Reviewing the Unreviewed: November 2019

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.

I Knead You Tonight (Slice Series #2) by Teagan Hunter. Read November 3-4. 3 Stars. 

This was compulsively readable, had some sweet romantic moments, and some good banter, but it ended up being just ok for me. The characters were a little more crass than I generally like and it kind of brought down my overall enjoyment. I also didn’t really like Drew. I felt like she was never called out for her reverse snobbery when it came to why she “hated” Winston and she didn’t really take responsibility for the fact that he was only mean to her in response to her being mean to him. While I did like the sweet moments between them, they were mostly a dysfunctional couple and were a little hard to root for. However, by the end they both grew a lot and I liked that.

Engaging Mr. Darcy by Rachel John. Read October 31 – November 10. 3 Stars. 

Pretty cheesy, but had some cute moments. Not bad for a KU pick, but not one I would want to read again.

Girl at Heart by Kelly Oram. Read November November 14-15. 3.5 Stars

This was so cute! And also a little cheesy. Even though I thoroughly enjoyed it, there were a few things that kept me from giving it a full four stars. Charlie was likable enough, but I thought she talked a little too much about how rich she was. And what an amazing athlete she was. And while she did have insecurities about her appearance, once she had her make-over she started using words like “gorgeous” to describe herself. She just seemed really full of herself sometimes and had zero self-awareness about it. But other than that, the story was cute (reminded me of On the Fence by Kasie West sometimes) and Jace was the absolutely sweetest character I’ve ever read. I completely adored him and his romance with Charlie. I’m going to try and read more books from this author while I still have my KU subscription.

Thirteen (Eddie Flynn #4) by Steve Cavanagh. Read November 12-18. 4 Stars. 

I liked this. It wasn’t quite as suspenseful as I had anticipated, but it was a good court room procedural with some surprises. I thought the angle with the serial killer was interesting and the story was well plotted. This is the fourth book in the series, but it’s the first one I read and I found it worked well as a standalone. There was a few relationship histories that I felt I was missing out on, but nothing that left me confused. I’m definitely going to check out more from this author.

The Whisper Man by Alex North. Read November 18-22. 3 Stars. 

This was decent, but I don’t really get the hype for it. There were a couple of ok surprises, but wasn’t really much a of thriller. Is “Men’s Fiction” a genre? Because this read a lot like Women’s Fiction to me, except about men. It’s a multi-generational tale of fathers and sons and it really focuses on family and emotions more than anything else.

One of the Girls by Robin Daniels. Read November 24-26. 3.5 Stars.

This was pretty cute, if slightly unrealistic. I adored Nick, though. There was some fun banter and I shipped the romance. 

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

Call Down the Hawk (Dreamer Trilogy #1)  by Maggie Stiefvater. I read the prologue for this and didn’t get farther than that. I just really wasn’t in the mood for this story, but I will definitely try it later. I might wait until the other two books are published first so I don’t have to wait.

Top Ten Tuesday: Backlist Books I Want to Read

This week’s Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by The Artsy Reader Girl, is: Top Ten Backlist Books I Want to Read. I’m not sure how everyone else defines “backlist”, but I’m going to use it as any book currently published I haven’t read yet, even if they came out recently.

Daughter of Smoke and Bone – Laini Taylor. I bought this book from the bargain shelves a couple years ago and still haven’t started it yet.

The Wolves of Mercy Falls series by Maggie Stiefvater. I got Shiver as a free e-book a couple years ago and I started it once, but never finished it. I’d like to go back and give the series another try.

Speaking of Stiefvater, I haven’t read All the Crooked Saints yet, either.

I’ve only read the first two books in the Helen Grace series by M.J. Alridge. I did enjoy them, but somehow it just fell off my radar and I’d like to go back and pick up where I left off.

The Conqueror’s Saga by Kiersten White. I remember being really excited for this series (mostly due to the beautiful cover, if I’m honest), but I started it once and couldn’t get into it. I’ve read so many great reviews of this series, though, and I want to try it again.

