Stephany Writes

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (2.3.25)

Annie Bot by Sierra Greer (★★★★★)

Audiobook • Library • Science Fiction • 2024

Short synopsis: Annie Bot was designed to be the perfect girlfriend, catering to Doug’s every need—but the more human she becomes, the less perfectly she behaves. As she starts questioning their relationship, Annie must decide whether pleasing Doug is truly what she wants—or if she owes herself something more.

Gosh, I really loved this book! It’s the kind of book you want to read with someone else because there is so much to discuss. In this world, people can purchase robots that look like real people to perform all sorts of tasks: cleaning, cooking, running errands, and even being the perfect partner who is always ready to have sex and never complains. I love the way the author explored the nuances that come with having a robot like Annie. Doug designed her to look very much like his ex-girlfriend but now, he has the perfect partner. Annie is 100% devoted to Doug because, well, that’s why she was created. And he can turn her libido up and down depending on his own needs. When he’s done with her, or if she starts to annoy him, he can just send her to her charging port. It’s the ideal scenario for any red-blooded man, you know? The throughline of relationships and communication and what we owe to our partners is such an interesting one. Doug regularly grows weary of Annie the more human-like she becomes; the more she voices an opinion or contradicts Doug, the less he enjoys her. But then, we also have to remember that Annie is not human and she is a robot, and what does it mean when robots start to feel more human and have the ability to walk around in the world without being noticed? It’s scary to think about, quite honestly!

I couldn’t help but love Annie, even knowing she’s a robot. She didn’t choose to be a robot. She was given everything to be a human (except a brain, I guess), and in having her understand human emotions and act like a human, she started to feel like she is one. She read books and learned recipes and began to create a life for herself outside of her owner. I wanted the best for Annie and felt so much sympathy for her. (For a robot! Gah! This book gave me such complicated emotions.)

Anyway, I loved this book and if you have read it, I want to discuss it with you!

Colored Television by Danzy Senna (★★★★☆)

Print • Library • Contemporary Fiction • 2024

Short synopsis: Jane hopes house-sitting in a lavish L.A. home will be the fresh start she needs to finish her novel and secure tenure, but when that plan falters, she turns to Hollywood for a second chance with a promising TV deal.

This book was definitely an interesting read. I struggled with the main character and her decisions, which tempered my enjoyment of the book. (Towards the end I was growing so tired of her and the expectations she was placing on her life. Gah!) And some of the satire elements of this novel went over my head. But what I did like was getting a glimpse into the life of a writer who is trying to produce their second book and doesn’t want to get lost in a sea of “mid-list authors.” I also thought the scenes with Jane trying to pitch a TV series and then come up with episode ideas to be riveting! I never knew what that was like. (Seems terrifying, lol.) This was ultimately a 3.5 star book for me (rounded up to 4) but I think it’s a book that would work a lot better for others than it did for me (particularly people in academia or who enjoy satire).

The Thing About Love by Julie James (★★★★☆)

E-Book • Owned (Amazon) • Contemporary Romance • 2017

Short synopsis: FBI agents and former rivals Jessica Harlow and John Shepherd are reluctantly reunited as partners in an undercover sting to take down a corrupt politician. Forced to pose as a couple at a romantic beachfront resort, their old tensions ignite into something far more complicated.

This is a reread for me, and I think with this novel, I’ve officially reread Julie James’ entire backlist. Now I have to find a new favorite author’s romances to reread! I gave this book 5 stars when I originally read it, but this time around, it was more of a 3.5-star read. Some of the writing and banter was stilted and I would have liked a little more build-up to the romance. It felt like these two characters didn’t like each other at all and then, bam, they’re making out and can’t keep their hands off each other. But it was still an easy, fun read and I enjoyed myself.

What are you reading?

