Stacey L. Camp's Blog

**5/5 Stars**

With so little time on my hands, I always appreciate a book that is fast-paced and to the point. Mason Coile’s W1ll1am is one of those can’t put me down reads that are easy to plow through after a long day at work.

The premise is timely. Henry, an out-of-job engineer who is homebound due to agoraphobia, spends his days tinkering in his lab. His wife, Lily, is in the tech industry and spends most of her day outside the home. With all this spare time, Henry builds “W1ll1am,” a robot that is tired of being locked away from the world.

When Lily and Henry have houseguests over for a dinner party, mayhem breaks loose. This is a story about a robot longing to be human, but with the worst intentions. W1ll1am had me up late at night racing through the pages, wanting to know how this tech thriller would end. I loved the ending’s twist, which readers may predict. Even if you predict the ending, it’s still a dark, fast-paced read.

This past year has been a great year of reading for me. I committed to reading 60 books, but then changed my goal to 55 after some health issues got in the way. I wanted to read more books than previous years, and I did it! I concluded the end of the year with some excellent readings. Here is a summary of just a few of my favorites from fall 2024.

I received an advanced reader copy of Jason Rekulak’s The Last One at the Wedding (thank you NetGalley and Flatiron books!). I had read his previous book, Hidden Pictures, and thought he did a good job of creating tension and suspense early on in a book. I listened to his latest book via audiobook, and the narrator made the story believable and engaging. This book not only involved a great deal of suspense like Hidden Pictures, but also had some fairly comical moments in it, especially for a parent of a teen like myself.

The book centers around a male narrator who is the father of a young woman who may or may not have been involved in a murder. Initially, the father makes a compelling argument for why his daughter wouldn’t ever commit a crime, or be involved in something as terrible as murder. But as he tells the story of her upbringing, and his role as a single dad, it becomes clear that his daughter is not perfect by any means. The tension builds in the book, with a finale that is shocking and worth every turn of the page.

Another fall favorite is Jean Hanff Korelitz’s The Sequel is a follow-up to The Plot. Like The Plot, The Sequel has a wild plot revolving around writers taking other people’s plots and stories. I listened to this book as an audiobook. I don’t want to spoil the plot, but essentially it follows up from where the last book ends. It begins with the wife of The Plot’s main character, who was a disillusioned professor teaching introductory writing classes to disinterested students. Much to his surprise, one of the students has a gift for writing, a student who is disrespectful and downright obnoxious.

The professor has spent most of his professional life trying to write a bestseller that will free him from teaching and allow him to dedicate all his time to writing. And now here is a student – one who is barely passing his class – penning a bestseller with the ease of a pro. Then the student dies, leaving the manuscript in the professor’s hands. This is the professor’s one shot at achieving his dream of becoming a bestselling author. He knows it’s wrong, but his desire to be successful at all costs outweighs his moral compass.

In The Sequel, the professor passes away, ironically at his desk doing the thing he loved the most: writing. His wife is left to pick up the pieces. She writes a novel, which becomes a bestseller. But her motivations for writing her book, and for being the wife of the professor, are questionable. The Sequel was just as fast-paced and entertaining as The Plot – it also tied up some loose ends from The Plot. I hope there is a third book in this series! Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and the author for an advanced reader copy of this audiobook.

Sarah Pekkanen’s single-authored and co-authored psychological thrillers are reliable purchases for me. Her books never disappoint. House of Glass was yet another thrilling read. I chose to listen to the audiobook, which was an enjoyable listen.

There were several different timelines involved in this book. It was easy to identify the timeline and changes in characters via the narrator’s voice acting. The book’s premise involves a lawyer charged with figuring out what happened to a little girl’s nanny. The little girl, Rose, is presumed to be a witness to the nanny’s murder, which took place in Rose’s family’s mansion.

There are a lot of unpredictable plot twists – an overbearing mother-in-law, a cheating husband, a wealthy heiress, and a now mute Rose, all of which keep me listening to the audiobook. A must-read for fans of thrillers.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and the author for an early edition of this book!

