February was another solid reading month! I finished 7 books, totaling 1,361 pages and about 26 hours of audiobook listening. My average rating was a strong 4.04, with some real standouts this month. Here are my quick thoughts on each book I read, with a bit more about the plots!
1. My Friends by Fredrik Backman
Rating: 5.0★
Fredrik Backman never fails to pull at the heartstrings. Seriously, every book of Backman’s is a masterpiece and gets me right in the feels.The last 10% of this book had me in new tears every couple of paragraphs. The story telling is so lovely. The relationship between the four friends was so well crafted. I think this book should have been called One of Us instead, though!
2. Finlay Donovan Digs Her Own Grave by Elle Cosimano
Rating: 5.0★
I blew through this one faster than I thought possible, but at the same time, I wanted to savor every second. It’s exactly the sort of story I crave right now (and, honestly, all the time). The writing style is so ridiculously entertaining, and the over-the-top scenarios Finlay and Vero find themselves in are absurd in the best way. The narrator totally nailed it, also.
This time around, Finlay and Vero find themselves stuck with their grumpy neighbor, Mrs. Haggerty, who’s suddenly mixed up in a murder right in her own backyard. Mrs. Haggerty ends up camping out at Finlay’s house, which is already chaotic enough without another dead body to worry about. When Finlay’s ex-husband gets tangled in the investigation, there’s no choice but to team up with Mrs. Haggerty and dig up some (possibly incriminating) secrets before the police do. If you’re looking for a fast, funny, and flat-out addictive mystery, you can’t go wrong with this one.
3. The Wedding People by Alison Espach
Rating: 4.0★
The cover seems deceptive for this book. It seemed like it would be similar to an Emily Henry book, but definitely has some dark thoughts. It was a really good read, but TW: suicidal discussions
On a beautiful Newport day, Phoebe Stone arrives alone at the grand Cornwall Inn in a striking green dress and gold heels, immediately mistaken for a wedding guest despite being the only one not there for the big event. In Alison Espach’s uproariously funny yet tender novel, The Wedding People, Phoebe’s unexpected presence—and the bride’s perfectly planned chaos—spark conversations that reveal how chance encounters can reroute our lives in the most surprising ways.
4. The Corpse in the Closet by Lucy Score
Rating: 3.25★
Reluctant psychic Riley Thorn and her PI boyfriend Nick Santiago find themselves juggling family drama, mysterious murders, and a series of absurd complications—from a disapproving grandmother and an oddball elderly roommate to a warning from a killer. As bodies pile up and personal crises collide, the couple must unravel a tangled web of investigations before Riley becomes the next victim.. A little over the top in some parts, but a fun second installment in this cozy mystery series.
5. Mercy Falls by William Kent Krueger
Rating: 3.25★
In the 5th book of this series, Sheriff Cork O’Connor of Tamarack County finds himself in deep trouble when a routine call to an Ojibwe reservation turns deadly with sniper fire, and soon after he’s forced to investigate the brutal murder of Eddie Jacoby. Jacoby was a Chicago businessman entangled in a controversial casino contract. When the Jacoby family enlists a private investigator and Cork uncovers a connection between one of the Jacoby sons and his own wife, Jo, he realizes that greed, jealousy, and long-buried personal secrets are driving this dangerous case. This one ends on a giant cliff hanger.
6. The Examiner by Janice Hallett
Rating: 3.75★
I got sucked into The Examiner pretty quickly. It’s a mystery that unfolds through emails, texts, and essays. It’s about a group of art students whose master’s program at Royal Hastings University takes lots of twisty turns. Gela Nathaniel, the head of the new Multimedia Art course, scrambles to recruit six uniquely flawed students from all over the UK before her funding is cut. When the examiner starts sifting through their final essays and messages, he soon suspects that someone’s in deep trouble—or maybe already dead. The ending took a weirdly political turn and brought in some other dark points to the plot, but it was still an engaging read. I read this as an e-book.. I can’t imagine keeping track of all the digital clues in an audiobook.
7. Revenge of the Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell
Rating: 4.0★
This nonfiction (my first of the year!) dive explores how small actions can create massive social change—for better or worse. Gladwell’s case studies range from viral marketing to the dark world of social engineering, showing how easily our perceptions can be manipulated. I enjoyed this one as it had a lot of recent examples. I haven’t read any Gladwell books in a while, so it was nice to hop into one again.
Month in Review
- Books finished: 7
- Pages read: 1,361
- Hours listened: 26.0
- Average rating: 4.04
- Highest-rated books: My Friends by Fredrik Backman & Finlay Donovan Digs Her Own Grave by Elle Cosimano (both 5.0★) but for very different reasons!
Overall, February was full of twisty mysteries, dark humor, and even a bit of nonfiction to balance things out. I leaned hard into audiobooks again (about 57% of my reading was audio). As always, if you have recommendations, drop them in the comments—I’m all ears!