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Historical Fiction Mysteries I adore historical fiction and mystery books, and I love the intersection Something about detailed settings from the past just sets off a mystery beautifully for me. Here's a greedy reading question: What other historical fiction mysteries should I read? I’m glad the circumstances of what led to the mystery—yikes! The Jackaby story is dark, mysterious, and feels Gothic, yet there's humor too.

Solid Mystery and Suspense Reads These six four-star mysteries are all so good and so different--they I'd love to hear about your favorite mystery reads! 01 The Witch Elm by Tana French A Tana French mystery is usually a pretty good bet for me, and I plowed settings are exquisitely wrought, with stark, rugged, lush landscapes serving as the backdrop for a mystery It isn't a police procedural; this is a starkly beautiful book that happens to be a mystery.

Six Four-Star (and Up) Bossy Mystery Reads This is the time in the year when you may be asking yourself Four-Star Mystery Reads I Loved Last Year and Six More Four-Star Mysteries I Loved Last Year. What are some of your favorite mystery reads? This is a character-driven mystery with a twist. Exiles was the right mystery at the right time for me.

Six Four-Star (and Up) Bossy Mystery Reads If you want more favorite-mystery lists, check out round 1 Four-Star Mystery Reads I Loved Last Year and Six More Four-Star Mysteries I Loved Last Year. You can click here for other mysteries I've reviewed on Bossy Bookworm. And here's a link to my Greedy Reading Lists featuring mystery titles. What are some of your favorite mystery reads?

Historical Fiction Mysteries I adore historical fiction and mystery books, and I love the intersection Something about detailed settings from the past just sets off a mystery beautifully for me. Here's a greedy reading question: What other historical fiction mysteries should I read? I’m glad the circumstances of what led to the mystery—yikes! The Jackaby story is dark, mysterious, and feels Gothic, yet there's humor too.

Solid Mystery and Suspense Reads These six four-star mysteries are all so good and so different--they I'd love to hear about your favorite mystery reads! 01 The Witch Elm by Tana French A Tana French mystery is usually a pretty good bet for me, and I plowed settings are exquisitely wrought, with stark, rugged, lush landscapes serving as the backdrop for a mystery It isn't a police procedural; this is a starkly beautiful book that happens to be a mystery.

Six Four-Star Bossy Mystery Reads Doesn't the cold winter feel like the perfect time to cozy up with a mystery that hooks you with its twists and turns? Here are six of my favorite mystery and suspense reads of last year--with another list to come! A couple of these are historical fiction mysteries, one was jointly written by two authors, one was set And I'd also love to hear: what are some of your favorite mystery reads?

Six More Four-Star (and Up) Bossy Mystery Reads "Is she going to just keep rehashing all the big hits I recently posted about Six Four-Star Mystery Reads I Loved Last Year. This list highlights six more of my very favorite mystery reads of last year (Check out My Very Favorite And here's a list of Six Historical Fiction Mysteries I Loved, if you like the melding of those two What are some of your favorite mystery titles or mystery genres?

