Stephany Writes

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (5.21.18)

After a short hiatus, I’m back with my weekly reading recap. I’m definitely not going to talk about all the books I finished over the past few weeks (ain’t nobody got time for that!), so I’m starting fresh and just talking about the books I finished over the past week. I thoroughly enjoyed one novel and thoroughly hated the other. Fun! Let’s dive in:

Books Finished

Title: Sleeping Giants
Author: Sylvain Neuvel
Format: Library hardcover
Published: 2016
Rating: ★★★★☆

Plot Summary: A girl named Rose is riding her bike near her home in South Dakota and falls down a hole. When she’s found by rescuers, they peer down to see her laying in a giant metal hand. Seventeen years later, Rose is an enigmatic physicist who is determined to find out the origins of this giant metal hand and what it means for humanity as we know it.

My thoughts: My work book club chose this book as our May pick, and I wasn’t quite sure about it at first. I like science fiction books, but I’m a little wary of books that have a kooky and bizarre synopsis. But that’s what book clubs are all about, right? Getting you to read books you’d never pick up on your own. And I am so glad I gave this one a chance because it was a pretty amazing thrill ride. I think what I appreciated most about this book was how it tried to explore the idea of there being life on other planets and what that could mean for life on Earth. The book is told in transcripts and journal entries, and in some cases, I think this method worked really well and helped the novel move along at a great pace. In other cases, usually the action scenes, it fell apart. I wavered between 3 and 4 stars, but since I read the last 100 pages in one sitting and stayed up late to finish it, I couldn’t give it less than 4. It’s probably not a book I’d recommend to everyone, but good if you’re looking to read something a little bizarre and not too heavy.

Title: The Final Score
Author: Jaci Burton
Format: Library e-book
Published: 2017
Rating: ★☆☆☆☆

Plot Summary: Longtime friends Nathan and Mia, both newly graduated from college and embarking on new careers, make a friends-with-benefits pact because they just cannot deny the chemistry that sizzles between them.

My Thoughts: Well, it’s not very often that I give a 1-star rating, but this one kinda deserves it. I had a lot of issues with this book, so let’s get right into it, shall we?

  • Issue #1: It’s not realistic to write a novel about a girl who is fresh out of college and starts her own sports management company out of the blue where she has no setbacks whatsoever. First of all, you need to earn the role of CEO by working your way through the ranks, starting at the bottom. She did nothing of the sort and yet, she has a large office in San Francisco with dozens of employees, none of whom resent her for being CEO when she’s 10+ years younger than them? Not relatable, not realistic. It’s also not realistic to have zero setbacks when it comes to starting a business, other than her own insecurity.
  • Issue #2: After being a backup QB during his rookie season, Nathan is now the starting quarterback for an NFL team and yet again, the author has this kid encounter zero setbacks during his first handful of games on the field. His only setback is his own insecurity about taking over for the team his stepfather played for (which in and of itself is a really weird plot twist). I watch football religiously and one thing I know for certain is that anyone’s first time at starting QB doesn’t always go smoothly. There are kinks to figure out and that’s fairly expected. For him to come on the field and immediately be a Tom Brady-level quarterback is so unrealistic that I skimmed my way past the football parts because I just didn’t care.
  • Issue #3: There was no conflict whatsoever in this novel! Romances need to have conflict. They need to have a push/pull dynamic. And there needs to be something happening beyond the romance. There could have been such an interesting side plot involving Mia and her business, but the author just chose to keep the whole novel at surface level.
  • Issue #4: Please. Stop. With. The. Sassy. Black. Best. Friends. That is not okay.

So I mean, yeah. If you hung around for that rant, thanks! I just had to get it off my chest. I’ve read probably 15 or so romances by Jaci Burton, but I think this is the last one I’ll be reading. I just cannot get over how utterly unrealistic and boring this novel was, not to mention the gloriously awful writing. (Usually, I can look past her writing when the romance is sizzlin’, but it just wasn’t there in this one.)

What I’m Reading This Week

  • How to Walk Away by Katherine Center – This was my pick from Book of the Month’s May selections (<– affiliate link; sign up with my code to get a free book!) It tackles a very difficult topic, but in a way that doesn’t make it feel too heavy. I started reading it on Saturday morning and I’m nearly finished, so that can give you an indication of just how much I’m loving it.
  • Moonlight Over Manhattan by Sarah Morgan – Once I finish How to Walk Away, I’ll start this fun contemporary romance from one of my faves.
  • The Engagements by J. Courtney Sullivan – I was originally going to read this book back in April, but the timing didn’t work out. (I didn’t think I’d be able to finish it before my cruise and didn’t want to bring such a hefty book with me.) So I’m going to start it this week and I hope it’s as great as I expect!

