Reading Lately #3

I feel like I've been reading like crazy lately, and have had a lot of luck with books lately.  I have a few to recommend today (as well as one that I really didn't enjoy).  I'm always looking for new books to add to my library list, so please let me know what you've been reading lately in the comments, and I hope you find a few to add to your own list!

Fool Me Once by Harlan Coben

Former special ops pilot Maya, home from the war, sees an unthinkable image captured by her nanny cam while she is at work: her two-year-old daughter playing with Maya’s husband, Joe—who was brutally murdered two weeks earlier. The provocative question at the heart of the mystery: Can you believe everything you see with your own eyes, even when you desperately want to? To find the answer, Maya must finally come to terms with deep secrets and deceit in her own past before she can face the unbelievable truth about her husband—and herself.

My Thoughts : This was a fast-paced book with a lot of action.  There was a huge twist at the end that I didn't see coming, and really enjoyed getting to that point.  A lot of characters were introduced, but the author does a great job of keeping them straight so I always knew who everyone was.  This was my first Harlan Coben book and now I want to read more!  My only criticism was that the book seemed to get a bit lost in side stories and could have been a lot shorter.
Rating : 8/10
Read If... : you enjoy murder mysteries and want to read a well-written story

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

The Glass Castle is a remarkable memoir of resilience and redemption, and a revelatory look into a family at once deeply dysfunctional and uniquely vibrant. When sober, Jeannette’s brilliant and charismatic father captured his children’s imagination, teaching them physics, geology, and how to embrace life fearlessly. But when he drank, he was dishonest and destructive. Her mother was a free spirit who abhorred the idea of domesticity and didn’t want the responsibility of raising a family.  The Walls children learned to take care of themselves. They fed, clothed, and protected one another, and eventually found their way to New York. Their parents followed them, choosing to be homeless even as their children prospered.  The Glass Castle is truly astonishing—a memoir permeated by the intense love of a peculiar but loyal family.

My Thoughts : This was such an amazing book.  I haven't read many memoirs, but this makes me want to look up more.  The story itself is remarkable and inspiring, and the writing was perfection.  Reading about Jeanette's life made me realize that no matter what obstacle you face, you can always make it through if you have belief in yourself and don't let things out of your control affect what happens to you.  This is such a great read, and even though it took me a while to get through it, I would recommend it to everyone.  Plus- it's being made into a movie!
Rating : 10/10
Read If... : you want to be inspired or are looking for something different to put on your reading list

The Forgetting Time by Sharon Guskin

What happens to us after we die? What happens before we are born? At once a riveting mystery and a testament to the profound connection between a child and parent, The Forgetting Time will lead you to reevaluate everything you believe…What would you do if your four-year-old son claimed he had lived another life and that he wants to go back to it? That he wants his other mother? Gorgeously written and fearlessly provocative, Sharon Guskin’s debut explores the lengths we will go for our children. It examines what we regret in the end of our lives and hope for in the beginning, and everything in between.

My Thoughts : I really liked the premise of this book, but it left me feeling disappointed.  It felt like it took me forever to get through this, and a lot of the information was really unnecessary.  The plot itself was great, but I wasn't a fan of the overall book or ending.
Rating : 6/10
Read If... : you enjoy supernatural subjects or books with multiple narrators

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis

Four adventurous siblings—Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy Pevensie—step through a wardrobe door and into the land of Narnia, a land frozen in eternal winter and enslaved by the power of the White Witch. But when almost all hope is lost, the return of the Great Lion, Aslan, signals a great change . . . and a great sacrifice.

My Thoughts : A classic that I haven't read for years!  This is on Time's best novels list, so I wanted to re-read it.  I flew through it in a day and loved getting swept up in the mysterious land of Narnia.  
Rating : 7/10
Read If... : you want a quick read or want to reminisce!

Dark Matter by Blake Crouch

“Are you happy with your life?” Those are the last words Jason Dessen hears before the masked abductor knocks him unconscious. Before he awakens to find himself strapped to a gurney, surrounded by strangers in hazmat suits. Before a man Jason’s never met smiles down at him and says, “Welcome back, my friend.” In this world he’s woken up to, Jason’s life is not the one he knows. His wife is not his wife. His son was never born. And Jason is not an ordinary college physics professor, but a celebrated genius who has achieved something remarkable. Something impossible. Is it this world or the other that’s the dream? And even if the home he remembers is real, how can Jason possibly make it back to the family he loves? The answers lie in a journey more wondrous and horrifying than anything he could’ve imagined—one that will force him to confront the darkest parts of himself even as he battles a terrifying, seemingly unbeatable foe.

My Thoughts : I had really high expectations for this book because so many people recommended it to me, and I saw it on everyone's "must read" list.  I did really enjoy it and it completely twisted my mind, but it didn't quite live up to the hype.  It took me about half of the book to really get into it, but by the end I was totally engrossed.  There were some unanswered questions that I had by the end, and  I also wasn't a huge fan of the writing style.  

Rating : 8.5/10

Read If... : you enjoy slightly creepy/sci-fi/mind-bending books.



What have you been reading lately?
Do you re-read books from your past?
linking up with Amanda