Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by David Grann (★★★☆☆)
Audiobook • Libby • Nonfiction (True Crime) • 2017
Short synopsis: In the 1920s, the Osage Indian Nation were the richest people per capita in the world, thanks to a reserve of oil being found on their land. And then… members of the Osage tribe began to be killed off one by one. When the number reached 24 Osage killed, the newly created FBI stepped in and this became the first major homicide investigation they solved.
This book has been on my TBR shelf for a long time, and I finally listened to it on audio last week. I wasn’t sure what I was expecting from the novel. I think I was both expecting it to be a bit dry at times but also propulsive. And it turned out to be both of those things. The book was separated into three parts: one from the point of view of the Osage as members of their tribe are murdered, one from the point of view of the FBI as they tried to solve the case, and one from the point of view of a journalist looking into the case years later. Part 1 was so interesting because it really laid out in clear prose the way the Osage lived and how these murders affected every member of the tribe. Part 2 is when things started to feel a little dry and even clinical at times. It was interesting to learn how the FBI solved the crime but I felt like I needed a character bible to remember all of the characters and their relationships within the tribe. And part 3 was just rather boring to me. It was an important part of the story, but I think it could have been an epilogue, rather than multiple chapters of drawn-out story. All in all, an interesting story but not one I’m rushing out to recommend.
I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai (★★★★★)
Print • Owned (Book of the Month) • Fiction • 2023
Short synopsis: Bodie Kane is a successful film professor and podcaster, and when she’s invited to teach a course on podcasting at Granby School, the boarding school where she attended high school, she’s happy to say yes. What she doesn’t expect is to get drawn back into the case that rocked Granby School when she was there. Thalia Keith, Bodie’s roommate, was murdered in the spring of her senior year and while the former athletic trainer, Omar Evans, was eventually charged and is serving a life sentence for the murder, Bodie’s podcasting students aren’t sure he did it. And they want to make a podcast about it.
This book was so good! I listened to Rebecca Makkai’s interview on Sarah’s Bookshelves Live podcast right before I started this book, and it made the experience that much better. This book is not a thriller or even a true crime story… it’s really about so much more than that. It’s about violence against women, about the #MeToo movement, about racism and the justice system, about memory and the faulty way it can work, about trauma and our responses, about being a teenager and the ways we try to fit in with our peers… Makkai truly does delve into so many different topics in this book but for me, it all worked together seamlessly. It never felt like she was taking on too much, and that’s probably because she is such a talented storyteller. I felt vividly a part of this story and thought Makkai deftly handled the subject matter and all of the interweaving plotlines. The story centers around the death of a high school girl and violence against women is used as a narrative device throughout the book (in a super powerful way), so be aware of that going into it. I loved this book and it’s got an easy place on my favorites list.
The Wedding Crasher by Mia Sosa (★★★★☆)
E-Book • Libby • Contemporary Romance • 2022
Short synopsis: Solange and Dean met at a wedding. Dean’s wedding, where she was the one who spoke up to tell Dean not to marry the woman in front of him. It ended up being okay in the end, but now Dean needs a fake girlfriend for a week and he knows just the person who owes him a favor.
I enjoyed this book so much! I love a good fake-dating trope in romance, and this one turned out to be really fun. I loved Solange and Dean’s meet-cute where she disrupts his wedding; it was definitely a unique one! The journey each character takes—Dean, as he realizes what it will take to be partner at his law firm, and Solange, as she tries to decide whether to stay put in DC or move somewhere else—felt honest. It added tension to the story while also moving the plot along. I enjoyed the scenes between Solange and Dean a lot, they were such a great couple together even when they were fake-dating! There was true warmth and connection between them. All in all, a sweet romance that kept a smile on my face.
What are you reading?
I also gave Questions 5 stars and am glad I read it after hearing the author interview. It is hard not to draw parallels between this book and season 1 of Serial but I know the author doesn’t want to be compared to Serial. It was also kind of nostalgic for me since I went to HS in the 90s, and was also a total outcast. I just didn’t lean into it as hard as the protagonist did. She does tackle a lot but it all served the story. If I had to cut something, it’d be the Jerome storyline but that still serves the storyline.
