August was all about being back on the road, which means I didn’t really get much reading (or blogging) done, but I loved every minute of it. I can’t wait to write blog posts about my trips to Germany & France. First I would like to wrap up my reading month though. I read only a couple of “Advanced Reader Copies” which I received through Netgalley. The upcoming month I have to work away the backlog a little bit. This month I read three non-fiction novels, two of which I absolutely loved. Anyways, in this post you’ll read all about the books I have read this month.
Stats
Books: 6 books
Format: 3 physical books, 3 e-books and 0 audiobooks
Total Amount of Pages: 1.808
Authors: 6 new to me
Language: 5 English and 1 Dutch
Megan Goldin – The Night Swim (2020)
Mystery/Thriller
What to do when you feel a book is fantastic, but you feel that it isn’t what it has been marketed to be. See, I wouldn’t call it a thriller, or a suspense novel. I would call it a contemporary novel and an incredibly strong one at that.
Let me explain why. The Night Swim is about a very hard-hitting subject. It’s about a rape trial in a small town, which is covered by our main protagonist Rachel who has a crime podcast. When she arrives in the town she finds a note on her car from Hannah asking her for her help. Her sister drowned 25 years ago in the same small town, and Hannah believes she was murdered. She wants Rachel’s help in uncovering what happened and who has done it.
The story is told from the point-of-view of Rachel, while she investigates both the alleged crime of current times and the one from years ago. It’s also told from the point-of-view of the podcast, and Hannah’s letters about the past. It’s a nice way to mix things up. It also gives the novel a bit of a faster pace.
As I stated in the opening paragraph, I didn’t find the novel very mysterious. It did give me goosebumps just like Playing Nice by J.P Delaney last month. The subject matter really made me think. Goldin tackles the subject of the rape trial with confidence, and it shows she has done her research. The horror is in the slow burn and the subject-matter itself. I didn’t think that the whole whodunnit added something valuable to the story.
I like that all main characters in the book are likeable, especially Rachel. She’s a skilled investigative journalist and it’s fun reading the story through her point-of-view. The fact that it takes place in a small town, adds to the drama of the story. People know each other, have opinions about each other and there are always plenty of secrets.
I haven’t read Escape Room yet, but I’ve heard that Goldin also tackles a current subject in that novel. If she has done it as well as in The Night Swim, I will definitely pick it up soon as well.
Many thanks to the publisher Mirror Books and Netgalley for providing me with a review copy!
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Catherine Ryan Howard – The Nothing Man (2020)
Mystery/Thriller
I’ve never read anything by Catherine Ryan Howard, but the premise of this book gripped me by my throat and I knew it was a story I had to read. I’m incredibly fascinated by crime novels, especially if they’re about serial killers. Catherine Ryan Howard has added a bit of a twist, because from the start we know who the killer is.
Jim Doyle is the infamous Nothing Man who was active in Ireland twenty years before the start of the novel. One day a book is released by one of his female survivors. She was 12 years old when her family was murdered by this vicious killer. In the book & marketing campaign, she promises she will catch The Nothing Man. However, up until today Jim Doyle is still a free man. Amused and a little bit concerned about what has been written about him, he picks up the book.
This concept keeps on giving. It’s both hilarious and enthralling to read the book from the killer’s point-of-view. We get the history of the crimes from the point-of-view of the writer/survivor and of himself when he gives clarifications or further explanations.
The story propelled forward by this fact. We’re reading the book at the same speed he is. He couldn’t put it down, but I couldn’t put it down either. I was guessing the whole time how it would all end. I have to be completely honest, the ending was a bit of a let down for me. I think this is a matter of taste though. I would’ve like a bit more of a exciting climax than the one we’re presented with. As I said, this is a matter of taste.
P.s. this is the tenth time I’ve been recommended to read I’ll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman’s Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer and I swear it’ll be the next book I pick up on Audible once I finish The Hunter.
Many thanks to the publisher Atlantic Books and Netgalley for providing me with a review copy!
