December Reading Wrap Up
December reading… more like December listening haha. I didn’t read a single book — physically. But I did listen to 4 audiobooks, so that must count for something. I know I’m extreeeemely late to the December wrap up party, but let’s recap anyway!
Funny Story by Emily Henry
Book thoughts — In this house, we love a good Em Hen book. Funny Story was cute — I especially loved the way the book opened and closed, a nod to the title which was very appropriately named (it’s kind of a funny story). While I don’t think this book changed my life (they can’t all be Beach Read (5 stars)), I liked the storyline, I liked how the main characters developed, and I liked the humor and charm sprinkled throughout.
My rating — 4 stars. Super enjoyable!
The Inheritance Games by Lynn Barnes
Book thoughts — You ever feel like you must have read a different book than everyone else? Because that’s how I feel about The Inheritance Games. Overall, it was a quick, breezy read with lots of “riddles”, “games”, and “puzzles” to solve (quotes because were they really riddles, games, and puzzles, or just a watered down version?), but to me, it read a little too YA and I didn’t really connect with what the plot was trying to deliver. So it goes with reading, I’m glad I finally read it (it was sitting on my shelf for far too long), but in the end, I felt it underperformed according to my expectations and maybe that’s totally on me. I was looking for a vengeful family drama and a twisty fast-paced mystery, not just a teeny-bop version of Clue featuring four bland brothers whose personalities were so indistinguishable that I couldn’t even remember who was who at any point. I also don’t think I really “got” the ending, despite listening to the last chapters like three times (literally).
My rating — 3 stars. Rather underwhelming unfortunately. I’m not likely to read on in the series without extreme coaxing.
A God Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson
Book thoughts — I waited SO long for my Libby hold to come through, but when it did, I binged this book on audio! I felt the mystery was really well executed — a true whodunnit that left me guessing to the very end. Pip was such a fun main character to follow — gave me Nancy Drew/Harriet the Spy vibes all the way through (seriously, I LOVED Harriet the Spy as a kid — I still remember that old orange VHS tape logging a lot of hours in our VCR haha). If you like crime fiction, don’t mind reading YA (because Pip IS a teenager), and you’re looking for a book that’s going to suck you in and spit you out 100+ guesses later, I definitely recommend A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder. I had so much fun weeding through the suspect list alongside Pip and Ravi. There were many times I found myself at the edge of my seat, wondering what kind of twist was coming next.
My rating — 5 stars. Can’t wait to watch the Netflix adaptation. BTW — this book was so, so good on audio. If you’re an audiobook reader, the listening experience was 10/10.
The Husbands by Holly Gramazio
Book thoughts — Live footage of me scratching my head wondering WHAT the purpose of this book even was?? I feel so lost. Why was the attic magic? Why did we know nothing about our main character Lauren? What kind of rut was she stuck in that she was being dealt a line of mysterious husbands? Why did some of the husbands show up twice? Genuinely, I have so many questions that I need answered because I feel so let down by the direction this book went off in. What’s worse is that I loved the premise and was SO excited to read The Husbands for many, many months — the premise being that every time Lauren’s “husband” climbs up the ladder to the attic, a new one comes down. Entertaining concept, and a super neat and creative take on the groundhog’s day trope. I enjoyed the early chapters of Lauren swapping her husbands out, but over the course of the hundreds of pages in the book, it was just rinse and repeat, and that’s what lost me. By the end, I didn’t care if she traded her last husband, went back to her prior life, or lived happily ever after. I just wanted to be done.
My rating — 2 stars. If I were judging the book by its cover and synopsis, I’d be giving it 5 stars. However, in my opinion, the execution was weak, and the ending was very mid at best. I’m so sad.
That’s a wrap on what I read in August. My favorite book was A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, my least favorite was The Husbands. As always, much respect to the authors of each book. Whether I loved, liked, or disliked a book, it’s important to acknowledge that writing and publishing a book is an incredible feat in and of itself.
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Enjoy!
JB