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When She Was Good by Michael Robotham My rating: 5 of 5 stars Even better than the previous one because we finally get to see what happened to Evie! View all my reviews

Good Girl, Bad Girl by Michael Robotham My rating: 5 of 5 stars I had never heard of this series but I swallowed both of the books in one shot. I cannot wait for the third. Fantastic character development. Well written and interesting. Highly recommended. View all my reviews

A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers My rating: 5 of 5 stars "You’re an animal, Sibling Dex. You are not separate or other. You’re an animal. And animals have no purpose. Nothing has a purpose. The world simply is. If you want to do things that are meaningful to others, fine! Good! So do I! But if I wanted to crawl into a cave and watch stalagmites with Frostfrog for the remainder of my days, that would also be both fine and good. You keep asking why your work is not enough, and I don’t know how to answer that, because it is enough to exist in the world and marvel at it. You don’t need to justify that, or earn it. You are allowed to just live. That is all most animals do.” What a gem of a book! It's unlike anything I've read before. I don't even know how to describe it. I'd read that this book felt like a hug and it really does. “We don’t have to fall into the same category to be of equal value.” I had a hard time getting...

Lonely Castle in the Mirror by Mizuki Tsujimura My rating: 5 of 5 stars Something drew me to this book and I wanted to read it the moment I saw the cover and read the blurb. This is the story of seven children who find their mirror shining one day and can go through the mirror to a castle where a "wolf girl" tells them that they can visit this place until the beginning of the next school year (which is march in Japan) between the hours of 9-5 every day. They are looking for a key and then a wishing room. Only one wish will come true but that one wish will absolutely come true. Each of these kids is not going to school. They are all struggling in their own ways. The story is told from the perspective of Kokoro who has been bullied and has quit going to school as a result. The story is poignant, beautiful, unpredictable and so very full of love. I did not put it down once I started reading it and I will continue to think about it for a long t...

Seven Days in June by Tia Williams My rating: 4 of 5 stars Beautiful story of a young love who get to meet each other again after many years. There's so much explored here about art, being black, love, motherhood and more. Beautiful writing. View all my reviews

And Yet: Poems by Kate Baer My rating: 5 of 5 stars Kate Baer's poems aren't subtle. They aren't for the weak of heart. This collection has many poems about motherhood and each poem is beautiful, raw, and makes you feel more and more seen. I am grateful for Baer's voice and art. with gratitude to Harper Perennial and netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. View all my reviews

Someone Else's Bucket List by Amy Matthews My rating: 5 of 5 stars “You never really have someone,” the speaking pixels said, “not forever. You just get them for a little while, if you’re lucky. And you never know how long you have them for.” I loved this little gem of a book. This is the story of Jodie who loses her beloved sister to leukemia way too young. Her sister is a major instagram influencer and has lived life to the fullest. She's loved by everyone and is sweet and kind. After she dies, she sends a video to her sister asking her to finish the remaining items left in her life list. Varying from "fly over Antarctica" to "be an extra in a broadway musical." Jodie, unlike her sister, is shy and does not like to be in the center of attention. But if she completes the list, a corporate sponsor will pay off all of the debts her family accrued. The debts are breaking her family and Jodie can't in good conscience, ref...

A Flicker in the Dark by Stacy Willingham My rating: 4 of 5 stars Fast, interesting, twisty thriller. Some predictable parts and some surprises. I enjoyed reading this. View all my reviews

The Every by Dave Eggers My rating: 0 of 5 stars I tried and tried but couldn't get myself to finish this book. Yes there are funny bits and yes I love Eggers' writing but honestly, I just can't get myself to read another 700 pages about big tech and how evil it is, even with all the jokes. So little character development means my attention wavers and I have no attachment to the story. Since I DNF'ed this even though I was 65% through, I am not rating it. View all my reviews

Tiny Buddha's Inner Strength Journal: Creative Prompts and Challenges to Help You Get Through Anything by Lori Deschene My rating: 5 of 5 stars If you're a fan of Tiny Buddha, this journal will be a lovely addition to your collection. This journal explores how to build your inner strength through different methods, here's an example of one set of subsections: - Assessing your strengths and weaknesses - Developing a growth mindset - Changing your interpretations - Keeping things in perspective - Changing your perception of change - Releasing disempowering beliefs - Focusing on solutions Each of them gets their own section. Each section starts with a resonant quote and a drawing that could be colored and then continues with thoughtful prompts and exercises. There are also many other sections including compassion, empathy, fostering optimism, etc. I really loved the variety of prompts and the insights they bring forth. A wonderful way to enc...

Maame by Jessica George My rating: 5 of 5 stars "When people are ill to the point of no return to full health, to the person they used to be, some don’t have the stomach to stick around. We don’t appreciate being reminded of our own body’s weaknesses, our lack of control and inevitable mortality." This is the story of Maddie who's been spending her twenties taking care of her dad who has Parkinson's while her mom is helping with the family business in Ghana and her brother is living his own life instead of helping out. When her mom comes back for a year, Maddie finally moves out and starts living the life she's been missing out on. I fell in love with Maddie's voice almost immediately. She's struggling yes, and there are cases where she makes choices that absolutely drive you mad and there are situations that make you so sad for her but you also know she's resilient and strong and you can't help but root for her....

