a_stylish_bookworm's Reviews (1.53k)

This is sort of a take on Pretty Woman. I like that Ramses came from a humble background and gave back to the community. 

The dynamics between Ramses and Blake was interesting. She was his student and she challenged him. 

The story is steamy and I really liked the artwork in each chapter.

This has an interesting premise but it just didn't work for me. The idea of renting a stranger and his view sounded good. I felt detached to any of the characters and there was no development. 

I think his recurring role as was the best part of the story. At the same time, I felt bad for the him for having no one and being deceitful to the child

This was such a great ending to this series. I love Theo and Mai together and Mitchell did such a great job with characters representation of living full lives with disabilities and anxieties. The friends to lovers between the two was perfection with the banter. 

Theo is the perfect cinnamon roll. I love how attentive he was. I always enjoy seeing characters from the other books appear in this. This can be read as a standalone but it's so much better to read all of the books.

This series just keeps getting better!! I love seeing Sutton and her son in the other books and excited to get their story. 

Sutton and Cope is so good together. Cope is the perfect book boyfriend and how he took and cares for both Sutton and her son. 

Cowles does such a great job building the tension and the same time revealing the backstory on Sutton. 

Teddy Hamilton, Erin Mallon both did a great job on the narration.

This was such a fun debut thriller. We have twins, Julie and Chloe who were separated when their parents died. Julie lived with her aunt and Chloe was adopted into a wealthy couple. 

Chloe is a famous influencer while Julie is at a dead end job. A viral video made them reconnect and Julie finds her sister dead at her apartment and decides she wanted Chloe's life instead. 

I love how the story pokes fun of being an influencer and the darker side of it. The sarcasm and how unhinged the story kept going kept me so entertained. The humor is dark and all the characters were quirky and wacky. 

Yu-Li Alice Shen did a great job with narration and different voices for the characters. 

Thank you @simon.audio @atriabooks for a copy of this.

Please don't hate me for not loving this book. I love Backman's writing and was excited to read My Friends. 

This story is about friendship, that one unforgettable summer in your teens, about loss and love for art. We start with Louisa, a foster care child that is wanting to see a famous piece of art in her town. She by chance meets that artist and they have an instant connection. 

We have Louisa then crossing path with Ted, who was the artist's friend and they go on a journey that goes back 25 years of Ted, the artist and the friends that summer that inspired the picture. 

Along the way, we learn more about Louisa as well and what she has been through. The story at parts moved a bit slow for me. 

I thought it was interesting that we don't get the artist's name until almost the end. I am curious what is the purpose of that. 

Thank you @atriabooks for a copy of this.

I love a dark academic thriller and Julie Soto nailed it with her debut thriller. I love her romance novels and was excited to dive into this. Set in high school in Sacramento, we have the death of Emily. 

The story centers on The Thrashers, a group of kids that hang out with Zack Thrashers. The Thrashers are all rich and popular except Jodi, who feels lucky to be part of them. 

The story follows Jodi as she uncovers what happened and Emily's journal which was uncovered as part of the investigation. 

The story is fast paced and there is an element of spookiness to it. I loved how it all played out. 

Eva Kaminsky and Jesse Vilinsky did a great job with narration and bringing the story to life. 

Thank you @macmillan.audio @wednesdaybooks for a copy of the book.

I have so much mixed feelings about this story. 

Here's what I liked:
- the writing. Betty does a great job with words and bringing all the feelings to life 
- I liked the idea of sex positivity that the podcast aspect brought out 
- openness about therapy and how that helped Maeve through her trauma 

Here's what I didn't enjoy:
- Maeve and Finn's relationship was full of miscommunication. This is my least favorite trope so it drove me mad 
- Maeve getting angry at Finn for dating the one that got away. This felt so unfair to Finn and she didn't take any accountability 

If you don't mind miscommunication trope, you will enjoy this much more than I did. 

Thank you @youhadmeathea for a copy of the book. 

A former one show/season actress Ivy is down on her luck. She is no longer famous and is working at a super market and can't get any acting gigs. She gets a notice that it's time for a 10 year reunion and Ivy and her mom head down to LA for it.

What Ivy founds is that her best friend and co-star is dead and now she is in the middle of the investigation. The story is told with Ivy's rise to fame and her season as the newest star. I enjoyed the past with Ivy's experience with Hollywood and her relationship with her costars and producer. 

The story is fast paced and kept me devouring it and wanting to know what happens. 

Thank you to the publisher and @netgalley for a copy of the book.

Thank you @prhaudio @ballantinebooks for a copy of this book. 

Such bittersweet to be back with Molly and her found family at Grand Regency Hotel as this is the finale to the series. We have Molly and Juan, engaged and planning their wedding and life is good. The hotel is hosting a popular antique show and Molly decides to bring an egg her grandmother owned to have it evaluated and surprisingly is worth millions. 

The egg turns up missing and now Molly and her friends are trying to find out who stole it. The story is told in Molly's current POV and Molly's grandmother and how she came to have this egg through her journals. 

I loved getting to know more about grandma and how she was still so much part of the story. 

The story was well told and the mystery of the egg added another level of depth to the story. I loved that Lauren Ambrose narrated all 3 books and her voice for Molly is perfection.