Stephany Writes

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (8.26.24)

Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe (★★★★☆)

Audiobook • Spotify • Contemporary Fiction • 2024

Short synopsis: Faced with an unplanned pregnancy, unemployment, and looming eviction, Margo turns to OnlyFans, drawing on her estranged father’s wrestling advice to craft a successful online persona. 

This was a great book, and one I wasn’t sure I wanted to read until everyone else started raving about it. They were right! Margo was an utterly delightful character and while some may get annoyed with her naivete, especially in the beginning of the book, I honestly couldn’t get enough of her. She felt so real. She became a mother at 20 and has to figure everything out on her own because her friends don’t want to help and her mom is useless. I loved her character arc and the way we see her become more and more comfortable in her role as a mother—and as a businesswoman. I found the scenes between Margo and her mom to be so difficult to get through; a toxic mom/daughter relationship always breaks my heart! But the true standout in this novel is the relationship between Margo and her father. I don’t want to give too much of the plot away, so I’ll just say that as someone who is also estranged from my father, I really enjoyed this part of the plot. This is a book I would confidently place in the hands of most readers, so give it a try! (The audiobook is excellent, too. It’s read by Elle Fanning and she didn’t make up silly voices for the male characters. I want all of my audiobooks to be read by her!)

I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith (★★★☆☆)

E-Book • Owned (Amazon) • Fiction • 1948

Short synopsis: Through six turbulent months of 1934, 17-year-old Cassandra Mortmain keeps a journal, filling three notebooks with sharply funny yet poignant entries about her home, a ruined Suffolk castle, and her eccentric and penniless family. By the time the last diary shuts, there have been great changes in the Mortmain household, not the least of which is that Cassandra is deeply, hopelessly, in love.

This novel started out strong for me, but it petered at the end. In the beginning, I adored Cassandra and her witty journal entries. She gave me real Anne Shirley vibes and I settled in for a sweet story about a poor family. Unfortunately, the story took a turn for me about halfway through. Characters I previously loved started making very dumb decisions and while there is a redemptive character arc, I think I was just so frustrated by the end that I didn’t really care. There were some really fun scenes in this book (the bear! the kidnapping!) that kept it from being a slog. And I think the author did a great job of portraying the emotions and mistakes of teenage girlhood—I had to continually remind myself that Cassandra is young and is doing the best she can. Her brain is still developing and she’s bound to make really dumb decisions at this point in her life. All in all, I’m glad I finally read this book but it’s not one I’m going to be recommending to many people.

All That Is Mine I Carry With Me by William Landay (★★★☆☆)

Print • Library • Mystery • 2023

Short synopsis: In 1975, ten-year-old Miranda Larkin comes home to find her mother mysteriously missing, leaving behind no signs of struggle. Decades later, Jane Larkin’s remains are discovered, reigniting an investigation that forces her now-grown children to confront the chilling possibility that their father, a criminal defense attorney, may have been involved in her death.

I have complicated feelings about this book. I picked it up because multiple recommendation sources had raved about it so I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. And it just didn’t really work for me. The book is divided into multiple sections and there’s a different narrator for each section, which was hard to wrap my head around at first. There were some odd stylistic choices like not having chapters and halfway through the book, he stopped using quotation marks. (I really hate books that don’t have quotation marks. Just use them!) I thought the story was pretty bland and unsatisfying, especially because it was easy to understand what had happened to Miranda’s mother and nothing really gets solved beyond that. I was expecting something different, I guess.

What are you reading?

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (8.19.24)

What Lies in the Woods by Kate Alice Marshall (★★☆☆☆)

Audiobook • Library • Thriller • 2023

Short synopsis: Naomi Shaw and her friends, Cassidy and Olivia, once played a game of magic in the woods, but it ended tragically when Naomi was attacked and nearly killed. Decades later, as Olivia wants to reveal a long-held secret, Naomi must uncover the dangerous truth of what really happened.

This thriller gets pretty good reviews and Meredith from Currently Reading loved it, so I was excited to read it. And I just hated it. Womp, womp. Honestly, my main issue lies with the narrator. I didn’t love the way she read the novel and I really disliked the fact that every male character had the exact same silly deep voice. It wasn’t a good performance and I considered abandoning the book because of it. Alas, I kept going because I was hopeful that the plot would make up for it. And it didn’t. The thriller was slow and meandering and even slightly predictable at times. I felt like the story went completely off the rails by the end, and the ending was deeply unsatisfying. Unfortunately, not a thriller I would recommend!

Act Like It by Lucy Parker (★★★★★)

Print • Owned (Amazon) • Contemporary Romance • 2015

Short synopsis: Once London’s hottest actor, Richard Troy’s fiery temper has made him public enemy number one, leaving fans heartbroken. However, rumors swirl that his romance with Lainie Graham might be transforming him into a new man, sparking speculation about whether this unlikely pair is genuine or just an act.