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Monique van Loon – Je bent jong en je krijgt wat (2020)
Non-fiction
This is an incredibly hard book to review because it’s the story of Monique van Loon’s cervix cancer diagnosis and the treatment that followed.
I don’t like to give ratings to people’s autobiographies especially regarding content (obviously). The reason I’m giving it 5 stars is because I got exactly what I expected from this book.
What can you expect from this book? For one, don’t expect a sob story. Monique deals with things as they happen. This story is about survival and trying to make the best out of an incredibly shitty situation. It’s about survival and dealing with the aftermath of it. It’s about losing friends and gaining them. It’s a realistic story of a young entrepreneur and the effect this diagnosis and the lasting effect it has on her body and life.
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Gabriel Krauze – Who They Was (2020)
Non-fiction
Congrats on the Man Booker nomination!
It took a long time for me to get into this novel. It’s always the same when I read books written with an accent. I’m talking of books like Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James and all of Irvine Welsh’ books.
What They Was is written in London South Kilburn slang. As I said, it took some getting used to but it’s pretty easy to read once you get the hang of a few of the most common words.
This is such an odd story. The premise itself isn’t really. It’s about a neighbourhood filled with low income houses and crime. We all know the (often) unrealistic stories told by people who “visit or go undercover”. This story, however, is told from Gabriel Krauze’s own experience growing up in this neighbourhood. He gives us the ins and outs of his criminal activities. His story is a bit of a peculiar one because while he was selling & taking drugs and killing people, he was studying English Literature at the university.
This contrast feels a bit insane and makes it a pretty interesting read. I gave it this rating because I felt it wasn’t fully for me. I enjoyed his story, I even shuddered at it. I didn’t find myself taking it all in though, I was in it to finish it.
I’m curious to see if this book makes the Man Booker short list. I’m not one to judge as I’ve only read two books of the long list so far.
Many thanks to the publisher 4th Estate and Netgalley for providing me with a review copy!
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Simone St. James – The Sun Down Motel (2020)
Paranormal
I was looking forward to reading this book from the moment it came out. I had The Broken Girls on my radar last year, but I never got around to purchasing, let alone reading it. When Simone St. James’ 2020 release came out I fell head over heels in love with the premise.
This book is set in a run down motel in a small town. We read two perspectives. One is of a girl Viv who stumbles upon the motel and becomes its night manager in the 80’s. The other is of her niece 35 years later, because Viv has disappeared from the face of the earth and Carly would like to find out what happened to her.
The atmosphere for both perspectives is perfectly eery. The setting of the run down motel is scary enough, but it’s also haunted by its past occupants.
Little by little we figure out more and more about the motel’s inhabitants through the eyes of both Viv and Carly.
I have to be honest, I didn’t always fully follow what happened to who especially in the case of boys. There are a bit too many characters in both narratives, and some of the scenes are a lot like each other which makes it hard to distinguish them from each other.
That having been said, it was a perfect 5 star read for me. I couldn’t put it down because I simply had to know the ending, and I wasn’t let down by it!
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Melody Beattie – Codependent No More: How to Stop Controlling Others and Start Caring for Yourself (1986)
Non-fiction
I took a looooong time reading this book. I wanted to take it all in properly. I read it with a pencil in hand to underline passages. I also made notes in a separate notebook. I don’t do that for every book, but there was so much in the pages of this one that I wanted to capture for future reference.
I’m sure I’ll pick it up again in the future anyway to see how much I’ve progressed.
The book has been written with partners of alcoholics in mind. I read it because I sometimes lose myself when I try to help others. As I said, this book has taught me a lot. What helped were the practical examples to see if you can identify with a certain statement.
Every chapter has the “problem statement” and possible solution followed by exercises.
My main takeaways from this book (which I will incorporate in my life from now on):
* I will try to limit offering unrequested help
* I will practice self-care
* I will choose detachment over worry and obsession
* I will eliminate ‘shoulds’ and what if’s from my vocabulary
Thanks to my friend Lara who suggested me to read this book!
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How was your reading month? What books did you read in August?
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