I picked this one up for the cover/title thinking it was going to be a spoooooooky one for the Halloweeny season. Then I realized it was maybe a seriaI picked this one up for the cover/title thinking it was going to be a spoooooooky one for the Halloweeny season. Then I realized it was maybe a serial killer (or copycat serial killer) story and that was A-okay with me too. But then?????
I don’t love a police procedural to begin with and I don’t tend to love missing children stories much either. Combine the two and have the parents both working for the police department whose kid is missing – and yet they are somehow SUPER involved in the investigation and I’m already suspending my disbelief too much. Then add in she’s a drunken pill popper, he’s had an affair, there was a superbadawful that caused amnesia, potential copycat killer, original killer was investigated by cop’s dad back in the day, multiple personalities, maybe there’s a cult, 800 characters to keep track of and perhaps this psychic can help piece things together????? Oh my word . . . .
Before I even put a little blippy bit of nothing out about this one, let’s start with a pointer. If you, like me, find yourself literally 200+ people Before I even put a little blippy bit of nothing out about this one, let’s start with a pointer. If you, like me, find yourself literally 200+ people down on the waiting list for this new release that you already know you have zero chance of actually liking, don’t forget to check out Hoopla if that’s an option because it will provide you instant gratification before all the superfans over on the TikTok spoil things for you.
Okay, so a little bit of nothing about The Boyfriend. Good news is – I didn’t rage listen to this one. I mean, don’t get me wrong, it was still turrrrrible but I literally walked EIGHT AND A HALF MILES while blasting right through it. It also took me nearly up until the reveal to figure out the whodunit because there were plenty of red herring characters thrown in and Freida don’t give no effs about anything making any sense so you never know what the big ending might be. Speaking of – the additional “twist” or reveal at the very endy-end was quite satisfactory.
Now with some bad. The plot here is about the thirstiest girl in Manhattan who is so desperate for a boo thang that she hooks up with a doctor named Tom right after her friend gets murdered and she had been dating a doctor named Tom. So awful storyline is still awful. Way to keep on brand, Freida! Next, the male narrator sounded like he was 11, but he was supposed to be a horny 17 year old and that just made me feel like WUUUUUT????? If this is dude’s real voice, he should not be paid to read books for a living and if that is what he thinks high schoolers sound like, then maybe there’s a Dateline episode with his name written all over it. Which brings us to how terrible the quality of writing always is in these books. I’ve always called it “Wattpad caliber”, but my pal @sweet_tea_and_a_book nailed it by naming it the Shein of publication. I mean they are all baaaaaaaad, but we’re talking at some point Thirsty McThirsterson goes on a date, talks about dipping her fries in ketchup and then complains about being expected to go halfsies when she only had a salad. I mean ZERO quality control. And yet the lemmings lap it up. I truly don’t get it, but I also won’t stop listening either so I’m part of the problem and not the solution. ...more
Welp I’ve done great this summer loving all the new releases that have been so well-received by the masses so I should have known my wrongreading geneWelp I’ve done great this summer loving all the new releases that have been so well-received by the masses so I should have known my wrongreading gene would rear its ugly head eventually. And here it is. This new Read With Jenna selection has been ALLLLL OVER The ‘Gram with everyone and their brother touting “the hype is real!!!” Then there’s me . . . .
So I’m just going to “spoil” something that comes out instantly, but apparently has peeved certain readers off about not being disclosed. Phoebe arrives at her vacay destination the Cornwall Inn in Rhode Island because it was always her dream to go there with her husband – but said husband left her for another woman so now Phoebe is there to end her life. Little does she know the entire hotel was supposed to have been rented out for a real shin-dig of a wedding. The blurb says Phoebe and the bride (Lila) “keep confiding in each other” – which I guess is true, but only because Lila literally keeps letting herself into Phoebe’s room with a master key she acquired from the hotel when she booked the whole place.
