Please Note:  I received an advance audiobook copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.  This did not influence the opinions in my review in any way.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

With her acclaimed New York Times bestseller (and Reese's Book Club pick) Fair Play, Eve Rodsky began a national conversation about greater equality on the home front. But she soon realized that even when the domestic workload becomes more balanced, people still report something missing in their lives--that is, unless they create and prioritize time for activities that not only fill their calendars but also unleash their creativity.

Rodsky calls this vital time Unicorn Space--the active and open pursuit of creative self-expression in any form that makes you uniquely YOU. To help readers embrace all the unlikely, surprising, and delightful places where their own Unicorn Space may be found, she speaks with trail blazers, thought leaders, academics, and countless real people who have discovered theirs everywhere--from activism to artistic endeavors to second careers.

Rodsky reveals what researchers already know: Creativity is not optional. It's essential. Though most of us do need to remind ourselves how (and where) to find it. With her trademark mix of research based, how-to advice and big-picture inspirational thinking, Rodsky shows you a clear path to reclaim your permission to have fun, manifest your own Unicorn Space in an already too-busy life, and unleash your special gifts and undiscovered talents into the world.

Review:

I have not read the author's previous book on household inequity, Fair Play, It had to do with how much more of the domestic work women often do at home than their partners.  I think this is an important topic, as we all can see by how women were much more affected by the COVID pandemic than their male partners.  Find Your Unicorn Space Eve Rodsky's latest book, is about finding time to pursue your interests.  She makes a good case for why this is important and not a luxury.  I appreciated her practical tips for having conversations with one's partner in order to get free time to do this.  She also wrote about how we can identify what our passions are.  This may seem unnecessary, but as many people put their needs last after their kids, this was actually really useful.

What I didn't appreciate was the author's assumptions that everyone reading this book is a heterosexual woman with a male partner, who has kids.  This really limited the appeal of the book for me. She also seems to scold people who say they don't have extra time in the day.  She makes the case that you can always find time for these pursuits.  But, if someone is struggling financially, in poor health, or working over 40 hours a week, they easily may not have time for anything other than sleep. There are also cultural challenges that some people may face that make doing creative things very difficult.    

What I Liked:

I did like that the book shows how people need to bee creative.  Much as we think this is a luxury, we should realize that it is necessary for a fulfilling life to finds ways to be creative.  While some are lucky enough to combine their passion with something that pays, most of us do not have that.  By finding creative outlets, whether it be cooking wonderful meals for our families, or studying a language, we will have more satisfying lives.  

The author does a good job of describing the differences between seeking happiness, and seeking fulfillment in life.  While happiness is an emotion that comes and goes, fulfillment is deeper and longer lasting.  I really appreciated these distinctions.  Too often, we are told we need to be happy, and if we're not, something is wrong with our lives.  But, happiness comes in waves.  Just because one isn't happy at every given moment  doesn't mean their life is on the wrong track. 

The book also had practical tips for having constructive conversations with your partner about what both of you need.  Getting time to pursue your interests is a two-way street.  If your partner is taking time to work on their interests, you need to get equal time.  The author points out though, that these conversations can be emotionally charged if not handled carefully, and with mutual respect.  

What I Didn't Like:

One of my pet peeves is when someone (like a celebrity) moans about how hard it is to be a mother, only to learn that they employ a cook, a housekeeper, and a nanny!  Oh cry me a river.  They do not have it hard.  This book is like that.  There are many examples that the author uses of having to negotiate with her husband about him taking on more of the household chores and childcare so she can have her creative time.  But, from the acknowledgement at the end of the book, she does employ a nanny.  Leaving out this key detail makes her lose some credibility with me, as a reader.  

The author does concede that every study she sites on the workload inequities that women face are based on cis gender, heterosexual couples.  Maybe there haven't been any studies done with other types of households.  But this narrows the audience for this book.  Single parents, gay couples, etc. are completely shut out.

She also (very briefly) acknowledges that it's more challenging to be creative when you're having trouble making ends meet.  But then she gives examples of women who are able to do this, even though they a struggling financially.  Way to put pressure on women, Eve!  These examples, in my opinion, are themselves, unicorns.

Rating:  ⭐⭐⭐

Release Date:  December 28, 2021

Author:  Eve Rodsky

Genre:  Self-Help

Audio Publisher:  Penguin Random House Audio

Narrator:  Eve Rodsky

Audiobook Length:  8 hours, 52 minutes

Print Publisher:  G.P. Putman's Sons

Print Length:  336 pages

Source:  Penguin Random House Audio

Review Format: Audiobook 

Recommendation:  While this book does offer good tips to create time for creativity, it also reeks of privilege.  I think this would be a good library read.

