January Reads

Well, I got six books read in January.  Three of them are 5/5.  And the other three are 4/5.  Not too bad!

1) The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles: This was a Christmas gift and I started it Christmas night! I could hardly wait to begin reading it.  It was worth my wait. The story takes place over ten days, involving four young men who end up traveling the Lincoln Highway. 

The story is narrated by various characters in the story, primarily by Emmett.  Emmett Watson was an eighteen-year-old boy who had just been released from work home for juveniles after serving fifteen months for a charge of involuntary manslaughter. The warden of the home drove Emmett back to his home.  The only family he had left was his younger brother, Billy.  Emmett's father had died while Emmett was away and his mother had left the family years before, so neighbors took care of Billy until Emmett was back home.

Due to the nature of the charges, Emmett wanted to leave his hometown with Billy and start their lives somewhere new.  Billy wanted them to move to California because he thought his mother was probably there.

However, all plans changed when Emmett discovered that two of his friends from the work farm had hidden in the warden's truck.  The friends had other plans for the four of them and they all ended up in New York City. Thus began their ten-day journey navigating around the city and meeting other people who were also struggling. 

As with the author's last book (A Gentleman in Moscow), the author does a spectacular job with character development and plot lines.  His writing is amazing and the story will stick with me for a long time! 5/5.

2) When Ghosts Come Home by Wiley Cash: I enjoy Mr. Cash's books immensely and this one was right up there with the others.

Sheriff Winston Barnes was up for re-election and was facing an opponent who would use any dirty trick possible to beat him. One night Winston woke to the noise of a very low-flying plane and he realized that something may be wrong, so he went to the local airfield and found the empty plane, along with the dead body of a local man lying on the runway. As he began the investigation, some of the people in the small southern town began to stir up accusations and racial tensions began growing.

This is a really good mystery and the ending is rather stunning! 5/5

3) The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid: I had this book on my radar for a long time and finally read it.  It's a good story with an unexpected ending.

Evelyn Hugo was an aging former movie star who surprisingly chose young Monique Grant to write her memoir. Evelyn wanted someone who could tell the truth about her life, the good and the bad. Monique was surprised at Evelyn's honesty as Evelyn told her story each morning.  She had, of course, seven husbands, but there was much more to her life than that.  There was also the unexpected great love of Evelyn's life.  And Evelyn's story somehow involved Monique.

Another unexpected ending.  Well done! 4/5

4) Blood Hollow by William Kent Krueger: another of the Cork O'Connor series.  I especially enjoyed this one.  I wonder if each book gets better? 4/5

5) If I Forget You by Thomas Christopher Greene: I was looking a book by this author that had been recommended to me when I was at the used bookstore.  They didn't have that particular book, but they did have this one, so I thought I would try it.

This story is about two people who had many years ago been lovers and paths crossed one day. Actually, the back story was quite engaging...the two met in college, he from a very poor family and she from an upper-class family. They had been torn apart by her father.  Years later when they accidentally saw each other, they came together and age-old secrets were discovered. The book actually had a rather different ending than expected. It was a good read. 4/5.

6) Northernmost by Peter Geye: I came across this book at the local bookshop (The Novel Neighbor) while visiting in Webster Groves, Missouri, and was rather stunned!  It was the third book of a trilogy, and I had not realized it was a trilogy.  I had read the first book some years ago and decided to read this third one (out of order, I know). 

So Northernmost ends the series but would be very readable without even reading the first two of the series.  This story takes place in two different times: 1897and 2017. 

In 1897, Odd Einar Eide returned to his home in Hammerfest, Norway after having been thought to have died by a bear attack. The day he returned, he found that his wife was attending his funeral. When it was learned that he had returned, he was sought out by a journalist who wanted to print the story of his time in the Arctic.

In 2017, Greta Nansen is struggling with her decision to end her marriage.  [Greta was the great-great-granddaughter of Thea. Thea had been born in Hammerfest many years ago and was the only child of Odd Einar Eide.  He had sent her to America when she was a young girl, hoping for a better life for her.] When Greta's husband went to Norway on a business trip, Greta decided to fly over to Norway to tell him she wanted a divorce.  But when she arrived at the airport, she decided to visit Hammerfest first to learn more about her ancestors.

This is just a stunningly beautiful book.  I loved the story! And, yes, I have already ordered the second book of the trilogy! 5/5.