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Romance
Latest Book Reviews
4
Open communication (mostly), baseball, a man who wants to worship his woman, and references to other sports romances 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘈𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘊𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘍𝘦𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 is everything we love about summer romances. Thompson creates complicated, inwardly reflecting main characters, instantly drawing me into their relationship. The side plots are minor, yet I never felt I needed more. Her writing has such a range, covering both severe subject matter and fun music and movie references with the same ease.
In an adorable meet-cute, Daphne, a woman who knows nothing about baseball, has one too many IPAs at a baseball game and heckles a handsome third baseman, making him cry. In her DM attempt to apologize, she accidentally deletes the paragraph about being his heckler, and things snowball.
At first, I struggled with Daphne’s inability to admit her mistake, yet I ultimately sympathized with her. Her insecurities felt valid, and I loved seeing Chris try to get through her walls. I adored Chris. He is down bad for Daphne, trying to play consistently, all while trying to forget his trauma. It is an excellent depiction of how mental health impacts physical health. You could see the conflict in their relationship coming, and I appreciated that both did some self-reflection before reconciling.
This is a true sports romance with actual sports covered: the plays, the practices, the emotions at the end of the loss, the nitty-gritty of being a fan and player, and I ate it up. It was a great depiction and, despite my lack of baseball knowledge, enjoyed all the references. I prefer my sports romances to accurately reference the sport, which felt in the right ballpark.
This book has a 𝘗𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘴 reference, which is an extra spot of joy. Grab yourself some crackerjacks (do they even serve those in stadiums?).. and curl up with this book!
Romance, Young Adult
Latest Book Reviews
4.5
mmediately charming and humorous with a warm narration and a fast-moving plot, 𝘔𝘺 𝘓𝘢𝘥𝘺 𝘑𝘢𝘯𝘦 is an imaginative re-telling of the events surrounding King Edward VI’s death, Lady Jane Grey’s brief rise to the throne, and the end of Mary Tudor’s reign. Ya’ll, when I say I am obsessed with the Tudors, I am not exaggerating; I was Elizabeth I for Halloween in fifth grade (nerdy bookworm from the start). I inhaled both Reign and The Tudors when the shows ran and have repeated the Six Peloton ride multiple times. Somehow, I didn’t even realize the new Amazon Prime show was based on a book until @booksmartkate posted her review. I must read a book before viewing the adaptation, so I immediately grabbed this from the library. I swear this is a review and not just me talking about myself…
This novel is delightful. The narration by Kellgren is top-notch, with unique accents for each character that keep you wrapped up in the story. Told through three points of view (Lady Jane, Edward, and Jane’s husband Guilford), we follow our characters through the eventful summer of 1553. I loved the twist of making the Catholic vs Protestant persecutions into those who are Eðian, who can turn into animals, and those who cannot the Verities. There was the same tension and animosity without delving into religion.
While I am very familiar with actual history, I was wrapped up in this version and rooting for the character’s happiness from the start. I love when an audiobook lets you escape and I was traipsing all over the English countryside with my new friends in my mind. The authors’ humor was effortless, and the changing POV made the chapters accessible to manage. While this is very YA and closed-door kissing only, you couldn’t help but root for the arranged marriage subplot to blossom into a real romance. The magic/ fantasy was easily understood and incorporated into the actual historical events.
I have not watched the show, so I cannot comment on the similarities, but I am thrilled I read this charming book!
Romance
Latest Book Reviews
4.5
A sweeping, sensual, second-chance romance, Forget Me Not gripped from the first word to the end! Sometimes romance is an escape, and I loved being caught up in this grumpy florist, Elliot, meets romantic in denial wedding planner Ama.
Julie Soto is one of my favorite author discoveries of the year. Soto’s writing is fast-paced, detailed, and with just enough complexity to make the plot seem remarkably realistic. This was told through a dual point of view, with Ama describing the present while Elliot took the past. I loved this approach and felt it worked well as we began seeing the flaws and their original relationship. The slow intertwining of their professional and personal relationships and realizing that perhaps they wouldn’t work as a couple was surprising yet easy to accept.
The pinning on this book was next level. Every interaction between them just felt incredibly charged, and I loved witnessing acquaintances to lovers and then from exes to friends to more throughout the book. I adored the idea of the wedding planner falling for the florist. The way their conflict was apparent from the beginning and how they both fought it. The selflessness by Elliot as Ama, a woman who used to doing everything by herself, had to rely on someone else (I am a sucker for a caregiver). The tattoos and his reasoning behind them- major swoon. There was just so much to enjoy.
I loved the setting of the wedding industry. Something about how Ama wanted to know her clients had me fully wrapped up in the outcome of the big influencer x small-town girl wedding planned by Ama. I got married six years ago and loved working with our florist and wedding planner. I also hope it is not totally obnoxious that I included some of my wedding florals in this post.
Julie Soto is an incredible talent, and I cannot tell you how much I loved 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘔𝘦 𝘕𝘰𝘵 and her upcoming release 𝘕𝘰𝘵 𝘈𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘓𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘚𝘰𝘯𝘨 (July 16 in the US, out in the UK!). I would recommend reading both, and I enjoyed seeing the characters overlap. I was absolutely enamored with this book!
