I had this book on my TBR and in my Audible library for reasons I had already forgotten by the time I decided to read this book, but I’m really glad past me thought to add it to my library. Who knew I had a fascination (read: hyper fixation) on British Exploration? This book was incredibly fascinating. I was on the edge of my seat during the entire listen. I was also terrified to ever go into the jungles of the Amazon until I Googled and learned most of the jungles Percy Fawcett explored are now gone. Which is pretty depressing. If you like a good exploration tale, this book is for you.
For my library’s reading challenge this year, I needed to read a book by James Patterson, and I honestly wasn’t looking forward to it. However, I then remembered I had this book on my Kindle, and then I was excited. I have read many books about The Beatles, I have even read Cynthia Lennon’s memoir, so nothing in this book was new information. However, the way it was presented was new. I really enjoyed the way Patterson (and his co-writers) laid out this story. The prose was easy to read, and the book read like a suspense novel. If you have an interest in Lennon, but don’t want to delve into a denser biography, this is a good start.
I read this as an ARC, and you can find my review here.
This book was hilarious and heartbreaking all at the same time. A woman dies, in a pretty hilarious way, and in her afterlife, she meets who she thinks is going to be her great love. Only, he was sent by mistake and is returned to earth. The woman is then given ten days to get him to kiss her and then she can have a second chance at life. What ensues is a lot of hilarious antics, and a lot about learning to live life to its fullest. This was a fun and easy read. And I couldn’t put it down. Warning: It did make me cry several times, but that may not be news to you, since if you know me IRL, you know that I cry at most romance novels.
This was recommended to me on Kindle Unlimited, and I thought, “Why not?” This was a cute and funny, easy read in a month where I read a lot of nonfiction books. I thought the premise was really cute, and I enjoyed the characters a lot. Nothing seemed too over the top about it. I am a sucker for “forced proximity” tropes. The only thing this one was missing was “there’s only one bed.” If you want a fun romance novel about two neighbors becoming roommates unexpectedly, then this is the book for you!
Nerdy forty-somethings falling in love? Yes. Please! This book was something I didn’t know I needed. I think I saw it on X shared by the author, and I bought it. I finally got around to reading it, and I couldn’t put it down. Grumpy Sunshine novel where the girl is the grumpy? Also, yes. I devoured this book. It was hilarious. They play an online game together and he thinks she’s eighty and she thinks he’s twenty. Hilarity ensues, and also so much love. Highly recommend this, especially if you’re tired of romance novels being about people in their twenties.
I listened to this book, which apparently means I read a completely different book that what was printed. This was a pick for my mom group book club, and half of us read it with our eyes and half of us read it with our ears. Those of us who listened to the audiobook (which is SIXTEEN HOURS by the way) had a much more positive opinion of the book than those who read the physical copy. I thought the book was hilarious, and interesting. Listening to the book was like having Leslie right in the car with me as she told me all these stories of her life. Warning: she cusses a lot, but if you follow her at all, you already know that.
This book was amazing. A reimagining of the Narnia idea, but for adults, this book follows two boys who were lost in the woods as teens and came back changed. Now that they’re adults, they want to return to the land they found happiness as children. This book is full of magic and love and found family, and it made me cry like a little baby. If you liked Meg Shaffer’s debut, The Wishing Game, you’ll love this one. I think I liked it better than the first one, and that’s saying a lot since I really liked the first one.
The only thing I really knew Kelly Bishop from was The Gilmore Girls, but when I saw she had a memoir, I jumped at the chance to read it. I’m so glad I did. Did you know she originated one of the roles in A Chorus Line and the character she portrayed was semi-autobiographical? I sure didn’t! She is very outspoken and I fell in love with her through this book. I also cried. But, if you’ve made it this far in this post, you’ll notice I dod that a lot with books. She loved her role on Gilmore Girls and I think that made me happy. This is the second memoir of someone on the show I’ve read, and I’ve listened to Scott Patterson’s podcast. Knowing that the experience was beloved by the cast makes me love the show even more. It may be time for a rewatch…
Picked for my book club as a replacement for a book we couldn’t find at the library, I was really excited to read this book. I love Jeopardy. My husband and I watch and sometimes we keep score of the questions we get correct and compare our scores. (He’s really good at Jeopardy and often wins.) I really liked the way this memoir was written. Short chapters, lots of photos. I especially loved that reading this memoir didn’t tarnish Alex for me. Sometimes I read a memoir and realize that the person I’m reading about is a worse person than I thought. Not Alex. He’s every bit the person you would expect.
This. Book. Easily in the top five books I’ve read this year, Eleanore of Avignon tells the story of a young midwife in 1348 Avignon, which is when the Plague arrived for the first time, decimating the population. Told through the point of view of a fictional character, but surrounded by historical figures, this book beautifully tells the story of life in the Medieval Papal States. It talks about the lives of women, the Jews, and how life in the city worked. When the plague hits, the descriptions about the toll it takes on the population will haunt you. If you’re a fan of feminist historical fiction, this is the book for you.
I love this series, and I was looking forward to this addition. However, there was something missing from this one that made me love all of the others. I think it felt rushed. It was a lot shorter than I expected. I think if there were about fifty more pages, and the love story was stretched out just a little longer, this book would have been amazing. That being said, I still really enjoyed this book, and I laughed and cried along with the characters.
So, reading a memoir about a Christo Fascist Misogynistic Cult after this past election certainly was a choice I made, however, I loved One Tree Hill, and Haley was my favorite character, and I needed to read this. Highly recommend the audio, she has people come in and read their words. What Lenz experienced in her ten years in a cult was genuinely terrifying. I had to stop listening and give myself a break at times, especially near the end when she was trying to get her and her daughter out. Even if you weren’t a One Tree hill fan, I recommend reading ti. It’s a good read. She’s a great writer.
I read an ARC of this book, and you can find the review here.
Stephanie Caffrey, Author 