The Guest Lecture by Martin Riker My rating: 2 of 5 stars This entire book takes place overnight while Abigail is trying to prepare for a lecture she's scheduled to give the next day and is struggling with both the lecture and insomnia. The entire book feels like a stream of consciousness where we get to hear bits of her economic thesis and thoughts on Keynes and his thoughts on the future using different rooms in her house as a memory technique intermeshed with stories of her own life including her career and family. No matter how hard I tried, I could not connect to the character and I could not care for her ongoing saga. I felt like much of the book was one long sentence and I understand how it might have been done to give the feeling of how one might function with insomnia but it made the book quite unreadable for me. with gratitude to edelweiss and grove press for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review View all my rev...

Small World by Laura Zigman My rating: 4 of 5 stars “Isn’t everyone’s true purpose to love and be loved? To be in service to and to take care of those who need us most?” This is a story about two sisters, Joyce and Lydia, who are both going through a divorce and Lydia has moved back from California (where she's been for a long time) into Joyce's apartment in Boston. The sisters are living together for the first time since they were kids. “Do you have a sister, Erin?” She shakes her head. “My point exactly. This is what sisters do. We mess with each other, make each other jealous, punish each other for reasons we don’t even understand.” The book goes back and forth between the present moment and their experiences growing up where they had a third sister who was disabled and died at the age of ten. Their sister took up all of their mom's energy the book covers a lot of the impact this had on each of the women (kids.) “I’ll never forget how ...

The Art of the Travel Journal: Chronicle Your Life with Drawing, Painting, Lettering, and Mixed Media - Document Your Adventures, Wherever They Take You by Abbey Sy My rating: 4 of 5 stars I follow Abbey Sy on instagram and I've always loved having a peek at her travel journals. This book is a great starter book for anyone who wants to explore travel journaling. It outlines everything you need to get started and to explore. From what materials to use to how to do your layouts and what type of stories to tell. How to incorporate ephemera. It also has a few howtos: how to make your own washi tape sampler, ephemera envelopes, and watercolor tin, etc. It's a lovely and inspiring book. If you've wanted to dabble into travel journaling and didn't know where to start, it is sure to inspire you. with gratitude to Quarto Publishing Group and netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. View all my reviews

When We Were Friends by Holly Bourne My rating: 3 of 5 stars "Wondering if his love would ever be something I took for granted, rather than treating it like a finite resource I was scared of squandering too quickly." Ok I am going to be in the minority on this one. This is the story of Fern and Jessica who were inseparable best friends for five years during their teenage years before they had a falling out. They haven't talked to each other in ten years when Jessica shows up in Fern's life. The book then alternates between telling their story now and telling their story from back then so we can see what caused the falling out. I know many people loved this book and I sat with it for quite some time after I finished it to pinpoint what bothered me about it. Here's what it came down to for me: when Bourne is telling us about their friendship as teenagers, she keeps saying how they were best friends but as a reader, I didn't se...

Happily Ever After & Everything In Between by Debbie Tung My rating: 5 of 5 stars Another winner from Debbie Tung! loved this one about marriage and laughed out loud at several of them. Can't wait to read more of her beautiful and insightful work. View all my reviews

Quiet Girl in a Noisy World: An Introvert's Story by Debbie Tung My rating: 5 of 5 stars Yep fell into a Debbie Tung hole and I decided I needed to read all of her books. I loved and related to this one so very much. View all my reviews

Book Love by Debbie Tung My rating: 5 of 5 stars I absolutely love Debbie Tung and her awesome writing and beautiful illustrations. For a book lover, this was the perfect book to read. View all my reviews

Fresh Water for Flowers by Valérie Perrin My rating: 4 of 5 stars 4.5 stars A beautiful beautiful story about loss and grief and family. I really loved the characters and I loved the beautiful writing. I thought at parts it was longer than it needed to be but overall I highly recommend this story. View all my reviews

Everything Is OK by Debbie Tung My rating: 5 of 5 stars I had never heard of Debbie Tung but I have a lot of depression and anxiety around me right now and I thought this might be timely. It was an absolutely beautiful book of illustrations and beautiful, thoughtful journey that the author took for her mental wellbeing. It's thoughtful, honest and I now want to read all of her books! with gratitude to edelweiss and Simon & Schuster for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. View all my reviews

The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston My rating: 3 of 5 stars 3.5 stars sweet story with cute little twist. I liked it and read it in one fell swoop. If romance is your thing, you'll enjoy this one. View all my reviews

Vacationland by Meg Mitchell Moore My rating: 4 of 5 stars I really enjoy Meg Mitchell Moore's stories. I like her characters, I like the way the books make me feel and I like getting to know the worlds and people she creates. This one was no exception. View all my reviews

The Appeal by Janice Hallett My rating: 3 of 5 stars 3.5 stars this was an interesting book, a tough one to listen to in audio with the large number of characters and large number of permutations of what might have happened that the two detectives discuss. I still liked my time with it and enjoyed reading it. View all my reviews

