The Collected Regrets of Clover by Mikki Brammer

Book #26 in 2023
5.0 out of 5 (photo from Goodreads)

I adored this book! If I could give it more than five stars I would. So much drew me in – the characters, the plot, the lessons learned.

Clover is a death doula. She helps those who are going to die with last wishes, coming to terms with their death, and can even be the only person around when someone else dies. She feels she has a connection to those who are going to soon pass away and she likes to help them not feel as lonely, scared, or unprepared.

She takes on a new client and finds herself becoming more immersed in her final days compared to others she has helped. Through this process Clover learns more about herself.

I loved Clover as well as the sub-characters. This novel is a somber, yet important way to look at death – and life.

Stop here if you want to avoid spoilers!

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Refugee by Alan Gratz

Book #25 in 2023
5.0 out of 5 (photo from Goodreads)

I thought this book was great. Although it’s a middle grade book, I felt that the information is presented in a way to get younger kids interested, portray some difficult situations and scenes, and also provide lessons in things not necessarily known to them.

This book follows the families of three kids who are refugees. Each of them leaves their home with their family in order to seek a better life. All three must be uprooted and face a lot in order to try and have a better life.

The three are from different decades as well. I think this helps kids see things from “long ago” as well as how things like this are still going on in recent times. But there is also a connection.

I enjoyed reading this book and would pick up more by this author.

Smoke Gets In Your Eyes by Caitlin Doughty

Book #24 in 2023
4.0 out of 5 (photo from Goodreads)

I enjoyed this book as much as you can like a book about death. I’ve read other books by this author and have liked them as well. Even though she interjects her own thoughts and personal experience while also educating about the death industry I feel like she does it in a way that’s not preachy, looking for some reaction, or other reason.

In this book, the author writes about her early days when she worked at a crematory. I like that some history about death practices, rituals, and beliefs are included. I also like her perspective on death, how to deal with it, and even how the funeral industry can often be a money grab especially for those who don’t prepare for their death ahead of time.

Death isn’t an easy topic to talk about or read about. But I feel it’s an important one. It’s part of life – the opposite of birth. And I feel that knowledge makes things that are uncertain less foggy, scary, or negative.

The Trap by Catherine Ryan Howard

Book #23 in 2023
3.5 out of 5 (photo from Goodreads)

While this author isn’t necessarily one of my favorites, I have enjoyed some of her books. This is one that I liked! I didn’t really feel for any of the characters but the plot was such (even though it did feel a bit choppy with jumping around to various points of views) that I stayed interested. There are some twists and turns and revelations throughout the book as well.

Lucy’s sister Nicki went missing just over a year ago. Lucy can’t bring herself to be able to move on not knowing what happened. So she does what she can to try and figure out the mystery behind the disappearance. There are also two other women who have disappeared under similar situations – all of which could be connected.

Denise (a family liaison officer) and Angela (a civilian helper) are also trying to figure out who has kidnapped the women.

The actual kidnapper’s point of view is also sprinkled throughout the book. Oddly enough, he’s the one I felt the most connected to in the sense of knowing why he did or didn’t do things.

Stop here if you want to avoid spoilers!

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All the Living and the Dead by Hayley Campbell

Book #22 in 2023
2.5 out of 5 (photo from Goodreads)

I thought this would be an interesting book about the various occupations that surround death. Parts of the book were interesting. I think it would have been better and even more informational had the author not thrown her own input on the pages throughout the book. The author is a journalist. I think I expected more *facts* and even history behind the various aspects of death. I wanted to know more about what each person the author interviewed through rather than her own thoughts and why she’s fascinated with death.

It was interesting learning a bit more about some occupations in the realm of death, especially those I didn’t know much about. Each chapter deals with a different occupation. I did learn something things. But I think (hope) I can find a better book on the topic of death.

The Stranger Upstairs by Lisa Matlin

Book #21 in 2023
3.5 out of 5 (photo from Goodreads)

Not a bad spooky kind of book to read in October. I didn’t feel blown away but it was a bit creepy, had some twists, and kept my attention. For me it was the horror/mystery/suspense version of a cozy mystery. Entertaining but not ground-breaking. Also not a bad debut book for the author.

Sarah Slade is a therapist and media blogger. She and her husband by a “murder house” and plan on rennovating it. It’s a new beginning for both of them who have been having troubles. The house is sold fo a cheap price because it needs work. And a murder-suicide happened within its walls.