My brother, who is not a big reader, is obsessed with the Mitch Rapp series and I’ve read the first couple books and enjoyed them, but need to get to the rest. One interesting thing about this series, it recently picked up with some new books written by a different author after the original author (Flynn) passed away.

Wonder Woman by Leigh Bardugo. This was one of my most anticipated books last year, but I have yet to read it. I did actually start it once, but didn’t get past the first chapter or two.

From Sand and Ash by Amy Harmon. I love Amy Harmon books and this is one of the very few I haven’t read yet.

All of the Rosato & Associates and Rosata & DiNunzio books by Lisa Scottoline. I’ve read the first book in each series (one is a spin-off of the other, but really I think is just a continuation?) and I need to get to the rest of them.

What backlist books do you want to read?

Reviewing the Unreviewed: November 2017

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.

A Killer Harvest by Paul Cleaver. Read October 26-November 7. 3 Stars. 

I’m going to preface this by saying that I think if I had read this at a different time I would have enjoyed it much more and read it much faster. It just happened to be the book I started when a lot of life stuff happened and I didn’t really feel like reading. I can’t really tell if I just didn’t find this that interesting or if it was my mood. Maybe a little of both? I did like the general concept and the multiple perspectives. I liked Joshua. I liked the ending. I thought the writing was a little too wordy at times. I felt like it over-explained a lot of things. Overall, it was a decent book, but I didn’t love it. Again, it might have just been my reading mood.

Public Relations by Katie Heaney & Arianna Rebolini. Read November 8-11. 2 Stars. 

I wanted to read this because I thought it sounded a little bit reminiscent or Dating You/Hating You by Christina Lauren and When It’s Real by Erin Watt, both of which I loved. However, Public Relations fell far, far short of my expectations. The main character, Rose, was pretty awful. She was incredibly self-centered, completely unprofessional, and just so, SO unlikable. I did not find her to be a sympathetic character at all and I almost wished things would’ve blown up in her face by the end instead of following it’s obviously predictable path just because I would’ve liked her awful behavior to have some type of consequence. I also found the book way longer than it needed to be, filled with so much pointless detail that I had to skim some parts. So why am I giving this 2 stars instead of 1? Archie Fox! I often found myself smiling at scenes he was in and even though I did not understand at all why he was into Rose, I enjoyed their scenes together (though she often ruined it by the end of the scene). Sadly, though, even Archie Fox is not enough for me to recommend this book to anyone.

The Ghostwriter by Allesandra Torre. Read November 14-19. 3 Stars. 

So I thought this book was supposed to have twists? Did I misunderstand? Where were the twists?!?! I’m trying to not let the disappointment of my expectations effect my rating. The writing wasn’t bad. I really liked Mark. It was verrrrry slow going, though. And I was ok with that because I thought there would be a great pay off later…but there wasn’t really. A decent book, but another instance where my expectations/hype ruined it a little.

A big thanks to Suzanne @ https://thebookishlibra.com/ for a copy of the book which I won as the book of my choice from a giveaway on her blog.

Follow Me Back (Follow Me Back #1) by A.V. Geiger. Read November 19-22. 4 Stars. 

This is maybe more of a 3.5, but I’m bumping my rating up to 4 for a couple reasons. I thought this was really compulsively readable and I did not really see the end coming. I can’t wait for the next book to see if my predictions are right.

I also liked the psychological aspects of the story. I thought the role reversal of online obsession was well done.

The Secrets She Keeps by Michael Robotham. Read November 22-25. 3.5 Stars.

I liked the writing. I read the first part of the book very quickly. I enjoyed both Meghan and Agatha’s POVs. There just wasn’t anything that surprising. Based on all the reviews I expected a few more shocks or twists, but it was all pretty straightforward. One thing that I did like, though, was that I forgot this was written by a man. I don’t always think 1st person POV female characters written by men are very believable, but I thought Robotham’s writing was solid. I’ll read more from him in the future.

