meg reads and reads

Title: Never Have I Ever Author: Joshilyn Jackson In Never Have I Ever , Joshilyn Jackson brings her signature friendly-but-dark suburban energy to the domestic thriller genre, and for the most part, it's a breath of fresh air. We meet Amy Whey, who has the "perfect" suburban life: the husband, the stepdaughter, the new baby, and the inevitable dark secret. But let's be honest--this is a domestic thriller. If a character in this genre doesn't have a skeleton in their walk-in closet, are they even a protagonist? The book kicks off with a fantastic premise: a mysterious new neighbor, Angelica Roux, crashes book club. Naturally, everyone gets a little tipsy, and Roux suggests a game of "Never Have I Ever" that goes way beyond "never have I ever ghosted a guy on a dating app." Amy, possessing a secret that could ruin her life, is understandably less than thrilled. What I truly appreciated is that Amy isn't your standard, cookie-cutter "sub...

Title: Savannah Blues Author: Mary Kay Andrews I am a sucker for Southern literature. Give me some Spanish moss, a humid mystery, and a glass of sweet tea, and I'm usually a happy camper. When I realized Savannah Blues was leaning into the Southern mystery genre, I was actually pretty excited. Unfortunately, that excitement soured fast. The character development--or lack thereof--was the biggest letdown. Let's discuss Daniel. If the goal was to create a romantic lead who is defensive, quick to anger, and entirely unappealing, then Mary Kay Andrews nailed it. He's a total dud. I'm placing my bets now: Weezie and Daniel aren't making it past Valentine's Day. He has the charm of a sunburned tourist and twice the irritability. Then there's Weezie herself. She was just...silly. Her decision-making skills were questionable at best, and her depth was paper-thin. To top it off, the subplot involving her alcoholic mother felt like it was thrown in haphazardly, as if ...

Title: The Shadow Box Author: Luanne Rice If you enjoy a tension-filled domestic thriller that plays musical chairs with its timeline, you'll find plenty to like here. The story flips back and forth between the main characters and the before and after of the attacks. It certainly kept me engaged with the story and wanting to uncover more of the secrets hidden within the plot. However, I have to be honest: I was waiting for the jaw-on-the-floor kind of plot twist. I wanted to be knocked sideways by a shocking revelation, but instead, the story felt a little safe. At times, the writing felt a bit long-winded and theatrical. I wanted to occasionally skim through some portions because the pacing slowed down. It was a bit easy to see where the breadcrumbs were leading. By the end, I was left with a bit of a "was that all?" feeling. Even though it didn't quite deliver the massive shock I was hoping for, it was still a fun read for the most part! I'd still recommend it b...

Title: Southernmost Author: Silas House Southernmost is a novel that feels like a long, humid drive from the Cumberland Valley of Tennessee down to the tip of Key West. It's a journey fueled by heavy themes: judgment, fundamentalism, and a father's desperate, often misguided, love for his son. While Silas House paints a vivid picture of the Bible Belt, and the salty air of Florida, the engine of the story frequently stalls under the weight of its own coincidences. The story kicks off with a catastrophic flood--the kind of biblical-scale event that usually prompts a protagonist to rethink their life choices. Asher, a fundamentalist preacher, rescues a gay couple and decides to actually practice the "love thy neighbor" part of his Sunday sermons. Naturally, in his small town, this goes over about as well as a heavy metal concert at a silent retreat. Ostracized by his congregation and his family, Asher grabs his nine-year-old son, Justin, and hits the road to find his lo...

Title: Blaze Author: Richard Bachman If you've ever wondered what happens when Stephen King forgets a manuscript in a drawer for thirty years and then decides to dust it off during a book tour, Blaze is your answer. It's a crime novel that's wearing a Bachman mask, but the voice underneath is pure, unadulterated King--complete with his signature "bloat," even at a modest 300-something pages. The story follows Blaze, a goliath with cognitive challenges whose life choices are currently being managed by George. The catch? George is dead. Whether George is a supernatural hitchhiker or just a symptom of Blaze's tragic head trauma is up for debate, but either way, he convinces Blaze to kidnap a baby for ransom. The book operates on two tracks, and like a lopsided train, one side is much sturdier than the other: The Flashbacks (The Good): This is where the heart is. Seeing Blaze's transition from a normal kid to a "simpleton" after a brutal beating from...

Title: The Highly Sensitive Person Author: Elaine N. Aron I picked up this book hoping for a biological roadmap to explain why I jump three feet in the air when a toaster pops, but instead, I found a manual on how to join a "priest class" I didn't sign up for. The first half of this book is an endless loop of, "You thought there was something wrong with you, but there isn't!" Look, as an introvert--and part of the 70% of us who usually have enough self-awareness to realize we're just wired differently (and often gifted)--I never actually thought I was "wrong." I've always quite liked my sensitivity, thanks. I don't need a book to fix my self-esteem; I need it to help me explain to my neighbor why their windchimes are an instrument of psychological warfare. We need a version of this book for people who enjoy being sensitive and just want the data, not a pat on the head. The opening chapters actually start strong with genuine information ...