I am making good progress towards my goal of reading 60 books this year. I enjoyed so many books this year. I’ve read an eccentric mix of memoirs, non-fiction, sci-fi, dystopian literature, speculative fiction, and psychological thrillers. Here are some of my favorites.

Luiza Sauma’s Everything You Ever Wanted was an intriguing read. I devoured this book like it was a piece of chocolate cake. Iris, the narrator and main character, is miserable with the drudgery of life in a capitalist, materialistic society. She finds work and relationships dull, and feels disconnected from society. She feels insignificant and lonely. Her relationships always end in heartbreak.

She dreams of finding meaning somewhere, anywhere, even if it means leaving the planet entirely. And that she does.

“Soon the weekend would come and time would briefly belong to them – more or less, apart from the regular checking of emails. I’m projecting my feelings, thought Iris. They probably love their jobs. They’re nothing like me.”

Iris has a chance to leave this world behind for a new life in an experiential, televised underwater settlement. The settler’s lives will be broadcast to the outside world for consumption. Iris applies to be a participant in the grand experiment/reality tv show, and, surprisingly, she is chosen.

But there’s one big caveat – leaving is a one-way ticket. There is no way to return to Earth. Ever.

Iris knows this, and is so unhappy on Earth that she is willing to risk everything – including a loving relationship with her younger sister – to abandon everything for a new life. She has hope that this new place will change her outlook on life, that it will be the reset button she needs.

I don’t want to ruin the ending of this book, but let’s just say that the settlement isn’t what it was promised to be. But I think the real question at the end of the book was this truly “everything” Iris wanted it to be. Maybe it was.

Scott Alexander Howard’s The Other Valley has to be one of the most unique books I’ve read in years. It’s been a while since I finished it, but it stands out from other books because the concept is so unusual. When I read the book’s premise, I was doubtful Howard could execute a plot like that.

Imagine a world where you could travel back into the past or into the future. What would you do? Would you try to get a glimpse of your loved ones? Change the trajectory of your life? This world offers so many tantalizing possibilities.

But there’s a catch.

A committee decides if you are allowed to take a trip into the past or future. You must propose the reasons why you wish to travel to either place. If the committee approves, you will be watched carefully by guides who are there to ensure you do not interact with anyone while you are in the past or future. You are not to prevent what has transpired in the present world.

As one might imagine, the temptation to change the past or future or say hello to your loved ones is immense. But there are severe consequences for breaking the rules.

I wasn’t sure how this story would pan out, but it was a nice surprise filled with gorgeous writing. Loved this book and I highly recommend it.

I recently finished Angie Kim’s Happiness Falls, which is her follow-up to Mirace Creek. If you enjoyed Miracle Creek (I did!), then you will really enjoy her latest.

The two books share similar themes – how do families manage their obligations to one another? How do they manage interracial relationships, having special needs children, and racism? What does it mean to give up your dreams because of changing obligations and familial needs? What does it mean to be a wife, father, mother, sister, brother, and family member in this day and age? It is easy to paint a picture that is black and white when it comes to these issues, but anyone who has lived knows that life is much more complex.

The book opens with a father going missing after visiting a park with his son who has Angelman syndrome. There are a series of mishaps and mistakes the characters make, which makes finding the father even more difficult.

This book also explores how people with disabilities are treated by the external world and how families handle the caretaking of their loved ones. I found myself crying at different parts of this book because of how well the author captured family dynamics and expectations, especially when faced with the pressure of decoding the needs of a family member who is not able to verbally express their needs.

I listened to the audiobook version of Happiness Falls, which was voiced by a phenomenal voice actress. The epilogue of this book is also important to read – the author explains the research she conducted to write this book as well as articulates how her own personal experiences as an immigrant shaped its content.

Be ready to cry and have your heart broken into a million pieces, only to be put back together by the end of the novel. This is a remarkable book, so save it for a time when you really can sit down and enjoy reading a beautifully written novel.