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (1.27.25)

Making Up by Lucy Parker (★★★★★)

E-book • Owned (Amazon) • Contemporary Romance • 2018

Short synopsis: Former circus star Trix Lane is thrust back into the spotlight just as her old nemesis, disgraced makeup artist Leo Magasiva, reenters her life, sparking a fiery, complicated romance.

I’m rereading all of Lucy Parker’s romances right now and this was a delightful read once again. It was such a unique setting—a Cirque du Soleil-type act where Trix performs on the silks—and I loved that Leo is a straight man who is also a makeup artist! (He mostly does special effects makeup, but had a mishap with an actor on a movie set, so he’s taking whatever work he can get at this point.) Trix is healing from an emotionally abusive relationship and I felt that the author did a beautiful job expressing how that relationship affected Trix in myriad ways, from her professional life to her romantic relationships. What I love most about Lucy Parker’s books is that she doesn’t rely on miscommunication subplots to create tension in the novel. She still manages to create high stakes between the couple, but it always feels so much more original and true to life.

Distress Signals by Catherine Ryan Howard (★★★☆☆)

Audiobook • Hoopla • Thriller • 2017

Short synopsis: When Adam Dunne’s girlfriend, Sarah, vanishes after a trip to Barcelona, he discovers her link to a cruise ship where another woman disappeared under similar circumstances. Determined to uncover the truth, Adam delves into their relationship’s secrets and faces a cunning predator on a deadly hunting ground.

This is Catherine Ryan Howard’s debut and it’s quite apparent that her writing and plotting got a lot better as she gained more experience as a writer (as one would expect!). This book was very uneven for me. I loved the first half of the book and it was hard for me to stop listening because I wanted to know what happened! But then the book took a turn that I didn’t love and I found it kind of a slog to get to the end. What’s more, there was a secondary plot to the novel involving an entirely different character and I could not figure out the connection to the main plot. Typically in these thrillers, these plots come together in a fascinating way, but that was not the case here. (I found a Goodreads Q&A with the author that explained the connection, which made sense but damn. It’s probably not a good sign to finish a book and then have to go down a rabbit hole, trying to figure out how all of the different threads were connected.) I wouldn’t necessarily recommend this novel, but it does have a 3.8 rating on Goodreads so YMMV. (For me, it was 2.5 stars, rounded up to 3.)

The Shell Seekers by Rosamunde Pilcher (★★★☆☆)

Print • Owned (Barnes & Noble) • Literary Fiction • 1987

Short synopsis: Penelope Keeling reflects on her rich, complex life while navigating the challenges of aging, family dynamics, and the newfound value of her father’s painting, The Shell Seekers. 

My first 500+ page book of the year! As a reminder, I have a goal to read four books that are longer than 500 pages this year. Ideally, I’d like them to be in the 700-900 range (this one was slightly under that at 630-ish pages). For me, this book was just okay. It was well-written and I loved being taken through all the different eras of Penelope’s life, but it was intensely sad at times. I can’t tell you how many times I just knew bad things were right around the corner for Penelope, and it got hard to go through that grief again and again. I also really hated two of Penelope’s children, but they were written to be unlikable so… good job, Rosamunde Pilcher! I wanted to wring their necks, they were so selfish and horrible. This was the kind of long book where I definitely felt the length of it and I was just ready to be done with it by the time I got to page 500 or so. Near the end, I started skimming so I could finish it faster, which is never a good thing. So, while I can understand why this is a modern classic, it wasn’t really for me.

What are you reading?

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (1.20.25)

Fly Girl: A Memoir by Ann Hood (★★★☆☆)

Audiobook • Spotify/Hoopla • Nonfiction • 2022

Short synopsis: In 1978, Ann Hood became a flight attendant for TWA during the golden age of air travel. She recounts her journey, sharing tales of adventure, romance, and the challenges of a rapidly changing airline industry. 