The Summer Favorites These titles aren't light "summer reads," but they were my favorite reads from a summer past, and they all stand the test of time. In case you missed them the first time around, I'm reposting them as this summer begins so you can add to your to-read list at will. If you've read any of these, I'd love to hear what you think! For classic light fiction that's also great for summer reading, check out these titles and Bossy reviews. 01 The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett Bennett explores the complicated implications of perception as reality when it comes to race and its meaning. In The Vanishing Half, Bennett follows the history of the fictional Vignes twins, Desiree and Stella, as they grow up in a town made up of those who identify as light-skinned black people. As teenagers they run from a prescribed future as maids in the small town, where tragedy in the form of evil white men took their father from them and left their mother scrambling to provide for them. Upon reaching freedom, their paths diverge. One twin secretly passes at work for white, then vanishes into a life based upon this premise. The other twin marries a dark-skinned black man and lives as a black woman. The book explores the complicated implications of perception as reality when it comes to race and its meaning; the subjectivity of and intense power within race labels; and the tension of living under false pretenses. For my full review, see The Vanishing Half. 02 Florence Adler Swims Forever by Rachel Beanland Atlantic City just before WWII, with its giant hotels, piers, and general hubbub, is the backdrop for the story of a few summer months in the life of an extended family. I loved watching the story's events unfold in this lovely debut from Rachel Beanland. Florence Adler Swims Forever, the story of a few summer months in the life of an extended family--including a stolid patriarch and matriarch, a free-spirited daughter, a spunky and fantastic granddaughter Gussie, a daughter with another grandchild on the way, a deadbeat son-in-law, and family friends to round out the group. There’s an undercurrent of concern about Hitler and his increasingly punitive behavior toward Jewish families’ businesses and emigration in Germany. I loved watching the book’s events unfold—even if I could predict some of them. Anything that was wrapped up a little too neatly didn’t bother me at all; I was all in and satisfied. Beanland based some of the basic events of her debut novel on her ancestors’ experiences, which I thought was fascinating but didn't realize until the end. Click here for my full review of Florence Adler Swims Forever. 03 Blacktop Wasteland by S.A. Cosby This is a fantastic blend of realistic complications, mistakes, adjustments, and spunk. It's action-packed yet character driven. Bug is a respectable business owner nowadays with a family. But some old acquaintances show up with an idea that might offer some financial breathing room--if the others on the job can keep their heads on straight, and that's looking like a big if. Blacktop Wasteland took a little while to get going for me, but just shy of halfway through, the setup is complete and the action starts singing along. I'm not inherently interested in the preparation and modification of vehicles or in skillful evasive driving, but I was all in for S.A. Cosby's writing about all of it. Bug is a wonderfully faulted character. who when not in crisis takes stock of himself and aims to be a better person. He's forced to consider what loyalty means, and to face how dark the path ahead might become when the bad guys are truly evil, very powerful, and the stakes couldn't be much higher. The ending of Blacktop Wasteland is a little abrupt and opaque, but not without hope. See my full review of Blacktop Wasteland here. 04 Utopia Avenue by David Mitchell In Utopia Avenue, Mitchell takes us through the twists and turns of a fictional psychedelic British sixties band on its rocky rise to popularity. Utopia Avenue explores the band members' crises, joys, fears, and triumphs. Mitchell made me care about a singer connecting with an audience, the cathartic heartbreak-writing of songs, and the magic spark of a performance. The book contains endless imagined cameos, fictional adventures, and gems of wisdom from real-life musicians like David Bowie, Joni Mitchell, Jerry Garcia, and members of the Rolling Stones--not to mention wild parties, betrayals, leaps of faith, breakups, and tragedy. But Mitchell expertly builds the band members into rich characters you're rooting for through their individual ups and downs as well as through the triumphs and setbacks of the band Utopia Avenue. Mitchell doesn't provide too easy or neat of an ending to this weird and wonderful book, but it felt fitting and left me satisfied. This was a really captivating story that kept me intrigued throughout. For my full review of Utopia Avenue, click here. 05 When These Mountains Burn by David Joy Joy offers an often dark work of Southern literary fiction through which bubbles of hope emerge. Ray has outlived his beloved wife in the mountains of North Carolina. He has a precious old girl of a dog, a fascination with (and healthy fear of) coyotes, a love of reading, and a no-nonsense manner that makes clear he doesn't brook fools. He has almost resigned himself to the heartbreaking idea that his addict son is too lost to be saved. There's an undercover cop nearby who's trying to help take down a robust drug ring, and then there's Ray, who uses old-fashioned methods and his knowledge of mountain terrain to address injustices in a straightforward way. When These Mountains Burn isn't always easy to read, but it isn't over the top, and Joy's characters are fascinatingly faulted and keep you humming right along. I read this in 24 hours while wishing I were making it last longer. For my full review of When These Mountains Burn, click here. 06 This Is All He Asks of You by Anne Egseth Luna has a unique and lovely voice and is an irresistibly odd bird of a twelve-year-old girl. I just loved This Is All He Asks of You. Luna stumbles into encounters that shape her life dramatically, in unorthodox and heartbreakingly meaningful ways. She is facing her mother’s decline in health and exploring her own identity and meaning in her life, and she shapes her sometimes practical but often mystical thoughts and reflections through writing letters to her father, who she has never met, in the conversational tone of a pen pal writing to someone who will love her and her words unconditionally. I simultaneously wanted to scoop up Luna and take care of her and to follow the lead of this wise-beyond-her-years, intensely spiritual young person. She has a unique and lovely voice and is an irresistibly odd bird of a twelve-year-old girl. For my full review of This Is All He Asks of You, click here.

you're interested in books like this, you might also like the books on these Greedy Reading Lists: Six Great Stories about Robots, Humans, and Alien Life and AI Six More Fantastic Dystopian and Postapocalyptic Novels Six Four-Star (and Up) Science Fiction Reads I Loved Last Year Have you read any of these books and he's got two dead crewmates, a chatty AI robot caregiver, a lot of complicated equipment, and a mysterious

If you love memoirs, you might also like the titles I listed on these Greedy Reading Lists: Six Fascinating Memoirs to Explore Six More Fascinating Memoirs to Explore Six Illuminating Memoirs to Dive Into Six Illuminating Memoirs I've Read This Year Six More Illuminating Memoirs to Lose Yourself In Six Foodie Memoirs to Whet Your Appetite Six Powerful Memoirs about Facing Mortality A few other memoirs on my

Cosby's Razorblade Tears, two men are coping with the tragic, violent, mysterious deaths of their married I loved his gritty, character-driven mystery-thriller Blacktop Wasteland so much that it made my Six camp; and winds it all through our middle-aged heroines' satisfying solving of a disturbing set of mysteries Nessa, Jo, and Harriet work together and use their newfound abilities to try to solve the mystery of incredible genetic cloning advancements--but people have noticed that her husband has recently been mysteriously

