Falling for You by Natasha Madison

 

Title:  Falling for You

Author:  Natasha Madison

Narrated by:  Teddy Hamilton, Samantha Brentmoor

Publisher: Blackstone Publishing

Length: Approximately 8 hours and 4 minutes

Source: Thank you, Partner @bibliolifestyle @blackstonepublishing for the physical book review copy.  Audiobook purchased from Audible.

How are the fall colors where you live?  We are starting to get color now in Northeast Wisconsin and it is beautiful on my drives.

Collins and Theo shared a passionate one-night stand which ended when Theo snuck away while Collins slept.  Two months later, Collins discovers she is pregnant. She runs into Theo again and discovers his identify. When she breaks the news of her pregnancy to him, will Theo decide to stay or go?  Can Collins move on from her family’s criminal and neglectful past?

My thoughts on this audiobook:

·       This is the first book in a new series.  I am looking forward to the rest of this series!

·       This book was delightful on audiobook.  There were two different narrators, for the dual first-person narration of both Collins and Theo.  The female narrator did voices for all the different characters.  They were both expressive narrators.  I loved it!

·       The genres for this book were contemporary romance, small town romance, accidental pregnancy, and mystery.

·       I felt bad that Collins was saddled with a bad family, and it was hard to move on from it.

·       This romance was spicey almost immediately with short scenes of spice throughout the novel.

·       There were two epilogues to this story, and I would have read more.  I was sad for it to end.

·       There was a bit of a mystery solved at the end of the book, but the mystery of who shot Sierra at the beginning of the book was never solved.  Did I miss something?

·       Theo develops from a player to a great romantic partner.  I loved how he pampered and cared for Collins.  I liked the growth of both characters throughout the novel.

Overall, Falling for You by Natasha Madison was an engaging contemporary romance with great characters.  It was excellent on audiobook.  I look forward to seeing the characters again as more books come out in this series.

The Things We Leave Unfinished by Rebecca Yarros

 

Title:  The Things We Leave Unfinished

Author:  Rebecca Yarros

Narrated by:  Tim Paige, Carly Robins

Publisher: Tantor Audio

Length: Approximately 14 hours and 32 minutes

Source: Checked out from Libby through the Kewaunee Public Library

What is a book that you would recommend as a good book club read?

Georgia Stanton has just gone through a brutal divorce.  Back home in Colorado, she is going through her best-selling author Great Grandma Scarlett’s estate and learns that author Noah Harrison has been signed by the publisher to finish Scarlett’s unfinished manuscript.  Georgia thinks Noah is arrogant and not the right man for the job.  As they read Scarlett’s manuscript and letters, sparks fly between them, and they fight how to end the novel.  It’s based on Scarlett’s real WWII romance with a pilot which did not end happily.  Should Noah end the book with the sad real ending or the happy ending that were the trademark of Scarlett’s romance novels?

My thoughts on this novel:

·       This was the August selection for the Rogue Book Club.  We all read this book and enjoyed it.  It prompted a good discussion. 

·       It was an engaging audiobook with great narrators.

·       I enjoyed both the contemporary and WWII romance.

·       I loved Jameson and Scarlett’s romance.  Scarlett wants to marry the man she loves and not the man her parents want her to marry to save the family estate   Can you really move on when your one great love is killed in WWII? 

·       Noah was able to help Georgia move on from her terrible divorce and to truly heal.

·       Scarlett and Constance were sisters who were always there for each other.

·       I would classify this novel as historical fiction, historical romance, dual timeline, and contemporary.

Overall, The Things We Leave Unfinished by Rebecca Yarros was a compelling historical and contemporary dual timeline novel.

Her Affections and Wishes by Heather Moll

 

Are you a fast reader or a slow reader?  I’ve realized as I’ve gotten older that I am a pretty fast reader.

