Not a Happy Family by Shari Lapena (★★★★☆)
Audiobook • Library • Thriller • 2021
Short synopsis: The Tuesday after Easter, the Mertons are found brutally murdered in their home. Their three adult children are devastated. Or are they? They all stand to inherit millions, and none of them were particularly close to their parents. Did one of them snap?
This was a decent thriller with lots of interesting twists and turns. I love the trope of wealthy people behaving badly, and this one had it in droves. There were the parents who weren’t particularly nice to their children, and their children who had every reason to hate their parents. I enjoyed getting to know the three children and their significant others. I thought Lapena did a great job at developing well-rounded characters who all had motive to kill. I’ll admit that my mind kept going back and forth on who I thought did it! I don’t think the ending was quite as satisfying as I would have hoped, but it made sense. Pick this one up if you need a quick, easy thriller to speed through!
How You Get the Girl by Anita Kelly (★★★☆☆)
Print • Owned (Amazon) • Contemporary Sapphic Romance • 2024
Short synopsis: Julie Parker is in her first year as head coach of a high school women’s basketball team, when she discovers that her childhood role model NCAA basketball star Elle Cochrane is the foster parent for one of her athletes. When Julie persuades Elle to become her assistant coach, the two of them grow closer.
I am a diehard Anita Kelly fan and purchased this book almost as soon as I heard it was published. I cracked it open, confident that I was going to have another five-star read on my hands. When the book began, I continued to feel that way. I loved Julie and Elle’s rapport and I loved getting to see my favorite characters from Kelly’s other books. But as the book progressed, I found myself a little bored. I never really felt the chemistry between Julie and Elle, and I never truly felt connected to Elle. What I liked about this novel was the exploration of Julie’s sexuality. She’s thirty and has yet to have any sort of romantic relationship. She knows that she likes women but wonders if she’s asexual. Part of this novel involves Julie exploring her sexuality with Elle—someone who has more experience and is a safe person to be with. And while those scenes were crucial to the growth of Julie and Elle’s relationship, I found myself skimming them more often than not to get to the next scene. There just wasn’t anything there for me to grasp onto and enjoy, and I was just a little weary of the slow-burn aspect of their romance. All in all, this was a disappointment from a romance author I normally adore.
A Murder Is Announced by Agatha Christie (★★★★☆)
Print • Owned (Amazon) • Mystery • 1950
Short synopsis: The villagers of Chipping Cleghorn, including Jane Marple who is staying nearby, are agog with curiosity over an advertisement in the local gazette which reads: ‘A murder is announced and will take place on Friday October 29th, at Little Paddocks at 6.30 p.m.’ Unable to resist the mysterious invitation, a crowd gathers at Little Paddocks at the appointed time when, without warning, the lights go out and a shot is fired…
This was my first Miss Marple mystery and while I think I prefer Hercule Poirot (maybe because he reminds me of my beloved Armand Gamache!) to Marple, this was a very enjoyable mystery. One of things I really need to start doing when I start these mysteries is keep a character bible. So many characters get introduced at the beginning (in this book and the other two Poirot books I read!) and it’s hard to keep track of who’s who. Eventually, I settled into the story and when the murderer is finally announced, it was so completely different than anything I could have thought of! It was brilliant. This book shows why Agatha Christie stands at the top of the mystery genre. She gives you little nuggets of information that you could use to solve the mystery but you don’t know how important those nuggets are until it’s all revealed at the end.
What are you reading?
I thought I had read that first book but I think it must be the Couple Next Door, because I just checked my spreadsheet. I just finished reading Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone. You know what, I just don’t really enjoy murder mysteries, although it was cleverly written. I find them way too confusing and then, because I’m confused, I get bored. Ah well. I have some good books ready to start (I hope they are good, I’ve been looking forward to them).
I read and really liked The Couple Next Door. Lots of interesting twists and turns with that one!
I totally understand what you mean about not knowing what’s going on and getting bored – it’s a good thing to know about yourself as a reader! Mysteries – not your genre!
The first book sounds intriguing but I am taking a bit of a break from thrillers. They haven’t been working for me lately. I can’t quite say why but have decided to steer away from them unless I am super intrigued by them – so I do plan to read “Listen for the Lie” which is something Jamie greenlights and has a podcast aspect to the plotline which sounds interesting.
I just finished “The Perfectionist’s Guide to Losing Control” which was 3 stars/just ok. There were aspects I liked but it felt long and I didn’t love the structure of the book. Now I am reading ‘Real Americans’ which is on a lot of summer reading guides and I am LOVING it. It’s 600+ pages but I am flying through it because I can’t put it down.
I’m listening to Listen to the Lie right now, and I am RIVETED. It’s so good! It’s really exceptional on audiobook with the podcast aspect. I just want to keep listening to it!
I’m glad to hear your review of Real Americans. That was a BOTM selection in May, but I wasn’t sure how I would feel about it.
Ooh! I know I’ve read A Murder is Announced, but it was years ago and I don’t remember it. I’m going to see if I can get it from the library- I’m probably due for a re-read. I agree, I like the Hercule Poirot books best, but there are some great Miss Marples.
I hope you’re able to get it from your library! It was a very satisfying mystery for sure.
Not a Happy Family sounds like just my vibe for a thriller. I also love the rich people behaving badly trope.
Bummer about How You Get the Girl! I am not here for slow burn romance lately. LOL.
I am reading The Reality of Everything and listening to Iron Flame.
I do not have the patience for slow burn romance! Give me the goods SOONER thank you very much.
You may enjoy Not a Happy Family! It’s a standard thriller, but I enjoyed it a lot.
I once read an essay where the author said the brilliant thing about Agatha Christie mysteries is that both the murder and the motive is so perfectly specific to the murderer, which I find is really true. It’s almost as if she writes them backwards.
I’m now reading Frozen River, which is set in Maine, where we will be going in a few weeks. I always find it fun to read a book that corresponds to our travels.
She really is the queen of the genre! I think I may have to continue this journey of working my way through her books after 2024 is over!
You really make me want to dive into all the Agatha Christie novels too. It sounds so fun. And a good mystery is not something I wouldn’t enjoy. I bet they are also not very bloody like some you have today.
I am sorry your favorite author was able to deliver.
Not bloody or gory at all! I wouldn’t classify them as a cozy mystery, but they definitely feel a little more wholesome than the typical thriller novel.