Stephany Writes

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (2.11.19)

Happy Monday! I actually didn’t know if I’d have a “What I’m Reading” post ready for today because I haven’t spent a ton of time reading this week. At least, reading books for review/tracking purposes. I have been reading – about Ireland! My mom and I settled on our itinerary but it required a lot of research and reading on my part. I checked out Rick Steves Ireland 2019 from the library and have spent my week pouring through the pages (while skimming a lot of the sections, which is why I’m not counting it as a book I’ve read) so I can figure out what we need to see, what we can skip, and how to build an itinerary that will allow us to see the best sights without completely overwhelming me (I cannot go-go-go all the time). And work was insane this week, so I didn’t even spend any time reading on my lunch break (unheard of for me!). I’m hoping this week was an anomaly because I don’t like reading so little.

Anyway, I do have a book review for you because I finished a book! And I’ll probably end up finishing 2-3 next week, so I should be back on track. 🙂

99 Percent Mine by Sally Thorne (★★★★☆)

I’ve been greatly anticipating Sally Thorne’s follow-up novel to her bestseller (and my all-time favorite romance), The Hating Game, so I was so happy to get my hands on 99 Percent Mine. Within the first few pages of this novel, I knew the story was going to be dramatically different with much more complex characters. (Which just showed me that Thorne is not a one-trick pony and has a vivid imagination.) It involves a woman named Darcy who has been in love with her twin brother’s best friend, Tom, since she was a teenager. And then, after Darcy’s grandma dies, both Darcy and her brother inherit her cottage and must renovate it and sell it – those are their grandma’s instructions. Lo and behold, Tom is the man who is going to renovate the cottage – and he’s single for the first time in eight years. The story has Thorne’s typical snarky humor, and I just loved how lively and realistic her characters were. They didn’t feel like caricatures, but real, breathing people with passions and interests and pain and depth. Their romance was sweet and fun and downright steamy. While I didn’t love this with the ardent fervor that I loved The Hating Game (there were times when Darcy frustrated me and I wished the author had given her a bit more agency in her life), I still really enjoyed this novel and I hope we don’t have to wait three years for her next romance!

I’m currently reading…

> Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery. I’m still working my way through Anne and I am just loving every second of it. I was worried that I would reread this book and not understand why I loved it so much when I was younger, but I can totally see why it captivated me. Anne is such a wonderful character! She’s made me giggle multiple times. 🙂

> They Can’t Kill Us All: Ferguson, Baltimore, and a New Era in America’s Racial Justice Movement by Wesley Lowery. On a much different note, I’m reading this important book about racial justice and police violence in between pages of Anne. I’ve had this book on my TBR for a while now, and I’m glad I’m finally getting around to reading this because it’s important and necessary.

What are you reading?

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (2.4.19)

Happy Monday, friends! I had a pretty great weekend and the weather was pretty gorgeous for us here in Florida (sorry to brag for everyone experiencing arctic-like temperatures up north). I was able to take three long walks outside, work on my novel, and get some reading done. I also thoroughly enjoyed my mom’s Super Bowl party, even though I wasn’t thrilled with the outcome of the game. 😉

This week, I finished three books! This means I somehow read FIFTEEN (?!?!) books in January, which feels like too many books to read in a month, haha.

Healing Spiritual Wounds: Reconnecting with a Loving God After Experiencing a Hurtful Church by Carol Howard Merritt (★★★★☆)

I’ve been spending a lot of time lately thinking about my own faith and what I want from it. (If I want anything from it.) So, this book came to me at the perfect time and has really challenged my ideas of God and what faith means today. I haven’t gone to church or read my bible in years, mostly because I never felt welcomed in church and I find many parts of the bible to be problematic and hurtful. This book was so helpful in parsing through all the ways the church can harm people and how to develop a relationship with God that is healthy and positive, not endlessly damning and rigid. At the end of each chapter, Merritt had a series of prompts for readers to work through and I’m taking my time to journal my thoughts but so far, they have been enlightening and allowing me to make peace with my hurtful church past and build a way forward. I encourage anyone who has been hurt by the church and/or its teachings or confused by their faith to pick this book up. It has been so impactful for me.