Almost immediately Sarah does not feel safe in the house. She feels it’s talking to her. She feels it’s watching her. Everything becomes suspect as strange things start happening to Sarah.

Is she safe in the house? Can she figure out what’s going on before something happens to her?

Stop here if you want to avoid spoilers!

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The Land of Lost Things by John Connolly

Book #20 in 2023
2.5 out of 5 (photo from Goodreads)

I really wanted to like this book, especially after I loved The Book of Lost Things by this author. But I couldn’t get into this one. It wasn’t horrible and I trudged along but if I were doing it again I think I would have abandoned the book.

Some characters from The Book of Lost Things appear in this second book, but The Land of Lost Things could be read as a stand alone.

Ceres is a mother with an eight year old daughter in a coma after a car accident. Ceres reads books to her daughter, Phoebe. The books she reads are fairytales with dark currents.

Ceres becomes immersed in a fantasy world that’s dark and spooky where good and bad awaits. Parts of the book weren’t bad. Descriptions and characters are somewhat creep worthy.

But overall I didn’t care about the plight of Ceres.

Stop reading if you want to avoid spoilers!

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The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot by Marianne Cronin

Book #19 in 2023
3.5 out of 5 (photo from Goodreads)

I wanted to like this book more than I did. I liked the premise. I liked the characters for the most part. But I had some issues with the book that I’ll write more about in the spoiler section.

Lenni is 17 years old. She’s in a hospital in a terminal ward. She knows she’s going to die. She meets Margot, who is 83 years old, in an art class. The two put together that between the two of them, they have lived 100 years. The pair sets out to document their 100 years.

Much of the book contains flashbacks of significant snippets in their lives. You never really dive deep into any of them. Because of this, I felt like the book was a bit choppy.

However, I still wanted to see what happened to Lenni and Margot in the end. I even enjoyed the character of Father Arthur.

There were parts of the book that I found touching, some a bit humorous, and others even sad. I was interested in themes of love, loss, friendship, and death. But these same themes and parts also left me wanting to know and even feel more.

Stop here if you want to avoid spoilers!

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The Book of Eve by Sadeqa Johnson

Book #18 in 2023
4.0 out of 5 (photo from Goodreads)

After a reading hiatus, I finally had time to pick something up. This was a quick read for me, finished in a couple of days. I really liked Yellow Wife by this author. This book didn’t disappoint. I didn’t like it as much but the plot drew me in. Not in the sense of being mysterious or suspenseful but due to reading about a time in history I’ve not read much about until now.

The plot goes between Ruby and Eleanor, both black women, living in the 1950s. They both endure issues surrounding race and women’s rights. Ruby’s story was told in first person point of view and Eleanor’s was told in third person. I’m not sure if there was a specific reason for this. Did the author identify more with Ruby? It didn’t necessarily take away from either story.

Ruby is seeking a way to break out of her family’s mold. She wants to go to college and has the opportunity if she works hard. But it also comes at a cost.

Eleanor is working at a university and falls for an elite black man. Even within their race, there is division.

These two characters both deal with a lot, have to make tough decisions, and are strong women (even when they don’t think that they are).

Stop reading here if you want to avoid spoilers!

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The Girl Behind the Gates by Brenda Davies

Book #17 in 2023
3.5 out of 5 (photo from Goodreads)

I feel a bit torn on how to rate this book. It’s an emotional story based on a real person. I liked the main character but didn’t feel like she jumped off the pages for me. While the author’s writing isn’t bad, I felt like I was being told things rather than being shown things. Perhaps because the author is a psychiatrist that’s why the characters seemed a bit flat for me. You understood what they were going through and even thinking and feeling but there was still something missing in the writing for me.

Nora is sent off to a mental hospital in 1939 when she’s 17 after she’s found to be pregnant. She’s declared defective and meant to spend the rest of her life out of regular society. The things she endures during the over 40 years she is there are horrible.

The second part of the book is about a psychiatrist who treats Nora after over 40 years in the institution. Janet, the doctor, has a story of her own that I didn’t really care about knowing. I did like seeing the relationship between the two women grow over the years.

Overall I enjoyed the book but wonder if I would have liked it better in the hands of another author. It has me interested enough to look more at the United Kingdom’s Mental Deficiency Act.

Stop here if you want to avoid spoilers!!!!!

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