book review

Time to link up with Steph and Jana for Show Us Your Books!!! For sure my favorite link up of the month!

Then You Were Gone by Claire Moss

I had a hard time getting in to this book at first. I am not sure if I just wasn’t in the right mood or what? This  book really made me think, how well do I really know anybody?? Simone’s boyfriend Mack disappears and her and her guy friend Jazzy set out on a quest to figure out what happened to him. I felt like there was a story line brewing between maybe a lost flame between Jazzy and Simone but it was sort of a fizzle and could have been elaborated a bit more for a plot twist or interest. Other than that, the book basically follows them around as they try to piece together what they actually know about Mack. Which they realize, isn’t much.

To be honest, I really liked Jazzy but I didn’t care much for Mack. Perhaps because we didn’t know that much about him? Either way, I almost felt indifferent most of the book as to whether or not they even find him.

This is sort of a suspenseful book but in the why did Mack leave sort of way. Which did peak my interest throughout. The thing was I knew instantly why he had went off and Simone and Jazzy didn’t even have the real reason cross their minds, which to me was ridiculous because it was so obvious to me!!

Bottom Line: I did enjoy most of this book, I just wish I had liked Mack more. I guess that is part of the suspense, because you don’t really know him. Though I didn’t need to know much about him at all to figure out the end. Overall, it was an interesting read, I just wish it was a little more developed with the plot because it is a fantastic plot idea.

I was provided a copy of this book (Before We Were Strangers) by the publisher and author via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Boy Who Dared by Susan Campbell Bartoletti

I listened to this one via audiobook. This book is based on a true story/experience. It changes perspectives from present day Helmut in jail to memories of his past that lead up to him being in jail. I immediately related to the character. While I obviously am not German nor did I live in the WWII era, I can appreciate how people felt back then. I loved how Helmut had his own thoughts. He was told that all the books he reads must be German, but he thinks that is ridiculous and loves his American Western novels. He sees Jewish people being treated badly and it upsets him. He tunes in to the BBC radio in the evenings to get the true story about what is going on around the world, not what is fed to him by the German government. Standing up for what you believe in at such a young age is a very brave thing to do.

When Helmut goes to jail for simply speaking the truth, it is rather eye opening to realize how many people this really happened to then. I insist that if you do read or listen to this book, you stick around for the author notes.

What I find the most interesting is that this stuff still goes on today. I am not so naive to think that our own government doesn’t hide certain truths from us, but even worse in other countries. Look at North and South Korea!! The people of North Korea were told recently that their astronauts landed on Saturn. Saturn!!! Last checked, Saturn is a gas giant planet. Only about 1,000 people (mostly North Korean government) have internet in that whole country. Just crazy, right?!?! They have no way of knowing what is really going on.

Bottom Line: I highly recommend this book if you like historical fiction, or just want to understand more about Germany and the Hitler Youth. While all the events are not real, they are based on a real person and the author did extensive research to make the most plausible story.

Freefall by Tess Oliver

This was such a quick read for me, about two days. Nix owns a tattoo shop that he opened with an inheritance from his father that passed away. He is a former heartbreaker with a core group of friends and is a sweet guy. He looks after his sick grandmother and seems to be the levelheaded one of his group. Scottlyn is a selective mute who lost her family in a tragic car accident and has never quite recovered. She was taken in by a douche canoe named Lincoln who is controlling and in to shady business. Scottlyn meets Nix when Lincoln takes her to Freefall to get her scar from the accident covered with a tattoo. A spark is ignited between Nix and Scottlyn. You see where this is going….

This book is considered romance, but there is much more story line and hardly any smut. So this is a great choice for those of you who don’t care for the smut in romance novels.

Bottom Line: I liked this book. It had a little suspense in it that kept me interested in finding out what would happen next. I liked the characters, though I felt like Clutch and Taylor was a weird side story that never went anywhere. One thing I didn’t like? The book needed editing bad!!! There were several errors that I caught. Also, the ending came quick in a perfect little bow and I thought more could have be done with it.

