Month: July 2020

The Sullivan Sisters by Kathryn Ormsbee Review

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Summary (from the publisher):

image001Time changes things.

That painful fact of life couldn’t be truer for the Sullivan sisters. Once, they used to be close, sharing secrets inside homemade blanket castles. Now, life in the Sullivan house means closed doors and secrets left untold. 

Fourteen-year-old Murphy, an aspiring magician, is shocked by the death of Siegfried, her pet turtle. Seventeen-year-old Claire is bound for better things than her Oregonian hometown—until she receives a crushing rejection from her dream college. And eighteen-year-old Eileen is nursing a growing addiction in the wake of life-altering news.

Then, days before Christmas, a letter arrives, informing the sisters of a dead uncle and an inheritance they knew nothing about. The news forces them to band together in the face of a sinister family mystery…and, possibly, murder.

 

My Rating: 2.5/5 Stars

My Thoughts:

I’m always on the hunt for books starring sisters, which led me to Kathryn Ormsbee’s latest book, The Sullivan Sisters. I really enjoyed Kathryn Ormsbee’s Tash Hearts Tolstoy back in 2017, so I was excited to pick up another book of her’s. The Sullivan Sisters follows sisters Eileen, Claire, & Murphy. The three had a tight-knit relationship when they were younger – which included setting up a blanket & pillow fort during Christmas while their mom was at work- but family circumstances have led them to fall apart over the years. When the sisters receive a letter about an inheritance from an unknown uncle, the three travel to the house left in their name while discovering some family secrets. 

Although the murder mystery is central to the plot, The Sullivan Sisters is much more of a character driven story than mystery. 

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July Library Book Haul

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During quarantine,  checking my county library’s website to see if and when my local library would re-open this summer was a daily routine. Before the library closed back in early March, I managed to checkout 3 books… which I had finished by early April. Fortunately, I’ve had a few review books sent to me and quite a few backlist titles laying on my shelves – and I totally gave into some binge book buying – but I was literally over the moon when my county library system officially reopened for door-side pick-up last week. For anyone who is wondering what door-side pick up looks like, once I receive an automated call saying that my books are in, I go to the library and then call my branch to say that I’m there to pick up my holds. From there, they place my books on a table outside of the main entrance. The checkout period is still 2 weeks and you’re allowed at least 3 renew cycles (so 8 weeks total), but all returned books have to be placed in their outdoor drop box and are then quarantined for 3 days. 

As soon as the website said that the online catalog was open, I ran to my list of must-check-out books (which I had made back in May, oops) and by the end, I had managed to put a casual 17 physical books on hold. I admit that these 17 holds were mostly out of pure excitement, but also out of my fear that the libraries may close again. I picked up 10 of my holds last week, and I’m actually going to be picking up 2 more books later today. Today I’ll be sharing library books I currently have checked out, as well as my current holds. 

Books I Checked Out

The Idea of You by Robinne Lee – The Idea of You is probably the #1 recommended book on Bad on Paper. This romance following a forty year old woman who falls in love with the lead singer of her daughter’s favorite boy band was their go-to quarantine read, and I somehow managed to hold off on until July. I’ll actually be returning this one today, having read it during Fourth of July weekend. I’ll have a review soon, but just know for now that The Idea of You is so worth the hype! 

Playing with Matches by Hannah Orenstein – I wasn’t sure if I would be able to use interlibrary loan (meaning ordering books from other libraries other than my local brands – update, I was) so at first I was putting books on hold that I knew my local branch had on hand, which included Hannah Orenstein’s Playing with Matches. I recently bought her latest release, Head Over Heels, and I enjoyed Love at First Like last summer. Like The Idea of You, I also devoured Playing with Matches this weekend and loved it! 

Get A Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert – Many of my book blogging friends have loved Talia Hibbert’s recent release, Take a Hint, Dani Brown, so I knew it was time to pick up the first book in this companion series. If I enjoy this one, I’ll definitely put the second book on hold.

From Sand and Ash by Amy Harmon – If I was going to buy another book before the library reopened, it was most likely going to be Amy Harmon’s From Sand and Ash. I found this historical fiction novel set during WWII through Sarah’s Bookshelves Live (I forget which episode), and it just sounded so unique from most of the WWII historical fiction I’ve read. Read More »

FUNNIEST ROM-COM: You Deserve Each Other Review

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44143895._UY2048_SS2048_Summary (from the publisher):

Naomi Westfield has the perfect fiancé: Nicholas Rose holds doors open for her, remembers her restaurant orders, and comes from the kind of upstanding society family any bride would love to be a part of. They never fight. They’re preparing for their lavish wedding that’s three months away. And she is miserably and utterly sick of him.

