OH MY GOSH. What a mess! I was looking through my posts, trying desperately to find my September and October book reviews, knowing I hadn’t done one in November or December because of the holiday season, and lo and behold– my September list was a draft and there never even was an October post!! Talk about disorganized!
I can’t even remember how many more books I’ve read since AUGUST!!! I try to write up my reviews immediately after reading the book, so that both the plot and my feelings about the book are fresh. This time, unfortunately, I’m going to have to dig for those haha!
The Towering Sky by Katharine McGee
If you’ve been following my book reviews for awhile, you know about my obsession with The Thousandth Floor and then The Dazzling Heights. The Towering Sky is the third book in the The Thousandth Floor series. To refresh your memory: The Thousandth Floor is a YA novel set in Manhattan in 2118. Basically the way I describe it is Gossip Girl meets Big Little Lies with a murder mystery twist. The Towering Sky is the third and final book in the trilogy and doubles down on the drama and mystery. I can’t recommend this series enough, it’s one of my all time favorites! For a better review on The Thousandth Floor, head here!
An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen
I absolutely loved Hendricks and Pekkanen’s first book, The Wife Between Us. (You can read that review here!) When I heard about An Anonymous Girl, it instantly shot up in my must-read list!
Jessica Farris a freelance makeup artist running from a painful past and a devastating secret. She’s spent years burying herself in work and trying to forget about what she did. When an opportunity to make some quick cash presents itself, Jessica doesn’t hesitate before jumping on it. The task? Participating in a mysterious longterm psychological study on ethics and morality. As the experiment goes from the lab to the real world and the cash starts to roll in, Jess finds herself unsure to tell what’s real and what’s an experiment. Told from the dual viewpoints of Jess and her mysterious doctor, the web of deceit and manipulation spun by the omniscient Dr Shields becomes more and more dangerous. This twist-y psychological thriller had me on the edge of my seat and honestly, I devoured it.
You by Caroline Kepnes
OK, if you watched the TV show YOU on Netflix, you absolutely have to read the book it’s based on!! While I felt the show to be a pretty true adaptation to the book, the book was definitely 1000x more disturbing in a lot of parts. If you didn’t watch the show, basically here’s the skinny:
When NYC bookseller Joe Goldberg meets Guinevere Beck, a beautiful aspring writer, he instantly falls in love. After a quick Google search of the name on her credit card, he finds all of her social media accounts and quietly starts plotting a second chance encounter. What starts off as an almost sweet only mildly creepy play for the girl of his dreams quickly deteriorates into a twisted, obsessive game in which Joe stalks Beck’s emails, texts and journals to turn himself into her perfect man and sweet her off her feet. I was totally hooked on this one and TBH totally horrified and terrifed of dating after reading it LOL. I won’t give too much away, but this is a must-read and you find yourself alternately almost rooting for Joe and desperately hoping he finally gets caught. With twists you don’t see coming and ending that almost seems inevitable, this one I COULD NOT PUT DOWN.
Hidden Bodies by Caroline Kepnes
Hidden Bodies is the sequel to You and is an absolute must-read as well. If you watched the show on Netflix, season 1 ended at the very end of the first book and will pick up season 2 at the beginning of Hidden Bodies. If you’re dying to know what’s going to happen in the next season of the show, pick up the book. I’m a little curious about how the show will tackle a couple of main hurdles they set up in the first book, mainly some big things that happened at the end, but overall, I think it’ll be exciting.
7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
Didn’t love this one. Groundhog Day meets Life After Life with a dash of body swapping, giving total Agatha Christie vibes. The concept is totally genius and the creativity of the storyline is definitely 5-stars. I was immediately intrigued by the cover art and the book synopsis/teaser.
Aiden Bishop is trying to solve a murder. The Hardcastle family is hosting a macabre party at their estate, on the anniversary of their youngest son Thomas’ murder. At 11pm, their daughter Evelyn Hardcastle will be murdered. She will be murdered every night for 8 nights until Aiden can figure out who the killer is. Every morning, he wakes up in the body of a different “witness” in a race against time and the two others trying to solve the mystery at the same time. Only one of them can escape. Is this purgatory? A game? You’ll have to wait and see.
I felt like I was in the dark for most of the story and then the last few chapters were a flood of information. Some of the twists and twists on twists seemed a bit melodramatic, but then again, that might just be a genre thing. It was an enjoyable read and is obviously going to be a huge hit, so it’s absolutely worth the read… just not one of my favorite books.
SO, that’s what I’ve read since we last chatted books! I’d love to know which of these you’ve read as well and what you’re planning on picking up out of this list! OR any recommendations you have for next month, definitely let me know!
