Girl, Check Yo Shelf (2025)

11/02/2024

𝕓𝕠𝕠𝕜 𝕣𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕖𝕨…

𝓐 𝓒𝓸𝓾𝓻𝓽 𝓸𝓯 𝓕𝓻𝓸𝓼𝓽 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓢𝓽𝓪𝓻𝓵𝓲𝓰𝓱𝓽 by Sarah J. Maas

Published: June 2020 by Bloomsbury Publishing
Format: Paperback
Reviewed by🖤 Lauren
⭐️⭐️⭐️✨/5 stars

I think everyone is right; if you approach this for what it is, a filler book, the ACOTAR version of a Christmas special or an extended epilogue of sorts…. You won’t hate it. Despite my 3.5 rating I didn’t, hate it. Ultimately it was just a little ‘meh’ and for a book that’s so short, it could have been shorter?

So I’ll just throw my top and least favorite parts out there (since most people in the bookstagram world finished these all ages ago):

𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑰 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆𝒅:
🖤The personal rebuilding post war the characters were experiencing.

𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑰 𝒅𝒊𝒅𝒏’𝒕 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆:
✖️Can Rhys and Feyre stop saying ‘my mate’ after every sentence and longing look?

Spending this Sunday resetting my house taking to the kiddo to swim class and, oh yeah the Super Bowl (Taylor’s Version) vote for who you think is going to win! 🖤

02/02/2024

First Lie Wins

Ｂｏｏｋｒｅｖｉｅｗ

𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗟𝗶𝗲 𝗪𝗶𝗻𝘀 by Ashley Elston
Published: January 2, 2024 by
Reviewed by: Mel
Format: Audio via Libby

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀
The hype is real! This cat-and-mouse thriller was a rollercoaster ride from beginning to end. Evie is a likable unreliable narrator — from the very beginning, you feel like she is being transparent as a narrator, even though we know she’s up to no good.

I listened to the book on audio and very much enjoyed the narrator — but as far as the writing, I didn’t always completely follow what was going on — especially within the last 75% but I know there were a million twists and turns and a sneaky, accidental love story.

I really appreciated that, throughout the whole book, Evie was a strong independent woman — and it wasn’t a story about a jilted or abusive lover. A lot of cat and mouse stories are about a murder, ra**st, or jilted lover — but this had an aura of secret spy missions.

I really enjoyed it and definitvely found it to be a page turner that kept me guessing!

Have you read it yet?! What are your thoughts?!

29/01/2024

𝕓𝕠𝕠𝕜 𝕣𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕖𝕨…

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐆𝐨𝐥𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐒𝐩𝐨𝐨𝐧 𝐛𝐲 𝐉𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐚 𝐌𝐚𝐱𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐥

Published: March 2023 by Atria books
Format: Audiobook
Reviewed by🖤 Lauren
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 stars
(Melissa also rated this 5⭐️s)

𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑰 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆𝒅:
🖤This will always be my top answer for audiobooks… full cast. It makes it easier to follow and much more engaging.
🖤if you love British Bake-off or cooking competitions in general, this book is for you! I loved the concept of a cooking competition.
🖤mainly, I loved that this book wasn’t really predictable. It’s a fun, fast-paced ‘whodunt’.
🖤Melissa in her review describes it as immersive and I think that’s a pretty great descriptor of this book.

𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑰 𝒅𝒊𝒅𝒏’𝒕 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆:
✖️honestly, no notes. Was it absolutely perfect… probably not BUT as I sit here trying to think of a negative, I can’t.

Hope everyone had a great weekend and an even better start to your week 🖤

24/01/2024

Just like a strong cocktail, readers love strong plot, character development, and setting descriptions. These books are at the top of my 2024 menu 🍹✌🏻✨🙌🏻

✷ 𝗢𝗻𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗮 𝗠𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗮𝗹 by Kate Kennedy
An exploration of pop culture, nostalgia, the millennial zeitgeist, and the life lessons learned (for better and for worse) from coming of age as a member of a much-maligned generation.