Naomi wants out, but there’s a catch: whoever ends the engagement will have to foot the nonrefundable wedding bill. When Naomi discovers that Nicholas, too, has been feigning contentment, the two of them go head-to-head in a battle of pranks, sabotage, and all-out emotional warfare.

But with the countdown looming to the wedding that may or may not come to pass, Naomi finds her resolve slipping. Because now that they have nothing to lose, they’re finally being themselves–and having fun with the last person they expect: each other.

 

My Rating: 5/5 Stars

My Thoughts:

Sarah Hogle’s You Deserve Each Other is the funniest contemporary romance novel that I’ve ever read.

This debut novel follows fiancés Naomi Westfield and Nicholas Rose, who are anything but ready for marriage. For the past year, Naomi has began to doubt her future with Nicholas, but with so many deposits already placed (including the wedding dress her not-so great mother-in-law basically chose), Naomi knows the only way out of her engagement is to make Nicholas break off the engagement. With plenty of sabotage and pranks in store, Naomi and Nick test each other to see who can break first.. and suddenly start having the most fun they’ve had in their relationship in a while.

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You Deserve Each Other captured my attention for its unique take on the enemies-to-lovers trope, or really, the lovers-turned-enemies-turned-lovers-again trope! I feel like workplace romances are the most common place for the trope – don’t get me wrong, I LOVE them- but it felt so refreshing to have this trope in a setting unlike anything other I’ve read! Naomi and Nicholas are both pretty miserable, but Naomi is truly the mastermind in their break-off plans. Nicholas is ready to play the game as well, but readers soon discover that Nicholas’ true motive isn’t about sabotaging his relationship.Read More »

BOOKS, TV, & MY CURRENT NORMAL: June 2020 Wrap Up

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June was another transitional month into my new normal, with plenty of books in tow. I’ve been keeping busy, between starting my remote jobs and grad school. It’s crazy to think I finished my first round of grad school classes, and my second round started this week. I started experiencing some Zoom burnout this month, so reading and taking my eyes away from my laptop screen with books helped things. I actually have to read two YA books for my grad school classes in July, and I’m so excited to be getting to read YA for school – I read two YA books for undergrad, but that was purely because I decided to do my capstone projects on them.

My reading and TV watching were all over the place this month. I read a lot of contemporary and reread a few books, while I still dove into a reality TV this month. I often had trouble really concentrating on TV, movies especially – I had one night where I tried watching three different movies and then ended up rewatching Cheaper by the Dozen 2 and an episode of Queer Eye. 

What is also improving my reading mood even more is that my local library re-opened for door side pick up! I may or may not have put 15 books on hold as soon as the online catalog re-opened. Although there are plenty of good things going on personally right now, there’s definitely still some uncertainty this summer, to say the least. While my state’s covid-19 cases have significantly decreased over the past two months, we’re seeing multiple states have huge increases in cases. Between work and school, I’m typically home Monday through Friday but these increases has made me rethink a few weekend plans and curious to see how my state moves forward with re-opening plans. I went to my first outdoor restaurant and first trip back to Barnes & Noble last week, but my family and friends and I are still being cautious and smart about where we go. 

whatireadnew

Beach Read by Emily Henry | 5/5 Stars

Like me, I’m sure you’ve seen Emily Henry’s Beach Read EVERYWHERE, but I’m here to confirm that the hype is more than worth the read! There’s such depth to this contemporary romance.

Love at First Fight by Sandhya Menon (novella) | 5/5

I’m a firm believer that Sandhya Menon is the queen of novellas, with Love at First Fight as no exception. You don’t have to read it before picking up 10 Things I Hate About Pinky this July, but it was a really fun addition to the Dimpleverse! 

Attachments by Rainbow Rowell 5/5 (reread)

One of my best friends IRL is reading Fangirl, aka honestly my all-time favorite book, which led me to make the decision to reread Rainbow Rowell’s contemporary books this summer. Attachments still reigns as my favorite adult fiction novel of hers. 

Slay by Brittany Morris | 4/5

If you’re looking to read more YA books by black authors, as well as books that reflect some of the conversations we’re currently having about race in the U.S., Slay is definitely worth checking out. Read More »