Here we are almost
finished with May, and I’m just now writing my April book review post. I read
five books in April.
1. A Rhythm of Prayer: A Collection of
Meditations for Renewal, edited by Sarah Bessey. ★★★★★ It's no secret that we are overworked, overpressured, and
edging burnout. Unsurprisingly, this fact is as old as time--and that's why we
see so many prayer circles within a multitude of church traditions. These
gatherings are a trusted space where people seek help, hope, and peace,
energized by God and one another.
This book, curated by acclaimed author Sarah
Bessey, celebrates and honors that prayerful tradition in a literary form. A
companion for daily inspiration, this collection gives women permission to
recognize the weight of all they carry, while also offering a broadened
imagination of hope--of what can be restored and made new. Each prayer is an
original piece of writing, with a short introduction from Bessey sharing
exactly why she loves and looks up to the writer.
This book is a literary hug, an invitation for
respite, and a chance for readers to pause and celebrate who they are, beyond
what they do.
The Bug Says: This book caused QUITE a furor because of a prayer
written by Dr. Chanequa Walker-Barnes, which contains these words: “Dear
God, Please help me to hate White people. Or at least to want to hate them. At
least, I want to stop caring about them…” (You can read the full text here.) As a progressive white Christian lady, when I read that prayer
I thought, “PREACH!” But there was some conservative outrage about this
well-educated black woman who wanted to hate white people. It is a beautiful
prayer, written in the style of lament, as a response to a "friend" using racist language, and she should not have been harassed because
of it. Harrumph. Also, the other prayers were lovely too. If you’re a person of
faith, or almost faith, or used to be, or just curious, I highly recommend this
book!
2. Fractured (Will Trent #3), by Karin
Slaughter. ★★★★ When a tortured young woman enters the trauma
center of an Atlanta hospital, Dr. Sara Linton is thrust into a desperate
police investigation with Special Agent Will Trent and his partner, Faith
Mitchell. Though guarding their own wounds and their own secrets, Sara, Will,
and Faith find that they are all that stand between a madman and his next
victim.
The Bug Says: I am really
enjoying this series. Lots of moving parts, excellent twists that I don’t see
coming, engaging characters… I’ve already finished book #4 and enjoyed it just
as much.
3. Twisted Twenty-Six (Stephanie Plum #26), by Janet
Evanovich. ★★★★ Grandma Mazur is a widow...again. This time her
marriage lasted a whole 45 minutes. The unlucky groom was one Jimmy Rosolli, local gangster,
lothario (senior division) and heart attack waiting to happen...well, the
waiting's over. It's a sad day, but if she can't have Jimmy at least
Grandma can have all the attention she wants as the dutiful widow. But some
kinds of attention are not welcomed, particularly when Jimmy's former
"business partners" are convinced that his widow is keeping the keys
to their financial success for herself. As someone who has spent an
entire career finding bad guys, a set of missing keys should be no challenge
for Stephanie Plum. Problem is, the facts are as twisted as a boardwalk pretzel
with mustard.
The Bug Says: While I was reading this book I kept thinking, did
someone else write this? Grandma Mazur waxed philosophical, Ranger ate ice cream (!!!), and Stephanie seemed to
be a much more deep thinker. I didn’t dislike the change, but I definitely
noticed it. I went to check out the comments on Goodreads & lots of other folks
noticed too. It will be interesting to see what the next one is like.
4. Next to
Last Stand (Walt Longmire #16), by Craig Johnson. ★★★★ One of the most viewed paintings in American history,
Custer's Last Fight, copied and distributed by Anheuser-Busch at a rate of over
two million copies a year, was destroyed in a fire at the 7th Cavalry
Headquarters in Fort Bliss, Texas, in 1946. Or was it? When Charley Lee
Stillwater dies of an apparent heart attack at the Wyoming Home for Soldiers
& Sailors, Walt Longmire is called in to try and make sense of a piece of a
painting and a Florsheim shoebox containing a million dollars, sending the good
sheriff on the trail of a dangerous art heist.
The Bug Says: What I love most about these books is that Walt is “still
waters run deep” personified. He spends a lot of time in his head, but there is
still plenty of action. And a bonus in this one was hearing the Native American
view of Custer.
5. Midnight at the
Blackbird Café, by Heather Webber. ★★★★ Nestled in
the mountain shadows of Alabama lies the little town of Wicklow. It is here
that Anna Kate has returned to bury her beloved Granny Zee, owner of the
Blackbird Café. It was supposed to be a quick trip to close the café and
settle her grandmother’s estate, but despite her best intentions to avoid
forming ties or even getting to know her father’s side of the family, Anna Kate
finds herself inexplicably drawn to the quirky Southern town her mother ran
away from so many years ago, and the mysterious blackbird pie everybody can’t
stop talking about. As the truth about her past slowly becomes clear,
Anna Kate will need to decide if this lone blackbird will finally be able to
take her broken wings and fly.
The Bug Says: This book is almost too syrupy sweet, but I loved it. Maybe I needed something light
after all the murder & mayhem. There is depth to it as well. It was very satisfactory
to read!
I’ve only finished two books so far in May. I’d better get with it, or next
month’s reviews will be slim pickins! What good things have you read lately?