Desolate settings, mysterious deaths, darkness, hauntings--Halloween, here we come! In Things in Jars, Jess Kidd offers a creepy, dark mystery tale gloriously steeped in details of Victorian Oh, and a mysterious, dangerous, but tragic child-creature-mermaid necessitates detective work and a In Jars offers solid historical fiction details of Victorian London, which I love, within a creepy mystery Behind a door without a key--a door that is sometimes locked and other times mysteriously not--a "silent

These six memoirs from musicians offer stories about the authors' lives, loves, and work, and they each more more more memoirs I've loved that you might want to try, check out these Greedy Reading Lists: Six Fascinating Memoirs to Explore Six More Fascinating Memoirs to Explore Six Illuminating Memoirs to Dive Into Six Illuminating Memoirs I've Read This Year Six More Illuminating Memoirs to Lose Yourself In Six Foodie Memoirs to Whet Your Appetite Six Powerful Memoirs about Facing Mortality 01 Songteller: My

you like books about magic, here are two other Bossy Bookworm Greedy Reading Lists you might enjoy: Six Royally Magical Young Adult Series and Six Magical Fairy Tales Grown-Ups Will Love. Katherine Arden finishes out the trilogy in typical mesmerizing fashion, with her usual masterful balance This book also appears on the Greedy Reading List Six Magical Fairy Tales Grown-Ups Will Love. 03 Wicked

Valley Road: Inside the Mind of an American Family is the true story of a family with twelve children, six Significant scientific advancements regarding mental illness were made possible due to studies of the genetic material

If you share that obsession, you might like the books on the Greedy Reading List Six Great Stories about

The murder mystery stories were written decades before the book's present-day events take place and are I like a mystery that makes me care about the characters and doesn't foreshadow too much. Which mysteries hooked you this year? This is a pretty eclectic group of mysteries. If you like mysteries, you might also like titles from the Greedy Reading Lists The Six Best Mysteries I Read Last Year and Six Historical Fiction Mysteries to Intrigue You.

After the World Falls Apart I have a fascination with postapocalyptic (set in a time after a disaster) and dystopian (set in a time of darkness and desperation) books, and I think it's for the same reason I'm captivated by wartime stories: the books are about characters being pushed to their limits by an incredibly challenging situation, which allows them to show their true selves and discover their abilities. This category also includes the Hunger Games series, the Insurgent series, Station Eleven, The 5th Wave, The Chosen Ones, The Road, and The Handmaid's Tale. I think I have enough other favorite reads in these categories to make two more Greedy Reading Lists. Which other postapocalyptic or dystopian books do you love? 01 A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World by C.A. Fletcher And there may be no law left except what you make of it, but if you steal my dog, you can at least expect me to come after you. If we’re not loyal to the things we love, what’s the point?... That’s a kind of death, even if you keep breathing. The thief came and shattered what was left of young Griz's life. Now Griz and his dog are making their way through the world. Griz is capable of fury and revenge, but also great love and loyalty, bravery, and creativity. He's a fantastic character I loved. This great book by C.A. Fletcher was tough to read at times because of the frequent reckless, life-and-death, sometimes ill-advised decision-making in a postapocalyptic world. Fletcher somewhat frequently hints at later events in the book in the middle of early scenes, which added to my anxiety. The main protagonist Griz is tough as nails and determined and wonderful, and things do ultimately improve in satisfying ways. I thought this was wonderful. 02 The Grace Year by Kim Liggett It feels like freedom, but we know it's a lie. This is how they break us. They take everything away, our very dignity, and anything we get in return feels like a gift. The Grace Year is the type of book I could’ve stayed up all night reading. I was totally hooked by this Lord of the Flies-esque situation of trapped girls devolving into paranoia, mayhem, fury, and destruction, with a wonderfully strong and imperfect heroine trying to upend the situation. I felt as though the later sections glossed over some major issues (consorting with the gruesomely brutal enemy; the prospect of folding back into the world that created the horrific system of oppression, control, torture, and death—even with a promise of potential change; fast emotional movement past the loss of a beloved character), but there’s hope for the slow but significant evolution into a new era. I thought the teen girls’ “magic” and their perception of it (and especially the perceptions of the men and women in the society) was particularly haunting. This was a fast and engaging read. 03 The Girl With All the Gifts by M.R. Carey Melanie loves school. She loves learning about spelling and sums and the world outside the classroom and the children's cells. She tells her favorite teacher all the things she'll do when she grows up. Melanie doesn't know why this makes Miss Justineau look sad. I didn't have a clue what this book was about going in, which worked wonderfully for me. This is listed as an adult title but felt to me like a dark young adult postapocalyptic novel, and it offered several twists. I found this engrossing, really interesting, and also character driven, which feels unusual given one of the aforementioned twists. Some of this is odd, other parts are disturbing, and there are some wonderful implausibly amusing standoffs. And M.R. Carey's story is also hopeful, but not in the way I might have expected. If you like this one, you're going to also want to read Carey's The Boy on the Bridge, which is a standalone book in the same series, is fantastic, and is also on this list. 04 The Dog Stars by Peter Heller Hig somehow survived the flu pandemic that killed everyone he knows. Now his wife is gone, his friends are dead, and he lives in the hangar of a small abandoned airport with his dog, Jasper, and a mercurial, gun-toting misanthrope named Bangley. Then Hig gets an indication that he is not alone and that there is life out there after all. He must decide if he'll risk a one-way journey to seek out the good, bad, and ugly that may be awaiting him. It's a true life-or-death dilemma for a man with two stark options: safety and loneliness or potential danger and finally making contact with others. And he just might find himself questioning his decisions either way. My initial review of this book was "I loved this book. Nerve-wracking and beautiful, unconventional, real. I love this author. Love." This is one of my all-time favorite books. I'm in for reading anything Peter Heller writes (e.g., The River and The Painter, both of which I loved, and The Guide, none of which are postapocalyptic). 05 The Power by Naomi Alderman It follows that there are two ways for the nature and use of human power to change. One is that an order might issue from the palace, a command unto the people saying “It is thus.” But the other, the more certain, the more inevitable, is that those thousand thousand points of light should each send a new message. When the people change, the palace cannot hold. In The Power, Naomi Alderman offers a dark and fascinating look at a world where the traditional male-female and old-young power structures are turned on their heads. The Power explores the destructive nature of the greed for control and influence--especially damaging when coupled with the certainty that your opinion is infallible and correct. I found this book fascinating. 06 The Boy on the Bridge by M.R. Carey Months into their save-the-world mission, the soldiers and scientists on the Rosalind Franklin (a tanklike RV with flamethrowers that's nicknamed Rosie) are close to retrieving all of the samples their predecessors left throughout Scotland during an earlier expedition to try to find a cure for the plague. But it begins to become clear that idealistic Dr. Samrina Khan, the head epidemiologist; single-minded young Stephen the wunderkind; gruff, bighearted Colonel Carlisle; and the others on board may not have been meant to succeed in their grand mission after all. Political machinations meant that some of their party needed to be out of the way for corrupt power plays back home. Against enormous odds, the team may just be finding some of the lifesaving answers they were sent to discover. But bringing back their surprising findings might very well mean the wholesale rounding up and destruction of those affected by the plague. The Boy on the Bridge offers adventure, twists, turns, love, scientific exploration, betrayal, and an odd twist of hope. This is the second M.R. Carey book on this list, but I couldn't help myself. There's a character in common between the two books; this person appears at the end of The Boy on the Bridge but is a main character in The Girl With All the Gifts.

