Everything I Read in June 2024.

June was a good month of reading. Eight books, spread across thrillers, non-fiction, literary fiction, and some lighter reads. The highlights for me were The Work by Bri Lee (more literary, involves a long distance relationship and the art world) and Sociopath by Patric Gagne (absolutely mesmerizing… highly recommend listening as Gagne herself narrates). And of course I had been waiting for (and really enjoyed!) The Next Mrs. Parrish. A treat! And Elin Hilderbrand’s latest. I could go on, more below! The only book that left me underwhelmed was youthjuice (too off the rails for me) BUT there were still parts of it I really loved.

I’d love to hear what you are reading and what you’ve loved recently. I tend to pick my next books based on the comment section here!

And don’t forget about The Library, which has every book I’ve read in ten plus years. It has its own separate search plus you can filter by genre and grade.

Everything I Read in June 2024

Thrillers

Kill for Me, Kill for You, by Steve Cavanagh

Before I dive into any gripes, I want to say that I loved this book. I read it in under 24 hours because the plot was so engaging. I had to know what happened. It had several big twists and turns and a dramatic twist at the ending. The plot is a ten! That being said, the writing is just medium… you could tell the author never lived in New York (everyone had “houses,” transportation logistics seemed off at times), and his descriptions were strange at times (I couldn’t get over him describing a character’s hair as “hazel brown.” Isn’t that an eye color?) Anyway, I am a tough crowd but all of those things aside still gave this book an A- as I loved the plot, which takes inspiration from Strangers on a Train.

Amanda and Wendy meet in a grief support group and immediately bond as they’ve suffered similar tragic losses. After a night out, the two women make a deal — each promising to kill the men who destroyed their families. If you kill for me, I’ll kill for you. What could possibly go wrong!? Meanwhile across town, Ruth is home alone in her beautiful brownstone and is brutally attacked by a man with piercing blue eyes. She doesn’t know if she will ever feel safe again. The book is fast paced and twisty as the two stories intersect. I gasped at the ending! Overall Score: A-// Order on Amazon.com or Bookshop.org

youthjuice, by E.K. Sathue

This is a disturbing little book. More of a horror novel than a thriller, and I don’t typically read much horror! That being said, I was super intrigued as it was described to me as American Psycho meets The Devil Wears Prada. Besides being a horror novel, it’s also a satire of NYC It-girl culture and I absolutely loved that part of it. Sophia is twenty nine years old, with dark secrets of her own and a career that feels non-existent. She’s also got a brutal nail biting habit, to the point where she has to wear gloves. Thanks to her best friend Dom, she’s able to live in a gorgeous apartment, but her life doesn’t feel like it’s going anywhere. She lacks purpose, routine… and outside of her friendship with Dom, she doesn’t have her people.

Until she gets a job on the storytelling (content) team, a hot beauty start up (picture Glossier or even Rhode and you have it). When Sophia starts working at HEBE, she feels like her life finally has purpose. Her coworkers feel like family and they are all united in their mission to make beauty possible. The founder, Tree Whitestone (a glamorous, mysterious former beauty blogger who bares a startling resemblance to Emily Weiss) takes Sophia under her wing, even letting her test a brand new product, youthjuice, set to revolutionize beauty forever. But when Sophia learns about the gruesome secret ingredient in youthjuice, what will she do? How far is she willing to protect the company she’s grown to love (and stay beautiful forever!?).

The book takes dark turn after dark turn. It goes pretty far off the rails. If you are easily grossed out, don’t read this. If not, it will make for a fun (albeit scary) fast beach read. Overall Score: B // Order on Amazon.com or Bookshop.org

A Talent for Murder, by Peter Swanson

First of all, this book is CLEVER. If you are like me and read a ton of thrillers, you must read this because it’s so different! There are several great twists that smack you in the face in the best possible way. I was on the edge of my seat and couldn’t put this book down. My jaw actually dropped at one point (and I feel like nothing surprises me anymore). Martha Ratliff is a librarian who had just always thought she was cursed in love and would never get married. Just when she had accepted it and found herself really happy being alone, she meets Alan – a sweet, quiet, little bit nerdy salesman who travels a lot for work. Even after being married a bit, though she is happy, she still feels like she doesn’t know him very well.

One day, after he’d been at a conference in Denver, she finds a strange blood streak on his clothing. She starts a little investigation and discovers a disturbing pattern of unsolved murders in every city Alan has traveled to. She starts to feel like she is going crazy… is she married to a serial killer? So she enlists the help of an old friend (Lily Kintner) from graduate school to help her investigate. When Lily begins to follow Alan, what she discovers is darker and more messed up than either woman could have imagined. I will leave it at that but if you are a thriller person, this one is a must-read! Overall Score: A- // Order on Amazon.com or Bookshop.org

The Next Mrs. Parrish, by Liv Constantine

Oh my… this was so satisfying! I absolutely loved The Last Mrs. Parrish when it came out several years ago and was thrilled to have a follow up. It has all our old favorites (shitty Jackson, conniving Amber, lovely Daphne)… plus a new character, someone from Amber’s past. Daphne has left her life in Connecticut and moved to California with her daughters. Jackson is serving out his tax evasion sentence. And Amber? Amber is still Amber, backstabbing and doing everything she can to get what she feels she deserves. When Daphne’s oldest daughter leaves her school field trip to try and see her father, Daphne is convinced to spend the summer in Connecticut and let her daughters have a (very supervised) relationship with their father.

