Reviews – Page 2 – Books Dani Likes

The Survivors by Jane Harper

Hello Readers! I’ve got a new title from a favorite author to share with you today. This book came out recently and is the latest stand-alone from Australian mystery writer Jane Harper. She is an auto-read author for me and her work has been getting more and more attention over the years. Her first novel was even made into a movie recently starring Eric Bana (no clue when we might be able to see it stateside, but I’ll definitely be doing a re-read once we do have a date).

Title: The Survivors

Author: Jane Harper

Author website: https://janeharper.com.au/

Publisher: Pan Macmillan

Publish date: February 2, 2021

ISBN: 9781760981051

Buy the Book: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Bookshop.org

Summary:

Kieran and his wife return to their small town after years away to find that life in a small town never really changes much. When they were young a brutal storm moved through that resulted in the death of Kieran’s older brother, the death of his brother’s business partner, and the disappearance of a young girl. Everyone in town thinks that they know what happened that day and that at least part of the blame for the two confirmed deaths that day falls at Kieran’s feet. Kieran and his family have tried to cope with their guilt about everything that happened for years.

When a young woman is found murdered on the beach during their stay, old feelings and suspicions come boiling to the surface. Small towns are excellent for proliferating gossip and holding old grudges. As the investigation stalls and tensions in the town mount, Kieran has to confront his feelings about what happened years ago while also grappling with questions about what is happening in the current day and how his family may or may not be involved.

There are plenty of suspects and even more suspicions in this fourth novel from Jane Harper. Harper gives the traditional mystery a fresh spin with her richly detailed settings and her emotionally complex characters. The character work in this story is excellent, and each character is revealed to have their own secrets and motivations related to past and present day events. Whatever the reader may think about what happened back then, I feel pretty sure that few will be able to guess this ending or the motivations for it.

Why I liked it:

Harper writes mysteries in a way that feels fresh because of her unique settings that still read as something familiar. Yes, it’s set in Australia, but small-town life is inherently a familiar concept and Harper writes those dynamics very well. I also appreciate that each character is developed fully. There are almost no throwaway characters in this story. It is a bit of a slow burn, but the writing is so rich that I truly didn’t mind.

What I would like to change:

The characters that we get to know the least in these stories are the victims, and I would have loved to have gotten a few chapters from their perspectives. While the story was really good on its own, I think I would have enjoyed a deeper insight into those characters because, as it was, our only impressions of them are what other people knew.

Disclaimer: I received my copy early from Book of the Month (a pretty neat and reasonably priced subscription service that lets you pause or skip a month if the books don’t appeal to you.) I also had a digital copy from the publisher via NetGalley which I received with the expectation of an honest review.

My library rating: I’m giving this one 4 glasses of lemonade, primarily because there’s language and a few tough scenes with assault. Overall, this is a highly recommendable book to most groups.

lemonade_icon 4 glasses of lemonade= a book you could recommend to a book group or anybody who reads. You might find controversial subject matter, but it is handled delicately.

My personal preference rating: I gave this title 4.5 stars. It was pretty close to perfect, but I had to deduct a little because I didn’t get an overwhelming feeling to re-read the story as soon as I was done. My absolute favorite mysteries make me want to re-read them right away to try and go back to find the things that I missed the first time around. I didn’t get the feeling that I had missed that much in the first reading, even though I really enjoyed this read.

In the Garden of Spite by Camilla Bruce

Hello Readers! How is your reading year going so far? Have you already picked up a favorite book of the year? I don’t know that I’ve found a favorite of the year so far, but I have read a few books that I’ve really enjoyed already. One of those books is the title I’m reviewing today. It’s the second book from Norwegian author Camilla Bruce. I haven’t read her first title, but I’m definitely more likely to pick it up after finishing this one. In the Garden of Spite is out now and it is a dark story of revenge and blood lust. It won’t be for everyone, but if you like dark true crime, I think this will appeal to you.

Title: In The Garden of Spite

Author: Camilla Bruce

Author website: https://camillabruce.com/about/

Publisher: Berkley

Publish date: 01/19/2021

ISBN: 9780593102565

Buy the Book: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Bookshop.org

Summary:

The story follows Belle Gunness, a woman who goes by several names before all is said and done. We follow Belle/Bella/Brynhild from her early days in Norway. Belle leads a tough life as a clever girl in a time and place where clever girls are not considered valuable. In an effort to better her life circumstances she makes some questionable decisions and some dangerous enemies. Her plans go horribly wrong and she is savagely beaten as a result. This story is not for the feint of heart.

