we are officially halfway through february! i'm conflicted about the month that generally provides some of the most bone chilling temperatures, but sweetens the deal with valentines day and fewer days. if you, like me, are tempted to hunker down and wait out the final dog days of winter, you may be looking for a good book to snuggle up with and i may be able to oblige your request. here are the books i most recently finished
the wife between us by greer hendricks:
i will preface my opinion by saying i read this directly on the heels of the last mrs. parrish (which i gave me rave review of here), and since the two books have similar premises, tones, pacing and twists, this felt like a cheap knockoff of it's predecessor. having said that i'm choosing to believe part of that was an accident of timing and not really the novels fault. the story is interesting and does include a good amount of captivating developments (even though a few are a bit far fetched). all in all, it was a pretty good read, just not one of my personal favorites.
jacquline bouvier kennedy onassis: the untold story by barbara leaming:
biographies are difficult to assess because they are so subjective. but i personally believe what most influences my opinion is the subject of the work. perhaps it's because my father is the greatest living expert on JFK, or in part to my grandparents personal relationship with the couple, but i have been fascinated by jackie kennedy my entire life. my interest extends far beyond the morbid obsession most people have toward her, into her strength, independence, intelligence, poise, charisma, and elegance. the book begins with her formative years, that had a huge impact on the woman who would eventually stand beside the most powerful man in the world, and extends beyond her second marriage when she once again found herself widowed and working in publishing. after countless documentaries and secondhand stories, i still managed to find out new nuggets of information. if you feel nostalgia for the days when celebrity came as a reward for substance rather than sensationalism, this book is for you. (and if your interest in the kennedys extends to the next generation, fairytale interrupted by rosemarie terenzo is the most personal work about carolyn bassett ever written and delves deeply into her relationship with John Jr.- one of my all time favorite books)
my lovely wife in the psych ward by mark lukach:
i went to an all girls high school that shared a campus with an adjoining boy school. the two institutions were separated by a giant hill and halfway between our worlds was our mutual dining hall. everyday, my friends and i would walk the ridiculously steep stairs to leer at our male counterparts and drool over mr. lukach. yes, the author of this book was a teacher at my high school and as you can imagine, this face, caused quiet a stir in the lunch room. naturally, when word got out that he had written a best selling book, my friends and i didn't waste much time purchasing it. my personal interest aside, this book is absolutely beautiful. it follows mark and his wife guila from the moment they first meet at georgetown through their unconditional love as guila experience her first psychotic break, to becoming parents, and learning to cope with gulia's mental illness. it will reaffirm your faith in love and shows exactly what the vows "in sickness and in health, in good times and bad" really mean.
the woman in the window by a.j. finn : this book provided a particular kind of disappointment. everyone and their mother is reading this book and i had extremely high hopes about something that was receiving such rave reviews. perhaps it's because i have indulged in one too many thrillers, but instead, what i found was a slow paced, predictable, mess. the story centers around an agoraphobic woman who is captivated by the lives of her neighbors, specifically the new family across the street. one night, she witnesses something horrific that shapes all the events thereafter. i would genuinely recommend skipping this one.
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