Here are six I've loved set in the Tar Heel State. Have you read any of these? also the author of Pride of Eden, Fallen Land, a title I loved and included in the Greedy Reading List Six abandoned airplane are found in his quiet, coastal North Carolina town, Winston must try to unravel the mystery underbelly of their rural North Carolina town, and basically everything about this intricate literary mystery-thriller The Last Child appears in the Greedy Reading List The Six Best Mysteries I Read Last Year.

My first Greedy Reading List of books that focused on this theme was Six Satisfying Novels about Revenge Here are six more novels across genres that kept me hooked on their revenge-filled storylines. Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo When tough, stubborn Alex Stern is offered a new start after surviving a mysterious spoiled socialite—and one of the cons aims to right some wrongs in two of the characters' shared (but mysterious the main players at one point or another and couldn't wait for the big reveal for this young adult mystery

My first Greedy Reading List of books that focused on this theme was Six Riveting Time-Travel Stories to Explore, which I followed with Six Riveting Time-Travel Stories to Explore. You might also like the books on the list Six Second-Chance, Do-Over, Reliving-Life Stories. Here are six more novels across genres that kept me hooked on their time-travel stories. But when one of Cara's eight remaining selves mysteriously dies while she is world walking, shocking

Six Great Bossy Fantasy Reads I knew I was reading some gooood science fiction and fantasy, but didn't You can find last year's version of this list here: Six Favorite Bossy Fantasy Reads from the Past Year Jess Kidd is the author of Things in Jars, a mystery I gave four Bossy stars--and listed in two Greedy Reading Lists, Six Spooky, Gothic Tales and Six Historical Fiction Mysteries Sure to Intrigue You. talking) creepy-crawlies in this middle-grade novel, you'll find a noble quest, unlikely heroes, a mysterious

Light were the Greenland setting, the alternate world, the bitter cold, and the sentimentalism and mystery settings are exquisitely wrought, with stark, rugged, lush landscapes serving as the backdrop for a mystery It isn't a police procedural; this is a starkly beautiful book that happens to have a mystery at its I also listed Disappearing Earth in the Greedy Reading List The Six Best Mysteries I Read Last Year. When we are young, we consume the world in great gulps, and it consumes us, and everything is mysterious

historical fiction, you might also like to take a look at the books I listed on the Greedy Reading Lists Six Great Historical Fiction Stories Set in the American West, Six Historical Fiction Favorites, Six Historical Fiction Mysteries Sure to Intrigue You, and Six Great Historical Fiction Stories about the Civil War If this book sounds down your alley, you might also like the books on the Greedy Reading List Six Great historical fiction set during World War II, you might also like the books on the Greedy Reading List Six

lighter fiction with some romance and laughs, you might also like the books on the Greedy Reading Lists Six Great Light Fiction Stories Perfect for Summer Reading and Six More Great Light Fiction Stories. In town, she'll always be known as The Girl Who Solved a Murder Mystery by Talking to Ghosts, with all For my full review of this book, please see The Dead Romantics. 06 Happy Place by Emily Henry Six longtime Now they've been engaged for six years, they're desperately in love, and they've been dating long-distance

