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As a biracial, unenrolled tribal member and the product of a scandal, Daunis Fontaine has never quite fit in—both in her hometown and on the nearby Ojibwe reservation. When her family is struck by tragedy, Daunis puts her dreams on hold to care for her fragile mother. The only bright spot is meeting Jamie, the charming new recruit on her brother’s hockey team.
After Daunis witnesses a shocking murder that thrusts her into a criminal investigation, she agrees to go undercover. But the deceptions—and deaths—keep piling up and soon the threat strikes too close to home. How far will she go to protect her community if it means tearing apart the only world she’s ever known?
For the Reading Challenge(s): TBD
The Reason
This book keeps turning up and catching my attention, so I decided to finally read it!
The Quotes
“We love imperfect people. We can love them and not condone their actions and beliefs.”
“When someone dies, everything about them becomes past tense. Except for the grief. Grief stays in the present. It’s even worse when you’re angry at the person. Not just for dying. But for how.”
“People say to think seven generations ahead when making big decisions, because our future ancestors—those yet to arrive, who will one day become the Elders—live with the choices we make today.”
“Some boats are made for the river and some for the ocean. And there are some who can go anywhere because they always know the way home.”
The Narrator(s)
Isabella Star LaBlanc. She did an amazing job! I was completely immersed in the story.
My Thoughts
I went into the story blind and was very surprised to find it was a contemporary young adult story. I had initially assumed it was historical fiction, but I also really loved reading about Indigenous people in our contemporary times and how that looks like for them. It was very eye-opening. I thought it started a little slow, but at the same time, I love how that set the stage for us. It got really interesting once the whole criminal investigation thing was revealed to the MC, Daunis, and the stakes got a lot higher after that. I’m not sure how to describe how I feel, but the story felt very real and emotional to me. The author did mention in an afterword that she was inspired by real events. I love that there was so much to takeaway from the book; about self-love, romantic love, the respect for tradition and culture, the strength and resilience of people who have not been treated very well. I am so glad I finally read this.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
The Turn of the Screw is an 1898 horror novella by Henry James that first appeared in serial format in Collier’s Weekly magazine (January 27 – April 16, 1898). In October 1898 it appeared in The Two Magics, a book published by Macmillan in New York City and Heinemann in London.
A very young woman’s first job: governess for two weirdly beautiful, strangely distant, oddly silent children, Miles and Flora, at a forlorn estate… An estate haunted by a beckoning evil. Half-seen figures who glare from dark towers and dusty windows- silent, foul phantoms who, day by day, night by night, come closer, ever closer. With growing horror, the helpless governess realizes the fiendish creatures want the children, seeking to corrupt their bodies, possess their minds, own their souls. But worse-much worse- the governess discovers that Miles and Flora have no terror of the lurking evil. For they want the walking dead as badly as the dead want them.
I’ve been curious about this book for a while. It was available from my library and was relatively short, so I thought why not.
The Quotes
“Of course I was under the spell, and the wonderful part is that, even at the time, I perfectly knew I was.”
“To gaze into the depths of blue of the child’s eyes and pronounce their loveliness a trick of premature cunning was to be guilty of a cynicism in preference to which I naturally preferred to abjure my judgment and, so far as might be, my agitation.”
“An unknown man in a lonely place is a permitted object of fear to a young woman privately bred.”
The Narrator(s)
Simon Vance, and Vanessa Benjamin. Simon Vance does the prologue, and the rest of the story is predominantly narrated by Vanessa Benjamin. She was wonderful.
My Thoughts
I finished this book in one sitting because it was relatively short and it kept me on the edge of my seat wondering what was going on and what was going to happen. The story was very confusing, very ambiguous, you don’t get many questions answered, and in fact, the deeper in you go, the more questions you have that don’t get answered. But somehow it worked for me.
To be clear, I think I love the effect of this book more than I actually love the story, but I also think that’s by design. The phrase “the turn of the screw” meaning to add insult to injury, and/or to make something already bad even worse, I feel like James is playing with us. Getting us invested in the story, making us curious, bringing us on a journey, and then leading us to a non-destination that is absolutely dissatisfying and curse-worthy.