I’ve had this book on my TBR list for a long time; I think it was originally a Modern Mrs. Darcy recommendation, and I stopped reading her blog/listening to her podcast many years ago. I was excited to pick it up, though, because I find the lives of flight attendants (especially flight attendants from the 70s/80s) to be fascinating! Ann Hood became a flight attendant in 1978 but it wasn’t long before the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978 took effect, vastly changing the experience of air travel and flight attendants. I was mesmerized by all of Ann’s training to become a flight attendant and what it’s truly like to be running around the plane all flight long, ensuring everyone has what they need and calming down irate passengers. Ann was there when a man died on her flight and a passenger got so drunk and belligerent that the cops had to be called. She got to meet celebrities and many men she would later go out on dates with. And while I found her stories to be fascinating, there was something about this book that tempered my enjoyment. Her stories felt scattered at times and I think the book could have been organized better. I wanted a bit more personality from her, too—she read the audiobook herself and took a very flat tone, even with the more insane stories she told. Also, I found it such a letdown that she told all of these long, drawn-out stories about her romantic relationships but we never got the story of how she met and fell in love with her husband (who I think she’s still with today!). (EDIT: She is not with her husband anymore. So now that makes sense, ha.) I found that to be a bit odd. All in all, a bit of an uneven reading experience but I did enjoy getting a glimpse into what it was like to be a flight attendant in the late 1970s/1980s.

A Novel Love Story by Ashley Poston (★★★★☆)

Print • Owned (Barnes & Noble) • Contemporary Romance • 2024

Short synopsis: Elsy Merriweather is on her way to a solo weekend away when her car unexpectedly breaks down… and she suddenly finds herself in Eloratown, a city that only exists within the pages of her favorite romance series. 

This is the kind of book that’s not going to be for everyone. It is a very, very sweet romance novel with very little spice. But for me, it worked. I really loved Elsy’s character and I could relate to her so much, especially being resentful when all of her friends cancel on her (hence the solo trip) but not wanting to tell them how much it hurt. (Elsy’s an Enneagram 9, right?!) I loved how enamored she was with being in the world of her favorite fictional series and it made me do a lot of thinking of what world I would want to be in (maybe Ashley Herring Blake’s Bright Falls series since it’s a town filled with queer people, ha). This town has a grumpy bookstore owner who seems to be the only one, aside from Elsy, who knows that they are in a fictional town, and Elsy believes she has been sent here to help him find his love story (which isn’t with her). At times, I wanted to shake Elsy because don’t you see that he’s perfect for YOU? I just wanted her to get it together. The novel did have a slow middle, so my official rating is 3.75 stars, but it was a satisfying read overall.

All in Her Head: The Truth and Lies Early Medicine Taught Us About Women’s Bodies and Why It Matters Today by Elizabeth Comen, MD (★★★★★)

Audiobook • Hoopla • Nonfiction • 2024

Short synopsis: For centuries, women’s healthcare has been shaped by a history of objectification, ignorance, and male-dominated narratives, leaving women’s voices and experiences overlooked. In her exploration of this legacy, Dr. Elizabeth Comen, sheds light on the systemic biases and untold stories that have shaped modern medicine, offering a compassionate and insightful guide to understanding women’s bodies and health.

Wow, you guys. This book. THIS BOOK! It’s only January and I cannot see how this won’t make my favorites list at the end of the year. This book was sensational. And horrifying. And maddening. Dr. Comen structures the book around the body’s 11 systems—integumentary (skin), skeletal, muscular, circulatory, respiratory, digestive, urinary, immune, nervous, endocrine (hormones), and reproductive. Each chapter delves into the medical field’s journey to understand a specific system, the conditions affecting women within it, and the many ways the medical community has historically failed to address women’s needs. And also how the medical community failed women doctors. Textbooks only had male bodies in them, cadavers were mostly men, X-ray machines weren’t even set up to protect a woman’s breasts, and even some of the medical instruments were more difficult for women to handle. What really horrified me was how so many women were labeled as hysterical and sent to asylums as a result. What a scary time to be a woman! Any simple symptom could earn a woman the label of hysteria, and worse, a woman’s husband could simply make up symptoms and send their wife to an asylum at any point. Good god. I am so grateful to be living in modern times where my anxiety and depression are treatable conditions and I’m not labeled with hysteria. Anyway, if you, too, want to be horrified but also enlightened by the history of medicine, I encourage you to pick up this book. Dr. Comen had a really friendly, personable writing style and I really enjoyed the audiobook.

