#17: Kristin Hannah, The Nightingale

[kareila]

Perfect for people who thought Schindler's List was too cheerful and upbeat.

Edited to add: it came up at our book club meeting that it is not quite as depressing as The Boy in the Striped Pajamas. Thankfully I have been spared that.

#18: Jonathan Stroud, The Empty Grave (Lockwood & Co. #5)

[kareila]

This is the final book in the series, and while it resolves its central questions in a tidy and mostly satisfying fashion, it lacked the character development that I had come to appreciate in the more recent installments.