The Maid by Nita Prose

This is a book that has gotten a lot of attention lately. It was featured in multiple book clubs this past month! I’m excited to get the chance to share my thoughts with you.

Thank you Ballantine Books for my gifted copy in exchange for my honest review.

Synopsis: Molly Gray is not like everyone else. She struggles with social skills and misreads the intentions of others. Her gran used to interpret the world for her, codifying it into simple rules that Molly could live by. Since Gran died a few months ago, twenty-five-year-old Molly has been navigating life’s complexities all by herself. No matter—she throws herself with gusto into her work as a hotel maid. Her unique character, along with her obsessive love of cleaning and proper etiquette, make her an ideal fit for the job. She delights in donning her crisp uniform each morning, stocking her cart with miniature soaps and bottles, and returning guest rooms at the Regency Grand Hotel to a state of perfection. But Molly’s orderly life is upended the day she enters the suite of the infamous and wealthy Charles Black, only to find it in a state of disarray and Mr. Black himself dead in his bed. Before she knows what’s happening, Molly’s unusual demeanor has the police targeting her as their lead suspect. She quickly finds herself caught in a web of deception, one she has no idea how to untangle. Fortunately for Molly, friends she never knew she had unite with her in a search for clues to what really happened to Mr. Black—but will they be able to find the real killer before it’s too late?

I thought this was a great cozy mystery. Does it live up to the hype? Not so much. It didn’t grab me in as much as I wanted it to. While I think it’s great to have a neurodivergent character in a story, I’m not sure it’s a great idea to push it to be something so cool just to get people to fall in love with the story. At least, that’s the vibe I got from reading it. It was a slow start, and a bit of a predictable finish. I think there are other locked room mysteries that deserve a read over this one.

3.5/5 Stars

Everything We Didn’t Say by Nicole Baart

This book was featured in last month’s Book of the Month Club selection. You may have had a chance to read it before I have! If so, please share your thoughts in the comments!

Thank you Atria books for my gifted copy in exchange for my honest review.

Synopsis: Juniper Baker had just graduated from high school and was deep in the throes of a summer romance when Cal and Beth Murphy, a childless couple who lived on a neighboring farm, were brutally murdered. When her younger brother became the prime suspect, June’s world collapsed and everything she loved that summer fell away. She left, promising never to return to tiny Jericho, Iowa. Until now. Officially, she’s back in town to help an ill friend manage the local library. But really, she’s returned to repair her relationship with her teenage daughter, who’s been raised by Juniper’s mother and stepfather since birth—and to solve the infamous Murphy murders once and for all. She knows the key to both lies in the darkest secret of that long-ago summer night, one that’s haunted her for nearly fifteen years. As history begins to repeat itself and a dogged local true crime podcaster starts delving into the murders, the race to the truth puts past and present on a dangerous collision course. Juniper lands back in an all-too-familiar place with the answers to everything finally in her sights, but this time it’s her daughter’s life that hangs in the balance. Will revealing what really happened mean a fresh start? Or will the truth destroy everything Juniper loves for a second time?

Nicole has a wonderful talent for writing. The prose in her books is so beautiful! I’m captivated each time a read one of her novels. On the other hand, this was a bit too much of a slow burn for me. I also had a really hard time with the dual timelines (if you’ve been following my blog for awhile, you know this a tricky thing to master for me). Regardless, this is definitely my favorite novel of hers to date!

3.5/5 Stars

YA Book of the Month Club September HUGE DISCOUNT

If you’re anything like me, you’re broke but want to buy all the books.

I’ve got a solution for you because I have the best discount code you could ever imagine!

Have you checked out YA Book of the Month Club’s September picks? They are STELLAR and you can choose one today for just $5!

Haven’t seen them yet? I’ve blogged about 2 of them…but check all the choices out!

There seriously isn’t a bad book in this stack. ALL of these are on my list to read! Right now, you can pick one for just $5 by using this link here and entering promo code YALIT. This deal ends September 30th or when these books run out which is getting pretty close! Don’t experience FOMO!

The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E Harrow

If you’re like me, you may be wanting desperately to read something to sweep you off your feet. Look no further! This book had my jaw dropping to the floor.

Synopsis: In the early 1900s, a young woman embarks on a fantastical journey of self-discovery after finding a mysterious book in this captivating and lyrical debut. In a sprawling mansion filled with peculiar treasures, January Scaller is a curiosity herself. As the ward of the wealthy Mr. Locke, she feels little different from the artifacts that decorate the halls: carefully maintained, largely ignored, and utterly out of place. Then she finds a strange book. A book that carries the scent of other worlds, and tells a tale of secret doors, of love, adventure and danger. Each page turn reveals impossible truths about the world and January discovers a story increasingly entwined with her own. Lush and richly imagined, a tale of impossible journeys, unforgettable love, and the enduring power of stories awaits in Alix E. Harrow’s spellbinding debut–step inside and discover its magic.

