The Best Book I Read This Month: The Bandit Queens by Parini Shroff

The best book I read this month is a comedy of errors set in a small town in India. Parini Shroff’s The Bandit Queens tells the story of a group of women who conspire to murder their way out of abusive marriages.

At the center of the story and the group is Geeta, whose husband disappeared years before. Town gossip says she killed him, and the townspeople shun her as a murderess. When women in Geeta’s small loan group decided they want out of their marriages, they turn to Geeta to help them follow her (murderous) example.

Geeta, on the other hand, wants nothing to do with their conspiracies. She just wants to make and sell enough jewelry to afford a refrigerator. As she is pulled deeper and deeper into her friends’ schemes, she turns to the example of Phoolan Devi, India’s historical Bandit Queen, for guidance and inspiration.

Geeta and her friends end up on a hilarious and heartbreaking adventure involving blackmail, gangsters, moonshine, manipulation, and friendship. It was a rollicking ride that I finished in two days. I don’t know if Parini Shroff has more in store for Geeta and her sisters in crime, but I sure hope she does. I enjoyed every moment I spent with them.

The Best Book I Read This Month: Kills Well With Others by Deanna Raybourn

The best book I read this month is a sequel to a previous Best Book I’ve Read. Two and a half years ago, I chose Deanna Raybourn’s Killers of a Certain Age as the best book I read that month. I described it as “a romp featuring four 60-year-old assassins.” Its sequel—Kills Well With Others—is just as much of a romp.

In this second installment, former assassins Billie, Helen, Natalie, and Mary Alice are comfortable in their retirement when they are called back into action. An old nemesis is hunting members of the team from one of their old cases. They are tasked with finding and stopping the hunter. Of course, nothing is what it seems, and their pursuit twists and turns in humorous and dangerous ways.

It was a delight to go on another adventure with these ladies. As I said in my review of the Killers of a Certain Age, it feels wrong to describe a book about murder as fun but fun is exactly what this book is.

The Best Book I Read This Month: The Violence by Delilah S. Dawson

The best book I read this month packed quite a gut punch. The Violence by Delilah S. Dawson imagines a second pandemic on the heels of COVID-19, one in which people are prone to inexplicable bouts of homicidal violence. For Chelsea Martin and her daughter Ella, the Violence becomes a way to escape domestic violence.

I have to admit, I almost did not finish this one. I found it hard to stomach the scenes of abuse early in the story. Some just hit too close to home, and all of them were visceral.

But I’m glad I stuck with it. Watching Chelsea and Ella find themselves and remake their lives was worth it. Even more rewarding was seeing their abusers get their comeuppance or change their ways. Such arcs rarely happen in real life.

Meeting the support cast was another reward, especially the crew that Chelsea takes up with. Mensches, every one, and each colorful in their own way.

I normally recommend books whole-heartedly, but this time I recommend The Violence with a caveat: add this to your TBR only if you can handle scenes of explicit violence and abuse.

The Best Book I Read This Month: Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn

The best book I read this month was a romp featuring four 60-year-old assassins. Yes, you read that right—I used the words romp and assassins in the same sentence. I never thought I’d describe a book about murder as fun, but that’s exactly what Deanna Raybourn’s Killers of a Certain Age is: fun.

Billy, Natalie, Mary Alice, and Helen are celebrating their retirement—from nearly forty years of working as assassins—when they discover they themselves are targets for assassination. What follows is part murder mystery, part buddy road comedy, part revenge drama.

It was a delight to read about women “of a certain age” without the focus being on divorce or loss or aging. Loss and aging play a role here, but these women are not going quietly into that good night. They are action heroes—smart, sassy, capable, and kick-ass. I loved it. I want more books with characters like these women—mature, strong, and badass.

The Best Book I Read This Month: Johanna Porter Is Not Sorry by Sara Read

The best book I read this month was a rollicking read about a middle-aged woman reclaiming her life. Seriously, Sara Read’s Johanna Porter Is Not Sorry was a RIDE. Like Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride. Twists, turns, close calls, near misses, highs, lows—this story has it all.

Johanna Porter is the divorced mother of a spirited teenage girl. She was once the lover and muse of a famous painter—as well as a promising artist herself. These days, she’s the art teacher at her daughter’s school. When the famous painter comes to town, Johanna is talked into attending his show, where she sees his most renowned painting of her on display. Impulsively, she steals the painting.

What follows is a cat-and-mouse journey of self-discovery that changes Johanna’s relationship with herself, her daughter, and others.

I could not put this down. I found it a thoroughly enjoyable read, with one particular twist that surprised and amazed me.