Monday, August 2, 2021

Mini-Book Reviews: July 2021

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links.

Starting this month, I'll be sharing my mini-book reviews in their own post! I've been kind of hijacking my coffee talk posts and squeezing in my reviews.. My mantra has always been "so many books, so little time", but laid up for the past month with a broken ankle and foot, I've had time to read a lot of books this month. I have a few new releases and some backlist reads from my Kindle app. It's been a good reading month. I hope you enjoy the new format! As always, you can follow me on Goodreads to see what I'm reading currently.



Landslide by Susan Conley is the story of a mother left alone with her two teenage boys after her husband gets seriously injured in a fishing accident. The family lives on a remote island in northern Maine. As a mom of two grown boys, his book got me in the feels. If you've raised boys, you know the challenges she faced and how she struggled with her own emotions. This is a beautifully written, quiet little introspective novel that will have you thinking about it long after you've finished. And yes, the title is based on the song by Fleetwood Mac. 



Who is Maud Dixon by Alexandra Andrews was a wild ride of intrigue and mistaken identity. An aspiring young wannabe writer takes a job as an assistant to 'Maud Dixon', a pseudonym for a reclusive author. They travel to Morocco so the author can do some research for a novel she is working on. Things aren't what they seem, though. I could not put this book down--I kept wanting to see what was happening next. The writing is great and there's some snarky humor, too. One of my favorite books so far this year.




Mary Jane
by Jessica Anya Blau is set in the mid-1970s. The main character, Mary Jane, is 14 years old and has been raised by very conservative parents. She takes a summer job as a nanny for a doctor's young daughter. Unbeknownst to Mary Jane and her parents, the doctor is treating a famous rock star who is detoxing and Mary Jane is exposed to a whole new world. It was a fun nostalgic read, especially since I was about the same age as Mary Jane when this story takes place. It's also a wonderful coming of age story and another highly recommended read!



Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead is an epic novel that spans the life of twins whose father makes a split-second decision to save their lives on a sinking ship. They are raised by an uncle in rural Montana--kind of a raised by wolves life--where they are free to roam as they wish. Marian, the girl, dreams of being a pilot of seeing some barnstormers overhead. She realizes her dream but pays a big price for it. The book follows her legendary story and that of her brother. Alternating with Marian's story is that of a troubled young actress who is chosen to play Marian in a film of her life. At first, I didn't understand the significance of this alternating storyline, but as the book continued, things started to fall into place. I am amazed at the detail the author went into to describe the planes, the geography, and the flights. Truly a masterpiece and I hope that a movie is made of it. 




Falling by T.J. Newman is the story of a pilot who learns inflight that his family is being held hostage. He's flying a plane full of passengers and the only way to save his family is to crash the plane. The author is a flight attendant and her insider knowledge adds authenticity to the story. This was a frightening read but naturally, I couldn't put it down. If you like thrillers, this is a good one. But I wouldn't recommend reading it on a plane.





Rules for Visiting by Jessica Francis Kane is the story of an introverted botanist who is granted a leave of absence from her job and decides to visit some old friends as a way of reconnecting. She studies Emily Post's etiquette to make sure she's a good guest but finds that she wishes her hosts would let her just be part of their lives instead of planning all kinds of special things for her to do. You know I love quirky characters and this book is full of them. This is a quiet, meditative read that didn't quite grab me as much as I had hoped.





When I Ran Away by Ilona Bannister is a raw, darkly funny story of a marriage. A chance meeting with a guy from the coffee shop on 9/11 sets the story in motion. Ten years later, they meet up again and fall in love. They marry and move to London, where the main character has to deal with grief, homesickness, and the most vivid description of postpartum depression I've ever seen. This was a completely immersive read, one I didn't want to put down until I was done. Whew!







Such A Quiet Place by Megan Miranda was an unputdownable pageturner! This suspense novel kept me up late and I finished it up the next day. A woman accused of murder gets released on a technicality. She returns to the peaceful, idyllic little neighborhood where everyone is watching to the home of the woman she was sharing a home with. She's behaving suspiciously, but why? So many twists and turns--this was a good read!




