March Audiobooks

What a great book month! I read 7 books and there isn't a bad one in the bunch. My biggest surprise for the month was James by Percivil Everett. It was so outrageously hyped last year that it kind of turned me off and I returned it to the library twice before I finally broke down and read it. I'm glad I did.

What is your favorite book that you read in March?
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Devil's Kitchen
by Candice Fox, Read by Kirsten Potter

TLDR: Fast paced mystery about a corrupt firefighting unit in NYC.

Andy Nearland has joined a fire fighting unit in NYC. This unit is a close-knit group of men and she's the first woman to join the unit. They are also corrupt and they aren't aware that she's an undercover operative.

I have read Fox's Crimson Lake series and liked it a lot. I'm honestly a little tired of the unrealistic tough, but sexy, female heroine trope, but, even with from that, it was a fun read.
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We All Live Here
By Jojo Moyes, Read By Jenna Coleman

TLDR: Really good women's fiction about life challenges and creating family.

Lila Kennedy is a little busy. She's a writer in the middle of writer's block that probably has something to do with her recent divorce, the loss of her mother and her step-father moving in. She's trying to raise her two daughters who have their own issues with school and dealing with their father and his new wife.  Things get even weirder when her biological father suddenly arrives in her life after years away. Everything is complicated.

This is a story about finding home and family. The characters are very well developed and each one is dealing with his/her own challenges. I enjoyed my ride with this family. If you like this genre, you will like all of her books.

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The Thread Collectors
By Shaunna J. Edwards and Alyson Richman

TLDR:  Historical fiction focused on a slave couple from the South and a Jewish couple from the North. The war brings them together.

It's 1863. Stella, a slave in New Orleans, tolerates her master. While he's away she stitches maps to help other slaves escape. She's in love with a black soldier named William but they must keep their illegal relationship secret.

In New York City, Lily, a Jewish wife makes quilts and rolls bandages to support the war effort while her husband is away fighting. After not hearing from him for 2 months, she sets off for Louisiana to find him. Music eventually brings Lily and Stella together.

I love the characters in this book and I got totally invested in their stories. If you like historical fiction, I recommend this one for you.

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James
By Percival Everett, Read By Dominic Hoffman

TLDR: An excellent retelling of Huckleberry Finn from Jim's POV

I have not read Huckleberry Finn but may get to it before the end of the month. (Edit: I did read it as you will see later.) This is a very loose re-telling of Twain's novel from Jim's point of view. This book was all the rage last year and I avoided reading it because of the hype. I eventually gave in and I'm glad I did.

Not knowing Huckleberry Finn, I had no preconceived ideas about this book. It was a completely new story for me. Jim escapes from his enslavement when he hears that he's being sold away from his wife and daughter. At the same time Huck has run away from his brutal father. Huck, a white boy, has always felt close to Jim and, after them meet up in the woods, they are comfortable traveling together. But they are both being hunted and just are trying to get down the Ohio river to freedom.

The writing and character development is wonderful. I am sure that it will appeal to people with modern sensibilities who can't stomach Twain's original narrative. There is quite a twist on the slave story.
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Queen Hereafter
By Isabelle Schuler, Read By Sara Vickers

TLDR: Even non-Shakespeare fans will enjoy this reimagining of the origin story of Lady MacBeth.

I didn't realize until I was about halfway through that this book is the imaginative origin story of Lady MacBethad (MacBeth to the English). Grouch descends from ancient Druids and is the daughter of a a king who lost his lands. We are introduced to her at a very young age shortly before she is told by her Druid Grandmother that she will someday be Queen.

What follows is the warring and intrigue of Scotland in the 11th Century. The writing is so good and the characters so well developed that I was 100% invested in Grouch and her life.

People who like historical fiction and epic-like novels will love this one.

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The Frozen River
By Ariel Lawhon, Read By Jane Oppenheimer

TLDR: If you love historical fiction, don't miss this one.

Martha Ballard was a midwife and healer. She is known because she kept a detailed diary of her life from the age of 50 until her death. She delivered over 800 babies and never lost a mother. Her diary also chronicles crimes that happened in her community. The book is not true history but is fiction based closely on her diary entries, specifically a rape allegation in the community.

The story opens in 1789 and is set on the Kennebec River in Maine. The river was frozen when a man was discovered under the ice. Martha is asked to come examine the body to determine cause of death. She deems it a murder but a new physician, freshly graduated from Harvard, declares it an accident.

Many months before she had recorded the details of an alleged rape of one of her patients. The story covers the months when the trial is set to take place but also jumps back in time periodically to tell Martha's life story and other background for the current events.

​At the end of the book the author has an entry to explain the deviations from the diary entries and how she built the story. It was a great read.

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The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
By Mark Twain, Read By Tom Porter

TLDR: There's a reason that Mark Twain is considered the premier American novelist. If you can get by the language and stereotypes of the time, it's a delightful adventure story.

This was published in 1884 and is set in 1840 so you have to go in accepting that slavery was a reality at that time. If your modern sensibilities can handle that, it's a wonderful read. There were several times that I laughed out loud. I know that it was read often in school when I was growing up but I don't remember having to read it in my school in Bassett, VA. I expect that no schools require it for reading now and I wouldn't be surprised if the book isn't even available in school libraries now. That would be a shame because it's a great piece of literature. I admit that if not for James, I would have never read Huck Finn. I'm glad I read both.

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