Happy Monday, friends. How’s everyone doing today? I had yet another slow, lazy weekend. I really wish my weekends could be as productive as other people’s seem to be, but I find myself so much more inclined to laziness. Maybe I should make a to-do list of sorts? Or not. I don’t know. I’m not necessarily upset about it—what else is there really to do?! And at least I’m getting lots of good sleep now. I’ve never been so well-rested!
Last week, I finished three books so I’m still five books ahead of where I need to be for my Goodreads yearly goal of 135 books. One of the things I’m not doing that’s moderately affecting my reading life is listening to audiobooks. I used to bang out 2-3 audiobooks a month thanks to my commute and driving around, but I’m barely driving these days so I haven’t listened to an audiobook in over a month! I miss audiobooks, but I can barely keep up with my podcast feed as it is, so I don’t know when I’ll add them back into my listening rotation.
Books Finished
Eight Hundred Grapes by Laura Dave (★★★★☆)
One sentence synopsis: After finding out a week before her wedding that her fiance has been keeping an explosive secret from her, Georgia flees to her family’s winery.
This novel was such a wonderful, light, easy read! I’m not much of a wine connoisseur, but I’m sure the setting of a winery in Napa Valley would be a great pull for some readers. (Eight hundred grapes refers to the amount of grapes needed for one bottle of wine.) There were times when I thought some of the dialogue was a little too… honest… but maybe that’s because my family operates in an entirely different way, haha. The writing was beautiful and I love how I wasn’t sure whether I wanted Georgia to end up with her fiance or not!
Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montimore (★★★★☆)
One sentence synopsis: Oona is 19 on New Year’s Eve 1982, but then she faints right before the stroke of midnight and wakes up 32 years later, thus beginning her life as a time traveler, leaping to a different age at random every year.
This book was so inventive and fun! It made me really consider what it would be like to wake up in an entirely different body every year and have to figure out who the people in your life are and what they mean to you. The relationship between Oona and her mom was so special and lovely. It’s always nice to see healthy mother/daughter relationships in books! I will admit that Oona could be a bit unlikable at times (of course, she was also in her early twenties throughout the novel and I could understand her frustration at this crazy life she had to come to terms with) and made decisions I didn’t entirely agree with, but it was a really fun read—perfect for quarantine!
Advanced Physical Chemistry by Susannah Nix (★★☆☆☆)
One sentence synopsis: After Penny discovers her boyfriend is cheating on her, she swears off men, only to find out that the hottie barista at her local coffee shop has a crush on her.
This book had a lot of potential, but it just didn’t live up to my expectations. I felt like Nix used the character’s plus-size body in a way that felt disingenuous and fat-phobic at times. It was almost as if the author felt like she had to make her main character fat because it would make it all the more crazy that this hot, looks-like-Zac-Ephron barista was crushing on her. Meh. That said, I enjoyed the relationship between the two characters and the way they grew together as they learned to open up and trust one another. The sex scenes were also pretty tame, so this book may appeal to readers who love a closed-door romance.
What I’m Reading This Week
I’m about halfway through Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate, a novel many friends have read and raved about. I’m enjoying it, although the heaviness of the story feels a little much for me right now and I find myself less inclined to pick it up. I may need to adjust my TBR list to make sure I’m sticking to lighter reads until life gets back to normal.
I’ve also picked up American Sweethearts, the last book in Adriana Herrera’s Dreamers series. I’m dipping in and out of this one, and it’s a good palate cleanser for when Before We Were Yours gets heavy.
What are you reading?
Don’t make a to do list! Make your weekend exactly what you want it! I hate too productive weekends. They leave me drained for the start of the week.
I am curious about the honest dialogue in Eight Hundred Grapes! I bet it would seem unrelatable to me, too.
I really think we need a part 2 for Oona where she is navigating life in her late 30s or even 40s so we can see how she matures!
I am reading Neverwhere. At first I was in to it, and then I was like “uh oh, it’s getting a bit too fantasy-y for me.” We’ll see what happens!
I like the new format!
Before We Were Yours is such a heavy topic so I can see why you aren’t drawn to it right now! I have thought about picking up 800 Grapes so will have to check it out since you enjoyed it. I need light reads right now!
I’m reading “The Stationary Shop” right now which is our May book club. I was thinking I would need to buy it but then I realized it was available on kindle unlimited so I signed up for a free 2 month trial so I could have access to the book. It’s a heavier topic as it’s set in Iran during a revolution in the 1950s but it’s really well-written so that kind of makes up for the heaviness of the topic! After that, I am thinking I will read “Such a Fun Age”. I just need to call the library and arrange a time for curbside pick-up. I’m so glad my library is offering that! I’m not sure how many books will be available but even if I just get a couple, it will be great.
Eh, my weekends (when I am not on call) tend to be pretty lazy, too. It’s not just you, my friend.
Um, Oona out of Order sounds really good! I’ll have to see if I can find it.
I am about half way through the Chaos of Standing Still by Jessica Brody. I have not been doing as much reading the last few days, so I am trying to work in a bit before bed in the evening.