The Summer Favorites These titles aren't light "summer reads," but they were my favorites from a summer past, and they all stand the test of time. In case you missed them the first time around, I'm reposting them as this summer begins so you can add to your to-read list at will. If you've read any of these, I'd love to hear what you think! For classic light fiction that's also great for summer reading, check out these titles and Bossy reviews. 01 The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett Bennett explores the complicated implications of perception as reality when it comes to race and its meaning. In The Vanishing Half, Bennett follows the history of the fictional Vignes twins, Desiree and Stella, as they grow up in a town made up of those who identify as light-skinned black people. As teenagers they run from a prescribed future as maids in the small town, where tragedy in the form of evil white men took their father from them and left their mother scrambling to provide for them. Upon reaching freedom, their paths diverge. One twin secretly passes at work for white, then vanishes into a life based upon this premise. The other twin marries a dark-skinned black man and lives as a black woman. The book explores the complicated implications of perception as reality when it comes to race and its meaning; the subjectivity of and intense power within race labels; and the tension of living under false pretenses. For my full review, see The Vanishing Half. 02 Florence Adler Swims Forever by Rachel Beanland Atlantic City just before WWII, with its giant hotels, piers, and general hubbub, is the backdrop for the story of a few summer months in the life of an extended family. I loved watching the story's events unfold in this lovely debut from Rachel Beanland. Florence Adler Swims Forever, the story of a few summer months in the life of an extended family--including a stolid patriarch and matriarch, a free-spirited daughter, a spunky and fantastic granddaughter Gussie, a daughter with another grandchild on the way, a deadbeat son-in-law, and family friends to round out the group. There’s an undercurrent of concern about Hitler and his increasingly punitive behavior toward Jewish families’ businesses and emigration in Germany. I loved watching the book’s events unfold—even if I could predict some of them. Anything that was wrapped up a little too neatly didn’t bother me at all; I was all in and satisfied. Beanland based some of the basic events of her debut novel on her ancestors’ experiences, which I thought was fascinating but didn't realize until the end. Click here for my full review of Florence Adler Swims Forever. 03 Blacktop Wasteland by S.A. Cosby This is a fantastic blend of realistic complications, mistakes, adjustments, and spunk. It's action-packed yet character driven. Bug is a respectable business owner nowadays with a family. But some old acquaintances show up with an idea that might offer some financial breathing room--if the others on the job can keep their heads on straight, and that's looking like a big if. Blacktop Wasteland took a little while to get going for me, but just shy of halfway through, the setup is complete and the action starts singing along. I'm not inherently interested in the preparation and modification of vehicles or in skillful evasive driving, but I was all in for S.A. Cosby's writing about all of it. Bug is a wonderfully faulted character. who when not in crisis takes stock of himself and aims to be a better person. He's forced to consider what loyalty means, and to face how dark the path ahead might become when the bad guys are truly evil, very powerful, and the stakes couldn't be much higher. The ending of Blacktop Wasteland is a little abrupt and opaque, but not without hope. See my full review of Blacktop Wasteland here. 04 Utopia Avenue by David Mitchell In Utopia Avenue, Mitchell takes us through the twists and turns of a fictional psychedelic British sixties band on its rocky rise to popularity. Utopia Avenue explores the band members' crises, joys, fears, and triumphs. Mitchell made me care about a singer connecting with an audience, the cathartic heartbreak-writing of songs, and the magic spark of a performance. The book contains endless imagined cameos, fictional adventures, and gems of wisdom from real-life musicians like David Bowie, Joni Mitchell, Jerry Garcia, and members of the Rolling Stones--not to mention wild parties, betrayals, leaps of faith, breakups, and tragedy. But Mitchell expertly builds the band members into rich characters you're rooting for through their individual ups and downs as well as through the triumphs and setbacks of the band Utopia Avenue. Mitchell doesn't provide too easy or neat of an ending to this weird and wonderful book, but it felt fitting and left me satisfied. This was a really captivating story that kept me intrigued throughout. For my full review of Utopia Avenue, click here. 05 When These Mountains Burn by David Joy Joy offers an often dark work of Southern literary fiction through which bubbles of hope emerge. Ray has outlived his beloved wife in the mountains of North Carolina. He has a precious old girl of a dog, a fascination with (and healthy fear of) coyotes, a love of reading, and a no-nonsense manner that makes clear he doesn't brook fools. He has almost resigned himself to the heartbreaking idea that his addict son is too lost to be saved. There's an undercover cop nearby who's trying to help take down a robust drug ring, and then there's Ray, who uses old-fashioned methods and his knowledge of mountain terrain to address injustices in a straightforward way. When These Mountains Burn isn't always easy to read, but it isn't over the top, and Joy's characters are fascinatingly faulted and keep you humming right along. I read this in 24 hours while wishing I were making it last longer. For my full review of When These Mountains Burn, click here. 06 This Is All He Asks of You by Anne Egseth Luna has a unique and lovely voice and is an irresistibly odd bird of a twelve-year-old girl. I just loved This Is All He Asks of You. Luna stumbles into encounters that shape her life dramatically, in unorthodox and heartbreakingly meaningful ways. She is facing her mother’s decline in health and exploring her own identity and meaning in her life, and she shapes her sometimes practical but often mystical thoughts and reflections through writing letters to her father, who she has never met, in the conversational tone of a pen pal writing to someone who will love her and her words unconditionally. I simultaneously wanted to scoop up Luna and take care of her and to follow the lead of this wise-beyond-her-years, intensely spiritual young person. She has a unique and lovely voice and is an irresistibly odd bird of a twelve-year-old girl. For my full review of This Is All He Asks of You, click here.