Elizabeth Bennet has turned down Mr. Darcy’s proposal.  Darcy has regrets and has started to correct his behavior towards others.  Lady Catherine decides that Elizabeth should join a friend of Lady Catherine’s, Lady Metcalfe, and her daughter Julia at a house party at Woodcote Park to watch the Epsom horse races and to try to win a husband.  When Elizabeth arrives, she is surprised to find Mr. Darcy amongst the guests.  Will this time spent together spark their affections?

My thoughts on this novel:

·       This is a Pride and Prejudice variation.  The time frame is weeks after the Hunsford proposal.

·       It was a very romantic story between Elizabeth and Darcy.  It shows their feelings and passions started to build.  They had great chemistry!

·       As mysterious “accidents” start to happen around Elizabeth, who is trying to harm her and why?  I liked the mystery and bit of adventure in the last part of the book. 

·       I loved the house party and Regency games.  Some of the games seemed racy for the time and included kissing or touching people while blind folded.

·       The dialogue between Elizabeth and Darcy was top notch as well.  I liked Darcy’ second proposal.

·       Lady Metcalfe and Julia were both something else as Julia tries to snag Darcy as a husband.  It made me wonder, what would you do in Regency times if you were accidently caught up with vulgar people?

·       I loved the Epilogue set in the future.  It tied up the loose end and showed the couple happily married.

·       Moll writes Austen’s characters wonderfully and captures their original spirit.  I liked the addition of the new characters to the Austen world.

·       This is a forced proximity clean read.  There were kisses only, but affairs are discovered, and the characters talk in innuendo.

Overall, Her Affections and Wishes by Heather Moll was a delightful Regency romance and Pride and Prejudice variation.  I loved the romance, Regency games, and bit of adventure.

Book Source:  Review copy from Heather Moll as part of a book tour.  Thank-you!

The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood

Title:  The Love Hypothesis

Author:  Ali Hazelwood

Narrated by:  Callie Dalton, Teddy Hamilton

Publisher: Penguin Audio

Length: Approximately 11 hours and 51 minutes

Source: Checked out from Audible through Amazon Music.

Olive Smith is a PhD student who has a personal reason for researching early methods of detection for pancreatic cancer as her mother died of it when Olive was just a teen.  She doesn’t have time for romance. When her best friend Anh falls for Jeremy, a guy she had been on a few casual dates with, she decides that she needs a fake relationship so that Anh can move happily forward with Jeremy. She kisses the first available man who happens to be Dr. Adam Carlson. While handsome, smart, and aloof, he is also known as a tyrant to the grad students.  Adam agrees to the scheme in order to convince the higher ups that he is not going to leave Stanford.  Will this fake relationship develop into something more?

My thoughts on this novel:

·       This was my pick for the September Rogue Book Club in anticipation of the new Prime movie.  We were looking for a light, fun read and this fit the bill.  Only three of us made it to book club this month, two out of three read it and loved it.  It had interesting points to talk about for a book club discussion a well.

·       I enjoyed the funny, witty banter.  I laughed out loud more than once while listening to this audiobook.  Great humor.

·       I was annoyed when Olive didn’t tell Adam the whole truth at times and kept things to herself.  Luckily, the truth all comes about on both sides by the end.

·       I loved the science and academia setting.  It was unique to the romance world.  I was an engineering grad student once upon a time and could relate to many items in this book.

·       This novel was very steamy towards the end of the novel with one very long spicy scene over two chapters.

·       The side characters were great in this novel.  I especially loved the romance between Malcom and Holden.

·       This book could be classified as fake dating, sunshine versus grumpy, and contemporary romance.

·       I loved their meet cute from years before when Adam inspired Olive.  She couldn’t see him with eye issues with her expired contacts.

·       I also loved that Adam supported Olive with feeling positive about herself and her research. Women are not represented well in STEM and there is an incident in this book that characterizes one reason why.

·       I did feel kind of icky about the professor and grad student dating, even if it wasn’t his grad student.  We had a professor that dated his own grad and undergrad students when I was in college, and it was very cringe.  When is it okay for a professor to date a student at his/her college?

Overall, The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood is a fun, witty, and delightful contemporary romance set in the academia and STEM world.  I laughed out loud and highly recommend it.  It also has enough teeth to provide many discussion points for a book club.

