Sarah

I confess that all the different characters and plot lines confused me a bit. Maybe that was a side effect of listening to rather than reading the book, but I enjoyed the lilting Indian accents of the reader.

I started this book last year, after finishing the other Hunger Games books, but abandoned it quickly. It's not as fast-paced or new-feeling as the earlier books, although I have been enjoying it this second time around. I found it worth reading to complete the trilogy, but not up to the caliber of Katniss's earlier adventures.

I love this mystery series. It's a little gritty, funny and engrossing.

I'd forgotten how wonderful this book is. One of our high school volunteers at the library was struggling with this, and I can't stand by while someone doesn't like Barbara Kingsolver because of a misguided teacher.
This is such a rich text and timeless, layered, human story. I loved rediscovering it as an adult.

I couldn't get past the first page of this novel. The narrator was whiny and annoying and I didn't see any redeeming literary style.

Lots of thought-provoking stuff here; especially interesting to read along with Malcolm Gladwell. Very depressing re: the cyclical nature of poverty and how much culture determines drive/life map.

Funny but completely schizophrenic. Poundstone uses famous historical figures to (I think) illuminate aspects of her own life. It's basically like listening to a history book and a comedy album simultaneously. An unsuccessful literary device, sadly.

This is a fun and fast read. de Botton is a thoughtful philosopher with a gentle sense of humor and I've always enjoyed his books. Plus there are pictures :)

I'm a latecomer to this series and I look forward to continuing, but, to be perfectly honest, I thought this first mystery was a little overdone and predictable. Still, I like Ruth as a strong, intelligent, fallible character.

There's a lot of great stuff in this book - plot twists and unique characters - but the abrupt ending spoiled it for me. If the end was fleshed out instead of neatly tied up, this would feel less like a first novel.

I read this (#2) before reading the first in the series, but that turned out not to matter very much. Larsson doesn't give away much from the first book. I almost put it down after reading the first two pages, but once I got past that scene, I was completely caught up in the story. Fantastic.

I know a few readers who gave up before the second chapter, and I can understand why. This is not quite a slow, intellectual novel but probably not a beach read. I enjoyed it, but the ending was so abrupt that I am now trying to remember whether I actually finished it! (I did.) It's certainly well crafted, but I think the focus on obscene wealth almost necessarily leaves the reader feeling empty.

This is a fun series with an excellent narrator for the audiobooks. The children's howls and yips translate well to audio :) Highly recommend.

Not quite what I thought it was going to be, but an excellent read nonetheless. You know who the killer is early on, but understanding the “why” and wondering what the killer will do next keeps the pace fast and engaging.

To be fair, i read two pages, didn't like the writing style, and stopped.

I have an inordinate fondness for writers like Russo and John Irving and their lengthy dives into 1980s New England/upstate NY life. There's some racist language that stands out in a 2021 reading, but a lot of heart and humor and empathy for the characters. It also inspired some wholesome cravings for nineteenth century real estate.

Another great Moriarty book! Big Little Lies is still my favorite.

This is a well-crafted novel with deep characters, but I found the end rather unfulfilling. Durrow has created an engaging and relatable story from a horrific event, and this is still an impressive first novel.

It turns out you can write a book without an ending. The reader experiences a tiny fraction of the weight of the unknown that families of missing hikers face, which is made both understandable and agonizing in this book. Lankford pulls in other (solved) search & rescue stories to try to make up for the three main unsolved cases, and is well placed to inform us of the various agencies, politics, and personalities at play in wilderness missing persons cases and SAR missions.

As with most of my books, I listened to this audiobook as read by the author. I really enjoyed the beginning, but did lose sympathy with some of the characters towards the end. This may have to do with Walls's autobiography, which I read earlier in the summer. At any rate, very interesting portrayal of life in the West in the early twentieth century.

fun, light, my kind of chick lit

Not, as my mother initially thought, a funny and charming read. It is both of those at times, but it is also dark and, at times, graphic. Worth reading.

Yes but no. Maybe this is what thriller writers are doing now with twist endings, but I think Lippman chose shock value over layering clues. I know it's not a Golden Age mystery and doesn't have to play by those rules, but I would have appreciated a few more conventions followed.
But also, salute to You're Wrong About!

Charming. A fun and witty mystery series - looking forward to the others!

Propulsive and fun, but the ending felt like when all the fireworks go off at once.