Nerd Girl Loves Books

This is book 21 in the Cork O’Connor series but can be read as a standalone. There are issues from previous books that are referenced, but won’t impact a first time reader’s enjoyment of the book. This book has plenty of action and suspense that will keep you glued to it. Cork also goes through a lot of self-reflection in this book. He tries to come to terms with his capacity for peace and forgiveness but also for rage and vengeance.

Twenty-five years ago Barb, Nicolette, and Lorelei were best friends in small town Seaside. They meet a drifter named Sam at an amusement park and they all go to the drive-in. The girls have a fight and the last time Barb and Nicolette see Lorelei is when they left her at the drive-in with Sam. A few days later Lorelei’s body turns up in a cranberry bog and Sam is later arrested. He confesses to killing 4 other girls besides Lorelei and goes to prison.

I will never get tired of reading books about messed up rich people doing messed up things. I didn’t really know what to expect with this book and it exceeded my expectations. It revolves around the Button family. The father is a crazy rich guy who adopts 5 children (heirs) and experiments on them using his “Button Method”. He’s testing whether nature or nurture will decide the future of people. The children are immediately emersed in a grinding lifestyle of non-stop training and education by the world’s top experts to train the kids to become prodigies in 5 distinct categories. He succeeds in 4 of the 5 children.