I am a huge Ruth Ware fan, and her latest book, One Perfect Couple, does not disappoint. I read this on the beach in the Florida Keys in the middle of what thankfully did not turn into a hurricane. As I would discover, a storm in the Keys was the perfect setting for reading this book.

One Perfect Couple involves a reality show set on a tropical island in the middle of nowhere gone wrong. The narrator is a female scientist who has struggled to make it in higher education. She has a boyfriend, a flailing actor struggling to find work. When her boyfriend approaches her about an opportunity to make money and be on television, she initially balks at the idea.

When she is informed that the show will involve couple swapping, she puts her foot down. But he begs and pleads, and they need money. This show is his shot to make it big in Hollywood, for them to get out of debt. So she reluctantly agrees, and they are off to a remote island to begin filming.

Things are not what they seem, though. When the couple meets with the producers and participants, they realize they should have never signed up for the show. A terrible storm pummels the island, and then participants start dying.

This book reminded me of Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None. I love mysteries that involve a mystery in an isolated place where no one can leave. This is one of my favorite Ruth Ware books – I would put it in my top 3.

My last book recommendation from 2024 so far is Hum by Helen Phillips. I read her last book, The Need, and thought her voice and writing style were different than other writers. I like the sparseness of her prose, and how she can convey so much emotion in a short sentence. It takes skill to write compact prose that encapsulates tension and fear.

Hum is set in the not too distant future where machines and robots are living side by side with humans. I imagine this book was inspired by things like Alexa, which is both helpful and a bane to your existence. Alexa can help me locate a book title or play my favorite song, but she will also try to sell me products. This is the world of Hum.

The lead character in Hum is struggling to make ends meet. In a disaster capital world, she finds herself nearly out of work, displaced by AI and “smart” computers. Yet she strives to carve out joy for herself and her family, even if it comes at a great cost. This cost involves selling her identity, which brings in enough money to take a vacation at a simulated cabin in the forest.

“There was a crisp breeze in the park, the grass and trees alert with it, layers of movement, tiers of leaves and branches swaying against the sky. She wanted the children to be here to see it. Whenever she saw beauty, her only thought was that she wanted them to see it.”

This book felt like a Grimm’s fairytale where evil lurks beneath the surface. There is a sense of constant unease and tension that permeates each page. When something tragic happens amid a vacation she gave up nearly everything to afford, the main character is ostracized by society to the point she may lose everything she loves.

I had mixed feelings about the book’s ending. I felt it was too abrupt, but perhaps that was the author’s intention – that everything can be taken away from you in a second, especially in a capitalistic society that steals your very identity for profit. However, I really liked the story. It is a haunting reminder of what our society could quickly become if we don’t think twice about where it is currently heading.

I usually review books I’ve read, but I thought I’d write about books I am excited to read in the coming months.

At the top of my list is Jeff VanderMeer’s fourth installment the Southern Reach series, which was originally a trilogy. The film, Annihilation, was based upon the first Southern Reach book, but I don’t think it did due diligence to the book (and that is true for so many books to movies!). I believe this book is coming out this fall.

Riley Sager’s books have been hit or miss for me, but I am always willing to power through his stories. Some of my favorite Sager reads include The Only One Left, Final Girls, Lock Every Door, Home Before Dark, and The Last Time I Lied. Sager has a new book out called Middle of the Night that has mixed reviews. I am hoping to get through it this summer.

I just started Ruth Ware’s latest book, One Perfect Couple, and so far it has kept me turning the page. She is really the queen of thrilling murder mysteries. My favorite books of Ware’s include The Woman in Cabin 10, The Death of Mrs. Westaway, and In a Dark, Dark Wood.

Jason Rekulak, author of Hidden Pictures that was a whirlwind of a read from 2022, has a new book coming out in October of this year. Stephen King loved Hidden Pictures, and so did I! I excited to see how his latest publication, The Last One at the Wedding, holds up.