A hundred and fifty years later, a young archivist, Elodie Winslow, is drawn to the mystery. I’m glad the circumstances of what led to the mystery—yikes! The story is dark, mysterious, and feels Gothic, yet there's humor too. What are your favorite historical fiction mysteries? I love an intersection of historical fiction and mystery, two genres I adore.

She is banished from her kingdom, her six brothers are turned into cranes, and Shiori is cursed to not Meanwhile there are odd creatures doling out questionable advice, a mysterious stepmother, a land struggling The Dragon's Pearl, the second and final book in the Six Crimson Cranes duology, is expected to be published

Books I Loved Last Year, Six Book Club Books I Loved in 2021, and My Six Favorite Book Club Books of ' Experiences. 05 Shrines of Gaiety by Kate Atkinson Atkinson's newest mystery is set in vivid Roaring Twenties London as Nellie Coker struggles to hold on to her empire of clubs while mysterious dark undercurrents by the intersection of Gwendolyn and Ma Coker's golden child, her eldest son Niven--along with the mystery An overly convenient situation and moment of chitchat pushes the main mystery of the story to a head-

Six More Bossy Favorite Reads I've been posting lists of some of my favorite reads of last year by genre Similarly, when he stumbles onto a truth about his own mysterious heritage--a mystery he felt he had

Six Great Bossy Nonfiction Reads I promise that this is the last roundup list of 2023 favorites, which You can find some of my many other lists of favorite nonfiction and memoir roundups here: Six of My Favorite Nonfiction Reads from the Past Year Six Compelling Nonfiction Reads Six Illuminating Memoirs to Dive Into Six Musicians' Memoirs that Sing Six More Fascinating Memoirs to Explore And you can click here You might also be interested in the titles on my Greedy Reading List Six Fascinating Books about Immigrants

If you like witchy books, I hope you'll also check out the books on my Greedy Reading Lists Six Wonderfully Witchy Stories to Charm You and Six More Wonderfully Witchy Stories to Charm You. Deadly Education: Lesson One of the Scholomance by Naomi Novik (I listed it in my Greedy Reading List Six VenCo by Cherie Dimaline VenCo offers feminist, hard-drinking, foul-mouthed witches bound together by mysterious James is offered a mysterious job at a publishing company...but she and her grandmother are folded into

You might also like the books on my first Greedy Reading List of short stories: Six Short Story Collections MacArthur is also the author of the mystery Heart Spring Mountain. With masterful storytelling, King builds a world within each short story that feels immediate, sometimes

Six More Bossy Favorite Reads So far in 2024 I've been posting Friday Greedy Reading Lists of some of Then mysterious threats and unexplained feminist changes begin appearing within the script, aimed at When June witnesses Athena's death and then mysteriously comes up with a story about Chinese laborers Powerful Memoirs about Facing Mortality and Six More Powerful Books about Facing Mortality. learns that his like-a-brother friend Misha from his childhood World War II-era orphanage has died under mysterious

For more more MORE memoirs I've loved that you might want to try, check out the Greedy Reading Lists Six Illuminating Memoirs to Dive Into, Six Illuminating Memoirs I've Read This Year, Six More Illuminating Memoirs to Lose Yourself In, Six Foodie Memoirs to Whet Your Appetite, and Six Powerful Memoirs about Fisher is candid, funny, charmingly offbeat, and she's mastered the art of honest self-examination.

Here are six personal stories that I found captivating! more more more memoirs I've loved that you might want to try, check out these Greedy Reading Lists: Six Fascinating Memoirs to Explore Six More Fascinating Memoirs to Explore Six Illuminating Memoirs to Dive Into Six More Illuminating Memoirs to Lose Yourself In Six Foodie Memoirs to Whet Your Appetite Six

might also want to check out the memoirs I've loved on my first Greedy Reading List on the subject, Six

If you like memoirs, you might want to also check out these Bossy Bookworm Greedy Reading Lists: Six Fascinating Memoirs to Explore Six More Fascinating Memoirs to Explore Six Illuminating Memoirs to Dive Into Six Illuminating Memoirs I've Read This Year Six More Illuminating Memoirs to Lose Yourself In Six Powerful Memoirs about Facing Mortality Have you read any of these books?