Playing for Keeps by Jill Shalvis (★★★★☆)

This was such a cute, fun romance! It’s the seventh book in Shalvis’s Heartbreaker Bay series, and it’s one I truly enjoyed. It follows Caleb and Sadie who wind up adopting a three-legged dog together when the dog is abandoned by her owner. Caleb is a genius tech gazillionaire while Sadie is barely making ends meet, working two jobs and trying to build up her clientele at a tattoo shop, which is her true passion. Both Sadie and Caleb have their own demons to work out, and their romance felt believable and natural, even though there were times when I wanted to shake Sadie for some of the dumb choices she made.

The Alice Network by Kate Quinn (★★★★★)

The Alice Network is a fictionalized story about a real-life female spy network that worked against the Germans in World War I. The book alternates between Eve and Charlie’s stories. In Eve’s timeline, the year is 1915 and she is recruited to join The Alice Network and become a spy. In Charlie’s timeline, World War II has ended and she’s determined to find her cousin Rose, who disappeared in France during the war. Charlie has reason to believe that Eve may know where her cousin is, so she shows up at her door to ask for her help. It’s not an easy read – especially Eve’s chapters – but it’s an utterly engaging, well-written story and one I won’t soon forget.

I’m currently reading…

> 99 Percent Mine by Sally Thorne. I’ve been devouring this romance from my very favorite romance author. It’s so perfect and fun and sweet. I’m trying to read it slowly and savor every word, but I’m also finding it hard to put down!

> Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery. I’m only about 50 pages into this novel (which is nearly 500 pages – I had no idea it was so long!) and ugh, it’s so damn perfect. Anne Shirley is everything.

What are you reading?

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (1.28.19)

Happy Monday, my friends! I’m coming off the #24in48 readathon where I didn’t even come close to 24 hours of reading, haha. In the end, I managed nearly 13 hours (12 hours, 42 minutes), and I’m deeming it a success. I didn’t have any sort of goal for this readathon (ok fine, I secretly hoped I could manage 18 hours). I just wanted to have fun and make this weekend ALLLL about reading.

Even with the readathon, though, I only finished one book. (However, I published last week’s What I’m Reading on a Wednesday, so things are a little skewed.) But it was a five-star read and something I’d wholly recommend.

Act Like It by Lucy Parker (★★★★★)

It’s not often that I give a romance novel five stars. But every now and then, a romance burrows its way into my heart, and I can’t give it anything less than five stars. This novel was engaging from the beginning and had fully formed characters, realistic dialogue, and a sweet natural progression of the relationship. Also, the cheesiness factor was just about nil, which always ups my rating. Act Like It was an enemies-to-lovers/forced proximity romance, and it was everything I wanted it to be. It follows two theater actors in London – Lainie and Richard – who are forced to pretend to be a couple to help Richard’s image. He’s known to be a bit of a troublemaker in the tabloids, and his agents are a little tired of cleaning up his messes. The more time they spend together, the more they realize they have more in common than they think and that this pretend relationship is starting to feel more real every day. I loved everything about Lainie and Richard, especially as they began to let down their walls and fall in love. I’m so glad I’ve discovered Lucy Parker and now I can’t wait to read more from her!

I’m currently reading…

> Without Merit by Colleen Hoover, on audio. I started this novel over the weekend for the readathon, figuring listening to an audiobook while I was driving around or cleaning my apartment would allow me to sneak in some extra hours. I’m nearly done – a little over two hours left – and I’m curious to see how it ends.

> Playing for Keeps by Jill Shalvis. I was so excited to dive into this book, as I had pre-ordered it months ago. I’m already a quarter of the way through it (thanks, readathon!) and loving it so much.

> The Alice Network by Kate Quinn. I’m a little over halfway through this historical fiction novel and it’s so damn good. I was able to read almost 200 pages this weekend thanks to the readathon and I’m excited to finish it sometime this week. It’s such a unique story!

> Healing Spiritual Wounds: Reconnecting with a Loving God After Experiencing a Hurtful Church by Carol Howard Merritt. I’m working my way slowly through this book, as I don’t want to rush through Merritt’s words at all. I’m taking my time to journal through the prompts she gives and write down my own thoughts as I read. It’s been therapeutic, to say the least.

What are you reading?