Summer State of Mind by Kristy Woodson Harvey

 

Title:  Summer State of Mind

Author:  Kristy Woodson Harvey

Narrated by:  Cassandra Campbell, Stephanie Einstein, Matt Pittenger

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Length: Approximately 11 hours and 21 minutes

Source: Review copy from Simon & Schuster Audio. Thank-you!

On this last official weekend of summer, did you have any last-minute adventures or summer reads?

Baseball coach Mason and his star student Drew, find a newborn in a dumpster behind the school.  They rush it to the hospital and meet nurse Daisy who has just moved to the area.  As Daisy falls in love with the newborn, will she be able to foster and keep the child?  Mason and Daisy feel a spark – will they start a romance?  Who abandoned the child?

My thoughts on this book:

·       I loved the community and characters in this book.

·       Daisy and Mason both had past issues they had to work through to move forward to a happy life. 

·       This was a great summer beach read.  I found it to be highly entertaining.

·       One of my favorite characters was Aunty Tilly.  She has multiple personalities but takes a step forward in her life by starring in Hello Dolly.  Will she be able to face her past and move into the future?

·       I just love stories where babies are found – I don’t know why.  I guess it’s a happy story where a baby I rescued by someone who loves it.  Rilla of Ingleside also is a favorite book where a baby is found.

·       This story was great on audiobook.  I loved the narrators. The story is told through three points of view -  Daisy, Tilly, and Mason.

·       The setting was in a fictional seaside town in North Carolina.

·       I would classify this novel as a family drama and contemporary romance story.

·       This story focused on what does it mean to be a family?  Can you forgive a past wrong?

·       It did like Daisy was skirting some professional ethics at work with Baby Mason.

·       I enjoyed the mystery of figuring out who abandoned the baby as well as Daisy and Tilly’s pasts.

Overall, Summer State of Mind by Kristy Woodson Harvey was an entertaining contemporary romance and family drama that I greatly enjoyed.

Shortbread in the Highlands by Robin Jones Gunn

 

What is your favorite dessert?  I love so many it’s hard to pick one.  One favorite is cherry pie.

Cousins Nora and Allie travel to Scotland to claim an inheritance for their Gran.  They meet interesting new people as they stay in a cottage in the town that their Gran grew up in.  This trip is also a time to explore Scotland in the fall and spend time together.  Besides being plagued by delays, Nora and Allie discover that their Gran had kept a secret from them.  What was the secret and why did she keep it from them?

My thoughts on this novel:

·       This book really made me want to visit Scotland with the wonderful descriptions of the scenery, food and people.

·       This book is number three in the Suitcase Sister series, but I read it as a standalone novel, and it worked just fine.

·       I liked that the trip got the two both thinking about their lives and where God was leading them.

·       I loved that the inheritance was a library.  If only I could inherit a library!  Their mission was to retrieve their Gran’s diary from the library and then sell the contents of the library.

·       Scottish shortbread sounds delicious, and I would like to try some.  There is a great recipe in the back of this book that I need to try out!

·       This was a sweet romance, clean read, contemporary, and inspirational read.

·       Allie and Robin get annoyed with each other at times but work through it.  Allie owns a successful skincare company with her husband and feel like she really needs to get back and not spend time in Scotland with Robin.  This puts a strain on things at first.  There is more to this, and it slowly comes out in the story.

·       Recipes, discussion questions, and a look at the author’s next book conclude this story.

Overall, Shortbread in the Highlands by Robin Jones Gunn is a delightful, cozy story set in Scotland with a hint of mystery and romance.  I enjoyed it this summer and the fall setting also makes it a perfect fall read!

Book Source:  Thank-you to @robingunn @revellfiction @greatreadsbookpromo for the review copy as part of the Great Reads Book Promo tour.

The Roommate Rule by Georgia Stone

 

Have you ever lived with a roommate besides a spouse?  Would you rather have a roommate or live alone?

