Month in Review: July 2018

I don't know about you guys, but I'm glad that July is over.  I'm really hoping August is a better month, overall.  The weather didn't help; it was way too hot, muggy, and rainy.  We did see a couple great movies (Ant-Man and the Wasp, Mission: Impossible Fallout), but that was about it.

I noticed I've been getting a lot of hits from Twitter, so thank you to everyone who has been sharing my posts over there!

And lastly, some semi-exciting news: I finally got a smartphone and joined Instagram; you can check out my page here.  Right now it's set to private because it will also be my personal account, but please feel free to send me a request and I'll follow back!

The Books

 The Party // Legendary // Boardwalk Summer (review to come) // Slightly South of Simple

Zoo (audio) // All We Ever Wanted // Obscura (review to come) // The Garden of Small Beginnings

Stay Sweet (review to come) // Sweet Spot (review to come) // The Address // The Loneliest Girl in the Universe (review to come)

Daughter of the Siren Queen // Code Girls (review to come) // Jurassic Park (audio) // The Sweetest Kind of Fate

The Posts and Reviews

Summer TBR Wipeout 2018: Intro Post
Top Ten Tuesday: Red, White, and Blue Covers
5 Takeaways from "The Year of Less"
5 Low-Rated Books I Really Liked 
Top Ten Tuesday: Best Books of 2018... So Far 
Fiction/Nonfiction Mini-Reviews: The Reality TV Edition 
Summer TBR Wipeout 2018: Update #1 
Rutgers Gardens and Frank G. Helyar Woods 
Review: The Academy 
5 Highly-Rated Books I Didn't Enjoy
Backlist Fiction/Nonfiction Mini-Reviews: The Royal Edition
Summer TBR Wipeout 2018: Update #2

The Posts I Loved

Lindsey at Lindsey Reads gives us a little tour of Belgium through book covers

Marie at Drizzle and Hurricane Books talks about 4 positive things book blogging has brought to her life

Laura at Boats Against the Current tells the story behind her blog name

Tracy at Cornerfolds talks about the aftermath of a blogging slump

Sarah at Sarah's Book Shelves gives you the ultimate guide to celebrity book clubs

 

How was your July?  What was your favorite book of the month?

Review: The Husband Hour

The Husband Hour
Jamie Brenner
Published April 24, 2018

When a young widow's reclusive life in a charming beach town is interrupted by a surprise visitor, she is forced to reckon with dark secrets about her family, her late husband, and the past she tried to leave behind.

Lauren Adelman and her high school sweetheart, Rory Kincaid, are a golden couple. They marry just out of college as Rory, a star hockey player, earns a spot in the NHL. Their future could not look brighter when Rory shocks everyone-Lauren most of all-by enlisting in the U.S. Army. When Rory dies in combat, Lauren is left devastated, alone, and under unbearable public scrutiny.

Seeking peace and solitude, Lauren retreats to her family's old beach house on the Jersey Shore. But this summer she's forced to share the house with her overbearing mother and competitive sister. Worse, a stranger making a documentary about Rory tracks her down and persuades her to give him just an hour of her time.

One hour with filmmaker Matt Brio turns into a summer of revelations, surprises, and upheaval. As the days grow shorter and her grief changes shape, Lauren begins to understand the past-and to welcome the future.

Rory Kincaid was a star athlete with a career in the NHL, newly married to his high school sweetheart Lauren, when he decided to enlist in the army.  After he is killed in combat, Lauren spends the next four years at her family beach house, isolated until one summer finds her entire family sharing the house with her.  To make things worse, a documentary filmmaker wants to tell Rory's story.

I have to say, one of the main reasons I was drawn to this book was the Jersey shore setting.  I spent my childhood summers up and down the shore, so I was eager to see how the author incorporated that.  I think she did a good job, with the references to local landmarks and overall relaxed lifestyle.

Onto the story!  Much of the plot revolves around the documentary being put together by Matt Brio.  He wanted to do a portrait of American hero Rory, but through his research and interviews, he comes across some things about Rory that were kept quiet, which leads his film in a different direction.  He wants to talk to Lauren to fill in some of the gaps.  She, understandably, doesn't want to be involved at first. 