Shari Lapena is one of the few writers who seems to hit it out of the ballpark with every single book. She is an auto-purchase or auto-request at the library for me! She has a new book coming out in July entitled What Have You Done. The reviews of the book are already stellar (3.9/5 on GoodReads), with readers saying the mystery is a must-read. My favorite Lapena books are An Unwanted Guest and Everyone Here is Lying.

Finally, I am so excited to read Robyn Harding’s newest book, The Haters. She is such a gifted writer and her books have never failed me! This book comes out very soon – July 2nd! I will be grabbing it at my local bookseller, Schuler Books. There isn’t a Harding book I haven’t enjoyed. If I had to pick my favorites, they would be The Arrangement and The Drowning Woman.

**5+/5 Stars**

Ling Ling Huang‘s Natural Beauty is bound to become a script at some point. It would be a shame if someone didn’t pick up this original story! It is a remarkable read with so many layers.

The first layer involves family relationships. The main character is a young woman whose parents left China to build a life for themselves and their gifted daughter in the United States. Pianists forbidden to play piano and compose amid the Cultural Revolution in China, they now teach piano lessons in the US to survive. Their aspirations become their daughter’s aspirations, which weigh heavily on her. A gifted pianist beyond her years, the daughter gets accepted to a prestigious music academy. Once there, she is teased and bullied by wealthy, jealous musicians. Then, her world is turned upside down by a tragedy.

The second layer of this book focuses on the desire to remain young at all costs. The daughter finds work in a wellness store, which at first seems like a financial blessing. However, the store and owners’ secrets slowly come to the surface. They reveal a grotesque underbelly of the beauty industry, one not too far off from the current time in which we live.

The last layer is about making friends and finding love in a world that can feel and be so shallow. How does one make it in a world that is, at times, racist, sexist, and elitist? The worlds of beauty and music are infiltrated by these -isms, and the author does a good job of exploring how the character navigates a world pitted against her.

As a parent of a child (now teen) musician, I could relate to a good chunk of this part of the story. The author’s personal experience as a gifted musician was evident in this book, and I enjoyed every single part of the story that involved music. The music world is intensely competitive, frequented by numerous wealthy families who have privilege and use it to buy their way into academies. The story of the sacrifices parents make for their children – children who often do not understand them at the time – was particularly powerful. I loved how music brought together the daughter and her parents, in life and in death.

A marvelous first book by Huang. Highly recommend!

**5+/5 Stars**

Where to even start with this magnificent book? Sequoia Nagamatsu‘s How High We Go in the Dark is a series of deeply interconnected stories told across thousands of years (maybe a couple million years?!) of time and over numerous generations of families. I will warn you that this is a difficult book to read if you are down or depressed. If you have experienced child loss or any sort of really terrible thing as of late, Chapter 2 is probably not for you. Some of the content may feel all too familiar after surviving a plague of our time.

If you can handle the overwhelming wave of emotions that comes when reading about life and death amid a devastating global plague, then please, please read this book. I was initially drawn in by the character of an archaeologist, who loses his daughter to an odd prehistoric virus found in the remains of an ancient child’s skeletal remains. Each story that follows after this is sort of like Russian nesting dolls; they have overlapping patterns, themes, and people who are all struggling to find meaning in the world. This book isn’t just about darkness and death; it is also about hope, grit, resilience, and longing. It covers the entire range of human emotions.

As someone who loves futuristic dystopian novels, I was immediately sold on this book, as weird and unique as some of its stories are. There is an entire chapter about a genetically modified pig who learns to speak, and you will find yourself never wanting to eat bacon after it. Some chapters make you question the ethics of how we might recall and recreate our loved ones in the not-too-distant technological future. Many chapters make you question what makes us human and what emotions may be unique to our species.

Overall, this was an incredibly powerful book and I cannot wait to see what this author writes in the future.

