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stephsbooktalk's Reviews (915)
I am a remote employee and have co workers in Florida who are also readers. After stumbling upon a Tik Tok about how a reader started a "Sisterhood of the Traveling Book", my co workers and I decided we wanted to give it a try.
My pick was Hello Beautiful. The buzz about this book was so strong in the book community that I knew it had the potential to be a great pick for me to share with my reader friends. This is not normally a genre either of them read so I'm very anxious/excited to see their thoughts.
I paired reading this book with the audio courtesy of Penguin Random House Audio and actress Maura Tierney who I thought did a great job!
"I'm a house, and when I find my great love, I'll become the entire world."
I absolutely loved this book! I did not realize into after I started reading this and then looked at the description that this was a homage to Little Women so after knowing that I definitely was picturing Timothee Chalamet as William, Florence Pugh as Sylvie and Saoirse Ronan as Julia.
I am not super skilled in the story of Little Women but do remember some things from the most recent adaptation but Napolitano put her own spin on the classic.
If you are an emotional reader, you may want to have your kleenex ready as there are moments spread throughout the book that will tug at your heartstrings.
This book was told from a few point of views (primarily William, Julia and Sylvie) in fairly short chapters between the years 1960 to 2008.
There is a lot that happens between the characters of course the of the decades that I do not want to go too in depth with as it would be a spoiler. The family has to work together after loss and changes amongst their dynamic and how to establish a new normal.
The relationship between the sisters was such a special bond that my heart broke for them when it was fractured. I did not like their mother. I thought she was incredibly selfish and should've been more supportive of her daughters and their lives.
"I want more than that, you know. I want you to feel better. To love your life."
I was trying to decide if there was a character who I enjoyed the most but it is really hard to pick between. William is a complex human who just wants a sense of belonging and feeling love that was never given to him. Julia is hard headed and determined and stayed focus on what she wanted in a time where women did not get those opportunities. Sylvie is a book worm who is looking for her great love & feels this pull towards William even though he is with Julia.
A side character that stuck out with me was the best friend of William, Kent. He was such a good guy and we all could use a friend like Kent. He went above and beyond over and over and his love for William and the Padavano family was very strong. He didn't have to do the things he did, but he did and I know William is forever thankful for him.
I know Napolitano's prior book Dear Edward has been adapted for television last year and I could see this one being adapted as well.
I think this book would be great for book clubs & anyone who loves family dramas that take place over the course of years.
My pick was Hello Beautiful. The buzz about this book was so strong in the book community that I knew it had the potential to be a great pick for me to share with my reader friends. This is not normally a genre either of them read so I'm very anxious/excited to see their thoughts.
I paired reading this book with the audio courtesy of Penguin Random House Audio and actress Maura Tierney who I thought did a great job!
"I'm a house, and when I find my great love, I'll become the entire world."
I absolutely loved this book! I did not realize into after I started reading this and then looked at the description that this was a homage to Little Women so after knowing that I definitely was picturing Timothee Chalamet as William, Florence Pugh as Sylvie and Saoirse Ronan as Julia.
I am not super skilled in the story of Little Women but do remember some things from the most recent adaptation but Napolitano put her own spin on the classic.
If you are an emotional reader, you may want to have your kleenex ready as there are moments spread throughout the book that will tug at your heartstrings.
This book was told from a few point of views (primarily William, Julia and Sylvie) in fairly short chapters between the years 1960 to 2008.
There is a lot that happens between the characters of course the of the decades that I do not want to go too in depth with as it would be a spoiler. The family has to work together after loss and changes amongst their dynamic and how to establish a new normal.
The relationship between the sisters was such a special bond that my heart broke for them when it was fractured. I did not like their mother. I thought she was incredibly selfish and should've been more supportive of her daughters and their lives.
"I want more than that, you know. I want you to feel better. To love your life."
I was trying to decide if there was a character who I enjoyed the most but it is really hard to pick between. William is a complex human who just wants a sense of belonging and feeling love that was never given to him. Julia is hard headed and determined and stayed focus on what she wanted in a time where women did not get those opportunities. Sylvie is a book worm who is looking for her great love & feels this pull towards William even though he is with Julia.
