One True Loves by Taylor Jenkins Reid

 

 

Well here is one mediocre review I did not see happening. I swore that I was going to love this book and that it was going to be the most epic thing I have ever read and as it turns out I was just not that into it.

Although I gave this book an average rating and I found the actual plot to somewhat average, this is by no means an average book. Taylor Jenkins Reid is an astonishing writter and she has this uncanny ability to write realistic characters, that come through unique situations. Just enough realism mixed with fiction. This story is different in every sense of the word, and most people would say that they have never heard a story like this before. Well,  I am not most people. My lack of enthusiasm for this book actually takes place a long time ago and with another book. If you followed me when I used to blog on alliereads, then you may remember about 2yrs ago I read a very underrated christian fiction book called, Beneath a Southern Sky by Deborah Rainy here’s the goodreads if you want to check that out. Basically the book is about a married ouple who are South American missionaries, the husband is a doctor and is called away to a neighboring village to assist with a flu epidemic. However, while there the village comes under attack and is burned to the ground, and there are no assumed survivors. The main character is then sent home (I am so sorry, I do not remember her name, and I do not feel like digging out the book) to Kentucky and there she has to begin to start her life over. She then discovers she is pregnant with her first child, by her dead husband. Then shortly after she falls in love and marries a very amazing man, who takes care of her and fathers her child. Then out of nowhere she recieves a call saying that her first husband is actually alive and is coming home.. ( do you see the resemeblences?) And from there we examine the prospects of both relationships. It was a very emotional and thought provoking read. The whole time I was reading it I kept thinking about how I would handle these situations. I’m sorry I’ve already reviewed this book and I’m not here to review it again.  But, I said all this to say, that this storyline is not new to me, I have seen it done before and frankly done much better. In Beneath a Southern Sky, story went more in depth about the previous couples relationship, more in depth with her new relationship and I felt like the grieving process was even handled with much more emotion. The stories are eerily similar, even the endings and while I did enjoy them both, I felt so much more connected to the previous story. Now I know it’s unfair for me to try and compare the two, and though it seems like that’s what I was doing. I promise I wasn’t. I just knew the great potential that this book had bc of the author and I already knew that this plot could be beautifully done.

By all acounts this book was heartbreaking and gut wrenching, it was one of those books that I wished had made me cry. (I’m not a crier, so that is very rare). I really enjoy Reid’s writting style, the best word I can think of to describe it would be monotone, not in a bad way. Whenever I sit down to read one of her books, I know that no matter how emotionally charged the book is, it’s still going to have an overall chill and peaceful feel to it. I was easily able to get into the story and able to get a feel for the characters, yet this book just left me feeling so unsatisfied at the end. I think I needed to see for myself the love that Jesse and Emma had. I understand that they had this wild, adventerous lifestyle and that they followed their dreams and seen the world together. I needed more of that, I needed to see that and feel that attraction that she had towards him, so that I could better understand her grief and hesitations. I wanted to feel her turmoil with her, but I could not bc all I got to see was how they met in highschool and a few pages about what they had been doing since. I just a hard time connecting. I did understand her relationship with Sam a lot more, only bc I had gotten to see it unfold, however I felt it was just there to create conflict and more of a plot device than a real relationship. I know this review makes me sound as if I really disliked this book and that most certainly isn’t true. I think I had mostly set myself up for disappointent by relying too much on the hype surrounding it. Once I got past my issues with the romances, I was able to focus on what this story is truly about, and that is self discovery. Emma transformed so much from the girl eager to leave her hometown and her parents expectations to ultimately discovering that what she was always looking for was always in her own backyard. The parts that made me wish I could cry were not the romantic parts, or even the grief. They were the times when Emma realized who she was and embraced it. Learning and growing through the unexpected and being able to come out on the otherside more sure of yourself than you ever were: that’s a story worth reading.

Taylor Jenkins Reid is an amazing writter, I have so far read 3 of her books and I own all of them. While this one was not my favorite or least favorite I am wanting to re-read it, now that I know the outcome and can really focus in on anything I missed..

After the Rain by Renee Carlino

 

Sometimes your just in the mood for a really good romace, if your me then that’s pretty much all the time. I had heard really great things about Renee Carlino in a lotof reccommendations videos on booktube, so naturally I binge bought all of her books. After having them sit on my shelves for 5mos I decided to actually read them, and since this is the first one  purchased I supposed I’d start with it.