This one did not work for me whatsoever. From the “lighthearted” suicide attempt (Really? You’re going to off yourself with your cat’s pain medicine??? Did you bring eleventy pills to get the job done???) – to Phoebe accidentally crushing on the groom . . . but then absolutely NOT stopping communicating with him (Really? You want to kill yourself because of your husband’s affair and now are 100% developing some sort of emotional affair with a taken man on your own? Yuck.) – to Lila being a self-centered turd (Really? You have the nerve to complain about your mother nonstop when obviously the apple did not fall far from the tree.) – to SO. MUCH. NAVEL. GAZING.
Yeah, I’m the wrongreader here. I felt absolutely zero connection to Clover and this story. It read like a Ted Talk on how to navigate the grieving process. I was hoping things would pick up in some sort of cutesie “Letters from Juliet” spin when the blast from the past romance angle was brought into the story, but even that fell flat. Glad it worked for so many, but it most definitely was not for me. ...more
Welcome to Freida’s scaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaary overnighter at the local psych ward where everyone is a schizophrenic, the “plot” is oh-so-
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Welcome to Freida’s scaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaary overnighter at the local psych ward where everyone is a schizophrenic, the “plot” is oh-so-predictable and the writing is Wattpad. Am I completely mindblown by the cult-like following Freida has on the bookish social medias? Yep. Is this a prime example of why I will never partake in "BookTok". You betcha! But will I keep listening to her stuff? Abso-root-toot-tutely because they are easy as hell to follow along with while trudging up endless hills in 100 degrees with 100% humidity....more
I dared to Google “Why is Freida McFadden so popular” because truly, my mind? She be blown. The first response (from Reddit – oh how I love the subReddits) states “I get why it's popular because it's fast paced and a very easy read but the plot is so derivative and the writing style is so annoying.” To that I say – PREACH.
Talk about an easy reader. The plot (LOL plot!) here starts with a body being buried in the woods. You then meet the “teacher” (teacherS in this case since Eve is married to a fellow educator named Nate) and their student Addie. It doesn’t take much of an I.Q. to figure out EVERYTHING that is going to happen so I have no idea what “twists” people cream their jeans over. Maybe they are contained in her other books???? (Sidenote to anyone thinking of making a drinking game every time “shoes” are mentioned. Don't do it. You will die from alcohol poisoning.)
Apparently she has a real rabid fanbase so I guess I can look forward to potentially getting trolled for eternity like I have for nearly a decade by the Cohorts (note to trolls - I delete and block you rather than engage so have a blessed day and maybe go outside and touch some grass). It also appears from my quick one minute search of the interwebs that she apparently is a copycat so the half that don’t love her want her cancelled. Bottom line? No matter what we readers/reviewers can’t win. But before any of you go all keyboard commando please note that popcorn thrillers like these are a dime a dozen and trying to claim Freida steals from Riley Sager, an author who admittedly makes his millions reimagining others’ tales, isn’t gonna hold up in court. I was looking to venture out of my comfort zone of listening to memoirs during my “Walk ‘n Talk” and this was so easy to follow while I attempted to kiss every dog that crossed my path on the trail at the park that I will most likely end up picking her stuff up over and over again. And most likely also give them 2 Stars max.
My reactions to Emily Henry’s books have gone down star by star each new release – to the point where I have so far managed to avoid Happy Place placeMy reactions to Emily Henry’s books have gone down star by star each new release – to the point where I have so far managed to avoid Happy Place place completely. But then I got an email offering me this one and . . . .
Not to mention I am well aware of how lucky I am to be someone who receives Berkley widgets so I’m not about to look that gift horse in the mouth.
The “funny story” (or meet/cute, if you will) here was a cute one. Daphne’s fiancé calls it off after realizing at his bachelor party that his lifelong BFF is really the girl for him, leaving Daphne scrambling for a place to stay in said fiancé’s home town after relocating herself halfway across the country for him. Miles has a place to stay (including an extra bedroom) and is the other dumpee – this time of the aforementioned BFF. Thus begins a co-habitation period and Daphne’s countdown clock to the big all-night Readathon for kids at the library where she works. After that event is over, Daphne can move away from Michigan with a clear conscience. But when an invitation to the wedding of Peter and Petra (barf, right?) arrives, Daphne makes a bit of a boo-boo and openly defines the relationship with Miles . . . into a romantic one.
