The idea is pretty simple, every week you dedicate a post to the three W’s:
What are you currently reading?
What have you just finished reading?
What are you going to read next?
I finally read some books this weekend! I think it’s because my daughter’s dance recital is finally done and I can really relax now until the end of the month that is haha. Maybe my slump is over? Or I just finally got the books I’ve been waiting for at the library!
**Update** – so I thought my body could relax but then my week started with my a/c unit crapping out again – so I am a little too warm and toasty in my house. Also our house alarm was acting up, alerting the company that our garage door is open when it’s not, etc…so yeahhhh maybe not so much a relaxing week so farm but I’m determined to stay positive about all this. 😅
The idea is pretty simple, every week you dedicate a post to the three W’s:
What are you currently reading?
What have you just finished reading?
What are you going to read next?
I can’t believe I just realized all my WWW Wednesday posts this year said 2023 LOL. OH WOW – guess I have to change that. See, I told you my brain has been elsewhere this year. Anyway, it’s May and my kids end the school year in 4 weeks – they are so excited. My daughter has her big recital this weekend and this will be it for her ballet and tap days. She might be trying something more mellow, like hula next. We shall see!
Did I read more this week? Not really…but I’m glad I had some progress, really slow progress, but at least it’s progress.
The idea is pretty simple, every week you dedicate a post to the three W’s:
What are you currently reading?
What have you just finished reading?
What are you going to read next?
I haven’t picked up a book all weekend because I’ve been streaming Taylor Swift’s new album and trying to decode the lyrics – it’s been a grower for me but so good! I can’t believe we are almost at the end of April. My daughter is going to be busy with her tap recital being next week so we have stage rehearsals this week. Not sure if I’ll finish any books this week but I do have an audiobook I can listen to.
The idea is pretty simple, every week you dedicate a post to the three W’s:
What are you currently reading?
What have you just finished reading?
What are you going to read next?
Finally I am feeling much better! Still some congestion but most of the yuckiness and the coughing is gone thank goodness. But now my daughter has pink eye so yay…fun! Now I’m trying to avoid that lol. I haven’t posted much, I haven’t read much and if I did it was one or two pages and then I’d put the book down. Not sure why I’m in such a slump but have you read any amazing books lately? If you have drop some recs in the comments, please!
Readers who love books about books will fall for Erin La Rosa’s latest rom com—a friends (with benefits)-to-lovers story about a romance author who’s never been in love, and needs to find out why before her next manuscript is due! For fans of BY THE BOOK and BOOK LOVERS.
Romance author Sophie Lyon’s ironic secret just went viral: she’s never been in love. Though her debut novel made readers swoon, Sophie’s having trouble getting her new characters to happily-ever-after, and she blames it on her own uninspired love life. With a manuscript deadline looming, Sophie makes an ambitious plan to overcome her writer’s block: reunite with her exes to learn why she’s never fallen in love—and document it all for her millions of new online followers. Which also means facing her ex-girlfriend Carla, the one person Sophie could have loved.
Luckily, Sophie’s reclusive landlord, Dash Montrose—a former teen heartthrob—has social media all figured out and offers to help. But he doesn’t mention that he’s an anonymous online crafter, a hobby that helps him maintain his sobriety. No one knows about his complicated relationship with alcohol and he intends to keep it that way. His family is Hollywood royalty, so Dash has to steer clear of scandal.
As Sophie and Dash grow closer, they discover a heat between them that rivals Dash’s pottery kiln. But Sophie needs to figure out who she is outside her relationships, and Dash isn’t sure he’s stable enough for the commitment she deserves. So Sophie suggests what any good romance author would: a friends-with-benefits arrangement. Surely a casual relationship won’t cause any trouble…
Book Excerpt
Sophie Lyon was not in a good place.
More specifically, she’d had one (or three) too many the night before. So instead of falling asleep on her bed, she was lying on the couch with a paperback book as a makeshift pillow. Her legs were tucked up in the fetal position inside her billowy dress. And as she licked her lips, she tasted vodka and fried chicken, which she didn’t remember drinking or eating.
She attempted to open her eyes, but her lashes stuck together from the makeup she’d forgotten to remove the night before. With the help of her index finger and thumb, she managed to peel one lid open. White-hot summer light poured in through the arched living-room window and her mint green walls, a color she’d specifically chosen for its soothing properties, were mockingly chipper.
