Tag: reading

Best Books I Read in May (2021)

In May, I read 29 books, bringing my total for the year to 107 books. I actually DNFed nine other books, which is an usually high number for me. However, I also read some fantastic books in May. Actually, it’s too hard to narrow it down to three, so I’m going to go over a bit.

The Funny Thing About Norman Foreman, by Julietta Henderson. This started off a little bit slow, but it ended up being so, so good! Norman is an awesome character, and I loved his mom and her struggles, too.

New Girl in Little Cove, by Damhnait Monaghan. I was enchanted with this from the very beginning. The setting is just as much a character as any of the actual people in this story, and it was so vividly described I could almost see it.

The Summer Seekers, by Sarah Morgan. I loved all three main characters of this and couldn’t put it down!

The Girl in His Shadow, by Audrey Blake. This historical set when women in England couldn’t practice medicine was engrossing—and mildly infuriating—but so good.

Lady Sunshine, by Amy Mason Doan (review forthcoming). I ended up being completely sucked into this novel from the very beginning. It was so unexpected, yet so riveting and I couldn’t wait to find out what happened.

Blog Tour: The Summer of No Attachments, by Lori Foster

Image belongs to Harlequin/HQN.

Title:  The Summer of No Attachments
Author:  Lori Foster
Genre:  Romance
Rating:  DNF

Summer flings with no strings mean nobody gets hurt.

At least, that was the plan…

After putting the brakes on her dead-end relationship, local veterinarian Ivey Anders is ready to soak up this summer on her own terms. The way she sees it, no dating means no disappointment. Why complicate life with anything long-term? But when she meets Corbin Meyer—and his troubled young son, Justin—Ivey’s no-strings strategy threatens to unravel before she can put it into practice.

Trust doesn’t come easy for Ivey’s best friend, Hope Mage, a veterinary-clinic assistant who’s affected by an incident that’s colored every relationship she’s had. Though Hope’s happy for Ivey, she can’t quite open her own heart to the possibility of love. Not just yet… Maybe not ever. Soon, however, she’s faced with a dilemma—Corbin’s older brother, Lang. He’s charming, he’s kind…and he may just be the reason Hope needs to finally tear down her walls.

And as the sweet summer months unspool, the two friends discover love won’t give up on them so easily.

I read about 25% of this before DNFing it. I found the characters low-key annoying, especially Ivey’s dramatics. If I wouldn’t want to hang around these people at all, what’s the point of reading about them? The dog and her elderly cat were almost enough to keep me reading, but in the end, I decided it wasn’t worth it.

Lori Foster is a bestselling author. The Summer of No Attachments is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Harlequin/HQN in exchange for an honest review.)

What I Read in May (2021)

Books Read in May: 29

Books Read for the Year:  107/250

Topical Books/Monthly Goal Books:

A Wicked Conceit, by Anna Lee Huber (TBR). Another great entry in this series!

How to Eat Your Bible, by Nate Pickowicz (spiritual).

A Court of Mist and Fury, by Sarah J. Maas (TBR, re-read). Okay, I’m really mad I never read more than the first book in this series before. Enthralling.

Brother Odd, by Dean Koontz (re-read). I’m so glad I decided to re-read these (and read the latter ones, that I haven’t read.). Odd Thomas is such a great character.

A Sorrow Fierce and Falling, by Jessica Cluess (TBR). I enjoyed this conclusion to the trilogy.

For Review:

The Funny Thing About Norman Foreman, by Julietta Henderson. This started off a bit slow, but I’ so glad I kept reading! This ended up being a wonderful read with quirky, relatable characters I’d cheerfully read more about.

New Girl in Little Cove, by Damhnait Monaghan. Another lovely read! The setting is as much a character as anyone else, and, as long as I kept in mind the when (the 80s), I didn’t roll my eyes at the Madonna references. Much.