What are you reading?

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (1.15.25)

A Daughter of Fair Verona by Christina Dodd (★★★☆☆)

Audiobook • Library • Historical Romance • 2024

Short synopsis: Reimagining Romeo & Juliet as not a tragedy, but as two people who fell in love, got married, and had a brood of children, A Daughter of Fair Verona starts with a murder. At the betrothal ball for their oldest daughter, Rosie, to a duke who is much older than her and has three wives who have met unfortunate ends, the duke ends up dead. Who killed him? And could they be after Rosie, too?

This is was my final audiobook of 2024 when I wanted something quick and light-hearted at the end of December. And this book definitely delivered in that department! I loved the voice in this novel; Rosie was smart and funny and yes, the dialogue did not stay true to the time period but I had to just go along with it. There were many times I laughed while listening along, which is not something I generally do when reading! However, all that said, I found the plot to be quite lackluster. The author is clearly setting this up to be a trilogy, but it meant that the book as a whole felt unfinished and the ending abrupt. I probably won’t continue reading the series; it wasn’t compelling enough for me.

The Fall Back Plan by Melanie Jacobson (★★★☆☆)

E-Book • Owned (Amazon) • Contemporary Romance • 2023

Short synopsis: Jolie left the small town Harvest Hollow ten years ago for the big city. She returns to take over the beloved bar in town and runs into her high school nemesis, Lucas, nearly immediately. And not only has the bad boy turned good, as in the Sheriff of Harvest Hollow, but he’s also hotter than ever. 

If you love a chaste, simple romance, then this book is for you. If you want something spicy and exciting, then steer clear. This novel was a little too sweet for me and it didn’t have the level of character development that I want in my romances. As a character, Jolie wasn’t believable. For one, she seemed a bit immature and basically moved back to Harvest Hollow to get back at someone in her life, and that just felt like a crazy thing to do. There were parts of this novel I liked (I always love a small-town setting and I enjoyed the fall-like vibes) but mostly it was a miss for me. Also, I really need authors/publishers to stop labeling romances as “rom/coms” when there is no comedy to speak of! There was nothing funny in this novel; it was actually pretty serious. Gah.

The Return of Ellie Black by Emiko Jean (★★★★☆)

Print • Library • Thriller • 2024

Short synopsis: Ellie Black has returned. After missing for two years, she is found disheveled in the woods but won’t say a word about what happened to her or where she’s been. 

This was a great thriller, but trigger warnings abound. This book was very dark with some grim themes. As a highly sensitive person, it was hard for me to handle at times but I powered through because the story was so compelling. The story alternates between the present day as Ellie returns and the past when Ellie disappeared. The present timeline is voiced by both Ellie and the detective who is trying to figure out what happened to her. The detective drove me crazy and I think that was the point. So, good job, Emiko Jean. I wanted to shake this detective so many times! Anyway, this is a propulsive thriller and a solid 4-star read to start my 2025 reading year!

What are you reading?

Categories: Best Of, Books

Best of 2024 | Reading Stats

And here we are – the final post in my “Best of 2024” series and arguably, my favorite post to research and write. Reviewing my reading stats and making these charts is so much fun! I use a very detailed spreadsheet and spend a lot of time in that spreadsheet throughout the year. I love filling it out when I start and finish a book; it fills me with the greatest delight. And what’s also delightful is this post! So let’s get into my reading stats for 2024 reading.

