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Pandora’s Jar by Natalie Haynes

Pandora’s Jar by Natalie Haynes

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Pandora’s Jar by Natalie Haynes is not what I thought it would be. I must have been so excited about a new Natalie Haynes book that I did not comprehend the synopsis before I bought it. I thought it would be a collection of short stories she wrote about the women featured in Greek myths. Instead, it is an examination of Greek myths where Haynes uses her extensive knowledge of Greek mythology to trace how white men changed the origin stories of Greek mythological women to suit their own ideas of women. But even though it turned out to be a completely different book from what I thought I would be reading, Pandora’s Jar is an interesting book. If you have any interest at all in Greek mythology, I think you will find this book interesting as well.

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The Maid by Nita Prose

The Maid by Nita Prose

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If I were to use only one word to describe The Maid by Nita Prose, it would be “cute”, much like the cat in the above picture. Do you ever have one of those days where you feel like the weight of the world has got you down, and you just want to lay on the couch or on a beach and watch/read something light-hearted and enjoyable? Well, The Maid is the novel you want to read the next time you are in that kind of mood.

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The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova

The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova

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The first time I read The Historian was way back in 2005 when it was first published. I liked it enough back then to read Kostova’s next novel, The Swan Thieves (which I have read more than once), and I decided to reread it now to see if I would still like it all these years later. If you like historical fiction, The Historian is a fascinating novel, but at the same time it can feel like a bit of a slog to read.

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Florida by Lauren Groff

Florida by Lauren Groff

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Ahh, Florida. Home of Disney World, sunny beaches, the Everglades, alligators, “Don’t Say Gay” legislation, and Ron DeSantis. If you have been following my blog, then you know that Lauren Groff’s The Monsters of Templeton is one of my favourite novels and I reviewed her latest release, Matrix, which was one of my favourite reads from last year. Groff lives in Florida and Florida is a short story collection about people who live in Florida. I do not usually read short stories (don’t ask me why; I just don’t), but since I am a fan of Lauren Groff, I decided to give Florida a try. I wanted to like it, but it left me feeling too unsettled to enjoy it.

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Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

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I liked Mexican Gothic, but I did not love it. It is a deliciously gothic novel set in a creepy old mansion that may or may not be haunted, but the true horror in the novel is rooted in Mexico’s colonial history and eugenics. The novel takes a bizarre turn towards the end, but I just went with it because it does fit in with the themes of the novel.

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The Power by Naomi Alderman

The Power by Naomi Alderman

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Imagine a world where women have all the power and men learn to become afraid of them; that is the premise of The Power by Naomi Alderman. In The Power, females are discovered to have the latent ability to conduct electricity and release it through their fingers. This power suddenly becomes activated in teenage girls, who can then awaken the power in older women. Women start weaponizing the power against men, and it flips the gender narrative in favour of women. But would the world be a better place if women were in control? The Power is an interesting and thought-provoking novel that posits an answer to that question that I think misandrists are going to hate.

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The Arc of a Scythe Trilogy by Neal Shusterman

The Arc of a Scythe Trilogy by Neal Shusterman

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The Arc of a Scythe Trilogy consists of Scythe, Thunderhead, and The Toll. I read Scythe about two years ago and think it is an excellent YA novel. I finally got around to reading Thunderhead and The Toll this past week. This trilogy is easy to read and compelling, full of important themes that YA readers should be reading about, and that some adult readers could probably use a reminder of. Each novel is quite well written, although the second novel, Thunderhead, might be the weakest link. Still, I highly recommend this trilogy.

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Fingersmith by Sarah Waters

Fingersmith by Sarah Waters

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I have read a couple of Sarah Waters’ books prior to Fingersmith: The Little Stranger, which I ended up hating, and The Paying Guests, which I found interesting, but was not overly excited about. Usually at that point, I would give up on Sarah Waters, but Fingersmith is well reviewed, and it sounded like an interesting story, so I decided to give her novels one more chance. I am glad that I read Fingersmith. If you like Charles Dickens, or if you like historical crime fiction, then you will like Fingersmith as well.

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Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner

Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner

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If you like memoirs, then I think you will appreciate Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner, who is a Korean American musician that performs under the name Japanese Breakfast. Crying in H Mart is about her grief over the loss of her mother and trying to keep her mother’s memory alive, and holding on to her Korean identity, by learning to cook Korean food. I found Crying in H Mart comforting to read as I still struggle with my own losses.

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