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anabel_unker's Reviews (1.16k)
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
funny
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
*I received a copy of this book on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for this opportunity*
Jack Jr. wakes up to a world he doesn't recognize. He no longer has a nice water-view apartment, the company he worked for has been bought and no longer exists, and nobody will tell him where his finance-- the man he was preparing to spend a life with-- has disappeared to. Suddenly thirty, he's back in his childhood home working at the restaurant he ran away from at eighteen; slicing fish with his father and waking up before dawn to finish the fish run with his (now practically grown) nephew.
This story will resonate with people; it's an examination on second chances, familial love and forgiveness, and the opportunity to re-discover yourself after a new awakening. However, it wasn't for me this time around.
Jack Jr. wakes up to a world he doesn't recognize. He no longer has a nice water-view apartment, the company he worked for has been bought and no longer exists, and nobody will tell him where his finance-- the man he was preparing to spend a life with-- has disappeared to. Suddenly thirty, he's back in his childhood home working at the restaurant he ran away from at eighteen; slicing fish with his father and waking up before dawn to finish the fish run with his (now practically grown) nephew.
This story will resonate with people; it's an examination on second chances, familial love and forgiveness, and the opportunity to re-discover yourself after a new awakening. However, it wasn't for me this time around.
mysterious
slow-paced
emotional
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
*I received a copy of this book on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for this opportunity*
These were our bodies, and they were small, far too small, because they couldn't contain all our love.
Sometimes books are hard. Sometimes books are easy. Sometimes they make you laugh, or cry, or ponder, or feel. Sometimes, and only the very best ones do this, they change a part of your chemistry. They peel back a layer and allow a little glimpse into another world, another life, another way to be. They remind you what it means to be young and in love with life, they remind you how lucky you are to be alive and well, they remind you to be thankful for what you have experienced or haven't experienced.
I always feel a little raw after reading one of Backman's stories, and MY FRIENDS is no different. Fredrik Backman has an uncanny ability to tell a story around an idea; and at the heart of this story is what it means to love. Not in a romantic sense, but the marrow deep love you have for your childhood friends, your parents, your children, the helpless bird you find in the grass and decide to nurse back to health, your kindred souls.
This book will give you as much as you let it, and dear reader, I hope you approach it with an open heart and mind.
These were our bodies, and they were small, far too small, because they couldn't contain all our love.
Sometimes books are hard. Sometimes books are easy. Sometimes they make you laugh, or cry, or ponder, or feel. Sometimes, and only the very best ones do this, they change a part of your chemistry. They peel back a layer and allow a little glimpse into another world, another life, another way to be. They remind you what it means to be young and in love with life, they remind you how lucky you are to be alive and well, they remind you to be thankful for what you have experienced or haven't experienced.
I always feel a little raw after reading one of Backman's stories, and MY FRIENDS is no different. Fredrik Backman has an uncanny ability to tell a story around an idea; and at the heart of this story is what it means to love. Not in a romantic sense, but the marrow deep love you have for your childhood friends, your parents, your children, the helpless bird you find in the grass and decide to nurse back to health, your kindred souls.
This book will give you as much as you let it, and dear reader, I hope you approach it with an open heart and mind.
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
*I received a copy of this book on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for this opportunity*
After surviving several heart attacks and now living with an ICD implant, Jesse Reeves is ready to live a different life. One that's a little freer, a.little more fun, and that doesn't leave any room for emotional attachments. Having almost died, Jesse understands how quickly everything can be taken away from you-- and to keep herself on track, she's created a bucket list of new experiences to kick start her new chapter.
Item number one? Asher Jamison, her first one night stand. However, after one rather magical night, Asher keeps popping up like a lucky penny despite Jesse's insistence on keeping her distance. Before she knows it, Asher is joining Jesse on a cross-country roadtrip; and neither can ignore the sparks that keep flying.
Sweet and a little spicy, CHANGE OF PACE was an unexpected winner for me! I loved the representation (plus-size MFC, medicated ADHD, Kawasaki Disease, to name a few), the bucket-list road trip (that included some of my own personal favorite National Parks), and I'm an absolute sucker for a he-falls-first trope. This was a great listen while I was traveling myself, and is perfect for anyone craving a slightly-deeper, but fun romance.