✷ 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝗶𝘃𝗼𝗿𝗰𝗲𝗲𝘀 by Rowan Beaird
Set in the glamorous, dizzying world of 1950s Reno, The Divorcees is a riveting page-turner and a dazzling exploration of female friendship, desire, and freedom.

✷ 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗻𝘆 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 by Emily Henry
A shimmering, joyful new novel about a pair of opposites with the wrong thing in common.

✷ 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘀 𝗡𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹 by Ruth Reichl
A dazzling, heartfelt adventure through the food, art, and fashion scenes of 1980s Paris.

✷ 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗼𝗺-𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀 by Katherine Center
She’s rewriting his love story. But can she rewrite her own?

Which one are you most excited for? Tell us which one and why in the comments! 👇🏻

🩷 M

24/01/2024

Ｂｏｏｋｒｅｖｉｅｗ

𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴’𝘀 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗲 by Cecelia Rabess
Published: June 6, 2023 by
Reviewed by: Mel
Format: eARC [thank you and ]

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀
Ok. Hear me out — this book has a 3.58 average currently on Goodreads with over 200 1 ★ reviews BUT I want to argue that the people that HATED it went in with the mindset that this was a romance.

It. Is. Not. A. Romance.

**LOUDER FOR THE PEOPLE IN THE BACK**

ITS NOT A ROMANCE. It’s a commentary on political and social differences in the world right now and how it manifests in the workplace, friendships, romantic relationships, even family relationships.

I also have to point out that it pinpoints the heightened emotions that everyone felt during the 2016 election and the turning point of both political sides no longer working together. It depicts the division that erupted, and the excessive hate that became emboldened.

It was incredibly enjoyable and I felt emotionally invested in Jess and Josh’s relationship — until I wasn’t.

This one definitely surprised me! Definitely an anti-Valentine’s day relationship read 😂🩷🫶🏻✌🏻

09/01/2024

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗘𝗿𝗮𝘀 𝗧𝗼𝘂𝗿 starts up again in a few weeks — which means, back to reading and live streaming bad quality TikTok feeds 😝🤩

💬 Do you stream the shows live? If so, what’s your favorite part?!

Like, share, and save these memes like a cardigan under your bed!

07/01/2024

𝕓𝕠𝕠𝕜 𝕣𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕖𝕨…

𝑭𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒕𝒉 𝑾𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒃𝒚 𝑹𝒆𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒄𝒂 𝒀𝒂𝒓𝒓𝒐𝒔
Published: May 2023 by Entangled Publishing (Red Tower Books)
Format: Audiobook (L) & Hardcover (M)
Reviewed by 🖤 Lauren & Melissa
Both ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 stars

This is a post that requires no real explanation (although our fast takes are below). Clearly based on over 30 of my good reads friends reading this… we were late to the party.

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐝𝐢𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐡𝐨𝐩 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐰𝐚𝐠𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐨𝐨 𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞?
Let us know in the comments ⤵️ —, s, both quickly and smooth, whichboth of us (metaphorically for the audiobook LOL),— thrown in!

𝐋𝐀𝐔𝐑𝐄𝐍’𝐒 𝐓𝐀𝐊𝐄
I listened to this on audiobook and WOW was this narrator top tier. By far one of the best narrators to pull me into a book in a very long time. Even though I listened to this through , I need to snag this limited edition cover!
Start to finish this book was captivating. The story moved smoothly and made you want to keep turning the pages.

𝐌𝐄𝐋’𝐒 𝐓𝐀𝐊𝐄
I literally could not put this book down. Every free moment I had, I was lugging around this 600 page hardcover LOL! By the end, I couldn’t sit anymore, so I did alternate between physically reading and listening on audio and I can agree that the narrator was awesome! I 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐦𝐮𝐜𝐡 recommend listening to the ambiance playlist if you physically read the book! [linked in highlights!]

