I genuinely feel like Susan Cain is overrated. I read Quiet last year after many recommendation and it was okay, but I wanted to give her another chanI genuinely feel like Susan Cain is overrated. I read Quiet last year after many recommendation and it was okay, but I wanted to give her another chance and thought this would be interesting subject matter. It felt like instead of a cohesive book, a bunch of ramblings on why it’s okay to be sad. And that’s okay, that’s fine. But most of what she presented in this book felt like common sense to me? Not sure how else to explain it. I just wasn’t amused or impressed while listening to this book.
That being said, there were a few people in my life that I felt would gain something by reading this book even if I didn’t, so if you read my review and it makes you not want to read the book maybe don’t listen to me and try it for yourself. Everyone has different tastes and I can see others loving this book....more
After a tragic accident, Sewanee Chester has settled into a career of being an audiobook narrator and leaving behind her acting career. She 4 stars!
After a tragic accident, Sewanee Chester has settled into a career of being an audiobook narrator and leaving behind her acting career. She started in the audiobook career reading romance, but since her success has left that genre behind. After one magical night with a stranger while at a conference, Sewanee returns home to find that she has an offer to record an audiobook with a world famous narrator, but it’s a romance and she is hesitant. This with lots of changes in her family and friends life leave Sewanee at a point of change in her life, she just has to pick which direction to go.
It's funny because while this book is fiction it really seemed to me almost autobiographical in nature (which luckily author addressed at the end of the book). A former actress turned audiobook narrator? That’s Julia Whelan. But the characters are very much their own and not rooted in real life, which considering they felt real I was very impressed.
My favorite parts of the book are the ones in which Sewanee spent time with her grandmother Blah, they felt the most real to me and hit me the hardest, even bringing tears into my eyes. There were complicated friend and family dynamics covered in this book that I enjoyed very much and hit home a lot. I will say, the plot of this book was fairly predictable which is why it’s a 4 and not 5 star read for me. I guessed every single plot point from the beginning of the book which did take away from my enjoyment a bit.
Whelan with her second novel, gives a heartfelt story about a woman accepting her circumstances and forgiving herself for the mistakes she made leading to this point. It’s also a love letter to audiobooks and the artists who make them.
I received an ARC from the publisher via netgalley. After that I received an advanced listening copy from libro.fm as a part of their librarian ALC program. I chose to listen to the advanced copy instead of reading. Publishers, don’t hate me I love you ...more
Casey Duncan is a detective with a secret, in college she killed a man. The father of the man she killed is a member of the mafia and 3.5 to 4 stars
Casey Duncan is a detective with a secret, in college she killed a man. The father of the man she killed is a member of the mafia and years later wants to make her pay. When Casey’s best friend Diana hears of a town where one can disappear, they both jump at the chance to escape their current lives. And luckily, the town needs a new detective to help solve a recent murder…
Kelley Armstrong is one of my all time favorite authors, I must have read at least twenty of her books over the years. I’m a bit behind on some of the series so I decided to pick this one up on audio from my library. I think setting up a whole new series, this book was an exposition dump/overload. We seriously got so much information about the characters, the town, the people, that it felt almost not entirely relevant in this story, but will later.
I loved the main character, Casey, and I loved the dynamics between her and Eric Dalton. The mystery and the exposition fell a little bit flat for me, and the descriptions a little too violent. A great start to a series and I am willing to read the next book and see where this all goes. But not right away....more
I have many conflicted feelings about this book. I’ve worked in public libraries for almost two decades now, and in that time I have worked at roughlyI have many conflicted feelings about this book. I’ve worked in public libraries for almost two decades now, and in that time I have worked at roughly 25 libraries in some capacity whether it be part time, full time, or weekend/program coverage. So to read a book about the public library, written by someone who spent nine months at one difficult branch, I do wonder if this is a perspective I want to listen to? It’s like teaching for one year and writing a book on it. Does this person’s thoughts and feelings have weight to them? I’m not sure.
There’s a lot that Oliver talks about in this book that I agree with, libraries are more than books, services don’t look like what they used to, outsiders romanticize the profession not really realizing what it entails. But what this book really lacked for me was cohesiveness. Is it a memoir? Is it a history of libraries? Is it a commentary on social media and cancel culture? All of these things were in the book, but nothing seemed to mesh well together into a narrative.