This book was very emotional and very dark at times, infact going into this I thought it would be a cute and quirky western romance and it was in a sense. But I would def consider this a darker romance. Trigger warnings for death, suicide, depression and grief.

So this book is about a girl named Avelina, who married a cowboy right before graduating highschool. She and him moved out to Montana to work on a large ranch togther. For the first years married life was bliss and she and him worked to create  a wonderful life togther. However all good things come to an end,  a tragic, unforeseen event occurs leavin Avelina to pick up the pieces of her life. Drowning in depression and sorrow for years, she feels she’s ruined and too far gone for anyone to ever reach her. That is until Nate shows up. Nate is a heart surgeon from California. Reeling from a tragic accident that may alter his career, he decides to come stay for a few weeks on his uncle’s ranch. Here he meets beautiful and mysterious Avelina. The two share an instant and undeniable attraction. But can two broken hearts ever truly be whole enough to love?

I was pleasently surprised in both good and bad ways. This book.. I really loved a lot of the romance aspect of it. Some of it I really didn’t get. Some of it made me question the entire relationship btw Avelina and Nate.

But let me start from the beginning.. The first few chapters of this book were great. They were phenominal, Ava’s story of heartbreak and her transformation of a starry-eyed, barrel racer to a lonely an depressed shell. It was truly gripping. I loved hearing about Nate’s carefree lifestyle and getting to understand him as someone who is career obsessed and fully dedicated to his patients. I loved both of these characters on their own, however something about them togther did not feel right. I still liked their romance, but I didn’t understand it. If that makes sense.

This was almost insta-love, like they were definitley instantly attracted to one another, Nate was far more interested at first than Ava. Ava had been silent almost, never laughing, barely smiling, for years and then all of the sudden Nate is the only person who can get her to open up. I get that that is what is supposed to happen. What I think I am trying to say, is I liked the romance once it happened i just didn’t care for the execution of it. Nate was the ultimate nice guy, he was constantly doing things to prove to Ava just how much he cared, despite al his sweetness, he was very careeer obsessed and Ava always came second to that. While Ava was completely damaged, but once she let go and discovered who she truly was and how to love herself then she was able to let Nate in.

Here is a spoiler, regarding the ending.. you have been warned!

Ok, so I have to talk about the ending for a minute bc I think that that was my favorite aspect of the story. Ava decided to visit her mom in Spain, her mom checked out mentally for a few years after her husband died unexectedly and Ava just needed to see how she was doing. Once in Spain, Ava sees her mom doing well and decides it is time for her to begin to heal herself. Nate does show up in Spain, but Ava says she needs a year of no contact. She needs to know if this is really love btw them or infacuation. She also feels that she needs time to herself to really heal and discover herself and just really do things to better her life.

I LOVED that. I thought that that was perfect, that Ava didn’t need Nate to heal her, that she needed to heal herself. She took the time she needed to do things for herself and by herself. Personally I thought that was great and refreshing to see a heroine not need a guy to fix her.

So I would def recommend this book and author to lovers of romance. The middle and the beginings of their romance where a little cheesy at times, but overall it was good story and this author is def one I will be reading more of!

The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

 

First of all. The fact that I finished this book is an accomplishment in itself. Since Christmas this chunker has been sitting on my shelves daunting me with it’s page count. This book is also on one of previous posts, listed as being one of the 30 books I want to read before 30. So kuddos to me for sticking to it and chiseling this list down. Since the time is literally ticking away, I thought what better time than the present? So I did this the way I do all things: Jump in headfirst and fly by the seat of my pants…. And what do ya know? It actually paid off! So IF you are not reading this book bc you are intimidated by it’s size, don’t be. I read this 564 page book it less than a week. This story. These characters. It doesn’t even feel like a book. I was so totally engrossed, I felt like these were real people. I was so invested in the lives of the charcters, I felt as if I were on this journey with them. Kristin Hannah did a magnificent job creating such characters and circumstances, this book is such an emtional and heartening experience.

I think it’s safe to say that most ppl, reader or not, have heard of this book. If not, then I will give you a super short, brief summary.

This is the story of two sisters, living in France durng the invasion of Germany during WWII.  The story is told by a narrorator years later and it’s no spoiler, that you learn it is one of the sisters narrorating, however you don’t find out til the end which sister it is. That’s basically the main premise, I feel like telling too much else would give too much away.