What are you reading this week?

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (4.23.18)

Happy Monday, friends! It’s a great week for me because I only have to get through the next five days before I’m on my cruise! YAY! My mom and I booked this cruise such a long time ago, and I can’t believe we’re almost there.

This will likely be the last “What I’m Reading” post for a while. I’m not posting next week and when I come back, I want to do some monthly recaps and then trip recaps, so it’s looking like May 21st will be the grand return of “What I’m Reading.”

I finished three books last week (nearly finished four – I’ll finish the romance I’m reading today!) and they were all fantastic 4- or 5-star reads. Love weeks like that! Let’s dive in:

Books Finished

Title: Make Me Want
Author: Katee Robert
Format: e-book
Published: 2018
Rating: ★★★★☆

I breezed through this fun, light-hearted romance novel. The novel begins when high-powered lawyer Lucy asks her friend, headhunter Gideon, for a favor. She has learned that she has the potential to become a partner at her law firm, but that she’ll only be considered if she’s married. So, she wants Gideon to find her a husband. Oh, and she also wants Gideon to give her lessons on how to be better at sex. Yeah. It’s a fun premise and I think Robert does a great job at capturing both Lucy and Gideon’s internal motivations to bring about a compelling narrative. This novel is the first in her new series and I cannot wait to see where she takes it from here. (Add to Goodreads.)

Title: Dreamland Burning
Author: Jennifer Latham
Format: Library audiobook
Published: 2017
Rating: ★★★★★

Did you know that the Tulsa race riot, which happened in 1921, is considered one of the worst acts of racial violence in the US? It’s not surprising if you haven’t because it wasn’t until 1996 that a commission was formed to study this race riot, and not until 2001 that the commission published its final report. Meaning, this race riot was omitted from so much of our history, the victims silenced. It’s horrific, and I am so grateful for Jennifer Latham bringing this story to life. The story skips back and forth in time, between the present day and 1921. Present day finds us with 17-year-old Rowan, the summer before her senior year of college. On one of her first days of summer break, she discovers a skeleton on her property and decides she’ll play amateur sleuth along with her best friend to find out who this skeleton was and what happened to him or her. Meanwhile, in the past, 17-year-old Will is living in segregated Tulsa where he’s forced to work at his dad’s fancy Victrola shop and deal with a supremely racist neighbor. The storylines are woven together so intricately, and in a way that allows readers to see just how little race relations have changed in a near century. Sure, we’re not segregating people anymore, but we’re not living in some post-racial utopia. Not even a little bit. As the story progresses, it’s easy to recognize that it’s all going to culminate in a scary, horrifying way. I listened to this book on audio and it was fantastic. Almost movie-like in the production, so I highly recommend it on audio. (Add to Goodreads.)

Title: Men We Reaped
Author: Jesmyn Ward
Format: Library e-book
Published: 2013
Rating: ★★★★☆

After Jesmyn Ward lost five young men in her life in close succession, starting with her brother, she decided she needed to get to the bottom of why. So she wrote this memoir that explores the lives of these young men, as well as her own life, as a way to come to terms with what happened and why it happened. It’s a powerful story about the history of racism, the effects of economic struggle, and the impact that these deaths had on her and her entire community. It’s not a fun or easy read, but an incredibly important one. As much as I’d love to only read what makes me happy, I read to expand my own personal worldview and to hear stories that are so different from my own. This book is a great companion to Evicted by Matthew Desmond, and I highly encourage everyone to give it a try. (Add to Goodreads.)

Books Abandoned

Well, I was worried this would happen! I abandoned Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil deGrasse Tyson because the content was a bit too deep for me. Since I am super interested in astronomy (I even took an astronomy class for “fun” in college, just to expand my knowledge), I thought I would be able to hold my own with this book, but it just wasn’t for me. I feel like Tyson does his best to break down the science and make it easy to digest for people like me, but even so, I found myself having to read sentences over and over and over again so I could understand what he was saying. And most of it still went over my head. And, you know, that’s totally okay. A part of me feels dumb for not being able to “get it,” but another part of me just accepts that concepts like these work better for me in a different format. I thought about trying the book on audio, but I think that would go even worse because my mind wanders a lot when listening to audiobooks (which is why most of the nonfiction I listen to is memoirs). Instead, I think I may take the “easy” way out and just start watching Cosmos, Tyson’s docuseries about space. I watched the first four episodes on Netflix but then stopped for reasons I don’t know. So, I think I’m going to restart and get my astronomy “fix” that way. Live and learn. 🙂