But even more unsettling was the book on the coffee table directly in front of her, Whisked Away. Sophie’s first published book. She closed her one good eye and wished she’d never opened it.
Her mom had always dreamed about Sophie filling an entire bookshelf with all her titles, the years of working multiple day jobs while tinkering on romance books finally worth the struggle. But, as it turned out, Whisked Away would be Sophie’s one and only book. Had she known she’d be a one-hit wonder, she wouldn’t have ordered the little placard for her writing desk: Ask Me about My Tropes.
The worst part was that she had sold a follow-up book—or, at least, a pitch plus the first three chapters—but she hadn’t been able to finish The Love Drought (a title so tragically similar to her own personal problems that it made her cringe). She’d been given multiple extensions but missed all of them. And, per her contract, her publisher had the right to terminate their deal if those deadlines weren’t met. But no matter how many drafts she started, Sophie couldn’t find her way to the happily ever after that all romance books promised and that she loved.
The phone call with her agent started with We need to talk… and ended with You have six weeks to finish this book or your contract, plus the advance, will be taken back.
She’d spent most of that advance, though, along with the royalty checks that grew smaller and smaller as interest in her last book waned. She needed money from turning in the next book if she wanted to continue paying for things like food or a place to stay.
She should’ve seen the implosion coming. Her horoscope had warned that the entire month of June would be bad for important communication. But the damage was done: Sophie was a romance author with writer’s block, and in six weeks’ time, she’d lose her publishing deal.
So she’d done the only thing she knew would make her feel better: called Poppy. And her best friend had suggested a night out at their favorite downtown karaoke bar to drown away the loud whir of failure.
She cautiously sat up, then settled her feet into the woven jute rug. Her legs were as firm as Jell-O when she stood. Still, she managed to make it to the hallway mirror, where she saw that her normally side-swept curtain bangs had morphed into Medusa, snakelike tendrils across her forehead, and she had more flakes on her face than her pet goldfish had in his bowl.
She cringed. Rain Boots. Her goldfish was twelve years old and the longest relationship she’d ever had. She planted her hand on the wall for support and shuffled over to her bedroom where a large glass fishbowl sat on her bedside table. Rain Boots swam in the exact middle and blinked at Sophie with large accusatory eyes.
“I’m sorry, honey,” Sophie croaked out. “I know we have our bedtime routine, but Mommy got horribly drunk.”
She tapped the glass with her index finger and waited for a response, but none came. Eventually the silence broke when her doorbell loudly ding-donged and caused her to jump in surprise. The next, and bigger, surprise came when she made her way to the front door and saw her landlord waiting on the porch.
Dash Montrose wasn’t a tall man, but he had presence. Part of that was because he always seemed to be fidgeting—tapping his fingers, shifting his feet, or pacing slightly—but also, he had thick arms with swirling, inky-black tattoos.
It’s not that Sophie had stared at those arms in prior instances but…well, yeah, she probably had.
Still, her first instinct was to hide behind the couch because what the hell was Dash doing there? She and Dash lived next door to each other, but they were not close. In fact, Dash hardly ever acknowledged her existence. He lived in the large house tucked behind her bungalow, but he was always walking away in some kind of a hurry. If she waved, he only ever nodded back. She didn’t think he was intentionally being a jerk, but he clearly had no interest in interacting with her. They hadn’t spoken actual words to each other in at least a few months. She Venmoed him the rent, and sometimes he left a thumbs-up in response. That was the extent of it.
But there he was, in jeans and a T-shirt. What could he want? Did he somehow know her funds were about to run out and he was preemptively evicting her? Sophie avoided confrontation at all costs, but she couldn’t run away from him, not when his face was pressed against the window of her door and he was peering directly at her. She clutched her arms across her chest, extremely aware that she was still dressed in her clothes from the night before, as she made her way to him.
When she opened the door, she was hit not only with the heat from the high sun above but by the sight of Dash’s wet hair slicked around his face. Water trickled down his neck and splotched his faded shirt, like he’d come straight over from a shower. Which meant a few minutes prior he’d been totally naked, covered in soap and water and…
“Hey, uh, whoa.” His voice cut through Sophie’s thoughts. When she glanced up, Dash gave her an uneasy expression, then gestured down the length of her. “What happened…”
She never left the house without a minimum of tinted moisturizer, but of course Dash came on the one day where she closely resembled a Madame Tussauds wax statue melting in the sun. Sophie gently swiped her index finger under her eye, and it came back coated in black liner. Excellent.