I just started my May book club book – Vita Nostra. It’s a translated fantasty book that is supposed to have Harry Potter vibes. Fantasy is one of my least favorite genres so I went into this with some trepidation that I might not like it but so far it’s great!
I originally gave the book 4 stars but I just kept thinking about it and being so impressed with all she managed to fit into the story and had to give it 5 stars. I was bummed that Meredith and Kaytee on Currently Reading didn’t love it as much, but I think Meredith had a really good discussion about it. The Jerome storyline was probably the weakest part but it also propelled the storyline in an interesting way! I have no idea what I would remove.
Yep. I thought Killers of the Flower Moon was interesting and boring all at the same time. I think I gave it a slightly higher rating than you did, but not much. I thought keeping track of the characters was difficult to do reading it in print and I can’t imagine how much more difficult it was in an audiobook format.
I DNFed The Wedding Crasher. Imagine if someone in real life acted like Solange! I thought she was terrible, I thought the meet-cute was really rude and uncalled for, and I noped right out there. I wish I had liked it more.
Based on you and Lisa recommending I Have Some Questions for You, I put it on my hold list at the library. I’m #82 on the list, so we’ll see how long it is before I can get my hands on it.
I can definitely understand where you’re coming from on The Wedding Crasher. I think I can suspend my belief for romance more than some people, and in this case, that’s what I did. I could see where she was coming from, though. Imagine hearing a bride-to-be confessing her feelings for someone who was not the groom-to-be? It’s an interesting “what do you do?” scenario, for sure. I wouldn’t say anything, but I’m sure more outspoken people would be more apt to!
I’m interested to hear what you think of I Have Some Questions for You. Our tastes usually don’t align so I’m not sure it will work as well for you as it did for me, but we’ll see!
I read a lot in April (for me).
Some favourites (there were plenty of “misses” too):
– The Nothing Man. Couldn’t put it down!
– Crying in H Mart.
– How To Keep House While Drowning.
– What Alice Forgot.
– The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry.
– All The Light We Cannot See (just finished today on my lunchbreak)
I loved The Nothing Man! It was one of my favorite thrillers of 2022 and was a real hit with our book club. Such a unique concept!
I really liked What Alice Forgot and I’m one of the few people who loathed All the Light We Cannot See, ha. Everyone else loves it and I can understand why… it was just not the right book for me.
My library hold for I Have Some Questions for You just came in today! And it seems like it is very hot right now, so it makes me want to put my (slow to start) current read down and pick it up. But… I got a TON of other books, so maybe I will pick up another romance novel since my last foray into that genre was so successful.
Ooh, I am so excited for you to read I Have Some Questions for You! I’ll be interested in hearing your thoughts about it.
I feel like I need to read the second book to get over the horrible one I read about a podcaster solving a crime (they’re not the same book, but the one I read was so bad, LOL).
I am reading a memoir, Good for a Girl.
What was the book that was so bad?! I want to know!
It was called Something Bad Wrong. It was horrible. Ha.
What a good mix of books!
I loved The Great Believers so much that I’m almost afraid to read anything else by Rebecca Makkai.
I’m working my way through Pride and Protest right now, along with a middle grade graphic novel The Golden Hour which my 11 year old recommended. Listening to Diary of a Part Time Indian which by turns makes me laugh out loud in the car and catch my breath with sadness.
The Great Believers was soooo good. This book is entirely different, which I think helped me not try to compare it too much to that book. But she is such a talented writer, no matter what!
OK, my entire family read Killers of the Flower Moon and… I was not tempted at all. They LOVED it. Loved it. I’m still on the fence, reading your review. Not committing, for sure. But maybe if it falls into my lap I’ll give it a go? We’ll see…
I’ve added I Have Some Questions for You to my list – thank you! 🙂
I feel like so many people rave about Killers of the Flower Moon and it just did not land for me in the same way. Maybe if I had read a physical copy and not done the audio, I would have enjoyed it more? Not sure!