What I’m Reading This Week

  • An Extraordinary Union by Alyssa Cole – I am nearly finished with this historical romance, and it’s one I am having such a hard time putting down! It’s so well-written and the premise is so unique! It’s also the kind of romance I feel like I could recommend to readers who want to read something light-hearted, but that also has a lot of substance.
  • The Engagements by J. Courtney Sullivan – I’ve heard great things about this book and I really, really enjoy Sullivan’s writing style, so I’m excited to give this one a try. I’ve had a copy of the book sitting on my bookshelf for over two years, so it’s time to sit down and read it.
  • The Wife by Alafair Burke – This is my book club’s May pick that I’m going to read while I’m on my cruise. It’s a domestic thriller, which should make it perfect reading at a time when I don’t have to put down a page-turner if I don’t want to!

What are you reading this week?

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (4.16.18)

Hi, friends! Happy Monday. I’m less than two weeks away from my next cruise, so it’s honestly all I can think about. Is it too early to start packing? 😉

I had a good reading week, finishing two books and starting a few others over the weekend. As you’ll see in my “What I’m Reading This Week” section, I am not the type of reader who can read one book at a time and I’m especially not doing that this week as I’m listening to an audiobook, reading two nonfiction books, and reading a romance. Whew! This week and weekend will be a busy one for me, so we’ll see how much I can accomplish.

For now, let’s dive into my reviews of what I finished last week and what I’m reading this week.

Books Finished

Title: Everybody’s Son
Author: Thrity Umrigar
Format: Paperback
Published: 2017
Rating: ★★★☆☆

I read this for my local book club, and I was really excited to read it since it came highly recommended. It started off strong, as we learn about our two main characters – Anton, a young black boy growing up in poverty, and David Coleman, a white man who has had all of the privileges in life (both in being a white man and being rich). David and his wife Delores become Anton’s foster parents while his mother is in prison, and then eventually adopt him using their privilege and power to do so. The rest of the story explores this intersection of race and privilege, as Anton grows up and becomes powerful in his own right. The premise sounds great, which is why I couldn’t wait to read it, but I just found that the writing took itself a little too seriously. It was more about exploring these big issues and less about creating a story with compelling characters. I thought the beginning was fantastic and I was convinced it was going to be an easy 5-star read, but then the plot unraveled in the middle and it never could seem to get itself together. I just didn’t see these characters as real people, and Anton in his later years especially seemed to be one-dimensional. I hate to say it like this, but it’s one of those books that I think might have been better written by somebody else. (Add to Goodreads.)

Title: The Way Home
Author: Cindy Gerard
Format: Library e-book
Published: 2013
Rating: ★★★★★

Cindy Gerard truly never lets me down when it comes to romantic suspense, but I was a little wary of this because it was a little different than her typical novels and I knew it was going to involve tough subject matter, re: the PTSD effects of a soldier being tortured for 3+ years. The heroine of this novel is Jess whose husband J.R. was killed-in-action four years ago. She’s been trying to move on with her life, and that includes falling in love with a guy named Ty. They are planning their wedding when Jess finds out that her husband is not dead, he is very much alive. And what kind of woman would she be if she abandoned her husband when he needed her the most? Ugh, talk about tugging at my heartstrings! Obviously, this is a romance novel, so I knew what was going to happen. I knew, against all odds, Jess and Ty would end up together and that even J.R. would find his own happy ending, but the process of getting there was fraught and I appreciated the push/pull dynamic that Gerard so deftly wrote. It’s a book that maybe wrapped up a little too neatly, but that’s how I like my romances, so it was A-OK to me. (Add to Goodreads.)

What I’m Reading This Week

  • Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil DeGrasse Tyson – I’m reading one chapter a day in this slim volume because I think that’s all my brain can handle. But Tyson does his best to make a subject like astrophysics as accessible as he can, so I’m hanging in there so far.
  • Dreamland Burning by Jennifer Latham – This is my audiobook fiction pick for the month of April. I started it on Sunday and the audio is fantastic. It feels very movie-like in the production and it moves seamlessly through the two narrators and story lines. Excited to spend my week with this book!
  • Men We Reaped by Jesmyn Ward – I started this book over the weekend and I can already see why Jesmyn Ward is such a celebrated author. She writes so well and so vividly that I can feel her pain and heartbreak radiating through the pages. This book is going to be a tough one, but such an important one as well.
  • Make Me Want by Katee Robert – This is my romance pick for the week from one of my new favorite contemporary romance authors. This is the first book in her brand-new series and I can’t wait to dive in.