A side character that stuck out with me was the best friend of William, Kent. He was such a good guy and we all could use a friend like Kent. He went above and beyond over and over and his love for William and the Padavano family was very strong. He didn't have to do the things he did, but he did and I know William is forever thankful for him.
I know Napolitano's prior book Dear Edward has been adapted for television last year and I could see this one being adapted as well.
I think this book would be great for book clubs & anyone who loves family dramas that take place over the course of years.
Meg Jones is one of my favorite instagram accounts & when I saw she was writing a book, I knew I had to read it!!! She did not disappoint!
Jones really brought the angst between Olive and Ben. At one point I consulted with a friend to see how much of the book was filled with the sparring because it was a little strong. Perhaps I had just been waiting for the turning point to come but I understood that tension had to build.
"It was exhausting to keep up the act, to pretend to so many people that things were fine and I was fine and everything was fine and not at all on fire."
Though the romance and her relationship with Ben is a big part of this book, there also was a lot of focus on Olive's grief and her stubbornness in not willing to seek out help. I have not lost a parent but I can imagine how difficult it is to go through and the wave of emotions you feel. Am I supposed to have fun? Am I allowed to cry? Am I ready to take the next step? I thought this book did a good job with Olive's grief and how that it doesn't just go away. I also enjoyed her moments with her father - them talking about her mother and then him recognizing that his daughter needed help.
I do not think Olive realized that her grief was spilling over into other aspects of her life. It was sad to see it all unravel throughout the course of the book. You want to trust your friend when they say they are fine but as Ben said, he could tell that she was just not the same.
"Because Olive, I'm far from finished with you. If I only get one night, I'm going to make sure I work every bit of it I can."
The spice in this was perfection! I thought there was just enough (which Jones was kind enough to lay out the chapters at the end in the Dicktionary). Ben was such a great book boyfriend & I was swooning left and right over the things he said and did. I am daydreaming about him now as I write about him. This makes me really excited to see what other book boyfriends Jones comes up with in future books.
Also what I thought was unique was that Jones had each chapter a collerating song which then was part of a playlist for the book. I did actually listen to the playlist as I read which just help set the mood.
I am very excited to see what Meg writes next and will be biting at the bits while I wait!
If you are a fan of The Hating Game but with spice, you will surely enjoy this!!
Jones really brought the angst between Olive and Ben. At one point I consulted with a friend to see how much of the book was filled with the sparring because it was a little strong. Perhaps I had just been waiting for the turning point to come but I understood that tension had to build.
"It was exhausting to keep up the act, to pretend to so many people that things were fine and I was fine and everything was fine and not at all on fire."
Though the romance and her relationship with Ben is a big part of this book, there also was a lot of focus on Olive's grief and her stubbornness in not willing to seek out help. I have not lost a parent but I can imagine how difficult it is to go through and the wave of emotions you feel. Am I supposed to have fun? Am I allowed to cry? Am I ready to take the next step? I thought this book did a good job with Olive's grief and how that it doesn't just go away. I also enjoyed her moments with her father - them talking about her mother and then him recognizing that his daughter needed help.
I do not think Olive realized that her grief was spilling over into other aspects of her life. It was sad to see it all unravel throughout the course of the book. You want to trust your friend when they say they are fine but as Ben said, he could tell that she was just not the same.
"Because Olive, I'm far from finished with you. If I only get one night, I'm going to make sure I work every bit of it I can."
The spice in this was perfection! I thought there was just enough (which Jones was kind enough to lay out the chapters at the end in the Dicktionary). Ben was such a great book boyfriend & I was swooning left and right over the things he said and did. I am daydreaming about him now as I write about him. This makes me really excited to see what other book boyfriends Jones comes up with in future books.
Also what I thought was unique was that Jones had each chapter a collerating song which then was part of a playlist for the book. I did actually listen to the playlist as I read which just help set the mood.
I am very excited to see what Meg writes next and will be biting at the bits while I wait!
If you are a fan of The Hating Game but with spice, you will surely enjoy this!!
Thank you so much to Berkley Romance for an advance copy of this!
This is my first Sonya Lalli book and won't be my last. This was such a delightful read with heart and humor! I also loved some of the pop culture references that Lalli threw in there that made me laugh.