Please Note:  I received an advance audio copy of this book from Libro.fm (and a print version from NetGalley) in exchange for an honest review.  This did not influence the opinions in my review in any way.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

Thirteen-year-old Anna, an orphan, lives inside the formidable walls of Constantinople in a house of women who make their living embroidering the robes of priests. Restless, insatiably curious, Anna learns to read, and in this ancient city, famous for its libraries, she finds a book, the story of Aethon, who longs to be turned into a bird so that he can fly to a utopian paradise in the sky. This she reads to her ailing sister as the walls of the only place she has known are bombarded in the great siege of Constantinople. Outside the walls is Omeir, a village boy, miles from home, conscripted with his beloved oxen into the invading army. His path and Anna’s will cross.

Five hundred years later, in a library in Idaho, octogenarian Zeno, who learned Greek as a prisoner of war, rehearses five children in a play adaptation of Aethon’s story, preserved against all odds through centuries. Tucked among the library shelves is a bomb, planted by a troubled, idealistic teenager, Seymour. This is another siege. And in a not-so-distant future, on the interstellar ship Argos, Konstance is alone in a vault, copying on scraps of sacking the story of Aethon, told to her by her father. She has never set foot on our planet.

Review:

All The Light We Cannot See, by Anthony Doerr, is one of my favorite books of recent years.  So when I heard the author had finally written another book, I was eager to get my hands on it.  I was not disappointed.  This book is a slow burn.  There are really four stories going on here.  Each storyline is completely different from the others.  They take place at different times, and places, and are filled with vibrant characters.  You know that they are related somehow, but it takes reading most of the book to understand how all the pieces fit together.  I did find it frustrating, at first, because I couldn't understand the structure of the novel, as it does jump around quite a bit.  But I stuck with it and was rewarded with a rich tapestry of people, eras, and stories that are expertly woven together by the author.  

I think it's worth listening to the audio version over the print version, as it has wonderful production values, and clues that I picked up that I know I would have missed if I had only read the words on the page.

This is a truly special book.

What I Liked:

Audiobook Narration:

The book is narrated by Marin Ireland who does a wonderful job with three of the four stories.  She inhibits such a variety of characters from a fifteenth century nun to a sullen modern-day teenage boy.  With each person, she finds just the right voice to fit the character.

Cloud Cuckoo Land (in the book) is presented as a story from ancient times that one of the characters in another story has translated.  Simon Jones is an inspired choice to narrate this fantastical story within the story.  This is the actor who was the original Arthur Dent of BBC Radio's version of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and he brings the same sense of wonder and awe into this story.  Also, as his style is completely different from Marin Ireland's, it is an easy reminder for the reader that these sections in the book are a fable, and not actually happening.

Characters:

There are so many characters to love in this novel, but Zeno, the translator, is my favorite.  We meet Zeno as an old man.  The novel opens in 2020, as Zeno assists a group of fifth graders in putting on a play at the local Idaho library.  The play is, of course, Cloud Cuckoo Land.  As the story unfolds, we learn about Zeno's life as a young immigrant to America, to a POW in the Korean War, to his finding his life's work, translating Cloud Cuckoo Land from ancient Greek.

Zeno has had quite a life, but he has also squandered many opportunities for happiness.  As a man learning he is gay in nineteen-fifties America, Zeno has lived with fear all his life.  He is constantly trying to find a way to pass as straight.  When he meets the love of his life in the POW camp, he can't really bring himself to show his feelings.  But all is not lost for Zeno.  Through Rex, the man he loves, he develops a love of ancient Greek, and for translating.  This becomes his life's work.

I also loved Constance, another character who lives on a space ship sometime in the future.  She was born on the ship, and later learns that the journey she is on will take hundreds of years.  She will never live to see the final destination.  While the ship is filled with all the knowledge of the Earth, will it be enough?  If it isn't, how can she find a way to accept this?

I thought Constance (who we see from about age nine through about age fourteen in the story) shows a tremendous range of feelings and maturity.  She is faced with the fact that her life is but a stepping stone for future generations.  But isn't that what all our lives are, really?

Themes:

The themes of this book concern the enormity of time and how we confront that in each of our lives.  The author does this through the vehicle of a book, Cloud Cuckoo Land, that moves across all the stories over hundreds (and thousands) of years. Cloud Cuckoo Land is a story of a journey, rather like Homer's, The Odyssey.  It shows a rather silly man dreaming of a better life, if he could just become a majestic bird.  The story is filled with magic, and is diverting for the other characters in the other stories who read it.  Each person who encounters Cloud Cuckoo Land, comes to cherish it, and fights to preserve it.  But can a book, made of paper and ink, survive the ravages of time?  Won't all material things disintegrate over the centuries?  

