Book Review: Since You’ve Been Gone

Hello Everyone!

Today’s review is on Since You’ve Been Gone by Morgan Matson.

Summary:

It was Sloane who yanked Emily out of her shell and made life 100% interesting. But right before what should have been the most epic summer, Sloane just…disappears. All she leaves behind is a to-do list.

On it, thirteen Sloane-inspired tasks that Emily would normally never try. But what if they could bring her best friend back?

Apple picking at night? Okay, easy enough.

Dance until dawn? Sure. Why not?

Kiss a stranger? Um…

Emily now has this unexpected summer, and the help of Frank Porter (totally unexpected), to check things off Sloane’s list. Who knows what she’ll find? 

Go skinny-dipping? Wait…What? 

My Thoughts: 

I’ll admit that when I first picked up this book, I was skeptical about whether or not I would like it because some of Morgan Matson’s books have been pretty hit-or-miss with me. However, Since You’ve Been Gone has changed my mind – I LOVED IT!

At first I struggled to get into it because I was going through a minor reading slump when I started it, but once I got past the 100-page mark I flew through it! I loved the concept of the list of “challenges” that Emily has to complete – although I hated how Sloane just ditched her.

I enjoyed getting to know Emily and her family – I loved watching her grow as a person while the list. I also liked how in some ways she starts to find autonomy a part from Sloane. Then there is Frank Porter…he is such a cute character and I love him, he is an adorable cinnamon roll and I wish there were some actual guys like this in reality!

I also enjoyed getting to know Dawn and Collins and seeing how they, along with Frank, try  to help Emily on her quest. I liked Sloane, however I also disliked her because of how she basically drops out of Emily’s life without saying goodbye, but  the explanation that is given for this makes sense.

I really liked the playlists that appear throughout the book are awesome – I wish there were more. And I also liked how each chapter jumps back to the past to explain certain items on the list, or even just certain things that happen in the present day.

I really loved it, and it made me want to pick up her latest release, Save the Date, right away. 5/5 Stars.

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

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Book Review: Once and For All

Hello Everyone!

Today’s review is on Once and For All by Sarah Dessen.

Summary: 

As bubbly as champagne and delectable as wedding cake, Once and for All, Sarah Dessen’s thirteenth novel, is set in the world of wedding planning, where crises are routine.

Louna, daughter of famed wedding planner Natalie Barrett, has seen every sort of wedding: on the beach, at historic mansions, in fancy hotels and clubs. Perhaps that’s why she’s cynical about happily-ever-after endings, especially since her own first love ended tragically. When Louna meets charming, happy-go-lucky serial dater Ambrose, she holds him at arm’s length. But Ambrose isn’t about to be discouraged, now that he’s met the one girl he really wants.

Sarah Dessen’s many, many fans will adore her latest, a richly satisfying, enormously entertaining story that has everything—humor, romance, and an ending both happy and imperfect, just like life itself

My Thoughts: 

Sarah Dessen has a way of making readers feel all the feels in almost all of her books and Once and For All was no exception.

I like how we, along with Ambrose, were kept in the dark about Louna is so cynical when it comes to true love – the reason made sense and was very fitting with today’s current events and when it is revealed it is hard not to cry!

I liked all of the characters, although I found Louna to be a bit too mopey at times, although it did make sense. Ambrose was also interesting, although his way of trying to win Louna is ridiculous. I also enjoyed the side characters: Natalie (Louna’s mom) and William and their whole wedding planning business.

As I mentioned before, Sarah Dessen has a way of writing books that have readers tear up at some point, and there was scene towards the end of the book that had me in tears because of the build up to it, and Dessen makes the reader think that something similar happens to Ambrose that happened to Louna’s first love.

This was a good contemporary read that has  a lot of perfect fluffy moments, but yet still has scenes that are tear-jerkers, which is a perfect reminder that life isn’t all rainbows and unicorns, and that bad things do happen. 3.5/ 5 Stars.