I’m glad that people are writing books about the public library, because the public does need to know more what librarians face. But I don’t personally think Oliver is the right perspective. This book just wasn’t executed very well....more
Wow, Riley Sager has really bombed with these last two releases. This is possibly one of the worst suspense novels I have read in a while.
Th 2 stars
Wow, Riley Sager has really bombed with these last two releases. This is possibly one of the worst suspense novels I have read in a while.
The House Across the Lake has the most interesting premise, a nosy neighbor who spies on her neighbors across the lake and thinks a husband has murdered his wife. But in reality, it was beyond boring and the twists were completely unbelievable and laughable. I found myself muttering “what the fuck” to myself while reading this book and not in a good way.
Not sure if Sager has lost his touch/giving into pressure and demand for more books, but this one and Survive the Night were not it. I’m mad I wasted a libro.fm credit on this one. I think I’ll never get that reading high like I did for Home Before Dark and Last Time I Lied ever again…
Side note: I thought the main character of the book was an old woman because that’s what the narrator of the audiobook sounds like. Imagine my surprise when halfway through I figured out she was 35. Publishers, can we not do this? It made things confusing for me as a reader since I didn’t have the physical copy of the book on hand. ...more
Lessons in Chemistry is the story of Elizabeth Zott, a woman in the 1960’s who wants to be taken seriously as a scientist and ends up with 3.5 stars
Lessons in Chemistry is the story of Elizabeth Zott, a woman in the 1960’s who wants to be taken seriously as a scientist and ends up with her own television cooking show. Throughout the years we get to see her start in the field, how she meets the love of her life and the events that follow after.
I enjoyed this audiobook overall but there were parts of it I didn’t super love. Some parts were a bit too sad for me or intense and I didn’t like the perspective from the dog aspects. It held my attention the whole way through which is great but there were slow parts and things I didn’t love. It’s hard to express my feelings on this book. I can see it making a really great movie and hope that happens, I think I’d enjoy that format a bit more....more
Four colleagues walk into an elevator, except it’s an escape room and they need to solve the clues to free themselves. But the longer they’re 4 stars
Four colleagues walk into an elevator, except it’s an escape room and they need to solve the clues to free themselves. But the longer they’re trapped in the dark together, the more secrets are exposed. And not all of them will make it out alive.
This book wasn’t what I was expecting but in a good way. I thought the entire focus would be on the escape room but instead that was maybe a third of the actual story, and we got flashback perspectives from a colleague that these people had wronged. We learn that the people in the elevator aren’t good people, and this may be their karma coming back to bite them.
All I will say about this book is, I support women’s rights, but also women’s wrongs. Well done Megan Goldin, another solid thriller mystery....more
Liv Reese wakes up in the back of a taxi with no memory of how she got there. The last thing she remembers is being at her desk at work, and 4 stars!
Liv Reese wakes up in the back of a taxi with no memory of how she got there. The last thing she remembers is being at her desk at work, and she realizes soon two years have passed and she has no memory of that time. There’s also notes written all over her hands with messages like “wake up” and “stay awake”. There’s also a bloodstained knife in her pocket…
The Night Swim was one of my absolute favorite books I read last year and the moment I got the audiobook I dived right in (thank you libro fm!). The beginning of the book is a little bit jarring, because you’re reading it from Liv’s perspective and she’s understandably, pretty confused. I haven’t seen the movie Memento but I know the premise and this seems like a modern day book version of that. I think Goldin did an excellent job with the switching perspectives, the time jumps. The pacing of the book flowed together perfectly. Some parts of it were frustrating, and I think it was meant to be. I really enjoyed this one and I am ready to read everything Golden ever writes. She has a forever fan in me.
ALC was provided by libro fm as a part of their librarian ALC program. ...more
True Biz is told from two perspectives, the first is February, a headmaster of a school for the deaf and a CODA (child of deaf adults). The 4 stars!