“Vodka happened,” she muttered.
She rubbed the liner between her fingers. Something was wrong. Mercury must’ve been in retrograde. If thirteen-year old Sophie had known that she would be renting a place from Dash Montrose—former teen heartthrob movie star turned still hunky landlord—and he was seeing her hungover…she’d be even more embarrassed than she already was. And she’d probably also be delighted. Because Sophie had maaaybe had a photo of him from a magazine cover on her wall when she was growing up. His film Happy Now? was her all-time favorite movie.
She absolutely did not have a crush on adult Dash, though. Well, he was undeniably hot. No point in glossing over that thick, dirty-blond hair, the dimple in his chin, or any of the other tatted-up details. But he was Poppy’s brother and so off-limits that Sophie had built a wall around Dash in her mind. Though bits of the wall appeared to crumble at the sight of his strong jaw and the dark circles under his eyes that made him all the more mysterious to her.
“Poppy asked me to come check on you. She said you weren’t answering your phone.” He glanced behind her, as if searching for a potential thief holding her cell hostage.
“My Poppy?” Sophie had worked at Poppy’s spa, Glow, for years—one of the many day jobs she’d had before quitting to write full-time. Though, now that she had endless writer’s block, she might have to beg for her old job back.
“She’s my sister, so she’s technically our Poppy.” His hands landed in the pockets of his jeans.
Sophie looked behind her to where the phone usually was, and blessedly, while she’d been drunk enough to use a book as a pillow, she’d been just sober enough to plug in her phone. She rubbed at one of her throbbing temples and walked over to her desk, grabbed her phone, then held down the power button and watched the white icon flash back.
As she waited for the phone to boot up, she walked back toward Dash.
“Okay, she wants me to tell you that there’s a video of you going viral?” Dash gestured to his phone, which made his forearm flex and Sophie’s eyes widen in response.
She tried to process what he’d said. She needed an intense boost of caffeine—maybe a matcha—to be able to comprehend the words coming out of his mouth. “A video?”
“I don’t know, she said you needed to see it. And that I needed to make sure you saw it.” He shrugged, but the small motion lifted the edge of his shirt up just enough for Sophie to catch a glimpse of his boxers.
Sophie didn’t want to be impolite—Dash was Poppy’s older brother, after all—but what was she supposed to do? She couldn’t so much as look at a candle shop without rushing in to buy one. Dash was the male equivalent of fresh beeswax. She was definitely staring.
Just then, her phone erupted in a series of pings, vibrations, and what sounded like one deafening goose honk. If she owned pearls, she’d be clutching the hell out of them. The screen filled with notifications—emails, texts, missed calls, and push notifications from Instagram—but she pulled up Poppy’s text conversation first.
Soph, are you up?
It’s 10. You never sleep this late.
I’m at work, ARE YOU OK
I’m sending Dash over.
YOU’RE NOT DEAD! YIPPEE!
OK, here’s the vid. Don’t freak out!
Dash’s phone pinged too, he looked down, then sighed. “Did you get it?” He sounded a little irritated.
Sophie frowned at the blurry thumbnail of a woman, but clicked the link, which sent her to the TikTok app. Then, almost immediately, she saw herself reflected on the screen. The video was taken at the karaoke bar, and Sophie was the main event. She stood onstage as the undeniable background music to Elton John’s “Tiny Dancer” played. She had requested that song, hadn’t she? The small pieces of her lost-memory puzzle began to click into place.
Only, in the video, she was sobbing, with tears running down her cheeks, as she gazed wild-eyed into the crowd. Poppy ran onto the stage and attempted to coax Sophie off, but Sophie grabbed the mic and shouted, “I’ve never been in love, okay?!” Her voice so angry and vehement that she appeared to be deranged. The person holding the phone zoomed in at that exact moment to capture Sophie’s grimace as she shrieked out, “Love isn’t real!” Then Poppy yanked the mic out of Sophie’s hand and dropped it for her. End of video.