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

Book Review: From Twinkle, With Love

Hello Everyone!

Today’s review is on From Twinkle, With Love by Sandhya Menon.

Synopsis: 

 Aspiring filmmaker and wallflower Twinkle Mehra has stories she wants to tell and universes she wants to explore, if only the world would listen. So when fellow film geek Sahil Roy approaches her to direct a movie for the upcoming Summer Festival, Twinkle is all over it. The chance to publicly showcase her voice as a director? Dream come true. The fact that it gets her closer to her longtime crush, Neil Roy—a.k.a. Sahil’s twin brother? Dream come true x 2.

When mystery man “N” begins emailing her, Twinkle is sure it’s Neil, finally ready to begin their happily-ever-after. The only slightly inconvenient problem is that, in the course of movie-making, she’s fallen madly in love with the irresistibly adorkable Sahil.

Twinkle soon realizes that resistance is futile: The romance she’s got is not the one she’s scripted. But will it be enough?

Told through the letters Twinkle writes to her favorite female filmmakers, From Twinkle, with Love navigates big truths about friendship, family, and the unexpected places love can find you.

My Thoughts: 

Even though I liked When Dimple Met Rishi, I enjoyed this one a lot better, especially the ending. I loved getting to know Twinkle and how the format of this book is setup like her diary (I am a sucker for books like this). I also liked how her entries are written to different female movie directors that she looks up to. I  also loved how this read as  a good classic romantic comedy and it is the perfect summer read.

Sahil is the typical (but still awesome) hero of this rom-com. I loved how he was always trying to push Twinkle to be the best she could be, while also letting her figure out stuff on her own.

It was also interesting to see that in order to truly grow as a character, Twinkle had to become her worst self and realize that she had to change. It was also interesting to see all the different family dynamics that take place in the novel: Sahil and his inferiority to his twin brother Neil; Twinkle and her grandma, Twinkle and her parents who seem disinterested in her life. I also liked how it dealt with friendships and relationships in general: Maddie and Twinkle; Maddie and Hannah; Twinkle, Victoria and Francesca. I also liked how it dealt with some of the issues that people that immigrants face when they leave their home countries behind.

I am looking forward to seeing what Sandhya Menon writes text. 4.5/5 Stars.

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

Book Review: Fat Girl on the Plane

Hello Everyone!

Today’s review is on Fat Girl on a Plane  by Kelly deVos.

Synopsis:

Fat.

High school senior Cookie Vonn’s post-graduation dreams include getting out of Phoenix, attending Parsons and becoming the next great fashion designer. But in the world of fashion, being fat is a cardinal sin. It doesn’t help that she’s constantly compared to her supermodel mother—and named after a dessert.

Thanks to her job at a fashion blog, Cookie scores a trip to New York to pitch her portfolio and appeal for a scholarship, but her plans are put on standby when she’s declared too fat to fly. Forced to turn to her BFF for cash, Cookie buys a second seat on the plane. She arrives in the city to find that she’s been replaced by the boss’s daughter, a girl who’s everything she’s not—ultrathin and superrich. Bowing to society’s pressure, she vows to lose weight, get out of the friend zone with her crush, and put her life on track.

Skinny.

Cookie expected sunshine and rainbows, but nothing about her new life is turning out like she planned. When the fashion designer of the moment offers her what she’s always wanted—an opportunity to live and study in New York—she finds herself in a world full of people more interested in putting women down than dressing them up. Her designs make waves, but her real dream of creating great clothes for people of all sizes seems to grow more distant by the day.

Will she realize that she’s always had the power to make her own dreams come true?

My Thoughts: 

Before I get started with my thoughts I am grateful to have received an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

This year there seems to be quite a few novels dealing with weight and body-positivity for teens, which I think is great! However, I honestly didn’t read through the synopsis thoroughly so I found the events that unfolded to be a surprise, which I guess is a good thing.

