The Other Typist by Suzanne Rindell

Synopsis:

Confessions are Rose Baker’s job. A typist for the New York City Police Department, she sits in judgment like a high priestess. Criminals come before her to admit their transgressions, and, with a few strokes of the keys before her, she seals their fate. But while she may hear about shootings, knifings, and crimes of passion, as soon as she leaves the room, she reverts to a dignified and proper lady. Until Odalie joins the typing pool.

As Rose quickly falls under the stylish, coquettish Odalie’s spell, she is lured into a sparkling underworld of speakeasies and jazz. And what starts as simple fascination turns into an obsession from which she may never recover.

This book is so frustrating, yet so intriguing and mysterious. It is hard to keep in mind that this book takes place in the 20’s. The main character, Rose, speaks a lot about femininity and what a woman is supposed to be. It is so wildly different from the culture we live in now.

Part of me wants to smack her at times. Other parts of me just feel bad for her.

Then you think about her fascination with Odalie, and it is all very mysterious. Half way through the book and you still don’t really understand how deep her fascination goes.

It is also hard to figure out whether Rose is into women platonically or whether she is into them in a romantic sense.

This book follows the two of them and then it reaches a peak at the end. All I can say about that is, I am confused.

I was still confused after I read the last line of the book. Yes, it threw a twist at us, but I am not really sure what they twist was.

Maybe I am just being dumb with this one.

I did like the book overall, Rose was a very frustrating character to read about, but it was mysterious and kept me hanging on.

3.5/5 Stars

Memorable Quotes: “A good typist knows her place. She is simply happy, as a woman, to be paid a reasonable income.”

“I am quite skilled at watching people, and I believe this habit has given me something of a true education in the world – perhaps in more ways than one.”

“I wasn’t as sure as Odalie seemed to be about the prospect of my falling in love with what promised to be a group of derelicts posing as intellectuals, but I was becoming increasingly sure I was about to allow myself to be charmed by Odalie herself.”

“There is something darkly thrilling about standing on the balcony of a very tall building and looking over the edge with the silent knowledge that is in one’s own power to jump.”

“You see, doubt is magnificently difficult pest of which to try to rid oneself, and is worse than any other kind of infestation. It can creep in quietly and through the tiniest of cracks, and once inside, it is almost impossible to ever completely remove.” 

Click to Purchase!

Why We Broke Up by Daniel Handler

Synopsis:

Sixteen-year-old Min Green writes a letter to Ed Slaterton in which she breaks up with him, documenting their relationship and how items in the accompanying box, from bottle caps to a cookbook, foretell the end.

I have a love hate relationship with this book. I heard it talked about all over the internet, so when it went on sale, I bought it. I didn’t know when I started it, and I still don’t know now, why this book got so much hype. Both Min and Ed are painfully generic characters that feed into their stereotypes.

I never really ended up caring about either of them, and that made it difficult to finish this book. It got to the point where I was half way through it and I figured that I might as well just finish it incase it gets better at the end.

To me, it never did. I guess there must have been something about it that kept me reading, but I wouldn’t openly recommend the book to anyone.

2.5/5 Stars

Memorable Quotes: “I’m telling you why we broke up, Ed. I’m writing it in this letter, the whole truth of why it happened. And the truth is that I goddamn loved you so much.”

“You could never truly see the movies in my head and that, Ed, is why we broke up.”

“It was everything, those nights on the phone, everything we said until late became later and then later and very late and finally to go to bed with my ear warm and worn red from holding the phone close close close so as not to miss a word of what it was, because who cared how tired I was in the humdrum slave drive of our days without each other. I’d ruin any day, all my days, for those long nights with you, and I did. But that’s why right there it was doomed. We couldn’t only have the magic nights buzzing through the wires. We had to have the days, too, the bright impatient days spoiling everything with their unavoidable schedules, their mandatory times that don’t overlap, their loyal friends who don’t get along, the unforgiven travesties torn from the wall no matter what promises are uttered past midnight.”

Click To Purchase!

‘G’ is For Gumshoe by Sue Grafton

Synopsis:

G IS FOR GAME…

When Irene Gersh asks PI Kinsey Millhone to locate her elderly mother Agnes, whom she hasn't heard from in six months, it's not exactly the kind of case Kinsey jumps for. But a girl's gotta pay her bills, and this should be easy money—or so she thinks. Kinsey finds Agnes in a hospital. Aside from her occasional memory lapses, the octogenarian seems fine. And frightened.

G IS FOR GUN…

Kinsey doesn't know what to make of Agnes's vague fears and bizarre ramblings, but she's got her own worries. It seems Tyrone Patty, a criminal she helped put behind bars, is looking to make a hit. First, Kinsey's car is run off the road, and then days later, she's almost gunned down, setting in motion a harrowing cat and mouse game…

G IS FOR GUMSHOE

So Kinsey decides to hire a bodyguard. With PI Robert Dietz watching her 24/7, Kinsey is feeling on edge…especially with their growing sexual tension. Then, Agnes dies of an apparent homicide, Kinsey realizes the old lady wasn't so senile after all—and maybe she was trying to tell her something? Now Kinsey's determined to learn the truth…even if it kills her.

I am glad that this book followed the last one. The last book didn’t feel like a Kinsey novel, but ‘G’ had Kinsey written all over it. It was refreshing to get back into a familiar setting and pace of story.

There is a lot of action in this book, and her life is in danger once again.

Dietz is a character that gets a new and bigger role in this novel, which I was happy about. I liked him as soon as he walked into this book, and I liked him more and more as the novel went along.

I hope that he makes an appearance in later novels.

The storyline of ‘G’ grabbed my attention and held it a lot better than ‘F’ did. It kept me guessing and made me not want to put the book down. It seemed like there was danger around every corner.

5/5 Stars

Memorable Quotes: "If I were asked to rate my looks on a scale of one to ten, I wouldn't. I have to say, however, that I seldom wear makeup, so whatever I look like first thing in the morning at least remains consistent as the day wears on."

"When you're presented with bad news, there's always this lag time, the brain simply unable to assimilate the facts."

"A threat on your life is a curious thing. It seems, at the same time, both abstract and absurd."

Click To Purchase!