thebacklistbook's reviews
301 reviews

Dear Girls: Intimate Tales, Untold Secrets, & Advice for Living Your Best Life by Ali Wong

funny hopeful informative reflective sad slow-paced

2.0

This book is equal parts hilarious/cringey jokes and sound advice. With some past anecdotes thrown in for good measure. I laughed a lot reading this one.

The Silent Girl by Tess Gerritsen

adventurous challenging dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This was far more enjoyable in the first half. The legend of the monkey king and the story of a female general in the Ming dynasty were excellent additions to round out the world building. Jane starts to show a more balanced world view in this one. She understand the grey areas that exist in her profession.

The Affair of the Mysterious Letter by Alexis Hall
Did not finish book. Stopped at 11%.

There was far too much ... And since you already know. No, I don't. Essentially it falls apart due to a total lack of follow through on world building.

Ice Cold by Tess Gerritsen

adventurous challenging dark hopeful mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This book was so compelling I read for four hours straight! Haven't done that in years. The pacing was fantastic. Really could have done without the preface from the mind of a pedophile, though. You really get to see Maura and Jane come closer in this one too. 

The Keepsake by Tess Gerritsen

adventurous challenging dark hopeful mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

After the last two duds, this one was so fresh. I totally rooted for Josephine and connected with Jane being frustrated with Frost. The pacing was dynamic and flawlessly executed. The heavy influence from archaeology is definitely a big plus for me. I appreciate someone who does their proper research, too. Ms. Gerritsen certainly does hers. I also liked how she gave room for the possibility that we simply haven't found an intact mummy with certain characteristics before.

Sunshine Girl: An Unexpected Life by Julianna Margulies

informative reflective slow-paced

3.0

This book takes us through Julianna Margulies's life; from childhood through to Good Wife. She touches on Anthroposophy and eurythmy. The former is the practice of getting close to god through human action, typically by the use of eurythmy which is a form of expressive dance. she also discusses the time she ignored a dental situation until it became dire. It was a fascinating read.

Artemis by Andy Weir
Did not finish book. Stopped at 3%.

Couldn't get past the mechanics of building a semi subterranean city on the moon. Also the mc was seriously cocky and snarky without having earned either. 

Aunty Lee's Delights by Ovidia Yu
Did not finish book. Stopped at 7%.

The writing was approachable, but the characters just didn't work for me. Bored rich woman can't stop talking about area body discovery despite no new information. Skanky bitch wife of aforementioned woman step son thinks she is so hard done by. Seriously she is constantly scheming to steal money that doesn't belong to her. Or pushing her potentially gay husband into higher paying jobs. I couldn't find anybody to root for and kept wondering when the bitch would get murdered. It was definitely time to bail.

The Mephisto Club by Tess Gerritsen

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

Wow. I'm going to take a break from these for a while. Two extremely dark installments in a row. Yikes. I've always known Nephilim to be the race of half human-half angel warriors that protect us from evil. That's not the case in this book. In this book they are the evil. So says the Mephisto Foundation. So basically this book dives deep into folie-a-deux. Creeps me right out.

How Y'All Doing? Misadventures and Mischief from a Life Well Lived by Leslie Jordan

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

3.0

Leslie Jordan's autobiography was super cute. I enjoyed hearing all about Truman Capote, straight man standoffs, and reclaiming joy post-Pulse. Jordan shares highs and lows from a life well-lived indeed. Beverly Leslie will always be one of my favorite television characters.