04/01/2024

Ｂｏｏｋｒｅｖｉｅｗ

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗛𝗲𝗶𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀 by Rachel Hawkins
Published: January 9, 2023 by
Reviewed by: Mel
Format: eARC [thank you and ]

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗲𝗻𝗷𝗼𝘆
✽ Domestic Thriller / Mystery
✽ Mansions & Old Money
✽ Characters you love to hate
✽ Twists and turns

𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀
This book was highly anticipated for me — I love all of Rachel Hawkins’ books — and it certainly did not disappoint! I can’t believe how early I got my hands on the ARC; I devoured it pretty quickly at the end of the Summer of 2023.

While it does have a bit of the same “recipe” as other thrillers, I enjoyed the setting of North Carolina — and the weaving of the characters and their stories. It was very interesting to me to have the story revolve around a “main character” (aka Ruby) who dies before the story even starts. It was incredibly entertaining to see how Hawkins retells the story through letters and — without giving away too much — the interactions between the rest of the characters.

I despised some of the characters for all of the right reasons - and enjoyed the others. While the backstory is a bit twisty-turny, it wasn’t hard to keep up with all of the connections.

I look forward to seeing what everyone else thinks on January 9th!

31/12/2023

𝕓𝕠𝕠𝕜 𝕣𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕖𝕨…

𝑳𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝑭𝒂𝒓𝒎𝒔 𝒃𝒚 𝑩.𝑲. 𝑩𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒐𝒏
Published: November 2021 by
Format: paperback
Reviewed by🖤 Lauren
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨/5 stars

This may end up being the last book I finish in 2023. (Although I’m hoping for an Iron Flame audiobook miracle!) I read 57 books out of my 50 book goal. Despite an almost two month reading drought.

𝑯𝒐𝒘 𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒃𝒐𝒐𝒌𝒔 𝒅𝒊𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒄𝒌 𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒚𝒆𝒂𝒓?
Let us know in the comments ⤵️

Now my review! This book is all over bookstagram with almost everyone adoring it. So. I’m not going to go crazy long with this one..

𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑰 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆𝒅:
🖤The whole story read smoothly, the plot was fun and fast paced and the characters are all very like able.
🖤The setting! You know, I’ve read a lot of Christmas themed books, but I think this is the first one that tackles a Christmas Tree Farm!

𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑰 𝒅𝒊𝒅𝒏’𝒕 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆:
✖️realllly couldn’t get into the main characters nickname “Lala”. I know that’s a weird reason to knock off half a star…. But every time we hit the steamier scenes and he whispered Lala I got pulled out of it.

Wishing you all a happy, safe and peaceful NYE and start to your 2024! 🖤

29/12/2023

This holiday week, I’ve had a serious urge to watch romcoms from the 80’s and 90’s — and I’ll be damned if I don’t force my husband to watch the ones he’s never seen! He finally watched Love Actually last weekend and enjoyed it.

💬 What’s your go-to classic?

🤩 If we make more memes, what theme would you like to see?

Have a wonderful rest of your Friday! ✨🫶🏻🩷🪩

19/12/2023

𝗪𝗛𝗔𝗧 𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗦 𝗪𝗘𝗘𝗞 — 𝗠𝗘𝗟 𝗘𝗗𝗜𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 ✨🩷

📚 — Physical Copy: Iron Flame, Kindle: Come & Get It, Audiobook: The Frozen River

🎶 — Christmas music! 🎄

🎥 — We went to AMC Theater’s Screen Unseen last week and saw “The Boys in the Boat” before it premieres! It’s a Christmas release and while I hadn’t heard too much about it, it’s a George Clooney film and it was wonderful! I really enjoyed it — definitely check it out if you want a cozy 1930’s feel good story for a Christmas movie night!

📺 — Watching Lessons in Chemistry and staying caught up on The Masked Singer of course! 🎤

💭 — I can’t believe it’s almost Christmas. This year has FLOWN by but I’ve also packed a LOT of stuff into one year. Travel, concerts, adventures with friends and with Jeff - it’s been so amazing! 🤩

What are you reading, watching, and listening to this week?! Share below!

