booksread « karenika

Review: I Guess I Haven’t Learned That Yet: Discovering New Ways of Living When the Old Ways Stop Working

I Guess I Haven’t Learned That Yet: Discovering New Ways of Living When the Old Ways Stop Working by Shauna Niequist
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

3.5 stars.

I enjoyed this essay collection and loved the parts where I felt the author went deep into what it means to start over and give oneself grace and space. In some ways, I felt like maybe she hadn’t spent enough time in this new life yet to really dig deep enough to pull out all of her learnings/lessons. Like it was still all a bit too new. So it still felt a bit more on the surface than I would have liked. Still enjoyed them.

View all my reviews

Review: The Old Place

The Old Place by Bobby Finger
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I loved the time I spent with The Old Place. This is the story of Mary Alice and Ellie and Josie, all of whom live in a small town in Texas (Billington.) Ellie and Mary Alice live next door to each other and are best friends (both are also single moms of children who’ve died.) Josie is the New Yorker wife of a Billington resident who comes back home to take over his family’s business and she takes a job being a schoolteacher after Mary Alice (unwillingly) retires.

There are several other lovely and interesting and textured characters but most of the story revolves around these three women and you can’t help but fall in love with them, as flawed as they are. Even though Mary Alice wasn’t a likable character, I still found myself caring about her and wanting things to work out for her. You can tell that she hasn’t had it easy.

This story is about family, small towns, sisterhood, friendship and so much more. I loved every second I spent with it.

with gratitude to netgalley and Penguin Putnam for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

View all my reviews

Review: The Homewreckers

The Homewreckers by Mary Kay Andrews
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

3.5 stars

I’ve never read MKA before. This was fun and engaging and I enjoyed reading it. It was a light read and I am not sure it will stay with me but I still liked reading it.

View all my reviews

Review: You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty

You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty by Akwaeke Emezi
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I love Emezi’s writing. This is not my favorite novel by them but I still love their writing and this unusual story of a woman who suffered a great loss and has three different romantic partners is no exception. Beautiful writing but not an interesting plot.

View all my reviews

Review: Notes on an Execution

Notes on an Execution by Danya Kukafka
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book was really quite depressing. But it was also really well done. This is the story of Ansel Packer who is about to be executed on death row for murdering multiple women. The story is told by him and several of the women from his life: his mom, his wife’s sister and the officer who caught him. It’s a layered and captivating story.

View all my reviews

Review: The Humans

The Humans by Matt Haig
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

i read about this in a book I was reading and I am so glad I decided to take a chance on it. It’s not what you think it will be and it’s also exactly what you think it will be. Matt Haig is such a wonderful writer, for me. I enjoy his books.

View all my reviews

Review: Something Wilder

Something Wilder by Christina Lauren
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

read this in one slurp. Christina Lauren is always so fun and this one is no exception. Funny and I loved the wilderness setting.

View all my reviews

Review: Adult Assembly Required

Adult Assembly Required by Abbi Waxman
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

2.5 stars

This was a hit and a miss for me. Some of it was nice but the characters never really stuck with me and so I lost interest in the story even as i was reading it.

View all my reviews

Review: Other Birds

Other Birds by Sarah Addison Allen
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved everything about this story of a set of neighbors who live in an apartment building on Mallow Island. They each have their own story of loss and sadness and things they are running away from and yet they find family and kindness and love with each other. This story of love and loss and magic is absolutely beautiful to read.

There is a little magical realism in this book, but I didn’t think it was too much. I loved the way it was weaved in and what it represented. A really beautiful story about a chosen family.

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

View all my reviews