Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid

 

Joan Goodwin has been obsessed with the stars for as long as she can remember. Thoughtful and reserved, Joan is content with her life as a professor of physics and astronomy at Rice University and as aunt to her precocious niece, Frances. That is, until she comes across an advertisement seeking the first women scientists to join NASA’s Space Shuttle program. Suddenly, Joan burns to be one of the few people to go to space.

Selected from a pool of thousands of applicants in the summer of 1980, Joan begins training at Houston’s Johnson Space Center, alongside an exceptional group of fellow candidates: Top Gun pilot Hank Redmond and scientist John Griffin, who are kind and easy-going even when the stakes are highest; mission specialist Lydia Danes, who has worked too hard to play nice; warm-hearted Donna Fitzgerald, who is navigating her own secrets; and Vanessa Ford, the magnetic and mysterious aeronautical engineer, who can fix any engine and fly any plane.

As the new astronauts become unlikely friends and prepare for their first flights, Joan finds a passion and a love she never imagined. In this new light, Joan begins to question everything she thinks she knows about her place in the observable universe.

Then, in December of 1984, on mission STS-LR9, everything changes in an instant.

Fast-paced, thrilling, and emotional, Atmosphere is Taylor Jenkins Reid at her best: transporting readers to iconic times and places, with complex protagonists, telling a passionate and soaring story about the transformative power of love, this time among the stars. - taylorjenkinsreid.com

 

The thought of being in a space shuttle always freaked me out.  I feel suffocated just thinking about being in such a small enclosure and somehow even the sheet vastness of space itself makes also makes me feel suffocated and full of anxiety.  Back when I was a kid my cousin was obsessed with the movie Apollo 13 that had just come out on VHS in 1995.  She insisted we watch it at a sleepover.  It was scarier to me than anything Freddy Kreuger or Jason Voorhees could do. 

However, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on Atmosphere, the latest by Taylor Jenkins Reid which follows Joan Goodwin who becomes one of the first female astronauts in the early 1980s space program.  I relied on my faith of TJR’s skill of writing compelling, fully developed and realistic characters to carry me through my claustrophobia.  The beginning was a little tough to get into for me as it was a lot of tech about the space program and NASA which was a little out of depth for me.  However, I quickly grew to love and root for Joan and her niece Frances as well as fellow astronaut Veronica.  Right on the cover, Atmosphere is described as “A Love Story” and yes while there is a beautiful love story here with astronauts falling in love, it’s also a beautiful love story about finding your true self and exploring your heart’s desire and found family.  I ended up tearing through this book in just two days.  I know it’s a clichéd expression but I just couldn’t put it down and the ending had me literally tearing up which trust me is quite a feat for someone like me with a chronic dry eye condition.  LOL  This was a beautiful story and I wish we’d get an epilogue but then again maybe leaving what happens next is left best to one’s imagination where it can be bigger than the stars. 

I was lucky enough to pick up a signed copy of Atmosphere at The Strand in NYC during a birthday trip.  You can find your copy at your favorite local shop, library or online store. 

Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll

 

January 15, 1978, is a night of promise, excitement, and desire. A serial killer’s murderous spree in the Pacific Northwest couldn’t be further from the minds of the vibrant young women at the top sorority on Florida State University’s campus in Tallahassee.

That night, Pamela Schumacher, president of the sorority, makes the unpopular decision to stay home. Startled awake at 3 a.m. by a strange sound, she makes the fateful decision to investigate. What she finds outside her bedroom door is a scene of implausible violence—two of her sisters dead; two others, maimed.

On the other side of the country, in Seattle, Tina Cannon has found peace after years of hardship. A chance encounter brings twenty-five-year-old Ruth Wachowsky into her life and they forge an instant connection. But then Ruth goes missing from Lake Sammamish State Park in broad daylight, the same day as another young woman, surrounded by thousands of beachgoers. Both vanish without a trace. Tina is convinced Ruth was a target of the man the papers refer to as the All-American Sex Killer.

When she learns of the massacre in Tallahassee, Tina is convinced it’s him again. She rushes to Florida, on a collision course with Pamela—and one last impending tragedy.      -jessicaknoll.com     

 

Do you ever have a book that sticks with you long after you’ve turned the last page?  One of those books for me is Bright Young Women.  Think of the most infamous serial killer you know of thanks to endless films and true crime documentaries.  You probably know more about that individual than the victims and that’s the crux of Bright Young Women.  The killer is only referred to as The Defendant in the novel taking away any perceived “fame” from him and instead focuses on the POVs of victims Pamela and Ruth.  While this is a work of fiction, the characters are based on an amalgam of real victims/cases, it gives you a sense of what was taken from victims of these crimes depicted in the popular true crime documentaries and such.  You get to know Pamela, Ruth and their friends as fully developed people with their whole lives ahead of them and how this was all taken from them in one foul swoop.  This is more than your average thriller, it’s thought-provoking material that will linger in your mind for a long time. 

I received Bright Young Women as an e-book loan from my local library.  You can get yours from your favorite local library, book store or online shop.  For more information, visit the authors website linked above. 

 

 

Beach Club Bloodshed by Christine Wellert (Pub. Date 08/14/25)

 

Summer Jenkins day just went from bad to a downright dumpster fire.

First, there’s the dead body covered in stab wounds. Then, she finds out her best friend Lani’s missing and considered a person of interest in the murder.

With Lani MIA, everyone is looking to Summer for answers, including one hot hunk of a detective, Cole Peterson.

Detective Hottie, uh, Peterson, is a complication Summer doesn’t need right now. He senses Summer’s hiding something behind those pretty blue eyes, but when she becomes a victim of a hit and run, all of his protective instincts emerge as Summer gets drawn farther into the web of intrigue.

As the accidents start to pile up, Summer takes matters into her own hands and lands herself in hot water with a Yakuza boss, a Russian oligarch, and Auntie Miriam.

She can’t decide who’s scarier…

With the stunning backdrop of the Big Island’s Kohala Coast and a cast of quirky characters, this story is anything but a typical murder mystery.

Beach Club Bloodshed will keep you on the edge of your seat as Summer and her friends race against time to solve the murder and clear their names.

But with danger lurking around every corner and unexpected twists at every turn, will they be able to crack the case before it's too late? - christinewellert.com

 

This cozy beach mystery was a great little escape.  It’s a relaxing and fun read with some zany characters, especially the pets and a smattering of romance.  The ending sets things up for future installments and I look forward to another chance to hang with Summer and the gang.

Thank you to the author, Christine Wellert and Tales & Teacups for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.