Hello!

It’s been a while since I posted, but I have been reading/listening to plenty of books in the meanwhile. 

As my normal return to posting after the school year ends, I will post a bit more than normal, but it will taper off when school starts back.

With that being said, let’s get onto the recap of the books I read the past few months.

I hope you find a new read from this list! 

MARCH

Rogues: True Stories of Grifters, Killers, Rebels, and Crooks by Patrick Keefe

Summary:

Keefe brilliantly explores the intricacies of forging $150,000 vintage wines, examines whether a whistleblower who dared to expose money laundering at a Swiss bank is a hero or a fabulist, spends time in Vietnam with Anthony Bourdain, chronicles the quest to bring down a cheerful international black market arms merchant, and profiles a passionate death penalty attorney who represents the “worst of the worst,” among other bravura works of literary journalism.

Review:

As a former journalist, I was very intrigued by the concept of a collection of pieces on different people that fit the criteria of the title. Unfortunately, I was slightly disappointed.

Despite some writings that had me engaged, primarily the one on Amy Bishop, it had a boring start for me.

I was also confused about how some of the people featured in this collection fit with the list of descriptions, and I am left to assume that if it wasn’t obvious, they were just a rebel.

Rating:

3/5

The Way of the Househusband, Vol. 9 by Kusuke Oonoo

Summary:

It’s a day in the life of your average househusband—if your average househusband is the legendary yakuza “the Immortal Dragon”!

A former yakuza legend leaves it all behind to become your everyday househusband. But it’s not easy to walk away from the gangster life, and what should be mundane household tasks are anything but!

Tatsu faces off against his toughest opponent yet—a cunning little girl who refuses to eat her vegetables! It’s going to take more than some quick sleight of hand to get one over on this smart cookie. Does the Immortal Dragon have what it takes to deliver the goods?

Review:

Once again, I enjoyed reading this manga series. It makes me laugh, and I love seeing how people react when he does nice or unexpected things.

Rating:

4/5

To Make Monsters Out of Girls by Amanda Lovelace

Summary:

“What happens when the man of your dreams turns out to be a nightmare with sharp teeth and claws?”

Winner of the 2016 Goodreads Choice Award for Best Poetry, Amanda Lovelace presents her new illustrated duology, “things that h(a)unt.” In this first installment, to make monsters out of girls, lovelace explores the memory of being in an abusive relationship. She poses the eternal question: Can you heal once you’ve been marked by a monster, or will the sun always sting?

Review:

This poetry collection runs together much smoother than other ones I have read. The raw emotion that is displayed in these poems are heart-wrenching at times. However, it was a bit weaker than a previous collection that I read from her due to the fact that there were many poems that could not stand on their own.

Rating:

4/5

Waisted by Randy Susan Meyers

Summary:

Alice and Daphne, both successful and accomplished working mothers, harbor the same obsession with their weight overshadows concerns about their children, husbands, work—and everything else of importance in their lives.

Daphne, plump in a family of model-thin women, discovered early that only slimness earns admiration. Alice, break-up skinny when she met her husband, risks losing her marriage if she keeps gaining weight.

The two women meet at Waisted. Located in a remote Vermont mansion, the program promises fast, dramatic weight loss, and Alice, Daphne, and five other women are desperate enough to leave behind their families for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. The catch? They must agree to always be on camera; afterward, the world will see The Documentary .

But the women soon discover that the filmmakers have trapped them in a cruel experiment. With each pound lost, they edge deeper into obsession and instability…until they decide to take matters into their own hands.

Review:

Despite how interested I was when I discovered this book, it was a let down for me. I did not connect with any of the characters, and I was annoyed by how they responded to the people in their lives.

As someone who is obese and has some of the same feelings these characters had at times, I really wanted to be invested in them and the plot, but it never happened. Even with an audiobook, I had to force myself through the story.

Rating:

2/5

Spy x Family, Vol. 5 by Tatsuya Endo

Summary:

Anya Forger has been trying her best to befriend Damian Desmond, the son of the powerful Ostanian political leader Donovan Desmond, but her attempts have been constantly rebuffed. Despite the setbacks, Anya is determined to gain access to the Desmonds’ inner circle and even devises a new plan—acing her midterm exams to earn stella stars! Can the academically challenged Anya pull off this feat for the sake of world peace?

Review:

This was another great addition to the Forger family storyline. Not only do we see how the individual members start getting closer emotionally and with their efforts, but we are also introduced to a new challenger for Loid’s affection.

Rating:

4/5

The Murder on the Links by Agatha Christie

Summary:

When Hercule Poirot and his associate Arthur Hastings arrive in the French village of Merlinville-sur-Mer to meet their client Paul Renauld, they learn from the police that he has been found that morning stabbed in the back with a letter opener and left in a newly-dug grave adjacent to a local golf course.

Among the plausible suspects are Renauld’s wife Eloise, his son Jack, Renauld’s immediate neighbor Madame Daubreuil, the mysterious “Cinderella” of Hasting’s recent acquaintance, and some unknown visitor of the previous day–all of whom Poirot has reason to suspect. Poirot’s powers of investigation ultimately triumph over the wiles of an assailant whose misdirection and motives are nearly–but not quite–impossible to spot.

Review:

While the mystery kept me guessing who committed the murder, Hastings made me annoyed throughout the journey. While his theories are fine, it becomes extremely annoying when he meets a pretty girl and does whatever he can in order to protect her. Even if that means interfering with the crime Poirot is solving.

Rating:

3/5