Cute, right? You’re right. It is cute. This one will most likely make Henry fans swoon because all of the rom com feels will be felt. But I didn’t much like either of the main characters so it didn’t quite work for me. Note to Miles: It doesn’t matter how many people say you’re a “great guy.” If you are so easily distracted and get caught up in random conversations that make you late for scheduled dates/your job/whatever – you’re kind of NOT so great. Punctuality is a real thing for me – especially if you plan on some before dawn sort of excursion. Don’t come to me with coffee and an excuse, just GTFOOH. And note to Daphne: You are not a good friend. If you never let anyone in, they certainly aren’t the jerks for choosing to hang out with other people. And again, if you make plans with someone like me and then stand me up? You can GTFOOH too and don’t let the door hit ya where the good lord split ya on your way out.
ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Book #2 in my annual quest for a new coffee mug . . . .
While this has an extremely high Goodreads’ rating, I’m happy to see a mixed bag of reactions from my friends so I’m not feeling like quite such an outlier. I was totally willing to blame myself and the giant bookhangover I’m currently experience (for the first time in eons), but really compared to some of Katherine Center’s earlier stuff, this was just serviceable.
The story here is about an aspiring screenwriter who gets paired with a seasoned vet (of the action/alien/shoot-em-up film varieties) to polish a real turd of a rom com he has committed to creating in order to get the greenlight on his passion project – a ‘70’s mafia film. Credit where credit is due, the characters were both likeable enough (although I certainly wouldn't want to be in a relationship with either one of them) and Center is great at banter. I just didn’t feel much chemistry and think her best work is more chick lit with a tinge of romance. Also, as a lover of a “cartoony cover” I much preferred when she did the floral ones – these cartoon people aren’t cute. And, as always, my Roman Empire is stop writing epilogues for every romance. So unnecessary. Just give me the happily for now and call it a day.
I really loved Good In Bed and continue to recommend it to people looking for stories involving a plus sized protagonist, but that was really the onlyI really loved Good In Bed and continue to recommend it to people looking for stories involving a plus sized protagonist, but that was really the only book by Jennifer Weiner I enjoyed and I need to finally realize all I’m doing by picking up more of her stuff is wasting my time because she’s just not for me. As a woman who struggled with my weight for over 20 years and made a commitment to exercising a little over a year ago which has resulted in going from a size 24 to a 14, I am here to tell this author that shaming people for losing weight is just as toxic as shaming people for being fat. Also, you can be pro-woman without being 100% anti-man. Blech.
I love the idea of maybe a little whodunit wrapped up in a neighborhood drama since I’m always on the quest for the next Big Little Lies. I love skeletons falling out of closets and secrets lives and lying liars. And I love the idea of a grief-stricken mother spending her free time peeping on the potential local neighborhood manwhore. That being said, I was sooooo disappointed so early into this book when it came to Paige. Talk about shark jumpingly unbelievable/zero to sixty on the train to WTF is this bitch doing? Then Cora ends up being some dumb hoe too? Ick. Georgia’s story was the one which took me by surprise and I became fully invested. But I’m telling you if I were someone who DNFs – this would have been a strong candidate. I am happy to report explanations for certain things were given at about the halfway point, but it still didn’t make Paige’s actions make any sense and it just came off as some super telenova-type of storytelling.
Not to mention some of this was just lazy (or maybe a case of short-term memory loss while the author was writing) –some inconsistencies are so glaring that it’s impossible not to notice. A few examples:
1. Please don’t talk to me about a 6 month old baby and then tell me how she eats pancakes for breakfast and handfuls of Cheerios and goldfish crackers.
2. You get drunk at the neighbor feller’s restaurant and find the two of you singing with to the muzak playing on the speaker system, so why are you so terribly shocked when he takes the microphone on piano sing-along night? (Also, tipsy he sang terribly but sober he was wonderful????)
3. Magically the “we’d have to keep you until your arraignment, which will probably be Monday since it’s after noon on a Friday” somehow turns into only a 30 minute wait to be processed and let go on bond.
