What I’m Reading (10.17.22)

Happy Monday, friends! Whew… October has been a very slow reading month for me. We’re halfway through the month and I’ve only finished three books! It’s been a busier-than-usual month with lots of things going on, and it leaves a lot less time for reading than usual. But that’s life, isn’t it? And I don’t mind being busy right now. It’s feeling very good. But I do hope that the second half of October will allow for more reading time!

I have three book reviews for you guys today: a book I liked, a book I loved, and a book I didn’t care for. The full gamut! Let’s discuss.

The Hand on the Wall by Maureen Johnson (★★★★☆)

The third book in Maureen Johnson’s Truly Devious series provides a sense of closure of everything that’s happened to the students at this elite academy in Vermont, and allows them to move forward with their lives. The majority of the novel takes place during a snowstorm, with a bunch of the students (including Stevie, our main character, and her friends) snowed in and just trying to figure out how to pass the time. Except Stevie uses this time to continue her detective ways, and she really wants to figure out the reason behind all the crazy things that have been happening to students at this academy. All in all, I thought this was a really great way to wrap up the series (although a fourth book in the series released this year, so I can still follow my favorite teenage detective, yay!) I think the author could have pared it down a bit (there was a lot going on and so many different storylines and characters to keep track of!), but I still really enjoyed reading this novel and I’m looking forward to what’s next for Stevie!

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus (★★★★★)

Oh man, how I loved this book! It is going to be extremely hard to pick an overall favorite book of the year because I have read so many excellent ones, and Lessons in Chemistry definitely falls into that category. This novel is about Elizabeth Zott, a chemist. Unfortunately, Elizabeth is trying to break into the chemistry field in the 1960s, a time when women were not welcome in scientific spaces. Instead, after a series of mishaps, she finds herself hosting a cooking show for housewives—but she decides to put her own spin on it, showing her audience just how much chemistry is involved in cooking and how you can utilize chemistry’s basic building blocks to make incredible food for your family and maybe change your life as well. This book is delightful in so many different ways, between Elizabeth herself, her highly intelligent dog Six Thirty, and the friends Elizabeth makes along the way. However, you should also know that there are some harrowing things Elizabeth goes through. After all, she’s working in a male-dominated industry in the 1960s, a time when rape, sexual harassment, and misogyny claims were not taken seriously. I knew that there were going to be some really hard things in this novel, but it felt really, really important to include them and really, really true to the experiences of women like Elizabeth. It’s not easy to read about, but it’s something that should be talked about more. And the least I can do, as a woman who has benefitted greatly from all of the women who came before me, is read their stories. (Yes, this is about a fictional chemist, but the difficulties she experienced are not.)  All in all, though, I really enjoyed this novel and could not get enough of the characters or the story. A new favorite!

Count Your Lucky Stars by Alexandria Bellefleur (★★☆☆☆)

I don’t know why I keep reading Alexandria Bellefleur’s books. I am sure she is a lovely person and I am so glad she is writing queer romances, but man oh man, her books are just so bland to me. These characters do nothing for me and I don’t even get excited for the characters to kiss or have sex or profess their love. There’s just always something missing for me, where it’s hard for me to believe in the romance. In this novel, Margot is reunited with her first love Olivia when she learns that Olivia is the wedding planner for the wedding where she is going to be the “Best Man.” Cue awkwardness! Even worse, Olivia suddenly discovers she needs a place to stay after a mishap at her apartment and, of course, why not just bunk with Margot for a few weeks? Sparks fly when they become roommates and the women are forced to deal with their past to move forward into the future. This novel requires suspending your belief again and again and again… and it all just felt forced and unrealistic. Near the end, I found myself skimming the book just so I could be finished with it. A rave review, eh?

What I’m Reading This Week

• Sparks Like Stars by Nadia Hashimi (audio) – I’m 5 hours into this audiobook (a little less than 50%) and I am loving it so, so much. It’s so good!
• A Mother’s Reckoning: Living in the Aftermath of Tragedy by Sue Klebold (print) – I just started this book, which has been on my Goodreads TBR since 2017. I’m giving myself permission to abandon it if I can’t handle the subject matter, but so far, I’m doing okay.
• The Romance Recipe by Ruby Barrett (e-book) – I just started this queer (F/F) romance, and so far, I really like it!. It has a very low Goodreads rating (3.68) and one of my trusted romance sources DNFed it, soooo I’m keeping my expectations low.

What are you reading?