Reading Recap: March 2025
In my SpongeBob voice "ten years later".
It has been a while, Substack! Here’s what I read in March.
Heartwood by Amity Gaige
All of the elements of a great book were here: a woman hiking the Appalachian trail, nature writing, a missing person. But I felt like this book was outdated and a bit of a slog. If it had come out three years ago, maybe I would have loved it? Gaige’s earlier novel Sea Wife was much better in my opinion!
Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy
I know some readers did not like the style of this novel with its short chapters and frequently changing narrators/perspectives, but I really liked it! It is set on an island near the coast of Antartica and the sense of place is really well done. A woman washes to shore after a shipwreck and finds a family, the only people left on the island, as caretakers of a seed bank. With rising seas, they plan to evacuate but not before secrets are revealed, and they all risk their lives. It reminded me a bit of The Essex Serpent and The Night We Lost Him by Laura Dave.
The Float Test by Lynn Steger Strong
I tried so hard to read Flight by this author when it came out last year because it so many readers raved about it. But I thought it was boring! Not this book, it was such a juicy, dysfunctional family story, and I could not put it down! I kept wanting to know what these amazing weirdos who kept making bad decisions would do next. The setting is a lush, humid Florida summer and I think it made me actually sweat a little bit? Imagine if Ann Patchett’s novels were more like the movie The Family Stone and took place down the road from The Tiger King. 5 stars for me!
The Overnight Guest by Heather Gudenkauf
I’ve been trying to follow up 5-star literary reads with a mystery or thriller, even though I am notorious for not really liking mysteries or thrillers. However, this one was reviewed by Kirkus, the premise was intruging, and it was available on Libby through my library. It was suspenseful! The writing was well done, and I thought the author pulled off a twist near the end that I would usually roll my eyes about. This would make a great beach read!
A Better Ending by James Whitfield Thomson
Traci Thomas is my go-to recommendation source for nonfiction, so when she recommended a true crime memoir, I was immediately sold. This is not I'll Be Gone in the Dark, but it was a super interesting look into the absolute incompetence and corruption of police departments alongside grief, searching for answers, and what it means to live with an unsolved murder. I also thought the writing style was unique; the author was processing his sister’s death on the page, and I don’t think we get to see that very often.
Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins
This was just the book I needed recently on a trip where all of my flights were very turbulent. Suzanne Collins knows how to tell a story AND fill it with lessons, metaphors, and commentary. I read the first three Hunger Games books as pure entertainment but reading this as an adult has left me with a new appreciation for this series.