Reviewing the Unreviewed: March 2021

I read a lot of books that I don’t end up reviewing for whatever reason. Some because I wasn’t impressed. Some because I didn’t have the time. Some I just wasn’t feeling it on whatever particular day I finished. Reviewing the Unreviewed is my monthly post where I share my few thoughts on all the books I didn’t formally review.

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To Sir Phillip, With Love (Bridgertons #2) by Julia Quinn. Read March 8-11. 4 Stars.

I have been eagerly anticipating Eloise’s book and while I enjoyed it, I didn’t enjoy it quite as much as I expected to. It took me awhile to figure out what wasn’t working for me, and it was half way through when her brothers show up that I realized I was missing the other Bridgertons. The banter that I love wasn’t as present in this installment of the series due to the Bridgertons not being around for most of the book and also that Phillip is on the quieter side. I also was a little disappointed that we didn’t get to see much of the initial letters that led up to their meeting and their wedding was glossed over. Though we did get to see more of it in the previous book, I wanted to see it from Eloise and Phillip’s point of view. And I know this sounds like a lot of complaints, but they’re small nitpicky things and I did end up enjoying this. I will be eagerly waiting the next book in the series to become available at the library.

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Too Good to be True by Carola Lovering. Read March 5-12. 2 Stars. 

I found this really disappointing. I kept hearing about great twists, but there was absolutely nothing in this book that was surprising. Maybe if you’ve read very few books in this genre? Still, though, at least one of the “twists” was super obvious from very early on and wasn’t “revealed” until after half way through the book. I was waiting for a really explosive ending, but everything that happened just made me roll my eyes.

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Love at First by Kate Clayborn. Read March 4-13. 4 Stars. 

Quirky, romantic, a little sad, and sweet. I really ended up enjoying this book. I loved Will and Nora and all their neighbors. Though it took me just a bit to get into the story (I think that probably had more to do with my mood at the time I started it than the book itself), once I did, I was hooked and didn’t want to put it down. While it was just a little longer than I thought it needed to be, it was such a sweet story and I’m really looking forward to checking out more by this author.

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Love Lettering by Kate Clayborn. Read March 17-18. 4 Stars. 

I struggled a little with how to rate this. There wasn’t really much to the plot for most of the book, it could get pretty cheesy, and the big dramatic turn it takes in the last quarter or so of the book seemed a little out of nowhere – and in how it impacted Meg a little on the unrealistic side. However, the romance was cute and sweet, there was some good humorous moments, it made me want to learn calligraphy, and I did overall enjoy the reading experience, so I’m going to boost my rating up to 4 stars.

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To Have and to Hate by R.S. Grey. Read March 18-19. 4 Stars. 

This was a cute marriage of convenience story. I got a little frustrated with the lack of communication and would have liked Elizabeth’s relationship with her family a little more explored. Overall, though, it was a quick read that I enjoyed.

*****Back on the TBR*****

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A Simple Murder (Kate Burkholder series novellas) by Linda Castillo. I was in a big book slump for the last week and a half or so and by the time I finally felt like reading again, I only got through one of the stories before my library book expired. I will definitely try this again later, though. 

*****DNF*****

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A Court of Silver Flames (A Court of Thorns and Roses #4) by Sarah J. Maas. DNF @ 4%. Yes, I only read a couple chapters of this, but I couldn’t really force myself to read anything more. I looked at a lot of other reviews and there was nothing in them that made me think it would be worth it to me to finish the book.

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Take it Off the Menu by Christina Hovland. DNF @ 36%. I thought this sounded cute, but I never really connected with it. I didn’t think the main character was very likable and I hate when poor communication is a major plot point.

*****Books with Future Reviews Scheduled*****

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Where Secrets Lie by Eva V. Gibson – 2 Stars

The Book Snob Tag

It’s been awhile since I’ve done a tag and I saw this one over on Bookworm Blogger and thought it looked fun.

1. ADAPTATION SNOB: DO YOU ALWAYS READ THE BOOK BEFORE YOU SEE THE MOVIE?

No. A lot of times watching a show or movie will make me want to read a book that wasn’t on my radar before. Reading the book first will most likely ruin the show/movie for me because most adaptions are not done well when it comes to being faithful to the source material.

2. FORMAT SNOB: YOU CAN ONLY CHOOSE ONE FORMAT IN WHICH TO READ BOOKS FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE. WHICH ONE DO YOU CHOOSE: PHYSICAL BOOKS, EBOOKS, OR AUDIOBOOKS?

While I’ll always love physical books, I could not give up my e-reader.

3. SHIP SNOB: WOULD YOU DATE OR MARRY A NON-READER?

Yes, but I would prefer another booknerd.

4. GENRE SNOB: YOU HAVE TO DITCH ONE GENRE – NEVER TO BE READ AGAIN FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE. WHICH ONE DO YOU DITCH?

Non-Fiction. I usually only read a couple of non-fiction books a year, so I could easily give them up.

5. UBER GENRE SNOB: YOU CAN ONLY CHOOSE TO READ FROM ONE GENRE FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE. WHICH GENRE DO YOU CHOOSE?

I want to say Mystery/Thriller (I’m counting them as one genre because I honestly don’t know the difference between them and always just push them together like that), but if I look at what I’ve read most of this year, it’s been Romance. But I might be too snobby to make Romance the final answer.

6. COMMUNITY SNOB: WHICH GENRE DO YOU THINK RECEIVES THE MOST SNOBBERY FROM THE BOOKISH COMMUNITY?

Romance. Even though it’s a huge market.