I started this book while I was at my brother and sister-in-law’s for Thanksgiving. My sister-in-law is named Megan and is pregnant so I kind of felt like the story was a little more personal. I told her to stay away from any unknown pregnant women that try to befriend her lol.

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

        

Library books that expired before I started them:

If There’s No Tomorrow by JLA, Speak Easy, Speak Love by McKelle George, Little Deaths by Emma Flint, Betrayedby Lisa Scottoline.

Library books I barely started before I immediately thought, “Nope! Not in the mood!”

     

All The Crooked Saints by Maggie Stiefvater, In Other Lands by Sarah Rees Brennan, Sister, Sister by Sue Fortin.

********Re-Read********

When It’s Real by Erin Watt. As you can probably tell by now, this was a very moody reading month for me where I spent more time figuring out what I didn’t want to read than actually reading. I decided a good re-read was in store and went for this one. I loved it just as much the second time around.

Top Ten Tuesday: Books On My Fall TBR

This week’s Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by the Broke and the Bookish, is: Top Ten Books On My Fall TBR List.

1.  There’s Someone Inside Your House by Stephanie Perkins

2. Blind Spot (Chesapeake Valor #3) by Dani Pettrey

3. All the Crooked Saints by Maggie Stiefvater

4. Pride and Prejudice and Mistletoe my Melissa De La Cruz

5. If There’s No Tomorrow by Jennifer L. Armentrout

6. Wonder Woman: Warbringer by Leigh Bardugo

7. In Other Lands by Sarah Rees Brennan

8. Killing Kate by Alex Lake

9. Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys

10. Shoot the Moon (Seeking Mansfield #2) by Kate Watson

What books are on your Fall TBR?

Top 5 Wednesday: Favorite Bromances

This week’s Top 5 Wednesday (see their Good Reads group here) is: Favorite Bromances.  I think we have done this topic before in the distant past, but who doesn’t love a good bromance? Bromance = platonic relationship between two male characters.

1. Darrow and Sevro from the Red Rising trilogy. I love them both and they are always better together.

2. Garret, Logan, Dean, & Tucker from the Off-Campus series. I only read the first two books and then it got a little too far into erotica territory for me, but these boys cracked me up.

3. The Raven Boys: Gansey, Ronan, Adam, and Noah. These characters are the reason these books are so popular.

4. Declan and Rev from Letters to the Lost. The romance in this book was ok, but the bromance in between these two is what made it for me.

 

5. JD and Turk from Scrubs. Yes, it’s not a book, but theirs is the ultimate bromance. I think the first time I ever heard the term was in connection with them.

What are your favorite fictional bromances?

Top Ten Tuesday: Most Anticipated Books For The Second Half of 2017

This week’s Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by The Broke and the Bookish, is: Top Ten Most Anticipated Books For The Second Half of 2017.

1.  Foolish Hearts by Emma Mills. Publication Date: 12/26/17

2. Renegades by Marissa Meyer. Publication Date: 11/7/17

3. All the Crooked Saints by Maggie Stiefvater. Publication Date: 10/10/17.

4. Blind Spot (Chesapeake Valor #3) by Dani Pettrey. Publication Date: 10/3/17.

5. There’s Someone Inside Your House by Stephanie Perkins. Publication Date: 9/26/17.

6. Dead Woman Walking by Sharon Bolton. Publication Date: 9/5/17.

7. Wonder Woman: Warbringer by Leigh Bardugo. Publication Date 8/29/17.

8. Ready to Run by Laren Layne. Publication Date 8/22/17.

9. Lucky in Love by Kasie West. Publication Date 7/25/17.

10. Down a Dark Road (Kate Burkholder #9) by Linda Castillo. Publication Date 7/11/17.

What books are you looking forward to?

