SheReadsWorlds

An Unexpected Paradise

Today’s review is for a new, debut romance by Chelsea Curto, An Unexpected Paradise. I was so lucky (and grateful) to receive an e-arc of this book, and absolutely loved it. I just got the paperback and have been highlighting and tabbing so much of it; I couldn’t be happier to finally be back to blogging with this gem of a book. Fair warning, there will be some spoilers in this review.

An Unexpected Paradise is an enemies-to-lovers workplace romance, with main characters Jack Lancaster and Jo Bowen working at a tech company start-up called Itrix, their rivalry well-known throughout the building. Jack and Jo are sent on a work trip together to a conference that is any tech-lover’s dream. The only catch? Jo’s ex-boyfriend, who harasses her just enough that Jack jumps in–claiming to be her boyfriend. So, there we have the tropes: enemies-to-lovers, coworkers, fake dating, one bed, and some serious pining.

We also have some trigger warnings, that Chelsea kindly places for us at the very beginning, and I’ll list them here: mentions of miscarriage, depression, self harm/suicide attempt, abuse, drink-spiking/attempted rape. I will tell you, while I am grateful for Chelsea’s warnings on these (we all have triggers, and Chelsea graciously took that into consideration when sending this book out into the world), one thing I did notice was that she did not depict most of these on-page, simply referencing to many of them at multiple points. When she did depict these, she did so in a way that seemed, at least to me, respectfully done, and not one of them triggered me personally (despite more than one of these subjects being personal triggers of mine).

Now, on to the points I really loved about this book (you all know I love my bullet point lists of awesome factors)!

. The humor started in chapter one–this is pretty rare in my experience, and Chelsea had me laughing so hard that I found myself snorting. This brings the reader some joy as well as helping to balance out the more serious elements she has incorporated into this book. That’s such a rare but needed element, and I applaud her for doing so in an effortless manner.

. Jo Bowen’s interactions with her “work husband”, Tyler, in who we see some awesome LGBTQ+ representation! I’d love to see some more on Tyler in the future; while he is a minor/side character, I’d like to know more about him and his husband and their little family, as well as more interactions between him and Jo or even Jack.

. Jack Lancaster . . . enough said? I think not–let’s carry on and dive into that a bit more.

. Jack checks on Jo after they’re told about the work trip and she begins to have an anxiety attack (we get a little of this from his POV as well as hers, which I personally really enjoyed). Even though they were currently still in the enemies zone, he set that aside to see if she was okay, and I have mad respect for that.

Jack has some other amazing moments, such as protecting Jo in a bar and sticking up for her to her nasty ex. Again, respect, because while that’s something that should be commonplace, it sadly isn’t.

Jack handles Jo’s OCD with incredible patience and care. As someone who suffers from OCD on a daily basis, I can promise you that his reaction was beautifully written (as were the descriptions of the disorder itself) and exactly how I’d hope my partner reacted IRL.

. Jack’s group chat with his best friends–something we don’t often see, is how male friends interact with one another in multiple scenarios, and Chelsea brought a ton of humor and comradery into these characters and their scenes together. Something I personally loved was their “9 1 1 Bro Code”, and his best friend, Henry.

. That brings me to my next point–Henry. Just . . . fucking Henry. An amazing character I am so excited to learn more about in the future. Henry is a character that brought wisdom and humor together in one go and is a person I would love to know in real life. (Special mention to his scene in the bar. You’ll know it when you get to it–I legitimately cackled.)

. There’s a scene where Jo starts to realize that she is interested in Jack, and I thought it was really nicely done, especially as we get little glimpses of Jack’s interest in her throughout other chapters done in his own POV, where Jo has not yet caught onto his attraction. There’s a nice mix of slow-burn and insta-love here, and it’s a really interesting process seeing them come together.

We know this takes place, partially, at a work conference, where they begin fake-dating to get Jo’s ex off her back. Here are a few little pieces of what I enjoyed during their conference: the entirety of their conversation about fake dating (in Jo’s bedroom) because it was so sweet and well done, with amazing and thorough communication; Jack’s “overboard” schedule (*swoon*) followed by Jo’s kiss to his cheek at breakfast (*butterflies*); fried macaroni and mashed potatoes (that’s all you’re getting), and their excursions (yes, I’m including their fancy dinner in this, again, all you’re getting).

. The sex! While I personally am a reader who doesn’t love a whole lot of spice, Chelsea did these scenes so well that I just couldn’t get enough, and I loved reading it all. Even if these scenes aren’t your thing, you won’t be able to deny that they are written fantastically.

Now, I’m going to list some of my favorite quotes (another thing you guys know I like to do when I truly fall in love with a book); I hope that these will convince you to give it a read if you haven’t already.

. “You’re trying.”

. “An hour with you is better than a hundred without.”

. “I want you. Just you.”

. “All that I have, and all that I am, is yours.”

Now, for the most important aspect of this book (to me) and where the biggest part of my respect for Chelsea lies here.

The way Chelsea incorporated mental health into this romance. She didn’t incorporate it purely to do so; she did so with class and a purpose. She really went into this looking to show support to those struggling, and to show that mental health does not only effect women, something I wholeheartedly support and respect. Her depictions of OCD, anxiety, and depression, are not only accurate, but thought-out and accepting. The responses these characters have to the one struggling are respectful, kind, and considerate; they are simply and beautifully done, in a way I’ve never seen before and have only dreamt of seeing represented in such an accurate manner, with such accepting responses.

