I would like to give a shoutout to Hoopla for helping me get back into listening to audiobooks after struggling with it for a while. If you have a library card and haven’t signed up for Hoopla yet to get free audiobooks, ebooks, movies, tv shows, and more please go do that right now. Support your local libraries friends!
June has been one of my best reading months so far with me having finished 8 books. There were more hits than misses, but there were also a few “what the fuck” moments along the way. Let’s just say I pushed myself out of my comfort zone and sometimes my curiosity will force me to finish books solely because I want to know what happens (maybe also because it’s entertaining when a book is a little batshit). Enough of my prattling on, here are the reviews for everything I read in June.
First Time Caller by B.K. Borison – 5 stars
This story was lovely and a refreshing departure from some of the other romance books I’ve read recently. If you love 90’s and early 2000’s romcoms this is one you’re going to have a hard time putting down. The love interests are around 30 and I could relate to their relationship woes and disenchantments with the idea of love. Lucie and Aiden have great witty banter, heart to hearts, tense moments, and the spicy parts felt intentional and well thought out. The supporting cast is also fun and endearing as they help Lucie along in her search for love.
For fans of everything Nora Ephron, the situation when two people clearly like each other but they’re afraid to make a move, and Nobody Wants This
Where He Can’t Find You by Darcy Coates – 5 stars
Every kid has some bit of creepy lore about their hometown. For me it was a legend about a wolf-like creature that roamed the woods surrounding an old cemetery not far from town. In the case of this book, depending on who you ask, The Stitcher is either a man or a monster. It kidnaps people and when they turn back up they are grotesque mutilations of what they once were. It’s been decades and no one has uncovered evidence as to who or what the mysterious entity might be. There is a sense of urgency throughout this story propelling you forward at breakneck speed as the cast of teens frantically searches for one of their friends who has been taken.
For kids who watched too many urban legend and paranormal shows growing up, fans of Stranger Things/teen detectives, and small-town mysteries
Such Sharp Teeth by Rachel Harrison – 4 stars
A lady werewolf book? Sign me up. This is such a creative take and metaphor for dealing with and healing from trauma. After Rory hits a strange animal and wrecks her car, weird things start to happen to her of the physical and supernatural variety. There is a touching sibling and family story within Rory’s narrative I enjoyed a lot. This story is a take on trauma, rage, and expectations told through a feminist lens. It doesn’t shy away from discussing the main character’s flaws. There were some slower moments that interrupted the pacing and I could have done with some more foundation building for the romantic relationship in the story, but it didn’t take too much away from the story overall.
For fans of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Leigh Bardugo (but with more humor)
The Dream Hotel by Laila Lalami – 4 stars
Are you afraid of the implications of the masses embracing and using AI in their everyday lives? If the answer is yes then this book is the think piece on the future of AI technology that might send you spiraling. In the near future, Sara is detained at the airport after a computer program flags her as a risk to her husband and is sent to a retention facility for a mandatory 21 day hold. As the months go on and the officers at the facility find reasons to extend Sara’s stay, a perfect storm of circumstances set her on a path to take down the very system that put her in the facility. This story is a rumination on how technology might be framed as a way to make our lives easier, but can also toe a dangerous line between being helpful and putting us in constraints. It tackles discrimination, the prison-industrial complex, and criticizes the rising prevalence of AI.
For fans of Minority Report (or so I’ve been told), My Murder by Katie Williams, and anyone interested in what our strange future might hold
Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins – 4 stars
I don’t feel I can properly and officially rate this book until I go back and read the original trilogy again, but that being said I did think it was important to hear Haymitch’s story. When we meet him in The Hunger Games we don’t fully understand him; without the depth of his backstory he just comes across as a mysterious, messy drunk. There are a lot of parallels between Haymitch and Katniss that come together in the story, but there were some plot points that felt thrown in because they were convenient in getting from point A to point B. I think Collins drives home the point of Snow’s cruelty in the way she formulates and described Haymitch’s experience in the games. I would have liked to see more of his life in District 12 to get an idea of what normal looked like and honestly could have done without so much Lenore dove (sorry).
For anyone who thinks this current administration can get wrecked and those who always root for the underdog
Hunted by Darcy Coates – 4 stars
I spent 3/4 of this book almost fully convinced it was a Bigfoot horror story (and I kind of wish it was if I’m being honest). This is another story that cements my fear of the deep woods and the dark, so you won’t be catching me going camping. I liked how this kept me guessing whether it was going the supernatural cryptid route or the Scooby-Doo villain gets his mask ripped off to reveal a man. The twist wasn’t the most original, but I didn’t mind because it was actually believable compared to other things I’ve read. The narrative goes back and forth between a detective and a group of people searching for their friend who went missing in the forest, which was a nice way to keep this book from getting monotonous.
For fans of The Descent, True Detective: Night Country, and anyone who doesn’t fully believe in monsters but knows there’s always a chance
The Creeper by A.M. Shine – 2.5 stars
This book was just too slow for my liking. After loving The Watchers, I decided to go for a spin with this book and found the idea interesting while the execution was a bit lacking. There were some suspenseful and terrifying moments that were too few and far between. It starts off strong with an encounter with an entity called The Creeper and a couple of academics sent out to a remote community to gather information about this mysterious being. Unfortunately, there was too much set up and exposition where I was being told and not shown backstory on how all the characters are related to the legend. The brutal and realistic ending redeemed this story a little bit for me, though as a reader I had to work really hard to get there.
For fans of The Ritual, Darcy Coates (see reviews above), and folklore inspired horror
The Apartment Across the Hall by Jack Dane – 2 stars
I honestly don’t know what I read. Think of every insane plot twist that doesn’t really make sense that could happen in a thriller/mystery book and it probably happened in this one. It really threw me off the way it was specifically and consistently mentioned the main character wore a pair of Crocs. I love a comfy pair of Crocs but it was entirely unnecessary. Everyone in this story was fairly unlikable, which made sense in some cases, but I felt meh about everyone. It was hard for me finish this because it was so wild, but at the same time I was dying to know what was going to happen. The start of some interesting plot points had me excited, yet they were never developed further.
For people who enjoy how unhinged Joe Goldberg is in You, fans of potentially unreliable narrators, and readers who don’t mind wild plot twists
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The Rummy Writer 