The Books I Read In March

The Crying of Lot 49
by Thomas Pynchon
I want to say that I hated this book, supposedly one of Pynchon’s most accessible works, I almost abandoned it with only a page and a half to go. And yet, I will probably be unravelling the this story in my mind for possibly the rest of my life. Is it possible to be haunted by a book? If you’re looking for a challenge and a book you won’t soon forget this is for you.

The Midnight Assassin: Panic, Scandal, and the Hunt for America’s First Serial Killer
​by Skip Hollandsworth
​A series of attacks and murders of women are committed in the mid 1880’s in Austin, Texas. Though many are suspected of the crimes a killer is never found. This book might be a tad disingenuous regarding the serial killer aspect of these crimes. What I found most interesting was the day to day life in 1880’s Austin in comparison to today. If you're really into American history or western expansion then you’ll probably enjoy this, if you’re looking for some good true crime maybe try something else.

Postcards From The Edge
by Carrie Fisher
The twisted wit of Carrie Fisher never fails to amuse and entertain me. Drugs and celebrity in Hollywood give this novel a slightly autobiographical feel, but maybe thats just supposition on my part. This was her first work of fiction and her unique writing style combined with incredibly interesting and fucked up characters make for a fun read.

A Discovery of Witches
by Deborah Harkness
If Twilight and Fifty Shades of Grey had a baby and then that baby grew up and became a history nerd who loves wine is the best description I can come up with for this book. If you’re into creepy controlling love stories (I don't judge) then you're going to love this, if you’re looking for a cool vampire book its halfway there. 

Half Moon Bay
by Alice LePlante
I randomly picked this up from the library entirely because it takes place in Half Moon Bay, a small sea side town about an hours drive from where I live, this is not a recommended book selection tactic. The writing is flowery both literally and figuratively. The protagonist, who is a native plant expert, is overly neurotic and scatter-brained and the narrative is neither mysterious nor thrilling. I did finish it though, so I guess thats a positive.

Kitchen Confidential
by Anthony Bourdain
​Bourdain was a genius, just try and tell me otherwise. I highly recommend getting your hands on the deluxe edition which includes handwritten notes and an afterward by the man himself, as well as a new introduction from Eric Ripert. This was his original expose that earned him the bad boy chef rep, but its not that shocking if you’ve ever spent any time in a restaurant as an employee before.

As always I would love any book recommendations, feel free to leave them in the comments.