In an effort to escape her past in Norway, Belle writes to her sister Nellie, who has emigrated to the United States to ask for help. Nellie and her husband set aside a little money and send it to Belle who combines it with her own savings in order to afford passage to America. The whole thing takes time though, and Belle is living in a village filled with people who are unkind, and at least one person who tried to kill her. Belle goes through her life there, working hard, but never forgetting what was done to her. She will eventually get revenge on the man who attacked her, and the crux of her character for the rest of the book is born in that moment.

There are times, especially after Belle arrives in America and begins the process of rebuilding her life, that the reader can sympathize with her and root for her success in starting over…but this isn’t that type of story. The roots of her rage run so deep, that even when things start to look up she finds herself losing control of each situation in a manner that she can’t accept.

This is a story of blood lust and of the rage of one clever woman. The story is told from Belle’s perspective, but also from the perspective of her sister Nellie. Initially, Nellie thinks the best of her sister and just wants to protect her, but she slowly comes to realize exactly what kind of person her sister is and just how unforgivable her crimes are. I really appreciated Nellie’s perspective on things, because I think the reader could easily get sucked in to Belle’s logic for all of the decisions that she makes and could almost start to ignore the depravity of what she is doing.

Belle Gunness was a real person and she really committed the atrocious crimes that are detailed in this story, for the most part. The author reveals in her Author’s Note at the end that many parts of Belle’s life are unknown, including the motivation that led to her actions and how her life ended. Bruce explains the creative decisions that she made when she went to tell Gunness’ story, and I think the care with which she made those decisions shows clearly in the writing. Nellie’s character reminds us again and again that Belle was once a mistreated child, and later in the book, when things get really dark, Nellie reminds us that Belle has suffered an unimaginably horrific attack that is bound to have changed her psyche.

This is a very dark book, but it was an engaging story.

Why I liked it:

This novel presents feminine rage in a clear and concise manner. As the reader, you won’t be tempted to forgive Belle’s actions, but you will understand what led her to that moment. She’s not a sympathetic character, but so much of her life is a reaction to the incident from her early years in Norway that I did not forget her humanity despite all of the gore.

What I would like to change:

There was a point, particularly after we arrived in La Porte, Indiana, where the plot began to feel very repetitive and where Belle’s character stopped achieving any sort of growth. I know that it served the purpose of illustrating just how unchecked her crimes were at that time, but it did get a little tedious from the reading perspective.

Disclaimer: I received an e-galley of this title from the publisher via NetGalley with the expectation of an honest review.

My library rating: This is a dark book…like really dark. It has violence, gore, sexual assault, the death of children, domestic violence. That’s a lot of trigger warnings and many people would not be comfortable reading about those situations. I would probably be comfortable recommending this one to readers who like dark true crime and horror.

1 glass of lemonade= a book that can only be recommended to someone whose reading taste you know well, like a best friend. There may be a fair amount of curse words, spicy sex scenes, or potentially morally repugnant behavior. This does not mean that the book is bad, just that the audience might be a little more limited.

My personal preference rating: I gave this title 4 stars. I don’t mind the darkness and the gore and I really loved that this was based on a true story. The author’s note at the end added information about the real Belle Gunness, which I appreciated.

The Cookbook Club by Beth Harbison

Hello Kittens! This month is going by so fast that it is giving me whiplash. I’m having a decent reading month, despite a lot of distractions, but I’ve been finding a lot of comfort in lighter, fluffy reads recently. I wanted to share one of the newer releases that I’ve enjoyed with you today. Beth Harbison is probably best known for her Shoe Addict book series, but this new standalone from her hit all of the right notes for me. It is sweet, it has some serious moments, and it talks about food. I think I can safely blame reading this book for some of my holiday binge-eating. Some of the food descriptions in this book are definitely going to get your mouth watering. Sorry, not sorry.

Title: The Cookbook Club

Author: Beth Harbison

The Cookbook Club: A Novel of Food and Friendship

Author website: https://www.bethharbison.com/

Publisher: William Morrow

Publish date: October 20, 2020

ISBN: 9780062958624

Buy the Book: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org

Summary:

We get the stories of three women who seemingly could not be living more different lives. Margo has spent the last few years working on her perfect life. She has a good husband and a beautiful house and generally wants for nothing. Unfortunately, digging a little deeper proves that Margo’s husband is selfish and doesn’t care about her very much and wants to leave her and her beautiful house is a social burden that isn’t bringing her any happiness. The only thing that does bring her happiness at this point is cooking. She has an impressive assortment of cookbooks, and as she begins her newly single life Margo joins 2 other women in a cookbook club: a book club dedicated to experimenting with recipes from various well-known cookbooks.

