Icebreaker

 

I went into Icecbreaker blind. I just saw it at a second hand store for a couple bucks and knew it was popular. This is not the normal type of book I read at all. 

Anastasia is annoying. She clearly cannot recognize abuse or that she is being treated like a doormat by her skating partner Aaron. 

Nate is the captain of the hockey team and comes off as perfectly understanding women. Which seems far from true. I don't remember a single guy from college that understood women. 

The book was way too long. The story could have been told in half the amount of pages. I can understand a spicy scene but at least half the story was various spicy scenes. It felt like I was just reading a smut book. I kept waiting for the story to start but it never really started. It was not even until I got to almost 3/4th of the book that Nate even started skating with Anastasia like the back of the book mentioned. It was the last 3/4ths of the book was the strongest part of the story. I will not be continuing the series. 

The Last One at the Wedding

 

I randomly choose The Last One at the Wedding from the eBooks the library had available. 

It is rare that I read a mystery novel with a man as the main character that does not involve a lot of action and intense moments of physical activity. The Last One at the Wedding had none of that. 

Frank is obsessed with his job and keeping his record at his job pristine. He is so obsessed with his job he does not really even know those around him. So it is a surprise to him when his daughter calls to inform him she is getting married. Suddenly whisked into the world of the ultra wealthy Frank is soon not sure what is going on, who to trust, or even if he can trust his own eyes. 

The story was ok, the writing was consistent but slow in parts. Very little in the mystery and more about a man reaching retirement age soon with no purpose in life. 

The House of My Mother: A Daughter's Quest for Freedom

 

Even though I like watching true crime I rarely read about it. However after learning about the Franke family I knew I wanted to hear more and learn how neighbors did not know what what was going on with those poor children. The House of my Mother gave some insight into how horribly those poor children were treated while keeping some boundaries to protect the minors. 

I never ever question the narrative being told in true stories. It is not my place to judge how someone interprets what has happened to them in their life. Instead I critique the way they present their account. 

Shari clearly has major psychological issues from her upbringing and that comes across in the story in a way that makes you feel for her. At times I was frustrated with lots of happenings in Shari's life and other times I was sad hearing how help was denied to all the children. 

It was a really easy read, the story just flowed with a simple way of writing. It did not drag or go into overly abusive situations just told a bigger picture of what it had been like living with someone like Ruby.