If I had to pick a favorite book for the month, it would be Who is Maud Dixon?. But everything I read this month was good. What's next on my TBR list? I've got A Special Place for Women by Laura Hankin. There are also a few running books that are nearing publication, so look for at least one of those on the blog this month. 



What are you reading? Have you read any of these books? What genre do you like?

I'm linking up with Kim and Zenaida for Tuesday Topics.



28 comments :

  1. I love this format, Wendy! Please keep it going.
    I need to get Who is Maud Dixon. I have never been disappointed by your recommendations, so I'm pretty sure I will like it.
    I'm still stuck on a non-fiction book called "Antifragile" by Nassim Nicholas Taleb. Great ideas, but unnecessarily longwinded and tedious to read.
    Looking forward to your running book reviews!

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    1. Thank you Catrina! I'm doing this thanks to all the encouragement i got from everyone when I shared my reads on my coffee talk post. Please let me know how you like Maud Dixon.

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  2. Even with the extra time, I still don't know how you manage to read so much!

    I am currently reading The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hill, which I'm really enjoying. I also just finished The Goddess Pose, which was a fascinating look at the life Indra Devi -- and I knew nothing about her before I read the book.

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    1. I've always been a voracious reader, since I was a child. Heard good things about Sam Hill--it's on my TBR list.

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  3. Great book reviews! I already have Mary Jane on my library requests. I will make note of your other recommendations for reading later on in the year.

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  4. Interesting book reviews.
    I mainly like reading history books with particular regard to peoples, nations, conflicts and important persons.
    At the moment I am reading "Etruscology" by Massimo Pallottino.

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  5. So timely because I'm looking for books for vacation in a few weeks here. I've seen a lot of recommendations for Falling but I'll have to wait until we're back since we're flying.

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    1. Yeah, I wouldn't read that one on a plane, lol! It's intense.

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  6. Thanks so much for the book reviews! I was hoping to get more into reading this summer but as usual life gets in the way. Maybe I'll make this a goal for the Fall!

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  7. Lots of great reads, and they all sound intriguing. I'll probably take a pass on the Flying book...I'm a nervous flyer and don't need any additional things to worry about while in the air LOL

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    1. I get that. I had to put it down at one point because it was just a little too real. The narrative loosened up a bit as the book went on, tho.

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  8. This is so timely Wendy, I need some books for my Kindle for our upcoming Boundary Waters trip and just ordered a few of these! :) Thank you for sharing!

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    1. I'm so glad you found some you liked! Please let me know what you think.

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  9. ok wow you read a lot of books this month! I like legal thrillers and suspense novels. I am currently reading Daniel Silva's new book. Love him! I also finished Elin Hilderbrand's golden girl

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    1. Both really good authors! I like suspense novels too but I need to mix it up.

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  10. Thanks so much for sharing these! For the past few years I've only read running books or parenting books (like how to get your kid to sleep and how to potty train, lol). So this month I read Golden Girl and it was so nice to just read a novel. I'll need to check some of these out!

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    1. When the boys were little, I definitely didn't read as much for pleasure. Same with grad school. I guess I'm making up for lost time!

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  11. I love that you do this. I am always looking for books to read. I've just read 6 Diane Chamberlain books. I am reading Klara and the Sun for a book club. It's about artificial friends. So far i do NOT like it.

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    1. Klara and the Sun is an odd choice for a book club! Should be an interesting discussion.

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  12. Well, looking on the bright side of your injury, you got a lot of great reading done in July. I haven't read any of the books you reviewed, and two of them especially stand out to me (Maud Dixon and Such a Quiet Place.). My son somehow hooked me into re-reading the Harry Potter books this summer, and while I'm enjoying those I'm missing reading new books. Maybe I'll take a break and try one of these.

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    1. We read all the HP books when the boys were little, but the final books just got too dark for me. I should revisit them. But I have so many other books to get to first...

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  13. Wow, great reading, I didn't realise you were popping book reviews in your coffee posts as I almost never get time to read all those so often skip them. Gah! I do like a page-turner, but at the moment I'm loving working my way through Maya Angelou's works of autobiography.

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    1. I haven't read her books, but I want to! There are just so many options right now--I don't think I'll ever get to read everything I want.

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  14. You know I love your book reviews. These are all interesting and will add them to my list. Thanks!

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