The Broken Girls

 “The Broken Girls” by Simone St. James

Published by Berkley
Finished 6/28/23 – 3/5 Stars

This novel has alternating storylines – one of a girl who went missing from a boarding school in 1950 and one of a young woman in 2014 who is looking into her sister’s murder from 20 years prior. Both take place in the same small town in Vermont and include a ghost to add a little flair to the stories.  This is the 2^nd book I’ve read by this author, and I must admit, I liked the other one more.  I did enjoy it but it’s just not as suspenseful or intriguing as the other one.
 
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The Quiet Tenant

 

“The Quiet Tenant” by Clemence Michallon
Published by Knopf Publishing Group
Finished 6/17/23 – 4/5 stars
 
This book comes out in just a few days and my guess is that the rights to a movie or mini-series will be purchased by the end of the year.  It’s a short, page-turning, suspense novel that you won’t want to put down.  There are multiple points of view including the serial killer, his daughter, girlfriend, and the girl he’s held on to for the past 5 years (the quiet tenant).  The chapters are all labeled but it’s also pretty easy to determine on your own whose chapter it is.  You won’t get confused but you might find yourself internally yelling at a character periodically – like “no”, “don’t do that”, “hurry up”, “pay attention”, or “what were you thinking?”  Now, some might say it’s not very realistic but knowing the world today, I completely believe it could happen.
 
Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf Publishing for gifting me with an advanced copy to read and provide an honest review.
 
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Speak of the Devil

 

“Speak of the Devil” by Rose Wilding
Published by Minotaur Books
Finished 6/12/23 – 2.5/5 stars
 
The idea behind the book is good – multiple women find themselves in a room with the severed head of a man they all had a negative past with.  Any one of them could be the killer.  It then proceeds to tell you the back story of all these women and their connection to the deceased.  The issue I had was that I feel like there were just too many to keep them all straight the way it was presented to the reader.  Granted, if you have time to read it for longer stretches of time than I did, maybe it would be less confusing as to who’s who.
 
Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for gifting me with an advanced copy to read and provide an honest review.
 
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All Boys Aren't Blue

“All Boys Aren’t Blue” by George M Johnson
Published by Penguin Books
Finished 6/3 – 3/5 stars
 
I’m so glad this memoir was written as a YA book.  Sadly, not all schools will allow it on their library shelves, but thankfully there are still plenty of public libraries and bookstores that will.  Not all children are represented in YA books, especially not those in the LGBTQIAP community.  This book can help give those struggling to find themselves a true story, showing that they are far from alone in that struggle.  Proving that there are plenty of people that will accept you for who you are once you find the strength to tell them.
 
This book has been sitting on my bookshelf for about a year.  I figured Pride Month was a good time to finally read it and I’m very glad I did.  It gave me a better insight into both the Black and LGBTQIAP communities.
 
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Four Treasures of the Sky

 

“Four Treasures of the Sky” by Jenny Tinghui Zhang
Published by Flatiron Books
Finished 6/2/23 – 4/5 stars
 
This book won the Goodreads Choice Award for Historical Fiction last year, which is how I found it.  I’m honestly not sure why I haven’t heard more about it or why it hasn’t received more attention.  It may be a debut novel, but it doesn’t read as one.  You will fall in love with the main character and want to protect her through all the situations she encounters while trying to find her way back home to China where she had been kidnapped from as a child. The story is heartwarming at times and heartbreaking at others.  I definitely recommend it.
 
Side note – this book does have a pet peeve of mine……no quotation marks!  Drives me crazy but I was still able to fully enjoy it.
 
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