Back at it - 4 books I’ve read in the past two weeks
Hi there. It seems that I’ve been gone a while, I stopped blogging. Why did I? Potentially being overwhelmed with planning my wedding that was in June. Also busy with work and other functions… but really I felt as though it was not worth continuing because I wasn’t getting as many views on my posts! Silly I know, I think now I’ve come to terms on the thought that not everyone will read them, and maybe even no one will read them. The whole purpose is for me to enjoy writing about books!! Whether people read them or not, I should continue on.
I downloaded kindle on my phone to pass the time at work, and I’ve read through four novels in the past two weeks. (Normally I’m not a huge fan of reading on a screen, I much prefer the feel of a real book)
I’ve decided to write mini reviews of each one, in hopes that maybe they will grab someone’s attention. I truly enjoyed all of them! They were each very different from one another and I was even surprised by how much I enjoyed them.
Blackout
By Erin Flanagan
Genre: Psychological Thriller
Pages: 297
Overall Rating : 3.5/5
Overview: Sociology professor Maris Heilman has more to worry about than securing tenure at her university... after eight months of sobriety she has her first unnerving blackout. What could be causing this? Exhaustion? Illness? All the drinking finally catching up to her?
Whatever the cause is, the blackouts become more frequent, longer peiords of time erased from memory. Worried her husband Noel and daughter Cody will think she’s on a drinking bender again, she contunues on with her life as normal. When an incident leaves her in the hospital, she makes a discovery that multiple other woman are experiencing these same blackouts. Could it be coincidence? Or possibly something darker.
Review:
The only non-romance novel out of the four books! I found this book on kindle just recently, and I found out the book was just published this month!!
Being my favorite genre, I’ve read a lot of thriller novels that have blown me away. Most of the time they are true crime, mystery/murder, or even about ghosts or hauntings. I wouldn’t have necessarily described this book as a thriller, I would put it under the genre of sci-fi because of the topics relating more to science, and because there wasn’t really a “mystery feel” to it.
I found that the pace of the book was wonderful at first, really leading up to the climax of the story. Giving small details that made you gasp about finally connecting the dots on what was happening to the chracters. Towards the end of the book, I felt that it was rushed. You find out what’s going on so quickly, and in about 20 or so pages the problem is resolved. I just felt that the buildup was so good, and I was let down a little at the end. I also began to feel that the story was very unrealistic when relating to the neurological sciences. I realize this is fiction, but I’ve read other novels with “fake science” that were more believable to me.
trigger warning for those who choose to read this book: The story does include many themes including incidents of rape, alcoholism, and loss.
The Upside of Falling
By Alex Light
Genre: YA Romance
Pages: 278
Overall Rating: 3.5/5
“Just because we were pretending doesn’t mean it wasn’t real”
Overview:
Another book I found trending on ”Booktok” for a while was The Upside of Falling. Originally a WattPad book until it was published in early 2020.
Seventeen year old Becca Hart, an introverted bookworm who hides herself in cheesy novels comes face to face with her old best friend, who teases her about not ever having a boyfriend. Becca isn’t a believer of true love, her parents divorce made sure to put an end to that belief. But when confronted, Becca decides to lie and say she is seeing someone… and here comes star football player (and school heartthrob) Brett Wells. When he overhears Becca’s lie, he decides to step in and say he’s the mystery boy she’s been seeing.
From then on, the two have a mutual agreement to pretend to be dating each other, for their own personal reasons. Acting like the perfect couple isn’t easy, especially when you’ve barely exchanged a few words with each other. Both teens find out they each have been experiencing trauma and family issues. Becca’s in the past, and Brett’s in the present, they begin to realize how much they actually have in common and how they can lean on one another. Sparks begin to fly.
Review: I would say out of the four books I finished, this was my least favorite! The plot was heartfelt and genuine, but I feel that I’ve read so many books with the “fake dating” plot line that this one didn’t really stand out to me. It for sure did the job and made me feel all warm and fuzzy by the end, but again the story seemed to be a repeat like so many others.