**5/5 Stars**

I’m trying to get through some books over the holidays. I decided to read Jennifer duBois’ The Last Language after discovering it on a “top books” list somewhere out there on an obscure blog. It was published this year, and I was disappointed to see it hasn’t had a ton of traction on the blogosphere. I highly recommend this book and read it in less than 24 hours. I get tired of seeing the same books recommended on mass media websites, which is one of the reasons I became a book blogger.

Currently, this book only has 34 reviews on Goodreads, but they are very strong, with a stellar rating of 4/5. The book clearly draws from the real-life case of Dr. Anna Stubblefield, a professor of philosophy and chair of her department at Rutgers. Anna was sentenced to prison for taking advantage of a non-verbal adult male who is disabled. According to court records, Anna got to know the male by attempting to communicate with him using “facilitated communication.” Facilitated communication is no longer considered a reputable method of communicating. Anna developed a sexual relationship with this male, claiming he consented using facilitated communication with her. However, when other people tried to replicate conversations with the man, he was unable to communicate. Anna was sentenced to 12 years in prison, but was recently released after only 2 years.

As someone who is a professor, I was curious to see how duBois would interpret this case. She could have exploited it, or sensationalized it, but I felt as though she was fair in her depiction of how a highly educated person might begin to believe in facilitated communication. Angela, the main character of the book who is presumably modeled after Anna, is an unreliable narrator at best. She is a former doctoral student of linguistics, kicked out of her program for reasons that are at first unclear. She is also a mother and recent widow, though she does not spend much time mourning.

She is hired to work with Sam, a young man who is non-verbal and lives with his mother. Angela begins to spend her night and day with Sam, consumed with what we are told is productive facilitated communication between the two of them. When Sam’s mother tries out the technique, however, Sam cannot communicate with her. It is only through Angela that Sam becomes alive with words, which is suspect to say the least. As you can guess, their relationship progresses, resulting in tragic consequences all around.

I have taken linguistics courses and am an anthropologist, so I really enjoyed Angela’s musings on the nature of cognition and language. duBois did a magnificent job communicating the questions that arise in linguistics. For instance, can a person conceive of a concept without language? How does culture dictate our ability to communicate and give words to concepts and ideas?

“Russian has one word for “light blue” and another for “dark blue”; Russian speakers do not register these as variations of the same color. While the Herero of Namibia have the same word for blue and green; to them, this is a single hue.”

“Saudade (Portuguese): a feeling of melancholic longing for an irretrievable person or place. Has analogues in Welsh (hiraeth) and German (Sehnsucht) and perhaps in some combination of our “nostalgia” and “utopia,” derived from Greek, especially if we consider that utopos originally just meant “nowhere.”

Communication with Sam becomes a way for Angela to push back against her former linguistic colleagues who believe in linguistic determinism: that cognition and thought first required language, and that “there was nothing to discover within people who didn’t have it (language) already.” Or, in other words, “a person cannot conceive of what he cannot name.” If you are looking for answers to why Angela believed facilitated communication worked, or if Sam truly could communicate, you won’t get them. There is a haunting ambiguity to this book just like the real-world case of Anna, who appeared to be two things at the same time: a person who cared deeply and advocated fiercely for disabled people and someone who took things much too far with a vulnerable person who could not verbally consent to a relationship or speak for himself.

A couple things really stood out during my reading of this book. First, duBois is a phenomenal writer. She subtly conveys so much emotion and feeling with analogies and linguistic theories about the relationship between language and cognition. Here’s an example of such writing:

“Language is when someone paints the hoof, and means the deer. But what if the deer just steps in paint, and walks directly onto the wall?”

“One thing all truths have in common: they are only visible from certain distances.”

Secondly, duBois shows that there are subtexts and complexities to human connection. Human relationships are not just words; they are a tilt of one’s head toward another, a finger brushing against a loved one’s face, a nudge of the foot under the table. Non-verbal communication is inherently human and loaded with emotion. Perhaps her intentions were for us to believe the unstable Angela, to buy into her conviction that Sam wanted to be with her and that he could understand her. Whatever the case, this book left me with more questions than answers, which is precisely why I enjoyed it so much.

