Can't-Wait Wednesday: Love à la Mode

Can't-Wait Wednesday is hosted by Tressa at Wishful Endings and helps us spotlight upcoming releases we're eagerly anticipating!

Love à la Mode

Stephanie Kate Strohm

Expected publication date: November 27, 2018

Rosie Radeke firmly believes that happiness can be found at the bottom of a mixing bowl. But she never expected that she, a random nobody from East Liberty, Ohio, would be accepted to celebrity chef Denis Laurent's school in Paris, the most prestigious cooking program for teens in the entire world. Life in Paris, however, isn't all cream puffs and crepes. Faced with a challenging curriculum and a nightmare professor, Rosie begins to doubt her dishes.

Henry Yi grew up in his dad's restaurant in Chicago, and his lifelong love affair with food landed him a coveted spot in Chef Laurent's school. He quickly connects with Rosie, but academic pressure from home and his jealousy over Rosie's growing friendship with gorgeous bad-boy baker Bodie Tal makes Henry lash out and push his dream girl away.

Desperate to prove themselves, Rosie and Henry cook like never before while sparks fly between them. But as they reach their breaking points, they wonder whether they have what it takes to become real chefs.

Perfect for lovers of Chopped Teen Tournament and Kids Baking Championship, as well as anyone who dreams of a romantic trip to France, Love la Mode follows Rosie and Henry as they fall in love with food, with Paris, and ultimately, with each other. - from Goodreads

Paris, food, and Stephanie Kate Strohm (also the author of one of my favorite books of the year, Prince in Disguise) - I'm in!

Top Ten Tuesday: Hidden Gems

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl.  This week's topic is hidden gems.  I went through my Goodreads "Read" list and chose some books I really enjoyed that didn't have a lot of reviews or ratings.  These books are all wonderful, so I'm hoping to get the word out there about them!

     

Valley of the Moon by Melanie Gideon: Time travel, love, family, forgiveness - this book has it all. 

Rutherford Park by Elizabeth Cooke: If you like Downton Abbey, try this book out.

Good Morning, Midnight by Lily Brooks-Dalton: A quiet yet powerful "end of the world" story.

 

 The Lost Art of Keeping Secrets by Eva Rice: A quirky coming-of-age story, for fans of I Capture the Castle.

The Windy City Magic series by Crystal Cestari: This YA series with a dose of magical realism is so adorable, I'm really surprised I haven't seen more love for it!

   

 A Touch of Stardust by Kate Alcott: If you enjoy historical fiction and Gone With the Wind, you'll love this one.

How to Disappear by Sharon Huss Roat: Other bloggers have talked about this book, but I really think more people should read it, for its messages about social media and self-confidence.

The Debutante by Kathleen Tessaro: A grand English estate, a decades-old mystery - love this one!

The Scent of Rain and Lightning by Nancy Pickard: This well-plotted, slow burn murder mystery is a must for anyone who likes character-driven suspense.

Some Bookish Memories

A little while ago, the Top Ten Tuesday topic, hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl, was about books with sensory memories: books that are linked to very specific memories (where you were, what time of year it was, who you were with, what you were eating, what you were feeling, what you were seeing, etc.).  Even though I've read a ton of books in my life, I didn't think I had many specific memories of individual books that really stood out, so I didn't participate that week.  However, after reading so many other bloggers' lists and memories, it sparked something in my memory and I was able to come up with a few of my own.  So, here's the list I should have had that week! 

  

Behind the Attic Wall: This is one book I distinctly remember reading as a kid, and more than once.  I loved it so much I named my pet cat after one of the characters!

Nancy Drew: My aunts read Nancy Drew when they were younger, and my grandmother kept a lot of their old books.  When we would visit, she would let my sister and I read them!

The Selection series: I brought this series on vacation with me when we went to Las Vegas last year.  I thought it would be a fun, light reread.  I didn't get much reading done on our trip, but figured I would get some reading time in on the flight home.  Our flight stopped in Denver for what was supposed to be a short time (we weren't even supposed to get off the plane), but something happened, they made us all get off the plane, and we ended up being stuck in the Denver airport for HOURS.  I ended up reading quite a lot during that layover!

  

Anna Karenina: When I went off to college, I didn't bring many books with me, assuming I wouldn't have a lot of time to read for fun, but I brought Anna Karenina, I guess thinking that because it was so long, I wouldn't need any other books.  I distinctly remember sitting on the couches in the student center on a Friday night, reading it.  Now that I think about it, I was kind of pretentious - I swear, I had friends!

The Almost Archer Sisters: I decided to switch careers in my twenties and attended my local community college at night to get my paralegal certificate.  I would often get there really early because the parking situation was so bad, and I would either sit outside or in the library, eating Pop-Tarts for dinner and reading before my class.  I didn't have many books at home, so I reread a lot, and I remember reading this book at least twice in one semester.

Playing the Game: Tom and I were in Baltimore for a long weekend, and we browsed for a bit in the Barnes & Noble at the Inner Harbor.  I ended up buying this book, but the highlight of the weekend was Tom proposing!  Even though I ended up not liking the book very much, I held onto it for years because it brought back a lot of happy memories from that weekend.

What is your favorite bookish memory?



Check Out Literary Book Gifts!

I know it's only September, but it's never too early to start thinking about the holiday season.  Books are always a great gift for the book lovers in your life (and yourself!), but there are plenty of other unique bookish items out there!  I was recently contacted by Melissa of Literary Book Gifts, and she invited me to check out her site that's full of literary-inspired items, including men's and women's t-shirts, tank tops, and sweatshirts and (my favorite) tote bags. 

