Oak Avenue

 Book 92 of my 2023 Reading Challenge

read on September 23

Oak Avenue

by Brandi Reeds

My Opinion

3 stars

This short story is part of the Dark Corners collection available through Prime Reading.  I'm rating it neutrally because while it was entirely engrossing and I was tearing through it to find out the ending, the ending was unsatisfactory.  There was too much buildup to have such a sudden switch to people being helpful and there were too many questions left unanswered (and not the typical mystery "the end...or is it?" questions but story ones like the in-laws, why there was such a switch of multiple characters' behaviors, etc.).

Just a Girl

 Book 91 of my 2023 Reading Challenge

read on September 18

Just a Girl

by Alyssa Cole

My Opinion

4 stars

This short story is part of the Obsession collection available through Prime Reading.  My jaw was clenched the entire time because it was so frustratingly realistic.

A Good Day for Chardonnay

 Book 90 of my 2023 Reading Challenge

read from September 4 - 18

A Good Day for Chardonnay

by Darynda Jones

Summary (via Goodreads)

Running a small-town police force in the mountains of New Mexico should be a smooth, carefree kind of job. Sadly, full-time Sheriff--and even fuller-time coffee guzzler--Sunshine Vicram, didn't get that memo.

All Sunshine really wants is one easy-going day. You know, the kind that starts with coffee and a donut (or three) and ends with take-out pizza and a glass of chardonnay (or seven). Turns out, that's about as easy as switching to decaf. (What kind of people do that? And who hurt them?)

Before she can say iced mocha latte, Sunny's got a bar fight gone bad, a teenage daughter hunting a serial killer and, oh yes, the still unresolved mystery of her own abduction years prior. All evidence points to a local distiller, a dangerous bad boy named Levi Ravinder, but Sun knows he's not the villain of her story. Still, perhaps beneath it all, he possesses the keys to her disappearance. At the very least, beneath it all, he possesses a serious set of abs. She's seen it. Once. Accidentally.

Between policing a town her hunky chief deputy calls four cents short of a nickel, that pesky crush she has on Levi which seems to grow exponentially every day, and an irascible raccoon that just doesn't know when to quit, Sunny's life is about to rocket to a whole new level of crazy.

Yep, definitely a good day for chardonnay.

My Opinion

3 stars

Too much.  I was invested and there was witty, humorous dialogue as always but I'm also a little angry at how much I've been drawn in because there really are too too too many situations going on to have everything continue to work out semi-well (yet also have so much death at the same time).  It also makes ZERO sense to me that the paternity issue was not laid to rest years earlier...duh.

So I'll continue the series but it's almost reluctantly at this point.  It's kind of like the Stephanie Plum series...I'm interested in the characters and want to know what's going to happen but I also know the wheels are going to fall off and I'm just going to have to suspend any semblance of reality and go for the ride.

Slot Machine Fever Dreams

 Book 89 of my 2023 Reading Challenge

read on September 17

Slot Machine Fever Dreams

by Chris Bohjalian

My Opinion

3 stars

This short story is part of the Obsession collection available through Prime Reading.  It was fine while I was reading it but as it continued to become more and more unrealistic it took away all the suspense and ended with a whimper instead of a bang.  It's not that I necessarily wanted anyone to die but it took 'honor among thieves' a little too far.

We Should All Be Feminists

 Book 88 of my 2023 Reading Challenge

read on September 15

We Should All Be Feminists

by Chimamanda Ngoni Adichie

My Opinion

4 stars

A small book with great points.  I do think it's sad that the book was adapted in 2014 from a TED talk the author gave in 2012 and it didn't feel dated at all.  If anything, I feel like we've lost progress over the last few years.

The Comet Seekers

 Book 87 of my 2023 Reading Challenge

read from September 9 - 15

The Comet Seekers

by Helen Sedgwick

Summary (via the book jacket)

When Roisin and Francois meet at a remote research base on the frozen ice sheets of Antarctica, they are immediately drawn to each other. At first glance, the pair could not be more different. Older by a few years, Roisin, a daughter of Ireland and a peripatetic astronomer, joins the science team to observe the fracturing of a comet overhead. Francois, the base's chef, has just left his birthplace in Bayeux, France, for only the second time in his life. Yet the two are connected by devastating tragedy, the longing for a fresh start, and an indelible yet unknown bond that stretches back centuries.

My Opinion

2 stars

Severine's storyline is pretty much the whole reason I remained invested in the book, along with a mild curiosity about how it would all tie together.

Now for the only thing I'll remember about the book...it caused me to yell, "WHY ARE YOU HAVING SEX WITH YOUR COUSIN?!?!" many times.

I'm not going to name the characters but this next part could be a little spoiler-ish.

The two cousins having an on-off intimate and sexual relationship over the span of many years was so distracting.  I understand one of them needed to have a "first love" situation to continue to the plot but why a cousin?  This wasn't a time period or setting where it wasn't taboo...they knew it was wrong and hid it, even talking about moving away to somewhere where they wouldn't be known as cousins so they could be more open.  It happened over so many years and it brought me to a full stop every time their storyline popped up again. I don't get it.

The Heart of a Mother

 Book 86 of my 2023 Reading Challenge

read on September 12

The Heart of a Mother

by Julie Clark

My Opinion

4 stars

This short story is part of the Obsession collection available through Prime Reading.  It was entirely unexpected and made my heart sink because I felt so sad for the main character.

People Like Them

 Book 85 of my 2023 Reading Challenge

read on September 12

People Like Them

by Minka Kent

My Opinion

5 stars

This short story is part of the Obsession collection available through Prime Reading.  It was the perfect length, building suspense to an unexpected (but fully plausible when looking back) ending.

The Mosquito

 Book 84 of my 2023 Reading Challenge

read on September 7

The Mosquito

by B.A. Paris

My Opinion

4 stars

This short story is part of the Obsession collection available through Prime Reading.  The writing was so vivid I was uncomfortable reading it because of my empathy for the main character.  The ending wrapped up a little too conveniently but it's fine since it was a short story; I would've been disappointed if there had been more of an investment.

If I Live to Be 100

 Book 83 of my 2023 Reading Challenge

read from August 31 - September 3

If I Live to Be 100: Lessons from the Centenarians

by Neenah Ellis

Summary (via the book jacket)

Neenah Ellis's New York Times bestselling If I Live to Be 100 takes us inside the world of the very old and invites us to learn from them the art of living well for an exceptionally long period of time. Their stories add up to a course in living, with lessons and inspiration for all of us.

My Opinion

3 stars

Since this book came out in 2002 it was kind of sad to realize everyone in this book is definitely gone.  I love people's stories, especially "regular" people sharing little snapshots.  If the format is available I think I might enjoy it more hearing and/or seeing it directly from them instead of through the author's interpretation.  I'll have to see if the NPR series is still available.