Reading Thread/Goals for 2025

[Lumpy1106]

4/20, Marie Benedict, "The Only Woman in the Room". 4/5 stars. The true story of Hedy Lamarr. She married Fredrich Mandl, who made his fortune selling arms to the Nazis among others. Hedy had first-hand knowledge of actions that she believed could have been used to save lives had she acted on this knowledge. She later invented a means of controlling torpedoes, but the Navy refused to use it. A very interesting life, the book was OK.

 

[cayennews]

#7 Criminal by Karin Slaughter. Part of the Will Trent series. Very hard to put down.

 

[bobbiwoz]

15/50
“In the Darkest Hour” by Anna Carlisle, the third book in the series. They are light reading. 4/5

 

[RangerPooh]

3/15 Blue Lake Mysteries #6: Murder on the Ballot. By Hadley Knox

 

[WilliamNels]

Sounds like a great goal! I’m aiming for 20 books this year—trying to be realistic with my schedule but still push myself to read more. Any standout recommendations from your 2024 reads?

 

[DisneyHardin]

3/32 - Bookshop by the Bay - Pamela Kelley - A cute, but super predictable book about 2 ladies who purchase a small town bookstore together.

 

[Kirby]

#7 - Whistlin' Dixie in a Nor'Easter by Lisa Patton
Genre - General Fiction
This is the author's first book. It's also the first book in a trilogy. It's okay. I haven't decided yet if I will read the next book.

#8 - Scythe by Neal Shusterman
Genre - Young Adult Dystopian
This is book one of four books in the Arc of a Scythe series. It is okay, I have chosen not to continue on in the series.

 

[wvjules]

#5 A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas - This is book #2 in the A Court of Thorns and Roses series. I won't post book details due to potential spoilers. 656 pages

#6 A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas - This is book #3 in the A Court of Thorns and Roses series. I won't post book details due to potential spoilers. 736 pages.

I could not put books 2 and 3 of this series down. They are a bit long so they took a little more time to read but every spare minute I had went to reading these books. .

I now have book 4. It came earlier than expected so as soon as I finish the last few chapters of A Court of Wings and Ruin I will immediately start A Court of Frost and Starlight as my 7th book of the year. It is short at only 272 pages so it seems like it's more of a filler before the final book. I'm already getting sad that I'm almost done with the series.

 

[RangerPooh]

4/15 Blue Lake Mysteries #7: Murder Matinee. By Hadley Knox

 

[GsR80]

5/15 The Testaments

 

[Wood Nymph]

7/30 - The Frozen River: a novel - by Ariel Lawhon

"A gripping historical mystery based on the real-life diary entries of Martha Ballard, an 18th-century midwife who defied the legal system and wrote herself into American history. Maine, 1789: When the Kennebec River freezes, entombing a man in the ice, Martha Ballard is summoned to examine the body and determine cause of death. As a midwife and healer, she is privy to much of what goes on behind closed doors in Hallowell. Her diary is a record of every birth and death, crime and debacle that unfolds in the close-knit community. Months earlier, Martha documented the details of an alleged rape committed by two of the town's most respected gentlemen--one of whom has now been found dead in the ice. But when a local physician undermines her conclusion, declaring the death to be an accident, Martha is forced to investigate the shocking murder on her own. Over the course of one winter, as the trial nears, and whispers and prejudices mount, Martha doggedly pursues the truth. Her diary soon lands at the center of the scandal, implicating those she loves, and compelling Martha to decide where her own loyalties lie." --

It was very interesting to read about that period, especially from the judicial side. Midwives were required to give testimony in court when an unmarried woman gave birth. There was a belief at that time that a woman would reveal who the father was when she was in labor. It was an interesting story with all kinds of fictional events mixed in. This requirement put her in the center of several different crimes, since she was also considered a medical professional, a rarity for a woman at that time.

I enjoyed the book. I thought the author did a good job and I have taken out another book by her.

 

[cayennews]

#8 Unseen by Karin Slaughter. Another book that is part of her Will Trent series. A little confusing because it jumped around to different days, but it was hard to put down as usual.

 

[melk]

7/30 The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin

A widowed bookstore owner receives an unexpected package and his entire life is changed.

Loved it.

 

[bobbiwoz]

16/59
The Milford bedside companion“ by Jan Carone.

This was a delightful reminder of the good times that I had reading all of these books. Five out of five.

 

[Simba's Mom]

16/59
The Milford bedside companion“ by Jan Carone.

This was a delightful reminder of the good times that I had reading all of these books. Five out of five.

Glad to see you back to posting!

 

[Simba's Mom]

#10-"A Place to Hide", Ronald Balson, 5 Stars.
Informative, well-researched, thought-provoking. A historical fiction about WWII
book I'll remember for a long time.

 

[MGMmjl]

8/32 - The Boyfriend by Freida McFadden

Description:
"Sydney Shaw, like every single woman in New York, has terrible luck with dating. She’s seen it all: men who lie in their dating profile, men who stick her with the dinner bill, and worst of all, men who can't shut up about their mothers. But finally, she hits the jackpot.

Her new boyfriend is utterly perfect. He's charming, handsome, and works as a doctor at a local hospital. Sydney is swept off her feet.

Then the brutal murder of a young woman―the latest in a string of deaths across the coast―confounds police. The primary suspect? A mystery man who dates his victims before he kills them.

Sydney should feel safe. After all, she is dating the guy of her dreams. But she can’t shake her own suspicions that the perfect man may not be as perfect as he seems. Because someone is watching her every move, and if she doesn’t get to the truth, she’ll be the killer’s next victim..."

This book was recommended on this thread. I really enjoyed it!

 

[wvjules]

#7 A Court of Frost and Starlight by Sarah J. Maas - This is book #4 in the A Court of Thorns and Roses series. I won't post book details due to potential spoilers.

This one was just meh to me. It very much felt like a filler. Not much in the way of advancing story lines or adding anything substantial to the series. I probably could have skipped it and moved on to book 5 without missing much of anything.

I started book 5 last night. I do enjoy this series but I will be glad to be done with it so I can read other books.

Winter Garden will be my next read after this is done.

 

[melk]

8/30 More or Less Maddy by Lisa Genova

Novel about a freshman at NYU whose life spirals out of control, leading to her diagnosis of bipolar disorder.

I believe this was probably a realistic portrayal of a person suffering from bipolar disorder. Kind of painful and depressing to read so it wasn’t one of my favorites by this author.

9/30 The Crash by Frieda McFadden

A pregnant woman crashes her car in a Maine snowstorm but is rescued by a passerby. He takes her to his home where his wife takes care of her but then becomes oddly obsessed with her and her baby.

I listened to this one and while it started out really well I thought it just got too long and convoluted. It reminded me of Misery but was not as good.

 

[cayennews]

#9 We'll Always Have Christmas by Jenny Hale. Very light and fluffy. Unrealistic love story.