I am getting tingles just writing this review–you know the kind, the good kind you get when you’re excited and really love what you’re watching, reading, or listening to? The kind that mean you’re excited and happy and want more? Just from writing a review, you guys! It was so much more intense when I was actually reading the book for the first time, to the point where I turned to the book when I was anxious, or when I’d woken up and couldn’t get back to sleep because I just had to know what happened next. Now that I’m reading it for a second time, I’m noticing so many wonderful things I hadn’t before, I’m taking my time and truly highlighting all the little things, and loving it just as much, if not more, than the first time.

I cannot say enough about this book. I’m annotating this book, which is something I so rarely do that it’s always surprising for someone to see me with tabs and a pen in hand. I actually had to go out and buy more tabs for this, twice.

I’ll leave you with this: I could relate to both Jack and Jo. Chelsea handled mental illness and abuse with respect, acceptance, accuracy and class, so remarkably well and with the gentle insistence that it is okay not to be okay. That therapy is okay. Chelsea makes you feel seen, heard, and loved with this book, and makes you believe that things will be okay. That you’ll find someone who loves every piece of you. That you aren’t alone.

You aren’t alone.

You will laugh and you will cry with this book; you will get butterflies and tingles and never want it to end. Please, please consider giving this book a shot, it truly deserves it. Chelsea, thank you so much for sharing this book with the world–I am so grateful, and so proud.

An Unexpected Paradise released August of this year, and I’d also like to note that there is a sequel in the works for this book, starring Jack’s best friend, Henry, releasing this October; I could not be more excited for it.

If you read and love this book, please leave Chelsea a review and let her know you’d like to see more of her work! This book deserves every ounce of praise it gets. 4.5 stars out of 5 (9 of 10, if you’re extra like I am), that missing .5 simply being because I wanted more! (Yes, I did rate this 5 stars on Goodreads, I’m just kidding with you.)

To Get to the Other Side

Today’s review is of Kelly Ohlert’s upcoming release, To Get the Other Side, expected this December. I was able to get an advanced e-copy via Netgalley.

What initially drew me to this book was the cover; the first thing I saw was a chicken, being chased by a concerned woman, and I knew that female character was going to be like me. Within a few pages, I realized that I’d been right–Trixie was a thoroughly enjoyable character, and just like me. I mean, risking a minor crash and causing a traffic jam to rescue a chicken? Yes please, thank you kindly for your service ma’am, and I’d do this, too.

Going further into my love of Trixie, it’s revealed very early on that she works for an animal shelter, and is willing to pay one thousand dollars out of her own pocket to save the life of that injured chicken, whom she’s named Chick-Chick. This is such an admirable thing to do and something I would 100% do without a second thought–the amount of compassion in this one character is incredible and done effortlessly!

Introducing Bear, the only man who helped Trixie rescue Chick-Chick from the busy road, doesn’t only care about the wellbeing of animals, but he’s also hot and has common sense and general manners. In other words, this guy is pretty much drool-worthy already.

To sum this up so far, both Bear and Trixie are struggling financially, and Bear’s sisters put an ad in the Chicago Tribune to get their brother a housemate. I won’t spoil anything about said ad, but all you need to know is that it’s hilarious to the point of laughing-out-loud–oh, and Bear had absolutely no idea that this ad existed, until women were lined up outside his door while he was essentially naked.

This ad leads to Trixie showing up, needing a new place to stay now that she’s decided to adopt Chick-Chick. Everything about this second meeting–this time at his house and not the middle of the road for a chicken rescue–is fucking awesome, especially their conversation about her mismatched socks. You guys, this girl is me.

To go more into Bear’s character, he’s pretty well-rounded. He’s got a great relationship with each of his sisters, and his relationship with his niece is adorable; right away we get to see all kinds of incredible memories and interactions with them, as well as seeing into his friendships and the admiration he has for Trixie’s unabashed passion for helping animals.

Bear bonds with Chick-Chick, albeit slowly, and openly cries when the injured chicken begins to walk again. Having a male mc who is unafraid to show his emotions is not only a healthy image to have but surprisingly rare and refreshing.

I’ll warn you now, this book will make you cry. There is a point where Chick-Chick gets very sick, something that shows the harsh reality of not only what many farm animals are up against but a piece of animal rescue in general. A spoiler alert you’ll enjoy though, is Chick-Chick winds up being just fine, becoming best friends with a dog that Trixie and Bear adopt at the end of the book.

Some bullet points for you, starting out with the most important two:

. Emotional abuse and parental trauma is a big theme with this book, with both Trixie and Bear struggling to open up, reconcile with their parents, and regain a healthy outlook on themselves as people.
. Trixie does, slowly, become irritating; she has a breakdown, and when Bear tries to help, she begins to scream and throw things at him. He leaves, partly because she won’t allow him to help, and partly because he doesn’t want to get injured by flying objects; Trixie then takes this as ‘abandonment’ and blames him for this entirely–everything about this section was incredibly toxic.
. Mrs. Grisham is a pretty cool landlady for someone who doesn’t allow pets.
. Bear’s sister, Zoey, is hilarious; you’ll love her right away!
. Chick-Chick is awesome from page one to end–you’ll be smiling, crying, and loving this fictional little chicken through the entirety of the book.
. There is great character development, and seeing insights to both characters with a dual POV was certainly the right way to go on this book.
. You will love all of the animals we meet through Trixie’s job!
. There are scenes that are corny to an almost cringe-worthy level, but overall fit in really nicely, a predictable but enjoyable book overall.
. Bear’s family is freaking awesome, albeit incredibly pushy and know zero boundaries; this said, his birth father is a major asshole.
. The swing-set reconciliation (and, spoiler, proposal) is super cute!