I found it weird that there were two story lines – the past when Cookie was fat and when she is skinny in the present. I liked how it explored some of the misguided reasons for losing weight. I liked how Cookie discovered that life doesn’t become all sunshine and roses when she is skinny.

In some ways I found “fat” Cookie to be relatable especially with the emotions she goes through when she starts her journey. I loved watching her pursue her dreams in fashion and comes to realize that no matter what size she is, it is still a cut-throat industry.

I hated her relationship with Gareth Miller, especially since she was 19 and he was 35…it was just weird – I found this to be one of the pitfalls of the novel. I also wanted to love Tommy, her ex-best friend and crush, but he kept messing up and was just an idiot.

I loved her grandma, her parents were just awful. I loved her best friend Piper and how she deals with Cookie and her antics.

I liked the ending although I wish there was more resolution with her parents. And I also wish there were not quite as many F-bombs. 3/5 Stars.

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

Book Review: Katie in Waiting

Hello Everyone!

Today’s review is on Katie in Waiting by Erynn Mangum.

Synopsis: 

Katie McCoy has spent her whole life waiting for the right guy and he isn’t coming. After relocating to Carrington Springs, Missouri, Katie finds herself getting more and more frustrated. Can’t God see that she’s trying her best to meet someone? Doesn’t He care that she’s lonely? What is she doing that is making Him not bless her with this? With two new friends, Eliza and Ashten, by her side, Katie starts to realize that maybe God has bigger plans for her life than she could have ever imagined.

My Thoughts: 

There were so many jokes that were said in this novel that I feel like explain me to a “T”! Some of the things that Katie goes through, such has having become stagnant in her walk with the Lord is something that I myself have struggled with myself.

I liked how even though there was a possibility of romance it still ended up with Katie coming to terms with her singleness and finding contentment with the Lord. I also enjoyed getting to know Eliza and Ashten and I can’t wait to read each of their stories very soon. 4/5 Stars.

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

Book Review: Love Amid the Ashes

Hello Everyone!

Today’s review is on Love Amid the Ashes by Mesu Andrews.

Synopsis: 

Readers often think of Job sitting on the ash heap, his life in shambles. But how did he get there? What was Job’s life like before tragedy struck? What did he think as his world came crashing down around him? And what was life like after God restored his wealth, health, and family? Through painstaking research and a writer’s creative mind, Mesu Andrews weaves an emotional and stirring account of this well-known story told through the eyes of the women who loved him. Drawing together the account of Job with those of Esau’s tribe and Jacob’s daughter Dinah, Love Amid the Ashes breathes life, romance, and passion into the classic biblical story of suffering and steadfast faith.

My Thoughts: 

I really enjoyed this book. It was interesting to see how Andrews combined two pieces of biblical history together into a work of fiction. She puts together Job and Dinah, Jacob’s daughter who’s brothers killed an entire city for her honor. It definitely provided some insights into that text that I never thought of before. Plus, recalling a couple of lectures I listened to from Dr. Chou,  professor at my alma mater, mentioned that Job was a descendant of Abraham.

I liked how this book was a constant reminder of God’s love and mercy and how when we are truly repentant He forgives us, as in the case of Dinah, and even Job. I also enjoyed the reminder of how once we have confessed our sin and asked for forgiveness, we need to let go of the past and move on, which is something I struggle with.

I loved getting to know Dinah and Job besides just what is written in Scripture, even if it is just fiction. I also liked how Job’s affliction was given a human dimension, which is also possible. I enjoyed watching Sitis’ (Job’s wife) redemption through the novel, I also enjyoed getting to know Aban, Elihi, and Neghlahu. The one character that I’m not sure I liked the direction the author took was Jacob, I felt like he came across as bitter and harsh towards Dinah.

I loved the author’s note explaining why she did what she did with the characters and attempting to tell Job’s story in fiction. I had also just finished reading Genesis when I read this and I loved seeing a possibility of what happened beyond the text, even though it was fictional.

Overall I loved that this book was that it dealt with not just romantic love, but also God’s love amidst the trials of life. 4/5 Stars.

