February Reads

8. Always the Baker, Never the Bride by Sandra D. Bricker (2 stars)

The plot of this book was interesting: a baker who has diabetes. She can’t taste but a smidge of the creations she bakes and has to rely on her instincts. Her instincts have earned her an award and a new job at an up-and-coming hotel/wedding venue. Interesting premise aside, I could not get into this book for anything. At first, I was intrigued and loved all the characters but soon, it all became too much. There were too many wacky characters and not enough plot to sink my teeth into. And I really didn’t believe the romance that blossomed between the two main characters, which always gives me a case of the sads.

9. Perfect For You by Kate Perry (3 stars)

Graphic designer Freya Godwin has just been hit with an ultimatum: find her muse again or she’s fired. After giving her boss some very lackluster design proofs for an upcoming job, she learns she better find her inspiration again or she’s out of a job. Since she’s supporting her 21-year-old art student sister, she knows she can’t lose this job and becomes frantic with trying to find inspiration. Her first step? Posting an ad on Craigslist. Too bad the only place she finds this necessary inspiration is when she’s with her very annoying neighbor, Greg. This book was just okay for me. There were a lot of inconsistencies and the plot was very weak. Aside from the sister, the characters were very dull and dry and even the romance didn’t feel real. I also don’t understand why this character thought posting an ad for what is essentially a booty call on Craigslist is a good idea. No. No, no, no, no, no. NO.

10. The Wedding Gift by Lucy Kevin (2 stars)

Julie Delgado’s restaurant had to close after a scathing review by food critic Andrew Kyle. Andrew is the sexy host of Edgy Eats and his review pushed her fledgling restaurant over the edge. Julie is now working as a caterer for a wedding venue and feels lost. Enter Andrew into her life again. He’s the brother of a bride and comes to the wedding venue to taste her selection for his sister’s wedding. Once again, he is very critical of her work, and once again, Julie is out of a job. This book just didn’t do it for me. I love a good romance novel, but this one fell flat for me. The romance was too quick and I never felt a connection between the main characters. Bummer.

11. A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini (5 stars)

This was the #twookclub pick for February and I can safely, easily, and assuredly say I have a new favorite book. This story broke my heart and pieced it back together again. It made me take a good, long, hard look at myself and my life. It opened my eyes to a world I had only heard bits and pieces about, but never a true full picture. This book intertwines the stories of two women – Mariam and Laila. They each have their own heartbreaking stories, they each sacrifice and suffer in their own ways. It’s a book that touched my heart and a story I will never be able to get out of my head. This book shook me to my core and I implore everyone to read this book and open your eyes to the oppression women are still facing to this day.

12. Exclusively Yours by Shannon Stacey (4 stars)

I snatch up those free Kindle books like they’re candy and lately, the stories have been kind of meh. (See the first three books above…) So I really wasn’t expecting much out of this novel. And I was proven wrong. I was immediately captivated by the writing and the characters in this novel. It was well-written, with believable characters and a fun plot to follow. It wasn’t too cheesy, had the right amount of steamy romance, and while the ending felt a little dragged out, it was still a great novel. And I loved it enough to want to check out the other books in this series. Always a good sign!

13. Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert (4 stars)

I’ve heard so many mixed reviews of this book that I went into reading it thinking I wouldn’t enjoy it. I always do that to myself. I psyche myself out. But I needed to write a review on the memoir for my magazine gig, and it was one of those books I had wanted to read for so long that I just decided it was time to read it. A lot of people feel partial to one section of the three sections (Italy/India/Indonesia) but I’m an anomaly, I suppose, who enjoyed each section and got something different but life-affirming from each one. This book taught me so much, not just about love or faith, but about life itself. There is so much rawness, so much honesty to this memoir and I enjoyed it so, so much. A must-read, in my opinion!

14. The Comfort of Lies by Randy Susan Meyers (4 stars)

You can read my entire review of this book here.

15. Midnight Secrets by Ella Grace (1 star)

I recently signed up for Netgalley because I was all, “Free Kindle books? Why the heck not?” This was the first book I reviewed for the site and it was not a good introduction to Netgalley. I am trying not to let it stain my view, but this book was hard to read. The writing was cheesy. The characters fell flat. And the plot dragged on and on and on (and on and on and on and on and on…). My review wasn’t kind, but I had to be bluntly honest about how I felt. I always feel bad being critical of other writers because I know how much criticism hurts when it’s directed at me, but at the same time, I had to be totally honest about how I felt.

Books read in February: 8
Books read in 2013 so far: 15