Thank you, Partner @bibliolifestyle @harperperennial for the review copy of The Roommate Rule by Georgia Stone.

Dylan is taking a last minute six-week trip to Wales with her best friend’s brother, Max.  She has only met Max one other time but has agreed to this trip after his plus one dropped out.  Max is a travel influencer, and all expenses are paid.  As they get to know each other, sparks start to fly. Will these two find love on this amazing trip?

My thoughts on this novel:

·       I loved the interesting chapter titles such as “I’m fine, I just enjoy jumping from great heights, that’s all.”  They often gave me a chuckle.

·       Cancer survival is a theme in this book.

·       I need to read Georgia Stone’s other book, The Friendship Fling.

·       Tropes included best friend’s brother, forced proximity, contemporary romance, opposites attract.

·       There was great banter and chemistry between Dylan and Max.  It felt like the room lit up whenever they were together.

·       This book was a dual point of view novel with Dylan and Max as the two points of view.

·       The setting was Pembrokeshire, Wales and it made me really want to visit that area   It seemed beautiful and a place I would like to spend a long vacation.

·       I liked how both characters grew throughout the novel and faced their fears.  Max lives in the moment because of a past death experience.  Dylan is always trying to please everyone else, but what about pleasing herself?  They push each other out of their comfort zones.

·       This is a spicy romance.

·       I loved the cute cover. 

·       This was funny and was a perfect summer read for me last month.

Overall, The Roommate Rule by Georgia Stone is a fun romance with great characters and banter.

Things We Cannot Keep by Amanda Cox

 

Thank you to @amandacoxwrites, @revellfiction, and @greatreadsbookpromo for the gift copy of Things We Cannot Keep.

Do you have a special item from a friend or relative that helps you remember them?

Tess Holcomb has built a business with a partner, Amos, in Alabama to repair time pieces and other family treasures.  She has kept her past in her past and has moved on with her life. That is until Elliot Sullivan appears at her shop.  Is he looking for forgiveness after eighteen years or does he have an ulterior motive?

My thoughts on this novel:

·       I was intrigued by Tess.  I wanted to know more about her past and why she wanted to start a new life.  I like how the story unfolded and gave me all the details.

·       Timeless Restoration was such a unique shop.  The stories of the items that were to be restored were so interesting in themselves.

·       I enjoyed the mysterious package and how they worked together to solve the mystery.

·       This novel had great characters, especially Tess, Elliot, and Amos.

·       I enjoyed the themes of forgiveness, redemption and choosing happiness.

·       I would categorize this book as second chance romance, contemporary romance, road trip, clean read, and inspirational.

·       I loved thinking about the history of the mysterious watch and all the lives it impacted. 

·       There is trauma in this novel from childhood abuse.

·       I think this would be a great book club pick as it would prompt a lot of discussion.

Overall, Things We Cannot Keep by Amanda Cox is a compelling, heartfelt story with great characters.

Happy Place by Emily Henry

 

Title:  Happy Place

Author:  Emily Henry

Narrated by:  Julia Whelan

Publisher: Penguin Audio

Length: Approximately 11 hour and 3 minutes

Source: Purchased from Audible

Where is your happy place?  Is it a place or a person?

Harriet and Wyn have been a couple since college and are a fixture in their group of friends.  They broke up five month ago and have not told their friends.  Now it is the annual getaway for their friend group in May and they are sharing a bedroom.  Will they be able to make it through and keep their friends?  Will they find love again?  Why did they break up?

My thoughts on this novel:

·       I am a mood reader, and I was not in the mood for this book.  I listened to it on audiobook.  The narrator was great, but the storyline and characters did not engage me.  I was annoyed at Harriet and Wyn for lying to everyone.  I really hated miscommunication in books.

·       This was my first Emily Henry book.  She is raved about on Instagram – is there a better book by her that I should read?

·       I did not really like the characters.  The side characters were all one dimensional and Wyn was not a great hero.

·       Spicy scenes were included.

·       I was let down when the book finally told why they broke up.  I was like, really?

