Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt This was a book club read, and now the meeting about this book will be in January so I am ahead of schedule. This book is about 3 characters: an octopus in an aquarium, Tova—the woman who cleans the aquarium and a young man named Cameron. The octopus likes to get out of his tank and explore and he and Tova develop a relationship of sorts. The octopus is a keen observer of human behavior and sees things going on that the humans don’t. Tova is a widow and years ago lost her son in an accident. She still grieves for both and is in her 70s and is wondering what is next. Cameron is in his 30s and seeks his biological father after his mother, an addict, ditches him at age 9. He ends up getting a job working alongside Tova. Marcellus, the octopus, accurately senses a connection between the two of them they aren't yet aware of and uses his sneaking out skills to clue them in to what he sees. A really original concept.
Drowning by TJ Newman A father and daughter are flying from their home in Hawaii to San Francisco when the plane goes down. The dad, an engineer, figures out that they’re actually safer staying inside the plane until rescue gets there than going outside where jet fuel on the surface of the water is causing very dangerous and life threatening explosions. And then the plane sinks to a very deep part of the ocean. There’s still air in the plane and rescue is figuring out how to get them out. The mom is actually an underwater welder who happens to be working on a ship that day and she has to navigate through the government red tape to help rescue the dozen people left in the plane. Good pace, nonstop action.
Good Girl Bad Blood by Holly Jackson This is book 2 of the series and did not disappoint. Pip is investigating the disappearance of her friend’s brother and is recording it for her podcast, kind of like a Someone Knows Something sort of a deal. So, she’s tracking him down and finds out he’d been catfished by some girl—so now she’s trying to track her down because she seems to be at the center of everything. These are great stories, the mystery is very well put together.
BJ Knapp is the author of Beside the Music, available for purchase here. Please sign up for the Backstage with BJ Knapp mailing list to get updates on events, signings, dog pictures and so much more.