Thriller 5+/5

Evelyn Gardner, a broken spy from World War I, doesn’t believe she can help Charlie St. Claire find her missing cousin after World War II, until she finds a reason to fight: revenge. This was a book I could not put down, read twice, and would read again. Characters drew me into their lives and made me passionate to see them overcome hurdles to find happiness, or at least, peace. The worlds they inhabited were enveloping and captivating, and the plot twisted and twisted, and twisted again.

Again, busy with family this week. Cool thing: Heather’s current favorite fandom is A League of Their Own, and a friend set up an opportunity for Heather to do a Zoom call with Abbi Jacobson, writer and lead actor in that series. It was very cool!

Science Fiction 5/5

Hannah, raised a good Christian, learns to reject the values of a country that has placed conservatism over human rights when she is jailed, stigmatized, and persecuted for having had an abortion. Like The Handmaid’s Tale, this story paints an infuriating yet uncomfortably plausible future. At the same time, it is a gripping thriller as Hannah becomes involved in an underground rescue operation taking her to an unknown destination, further and further from the man she loves.

Steampunk 3-/5

Everfair, a country created from land purchased from Belgian king, Leopold II, offers an alternate history wherein historically marginalized people experiment with freedoms they never—in our timeline—had. This book is beautifully written, through the voices of distinct and very human characters, who interact in beautifully immersive settings. I found the plot convoluted and the story too long.