07/12/2023

𝒲𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝐼’𝓂 𝓇𝑒𝒶𝒹𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓈 𝒟𝑒𝒸𝑒𝓂𝒷𝑒𝓇…

Okay, it’s been a minute. Lauren here! (Waves!) 🖤

Basically, I read Fourth Wing in October… and couldn’t pick up another book. Reading slumps have always come and go for me… but this has been my longest, for sure.

BUT the point of reading (and this account) is fun, escapism, and free time… so when I’m not feeling any of those things, I don’t force myself! I’ve never understood why people feel the need to apologize for being absent, because, 𝓵𝓲𝓯𝓮 𝓱𝓪𝓹𝓹𝓮𝓷𝓼 (and mine has been wildly insane the last two months)!

So this December my goal is one book. That’s it! Just one. I’ve had this one of my shelf for a few months and I’ve been excited to pick it up.

Looking back I cant believe how many incredible books I’ve read, how much joy and creativity this account has brought me, and how much I love I have for my book and life Bestie I get to do this with.

🖤

Final Note: since half this account is run by (me) who lives in Vegas. I want to send my love to everyone in this community who lives here and is connected to UNLV. Today’s active shooter is another countless reminder that something needs to change. I’m making a donation, as I often do, to . Stay safe, hug your loved ones, ban the guns.

01/12/2023

𝗠𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗙𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗵 𝗠𝘂𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗿 by Colleen Cambridge
Published: April 25, 2023 by
Reviewed by: Mel
Format: eARC [thank you and ]

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗲𝗻𝗷𝗼𝘆
✽ Cozy mysteries
✽ Julia Child and/or cooking
✽ Paris in the 1950’s
✽ A relateable/likeable female MC

𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀
While this book took a long time for me to get through, it wasn’t because the book dragged or I read it slowly — it was genuinely because October and November were very slow reading months for me and I was also reading a physical copy of Fourth Wing at the same time.

I absolutely adore Julia Child — her books, movies and shows like Julie & Julia as well as Julia on Max, I’ve grown up with her in my life. When I applied for this ARC, I wasn’t sure what to expect, especially because it can be difficult to write completely fictional stories with very famous characters being portrayed.

I love what the author did to tell this story - she cold have easily created a French main character, but it was so much more impactful to have an American character with French roots who also spent time doing physical work for the war effort - it created a wonderful foundation for the strong friendship that develops between Tabitha and Julia.

This was incredibly cozy and comforting - I just wish I had a fireplace to curl up next to while I was reading it! ✨

[Thank you to and for the gifted ARC — I know I’m a bit but so happy I picked it up!!]

23/11/2023

𝐇𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐲 𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤𝐬𝐠𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 🦃✨🫶🏻

We are so thankful for each and every one of you and this Bookstagram community! We hope you have a wonderful, relaxing time with family friends — and all the Turkey and pie!

💬 what are you thankful for this holiday season?

19/11/2023

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗪𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗔𝗽𝗽 by Carolyn Mackler
Published: June 27, 2023 by
Reviewed by: Mel
Format: Paperback ARC and eARC [thank you and ]

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗲𝗻𝗷𝗼𝘆
✽ Female empowerment
✽ Women supporting women
✽ Shark Tank / Entrepreneurs

𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀
I didn’t really know what to expect going into this one, but I have to say, it hit me just right and I absolutely adored it. I loved the female empowerment and friendships between these ladies.

All of the women in this book are very relatable and all three have very different situations and relationships with the fathers of their children. All three are in NYC but all live very different lives even though they are very close friends. I was nervous that the concept of the book would come off as silly or ridiculous — but it ended up being incredibly believable and immersive — I actually wish this app was real!

It focuses a lot on the idea of mental load, which has been a buzzword for a few years now and thankfully more people are talking about the burden that a lot of wives and mothers feel having to carry this mental load of keeping everyone’s lives together.