I have yet to see a bad review about this book. It’s fantastical! If this sounds like something you want to get your hands on, I have a discount code for you to get your copy for $5 by using this link here and entering the word “YALIT”. Offer ends at the end of the month! You don’t want to miss out on this read!

Frankly in Love by David Yoon

It’s no surprise that I love Young Adult Books. I JUMPED for JOY when Book of the Month started a young adult box! I have ALWAYS loved that you can get a brand new book (sometimes even before they are released in stores) for WAY less than what they cost in stores new. Plus, they come hardcover 🙂

I’m ESPECIALLY OVER THE MOON EXCITED that my most highly anticipated read this year is one of their September books. I have read both David’s wife Nicola Yoon’s books as soon as they came out (see my past reviews on them!), so it was no surprise that I was THRILLED that he has written his first book.

Synopsis: High school senior Frank Li is a Limbo–his term for Korean-American kids who find themselves caught between their parents’ traditional expectations and their own Southern California upbringing. His parents have one rule when it comes to romance–“Date Korean”–which proves complicated when Frank falls for Brit Means, who is smart, beautiful–and white. Fellow Limbo Joy Song is in a similar predicament, and so they make a pact: they’ll pretend to date each other in order to gain their freedom. Frank thinks it’s the perfect plan, but in the end, Frank and Joy’s fake-dating maneuver leaves him wondering if he ever really understood love–or himself–at all.

It’s AMAZING and looks like there will even be a sequel! You can get your copy TODAY for only $5 using the code “YALIT” through this link here. They ship super fast too so you won’t have to miss out on reading this soon. Let me know what you think of it!

Before She Knew Him by Peter Swanson

I was super excited to see that this was a Book of the Month pick for March 2019 and I was lucky enough to get my hands on it really quickly.

Thank you William Morrow Books for my gifted copy in exchange for my honest review.

Synopsis from Goodreads: Hen and her husband Lloyd have settled into a quiet life in a new house outside of Boston, Massachusetts. Hen (short for Henrietta) is an illustrator and works out of a studio nearby, and has found the right meds to control her bipolar disorder. Finally, she’s found some stability and peace. But when they meet the neighbors next door, that calm begins to erode as she spots a familiar object displayed on the husband’s office shelf. The sports trophy looks exactly like one that went missing from the home of a young man who was killed two years ago. Hen knows because she’s long had a fascination with this unsolved murder—an obsession she doesn’t talk about anymore, but can’t fully shake either. Could her neighbor, Matthew, be a killer? Or is this the beginning of another psychotic episode like the one she suffered back in college, when she became so consumed with proving a fellow student guilty that she ended up hurting a classmate? The more Hen observes Matthew, the more she suspects he’s planning something truly terrifying. Yet no one will believe her. Then one night, when she comes face to face with Matthew in a dark parking lot, she realizes that he knows she’s been watching him, that she’s really on to him. And that this is the beginning of a horrifying nightmare she may not live to escape. . .

Are you a fan of The Couple Next Door? Then you’re going to love this one! I was a little thrown off at first because the story is told in two different viewpoints without it being labeled as such. Just like in The Couple Next Door, you find out some of your answers very early on. It still doesn’t take away from anticipation of what’s to come in the end. It wasn’t a jaw-dropping twist, but entertaining for sure! I have not read any of Peter’s books previously, and this made me want to go get them right away. He’s a talented thriller-author for sure! If you missed out on selecting this book for your Book of the Month box, then you’ll get to pick this one up in stores now!

4/5 Stars

For Better and Worse by Margot Hunt

I’m a sucker for a good mystery/thriller involving a married couple!

Thank you MIRA for allowing me to read a copy of this book in exchange for my review.

Natalie and Will had a cute first date back in law school – talking dreams over drinks. They got into silly conversations, even joking about how they would be able to get away with murder with all their knowledge from law school. Little do they realize that it would bite them in the back later on in life. Flash forward 17+ years where Will and Nat are married with a son named Charlie. They soon learn of a horrible incident that happens to their son at his school with someone they thought they knew pretty well. What lengths will Will and Natalie go to protect their son?

This was a really fast-paced novel that I enjoyed in one night. I stayed up a little too late to finish it, but I’m not complaining! I felt like the author spent a lot of time hyping up the marriage struggles between the two, forgot about it during the big reveal of the major incident, and rushed to come back to it in the end. Otherwise, the book was well written and it had me engaged the entire time.

4/5 Stars

The Perfect Mother by Aimee Molloy

Happy Mother’s Day to all my fellow mothers out there (animal mommas included because they can’t live without you either)! This is my first true mother’s day with my baby girl and I cuddled her extra tight while I relaxed with this read. Okay, relax may be an understatement with this novel.