Confessions from the Quilting Circle, by Maisey Yates. Nope. This is the last book by this author I’m reading. Her characters are just unlikable to me, whiny and entitled and they ruin any possible chance of me liking the story.

The Woman with the Blue Star, by Pam Jenoff. This was an interesting read. Not a happy read, though. I can’t imagine surviving a war by living in a sewer.

The Clover Girls, by Viola Shipman. I enjoyed this, although the 80s flashbacks really brought back some memories (Sort of. I was pretty young in the 80s.).

The Summer Seekers, by Sarah Morgan. I loved this read! It was just so much fun, and all three main characters were relatable and I couldn’t wait to find out what happened with each of them. Made me want to take a road trip—and I don’t even like road trips!

Isabelle and Alexander, by Rebecca Anderson. This ended up being such a sweet read, with a bit of a Jane Austen feel to it.

Counting Down With You, by Tashie Bhuiyan. I enjoyed this, but the male lead was way too good to be true for a 16-year-old boy.

Ariadne, by Jennifer Saint. I generally love novels that bring mythology to life, but this was just depressing.

The Girl in His Shadow, by Audrey Blake. I really enjoyed this historical read about a young lady with a gift for medicine…when it was illegal for women to practice medicine.

Talk Bookish to Me, by Kate Bromley. This was a fun, snarky read, even if the male lead was a hard no for me.

The Newcomer, by Mary Kay Andrews. I honestly didn’t care for this much. The retirees were pretty much nosy, rude busybodies, the “romance” was superficial at best, and I just didn’t really care about the characters.

Rising Danger, by Jerusha Agen. This was a decent exes-who-don’t-like-each-other romance with the threat of bombs added in.

The Last Thing He Told Me, by Laura Dave. This didn’t end up being what I expected at all. Solid read.

The Secrets We Left Behind, by Soraya M. Lane. I thought this was sad, but it was a good read.

The Summer of Lost and Found, by Mary Alice Monroe. I probably won’t read any more of this author again. I’m not a huge fan of the characters, among other things.

Dead Sprint, by Caroline Fardig. I’ve been looking forward to reading this 3rd novel in a the series, and it did not disappoint!

You Will Remember Me, by Hannah Mary McKinnon. Frankly, I feel like the author did not deliver on the promises made to the reader, and I will not read anything of hers again. No mystery at all about who the bad guy was, on top of the lack of delivery thing.

Legends of the North Cascades, by Jonathan Evison (review forthcoming). This was kind of a “meh” read for me. Excellent writing, but I was left wondering what the point was.

The Stepsisters, by Susan Mallery (review forthcoming). I finished reading this, but, of the three sisters, I couldn’t stand one of them, only sort of liked another, and mostly liked the third.

Lady Sunshine, by Amy Mason Doan (review forthcoming). I really loved this! It was a very unexpected, engrossing read!

The Warsaw Orphan, by Kelly Rimmer (review forthcoming). This was a solid, albeit sometimes sad, read.

Just Because:

Draw the Circle, by Mark Batterson.

Grace is Greater, by Kyle Idleman. I love this author’s voice: he makes heavy topics relatable.

Left Unfinished:

Hurricane Summer, by Asha Bromfield. I was really looking forward to reading this, and I made it about 30% through, but in the end, the patois slowed down the flow so much that I just didn’t care anymore.

A Summer to Remember, by Erika Montgomery. I made it about 15% of the way through this, then realized I hadn’t made a connection with the characters and I didn’t care what happened to them.

A Good Mother, by Lara Bazelon. I didn’t make it very far int his. The MC was just…not a likable person to me.

The Rooftop Party, by Ellen Meister. I only read about 15% of this before stopping. Dana comes across as vapid and self-absorbed, and the other characters were about the same, so I just couldn’t continue reading. And…if Dana is supposedly so smart and savvy, would she really have left a drink beside a guy who creeped her out and then returned for it a few minutes later and drank it? Really?