True Biz is told from two perspectives, the first is February, a headmaster of a school for the deaf and a CODA (child of deaf adults). The second is Charlie, a teenage girl born deaf and who has had a malfunctioning cochlear implant for much of her life. Charlie has hearing parents and only in coming to this school for the deaf does she get to learn ASL. February faces the possibility of the entire school closing down, coming to terms with that and also trying to do what’s best for her students. The result, a captivating slice of life story set in the halls of this school.
I really enjoyed this book, so much. It took me a little bit of time in the beginning to get into the pacing of the book, but once I got it I didn’t want to put it down. I thought the author did a great job at developing all her characters and the situations they were in seemed believable. I want to clarify that just because one of the characters is a teen, this does not mean this book is a YA novel, it is very much an adult novel. I thought the book presented the issues of the deaf community in a respectful and empathetic way, and I hope that people who read this book will change their previous (maybe incorrect) perceptions about the deaf community and its nuances for the better....more
Finlay is back and has more of a mess to get out of this time. Someone has put out a hit on her ex-husbands life, and even though he’s a jerk, he’s stFinlay is back and has more of a mess to get out of this time. Someone has put out a hit on her ex-husbands life, and even though he’s a jerk, he’s still the father of Finlay’s children. With her hot law student gone on a trip to Florida, Finlay finds herself spending more time with “hot cop” Nick. But with all the investigating Finlay and Vero do, they find themselves deeper and deeper in a twisted mess.
I love this series so much! I was apprehensive about picking up this second book because there are so many critical reviews, but I enjoyed it just as much as the first book. Finlay is yet again trapped in a mess she’s trying to get out of, keeping secrets from almost everyone in her life except her trusty partner Vero. I definitely am still not a fan of “hot cop” Nick, it’s the only part of this series I don’t like. I’m still team law school student Julian but I don’t know, it seems like the author is going in a different direction. I hope not.
Loved the hints of Vero’s backstory that we hopefully will get more of in the next book. I will say, I hope Finlay gets a bit of a break from the financial stress next time around but again, not sure how that’s all going to go. Love this series and these characters. Who knew I’d end up being a cozy mystery fan?...more
When Chloe Davis was twelve, her dad was given six life sentences in prison for the murder of six girls who went missing and were never fou 3.5 stars
When Chloe Davis was twelve, her dad was given six life sentences in prison for the murder of six girls who went missing and were never found. Now, twenty years later, Chloe is a psychologist with her own private practice, a wonderful fiancé, and a dark past she’s left behind. Until more girls start to go missing, and it seems like her past is here to catch up with her.
I think I would have enjoyed this book more if it hadn’t been so utterly predictable, I was able to guess from the beginning what happened with most of the plot and it didn’t feel like the most original of thrillers. I saw that this book was optioned to become a show and I would certainly watch it. I thought Chloe was a bit… dumb and annoying. I give a lot of grace to heroines generally so if she bugged me, it had to be pretty bad. Overall a very underwhelming read considering all the high ratings and reviews....more
The Golden Couple is told from the dual perspectives of Avery, an unconventional therapist, and Marissa, her new client. Marissa comes to Ave 3 stars
The Golden Couple is told from the dual perspectives of Avery, an unconventional therapist, and Marissa, her new client. Marissa comes to Avery when her seemingly perfect marriage needs help, and the deeper Avery digs into the two of them, the more convoluted things get. But there’s danger for both Avery and Marissa, and neither one of them know what’s coming their way.
I’ve never read these authors before and always meant to, and now I’m not so sure I want to try them again. This book had a lot of promise with the premise, but for me the execution was lackluster. I pretty much guessed the “who did it” from an offhand comment and while I think the authors did a great job setting it up, they got a little bit lost along the way. So many side characters and stories to keep track of, most of which I felt was unnecessary but that’s just me. Avery was interesting as a character, Marissa felt like a doormat for a lot of the book. Didn’t hate this book, didn’t love it. Falls perfectly at a three stars I will forget about this book in a few months category....more
The Dating Plan is a fake dating, friends/enemies/friends to lovers romance story between Daisy Patel and Liam Murphy. Growing up, Liam was b 2 stars
The Dating Plan is a fake dating, friends/enemies/friends to lovers romance story between Daisy Patel and Liam Murphy. Growing up, Liam was best friends with Daisy’s brother and over at their house all the time. Daisy was entirely in love with him, until he stood her up for her prom and disappeared for eight years. When Liam bumps into Daisy all these years later, he realizes she might be the perfect girl to help him get his inheritance. The only catch? They need to get married.
