karenikareadsalot

Winter's Mourn by Mary Stone My rating: 3 of 5 stars 3.5 stars. this series is new to me and i discovered it from an email recommendation. i liked the main character and the pacing, will keep reading them! View all my reviews

Good People by Patmeena Sabit My rating: 4 of 5 stars What an unusual way to tell a story. This was a very thought-provoking story. Even though in its root I don't think the story was really novel, the way the author told the story was really compelling and kept me interested. I did have to give up worrying about keeping track since that was really hard in the beginning. Totally worth the read and would make a great discussion. View all my reviews

The Top of the World by Ethan Joella My rating: 5 of 5 stars Ethan Joella writes the exact kind of stories that I love to read. His stories are character-driven, quiet and deep. I always end up falling in love with his characters and thinking about them well after I'm done with the book because they are so real and so well developed. This is the story of Maggie and Chip who work at the same hotel for a summer a year apart. Maggie's brother Chip has since died from cancer and she's trying to learn about Chip and how he spent his last summer. The chapters alternate between Maggie and Chip at the same place, a year apart. It's wonderful, life-affirming and exactly the type of stories I want to be reading right now. Thank you Ethan Joella for making life more beautiful with your stories. with gratitude to netgalley and Scribner for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. View all my reviews

The Midnight Train by Matt Haig My rating: 4 of 5 stars The thing with Matt Haig is that he knows how to weave a story that gets to the heart of the matter and knows how to remind us what actually matters. In this story of Wilbur getting to visit the major moments of his life after he passes away, he (and we) gets to see where he made the wrong choices that lead to outcome of a life he wasn't happy with in the end. A reminder that we can say what we value but unless we actively choose what we value and make those choices intentional, what we say doesn't matter. And next thing we know, we've lost the thing we value the most and end up with a life we didn't actually want. Alas. For those of us who are still living, it's not too late to change the choices we make. with gratitude to Viking and netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review View all my reviews

It Should Have Been You by Andrea Mara My rating: 3 of 5 stars 3.5 stars i liked this one, it's a bit of a different story in that it shows you how something seemingly inconsequential can cause unexpected amounts of harm View all my reviews

What Happened to Nina? by Dervla McTiernan My rating: 3 of 5 stars 3.5 stars interesting story where it's less about who did it but more about the impact on the two families. View all my reviews