This book was creative, heartwarming, fun, and written well — I definitely recommend picking this up if you want something fun and light to read over the holidays!

[✨Gifted ARC by for the program. Thank you , , and for both the paperback and the kindle ARCs!]

🩷M

15/11/2023

✨𝐏𝐢𝐱𝐚𝐫 𝐓𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐝✨

How cute are we as Pixar characters?! Granted - it keeps trying to give me freckles and give Lauren either a hot coffee or a Starbucks cup lol! Since Lauren and I are both Disney Adults, this was incredibly fun and I will probably keep making more!

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💬 what do you think? Do you think they look like us?!

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If you end up doing this too, let us know, we’d love to see yours! 🫶🏻

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08/11/2023

October was an incredibly slow month of reading for me and I can definitely say it was because of my trip to ᏋᏬᏒᎧᎮᏋ for two weeks!

My husband and I traveled from 𝗦𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟮𝟯 to 𝗢𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟴 and I’ve been in somewhat of a reading slump since.

I did, however finish 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝗙𝗼𝘅 on this adventure and it gets ☆☆☆☆☆ from me! It was a wild adventure and I found myself literally laughing out loud! If you haven’t read it yet - definitely add it to your TBR!

As for my journey, we traveled across a huge portion of Europe and ended in Spain for a beautiful wedding between two of our close friends. 🚆🛩️

𝙳𝚞𝚋𝚕𝚒𝚗 > 𝙰𝚖𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚍𝚊𝚖 > 𝙱𝚛𝚞𝚜𝚜𝚎𝚕𝚜 > 𝙿𝚊𝚛𝚒𝚜 > 𝙱𝚊𝚛𝚌𝚎𝚕𝚘𝚗𝚊 > 𝙼𝚊𝚍𝚛𝚒𝚍 > 𝙼á𝚕𝚊𝚐𝚊 > 𝙻𝚒𝚜𝚋𝚘𝚗

If you want more photos, I’ll be posting more travel reels and photos over at over the next few weeks! ✨

What’s your favorite travel destination?!

🩷 𝗠

30/10/2023

꯱ׁׅ֒℘ᨵׁׅᨵׁׅƙׁׅ֑ᨮ꫶ׁׅ֮ ꯱ׁׅ֒ꫀׁׅܻɑׁׅ֮꯱ׁׅ֒ᨵׁׅꪀׁׅ may be short but my love of thrillers and horror lasts all year long! 👻 🎃 🕷️ ✨

Between my trip to Europe and other amazing happenings in October, I’ve had a pretty quiet reading month but these three are definitely on my TBR for the end of the year!

𝗙𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗪𝗶𝗻𝗴 - the bar has been set high, it’s at the top of my TBR now!
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𝗗𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 - I love American Horror Story so I definitely need to read this before I start watching the current season!
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𝗛𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗼𝗿𝘀𝘁ö𝗿 - I mean, c’mon, the concept is just amazing!

Have you read any of these? I feel like everyone has read Fourth Wing already but I’m also really excited about the other two!

What’s at the top of your TBR for November? Are you hanging into Spooky Season like me or moving on to Christmas?!

🩷 M

27/10/2023

🏙️🗽𝕋𝕙𝕚𝕤 𝕚𝕤 𝕘𝕠𝕟𝕟𝕒 𝕥𝕒𝕜𝕖 𝕞𝕖 𝕕𝕠𝕨𝕟…

They have the cages they have the boxes… but Taylor Alison Swift officially reclaimed 1989 (TV) and it will transport you right to Wonderland and Out of the Woods.

When 1989 toured, I was able to see her live in DC and Miami. My surprise guests were Lorde in DC and Dwayne Wade, Ricky Martin AND Pitbull in Miami. It was truly my Wildest Dream. (Melissa saw 1989 at Gillette Stadium, her surprise guest was Walk The Moon!)

