I am ashamed to admit that I enjoyed the romance Goodbye, Orchid by Carol Van Den Hende. I’m not sure how it made it on my list, but it was a quick, two-hour, annoying, and completely predictable read. Amazon: “One July morning in Manhattan, handsome athlete and entrepreneur Phoenix Walker accompanies his love, half-Asian beauty Orchid, to the airport. Neither believes today is goodbye. But after she leaves, disaster strikes. Phoenix wakes in the hospital, broken, forever changed. He longs for Orchid but remembers the tragedy in her past that makes her panic over images of trauma. Now, he’s faced with the hardest decision of his life. Does he burden the woman whose traumatic childhood makes him feel protective of her? Or does true love mean leaving her without explaining why?” So, if you are looking for an escapist or beachy read and are willing to overlook incredible cliche, pick this one up.

Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi was a good story but it was WAY too long. Amazon summarizes: “Gifty is a sixth-year PhD candidate in neuroscience at the Stanford University School of Medicine studying reward-seeking behavior in mice and the neural circuits of depression and addiction. Her brother, Nana, was a gifted high school athlete who died of a heroin overdose after an ankle injury left him hooked on OxyContin. Her suicidal mother is living in her bed. Gifty is determined to discover the scientific basis for the suffering she sees all around her. But even as she turns to the hard sciences to unlock the mystery of her family’s loss, she finds herself hungering for her childhood faith and grappling with the evangelical church in which she was raised, whose promise of salvation remains as tantalizing as it is elusive. Transcendent Kingdom is a deeply moving portrait of a family of Ghanaian immigrants ravaged by depression and addiction and grief–a novel about faith, science, religion, love.” I didn’t love her first book, Homegoing either, as it turns out, so perhaps she’s not for me.

Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia was one of the worst books I have read in a long time. I should have abandoned it long before I did, but I needed to find out the ending. Do yourself a favor and skip this one unless you like horror novels. I don’t. I will not even waste another moment writing about this one. SUCH a disappointment

I was so excited to receive Memorial by Bryan Washington from our book fair. And, as a surprise, it was a signed copy. Unfortunately, though, I didn’t love it. Amazon says: “Benson and Mike live together in Houston. Mike is a Japanese American chef at a Mexican restaurant and Benson’s a Black day care teacher, and they’ve been together for a few years—good years—but now they’re not sure why they’re still a couple. But when Mike finds out his estranged father is dying in Osaka just as his mother, Mitsuko, arrives in Texas for a visit, Mike picks up and flies across the world to say goodbye. In Japan he undergoes an extraordinary transformation, discovering the truth about his family and his past. Back home, Mitsuko and Benson are stuck living together as unconventional roommates. Without Mike’s immediate pull, Benson begins to push outwards, realizing he might just know what he wants out of life and have the goods to get it. Both men will change in ways that will either make them stronger together, or fracture everything they’ve ever known. And just maybe they’ll all be okay in the end.” I liked the characters and the story development, but ultimately, it just didn’t win for me.

Monogamy by Sue Miller started slowly, but picked up pace, and became a somewhat enjoyable read. On the whole, however, I didn’t love it. It’s a slow story overall about a marriage and the individuals who surround the main married couple. If you love Sue Miller, I would pick this one up. Otherwise, I would skip it.

The Switch by Beth O’Leary is a delightful quick read about a grandmother and granddaughter who temporarily switch living arrangements to find themselves. Each has suffered loss and the switch became the circumstance they needed to figure things out. This was not deep, nor particularly thought-provoking, but it was a sweet story, nonetheless, and an enjoyable diversionary read.

I had mixed feelings about The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi. On the one hand, I liked the story. It was sad, but interesting. On the other hand, it dragged for me for a long while and I really struggled to finish. Amazon describes it as: “One afternoon, in a town in southeastern Nigeria, a mother opens her front door to discover her son’s body, wrapped in colorful fabric, at her feet. What follows is the tumultuous, heart-wrenching story of one family’s struggle to understand a child whose spirit is both gentle and mysterious. Raised by a distant father and an understanding but overprotective mother, Vivek suffers disorienting blackouts, moments of disconnection between self and surroundings. As adolescence gives way to adulthood, Vivek finds solace in friendships….But Vivek’s closest bond is with Osita, the worldly, high-spirited cousin whose teasing confidence masks a guarded private life. As their relationship deepens—and Osita struggles to understand Vivek’s escalating crisis—the mystery gives way to a heart-stopping act of violence in a moment of exhilarating freedom.” This book got very positive reviews and I think you will need to decide for yourself if it’s up your alley. Overall, it didn’t work for me. 

Musical Chairs by Amy Poeppel was a nice change of pace. And, while overall, I liked this one, it dragged a bit in the middle. Still worth a read, however. Amazon says, “Bridget and Will have the kind of relationship that people envy: they’re loving, compatible, and completely devoted to each other. The fact that they’re strictly friends seems to get lost on nearly everyone; after all, they’re as good as married in (almost) every way. For three decades, they’ve nurtured their baby, the Forsyth Trio—a chamber group they created as students with their Juilliard classmate Gavin Glantz. Bridget has been dreaming of spending the summer at her well-worn Connecticut country home with her boyfriend Sterling. But her plans are upended when Sterling, dutifully following his ex-wife’s advice, breaks up with her over email and her twin twenty-somethings arrive unannounced, filling her empty nest with their big dogs, dirty laundry, and respective crises.” It’s a romance and fun, and also available at the library.

My Sister, The Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite was recommended to me by a Grade 8 student! If the title doesn’t grab you, I don’t know what will. And, what a delightful romp it was. Amazon says: “Korede has long been in love with a kind, handsome doctor at the hospital where she works. She dreams of the day when he will realize that she’s exactly what he needs. But when he asks Korede for Ayoola’s phone number, she must reckon with what her sister has become and how far she’s willing to go to protect her. Sharp as nails and full of deadpan wit, Oyinkan Braithwaite’s deliciously deadly debut is as fun as it is frightening.” It was a quick read and fun, though I didn’t feel that the ending was entirely resolved for me. However, I would recommend it.