Had a pretty good reading month to start the year! I always forget how much time CHRISTMAS and all the things takes up until it's all over. Feels good to be reading some books I mostly enjoyed AND chipping away at that TBR slowly but surely!
I'm very active on Goodreads here, somewhat active on Instagram here, and linking up with Modern Mrs. Darcy on the 15th!
A lot of book posts in the past month:
My Favorite Half-Night Stand by Christina Lauren
I picked this as an easy read over Christmas break and it was that although a month later, I remember NONE of the details. Ok, read the summary. A bit cheesy and obviously knew how this would end. Maybe I'm just old or have been married a long time (both of which are true) but I do get a bit annoyed at couple in romance books that won't JUST TALK. JUST TELL EACH OTHER HOW YOU FEEL. 3 Stars
Nothing Else But Miracles by Kate Albus
I LOVED A Place to Hang the Moon in 2022 and was looking forward to her next book. This also takes place during WWII but set in NYC and not England. Three kids who are on their own while their Dad went to fight. But secretly on their own because the oldest brother is maybe 17, they aren't supposed to, legally, be on their own. Charming and I loved the sister's connection to the Statue of Liberty. It was not quite as charming as A Place to Hang the Moon but still excellent. 4.5 Stars
Mother-Daughter Murder Night by Nina Simon
This had the vibes of Finlay Donovan books but the mother-daughters here were not committing murder (accidentally or otherwise), just witnessing a possible murder and then getting very involved in the solving of the murder since the granddaughter was a suspect (and the one who found the body). A bit twisty, I don't think I knew the answer before the characters did so that was nice. 3.5 Stars
The Good Part by Sophie Cousens
Ok, without looking closely at the cover, I thought this had something to do with hair and the front was scissors making a part. This might tell you how much I was paying attention. It had nothing to do about hair but a woman who is struggling through parts of her life right now, making a wish that she could skip all this hard stuff and just get to the good part. And then it happens and she has no idea what's going on. Her supposed 7 year old son is VERY suspicious of this alien Mom, she has to explain to this husband who she didn't know she had that she doesn't know him, etc. Was it really worth skipping the hard stuff to get to where life is supposedly good? I think this is my favorite of her books. Lots to think about. 3.5 Stars
By Any Other Name by Lauren Kate
A publishing world set romance novel where the twist is very obvious but revealed very early on. Felt a bit like an Emily Henry book but not exactly. I don't know, I wasn't very taken with this although it was a quick read. Under 300 pages I think. 3 Stars
Beyond That, the Sea by Laura Spence-Ash
Our book club book for the month and it was one I picked (each of the 4 of us pick 3 books at the start of the year and then we slot them in and have the whole year planned at once). A girl is set across the ocean to spend the WWII years with a brand new family while her parents weather the war in England. This girl spend ~3 years with this foster family while a lot of big changes are happening and she grows very close with them. Then the war is over and she goes back to England and those years in America have ripple effects on the rest of her life. There was a timeline at the bottom of the pages which was SO HELPFUL. Please, every book spanning long periods of time needs to have that. 4 Stars
The Year of Second Chances by Lara Avery
A young widower's deceased husband sets up a dating profile for her a year after he dies (really, he had just scheduled an e-mail for a year out telling her about it) because he wants her to get on with living. She has some terrible dates and some good ones. Finds some friends, grows closer to others, deals with her alcoholic mom and brother. There is a lot going on in her life. But maybe she'll have a second chance at love?? 3 Stars
Frizzy by Claribel A. Ortega
A quick middle-grade graphic novel I read on a Sunday afternoon. I believe a young girl with roots in the Dominican Republic but living in America (NYC maybe?) is struggling with her Mom over her hair. Daughter doesn't like making it straight. Mom thinks she'll fit in better if it's straight. An aunt steps in (I have a different heritage and different hair texture but I do many of the same things to my wavy hair that are described here.). A firming and uplifting. 3.5 Stars
All-of-a-Kind Family by Sydnet Taylor
Another quick mostly Sunday afternoon read about 5 sisters and their parents living in the lower East Side of Manhattan at the turn of the 20th century (early 1900s). It was charming and quaint and oh so quick. But I do have the next book checked out to read...to myself again. 3.75 Stars
The Lost Library by Rebecca Stead
A middle grade book that was fine. A burned down library and ghost librarians and a little free library with a dedicated cat. A few mysteries to solve and kids on the brink of heading to middle school. I read this so sporadically between other books, probably would have gotten more into it if I had read it less spread out. 3.25 Stars
The Six: The Untold Story of America's First Women Astronauts by Loren Grush
This book especially hit after visiting Kennedy Space Center this past summer and seeing a real space shuttle and being near the launch pads where many of these women went to space from. Going through the late 70s and through the 80s of the first 6 women astronauts for NASA. Really focused on the space shuttle years since that's when these women were doing their first flights. Really went a bit deep into some of their shuttle loads (I don't care about all these satellites) and probably would have appreciated some of the things at KSC more if I had read this first (although it wasn't released until after our trip). It was fascinating and interesting. 3.75 Stars
Read with Luke and/or Sam
The Rowdy Red Panda and The Sleepy Snowy Owl by Amelia Cobb, illustrated by Sophy Williams
My 5 year old has LOVED this series. We read all 4 physical copies the library has and then one digitally. These are the 2 we bought him for Christmas. He was so excited to open them and then read them. We bought him 3 more to cover upcoming birthdays/holidays but then I'm going to have to purchase request the rest from the library. There are 24 in the series and they don't even have half! But sweet, easy chapter books to read with just him. 5 Stars, per the 5 year old.
The Last Holiday Concert by Andrew Clements
I read this to both boys (Luke and I are still working through Goblet of Fire...it's a LONG book. Maybe we'll finish this month). Same author as Frindle (which I also read them) but not quite as heartstring pulling. I would really like to see a school concert produced by the kids, at least around the 5th grade age. It would be entertaining and maybe then they'd hate it less. 3.5 Stars
What have YOU been reading lately??
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