This review is of Heather B. Armstrong’s The Valedictorian of Being Dead: The True Story of Dying Ten Times to Live. Why would you read a book about depression and suicide over the holiday break? I’d been wanting to read this book since it came out, but it felt too close and too personal to read up until this past month. Sadly, the author, Heather Armstrong, committed suicide this past May. She was the first big “mommy” blogger. I knew her name because I followed a number of very early bloggers (Rebecca Blood was my favorite, and I actually got to meet her at a friend’s wedding!), but I did not read Armstrong’s blog, Dooce.

Since Armstrong’s passing, so many bloggers and writers have added their opinions to the mix. What caused Armstrong to take her life? Was it the hate she received online? Was it the stress of sharing her family’s most intimate moments for the public to consume? Some folks want to place the blame on Armstrong herself, for not getting enough help, for not stopping her addiction, for not being a better parent, for oversharing…the list goes on and on. This feels like victim-blaming to me as someone who knows what mental illness is like.

As an outsider who did not read her blog (and has since read some of it), it seems as though Armstrong had so many demons. She was a brilliant writer and well-liked in school, achieving the incredibly difficult honor of being her high school valedictorian (hence the name of her book). Her sardonic wit and sarcasm were evident in her book. She loved her children and devoted entire books to them.

But Armstrong struggled with severe depression that refused to go away – it became resistant to the treatments she had used in the past. Armstrong was desperate for help. She ended up trying out a very experimental treatment that involved essentially dying and then being revived by a gifted set of medical professionals. The latter were so committed to helping mentally ill patients that they volunteered their time to this experiment. Armstrong was only the third patient to undergo this trial.

Why read this book, especially knowing about Armstrong’s heartbreaking story? If you want insight into what depression and suicidal ideation are like, the first half of this book captures it. When someone attempts suicide, they are not in their right mind. Armstrong appears to have tried many things – medications, diets, exercise, you name it. She wanted to get well for her kids. That’s what comes through in this book, and that’s what made me so sad for her.

This is a hard read, but it is an honest, frank account of severe psychiatric illness – its impact on Armstrong, of course, but also its impact on her family. The book concludes with hope, as Armstrong feels like the treatment is working. Given what transpired afterward, though, I do wonder if the treatment actually caused more harm than good. Have others involved in the experiment experienced relief or have they continued to struggle with depression? I do know that the book helped me empathize with Armstrong and understand just how much she was hurting before she took drastic measures by enrolling in this experiment.

I’ve been lagging behind in my book reviews this year, so I decided to highlight some of my favorite reads of 2023. I had a very exhausting, busy year, but I made my Goodreads goal of reading 20 books!

Because I struggled with chronic migraines this year, I stuck with some tried and true authors for me. I also relied upon Libby and Audible for audiobooks, as reading on my Kindle sometimes triggered my migraines. I’m on a new injection that has nearly eliminated my migraines, so I am hopeful I will return to Kindle/hard copy reading in 2024.

One of my favorite science fiction authors is Blake Crouch. I decided to read his Wayward Pines trilogy. I listened to it on audiobook, and I could not stop listening. I made it through the entire trilogy in lightning speed – I was listening to it every chance I had – walking, driving, hiking…everywhere. The audiobook’s narrator truly brought the story to life, so much so that I am planning to read other books narrated by him. What I love about this trilogy is precisely what I enjoy about all of Crouch’s books: scientists gone mad, dystopian worlds, time travel, and characters struggling with mortality.

I also nearly finished some book series that I started in 2022. I finished Suzanne Collins‘ prequel to the Hunger Games trilogy, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. I rated that book a 4/5 simply primarily it is hard to match the excitement and thrill of the original trilogy. I also felt like this book really could have been two books, which was my reaction to the film as well. It really went on too long and should have been two films. The book focuses on President Snow’s rise as a promising academy student serving as a mentor to one of the Hunger Games’ earliest tributes. What made the book interesting was the depiction of the post-war Capital and its discussion of the origins of the Hunger Games. However, Snow’s turn from an eager, semi-compassionate Capital student to a power-hungry sociopath seemed abrupt in both the book and the film. I think this transition could have been drawn out and explained in more detail if there had been two books/films. I also wanted to know more about Lucy Gray’s (the tribute) backstory.