If you need me I’ll be listening to this on repeat while the currents sweep me out again.
🖤Lauren

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐎𝐆 𝟏𝟗𝟖𝟗 𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐠? 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐯𝐚𝐮𝐥𝐭 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠? Let us know in the comments ⤵️

P.S. swipe to see some great IPhone photos from 2015…

17/10/2023

𝔻𝕠𝕦𝕓𝕝𝕖 𝕓𝕠𝕠𝕜 𝕣𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕖𝕨…

𝐇𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐚 𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐬 𝐲𝐞𝐭? Let us know in the comments ⤵️

My first two reads were both 4 stars! Here is a mini review of both:

𝓣𝓱𝓮 𝓛𝓸𝓷𝓭𝓸𝓷 𝓢é𝓪𝓷𝓬𝓮 𝓢𝓸𝓬𝓲𝓮𝓽𝔂… by Sarah Penner
Published: March 2023 by Park Row Original
Format: Hardcover/Audiobook
Reviewed by: 🖤Lauren
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 stars

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱:
🖤I felt like the plot development was easier to follow and more linear compared to Penner’s last work (Lost Apothecary)
🖤LGBTQ+ friendly
🖤audiobook has two narrators which is always a plus for me
🖤Love all books that involve strong female leads taking down the patriarchy

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻’𝘁 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲:
✖️although I liked the characters in the book I think they could have had more growth and development. They all sort of felt the same throughout which did make it a little slower to read.

𝓣𝓱𝓮 𝓗𝓪𝓾𝓷𝓽𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓸𝓯 𝓜𝓪𝓭𝓭𝔂 𝓒𝓵𝓪𝓻𝓮… by Simone St. James
Published: October 2022 by Berkley
Format: Paperback
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 stars

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱:
🖤I like that this has a little bit of everything: thriller, ghost haunting, romance, murder mystery… all of these tropes played in well together
🖤The ending was done perfectly. With some slow burn plot lines I feel like the end can feel rushed. Around page 160 this book did a great job of wrapping up the plot in a detailed way through the rest of the book. I never had that “wait that’s it” moment.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻’𝘁 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲:
✖️this book took a LOT of pages to finally get into it. The first 150 pages, although kept my interest, were a slowwwww burn.

12/10/2023

𝔹𝕠𝕠𝕜 𝕣𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕖𝕨…

𝓜𝓪𝔂𝓫𝓮 𝓲𝓷 𝓐𝓷𝓸𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓻 𝓛𝓲𝓯𝓮 by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Published: July 2015 by Washington Square Press
Format: Paperback
Reviewed by: 🖤Lauren
⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 stars

𝐇𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐚𝐧 𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫’s 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭? I’ve mainly read older books by Kristin Hannah once I fell in love with her. Let us know in the comments ⤵️

I did this as a buddy read with my friend and I think we were both a little underwhelmed. I personally have loved recent TJR books and decided to go back and read some of her older works.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱:
🖤I loved the concept of this book. The concept of if we make a choice what would have happened had we went a different direction. I don’t know if I’ve read anything else like this.
🖤The short chapters made it easy to follow the two alternating storylines - something I think a lot of other authors wouldn’t have gotten right.
🖤I enjoyed the friendship between Hannah and Gabby, I feel like it was well-developed in both timelines.
🖤Even in the end if I didn’t give this book 5 stars, I do love TJRs writing style and find her ability to keep you turning the pages excellent, even with a book you don’t love.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻’𝘁 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲:
✖️DEAR GOD how is it possible a book can mention cinnamon buns on every other page. I’m not even being dramatic. I would love a word count on how much cinnamon buns were talked about.
✖️Though I loved the idea of the if/then choice timeline, for the most part it fell a little flat and in the end wasn’t executed well.
✖️I’m sorry…. Did Hannah walk through the streets of LA BAREFOOT and then immediately get into bed? Gaggggg. Gross. Omfg no. Actual cringe.