There is so much about this book that bugged me and yet I finished it? Maybe I should have quit but by the time I started realizing I didn’t like this book I was too far gone. The number one thing I was annoyed by was the heroine constantly being referred to as “weirdly smart” and then we didn’t get any examples of how smart she was except for frequent (and I mean FREQUENT) references to how much she loved Marvel. WE GET IT. SHE LIKES MARVEL. ENOUGH! And aside from that she had major “pick me” girl energy. “I’m not like other girls I like Marvel and love doing computer stuff”.
A lot of the most interesting plot points of the book were completely glossed over: Liam’s relationship with his brother, Daisy’s relationships with her father and brother. I just felt there were so many things that were started in the plot but not finished, or maybe it was me. For a fake dating trope the plot was all over the place.
And one tiny thing that bugged me more than it should have. Hockey games have three periods, between which are period breaks. There is no half time break in hockey, you’d think something like that would be caught before publication but maybe I’m being too picky. ...more
I’m trying to put a finger on why all my friends loved this book and for me it was just fine. It had a lot of promise, Y2K killer at a blockb 3 stars
I’m trying to put a finger on why all my friends loved this book and for me it was just fine. It had a lot of promise, Y2K killer at a blockbuster, a repeat of the murder about 15 years later at an ice cream shop. Told in multiple points of view, I found this book to be a bit information overload which is weird because it was short. Also, I didn’t love one of the audiobook narrators so that may have taken away from my enjoyment as well.
And for all of that information that was dumped on us, I felt the reveal of the killer was a little bit out of left field, unless maybe I missed something along the way. I’m usually fairly good at guessing whodunit and didn’t for this one and felt really underwhelmed by the reveal.
I’d be willing to give Finlay another chance but also not eager to pick up anything else by them anytime soon....more
Cultish is a broad examination of the language of cults by linguist Amanda Montell, and this book really focuses more on the language of cult 4 stars
Cultish is a broad examination of the language of cults by linguist Amanda Montell, and this book really focuses more on the language of cults. Whether it be the language of an actual cult like Heaven’s Gate or groups that use cult like language such as soul cycle. Montell is not saying all of these things are actual cults, but their rise and everyday use of language is cult like.
I thought this book was incredibly fascinating and I thought the author did a wonderful job of keeping things broad on the subject and using specific examples to emphasize her points. I think what a lot of people misunderstand when reading this book is she’s not calling things like Soul Cycle or Crossfit cults, but instead pointing out where their success follows cultish language.
This book really made me think about the use of the word “cult” and how it can used to add malicious tones to something that really isn’t. It’s also not a bad thing for there to be a group mindset on something as long as people aren’t getting hurt. Despite the author kind of pointing out that people are not necessarily “brainwashed” when entering a cult, I do think there’s a level of reconditioning that happens to people when they do. Just because someone is intelligent doesn’t mean they aren’t vulnerable to their wants and needs.
One of the more interesting books I’ve read recently, I think this is a great nonfiction book for people who don’t normally read the genre. It gives a good scope of the topic but doesn’t become dry or dull with the finer details of the subject....more
Deaf Utopia is the personal memoir of Nyle DiMarco, a cultural icon of the Deaf community. He rose to fame after winning two reality show com 4 stars
Deaf Utopia is the personal memoir of Nyle DiMarco, a cultural icon of the Deaf community. He rose to fame after winning two reality show competitions America’s Next Top Model and Dancing with the Stars. Deaf Utopia is a glimpse into his life up to this point (DiMarco is still very young, in his early thirties) and it is a love letter to Deaf culture and American Sign Language.
I honestly can’t remember where I first heard of DiMarco, I didn’t watch his season of ANTM or DwtS, but I do recognize him as a famous celebrity. My mom is a coda, so anything to do with Deaf culture or ASL in books I am eager and happy to read so I picked up the audiobook version of this from my local library. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to DiMarco’s life and experiences, mostly his childhood and the antics and pranks he and his siblings and friends participated in over the years.
