When in Rome by Sarah Adams (2022)Amelia "Rae" Rose is a pop star who just really needs a break, so she makes a run for it in the middle of the night, only for her car to break down on Noah's lawn in a small town in Kentucky. He lets her stay with him until her car is fixed, and although neither are looking for a relationship, they can't ignore the feelings brewing between them. At first I was enjoying this book - a cute little romance in a small town and I liked the celebrity angle. There were some genuinely funny moments. But, the more I read, the more I found myself just... not caring. I know that sounds bad! Noah came across as blunt and rude, and although I understood his reasons for taking over his grandma's pie shop, he showed such little enthusiasm or joy for it that it put me off a little. I like small town settings, but it's also a little unrealistic that these people just know everything about each, are all up in each other's business constantly, have nothing better to do than pop in and gossip, etc. And Noah's sisters - the way they guilt trip Noah into staying in town was not cute. I love reading about close families, but this was just too much sometimes. Overall, just a little too cutesy, a little too twee for my taste. This wasn't the book for me, but based on Goodreads reviews, I'm in the minority, so take this with a grain of salt! 3 stars
Twenty years ago, Darcy met her three best friends and they spent many fond times together at Darcy's grandmother's chateau in France. Now, two decades later, Seraphine has again invited the women to her home - but when she is found murdered, the group fractures amidst secrets and lies. I loved the atmospheric vibes of the chateau, a place with a long history that has seen a lot. But while the story moved quickly, with lots of twists and turns, I didn't necessarily find myself wanting to solve the mystery. As more and more (and more, and more) is revealed, it all became very convoluted and overdone - it was very unbelievable that all of these things could happen all together. The story is told from the POV of all four friends, and at times it was hard to distinguish them from each other (I mean, three of them are basically social media influencers, or at least trying to be). Overall, just not what I hoped. 3 stars
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Sorry you didn't like Rome more. I really liked Noah and his family. I always read fiction and have no issue suspending disbelief when I read.
ReplyDeleteI don't usually, I'm not sure what it was about The Chateau that just rubbed me the wrong way.
DeleteI have The Chateau on my Kindle - unread as yet. That being said, I'm finding that I'm a little tired of certain themes and ways of telling stories in some books. I just set aside the book that is our mystery book group's selection for February, The Paris Apartment. I just could not keep going with it. Maybe I need to take a break and read some historical mysteries or even a nice romance. We shall see. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
ReplyDeleteI DNFed The Paris Apartment last year - I just couldn't get into it.
DeleteI think out of these two I would enjoy The Chateau the most. Four POVs is quite a lot though. Especially if like you said they are hard to distinguish from each other.
ReplyDeleteI had to keep reminding myself who was who!
DeleteWhen in Rome was not my usual type of read (like you said, overly cutesy) but I gave it go anyway (on audio) and was pleasantly surprised. I didn't love it, but it was still a solid 4 star read for me and I enjoyed the characters and their story. I can understand your issues, though.
ReplyDeleteYeah, maybe if I had been in a different mood, it would have hit differently!
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