All in all, this was a really good book, and by chapter four I’d already LOL’d two dozen times and put the paperback on my Amazon wish-list. I read forty-four percent of this book in one sitting, and I truly loved the way so many animals were featured throughout–and, overall, I did relate to Trixie. There’s one point where she’s trying to walk five dogs at one time, including a stray that she ‘couldn’t leave alone’, and I was again reminded of the fact that so much of what Trixie does, I would do (minus throwing things).

I would truly recommend this book to anyone, and I rated it four of five stars (eight of ten in the Extra System). Below I’ve included some of my favorite quotes/passages from the book, but please know I read the ARC of this book, and things are subject to change by publication.

If you chose to read this book, please let me know your thoughts! I’ll definitely be purchasing a finished copy at it’s release in December, and I hope you do, too. This is a real mood-booster of a romcom, with some pretty important themes engrained, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Congratulations to Ms. Ohlert, and I hope to see similar works from her in the future.

When in Rome

Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read an advanced e-copy of author Sarah Adams’ newest release, When in Rome, set for publication this September.

I’d like to start this off by saying that this is the first of Ms. Adams’ works that I personally read . . . and I can see why you all love her writing!

To sum up When in Rome: popstar Amelia Rae Rose, burnt out and lonely, decides to run away and channel her inner Audrey Hepburn. She sets out for Rome, Kentucky, intending to spend a few days at a B&B–and her car breaks down in the front lawn of Noah Walker, local baker in Rome. He’s hot, polite, and 100% off-market, but . . . that doesn’t stop Amelia or Noah from stirring up feelings.

I went into this book largely blind, having failed to pick up any of Ms. Adams’ previous books and being unfamiliar with her style. I knew the plot summary, but that was it, and I had no idea what to expect other than a happily-ever-after (I may not have read her previous works, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t do a little research). But, I downloaded it to my Kindle and dove right in.

You guys, I was laughing out loud before the end of chapter one. I was relating to these characters the second they hit the page, laughing at all of their jokes, picturing everything right in front of me, and highlighting a whole slew of beautiful quotes, vivid imagery, and hilarious comments on every other page.

Amelia Rose was fantastic–a total goofball, lover of the classics (hello, Audrey Hepburn?), with a mix of emotions she’s felt the need to tamp down . . . until she met Noah Walker–a reserved baker seeking an emotional connection before letting his vulnerability show, Noah is always trying to do the right thing, and has become an expert on hiding how badly he’s been hurt in the past. Ring any bells? It did for me–I related so hard to the aspects of these characters that it seemed like a little bit of me was actually in this story.

Amelia and Noah’s alternating POVs allow for the reader to get personal insight to both their inner workings–thoughts and feelings, desires and regrets–and who doesn’t love a well-written dual-POV romance? To me this also helps keep the story from going stale–you get a mini break from one character to delve into the depths of another, and learn to love both of them a bit more each time, while understanding the story even better.

The humor in this book was spot-on, the references to classic 1950s culture were perfect, and the blossoming love was beautiful. By the time we get to those comfort scenes (all I’ll say on this is that a thunderstorm has never been more important in a book, and never been more emotional), well, I was all-in and loving every minute of it.

You guys, I read this entire thing within a day. A day! I’m absolutely going to purchase more of Ms. Adams’ works, because I truly enjoyed this one and it was a real mood-booster during a rough day. You know those books that tear you away from reality, and make you feel when you didn’t think you could? Yeah, that’s this book.

4.5 stars out of 5 (or, as we say here on my Extra Scale, 9 of 10), and my sincerest thanks to Ms. Adams for writing this book, as well as Netgalley and Random House for permitting me an advanced copy. Pick it up, guys, you won’t regret it!

Enola Holmes and the Black Barouche

Enola always did quite well on her own. With Sherlock, she does even better.

To say I was excited about the latest installment in the Enola Holmes series by Nancy Springer is rather an understatement. I bought and re-read all the original books to refresh my memory, and enjoyed them as thoroughly as I had as a teen. When I finally cracked open the Black Barouche, the blurb on the inside cover was intriguing, and I was hooked.

For the first time, we see an opening written by none other than Sherlock, our favorite (male) detective, and true to Sherlock’s character, it’s full of fact and dry humor, successfully taking us quickly through the happenings of books one through six, leading us up to where Black Barouche starts, where Enola takes over again as narrator.

Also for the first time, we see Enola going out in her day to day life undisguised, which not only is oddly refreshing, but gives us another side to her character as we learn how she chooses to dress and do in her spare time now that she no longer is on the run from her brothers.

The first encounter we come across, through Enola, is Dr. Watson, who has come to Enola out of concern for Sherlock. While it’s been briefly referenced a number of times, this is the first time we go a little more in depth into the fact that Sherlock suffers from melancholia–persistent bouts of depression. Enola marches herself to 221b Baker Street, and we see how Sherlock behaves while impaired by depression.