Local Woman Missing, by Mary Kubica. I read about 20% of this before giving up. The writing was solid, but the style just wasn’t for me. I found the switches between timelines and points-of-view to be clunky and confusing, and I just didn’t feel a connection to any of the characters.

The Photographer, by Mary Dixie Carter. The voice of this just wasn’t for me.

The Whitby Murders, by J. R. Ellis. I made it about 20% before DNFing this one. I just didn’t feel a connection with the characters, so while the premise was cool—a locked room murder in a panic room setting—I just couldn’t get into it.

The Summer of No Attachments, by Lori Foster. I read about 25% of this, but the characters basically got on my nerves.

Canaryville, by Charlie Newton. The first 10% of this felt like a bad cop movie and I just couldn’t do it.

Book Review and Blog Tour: You Will Remember Me, by Hannah Mary McKinnon

Image belongs to Harlequin/MIRA.

Title:  You Will Remember Me
Author:  Hannah Mary McKinnon
Genre:  Mystery/thriller
Rating:  3.5 out of 5

Forget the truth.

Remember the lies.

He wakes up on a deserted beach in Maryland with a gash on his head and wearing only swim trunks. He can’t remember who he is. Everything—his identity, his life, his loved ones—has been replaced by a dizzying fog of uncertainty. But returning to his Maine hometown in search of the truth uncovers more questions than answers.

Lily Reid thinks she knows her boyfriend, Jack. Until he goes missing one night, and her frantic search reveals that he’s been lying to her since they met, desperate to escape a dark past he’d purposely left behind.

Maya Scott has been trying to find her estranged stepbrother, Asher, since he disappeared without a trace. Having him back, missing memory and all, feels like a miracle. But with a mutual history full of devastating secrets, how far will Maya go to ensure she alone takes them to the grave?

I feel like it’s usually kind of pointless to read a mystery or thriller where you already know who the culprit is. That being said, I never had much doubt who, exactly, was the bad guy in this story. With the multiple POVs in this story, there wasn’t much hidden about that—and sometimes the author was pretty heavy-handed about it as well.

I also feel like an author makes certain promises to the reader with the setup of a novel, and, frankly, I felt like the author broke those promises with the ending. That may just be me, but I doubt I’ll ever read anything from this author again.

Hannah Mary McKinnon was born in the UK and lives in Canada. You Will Remember Me is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Harlequin/MIRA in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: Dead Sprint, by Caroline Fardig

Image belongs to the author.

Title:  Dead Sprint
Author:  Caroline Fardig
Genre:  Thriller
Rating:  4.5 out of 5

Criminalist Ellie Matthews has turned over a new leaf. For the first time in her life, she’s working on herself and putting the past behind her with the encouragement of the new man she’s seeing, FBI Agent Vic Manetti.

Her first attempt at competitive running is cut short when a woman is found dead along the trail. At first, the case seems to be open and shut. But when a gruesome photo of the victim goes viral, tagged with a chilling caption threatening more violence, Ellie must delve into the mind of a deranged killer to get to the truth.

Though Ellie’s relationship with Detective Nick Baxter has been strained to its breaking point, the two find themselves teaming up once again in a race to bring down the killer before he takes another life.

I really like this series, and I was excited to read this third installment. Ellie is an interesting, flawed character, and it was good to see her working on herself and trying to overcome her issues (those chocolate binges were so relatable).

I’m not the biggest fan of Vic. I think he’s arrogant and condescending, if basically a nice guy, and my opinion didn’t change any with this read. I always enjoy a thriller when I don’t figure out the culprit halfway through the book, and I never did figure this one out, making it even more enjoyable. The banter with Nick, as always, was my favorite part.

Caroline Fardig is a bestselling author. Dead Sprint is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of the author in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: The Summer of Lost and Found, by Mary Alice Monroe

Image belongs to Gallery Books.