After surviving several heart attacks and now living with an ICD implant, Jesse Reeves is ready to live a different life. One that's a little freer, a.little more fun, and that doesn't leave any room for emotional attachments. Having almost died, Jesse understands how quickly everything can be taken away from you-- and to keep herself on track, she's created a bucket list of new experiences to kick start her new chapter.
Item number one? Asher Jamison, her first one night stand. However, after one rather magical night, Asher keeps popping up like a lucky penny despite Jesse's insistence on keeping her distance. Before she knows it, Asher is joining Jesse on a cross-country roadtrip; and neither can ignore the sparks that keep flying.
Sweet and a little spicy, CHANGE OF PACE was an unexpected winner for me! I loved the representation (plus-size MFC, medicated ADHD, Kawasaki Disease, to name a few), the bucket-list road trip (that included some of my own personal favorite National Parks), and I'm an absolute sucker for a he-falls-first trope. This was a great listen while I was traveling myself, and is perfect for anyone craving a slightly-deeper, but fun romance.
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
*I received a copy of this book on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for this opportunity*
In the second book to the Castle Knoll series, Annie Adams has started the surprisingly difficult process of settling into her newly inherited home. Unfamiliar with her new hometown, and struggling to make the mansion her home rather than the site of a murder, Annie has yet to find her place. However, when the infamous fortune teller Peony Lane is found dead in her home, Annie has a much larger issue at hand-- someone is trying to frame her for the gruesome murder.
Back in 1967, as told by her journals, Frances Adams is lured into investigating a cold case-- the deaths of three Gravesdown family members in a horrifying car accident. In her personal life, Frances is caught between the attention of two men: the rich but aloof Ford Gravesdown or the local, slightly shiftless, lad Archie Foyle.
What unfolds is a mystery that spans decades, with plenty of twists and turns waiting behind every uncovered secret. As the two timelines intertwine, both Annie and Frances find themselves faced with difficult decisions on who to trust and even, maybe, who it's safe to love.
An intriguing and uniquely formatted mystery series, HOW TO SEAL YOUR OWN FATE is a solid sequel-- but it does lack some of the original charm from the first book, HOW TO SOLVE YOUR OWN MURDER. I definitely recommend reading this book directly after the first, the story picks up pretty much right after the first book with little reintroduction for returning readers.
While I'm intrigued by Annie's story, and excited to see how she continues to settle into her new life as heiress/murder investigator; I have to admit this wasn't my favorite cozy mystery. The plot was convoluted and pretty confusing at times, and I feel like I had more questions than answers at the end of the novel.
In the second book to the Castle Knoll series, Annie Adams has started the surprisingly difficult process of settling into her newly inherited home. Unfamiliar with her new hometown, and struggling to make the mansion her home rather than the site of a murder, Annie has yet to find her place. However, when the infamous fortune teller Peony Lane is found dead in her home, Annie has a much larger issue at hand-- someone is trying to frame her for the gruesome murder.
Back in 1967, as told by her journals, Frances Adams is lured into investigating a cold case-- the deaths of three Gravesdown family members in a horrifying car accident. In her personal life, Frances is caught between the attention of two men: the rich but aloof Ford Gravesdown or the local, slightly shiftless, lad Archie Foyle.
What unfolds is a mystery that spans decades, with plenty of twists and turns waiting behind every uncovered secret. As the two timelines intertwine, both Annie and Frances find themselves faced with difficult decisions on who to trust and even, maybe, who it's safe to love.
An intriguing and uniquely formatted mystery series, HOW TO SEAL YOUR OWN FATE is a solid sequel-- but it does lack some of the original charm from the first book, HOW TO SOLVE YOUR OWN MURDER. I definitely recommend reading this book directly after the first, the story picks up pretty much right after the first book with little reintroduction for returning readers.
While I'm intrigued by Annie's story, and excited to see how she continues to settle into her new life as heiress/murder investigator; I have to admit this wasn't my favorite cozy mystery. The plot was convoluted and pretty confusing at times, and I feel like I had more questions than answers at the end of the novel.