Review: The Five-Star Weekend

The Five-Star Weekend
The Five-Star Weekend by Elin Hilderbrand
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Hilderbrand is a great women’s fiction author. Her characters are real and interesting and her stories are cozy. It’s a perfect summer novel and I really enjoyed it!

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Review: Thornhedge

Thornhedge
Thornhedge by T. Kingfisher
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved every single moment I spent with this very short book. I have to go check out his other books. Highly, highly recommended.

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Review: Amazing Grace Adams

Amazing Grace Adams
Amazing Grace Adams by Fran Littlewood
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book was okay but it took me forever to read it. I felt like I was listening to it for hours on end and it never felt like it was going to finish. I spose that says a lot about how much I liked it but I did like it, I just thought it was way too long.

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Review: I’m Glad My Mom Died

I'm Glad My Mom Died
I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

3.5 stars

I kept putting off reading this book. A friend said I would like it so I finally picked it up. It was okay. I think I’d read so much about it that I sort of knew half of the horrible things that happened to her. I love her introspection and I appreciate her candor. I am so sorry for anything she’s had to endure, let alone so much.

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Review: The Hike

The Hike
The Hike by Lucy Clarke
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was a fast read about several girl friends who go on a challenging hike together and things don’t go as expected. Fast and forgettable.

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Review: The Coworker

The Coworker
The Coworker by Freida McFadden
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was a fast and engaging read but I think this author is just not for me. I don’t like her characters or her writing style.

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Review: Look Again: The Power of Noticing What Was Always There

Look Again: The Power of Noticing What Was Always There
Look Again: The Power of Noticing What Was Always There by Tali Sharot
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I’m not an avid non-fiction reader so I wasn’t sure about requesting this book but the premise sounded interesting so I decided I wanted to see. And I am so glad I did. I read this compulsively readable book in a single sitting and I underlined many, many passages.

Look again has very interesting data and directly practical applications on when and how you should intentionally disrupt your patterns, change your environment and when you should not. It also talks about the dangers of repeating falsehoods and getting used to lying. It made me note about how it’s best not to take a break when doing something unpleasant and how I can use exposure therapy to get more comfortable with driving.

I loved every moment I spent with this book and can’t wait to recommend it to everyone.

with gratitude to netgalley and Atria Books for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

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Review: Bye, Baby

Bye, Baby
Bye, Baby by Carola Lovering
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Even though this is a thriller on the surface, I think it’s actually a psychological story about female friendships at its heart. It’s about what happens when we’re on the outside. What we’re capable of when we’re pushed and excluded. It’s about female friendships and how amazing and how toxic and how complicated they can be. It’s about what happens when we do things we never thought we were capable of.

The characters here are not likable. You’re not rooting for either of them. And yet they both endure things no human should have to go through. And they are both deeply messed up. It messes with your head quite a bit as you read this story. It’s like an accident you can’t look away from.

with gratitude to netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

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Review: Women of Good Fortune

Women of Good Fortune
Women of Good Fortune by Sophie Wan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This story took me forever to get into. Each of the characters were so dislikable that I had to force myself to keep reading. And if I hadn’t requested it as an ARC I might have stopped reading it.

But I’m so glad I didn’t.

They each grew throughout the novel and they also made their way into my heart and as the plot got more and more convoluted, I was so invested in each of them and in finding out what happens. I loved the way the story came together and I laughed and I cried and I cheered.

I’m so glad I didn’t give up on this one.

with gratitude to netgalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

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Review: Expiration Dates

Expiration Dates
Expiration Dates by Rebecca Serle
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed Serle’s previous novel and I loved the premise of a character receiving a notice with how long each of her relationships are meant to last. I loved reading about her previous relationships and also they juxtaposition of fate and free will on this lighthearted story. I loved each of the characters and found myself rooting for every single one of them.

with gratitude to netgalley and Atria Books for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

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Review: The Other Valley

The Other Valley
The Other Valley by Scott Alexander Howard
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a very unusual story. I don’t even know how to explain it. First of all, the world building is super unusual. I loved the idea that if you walk to the east or west of your valley you move forward or backward in time. I’d never read such a premise before.

Some of the other parts (like kids applying for jobs, etc) made me think of “The Giver” and I found myself enjoying both the story and the characters.

But in a novel like this, the best part not the story itself but how much you end up thinking about the ideas in the book. The moral around how one should decide who gets to visit the past or the future and why. The unintended consequences of our actions and decisions and freewill. There is so much in this novel that in can make you think for weeks all wrapped up in a slow and beautiful plot full of its own moments and twists and turns.

with gratitude to netgalley and Atria Books for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

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Review: Till There Was You

Till There Was You
Till There Was You by Lindsay Hameroff
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

What a fun and sweet book this was. If you are looking for a sweet and light book that will feel cozy and make you laugh, make sure you pick this one up. I loved both Lexi and Jake and really enjoyed their journey back to each other.

with gratitude to netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

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