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (1.23.19)

Surprise! It’s a “What I’m Reading” post in the middle of the week. I didn’t end up finishing any books this week until Sunday evening and I knew I wouldn’t have time to put together a post in time for Monday morning, so I just switched things up on ya. We all need that from time to time, right? 🙂

Little Panic: Dispatches from an Anxious Life by Amanda Stern (★★★☆☆)

Little Panic is the book to read if you want to feel less alone in your anxiety struggles… or if you want to really try to understand what the world is like for those of us who struggle with anxiety. It’s a book that could be exhausting at times because Amanda’s inner world is exhausting – just as my inner world is exhausting. This book is raw and vulnerable, and I truly appreciate Amanda for being so open and honest about her struggles and the way they have affected her. While my anxiety isn’t as severe as hers, I could definitely relate to her struggles and her overwhelming fear of just about everything that crossed her path. The book is written in a nonlinear form, moving back and forth between Amanda’s childhood and adulthood. Interspersed throughout the book are notes from the various specialists she saw as a child (therapists and the like). That made the book feel a little disjointed at times; it was missing the type of flow I’m used to having in memoirs. I also found that the book was just a bit too long (it was over 13 hours in audiobook form) and I think it could have used a tighter edit. But even with those negatives, I still think it’s a book that is worth a read.

Irresistible You by Kate Meader (★★★★☆)

I love it when I find a romance writer who I can trust to write a strong, well-crafted romance novel. These are the writers who I don’t have to worry about. I know their romances won’t require suspending crazy amounts of disbelief or cringing over silly dialogue. Kate Meader is one of those writers, and since she’s a new find for me, I am so delighted! This book officially begins her Chicago Rebels series: Harper Chase, one of the new owners of the Rebels, is ready to get her father’s professional hockey team into the playoffs for the first time in a long time, and it all starts with her new acquisition: Remy DuPre. Remy is one of the most solid hockey players in the league who can always be counted on to bring a team together. Of course, as you might expect, Harper and Remy have some serious chemistry and wind up falling in love. Aww. I really, really loved the natural evolution of their relationship, as well as the super steamy love scenes. (I love a well-written steamy love scene, but if you don’t, this book probably isn’t for you!) I also really enjoyed the feminist undertones of this novel – both from Harper and from Remy. Throughout the novel, Harper had to contend with sexism due to being a woman in a man’s world. Plus, there was also the subplot of Harper not willing to go public about her relationship with Remy because she knew she would be judged way harsher than Remy would. It’s a valid concern, and I’m glad it wasn’t glossed over. I also found the way the author resolved this plot point to be believable to an extent. (If this happened IRL, I think the backlash would be way more overt, but this is fiction and a romance after all. We need our HEAs!)

We Were the Lucky Ones by Georgia Hunter (★★★★★)

Oh, what can I say about this outstanding novel that hasn’t already been said? This book is a must-read, in my opinion, and completely stands out in the WWII subgenre. And I think the main reason it stands out is because this is a true story, albeit a fictionalized version. It follows three generations of the Kurc family in Poland as they navigate a cruel world that has suddenly deemed them unworthy of humanity based solely on being Jewish. The whole family is separated throughout the war: one brother flees the continent, others move to a different Polish city to pose as Aryans, and still others stay in their hometown and struggle to survive. It’s a story of grit, tenacity, resilience… with a dose of luck thrown in there. Hunter did an amazing thing with this novel because not only is it incredibly well-written, but it also preserves her family’s history in a beautiful way. I am so glad I finally read this novel and want to get it in the hands of everyone I know.

I’m currently reading…

> Healing Spiritual Wounds: Reconnecting with a Loving God After Experiencing a Hurtful Church by Carol Howard Merritt. I just started this book, and I’m taking it slowly by reading one chapter every night before bed. I bought this book after hearing Merritt on a podcast and her words really spoke to me. I’m not sure what I’m hoping to get out of this book but I’m going to keep an open heart and mind.

> Act Like It by Lucy Parker, for my romance of the week. I’m only a chapter into this delightful romance and it has already captivated me!

> The Alice Network by Kate Quinn. Typically, I wouldn’t read another novel about war so soon after finishing one, but I already returned this book to the library once and had to wait weeks to get it back. My next read, however, is most likely Anne of Green Gables so that will be the palate cleanser I need!

What are you reading?

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (1.14.18)

Happy Monday, my friends! I had an incredibly busy weekend that has me feeling a bit on edge as I enter this new week. I always tend to feel that way when I have a weekend that doesn’t allow for enough downtime. Thankfully, this week will be quiet (and I have a work-from-home day scheduled for Thursday, which is much needed) and I’m not making any plans for Friday and Saturday in the hopes I can fully recharge my batteries.