Now for starters, there is a lot of hype surrounding this book. It seems everybody and their grandmother is reading it. I tend to steer clear of hyped books, not bc they are all bad, but my prefernce is to find hidden gems. This year though, I have found myself partaking in many, many popular books and so far I found most of them surprisingly living up to that hype for me. This book happens to be one of those books that borders that imaginary hype line I have drawn in my head. I really liked the book, I was very invested in the story and the characters. Just something about it made me not seem to like it quite as much as everyone else. Now on my goodreads, I gave this book a 4 star and I fully stand by that. This book, in every sense deserves those stars. It is written beautfully, the situations where handled quite respectfully, yet still had enough depth to give the reader the full picture. There was a certain atmosphere about this book, that while you knew it was going to be sad, you still help on to this sense of hope and longing.

This where I may get just a tad bit spoilery, this is not going to be a major in depth super analyzing reveiw where I pick out every single like and dislike. I am, however going to tell the major pro’s and con’s for me. If you have not read this and don’t want any potential spoilers, come back after you’ve read this. If not then carry on..

The things I disliked about this book are nothing incredibly major. Like I said before, overall I thought this book was pretty great and it is so hard to come across a fictional book about something non-fiction that is actually decent.

My main complaint, is I needed answers. Now, nothing major, major was left unsaid. All the main points, that were important to the story were taken care of. No loose ends there. Just some minor things that started irritating me.  The narrorator, I won’t say who that is bc major spoiler, ended up in a different country, which actually made no sense bc once the war was over this person was excedeingly glad to have their home back. Also, (I am doing my best not to spoil or name drop, but if you’ve read it then you know!) there is a child born, outside of marriage and this child is of German decent, however, the narrorator keeps referring to this child as a decendant of another country! And there was no further explaination on that. Small things that didn’t add up to me. My second complaint is the romance. I know I am usually a romance reader, some stories though, I feel don’t require it. It felt out of place, this is a time of war and strife. While I understand the whole purpose of it being that we never know what lies ahead so we should follow our hearts and be happy even if it’s just for the moment, like I get it. That part of it was great. I think I just didn’t like this particular couple’s romance. I felt the guy (no names, no spoilers) to be somewhat creepy. He made it clear several times he had no interest, yet his actions , which were sometimes creepy said otherwise. I feel that it could have been done better if it had to have been done at all. Thirdly, I know I make it sound like I really hated this book, but I promise I didn’t. There was some major cheese. Ok. I know this a tearjerker. I knew that going into this and I expected to cry. But I want to cry bc I am genuinely saddened, not bc I feel as if the author is just trying to make me cry. Does that make sense? To be more specific, there is obviously some character death. Now one character dies in a very just gut-wrenching way. I’m going to go ahead and say it, it was a child death. I cried like I have never cried before. I didn’t see it coming and it was handled in a way that I felt was more realistic. A second character death happens way closer to the end and it was honestly just too much. This person survived so much, even came home from a concentration camp, and yet when their actual death happened I could not even shed a tear. Y’all this was my favorite character in the book! And I could not even mourn their death bc it was handled in such a cheesy way, it happened abbruptley and honestly I felt that it didn’t make sense. Most people don’t seem to mind this, I however, just wasn’t a fan.

” Men tell stories, I say. It is the truest, simplest answer to his question. Women get on with it. For us it was a shadow war. There were no parades for us when it was over, no medals or mention in history books. We did what we had to during the war, and when it was over, we picked up the pieces and started our lives over.”

So now on to the things that I did like so that I can end this review on a positive note. This book sends a message about WWII that we don’t often get to see in books, and that is the gritty and ugly things that women faced during WWII. Now I am not a war expert, I am no historian by any means. But I can tell you that in my opinion, this story seems to paint a more realistic picture of what it might have been actually like living as a woman in Germany occupied France. The things these women faced. All the turmoil that they had to endure just to keep thier children safe and fed. Oh I can not even imagine, nor do I want to. I think this is done beautifully, Kristin Hannah is a brilliant story teller and like I said before, she told this story with such poise and respect, yet included all the disturbing details. There were times that this book gave me chills, bc all I could think of is no amount of description could ever do justice to those who went through this.

Another aspect that I thoroughly enjoyed is the fact that this book takes plavce in France, the majority of WWII books that I have read have taken place in America and it was so refreshing to see the war from a fresh and much more relatable perspective.