Nitty-Gritty Details

  • Number of books read: 110 (-7 from 2023)
  • Number of pages read: 37,463 (-2,972 from 2023)
  • Percentage of books by and about BIPOC and the LGBTQIA+ community: 30, or 27% (+1% from 2023)
  • Number of books abandoned: 16 (+2 from 2023)
  • Overall rating: 3.8

Format Breakdown

Print books continue to reign supreme in my reading life, and this year the percentage increased by almost 5%! What can I say? I love print books. My audiobook reading was nearly identical from 2023 (+.1%) and my e-book reading continued to trend downward. It’s down 4.7% from 2023 and down nearly 15% from 2022! I mostly read romance on my Kindle, but it’s rare for me to read other types of books on it.

Genre Breakdown

Genre Percentage Average Rating
Romance 37% 4.0
Fiction 30% 3.6
Mystery/Thriller 21% 3.6
Nonfiction 6% 4.5
Historical Fiction 4% 4.0
YA/Middle Grade 2% 5.0

This year, I read more romance and improved my average rating for romance novels. Last year, it was at 3.6 and this year it was an even 4.0, which I’m super happy about. This means I’m picking good romances that I know I’ll love! I read more general fiction and more mysteries/thrillers, but my average rating for both those genres went way down (from 4.0 to 3.6, eeks). It’s only a slightly successful rating, but I’d like that to be higher in 2025. My nonfiction reading went way down this year – I was so surprised to see I only read 7 nonfiction books in 2024. WHAT! I need to do better in 2025 because, as it shows, I usually like the nonfiction books I read.

Source Breakdown

Once again, my top three sources for books were the library (-12% from 2023, though!), Amazon (+5% from 2023), and Book of the Month (+1.5% from 2023). I doubled the amount of books I got from indie bookstores and also definitely enjoyed those 15 audiobook hours that Spotify started offering Premium members at the end of 2023.

Month Breakdown

Typically, I read around 8-9 books per month, but I read 11 books in October (I tend to read a lot when I’m stressed, so that’s probably why) and 14 in December (I only worked two weeks out of the entire month, so I devoted a lot more time to reading!). Ideally, I’d like to read 10-12 books per month, but I’m happy with how stable my reading was throughout the year.

New Release vs Backlist

This was interesting! In the last few years, my new release reading has been trending upward but in 2024, it dropped 15%! I read a lot more backlist in 2024, but I’m cool with that. I don’t need to read the buzzy books right away. Sometimes it’s nice to let them simmer for a bit.

Recommendation Sources

Recommendation Source # of Books Read Overall Rating
Kim 2 4.75
Sarah’s Book Shelves Live podcast 6 4.3
Lisa 3 4.2
The Popcast 2 4.0
Currently Reading podcast 6 3.0

I’ve started tracking recommendation sources this year so I can figure out whose tastes align the best with mine. Most of these recommendation sources are podcasts, but two bloggers snuck into this list – Kim and Lisa – and as you can see, their recs usually work out really well for me! I’m not surprised to see such a low rating from the Currently Reading podcast. I’ve noticed that my tastes diverge from them a lot (especially Kaytee’s), which is just good info to have!

(If you use Goodreads, a good way to track recommendation sources is to create a new shelf that’s labeled with the source name. For example, I have a shelf called “sbsl-rec” for Sarah’s Book Shelves Live. If someone talks about a book and it sounds like something I’d like to read, I immediately add it to Goodreads as a “want-to-read” book and then label it with the recommendation source.)

Odds and Ends

  • Oldest book (by pub date): The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie (1926)
  • Newest book (by pub date): The Last One at the Wedding by Jason Rekulak (October 8, 2024)
  • Author I read the most: Agatha Christie (6)
  • Time spent listening to audiobooks: 348 hours, 30 minutes
  • Longest book: The Rose Code by Kate Quinn (624 pages)
  • Shortest book: The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett (120 pages)
  • Book that took me the longest to read: I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith (20 days)
  • Average number of days to read a book: 7.8 days

How many books did you read in 2024?