·       This book could be classified as contemporary, fake relationship, second chance romance.

·       I loved that Harriet loved to read cozy mysteries.

·       This was the June pick for the Rogue Book Club and the July pick for the Page-turners book club at the Kewaunee Public Library.  Is this a great book club book?  I didn’t think so.  It was a book of mostly angst with not much action.

·       I thought the ending was a part of the living in a different world of privilege.  SPOILER ALERT:  Harriet is going to school to be a doctor and decides to leave it all to become a potter.  Most people I know would not be able to do this.  That’s a lot of money and loans to throw away and somehow must be paid back.  I do believe in second chances and making a change, but most people would need to finish up and work as a doctor for awhile to pay off this debt.

Overall, Happy Place by Emily Henry was an angsty book that wasn’t for me.  What book has disappointed you lately?

 

Meet Me in Italy by Brenda Novak

 

What country is your current read set in?

Charlotte is having a hard time writing her second novel after the surprise success of her first novel.  She is stunned when her basketball star husband leaves her and she finds out she was an adopted child, her birth mother has died, and she has a young tween sister who is orphaned in Italy.  Charlotte and her best friend Sloane, and Sloane’s brother Julian, travel to the Amalfi Coast in Italy to meet her sister, Lily. Will Charlotte and Lily be able to have a relationship?  What will happen to Lily?

My thoughts on this novel:

·       I read this book in May for the April pick for the Brenda Novak Book Group. There are fun book club meetings on Facebook the fourth Thursday of the month.  I listen to the meetings afterwards when I can.

·       This novel was a contemporary romance and a family drama.  It also had found family and second chances.  The romance is friends to lovers.

·       I loved the description of the beautiful Amalfi Coast – I was ready to visit!

·       I felt so bad for Lily.  She had a rough life with her moving all around and constantly changing boyfriends.

·       The cover of this novel is beautiful.

·       The novel had characters dealing with heartbreak and troubles in life.  It showed how friends and found family can support you and how you can turn your life around.

·       My Great Grandma Kile would have called this a good story – it had a lot of drama, good characters, and a satisfying ending.

Overall, Meet Me in Italy by Brenda Novak was an enjoyable contemporary romance and family drama with good characters and setting.  It’s a great book if you are looking for a fun summer read.

Book Source:  Review copy from NetGalley.  Thank-you!

Scent of Hope by Susan May Warren

 

Title:  Scent of Hope

Author:  Susan May Warren

Narrated by:  Brian Hutchison

Publisher: Recorded Books

Length: Approximately 9 hour and 57 minutes

Source: Audiobook Review copy from NetGalley and physical book review copy from @susanmaywarren @revellfiction @greatreadsbookpromo.  Thank-you!

What is the last book you read that was very entertaining?  Scent of Hope by Susan May Warren was a very entertaining story that made my yard work fly by this past weekend.

Harley Tatum is a private investigator in Alaska.  She lost her family when she was young and the one man she loved, Jericho, never returned home after enlisting in the military.  Jericho has finally returned home with his avalanche dog, Orlando, and they must work together to solve a mystery and rescue those they love.

My thoughts on this book:

·       This was great on audiobook.  Brian Hutchison was an intriguing narrator.

·       This story was action packed.

·       It is the second book in the Call of the Wild series.  I need to read the first book in the series.  This worked as a standalone.

·       This story was a second chance romance story, which is one of my favorite tropes.

·       I loved that Orlando was a Bernedoodle with a stressful back story of his own. 

·       Harley is a strong woman, but she only trusts herself and won’t ask for help.

·       Jericho likes to control every situation and can’t trust that Harley has her own skills.

·       This was a good Christian and inspirational novel. There were messages about loss, grief, forgiveness, and putting your trust in God.

·       There was great chemistry and depth of feeling between Harley and Jericho.

·       This was a clean read.

Scent of Hope by Susan May Warren was a great action packed second chance romance with mystery, suspense, dogs, and a great Alaskan setting.  I highly recommend if you are looking for an entertaining read.