And for the main thing that made me absolutley fall in love with this story, the charactor. As I sit here typing this, I can’t help but tear up. I know these characters are fictional, but they represent so many ppl who are not. I don’t know if I mentioned this previously but the main characters in this book were completely different from one another. Isabelle was carefree and fearless. She wanted to leave behind a legacy and her involvment in the war effort was dangerous and put her in harms way more that once. While Vivianne was a mother and a wife, all she wanted was a quiet life in the counrty with her husband that she loved more than life itself and to raise her children. She lives in constant fear of the war and at times she seems meek and spineless, but more than once she proved herself to have more courage than she ever thought possible. When it came down to protecting those that she loved, she did all she could for them. Obviously the sisters had a rocky relationship with eachother, both operating out of past woundings inflicted by the other. It was just really interesting to see how their relationship would end up, and the inner dialouge of both of the sisters was just heartning.

If I haven’t made it apparent with this long review, I really did enjoy this book. As I write this review I find myself tearing up and missing these characters. I feel like this book is very worth the hype it has recieved and while their were some very minor issues that I had with the story, it was nothing that deterred me from loving it. And I absolutley can not wait to read it again.

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo: Book Review

 

 

 

It’s official. I have found one of my favorite books of the year. January was such a good reading month for me, most of the books I read were 4 and 5 stars, I think I had two 3 star books. For the most part, I thoroughly enjoyed everything I read.

If anyone is keeping score, I think I should get double points for reading this.  Not only was this book on my personal tbr, it was also on my 25 books I want to reaad in 2018.. And I did it! Look at me being an adult and sticking to my list!

I have heard majorly amazing things about this book and author and while I own all of her books, I had yet to pick one up. Since reading this I have read some of her other books and I am now a super fan..

This book tells the story of Evelyn Hugo, she one of the worlds most famous movie stars and an iconic sex symbol.. Pretty much the Marylin Monroe of her time.  Despite her many attributes, the one thing that Evelyn Hugo is most notorious for is having seven husbands.  Now in her old age, Evelyn has decided she is ready to tell her side of the story… Monique is a 30 something writer, lacking inspiration, on the verge of divorce and not exactly at the top of her game. So when Evelyn contacts her to write her biography/tell-all book, Monique thinks this is just the break she needs. However, when Evelyn’s truths come forwards and the two ladies lives intersect in unimaginable ways, Monique might just be getting more than she bargained for.

Told in alternating past and present, we see Evelyn’s journey to hollywood, her rise to stardom and learn the truths behind the media’s lies and we learn who was truly the love of Evelyn’s life..

Somethings you need to know before reading this:

1. It is amazing. Just read it. Don’t read spoilery reviews. Go into it blind.
2. Mine’s not spoilery so def read my review 🙂
3. Have tissues.

 

Nothing in this world could have prepared me for this. When I say all the feels, I mean all of them. I was angry with characters, I was brokenhearted for them, I wanted them to get what they deserve and still have a happy ending. I just wanted everything and I sincerly feel like that is what I got with this book. The story mostly takes place in old hollywood (50’s and 60’s) and I honestly felt like I was there. The atmospere and imagery for this book literally just flies off the page. By the end of this book I couldn’t tell you what was real and what wasn’t. My heart was on the ground. I went into this blind, only knowing about the 7 husband part, but this is nothing like you think it’s going to be. Guys, just read it. Just read it please.  And if you have read it please talk to me about it, I have so many thoughts.

After the fall: Book Review

 

Hi y’all! After a few weeks off, I am back and at it again! I really just needed a break from social media platforms and decided that the time to do that would be January. New year and much needed new perspective. But I come to you today with a clean and clear mind and with a TON of reviews.. During this time off I have taken some time to start up a schedule for this site and I have some really great ideas, and I am just excited to put them into effect..

So time off of social media means more time for reaading and this month I have read 11 books! I wil most likely do an update post, letting you guys know what I have read and my current reads and then a few things I plan to get to next. As you all know I don’t do tbr’s that well so these are merely suggestions, if you will. But enough rambling, let’s get on to this review..

After the fall was the second or third book I read this month. It’s been on my shelves for a while and I finally decided it was time for me to learn what is written in those pages.. As much as I anticipated this book, I have to say I found it to be slighlty disappointing and very much predictable.

This book tell the story of Raychel, who is torn between two brothers, one whom is her best friend and the other whom she has just begun a secret relationship with.

