Every year I set myself a reading goal of how many books I can read in one year. A while back my goal was to read 12 books and last year it was to read 20 books. For 2020, my goal was to read 25 books and I am so proud to say that I did it - and in the nick of time too because I literally finished my 25th book just before New Year's Eve (definitely cutting it close there!).
Here are the 6 books I read in December just before the start of the New Year.
If you are finding a way to enjoy the holidays but are also into thrillers and true crime podcasts, then this is the perfect unconventional holiday read for you. From the same author who wrote The Guest List, comes another mystery thriller reminiscent Lucy Foley's previous work as well as the film The Exterminating Angel.
Maintaining their time honored tradition of celebrating New Year Eve's together, a group of old friends from Oxford decide to meet and reserve a few nights stay at a remote Scottish estate. The estate has been heralded for its idyllic winter setting, but its isolation far up in the mountains is certainly ominous. Although they have all been friends for years, they each carry secrets and inner resentments towards one another that is bound to implode, especially when one of them turns up dead by New Year's Day.
I read this book pretty fast because not only was I anxious to find out who did it, but just like its guests, I was ready to flee that estate. Creepy is one way of putting it, but I prefer to use the word stifling to describe it as the setting felt claustrophobic bunched in with all the conflict between the group and even the estate's staff. There were a lot of similarities I found between The Hunting Party and The Guest List, with me personally preferring The Guest List, I felt that this one was more driven on characterization than who committed the murder. It was interesting thinking about how they were all friends in the first place because they were each so different and terrible towards one another. I already had a feeling on who was going to be dead, but how it all came together was a real twist.
Atomic Love by Jennie Fields
One of my favorite books from last year was November Road by Lou Berney. It was set in 1963 right after the Kennedy Assassination and had this mix of a road movie with the threatening intensity of gangsters just on your tail following an escape. I had been looking for something similar since then and ended up finding some of that spark in Jennie Field's Atomic Love.
Rosalind Porter is a scientist who spent her time during World War II working on the Manhattan Project never realizing how the result would not only end the war but at the cost of millions of lives. During this time she had a torrid affair with her colleague, Thomas Weaver, who ended up leaving her broken hearted and her professional reputation tarnished. Years later, Rosalind is approached by the FBI when Agent Charlie Szydlo urges her to spy on Weaver when he suddenly reappears back in her life. Charlie has reason to believe that Weaver is tied with Russian spies and has been secretly sending them nuclear plans since his time working on the Manhattan Project. Although Rosalind has despised Weaver since breaking her heart, she cannot help but feel drawn back to him making it all the more complicated by her relationship with Charlie which develops as well. As she follows through on her mission, she must also deal with the Russians following her every move.
Even though you could categorize this book under the romance genre, it also felt like a low-key espionage thriller in its own subtle way. There were Russian spies lurking around the corner and the paranoia of Rosalind being followed and if her apartment was being bugged. There was also the tension between Rosalind having to almost act like a double agent both as just a lowly shop girl but with a brilliant mind of a scientist and in terms of reconnecting with Weaver. She has to pretend to love him back when he pleas for her love, but at the same time maybe she is not pretending and genuinely does still love him. What I really liked about the book though was how it felt like watching a classic movie with elements of a film noir. It reminded me of films like Casablanca or even modern classic takes like Allied.
There were so many things we were all looking forward to in 2020 with one of them being the Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan. Although things took a turn and the Olympics were postponed to 2021, I felt that Hannah Orenstein's gymnastics centric novel Head Over Heels was still the perfect read for those who miss the Olympics and those who still have dreams of reaching Olympic gold.
Avery Abrams missed her chance as a gymnast to join the Olympics after facing an injury that cost her, her spot. Although she was able to physically recover, she fell into a downward spiral unable to handle the loss made all the more difficult when her best friend and fellow gymnast, Jasmine Floyd, ended up going to the Olympics and marrying their strict and emotionally abusive coach, Dimitri. After several years and with no direction in life, Avery is contacted by Ryan Nicholson, a former gymnast during her competition days as well as her unrequited crush. Ryan is coaching a young gymnast named Hallie who has a chance at making it to the Olympics in Tokyo but needs Avery's help and expertise into getting her there. Although Avery has some hesitancy returning to the sport, she is willing to do whatever it takes to help Hallie on her way to the Olympics.
I am a sucker for a good sports story and this was just the book I needed. Although it's pegged to be a romance, I felt that that part was only one half of it. The main story itself was about self-growth and friendship with themes of women supporting other women especially in such a highly competitive field. I really enjoyed reading Avery rediscover herself through the sport and how she becomes a mentor to Hallie, who had always looked up to her. Avery's journey also added emphasis to exploring the life of a gymnast both during and after they are done competing and the extensive training it takes. What I liked most though was Avery and Hallie's relationship as coach and athlete, which was heartwarming to read especially seeing how both characters develop throughout the novel. Even Avery's relationship with Jasmine was an important part of the story as Hannah Orenstein was not shy to discuss the emotional and mental toll athletes can endure apart from their physical health. I actually thought that this along with the true event subplot surrounding former Olympic gymnast doctor, Larry Nassar, that could not be ignored were handled very well by the author giving new perspective to not only the sports genre but to sports and athleticism as a whole.