Title:  The Summer of Lost and Found
Author:  Mary Alice Monroe
Genre:  Women’s fiction
Rating:  3.5 out of 5

The coming of Spring usually means renewal, but for Linnea Rutledge, Spring 2020 threatens stagnation. Linnea faces another layoff, this time from the aquarium she adores. For her—and her family—finances, emotions, and health teeter at the brink. To complicate matters, her new love interest, Gordon, struggles to return to the Isle of Palms from England. Meanwhile, her old flame, John, turns up from California and is quarantining next door. She tries to ignore him, but when he sends her plaintive notes in the form of paper airplanes, old sparks ignite. When Gordon at last reaches the island, Linnea wonders—is it possible to love two men at the same time?

Love in the time of coronavirus proves challenging, at times humorous, and ever changing. Relationships are redefined, friendships made and broken, and marriages tested. As the weeks turn to months, and another sea turtle season comes to a close, Linnea and the Rutledge family continue to face their challenges with the strength, faith, and commitment that has inspired readers for decades.

I’m thinking this wasn’t a good fit for me. I enjoyed the previous book in this series and the discussion of the environmental issues, but this one, the characters just came across as self-absorbed and superficial. Linnea has a lot of angst, but not much action. The blurb emphasizes finances “teetering on the brink” but that wasn’t a thing:  despite Linnea (and her roommate) not having a job or savings, they never seemed to be concerned about money. This book just wasn’t believable to me.

Mary Alice Monroe is a bestselling author. The Summer of Lost and Found is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Gallery Books in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: The Secrets We Left Behind, by Soraya M. Lane

Image belongs to Lake Union Publishing.

Title:  The Secrets We Left Behind
Author:  Soraya M. Lane
Genre:  Historical Fiction
Rating:  4 out of 5

Occupied France, 1940. When the staff at a field hospital draw straws to find out who will join the evacuation from Dunkirk, Nurse Cate is left behind. But when the Nazis arrive to claim prisoners of war, she takes her chance and flees into the night, taking one patient with her.

Fifty miles away, the surrendering soldiers of the Royal Norfolk Regiment are shot dead by the advancing Germans. Beneath the pile of bodies two men survive, crawling to the safety of a nearby farmhouse, where sisters Elise and Adelaide risk their lives to take them in. When Cate, too, arrives at their door with her injured soldier, the pressure mounts.

The sisters are risking everything to keep their visitors safe. But with the Nazis coming ever closer and relationships in the farmhouse intensifying, they must all question the sacrifices they are willing to make for the lives of others. How far will they go for family, friendship, and love?

I enjoyed this read! I liked the characters a lot, and they were realistic and people to root for. Except maybe Adelaide, who I kind of wanted to smack in the back of the head. I was never sure how this was going to turn out, so it wasn’t predictable to me, and the writing was excellent, with a setting that I enjoyed reading more about.

Soraya M. Lane lives in New Zealand. The Secrets We Left Behind is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Lake Union Publishing in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: The Last Thing He Told Me, by Laura Dave

Image belongs to Simon & Schuster.

Title:  The Last Thing He Told Me
Author: Laura Dave
Genre:  Mystery/Thriller
Rating:  4 out of 5

We all have stories we never tell.

Before Owen Michaels disappears, he manages to smuggle a note to his beloved wife of one year: Protect her.

Despite her confusion and fear, Hannah Hall knows exactly to whom the note refers: Owen’s sixteen-year-old daughter, Bailey. Bailey, who lost her mother tragically as a child. Bailey, who wants absolutely nothing to do with her new stepmother.

As Hannah’s increasingly desperate calls to Owen go unanswered; as the FBI arrests Owen’s boss; as a US Marshal and FBI agents arrive at her Sausalito home unannounced, Hannah quickly realizes her husband isn’t who he said he was. And that Bailey just may hold the key to figuring out Owen’s true identity—and why he really disappeared.

Hannah and Bailey set out to discover the truth, together. But as they start putting together the pieces of Owen’s past, they soon realize they are also building a new future. One neither Hannah nor Bailey could have anticipated.