For the characters, how do they find meaning when, eventually, everyone is forgotten?  What is important to the characters (family, position, wealth) will not continue on after they die.  Can anything last over time?  I think the author sees stories, and the task of preserving them, as a means to immortalize those who lived before us, and to continue the journey for those who will come after us.

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Rating:  ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Release Date:  September 28th, 2021

Author:  Anthony Doerr

Genre:  Literary Fiction

Print Publisher:  Scribner

Page Length:  640 Pages

Audio Publisher:  Simon & Schuster Audio

Audio Length:  14 Hours, 51 Minutes

Narrators:  Marin Ireland & Simon Jones

Format: Audio Book (and print)

Source:  Libro.fm, and Netgalley

Recommendation:  This is a complex book that may try your patience at first.  But stick with it.  All the stories come together to create a masterful novel.  I highly recommend this book.

Please Note:  I received an advance audio copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.  This did not influence the opinions in my review in any way.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

In tiny Merinac, Kansas, Chicken Mimi's and Chicken Frannie's have spent a century vying to serve up the best fried chicken in the state--and the legendary feud between their respective owners, the Moores and the Pogociellos, has lasted just as long. No one feels the impact more than thirty-five-year-old widow Amanda Moore, who grew up working for her mom at Mimi's before scandalously marrying Frank Pogociello and changing sides to work at Frannie's. Tired of being caught in the middle, Amanda sends an SOS to Food Wars, the reality TV restaurant competition that promises $100,000 to the winner. But in doing so, she launches both families out of the frying pan and directly into the fire. . .

The last thing Brooklyn-based organizational guru Mae Moore, Amanda's sister, wants is to go home to Kansas. But when her career implodes, Food Wars becomes her chance to step back into the limelight. Mae is certain she can make the fading Mimi's look good--even if that pits her against Amanda and Frannie's. With a greedy producer stoking the flames, their friendly rivalry quickly turns into a game of chicken. Yet when family secrets become public knowledge, the sisters must choose: Will they fight with each other, or for their heritage?

Review:

I first heard about this book from my book club.  Several people loved it.  So when I was offered an advance audiobook copy from Penguin Random House Audio, I was eager to listen to it.  The book had been described to me as hilarious, full of family shenanigans, and a cutthroat food competition.  However, I found nothing funny about this book.  This was a serious family saga, with the added element of how manipulative reality television can be.  I think I would have enjoyed this book more if the book had been marketed differently.  While the narration was excellent, I had a hard time empathizing with the main characters.  I do feel this is a well-written book, but it was hardly amusing.

What I Liked:

Narration:

The narrators, Xe Sands and Cassandra Campbell, did a wonderful job of portraying the two sisters, Mae, and Amanda.  Xe Sands has just the right voice for Mae, a  career-driven New York transplant.  Cassandra Campbell, shows just how naive Amanda was.  I particularly enjoyed how Campbell voiced the presenter of Food Wars, the cynical, two-faced Sabrina.  That character could go from sweet and concerned to conniving in a heartbeat.   This illusion for television, and the breaking of it, is central to the plot of the book.

Behind The Scenes of Reality Television:

Mae's highest ambition is to become a reality show host like super organizer, Marie Kondo.  The book gives us a behind the scenes look at these type of shows.  One could tell that the author used shows such as Restaurant Impossible, Cake Wars, and Hoarders, as inspiration.  But while it seems like everything is unscripted, the book shows how the producers of these shows set up conflict, and then use video footage to create a narrative with villains and heroes.  While I would like to think that the tactics used by the producers in the book are an exaggeration, I have a feeling they're not.

Hoarding:

I did like how the book approached the topic of hoarding. Mae and Amanda's mother, Barbara, is a hoarder, an open secret in their small town, but not something they want advertised to the world on television.   I could really identify with some of the guilt and embarrassment as a child of a hoarder.  I appreciate that the book explores the psychology of why people hoard things.  Hoarding is a sign of deep problems.  Blaming the family of the hoarder isn't helpful.  And just cleaning up the mess will not solve what's wrong.  People who hoard need empathy, love, support, and counseling to get to the root of the issue.

What I Was Mixed About:

Characters:

I really had a problem with Mae and Amanda.  Yes, they both had childhood trauma that shaped their choices as adults.  But they were incredibly mean to each other.  Mae is constantly judging Amanda for staying in their small hometown.  She was all too eager to underestimate her sister's talents.  Amanda never misses up a chance to point out Amanda's shortcomings to others.  Considering how secretive they each were about their mother's issues, it was surprising that Amanda was so eager to wave around all the dirty laundry.  The author explained it away as Amanda not understanding how the producers of Food Wars would use Amanda's comments.  But I didn't find that plausible.  