Are editors members of the writers’ strike? WTF has been going on the last year or so??????...more
I was all prepared to say I have such a better result with the Read With Jenna selections than I do with America’s Darling, Reese . . . and
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I was all prepared to say I have such a better result with the Read With Jenna selections than I do with America’s Darling, Reese . . . and then this one came along.
Chain Gang All-Stars tackles the penal system the same way S.A. Cosby tackled homophobia in Razorblade Tears . . . with a lot of gore and a heavy-handed Ted Talk sort of delivery. Per usual, the people who need a lesson on how unjust the American justice system can be will 100% be the people who would never even consider reading this. For me dystopia stories just aren’t really my jam to begin with and since I’m an old lady this had a been there/done that vibe a la the afore-giffed Mad Max, Gladiator, The Running Man, The Hunger Games, etc., etc., etc. but this one was somehow extremely boring.
Oh, and I HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATE bajillions of footnotes. (Because I am stupid and a wrongreader. There, save your breath folks. I trolled myself so you don’t have to.) ...more
I just took a second to look at the overall Goodreads’ rating along with my friends’ individual Star reactions to this one and it turns out I’m the naI just took a second to look at the overall Goodreads’ rating along with my friends’ individual Star reactions to this one and it turns out I’m the naysayer of the bunch. You know what that means, right????
Ha! Just kidding. Everyone is aware that I’m usually the wrongreader. The main reason I didn’t vibe with this one was not because it was farfetched – I’m down for some fun with my thrillers – it was a combination of this supposed grifter type of conwoman being so easy to fool and a supposed “zany” thriller that really did not tickle my funny bone after the first couple of chapters.
I’m over 100 reviews behind for the year, so that’s all I have to say. Everyone else really liked it, so it was probably just wrong place/wrong time for me. ...more
I knew the first big reveal at only the 4% mark, but had to wait until 31% for confirmation. The journal entries regarding the past were quite deliciously horrible, but I found the present to be so lackluster until nearly the halfway mark that I was really just slogging through. And the last 25% could have been condensed to a few chapters and wrapped things up perfectly fine. So there you have it. Every reader has a different experience with each book they pick up. I wish I would have enjoyed this one as much as all of my friends did.
2.5 Stars
ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you, NetGalley! ...more
Let me unload one piece of baggage before I even begin here. My copy of You Shouldn’t Have Come Here DID NOT include the Colleen Hoover cover blurb. ILet me unload one piece of baggage before I even begin here. My copy of You Shouldn’t Have Come Here DID NOT include the Colleen Hoover cover blurb. If it had, I would hope that I would have been smart enough to avoid this like the plague due the incessant seven year trolling I’ve receive from CoHo’s rabid fanbase. Buuuuuut, since The Perfect Marriage remains on my TBR, there’s a decent chance I still would have read it. Although I didn’t know about the new and improved cover at all, I was immediately confronted with a paragraph on the very first page. And then one by Jennifer Hillier, and Kaira Rouda, and John Marrs and Alex Finlay????? Now that I’m finished I have one question to ask . . . .
For real, though. I mean was this a dare to see how quickly this thing could go viral on TikTok? Are these authors a caliber of likeswappers Goodreads and The ‘Gram have never before seen? Did they all sell their souls????
I picked this up to give Jeneva Rose a second chance after reading One of Us Is Dead - a book that wasn’t terrible for me, just not as over-the-top as it could/should have been when it came to the delivery. I had not known Airbnb “Rooms” was now a thing since I refuse to watch television with commercials, but lemme just say if you’re thinking about staying with a random stranger maybe read this book because obviously this would be a killer’s wet dream. I was hoping for a popcorn thriller and suspension of disbelief was not going to be a problem for me when it came to the story of Grace who rents a room on a ranch in Wyoming from Calvin for ten days. I figured at least one person would wind up dead and I was down for the stabbies. But this was so booooooooooooring. Good lord amighty what a snoozefest.
The stuff that did finally happen was what most people would think was going to happen all along . . . other than the “twist” at the end which was one of those last-pagers that’s just stupid and thrown in as an attempt to shock the reader, but it was all too little too late.
Oh, and to authors who do things like this???
“Finally, a thriller. This one promised a twisty ending I wouldn’t see coming. It seemed every thriller promised that these days, but few actually delivered.”