You end the book with more questions, in disbelief, wondering if that was it and why the hell you spend the last few hours reading the book at all. You question everything you read in the book, wondering what you missed, wondering what it meant, wondering if any of it was real or true or the ramblings of a madwoman. Well, at least I did. I am both pissed off I read the book and marveling at the brilliance of it, so as I said, I’m not as taken by the story as I am by what it’s doing to me. I feel like I’ve been punked and I kind of like it.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
Lady Astronaut Universe series by Mary Robinette Kowal
On a cold spring night in 1952, a huge meteorite fell to earth and obliterated much of the east coast of the United States, including Washington D.C. The ensuing climate cataclysm will soon render the earth inhospitable for humanity, as the last such meteorite did for the dinosaurs. This looming threat calls for a radically accelerated effort to colonize space, and requires a much larger share of humanity to take part in the process.
Elma York’s experience as a WASP pilot and mathematician earns her a place in the International Aerospace Coalition’s attempts to put man on the moon, as a calculator. But with so many skilled and experienced women pilots and scientists involved with the program, it doesn’t take long before Elma begins to wonder why they can’t go into space, too.
Elma’s drive to become the first Lady Astronaut is so strong that even the most dearly held conventions of society may not stand a chance against her.
The Reason
I’ve been eyeing this series for a while and was able to get the books on an Audible deal.
The Quotes
“It’s hard to convince people that catastrophic weather changes are coming on a nice day.”
“Even geniuses can be stupid when they’re scared.”
“There is something magic about takeoffs. I know people who are afraid of flying who say that the takeoffs and landings are the only hard parts, perhaps because that’s when the act of flying is most apparent. I love the way you get pushed back into your seat. The weight and the sense of momentum press against you and the vibrations from the tarmac hum through the yoke and into your palms and legs. Then, suddenly, everything stops and the ground drops away.”
The Narrator(s)
Mary Robinette Kowal herself. I loved it. I love the story, I love her narration, I loved it.
My Thoughts
Book 1 – The Calculating Stars It wasn’t what I expected but it was very good, very nuanced, and I love that the FMC, Elma York, was introverted and flawed and yet had to step up and take charge. It’s set in the past so all the prejudices of the time was intact, but they had to adapt to new developments for the sake of survival. I love how racism and sexism was addressed and worked on. I love that things were difficult for the FMC, and she didn’t always know to do the right thing. It was really good!
Book 2 – The Fated Sky I liked this one more than the first book. The characters became more developed for me, and I love that they are actually in outer space this time. One of the highlights for me was also the platonic relationships developing between the characters. I hated Parker in the first book, but he was so much more nuanced in this book, and the way his and Elma’s friendship developed was really beautiful to see. This might be my favorite of the series. Maybe.
Book 3 – The Relentless Moon This one follows Nicole instead of Elma, and I really enjoyed the story itself, but it was incredibly painful when something difficult happens near the end. I had to stop reading for a moment and take a break with another book because it was really painful to feel all that emotion “on the page” and in the narrator’s voice. I think it really shows how amazing the author is, both for the storytelling and for the narration of those intense emotions.
Book 4 – The Martian Contingency We come back to Elma for this story, and it was also another great story. She and her husband and other people are now on Mars and starting a new chapter. There was some very interesting subplots and backstories that we find out about, and there were also some Parker and Elma interactions, not many, but they were fun for me. I’m not sure I like the ending but it makes sense in a way, the stories from the first book until this one span many years, and goals and priorities change. It’s a good series and I loved it all.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars for all of them!
Have you read this series? Would you read this series? Did you like it or do you think you would like it?
William Stoner is born at the end of the nineteenth century into a dirt-poor Missouri farming family. Sent to the state university to study agronomy, he instead falls in love with English literature and embraces a scholar’s life, so different from the hardscrabble existence he has known. And yet as the years pass, Stoner encounters a succession of disappointments: marriage into a “proper” family estranges him from his parents; his career is stymied; his wife and daughter turn coldly away from him; a transforming experience of new love ends under threat of scandal. Driven ever deeper within himself, Stoner rediscovers the stoic silence of his forebears and confronts an essential solitude.
John Williams’s luminous and deeply moving novel is a work of quiet perfection. William Stoner emerges from it not only as an archetypal American, but as an unlikely existential hero, standing, like a figure in a painting by Edward Hopper, in stark relief against an unforgiving world.
One of my in-person bookclub members praised this book very highly, and it became our December BOTM.