A Shoe Story by Jane L. Rosen My rating: 4 of 5 stars this was a pleasant surprise. with it being called shoe story, i thought it was going to be super fluffy but it was delightful. View all my reviews

Metropolis by B.A. Shapiro My rating: 4 of 5 stars Loved this book of characters who are all interconnected through a storage depot in Boston. It was relatively light but still fun and enjoyable. Read it quickly and it kept my interest the whole time. View all my reviews

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin My rating: 5 of 5 stars I loved this book. I know many thought it was too long and it was too much about video games. I didn't. I am not a huge gamer but I did know most of the games mentioned in the book and I am a programmer so that part didn't scare me. But this book wasn't about that in the end. It was about the deeply layered, flawed, interesting, and complex characters and how they changed each others lives. I loved every one of them and I could not stop listening to it once I started. It did not feel long to me at all. Loved it. View all my reviews

Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner My rating: 3 of 5 stars This book took me forever to read. I started it at least ten times. It felt too depressing each time so I put it down. After months, I finally picked it as my book club pick so I would make my way through the book. Even then, it took me days to finish. I can't put my finger on exactly why this book didn't have as profound as effect on me as it seems to have on many others. The writing was totally fine and I did love the food and all the evocative scenes. But I think in the end, it felt like the story was about grief, yes, but not about growth. Not about what she learned. Such it made it an interesting and very sad story but harder for me to relate to it and make it my own. Still I am glad I read it and grateful for more stories of grief out in the world. View all my reviews

The Long Answer by Anna Hogeland My rating: 4 of 5 stars I really enjoyed this quiet but textured book with stories around infertility, family, sisterhood, and how we and our stories help each other. View all my reviews

Kaleidoscope by Cecily Wong My rating: 4 of 5 stars Heartfelt and beautiful book about family, sisterhood, loss and love. I enjoyed this story and recommend it. View all my reviews

I Let You Go by Clare Mackintosh My rating: 2 of 5 stars Ok I know I am in the minority but I disliked this book. I found the characters stupid and despicable and I really felt awful by the time I was done reading it. I gave it two stars because I did keep reading it and some of the twists were interesting but I was of course able to guess the biggest ones and honestly, I was so unhappy by the end that I am sorry I read this book. View all my reviews

Naughts & Crosses by Malorie Blackman My rating: 2 of 5 stars 2.5 stars I am in the minority on this one or maybe I've read too many dystopian YA books by now that this was not interesting, not different or unique in any way except for the small twist of switching skin colors which was clever and interesting but not enough to make the book worthwhile for me. It might be the audio which I thought was terrible. View all my reviews

After You'd Gone by Maggie O'Farrell My rating: 4 of 5 stars 4.5 stars Maggie O'Farrell is such a wonderful writer and this, her first novel, is no exception. This is the story of Alice who takes the train to visit her sisters and while there sees something so shocking that she has to turn around and go right back home and then walks into traffic and ends up in a coma. The novel unwinds in bits and pieces from there and shows us Alice and her family members, each with their own stories and bits and pieces of life until it all comes together. This is a rich, multi-layered story with wonderful characters. Highly recommended. View all my reviews

The Picture of Dorian Gray [Penguin Twentieth Century Classics] by Oscar Wilde My rating: 3 of 5 stars I know this book and story are very famous and I can give it 5 stars for the concept but overall I didn't think the story was as compelling or interesting as the 250 pages warranted. Maybe it would have been a more interesting short story. View all my reviews

Tell Me Three Things by Julie Buxbaum My rating: 4 of 5 stars A YA novel about a girl who loses her mom and then her dad remarries a woman who lost her husband and has a son so they move from Chicago to LA and she has to assimilate to all the changes in a school full of new people who are not big fans of her. Until a secret boy starts emailing and texting her and they start connecting through shared loss. Beautiful story. View all my reviews

Body Grammar by Jules Ohman My rating: 4 of 5 stars This is a quiet, slow moving coming of age story about grief. There's some modeling but really it's mostly about grief and finding your way to yourself. I loved it. View all my reviews

Gilt by Jamie Brenner My rating: 3 of 5 stars 3.5 stars I read Brenner's "Drawing Home" a while back and this book gave me the same feeling of immediately being swept up and lost in someone's world with characters that are interesting and all lovable in their own way. A perfect summer book, for me. View all my reviews

Delilah Green Doesn't Care by Ashley Herring Blake My rating: 3 of 5 stars 3.5 stars Liked this romance between two women, Delilah and her sister's best friend. Interesting, fun and layered characters with some family drama thrown in. View all my reviews

Georgie, All Along by Kate Clayborn My rating: 4 of 5 stars Really well-done story about Georgie who goes back home to where she grew up to briefly collect herself after losing her job. She discovers her middle school dream book where she'd written down all the things she and her best friend were going to do and decides this is the perfect task for her as she figures out what to do next in her life. Thrown together with the older brother of her high school crush, she forges ahead and tries to find a way back to herself. This story is filled with interesting and layered characters who surprise you in delightful ways and worm their way into your heart. Loved the time I spent with it. with gratitude to Kensington and edelweiss for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review View all my reviews