March Reads

Friends, I haven't picked up a book since March 20 (as Goodreads tells me). I have tried physical and e-books, short stories and long, owned and borrowed, and nothing is grabbing my attention. Is this just me? Anyway, here is what I read before the slump.

Why Not Me? - Mindy Kaling: 4 Stars
Own

This book has been sitting on my bookshelf since it first came out in 2016. I love the way it's broken up- there are random lists, rules, anecdotes of her childhood, pictures...a little something for everyone. The only thing that truly annoyed me was/is her STILL talking about BJ Novak. That was only a small portion though, so I would definitely recommend!

On weddings: 

If you’re my best friend and the only way I get to have dinner with you is by traveling thousands of miles, selecting a chicken or fish option, and wearing a dress in the same shade of lavender as six other girls, I will do that. I won’t love it. But I love you.

Apples Never Fall - Liane Moriarty: 4 Stars
Own

Plot: Mom goes missing, Dad is a suspect, 4 grown children squabble about what happened, and one curious stranger seems to be at the center of it. 

At first I thought there were too many characters to keep track of, but they were all so exceptionally developed that it became easier as I continued. It was also a bit confusing with the timelines switching back and forth between last October and the present. I did enjoy the townspeople's POVs that were thrown in about why Mom went missing, or who dun it if something terrible happened to her as it added a bit of salaciousness to the whole situation. The entire mystery surrounding Savannah, the strange girl who just turned up at the Delaney's house late one evening in need of shelter and who stayed and made herself a fixture in their home was so well-done that even I didn't see that she had basically made herself an integral part of their "family" until it was too late. I've loved everything I've read by Moriarty and this was no different! 

The opening: "...odds were he’d get lucky tonight. He didn’t get lucky. He got very unlucky. Twenty minutes later he was dead..."

The Invisible Husband of Frick Island - Colleen Oakley: 3.5 Stars

library e-book

This probably would have received a higher rating from me if it didn't drag so much in the middle. I was expecting a breezy rom-com, but this actually tackled some much deeper issues which I found refreshing. And I definitely didn't see the main twist coming! I loved how absolutely flawed the reporter Anders Caldwell was, the townspeople, and the small town feel and descriptions of life and traditions on Frick Island. (In fact, I've read that the island is based off of Smith Island in Maryland and now I want to visit!) 

“Have you ever read The Phantom Tollbooth?” “No.” “It was one of Tom’s favorite books as a kid. I never really got the appeal, but there’s this one line that says: ‘If something is there, you can only see it with your eyes open, but if it isn’t there, you can see it just as well with your eyes closed. That’s why imaginary things are often easier to see than real ones.’”

Book Stats 
Total number read: 10
Owned: 3

Library: 5 

E-book: 5

Physical book: 5
Non-Fiction: 1 (same)
BIPOC Author: 3

What are you reading?

Linking up with Steph and Jana!