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

June Wrap-up

Hello Everyone!

Welcome to my June Wrap-up! I know my blog posts lately haven’t been the greatest but I am trying to change that, once again I am sorry for the half finished posts that have appeared here in the last couple of months, but from now on I am going to make sure all my posts are complete before I schedule them. On that note, here are the books that I read in June:

1. Remember by Karen Kingsbury with Gary Smalley 

I enjoyed re-reading this one. It is definitely a tear-jerker! Longer review to come. 4/5 Stars.

2. Assassination Classroom Volume 6: Swim Time by Yusei Matsui 

A good continuation of plot. I am only 6 volumes in and I excited to see where the rest of the series goes from here. 3.5/5 Stars.

3. The Queen’s Rising by Rebecca Ross

This was an okay read. I felt like a lot of the action happened too quickly and I kept having to flip back to find out what I missed. 3/5 Stars.

4. In Conclusion, Don’t Worry About It by Lauren Graham 

This was a good, quick read based on the speech that Lauren Graham gave to the 2017 graduating class at her old high school. She gives good advice and it is perfect for anyone who has just graduated from high school or college, as well as anyone who is starting a new job or starting a new stage of life. 5/5 Stars.

5. Assassination Classroom Volume 7 by Yusei Matsui 

Another great installment in the series. 3.5/5 Stars.

6. The Austen Escape by Katherine Reay 

This was an okay read. I highly recommend it for Jane Austen fans who are looking for a light contemporary read. Longer review to come. 3/5 Stars.

7. Assassination Classroom Volume 8:  Time for an Opportunity by Yusei Matsui 

A good continuation of the story, however I found  a couple of the villains introduced in this story to be very weird. 3/5 Stars.

8. Return by Karen Kingsbury with Gary Smalley 

This was a good book, but it didn’t seem to hold my attention as much as the other two, however I am enjoying my reread of the series. 3/5 Stars.

9. Assassination Classroom Volume 9: A Shocking Time by Yusei Matsui 

Enjoyed this volume a lot better than the last one. I also like that we got some of the back story on several of the minor characters. 3.5/5 Stars.

10. Assassination Classroom Volume 10: Time for Robbery by Yusei Matsui 

The story keeps getting better and better. 4/5 Stars.

11. Lumberjanes/Gotham Academy #1 by Chynna Clugston Flores 

A somewhat decent introduction to this crossover series. 3/5 Stars.

12. Assassination Classroom Volume 11: Time for Sports Day by Yusei Matsui 

A good continuation of the story, seemed to take a more slice of life approach in this volume. 3.5/5 Stars.

13. Lumberjanes/ Gotham Academy #2 by Chynna Clugston Flores 

The plot starts to thicken. 3.5/5 Stars.

14. Lumberjanes/ Gotham Academy #3 by Chynna Clugston Flores 

The story just keeps getting better! 4/5 Stars.

15. Lumberjanes/ Gotham Academy #4 by Chynna Clugston Flores

Good. 4/5 Stars.

16. Lumberjanes/ Gotham Academy #5 by Chynna Clugston Flores

Some good action in this one. I was sad to see it end in the next installment. 4/5 Stars.

17. Lumberjanes/ Gotham Academy #6 by Chynna Clugston Flores 

A good conclusion to the series. 4/5 Stars.

18. Lumberjanes Issue #1  by Shannon Watters, Grace Ellis and Noelle Stevenson

Great introduction to the series! 4/5 Stars.

19. Lumberjanes Issue #2 by Shannon Watters, Grace Ellis and Noelle Stevenson 

Good! 3/5 Stars.

20. Lumberjanes Issue #3 by Shannon Watters, Grace Ellis and Noelle Stevenson 

Good! 3/5 Stars.

21. Lumberjanes Issue #4 by Shannon Watters, Grace Ellis and Noelle Stevenson 

The plot thickens in this installment! 4/5 Stars.

