Review: Cry Havoc

Cry Havoc
Cry Havoc by Rebecca Wait
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Eh. this was not as interesting as i’d hoped it would be.

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Review: Helpless

Helpless
Helpless by Jessica Knoll
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

3.5 stars for the crazy twist at the end that really left me more confused than i expected. It was interesting but also i feel a little too over the top towards the end.

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Review: Beg, Borrow, or Steal

Beg, Borrow, or Steal
Beg, Borrow, or Steal by Sarah Adams
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Cute, sweet read just when i needed one!

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Review: Meet Me in the Garden

Meet Me in the Garden
Meet Me in the Garden by Nina LaCour
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

What a gifted writer Nina LaCour is…I loved every minute I spent with the story of Odette who is best friends with her cousin Delphine. Both of whom have secrets they can’t tell anyone else. As they make bold moves to leave their Creole community and move to Los Angeles, their lives diverge only to converge years later again as a result of a huge moment for Delphine. Neither woman will be the same again. As we follow Odette navigate her life and her choices and the consequences they bring, I felt like both wishing she were braver and having so much empathy for her and her fears around losing everything she loved most.

LaCour’s writing is so real that the characters jump off the page and carve their place in your heart as the story navigates family, belonging, mental illness, black community, sisterhood, queerness and so much more. Angel Pean’s audio brought it to life beautifully, helping me connect to the story much more deeply.

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

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Review: Ms. Mebel Goes Back to the Chopping Block

Ms. Mebel Goes Back to the Chopping Block
Ms. Mebel Goes Back to the Chopping Block by Jesse Q. Sutanto
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

3.5 totally readable. I loved listening to this one. It’s fun, it’s funny and full of moxy.

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Review: The Lion Women of Tehran

The Lion Women of Tehran
The Lion Women of Tehran by Marjan Kamali
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was a lovely story to listen to, and interesting history with good depth but the characters weren’t as textured and developed as I would have liked. Glad I read it.

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Review: Everything Was Beautiful and Nothing Hurt

Everything Was Beautiful and Nothing Hurt
Everything Was Beautiful and Nothing Hurt by Ben Reeves
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

3.5 stars

for some reason this book didn’t make it for me. I liked it but didn’t love it. And i am not sure why. maybe it was the wrong book at the wrong time.

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Review: Someone Else’s Husband

Someone Else's Husband
Someone Else’s Husband by Kimberly McCreight
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was okay. readable and moved fast but will not stay with me. Sometimes those are the perfect books for the moment.

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Review: One of Us Is Guilty

One of Us Is Guilty
One of Us Is Guilty by Steve Cavanagh
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Eddie Flynn might be one of my favorite fictional characters. I love watching him operate, especially in court! While this wasn’t my very favorite of the Flynn novels, I really enjoyed watching Flynn in action and I loved how the twists kept coming as they always do in his novels. Just when you think you figured it all out, Cavanagh makes sure you continue to pay attention!

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

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Review: In Wonderland

In Wonderland
In Wonderland by Joyce Maynard
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Maynard is such a wonderful storyteller. This is the story of Frances, fourteen, who gets to spend the summer in a lakefront home in Maine as a mother’s helper. A world that is usually completely inaccessible to her, one full of country clubs, tennis tutors and more. This life seems magical to Frances who falls in love with so much of it and doesn’t want the days to end. Until she realizes things are maybe not exactly as they seem and that maybe all that glitters is not, in fact, gold.

The secrets start unraveling, her dreams of what this life is get shattered again and again as she gets embedded into the lives of the family she’s staying with. This story brims with so much life. Frances’ own coming of age story juxtaposed with the marriage and personal traumas of the Regina and Forrest and the lives of the two kids they have creates this layered and textured story of how complex each of our lives are and how nothing is really what it seems.

The audio version of this story was truly excellent, transporting you into the mind of Frances as she learns to navigate so much in one short summer.

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

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Review: The Housewife

The Housewife
The Housewife by Natalie Barelli
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book was totally readable but also similar to many others I read. I had guessed the ending. At least most of it. It was still fun/easy to read.

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Review: My Nemesis

My Nemesis
My Nemesis by Charmaine Craig
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book was so unusual, I am still thinking about it. Nothing happens, it’s a book of ideas. Of perspective. Of how we see each other and how we judge each other and how we don’t understand each other. It’s about intellectualism, about motherhood, about marriage, about being a woman. and so much more.

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