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Three Days in June: A Novel
by Anne Tyler
A realistic, quick read (1/2/2025)
This book covers three days in June and tells the story of Gail Baines. It starts with Gail walking into work as the assistant headmaster only to find out that she is being replaced so she quits or is she fired? She arrives home and shortly afterward, her ex-husband, Max, arrives (uninvited) on her doorstep with a cat and announces that he will be staying with Gail for the weekend due to their daughter, Debbie's, wedding.

Debbie, meanwhile, is participating in a spa day for the ladies which Gail was not invited to. Just before the rehearsal dinner, Debbie confides in Gail and Max that her husband-to-be, Kenneth, acted questionably and she questions whether or not she should continue with the wedding.

This revelation brings back to light an incident that ended Gail's own wedding. This is a quick read and the characters are realistic and the storytelling his honest. The interchanges between Gail and Max are quirky and they are total opposites.
Never Lie
by Freida McFadden
Twisty but a bit repetitive (9/20/2024)
Ethan and Tricia are driving to an open house when a blizzard starts. They end up stranded at the desolate house and Tricia is a bit creeped out by the house, even more so when she keeps hearing noises in the house.

The house belonged to Dr. Hale, a psychiatrist who mysteriously disappeared several years prior and the house is still furnished so there’s no explanation for the noises. There is no internet and they do not have cell reception but there is electricity. Um….okayyyy.

Tricia stumbles across tapes consisting of the doctor’s sessions with patients and starts listening to them and discovers what happened to Dr. Hale.

Overall, the book was good. The story alternates between Tricia and Dr. Hale, with some chapters as the transcribed tape recordings. On the plus side, the chapters are short so it’s a quick read. There was a twist at the very end which I did not see coming. However, I ultimately thought the ending was a bit flat. Without giving too much away, it was just wrapped up too nicely and a bit far-fetched.
The Mystery Writer: A Novel
by Sulari Gentill
Interesting premise, but a strange book (4/22/2024)
Theodosia (Theo) Benton shows up at her brother’s home with two suitcases and an unfinished novel. She isn’t sure how he is going to react because they’ve had a strained relationship since they were kids, but they quickly develop a routine. She starts to frequent a local bar, Bender’s, to sit and try to write. While there one day, she starts talking to another patron, only to find out he’s a famous author. They develop a friendship but when he’s murdered, Theo wants to find the murderer.

Theo’s brother, Gus, is a successful lawyer on the partner track at his law firm. He brings his friend, Mac, an investigator, in to look into the murder. Mac’s family are doomsday preppers and the few interchanges with them in the book provided a bit of comic relief.

Interspersed with the story of Theo, Gus and Mac are interchanges between conspiracy theorists who are not only looking for Primus but also trying to figure out who it is. “Caleb” is a part of this. We find out who Caleb is mid-way through the book.

When Gus ends up in the hospital, Theo goes into hiding but Gus and Mac never stop looking for her. One day, they finally get a clue to her location and try to track her down.

Interesting story. Moved quickly. Towards the end, the storyline jumped in time…like months and then years in time. That was unexpected. Overall, very well written. As it is an ARC, there were a few typos within the text which I’m sure (?) will be fixed prior to publication (rounded down from 4 stars to 3.5 for this).
The Cleaner: A Novel
by Brandi Wells
Nothing mysterious (4/18/2024)
What a strange book. The Cleaner is a nameless person. In fact, nobody in the book has names. The security person is known as "L" and the delivery person is known as either "they/them/their" or "M".
The Cleaner works at night cleaning the offices and cubes of workers in an office building. "I watch over everyone. Sometimes they make the wrong decisions, and I help them see their mistakes. They just need someone to force them to do the right thing."
Based on things she finds on the desks and in the desk drawers, she comes up with nicknames for the employees. Such as Yarn Guy (he has spools of yarn in a drawer), Mr. Buff (he has several containers of protein powders in a drawer), Sad Intern (self-help books, probiotics, dry shampoo) and Scissors Guy (he has several scissors). She takes things from the desks and puts them on other people's desks. Sometimes she brings things in to leave on desks. She even accesses the CEO's computer.
This is labeled as a mystery/thriller, but I didn't get any suspense out or mystery out of this book. I kept waiting for something to happen but all she does is clean and move things from desk to desk.
The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game
by Michael Lewis
Not just a football story (1/15/2024)
This is the story of Michael Oher and the Tuohy family. It is also the story of the evolution of football.

Michael was a homeless kid in Memphis when he was adopted by the Tuohy family. Sean and Leigh Anne have two biological children, Collins and SJ (Sean Jr). Michael integrates into the family, but not without issues. He needs a lot of tutoring and guidance in life as well as school. He grew up thinking he'd be the next Michael Jordan and enjoyed playing basketball but eventually found football. The book goes into his life with the Tuohy's, the tutoring he needed to get his grades up to get into college, getting into college and the NCAA investigation into his acceptance to college. Sean and Leigh Anne were Ole Miss graduates (as was Mike's tutor) and very strong supporters of the school. (They even had an Ole Miss Christmas tree in their house).

The book was well-written and I found that the movie was pretty true to the book. I did end up skipping over some of the football sections. There is an afterword in the paperback edition that gives an update on Michael and the Tuohy family since the book had first been published.
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