WWW WEDNESDAYS is a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World Of Words and is all about answering the three questions below.

  • WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY READING?

I was going to take a break from ARCs, but the NG titles that are left are almost all highly anticipated titles so I don’t think I will resist them much longer. 😉 I’m currently reading one of them: Thirteen by Steve Cavanagh. It’s still early days, but I’m excited to be finally reading one of his titles! I’m also starting The Woman In Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware, a book I’ve been meaning to read for years (and also the final backlist one I needed to read before her newest comes out). And I’m also finally picking up Us Against You by Fredrik Backman, one of my absolute favorite authors.

WHAT DID YOU RECENTLY FINISH READING?

1. Fragile Things by Neil Gaiman (3/5 stars) NO REVIEW
Overall it’s an interesting collection of stories. I liked some better than others and wasn’t impressed with the adult content in some of them. Some were creepy while others were mild, some long and some short and had a poetry feel. I really liked how Neil Gaiman included his inspiration for each story in the very beginning of the collection. It wasn’t my favorite, but I’m glad to have finished my Dutch read of the year haha.

2. The Weight Of Feathers by Anna-Marie McLemore (4/5 stars) REVIEW
I’m happy I finally got the chance to read it, because I fell in love with both the writing and the story itself. It’s such a beautiful and well crafted story! It’s magical realism, but not too ‘heavy’ to distract or complicate you… Instead, you will find yourself mesmerized by the lives of the Corbeau and Paloma families and their performances. There is a hint of the magic, but mostly The Weight Of Feathers is a classic forbidden love story where two characters of rival families fall in love against all odds.

3. Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan (2,5/5 stars) REVIEW 22/06
Sadly, I ended up having mixed thoughts about Two Boys Kissing… It had nothing to do with the actual content, and I’m sad this story was put on the banned books list, but there was something else I really struggled with. What? While I loved the idea behind this story and the symbolism in general, I wasn’t a fan of the writing style at all. The whole second/third person POV was both alienating and extremely annoying and made me enjoy the story a lot less than I thought I would. I can’t deny Two Boys Kissing has a strong LGBT message though, and I loved the idea of the record breaking and the background of each character.

4. My Lovely Wife by Samantha Downing (4,5/5 stars) REVIEW 22/06
I admit I went in blind, thinking I was going to find a nice and docil domestic thriller despite the knife on the cover… I couldn’t have been more wrong. What a delightfully twisted and properly disturbing read! If you are, like me, strangely into serial killer stories, imagine finding not one, but TWO in one story… And a couple at that! As soon as I was hit with that mindblowing information, I was hooked. And not just ‘normal’ hooked; I literally read the whole thing in one sitting by candle light (not by choice though as we had a country wide power failure that day), not caring if I was basically ruining my eyes or if had other things to do. I just HAD to know how things would develop and how twisted things were going to get.

5. Dear Evan Hansen by Val Emmich (3/5 stars) REVIEW 27/06
I’ve had Dear Evan Hansen on my radar for a while and decided to pick it up on a whim while browsing my kindle for contemporary titles. The focus is on the main character and his mental health issues and anxiety. I’m always interested in stories with that angle, so I didn’t mind that much at first, but I’m not sure I actually like the execution here. Why? Well, I felt there was just too much focus on Evan’s mental problems as a personality trait and I didn’t feel his character was all that developed otherwise; making him essentionally one dimensional and not at all easy to connect to.

6. The Lynmouth Stories by L.V. Hay (4/5 stars) NO REVIEW
It’s true that I don’t read a lot of short stories, but I’ve been meaning to try L.V. Hay‘s work for a while now… After reading Sarah’s review and learning it was currently available for free on Amazon (still is last time I checked!), I decided to jump in and give it a go. This bundle includes three short, but dark stories which all share a Lynmouth setting. This setting sets the right atmosphere for three eery and slightly disturbing reads, where the characters discover the unpleasant side of Lynmouth. A kidnapping/hostage situation, the busy summer months turning into a lonely winter and  an abuse story turning into a natural disaster… Three different stories, but they all have that daunting feel and are very well written and without doubt make me want to read more of her work. If you are looking for a quick dose of excellently written suspense, you should definitely try The Lynmouth Stories.

7. The Secret Diary Of Hendrik Groen by Hendrik Groen (4,5/5 stars) REVIEW 27/06
I already had a feeling I was going to enjoy this title, and my instincts turned out to be right. If you, like me, loved A Man Called Ove, you don’t want to miss this one! I bet Hendrik and Ove would be the best of friends… Funny, entertaining and heartfelt; I definitely can’t wait to get a copy of book two.

  • WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU’LL READ NEXT?

I’m trying to work towards finishing some of my challenges early, and the next couple of titles will help with that. I’ve heard mixed things about Ivory And Bone by Julie Eshbaugh and I’m not sure if the writing will be for me, but I’m going to give it a shot anyway… And I’m excited to finally pick up Jar Of Hearts by Jennifer Hillier after reading so many raving reviews. I’m also picking up House Of Furies by Madeleine Roux soon. My TBR jar pick is still The Problem With Forever by Jennifer L. Armentrout… I definitely need to read that one soon.

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