General Fiction, Thriller/ Horror
Latest Book Reviews
4.5
At the surface level, this appears to be a time travel novel where those from the past, known as expats, have a bridge “or escort” to help assimilate to the twenty-first century. From the perspective of one such bridge, we follow the challenges of teaching hundreds of years of history and cultural norms and get some funny banter about modern life. However, at a deeper level, Bradley mixes time travel and critiques of colonialism and immigration with romance and wit to make 𝘔𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘛𝘪𝘮𝘦 a fast-paced, genre-bending read.
Government secrecy, questions on morality, a look at ingrained bigotry, a lot happens, and at times, I had trouble keeping things straight. While I think the author intentionally left some details up to the reader’s interpretation, I would have enjoyed a little more explanation surrounding the climax. That said, I enjoyed the warm yet demanding nature of the writing. Incorporating old phrases was a fun yet challenging hurdle for my dictionary skills. The perspective was unique, with the narrator intermittently breaking the fourth wall and almost encouraging the reader to focus on specific details. It worked well.
𝘔𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘛𝘪𝘮𝘦 made me think deeply, a positive sign. I admired the way Bradley confronted colonialism, gender roles, sexual liberation, and even the internet with remarkable honesty. I especially enjoyed mulling over how one person’s actions can have ramifications on the futures of hundreds. The vibe reminds me of 𝘊𝘭𝘰𝘶𝘥 𝘊𝘶𝘤𝘬𝘰𝘰 𝘓𝘢𝘯𝘥 in that I was both blown away but also felt I was missing pieces as I was reading? Not sure if that makes sense. I loved both books!
After finishing , I re-read the book’s first chapter, and I think this novel would be perfect for a book club. If you have read it, I have some theories.
Overall, I inhaled this! The narrator, the social commentary, the mention of 17th—and 19th-century customs—it all felt well written and, in the end, came together in a completely unexpected way!
Young Adult
Latest Book Reviews
4
Born intersex but raised male, Alyx feels she was denied the opportunity to live life as a woman despite her knowing she is a girl. After the death of her father and relentless bullying culminating in a physical attack, Alyx and her mother move to Wisconsin for a do-over. Alyx begins to live life as a female, makes the varsity girls’ basketball team, and experiences joy while discovering sometimes it is really hard to hide your past.
I enjoyed the basketball team dynamics and the incorporation of the basketball season into the novel. I loved that the coach and the team (mostly) supported Alyx even when she could not articulate her feelings. Despite being written ten years ago, many aspects of the book felt relevant to today’s difficulties for LGBTQ+ kids handling locker rooms and sports teams. The writing allowed basketball to be incorporated as a character, and the season and team dynamics moved the plot along. Through her writing, Birdsall affirmed that being intersex is not something to hide and there is joy in letting others really see you.
There was lots of teen angst, and Birdsall did an excellent job capturing all the insecurities and self-doubt accompanying being a teenage girl because Alyx is after all just a girl. I wish we saw more of Alyx’s relationship with her mom, I felt there something missing there. Alyx shut down quickly, was a poor communicator, and was suffering from PTSD. I wanted her mental health to be acknowledged a bit more, especially in a coming-of-age novel.
While I enjoyed the book, I was surprised there was not a CW about physical violence and ongoing bullying ( maybe that was not a thing ten years ago)
I felt the ending was rushed, and while we saw the end of the basketball season, we did not get a ton of resolution about how Alyx navigates her friendships and romantic interests. While it is not exactly my favorite book I have read this year, I do think it would work well for any sports-loving teen who feels they don’t quite belong.
Romance
Latest Book Reviews
4.5
A travel nurse who is afraid to commit to a town/place/person slides into Reddit(!!) DMs of a sunshine man facing life-changing circumstances. Man and woman discover they suffer from the same “curse” where all their exes meet true love. Add sophisticated side plots, pre and post-date surveys, and lots of anticipation, and you might just be able to comprehend how fantastic this book is. I was invested in how this unlikely pair would come together from the second I met Emma and Justi 𝘑𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘍𝘰𝘳 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘳 was my fourth Abby Jimenez read of the year, and I can confidently state she has an incredible ability to intertwine swoon, heartbreak, intricate secondary characters, and relationship obstacles into captivating stories that will make you laugh, cry, and kick your feet with joy.
The conclusion to Part of Your World Series, JFTS, felt like the heaviest book of the three. There were multiple reasons why this relationship would not work, despite the apparent connection between Justin and Emma. Emma’s relationship with her mom is heartbreaking, and I felt for her best friend, Maddy, who had spent years trying to get Emma to deal with her trauma. While I found it hard to connect with Emma, I loved her openness with Justin and enjoyed seeing her begin to recognize how not dealing with her past impacted her present. From her grappling with wanting Justin to whether she can handle his baggage, the plot is full of messy, emotional, heart-wrenching moments.
If you like swooning over caring men with a fantastic support network, Justin is the man for you! He has such grace, and his determination to love Emma is heartwarming. There is a soup moment here (IYKYK)! Jiminez made his flaws his circumstances rather than a personality trait, and I just wanted to reach out and hug him.
I refuse to get over the depth, warmth, and complicated relationships Jimenez crafts in each of her books. This was no exception, and one book that deserves all the hype.