29. This Bird Has Flown

By Susanna Hoffs (368 pp, ebook)

I was a huge Bangles fan back in the day and I had no idea Hoffs had written a novel. The algorithm fed it to me. I love books with musicians. This is the story of a musician who had one huge hit 10 years ago that was a cover of a lesser song from a huge artist. She's been foundering since. Her manager invites her to come to England to buckle down and write some new songs and she meets and makes out with a stranger on a plane. Then my musician book quickly became a romance novel which was unexpected but I didn't mind. Except the MC is a grown ass woman and she approached this relationship like a teenager and is jealous and nosey -- I struggled with her. Her beau is charming but has secrets of his own and everything unravels and then the book turned back into a musician story with a dramatic set piece involving the huge artist. I liked the writing and characters and enjoyed the book even with the frustrations described above.

28. Off Balance

By Domanique Moceanu (256 pp, ebook)

If you know me, you probably know that I am a huge gymnastics fan. This is a memoir by one of the Magnificent Seven, the first US team to win an Olympic gold medal (1996) in a real nailbiter competition. Domanique's story is heartbreaking. Her family of origin was dysfunctional and while her initial gymnastics coaches were wonderful, she started training with the Karolyis who were abusive and terrible. She tried to comeback in her 20s and US gymnastics treated her like garbage. She was way ahead of her time. This book came out in 2012 before anyone was calling out the Karolyis and I don't think she got a lot of support at the time. Also doing elite gymnastics in her 20s and trying to compete again. Oh, also, as an adult she found out she had a sister with disabilities who her parents gave up for adoption. They had a lovely reunion. From her story, it sounds like she has created a wonderful family and works as a coach. She also advocates for young athletes for their mental and physical health. Good for her.

27. Dreaming of You

By Lisa Kleypas (384 pp, ebook)

Is there a better chaser for a long, violent vampire book than Dreaming of You? This is a historical romance where the MC Sara is a bold young woman who writes fiction and is not afraid to get into the grit for her research. She is researching a debauched gambling den when she meets the dark and damaged owner Derek Craven. My romance podcast Fated Mates has an annual event celebrating Derek Craven (That link is NSFW, grown ups only.) I didn't know the book and finally had a chance to read it and enjoyed it immensely. I love MCs that do unexpected things without fear and I love when a broken man falls for the lady in spite of himself. Recommend.

26. Empire of the Vampire (Book 1)

By Jay Kristoff (800 pp, ebook)

I was in the mood for a big fat vampire book and I got one. This is set in a world where the sunrise has disappeared and if people don't have enough problems staying alive, there are also vampires. It's maybe like 1500s Europe (?) Our hero, Gabriel, a silversaint which is a powerful vampire killer, is in prison and telling this story to a vampire historian. There are overlapping timelines and found family, love story, super violent actiony parts where lots of people die. I enjoyed it but it became a repetitive beat for me that the characters had to do something almost impossible, and then everything went wrong and there was lots of gruesome fighting and then a brief reprieve to pull the remaining characters together and then do it again. Definite recommend for people who like epic dark vampire stories.

25: Spawn 2: More Weird Horror Tales About Pregnancy, Birth and Babies

By Deborah Sheldon, ed. (306 pp, ebook)

I bought this because one of my Clarion West classmates Carol Ryles has a story in it called: In War with Time for Love of You. It is worth buying this anthology just for her story. It's set in space and it manages to balance science-y stuff, creepy body horror, and heartbreak. Like any story collection, some are fantastic and some didn't work for me at all. They all have scary baby things but Carol's is the only sci fi. People have great imagination for creepy pregnancy stories.

24. The Hawthorne Legacy

By Jennifer Lynn Barnes (380 pp ebook)

I had to wait 4-5 weeks to get Book 1 from the library so I ordered this one ahead of time anticipating that I would want to continue with the series. This follows the pattern of the first book with new questions to answer about why Avery Grambs is connected to this family. The character relationships continue to develop. It also felt choppy and the characters felt thin and I wasn't sold on the romance. I think these are aimed at a younger reader than I -- they are very popular but I don't expect to continue with the series.

