A very sweet and endearing story of the things we do for love, and the hard decisions we have to make in the name of love. This book could have been 4.5 or 5 stars, but some of it was a little implausible and it has a few flaws, but is an overall engrossing story of life and live before and after WWII. I liked the Grand Central Terminal setting and Manhattanhenge elements.

4-4.5 stars

Ahh.. just what I needed. The second Beatriz Williams novel I’ve read, and both have been right in my wheelhouse - historical romance, engrossing storyline, epic love story told over time...

3.5⭐️ ⭐️⭐️💫

A fun, fast, rom-com that I read in one summer day!

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
3.5

Not quite suspense, not quite mystery... but an interesting story about a family and how miscommunication and first impressions can completely effect relationships. There is an underlying “question” that is slowly answered.

Uhhhhmm... For some reason I was irritated with this book. “Literary Mystery” seems to be a new hot trend, not quite suspenseful, but more of a literary story that has an underlying mystery throughout. Literary mysteries focus more on character relationships and themes of family, love, journeys of self-discovery, etc. This is the third book in this genre I’ve read in the past several months (Miracle Creek, The Mother-in-Law).

I did like the setting of the Netherlands, intertwined with the culture of a Chinese family and how their traditions and familial customs affected the main character, Sylvie. But ultimately there were a lot of plot points and loopholes that fell flat for me.

These days, “suspense” for me is a riveting historical fiction or deeply emotionally epic love story.

I enjoyed listening to the author narrate her collection of essays/memoir. This book has gotten so much buzz in the past several months, and it didn’t live up to the 5-star hype for me. However, I did really connect with Mary Laura’s “identity crisis” (really an experience in pondering her life and what she wanted to do next) in her late 30’s.

Liz Gilbert is a part of the tribe of women that I look to for spiritual guidance, wisdom, and how to do life (see also Glennon Doyle, Brené Brown, Martha Beck). This was my favorite fiction by Liz so far - fun, endearing, but a little long.

3.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ A sweet and honest coming of age/self discovery story. Bonus: a tale of millennials partying at the beach all summer!

This is 4.5-⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A truly honest portrayal of life: how trauma can be passed down through generations, how it can affect everyone in a family, what it’s like to be the spouse or loved one of an alcoholic, bring the child of a parent with mental illness.... one of the best books of the year.