22. Rejoice by Karen Kingsbury with Gary Smalley 

Another great installment in this series! I am glad I have decided to revisit it after 6 year. 4/5 Stars.

23. Lumberjanes Issue #5 by Shannon Watters, Grace Ellis and Noelle Stevenson 

Good! 3/5 Stars.

24. Lumberjanes Issue #6 by Shannon Watters, Grace Ellis and Noelle Stevenson 

The story keeps getting better! 4/5 Stars.

25. Lumberjanes Issue #7 by Shannon Watters, Grace Ellis and Noelle Stevenson 

Good! 3/5 Stars.

26. Lumberjanes Issue #8 by Shannon Watters, Grace Ellis and Noelle Stevenson 

Good! 3/5 Stars.

27. Goldie Vance Issue #1 by Hope Larsen

This was a good introduction to this comic series. I am looking forward to following Goldie Vance on more of her adventures! 3/5 Stars.

28. Once and For All by Sarah Dessen

This was a good contemporary read, however there was a long build up to the actual plot and it only seemed to take up 100 pages of the book. But Sarah Dessen is good at writing tear-jerker scenes, especially one scene towards the end that really got me! I highly recommend this for anyone who is looking for a light, but heavy, YA contemporary to read this summer. 3.5/5 Stars.

29. Lumberjanes Issue #9 by Shannon Watters, Grace Ellis and Noelle Stevenson

I enjoyed the different “scary” stories that the Lumberjanes tells in this issue! 4/5 Stars.

30. Lumberjanes Issue #10 by Shannon Watters, Grace Ellis and Noelle Stevenson 

Loved this introduction to the new story arc in this series. 4/5 Stars.

31. Reunion by Karen Kingsbury with Gary Smalley

The conclusion to the first series in the overarching Baxter Family Drama series (there are currently 6 series in the saga!). This one was a tear-jerker! It was good, but it was hard to get through at the same time. 4/5 Stars.

32. Lumberjanes Issue #11 by Shannon Watters, Grace Ellis and Noelle Stevenson 

Good! 3/5 Stars.

33. Fame by Karen Kingsbury

Always a good time catching up with the Baxter family and I love the new characters that readers will get to know throughout the Firstborn series.

34. Lumberjanes Issue #12 by Shannon Watters, Grace Ellis and Noelle Stevenson 

Good! 3/5 Stars.

35. Lumberjanes Issue #13 by Shannon Watters, Grace Ellis and Noelle Stevenson 

Good! 3/5 Stars.

36. Lumberjanes Issue #14 by Shannon Watters, Grace Ellis and Noelle Stevenson 

Good! 3/5 Stars.

37. Love, Life, and the List by Kasie West 

This was a cute, contemporary read and it is perfect for summer! 4/5 Stars.

DNF’d 

Emergency Contact by Mary H. K. Choi 

Even though I have been looking forward to this book for months, I just couldn’t get into it. I might try reading it again in a few months.

And those are all the books I read in June!

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

 

 

2018 Bookish Goals

Hello Everyone!

Today’s post is all about my bookish goals for 2018. I don’t have many goals, but the ones I did set are ones that I think I can achieve over the course of the year. Here are my goals:

1. Read 52 Books 

I set it my Goodreads goal for 52 books because even though I want to read everything in sight, I also want to slow down and enjoy what I read! Last year I read a lot, but I honestly can’t remember what half of them were about.

2. Complete the Around in 52 Books 2018 Challenge.

I attempted to do this challenge last year, and even though I was only a couple books short of completing it, this year I want to make more of an effort to complete all 52 challenges. If you would like to see what the challenges are for this year, check out my blog post all about it!

3. Complete the Beat the Backlist Challenge. 

If you would like to find out more about the Beat the Backlist challenge, check out my blog post from a couple of days ago where I talk more about it. I am going to attempt to read 20 books that were published before 2018 throughout the year, I might be able to read more, but right now I feel like this is the most attainable goal.