While I didn’t watch ANTM during DiMarco’s cycle, I was an avid watcher of the earlier years so I understood the format of the show and enjoyed learning more about Nyle’s experience. I definitely want to watch his season now that I’ve read about it. Same with DwtS I’ve seen other seasons of the show so I understand the format and also enjoyed those chapters. I do think there’s a lot that hearing people can learn from this book, that people can be more respectful of how they treat others they perceive to be different from them. Sometimes the book got a little bit repetitive but overall I really enjoyed and I hope more people pick up this book and read it. And I hope to see more from the author in the future, whether it be writing or film or more....more
A group of six friends attend their college reunion where ten years ago their friend Heather was murdered. They all assumed who the killer 3.75 stars
A group of six friends attend their college reunion where ten years ago their friend Heather was murdered. They all assumed who the killer was, but once reunited they all realize they’ve had secrets from each other and one of them may have been the one to kill Heather.
I enjoyed this book for the most part, I think listening to the audiobook made the pacing slower than it would have been if I was reading the hard copy of the book. Despite most of the characters being terrible human beings, I actually really enjoyed the dynamics of this book. I did figure out the who did it part, I just didn’t know why so that reveal was interesting to me. Overall a very solid thriller/mystery novel that did a wonderful job with character examinations....more
Divorced, single mother Finlay Donovan is having a very hard time. Juggling bills, an unsupportive ex-husband, and trying to write a book, 4.5 stars!
Divorced, single mother Finlay Donovan is having a very hard time. Juggling bills, an unsupportive ex-husband, and trying to write a book, she’s struggling to hold it all together. But after a meeting with her agent is overheard and misunderstood by a woman at Panera, Finlay finds herself hired as a hitwoman for $50k, and in the middle of a mess she can’t seem to find her way out of.
This was one of those books where once I picked it up I never wanted to put it back down. I listened to the audiobook and it was utterly fantastic, I found myself sad whenever I had to stop listening. Lately I’ve been getting more and more into “cozy” mysteries (is this considered one of those?) and I’m thinking I may have uncovered a genre previously unknown to me. I thought the narrative voice of this book was hilarious and so well done. I loved the scenes with Finlay and her kids, the banter she had with Vero was a delight to witness. And the endless messes she had to get out of were actually fun and not as stressful as I expected them to be.
The only thing I didn’t super love about this book was the love triangle. Yes, you read that right. Finlay attracts the attention of a bartender/law student and a local cop and for the record, I am team bartender/law student as I really didn’t care for Nick the cop. I saw he’s in the next book and I’m not too thrilled about it but I am going to try and have faith in the author not to ruin things.
I’m glad I gave this book a chance when it’s not normally something I would pick up. I am now kicking myself for not placing a hold on the second book from my library sooner as I already want to dive right into it....more
I wasn't feeling this book while listening to it, it was predictable and yet still gave me anxiety. I googled the spoilers and had pretty muDNF at 54%
I wasn't feeling this book while listening to it, it was predictable and yet still gave me anxiety. I googled the spoilers and had pretty much guessed what happened so I decided to take my losses and stop. I'm a quitter!...more
As a housewives fan, I adore Garcelle Beauvais. She’s a no nonsense straight shooter who doesn’t take any crap. I knew she had a book 4 stars!
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As a housewives fan, I adore Garcelle Beauvais. She’s a no nonsense straight shooter who doesn’t take any crap. I knew she had a book coming out, but when I saw her castmate Erika Jayne threw a copy of the book in the trash, I KNEW I had to read this book asap.
This is a memoir that follows key moments in Garcelle’s life, which I didn’t know a lot about and it was fun to learn. I thought she was pretty darn respectful talking about others in her life, she was pretty honest but not mean spirited. I enjoyed most the parts where she discussed her relationships with all of her children; it’s clear she loves them very much and is a great mom.
The only thing I didn’t love about this book is it didn’t seem very cohesive, it was more a selection of key moments in her life in random order which would throw me off because we’d finish one thing just to revisit the past right after. It felt a little disjointed, but I still enjoyed it overall....more
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