Mae was also generally awful to everyone.  She constantly makes important decisions about her family without consulting her husband.  When Mae makes the decision to take her kids hundreds of miles away to hustle her way to be featured on Food Wars, she shouldn't have been surprised that her husband, Jay was upset.  She continually looked for ways to market herself (and her family) on social media in order to further her career.  I found her sudden interest in the welfare of her mother to be a giant leap.

Rating:  ⭐⭐⭐

Release Date:  December 1st, 2020

Author:  K.J. Dell'Antonia

Genre:  Literary Fiction

Audio Publisher:  Penguin Random House Audio

Narrators: Xe Sands, Cassandra Campbell

Audio Length:  12 hours, 22 minutes

Print Publisher: G.P. Putman's Sons

Print Length:  352 Pages

Source:  Penguin Random House Audio

Format: Audiobook

Recommendation:  

Synopsis (From Goodreads):

The Jazz Age is in full swing, but Casiopea Tun is too busy cleaning the floors of her wealthy grandfather’s house to listen to any fast tunes. Nevertheless, she dreams of a life far from her dusty small town in southern Mexico. A life she can call her own.

Yet this new life seems as distant as the stars, until the day she finds a curious wooden box in her grandfather’s room. She opens it—and accidentally frees the spirit of the Mayan god of death, who requests her help in recovering his throne from his treacherous brother. Failure will mean Casiopea’s demise, but success could make her dreams come true.

In the company of the strangely alluring god and armed with her wits, Casiopea begins an adventure that will take her on a cross-country odyssey from the jungles of Yucatán to the bright lights of Mexico City—and deep into the darkness of the Mayan underworld.

Review:

I've always loved the Percy Jackson series by author Rick Riordan.  He found a way to bring the legends of Greek, and then Roman, mythology to life in a modern context.  One of the reasons this series was so wildly popular was because Greek and Roman myths have been a cornerstone of Western culture.  But there are plenty of cultures that also have legends of gods and mythical creatures.  So I was very excited to read Gods of Jade and Shadow, by Silvia Moreno-Garcia.  It is structured much like Percy Jackson, where a character goes on a quest and meets various creatures out of mythology.  In this case, the culture was of Mexico.  With detailed world-building, a colorful cast of characters, and a surprising story, this was a wonderful book.

What I Liked:

World-Building:

It was deeply interesting to learn about the many different creatures in Mexican mythology.  As Casiopea searches for the missing pieces of the Mayan god of death, she meets gods and creatures of various abilities.  Each of them tell a part of a larger tale of Mexican mythology. 

This story also takes place in the 1920's.  There are lots of descriptions of all the beautiful clothing, lavish nightlife, and Jazz music of Mexico City.  For Casiopea, this must have been dazzling.

Characters:

Casiopea is almost a Cinderella-like character.  With her father dead, she and her mother must move in with her terrible grandfather and relatives in a small, rural town.  Her mother's family treat her like a servant, plus her cousin, Martin, seems to take extra pleasure in bullying her.  She has no future.  When she accidentally sets the Mayan god of death free, she jumps at the chance to leave her town.  I loved Casiopea's adventurous spirit, and kindness despite how cruel the world treats her.

Martin, her seemingly sadistic cousin, is complicated.  While he is a complete bully and misogynist, he is also dependent on his grandfather, which builds resentment and anger in her cousin.  I liked that the author tried to create a fully-formed character, and not just a caricature of a bad guy.

Story:

While the first part of novel is a quest to find the missing parts of the Mayan god, the second part pits Casiopea against her cousin, Martin.  They both must travel the dark road to reach a mythical city.  This was a really fun part of the book where we see the characters tested in a variety of ways.  Both Casiopea and Martin are forced to face their own shortcomings and asked them to make choices that aren't always in their best interests.

What I Was Mixed About: 

Narrator:

I wasn't very impressed with the narration by Yetta Gottsman.  I think it's because I felt like she just read it, and didn't really act it out.  Sometimes it was difficult to distinguish which character was speaking.  Perhaps I'm spoiled, but the joy of audiobooks is hearing them acted out.  So I think some of the emotional punch was missing in this audiobook.

Rating: 

Release Date:  July 23rd, 2019

Author:  Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Genre:  YA Fantasy

Audio Publisher:  Random House Audio

Narrator:  Yetta Gottesman

Audio Length:   11 Hours, 4 Minutes

Print Publisher:  Del Rey

Page Length:  338 Pages

Source:  Public Library

Format:  Audiobook

Recommendation:  A Mexican novel of mythology reminiscent of Percy Jackson.  Full of wonderful world-building and an exciting story. 

