Getting closer…

Here are the books I finished in September and October:

The Windsor Knot by S.J. Bennett: I enjoyed listening to this first-in-a-new-series mystery that features Queen Elizabeth as our sleuth and her assistant personal secretary, Rozie, as her leg(wo)man. When a young pianist dies at Windsor Castle, apparently by suicide, HRH is not convinced and utilizes her young assistant to investigate. Turns out, she’s been solving mysteries since she was a child. The second book in the series came out late this year and I’m looking forward to listening to it.

A Lady’s Formula for Love by Elizabeth Everett: Lady Violet Hughes runs a public ladies’ institute, which is a front for a private women’s science club and laboratory. She’s also a brilliant chemist in her own right, currently looking into a scientific problem for the British government. When her life is threatened, her stepson organizes the most trustworthy bodyguard he knows, Arthur Kneland, to watch over her. But he may not have imagined the other type of chemistry that would bond the two of them. Solid feminist historical fiction romance. Recommended even if you don’t normally like all three of those descriptors.

Pride and Premeditation by Tirzah Price: In this reimagining of Austen’s most famous work, Lizzie aspires not to find a husband, but to be accepted as her father’s heir at his law office. After all, she routinely solves mysteries, but she never gets to take the credit. But now, she’s heard about a wealthy young man, Mr. Bingley, accused of murder and is in the process of getting him to let her help him — if only his current barrister, Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy, doesn’t prevent him from doing so. A really enjoyable reworking of the classic.

Class Act by Jerry Craft: In this companion middle-grade graphic novel to the award-winning New Kid, Craft centers his story on Jordan’s friend, Drew, who is now in seventh grade and his second year at the prep school where he and Jordan are some of the only Black kids enrolled. This year, they’ll deal with colorism, remaining friends with someone whose family has a lot of privilege, and the question about why all the Black kids hang out together, among others. Another beautiful story about aggressions and microaggressions.

Heist Society by Ally Carter: This is the first novel of a series about a master teen thief, who tried to leave the family business behind for high school, and her band of fellow young con artists, explosive experts, and grifters. In this story, she’s kicked out of school for a prank she didn’t commit only to learn that her dad has been similarly framed for an art heist — but his accusation comes from a terrorist, rather than an uptight headmaster. Will she and her friends be able to find who actually took the art and return it in time to save her father? Cute, if a little slow, given the number of characters who need to be introduced.

Donuts and Other Proclamations of Love by Jared Reck: It’s Oscar’s senior year, and since his grandfather refuses to let him drop out to help full time with their food truck, he’s hoping to coast by with his large block of culinary independent study and persuasive speech class. But his irritating class valedictorian, Lou, has other ideas when she brings him into her final Girl Scout project about food waste and literally dumps thousands of apples in the culinary lab for him to deal with. Will their friendship be as sweet as what he decides to do with the unwanted fruit from the school cafeteria? Adorable.

Nancy Drew: The Palace of Wisdom by Kelly Thompson and illustrated by Jenn St. Onge: In this graphic novel adaptation of the famous young sleuth, Nancy is summoned from River Heights by an anonymous note that hints that her mother’s death years before is more than just an accident. Now she’ll need to team up with her old friends, George, Bess, and Joe and Frank Hardy to solve that mystery, another that dates back to the same time as her mother’s, and some that are much more recent. Nancy Drew meets Veronica Mars. Highly enjoyable.