I can be pretty skeptical when it comes to modern interpretations of iconic classics whether it be a book or movie. If it is done well and adds something new that you forget that it's a reimaging of something existent, then I am in favor for it. I already saw it done well with Anna K, which I loved, and now again with Rachel Hawkins' novel, The Wife of Upstairs, which offers a new spin to the revered Charlotte Brontë novel, Jane Eyre. I ended up finishing this within 10 hours because I had to know what was going to happen, even though I had already read its original inspiration, and yet this novel lured me in with intrigued and left me contemplating what I had just read.
Broke and having escaped and survived an impoverished life as a foster child, Jane now works as a dog walker in the exclusive private neighborhood of Thornfield Estates in Birmingham, Alabama. The neighborhood is littered with gossiping housewives and the wealth they thrive in, so Jane has no problem occasionally stealing small trinkets from them let alone hiding her real name. Then, in comes Eddie Rochester. Eddie is handsome, wealthy, and recently widowed having lost his beautiful wife, Bea, to a boating accident along with her best friend, Blanche. Jane and Eddie are immediately attracted to each other upon their first meeting. It doesn't take long before she becomes the latest subject of gossip when she and Eddie start living together and become engaged. Everything Jane has always wanted is finally coming true... that is until she starts to suspect something is amiss with her fiancé and the questionable strange noises coming from above the house.
I should warn you that this book features an array of deplorable characters who are all terrible people. However, as strange as it may sound that is what makes it all the more enticing to read. Jane is a kleptomaniac with a desire to have what those housewives she works for have and even though she is attracted to Eddie, she is, in my opinion at least, in the relationship for the money and its perks. Eddie also comes off a little sinister sometimes or at least from Jane's perspective, as well as Bea whose perspective we also get to help fill in the blanks surrounding her disappearance. I wouldn't necessarily categorize this as a thriller despite a couple of eerie elements, but it is a strange cross between Gone Girl and You, especially through its three main characters. It's twisty and insane and makes me want to go back and reread Jane Eyre or Rebecca re-examining its themes and characters with fresh eyes.
I follow a couple of Bookstagramers on Instagram, and In a Holidaze was a book I saw repeatedly on their feeds throughout the holidays. When I finally decided to pick up In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren (the writing duo, Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings), I actually ended up reading it a couple of days after Christmas. What I was left with was a fun read that made me not only wish that we could gather together again without any risks, but also gave a sense of hopefulness that it's not too late to change and do the things you have been wanting to do.
Maelyn Jones has always celebrated Christmas in a cabin up in Utah with her divorced but amicable parents, her teenage brother, Miles, and her parents' eclectic group of friends that include Australian expat, Benny, who is almost like an uncle to Mae; married couple Kyle and Aaron and their adorable twins, Kennedy and Zachary; and Ricky and Lisa Hollis and their sons, Andrew and Theo. For as long as she can remember, Mae has always harbored feelings for Andrew Hollis but has been too shy to admit them. After a drunken Christmas evening, Mae ends up kissing Theo instead, which Andrew witnessed thwarting all hope of any chance she may have had with him. As if things couldn't get any worse, Ricky and Lisa announce to everyone that they have decided to sell the cabin. On her way home, Mae makes a wish to the universe to show her what will make her happy just seconds before she gets into a car accident. Suddenly, Mae awakens to find herself on her way to Utah again reliving the same Christmas week she had just spent. After multiple attempts to fix or redo some of her actions and everyone else's errors while she caught in this time loop, Mae is also given a second chance to finally change her life and admit her true feelings to Andrew.
Before going into this I was not very keen on the whole Groundhog's Day premise, but ended up really liking how Christina Lauren used it in their story. The times Mae had to repeat the first day was just as frustrating as it was to Mae. Once she was able to find her stride though and make bold choices such quitting her job and getting closer to Andrew was when I really began to hold my breath hoping that she does not end up having to restart her whole week again. The chemistry between the two was really cute and the family dynamics between everyone who share no familial relation at all was endearing and something rarely found in other books.
Apart from the title, this book is definitely the perfect lighthearted read for the holidays. I heard it was once said that England can be a magical place during Christmastime and I felt that while reading this book. Jenny Bayliss' beautiful written and descriptive prose invites us to the small town of Blexford, England with its snow covered cottages and delicious scents of freshly baked goods emanating from the town's café, where our heroine, Kate Turner's story begins.
Kate has never really been lucky in love. Although she has a successful career working as a designer at Liberty and selling her baked goods at her best friend Matt's café, The Pear Tree, she hasn't exactly found "the one" compared to Matt and her other friend, Laura. So out of Laura's urging, Kate decides to sign up for "The Twelve Dates of Christmas" dating experience where for the next twelve days she will go on special themed dates with various men her profile is matched up with. The first few dates start out awkward with one date turning out to be gay and another being super competitive when it comes to building a gingerbread house. Eventually however, Kate ends up meeting a few kind men making the experience pleasant than she expected. As she begins to gets closer to one man in particular she meets, she soon comes to realize that maybe the love of her life may have always been in right front of her.
This was the last book I read in the year and was the perfect one to end the year with. Its setting and characters felt like something straight out a movie that could be directed by Richard Curtis or Nancy Meyers, and the story was just the ideal book to read by a cozy fire. I thought the concept was entertaining, especially when you see Kate get to experience these dates. The dates may not have be super elaborate as what you would see on The Bachelor, but they were quaint and actually helped in getting to know the person. I think my favorite one was probably when Kate got to go ice skating with a fireman - I mean who better to save you from falling or getting injured than a fireman? The conversation they had too was realistic in terms of how well they got along and what they each want. The ending is predictable as most rom-coms are, but getting there and how everything comes together tied with Kate's "Twelve Dates" journey made it all the more rewarding.
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