Reviewing the Unreviewed: April 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.

Every Vow You Break by Peter Swanson. Read April 3-5. 2.5 Stars.

This book was bonkers. The writing had that addictive quality I expect from Swanson, which I’m giving the extra half star for, but the story itself was like a campy Lifetime movie. I had some theories about what would happen that I thought couldn’t be right because it was too crazy, but then it went down an even crazier path. You definitely have to suspend your grip on reality to enjoy this, which I wasn’t entirely able to do.

All Rhodes Lead Here by Mariana Zapata. Read April 5-7. 4 Stars. 

I loved this! Such a sweet, slow-burn romance. I might have some issues with Zapata’s writing sometimes, but she definitely knows how to write a romantic hero that will make my cold, black heart have some feelings.

When He Was Wicked (Bridgertons #6) by Julia Quinn. Read April 8-10. 3.5 Stars. 

Another enjoyable book in the Bridgertons series, but not one of my favorites. I wish there was a little more of the Bridgertons present, but I did like both Francesca and Michael.

Second First Impressions by Sally Thorne. Read April 16-18. 3.5 Stars.

The first several chapters were a bit of a chore to get through, but I was eventually able to get into the story. I didn’t like that the main character, Ruthie, keeps being referred to as old at 25, mostly by her 22 year-old assistant, Melanie. I didn’t really like Melanie at all. She’s supposed to be funny and supportive, but I found her a little grating. I also thought the two elderly ladies hiring young men to exploit and humiliate was a little tone deaf in today’s environment. There also wasn’t really much of a plot. But, despite all that, I did enjoy watching Ruthie and Teddy fall in love. There were several cute moments and I liked how they helped each other grow. If you’re looking for another The Hating Game, you’re not going to find it here, but it was definitely a solid effort from Thorne and I’ll try whatever she writes next.

The Beach by R.S. Grey. Read April 25. 2.5 Stars. 

This was very short and didn’t have much of a plot. The characters are from Doctor Dearest (which wasn’t my favorite R.S. Grey book) and the story is basically the female lead internal monologuing about her crush on the guy, them hooking up a lot, and then deciding it’s not just an island fling. I would have liked a little more banter and romance thrown in to round out the story a bit.

*****DNF*****

The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz. DNF @ 47%. I saw so many glowing reviews of this book and was very excited to read it, but it just didn’t work for me. The beginning was so slow and felt like a chore to get through. I found myself really annoyed about how often this super amazing plot is mentioned, without actually finding out what it is. I also guessed right away who the internet “troll” who accuses the main character of plagiarism was. I stopped reading properly at around 47%, but then skimmed through towards the end so I could see if my prediction was correct. It was. And that plot that kept being mentioned as revolutionary? VERY disappointing. Honestly, I thought it sounded similar to an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer…

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

 

The Soulmate Equation by Christina Lauren – 3 Stars

Falling by T.J. Newman – 3.5 Stars

Shutter by Melissa Larsen – 1 Star

WWW Wednesday: April 28, 2021

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

What did you recently finish reading?

Shutter by Melissa Larsen. This book was not for me at all. My first 1 star book of the year.

What are you currently reading?

Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid. I’m not that far in yet, but after a very promising start, I quickly became bored. I’m really hoping it picks up again soon.

What do you think you’ll read next?

I don’t know, but I want to try and get in some more KU books before my subscription ends next month and Eleanor & Grey by Brittainy C. Cherry was recently recommend to me (thanks Deanna!).

What are you reading?

Review: A Dark and Secret Place by Jen Williams

Synopsis from Goodreads: 

For readers of Jane Harper and Rachel Caine comes a chilling thriller from award-winning author Jen Williams about a woman who discovers her late mother had been secretly corresponding with a serial killer for decades.

When prodigal daughter Heather Evans returns to her family home after her mother’s baffling suicide, she makes an alarming discovery–stacks and stacks of carefully preserved letters from notorious serial killer Michael Reave. The “Red Wolf,” as he was dubbed by the press, has been in prison for over twenty years, serving a life sentence for the gruesome and ritualistic murders of several women across the country, although he has always protested his innocence. The police have had no reason to listen, yet Heather isn’t the only one to have cause to re-examine the murders. The body of a young woman has just been found, dismembered and placed inside a tree, the corpse planted with flowers. Just as the Red Wolf once did.