I felt that Ms. Springer’s representation was pretty spot-on, both an excellent and emotional account of how despondent one can become when suffering from a mental illness such as depression. Enola’s way of dealing with it, while not the most conventional, did effectively put across that, in their newfound sibling-like relationship, she was not going to just let him hide away forever.

In walks Tish Glover, in search of her missing twin–more precisely, her recently reported deceased twin, Felicity Dunhench. Miss Glover, while adamant that her twin is not deceased, carries with her the ashes she was sent from cremation. While questions arise as to why a Lady would be cremated and correspondence so brief, Enola and Sherlock examine the ashes to find they are not human. An intriguing case right off the bat!

Enola looks for information on the Dunhench family at the Basilweather grounds–in other words, the return of Tewky! Tewky was last seen in Enola’s first book, the Missing Marquess, and while both he and Enola have since grown up, their banter is much the same, clever and fluid, quick to tease. Throughout the book, the descriptions of locations and outfits are fantastic–it made envisioning each scene so much easier, to where it happened simply by reading the words, without any thought. Picturing Enola skulking around Basilweather Hall with a candle and frilly nightgown, snooping in the library with Tewky, was incredibly simple and joyous to do so.

Moving along, it was also really cool to see Enola and Sherlock working together, both disguised and undisguised, as well as to see their relationship as siblings grow; and, while Enola did, as her mother always said, do quite well on her own, having Sherlock there to help out was great.

Lady Dunhench immediately seemed like an interesting character, even without her being present. Enola’s descriptions of Lady Dunhench’s watercolor paintings was beautiful, especially when they formed as images in my mind–plus, cleverly thought out hidden messages? Yes, please, Ms. Dunhench! Her husband, Lord Caddie, was, as predicted, incredibly self-centered and brutish, which right away made me think he was up to no good.

There were some rather horrifying descriptions of Bedlam and its patients, where Enola and Tish toured to get an idea for where Felicity might be; Enola visits some people and snoops some more, and upon conference with Sherlock and Tewky, finds out that not only was Felicity sent away to a mental institution, but his first wife was as well (and she has since passed from illness there). All this prompts Enola’s wild scheme in which they endeavor to learn the name of the mental institution that Felicity was actually sent to–an extravagant, dangerous plan that requires a lot of planning and assistance. Tewky’s willingness to help with this scheme is admirable, as is Dr. Watson’s, though on a slightly lesser scale due to his previous adventures with Sherlock.

Enola, Sherlock, Tewky and Dr. Watson make rather an amusing and intriguing group of detectives, yet this too is very easily envisioned and enjoyed, though it’s the cottage Dr. Watson procured for their scheme that convinced me, this book should be turned into a movie, with no detail spared. Tish’s portrayal of an angry Flossie, straight from the insane asylum, was terrifyingly well-written, with a satisfactory closing to the case and equally satisfactory epilogue by Sherlock.

On a side note, Tewky and Enola’s relationship is wonderful, and several times I found myself wondering if they would perhaps marry in a future book, or if she was rather a closeted lesbian, as she seemed particularly interested in Tish Glover. This, however, could only be known at present by the author herself, so alas, I have no more to add on this subject.

All things considered here, I decided this was a ten of ten star read, and I just learned that a new book is indeed being released this year, so, well done to Ms. Springer, and I am excited for the upcoming release.

Harvey and the Collection of Impossible Things

Thanks to NetGalley I was able to get an advanced e-copy of Garret Weyr’s new children’s fiction book, Harvey and the Collection of Impossible Things.

This was a quick read despite it’s being 100+ pages. Told from the point of view of Harvey the cat, the reader goes on Harvey’s adventure with him, learning what the life of a street cat (or dog) is like, feeling the fear and sadness right with him. Throughout Harvey’s journey, aside from learning about how his life has been like the last six years, we see how Harvey interacts with other animals, such as looking up to his dog friend Chester and making friends with sparrows. We also learn about Harvey’s list of impossible things to do–such as be a brave city cat like his brother, and rescue his sister from kitty jail (the shelter).

When Harvey is left starving and bullied by other animals and humans, he runs away looking for a safe place to hide, and finds himself on the roof of an apartment building. There a young woman finds him, and he recognizes her as the nice lady who feeds him outside of the bakery. She brings him a litterbox and a box bed, and they form a friendship through conversation. Although the woman cannot understand Harvey’s meows, she still talks to him about her plants and her bakery, and Harvey listens. One day he decides that he trusts the woman, and puts learning her name on his list of impossible things.

From this point, Harvey continues to do new brave things, such as allow the bakery owner to pet him and hold him; he climbs the water tower to hide from her friend, and he makes sure to befriend even the the sparrow that is afraid of him (after all, most cats chase birds, but not Harvey)!

Harvey even lets her bring him inside her apartment, where he learns that her name is Danielle. He likes Danielle, and decides that he isn’t a city cat anymore, because he’s found himself a human. He even lets her friend Rachel pet him, and when he learns that she wants a dog as her pet, he runs away–to find Chester, who used to have a human of his own. Although Chester doesn’t want to find a new human, he introduces Harvey to some new puppies he is hiding with–puppies who have been orphaned and need some help learning how to dog. Chester sends one puppy, Lila, back home with Harvey, and Rachel adopts the little puppy before Harvey goes back to Danielle’s.

