until some of the twists and turns unfolded that I really didn't like. I found myself reading in a frenzy to find out how it unfolds and getting very upset at some of their choices. Haruf seamlessly weaves together three stories:

• Two little boys whose mother leaves them to be raised by their father
• Two old crusty bachelor brothers who are farmers
• A young girl finds herself pregnant 

This book is about these storylines and yet more than that, it is about a place, life and choices.

Easy to read in the writing style but not easy from an emotional perspective. This one will stay with me for a while. What an amazing author.

Re Jane by Patricia Park

Rating: 3.0

Half Korean and half American, Jane was shuttled off to her uncle in the States after her mother died and her grandfather refused her. This supposedly is a cultural retelling of Jane Eyre but it is fluffy and definitely isn't worthy of the comparison. That being said, it was still enjoyable as a beach read. I found two things very annoying:

1. when she would break the third wall "Reader, let me tell you...."
2. that whether Jane was speaking English or Korean, her grammar was 'very not good'. I could understand her Korean not being perfect but I didn't think she would speak in broken English (and that wasn't just when she was angry).

I did enjoy the capturing of her cultural challenges in both America and Korea as well as the many Korean foods, phrases that the author included.d It was entertaining but not a must read.