“Stop, stop, stop!” The words screeched out of her as she furiously poked the screen to try and delete the video. Then she remembered this was not her video—someone else had uploaded it. Eventually, her eyes drifted down to the caption, which read Relatable! The video had over two hundred thousand views and thirty thousand likes.
“Oh my holy hot hell.” She was a writer but could not think of any other words in that moment. Her mind raced at the thought of hundreds of thousands of people watching her have a public meltdown and liking it.
Normally, Sophie was an optimist, but after the last twenty-four hours, she was beginning to understand the appeal of pessimism. Her hand instinctively went to her chest and her fingers tap-tap-tapped at her pacemaker—something she always did to steady herself—as she scrolled through the comments and saw that not one but multiple people had recognized her.
Sophie Lyon is FUN
Sophie Lyon is secretly unhinged and it’s sending me
I hated her book, but I like this?
“Just breathe.” Then Dash’s hand was on her back, steady and warm, which momentarily distracted her, but not for long.
The heat outside had intensified to Palm Springs–level boiling and caused Sophie to break out in either hives or a rash. She furiously clawed at her throat with her free hand. She walked away from Dash and down the porch steps. Her bare feet hit the cool blades of grass in her yard, and when she looked up, the iconic Hollywood sign perched in the Santa Monica Mountains shined pearly white in the distance. Seeing those letters from her yard every morning used to make her feel closer to the success she so deeply craved, but now she felt buried under the weight of its implied expectations.
She stumbled, and Dash was next to her within seconds, holding her steady. He grabbed her elbow with one hand, and the other wrapped around her waist to cup her hip. His skin was warm against her, even through her dress. Her stomach flipped, probably from the lingering alcohol. “Sophie, you really need to sit. You look like you’re about to faint—”
The sound of her phone pinging cut him off. And when she looked down, a familiar name flashed across the screen. Carla. Sophie stopped scratching her throat. Her ex. The woman who had single-handedly led her on for close to a year. A year in which Sophie could feel herself beginning to fall head over heels, and then… Carla had ended it and dragged their relationship to the trash. Sophie stared at Carla’s name, and the text underneath, which read Saw the video… As in her ex had seen the video of Sophie having a full-on meltdown.
It was at this moment that she tilted her head back, let the punishing sun burn her eyes, and shouted as loudly as she physically could. When she eventually stopped screaming, her head felt light. The edges of her vision blurred with the realization that she had nothing left, her life was over, and she was completely mortified.
“Seriously, Sophie? My ears are ringing.”
Sophie was so focused on her own humiliation that she must’ve forgotten that Dash was right there.
“Are you on something?” Dash asked.
Sophie frowned. No, she was not on something. She may have been braless, hungover, and hanging by a thread emotionally, but what kind of an accusation was that?
And even if she were on ayahuasca and beginning to see rainbow caticorns encircling her feet—which sounded great, actually—what she did with her body was absolutely none of his business. She paid her rent on time. This was her place. He was the one who’d come bounding over, all wet and wearing a too-tight shirt, and now he had the nerve to suggest she was the one out of line?
She would tell Dash that he needed to leave. But when she opened her mouth to say as much, she felt the bile rise in her throat. Her eyes bulged wide as she closed her mouth and held back something akin to a burp. Dash clocked her panic, and his eyes narrowed. She shook her head, but there was no use. She was definitely going to hurl all over her high-school celebrity crush. And without even being able to call out a warning, she projectile-vomited all over Dash.
About the Author:
Author Bio: ERIN LA ROSA is a writer living in Los Angeles. As a writer for BuzzFeed, she frequently writes about the perils and triumphs of being a redhead. Before BuzzFeed, Erin worked for the comedy websites Funny or Die and MadAtoms, as well as E!s Fashion Police, Wetpaint, and Ecorazzi. Erin has appeared on CNN, Headline News, Jimmy Kimmel, and The Today Show on behalf of BuzzFeed. She is the author of Womanskills and The Big Redhead Book.
Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**
Thank you to Sourcebooks Fire for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!
Sixteen year-old Shur is one of the first to see the creatures. While staring out the window in history class, she spots one floating over the soccer field. It looks like a monarch butterfly—but it’s huge. Within minutes, her classmates’ phones are buzzing with emergency alerts. These things are everywhere, and though nobody’s exactly sure why the alerts are telling them to take cover, Shur knows it can’t be good. It’s only when she’s left school and headed home that she what the creatures do: they attack.