Harvey has learned to love life with Danielle, and Lila loves life with Rachel. They hear news from the sparrows, who tell them that Harvey’s brother is still safe, living on a campus where he gets food and shelter. They tell them that Harvey’s sister is happy in her new home, where she gets to play and have food every day, just like Harvey now does. The sparrows tell them that one of Lila’s brothers has a new home too, and the other puppies are still safe with Chester.

Harvey realizes now that his list of impossible things is empty, so he adds a new item to his list, but it isn’t an impossible thing this time–that thing is to stay with the people and friends that he loves, and that’s what he does. Harvey has learned to trust some humans and make new friends, to cuddle on the bed and play water from the faucet–he even likes to eat wet food and play with Lila, even though she can be loud (after all, she’s just a puppy).

Alongside that fear and sadness you feel during the book, you also feel Harvey’s joy and wisdom–you might even cry a little, because this book is so well written and offers so many valuable lessons, all with a happy ending that will make sure you laugh and smile.

This book also gives me the opportunity to urge you all to reach out to your local animal shelters–you can volunteer there, apply to foster an animal that is waiting for his or her forever home, or just find out what supplies they most need. You can organize a fundraiser, donate to them yourself, or share their social media posts to help get the word out that they have adoptable pets. Many shelters have special programs you can learn about, such as their foster programs, TNR programs (including low-cost spay/neuter for families who can’t always afford a more expensive vet), or upcoming adoption events to allow others to meet their new family member. If you can’t adopt yourself, these are great ways to help out, or, you can sponsor the adoption and/or training of a cat and dog at a shelter, so that the person who adopts them doesn’t need to cover that initial cost–many shelters offer cheap adoption fees! Another easy way to help an animal in need may be leaving out cat food for a stray colony in your neighborhood, or calling the local shelter for advice if you see a lost pup. Please, reach out and look into the different options, because there are so many ways to help, even if you don’t have a lot of spare time or money. The animals will appreciate it, and so will the shelter employees/volunteers! That gratitude can be seen through Harvey’s POV in the book I’ve just reviewed, Harvey and the Collection of Impossible Things.

While this book would be great for any child or adult, it will be especially interesting to those who have a special interest in helping animals, or some extra compassion for the cats and dogs of the world. I hope you enjoy this book as much as I did, and if you do, please leave a review on Goodreads or suggest it to your friends!

This book has just been added to my wish-list, because I’d enjoy having a paperback copy to go back to sometime. If you haven’t been able to read this yet, I highly recommend it–this is a great story for kids and adults alike, and I think you’ll find it a great addition to your shelves. This book, along with my recommendation, is getting a full ten of ten stars.

The Maid

Recently I borrowed the often talked about book, The Maid, by Nita Prose.

The prologue and first chapter had some pretty good quotes, and made the premise of the book seem quite intriguing (you will find several of these quotes featured on the image in this post, cross-posted to my Instagram).

Unfortunately, I began to become frustrated with the main character rather quickly. While she wasn’t exactly unlikeable, she did come across as incredibly odd, in the sense that I couldn’t relate to her whatsoever and she seemed more like a partially crafted character with no depth–a surface character, if you will. The following will include spoilers, so please read at your own risk.

Molly, while a good character on the surface, seemed particularly absent in many scenes. While I gathered that she was neurodivergent, it did come across as if Prose took it to an extreme now and then. For example, Molly’s only interest in the world is being a maid, and as such, when she walks in on two thug-like men with the hotel’s dishwasher, Juan Manuel, and bartender, Rodney, she finds this perfectly normal. She doesn’t question the bruises on Juan Manuel, assuming they came from the dishwasher itself, and believes that Rodney is asking her on a date. She assumes the cocaine on the table is powdered sugar from a donut, and that Rodney was jealous of Juan Manuel for talking to her.

When Molly finds Mr. Black, dead in his hotel suite, she reacts normally enough, but is then more concerned with shortbread than the dead man. She believes Rodney, a year after the drug cartel incident, is asking her on dates, when he is in fact interrogating her about the body she found, Mr. Black, and what the police know about the hotel and its’ employees, namely, him and the drugs, which she still knows nothing about.

The book went by quickly, and held my interest enough to finish it, however every twist was rather predictable; I wasn’t surprised to learn that Rodney and Mr. Black’s wife, Giselle, were involved, and I wasn’t surprised that Juan Manuel was being threatened over a work visa, to cut drugs for Rodney. I was unsurprised that Molly and Juan Manuel began dating in the epilogue, both of them being extremely similar, and I wasn’t surprised that Cheryl was demoted. I suppose the only thing that did surprise me was that Molly wasn’t convicted of the murder.

Essentially, the only characters I enjoyed in this novel were Giselle, who I’ve deemed 60% good, 40% bad; Mr. Preston, the hotel doorman, who I firmly believe and was heavily implied that he is Molly’s father, and Molly’s Gran, who was deceased prior to the book’s starting, though through reminiscence we learn was full of wisdom, enjoyed fictional travel with education, and sewed a pillow. Unfortunately, she also made Molly kill her with said pillow when her pancreatic cancer became too much, because she didn’t want to go to a hospital.

To sum up the murder itself, Mr. Black essentially killed himself on pills and booze, and his first wife (not Giselle), suffocated him with a pillow. Molly passed out upon finding the body, but saw the first Mrs. Black, who stayed to wake her and get her a drink. Mrs. Black and Molly then discussed the situation, and Molly, who knew Mr. Black had abused both of his wives, decided to let Mrs. Black the First go unnoticed, and cleaned the room to perfection so no prints would be found, before passing out again. I fully expected this revelation, and was rather annoyed that she had hidden this in its entirety in court, and was annoyed by the court scenes themselves.

