Welcome to Amy’s Picks and Pans – Issue 40, where my reading life has clearly been living its best, most dramatic, globe-trotting existence. This batch took me from 16th-century France to the Canadian wilderness, from small-town courtrooms to Nazi Germany, and even into the delicate (and sometimes chaotic) corners of childhood and faith. In other words—no passport required, just a comfy chair. What struck me this month was the sheer range. I found myself completely swept away by a few unforgettable five-star reads (the kind that make you cancel plans and ignore laundry), while a handful of others didn’t quite stick the landing. There are powerful stories of resilience, richly […]
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Penguins, Personal Growth… and a Plot You’ve Seen Before
How the Penguins Saved Veronica is one of those light, feel-good reads that’s easy to pick up—but a little harder to fully love. The story alternates between Veronica, a wealthy, prickly loner, and Patrick, a directionless young man. For much of the book, neither is especially likable. Veronica is sharp-tongued and judgmental; Patrick is immature and self-absorbed. It takes a while—honestly, about two-thirds of the way through—before either begins to win you over. The premise is undeniably charming, even if it stretches believability. Antarctica makes for a fresh, icy backdrop, and the penguin scenes are the highlight—sweet, informative, and often the emotional glue holding the story together. You’ll even come […]
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An Interesting Premise Buried Under Heavy-Handed Storytelling
⭐⭐⭐⭐ The Wind Knows My Name by Isabel Allende sets out to tell a sweeping, emotional story about displaced children across generations—but for me, it never quite found its footing. The novel moves between 1938 Vienna and modern-day America, following Samuel Adler, a young Jewish boy escaping the Nazis via the Kindertransport, and Anita Díaz, a child separated from her mother at the U.S. border. On paper, it’s a powerful parallel. In execution, it feels overworked. There are simply too many storylines competing for attention, and it’s no surprise when they eventually converge in a way that feels more predictable than profound. Allende leans heavily into her trademark mysticism, but […]
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Small-Town Secrets, Big-Time Twists—Slaughter Dials It Back (Just Enough)
In We Are All Guilty Here, Karin Slaughter kicks off her new North Falls series with a story that’s intense, twisty, and—dare I say—slightly less disturbing than some of her recent work. Either she’s easing up… or I’m getting used to it. (Also, I still can’t get over that’s her real name.) Set in a seemingly tight-knit Georgia town, the novel opens with the disappearance of two teenage girls during a Fourth of July celebration—an event that fractures the illusion that everyone knows everyone. Officer Emmy Clifton takes the case personally, and what unfolds is a layered mystery spanning years, riddled with secrets, guilt, and long-simmering resentments. What worked for […]
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Laugh-Out-Loud Wisdom from Washington’s Most Quotable Senator
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ I don’t usually reach for overtly political books, but this one was the exception—and I’m so glad I listened to it. How to Test Negative for Stupid isn’t a policy deep dive; it’s more like pulling up a chair while Senator John Kennedy spins stories, cracks jokes, and quietly lands a few punches along the way. It’s no surprise this book became a huge bestseller—readers clearly can’t get enough of his brand of humor and straight talk. Kennedy has a gift. His one-liners are legendary, his metaphors are downright hilarious, and his observations about Washington are as sharp as they come. He doesn’t just aim across the aisle—he takes a few […]
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Justice, Redemption, and a Race to Save What Matters Most
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Saving Emma is a first-rate legal thriller that delivers both pulse-pounding suspense and a strong emotional punch—classic Allen Eskens. Boady Sanden, a law professor and former Innocence Project attorney, takes on what seems like a long-shot case: Elijah Matthews, a man confined to a psychiatric hospital after being convicted of murdering a megachurch pastor. Elijah claims innocence—and insists he’s a prophet. But as Boady digs in, he uncovers unsettling connections to a tragedy much closer to home: the death of his best friend, Ben, in Boady’s own house. At the same time, Ben’s teenage daughter, Emma—whom Boady and his wife have raised as their own—is slipping away, manipulated by […]
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A Fearless Life Lived on the Front Lines
⭐⭐⭐⭐✨ (4.5 stars) Erika Robuck brings to life the extraordinary true story of Dickey Chapelle in The Last Assignment, and what a life it was. Chapelle’s daring career as a war correspondent—charging straight into combat zones when most would run the other way—makes for a fascinating and often humbling read. It’s the kind of story that leaves you looking at your own life and thinking… well, maybe I’ll just stay safely on my couch with a good book. Robuck does a wonderful job capturing both the grit and the inner drive of a woman who refused to live small. There’s a strong sense of purpose woven throughout the narrative, a reminder […]
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A Beautifully Written Journey That Takes Its Time
⭐⭐⭐✨ (3.5 stars rounded up to 4) Nathan Harris’s Amity is a gripping story about a brother and sister, emancipated from slavery but still searching for true freedom, and their odyssey across the deserts of Mexico to reunite—all while fleeing a former master who refuses to let them go. Set in 1866, the novel follows Coleman and June, siblings separated when their former owner hauls June off to Mexico chasing silver and control. When Coleman is later summoned to follow, what unfolds is a sprawling adventure filled with shipwrecks, captivity, desert crossings, and a relentless chase. Both siblings must wrestle with a hard truth: freedom isn’t always given—it’s taken. Harris […]
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Back to Where the War Began
⭐⭐⭐⭐ After loving the finale of the Danny Ryan trilogy, I circled back to the beginning with City on Fire—and it was fascinating to see how it all started. Set in Providence, Rhode Island in the late 1980s, the novel opens with a fragile peace between the Irish and Italian crime families that control the city. That peace shatters when a reckless romantic entanglement ignites a full-blown mob war. Danny Ryan, a dockworker who has tried to stay on the edges of the criminal world, finds himself pulled into the conflict through family loyalty and circumstance. As violence escalates and alliances shift, Danny begins a transformation that will shape the […]
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Secrets, Sacrifice, and the Price of Belonging
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Sadeqa Johnson’s House of Eve is a richly layered historical novel about ambition, motherhood, and the difficult choices women sometimes face when society stacks the deck against them. Set in the 1950s, the story follows two young Black women whose lives unfold on very different paths. Ruby Pearsall dreams of escaping the expectations of her tight-knit Philadelphia community by becoming the first in her family to attend college. Meanwhile, Eleanor Quarles is navigating the rarefied world of Howard University, where she hopes to secure the perfect life by marrying well. As both women pursue their ambitions, they confront secrets, sacrifices, and painful decisions that will shape the rest of […]
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