Aja is a young woman who is trying to become a better cook to impress her boyfriend. Her boyfriend comes from a wealthy family and definitely has some high expectations for her behavior. As she struggles to meet his expectations, and those of his family, she befriends the other women and learns about cooking, but also about herself. When her prince charming turns out to be charmless and she finds out her life is going to be irrevocably changed, Aja buckles down and gets a new job working for her ex-boyfriend’s mother. He is scandalized, but Aja knows that a good paying job is hard to come by and she’s not afraid of a little hard work.

Trista used a to a lawyer, but working in that highly competitive world for so many years wore her down. She decides to take a leap of faith and quit her job to fulfill her dream of owning and operating a restaurant. She finds a place and buys it, but it needs a lot of work and she’s got to come up with some creative ways to bring in more customers, otherwise she’ll be going broke sooner rather than later. Creating the cookbook club is her idea in an effort to come up with some new recipes for the restaurant.

As each woman deals with the messes in their lives, they come together to cook delicious food and form friendships with each other that get them through the hard times.

Why I liked it:

This book was a quick read with an agreeable cast of characters. Each woman has a major issue or two to deal with in their lives, and while they don’t all handle every situation with perfect grace, they are not portrayed as weak or in need of saving. I love when characters save themselves and get by with a little help from their friends. I also appreciated that while there are a few romances sprinkled around, none of them become the prime focus of the story. This story is foremost about the power of female friendship.

What I would like to change:

Everything wrapped up pretty quickly at the end and I would have liked a little more detail. Even after going back over it a few times, I still don’t entirely understand what happened with Margo’s husband, and there was some unresolved tension left over from his visit to the house to take his things. I feel like there was more set-up to that relationship falling apart and the ending felt half-hearted. It was like we knew that they weren’t going to have any sort of reconciliation, so their story just ended abruptly.

Disclaimer: I received an electronic galley of this title from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

My library rating: I didn’t see anything objectionable in this one and I think it would be a great book club pick. It could even inspire people to start their own cookbook clubs.

lemonade_icon 5 glasses of lemonade= you could recommend this book to anyone. There is nothing in here that is going to upset anyone and you could start handing it out on street corners.

My personal preference rating: 3 stars. I enjoyed reading this book, but I don’t think the story or the characters are going to stick with me very long. It was a good palate-cleanser read.

Murder in Season by Jon Land and Jessica Fletcher

Hello Kittens! It’s November. There’s been an election and Thanksgiving is coming. I’ll just say this: it’s a crazy time to be alive. I’m doing well, but not reading as much right now…just too much chaos going on. Nonetheless, I had a few days off last week and was able to get to the newest release concerning my favorite female sleuth: Jessica Fletcher. My favorite thing about this newest book is that it returns to the Jessica Fletcher that most of us know and love while also pausing to poke a little fun at the phenomenon that is the exceptionally high murder rate in Cabot Cove. I appreciate that the author added modern touches to Jessica’s life and broke up a few of her routines in this book without straying too far from her overall character development.

Title: Murder, She Wrote: Murder in Season

Author: Jon Land & Jessica Fletcher

Author website: https://www.jonlandbooks.com/

Publisher: Berkley Prime Crime

Publish date: November 24, 2020

ISBN: 9781984804365

Buy the Book: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Bookshop

Summary:

In this holiday installment to the series, the reader returns home with Jessica Fletcher after her months-long stay at Hill House. Having lost her home in a fire a few books back, Jessica is thrilled to be back home even if everything is not exactly as it was before. She is experiencing waves of nostalgia finally being back home after months spent living in a hotel. As she prepares for the holidays, and a visit from her nephew Grady, along with his wife and young son, Jessica finds herself embroiled in a new mystery. So what else is new?

When her home needs a few more updates in order to pass inspection, Jessica is just anxious to get all of the formalities over with. Unfortunately, fate has other plans. While digging on her property to install a new septic system, two bodies and a historical chest filled with long-lost documents are found. Suddenly, Jessica is thrust into investigating how the bodies got there, who they belong to, and why they were buried with a stash of historical documents.

Long-time readers will be glad to know that all of Cabot Cove’s favorite citizens make an appearance in this story. Dr. Seth Hazlitt is as ornery as ever and everyone’s favorite Sheriff Metzger is still wondering why he left New York City to move to the murder capital of Maine. We even get a few references to formed sheriff Amos Tupper and a visit from Private Detective Harry McGraw. All in all, this is a cozy installment in a long-running series that sees Jessica placed in less danger than the last few installments. This story feels more like the old-school Jessica Fletcher, lending a hand to a stalled investigation and letting life inspire her moments of investigative brilliance.

