Books – October 2023

Book reviews! I am going to go ahead and post the first half of October books now to turn in one of my ARC reviews, and because I already have four down and two more started so I know I should have enough for another post by the end of the month! I always like to get more into thrillers and mysteries in the fall months, and if you hang out til the end, you will see I have also started my holiday reading! My favorite time of year for books!

None of This Is True by Lisa Jewel

Wow. While reading this book, I was like what am I even reading???? Several times. And by reading, I mean listening, as I consumed this one on audiobook and the narration cast was fantastic!!! It really added so much to the book with music and background noise during interviews with other people, the podcast recordings, and then different narrators for different POV. So fantastic! But back to the book! You obviously know from the title that there is going to be an unreliable character, and it doesn’t take long to figure out who. The way that Josie slithers her way into Alix’s life is just….creepy! And like Alix, you can’t help but be all in on Josie’s story. And then Alix of course has some of her own problems. I will probably be thinking about this one for awhile, which marks a good book.

Bottom Line: Read it! Definitely check out the audio version if you enjoy audiobooks!

The Villa by Rachel Hawkins

I am going to be totally honest here, I started this book twice on ebook and just couldn’t get into it. I didn’t give it much of a chance and had so many other things I wanted to read, so I set it aside. I ended up waiting until the book came out on audio at my library, hoping the narrator would pull me in. She does a fantastic job with the narration! This is a story within a story, and I was bored with both of them in the beginning. I didn’t really start getting into the book until about 30-40% in, and then I flew through the rest wanting to see where the story was going. I figured out quite a few things on my own before they happened, but there were a few twists. I think I enjoyed this one more than Hawkins last book.

Bottom Line: Even though it started off slow, I am glad I hung in there because I quite enjoyed the second half and found it interesting.

**I received a copy of The Villa from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.**

Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers by Jesse Q. Sutanto

I don’t know what it is about this book, but I absolutely loved it! All the characters are so interesting and I loved to see how they are all part of the story. Cozy mysteries can be so hard, because they often come off cheesy at times, but that isn’t the case at all with this one. I just loved Vera and the whole gang and I found it very hard to put down. I consumed this one on audio and I highly recommend the audio version, as it was done so well. I am not going to say anymore about the storyline, because this is just one that you will have to read and enjoy on your own. And now I want a cup of tea.

Bottom Line: Read it!

Once Upon a Christmas Kiss by Ciara Knight, Brenda Lowder, Susan Carlisle, Terra Weiss, Susan Sands, Christy Hayes

This is a collection of short stories that all revolve around the book Once Upon a Christmas Kiss that gets passed around the town of Cherry Creek. I loved each of their stories in their own way, each sweet and full of Christmas cheer. We all know going into these short stories that you wont get a lot of depth, it is impossible in just a few chapters each. But with that said, I feel like you definitely get to know these characters a little and feel a spark between them. My favorites were Sawyer and Dawson’s story and Brandon and Laurel’s story. I have read a few other books by Terra Weiss, and she is definitely someone I seek out to read. The other authors were new to me and I wouldn’t mind checking out some of their other works as well. This book gives Hallmark Christmas Movie binge feels and I am here for it!

Bottom Line: Read it

**I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.**