I didn't really know what to make of Lauren at first.  She was only 24 when Rory died, and she has spent the last few years living alone at the shore.  As more of the story is revealed about her and Rory's relationship, we find out that their life was not as perfect as it had been portrayed.  They had issues, a lot of which stemmed from something beyond their control (I don't want to spoil it too much, although it is revealed pretty early on), and I finally understood that Lauren held a lot of guilt regarding Rory's death.

Lauren's sister and parents also play roles in the story, and everyone is dealing with their own issues.  Stephanie, the sister, is going through a divorce, but for me that totally didn't excuse her partying, drinking, and neglect of her son.  Lauren's parents are losing the store they owned for 30 years and their marriage is on the rocks.  I think Lauren's mother Beth was my favorite character.  She tried to be the glue holding everyone together.  Although she could be a bit naïve in that way, she was also a lot smarter than everyone gave her credit for.

I read this book very quickly; the writing was very approachable and the story flowed well.  However, for some reason I never became fully invested in the characters.  I didn't feel as moved as I thought I would be.  I also had two major issues with the book, the first being the romance, which I felt was forced.  There was also a surprise reveal near the end which I felt was completely unnecessary and really tainted my view of some of the characters.  However, this book has so many great reviews, so this may be an "it's not you, it's me" thing.

3.5 stars

Can't-Wait Wednesday: The Glass Ocean

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

The Glass Ocean
Beatriz Williams, Lauren Willig, and Karen White
Expected publication date: September 4, 2018

May 2013
Her finances are in dire straits and bestselling author Sarah Blake is struggling to find a big idea for her next book. Desperate, she breaks the one promise she made to her Alzheimer’s-stricken mother and opens an old chest that belonged to her great-grandfather, who died when the RMS Lusitania was sunk by a German U-Boat in 1915. What she discovers there could change history. Sarah embarks on an ambitious journey to England to enlist the help of John Langford, a recently disgraced Member of Parliament whose family archives might contain the only key to the long-ago catastrophe. . . .

April 1915
Southern belle Caroline Telfair Hochstetter’s marriage is in crisis. Her formerly attentive industrialist husband, Gilbert, has become remote, pre-occupied with business . . . and something else that she can’t quite put a finger on. She’s hoping a trip to London in Lusitania’s lavish first-class accommodations will help them reconnect—but she can’t ignore the spark she feels for her old friend, Robert Langford, who turns out to be on the same voyage. Feeling restless and longing for a different existence, Caroline is determined to stop being a bystander, and take charge of her own life. . . .

Tessa Fairweather is traveling second-class on the Lusitania, returning home to Devon. Or at least, that’s her story. Tessa has never left the United States and her English accent is a hasty fake. She’s really Tennessee Schaff, the daughter of a roving con man, and she can steal and forge just about anything. But she’s had enough. Her partner has promised that if they can pull off this one last heist aboard the Lusitania, they’ll finally leave the game behind. Tess desperately wants to believe that, but Tess has the uneasy feeling there’s something about this job that isn’t as it seems. . . .

As the Lusitania steams toward its fate, three women work against time to unravel a plot that will change the course of their own lives . . . and history itself. - from Goodreads

Dual timeline and historical fiction on the Lusitania?  Yes, please!

Summer TBR Wipeout 2018: Update #2

I can't believe it's time for the second update on the Summer TBR Wipeout, hosted by The Candid Cover!  Since my last update, I've read 3 books:

I've been wanting to read The Garden of Small Beginnings by Abbi Waxman since last summer, but for some reason kept putting it off.  I'm so glad I added it to my TBR for this challenge, because I really loved it! The Garden of Small Beginnings tells the story of widow Lilian as she and her young daughters take a gardening class.  I loved the cast of characters around her, especially her sister, and watching Lilian try to open herself up to love again made me cry some happy tears.