Please Note:  I received an advance audio copy of this novel from Libro.fm, in exchange for an audio review.  This did not influence the opinions in my review in any way.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

A highly imaginative and original horror-comedy centered around a cursed New England boarding school for girls—a wickedly whimsical celebration of the art of storytelling, sapphic love, and the rebellious female spirit.

Our story begins in 1902, at The Brookhants School for Girls. Flo and Clara, two impressionable students, are obsessed with each other and with a daring young writer named Mary MacLane, the author of a scandalous bestselling memoir. To show their devotion to Mary, the girls establish their own private club and call it The Plain Bad Heroine Society. They meet in secret in a nearby apple orchard, the setting of their wildest happiness and, ultimately, of their macabre deaths. This is where their bodies are later discovered with a copy of Mary’s book splayed beside them, the victims of a swarm of stinging, angry yellow jackets. Less than five years later, The Brookhants School for Girls closes its doors forever—but not before three more people mysteriously die on the property, each in a most troubling way.

Over a century later, the now abandoned and crumbling Brookhants is back in the news when wunderkind writer, Merritt Emmons, publishes a breakout book celebrating the queer, feminist history surrounding the “haunted and cursed” Gilded-Age institution. Her bestselling book inspires a controversial horror film adaptation starring celebrity actor and lesbian it girl Harper Harper playing the ill-fated heroine Flo, opposite B-list actress and former child star Audrey Wells as Clara. But as Brookhants opens its gates once again, and our three modern heroines arrive on set to begin filming, past and present become grimly entangled—or perhaps just grimly exploited—and soon it’s impossible to tell where the curse leaves off and Hollywood begins.

A story within a story within a story and featuring black-and-white period illustrations, Plain Bad Heroines is a devilishly haunting, modern masterwork of metafiction that manages to combine the ghostly sensibility of Sarah Waters with the dark imagin:ation of Marisha Pessl and the sharp humor and incisive social commentary of Curtis Sittenfeld into one laugh-out-loud funny, spellbinding, and wonderfully luxuriant read. 

Review:

Plain Bad Heroines is a story with dual timelines. One story takes place in the early nineteen hundreds at a girls boarding school in New England, while the other is set in modern-day Hollywood.  With it's story within a story format, the book is a look at female romantic relationships in both times.  It's also a fun behind the scenes look at the making of a big budget movie, with all the power plays, and shenanigans that go along with it.  I enjoyed both stories, and found this to be a highly entertaining audiobook.

What I Liked:

Narration:

I was very impressed with the narration by Xe Sands.  She perfectly created both the cadence of New England society women and the cockiness of Hollywood players.  I particularly liked how she conveyed the longing between Libbie and Alex.  At a time when lesbians could go to jail for showing their affections for other women, Sand's voice got across all the secrecy, and fear, of these characters.

Story Within a Story:

There were two parallel stories in this book.  The story of two female lovers who are running an all girls school in Rhode Island in the early nineteen hundreds, and a modern story about the making of a film based on the girls school.  This was a fun behind the scenes look at the making of a movie, that contrasts with (and sometimes mirrors) the evolution of the female relationships at the girls school.

Characters:

My favorite character was Harper Harper, the modern-day movie star who will be the centerpiece of the movie about Brookhanst.  The tough, lesbian actress who always knew how to turn on her movie star charm, also was a young woman who knew how strange it was that she was famous at all.  I could totally see Kristen Stewart in this role.  

I also liked Audrey, the child star who desperately wants to be taken seriously as an adult actress.  The run up of her audition for the role of Clara was a riveting behind the scenes look at the movie business.  Her mother, a faded movie star in her own right, was a cringe-worthy look at a woman who ruthlessly used her daughter to gain attention for herself.

What I Was Mixed About:

Ending:

I have mixed feelings about the endings of the two stories.  I enjoyed the resolution of the contemporary story, but the one that took place in the early nineteen hundreds was unclear to me.   The modern story, which was the making of a movie based on the girls school in the earlier story, showed the completion of the movie, as well as what happened to the characters.  I was deeply invested in these characters and so it was very satisfying to have a follow up on the characters after the movie was finished.  The earlier story involving the love story between Libbie (the owner of the Bookhanst girls school) and Alex (her female lover), has a muddled ending.  Even though I could understand what happened, I had a hard time understanding WHY it happened.  The author went for a gothic horror ending, but it was tempered by the fact that it was so convoluted, the explanation of what happened wound up more confusing than revelatory.

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Rating:  

Release Date:  October 20th, 2020

Author: Emily M. Danforth

Audio Narrator: Xe Sands

Audio Publisher:  Harper Audio

Audio Length:  19 Hours, 27 Minutes

Print Publisher:  William Morrow

Print Page Length:  619 Pages

Source:  Libro.fm

Format:  Audiobook

Recommendation:  Even with it's confusing ending, this was a very compelling and entertaining book. 

