I enjoyed this story of the aftermath of a murder in post 2008 crash Ireland. I listened to the audiobook and the narrator was the same for both male and female characters and without chapter headings to indicate narrator shifts, I was often confused. So I think I'd recommend this in the written format. 

The Return of Ellie Black is the fast paced thriller debut by Emiko Jean. Emiko Jean is well known for her Tokyo Ever After series and Mika in Real Life, so I decided to give her writing a try. I am beyond glad I did! This missing girl mystery sucked me right in and I couldn't put this book down until I finished it the next day. 

Twenty years ago, Chelsey Calhoun's older sister disappeared. She is now a detective committed to justice for girls like her sister. The story begins when Ellie Black reappears on a trail in the woods after being missing for over two years. Chelsey is on the case and will not rest until she has answers about (and from) Ellie as well as a string of other missing girls in the rural Washington state area. 

Full of reveals and enthralling turns, we learn that something is amiss with Ellie and it's not just the "typical" trauma of returning to the world after a harrowing experience. While I have a few small gripes about this story, I loved the characters and easy to fly through writing that was immersive without being bogged down. I'm not typically a fan of detective stories, and this one really worked for me. I would have liked more development of Chelsey's character and her relationship, and I also felt the storyline that so many white girls weren't being looked for doesn't add up with the reality in our society. They certainly do get looked for, much more so than girls who are not white. 

Overall, this book is great for a super fast, mysterious read that I really think would launch you out of a reading slump or go down easy when you're in a busy season of life where a slow paced book is just not the right fit. And I'll definitely be reading more from Emiko Jean! 

This Wound is a World is a must read poetry collection, even and especially if you don't usually read poetry. Belcourt writes in an accessible and artistic way about what it means and how it feels to be indigenous and queer. 

These poems are on the shorter side, usually only a couple of pages, and are written in a style that reflects how we usually communicate. I loved the frequent use of lists, especially when Belcourt used them to convey incredibly heavy ideas in concise points. Rather than feeling rushed by the list format, it made me really want to sit and consider each one. 

I think this collection will speak to many and is a must read. I can't do it justice in this review. 

The List is a timely novel about Ola Olajide. Ola is a successful  journalist at Womxxxn magazine, and in 26 days she will be marrying her fiancé Michael. Michael and Ola are "Black couple goals" and social media is as in love with them as they are with each other. But then, Ola wakes up to a plethora of notifications asking if she's seen "the list." 

Told from the perspectives of both Ola and Michael, we get a look into what it is like to be the partner of someone accused of sexual misconduct and how it feels to be the accused. The first half of this novel moved at a good clip and felt realistic enough to me. But after a significant plot point midway, the events and dialogue felt very repetitive and it was a slog to get through. 

I found the end to be redeeming. I did like how this novel looked at the issue of bad behavior specifically in men of color and false equivalencies that are made there. Adegoke fills this one with nuance while still moving the plot forward, even if it was at times slower and more redundant that I would have liked. Overall, I think this novel adds to the conversation on the subject of sexual harassment, abuse, and assault and I'm glad I read it. 

The Wife Before is a fast paced, easy to read psychological thriller. Mira is down on her luck, out of work and about to get kicked out of her apartment. She takes an opportunity to work as a server at a very high end event to make some cash and runs into a very handsome and very famous man, but she doesn't know that. All Mira knows is that there is an instant connection and they both feel it. 

When things quickly progress with Roland, Mira begins to suspect something is amiss with his previous relationship. Is he lying or is there more to the story? I went into this one not knowing much at all which made the plot much more fun. I think diving into too much detail will take some of the fun out. 

This is a fun read that features messy characters and lots of layers of secrets. It is a wonderful change of pace to read Black characters by a Black author in this genre. I really enjoy Shanora Williams. 

Well I knew roughly ten minutes into this audiobook that I would love it when Maria Bamford said "The best medicine is medicine." This humble and honest memoir about mental illness is everything you'd hope for based on what you might know about this comedian. It is hilarious, irreverent, and completely respectful of what a fucking slog it is to have a chronic mental health condition. 

The cult vibes come from facts, Maria has been or is a current member of several 12 step groups and has benefited from them tremendously. I loved the way she was able to have a sense of humor around 12 steppers while also sharing her deep love and need for these structures and the community. 

If you suffer with intrusive thoughts, I'd approach this one with caution as Bamford dives deep into what hers have been throughout life. However, I don't think I'd let that scare you off because her honest and humorous approach and the detail about how she used therapeutic practices to get them under control is really inspirational... and funny. 

This is my favorite celebrity memoir in a long time. As someone whose had more than a couple of diagnoses in life, this resonated hard despite having very different chronic struggles. Maria Bamford, you are a treasure. 

The Boy from Clearwater is a nonfiction biography of a boy who was born in Taiwan around 1930 and lived through tumultuous times as government leadership changed and began targeting students and teachers. 

Through minimal exposition and beautiful illustrations, the authors reveal so much of  Tsai Kun-lin's life. The addition of informational pages between chapters elevates the reading experience and adds much needed context for readers, most of whom are probably like me and didn't know much about political turmoil of Taiwan in the mid 19th century. 

I can't wait for book two to come out. This is phenomenal nonfiction in the graphic novel genre. 

Mercury is a family drama that will quickly worm its way into your heart and stay there long past the last page. The Joseph family is all about men, Mick Joseph the patriarch and his three sons, Baylor, Waylon, and Shay. Elise Joseph is an afterthought and unsurprisingly, the person doing all the unsung unpaid labor. 

After years of Mick's haphazard efforts and distractions, the book begins with the family roofing business in a precarious position. And a dead body. But at the forefront is a new girl in the small town named Marley. 

Marley gets the attention of Baylor, and then the attention of Waylon. Romance and circumstances sweep Marley away from her life plans and into the Joseph family where she takes on so much unpaid unseen labor and strives to gain Elise's love and approval. 

Full of twists and turns, this book is told in a nonlinear fashion and it really works to develop the characters and make this story compulsively readable and endearing. I adore these characters, specifically Marley and Shay. The layers of family secrets are a little over the top, but so believable in the context of the Joseph family. This book will make you feel. From the way it ropes you in with family drama to the way it captures 1990s small towns, this book is top tier.