What are you reading this week?

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (4.9.18)

Happy Monday, friends! Near the start of the weekend, I was worried that I might not have any books to talk about this week – at least books I’ve finished. It was a really busy week and weekend and I only grabbed reading time in snippets, like right before bed or on my lunch hour at work. But I did end up finishing two books this week even in the midst of my crazy schedule. One was a romance (and I was more apt to pick it up this week because my anxiety was all over the place and I just needed something light-hearted) and the other was an audiobook that I listened to on my commute.

Books Finished

Title: Take the Lead
Author: Alexis Daria
Format: e-book
Published: 2017
Rating: ★★★★☆

I’ve been hearing a ton of buzz in romancelandia about this novel, and since I’m trying to read more diverse and queer romance this year, I decided to pick it up as my diverse romance for April. I was nervous because I have really high standards when it comes to romances and a lot of the books that are frequently recommended in this genre just don’t do it for me. Thankfully, Take the Lead totally delivered. The novel is basically inspired by Dancing with the Stars and involves the love story of trained dancer Gina, who has just been told that she has to make it to the finals in The Dance Off or else she’s out of a job, and Stone, a reality TV star. His family has been part of the popular wilderness show Living Wild for a number of years, so he’s a macho outdoorsman who lives off-the-grid in Alaska and doesn’t know much about LA or dancing or any of that. And, of course, these two opposites attract as Gina helps Stone open up, both with his feelings and with his dancing. I was thoroughly impressed with this debut and wanted to spend all my time in their little world. (Add to Goodreads.)

Title: Born a Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood
Author: Trevor Noah
Format: Audiobook
Published: 2016
Rating: ★★★★★

If you’ve never listened to an audiobook before and don’t understand the appeal, do yourself a favor and download Trevor Noah’s memoir. I promise you: it will be completely worth the listen! The audiobook isn’t too long (just under 9 hours) and he is a fantastic narrator. He uses voices perfectly and for me, he totally captured the spirit and heart of South Africa. I didn’t know much about Trevor Noah or his life before listening. All I really know about him is that I love him on the Daily Show and his recent comedy special was amazing. And I was blown away by this memoir. It only covered his life in South Africa (I was dying to know how he ended up in America and becoming the new host of the Daily Show, but alas, that wasn’t the reason for this book), but it was everything I expected: funny and sad and heartfelt and silly and maddening. All of the emotions! Trevor Noah truly endured a lot throughout his childhood and early adulthood, and it was astounding and heartbreaking. I highly, highly, highly recommend this book and I think it’s such an important read. (Add to Goodreads.)

What I’m Reading This Week

  • Everybody’s Son by Thrity Umrigar – I didn’t really have much time for reading this week due to my busy schedule and when I did have some free time, I just wanted to read my light-hearted romance novel. Still, I managed to read 150 pages of this novel and I’m sure I’ll finish it early this week since I don’t have much going on. It’s interesting, for sure, but also makes me angry, which is why I’m less and less inclined to pick it up. (Angry in a good way…? Like, it’s bringing up emotions in me that I know the author wanted.)
  • The Way Home by Cindy Gerard – My romance pick for this week! Cindy Gerard is my absolutely favorite when it comes to romantic suspense and I’m excited to dive in this week.
  • Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil Degrasse Tyson – This is my nonfiction pick off my “immediate TBR” and I’m apprehensive about it. I’m just not sure it’s going to be accessible enough for me! My plan is to go slowwwww with it, maybe just a few pages a day, and really try to understand what he’s saying. That said, I’m also not averse to abandoning it if it’s not serving me. We’ll see!

What are you reading this week?

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (4.2.18)

Happy Monday, friends, and happy April! I am super looking forward to this month because my mom and I leave on a cruise at the end of it. Yayyyyy! We booked this cruise sometime in the fall of 2017, so to say we’ve been looking forward to it for awhile is an understatement. April is also the month I get to see my guys at Pod Save America live, and I couldn’t be more excited about that. I’m also hoping to spend some afternoons at the pool and put some real work into my novel this month.

But before all that, let’s dive into my reading life in the last week of March, shall we? It was another great week of reading for me because I finished three novels (two being romances, which I read super fast).

