I read five books during January. 4 out of the 5 were picks from my Book of the Month subscription.
1. This Tender Land by William Kent Krueger - I got this book from Book of the Month a few months ago, and finally got around to reading it after it was one of the 5 finalists for Book of the Year. It definitely is deserving of that. It is an adventure tale with wonderful characters and a lot of heart. It is reminiscent of classic "journey" books such as Huckleberry Finn. The book tackles some serious issues, especially the poor treatment of Native Americans in the 1930s, and it does this with sensitivity.
2. The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James - This was one of my Book of the Month picks for January, and once I was invested in it, I had trouble putting it down. It was interesting to see the way the mystery unfolded in the two different timelines. I loved both of the main characters, Carly and Viv.
3. The Reckless Oath We Made by Bryn Greenwood - This was an interesting story told from many different perspectives. Gentry was a lovable hero, a man with autism who thought he was a knight. He cared about Zee so much, and his relationship with her was well developed. The characters in this book went through a lot of tough trials, and this book didn't shy away from some more difficult topics.
4. The Map From Here to There by Emery Lord - It was great to be reunited with the whole gang from the first book in this one. A lot of problems in the book could have been solved with better communication but it is understandable that it wasn't that simple for them. They were still the lovable characters from the first book, but dealing with the stress of their senior year of high school.
5. Recursion by Blake Crouch - The science behind this book is complex quantum physics, and I don't think I fully understood all of it, but this was still a fascinating and interesting read. I had no idea how everything was going to resolve since it got very crazy.
