What I've Been Reading Lately

Checking in with some good reads I've read lately...or a couple months ago...I'm not behind or anything...

Dead Cold by Louise Penny

The second book of the Gamache series and I quite enjoyed it. The plot itself was pretty quirky and bordered on highly unbelievable, but there is just something I find really comforting about this series. I know, I'm weird that I find detective fiction comforting, but there is something about recurring characters, a cozy village, and an intelligent man of integrity solving mysteries that just makes me feel like I'm sitting by a warm fire under a soft blanket.

The Last September by Nina de Garmont

This novel is the tale of a marriage told by a wife after her husband has been found dead. It reads like a physiological thriller in a lot of ways, and the writing is quite good. I don't know if I would have enjoyed it more if the characters themselves were more likeable or not, but it was definitely a better book than Gone Girl which is sorta in the same bent. If you like books that provide that secret window into a marriage then you'd probably enjoy this one.

Kitchens of the Great Midwest by J. Ryan Stradal

For a really well reviewed, and what seems to be a very well-liked recent novel, this just didn't hit the mark for me. I love food books, food novels, foodie lit, and since this novel is about the life of an up and coming female chef named Eva and the lives of those around her I thought it would be right up my alley as a sure fire hit. But each chapter is about a different character in her life and for some reason although each chapter was original, I felt like it didn't actually move the story of Eva herself along enough. I wanted more plot, less character sketches. But it wasn't terrible!

Four Seasons in Rome by Anthony Doerr

I think I've talked about this book before, but if you missed me talking about it: I REALLY LOVED THIS BOOK. A memoir of Doerr's life in Rome for a year with his young family, including twin baby boys, this book is probably one of the best books about Rome, parenthood, and writing that I've ever read. Doerr has a beautiful honesty, yet a complete talent for writing incredible sentences. It's short, but poignant. I also liked seeing his view of St. John Paul II's funeral, a neat perspective.

The Lake House by Kate Morton

If you've ever read a book by Kate Morton, let alone two books by Kate Morton, you know she has a formula. Now, it's obviously a really successful formula - jumping back and forth in time from a few characters perspectives, a family mystery being involved, neatly wrapped up ending. Now, I criticize this, but I also have to say I usually enjoy reading her. This book I think I liked almost as much as The Secret Keeper which I think is her best work. I think where Morton has the most talent is when she writes characters who are older. I feel she just has a great knack for bringing the older person's viewpoint into vivid life. She does that again here in this novel which is probably what I enjoyed the most about it.


Checking in with Modern Mrs Darcy and Quick Lit and Ashley with Five Faves!

---

follow along:

facebook ~ instagram ~ pinterest