By the time Shur, her two brothers, and their two best friends make it back to her house, it’s clear the five of them must survive whatever comes next on their own.
As the “butterflies”—new hybrid creatures thought to be created by climate change—multiply and swarm outside, anxiety-prone Shur focuses on what she can control: boarding up windows, stocking food, and preparing a shelter in the basement. They lose internet and power while vigilantes create terror outside. Meanwhile the creatures begin to fulfill their ultimate purpose: multiplying via parasitic load, and before long, the butterflies aren’t the only thing trying to get in. To protect her family and survive the invasions, Shur must find the strength to protect their sanctuary at any cost.
Content Warning: body horror, violence, big bugs
I was so curious about this book because of the cover and title. Scary butterflies? How?! Butterflies are such beautiful creatures!
And then I read the book and yes I can imagine huge, people sized butterflies being creepy and scary especially with their legs and other body parts that isn’t their wings. Shur, along with her family and friends rush home after seeing a swarm of these butterflies in the sky at school. But it’s not only at their school – apparently it’s taking over the world and being bit from you makes you turn into a very scary, nasty creature. They get holed up at their house trying to survive without adults, without electricity, and just whatever they have.
I think teens who like horror and survival stories will love this books. It’s got some gory parts especially when they have to fight off whoever is trying to come into the house. I felt like how the kids survived was realistic and brave of them really. There was definitely a reference to COVID in here and we all remember how the world basically went on lockdown in 2020 and that’s what this book kind of felt like, minus scary butterflies outside out doors. COVID was the scary butterfly for us.
There wasn’t much explanation for the creatures in the book but I just went along for the wild ride this story took me on.
My Thoughts:
This one definitely gave me flashbacks of being in lockdown during COVID but I think I’d rather deal with that than carnivorous butterflies! The teen characters did a pretty good job surviving without any adults around. The story has scary butterflies, zombies, and killing said creatures with whatever they go, so if you like some gore, you will like this one. This one will appeal to teens, the younger YA crowd who likes horror and survival stories.
Categories: Young Adult, Contemporary, Family, Fiction
Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**
Thank you to Balzer + Bray for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!
From Boston Globe/Horn Book Award–winning author Brandy Colbert comes the story of four generations of a Hollywood family—an unforgettable tale of ambition, fame, struggle, loss, and love in America.
The Blackwoods. Everyone knows their name. Blossom Blackwood burst onto the silver screen in 1962, and in the decades that followed, she would become one of the most celebrated actors of our time—and the matriarch of the most famous Black family in Hollywood. To her great-granddaughters, Hollis and Ardith, she has always just been Bebe. And when she passes away, it changes everything. Hollis Blackwood was never interested in fame. Still, she’s surrounded by it, whether at home with her family or at the prestigious Dupree Academy among Los Angeles’ elite.
When private photos of Hollis are leaked in the wake of Blossom’s death, she is thrust into the spotlight she’s long avoided—and finds that trust may be a luxury even she can’t afford. Ardith Blackwood has always lived in the public eye. A television star since childhood, she was perhaps closer with Blossom than anyone—especially after Ardith’s mother died in a drug overdose. Ever since, she has worked to be everything her family, her church, and the public want her to be. But as a family secret comes to light and the pressures from all sides begin to mount, she wonders what is left beneath the face she shows the world.
Weaving together the narratives of Hollis, Ardith, and Blossom, award-winning author Brandy Colbert tells an unforgettable story set in an America where everything is personal, and nothing is private.
Content Warning: racism
I was drawn to the synopsis of this book because I love the idea of a rich Black Hollywood family who has made it in the industry. This story follows three of the Blackwoods, Blossom – the woman who started it all, and Hollis and Ardith her great grand-daughters.
I felt like this book was like a soap opera or very much like a Danielle Steel novel where we follow a woman through the generations. The Blackwoods starts in present day and then there are flashbacks to Blossom Blackwoods life. I loved her backstory and her drive to be an actress no matter how long it took her to achieve success. She was a hard working, independent woman who relied on her mom and sister instead of the father of her child. It’s wonderful to see her drive to make her dreams come true.