Towards the end I was definitely skimming paragraphs, despite the book feeling shorter than it was, largely in part to the surface-level characters all around and the unsurprising, predictable plot and twists.

Unfortunately this was, for me, a rather unremarkable and overhyped book, so I’m giving it a six of ten star review and strongly urge those looking for a new mystery, to look elsewhere, unless they are looking for one they can predict in its entirety by chapter three.

The Holiday Switch

Recently I read Tif Marcelo’s The Holiday Switch, a Christmas romcom published in October of 2021. I received it as a gift shortly after it’s publication, and while it took me some time to get to it, I read it relatively quickly. As usual I’ll list the pros and cons of this novel, and give my rating at the end of this post.

The Pros:
A responsible and hardworking, yet still fun and creative, main character.
A polite and funny love interest!
The MC is a book blogger! Not only that but she also utilizes what I like to call the “pros and cons format”, just like I do.
Lots of cute scenes between the MC, Lila Santos, and her love interest, Teddy Rivera.
The importance of internet safety!

Cons:
I found myself having a difficult time remembering and picturing what the characters looked like, and having to double check the cover art for reference. What I recalled off the bat was that Teddy apparently had nice muscles, and Lila had dark hair.
It seemed slightly improbable that Lila would not have noticed that they swapped phones, instead thinking that she had cracked her screen etc.

This book deals a lot with family, from secrets to resilience, traditions and new-forged paths, as well as with friendships new and old, all based around many’s favorite holiday, Christmas. Although, even if you don’t celebrate Christmas, or it isn’t your favorite holiday, you could still enjoy this book as Christmas (and specifically religion) are not major factors that play into this book and how it unfolds.

Keeping this review short, I’ll leave you with my recommendation, and for the first ever Tif Marcelo book I read, an eight of ten star review (which translates into four of five for those of you on Goodreads). Well done, Ms. Marcelo, and thank you to fellow bookstagrammer Cynthia for gifting me this wonderful book.

The Rebound

Today’s review is of author Catherine Walsh’s latest romantic-comedy, The Rebound. It’s set to be released this Valentine’s Day, and thanks to Netgalley I was able to get an ARC e-copy to review. Heads up that this review will be short, but that’s only because I was so invested in reading it that I didn’t take any notes! (Gasp! Me, with no notes?)

Abby Reynolds has just returned to her hometown in Ireland after her fiancé called off the wedding, and the company she worked for in New York filed for bankruptcy. Abby is dreading having to stay with her sister and her brother-in-law–after all, they’ve never gotten along, so why would this help? But with no other place to live and no job, this was her only option, so back to Ireland she went. In comes her childhood friend and neighbor, Luke Bailey . . . only she doesn’t exactly recognize him, because, well, he’s grown up. Luke is nothing she expected and everything she wanted, and he’s pretty into her as well, only, you know, he actually did recognize her. It all started on a rainy morning when she got the bus schedule wrong, and he happened to be there to offer a ride. . .

Well, that’s my small and probably ineffective take on a synopsis–could you tell I rarely if ever write them? Moving on to what I’m actually good at–discussing the actual contents of a book!

Abby Reynolds, while at first she was just kind of there for me, reminds me of a few people. Firstly, of me, because I can relate to some of the things she says, thinks, and feels. She also reminded me a bit of my friend (and fellow book blogger), Kaiemi, maybe because she works with numbers for a living, but still. She also reminded me of my mother, because she likes doing things like hiking and looking at mountains. Well, I guess she was a perfect blend of fiction and reality, and reminded me of a lot of people.

Luke Bailey, right away the attractive sort of male lead you want in a good romance novel–described as attractive, of course, but not only attractive in appearance. No, Luke Bailey is a good man with a good heart, loves his parents, is respectful and considerate, does his best to help everyone he cares about while being brave enough to let go of fear and do what he wants to do for his own life, while encouraging others to do the same as well. Honestly y’all, this is another Book Boyfriend for the list. To say he’s without his flaws is a little unrealistic, which makes him that much more perfect–after all, everyone has their flaws, right? Maybe that’s what made him and Abby so believable–they were a great mix of perfect and imperfect, to make incredible, well-rounded characters.

The subtle comedy had me laughing out loud at times, the mistakes and trials were written in a way that made you feel interested to know more, the sexy scenes were written in a tasteful way (in a way that’s good and romantic and yet still PG enough to allow anyone to read them), and the characters really carried this story through. This is definitely a book that is driven by characters rather than plot, and this time, it was done in just the right way. It took me almost a month to finally get to it (as usual, on a whim), but then? I read it in two nights, of about two hours each, and as soon as I finished the last page, I powered up my laptop and began writing this review, with no notes and no idea where I was going with this.