The Quotes
“In his forty-third year William Stoner learned what others, much younger, had learned before him: that the person one loves at first is not the person one loves at last, and that love is not an end but a process through which one person attempts to know another.”
“A war doesn’t merely kill off a few thousand or a few hundred thousand young men. It kills off something in a people that can never be brought back. And if a people goes through enough wars, pretty soon all that’s left is the brute, the creature that we—you and I and others like us—have brought up from the slime.”
“In the University library he wandered through the stacks, among the thousands of books, inhaling the musty odor of leather, cloth, and drying page as if it were an exotic incense.”
The Narrator(s)
Robin Field. It was great, I was very much immersed in Stoner’s world and I thought the narration was perfect.
My Thoughts
I was surprised by how invested I got into Stoner’s life. He’s an ordinary person, not special at all, and he doesn’t do anything special either. He was the most passive person but there were occasional times when he fought hard, and then nothing again, it’s interesting and perhaps true to life. The book follows him throughout his life and we see him through all his ups and downs. There were times you think he might achieve great things or do something extraordinary, times when you hurt for him and celebrate with him, times when you wish you could reach into the book and shake him and tell him to make better choices. There was a lot to think about and I think the writing is absolutely beautiful.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
A propulsive and uncommonly wise novel about one unexpected wedding guest and the surprising people who help her start anew.
It’s a beautiful day in Newport, Rhode Island, when Phoebe Stone arrives at the grand Cornwall Inn wearing a green dress and gold heels, not a bag in sight, alone. She’s immediately mistaken by everyone in the lobby for one of the wedding people, but she’s actually the only guest at the Cornwall who isn’t here for the big event. Phoebe is here because she’s dreamed of coming for years—she hoped to shuck oysters and take sunset sails with her husband, only now she’s here without him, at rock bottom, and determined to have one last decadent splurge on herself. Meanwhile, the bride has accounted for every detail and every possible disaster the weekend might yield except for, well, Phoebe and Phoebe’s plan—which makes it that much more surprising when the two women can’t stop confiding in each other.
In turns absurdly funny and devastatingly tender, Alison Espach’s The Wedding People is ultimately an incredibly nuanced and resonant look at the winding paths we can take to places we never imagined—and the chance encounters it sometimes takes to reroute us.
For the Reading Challenge(s): N/A
The Reason
I’ve heard a lot of praise for this book and I was curious.
The Quotes
“There is no such thing as a happy place. Because when you are happy, everywhere is a happy place. And when you are sad, everywhere is a sad place.”
“And maybe that’s it: You do things in the moment for the person you hope you might be two years from now.”
“Nobody can take care of you the way you need to take care of yourself. It’s your job to take care of yourself like that.”
“She is so good at predicting what will happen in books, so bad at predicting what will happen in life. That is why she has always preferred books – because to be alive is so much harder.”
The Narrator(s)
Helen Laser. She’s really good! Her narration reminds me a little of Julia Whelan’s narration and I’m a huge fan.
My Thoughts
I’m not sure what I was expecting with this book; I initially thought perhaps something along the vibes of Fredrik Backman’s books, something depressing turned heartwarming, and it was a little like that but also more complicated and a lot less clear-cut. There was a lot of tension throughout the book, and I love how the author juggled that along with telling the story. I loved the characters, the fact that there is more to each of them than initial impressions. They make mistakes, do stupid things, behave badly, want things they shouldn’t, but they can still be good people who mean well.
I also love how chance encounters can change your life and how random people can turn into important relationships. I met a random woman once when I was a young teenage girl, who gave me some life advice that I’ve remembered and tried to stick to ever since. I don’t even know her name and wouldn’t recognize her if I saw her again but I’ve never forgotten her and what she said to me. I love that Lila changed Phoebe’s life without even meaning to, and for purely selfish reasons. You just never know the impact you have on someone.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
When Jon Krakauer reached the summit of Mt. Everest in the early afternoon of May 10, 1996, he hadn’t slept in fifty-seven hours and was reeling from the brain-altering effects of oxygen depletion. As he turned to begin his long, dangerous descent from 29,028 feet, twenty other climbers were still pushing doggedly toward the top. No one had noticed that the sky had begun to fill with clouds. Six hours later and 3,000 feet lower, in 70-knot winds and blinding snow, Krakauer collapsed in his tent, freezing, hallucinating from exhaustion and hypoxia, but safe. The following morning, he learned that six of his fellow climbers hadn’t made it back to their camp and were desperately struggling for their lives. When the storm finally passed, five of them would be dead, and the sixth so horribly frostbitten that his right hand would have to be amputated.