This is a reread for me, as I am a Lucy Parker stan and want to work my way through her books again while I wait for her next release. I wasn’t sure if this one would be as good as I remembered it, but it absolutely was. This one had a few different tropes: a little bit enemies-to-lovers, a little bit fake-dating, a little bit sunshine/grumpy. It all worked together for a wonderful romance that I couldn’t get enough of. What I really appreciate about Lucy’s novels is that she doesn’t create these dramatic dark moments. There is a dark moment in this book but it felt totally natural and got resolved fairly quickly. I loved this novel just as much as the first time I read it and I can’t wait to keep rereading her backlist!

What My Bones Know: A Memoir of Healing from Complex Trauma by Stephanie Foo (★★★★★)

Print • Owned (Amazon) • Nonfiction • 2022

Short synopsis: A searing memoir of reckoning and healing by acclaimed journalist Stephanie Foo, investigating the little-understood science behind complex PTSD and how it has shaped her life.

What a stunning memoir. I was curious to read this book as someone who also had a traumatic childhood (my ACES score is the same as Stephanie’s), although I do not believe I have complex PTSD as Stephanie does. Stephanie was emotionally and physically abused by her mom and then abandoned by her when she was only 13. And then her father was essentially absent from her life until he, too, abandoned her to live with his new family when she was 16. It’s horrifying to think about everything she went through and everything she had to shoulder alone. During this book, Stephanie takes us through her childhood, her college and early adulthood life, and then finding out her diagnosis and what she does afterward. There isn’t a ton of research and treatment for C-PTSD because it isn’t considered an official diagnosis in the DSM. Stephanie tells us about all of the different therapies she tries, from talk therapy and acupuncture to meditation and restorative yoga. It’s a beautifully written book, but it’s a hard book to read because learning how to break free of the typical coping skills of someone with C-PTSD is incredibly difficult. It takes patience and understanding and courage.

This book made me super grateful for my mom. While I did have a traumatic childhood, I also had a strong support system. I had my mom’s unconditional love. I felt safe and secure with her. I had my brother, and he is the only person in the world who understands what we went through with my father. He had my back when we were growing up and today, he’s the person I can go to when I need to reminisce and talk through dad stuff. I also had my grandparents who also gave me unconditional love and a soft place to land. I had uncles and aunts and cousins. Stephanie didn’t have any family in the States (her parents immigrated here while the rest of her family remained in Malaysia). I can’t imagine going through such a difficult childhood with nobody by my side.

Anyway, obviously this book touched me in a deep, impactful way and I am so grateful to this author for writing such a personal book. I know it’s going to help so many people.

What are you reading?

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (7.29.24)

Supercommunicators: How to Unlock the Secret Language of Connection by Charles Duhigg (★★★★★)

Audiobook • Library • Nonfiction • 2024

Short synopsis: Supercommunicators are people who can steer a conversation to a successful conclusion. They are able to talk about difficult topics without giving offense. They know how to make others feel at ease and share what they think. They’re brilliant facilitators and decision-guiders. In this groundbreaking book, Charles Duhigg unravels the secrets of the supercommunicators to reveal the art – and the science – of successful communication. Above all, he reveals the techniques we can all master to successfully connect with others, however tricky the circumstances. 

Man, I loved this book. Communication is something that is a huge struggle for me. Sometimes it feels like my brain just completely shuts off when I’m trying to make conversation with people, especially strangers. I wrack my brain for questions to ask people and usually nothing comes to mind. In this book, Charles Duhigg combines real-life examples of people getting others to listen to them (everything from a CIA operative to members of a jury) with statistics and helpful advice on how to be better at steering a conversation. One of the main takeaways I got from this book is how to ask better questions. Rather than asking, “What do you do for work?” ask, “What’s your favorite thing about your job?” Or rather than asking, “How are you?” ask, “What’s something that made you smile today?” Also, supercommunicators are not only great listeners but also share about their lives to build an honest connection with people. I think what I learned the most about supercommunicators is that they are people who are genuinely curious about the world and the people around them and have a kind, empathetic nature to them. While I don’t think I’ll become a supercommunicator now that I’ve read this book (that’s just not my personality—social anxiety makes it very hard to be as open as I want to be!), I do think it’s given me some good tips and tricks to take with me into the real world.

Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez (★★★★★)

E-Book • Library • Contemporary Romance • 2022

Short synopsis: Alexis Montgomery, an doctor in line to become the next chief of emergency surgery, finds her world turned upside down after meeting Daniel Grant. He lives in a small town three hours from where she lives, but in the one night they spend together, they have undeniable chemistry. Torn between her family’s expectations to become a world-renowned surgeon and the joy she finds with Daniel in his tight-knit town, Alexis faces a difficult choice between her old life and a new, simpler happiness.