Some of the best psychological thrillers of the year also came from authors I’ve read in the past. Robyn Harding’s The Drowning Woman, Jennifer Hillier’s Things We Do in the Dark, J.T. Ellison’s It’s One of Us, Shari Lapena’s Everyone Here is Lying, and Rachel Hawkin’s The Villa made my favorite books of 2023 list. All of these books came in at a 4/5 or 5/5 rating for me. A couple of these reads really, really stood out. Riley Sager’s The Only One Left was one of my top 3 favorite books of 2023. It had a great twist at the end, and I loved the spooky Victorian mansion backdrop. Another favorite was Janelle Brown’s I’ll Be You. I’ve read all of Janelle Brown’s books. Brown’s books feature unreliable narrators (such as Gillian Flynn’s books) who are struggling with what it means to be mothers, daughters, and just plain human beings in a misogynistic world. They have aspirations beyond domesticity, and these desires often come in conflict with what the world and their families want them to become. I rated I’ll Be You 5/5 stars.

I also tried out a few new authors this year. I just happened upon Jayne Cowie’s Curfew while perusing Amazon, and I was immediately hooked from the first page. In a world where men are predominantly responsible for violent crimes, the UK government has decided to impose a curfew on them. Women are finally free to enjoy nights without fear of assault. A murder after dark, however, calls into question the curfew’s effectiveness. After sailing through Curfew and rating it 5/5, I purchased Cowie’s One of the Boys. This book feels as though it could be set in the same era or world as Curfew. In this book, boys are genetically profiled at birth to determine if they have a gene that predisposes them to violence. Boys who refuse testing are essentially exiled from society, and boys who have the gene are treated as criminals. This book reminded me of the film Gattaca and both Curfew and One of the Boys are perfect reads for dystopian literature fans. This book has a 4/5 rating on Goodreads (which is excellent because readers are hard to please) and I rated it 5/5.

My other favorite new author is Eve Smith. Her books look at the human consequences of medical interventions, some of which involve biotechnology. I read her book Off Target in 2022 and rated it 5/5 stars. This book also reminded me of the film Gattaca, as it explores an underground world where people genetically engineer their infants in the womb. This year I read Smith’s The Waiting Rooms, which examines the very real threat of a world where antibiotics no longer work. This book might be of interest to people who enjoyed the film/book Children of Men, as it wrestles with the difficult choice of who gets to live in a world of limited resources. What happens when childbirth and pregnancy suddenly become life-threatening conditions, for instance? Who gets medication, and who does not? I am currently reading Smith’s latest book, One. All of these books are rated 4.0 or higher on Goodreads (One has a very high rating of 4.31!), so clearly I am not alone in enjoying Smith’s books.

That’s it for my best reads of 2023. I appreciate any book recommendations in the comments!

This is my third Rachel Hawkins’ book, and like the two others, I immediately took to the story. In my book, you can never go wrong with a Rachel Hawkins book! She is on my auto-purchase list and she will stay on this list after this book!

The Villa involves two parallel stories: one that takes place in the present, and the other that takes place in the 1970s. It is the place in which the story takes place – an Italian villa – that is a common variable between the two storylines.

Several of the characters are also writers, and some of their own writing comes into play in this mystery. There are two mysteries taking place – one in the contemporary timeline, and another in the 1970s timeline. While I found this particular plot somewhat predictable, I thought the characters were interesting and I was invested in what was happening until the very last page. I will say I enjoyed the contemporary storyline a bit more and would have liked to have had more backstory with those two characters. I could even see reading a prequel with those characters.

If you are looking for a quick and engaging thriller that has a cast of interesting female characters, this book is definitely for you.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and Macmillan Audio for an advanced reader copy of The Villa.