The Perfect Mother starts off introducing the May Mothers, a group of women who have met online due to the fact that they are having a baby in the same month. They all meet up in person at the park towards the end of their pregnancies and after. On July 4th night, they all decide to get babysitters and go out for drinks. While they are at the bar, one of the mother’s (Winnie) baby (Midas) goes missing. They are devastated and obsessed with trying to find out who kidnapped him. Was it the babysitter? Was it Winnie’s baby daddy whom they never hear about? A random stranger causing ruckus near her house? Someone closer to them then they think?

I wanted to read this book because I knew I could relate to most of it (not the stealing baby part). I, too, have a mom group that I am in for the month my daughter was born. We also met online. I love them dearly and talk with them often and totally wish I could hang out with them in person, but we are from all over the globe so we just chat and send each other photos. I also loved the references about newborns because it’s so relevant to me where I am in my life and it was very well done. I was not a huge fan of the multiple narrating perspectives. You never truly know who is talking until you keep reading and really have to think about it. Sometimes you do truly have no idea who is talking. It was all over the place and hard for me to follow. I stayed confused quite often which was fun because it kept me from figuring out the ending, but really annoying at times because I just wanted to know what was going on! There are a lot of characters in this book, but the author does a great job at touching on each of their lives. This read is very “The Couple Next Door” -esque which is great, but it’s all I kept thinking about. There are certainly many differences, but there is a resemblance I couldn’t seem to get out of my head. I definitely was biting my nails hoping for a safe return for baby Midas, which also kept me reading for more.

3.5/5 Stars

Our Kind of Cruelty by Araminta Hall

It took me forever to decide what book I was going to read next (okay, maybe only two days..). I’ve heard so much about this one that it was almost decided for me.

Mike Hayes is in love with Verity Metcalf. He refers to her as V. They have had a very long relationship with each other with a pretty crazy sexual history between them. He has painted his life to revolve around V and make sure she is happy in every single way. The thing is, he had gotten a pretty awesome job offer in America that he couldn’t miss out on. V insisted he take it and they would work on their relationship long term. Both of them had done things they regret and now V is getting married, but not to Mike. What is Mike to do? He is in love and know V loves him just as much.

I started this as soon as I put my little one to bed last night and I finished it shortly after. I literally cannot stop thinking about this book. I never put it down as soon as I picked it up. I didn’t read too many reviews so I painted this picture in my head of what I expected the book to be about. I was so convinced I had everything figured out, so much so that I literally thought the book was lying to me. I thourhgt this was a book of obsession, but now I’m not so sure! Hall does an excellent job at painting the psychological portrait of Mike. I could see both sides of the story, all the way up until the end. But the ending! Oh my gosh, I STILL don’t know what to think of it. I can’t get it out of my head.

Iwant to know your thoughts! No spoilers in this review, but warning for the comments for those who post! But really….what does it all meannnnnn!

Originally I was going to give this a 4/5 stars for wanting to know a lot more about Verity, but you know what? This has just totally messed with my head so much that it deserves all the stars. 5/5 stars! I still suggest a book in Verity’s viewpoint. I would read the crap out of that!

 

The Oracle Year by Charles Soule

My husband and I are into watching tons of Marvel related shows. In fact, we just saw Avengers Infinity Wars and oh my gosh…that’s just a whole other story. Anyways, we are huge fans of Marvel and one of our favorite shows include Daredevil on Netflix. The reason I bring that up is because the author of this novel writes for Daredevil comics and even Star Wars comics (as you can probably tell from my blog name, I’m a sci-fi geek as well). When this novel came out last month, I just had to get it. Mostly because I figured this would be something both my husband and I could enjoy together. But also because it sounded amazing.

Will Dawson wakes up one morning to 108 visions about the future within a 3 year time span. His life as a muscian is about to change forever when he teams up with a buddy to start selling the predictions to become some of the wealthiest people on Earth. They set-up a website that soon takes the attention of every peson on the globe. The problem is, this power is eating Will alive and he is trying to figure out how he can bring good to the world with these predictions at hand. He’s starting to think there is a reason why he has been given these predictions.

The book was okay. I love the premise, and it kept me reading to find out exactly what happens, but it was slow. It didn’t flow very easily. I had a hard time keeping up with the different story lines going on at once between the multiple characters. I will say, I am not a fan of multiple points of view in novels, but I thought I could look past that in this book. Not so much. The Oracle has an epiphany in the middle of the book between what he thinks is happening and what he can do about it which was really intriguing to read about. I stopped reading to sleep on it once I read it to let it soak in before continuing to read it. There were multiple characters that I wanted to hear more about. In fact, I would actually go back through the book to re-read descriptions of what was happening with them because it was taking so long to hear from them again. They weren’t as developed as I thought they should be. I will be passing the book on to my husband to read and it may be a book I need to pick up and re-read again to let it really soak in. Honestly, it would have been better if it were a comic.

3.5/5 Stars