What I’m Reading (10.21.24)

Funny Story by Emily Henry (★★★★☆)

Print • Owned (indie bookstore) • Contemporary Romance • 2024

Short synopsis: After her fiancé leaves her for his best friend, Daphne finds herself in a small town, sharing a house with Miles—her ex’s new fiancée’s ex. As they navigate their heartbreak and stage a fake relationship, Daphne faces the possibility of real feelings in her fresh start.

This was such a fun romance! I was immediately drawn into Daphne and Miles’s worlds, and I love the uniqueness of their “meet cute”: Two exes living together after their exes leave them for each other. I love a unique plot like that! Daphne is in a bad place when her fiance leaves her – she’s in a city she moved to for him where she doesn’t have any sort of support system. Her whole life was him. I’ve known people like this (someone in the novel says Daphne is a “we” person, as in “we did this and we did that” – they don’t really have an identity outside of their relationship), and I thought the way Emily Henry explored that concept to be great. Daphne really had to come to terms with being single for the first time in a long time and learn how to make friends and build a life in this new city. I really loved the growing relationship between her and Miles, too. They were so sweet together and their love story made me happy sigh. I thought the novel was perfectly paced and while the dark moment was not my favorite, I appreciated how it resolved. All in all, I’d probably list this as my second favorite Emily Henry romance! (My list from favorite to least favorite: Book Lovers, Funny Story, Beach Read, Happy Place, and People We Meet on Vacation.)

The End of Her by Shari Lapena (★★★☆☆)

Print • Owned (Amazon) • Thriller • 2020

Short synopsis: Stephanie and Patrick’s seemingly perfect life with newborn twins unravels when a woman from Patrick’s past accuses him of murdering his first wife, challenging his claim that her death was an accident. 

Typically, I love a Shari Lapena thriller, but this one did not work for me at all. First, I thought a lot of the dialogue was pretty cringe-worthy and not well-written. Second, I found it hard to root for any of the characters, but most especially Patrick and the “other woman” in the story. They felt like caricatures rather than real people. And finally, there were the twists. The first twist in the novel wasn’t all that surprising and then the second one really came out of left field—and not in a good way. Sometimes a really crazy twist can feel satisfying, but this one felt unearned. I just didn’t enjoy this thriller, point blank. It wasn’t a fun read and I was pretty disappointed in the ending. I rated it 2.5 stars, rounded up to 3.

Mrs. Nash’s Ashes by Sarah Adler (★★★★☆)

Audiobook • Spotify • Contemporary Romance • 2023

Short synopsis: A starry-eyed romantic, a cynical writer, and (the ashes of) an elderly woman take the road trip of a lifetime that just might upend everything they believe about true love.

I loved this sweet romance novel, although if I had known I was going to have to listen to some of the explicit sex scenes, I might have thought differently about the medium I chose. (I rarely listen to romance on audio because the sex scenes can be so cringy to listen to!) This novel is mostly about Millie and Hollis, but it’s also about the ashes of Mrs. Nash. Millie has a few tablespoons of her late friend’s ashes to deliver to Mrs. Nash’s first true love who is dying in a hospital in Key West. It’s a weird premise for sure, but a really sweet one, too. The present-day timeline of Millie and Hollis’s road trip is interspersed with a past storyline, when Rose (the future Mrs. Nash) was stationed in Key West during World War II and falling in love with a nurse named Elsie. I’ve read so many books lately that are using this plot device to tell a story (a present storyline mixed in with a past storyline) and I am so tired of it. I understand that in many cases it helps to provide a greater understanding of the characters, but one of the storylines is always so much less interesting than the other one. In this case, I knew Rose and Elsie’s love story was doomed to fail and didn’t find their scenes to be particularly compelling, so I was retty bored by this storyline. (I might have even skipped those chapters if I was reading the book rather than listening to it.) But hey, YMMV. I still really enjoyed this romance and recommend picking it up if you want a feel-good romance to read.

It Happened One Wedding by Julie James (★★★★☆)

E-Book • Library • Contemporary Romance • 2014

Short synopsis: After a broken engagement, investment banker Sidney Sinclair swears off commitment-phobic men, but she’s forced into close contact with playboy Special Agent Vaughn Roberts as her sister’s wedding approaches. Despite her resistance, Vaughn’s determination to win her over turns their battle of wills into a genuine pursuit of love.

This book was a reread for me, and I am really leaning into comforting romances right now. I love Julie James’ books, and I am sad she’s no longer writing but at least I have a nice backlist I can return to again and again. This romance was excellent with two super confident and stubborn individuals who were absolutely perfect for each other but needed a bit of time to come to terms with that. This book was written a decade ago and there were some dated references, mostly when Sidney talked about signing up for a “dating website.” Remember when we had to do that and it was weird to be on something like Match or OK Cupid? Ha! It was a fun book that didn’t require me to think too hard, and mostly just gave me happy, ooey-gooey, lovey-dovey feels.

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies by Deesha Philyaw (★★★★☆)

Print • Owned (Little Free Library) • Short Stories • 2020

Short synopsis: The Secret Lives of Church Ladies explores the raw and tender places where Black women and girls dare to follow their desires and pursue a momentary reprieve from being good. The nine stories in this collection feature four generations of characters grappling with who they want to be in the world, caught as they are between the church’s double standards and their own needs and passions.

I picked up this slim book on a whim, knowing it would be something easy to slip in and out of. I read one short story every day and it was the perfect pace for me. My disclaimer for this collection is that there is a lot of cheating happening (stay away, Lisa!) and the book felt really melancholy for the most part. But I was feeling melancholy so it worked for me. It was nice to sit in my feelings while reading this book. The writing is gorgeous and the stories are quick, and I’m glad I finally pulled this one off my bookshelf to read.

What are you reading?