It’s time for my first half of May 2025 book review post! I am sharing what I read in May so far, although I am skipping my 5 star reads to share later in the month. The Amazon links to the books I’ve read are affiliate links and if you use them and make a purchase, I may receive a small commission. If you’ve read any of these books or are interested in them, I’d love to hear about it in the comments!
Title: Murder Between Friends
Author: Liz Lawson
Genre: YA Thriller
Publisher: Delacorte Press, 4/22/25
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
Murder Between Friends by Liz Lawson is about three teens who hope to uncover what really happened in the murder of a teacher. Henry’s brother Jake went to jail for the crime and is now out on a technicality. Grace was the one who provided testimony putting Jake at the scene. Ally is the third friend intent on helping Henry clear Jake’s name.
“Grace, Henry, and Ally grew up together on the same block. They used to be best friends–until Grace’s testimony put Henry’s brother, Jake, away for killing their English teacher. Now, two years later, Ally and Henry hate Grace, and Grace is doubting what she thinks she saw that night. It feels like everyone’s getting a second chance, then, when due to a mistrial, Jake is suddenly released. And Henry knows his brother is innocent, but when Grace reaches out to say she’s rethinking what she saw the night of the murder, Jake’s reaction is confusing. He doesn’t want Henry—or Grace–getting involved. For Ally not getting involved isn’t an option, and there’s nothing Grace can say to convince Ally she’s not the enemy. But can Ally afford to push Grace out when she’s one of the only other people willing to believe in Jake’s innocence? The clock is ticking. Jake’s new trial date is about to be set, and he’s sure to be found guilty again unless there’s new evidence to prove he’s innocent. Grace, Henry, and Ally are going to have to decide whether you can trust an old friend now that they’re your enemy.”
I was actually able to determine who murdered the teacher from the very beginning of the book. It was probably a lucky guess on my part! I did not know why it happened though, so it was still entertaining to read the story and find out what lead to the situation. Subplots include drugs and the death of a parent.
Title: Heart and Seoul
Author: Jen Frederick
Genre: Contemporary
Publisher: Penguin Audio, 5/25/21
Source: Publisher – Print, Library – Audio
Why I Read It: Backlist
My Rating: 4 Stars
From my 25 in ’25 list, I listened to Heart and Seoul by Jen Frederick, narrated by Greta Jung. This book is about Hara, who is Korean, but adopted by American parents. When her adoptive father dies, Hara goes to Korea to look for her biological father. When she finds out that he has also passed away, she begins a search for her biological mother. She also meets Yujun, and begins falling for him.
“As a Korean adoptee, Hara Wilson doesn’t need anyone telling her she looks different from her white parents. She knows. Every time Hara looks in the mirror, she’s reminded that she doesn’t look like anyone else in her family—not her loving mother, Ellen; not her jerk of a father, Pat; and certainly not like Pat’s new wife and new ‘real’ son. At the age of twenty-five, she thought she had come to terms with it all, but when her father suddenly dies, an offhand comment at his funeral triggers an identity crisis that has her running off to Seoul in search of her roots. What Hara finds there has all the makings of a classic K-drama: a tall, mysterious stranger who greets her at the airport, spontaneous adventures across the city, and a mess of familial ties, along with a red string of destiny that winds its way around her, heart and soul. Hara goes to Korea looking for answers, but what she gets instead is love—a forbidden love that will either welcome Hara home…or destroy her chance of finding one.”
It seems that this author usually writes what is called taboo romance, so it makes sense that this one was considered taboo by some. The book is also not really a romance, because it doesn’t end happily. It is actually the first in a duology, so maybe that one ends happily. I liked this story as far as Hara’s search for her origins and connection with Korea as she traveled.
Title: The Strongest Heart
Author: Saadia Faruqi
Genre: Middle Grade Contemporary
Publisher: Quill Tree Books, 3/4/25
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
I wanted to read this book because I have really enjoyed the author’s books in the past. This one was good as well, focusing on Mo and his father, who move across the country to live with his aunt and cousin in Texas. Mo’s father has schizophrenia and his mom is working out of the country. In a new school, Mo finds new friends and support systems.