I also thought Hollis’ and Ardith’s perspectives gave the reader a glimpse into how things have changed and the current issues they deal with today like dealing with the paparazzi and press hounding them. How everything in their lives can be exposed in the blink of an eye. But I loved the story about persevering and the bonds of family.
I don’t know if young adults will be drawn to this book. I felt like Blossoms story was more compelling than those of her granddaughters and I wanted more of her life story and even more about Ardith’s mother. I think this would have made an amazing adult fiction book. I also didn’t feel like the family secret was a big bombshell at all but I loved how the family came together to navigate it.
My Thoughts:
My favorite thing about this book is Blossom Blackwoods story from a girl in high school with dreams to being the matriarch of her family. She really didn’t give up even when she had a child out of wedlock, she had to travel from one coast to the other to work, she had to face racism in the industry, but she did it, with the support of her mom and sister – no matter how long it took. I feel like this could have been made into an epic family saga type of story because there are other stories here I want to know about like Ardith’s mom and her battle with addiction. Unfortunately, I didn’t really connect with the young adult aspect of the story but I think Blossom’s story makes up for all of that.
“This book absolutely dazzled me from the opening scene until the very last page. Highly recommend!” —Jenn McKinlay, New York Times bestselling author of Summer Reading
“a sparkling debut” -PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Poppy Banks would rather be writing mysteries than writing listicles for her dead-end job at Thought Buzz. But after a series of rejections, she’s ready to accept life on the sidelines as a plus-size woman. Her aunt Margot is the one person unwilling to give up on her niece’s dreams and tells her so at their secret yearly lunches.
But all of Poppy’s beliefs about herself are challenged when her beloved aunt dies and leaves her niece a grand surprise—a trip to her villa in the French Riviera. There, she learns her aunt intends to leave her stunning villa and secretive writer’s residency to Poppy—if she can finish her novel in six months.
When the writing countdown begins, Poppy realizes she has more to confront than her writer’s block. Family drama, complicated romances and self-doubt all threaten to throw her off course. In this fun and heartwarming debut, Poppy must decide if she can live up to her aunt’s—and her own—desire to be the main character in her own life.
Content Warning: Grief
The thing that drew me to this book was the title, Main Character Energy. I knew it was going to be a woman on a self-journey and when I saw that the synopsis mentions the French Riviera, I had to request it.
Poppy feels like she is at a dead-end in life. Her dreams of being a writer is stalled, she doesn’t get support from her family – especially from her mom and Poppy can’t believe this is her life. It is her life, until an opportunity arises after the death of her estranged aunt Margot who passes away. Margot leaves her a chance to be the “main character” in her life and what a chance it is.
The story is set on the French Riviera and I’ve only been to Nice, France once but it is a beautiful place so I could picture Poppy in France and really blossoming and working on her writing and herself really. There is even some romance in the air for her with Oliver, the man who was practically raised by her aunt. I loved the romance, the sense of community at the writing retreat Poppy lives at, and the magical setting of the French Riviera.
I enjoyed Poppy’s self-journey because she has a lot of things to fix. She’s afraid and this opportunity makes her face some fears and push through them. There are a lot of issues she has with her family and it does get resolved. I will say Poppy is forgiving towards her mom, because a relationship like that could have really ended in a “no contact” situation and I wouldn’t blame Poppy at all!
I did feel like some parts of the book felt rushed. Maybe because Poppy goes weeks without talking to Oliver because she’s busy writing but those are time jumps that I felt like rushed the story. Also I did wish for more “main character energy” but I get that Poppy was really new to this and she’s her own person. She made herself the main character in her way, even if it’s not as bold as I was expecting. Other than that though I think this is a great summer read.
About the Author:
Jamie Varon is an author, branding expert, course creator, and graphic designer living in Calabasas, California. Her nonfiction book Radically Content was published in 2022 with Quarto and is currently being adapted into a feature film with Camilu Productions LTD. Main Character Energy is her debut novel.
Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**
Thank you to Bantam for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!
A cynical tarot card reader seeks to uncover the truth about her friend’s mysterious death in this delightfully clever whodunit.
For Katie True, a keen gut and quick wit are just tools of the trade. After a failed attempt at adulting in Chicago, she’s back in the suburbs living a bit too close to her overbearing parents, jumping from one dead-end job to the next, and flipping through her tarot deck for guidance. Then along comes Marley.