Top 5 Wednesday: Books You Felt Betrayed By

This week’s Top 5 Wednesday topic is: Books You Felt Betrayed By: Beware the Ides of March! What books (or characters) did you feel betrayed by, for whatever reason…big or small.

1. Allegiant by Veronica Roth. First of all, I kind of have the Twilight Effect with this series- I really loved Divergent (and even Insurgent) when I first read it, but going back and re-reading I find it really underwhelming. Anyways, I was so excited for Allegiant and it ended up being probably the worst series ender I’ve ever read. Not just the controversial death, but it made me really dislike Four and the plot was just so convoluted and didn’t make any sense!

2. Sacrifice by Brigid Kemmerer. I loved the Elemental series and was excited to finally get Michael’s POV. And I was really enjoying this book – right up until the very abrupt end! Part of the problem was my sneaky ARC, but I felt like there were just SO MANY loose ends and this was supposed to be the series finale. Since then, Kemmerer has said she is continuing the series, but no date has been announced as to when that will happen.

3. The Rose Society by Marie Lu. Every review I read for this series raved about how “dark” it was supposed to be and how the main character was supposed to be so villainous. However, I did not feel that way at all about it. There were maybe a couple of darker moments, but I felt way more sorry for the main character than scared of her, which was a major disappointment. I still haven’t read the final book in the series yet.

4. The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater. So I gave this a pretty favorable review when I first read it, but the more I got away from it, the more disappointing I found not just this final book, but the whole series. Though I will always love the characters, the story just doesn’t make a lot of sense! I especially find the conclusion of the Glendower plotline to be particularly ridiculous and unsatisfying. I’m not even very interested in the upcoming Ronan spin-off.

5. Kate in Sisterland by Curtis Sittenfeld. She kind of ruined everything between her and her husband, who I loved, with one stupid choice. The fact that it seemed so abrupt and not anything that the story had been “leading up to” made it even worse.

Top 5 Wednesday: Most Misleading Synopses

This week’s Top 5 Wednesday is: Most Misleading Synopses. Ever read a synopsis and think it sounds dumb, but then you read the book years later and it’s actually amazing? Ever read a synopsis and think it sounds amazing, but it actually turns out to be nothing like the synopsis? Ever have a synopsis spoil something that happens 75% of the way into the book so you just spend most of your time waiting for that one element you already know? This is the topic for you.

1. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. I thought this was a YA Paranormal Romance with action-packed magical dueling. Um, no. Not at all. It’s amazing, but the synopsis didn’t get me to read it, it was all the great reviews that did.

2. Last Seen Leaving by Caleb Roehrig. I expected a lot of mystery and suspense with the main character’s big secret to play a major factor in it. Instead his secret had nothing to do with the mystery and took up a lot of focus of the plot (but it was much more well done than the mystery side of the plot, so…).

3. A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab. It took about 200 pages to get to the part with Lila that’s mentioned in the synopsis.

4. The Magician’s Lie by Greer Macallister. Book comparisons will always disappoint me. This was compared to The Night Circus and is not at all accurate. Also, I thought it was going to be really surprising and shocking based on the synopsis, but I found it predictable and kind of dull.

5. The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater. The synopsis makes it sound like the romance in the book is way more prominent than it is. In reality it’s a much more interesting book than that.

What are some book synopses that you’ve found misleading?

Olympic Book Tag

I saw this tag over on Brandie is a Book Junkie and since I am a little obsessed with the Olympics, I knew I had to do it.

This Adventure Ends by Emma Mills. I read this book in one sitting.

My One and Only by Kristan Higgins.

One True Loves by Taylor Jenkins Reid. There are not many books that can pull off a good love triangle, but this one definitely does.

Tell the Wind and Fire by Sarah Rees Brennan. This is a re-telling and I think maybe I should’ve read the source material to really appreciate it.

Truly Madly Greekly by Mandy Baggot. I don’t actually remember if this takes place in the summer, but it’s definitely a beach read, so I’m counting it.