I’m someone who usually can’t get very invested in novels set outside of the US–maybe because it isn’t my normal, in the sense that it isn’t a place I could recognize or the slang used isn’t the same terms I’d hear around me, making it seem less realistic for my own life (because even the best of fantasy books have a sense of reality in them). Knowing that, I went into this book not expecting a whole lot, thinking maybe I’d put it down in a few chapters (but after the last book I’d given up on, which was truly ridiculous, I also went into it knowing I had to get at least halfway through). Well, page one made it pretty clear I wasn’t only going to finish the book, but finish it quickly, and enjoy it a whole lot while I was at it. The setting was done beautifully, the characters were written incredibly, the comedy was just right and the romance was fantastic. Oh, and Abby’s sister, Louise? Activist for nature and the environment, something a few of you know I’m interested in. Louise’s husband, Thomasz, and Luke’s friend, Beth (who runs the cool but pretty much bankrupt coffee shop) are a great addition that helped to keep the book moving as well.

Maybe this won’t be my typical run-down of a book, discussing the pros and cons the way I normally do, but hopefully this convinces at least some of you to pick up this book, because trust me, it deserves to be read (not just bought and displayed on a shelf, something us book bloggers are rather notorious for). Nine of ten stars for Ms. Catherine Walsh, and a big thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for letting me read the advanced copy.

As Seen on TV

Thanks to Netgalley, I was able to get an early review copy of Meredith Schorr’s newest romcom book, As Seen on TV. What initially attracted me to this idea was that it was set in a small-town, where main character Adina Gellar visits under the assumption that all small towns are like those on Hallmark. I liked the idea of a journalist going to this small town to write an article on small towns, but unfortunately this book was far from what I expected. I’ll include both the good and bad parts of this book, and keep in mind what didn’t work for me could work for you.

The first chapter or two I had no issues with Adina at all, and the chapters seemed interesting enough to want to read. Unfortunately the chapters quickly started to seem long, even though in reality they were quite short. Adina began to annoy me immensely by chapter four, and that only increased over the rest of the book.

Adina’s disappointment over Pleasant Hollow not being like a Hallmark town was somewhat understandable, unfortunately it was turned up to an obnoxious level. She expected the inn owner to hug her, give her cookies and ask her life story; she makes far too many assumptions and gets almost bitter when they don’t happen, such as the people in the restaurant not welcoming her and offering her free pie, and when an old couple ‘glares’ at her, I had to wonder if they really glared or she was just mad they didn’t behave the way she sees in Hallmark.

Adina says things that she thinks everyone will see as an “unintended sexual innuendo,” and assumes men are flirting with her. She is a really poor example of a journalist–she doesn’t do research on the interviewees beforehand, then gets disappointed when it doesn’t pan out; she also tried numerous times to mold the town and townspeople into the ideal Hallmark town simply to be able to write the article she had intended.

Adina is also incredibly obsessed with sex–if she isn’t talking about men’s muscles and lower extremities, she is having sex, thinking of sex, or sending inappropriate emojis to her friend about the men in town. She sees a guy at a bar and starts to think about having sex with him, and even during interviews she is sitting on her hands to prevent herself from grabbing him. She is thinking about sex throughout the entire interview and every time she sees an available man.

She thinks, “one could say he was flirting,” but he really wasn’t at all. She randomly tugs at his jacket, touches his chest, and actually forgot that consent goes both ways. Even after all this, she is still literally fanning herself with her shirt, thinking about having sex with an entirely different person. Once she realizes he’s the male version of her, she loses interest and rudely walks off.

Right off the bat she is already thinking, if not expecting, a movie to be based off her article. She spends more of her time shopping, complaining, and thinking about/having sex, than doing her actual job. She even tried to dig up dirt on the guy she was sleeping with just because she was mad at him and mad that the guy he worked for wasn’t the typical bad Hallmark guy. She seems to put her credibility as a writer on hold to be concerned about when she’ll next have sex–her career is in flames and she has no relationships outside of her mother and best friend, and she might be homeless in a few months, but all she cares about is sex.

Knowing she has an “approaching negative bank balance”, no legitimate career to speak of, and might be losing her home, she still is spending seventy dollars on a nice dinner, twenty on a travel mug, a manicure with a “generous tip she can’t afford”, and a book she didn’t want to read. That’s at least $150 in like two days not counting the extra week stay at the inn that she booked just to be near the guy slept with so she can write an article to paint him as a bad guy.

Adina says some strange things, such as “guinea pigs have nothing on me”, and “like lovers reuniting,” both in reference to seeing her best friend for the first time in a week. She also refers to her news story as an orgasm. She swipes on guys in her dating apps purely to keep it open, yet another expense she doesn’t has, and she invites the male lead to her family’s holiday dinner, purely to force him into talking about his past. She randomly walks up to people prying into their lives, asking about sex, asking about single members of town, and snapping at them when they refuse to continue trying to force everyone in the town to change into a Hallmark-type community.

All in all I’m not really sure how she’s considered “irresistibly likeable,” and I feel like her character lacked good qualities. She was overall selfish, not very intelligent, and annoying. That said, I have seen reviews where people did like her, so I guess it depends on how you read it, what you expect going in, and how much you’re willing to let go for the sake of creativity.

Backtracking a little now to discuss the other main character of this book, and it’s saving grace, Finn Adams. Finn was immediately likeable and friendly, despite the obviousness that he would end up being (or working for) the ‘bad guy’ developer (spoiler, he’s the production manager). Finn has the best character in the book, despite some things said and done throughout; by chapter twenty, he was the only reason I kept reading, and I truly only finished the book to find out more about his character and figure out if he had the happy ending. Finn set up a sweet outdoor-movie date, supportive of Adina’s career, and overall seemed to be sweet and relaxed. Finn opened up slowly and randomly, but when he did open up it gave his character more emotion and brought me as a reader more interest and investment.