What did Heather’s mother know? Why did she kill herself? And with the monstrous Red Wolf safely locked inside a maximum security prison, who is stalking young women now? Teaming up with DI Ben Parker, Heather hopes to get some answers for herself and for the newest victims of this depraved murderer. Yet to do that, she must speak to Michael Reave herself, and expose herself to truths she may not be ready to face. Something dark is walking in the woods, and it knows her all too well.

A Dark and Secret Place publishes June 8, 2021

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

I’m always on the lookout for a good serial killer book and I thought A Dark and Secret Place looked pretty intriguing. Unfortunately, I ultimately found it disappointing.

I thought the “Before” chapters about Michael’s early life were well done and compelling. I found Michael a sympathetic, if unsettling, character. Once Michael started to grow up, though, I didn’t find the Before chapters as well done. I wanted a lot more background information about the mysterious man that takes him in and the commune he starts. There is very little said about it’s purpose and motivations and it left me with a lot of questions. 

I struggled a lot with Heather’s character. She was so unlikable and barely anything she did made sense to me. I really felt like I had to suffer through the chapters from her point of view to get to the Before parts I enjoyed more. I also thought that as she investigated, everything fell into place just a little too easily for her. 

Overall, I found A Dark and Secret Place pretty disappointing. I really wanted to like it and was intrigued in the beginning, but the over the top turns the story took, how unlikable the main character was, and the unsatisfactory explanations in the end really let me down.

Overall Rating (out of 5): 2 Stars

Funny Friday

Funny Friday started as book-related humor and then shifted into COVID-19 humor. I decided to stop limiting it to one thing and it will now be whatever I find that’s funny and relevant to me.

Every day of of my life…

WWW Wednesday: April 21, 2021

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

What did you recently finish reading?

Second First Impressions by Sally Thorne. This started off really slow, but I ultimately enjoyed it. Not as good as The Hating Game, but way better than 99 Percent Mine.

What are you currently reading?

Falling by T.J. Newman. This debut book has already made the author millions of dollars, so I have really high expectations for it.

What do you think you’ll read next?

I’m kind of in a mood, so I’m not sure what will catch my interest next.

What are you reading?

Review: The Insiders by Tijan

Synopsis from Goodreads:

The Insiders is the first in a brand new, page-turning romance trilogy from New York Times bestseller, Tijan!

Bailey is as normal as could be, with a genius IQ and a photographic memory. But still, normal for her. Then, things happen—a guy breaks into her house in the middle of the night to take her hostage. She finds out her father is actually billionaire tech genius Peter Francis, the same guy she’s idolized all her life. She learns all this when she meets dark, mysterious, and electrifying Kashton Colello. He’s an associate of her father’s, and he gives Bailey two choices—go with him and meet her father or survive on her own because those kidnappers are going to try again. It’s a no-brainer.

After this, three things become clear for Bailey:

1. She’s living at her father’s sprawling estate, complete with bodyguards and the best security that money can buy.

2. She’s no longer an only child. She has three siblings and has no idea what to do with them and vice versa.

3. She is being guarded by Kash himself. Personally guarded. And there is a lot of guarding going on there and some of it is going to drive her crazy.

A complete outsider in a world of wealth and decadence, Bailey has to find her way within a family that has more secrets than she could have imagined. One of these secrets could be deadly…

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

The Insiders publishes May 4, 2021. 

This is an odd one to review. I really enjoyed the reading experience for most of the book, but I also kind of have a lot of issues with it. I’m going to go the list route on this one.

*For about the first 3/4 or so of the book, I could not read this fast enough. Tijan has a very addictive quality to her writing where I just need to keep reading. I found myself really enjoying it, even though basically NOTHING was happening, plot-wise.

*Though I do often find Tijan’s writing addictive, I always feel like it could use just a little more editing. I believe this is her first traditionally published book, so I expected things to be tightened up a little more than usual. For a little while, it felt like it was. However, as the book went on, it felt like the editing got less and less polished.

*Is it weird that I both shipped the romance while also not really believing in it? It was insta-lust. There wasn’t really any development before they jumped into an intensely physical relationship. They barely talked. There were barely any cute moments or banter. But I wanted them to be together. I liked how protective Kash was of Bailey. I just wanted them to have an actual conversation once in awhile.

*So what about the plot? It felt like there wasn’t one for most of the book. And then everything happened all at once in the final few chapters. And I wasn’t terribly impressed with the direction the story went. It seemed anti-climatic. I will say that I didn’t realize this was the beginning of a series when I read it, so now that I know that, it makes more sense that a lot of larger plot issues were just hinted at to set up for the future books. I just think the story could have been a little more balanced, though.