Mysterious, worldly, and comfortable in her own skin, Marley takes a job at the mall where Katie peddles Russian tchotchkes. The two just get each other. Marley doesn’t try to fix Katie’s life or pretend to be someone she’s not, and Katie thinks that with Marley’s friendship she just might make it through this rough patch after all. So one day, having been encouraged by Marley to practice soothsaying, Katie reads tarot for someone who stumbles into her shop. But when she sneaks a glance at his phone, she finds more than just clairvoyant intel. She finds a photo. Of Marley. With a gunshot wound to the head.
The bottom falls out of Katie’s world. Her best friend is dead? Who killed her? She quickly realizes there are some things her tarot cards can’t foresee, and she must put her razor-sharp instincts to the ultimate test. But the truth has deadly consequences, and Katie’s recklessness lands her in the crossfire of a threat she never saw coming. Now Katie must use her street smarts and her inner Strength card to solve Marley’s murder–or risk losing everything.
Content Warning: violence
I’m not a big fan of mystery books – it’s usually a hit or miss for me because if the story is slow and drags I will lose interest fast. But I wanted to take a chance on this one because of the cool cover and the whole tarot card reading. Here is what I thought:
+ I was pleasantly surprised with how much this story captured my attention. Katie is an under achiever and so good at it but I didn’t really feel sorry for her because she was quirky, she still tried to live on her own even if it was a dump, she loves her brother a lot (I love Owen!) and I love their connection and she was genuinely nice to people even if she sort of knew how to lie to them when card reading.
+ I like when Katie tries to find her friend’s killer and befriends a cop who has a past – he’s hard to read which is not normal for her, but I like their friendship a lot. Is there a romance brewing between them? I don’t know because it stays in the friend zone but I like that they get to know each other and have great banter. They need one another but the romance and feelings are not the focus in this book.
+ I enjoyed the twists in the story. I went along for the ride and was really interested to know how Marley (the dead friend) died and how everything fit in the puzzle. I was entertained until the very end!
~ Katie is kind of lost, she goes from job to job and she is a tarot reader but the story only has her do one major reading. I kind of wanted to see her do more because I find tarot reading fascinating and just wanted to see more of it in the story. I liked how she read people in her mind upon meeting them though.
~ Katie herself isn’t a cop but after the “bad guys” first start following her and warning her – I would have thought they (Jaime and the cops) would be more vigilant about protecting her. Also I was wondering why if the bad guys were so bad, they just didn’t kidnap Katie and rip that necklace off her. She wore on her person for awhile – so I thought those guys showed a lot of restraint and was expecting them to do worse to her.
Why you should read it:
entertaining whodunit story about an under-achiever who gets caught in the middle of a bad situation
love Katie’s relationship with Owen and her growing friendship with Jamie
fun twist and turns
Why you might not want to read it:
I like it because it was fun for me but I’m not usually a mystery lover. Most mysteries that people love – I find boring, so my judgment of this book might be way off for someone who already loves reading mysteries. Basically – take my review with a grain of salt if you are a die-hard mystery fan.
My Thoughts:
I really enjoyed this one more than I thought I would! I love Katie’s quirky, chaotic, messy character, even though her living conditions stressed me out. I love her relationship with her brother Owen and her growing relationship with Jamie, the cop with a traumatic past. And overall I had fun trying to guess who killed Marley and seeing where the story went – which was into a place I didn’t even expect. My minor issues with the book only came with me wanting more tarot reading in the story since Katie is a tarot reader. Other than that I thought for someone who doesn’t love mysteries, this was a fun read.
Patrick, or Gay Uncle Patrick (GUP, for short), has always loved his niece, Maisie, and nephew, Grant. That is, he loves spending time with them when they come out to Palm Springs for weeklong visits, or when he heads home to Connecticut for the holidays. But in terms of caretaking and relating to two children, no matter how adorable, Patrick is honestly a bit out of his league.
So when tragedy strikes and Maisie and Grant lose their mother and Patrick’s brother has a health crisis of his own, Patrick finds himself suddenly taking on the role of primary guardian. Despite having a set of “Guncle Rules” ready to go, Patrick has no idea what to expect, having spent years barely holding on after the loss of his great love, a somewhat-stalled career, and a lifestyle not-so-suited to a six- and a nine-year-old. Quickly realizing that parenting—even if temporary—isn’t solved with treats and jokes, Patrick’s eyes are opened to a new sense of responsibility, and the realization that, sometimes, even being larger than life means you’re unfailingly human.
