Hi & happy book day! This might just be a book blog now, lol.

Linking up with Steph & Jana today for Show Us Your Books! (Happy belated bday to Jana!)

Title sends you to GoodReads & “buy it” goes to an affiliated link on on BookShop or Amazon!

The Hawthorne Legacy by Jennifer Lynn Barnes | YA Mystery | ★★★★★/5
The second in The Inheritance Games series and another 5 star read. I think I loved book 1 more, but this one sucked me in all the same and kept me turning pages. I can’t say and won’t say much, because you need to start with book one. I’m excited for the third one’s release in September!
Buy it! Bookshop | Buy it! Amazon | Buy it! Kindle

The Stranger in the Lifeboat by Mitch Albom | Christian Fiction | ★★★/5
I don’t know why exactly this book didn’t click with me, but it didn’t… Maybe it was the neat little ending for some of the characters? Maybe it was how quickly the “come to Jesus” moment happened for some of them. (Pun intended, fyi.) It was fine, but I walked away knowing I could’ve not read it and still been unchanged.
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My Evil Mother by Margaret Atwood | short story | ★★★★/5
I think I am a fan of how Atwood writes… I’ve only read The Handmaid’s Tale, but this one was such a calming, gentle story of mother and daughter and mother. I think depending on your role in life, you read this differently. The evils we take on and concoct to protect and guide and raise our babies. And the burdens our moms carry to give us the life they think we deserve.
Buy it! Kindle

The Anubis Gates by Tim Powers | Sci-fi? Fantasy? Weirdness | DNF
This was weird and I don’t regret walking away. It was a book club pick and everyone agreed it was an oddball.

Another Book Challenge starts in July. I’m planning to share my picks on Thursday.

What did you read this month?

-Aud

Happy Book Day! Also, it’s now May. WTF. We’re practically to Christmas.

Linking up with our fabulous hosts, Steph & Jana, for Show Us Your Books!

Title sends you to GoodReads & “buy it” goes to an affiliated link on on BookShop or Amazon!

The Wedding Game by Meghan Quinn | Romance | ★★★★★/5
The cover is terrible, but the inside is hilarious. I was crying-laughing more than once. Luna was flawed but lovely, Alec was v steamy, and all the side characters were fantastic- esp. Farrah, Declan, and Naomi. I laughed a lot, but the book had a lot of heart, too.
Buy it! BookShop | Buy it! Amazon | Buy it! Kindle

The Midnight Library by Matt Haig | Magical Realism | ★★★/5
I am clearly in the minority, as I did not love the book. It was interesting, and I’ve never read a story like it, but it was predictable. And I felt like it had a naivety to it. I did not connect with it. I believe it’s a soft spot to land for those in the thick of depression, and that’s absolutely lovely.
Buy it! BookShop | Buy it! Amazon | Buy it! Kindle

The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes | YA Mystery | ★★★★★/5
Inhaled. I literally inhaled this book. I couldn’t put it down. It was so enjoyable and I immediate put a hold on the second book in the trilogy once I’d finished this one. The brothers were so unique. Avery is a badass. Every chapter had me turning pages. My only complaint is that everyone is so young so I feel weird having literary crushes on them. LOL
Buy it! BookShop | Buy it! Amazon | Buy it! Kindle

It was a pretty dang good month for books. What have you read lately?

-Audrey

Happy Show Us Your Books Day! I don’t want to make a cliche comment about how it’s already March… but also, it’s already MARCH. Damn.

Linking up with Steph & Jana today!

I read three books this month 🎉 All only 3 stars, though.

Share Your Stuff. I’ll Go First by Laura Tremaine | Memoir | ★★★/5
I don’t remember why or how this book came across my radar. I didn’t know her name and I’d never listened to her podcast (10 Things to Tell You). This book was a “meh” for me. I wanted to have my mind blown as far as friendship goes and it wasn’t. That said, it was an interesting enough read. It’d have been more interesting if I knew who the hell she was. Lol

One by One by Ruth Ware | Mystery | ★★★/5
I wanted to like this one. I hated Ware’s Cabin 10, but I was giving her another shot. This wasn’t terrible, but it reminded me of The Hunting Party and The Sanatorium… so I felt like I’d been there, done that. (In Ware’s defense, One by One came out before The Sanatorium.) It was fine, but I figured out the killer immediately after the first death and I just kept reading to essentially know why 🤷🏼‍♀️

A History of Wild Places by Shea Ernshaw | Mystery? | ★★★/5
This book was also fine. (Maybe I’m the problem this month? lol) I picked it from the BOTM selection and then avoided reading it because it didn’t sound like “my thing.” Then I joined a bookclub that happened to be reading this one next. Fate, maybe. Maybe it’s because of where I live, but I couldn’t help but see everyone as Amish or Amish-lite. It was kind of M. Night Shyamalan meets Amish Mafia. Lol

ERIN’S BOOK CHALLENGE 16.0

| 5 points | Freebie: The Love Hypothesis (Hazelwood)
| 10 points | Title starts with the letter C: Carnegie’s Maid (Benedict)
| 10 points | Published in 2020 or 2021: The Wedding Game (Quinn)
| 15 points | One of the following in the title: you/your/etc.: Share Your Stuff. I’ll Go First. (Tremaine)
| 20 points | Set on an island: Reckless Girls (Hawkins)
| 20 points | From an indigenous or First Nations author: There There (Orange)
| 25 points | A memoir/biography/autobiography: Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman(Massie)
| 30 point | One of these in the title: Ace/King/Queen/Jack/Joker: Queen of the Tearling(Johansen)
| 30 points | Poetry or a book written in verse: The Poet X (Acevedo)
| 35 points | By or inspired by Jane Austen: The Jane Austen Book Club (Fowler)

A whole 40 points right now. Lol

So there we have it. I’m currently reading three books right now and I have a bunch on hold at the library which will probably all be available at the same time. Next time I’ll share some Moo recs, too.

What did you read last month?

-Aud