7. SNOBBERY RECIPIENT: HAVE YOU EVER BEEN SNUBBED FOR SOMETHING THAT YOU HAVE BEEN READING OR FOR READING IN GENERAL?

My brother used to send me a lot of memes like the below to poke fun at me, but other than that, not really.

WWW Wednesday: March 24, 2021

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WWW Wednesday is hosted by Taking on a World of Words.

What did you recently finish reading?

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To Have and to Hate by R.S. Grey. I enjoyed this one.

What are you currently reading?

I’m in one of those moods where nothing is working for me. I’ve started and put down several books recently and nothing is sticking.

What do you think you’ll read next?

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I just got Every Vow You Break by Peter Swanson from the library, so probably this? I haven’t seen great reviews for it so far, so I’m a little wary to start it.

What are you reading?

WWW Wednesday: March 17, 2021

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WWW Wednesday is hosted by Taking on a World of Words.

What did you recently finish reading?

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Where Secrets Lie by Eva V. Gibson. This one disappointed me.

What are you currently reading?

I literally just finished the above book and haven’t started a new one yet.

What do you think you’ll read next?

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I’m really not sure, but I recently enjoyed another Kate Clayborn book, so I might try Love Lettering. Or Ladies of the House by Lauren Edmondson since this is the second time I’ve taken it out from the library and it’s due back soon.

What are you reading?

Top Ten Tuesday: Books on my Spring 2021 TBR

This week’s Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, is: Books On My Spring 2021 TBR

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1.  The Soulmate Equation by Christina Lauren

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2. Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid

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3. Sunkissed by Kasie West

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4. Second First Impressions by Sally Thorne

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5. To Have and to Hate by R.S. Grey

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6. When He Was Wicked (Bridgertons #6) by Julia Quinn

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7. It’s in His Kiss (Bridgertons #7) by Julia Quinn

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8. A Dark and Secret Place by Jen Williams

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9. The Engagement Arrangement by Jaci Burton

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10. Shutter by Melissa Larsen

Review: Bookshop by the Sea by Denise Hunter

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Synopsis from Goodreads:

Sophie Lawson should be enjoying her sister’s wedding day. But nothing could have prepared her to see the best man again.

After her mother became bedridden and her father bailed on the family, Sophie found herself serving as a second mother to her twin brother, Seth, and younger sister, Jenna. Sophie supported her siblings through their college years, putting aside her own dream of opening a bookshop in Piper’s Cove—the quaint North Carolina beach town they frequented as children.

Now it’s finally time for Sophie to follow her own pursuits. Seth has a new job, and Jenna is set to marry her college beau in Piper’s Cove. But the destination wedding reunites Sophie with best man Aiden Maddox, her high school sweetheart who left her without a backward glance.

When an advancing hurricane strands Aiden in Piper’s Cove after the wedding, he finds the hotels booked to capacity and has to ask Sophie to put him up until the storm passes. As the two ride out the weather, old feelings rise to the surface. The delay also leaves Sophie with mere days to get her bookshop up and running. Can she trust Aiden to stick around? And will he find the courage to risk his heart?

I received a copy of this title via NetGalley. It does not impact my review. 

Bookshop by the Sea publishes April 13, 2021

It’s been awhile since I’ve read a Denise Hunter book, but I thought Bookshop by the Sea looked pretty cute. Her books are often hit or miss for me, but this one ended up somewhere in the middle.

I really enjoyed the beginning as Sophie and Aiden found themselves stuck together after seven years apart. I liked seeing them start to communicate and forgive each other. Once they hit that point, though, I kind of started to lose interest. I felt like the pace dragged and there wasn’t really much plot. I also wasn’t completely sold on them rekindling their romance. For one thing, Aiden is dating someone else for the first half of the book. He goes to great pains to say they’re not exclusive, but it still made him come across a little skeevy.

There was some added drama with Sophie’s family being basically awful and selfish people and Aiden dealing with abandonment issues. While I think there were some good lessons learned, it was all crammed into the ending, where everything was resolved surprisingly easily.

Overall, Bookshop by the Sea was just ok for me. It had a promising start and while Hunter seemed to know where she wanted all the characters to end up, it felt like the middle was kind of phoned in. While this one wasn’t really for me, I’ll still be checking out more from this author in the future.

Overall Rating (out of 5): 3 Stars

WWW Wednesday: March 10, 2021

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WWW Wednesday is hosted by Taking on a World of Words.

What did you recently finish reading?

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Bookshop by the Sea by Denise Hunter. This ended up being 3 stars for me. My review will post next week.

What are you currently reading?

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Love at First by Kate Clayborn. I’m kind of in a mood where things aren’t really catching my interest and I’m not totally invested in this yet, but I do like the characters so far.

Too Good to be True by Carola Lovering. This is a book I’ve been highly anticipating, but I’m kind of bored with it so far. And I feel like I already have the big twist figured out, but it feels so obvious that I’m sure there has to be another twist coming.

To Sir Phillip, with Love (Bridgertons #5) by Julia Quinn. This is the one that’s keeping my attention the most right now. I like it so far, but not as much as I thought I would. I’m hoping this is due to my weird mood and I’ll get over it.

What do you think you’ll read next?

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Winning the War in Your Mind by Craig Groeschel. I did a mini devotional series based on this in The Bible app recently and it kind of spoke to me, so I bought the book.

What are you reading?