08/10/2023

𝔹𝕠𝕠𝕜 𝕣𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕖𝕨…

𝓝𝓸𝓷𝓮 𝓞𝓯 𝓣𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓘𝓼 𝓣𝓻𝓾𝓮 by Lisa Jewell
Published: August 2023 by
Format: Audiobook
Reviewed by: 🖤Lauren
⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 stars
(Melissa rated this 4⭐️s)

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐨 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫? I feel like I’ve been in a good thriller drought! ⤵️

𝑫𝒊𝒔𝒄𝒍𝒂𝒊𝒎𝒆𝒓: I was so hyped for this book after some amazing reviews on bookstagram. But ultimately, I felt a little underwhelmed. Because it’s a thriller and because most of my “meh” or “oh come on” moments happened at the end, my review is short to avoid spoilers.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱:
🖤Full cast audiobooks. Truthfully, any audiobook that has at least 2 narrators will likely boost it a star. I find it much easier to follow along with the story and character development when there are 2+ narrators.
🖤The initial concept of “birthday twins” I thought would be an interesting story line. I feel like we’ve all at some point wondered about the people we share a birthday with and the paths life has taken them
🖤I enjoyed the podcast angle and it sounded great in the audiobook.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻’𝘁 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲:
✖️Josie’s husband was a pe*****le. When Josie’s mother later says that her 15 year old daughter tricked a 45 year old man into being with her. No. I’m sorry. Absolutely not. She was groomed. A 15 year old has mashed potato brain. This point absolutely dropped a star for me. Almost 2.
✖️I didn’t find the end twist to be that shocking? I think Im marking this as a negative because everyone was saying this book has twists that will blow your mind until the very last page. Again “meh?”

Ultimately I think this book was good, but didn’t live up to the crazy hype I was seeing (at least for me!) But if you’re looking for a thriller to cruise through I think this would be good, especially on audiobook.

04/10/2023

𝔹𝕠𝕠𝕜 𝕣𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕖𝕨…

Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult & Jennifer Finney Boylan
Published: October 2022
Format: Hardcover
Reviewed by: 🖤Lauren
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨/5 stars

𝐇𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐉𝐨𝐝𝐢 𝐏𝐢𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐭 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞? I admit this may be my first! Let us know in the comments ⤵️

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱:
🖤absolutely beautiful and engaging writing. I was drawn in to the storyline immediately. I went in blind, this was recommended by my friend ! I trust her opinion so much I just dove right in!
🖤all of the bee facts. Wow. I actually was stunned at how interesting I found all these. Also how well they were written into the plot.
🖤 I love a court room drama that I finish and don’t HATE how a defense attorney is portrayed. I often read books where it’s clear the author has never spoken to a criminal defense attorney a day in their life.
🖤I loved all of the inclusivity and topics that the book touched on. We need more books like this. Books that talk about the struggle and torment transgender youth go through, that their families go through… the struggle for individuals to get out of domestically abusive relationships, the difficulty that comes with starting over.
🖤this is another great book to bring you out of a reading slump.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻’𝘁 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲:
✖️Some of the Lily and Asher flashback dating stories felt a little long and ,once we hit the trial, unnecessary. I found myself skimming quickly through the ice rink date.

30/09/2023

𝔹𝕠𝕠𝕜 𝕣𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕖𝕨…

𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑼𝒏𝒉𝒐𝒏𝒆𝒚𝒎𝒐𝒐𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒔 by Christina Lauren
Published: May 2019 by
Format: Paperback
Reviewed by: 🖤Lauren
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 stars

If I see “Christina Lauren” on a book, I will buy it. Their books never disappoint. 𝐃𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐚 𝐟𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐚 𝐋𝐚𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐧 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤? Let us know in the comments ⤵️

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱:
🖤this book was a beautiful combination of romance and funny. I love when a romcom really connects those two things well.
🖤I just adore a good enemies to lovers trope. They never disappoint and the tension buildup is always the BEST.
🖤It’s a great book to bring you out of a reading slump.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻’𝘁 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲:
✖️as much as I love the enemies to l lovers trope, I need the initial miscommunication (if there is going to be one) to be a little stronger.
✖️Olive’s sister having nearly her entire wedding paid for by winning various contests (literally everything) felt just too far fetched for me.