The story is very sweet, and the chracters are very charming. One thing I really enjoyed (maybe a spoiler I’m sorry) is that the typical male main character did not end up being a complete jerk. The way he is described and perceived by everyone else in the story is his actual personality. No bombs thrown in to ruin him, or big huge underlying secrets about his character. I thought that was different!
Punk 57
By Penelope Douglas
Genre: Adult Romance (dark)
Pages: 340
Overall Rating: 5/5
“We were perfect for each other, until we met”
Overview:
Misha + Ryen = best friends ?
In fifth grade, their elementary schools set up a pen pal system, writing to a student from a different school. Boys with boys, girls with girls. Misha was always mistaken as a girls name, and Ryen was always mistaken as a boys. Somehow, the two became pen pals. Eventually they realized the mistake, but continued to write to each other without mentioning anything. They began jokingly arguing over everything; the best music, foods, things to do. A playful banter became the theme of their letters.
This went on for 7 years.
Now still pen pals, they have never met. This didn’t stop them from being the closest of friends. They had rules for this odd friendship:
No phone numbers
no social media
no pictures
Better not to ruin a good thing by finding out too much about one another.
Ryen hasn’t heard from Misha in three months. How could he stop writing to her? What’s happened to him? She needs to find him, break the rules.
Misha has been ignoring Ryen‘s letters, a terrible tragedy has happened and he has some unsolved business to attend to. This means he may actually run into Ryen.… will he like what he sees when they meet in person?
Review:
Now, this was my favorite one. I made sure to put ”dark” next to the genre because this isn’t necessarily a happy romance novel. There are a lot of dark themes and toxic relationships involved… as well as some adult content not recommended for under 18. BUT I can say you won’t be able to put this one down.
I absolutely loved every aspect of this novel. The characters, the plot, the writing style were all really fantastic. The author switches POV between Ryen and Misha, but it’s not every other chapter. I was constantly surprised by the events of the story, I truly did not see anything coming. I have nothing negative to say about this book. If you love a good enemies to lovers, or friends to lovers trope, this is for you.
trigger warning for those who choose to read: topics of bullying, family loss, violence and sexual content
Things We Never Got Over
By Lucy Score
Genre: Adult Romance
Pages: 572
Overall Rating: 4/5
“There’s a difference between taking care of people because you love them, and taking care of someone because you want them to love you”
Overview: A very highly recommended read on “BookTok” currently is Things We Never Got Over, a very cheesy romance that starts off about a woman named Naomi, starting in a new city after running away from her hometown trouble (and fiancé). She finds herself mixed up in some problems that her estranged twin sister, Tina, has caused and now has to pick up all the pieces. Tina has used her, stole her money and her car to get away. Now stranded in the town of “Knockemout” Virgina, she runs into local eye candy Knox, who is your typical attractive, mysterious, moody man. They work together to find out where Tina has gone by checking her motel room, to find a young girl, Waylay, who happens to be Naomi‘s niece… who Naomi didn’t know existed. The story goes on about the struggles of Naomi’s new guardianship, starting her life in this new place, and blooming romance with Knox. Review:
I know I’ve said it already but this book was VERY cheesy (in a good way), and seemed like a book I’ve read before… it feels as though it was intentionally written to be this story that you could guess the trope right when you started. What kept it so interesting?
The authors writing style! Chapters going back and forth between Naomi and Knox’s point of view, seeing their perspective of one another, learning each of their dark secrets. The writing was also very humorous. I genuinely laughed out loud at the banter between characters. I enjoyed that you can make a good connection with all the main characters, they are each so relatable and realistic.
I am a sucker for a good romance novel, Something about this story was extremely intoxicating and I could not put it down, I read it in 2 days. The only reason I’m not giving a 5 star rating is because the story didn’t have any moments that really WOWED me, I enjoyed the plot and the characters but nothing ever made me say, “wow this is getting so good”.
I guess there is a sequel coming as well! Which I will for sure be reading.
Thank you very much for reading! I hope you may have found a book you’re interested in checking out! I hope I will be reading a book a week again sometime soon, and keeping up with posts. Currently I am finishing my first Colleen Hoover book Layla, and Stranger in the House by Shari Lapena
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