23. The Inheritance Games

By Jennifer Lynn Barnes (386 pp ebook)

I listened to an interview with the author who studies why people connect with stories and I wanted to read her fiction. This book is about a young woman, Avery Grambs, who learns she has been chosen to inherit billions from complete stranger, Tobias Hawthorne, who has chosen her over his own family. She is swooped up and taken to the family mansion where she has to live for 1 year to collect the fortune. The family is in the mansion, too. They need to solve riddles and puzzles to figure out why Avery was chosen and Avery needs to adapt to her new circumstances and the danger that comes with it. It's a fast read. I know the technique of short chapters ending on a question keeps readers going but after awhile it felt choppy and I thought the characters were a little thin. Still fun.

22. The Shards

By Bret Easton Ellis (608 pp ebook)

I haven't read Ellis in decades and I'm going to guess I bought this book because I read a review that said it was great nostalgia for people who grew up in S. California in the 80s.

Ellis is the same age as I am and the descriptions in this book: the clothes; driving around naming all the roads: Valley Vista, Mullholland, Beveryly Glen; the music; the movies; the clubs; the kinds of things we did when we were teenagers, were all heavy duty nostalgia. The only difference is I wasn't rich and didn't do drugs. The story is about a fictional Ellis in rich people high school with a close group of friends and dealing with rich people problems, drinking, drugs, dysfunctional families. It's dark and suspenseful. I'm going a terrible job of describing it. It did get long for me but it's a page turner.

21. Deep End

By Ali Hazelwood (464 pp ebook)

Another romance! My friend told me I had to read this so I learned how to use the Libby App and waited until it was my turn.

I love Ali Hazelwood's writing and enjoyed this book a lot. She writes a good steamy scene that doesn't sound like every other steamy scene. The main character Scarlett is a college student and competitive diver. She meets Lukas who is also a college student and champion swimmer. There's a lot going on that's too much for a capsule review. I liked these main characters and the swimming/diving world. There were other characters that didn't quite work for me but overall -- do recommend.

20. Lady for A Duke

By Alexis Hall

I read some craft books and didn't finish anything for a bit but my brain is unhappy when I'm not reading so I picked up this historical romance.

I love everything I've read by Alexis Hall and recently learned he has a book coming out next year: Hell's Heart: Sapphic Moby Dick. In space.

Put it on your list.

This one is about Viola Carroll who pretends to die at Waterloo so she can live as her true self even though she has to give up her title and old life. For story reasons she reconnects with the family of the best friend she left behind at Waterloo and who is suffering from his experience as a soldier. Feelings happen. So romantic. Love it.

19. Mexican Gothic

By Sylvia Moreno-Garcia

This is a terrific atmospheric novel about a young woman who goes to her cousin who has married and moved to a mysterious house in the Mexican forest. The house is rundown, her cousin's new family is creepy and controlling, and the whole place is foggy and moldy and falling into ruin. As the story opens, the main character Noemi is a party girl and maybe kind of shallow but as the story develops she is fearless and dogged against dangerous forces. Recommend.

Okay! I am back in writing mode and my reading is probably going to dwindle to almost nothing for awhile. More info to come.

18. The Arctic Fury

By Greer MacAllister (408 pp, ebook)

A friend reviewed this book just as I finished The Terror. This book is also a fictional tale related to the Franklin Expedition. In this story, an all woman expedition has been hired to find out what happened to the men and hopefully rescue them and bring them back. The story is divided between a murder trial for the woman who led the expedition and the story of the expedition and how it unfolded. It's really good. I wished for a little more time on the ice and a little less court room and a little more characterization. But it's a clever alternate history. If you have never read it, check out this short story by Ursula LeGuin, Sur about an all woman expedition to the South Pole. That story was published in 1982 and made a big impression on me as I was first thinking about being a writer.