This was an interesting read. Hannah’s job as a woodturner was quirky and one I’d never read about, so I was fascinated by that part of it. I had no opinion through most of the book on if Owen were guilty or not, but the reason he ran wasn’t what I expected at all. I enjoyed the not-knowing and was invested in the characters and what was happening, so this was a solid, engrossing read.

Laura Dave is a bestselling author. The Last Thing He Told Me is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Simon & Schuster in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: Rising Danger, by Jerusha Agen

Image belongs to Harlequin/Love Inspired.

Title:  Rising Danger
Author:  Jerusha Agen
Genre:  Mystery/thriller
Rating:  4 out of 5

Someone’s planting explosives on dams in the Twin Cities, and Bristol Bachmann and her bomb-sniffing dog must move quickly to find them before everything ends up underwater. That means relying on the dams’ supervisor—an ex-boyfriend Bristol never thought she’d see again. Hopefully Remington Jones has grown up from the rakish charmer she knew in her academy days. Because lives now depend entirely on them…

It’s an environmental terrorist who wants the dams gone, and his bid to set the waters free has lethal consequences. When he sees Bristol and her K-9 working to stop him, he sets his sights on them. Can they evade him in a lethal game of cat and mouse and protect the cities from devastating destruction before the clock runs out?

This is definitely a story of redemption and hope. Bristol and Remington were different people when they knew each other before, so there are some surprises as they get to know each other all over again. The dogs, or course, are my favorite part. I’m fascinated by working dogs like this, and I enjoyed this read.

Jerusha Agen has a B.A. in English and a background in screenwriting. Rising Danger is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Harlequin/Love Inspired in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: The Newcomer, by Mary Kay Andrews

Image belongs to St. Martin’s Press.

Title:  The Newcomer
Author:  Mary Kay Andrews
Genre:  Mystery/thriller
Rating:  3.8 out of 4

After she discovers her sister Tanya dead on the floor of her fashionable New York City townhouse, Letty Carnahan is certain she knows who did it: Tanya’s ex; sleazy real estate entrepreneur Evan Wingfield. Even in the grip of grief and panic Letty heeds her late sister’s warnings: “If anything bad happens to me—it’s Evan. Promise me you’ll take Maya and run. Promise me.”

With a trunkful of emotional baggage…

So Letty grabs her sister’s Mercedes and hits the road with her wailing four-year-old niece Maya. Letty is determined to out-run Evan and the law, but run to where? Tanya, a woman with a past shrouded in secrets, left behind a “go-bag” of cash and a big honking diamond ring—but only one clue: a faded magazine story about a sleepy mom-and-pop motel in a Florida beach town with the improbable name of Treasure Island. She sheds her old life and checks into an uncertain future at The Murmuring Surf Motel.

The No Vacancy sign is flashing & the sharks are circling…

And that’s the good news. Because The Surf, as the regulars call it, is the winter home of a close-knit flock of retirees and snowbirds who regard this odd-duck newcomer with suspicion and down-right hostility. As Letty settles into the motel’s former storage room, she tries to heal Maya’s heartache and unravel the key to her sister’s shady past, all while dodging the attention of the owner’s dangerously attractive son Joe, who just happens to be a local police detective. Can Letty find romance as well as a room at the inn—or will Joe betray her secrets and put her behind bars? With danger closing in, it’s a race to find the truth and right the wrongs of the past.

I’m kind of on the fence about this novel. I almost DNFed at about 15% but decided to continue on. The cover makes it look like a rom com, but it’s definitely not. The “romance” is lackluster at best, and there was never much question of who actually murdered Tanya—who was a pretty horrible person herself. The retirees at the motel are almost universally cranky busybodies with nothing to set them apart from each other, and Letty basically lets life happen to her instead of taking action herself. Perhaps this was just a case of the book not being a good fit for me, but I’d say it’s solidly so-so.

Mary Kay Andres is a bestselling author. The Newcomer is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)