Vera, or Faith by Gary Shteyngart

 

Decent, but not spectacular, and I find myself irritated at the praise that the author gets for this level of writing.

Run for the Hills by Kevin Wilson

 

Decent.

The Beach House Murders by Peter Boland

 

Solid.

You Will Never Be Me by Jesse Sutanto

 

Solid.

New People by Danzy Senna

 

Meh.

Written Out by Howard Mittelmark

 

Quite fun.

Veronica Ruiz Breaks the Bank by Elle Cosimano

 

I've been a little worried that this series was fading in quality, but this throwback short story was great fun.

Review copy provided by publisher.

Best of all Worlds by Kenneth Oppel

 

OK, I guess.

Eat a Peach by David Chang

 Very interesting.

Beach Hut 512 by Dorothy Koomson

 

I guess there is a market for what I have come to think of as "the implausible mystery," but it isn't me.

Review copy provided by publisher.

What Was She Thinking? by Zoe Heller

 

Very nice.

The Namaste Club by Asha Elias

 

OK, trying to describe this without spoilers: I was initially rolling my eyes a bit at the characterization, but the nice twist at the end redeemed the book in my eyes.

Review copy provided by publisher.

Runner 13 by Amy McCulloch

 

The setting -- an ultra marathon in the desert -- was quite promising. But the plot suffered from something that a lot of mysteries suffer from: just way too many coincidences and unnecessary drama.

Review copy provided by publisher.

You Feel It Just Below the Ribs by Jeffrey Cranor and Janina Matthewson

Really clever.

 

The River Is Waiting by Wally Lamb

 This was engrossing and gutting, in the best way.

The Relentless Moon by Mary Robinette Kowal

 

Solid. However, the narrator's voice and volume for the news articles is a crime against humanity.

El Dorado Drive by Megan Abbott

 The disadvantage of reading a lot is that a lot of plots begin to seem overdone. But this was different, interesting and clever.

Review copy provided by publisher.

Beijing Payback by Daniel Nieh

 

Quite good.

Co-Intelligence by Ethan Mollick

 

Very good.

Seven Days in June by Tia Williams

 I think Tia Williams is one of my favorite authors.