Featuring classic authors and books, the clothing items come in several sizes and colors, and for people like me who can never figure out what size they are, there's a handy sizing chart.  Here are just a couple of the fun clothing designs to show off your love of reading:

  

  

 

I'm a firm believer that you can never have too many tote bags, and Literary Book Gifts has some really cute designs (and they come in three sizes).  These are some of my favorite designs:

 

If you see anything you're interested in, Literary Book Gifts is offering the following promo code MUSINGSOFALITERARYWANDERER20, which is good for 20% off anything in the store, no minimum, and it doesn't expire!
 

Happy shopping!

Disclaimer: I did not receive anything in exchange for this post.

Backlist Mini-Reviews

Dangerous Girls by Abigail Haas (2013)

This book sounds like it could be ripped straight from the headlines - high schoolers on spring break in Aruba; one of them is murdered; and another faces a trial and jail in a foreign country.  Anna is the main character, and when her best friend Elise is murdered in their vacation house, Anna is brought in almost immediately as a suspect.

I liked the way the author played with the timeline in the book.  It bounced around between the spring break trip, Anna's trial, and the lives of the friends before it all went to hell.  Different secrets were revealed and we got to know Anna and Elise bit by bit.  I kept going back and forth on whether or not Anna had actually killed Elise.  Sometimes I thought maybe she did, but other times I was convinced that she was a victim, too, of a biased investigation.

It was interesting to see how the investigation and trial played out and also how the media portrayed Anna - how everyone took snippets of conversations or pictures and tried to prove Anna was dangerous, uncaring, even a psychopath.  I did think the story was a tad predictable in some parts, but overall, it was a fast-paced mystery.  4 stars

 

 Swear on This Life by Renee Carlino (2016)

A woman realizes a childhood friend has written a best-selling novel based on her own early life.

Unfortunately, I DNFed this one.  The relationship between the main character and her boyfriend was off-putting; they seemed so unhappy and it was bringing me down.  Even in just the first couple chapters, it was all feeling a bit too melodramatic for me.  The book-within-the-book was another low point.  I thought the writing was kind of pedestrian.  I didn't understand why all the characters were raving about it.  I had to stop after about 50 pages.  This book has great reviews on Goodreads, so it's probably a matter of "it's me, not you."

Can't-Wait Wednesday: Nine Perfect Strangers

Can't-Wait Wednesday is hosted by Tressa at Wishful Endings and helps us spotlight upcoming releases we're eagerly anticipating!

Nine Perfect Strangers
Liane Moriarty
Expected publication date: November 6, 2018

Could ten days at a health resort really change you forever? In Liane Moriarty’s latest page-turner, nine perfect strangers are about to find out...

Nine people gather at a remote health resort. Some are here to lose weight, some are here to get a reboot on life, some are here for reasons they can’t even admit to themselves. Amidst all of the luxury and pampering, the mindfulness and meditation, they know these ten days might involve some real work. But none of them could imagine just how challenging the next ten days are going to be.

Frances Welty, the formerly best-selling romantic novelist, arrives at Tranquillum House nursing a bad back, a broken heart, and an exquisitely painful paper cut. She’s immediately intrigued by her fellow guests. Most of them don’t look to be in need of a health resort at all. But the person that intrigues her most is the strange and charismatic owner/director of Tranquillum House. Could this person really have the answers Frances didn’t even know she was seeking? Should Frances put aside her doubts and immerse herself in everything Tranquillum House has to offer – or should she run while she still can?

It’s not long before every guest at Tranquillum House is asking exactly the same question.

Combining all of the hallmarks that have made her writing a go-to for anyone looking for wickedly smart, page-turning fiction that will make you laugh and gasp, Liane Moriarty’s Nine Perfect Strangers once again shows why she is a master of her craft.

This book sounds awesome, but honestly, I didn't even need to read the synopsis - it's Liane Moriarty, so of course I'm going to read it!

Month in Review: August 2018

Even though some of the crappy stuff from July spilled over into August, overall it was a much better month!  I had a fun girls' night out with my sister and two of my sisters-in-law doing a crafting project.  We saw The Meg and it wasn't as terrible as I thought it would be!  August is another big month for birthdays around here, including my husband's.  For Tom's birthday, I took him up to Beacon, New York, where there is a Doctor Who-themed restaurant called The Pandorica!  It was a really cute place and he loved all the little touches!

 

 

I was the lucky winner of a birthday giveaway from Lindsi at Do You Dog-ear?.  I was so excited to receive a copy of Starry Eyes, a beautiful book sleeve, and a mug that says "Life is the adventure" - totally perfect for Tom and me!

The Books

Dangerous Girls (review to come) //  Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children // The End We Start From // The Summer Wives

Murder on the Orient Express (audio) // This Could Change Everything (review to come) // This Shattered World // Something in the Water

Wedding Toasts I'll Never Give (review to come) // Shiver (audio) // How To Be Married (review to come) // The Other Side of Lost (review to come)

Six of Crows

The Posts and Reviews

Review: The Husband Hour 

The Coffee Book Tag

Six Mile Run

Sweet Fiction/Nonfiction Mini-Reviews: Everything is Better with Ice Cream 

Summer TBR Wipeout 2018 Wrap-Up 

Science Fiction Mini-Reviews: 

5 Things I Would Tell Myself as a New Blogger 

TV Shows I'm Obsessed With Lately #6 

Nonfiction Mini-Reviews 
Quotables #10 
Top Ten Tuesday: Not Your Typical History Lesson 
Historical Fiction Mini-Reviews

The Posts I Loved

Greg from Book Haven gives some thoughts on book blogging

Sam from We Live and Breathe Books discusses negativity in book reviews

Tressa from Wishful Endings looks for feedback on branching out from book blogging

Genni from Ready, Set, Read! talks about what she values in a book-to-movie adaptation

Tracy at Cornerfolds dissects trends in YA

How was your August?  Are you as excited as I am that fall is almost here?