*Some other super random thoughts — *Kashton Collelo is a cool name.* *How was Bailey’s mom able to just leave her job and whole life to move in with her former baby daddy? And WHY? Nothing that woman did made any sense to me.* *It’s not a Tijan book without some crazy drama – enter Matt and his risque partying ways.* *Who’s that blonde girl on the cover? I can only think of one side-character that could possibly be and I barely remember anything about her. Definitely not prominent enough of a character to make the cover.*

Overall, I enjoyed The Insiders, but not as much as I was hoping to. The addictive writing couldn’t quite make up for the lack of plot for me. Still, I have no doubt Tijan fans will love it and I’ll look forward to the next book in the series.

Overall Rating (out of 5): 3 Stars

Funny Friday

Funny Friday started as book-related humor and then shifted into COVID-19 humor. I decided to stop limiting it to one thing and it will now be whatever I find that’s funny and relevant to me.

WWW Wednesday: April 14, 2021

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

What did you recently finish reading?

When He was Wicked (Bridgertons #6) by Julia Quinn. Not my favorite Bridgerton book, but still enjoyable.

What are you currently reading?

   

A Dark and Secret Place by Jen Williams. I’ve been looking forward to this, but it’s just ok for me so far. I don’t care for any of the chapters from the main character’s POV, but everything else is interesting.

The Soulmate Equation by Christina Lauren. This one is ok, but like with the other book, I’m struggling with the main character.

What do you think you’ll read next?

 

I just got Second First Impressions by Sally Thorne and The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth from the library.

What are you reading?

Review: People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry

Synopsis from Goodreads:

With one week to win back the best friend she might just be in love with, a travel writer plans the trip of a lifetime in this sparkling new novel from the New York Times bestselling author of Beach Read.

Poppy and Alex. Alex and Poppy. They have nothing in common. She’s a wild child; he wears khakis. She has insatiable wanderlust; he prefers to stay home with a book. And somehow, ever since a fateful car share home from college many years ago, they are the very best of friends. For most of the year they live far apart–she’s in New York City, and he’s in their small hometown–but every summer, for a decade, they have taken one glorious week of vacation together.

Until two years ago, when they ruined everything. They haven’t spoken since.

Poppy has everything she should want, but she’s stuck in a rut. When someone asks when she was last truly happy, she knows, without a doubt, it was on that ill-fated, final trip with Alex. And so, she decides to convince her best friend to take one more vacation together–lay everything on the table, make it all right. Miraculously, he agrees.

Now she has a week to fix everything. If only she can get around the one big truth that has always stood quietly in the middle of their seemingly perfect relationship. What could possibly go wrong?

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

People We Meet on Vacation publishes May 11, 2021. 

Emily Henry’s Beach Read was one of my favorite books of 2020, so I had very high expectations for People We Meet on Vacation. While I’m not sure it will make my 2021 Favorites list, I still definitely enjoyed it.

I absolutely loved the relationship between Poppy and Alex. They had amazing banter and it was obvious how much they cared about each other. So many of their scenes just put a big smile on my face. The chapters jump around between the present and the past, where we see many of their summer trips, going back from when they first met twelve years ago. I enjoyed both timelines and being able to see the evolution of their friendship.

While I loved the humor and the romance, there were a few things that brought the story down for me. There was some subtle bashing of religion, which I found a little offensive. There was also a lot of build up to the big Croatia trip that ruined their friendship two years ago and it ended up being pretty anticlimactic to me. It was a short chapter and I expected a bit more than what actually happened. I also was a little confused about how impactful to Poppy’s life she kept saying the people she met on her travels were, when there were very few examples of that in the actual story. I can only think of a couple of examples and they left no lasting impact to me.

Overall, People We Meet on Vacation was a very cute story. It had terrific banter and several adorably romantic scenes. The characters were likable and I loved their friendship. I felt like it was a little messy at the end, though. What happened in Croatia and the fall out didn’t feel like it lived up to all the build up about it. I also felt like too much was crammed into the final chapters. Trying to make the theme of the title so important at the end when there was very little about it in the rest of the story was a little jarring. Despite that, though, this is a book that I see myself re-reading in the future.

Overall Rating (out of 5): 4 Stars

Funny Friday

Funny Friday started as book-related humor and then shifted into COVID-19 humor. I decided to stop limiting it to one thing and it will now be whatever I find that’s funny and relevant to me.

I’ve been waiting a while…