Down the Rabbit Hole by Holly Madison

I did this one via audible and I loved it! I used to watch Girls Next Door, so I was already familiar with Holly and the other girls that were on the show. This really gave you a different perspective on what the Playboy Mansion life was really like. I remember when I watched the show I thought that it probably wasn’t as glamorous as they tried to make it seem.

Bottom Line: If you watched Girls Next Door or are at all curious about what Hef is really like, then this is a great read. I found it really entertaining to listen to, as Holly reads it herself. I loved the Alice and Wonderland quotes at the beginning of every chapter, even if Holly’s English accent is the worst I have ever heard.

Game of Love Melissa Foster

This book was (maybe still is????) free on ibooks! I am going to be honest, the main draw to it for me was that Dex, the leading male character, is a video game developer. Since I like video games and am married to a gamer/computer mastermind, I felt like I would connect with him. This is your typical love story of the girl in need being rescued by her strong man. In this case, Ellie was a child “of the system” when she was younger and grew up next to Dex. Her foster parents decided to let her go and she left without saying goodbye to him. Several years she showed up at his door for a weekend and left again without saying bye. He never recovered. Now she is back and a lot  of the book is her struggle with wanting to stay with him and fighting the urge to run.

Bottom Line: I enjoyed the plot of the book and I really liked Dex. My issue is that the author kept repeating over and over again the struggle that Ellie was going through. We get it, she was a foster child, she had a hard time earlier in life, she is a flight risk now because of it…quit repeating it! For that reason, I will only be rating this book 2 stars. But I really did love the idea behind it.

Other books I read this month:

Before We Were Strangers

I started The Scam over the weekend. It is Janet Evanovich’s new novel and I am excited! She is one of my favorite authors 🙂 What are you reading?

When Matt sees Grace on the F train in New York City after 15 years, his past comes rushing back. He sees her a minute too late, though! He writes a letter to her in the missed connections section of Craigslist in hopes that she will find it.

This book changes POV between Matt and Grace in different chapters and was easy to follow because at the start of each chapter, it literally had the name of whose point of view it was. I really enjoyed getting both of their perspectives of everything. After the book sets up the current day seen, it jumps back to Matt and Grace’s stint their senior year of college. It shows you how they met and how their relationship develops. The book then jumps back to current day.

This is a book about second chance romance that seemed so real and raw. I was hooked from the first chapter and I loved how it wasn’t always perfect. You get to see a silly college friendship build in to something deeper. I feel like Gracie and Matt could have been people I hung out with in school. I loved the other characters in the book as well, like their friends Tatiana and Brandon and I instantly fell in love with Matt’s mom too. Grace is a cellist and Matt is a photographer, so you get some music and art talk which was lovely.

I haven’t read anything by Renee Carlino before, but I am seriously going to have to check out more of her work now. This book should most definitely get added to your to-read list! It gave me all the feels and I was left smiling and wishing it wasn’t over so soon! You can add it to your Goodread’s list here!

I was provided a copy of this book (Before We Were Strangers) by the publisher and author via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I also wanted to join in with Pamela on the Share the Love link up! Today I want you to meet Lindsay! She blogs over at Bourbon, Lipstick and Stilettos. If the blog name alone doesn’t get you….but who are we kidding, you know it does…her content will!!! Not only does Lindsay posts great reviews and thoughts on different beauty products, she talks about real life stuff. You will also find some posts on stuff that some people would be afraid to hit publish on. I love how genuine she is and the variety of things that she shares!

Don’t forget to link up tomorrow with Laura and I for What’s Your Sign!!!! Any zodiac talk goes. I cannot wait to read all of your posts!!!!!!

It’s Show Us Your Books day!!! I have a feeling that my To Read list will be growing lots after reading all of your posts today. Let’s just get right to it, shall we?? For those of you who care nothing about books, stop back by later. I have another post scheduled with Erin’s link up.