Please Note:  I received an advance copy of this Audiobook from Listening Library in exchange for an honest review.  This did not influence the opinions in my review in any way.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

From New York Times bestselling authors Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff comes an Illuminae prequel digital novella that gives readers a hair-raising glimpse into the calamity that befell the invincible AI system known as AIDAN–and the daring young programmer who would risk her life to keep it from crashing.

AIDAN is the AI you’ll love to hate.

The advanced AI system was supposed to protect a fleet of survivors who’d escaped the deadly attack on Kerenza IV. AIDAN was supposed to be infallible. But in the chaotic weeks and months that followed, it became clear that something was terribly, terribly wrong with AIDAN…

Review:

This novella, by one of my favorite writing duos, Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff, is a VERY short story, coming in at a listening total of just over ninety minutes.  But, it quickly packs a powerful punch.  But be warned, true to their signature style, the authors created a story that will rip your heart to shreds.

via GIPHY

What I Liked:

Narration: 

This novella may be short, but it keeps the strong production values of the other books in the series.  There is a full cast, with sound effects, and music, all of which bring this story to life.  I particularly liked the voice of AIDAN, the computer who is developing a sense of self.  Lincoln Hoppe does a masterful job of making AIDAN both child-like and disturbing.

Story:

This short story is a terrific introduction to the Illuminae book series.  I shows the origins of one of the main conflict in the series.   AIDAN, the AI that runs the Kerenza spaceship is developing a sense of self.  But, due to the damage he sustains in the attack (that occurs in this book),  his decision making skills are flawed.  Or are his actions self-preservation?  

This story works for fans of the series as well, as we get more backstory on the members of the crew of the Kerenza, and an achingly beautiful love story to boot.  I LOVED Ethan and Liv.  But, knowing how these author roll, I knew their story was headed for...  I'm not going to spoil it!  But have your tissues ready.

via GIPHY

Rating: 

Release Date:  October 20th, 2020

Authors: Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

Genre:  Science Fiction

Audiobook Publisher:  Listening Library

Audiobook Length:  93 Minutes

Narrators:   

Olivia Klein, read by India Dupré
Ethan Wolf, read by James Fouhey
AIDAN, read by Lincoln Hoppe
Stephanie LeFevre, read by Emma Bering
Ezra Mason, read by Johnathan McClain
Narrator, read by Ryan Gesell
 
Featuring additional performances by Danny Campbell, Frankie Corzo, Chris Cuilla, Deepti Gupta, John Lee, Sarah Mollo-Christensen, Donabella Mortel, Austin Rising, Erin Spencer, and Nancy Wu.

Print Publisher:  Knopf

Page Length:  84 Pages

Source:  Publisher

Format:  Audiobook

Recommendation:  A must read for fans of The Illuminae series, and a great introduction to this series if you haven't read it. 

Please Note:  I received an advance audio copy of this book from Libro.fm in exchange for an honest review.  This did not influence the opinions in my review in any way.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

This is a poignant comedy about a crime that never took place, a would-be bank robber who disappears into thin air, and eight extremely anxious strangers who find they have more in common than they ever imagined.

Viewing an apartment normally doesn’t turn into a life-or-death situation, but this particular open house becomes just that when a failed bank robber bursts in and takes everyone in the apartment hostage. As the pressure mounts, the eight strangers slowly begin opening up to one another and reveal long-hidden truths.

As police surround the premises and television channels broadcast the hostage situation live, the tension mounts and even deeper secrets are slowly revealed. Before long, the robber must decide which is the more terrifying prospect: going out to face the police, or staying in the apartment with this group of impossible people

Review:

Never has a title of a book been more appropriate for our time.  Anxious People is filled with people with major issues.  And at first, I found these characters more obnoxious than anxious.  But, by the end of the novel, I grew to love each personality.  This is a wonderful, funny book that is a perfect read in these uncertain times.  I loved it.

What I Liked:

Format:

The story is told in police interviews, and character flashbacks.  With each chapter, we learn more and more about each person.  Each point of view adds a new layer to each character.  This makes this book a page-turner as we try to figure out who these people really are.

Characters:

This is a character-driven book.  As the story progresses, characters, who we think we understand, are seen in a new light as more information is revealed.  Take Roger and Analena for example.  I found this couple so annoying at first.  Roger is a typical obnoxious older man who puffs around the real-estate showing.  His wife Analena seems clueless.  But as the story unfolds, you really see the humanity and love in this marriage.  

I also love that several of these people are not meeting randomly.  There are connections that are revealed as the story progresses.  This is fun and explains the motivations of some of the characters.  

