Sister by Rosamund Lupton This book randomly ended up on my book list but I'm glad it did. I'm not usually one for mystery/suspense novels but this one really sucked me in pretty quickly. I loved too that the ending was not predictable in the way that most mysteries you figure out before you get close to the end. The story is of an English woman living in NYC who gets called home after her sister is murdered but the death is ruled a suicide even though the main character is convinced otherwise. She sets about on her own to prove her sisters death was a murder not a suicide. The dead sister had recently given birth but the baby had died as well. There was also a genetic component to the novel, where it was shared that the sisters had a brother when they were younger who died from cystic fibrosis. The ending, as I mentioned, gets very interesting and throws a curveball at the reader. I then got a little worried that I wouldn't like the very end of the book but all came to a conclusion eventually and in interesting ways that were not typical.
The Opposite of Me by Sarah Pekkanen I saw these books in a magazine ad and though that's probably not the best way to pick books they looked interesting enough. This one was about twin sisters who were very different and didn't really get along very well. One twin is highly successful in her career and one is about to get married. The career woman loses her job and has to return home but keeps it a secret that she was fired. The other one continues to plan her wedding while also keeping some secrets of her own. The girls are in their late 20s and some big life changes and decisions occur. Also so past information about their childhood comes about which leads to almost a role reversal for the two. It was an easy enough read and kept my attention. The thing I didn't like was that some parts could have been omitted very easily, an extra illness, romance, etc that were added in. The ending also was pretty predictable from the very beginning.
Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins This is book 2 in The Hunger Games series. Katniss and Peeta begin their victory tour as "rebellion" continues to be a threat to the nation. Katniss becomes the center of this rebellion as a symbol for all the nation. The love triangle with Katniss, Peeta, an Gayle continues. In the 75th hunger games, it is explained that this is called a quarter quell (25, 50, 75) and the quarter quells are special. They are said to have been set up by the original founders of the hunger games but coincidentally when the "special" rules are read they are that the pool of contenders this year will come from victors from each district. As the only female victor from district 12, Katniss is automatically back in the games. Before preparing for the games it is alluded to that district 13 may in fact be alive and well and Katniss becomes involved in figuring out if this is true. Katniss and Peeta end up back in the games along with other victors from each district. Some are very old and either die quickly or end their own lives. Katniss and Peeta partner up with various people from other districts and eventually Katniss, with the help of one of their allies, figures out that the arena this year is set up like a clock with the terrible things happening repeatedly in that area of the clock when it is that time. I really can't wait for the movie on this one because the visual of it in my head is cool so on screen should be pretty awesome. I won't give away the ending but it was quite unexpected and happened very quickly.
Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins This is book 3, the final book, in The Hunger Games series. It was weird to have a Hunger Games book without a Hunger Games event in it. This book picks up right where book 2 left off, with Katniss in district 13 and the rebellion in full bloom. We learn a little more about the rebellion and the capital and a full out war begins and ends in the book. The love triangle is also solved by the end. The book got a little more graphic for my taste (beware reading the trilogy at night may give you strange dreams, it did for me) but overall I applaud the author for the series and for an ending that was not disappointing.
Skipping a Beat by Sarah Pekkanen Explores the nature of relationships and the changes life throws at us. In this novel the main characters husband, who is her high school sweetheart, has a heart attack that changes him from the high powered money spender he became to someone who wants to go back to their simpler roots. The book explores the changes in their relationships and how they went from high school sweethearts to an almost divorcing high powered couple with no children to attempting to fall back in love. Overall the book was interesting enough to keep me reading to the end, but was a little too borderline romance novel for me.
These Girls by Sarah Pekkanen In this novel 3 20 something women share an apartment in NYC after college as they begin their careers and find out what they want from life. The girls are all keeping secrets from their past but bond together and slowly reveal to each other what is going on and strengthen their friendships to one another. Of course their love lives were explored too and though I could have done without that part of the book I'm glad in the end the book was about the friendships formed and not about the men.
The Odds by Stewart O'Nan This short novel explores a dissolving marriage with a husband who got laid off and in a last ditch effort to save their house the couple heads to Niagara Falls to gamble away or win back what little money they have left. I liked that it explored a different side of a relationship and the mistakes made over the course of a marriage. There was a lot of looking back in time and seeing over the years how the couple worked and didn't work together. I didn't like that some things were implied but perhaps not explored enough for the reader to make definite conclusions on. It was a quick and easy short read and I have always wanted to read a novel by this author. I'm certain more of his books will make it onto my list because while this particular book wasn't super great I liked his style of writing.
Mudwoman by Joyce Carol Oates Okay I love JCO but I really disliked this book. Usually JCO has complex stories that unwind in front of the reader in a wonderful way. As a reader you want to keep turning the pages to keep unwrapping the story. In this novel I did that continuing to hope the story would unravel but it never really did. The story is of an abandoned child who grows up and ends up adopted and turns into an intelligent woman who becomes the president of a university. Throughout the book I kept waiting for something big to happen or for some pieces of the puzzle to come together but this one was just confusing rather than complex. The book went back and forth from childhood to adulthood and was hard to follow. The main character had vivid hallucinations that were confusing to read through and figure out. I think the author was trying to convey something important and impart a great story as usual but this one just didn't do that for me.