Quick Recap: Jasmine and her boyfriend broke up (again) and she decided to join her parents on a Alaskan cruise. Expecting that it was going to be filled with childhood friends that she would reconnect with instead it was a senior cruise. She spots another young cruise goer whom she mistakens for a waiter. Turns out Jake was someone she babysat as a teen. While navigating these new feelings for Jake she is also working to improve her relationship with her parents who never took her serious.
Jasmine had tried so hard not to fall for Jake but his charm was undeniable. Heck I was even charmed by him. He never gave a reason to doubt Jasmine but she just wasn't sure if he was just being a flirt/playboy and didn't want to end up hurt. Could a 28 year old be ready for a relationship with a slightly older woman who is ready for a serious committed relationship? I love when they would have their heart to heart that allowed them both be vulnerable to each other. They were playful with each other and Jake could tell when Jasmine needed backup to deal with the aunties on the ship.
I had seen reviews prior to reading saying that this was women's lit as oppose to a romance. Was this a full open door romance? No but I thought there was enough of the dynamic with Jake to make it a romance. I thought this gave a good balance between her growing relationship with Jake and her mending the relationship with her parents.
This book would be a perfect palate cleanser that has just enough sweetness and humor that would make you smile after an emotional read or opposite a scary thriller.
In addition, I paired my reading with the audio via Penguin Random House and the narrator Mayuri Bhandari was the perfect choice to voice Jasmine.
This definitely made me want to go to Alaska (which I already wanted to go to) and heck I would even do a cruise! You'll want to read this if you like forced proximity (hello cruise ship), dreams of Alaska & meddling family members.
This is my first Sonya Lalli book and won't be my last. This was such a delightful read with heart and humor! I also loved some of the pop culture references that Lalli threw in there that made me laugh.
Quick Recap: Jasmine and her boyfriend broke up (again) and she decided to join her parents on a Alaskan cruise. Expecting that it was going to be filled with childhood friends that she would reconnect with instead it was a senior cruise. She spots another young cruise goer whom she mistakens for a waiter. Turns out Jake was someone she babysat as a teen. While navigating these new feelings for Jake she is also working to improve her relationship with her parents who never took her serious.
Jasmine had tried so hard not to fall for Jake but his charm was undeniable. Heck I was even charmed by him. He never gave a reason to doubt Jasmine but she just wasn't sure if he was just being a flirt/playboy and didn't want to end up hurt. Could a 28 year old be ready for a relationship with a slightly older woman who is ready for a serious committed relationship? I love when they would have their heart to heart that allowed them both be vulnerable to each other. They were playful with each other and Jake could tell when Jasmine needed backup to deal with the aunties on the ship.
I had seen reviews prior to reading saying that this was women's lit as oppose to a romance. Was this a full open door romance? No but I thought there was enough of the dynamic with Jake to make it a romance. I thought this gave a good balance between her growing relationship with Jake and her mending the relationship with her parents.
This book would be a perfect palate cleanser that has just enough sweetness and humor that would make you smile after an emotional read or opposite a scary thriller.
In addition, I paired my reading with the audio via Penguin Random House and the narrator Mayuri Bhandari was the perfect choice to voice Jasmine.
This definitely made me want to go to Alaska (which I already wanted to go to) and heck I would even do a cruise! You'll want to read this if you like forced proximity (hello cruise ship), dreams of Alaska & meddling family members.
Thank you so much to Berkley Romance for an advance copy of this book!
I will be honest. I wasn't sure what to think about this book in the first 25% as it just felt like an okay book but as it went on, more and more I was becoming attached to these characters. I gravitated towards this book just from the very first line of the description. I didn't need to see anything more. I knew it was going to be my kind of book.
"You can have good things, but you have to let yourself have them."
Quick Recap of book: Cassie is looking for a full time job while finishing up school. She previously was a sex worker with an anonymous account on OnlyFans but abruptly stopped after one of her biggest customers suddenly ghosted her and she didn't feel the need to go back. Cassie answers an ad for a live-in nanny - enter Aiden and Sophie. Cassie realizes pretty early on that Aiden was her former customer on her OnlyFans and is afraid of telling Aiden and messing things up.
