Everything's Fine by Cecilia Rabess
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I found this very readable; finished it in a day. I'm a shade of grey person and could relate to both Josh and Jess. I became frustrated at how easily she reverted to an accusation of racism when she couldn't understand a perspective or became overwhelmed and frustrated with emotion. I completely understood her passion for activism and I was furious with how she was treated at her workplaces. There was also a scene where she discovered a clothing item that Josh brushed off and maybe in historical hindsight you could explain that away - but man, was I in Jess's camp in that scene. I felt that she had many assumptions about Josh going back to college that she never apologized for as she got to know him better and realized she was wrong.
I was rooting for them together, and still am.
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Between the Pages: Lauren's Reads
(what I've read, what I loved, liked, disliked......)
Tuesday, April 18, 2023
Tuesday, April 11, 2023
"Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow" by Gabrille Zevin
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
When I see review and review gushing over a book, I'll admit that I get a bit bummed out because the hype often doesn't live up to expectations. I prefer that *I* discover how amazing a book is and then delight that others agree, rather than the other way around.
However, this is an exception. I adored this book.
How exactly to classify it? I don't know....it is a love story. And it left me wanting, but not in a let-down way...but because I'll miss the characters and because of some intentionally unfulfilled possibilities.
Way to knock it out of the park, Gabrille Zevin!
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My rating: 5 of 5 stars
When I see review and review gushing over a book, I'll admit that I get a bit bummed out because the hype often doesn't live up to expectations. I prefer that *I* discover how amazing a book is and then delight that others agree, rather than the other way around.
However, this is an exception. I adored this book.
How exactly to classify it? I don't know....it is a love story. And it left me wanting, but not in a let-down way...but because I'll miss the characters and because of some intentionally unfulfilled possibilities.
Way to knock it out of the park, Gabrille Zevin!
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"Yours Truly" by Abby Jimenez
A new book from fave author Abby Jimenez is cause for celebration! I appreciate how many of her books weave together loosely connected characters so a new story often gives us a chance to check in old friends. That wasn't really the case in "Yours Truly," though Lola Simone is mentioned.
Drs. Briana Ortiz and Jacob Maddox are our protagonists and they have a delicious back and forth, beginning with major misunderstandings and ending with....well, you'll have to read it to find out!
Family drama, past relationships, old-fashioned correspondence and emotional disabilities all factor in to this delightful rom-com.
Tuesday, July 19, 2022
The Bodyguard by Katherine Center
The Bodyguard by Katherine Center
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I absolutely loved this book! It is a funny, touching rom-com and I wish it could go on forever. I will have a good time recommending and hand-selling this, just like Katherine Centers’ other books. 💛
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My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I absolutely loved this book! It is a funny, touching rom-com and I wish it could go on forever. I will have a good time recommending and hand-selling this, just like Katherine Centers’ other books. 💛
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Monday, June 6, 2022
"The School for Good Mothers" by Jessamine Chan
The School for Good Mothers by Jessamine Chan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I'm going to give this ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️, but not because I loved it....it scared me too much. I admire the story this author crafted - she took upsetting dystopia to a new level and it was very upsetting.
This rocked me more than The Handmaid's Tale, perhaps because I could relate more directly. What mother hasn't done things she regretted, wished to take something back or re-do a moment, letting that regret keep her up at night? I know I have. Jessamine Chan creates a society just a little off from our own, where such mistakes (or even ones very minor) can sever your parental rights forever.
The narrator did a fantastic job of bringing Freda to life for me. Her personality, shaped by rigid Asian parents, was fully shaped in the narration of the character. Little bits of humor shone through in dark moments. Her personal connections with other "students" and her unrelenting drive to get back to Harriet rounded her out even more. The love she ended up having for her doll, Emmanuelle.
I am certain someone will option this and create a movie or television series. It's perfect for that.
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My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I'm going to give this ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️, but not because I loved it....it scared me too much. I admire the story this author crafted - she took upsetting dystopia to a new level and it was very upsetting.
This rocked me more than The Handmaid's Tale, perhaps because I could relate more directly. What mother hasn't done things she regretted, wished to take something back or re-do a moment, letting that regret keep her up at night? I know I have. Jessamine Chan creates a society just a little off from our own, where such mistakes (or even ones very minor) can sever your parental rights forever.
