Review: Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop

Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop
Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-Reum
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

One of the reviews I read says this is known as “healing fiction” in Korea and what a wonderful name for a category of fiction. It is meant to be read slowly and deliberately. I loved every moment I spent with it. I loved the main character and I loved all the books it mentioned and I loved the coffee details too. Wonderful.

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Review: Sweet Filthy Boy

Sweet Filthy Boy
Sweet Filthy Boy by Christina Lauren
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I really enjoy Christina Lauren and this one was fun but one of the lighter ones for them. Looks like it’s 10 years old, that might be why.

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Review: Evenings and Weekends

Evenings and Weekends
Evenings and Weekends by Oisín McKenna
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

3.75 stars on this one for me. It’s one really hot weekend and several characters who each have to come to terms with their secrets coming to the surface and their lives changing significantly as a result. It’s well written and the characters are very real. I enjoyed reading this one.

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Review: Sweet Vidalia

Sweet Vidalia
Sweet Vidalia by Lisa Sandlin
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book was not the best read for me. It’s about a woman who suddenly finds herself alone after the unexpected death of her husband and as secrets and unfortunate events unfold, she finds a way to ground herself and slowly find ways to move on. It’s a story of perseverance. There isn’t much that happens in this story and the writing isn’t as strong as I wish it were. It wasn’t the best fit for me.

with gratitude to netgalley and Little, Brown and Company for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: Like Mother, Like Mother

Like Mother, Like Mother
Like Mother, Like Mother by Susan Rieger
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I absolutely adored this book. Which is weird today because this book could have easily been called “Generations of Bad Mothers.” This book is about three generations of women: Lila, her daughter Grace, and Lila’s mother who died when she was little. Each part of the book dives deeper into each woman. My favorite part by far was Lila’s but I loved each part. I loved the characters. Even all the side characters like the amazing Joe who might be the best dad of all time. Joe’s wonderful mother. The “twins,” Grace’s best friend and the man who runs the paper with Lila. They are all wonderful and written so well that they jump out of the page.

I savored this book so much and tried to read a little each day which is incredibly rare for me.

There’s so much at the heart of this book about motherhood and family and siblings and marriage and money and choosing work over family and dysfunction and all the different ways in which we can mess each other up. I won’t forget this one for a long, long time.

with gratitude to netgalley and Random House in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: The God of the Woods

The God of the Woods
The God of the Woods by Liz Moore
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Liz Moore is an excellent writer and i love mysteries that are more about character building than plot. This one had interesting characters, good plot and also good atmosphere. It was a great read.

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Review: Home Before Dark

Home Before Dark
Home Before Dark by Riley Sager
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Interesting thriller with some interesting underlying story. Don’t want to give away spoilers but i liked this one if you’re into mysteries. Not much horror even if it’s a bit eerie at times.

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Review: Liars

Liars
Liars by Sarah Manguso
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Hmmm. So this book was pitched as “searing” but, to me, it read like a tale as old as time. Woman and man are both flourishing. They get married, have a family, woman makes sacrifices and becomes small and not flourishing in the process. Man continues to make more money but the woman is actually more well-known and famous and then leaves woman for another woman. I mean what part of this is surprising at this point? Doesn’t this happen again and again?

I feel like from the outside these stories might seem crazy and so obvious, but from the inside it’s a lot more common than it seems. And maybe that’s the point here? I liked it but I also wasn’t wow’ed by it like many seem to have.

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Review: Her Golden Coast

Her Golden Coast
Her Golden Coast by Anat Deracine
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I know Anat in real-life and I had read her previous book and loved it so when I saw this was available, I knew I wanted to read it.

And I am so glad I did.

This book takes place over the 2000s in Silicon Valley. The main characters work at a start-up. As the years unfold, so does a lot of moments that end up impacting their work and lives: the housing bust, and tech recession, the election of Obama and the conversations around marriage equality, the insanity of the VCs and tech companies buying each other and of course the toxic bro culture are all the background in which this story takes place. And it’s a strong and honest depiction of the industry and the time.

And our main characters come from two very different worlds, do two different jobs in a similar environment, showing the reader the dichotomy of roles and the respect they each have in these companies. The book doesn’t shy away from tough topics like classism, sexuality and sexism, as all of these are real everyday experiences of our characters.

But at its heart, this book is about friendship and love. It’s about two people who are trying to find their way in a world that isn’t being really kind to them. They are trying to navigate growing up, finding their place in their work and in the world. Finding their people and understanding how to be who they are in a world that really makes it hard to do so. And the kind of love that comes from sharing so much life together and being there for each other again and again.

I couldn’t help but fall in love with each of the main characters and found myself rooting for them. And, for me, the books I love are filled with characters who are real and characters who grow. This wonderful book delivered on both counts.

with gratitude to netgalley and Mayavin Publishing for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: The Paris Widow

The Paris Widow
The Paris Widow by Kimberly Belle
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Meh another fast and interesting thriller but not as good as many I read this summer. It was okay just not excellent.

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Review: The Last Letter: A Novel

The Last Letter: A Novel
The Last Letter: A Novel by Rebecca Yarros
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

ok this was a complete and total tear jerker. It was pretty much written to mess with your emotions.

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Review: All Good People Here

All Good People Here
All Good People Here by Ashley Flowers
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

fast, interesting thriller. good for a summer read.

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