booklistqueen's reviews
634 reviews

Rebecca Yarros took the book world by storm with her dragon romantasy book, Fourth Wing. In the third book of the Empyrean series, Violet Sorrengail must venture beyond the failing Aretian wards to recruit allies. Violet needs an army and magic to keep her homeland, Xaden, and the dragons safe. But that means keeping a secret that could risk destroying everything.

One of the most anticipated books of the year, Onyx Storm didn't fully live up to its hype for me. Yarros kept the same tone as the previous books with steamy sex scenes and a constant stream of action sequences. Unfortunately the storyline - particularly the island encounters -  was underwhelming and didn't quite capture the magic of the first two books. While unlikely to be anyone's favorite, fans of the series will still enjoy Onyx Storm and I suspect it will serve as a bridge into the second half of the book series. 

From the author of Still Alice, neuroscientist Lisa Genova paints a story about a young woman with bipolar disorder trying to pursue a career as a stand-up comedian. Maddy has always felt like she doesn't quite belong in her perfect Connecticut family. While a freshman at NYU, a stressed-out Maddy begins swinging from deep depression to wild mania and is diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Now Maddy must come to terms with her diagnosis and the complex effects it causes on her relationships. 

Lisa Genova paints an intimate look at bipolar disorder and the effects on a young woman's relationships. I found myself getting more and more uncomfortable as the book went on, watching Maddy's mania phases spiral her out of control and then careen her into a deep depression. However, by its very nature, bipolar disorder would be an uncomfortable diagnosis requiring a difficult journey to find the correct balance. Genova humanized bipolar disorder in a way that hit me to the core and will stay with me for a while. 

Katarina Shaw always knew she was destined to be an Olympic ice skater even if she didn't have the support or pedigree it usually requires. When she meets Heath Rocha, a lonely kid in foster care, Katarina finds the perfect partner to make her dreams - and desires - come true. Ten years after a shocking event ends their Olympic careers and relationship, an unauthorized documentary forces Katarina to break her silence about what happened in this sports romance inspired by Wuthering Heights.

I devoured The Favorites in one sitting but I have to admit, it did remind me why I hate Wuthering Heights so much; I absolutely despise the brooding Heathcliff energy. Yet, Fargo captivates with a story of Kat's Olympic pursuits full of gripping ups and downs that make for an epic tale. I loved how the documentary excerpts really helped keep the anticipation going, dropping tantalizing hints at what might lay ahead and giving you a better feel for the side characters. More contemporary fiction than sports romance, The Favorites sends you on a dramatic roller coast ride of the obsessive passion to win Olympic gold. 

Shari Franke is the oldest child of Ruby Franke, a temperamental mother fickle with her love and affection. After her sixth child, Ruby embraced the influencer lifestyle and created the YouTube channel 8Passengers. Growing up with her childhood mined for content, Shari struggled under a mother wanting to use her more than love her. Just as Shari leaves for college, Ruby falls under the thrall of life coach Jodi Hildebrandt and the two go on to commit heinous acts of child abuse all while Shari pleaded with family services to intercede.

One of the first memoirs by a child of an influencer family, The House of My Mother hits on the legal and moral issues about being raised as content. Shari tells her story well (and narrates the audiobook), giving powerful insights into her childhood and the ramifications of her mother's actions on her family. The whole situation was horrifying and was too much for someone so young to deal with. To make it worst, you have to watch as Shari, finally seeking therapy and desperately trying to save her siblings, gets punished by her church because an older church leader groomed and abused her. I understand why she wrote her memoir now and I would be fascinated to see how her feelings and insights about how religion was used against her and her siblings evolve as she gets older. 

Written as a fictional "memoir", The Three Lives of Cate Kay tells the life story of Cate Kay, whose bestselling book trilogy turned into the hit movie franchise of the decade. Cate Kay's identity has been a closely guarded secret for years even from her literary agent. As a teen, Annie and her best friend dreamed of moving to California to be movie stars. After a tragedy, Annie runs away, living under an assumed name for decades. To regain her life, Annie is finally ready to reclaim her name and make all parts of herself whole once again. 