“Mo is used to his father’s fits of rage. When Abbu’s moods shake the house, Mo is safe inside his head, with his cherished folktales: The best way to respond is not to engage. Apparently, his mama knows that too—which is why she took a job on the other side of the world, leaving Mo alone with Abbu. With Mama gone, the two move to Texas to live with Mo’s aunt and cousin, Rayyan. The two boys could not be more different. Rayyan is achievement-driven and factual; Mo is a ‘bad kid.’ Still, there is a lot to like about living in Texas. Sundays at the mosque are better than he’d expected. And Rayyan and his aunt become a real family to Mo. But even in a warm home and school where he begins to see a future for himself, Mo knows that the monster within his father can break out and destroy their fragile peace at any moment…”
I liked how Mo was able to connect with his interests and grow himself while living in a stable home environment. He was able to express himself through art, become a role model for younger kids, and nurture his love of Pakistani and Muslim folktales. He also learned that “the strongest heart is the one that keeps beating.”
Title: Maine Characters
Author: Hannah Orenstein
Genre: Contemporary
Publisher: Penguin Audio, 5/13/25
Source: Audio Publisher
Why I Read It: Enjoyed her previous books
My Rating: 4 Stars
Having enjoyed Hannah Orenstein’s previous books, I was excited to listen to this one. It was narrated by Mara Wilson and it is about half sisters Vivian and Lucy. While Lucy knew about Vivian, Vivian was only suspicious that her father may not have been completely honest with her. When her father dies, she goes to his cabin in Maine, where she discovers Lucy.
“Every summer, Vivian Levy and Lucy Webster spend a month with their father at his lake house — separately. Raised in New York City, Vivian is an ambitious sommelier with a secret that could derail her future. Lucy grew up in a tiny Maine town, where she now teaches high school English while watching her marriage unravel. They’ve never met. While Lucy envied her half-sister from afar, their father kept Vivian in the dark. When Vivian arrives at the lake to spread his ashes and sell his cabin, she’s shocked to find Lucy there, awaiting his return. In an ideal world, they’d help each other through their grief. Instead, forced to spend the summer together, they fight through a storm of suspicion and hostility to untangle the messy truth about their parents’ pasts. While Lucy is desperate to hold onto the house, Vivian is scrambling after a betrayal. After thirty years apart, is it too late for them to be a family?”
While this was not my favorite of Orenstein’s books, I appreciated the included Jewish representation, the way that Vivian grew throughout the story, and the way the family was able to bond over their shared connections. This also probably has the prettiest cover of any book this year!
Title: Fun For The Whole Family
Author: Jennifer E. Smith
Genre: Contemporary
Publisher: Ballantine, 4/8/25
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
I wanted to love this story of four siblings who reunite in North Dakota after a falling out. Flashbacks tell of their travels across the U.S. with their mother, before she abandoned them. Now, Roddy is an athlete, Jude is an actor, Connor is a writer who wrote a book based on the siblings, and Gemma, who mothered the siblings after their mom left, is questioning whether she wants children of her own.
“The four Endicott siblings—Gemma, Connor, Roddy, and Jude—were once inseparable, a bond created by the absence of their dazzling, mercurial mother, who would return for a few weeks each summer to whisk them off on sprawling road trips around the country. Decades later, the unthinkable has happened: the Endicotts haven’t spoken in years . . . until an out-of-the-blue text arrives from Jude, now a famous actress, summoning them to a small town in North Dakota. They’re each at a crossroads: Gemma, who put her own ambitions aside to raise the others, now isn’t sure if she wants to be a mother herself; Connor, a celebrated novelist, is floundering after his recent divorce and suffering from an epic case of writer’s block; and Roddy, at the tail end of a professional soccer career, is dangerously close to losing his future husband for the chance at one last season. Jude is the only Endicott who seems to have it all together—but appearances can be deceiving. As the weekend unfolds, and the siblings wrestle with their shared past and uncertain futures, they’ll discover that Jude has been keeping three secrets . . . each of which could change everything.”
This book had the type of characters that you care for and cheer for. I wasn’t thrilled with the emotionally manipulative ending though!
Title: Home of the American Circus
Author: Allison Larkin
Genre: Contemporary
Publisher: Gallery, 5/6/25
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
I loved Allison Larkin’s previous book so I was very excited to read her new one. While I thought some of it was very good, I also found some confusing and it to be a bit too long. It is about Freya, who ran from her home town in NY after a neglectful childhood and a bad situation with her older sister. Now, she is forced to come home after a medical situation. She is reunited with her sister’s daughter Aubrey, who is now going through similar neglect as a teenager.