Jackson, fresh out of prison on good behavior, seems to have changed. But has he really? Meanwhile, Amber is up to her usual scheming and a new character emerges… hell bent on getting revenge on something that happened in Amber’s past. Similar to the first book, it’s very soapy. So much happens! It goes so off the rails! But I absolutely LOVED it and think you will to. Read the first book if you haven’t already! Even if it’s been a few years you will pick up where you left off. Overall Score: A // Order on Amazon.com or Bookshop.org

Lighter Fiction

Swan Song, by Elin Hilderbrand

I put off reading this as I’m really sad that it’s Elin Hilderbrand’s last Nantucket novel. (But also happy for her: rest is good, she deserves this!). And of course, it did not disappoint. This one is a mystery, which I thought was fun. The novel surrounds a glamorous couple, The Richardsons. They move to Nantucket and immediately make waves, purchasing a $22 million home (with its own upstairs party room and octagon shaped porch) and yacht, Hedonism. The couple quickly becomes the talk of the town with their wild parties, loose morals, and debauchery. Everyone wants to be invited, (and everyone also wants to know how they got all that money!?

As the book opens, we see their beautiful home burning to the ground and their personal assistant Coco disappearing). We are then taken back to the beginning of summer where we get to know the members of the town and try to figure out what the heck happened. Blonde Sharon (a loveable gossip, going through a divorce), the soon to be retired police chief and his daughter Kacy (who becomes close with Coco), and a slew of other memorable characters. The book alternates timelines between the beginning and the end of summer as we try to solve the mystery of what exactly happened to The Richardsons home (and who these mysterious people are!). Overall Score: A- // Order on Amazon.com or Bookshop.org

Literary Fiction

The Work, by Bri Lee

OK first of all, I loved this book SO much. Second, it’s kinda hard to get your hands on a copy. Bri Lee is an Australian author and it’s not available on Bookshop + took a little while to arrive on Amazon. This is a romance at its core but really so much more than that. Lally is an American gallery owner who has poured everything: her whole being, her life, a small inheritance – into her gallery. Pat is a scholarship boy who is barely able to pay his rent, trying to establish himself in Sydney’s antiques scene. When they meet at the Armory Show in New York, they have instant chemistry. The two find themselves flying across the ocean to see each other, while separately balancing money and ambition. All the while, they each are making terrible (but understandable?) career mistakes.

The book is funny, beautifully written, vulnerable, steamy (in a high brow sort of steamy way which will make sense if you read it). I absolutely loved it and want more people to know about it!!! I loved every page and did not want it to end. Easily one of the best books of the year for me, hands down. Overall Score: A+ // Order on Amazon.com.

Non-Fiction

Sociopath, by Patric Gagne

To be honest, I went into this (I listened on audio) thinking I was going to get some sort of juicy, dark confessional. And at times, it was! But it was so much more than that. To be honest, it was a raw & real memoir of someone who I think I’d like a lot in real life. It made me think about how in the past I’ve thrown around the word sociopath (mostly as a negative, in regard to exes, etc.). This is Gagne’s memoir, starting from childhood (when she would sneak out of the house late at night, when she realized that she made people uncomfortable before even starting kindergarten) through adulthood. It is a story of trying to fit in and conform, a story of feeling nothing (and not liking that feeling very much).

In childhood, she did anything she could to feel something. Stealing. Lying. Being occasionally violent; breaking into empty homes. Then, in college, she finally confirmed what she had long suspected: she was a sociopath. And then: trying to learn more about her diagnosis and realizing that sociopathy had been neglected by mental health professionals for decades. Working with a therapist, being told she couldn’t have a normal life. Being haunted by the sterotypical sociopaths of pop culture (always the villain). Finding romantic love and wanting to keep it. The book is utterly engrossing and so interesting; but also very hopeful. I really loved it. Overall Score: A+ // Order on Amazon.com or Bookshop.org

The Art of Small Talk, by Casey Wilson and Jessica St. Clair

This was a reader recommendation and I was intrigued because a) I am one of those people who says, “I hate small talk!” and b) it is only available as an audiobook and has a pretty tremendous cast of characters (Malcom Gladwell, Amy Poehler, etc.!) At first, I found myself slightly annoyed by the hosts. They are high energy comedians! With time though, they wore me down. I am not kidding when I say that this book changed my perspective about small talk (from vapid and useless to something that can be really helpful).

I like that it also gives exit strategies, tips for dealing with energy vampires, and more. And, it’s very entertaining. Wilson and St. Clair have a fantastic energy together and made me laugh out loud more than once. Any book that can do that AND teach me something/change my mind is a winner in my book. I highly recommend it. Overall Score: A // Order on Amazon.com