4. Read my Bible every day. 

One of my goals last year was to read through the Bible in a year, however I completely slacked off on this for most of 2017. However, this year I am determined to stick to a plan and do it for the whole year!

5. Write a review for every book I read (long or short). 

The only exception to this rule is going to be Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows because I haven’t done a review for the rest of the series. But every other book is going to get a review this year, it just might take a while for it to go live on the blog.

6. Post consistently on my blog. 

The second half of 2017 was somewhat disastrous posting wise because I didn’t really have much of a schedule and I would take several weeks off at time. However, this year I am planning on posting three times a week (Monday, Wednesday, Friday), with a few extra posts on a Saturday. There will also be certain times (like the first two weeks of January) where I will be posting five days a week just to keep up with all the content I want to post this year!

7. Post consistently on Instagram. 

Over the past several months my Instagram account has primarily been a Bookstagram account (apart from several personal posts) and I am looking forward to uploading more Bookstagram photos. My plan is to try and upload a photo every day (at least for this month), and to just be consistent with it.

8. Try to gain 100 followers for my blog. 

9. Try a genre I wouldn’t normally read. 

For this goal I am thinking of trying out either Thriller or Horror, but nothing to scary. I am thinking of picking up either The Shining or Carrie by Stephen King in order to complete this goal.

10. Try different kinds of content on my blog. 

I am still working on what exactly this is going to be, but I am looking forward to sharing some of the ideas I have with all of you soon.

And those are my goals for 2018! What are some of your bookish goals for the year?

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

P.S. If you haven’t done so already, don’t forget to click the blue “Follow” button. You can also follow me on my other social media profiles: Twitter (@Jlc0904Janelle), Instagram (@jazzyjan101), GoodReads, and The Meanderings of a Bookworm Facebook page! 🙂

The Name Change

Hello everyone!

It has been about a week since I moved from Blogger to WordPress, and The Scribbler became Meanderings of a Bookworm.

The reason for the change is that I felt like it was time to give my blog a makeover and I was finding it difficult to use Blogger in more innovative ways to improve my blog. I had heard in the past that WordPress was better than Blogger, however I wanted to do my own thing and refused to accept it. But since I felt that a change was needed on my blog I decided to check it out and see whether or not I wanted to use it as the new home of my blog.

After spending a few hours of playing around with WordPress, I discovered that it was easier to use and make changes than on Blogger. I also decided that if I changed to WordPress then maybe it was time to change the name as well; for a while I have been wanting to change for a while.

I also felt like a change was necessary since I started The Scribbler back when I had just finished my senior of high school and two years later I decided to turn it into a book blog. However, now that I have graduated from college and I am a little bit older I also wanted my blog to reflect the changes I have been going through.

For those of you who read The Scribbler, welcome to Meanderings of a Bookworm and I hope you enjoy the content of this blog as much as you enjoyed the old blog! To my new readers, welcome! I hope you enjoy my ramblings about books and anything book related! 🙂

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

P.S. Don’t forget to follow the blog and like the Facebook page. You can also follow me on Twitter (@Jlc0904Janelle) and Instagram (@jazzyjan101).

July Wrap-Up

Hello Everyone!

Welcome to my July Wrap-up! So I’ll admit that I read more books than I thought I would this month because it started out as a slow reading month. But I managed to read 16 books this month, which is great (any amount of reading is great, but this exceeded my expectations). Also, if you remember my July TBR, my friend Allison picked out 6 books for me to read this month and I am proud to say that I managed to read 5 out of the 6 books she picked for me! Here are the books I read this last month:

1. Forgiven by Karen Kingsbury 

Another good installment in the Firstborn series. I appreciated how the author dealt with tragedy and how to move past it as a Christian. 4/5 Stars.

2. The Way the Light Bends by Cordelia Jensen

This was an okay novel told in verse. I felt like it took a while for it to get to the main conflict in the novel and I wish it hadn’t been brushed over/explained away. 3/5 Stars.