Why I liked it:
After a shaky installment in “The Murder of Twelve” which came out back in May, I didn’t go into this story expecting to love it. Land has only been writing the last couple of books in the series and I felt like the last one strayed too far from Jessica’s character. Thankfully, this book did not suffer from any of those issues. This is the Jessica that most of us know and love from the television series. She’s in the middle of the investigation because it literally starts in her lawn, but she’s not in overt danger. There are pretty good red herrings, a mysterious recurring clue that isn’t as obvious as it first seems, and a supporting cast of characters who carry their own agendas well. Also, Harry McGraw was always one of my favorite side characters in the story, so I really loved seeing him play a crucial role in the development of this story.

What I would like to change:

There’s one part of this whole story that really bugs me. How is Jessica continuing to live in her house without a functioning septic system? At one point there are like 4 extra people staying there….so how is everyone dealing with that bathroom situation? It’s a little thing, but it did stick out to me.

Disclaimer: I received an electronic galley of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

My library rating:

lemonade_icon 5 glasses of lemonade= you could recommend this book to anyone. There is nothing in here that is going to upset anyone and you could start handing it out on street corners.

My personal preference rating: I gave this title 4 stars. It was a really cozy read at a time when I really needed one.

The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune

Hello Kittens! It may have taken me over half the year, but I’ve found my personal contender for best book of the year. This book is sweet and has memorable characters and will make you laugh as well as cry. It is a story about accepting differences and really getting to know people for who they are and not just how we see them. This title released just as the pandemic was really beginning to hit hard in the U.S., but I’ve seen this book getting some buzz in the YouTube community. I really hope it doesn’t get lost in this year of weird happenings. I have been singing its praises since before I even finished it, and I even kept it a few extra days from the library since I knew it had holds and I wasn’t going to get it back for a while (the fines are going to be pretty decent).

Title: The House in the Cerulean Sea

Author: TJ Klune

Author website:http://www.tjklunebooks.com/

Publisher: Tor

Publish date: March 17, 2020

ISBN: 9781250217288

Buy the Book: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Bookshop

Summary:

Linus Baker does not live an extraordinary life. He gets up, gets ready, goes to work for several hours, comes home, feeds his cat, has an unpleasant conversation with his neighbor, listens to some records, then goes to bed. Each day is remarkably similar. He believes in the work he is doing for the Department in Charge of Magical Youth, inspecting orphanages to make sure that the children are being cared for as they should be. He has something of a reputation for his objective reports on his different cases. He takes his guidance from a large tome known as the RULES AND REGULATIONS, which he reads from daily.

Linus is very good at his job but never seeks promotion from it. So he is very surprised when one day he is summoned by Extremely Upper Management and given a top-secret assignment. It is so secret that they won’t even tell him any of the details until he reaches the location of the next orphanage. When he arrives, he opens the files regarding the children whom he is there to look into and faints dead away. This will be his most challenging assignment ever, and Linus isn’t at all sure he is the man for the job, or that Extremely Upper Management have provided him with the tools and information to succeed.

Linus will spend the next several weeks studying this orphanage, the children who live there, and the headmaster who is in charge of it all. He will make sure that the environment is safe and that the children are being cared for. He will do all of this to the standards set forth in the rule book. From the moment he steps on the campus, Linus discovers that these children are extremely challenging, the headmaster is extremely mysterious, and the environment is extremely secluded. He’ll encounter townspeople who are less than thrilled to have the children living nearby while dealing with cryptic and semi-threatening messages from the home office.

Why I liked it:

This book is utterly charming. Linus’ character development is well-paced and engaging. The children are all absolutely delightful, even when they’re being nightmares. The story deals with challenging all sorts of preconceived notions and prejudices. At its heart, it’s a story about morals and how we should strive to treat each other. Readers will delight in Linus’ development and the strides made by the children and townspeople. I laughed, cried, and was heartbroken at times. This was a 5 star read in every sense of the word.

What I would like to change:

I would like a sequel please. I’m not ready to leave these characters behind yet.

Disclaimer: No disclaimer needed. I checked this book out from my library.

My library rating: This was a really tough rating to give out. I want to recommend this book to everyone because it is beautiful, but I know that some people will object to a male/male romance, even if it is relatively chaste. That being said, I think some people might be able to look past that on this one because of the writing, and others will be thrilled to see queer representation (a directly stated goal of the author, who self-identifies as queer). While there is a romance, it is in no way steamy. If there is such a genre as a Cozy Literary Fantasy, this would fall squarely within it.

lemonade_icon 4 glasses of lemonade= a book you could recommend to a book group or anybody who reads. You might find controversial subject matter, but it is handled delicately.

My personal preference rating: I gave this title 5 stars. It is my absolute favorite read of the year so far.