“When she appeared in the kitchen, I let out the breath I didn’t realize I was holding in. Cliché, I know. But it’s true.”
It doesn’t make you seem clever to be “in on the joke” – it’s simply a confirmation that you don’t write well enough to come up with something other than the worn out lines every other pisspoor Wattpader comes up with.
Unfortunately for Jeannette Walls (at least when it comes to this review) is that nothing fictional that she writes could ever come close to the nonfiUnfortunately for Jeannette Walls (at least when it comes to this review) is that nothing fictional that she writes could ever come close to the nonfictional accounts of her own family history. I’m currently 80+ reviews behind, so I’m going to keep this real short. Basically, I expected a real humdinger of a time when picking up a story about a female rumrunner in Prohibition Era America. Sadly, I never felt much of any connection with the story or its characters and the writing seemed very . . . . sterile? I’m not sure that makes sense, but to me it was very devoid of much emotion and I basically just continued reading simply to be done with it. It wasn’t baaaaaaad – it just wasn’t great.
Here’s the thing. Jojo Moyes needs zero of my help selling her books and since I loved Me Before You, Still Me and One Plus One I am not su
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Here’s the thing. Jojo Moyes needs zero of my help selling her books and since I loved Me Before You, Still Me and One Plus One I am not super interested in dissecting all the reasons this one didn’t work for me. Some books just aren’t for some people and for me that has a lot to do with the characters. I didn’t much care for doormat Sam at all and thought Nisha was a real See You Next Tuesday throughout the entire story (even though an attempt was given at providing her a redemption arc). The plot didn’t really tickle my fancy either and it was waaaaaaay too long (especially when things went all “Three’s Company” while attempting to steal back the shoes in the hotel). So that’s that and on to the next.
I liked this one better when it was called The House in the Cerulean Sea. I mean really that’s all to be said here. I picked this up for the title andI liked this one better when it was called The House in the Cerulean Sea. I mean really that’s all to be said here. I picked this up for the title and cover alone when it was offered to me and I was planning October-y reads. Sadly, this was a pretty sad copycat of T.J. Klune’s magical releases of late.
The story here involves, you guessed it, a witch who gets recruited to come tutor a trio of children witches in an attempt to teach them how to harness their power. There’s a houseful of other characters – including a handsome sourpuss, natch, but none of which were very developed. I don’t love kids generally (in fiction or in real life) so it really takes some doing to get me to love stories about them (see the aforementioned Klune or The Guncle as recent exceptions to the rule). There was also quite a bit of “potion” talk that basically involved making tea infused with essential oils such as lavender or peppermint rather than any eye of newt or tongue of frog. But the main problem was in the form of . . .
Who said anything about transforming the world? What about just making it a little better? And then a little better? And then a little more, until, one day, maybe long after we’re gone, it has transformed?”
But there isn’t much making of things ANY better as this one wraps up and, despite not being a fan, my dead heart still felt a little bummed out these kids didn’t end up with more than they did in the end. I thought the entire point of this was going to be along the lines of “be the change you wish to see in the world” – but I guess getting laid was really the M.O. *wink*
ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review....more
As much as it physically pains me to do so, I’m going to have to agree with my pal Dan 2.0 when it comes to Tiffany McDaniel’s style . . . it’s probabAs much as it physically pains me to do so, I’m going to have to agree with my pal Dan 2.0 when it comes to Tiffany McDaniel’s style . . . it’s probably not for me. I looooooooooved Betty and agree that there is an excellent story within the pages of this latest release regarding a series of prostitutes who are found in Chillicothe, Ohio (inspired by the true tale of the “Chillichothe Six”). Unfortunately, it was so mired in the purple prose that I could not feel all of the feels that I was supposed to be feeling. I have actively avoided The Summer that Melted Everything for fear of being a wrongreader and I will probably continue to do so for the foreseeable future since the main complaint was regarding how it too was overwritten.
Also, I already dislike a face cover, but if you're going to commit to one at least get it right. One sister lipsticked her TOP lip, the other the BOTTOM. Stuff like that drives me batshit.
ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review....more
Kelly (and the Book Boar)
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