I read this knowing it was going to be a sweet, fun and quick story and it was exactly that. What i needed and when I needed it. I am looking forward to reading the others in the series, too. Love the strong women and the kind men and loved having a character that was hard of hearing.
Even though this story was short, I took forever to read it. Pieces of it were beautiful and pieces of it felt melodramatic. I still appreciated reading the immigration story and the slightly different take with the siblings growing up in different countries as a result.
I knew the beginning was going to actually be slow as opposed to what the blurb says so I patiently made my way through it and then I was hooked and wanted to know what was going to happen. When it was time to sleep, I read in the dark on my phone so as to not wake my husband. I kept reading and reading because I wanted to know what happened next. It felt compulsive.
And then the book turned for me. Suddenly I could guess all the twists, one after the other.
At that point, I am not sure it mattered because I basically finished the whole thing in a blur. I really enjoyed the ride this book gave me and I could see the whole thing becoming a movie.
with gratitude to Celadon Books and netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
I think I’m going to have to reread this story. I loved the writing and I loved the small bits of insights the author shared along the way. This is a very short book and there’s a lot packed in there. I loved the way it was quiet on the surface, and much less so underneath. I will have to sit with this one for a while.
“I’d like to know if God gives us points for showing up or simply marks us present.”
I can listen to Anne Lamott read me her books every single day. It doesn’t even matter what she’s writing about because there’s so much wisdom is her very ordinary days because she is the one who makes things extraordinary. Her wisdom, her insight, her way of looking at life always makes me feel less alone in the world.
Thankful for authors like her and thankful that she keeps writing.
This book was a fast read and there’s a lot going on. It’s the classic things-aren’t-what-they-seem mystery and while it was satisfying, because of the way the author wrote it, there was a lot of telling and considerably less showing. So it felt like i was outside of the story, listening to someone tell me the plot. I still enjoyed my time with it.
‘Santi shakes his head. “Thora, no. If love was something we had to deserve, we would all be loveless. No, love is what the world owes us.” He gives her an apologetic smile. “Sometimes, it doesn’t pay up, that’s all.”’
I really loved the time I spent with this story. I’ve read a lot of books and have seen many characters and a lot of plot lines. I don’t think I’ve ever read anything like this. It’s part romance and part science fiction and I had no idea where it was going but while I was trying to figure that out, I fell in love with the characters along the way.
“There’s no wrong choice,” Santi says. “There’s just what happens.”
And then once I knew what was going on, and my mind was blown, I loved it even more. I just wanted to keep going. And there were crazy twists upon twists but none of them mattered to me because these two characters already had my heart.
“I didn’t understand until you put it that way. But do you realize, this is what I’ve wanted my entire life? My entire lives. A way to go back. To see how it would be if I did things differently.” She shakes her head in wonder. “I’ve always been so scared of choosing wrong. Now, I don’t have just one choice. I can live every life I want to. Explore every version of who I can be.” He speaks carefully. “You can’t control everything that happens to you.”
And then the heart-wrenching ending came and I was shattered and full of joy and full of awe at this crazy, weird, unusual book that managed to take my heart, fill it, break it, rebuild it and just make me feel full with awe and wonder. What a book.
“Yes,” he says, fire in his voice. “Thora, yes. It’s not one choice. It’s a hundred choices, every single day, and all of them matter.” He holds her gaze steadily as he says, “I learned that from you.”
with gratitude to William Morrow and edelweiss for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review
I enjoyed this story of four women who find themselves in a competition to host a cooking radio show. Four very different women for very different reasons whose lives get intertwined and they all emerge stronger and better as a result.
You really can’t go wrong with a Christina Lauren book, if you ask me. The characters are always fun and the plot keeps you engaged, takes you through a journey and always lands in a happy place.
This story is no exception. I had a soft spot in my heart for River and really enjoyed reading about Jess and Fizzy and their friendship.
When I grab one of their books, I know it will keep me engaged and entertained and leave me content by the end and that’s exactly what happened.
with gratitude to netgalley and Gallery Books for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
The Best Part of this Week: The best part of this week was having a 3 (maybe 4-) day weekend.
I celebrate: taking a little downtime
I am grateful for: a conversation i had with a friend at work that helped put my mind at ease
This week, I exercised: I climbed 3 times a week, rode thrice, did 10 mins of core and 10 mins of arms 4 days a week. And did 30 mins of yoga and 40 mins of stretching and 10 mins of cardio.
This week, I said yes to: hosting a social.
I said no to: doing overtime.
I honored my values (love, learn, peace, service, gratitude): things are still touch and go here but I am working on leaning into love and peace way over anything else.
Top Goals Review: did not get that much done this week :/
Work: did not write up the 3 for L and 3 for D. did not finish coaching assessment. did not prep for reviews.
Personal: did not really get back to drawing and journaling.
Family: did not take walks with J. did one thing with N and did not do one thing with D. did not book vacation for April.
My mood this week was: i’ve still been anxious but i am working on it actively and some days are definitely better than others.
I am proud of: all the exercise i am trying to do. i wish i could say the same about the nutrition too.
I release: i’ve been in my head a lot this week, about work, about my body, about my trip. on and on. i’d like to release all of it.
Here’s what I learned this week: that i might be okay after all.