3. Since You’ve Been Gone by Morgan Matson

I really enjoyed this book! It is the perfect summer YA read that follows a girl whose best friend disappears and leaves a list of things for her to do. I loved getting to know Emily and following her on her adventure as she tries to complete the list and make new friends along the way. 4/5 Stars

4. Found by Karen Kingsbury 

Another good installment in the series. 4/5 Stars.

5.My So-Called Bollywood Life by Nisha Sharma 

This book did not live up to my expectations but was still decent. 3/5 Stars.

6. Family by Karen Kingsbury

Another good installment in the Firstborn series, however not as good as the previous book. 3/5 Stars.

7. Honey So Sweet Volume 1 by Amu Meguro 

This was really cute and I loved the accurate depiction of how awkward crushes can be! 4/5 Stars.

8. Forever by Karen Kingsbury 

A good conclusion to the series! 4/5 Stars.

9. Stay Sweet by Siobhan Vivian

This started out slow, but once things started to pick up about 50 pages in I flew through it. A perfect summery read about an ice cream stand that has traditionally only been run by women – however the founder dies and her grand nephew is left in charge and things start to change. 4/5 Stars.

10. Listen to Your Heart by Kasie West 

A cute but predictable story. 3/5 Stars.

11. Eliza and Her Monsters by Franscesca Zappia 

A YA contemporary novel dealing anxiety, depression and fandoms. I really enjoyed it! 4/5 Stars.

12. Milk and Honey by Rupi Kuar 

This was a meh read for me. This is the second collection of poetry I have read from this author and it wasn’t great. 2.5/5 Stars.

13. The Dating Disasters of Emma Nash by Chloe Seager 

I was really looking forward to this book, but it ended up falling flat for me. I loved epistalory writing style, however there was too much sexual humor for my taste. 2.75/5 Stars.

14. The Queen of Hearts by Kimmery Martin 

It took me a while to get into this book, but I really enjoyed it and I loved reading about the rigors of being a med. school student and seeing how the characters had changed since becoming doctors. I really hope Kimmery Martin writes more books. 4/5 Stars.

15. The Sisters Grimm: The Fairy-Tale Detectives by Michael Buckley 

A good introduction to the series…it’s like Once Upon a Time for kids with a mystery element. 3.5/5 Stars.

16. So Not Happening by Jenny B. Jones 

This was a reread for me and it was interesting to revisit it after having read it back as a senior in high school. I liked the mystery element and how the main character had to change, but I didn’t like it as much the second time around.

 

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

August TBR

Hello Everyone!

So the past couple of months I have been trying to shake up my TBRs by doing different things such as letting a friend pick my TBR or Goodreads pick my TBR, which has been fun. For August I was planning on having BookTube pick my TBR, but I decided to not do that because there are several books I want to read before the Fall semester starts. Usually this doesn’t matter, but I am taking a class this upcoming semester that I am excited for but it requires me to read over 30 adult fiction books from a variety of genres, so as a result I’m not going to be able to read much else except books for that particualr assignment. This also means you are probably going to see more reviews for adult books than I have done in the past, which I am excited to try something different (I have read “adult” books in the past, but this is the first time where it has been the main thing I have read), and I already have a list of books that I want to read for this particular class (we can choose whatever we want, as long as it represents different genres).

So, after that very long-winded explanation, here are some of the books I plan on reading in August:

Lost in a Book by Jennifer Donnelley

Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas 

Bookish Boyfriends: A Date with Mr. Darcy by Tiffany Schmidt 

The Way You Make Me Feel by Maureen Goo 

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling

And those are all the books I plan on reading in August!

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

 

 

Blind Date with A Book Unwrapping

Hello Everyone!

Today’s post is a little bit different, my friend Allison and I recently bought a couple of “mystery” books and decided to try a blind date with a book. Here is the video of us unwrapping our “dates” :

I hope you all enjoyed something a little bit different. I might do some more posts like this in the future.

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.