The Best Kind of People by Zoe Whittall

Finally! A book that I read for fun, not for my book club. Rob gave me this one for Christmas, and a friend had previously recommended it, so I was eager to give it a read. I am going to have problems reviewing it, because I really enjoyed it up until the last 10 pages or so. However, I found the ending really unsatisfying, so it kind of ruined everything else for me. I will try to do my review without any sort of spoilers, but I apologize if I inadvertently give something away.

George Woodbury is a hero in Avalon Hills. He once stopped a school shooter from his attempt at attacking the private school where George was a teacher. The shooter had his gun out and George's daughter, Sadie, was the only student in the hallway at the time. George was in the right place at the right time and attacked the shooter, preventing a tragedy. After this, he is voted Teacher of the Year every year and is well-loved by everyone.
So everyone is surprised when George is suddenly arrested in his home, accused of the attempted rape of a student and inappropriate behaviour with other students. Can it be true?

George himself is a minor character, the rest of the story is told through the eyes of his daughter, Sadie and his wife, Joan and how they react to their new situation. It is a well written story, looking at rape culture, relationships, and how a family can survive this kind of trauma. Secrets are revealed, old hurts are brought back to the surface, and questions are raised about what the characters thought they knew.

All in all, a pretty good read, but a very frustrating ending!

The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena

Suspenseful thrillers seem to be the big trend in modern literature. It started around the time Gone Girl was released a few years ago, and seems to be continually on the rise with each passing month. A trip to Indigo will have countless suspenseful reads on display, ready to grab your attention. I've tried a few of them, and haven't been all that thrilled, so I was a little leery when this was chosen as our book club selection for January. But I have to say, of all that I've read in this style in recent years, this one has been my favourite so far.

This is the story of Anne and Marco Conti. They are the parents of 6-month old Cora and are invited to a dinner party at their next door neighbour's house. The hostess has made it clear that their crying baby isn't welcome in her home, so when the babysitter cancels at the last minute Anne and Marco don't know what to do. Because they live in adjoining townhouses, they decide it would be ok to leave the baby at home, while they take the baby monitor with them and take turns checking on her every half hour. Everything goes along fine, until they return home after 1:00 AM to find the baby's crib empty. The rest of the book is the search for Cora and the unravelling of family secrets, which helps to solve the mystery.

It was a fast, exciting read, I managed to read it over the course of three days, which is pretty quick for me. If you are looking for a light, entertaining read, this would be a good place to start.