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I took a while to read this book because I knew it was going to be really sad. And it was. The horrible story of abuse and gaslighting told through a creative and beautiful memoir reminds you that abuse is not reserved for a certain kind of relationship and it exists between same-sex. relationships too. It’s heart wrenching and brutal.
This might be one of my all-time most favorite series to read. The Wayward children series is so creative, so original and each of the books is so unique. This one might be one of my favorites in a long time, which is a little odd to say because the subject matter is so tough and so heart wrenching. I really really appreciated the author’s note in the beginning, it allowed me to enjoy the story and be present instead of triggering the whole time. I felt so much compassion and love towards Antoinette, who loses her father and her life from thereon is never the same. One day, she walks through a door and finds herself in the place where the lost things go. But like all the places in these books, things aren’t what they first seem. This book is so sad and yet so very beautiful. I really loved the themes around innocence, loss and time. with gratitude to netgalley and Macmillan Audio for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review
This story was hard to follow for quite a bit of the beginning but eventually I couldn’t stop reading because I wanted to know what happened to Maali and what the photos were about. As the story slowly unravels, we learn so much about Sri Lanka’s political situation and get to know these amazing and interesting characters. This book has some of the best one-liners I’ve read anywhere. It’s visual, rich and an experience unlike anything. But it also requires patience and endurance to be willing to stick with it.
3.5 stars, rounded up I really liked this fast-paced story about Catherine who is a nurse at an elderly home and her mother, Ruth. They have been together all their lives and have a very close dependable relationship. Until things start to unravel. Catherine catches her mother in one lie, and then another, until she is not sure she can believe anything her mom says and their paths start forking. This story goes back and forth between the present time and Ruth’s diary entires about her past. While I liked the diary entries, it felt a bit like telling more than showing so made those parts of the story feel like I was reading someone’s synopsis of a book. Unlike so many mystery books, this one didn’t have any dislikable characters and I found myself rooting both for the mom and the daughter. I read this one in a single sitting and I am sure you will, too. With gratitude to netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
I can be hit or miss on Moriarty’s books and I didn’t want something that was a gimmick so I kept picking this book up and putting it back down. But as my vacation winds down, I felt the pull towards something light and flowing. And I knew she would deliver. This book turned out to be surprising for me. There wasn’t one big twist or revelation. In fact, as woman who’s been married 20+ years with teenage kids, there was a lot of interesting food for thought in this story if you’re willing to look past the superficial bits. It was an interesting narrative on the stories we tell ourselves and how time and experiences can alter our perspective in ways that feel irredeemable. And yet how we always (at any moment) have the option to change the course of our life and choose what we remember or where we shine the light. Resentment breeds more resentment and gratitude breeds more gratitude. I am very glad I read this book.
This is the story of Emma who is transgender and trying to get approval for hormone replacement therapy. So she starts seeing a therapist and slowly they uncover that she has a history of trauma and Dissociative Identity Disorder. The rest of the book is Emma struggling with her therapist and his lack of professionalism and ability to deal with her disorder (in fact, I’d say the therapist is abusive too often.) and her journey working her way through some of her trauma, etc. It’s really heart wrenching in parts and really disorienting in others. It made me feel really angry at incompetent therapists who do more harm than good and it also broke my heart completely to read all the trauma she had to endure as a little girl. People can be so very cruel. Many people commented on how big this book is, since I read it as an ebook I didn’t realize that until I started it but to me, it was a fast and engrossing (and heartbreaking) read.
A perfect way to end 2022. This is my last book of 2022 and I couldn’t have picked a better one. It’s the third in the Lovelight series. I’ve loved all of these sweet books with lovely characters that feel like Gilmore Girls. This is Layla’s story and it’s filled with sugar, spice and everything nice. I can’t recommend it enough.
I really enjoyed this story about an American girl whose dad moved back to his hometown of Egypt after her parents’ divorce. She goes back to Egypt to spend the summers with him all her life. He marries someone else and has children with that person and their lives change and evolve from there. It’s an interesting story even though it stays a little too on the surface in my opinion.
Loved this very quick read that’s between a biography and a nonfiction story about sea creatures. Creative, thought-provoking and heart wrenching all at once. Really beautiful.
This is a very sweet story of two people who fall in love on vacation in italy and decide to get married as a result of their whirlwind romance. When they come back home, both of their parents are worried it’s all happening too soon until they meet and realize they know each other from a past life. Chaos ensues. Until the chaos touches the two kids whom they love with all their hearts and brings the parents back to their senses. It’s sweet, predictable but kind with lots of laughs. It was a lovely book to read during the rainy and dark winter days. with gratitude to netgalley and Alcove Press for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review
A Jane Harper novel is a cause to celebrate. Harper’s novels are always character-driven and atmospheric and low burning and still manage to surprise you and this one is no exception. It is the story of a mother who goes missing in the middle of a town carnival leaving her newborn baby behind in a stroller. What would possibly make a mother do that? The story unfolds slowly and deliberately. You get enmeshed in the affairs of this little town and the tangled lives its inhabitants have with each other. I was so invested in these characters and their story that I was heartbroken when I found out what happened. with gratitude to netgalley and Macmillan Audio for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review
“But the secret to a beautiful death is a beautiful life.” Clover is a death doula. She sits with people as they die and she makes sure they are not alone. And yet, she’s mostly alone. She has one friend who is 76 and that’s it. This is the story of how through the help of a new client, some unexpected friends and some tough but real words she slowly starts to change her life. This character driven story is beautiful and is full of reminders that life is for the living. It’s for taking chances, it’s for being cautiously reckless and it’s for living the moments we’re given to their full capacity. with gratitude to netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. |
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