Golden Son by Pierce Brown. And I loved every second of it!

Red Rising by Pierce Brown.

The Serpent King by Jeff Zentner

The Perfect Neighbors by Sarah Pekkanen. Not a lot of plot, but loads of character development.

The Baby-Sitters Club by Ann M. Martin. I read so, so many of these books as a kid.

White Cat by Holly Black. This isn’t necessarily about animals, but the white “cat” plays an important role.

The Goodbye Bride by Denise Hunter. While I liked many other books by this author, this one just drove me completely insane.

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater. I just loved the group of friends in this series.

Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins. Ok, this one isn’t actually about the Olympics, but it does have a side character that’s an ice skater trying to get into the Olympics.

Reviewing the Unreviewed: April 2016

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. I thought I’d start doing a post once a month  with just the couple thoughts I shared on Good Reads.

What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty. Read March 29-31. 4 Stars.

So I technically read this one in March, but it was after I posted my Reviewing the Unreviwed for the month.

I really liked this book. The pace is pretty slow, but it’s a very intensely character driven story and I really cared about all of them. I really liked Alice and I loved Nick (and then hated him a little and then loved him and then got just as mixed up as Alice). I loved their kids and their whole slightly dysfunctional family.
I feel like people who are married and have kids (or are trying to have kids) would be able to relate a little more to the story than I did, but I still found a lot of the themes relatable.

The Last Good Girl (Anna Curtis #5) by Allison Leotta. Read April 12. 4 Stars.

I love this series so much! Leotta writes such realistic characters and intense situations that keep me glued to the pages. I’ve been looking forward to this book for a while and it definitely didn’t disappoint me. Full review to come closer to release date.

The Wishing Season (Chapel Springs #3) by Denise Hunter. Read April 13-17. 3.5 Stars.

I liked this one. Both PJ and Cole were likable characters and the story didn’t drag like some of the other books in this series does. I thought the premise was a little unrealistic, but it worked well enough. Overall an enjoyable read with a slow-burn, cute romance.

The Last Best Kiss by Claire LaZebnik. Read April 19-21. 2.5 Stars.

I didn’t really care for this one. The characters were unlikable, spoiled, and shallow. I didn’t like the casual drug use or how the clothing of EVERY character was described in EVERY scene. There were a few cute moments, though, and a few of the parallels to Persuasion were well done enough to keep me reading.

Cure for the Common Breakup (Black Dog Bay #1) by Beth Kendrick. Read April 21-23. 3 Stars.

I didn’t like this one as much as the other book I’ve read by this author, but it was still ok. My favorite thing was the relationship between Summer and Ingrid. I never felt like we got to know Dutch enough for me to ever really buy into the romance. I mostly liked Summer, though I found her hard to relate to most of the time. Overall, a quick, easy read that had some funny and cute moments.

Dancing with Fireflies (Chapel Springs #2) by Denise Hunter. Read April 23-24. 3.5 Stars.

I really liked Daniel. He was so sweet. Jade was a little selfish and is probably my least favorite of all the McKinley kids, but she grew on me by the end. A cute, quick read.

Tell the Wind and Fire by Sarah Rees Brennan. Read April 25-28. 3 Stars.

After completely falling in love with Brennan’s Lynburn Legacy series, I was so looking forward to reading more from her, but I found myself pretty disappointed with this book. The quick-witted humor and banter that I had come to expect from Brennan was missing. Perhaps I would have liked this better if I had read A Tale of Two Cities?

The one thing that made me keep reading was Carwyn. In the beginning he reminded me a bit of Jared Lynburn and was the only one with the humor I was expecting. But as the story went on, his character really developed and I just love him. There were several chapters in the middle of the book where he wasn’t involved and it almost made me stop reading, but I am glad I kept on. He’s the reason I’m rating this 3 stars and not something lower.

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RE-READS

The first three Raven Cycle books in order to gear up for the release of The Raven King. You can see thoughts on my re-read HERE.