After the World Falls Apart I have a fascination with postapocalyptic (set in a time after a disaster) and dystopian (set in a time of darkness and desperation) books, and I think it's for the same reason I'm captivated by wartime stories: the books are about characters being pushed to their limits by an incredibly challenging situation, and they show their true selves and abilities. This category also includes the Hunger Games series, the Insurgent series, Station Eleven, The 5th Wave, The Chosen Ones, The Road, and The Handmaid's Tale. I think I have enough other favorite reads in these categories to make two more Greedy Reading Lists. Which other postapocalyptic or dystopian books do you love? 01 A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World by C.A. Fletcher And there may be no law left except what you make of it, but if you steal my dog, you can at least expect me to come after you. If we’re not loyal to the things we love, what’s the point?... That’s a kind of death, even if you keep breathing. The thief came and shattered what was left of young Griz's life. Now Griz and his dog are making their way through the world. Griz is capable of fury and revenge, but also great love and loyalty, bravery, and creativity. He's a fantastic character I loved. This great book by C.A. Fletcher was tough to read at times because of the frequent reckless, life-and-death, sometimes ill-advised decision-making in a postapocalyptic world. Fletcher somewhat frequently hints at later events in the book in the middle of early scenes, which added to my anxiety. The main protagonist Griz is tough as nails and determined and wonderful, and things do ultimately improve in satisfying ways. I thought this was wonderful. 02 The Grace Year by Kim Liggett It feels like freedom, but we know it's a lie. This is how they break us. They take everything away, our very dignity, and anything we get in return feels like a gift. The Grace Year is the type of book I could’ve stayed up all night reading. I was totally hooked by this Lord of the Flies-esque situation of trapped girls devolving into paranoia, mayhem, fury, and destruction, with a wonderfully strong and imperfect heroine trying to upend the situation. I felt as though the later sections glossed over some major issues (consorting with the gruesomely brutal enemy; the prospect of folding back into the world that created the horrific system of oppression, control, torture, and death—even with a promise of potential change; fast emotional movement past the loss of a beloved character), but there’s hope for the slow but significant evolution into a new era. I thought the teen girls’ “magic” and their perception of it (and especially the perceptions of the men and women in the society) was particularly haunting. This was a fast and engaging read. 03 The Girl With All the Gifts by M.R. Carey Melanie loves school. She loves learning about spelling and sums and the world outside the classroom and the children's cells. She tells her favorite teacher all the things she'll do when she grows up. Melanie doesn't know why this makes Miss Justineau look sad. I didn't have a clue what this book was about going in, which worked wonderfully for me. This is listed as an adult title but felt to me like a dark young adult postapocalyptic novel, and it offered several twists. I found this engrossing, really interesting, and also character driven, which feels unusual given one of the aforementioned twists. Some of this is odd, other parts are disturbing, and there are some wonderful implausibly amusing standoffs. And M.R. Carey's story is also hopeful, but not in the way I might have expected. If you like this one, you're going to also want to read Carey's The Boy on the Bridge, which is a standalone book in the same series, is fantastic, and is also on this list. 04 The Dog Stars by Peter Heller Hig somehow survived the flu pandemic that killed everyone he knows. Now his wife is gone, his friends are dead, and he lives in the hangar of a small abandoned airport with his dog, Jasper, and a mercurial, gun-toting misanthrope named Bangley. Then Hig gets an indication that he is not alone and that there is life out there after all. He must decide if he'll risk a one-way journey to seek out the good, bad, and ugly that may be awaiting him. It's a true life-or-death dilemma for a man with two stark options: safety and loneliness or potential danger and finally making contact with others. And he just might find himself questioning his decisions either way. My initial review of this book was "I loved this book. Nerve-wracking and beautiful, unconventional, real. I love this author. Love." This is one of my all-time favorite books. I'm in for reading anything Peter Heller writes (e.g., The River and The Painter, both of which I loved, and The Guide, none of which are postapocalyptic). 05 The Power by Naomi Alderman It follows that there are two ways for the nature and use of human power to change. One is that an order might issue from the palace, a command unto the people saying “It is thus.” But the other, the more certain, the more inevitable, is that those thousand thousand points of light should each send a new message. When the people change, the palace cannot hold. In The Power, Naomi Alderman offers a dark and fascinating look at a world where the traditional male-female and old-young power structures are turned on their heads. The Power explores the destructive nature of the greed for control and influence--especially damaging when coupled with the certainty that your opinion is infallible and correct. I found this book fascinating. 06 The Boy on the Bridge by M.R. Carey Months into their save-the-world mission, the soldiers and scientists on the Rosalind Franklin (a tanklike RV with flamethrowers that's nicknamed Rosie) are close to retrieving all of the samples their predecessors left throughout Scotland during an earlier expedition to try to find a cure for the plague. But it begins to become clear that idealistic Dr. Samrina Khan, the head epidemiologist; single-minded young Stephen the wunderkind; gruff, bighearted Colonel Carlisle; and the others on board may not have been meant to succeed in their grand mission after all. Political machinations meant that some of their party needed to be out of the way for corrupt power plays back home. Against enormous odds, the team may just be finding some of the lifesaving answers they were sent to discover. But bringing back their surprising findings might very well mean the wholesale rounding up and destruction of those affected by the plague. The Boy on the Bridge offers adventure, twists, turns, love, scientific exploration, betrayal, and an odd twist of hope. This is the second M.R. Carey book on this list, but I couldn't help myself. There's a character in common between the two books; this person appears at the end of The Boy on the Bridge but is a main character in The Girl With All the Gifts.