Into Thin Air is the definitive account of the deadliest season in the history of Everest by the acclaimed journalist and author of the bestseller Into the Wild. On assignment for Outside Magazine to report on the growing commercialization of the mountain, Krakauer, an accomplished climber, went to the Himalayas as a client of Rob Hall, the most respected high-altitude guide in the world. A rangy, thirty-five-year-old New Zealander, Hall had summited Everest four times between 1990 and 1995 and had led thirty-nine climbers to the top. Ascending the mountain in close proximity to Hall’s team was a guided expedition led by Scott Fischer, a forty-year-old American with legendary strength and drive who had climbed the peak without supplemental oxygen in 1994. But neither Hall nor Fischer survived the rogue storm that struck in May 1996.
Krakauer examines what it is about Everest that has compelled so many people — including himself — to throw caution to the wind, ignore the concerns of loved ones, and willingly subject themselves to such risk, hardship, and expense. Written with emotional clarity and supported by his unimpeachable reporting, Krakauer’s eyewitness account of what happened on the roof of the world is a singular achievement.
For the Reading Challenge(s): N/A
The Reason
It’s one of the most recommended nonfiction books and I have an interest in reading about Everest in general.
The Quotes
“Getting to the top of any given mountain was considered much less important than how one got there: prestige was earned by tackling the most unforgiving routes with minimal equipment, in the boldest style imaginable.”
“Everest has always been a magnet for kooks, publicity seekers, hopeless romantics and others with a shaky hold on reality.”
“We were too tired to help. Above 8,000 meters is not a place where people can afford morality.”
“There were many, many fine reasons not to go, but attempting to climb Everest is an intrinsically irrational act—a triumph of desire over sensibility. Any person who would seriously consider it is almost by definition beyond the sway of reasoned argument.”
The Narrator(s)
Philip Franklin. It was amazing! I was completely immersed.
My Thoughts
I see why this book is so highly recommended! It is intense, emotional, exciting, and heartbreaking all at once. There has apparently been a lot of controversy surrounding this book and the events of the 1996 Everest disaster. There were criticisms thrown around about how individual people handled the situation as it was happening, how they helped or didn’t help, and so on. Obviously, all of this happened almost 30 years ago now and I’m late to the discussion, but I do have thoughts.
I think when you’re in a unique environment like Everest, all the normal protocols and morality for helping others don’t necessarily apply. You don’t have trained first responders you can call, you only have whoever’s up there with you, and very often you are already in compromised health yourself. It’s like if a person is drowning and you don’t know how to swim, don’t be a fool and jump in there to try to save them yourself; you’re only causing more problems because now rescuers have to rescue both you and the person who was originally drowning. In Everest, there are often no trained rescuers, fresh and energized, coming to help anyone in distress. You and the other climbers, all exhausted from their own climb, are all you have. And yes, if you aren’t in the best shape or condition, sometimes the choice you have to make is to not make the rescue, otherwise instead of one death, you’d have two or three or more.
Assuming that everything that Krakauer shares in this book is as accurate as he can be – and he admits that they may not be accurate because there have been discrepensies in each individual’s memories – he has been open with his actions and inactions with helping his fellow climbers, and takes some of the blame for the tragic deaths and suffering that happened. His writing voice in the book reflects his emotional distress about the tragedy, even as he tries his best to be objective about putting it down in words.
It’s easy to criticise others for their inaction, but honestly for me, you don’t know what you would do if you were in the same situation until you’ve been there yourself. It’s not even just being physically compromised and not able to physically help others, the conditions including the lack of oxygen to the brain also causes you to be mentally compromised and not able to think and make decisions. If it were me, I’d imagine that my lizard brain kicks in and survival instincts take over, and I’d be basically useless to help anyone but myself.
And that’s also why I will never ever climb Mount Everest! I am perfectly content reading about other people doing incredible things while I sit comfortably at home on the couch! The most risky thing I did was sitting on the edge of my seat while reading this book. I could’ve fallen off! I got into such a rabbit hole of googling more about Everest and watching some videos of Everest climbers after I finished the book. It’s an amazing story and I respect the hell out of people who do stuff like this.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
“It is the horrible texture of a fabric that should be woven of ships’ cables and hawsers. A Polar wind blows through it, and birds of prey hover over it.”