For instance, the two policemen aren't just colleagues.  They are father and son.  Their bickering demonstrates what a colossally bad idea working with your children is.  It's impossible for the pair to act professional with each other.  While this may not be realistic, it is quite funny.  

Narrator:  

The narrator, Marin Ireland, does a wonderful job with the many characters in this story.  Most of these people have big personalities and attitude, and Ireland finds ways to show their personalities in her delivery.  From the snotty twenty year-old bank teller, to the jaded banker, each character is a distinct individual.

Story:

The fun of this book is that, aside from all the wonderful characters, this is a mystery.  It begins in the aftermath of a hostage crisis after a failed bank robbery.  But when the hostages are released, the bank robber cannot be found.  Where did he go?  Who was he?  All this is slowly unveiled through the story.

Rating: 

Release Date:  September 8th, 2020

Author:  Fredrik Backman

Genre:  Contemporary Fiction

Narrator:  Marin Ireland

Audio Publisher:  Simon & Schuster Audio

Audio Length:  9 hours, 53 minutes

Print Publisher:  Atria Books

Print Length:  352 Pages

Source:  Libro.fm

Format:  Audiobook

Recommendation:  This was a wonderful, funny novel.  I highly recommend it.

Please Note:  I received an advance audio copy of this book from Libro.fm and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.  This did not influence the opinions in my review in any way.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

A broken world.
An overwhelming evil.
A team of warriors ready to strike back.

Talin is a Striker, a member of an elite fighting force that stands as the last defense for the only free nation in the world: Mara.

A refugee, Talin knows firsthand the horrors of the Federation, a world-dominating war machine responsible for destroying nation after nation with its terrifying army of mutant beasts known only as Ghosts.

But when a mysterious prisoner is brought from the front to Mara's capital, Talin senses there’s more to him than meets the eye. Is he a spy from the Federation? What secrets is he hiding?

Only one thing is clear: Talin is ready to fight to the death alongside her fellow Strikers for the only homeland she has left . . . with or without the boy who might just be the weapon to save—or destroy—them all.

Loyalty is life.

#1 New York Times-bestselling author Marie Lu is back with an adrenaline-laced novel about the lengths one warrior will go to fight for freedom and those she loves.

Review:

I think I've read nearly all of Marie Lu's books.  They are filled with adventure, strong characters, and dystopian angst.  While Skyhunter, her newest novel, has many similar elements, it has a fresh story.  What is missing, which I am actually happy about, is a sweeping romance.  Given that the fictional country of Mara is under siege, I appreciate that the characters are focused more on staying alive than falling in love.  That's not to say there aren't hints of love in the future.  But the book is more focused on the tragedies of war.  Add to this a wonderful narrator, and you have an entertaining good time.

What I Liked:

Narrator:

Natalie Naudus does a wonderful job with all the voices in this book, particularly Talin (the main character) and Constantine (the bad guy).  I especially like her voice for Contantine. It is so creepy!!!  But she is also wonderful at showing the disdain the Maran citizens show Talin.  The racism Talin faces throughout the book is subtle and palatable.

World-Building:

The world of Skyhunter is a world at war.  Talin and her mother are refugees.  As the Federation invades their homeland, they flee to Mara, only to face an ongoing siege.  There, they face discrimination, poverty, and the threat of even more violence.  There is a huge disconnect between wealthy Marans and refugees.  The wealthy live barricaded behind a huge wall, secure from the threats of the Federation, while refugees live in the crowded outer city.  Refugees also face food shortages, crime, with no possibility of  having the opportunity of using their natural gifts.  By keeping the refugees down, Mara is not utilizing everything they could to resist the Federation.

Characters:

Talin is a wonderfully powerful , brave character.  Just as Japanese-American who were held in internment camps, volunteered to defend The United States in WWII, Talin volunteers to train as a Striker to defend Mara from the Federation.  This shows such character and integrity to put her mistreatment aside to risk her life for a country who treats her so poorly.

Talin is also disciplined.  She trains constantly to become a better soldier.  Her friendships strangthen her fighting skills, as she works as a team member on the battlefield.  While she is attracted to a certain character, she knows this is no time for romance.

Red is a former Federation soldier who is about to be executed.  Talin sees that there is something more to him than meets the eye.  He is no ordinary soldier, and intervenes just before he is about to be killed.  He is, in fact, a Skyhunter, who has been genetically engineered to be a killing machine.  The Federation may have changed him physically, but he actively doesn't wish to kill others.  It takes him a while to trust Talin.  But as they are paired up to fight at the warfront, Red can see what a good person Talin is, despite being an effective killer.

I think this is what Red and Talin have most in common.  They are both conflicted about killing, even in war.  They know, all too well, the pain of losing a loved one.  They know what they are doing will cause incalculable suffering for the families of those they cut down.