I just love the relationship that Cassie has with everyone in this book. Her relationship with Wanda proves that found family are just so important. Her relationship with Aiden's daughter Sophie was so sweet and you could tell that Sophie really valued Cassie's presence. Cassie just has this way with people that is just so special. I can't even say that the banter was great between Cassie and Aiden but it also was fun reading her interactions with Sophie and Wanda.
I do think that Cassie made the mistake and overreact during the 4th quarter shakeup that a conversation could've fixed it all. But all she knew was to run away separate herself from the issue. And there were times where I wasn't sure how Cassie didn't realize the overlapping of the time Aiden disappeared from OnlyFans with his baby mother's death. It had kept being brought up and even was interfering with their potential future which just didn't make sense But alas I still love her character and everyone is flawed.
"I'm offering you my whole damned life, if you want it."
The character Iris was an interesting one! Clearly still grieving over her sister's death, she is taking her anger with that and taking it out on Cassie. Honestly though do most siblings of a deceased get that protective of a niece when there is a supportive, capable father in the picture?! That probably was the most unrealistic aspect of the book (aside from the kismet of Aiden & Cassie finding one another).
I paired this with the audio courtesy of Penguin Random House and when I got to those spicy parts halfway and in the 4th quarter, my goodness I was blushing! The door was wide open and my goodness it just did not disappoint. I honestly was waiting for them to get caught a few times with just how things were going. Aiden was just so swoony.
This book just made me happy and despite the length (which probably could've been edited down a bit), I thoroughly enjoyed it all and didn't want it to end.
I debated back and forth on what I wanted to rate this book and ultimately it still makes me smile days later and so I have to give it the 5 star approval.
I am so excited to see what else Lana Ferguson does & will be looking forward to reading her 2nd book later this year.
I will be honest. I wasn't sure what to think about this book in the first 25% as it just felt like an okay book but as it went on, more and more I was becoming attached to these characters. I gravitated towards this book just from the very first line of the description. I didn't need to see anything more. I knew it was going to be my kind of book.
"You can have good things, but you have to let yourself have them."
Quick Recap of book: Cassie is looking for a full time job while finishing up school. She previously was a sex worker with an anonymous account on OnlyFans but abruptly stopped after one of her biggest customers suddenly ghosted her and she didn't feel the need to go back. Cassie answers an ad for a live-in nanny - enter Aiden and Sophie. Cassie realizes pretty early on that Aiden was her former customer on her OnlyFans and is afraid of telling Aiden and messing things up.
I just love the relationship that Cassie has with everyone in this book. Her relationship with Wanda proves that found family are just so important. Her relationship with Aiden's daughter Sophie was so sweet and you could tell that Sophie really valued Cassie's presence. Cassie just has this way with people that is just so special. I can't even say that the banter was great between Cassie and Aiden but it also was fun reading her interactions with Sophie and Wanda.
I do think that Cassie made the mistake and overreact during the 4th quarter shakeup that a conversation could've fixed it all. But all she knew was to run away separate herself from the issue. And there were times where I wasn't sure how Cassie didn't realize the overlapping of the time Aiden disappeared from OnlyFans with his baby mother's death. It had kept being brought up and even was interfering with their potential future which just didn't make sense But alas I still love her character and everyone is flawed.
"I'm offering you my whole damned life, if you want it."
The character Iris was an interesting one! Clearly still grieving over her sister's death, she is taking her anger with that and taking it out on Cassie. Honestly though do most siblings of a deceased get that protective of a niece when there is a supportive, capable father in the picture?! That probably was the most unrealistic aspect of the book (aside from the kismet of Aiden & Cassie finding one another).
I paired this with the audio courtesy of Penguin Random House and when I got to those spicy parts halfway and in the 4th quarter, my goodness I was blushing! The door was wide open and my goodness it just did not disappoint. I honestly was waiting for them to get caught a few times with just how things were going. Aiden was just so swoony.
This book just made me happy and despite the length (which probably could've been edited down a bit), I thoroughly enjoyed it all and didn't want it to end.
I debated back and forth on what I wanted to rate this book and ultimately it still makes me smile days later and so I have to give it the 5 star approval.
I am so excited to see what else Lana Ferguson does & will be looking forward to reading her 2nd book later this year.