So Melville wrote of his masterpiece, one of the greatest works of imagination in literary history. In part, Moby-Dick is the story of an eerily compelling madman pursuing an unholy war against a creature as vast and dangerous and unknowable as the sea itself. But more than just a novel of adventure, more than an encyclopaedia of whaling lore and legend, the book can be seen as part of its author’s lifelong meditation on America. Written with wonderfully redemptive humour, Moby-Dick is also a profound inquiry into character, faith, and the nature of perception.
This edition of Moby-Dick, which reproduces the definitive text of the novel, includes invaluable explanatory notes, along with maps, illustrations, and a glossary of nautical terms.
It’s been on my TBR for a while now, and it was available as a buddy read in my online bookclub, so I decided now was the time!
The Quotes
“It is not down on any map; true places never are.”
“Whenever I find myself growing grim about the mouth; whenever it is a damp, drizzly November in my soul; whenever I find myself involuntarily pausing before coffin warehouses, and bringing up the rear of every funeral I meet; and especially whenever my hypos get such an upper hand of me, that it requires a strong moral principle to prevent me from deliberately stepping into the street, and methodically knocking people’s hats off – then, I account it high time to get to sea as soon as I can.”
“Think not, is my eleventh commandment; and sleep when you can, is my twelfth.”
The Narrator(s)
Anthony Heald. It was a wonderful narration and I really enjoying listening to his voice.
My Thoughts
It was not the best time for me to read the book because I had a lot of things on my mind, and had many things to do and catch up on, and I was not in the right frame of mind to savor this book. However, I really enjoyed it very much despite my inattentiveness to the story.
To be fair, there was more lecturing about whales than there was an actual story but I still really enjoyed the story, and I really enjoyed the lecturing; about whales, whaling, fossils, ambergris, history of this and that, Ishmael talks about it all! My issue was that I loved the idea of getting to know more about whales, but I wasn’t in the frame of mind to pay attention to the details, so I didn’t get the full benefit of those parts of the book.
As to the story itself, I love the characters and how vibrant they are! They were all kind of larger than life and caricaturistic, but I feel like that makes sense for how dramatic the story is, and the role each of the characters play in the story. It’s not unusual for me to reread books I enjoy over and over again to understand them better, and I think Moby-Dick falls into that category. It almost seems like this first read was like a primer for me, so that when I reread this I’ll know what to look out for and where I need to pay attention. I’m sure I’ll enjoy it more when I read it again!
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
Kahlil Gibran’s masterpiece, The Prophet, is one of the most beloved classics of our time. Published in 1923, it has been translated into more than twenty languages, and the American editions alone have sold more than nine million copies.
The Prophet is a collection of poetic essays that are philosophical, spiritual, and, above all, inspirational. Gibran’s musings are divided into twenty-eight chapters covering such sprawling topics as love, marriage, children, giving, eating and drinking, work, joy and sorrow, housing, clothes, buying and selling, crime and punishment, laws, freedom, reason and passion, pain, self-knowledge, teaching, friendship, talking, time, good and evil, prayer, pleasure, beauty, religion, and death.
“You talk when you cease to be at peace with your thoughts.”
“Your children are not your children. They are the sons and daughters of Life’s longing for itself”
“You give but little when you give of your possessions. It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.”
The Narrator(s)
Riz Ahmed. It was good, no notes.
My Thoughts
This book was one of my bookclub member’s favorite book and she chose it for us. I listened to it twice on audio because it was such a short book and I really resonated with a lot of the ideas in the book, but I feel like this is one book that should be savored. Listening on audio, I didn’t get a chance to sit with a lot of the ideas, and I tried to mitigate that by listening twice back to back but I still think I will reread it again on print, slowly, and take time to pause in between sections and think about the ideas more.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
A dying billionaire sends one woman and a cast of dreamers and rivals on a citywide treasure hunt in this irresistible novel by the author of Bellweather Rhapsody.
Tuesday Mooney is a loner. She keeps to herself, begrudgingly socializes, and spends much of her time watching old Twin Peaks and X-Files DVDs. But when Vincent Pryce, Boston’s most eccentric billionaire, dies—leaving behind an epic treasure hunt through the city, with clues inspired by his hero, Edgar Allan Poe—Tuesday’s adventure finally begins.
