karenika

Review: Earth’s the Right Place for Love

Earth’s the Right Place for Love by Elizabeth Berg
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I just love and adore Elizabeth Berg. Her books are always a balm for my soul and I love her characters. I love how you can almost feel them viscerally and I love how when I am weary and tired, I can pick a Berg novel and I know it will give me the comfort I need without feeling like too light a book. I will grow to love her characters.

This book is no exception. OF course it couldn’t be as it’s Arthur’s story and we already know what a gem he is. This is the story of how he and Nola end up together and it’s a real nod to patience and deep friendship and loving and caring for someone anyway.

I loved this book. I love Berg and will continue to read her books for as long as she’s generous enough to give us her stories.

with gratitude to netgalley and random house for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: Gone for Good

Gone for Good by Joanna Schaffhausen
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

3.5 stars

Ok here’s the truth. It’s been a few weeks since I read this book and I’ve managed to completely forget it. I spose that says all you need to know. I remember enjoying it and reading it really fast. But I can’t remember the twist or the who of the whoddunit. Alas.

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Review: Hello Beautiful

Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Ann Napolitano’s ability to capture the complexity and layers in a character is truly beautiful. This book is really quiet. At least it was for me. You have to sit with it for a long time and let yourself get immersed in their world. Each of the characters slowly winds their way into your heart and then there’s no moment that you don’t want to spend with them.

This is the story of four sisters who are incredibly close to each other. One of them marries William who is merged into their family wholesale from the moment Julia picks him. And like it always does in life, so many different things happen to this family. There’s so much about parenthood, acceptance, forgiveness, grief, love and of course deep sisterhood in this book.

It pays a beautiful homage to Little Women and these women will absolutely stay in your heart long after you’re done reading the book.

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

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Review: The Immeasurable Depth of You

The Immeasurable Depth of You by Maria Ingrande Mora
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was lucky enough to get an early copy of this book from edelweiss and Peachtree Teen. This is the story of Brynn who is sent to spent the summer on her Dad’s houseboat in Florida so that she can be away from all technology as a result of a post she made that was deeply concerning to her mom. There’s a lot going on in this story: her relationship with her dad, and also her mom, the divorced parents’ relationship with each other especially as they try to support a girl with mental health challenges and then there is a lot going on in the town they are staying at as Brynn makes some friends and tries to uncover their stories.

I loved every moment I spent with this story. I didn’t know it was YA before I started it, and I do think it’s squarely YA but I still enjoyed it and will remember it for a long time.

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Review: The Lightkeeper’s Daughters

The Lightkeeper’s Daughters by Jean E. Pendziwol
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I enjoyed this story about a woman in a home who meets a girl who’s doing community service there and they connect and over the course of the story, they find out their lives are more intertwined than they thought. It’s a beautiful and touching story.

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Review: Watch Over Me

Watch Over Me by Nina LaCour
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Loved this tender and beautiful and subtle story. I love Nina LaCour’s quiet voice.

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Review: The Twist of a Knife

The Twist of a Knife by Anthony Horowitz
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I love and adore Anthony Horowitz and his creative and unique stories and characters. These stories that are so meta and the characters, so memorable, each and every one of them.

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Review: Skye Falling

Skye Falling by Mia McKenzie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

i am not sure why i checked out this book 11 times before I finally read it. It was absolutely excellent. About connection and love and giving into both loving people and letting yourself be loved. Really wonderful.

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Review: You’d Be Home Now

You’d Be Home Now by Kathleen Glasgow
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was a painful book to read but it was also beautiful and real. It’s hard to create YA characters that feel like teenagers and I think this book does an excellent job of it. And it captures struggles around substance abuse, parenting, dating and so much more in a raw and truthful manner.

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Review: Things We Do in the Dark

Things We Do in the Dark by Jennifer Hillier
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I like Hiller’s storytelling, even though it’s always very dark and there are surprises but not twists that assume the reader is stupid. This story was no exception. You know she’s not guilty but you don’t know what’s going on. And then there are surprises. And when you think you know them, there are new ones. I will read more of her 🙂

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Review: Autoboyography

Autoboyography by Christina Lauren
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Not my favorite of Christina Lauren books but I still enjoyed reading it. Just didn’t think they did the YA voice as well as they do in their adult books. But I loved the subject and I loved the way they handled it.

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