A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Warning if you haven't read this yet: Don't start reading this book on your last day of vacation (like I did). This book is a little over 700 pages, and it will suck you in. Make sure you have plenty of reading time set aside before you begin.

This is the story of four friend: Jude, Willam, JB, and Malcolm. They meet in college, and the story follows their lives. However, Jude St. Francis is the real focus of this book. Of the four friends he is the most complicated. He's a broken man in many ways. His story will break your heart, but it's much more than just that.

This book is really a story of friendships and different relationships. It's epic in scope and will reveal all parts of the characters lives. The character development is great, and I won't (probably ever) be able to forget these characters who seem so real.

There is a lot of brutal stuff to read in this story. Some of it will make a reader cringe, reach for tissues, and put the book down until one recovers. Getting through the hard parts of the book is so rewarding, however. There's a lot of love in these pages.

I gave this 5 stars, though the book was not perfect. I almost quit reading shortly after I began. The story jumps right into introducing the four friends and for a short while I couldn't keep them straight. I decided to give it 50 pages and see how it went. I was hooked by page 50 and was so glad I kept reading.

Don't be put off by the time investment of reading this story. It's very well worth it.

This is added to my "All Time Favorites" list. What's on your list? Comment below!

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One Last Thing Before I Go by Jonathan Tropper
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Leading man, Silver, is kind of a loser. He's lost his wife, his daughter doesn't talk to him, he was a one hit wonder once upon a time, and has very little to look forward to in his life. His daughter comes back into his life to let him know she's pregnant (and also on her way to start college). Then when Silver learns that he needs a life saving to fix his faulty heart he decides to skip the operation.

What happens during this terminal part of Silver's life fills the pages of this book. There is a lot of humor, and a cast of characters that are a lot of fun to read about in a dysfunctional sort of way. This book is also crude. It's mean for mature readers (but not if you're easily offended).

I had hoped for a little more from this book (though I don't know why my expectations were so high). The humor was great, the story's concept was fine, but these aren't characters or a story that I will remember much of a few months from now. Also, if you want a nice, happily ever after ending, steer clear of this book.

What is your favorite humor writer? Comment below!

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Final Girls by Riley Sager
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

A Final Girl is rare. A Final Girl is someone who fascinates the public and causes a media frenzy. A Final Girl is not something you want to be. A Final Girl is the lone survivor of a massacre.

There are only three Final Girls - Lisa, Sam, and Quincy. When Lisa turns up dead, Sam turns up on Quincy's doorstep. Quincy had never met the other Final Girls, choosing instead to ignore her past, eat a regular dose of Xanax, and live her life as normally as possible out of the spotlight. Sam wants to help Quincy remember the past, but Sam is destructive. What's the truth and what's a lie? This book will really keep you guessing.

This is fast paced, and really hard to put down. All of the hype you've heard about this new summer thriller is well earned. There are a few things in there that seem a bit unbelievable but overall it was fun to read. I thought I could guess the ending here, but I was completely wrong!

What's your favorite summer thriller? Comment below!

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The Saturday Evening Girls Club: A Novel by Jane Healey
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was a sweet book about four young women who are best friends. They are each unique, but have come together through the Saturday Evening Girls Club. The club is sponsored by a wealthy woman who is able to encourage these girls and offer them opportunities that would otherwise be hard to come by for immigrants in the early 1900s.

Caprice is ambitious. Ada is brilliant. Maria is the beauty, and Thea is the shy and obedient one. Two of the girls are Catholic and two of the girls are Jewish. Throughout the book each of these girls are given a variety of conflicts that stem from their family life and the restrictive world they live in. They hope for careers and families of their own, and they all go about getting what they want in different ways.

The book was predictable at times, but it was still a fun, quick read. There were Jewish proverbs given at the start of each chapter that were a lot of fun to read through. I really like the time period and cultural backgrounds of these first generation American women.

This book was the July 2017 adult book for the Once Upon A Book Club box. If you haven't checked it out make sure you go here! I received 5 gifts with this book. Once Upon A Book Club really brings the story alive and enhances the reading experience.

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The Samurai's Garden by Gail Tsukiyama
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Samurai's Garden is set at the beginning of WWII. Stephen has tuberculosis and is sent from his family's home in Hong Kong to their vacation home in Tarumi, Japan. Far from anyone he knows, he spends the year getting to know the quite groundskeeper, Matsu. Matsu lives a quite life but Stephen gradually learns about the generous and humble life Matsu has lived.

This was a really beautiful book with a hint of a fairy tale quality. The characters were surprising. The time period is very interesting if you care to read about Asian culture. Stephen, a Chinese man, lives in Japan while racial hatred is abundant. Stephen also meets and befriends a woman with leprosy at a time and place where those with the affliction are shunned.

The ending of this book seemed a bit rushed to me, and I wanted to know more about what happened to several of the characters. Still, it was an enjoyable read filled with interesting cultural tidbits.

Have you read any books about Eastern culture during different eras? What's your favorite? Comment below!

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Goodbye, Vitamin by Rachel Khong
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was a short, sweet book about a grown woman returning home and reconnecting with her dad. Ruth is 30, still recuperating from her fiance dumping her, and her dad, Howard, is beginning to lose his memory. During Christmas her mother asks her to stay, just for the year. Ruth leaves her job and moves back to her family home to spend the year with her father and mother.