Here are six I thought were just lovely--more about each of them below. more more more memoirs I've loved that you might want to try, check out these Greedy Reading Lists: Six Fascinating Memoirs to Explore Six Illuminating Memoirs to Dive Into Six Illuminating Memoirs I've Read This Year Six More Illuminating Memoirs to Lose Yourself In Six Foodie Memoirs to Whet Your Appetite Six Powerful Memoirs about Facing Mortality How many memoirs is too many memoirs, you may ask?

01 The Witch Elm A Tana French mystery is usually a pretty good bet for me, and I plowed through The settings are exquisitely wrought, with stark, rugged, lush landscapes serving as the backdrop for a mystery It isn't a police procedural; this is a starkly beautiful book that happens to be a mystery. What mystery/suspense reads have been your favorites lately? It feels like the time of year to be stocking up on spooky books and mysteries.

Exiles was the right mystery at the right time for me. Similarly, when he stumbles onto a truth about his own mysterious heritage--a mystery he felt he had Jess Kidd is the author of Things in Jars, a mystery I gave four Bossy stars--and listed in two Greedy Reading Lists, Six Spooky, Gothic Tales and Six Historical Fiction Mysteries Sure to Intrigue You. In Dawes, he meets eccentric, wealthy art lovers John and Eve Long--mysterious, possibly hiding something

This Greedy Reading List offers a little of everything: light fiction/rom-com, mystery, fantasy, contemporary you're intrigued by time-travel stories, you might also like the books on the Greedy Reading Lists Six Riveting Time-Travel Stories to Explore and Six Second-Chance, Do-Over, Reliving-Life Stories. Gillian McAllister's twisty mystery begins with a mother awaiting her teenage son's return home late In this science fiction novel, Mandel plays with time and time travel as well as mysteries surrounding

I recently posted about Six of My Favorite Fiction Reads Last Year, Six Four-Star Mystery Reads I Loved Last Year, Six More Four-Star Mysteries I Loved Last Year, Six Four-Star Historical Fiction Reads I Fascinating Memoirs to Explore Six More Fascinating Memoirs to Explore Six Illuminating Memoirs to Dive Into Six Illuminating Memoirs I've Read This Year Six More Illuminating Memoirs to Lose Yourself In After long months of mystery and suffering, she received a diagnosis: acute myeloid leukemia and a rare

Recursion also appears in the Greedy Reading List Six Riveting Time-Travel Escapes. 02 The Long Way to incredible genetic cloning advancements--but people have noticed that her husband has recently been mysteriously This book was mentioned in the Greedy Reading List Six Great Stories about Robots, Humans and Alien Life This book was mentioned in the Greedy Reading List Six Great Stories about Robots, Humans and Alien Life

Exiles was the right mystery at the right time for me. For my full review, check out Exiles. 02 The Wife and the Widow by Christian White White's twisty mystery This was like a Secret Garden for grown-ups, with intertwined, mysterious stories from 1900, 1975, and For my full review, check out Only Killers and Thieves. 06 The Lost Man by Jane Harper Harper's mysteries I listed this book in the Greedy Reading List The Six Best Mysteries I Read Last Year.

Six Favorite Fiction Reads I recently posted about Six Four-Star Mystery Reads I Loved Last Year, Six More Four-Star Mysteries I Loved Last Year, Six Four-Star Historical Fiction Reads I Loved Last Year Kevin Wilson's wonderfully odd 1990s coming-of-age novel centers around teens Frankie and Zeke, their mysterious They come up with an original enigmatic phrase and add attention-getting artwork, then spread mysterious Nessa, Jo, and Harriet work together and use their newfound abilities to try to solve the mystery of

These six did the trick for me in the past year. (Stay tuned for another list to come of six more favorites!) More Great Light Fiction Stories Six Lighter Fiction Stories for Great Escapism Six Great Light Fiction Stories Perfect for Summer Reading Six Rom-Coms Perfect for Summer Reading Six More Great Rom-Coms Perfect Time-Travel Stories to Explore, Six More Riveting Time-Travel Stories to Explore, and Six Second-Chance

I hope you'll also check out the books on my first Greedy Reading List of Six Fantastic Dystopian and