I did feel like it was predictable of him to have bailed on their date, and I thought it was gross that he let his drunk father pull Adina’s hair and call her a slut. This was one of maybe three total instances in which I didn’t agree with Finn’s character or find him likeable, so all in all I really did enjoy his character through most of the story.

I thought it was sweet of Finn and Adina to see each other the next morning to ensure the other was okay. Finn was incredibly sleep deprived and wanted cuddles, something that given what was explained the previous few chapters, seemed understandable and and sweet. I don’t condone his behavior from the night before whatsoever, and I appreciated that Adina took the time to stand up for herself. That said, Adina wasn’t in the right either, and I think both of them could have handled this situation way better, both the night before and that morning.

I think it was a very typical Hallmark-y sort of response to conflict, with Adina writing her article about Finn (and I can name several movies where this actually did happen), asking for a second chance. That said, I found the article cute, Finn’s grand gesture cute, and their entire make-up cute. I thought it was a bit much for there to have been a TV spin-off of her article, and thought the epilogue was better left unwritten.

Finn, despite a few negatives, is for sure on my list of Book Boyfriends, something pretty rare for me to add on to. Adina could have used some more work, but their overall relationship was pretty cute, and the sex scenes, while not very many, were overall well-written in a romantic way, and their relationship, while starting with sex, was not entirely based off of it, as shown in Finn’s desire to do PG activities with her such as hiking or watching a movie in the park.

Overall, while I don’t regret reading this book, I’m not sure I’d buy it for myself, though I wouldn’t complain if someone bought it for me. Finn really saved the book for me, being enjoyable about eighty percent of the time, and I was glad his character was well-rounded and thought-out. Due to Adina’s lack of responsibility and over-all character, I’m rating this a six point five, and, if you can overlook the frustration Adina might give you, I’d recommend it for someone who enjoys Hallmark and romcoms.

The Further Adventures of Miss Petitfour

Today’s review will be pretty short, as I’m reviewing the ARC (provided by NetGalley) of a children’s book by Anne Michaels (illustrated by Emma Block).

I had both pros and cons with this story, but let’s start with the pros. I really enjoyed the character introductions, placed right before the stories themselves actually begin. With beautiful illustrations of Miss Petitfour and all her cats, and little tidbits about what makes them, well, them, I thought this was a fun addition to the book and a really good idea as a way to keep track of the characters as you read.

I loved reading about each of the cats and learning about their behavior; each cat is unique, yet all of them find enjoyment and appreciation in simple things. That idea, of finding joy in the simple things, carries into some of the stories; for example, in the fifth story, Miss Petitfour and the Key, there is a small section where we learn about the different lists kept by each of the cats, such as “The Longest Words I Know,” and “Things Smaller Than My Paw.”

I also noted that Miss Petitfour seemed to be an excellent portrayal of a character with intense ADHD, from randomly going on tangents about onions to the different kinds of wind speeds.

In theory, this book is a great mix of Mary Poppins and Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle, with a bit of Pinkalicious–all characters and stories that children enjoy. I also liked that this was, again in theory, a fun way to introduce new words and their meanings to young children–words they probably hadn’t heard before were often in a different color, followed by a definition relating to the story.

The cover art of The Further Adventures of Miss Petitfour (written by Anne Michaels, illsutrated by Emma Block), and the character introduction pages.

You’ll notice that I’ve used the words “in theory,” and this is because, while the idea was to introduce new words outside of a classroom, it could have been executed more cleanly and in an easier to understand way. I found that the more the stories went on, the harder they became to follow, as not only does the story get off track increasingly often, but the instances used in the definitions began to seem unrelated to any piece of the story at all. Given my initial thought that the character of Miss Petitfour has what is presumably undiagnosed ADHD, I enjoyed the initial idea that there would be an occasional digression, something I could relate to extremely well; unfortunately, they began to happen too often, and it grew annoying the more these digressions continued.

Another thing that made this book difficult to follow was the names of random characters–while some of them were pretty simple, like “Mrs. Collarwaller,” a lot of them began to border on what I could only refer to as nonsensical insanity. Many of these names were absurdly long, such as “Helena Serge-Bonnet-Highleigh-Leapleigh-Pitchwell-Overleigh-Balderson-Blaskett.” There’s a long list of names like that one, and not only are they difficult to pronounce, but they turn even a simple sentence into a run-on–something that was already beginning to happen rather frequently. I have to wonder, if an adult has a hard time pronouncing these names, how would a child ever be reasonably expected to do so themselves?

Something that bothered me with all of these stories was the implication that the cats were able to eat things like chocolate caramel cake and cinnamon buns. Not only is it inaccurate, but children who enjoy the book, and are too young to realize it is entirely fictional, would undoubtedly try and feed these treats to their own cat. While liberties are of course taken with fiction of any kind, specifically in a fantasy like this one, I really did feel like a parent would find themselves having to tell their children not to do a number of things from this book.

Overall, what started as a somewhat promising children’s novel, ultimately left me frustrated and slightly disappointed. It was, to sum up, difficult to read and follow, let alone actually enjoy it, and it was a forced challenge to finish it. I give this two stars with the suggestion of a strong rewrite–the best parts were by far the illustrations by Emma Block, along with the initial descriptions in the character introductions.