February 2023 Wrap Up

My 2023 is really about not feeling any pressure when it comes to my reading and to just give into mood reads. I LOVED this reading month when it came to quality, finding so many gems, especially when it came to middle grade – PSA that I don’t think I’m necessarily a middle grade reader, BUT as a middle school teacher, I am all about finding ‘the good stuff’ aka the best books AND the ones that my reluctant readers WANT AND WILL read. That being said, I LOVED, LOVED Lisa Fipps’s Starfish and Megan E.Freeman’s Alone. I even found myself reading Judy Blume’s Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret because the adaptation looks so good and I honestly don’t think I read this one growing up!

I shared a lot of thoughts on the first 5 books in my February 2023 Currently Reading post, so I’ll be diving a little bit more into the second half of my reads below. My other favorites of the month were Lindsey Kelk’s On a Night Like This and Falon Ballard’s Just My Type.

The Reunion by Kayla Olson | 3.5/5 Stars

Age of Vice by Deepti Kapoor | 3.5/5 Stars

Finlay Donovan Jumps the Gun (Finlay Donovan #3) by Elle Cosimano | 4/5 Stars

Starfish by Lisa Fipps | 5/5 Stars

On a Night Like This by Lindsey Kelk | 4.5/5 Stars

Really Good, Actually by Monica Heisey | 4/5 Stars| This one got a lot of early buzz, especially since the author was a writer for Schitt’s Creek. I don’t think this one will be everyone’s cup a tea, since it’s on the darker and satirical side (but keeps a lighter tone throughout), following a woman post divorce in her late twenties, but I found myself cackling at its many funny moments.

Just My Type by Falon Ballard | 4.5/5 Stars | I wrote a whole review dedicated to Just My Type, loved this second chance romance!

Begin Again by Emma Lord | 4/5 Stars | I’ll always be an Emma Lord reader, I liked this one a lot, especially for its college setting. It took me the first half of the story to really settle in.

How to Walk Away by Katherine Center | 4/5 Stars | Katherine Center is a recent new-to-me author, so I’ve been working through her backlist. I enjoyed How to Walk Away, Things You Save in a Fire and What You Wish For still reign as my favorites.

Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret by Judy Blume | 3/5 Stars | I totally understand why this one was such a pioneer at its time of publication and has remained as a classic for over fifty years..but maybe blame it on my adult fiction reader/critical thinker self, but I wanted more development when it came to the plot and even Margaret’s own character development.