This is the first book in Abby Jimenez’s Part of Your World series and the last one I read (I read them out of order and I don’t think that mattered much). I loved it. I think I would put this one smack dab in the middle (Yours Truly will forever be my favorite since one of the characters had social anxiety). There are triggers to be aware of in this book, specifically intimate partner violence, so please be mindful of that. I think the way Jimenez portrayed IPV was really well done and got to the heart of why it can be so hard for people to leave a relationship. I also just really, really loved the chemistry between Daniel and Alexis. They were so damn cute together and I got a little annoyed at the way Alexis continued to push Daniel away because she was so tied to her life at her hospital. And maybe that’s because I’ve seen how happy they are together in the subsequent books in the series, so I just wanted her to grab that happy ending as soon as possible! The way everything unfolded in the end, though, was perfect and made the most sense for the two of them. Anyway, Abby Jimenez is back in my good graces (I hated her first series, The Friend Zone, and had sworn off her books until everyone started raving about this series) and is probably an auto-buy author for me now.

The Housemaid by Freida McFadden (★★★★☆)

Print • Owned (book swap) • Thriller • 2022

Short synopsis: In this psychological thriller, a woman named Millie takes a job with the affluent Winchester family, hoping for a fresh start and a chance to reinvent herself. But the more she gets to know about the Winchesters, the more unsettled she becomes. Why does her small attic room only lock from the outside? And why are there scratches on the doorframe?

The Housemaid is a thriller that’s been everywhere and it has a super high Goodreads rating (4.3 with over a million ratings!) I was excited to finally dive in, but I have to be honest: I was very ready to abandon this book after the first 50 pages because it made me feel so icky. The way Mrs. Winchester treated Millie was so abhorrent that it just didn’t make me feel good. But I kept pushing through because so many people raved about this book and I had to know what the hype was about. And oh boy… did I discover it. By the time to first big twist comes around, I was completely sucked in and couldn’t put this thriller down for anything. It was sensational! I understand now why it’s such a highly rated book, and I’m glad I finally gave it a chance.

What are you reading?

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (7.24.24)

The Last Chance Library by Freya Sampson (★★★★☆)

Audiobook • Library • Contemporary Fiction • 2021

Short synopsis: Lonely librarian June Jones has never left the sleepy English village where she grew up. Shy and reclusive, the thirty-year-old would rather spend her time buried in books than venture out into the world. But when her library is threatened with closure, June is forced to emerge from behind the shelves to save the heart of her community and the place that holds the dearest memories of her mother.

This was such a lovely little book. It was the audiobook I chose after slogging through Detransition, Baby. I needed something light-hearted and sweet, and this novel absolutely fit the bill. I loved June so much. Her character growth throughout the novel, as she found her voice and learned to stand up for what she believed in, was beautiful and I was rooting for her all along the way. I loved the eclectic cast of characters that accompanied her throughout the journey, and the emphasis on libraries and the way they become community centers for so many people. Libraries are so much more than places to borrow books. They are places for people to access the Internet, for kids to have a safe space to do their homework, etc. I loved this book and it would be a great addition to anyone’s TBR—it’s a good book to pick up the next time you need a palate cleanser!

Five Little Pigs by Agatha Christie (★★★☆☆)

Print • Owned (indie bookstore) • Mystery • 1942

Short synopsis: It was an open and shut case. All the evidence said Caroline Crale poisoned her philandering husband, a brilliant painter. She was quickly and easily convicted and sentenced to life in prison. Now, sixteen years later, in a posthumous letter, Mrs. Crale has assured her grown daughter that she was innocent. So, Caroline calls on Hercule Poirot to open the case and find out what really happened.

This was such a unique story! I appreciated what Agatha Christie was trying to do with this mystery—to show us how our perception of an event can be drastically different based on our biases. Unfortunately, it started to feel a bit repetitive when the same story was being told over and over again. I also found the mystery at the heart of the novel to be a bit hard to follow at times, but maybe that was the purpose because it wasn’t until the end of the novel that I could fully grasp what had happened. In this novel, there are five important players (aside from the victim, Mr. Crale, and the assumed murderer, Mrs. Crale): two friends of Mr. and Mrs. Crale who were around on the day of the poisoning, Mr. Crale’s mistress, Mrs. Crale’s younger sister, and the sister’s governess. Hercule meets with each one to get their side of the story and then asks them to write down their knowledge of the events. The result is a story that is told over and over again, and left me feeling rather bored by the plot. The ending was a bit convoluted and not as satisfying as I had hoped. But, hey, not every Christie novel can be a slam dunk, right?

Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute by Talia Hibbert (★★★☆☆)

E-Book • Library • YA • 2023

Short synopsis: Bradley and Celine are former best friends who had a falling out when they started high school and Brad abandoned her for the “cool kids.” (Or at least, that’s how she sees it.) When Celine signs up for a survival course that comes with a college scholarship, she’s surprised more than anyone to see Brad right by her side. As this adventure brings them closer together, they begin to remember the good bits of their history. But has too much time passed . . . or just enough to spark a whole new kind of relationship?

I was a little surprised that this was a YA romance because, so far, all of the Talia Hibbert books I’ve read have been adult. But I do love a good YA romance so I quickly got over my surprise and settled in for a cute read. It was an enemies-to-lovers trope and I loved the rapport between Bradley and Celine when they were enemies. They were so mean to each other (but not in a problematic way); they were so funny, though! I didn’t care all that much for the survival course scenes (they were kind of boring) and thought the chemistry between Bradley and Celine was just so-so. I liked the themes explored in this novel, especially because Celine is estranged from her father and I could wholly relate to her desire to show him what he’s missing out on. (And for Engie: No teens having sex in this novel!)

What are you reading?

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (7.9.24)

The Queer Principles of Kit Webb by Cat Sebastian (★★★☆☆)

E-Book • Library • Historical Romance • 2021

Short synopsis: Kit Webb has given up his life of crime and now runs a respectable coffee shop. And then the suave Lord Holland comes into his shop, requesting that Kit complete a job for him. Kit refuses to participate in the robbery but will help Lord Holland learn the art of highway robbery so he can do it himself.  Only the more time these two men spend with each other, the more they realize there’s something between them.

Cat Sebastian is one of those reliable 3-star authors for me. I love that she writes queer historical romance, but I can’t say that I’ve read any books by her that are outstanding. They’re all just… pleasant. They’re readable and have great sex scenes, but there’s always something missing from the story that keeps me from loving the book. The same was true with this romance; it was an easy story to dip in and out of, but I wasn’t enamored with it. It was a fine romance, but nothing outstanding.

Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters (★★★☆☆)

Audiobook • Library • Literary Fiction • 2021

Short synopsis: The lives of three individuals—a transgender woman named Reese, her detransitioned ex Ames, and Ames’s boss Katrina—intersect dramatically when Katrina’s unexpected pregnancy prompts Ames to propose a plan for the three of them to raise this baby together. Sure, Ames and Reese haven’t talked since their breakup and Ames’ detransition, but a baby is all Reese has ever wanted. The book weaves together concepts of gender identity, family, womanhood, and intimacy in a poignant look at society today.

I struggled a lot with this book. It’s our book club pick for June, and I was committed to getting through it, even though parts of the book made me feel very icky (specifically, Reese’s destructive pattern of sleeping with married men). There’s a lot to discuss about this book, and a lot to unpack about my own thoughts about queerness and the transgender community. While I can appreciate what Peters’ did here by creating incredibly complex, downright unlikable characters, it really made the reading experience difficult for me. There was nobody to root for in this novel; every chapter unveiled a new layer of complexity that made me dislike the characters even more than I already did. I found the whole idea of “man reaches out to his ex to see if she’d like to raise a baby with him and his new girlfriend” to be wholly implausible. I just wanted more from this novel.

*I want to say here that I sought out reviews from transgender people because I was really curious about their reception of the book. Most of the reviews I found were very positive with a lot of people talking about how they could relate to these characters and the novel spoke true to their experiences. And for that, I am immensely grateful to this author for writing this book and giving the transgender community the representation that is sorely lacking in the literary world.

This Spells Love by Kate Robb (★★★★★)

Print • Owned (Book of the Month) • Contemporary Romance • 2023

Short synopsis: In a bid to heal her heartbreak, Gemma casts a spell to erase her ex from her life, but wakes up in an alternate reality where she never dated him—and her best friend doesn’t recognize her. To return to her old life, she must get her best friend to kiss her, but as they grow closer, she questions if he might have been The One all along.

I don’t know what it was about this book, but I could not put it down. I basically spent all of the July 4th holiday on my couch reading this romance because it was so cute and I wanted to stay in Gemma’s world forever. I wouldn’t say this book was particularly well-written and I don’t even know if the whole “alternate universe” concept worked. But for me, it was the right book at the right time. The “best friends-to-lovers” trope is my absolute favorite in romance (yes, above enemies-to-lovers!) and this one did it so perfectly. I loved being with these characters and I loved the setting of this book so much. It really does show you how small decisions you make in life can make such a difference down the road. You just never know what’s waiting for you around the corner!

What are you reading?