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me by Mindy Kaling

I loved The Mindy Project and could totally see myself hanging out and being BFF with Mindy in real life, so it was no surprise that I loved this book! I listened to the audiobook version and it was almost like listening to one long episode of her show. I won’t go in to a lot of detail her, but Mindy just talks about real life stuff. Her struggle with weight, what she is looking for in a guy, a bit about her time as a write for SNL and The Office, etc. One of my favorite lines was where she compared sci-fi to a romantic comedy saying that neither was like real life and it is all made up. So true, right?

Bottom Line: If you liked The Mindy Project or Mindy in general, read this book!

Everything I Left Unsaid by Molly O’Keefe

The premise of this book is what drew me to it. Annie, an innocent farm girl on the run from her abusive husband, lands herself in a trailer park with some interesting neighbors and a mysterious cell phone. The phone rings and Annie answers. It is a guy named Dylan who is trying to keep an eye on Annie’s neighbor Ben for reasons unknown. Annie and Dylan both have secrets, but are drawn to one another with some intense phone chemistry. They both use each other to get over their past, and become addicted to the rush they get from talking to one another on the phone.

This book delivers on action, suspense and romance. And to be honest, it was refreshing to see how raw, yet brave Annie was. It takes a truly strong person to leave the situation she was in. That is what makes a kick ass female lead in a book! Annie was far from perfect, but watching her push herself and be strong…that was inspiring. The ending sort of threw me for a loop. Not in a bad way.

Bottom Line – This was a great read. I really enjoyed all of the characters in the book. Reading through some of Annie and Dylan’s racy interactions on the phone was a little weird, but needed for the plot line.

I was provided a copy of this book (Everything I Left Unsaid) by the publisher and author via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Reckless by Skye Jordan

This is the first book in Skye Jordan’s Renegade series, and this book was awesome!!! We meet Lexi, a couture wedding dress designer who has some pretty powerful and famous clients. Lexi’s best friend is a tech nerd who develops an app that she wants Lexi to try out while waiting for a flight to NYC. The same flight that the hot Jax whom she caught eye contact with in the drop off lane in front of the airport is on. Lexi starts to anonymously text Jax through this app and they hit it off. Unfortunately, both of them have been hurt in the past for being used. The love story that builds throughout this book is incredible. Sometimes being reckless reaps big rewards, sometimes it leaves you broken. I also loved that Lexi was a fashion designer. It was fun to read about her passion.

Bottom Line – I loved this book and highly recommend it. You get a risk, a love story, some hot passion, haute couture fashion and a bad boy. Probably one of my favorite reads this month!

My Kind of Love by Kristin Miller

I had found this book for free through iBooks which was super exciting and figured I would give it a try. It was a short book, less than 200 pages but I felt it was a decent enough length to get the story out, and the story was something that could really happen. Harlow ran out on her wedding day after finding out her ex cheated on her with her school’s principal. She runs back to Blue Lake, her small home town, and runs into her old crush Dane. Dane is an adventurous guy with some serious commitment issues. Even though Harlow has a bad relationship, she still believes in true love.

I loved that Dane had a blog that he tried to tie in to his business. It was very relate-able and cool to see in a book since blogging is one of my favorite hobbies as well!

Bottom Line– There are some funny parts to this book, some real life raw emotion, a little romance, and a great love story. There was nothing that really stood out to make me say wow, what an amazing read…but I enjoyed it none the less! Plus, it was great that it was on the shorter side. Most books I read are well over 300 pages.

Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein

This book. This book gave me all the feels!!!! I wasn’t quite sure what to expect when I started. I knew the book was written from a dogs perspective and I guess I thought it was going to be happy go lucky. But no. It was so deep, thoughtful and honestly…I straight up cried a few different times.

Not to give too much away, but the book basically tells the story of Enzo’s life through his own eyes. Enzo is the dog, obviously. His master, Denny, is a race car driver and the book uses a lot of race analogies and vocabulary to understand how to drive through life. There are several twists and turns that I wasn’t expecting when I picked this book up. I sort of saw them coming once I got in to it, but that wasn’t an issue for me.

Some of my favorite quotes were:

“That which you manifest is before you.”

“No race has ever been won in the first corner; many races have been lost there”.