This story is told in snippets. I've read some other books that take this approach (Dept. of Speculation, for example) and they're typically pretentious. You won't find that here. Rachel Khong's story is very honest but still filled with humor and wit. There is some sadness, but this felt more like a celebration of Ruth and her father rather than a mourning of the man that once was.

I was not overly wowed by this book. It was pleasurable, and I'd look for other novels by Khong. It just didn't knock my socks off. Recommended for anyone who has a loved one experiencing dementia. This may be a reminder that even though it's scary and sad watching your loved one lose their memory and identity, there is still humor and love to be found.

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The Child by Fiona Barton
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is a mysterious story surrounding the discovery of a baby's skeleton. Who is the baby? Who buried the baby? Is this somehow connected to a baby being stolen from a hospital years ago?

There are several POVs in this book which incorporate several story lines. The stories do all come together nicely, and the mysteries made for a compelling read. I enjoyed the short chapters and Fiona Barton's writing style.

I didn't love this book though. I had the story figured out about halfway through. There were some minor characters that seemed unnecessary to the story. There were some connections that the police didn't make that I thought were not realistic. I don't think this story will be one that I remember for very long.

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The Two-Family House by Lynda Cohen Loigman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This family saga begins in late 1947. Two brothers share their two-family home. Younger brother Abe lives upstairs with his wife and four sons. Younger brother Mort lives downstairs with his wife and three daughters. Their wives, Helen and Rose, both find themselves in labor during a blizzard where they eventually give birth to their babies within a few minutes of each other. The story follows what happens in the lives of these two families during the next thirty years or so.

The two women, Helen and Rose, share a secret that no one else has ever even guessed at. The secret will be apparent to readers. I was disappointed that the secret seemed so apparent at the beginning. However, there is still a lot to unravel in this story that spans so many years.

What I loved most about this book was the characters. They blossomed throughout this story (though there was some wilting as well). Each was unique, each was well developed, and each had layered and complicated relationships with other members of their family. Don't be intimidated by the number of members of this family. It's worth your time to get to know them and their secrets.

What's your favorite family saga? Leave a comment!

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Beneath a Scarlet Sky by Mark T. Sullivan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Thank you to Brilliance Publishing for sending over a copy of this book for me to read.

If you've read and enjoyed Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand then you're going to love Beneath a Scarlet Sky. Both are stories of men who went through some incredible things during World War II. These books are both hard to put down!

Beneath a Scarlet Sky is the story of Pino Lella. He's a young, Italian teenager toward the end of World War II when his home in Milan is destroyed. Soon after Pino begins helping Jews escape to the safety of Switzerland by leading them through the difficult terrain of the Alps. And just as he turns 18 he is forced to enlist in the German military, becoming one of the Nazis he despises. When Pino receives an opportunity to become the personal driver for General Layers (Hitler's left hand in Italy) Pino suddenly becomes a spy for the Allies.

There is so much in this story - bravery, suspense, love, espionage, loss - and a really likable hero at the center of it all. So much of this story was unbelievable, though as a reader who has never experienced war, I think much of the hell that war brings about is unbelievable. I had trouble tearing myself from these pages because I just needed to know more.

Pino's story is epic, not always happy, and one that should be read widely. The book is written simply so those of us who aren't history buffs can still easily follow along. Highly recommended!

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The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane by Lisa See
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I love to read just about anything Lisa See writes. This book is no different. I couldn't put it down.

The book focuses on the life of Li-yan. She grows up in a remote area of China and is an ethnic minority, an Akah. See writes a beautiful story but also educates readers on cultures they may not be familiar with otherwise. The story takes place from the late 1980s to present day. It was extra interesting to me since the main character is near my age though her life is completely different from my own.

Recommended for Lisa See fans, anyone looking for a book about a little known culture, or someone looking for a good story to get lost in.



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The Sisters Chase by Sarah Healy
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Chase sisters, Mary and Hannah, live with their mother Diane. They don't have much but they get by. When Diane dies suddenly, 18-year-old Mary is left to take care of her much younger sister. This story of survival and love is hard to put down.

Mary is a tough character. She loves her sister fiercely and guards the love she gives to others. She's not above manipulating people and situations so she and her sister have what they need to get by. At times it was tough to know if I should cheer for or hate Mary. This story goes back and forth through time (late 70s through the early 90s) and follows the girls on their travels as they move from place to place.

I couldn't stop reading this story. There are several secrets in this book - some that were easy to uncover and others that came as a surprise as the story unraveled. Readers will likely require a few Kleenex in order to finish this book up. This is a great pick if you're looking for a beach read this summer!

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Into the Water by Paula Hawkins
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Into The Water is another book by Paula Hawkins. You've all heard of The Girl on the Train, right? Same author.

This book dives into the mystery surrounding the recent deaths of two women, a single mother and a teen girl, who are both found in a small town's river within a month's time. They're not the first women to meet their demise in this river, and it seems that everyone in this small town has some opinion about the deaths of the various women in this river.

There are a lot of characters to get to know, and it was difficult to warm up to any of them. Regardless, if you can keep the characters straight, each of them adds something different to this story. There's not a lot of happy, uplifting moments, but the short chapters kept the story moving rapidly.

There are several twist in this book. I thought I had the story figured out many times before I reached the end and found out what actually happened. (And I do mean the very end!) As a little bonus: I really liked the dedication in this book. It fit well with the story.

What's your favorite thriller? Comment below!

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