Content Warning: grief, death of a loved one, addiction, anxiety, story of sexual assault
I had my eye on this book since last year and finally got it from my library. I’m glad I did because I felt like it would be a great summer read and it’s Pride month so why not read about a guncle (gay uncle). This book hit me in the feels!
+ Yes Patrick, GUP, Guncle is a bit self-centered and snarky. He is a golden globe winning actor and was a star for a time. He loves to talk about when he was super famous, he loves all things television, movies, broadway, and theatre. But things happened in his life and he’s now in his 40’s and living a quiet life in Palm Springs until he is forced to be out again because his family needs him. His best friend and sister-in-law has passed on, his brother needs to go to rehab and leaves his kids with Patrick. I love how taking care of his niece and nephew scared him but he stepped up in the best way possible. It warmed my heart so much.
+ This book is about relationships and grief. It gave us a peek at how relationships we have with our siblings, the ones or we have with our parents can be messy. Messy and yet it can still be loving. Patrick is relatable in that way. I could also relate to his fear of wanting to love people because he is still stuck in his grief losing his partner, Joe. There is a lot of loss Patrick is dealing with and I felt like his fears were my own. I could totally relate.
+ Patrick’s experiences growing up gay, trying to explain to his sister how he had to protect his inner, real self in the outside world by pretending was such an important point. I love that he could tell his side of this story especially when he was trying to explain it to his sister Clara who in turn felt like she had to struggle also being a woman. Everyone around Patrick had their own trauma and I like that the story was honest and truthful about these struggles.
+ I love the humor – when Patrick is on, he is ON and the children have no clue what he is saying have the time. I can already imagine this book as a tv series, it has that sitcom kind of feel but with some tough issues. I was laughing one moment and then heartbroken the next when the kids talked about missing their mother or Patrick was missing Joe. 😭
Why you should read it:
Patrick is a force – he’s funny, snarky, self-centered but loves his family even though they have problems – no matter, he is there for them the best way he can be.
Patrick with his niece and nephew have such adventures in Palm Springs
This story is full of grief and yet full of hope, the will to survive a broken heart, the beauty of life that come with tragedy. The medicine of laughter and love, family and friends.
Why you might not want to read it:
not into Patrick talking about himself all the time lol…I can picture him talking fast, like how some people just do
My Thoughts:
This one hit my heart with so many feels! The story dealt with so many issues about grief, fear and anxiety – letting go and moving on. It hurt. But I was also laughing when Patrick was trying to take care of two kids for the first time in his life, and he did it without much help – he’s even too afraid to drive! Thank goodness for ride-share! I love that the kids taught him things like youtube lol. But seeing those two kids melt through his guarded heart was a glorious thing. I love that we get Patrick’s point of view as a gay man trying to raise two kids on his own, trying to deal with his grief and figuring out what will be act two in his life after his tv stardom has ended. His journey was rocky but like he said in the end, he survived it…the show must go on. I love Patrick and his family and was rooting for all of them to help each other get through grief, addiction, divorce, resentment and anything else that was holding them back from bonding. This is a beautiful story and I’m glad I finally read it!
📚 ~ Yolanda
Quotes From the Book:
We’re hyper-connected, but at the same time desperately lonely.”
~ Steven Rowley, The Guncle
What do you think gay people do? Have done for generations? We adopt a safe version of ourselves for the public, for protection, and then as adults we excavate our true selves from the parts we’ve invented to protect us. It’s the most important work of our queer lives.”
~ Steven Rowley, The Guncle
I am less of me. I left part of myself with you. I don’t know what it was, but I felt it leave my body the last time I held your hand.|
~ Steven Rowley, The Guncle
The sky is not going to fall. That’s what I’m telling you. The pain you feel, the disaster you think is imminent. Those feelings fade. And some day you even miss it. Some days you miss the pain, because you’re afraid. Afraid that as the pain softens so do memories of the one you lost.”
~ Steven Rowley, The Guncle
Grief orbits the heart. Some days the circle is greater. Those are the good days. You have room to move and dance and breathe. Some days the circle is tighter. Those are the hard ones.”
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