My first celebrity book club read of the year, and Reese Witherspoon delivered with this riveting character-driven read with a queer love story. Except for the villain, Fagan's characters were fleshed-out and well-developed and the memoir styling kept the narrative compelling. A thoughtful and endearing read, The Three Lives of Cate Kay highlighted the journey of self-discovery and the harms of always trying to run from your past. 

Poet Maggie Smith never imagined that her career success would lead to the deterioration of her marriage. In her lyrical memoir, Smith tells her tale of heartbreak and rebuilding as she is determined to become a fierce mother even as she finds herself. More than just her story, You Could Make This Place Beautiful contemplates modern womanhood, traditional gender roles, patriarchy's role in society, and the challenges facing women today.

Maggie Smith narrated the audio version of her divorce memoir perfectly. I was captured by her poetic structure and her ability to beautifully turn a phrase so that I felt so many of her lines. Although Smith is trying to be fair and nice, her husband comes off as a complete jackass - a spouse who refuses to be an equal parent and blames the wife for her career success. Smith's story is powerfully relatable to modern women and I absolutely loved her unique take on storytelling. 

At the turn of the century, a twelve-year-old girl grieving her father is sent by boat to meet her 40-year-old husband. Eventually, she becomes known as Big Ammachi, the matriarch of a family particularly cursed to have one member of each generation die by drowning. From 1900-1977, Big Ammachi and her family see unimaginable changes to her Christian community on South India's Malabar coast.

What a beautiful book! The Covenant of Water is a modern classic that reads like an epic Dickens' novel. This gripping multigenerational story brings the characters and settings and history alive so you feel like you experience their sliver of the world. I really liked that the family curse turned out to just be a genetic condition. In true Dickensian fashion, the whole story comes full circle at the end in a touching conclusion that makes an excellent book even better. I can't recommend it enough. 

Single mom Birdie is doing the best she can to raise her daughter Emaleen in Alaska. When Emaleen gets lost in the woods, Arthur, the scarred local recluse, brings her home safely. Soon Birdie falls in love with Arthur, craving his existence in the isolated mountains. Moving in with him, Birdie soon learns that the Alaskan wilderness, and Arthur himself, have darker sides than she realized.

Black Woods, Blue Sky was an odd book. A naive and misguided Birdie makes careless decisions to move in with a man who barely talks. I understood Birdie's desire to be independent but the connection with Arthur wasn't there, mostly because he's barely present in the story. It wasn't until after I finished that I saw the book being marketed as a Beauty and the Beast retelling, which I don't see. Magical realism has never been my thing but, other than beautiful descriptions of the Alaska wilderness, I didn't see the appeal of this tale.

The daughter of a wealthy Black family, Ebby Freeman accidentally turns the headlines to herself during a failed wedding. Now the press is rehashing the death of her brother twenty years earlier in a home invasion. Fleeing to France, Ebby begins looking into her family history and researching a heirloom stoneware jar that was destroyed in that same home invasion. Will Ebby's family's past be the thing that sets her free in this multigenerational family drama from the author of Black Cake.

Although I loved Charmaine Wilkerson's debut, I had mixed feelings about Good Dirt. Much of the book was extremely slow and dragged in a lot of ways. Yet, at times the writing was powerfully beautiful. I loved the connection between the family's past and the history behind the jar. However, instead of focusing on Ebony's relationship with her parents and grandparents, Good Dirt spent most of its time on how PTSD affected her romantic relationship. In all, I would say Good Dirt is a beautiful book that's rough around the edges.

Taylor Swift's Eras Tour became a cultural phenomenon, shattering records as it grossed over 2 billion dollars. With a 3 and a half hour set list, The Eras Tour stunned fans with remarkable production and was turned into a successful concert film. Capitalizing on the success of the tour, Swift released a book with over 500 high-quality images from the tour. With barely any text, The Eras Tour book is really just a coffee table book with pretty pictures that only the truly diehard Swifties (like me) would want to read.