It’s time for another reading list! I love these posts. This one is everything I read in January. Well, technically it has everything I also read over the Christmas break, too. It was a good long run of reading time, which is something I enjoy above all other relaxing activities. I can get completely immersed in a book and forget what day it is! This month was an interesting mix of historical fiction, dystopias, a light “vacation read,” and a murder mystery. I also finally tackled The Handmaid’s Tale, a book that I’m late to the party on, but L-O-V-E-D…LOVED!

If you’re new around here, you can see my other reading list posts at the top of the page under the Lifestyle > Books menu.

And please tell me what you’re reading, too! I love getting book recommendations and adding to my TBR pile!

The one for fans of the fashion and times of the television series Mad Men…

The Dollhouse by Fiona Davis

I loved the mystery that unfolded in layers between the 1950’s and today. Flashbacks and flash forwards keep you guessing until the end. The story follows Darby, a young woman who has made up her mind to find success in “the big city” of New York. She gets a room at The Barbizon, a female-only residence for women seeking professional opportunities like modeling or secretarial work. It was a place that the parents of these young women considered safe until their daughters hopefully met a husband. Can you imagine?! Anyway, fast forward to today where one of the original inhabitants is still living at the Barbizon, making her fellow residents uneasy. Rumors circulate that perhaps she was involved in another girl’s death decades ago, possibly murdering her. Rose, Darby’s upstairs neighbor and journalist with a rather disastrous personal life, takes an interest in the rumors of Darby’s past. Darby’s story fascinates her but the more she digs, the more obsessed with this mystery woman Rose becomes. I cannot say more without giving away anything. It’s a fun read!

The one I’m still really unsure about…

White Fur by Jardine Libaire

I mentioned this one in my previous reading list post, and I’m still not sure how I feel about it. Reading it made me feel dirty. Not in a sexual way, but in a disgusted/disgusting way. I’m not sure describing it as “gritty” (as the reviews have mentioned) quite does it justice where that’s concerned. I was at times confused by the characters’ behavior, which seemed a little unrealistic and possibly written for shock value. At its core, the story is a bit of a Romeo and Juliet type premise. A boy from an elite family falls for a girl from the “wrong side of the tracks.” But for two characters seemingly destined for each other and in love, as the author would like us to believe, I just didn’t buy their behavior towards one another. Unless you just really think that relationships like this one are healthy, which I do not. But, I’ll let you read it and tell me. Maybe I’ve missed some kind of point here? I would give this one a C- at best.

The Holocaust story you need to read…

Mischling by Affinity Konar

I admit that I love WWII historical fiction. It’s not that I enjoy the violence and horror of that time, but I think it’s important to never forget our history and I want to try and understand how humans can be so cruel. Maybe the better we understand that, the better we will all get at being kinder and gentler. All that being said, I really enjoyed this story. It’s based on true events that took place at Auschwitz involving Dr. Josef Mengele, also known as The Angel of Death, and his many experiments on children born as multiples – twins, triplets, etc. I’ll spare you the gore. You can read the book and Google to find out that he actually carried out those atrocities. Overall it’s an uplifting story of survival by two little girls, twins who become separated from their family and must do everything the Dr. wants to stay alive. One of the girls goes missing, and the remainder of the story is her sister’s quest to get her back. I may have shed a tear or two over this book but it’s very well done and I recommend it.

The murder mystery for fans of Agatha Christie…

Magpie Murders by Anthony Horowitz

This was one of my favorite books I read this month, and definitely one of my favorite mysteries I’ve read in a very long time. It’s a classic whodunnit, with all the red herrings and cast of odd characters that you want in a murder mystery. It’s also a book within a book. The story starts with a book editor who receives the manuscript for another novel by a fictional well-known murder mystery writer. And she warns you that what you’re about to read will change your life, as it did hers. After this introduction you read the manuscript yourself. The story is awesome, too. You almost forget about the editor, until you come to the end of the manuscript. Except there is no end. The ending is missing. We catch up with the editor who is now looking for the rest of the book only to find out the author has died, possibly being murdered himself. Real life starts to look a little like the fictional manuscript. This one is a MUST read!

The one for your next vacation…

A French Wedding by Hannah Tunnicliffe

This one is a light read but entertaining nonetheless. I would say to save it for the pool or your next trip, as you’ll easily get through it and at least say to yourself, “that was cute.” The story is about a group of friends who have been close since college. Now they’re all entering mid-life with a 40th birthday party for Max, a once hugely popular now slightly tired rockstar. The group of friends and their spouses/partners come together for a weekend at Max’s home in France. It becomes clear that along with good memories are also resentments and fears. His private chef, Juliette, has left her restaurant in Paris to provide food and drinks for the weekend and comes to be a sort of “off camera” storyteller of the weekend’s events. Is there a wedding? Yes. But who will it be?

The one I finally read and devoured and then felt like getting on a soapbox about…

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood 

No, I have not seen the show. I know of it, but I prefer to read books before ever seeing them on screen. There’s no reason to give a synopsis here. Pretty much everyone knows the premise at this point. I just want to say that it’s an important read. Some people may think casually of it as a fictional story and move past it as easily as any book. But I cannot. It’s a cautionary tale, and given all that’s transpiring in our current political and social climate, I think it’s an important reminder of how things can go quite wrong quite fast. Call me a conspiracy theorist all you want, but as a member of humanity that hasn’t always had rights or been treated as a human being, it becomes all too easy to see how those rights are taken away. Read it and reflect on it. 

The one I’m currently reading…

The Testaments by Margaret Atwood

I couldn’t follow up The Handmaid’s Tale with anything other than The Testaments! I’m a little more than halfway through it and it’s just so good. You’ll get a lot more background on Gilead and come to understand some of the characters better. I’ll save it for the next reading list post, but so far I’m loving it!

Shop January Reads:

What are you reading?

xo – Erin

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