Puzzle-loving Tuesday searches for clue after clue, joined by a ragtag crew: a wisecracking friend, an adoring teen neighbor, and a handsome, cagey young heir. The hunt tests their mettle, and with other teams from around the city also vying for the promised prize—a share of Pryce’s immense wealth—they must move quickly. Pryce’s clues can’t be cracked with sharp wit alone; the searchers must summon the courage to face painful ghosts from their pasts (some more vivid than others) and discover their most guarded desires and dreams.
A deliciously funny ode to imagination, overflowing with love letters to art, from The Westing Game to Madonna to the Knights of the Round Table, Tuesday Mooney Talks to Ghosts is the perfect read for thrill seekers, wanderers, word lovers, and anyone looking for an escape to the extraordinary.
I needed a book for the puzzle prompt and this book turned up and I was intrigued!
The Quotes
“Tomorrow you could be anyone. Imagine that.”
“Maybe this was how adult friendships happened: by accident, embroidered over time, visible only from the height of years.”
“Don’t cheat your friendships. Don’t ask them to mean less to you than they do, or think they only have value if they’re a stop on the way to a *real* relationship. All relationships are real. Friendship can be as deep as the ocean. It’s all a kind of love, and love isn’t any one kind of thing.”
The Narrator(s)
Lauren Fortgang. I loved it, no notes!
My Thoughts
I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. I’ve had some bad luck with recent books and I tried to manage my expectations for this one. I’m also really into stories about solving puzzles within the books and I’ve read a few that ended up quite disappointing, so I tried to be neutral with expectations going into this.
To be clear, I don’t think the puzzle-solving portion here was the most brilliant thing, but I loved the story and the characters. I really love the characters! Tuesday Mooney is such an interesting, paradoxical character. I like how she’s presented as a mystery and a loner, but she’s got so many people caring about her from the start, and she actually cares about them too, even if she pretends not to. I expected her to be this strong, proper, stoic person, but she does some questionable things, which actually makes me love her more because they make her so much more human.
I love the other characters as well; Dorry, Dex, Lyle, and Archie. They are so vibrant and colorful, and I really want to learn more about them, spend more time with them, be friends with them! I love one of the messages of the book shared in a quote above, about how friendships are important relationships too. I believe very much in platonic love, and they are just as important as romantic and familial love. What a wonderful read!
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
There are one hundred and forty-three other passengers onboard.
What you don’t know is that thirty minutes before the flight your pilot’s family was kidnapped.
For his family to live, everyone on your plane must die.
The only way the family will survive is if the pilot follows his orders and crashes the plane.
Enjoy the flight.
For the Reading Challenge(s): N/A
The Reason
I love thrillers and I was really excited about the premise and the fact that the author used to be a flight attendant.
The Quotes
“You don’t think everyone actually lives, do you? Most people just exist and roam around. It’s a choice, to actually live.”
“Accept the given circumstances and deal with what you can control. Don’t waste time on what you can’t.”
“Everyone dies. No one escapes it. It’s the only fair thing in the world. Sometimes you’re young, sometimes you’re old, sometimes you deserve it, sometimes you don’t.”
The Narrator(s)
Steven Weber. He was absolutely fine.
My Thoughts
I really wanted to like this book more than I did. It really could’ve been a great story but there were several issues with it that I couldn’t ignore. I won’t speak to the accuracy of flight and crew details because I’m obviously not an expert on these things, but the biggest thing for me is that the plot device just didn’t work. I’m usually not a stickler for details and as a reader, I want to enjoy the story so I try not to be nitpicky, and try my best to suspend belief, but the one thing that I need is for the characters and their motivations to make sense. I’m a character-driven reader; I don’t need to like the characters, but I need them to make sense and I need them to be interesting.
The plot was so weak because the bad guys’ motivations didn’t make sense at all. They had no real plan, no rhyme or reason to their actions, there was no true conviction, and their actions contradicted their words and what they said were important to them.
What I love about thrillers are the feelings of high stakes and being on the edge of my seat, but I couldn’t enjoy this one because I was just like, wtf are they doing?, why are they doing this when they said they wanted that?, and finally, who cares? It didn’t feel important to me, the characters didn’t feel real, the scenario didn’t feel real, I couldn’t take it seriously.
My Rating
⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