P.S. I packed this book to read while traveling through Virginia for a sweet friend’s wedding. We stopped at and in Charlottesville and it was amazing with the most stunning views.

26/09/2023

𝕕𝕠𝕦𝕓𝕝𝕖 𝕒𝕦𝕕𝕚𝕠𝕓𝕠𝕠𝕜 𝕣𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕖𝕨…

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐎𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐋𝐞𝐟𝐭 by Riley Sager
Published: September 2019
Format: Audiobook
Reviewed by🖤 Lauren
⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 stars

𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑰 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆𝒅:
🖤The ending. I found the end twists and red herrings to be interesting. I don't feel like the book actively misled me, when the final "AHA" moment is revealed. After the book was finished I could look back on the story and say "oh that makes sense" instead of the twist being completely out of left field.
𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑰 𝒅𝒊𝒅𝒏'𝒕 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆:
✖️The constant repetitiveness. Sager has a tendency to retell a flashback story and give one small morsel of change each time. It got to be incredibly annoying and I ultimately didn't care about any of the Kit storylines retelling her past.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐮𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐇𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞 by Ann Patchett
Published: June 2023
Format: Audiobook
Reviewed by 🖤Lauren
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑰 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆𝒅:
🖤Ann Patchett's writing is beautiful and just feels very unmatched. She can weave a story with ease that makes you not only feel like you're there but you could be friends with the characters or even experience what they're experiencing. Maeve and Danny felt relatable and I enjoyed the flow through time and seeing how they changed through different seasons of life.
𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑰 𝒅𝒊𝒅𝒏'𝒕 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆:
✖️Oddly enough, what drew me to this audiobook as I was searching through Libby, was that Tom Hanks was the narrator. Although, in the end I very much enjoyed him narrating it, it took me about 10 percent of the book to get used to Tom Hanks narrating young Danny.

Longer reviews linked in stories!

𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒂𝒗𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝒂𝒖𝒅𝒊𝒐𝒃𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒚𝒆𝒂𝒓?
Let us know in the comments ⤵️

21/09/2023

𝔹𝕠𝕠𝕜 𝕣𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕖𝕨…

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐏𝐨𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐰𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐁𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 by Barbara Kingsolver
Published: September 1998
Format: Paperback/Audiobook
Reviewed by 🖤Lauren
⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

I am a big fan of historical fiction, although I admit, I have mainly read WWII-based historical fiction. It happened a little organically... I read one... felt incredibly invested and kept going. So a goal lately has been to try more books that are historical fiction that don't revolve around WWII.

Ultimately, I liked this book. It is long, dense, and the writing is slow. I don't think I would have been able to finish it if I was only reading the paperback. It helped to download the audio while I was driving and cleaning the house.

𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑰 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆𝒅:
🖤If at the end of a historical fiction, I want to go and learn more about that event, or dig up a documentary on that time period... then I know the book did its job. I found the theme of the Congo and colonialism being fascinating and different from pretty much any book I've read.
🖤Kingsolver's writing is almost lyrical. The book is written beautifully and that comes across both listening to the audiobook and reading the physical copy.
🖤I enjoyed the different perspectives from each daughter at different ages, and how this move effected them as a family and independently.

𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑰 𝒅𝒊𝒅𝒏'𝒕 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆:
✖️It was just far too long. The first three "books" dragged. It was at that point I started doing this as a dual audio/physical book to push through.
✖️I didn't like that we had everyone's perspectives in the Price family except the father. We heard from all of the children and mother, at that point you have so many characters. What was one more?

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐡𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧? (bonus points if it's not WWII based!) Let us know in the comments.⤵️

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