The narrator did a fantastic job of bringing Freda to life for me. Her personality, shaped by rigid Asian parents, was fully shaped in the narration of the character. Little bits of humor shone through in dark moments. Her personal connections with other "students" and her unrelenting drive to get back to Harriet rounded her out even more. The love she ended up having for her doll, Emmanuelle.
I am certain someone will option this and create a movie or television series. It's perfect for that.
View all my reviews
Friday, May 20, 2022
"Carrie Soto is Back," by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Carrie Soto Is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I was SO excited when I discovered a new book was coming from Taylor Jenkins Reid. Then, when I saw the title, I couldn't place Carrie Soto in my recollection for previous novels. It turns out that she was only a mention and a side character in "Malibu." But she becomes a full and memorable character quickly.
Carrie is a tennis phenom, thanks to her father Javier who was once a gifted tennis player himself but realizes his full potential as Carrie's coach after her mother dies young. They are a close father-daughter duo, but from the outside looking in, it's painful to see young Carrie singing for more of a connection to her mother and her softer side, denied by Javier. There is no shortage of love, but the end result is that Carrie hardens to most emotions that aren't about tennis and her drive to be the absolute best.
It is an entertaining read to go on this journey with Carrie. After the first third of the book, I felt a little dismay that so much of it was about tennis, but the second and third parts of the book develop her character fully and we are invested and immersed in her journey to the top....and beyond.
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My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I was SO excited when I discovered a new book was coming from Taylor Jenkins Reid. Then, when I saw the title, I couldn't place Carrie Soto in my recollection for previous novels. It turns out that she was only a mention and a side character in "Malibu." But she becomes a full and memorable character quickly.
Carrie is a tennis phenom, thanks to her father Javier who was once a gifted tennis player himself but realizes his full potential as Carrie's coach after her mother dies young. They are a close father-daughter duo, but from the outside looking in, it's painful to see young Carrie singing for more of a connection to her mother and her softer side, denied by Javier. There is no shortage of love, but the end result is that Carrie hardens to most emotions that aren't about tennis and her drive to be the absolute best.
It is an entertaining read to go on this journey with Carrie. After the first third of the book, I felt a little dismay that so much of it was about tennis, but the second and third parts of the book develop her character fully and we are invested and immersed in her journey to the top....and beyond.
View all my reviews
"Other Birds" by Sarah Addison Allen
Other Birds by Sarah Addison Allen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I would like to live in a world imagined and written by Sarah Addison Allen. There's a little shimmer of the mystical and magical that offsets the ordinary and it is lovely.
In this new novel, we spent time with a cast of characters that are brought to the Dellawisp Condos by chance...or is it? Zoey inherits her condo from her mother who died long ago and who Zoey longs for a connection to. Charlotte found her way there while on the run from a traumatic childhood, and while fulfilling the wish list of an old friend. Lizbeth and Lucy didn't travel far to get there and are a few doors apart, but really a world apart from one another. Mac is looking for someone else to love besides his deceased and adored caretaker, but he doesn't really know that. Oliver has run away from the Dellawisp, looking for another place to belong.
Birds are special to me and they have a special place in this book too. From the beginning, I envied Zoey her Pigeon.
My only complaint about "Other Birds" is that it ended too soon. I look forward to the next book by SAA!
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My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I would like to live in a world imagined and written by Sarah Addison Allen. There's a little shimmer of the mystical and magical that offsets the ordinary and it is lovely.
In this new novel, we spent time with a cast of characters that are brought to the Dellawisp Condos by chance...or is it? Zoey inherits her condo from her mother who died long ago and who Zoey longs for a connection to. Charlotte found her way there while on the run from a traumatic childhood, and while fulfilling the wish list of an old friend. Lizbeth and Lucy didn't travel far to get there and are a few doors apart, but really a world apart from one another. Mac is looking for someone else to love besides his deceased and adored caretaker, but he doesn't really know that. Oliver has run away from the Dellawisp, looking for another place to belong.
Birds are special to me and they have a special place in this book too. From the beginning, I envied Zoey her Pigeon.
My only complaint about "Other Birds" is that it ended too soon. I look forward to the next book by SAA!
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