“After an emergency leaves her short on rent, thirty-year-old Freya Arnalds bails on her lackluster life as bartender in Maine and returns to her suburban hometown of Somers, New York, to live in the house she inherited from her estranged parents. Despite attempts to lay low, Freya encounters childhood friends, familial enemies, and old flames—as well as her fifteen-year-old niece, Aubrey, who is secretly living in the derelict home. As they reconnect, Freya and Aubrey lean on each other, working to restore the house and come to terms with the devastating events that pulled them apart years ago. Set in the birthplace of the American circus, this deeply moving novel is an exploration of broken families, the weight of the past, and the complicated journey of finding home.”
I really liked the found family elements in this one. I wasn’t as much of a fan of the love triangle Freya was involved in. I liked how the history of the circus and the circus elephant Bet was included. It was interesting to think about the way history can differ depending on who is recalling that history.
Title: Entirely Emmie
Author: Terri Libenson
Genre: Middle Grade Graphic Novel
Publisher: Storytide, 5/6/25
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
We have a bit of a collection of the Emmie & Friends books, but Simon has stopped reading them, so I decided to pick this one up myself. It was really cute! It is partially written in typical graphic novel comic type layout and partially in blocks of text with images. This one is about Emmie, who goes on a camping trip with school, but without her two best friends. Meanwhile, Joe, the class clown, feels left out by his friends.
“These days, Emmie doesn’t feel so invisible. At least not around her best friends and her crush, Tyler. Class-clown Joe’s jokes aren’t landing the way they used to. Who doesn’t love a good prank? Apparently not his so-called friends, who don’t even seem to care if he’s around. When their class goes on an end-of-year camping trip, Emmie and Joe find themselves stuck together—and expect the worst. But what happens instead turns out to be entirely unexpected.”
I enjoyed seeing how Joe liked to make jokes but realized that he sometimes hurt people with the way his jokes effected them. I liked that Joe and Emmie got to know each other. This was a cute book about friendship!
Title: Forest Walk on a Friday
Author: Lynne Golodner
Genre: Memoir
Publisher: Scotia Road Books, 1/28/25
Source: TLC Book Tours
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 3.5 Stars, rounded up to 4 Stars
This book of essays is a collection of previously published essays which at times became repetitive, as some of the same information was included in multiple essays by the author.
“Since she was six years old, Lynne (Cohn, Schreiber) Golodner has turned to writing to make sense of the world, figure out her feelings and process experiences. In this riveting, heart-spilling collection of personal essays, Lynne takes the reader on a journey with her through travel, religious exploration, parenting, relationships and intimate encounters with the natural world. Forest Walk on a Friday contains 28 essays—20 of which have been previously published in literary journals and magazines—articulating the ache of lost love, embarking on a soul journey to find happiness alone on a mountaintop, making peace with the loss of a father and examining what work is. The Detroit-based author of award-winning novels, poetry collections and nonfiction books, Lynne opens her heart to readers in a daring and brave way, inviting them to contemplate how humans find happiness and what makes life worth living. As with all of her books, Lynne shares the beauty of her Jewish identity and the ancestry she inherited, through food, visits with beloved relatives and quiet walks in the cemetery to visit those she’s lost. She details her two marriages, showcasing the courage it took to leave one that didn’t work and sharing the gratitude she found in discovering new love at midlife. As a parent of four children, Lynne is candid about the joys and challenges of being an attentive parent and the emotions that come with letting go of her grown children as they prepare to leave home.”
The essays were less about nature than I expected. They do address Judaism and how the author set out to find herself in the religious community, but she goes on to express how this community didn’t work out for her and what she was looking for. I also found less about parenting than I expected. Overall, I appreciated some of the writing and experiences from the author, but I’m not sure an entire book was needed.
This post includes 8 of the books I read this month. 6 were print books and 2 were on audio. Five of them were adult books, 1 was YA, and 2 were middle grade. Genres included thriller, contemporary, graphic novel, and memoir.
Have you read any of these books or do you want to? What have you been reading lately?