Books Finished

Title: Roomies
Author: Christina Lauren
Reason for reading: For fun
Published: 2017
Rating: ★★★★★

So, I need to preface this review by saying that I understand why many people are a little leery of this novel, especially with the debates about DACA and immigration in the news. In a way, the plot can be seen as insensitive because the hero in this novel is an Irish immigrant whose visa expired more than four years ago. And yet, due to his whiteness, he has certain privileges that other black or brown immigrants don’t have. And, honestly, that privilege is never brought up in the novel and it can be off-putting for some people. I get that totally. But also? I loved this novel, and I just had to realize that this novel can be problematic and I can love it, too. The characters were so well-written and real. The plot moved along at the perfect pace, and the way Calvin and Holland fell in love with each other felt natural and beautiful. But I think what I liked most about this novel was that while the romance was the central figure, it was also about Holland and her process of finding herself. When the novel begins, Holland is a girl with an MFA in creative writing who wants to be a writer, but is uninspired and feels that she’s just letting life happen to her. She works at her uncle’s playhouse, selling merchandise, and she knows she’s destined for way more than that, but doesn’t know how to go out and get it. Her fears and vulnerabilities were so real and I could see a lot of myself in her. She was a really easy heroine to like and root for. And I love how she came full circle in this novel. (Add to Goodreads.)

Title: Not That I Could Tell
Author: Jessica Strawser
Reason for reading: March Book of the Month pick
Published: 2018
Rating: ★★★★☆

I wasn’t expecting to enjoy this thriller as much as I did, maybe because I’d read two lukewarm reviews of the novel that tempered my expectations. (Maybe that was a good thing?) I actually thought it was a truly well-written thriller that wasn’t too over-the-top with crazy twists and turns. And the characters were all super likable; the author didn’t fall into the trap of writing about female relationships in a negative way. Even the contentious relationships had a true-to-life feel to them. As I’ve had time to reflect on this book, I think the core of this book isn’t about the disappearance of a neighbor and her kids. It isn’t about the investigation into her disappearance or her estranged husband’s maybe-guilt. It is about these neighbors, about sisterhood, about vulnerability and opening up. It’s about motherhood and how lonely and isolating it can be. It’s about singlehood and how lonely and isolating that can be. It’s about how we need to watch out for each other and how women can come together and help each other. So, I can really see why this book was compared to Big Little Lies because that was the overarching theme of that novel, and I really think this was a good read-alike to that book. All in all, I really, really liked this novel and I’m really glad I gave it a chance! (Add to Goodreads.)

Title: Irresistibly Yours
Author: Lauren Layne
Reason for reading: For fun!
Published: 2015
Rating: ★★★★☆

This was such a quick, fun read and one that was hard to put down because I enjoyed the characters so much. This novel is about Cole (a character who was present in some of Layne’s previous novels) who is a notorious womanizer and freelance sports writer. He’s hoping to be hired to a full-time sports writer position at the magazine he often writes for, Oxford, and thinks he’s a shoo-in because he already has a relationship with the editor-in-chief and other staff. Enter Penelope, a woman who lives and breathes sports and wants a chance to prove she has what it takes to make it in the cutthroat sport writing world (a world where there aren’t too many females leading the way). Cole and Penelope meet during a baseball game, where he’s enamored with the way she watches the game with her entire being… until he realizes she’s his competition for the job of his dreams. Guys, I loved Penelope. I loved her so damn much that I wish she was a real person because I’d like to be her best friend. It was obvious from the beginning that she wasn’t Cole’s usual “type” – she was short and skinny with no chest and had no fashion sense – but there was something about the fact that she wasn’t his usual type that drew him to her. Their love story was sweet and hopeful and made me happy sigh when I finished this book. (Add to Goodreads.)

What I’m Reading This Week

  • Everybody’s Son by Thrity Umrigar – I recommended this book to my book club as our April read, and everyone was on board, so I’m diving into it this week! By the synopsis, I know it’s going to be a really heavy read, so I’m bracing myself for it by making sure I have some romances on deck to read when I need a break from the heaviness.
  • Take the Lead by Alexis Daria – I’ve heard amazing things about this book (it’s basically like Dancing With the Stars in romance novel form), so I think I’ll start it sometime this week.
  • The Way Home by Cindy Gerard – I’ll be starting this romance after Take the Lead. Cindy Gerard is my favorite romantic suspense author, so I’m really looking forward to this one.
  • Born a Crime by Trevor Noah – I like to listen to one nonfiction and one fiction audiobook every month, so I started Trevor Noah’s memoir yesterday. I actually won a copy of his book through a Goodreads giveaway, but I wanted to listen to it on audiobook because I hear his narration is fantastic. My library didn’t have this on audiobook, so I used up my one free Audible credit to listen to it. So far, so great.

What are you reading this week?