And that is basically your plotline. Although it sounds it sounds like a typcal ya love triangle, it is not. This is a very dark book. Topics of rape, death, depression, and slut-shaming  are examined. There were a few instances where I felt like a certain could have been handled a little differently. But that is the only qualms I had with it.  I honestly don’t have much to say about this book, although the topics are dark and heavy, I found this book to be overall bland.  And the plot-twist, which is one I saw coming, was almost too much. I gave this book 3 stars. I don’t feel like it was anything to write home about. Just your standard-ya-dark-contemorary. Nothing particularly stood out to me.

Book Review: The Sun is also a Star

 

I have to say that this book was a pleasant surprise.  It’s no secret , I am a huge romance reader. I would say about 90% of everything I read has some form of romance. With that said, I have read some duds. Every single romance troupe you can think of: I’ve read it. One of my least favorite troupes is the dreaded insta-love. I am very big on conversation and connections. I love to see characters actually fall in love, rather than force those feelings.  So after reading the premise for this book, I approached with much hesitation.

This is the story of Daniel and Natasha. Two teenagers, who against all odds and despite unfortunate timing manage to meet and fall in love with eachother over the course of one day. Natasha is all about science and facts. In her eyes, nothing is left to fate or happens by coincidence. So she certainly can’t leave the fact that she is being deported to Jamacia in one day in fate’s hands. Daniel has always tried to be a good son to his hard-working Korean Parents. He is a free spirit, a dreamer and  a poet, but he pushes those things aside to pursue the dreams his parents have for his life. When these two meet by chance, they spend one magical day together and fall in love.  But with time against them can they really ever have more than just one day together or are some things best left in fate’s hands?

This is a perfect example of insta-love done correctly.  Never have I ever, rooted for two characters to find a way to be together. This book stole my heart and I don’t know if I will ever get it back!

As much as I loved this book, I did struggle at first to get into the story. This book has a lot of pov’s. A lot. Some of which, seem pointless but as the story progresses everything starts to connect and the diff pov’s start to become less aggravating and more anticipated.

I can not even tell you how precious these characters are to me. I related to both Daniel and Natasha, making it very hard to take sides btw them.  Thier connection was undeniable and their romance was adorable yet, intense. This book did something that most YA books tend not to do these days:  the main characters communicated. When they actually did fall in love with eachother, I wasn’t left wondering “how?” or “why?”. I saw them communicate and connect first hand. Therefore making me feel involved with the story and intune with their feelings.  I don’t think I have been on such an emotional roller-coaster since I read November 9 (one of my fave books). This book had me from laughter to tears to laughter to full on emotional basket case, all within a few chapters.

The ending to this story was perfect. It was real and everything tied together so nicely.  Natasha’s facts and Daniel’s fate blended together and left me so satisfied.  This book is the perfect combo of adorable and deep.  I absolutley loved it and I highly recommend it to everyone. Even if you are not a major romance reader, I am confident that this story will still have something for you.  While romance is the main plot, the characters also deal with other conflicts and obstacles.

Daniel comes from immigrant parents, who have worked hard their entire life to provide a better life for themselves and so that Daniel and his brother can have a good life. However, to them that life entails both sons going to prestigious colleges and becoming successful doctors or lawyers. Daniel’s brother has already disgraced his their parents by being expelled from school. Daniel is torn between wanting to be a good son and pleasing his parents and between being himself and pursuing his love of poetry.  This is a major conflict is Daniel’s life.

Natasha is struggling with the fact that in 12 hours she will be deported to a country she no longer has any connection to. She is struggling with the fact that her father’s dui is the reasn for their deportation and the fact that she harbors major anger towards him. Throughout the book we see major, major struggles and conflict with Natasha’s family. Between Natasha and her father, her father and her mother.  Her story and the dilema she is facing is much more surreal than the things that Daniel has going on his life, however they seem to really be able to comfort and understand one another.

This book, in my opinion, is all about fate and struggles and dealing with things that are beyond our control and allowing what is supposed to happen to happen and learning how to cope with whatever circumstance your thrown in. Nothing in this life is expected or guaranteed and it is so vital that we learn how to adapt.  Natasha and Daniel never expected to meet and fall in love, but it happened. And I like to think that because of their meeting that they both became better people.  I highly reccommend this book, if you’ve read it I’d love to know your thoughts!