November 2016 Reads

I don't think anything I read will shock anyone this month, but I did discover a new author which is always fun!

The Distant Hours by Kate Morton - This was the last Kate Morton book I had to read, and it was very similar in theme to her others. In the present, the main character finds a connection with her family to a mystery from the past around when her mother was billeted at a country estate during WW2 involving 3 sisters, and we jump from present to past as the mystery is unraveled. I really enjoy her books and this one was another winner!

Ghettoside by Jill Leovy - Our book club pick for this month was Ghettoside which I read about 18 months ago. I reread it so it was fresh in my mind, and it was still as amazing as the first time. This book is just so impactful! It tells the story of an LA homicide detective's son's murder - he was killed in a random act of street violence - basically for being black and in the wrong place at the wrong time. The book also looks at the circle of violence in LA, the causes, what needs to happen to fix it, it is just SUCH a good book!

It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover - This was the first book I read by Colleen Hoover, and I am definitely going to be reading more. I would have thought this was a typical chick lit story, but it SO wasn't, and I can't say anything more without giving away too much. The title of the book doesn't make sense until the very end, but it was excellent!

11th Hour, 12th of Never, and Unlucky 13* by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro - 3 more Women's Murder Club books {*I listened to this one because the library only had the audiobook}. I swear each book now tells about 4 different stories and can sometimes be annoying, but I'm going to stick with it!

Slammed, Point of Retreat, and This Girl by Colleen Hoover - Slammed was the only other Colleen Hoover book at my library, so I checked it out not realizing it was a YA book. It's about a girl, Lake, who moves with her family to Michigan from Texas after her father dies, and she has an instant connection with the boy next door, Will...until she realizes he teaches at her school. Oops. The 'slammed' part comes into it because of slam poetry which I didn't really like, but overall the story was fun - if a bit too much YA angst. Point of Retreat continued the story from Will's point of view. I wouldn't waste your time/money on This Girl because it retells Slammed from Will's point of view, and I struggled to get through it - I was just bored.

I have a feeling my reading in December will be less as I might be a little preoccupied, but I guess time will tell!