The It Girl by Ruth Ware

Honestly, this was disappointing.

Pleasantville by Attica Locke

 

 Attica Locke is one of my favorites. As usual, an excellent combo of mystery and social commentary. Highly recommended.

Aurora by Kim Stanley Robinson

 

This worked on so many levels. Why have I never read Robinson before?

American Demon: Eliot Ness and the Hunt for America's Jack the Ripper by Daniel Stashtower

 

This was solid. Lots of interesting details.

Review copy provided by publisher.

The Lost Girls of Willowbrook by Ellen Marie Wiseman

 

I honestly can't believe this was published. The writing is spectacularly cliched, and the story is bizarre.

Review copy provided by publisher.

Love Anthony by Lisa Genova

 

A really delightful book with a really lame ending.

Camino Island by John Grisham

 

This was a little different for him (i.e., not a legal thriller), but a fun read.

The Truth about Melody Browne by Lisa Jewell

 

The basic conceit here was . . . implausible?

Science Fictions by Stuart Ritchie

 

Super-interesting.

A Peculiar Combination by Ashley Weaver

 

This was good. I really like this series.

The Puppeteer's Daughters by Heather Newton

 

This was very clever. Good characters, nice plot. Would be fun to discuss.

Review copy provided by publisher.

What She Knew by Miranda Rijks

 

This was a solid mystery (despite the somewhat cheesy cover). It had a good twist.

Review copy provided by publisher.

The Last White Man by Mohsin Hamid

 

This wasn't very good -- it's an interesting idea, but was too short to be developed well.

Wrong Place, Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister

 

This was so clever. 

Vox by Christina Dalcher

 

This was really amazing. It would be great to discuss.

Deep Work by Cal Newport

 

The book was a bit simplistic, but the concepts are solid.

Traitor King by Andrew Lownie

 

No doubt a fascinating story, but this book is written in a dull way and seems to uncritically use sources.

Review copy provided by publisher.

All the Living and the Dead by Hayley Campbell

 

Fascinating story, excellent writing -- nonfiction just does not get much better than this. Highly recommended.

Overkill by Sandra Brown

 

Interesting plot, but a lot of painfully awkward writing.

Review copy provided by publisher.

All the Dirty Secrets by Aggie Blum Thompson

 

I would describe this as 'just ok' in terms of plot and characters. And the narrator for the teen girl was way too over the top -- it really distracted from the audio book.

Review copy provided by publisher.