Story:

This is a story of war.  A story of why people volunteer to fight.  It's not to get a free pass to kill others.  It's about defending your family, your values, your way of life.  This book in no way glorifies war.  What it does is helps the reader understand why people will sacrifice their lives in order to protect others.  This is definitely a book that is relevant to our times.

Rating: 

Release Date:  September 29, 2020

Author:  Marie Lu

Genre:  YA Dystopian

Audio Publisher: MacMillan Audio

Narrator:  Natalie Naudus

Audio Length:  11 Hours, 58 Minutes

Print Publisher:  Roaring Brook Press

Print Length:  384 Pages

Source:  Libro.fm

Format:  Audiobook

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Synopsis (from Goodreads):

On their first night in Paris, the Gamaches gather as a family for a bistro dinner with Armand’s godfather, the billionaire Stephen Horowitz. Walking home together after the meal, they watch in horror as Stephen is knocked down and critically injured in what Gamache knows is no accident, but a deliberate attempt on the elderly man’s life.

When a strange key is found in Stephen’s possession it sends Armand, his wife Reine-Marie, and his former second-in-command at the Sûreté, Jean-Guy Beauvoir, from the top of the Tour d’Eiffel, to the bowels of the Paris Archives, from luxury hotels to odd, coded, works of art.

It sends them deep into the secrets Armand’s godfather has kept for decades.

A gruesome discovery in Stephen’s Paris apartment makes it clear the secrets are more rancid, the danger far greater and more imminent, than they realized.

Soon the whole family is caught up in a web of lies and deceit. In order to find the truth, Gamache will have to decide whether he can trust his friends, his colleagues, his instincts, his own past. His own family.

For even the City of Light casts long shadows. And in that darkness devils hide.

Review:

This is the sixteenth book in the Inspector Gamache mystery series, and I have read them all.  Besides the challenge of solving whatever crime is featured in the novel, I love the people and village of Three Pines, Quebec.  This is the first novel in the series that is not set in that idyllic small town.  But, the Paris setting, a more in-depth look at the Gamache family, and the complex mystery in this book, I didn't mind this detour.  This book widens the world of the series and was as thrilling as any of her other books.  I loved it.

What I Liked:

Setting:

Who doesn't like Paris?  The author does a wonderful job of showing what this city is like for Quebecois visiting France.  They don't quite fit in.  Similar to when Americans go to England.  They may speak the same language, but that's the only thing they have in common.  Parisians consider themselves to be superior to all others, and treat anyone with a Quebecois accent like they are country bumpkins.

But Penny also shows the magic of Paris, with it;s many lovely parks and monuments, museums and libraries.  It is a place of culture and privilege.   One can definitely see why so many people want to live in such a magical place.

Characters:

All of the Gamache family are in Paris in this book.  Daniel, Armand's son, is a banker and has made a comfortable life for himself and his family.  Jean Guy Beauvoir, married to Gamache's daughter Annie, has just taken a job in the private sector (and away from all the bullets).  Armand, and his wife Reine Marie, are in Paris for the birth of Annie and Jean Guy's baby.  Everyone is looking forward to a happy occasion.

When Armand's godfather is attacked, Gamache must find out who is behind it.  This strains his relationships, particularly with his son, Daniel.  Daniel is a very complex character.  Outwardly successful, he is actually full of insecurities, and anger towards his father.  I vacillated between finding Daniel annoying, and feeling sympathy for his tragic misunderstanding of his father.  So many years are lost to hurt feelings and grudges.  This dynamic illustrates how difficult it is to see your parents as adults, and for parents to look at their kids as grownups.

Plot:

Once again, the plot is a web of conspiracies, and unlikely connections between people that lead to a satisfying puzzle.  The author gives just enough information so the reader will have the possibility of solving the mystery along with Inspector Gamache.  I loved figuring out the clues and piecing it all together.  I also loved how the book focuses on how (and if) Armand can heal his relationship with Daniel.

What I Was Mixed About:

No Three Pines Characters:

I really liked this book, but I cannot lie:  I missed the people of Three Pines.  I think the purpose of this book was to focus on Armand and his family relationships, so it was natural for the plot to be set away from the village.  The contrast between the small Canadian village and big old Paris couldn't be more stark.  But this did end up being less cozy and more real world, as a result.

Rating: 

Release Date:  September 1st, 2020

Author:  Louise Penny

Narrator:  Robert Bathhurst

Audio Length:  14 hours

Audio Publisher:  Macmillan Audio

Print Publisher:  Minotaur Books 

Page Length: 448 Pages

Genre:  Mystery/Thriller

Source:  NetGalley

Format:  Audiobook

Recommendation:  Another wonderful book in the Inspector Gamache series.  A must read for fans.