Review: The Things We Never Say

The Things We Never Say
The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I love Elizabeth Strout. Her quiet characters and writing always speaks right to my soul and this book is no exception. I also, so much of the time, wish people would say the quiet part out loud.

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Review: Good Joy, Bad Joy

Good Joy, Bad Joy
Good Joy, Bad Joy by Mikki Brammer
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

What a complete gift of a book. I love reading character-driven stories and lately I find myself really enjoying characters that are older women and this fulfills all my categories. It’s sweet and kind and generous of spirit without being cloying. It’s almost impossible not to fall in love with several of the characters in this book. Not just Joy, who is one of a kind but also Hazel and all the others we get to see through Joy’s eyes and heart.

What a gift this book is and a reminder that it’s never too late to change and you impact more people’s lives than you think you do and we need each other.

An absolute joy to listen to on audio where you get to truly get lost in Joy’s world. It’s like she’s having tea with you the whole time.

with gratitude to netgalley and Macmillan Audio for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

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Review: Seek Immediate Shelter

Seek Immediate Shelter
Seek Immediate Shelter by Vincent Yu
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was one of my favorite reads in a long while. I loved the concept and have actually read a different book with the same premise last year but this was was so so well-executed. I didn’t even realize it was inter-connected short stories until I started it but that was the best structure for a book like this and each time I discovered a connection between the stories, I’d find myself smiling. Even though most of the stories are sad (some even devastating) I found myself completely captivated story after story. An excellent, excellent debut!

Would also make a fantastic discussion book. And the audio was also absolutely fantastic, highly recommended.

with gratitude to netgalley and Macmillan Audio for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: The Language of Liars

The Language of Liars
The Language of Liars by S.L. Huang
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I tried to read this several times and even though it was short and well narrated and the concepts were interesting, i felt that something that allowed the story to be held together was missing. Even though I did like the concept and I love language and linguistics, I couldn’t get connected to the story enough no matter how hard I tried.

with gratitude to netgalley and Dreamscape Media for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

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2026 – Onward – April 13

Well I had no big goals or small goals for this month so the checkups will look a bit different i guess. I took a little time off this past week and it was great. It definitely was not enough and I am hoping to take a bunch more time off over the next two weeks, we’ll see if I can pull it off.

  • I did a few more items on my list:
    • More tidying up: Go through most of the ikea next to my desk, Clean out the foosball table (over and under), Go through David’s kitchen drawer.
    • Health: Moisturize every night
    • Learn stuff: Learn to use Jski more progress on this!
    • Take care of my people + myself: Help A with AP stuff and Take time off, go to laser place, hang out with David.

I’ve been feeling all over the place so I am giving myself grace. Let’s see what I navigate this week.

Here’s to another week. Paying attention. Savoring and living in awe. And taking steps to move onward.

Review: London Falling: A Mysterious Death in a Gilded City and a Family’s Search for Truth

London Falling: A Mysterious Death in a Gilded City and a Family's Search for Truth
London Falling: A Mysterious Death in a Gilded City and a Family’s Search for Truth by Patrick Radden Keefe
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Keefe is truly excellent. His writing is impeccable, his story telling is excellent and you can’t help but get wrapped up in it. How our kids can become true strangers to us… You won’t want to miss this one.

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Review: American Fantasy

American Fantasy
American Fantasy by Emma Straub
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

this is more than what it seems. It’s light and fun but also covers aging, belonging, divorce and has some pithy sections i loved.

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Review: The Paris Match

The Paris Match
The Paris Match by Kate Clayborn
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

romance but also covers a lot of heavier topics around family, belonging, trauma, and more.

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Review: One & Only

One & Only
One & Only by Maurene Goo
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

cute and sweet if you’re looking for something light.

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2026 – Onward – April 6

Well I had no big goals or small goals for this month so the checkups will look a bit different i guess. I took a little time off this past week and it was great. It definitely was not enough and I am hoping to take a bunch more time off over the next two weeks, we’ll see if I can pull it off.

  • I did a few items on my list, but very small ones:
    • Buy Fun stuff: buy something to keep bugs/mosquitoes away.
    • Health: Moisturize every night
    • Learn stuff: progress on jski and the class
    • Take care of my people + myself: Help A with AP stuff and Take time off

I’ve been feeling all over the place so I am giving myself grace. We’ll see how this week goes and whether I decide to be more productive or to rest more.

Here’s to another week. Paying attention. Savoring and living in awe. And taking steps to move onward.

Review: The Night We Met

The Night We Met
The Night We Met by Abby Jimenez
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I just adore Abby Jimenez and find that her books are perfect on audio for me. Once I started this today I didn’t want to do anything else. I just wanted to listen and listen and listen. So I did. All the way to the end. And it didn’t disappoint for one minute.

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Review: The Will of the Many

The Will of the Many
The Will of the Many by James Islington
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was a long long long audiobook. I started and stopped it a few times but for some reason i decided this was the week to really sink my teeth into it. And I am so glad I did. I really enjoyed it, especially the class/school parts and could have listened for a while more. Not sure if I will read the next one but glad I read this one!

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