Bottom Line – Absolutely read this book!!! Especially if you are a dog lover, but even if you aren’t. Literally all of the feels.

Micah by Jo Raven

Micah is near death and homeless when Ev meets him for the first time. Ev has a soft spot for those that are  homeless and in need. She calls an ambulance for Micah and ends up needing one herself during her wait. Fast forward to a few months later, when Ev can’t get the boy who she tried to save out of her mind. Did he make it? And Micah who has recovered and noticed Ev at a coffee shop across the street from his tattoo parlor where he now works.

They meet once again, though Ev doesn’t realize that Micah is the boy she saved. They have this deep connection right from the start, and they explore on that has Micah tries to figure out what Ev is afraid of….and Ev tries to dig into Micah’s past.

Bottom Line: I really enjoyed this book. It was a quick read, and I had a hard time putting it down because I had to know what happened next!

I also read Secrets of Maple Syrup Farm and reviewed it here.

I started to read All the Light We Cannot See but couldn’t get in to it and put it down. I think I have to be in the right mood for that book and I just wasn’t.

Right now I am reading Before We Were Strangers

This book you guys. This book. It was so sweet!! I fell in love instantly with this book and got invested in all the characters and life in Ashford, Connecticut!

Lucy and her mother Crystal are bit of nomads, bouncing around from town to town until Lucy’s mother falls ill with ALS. Now Lucy must work double shifts at the diner to just barely scrape by and spend all of her spare time by her mother’s side trying to care for her.

Lucy’s mom makes her promise to take a year for herself. To jump on the first bus that leaves out of town and go discover herself and invest time in her passion, art.

Lucy ends up in Ashford, Connecticut and lands a job at the Maple Syrup Farm after coaxing stubborn, yet oh so hot Clay into giving her a chance to be a farmer’s assistant. Of course, this is after Lucy walks in on him on a ladder singing and grinding to Genuine’s Pony. A guy after my heart.

Lucy quickly learns that life in a small town is everything she was missing. The people are all in each other’s business, but certainly care and do everything they can to help each other out. You get to meet Lil and CeeCee who work at the Gingerbread Cafe. Turns out…there is a series by the author about the Gingerbread Cafe that I can’t wait to sink my teeth in to!!!

Clay is very much a recluse, and Lucy has to work very hard to chisel away at his ice. They both have secrets from their past and feel at home at the Maple Syrup Farm under the maple trees who lend them comfort. Lucy’s passion for art and her eye for the beauty in nature are described just beautifully in this book!

While this is considered romance, I would classify closer to maybe chick lit? You didn’t have the super steamy scenes like some romance books and more of just a good love story.  The relationship between Lucy and her mom was so sweet. It reminds me very much of the relationship that I have with my mom. I highly recommend this book!!! I was hooked instantly and could barely put it down because I needed to know what happened.

I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher and author via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Also, today is the check in for the Literary Ladies book challenge!!! I have highlighted in green which books I have read so far.

1. A YA Book – LA Candy by Lauren Conrad

2. Non US Author – Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty

3. A book that was recommended by a blogger (or instagrammer/you-tuber/goodreads-er) –The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin was recommended to me by Kristen and probably other bloggers too!

4. A book that has been on your TBR list for a year or more – The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty

5. A book with a kickass female character – The Sea of Tranquility by Katja Millay. This book was #18 on the Goodread’s list of “Unmistakably Strong Female Characters!!” so I say that is a kickass female character book, wouldn’t you? Plus I have heard amazing things about it.

6. A book that is or will be a movie or TV show – The Martian by Andy Weir

7. A book written by a comedian or celebrity – or even a memior – Bossypants by Tina Fey

8. A book with a one word title – Hasfrau by Jill Alexander Essbaum

9. A suspenseful book – a mystery, thriller, a book about revenge! – You by Caroline Keeps

10. A book about summer, with Summer in the title, or any way related to summer. –Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson

It appears I have a lot more to read!!! I may end up switching a few of these out based on books that are available to me right now. We shall see. Where are you in the challenge??