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I love a full cast audio!!! One thing I have come to realize with thrillers is that I love when characters are stuck in one place for the duration of the book. Several thrillers that I have enjoyed had this trope (?) and I can add this one to the list! If you are a fan of cooking/baking competitions, you may want to check this one out. There are different point of views for the contestants. I think I would consider this a cozy mystery and you are trying to figure out who died and why. The end was not super shocking but still enjoyable.
This was such a cute YA book! I kept seeing this one posted during the TransReadAThon which also was promoting queer stories. If you know me, you know that I love when romances and any book have 2 POVs (I absolutely loved the narrator for Theo's POV). Each character had their own family struggles but yet a common bond over each of their family's business being in trouble. They decided to start selling food at school to draw buzz to their family's respected business. I definitely don't know what it's like to have a family the owns a business so I'm not sure I can attest that the fate of a store should not be determined by a teenager. I also am not sure the average teenager would go to such great lengths to save their family's business.
It was just a cute listen, thought the pacing was fine and went quick.
It was just a cute listen, thought the pacing was fine and went quick.
This was such a solid book! I thought it was excellent via audio and the narrator's tone was so nice to listen to. This is another one to add to the list of books with family drama. There is a mystery involved as Ray's family violin has come up missing the night before his biggest competition. This book starts and end in the present but a good chunk of the middle is told from the past. We see how Ray came to start playing the violin and when he was given the family's violin. I was getting so angry over so many things that happened to Ray throughout the book between his mom, treatment from his uncles & aunts, racists people in his community - it all was infuriating. I definitely recommend this!
I had seen this one recently floating around the Bookstagram space and heard it was compared to My Big Fat Greek Wedding so naturally I was immediately sold! I will admit the first 25% I was a little lost with all the different family members and their storylines but I then picked up on who was who. This could have been a different experience had I read while listening or just read. The family loved so deeply for one another. I love that we got to hear love stories from the different generations and how you are never too old to start over and fall in love.
If you are a fan of family stories with lots of big personality in the characters, this could be the one for you!
If you are a fan of family stories with lots of big personality in the characters, this could be the one for you!
This was such a fun listen! If you are into messy rich people drama with lots of mommy issues, this one's for you! This is told from two timelines - Bea's past and Bea's present. She learned from her mother how to get her way with men. Bea meets Collin and "falls" in love but his best friend Gayle somehow finds out all of Bea's secrets and threatens her. I really enjoyed the audio and thought the narrator did an excellent job bringing Bea to life. I got to be a part of an author q&a with my book club and I learned that this is being (hopefully) adapted for television and the author works in Hollywood. And the author has ideas for a sequel with Syl as the narrator or a prequel about the mother.
"I have no faith in love. Love cannot save me. I choose vengeance."
Yay! Stephanie finally read a fantasy and could follow along with no issue!!!
I paired the text with the audio and I think that really helped me really be able to picture the world of Huaxia. Granted some stuff was still a little high level for my brain but I was able to put the pieces together to have the picture come together.
I thought the world building was just enough for me. Zetian is such a badass character and just the coolest. I love that Zetian was willing to sacrifice her life and what she believed in and felt so strongly about how women were treated in by her government.
"It's hilarious. Men want us so badly for our bodies, yet hate us so much for our minds."
I love the relationship she had with Yizhi and Shimin. The 3 of them together is one unbelievable force and I am excited to see what happens in the next book. I'm also excited to see how her relationship with the two men grow together and within each of the pairing.
Yay! Stephanie finally read a fantasy and could follow along with no issue!!!
I paired the text with the audio and I think that really helped me really be able to picture the world of Huaxia. Granted some stuff was still a little high level for my brain but I was able to put the pieces together to have the picture come together.
I thought the world building was just enough for me. Zetian is such a badass character and just the coolest. I love that Zetian was willing to sacrifice her life and what she believed in and felt so strongly about how women were treated in by her government.
"It's hilarious. Men want us so badly for our bodies, yet hate us so much for our minds."
I love the relationship she had with Yizhi and Shimin. The 3 of them together is one unbelievable force and I am excited to see what happens in the next book. I'm also excited to see how her relationship with the two men grow together and within each of the pairing.