Even with the busyness, however, I still managed to finish four books! One was an audiobook and one I had about 30 pages left in when I started the week, ha, but it all counts. I’ve decided to change up my reviews somewhat, make them a bit more concise. Enjoy!

Falling Into Place by Amy Zhang (★★★★★)

This is a beautifully written novel that starts with a teenage girl attempting to end her life by losing control of her car on an icy patch of the road. What follows is a nonlinear timeline of what happened to lead Liz to believe suicide was her only way out, and how her accident reverberates throughout her friends, her school, and her community. The writing is just so gorgeous, and I was so impressed to learn that this book is Zhang’s debut novel. The story reads fairly quickly due to short chapters and it’s not one to be missed, in my opinion.

The Kind Worth Killing by Peter Swanson (★★★☆☆)

This thriller has a fairly insane premise: a man and a woman are on a flight together and start talking. The man mentions how he knows his wife is cheating on him and he could kill her for it. Instead of being creeped out by that pronouncement, the woman tells him she can help. After all, she says, some people are the kind worth killing. From there, the plot takes off and doesn’t slow down even at the end. (Honestly, the final twist almost bumped my star rating from three to four stars.) Overall, I wasn’t a huge fan of this thriller and it might have simply been due to the extremely unlikable characters. I don’t need likable characters, especially for thrillers, but there was just something about these people that I really despised. Every character seemed to be the worst of humanity; none of them were redeemable in any way. However, my opinion seems to be in the minority because most people rave about this book and it has a 4.03 rating on Goodreads with over 61,000 reviews. So I guess you should take my opinion with a grain of salt, ha.

Maybe This Christmas by Sarah Morgan (★☆☆☆☆)

I was really looking forward to this contemporary romance, the final in a trilogy about a group of brothers who work at their family’s winter resort. Throughout the first two novels, Brenna and Tyler were secondary characters but with a shared history that I couldn’t wait to explore. The result was rather disappointing, however. Brenna and Tyler have been best friends since they were kids, skiing together nearly every day after school, and throughout that whole time, Brenna had a crush on Tyler. Tyler became a skiing sensation, winning multiple Olympic gold medals and World Cups until an injury ended his career. He comes back to Snow Crystal disappointed and angry but Brenna is happy to have her best friend back in her life full-time. As I’ve shared previously, the friends-to-lovers trope is my favorite of the romance genre but this was a good lesson in how not to write it. Brenna was written completely differently than she had appeared in the first two novels of this trilogy, and her self-consciousness around Tyler didn’t read true to life. You wouldn’t be that way around someone who’s been your best friend since you were kids! I was also disappointed in the ending – not because of the HEA (I always love an HEA!) but because everything wrapped up a little too neatly in a way that made me suspend reality just a little too much.

Text Me When You Get Home: The Evolution and Triumph of Modern Female Friendship by Kayleen Schaefer (★★★★☆)

This book gave me all of the warm fuzzies about female friendship and the women I call my friends! The title of the book is something I have said to my friends or been told to do after leaving their home or a restaurant or a party. It’s something that always makes me feel good, knowing I have someone checking in on me and wanting to know I got home safe. It reminds me that I may be single but I am not alone. In Text Me When You Get Home, the author explores the evolution of female friendship, starting with how it wasn’t much of a priority for her mother as a new wife in her early twenties, and what it looks like today, both in the real lives of women and what’s portrayed on TV shows and movies. It’s a well-researched love letter to female friendships, and how they are arguably more important in the lives of women than romantic relationships. I loved every bit of this book.

I’m currently reading…

> Little Panic: Dispatches from an Anxious Life by Amanda Stern, on audio. This is a memoir about living with anxiety, starting from Amanda’s childhood and how she lives with it today.

> Irresistible You by Kate Meader, my romance pick for the week. Kate Meader is a new-to-me romance author, so we’ll see how this goes!

> We Were the Lucky Ones by Georgia Hunter. I’m reading this for book club (my suggestion, so it had better be as good as everyone says, ha). I read the first 50 pages on Sunday evening and was immediately sucked into the story, so I think I’m thoroughly going to enjoy my time with this novel.

What are you reading?