Next I moved onto The Address by Fiona Davis, which is set at the historic Dakota apartment building in New York City.  The story is told in a dual timeline: the first is in the 1880s, when the building first opens, and the second is in the mid-1980s and focuses on cousins living in the Dakota who are related to the fictional architect of the building, Theodore Camden.  I loved learning about the historic building; however, even though I enjoy dual timeline stories, it seems like one story is usually more interesting than the other.  In this case, I preferred the 1880s story about the female manager of the building.

The third book I read was Daughter of the Siren Queen by Tricia Levenseller.  I really enjoyed Daughter of the Pirate King and was looking forward to the sequel - it didn't disappoint!  I love these strong female pirates, and this book was so action-packed!  There were a lot of tense moments, and not everyone makes it out.  Definitely a great conclusion to the duology!

So, I have three books left on my TBR for this challenge, and I'm looking forward to getting started on them!

Backlist Fiction/Nonfiction Mini-Reviews: The Royal Edition

Princesses Behaving Badly: Real Stories from History - Without the Fairy-Tale Endings by Linda Rodriguez McRobbie (2013)

Princesses Behaving Badly is a fun, kind of tongue-in-cheek look at the lives of many women throughout history who didn't portray the typical lady-like behavior expected of them.  The book is divided into sections, such as the Schemers and the Partiers.  Each biography is quite short, just giving an overview.  I appreciated that the author tries to debunk some of the inaccuracies surrounding these women and that she included princesses from all over the world and many time periods.  However, I was a little disappointed that some of the women were not actual princesses and a couple of them may have not been real at all, but just stories from local myths or folklore.

The writing style is definitely not dry; it's very readable and almost light-hearted.  I didn't know most of the women highlighted in the book, but there were a few I did, including Princess Margaret of England.  If you're looking for a twist on the typical biography, you may enjoy this one.  4 stars

My Lady Jane (The Lady Janies #1) by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows (2016)

I normally shy away from hyped books, so when this book first came out and everyone was raving about it, I didn't really want to read it.  I wasn't sure it was my thing, either - people changing into animals?  Trying to inject humor into a very tense time in history?  But, it's loosely based on the Tudors, and I can't resist that!

King Edward is dying, and he is convinced by Lord Dudley to name his cousin, Jane Grey, as his successor and marry her to Dudley's son, Gifford.  While this sounds pretty close to the historical record, this is where the similarities end, and what we get is a whimsical and light-hearted take on the 9-day reign of Lady Jane Grey.  Instead of religious persecution, England is torn between those who can shape-shift into animals and those who cannot.  Jane Grey is a bookish, opinionated, and open-minded young lady.  She doesn't find out until after her marriage that her husband Gifford changes into a horse every day.  While he's human, though, he is a sensitive and poetic lord.  I loved watching them fall in love and even laughed at every near-kiss interruption.  With Edward and Elizabeth (Bess), they try to take back England. 

I just loved this book; the characters were so fun, the story so imaginative, and I couldn't stop reading (knowing the end would be so different from the story we actually know).  My only quibble is that it seemed a bit coincidental that many major players found out they were also shape-shifters at the most opportune of times.  4.5 stars

Can't-Wait Wednesday: Blind Kiss

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

Blind Kiss
Renee Carlino
Expected publication date: August 14, 2018

Penny spends her afternoons sitting outside a sandwich shop, surrounded by ghosts. Fourteen years ago, this shop was her childhood dance studio... Now she’s a suburban housewife, dreading the moment her son departs for MIT, leaving her with a McMansion and a failing marriage. She had her chance at wild, stars-in-her-eyes happiness, but that was a lifetime ago. After The Kiss. Before The Decision.

The Kiss was soulful. Magical. Earth-shattering, And it was all for a free gift card. Asked to participate in a psych study that posed the question, “Can you have sexual chemistry without knowing what the other person looks like?” Penny agreed to be blindfolded, make polite conversation with a total stranger, and kiss him. She never expected The Kiss to change her life forever and introduce her to Gavin: tattooed, gorgeous, and spontaneous enough to ask her out seconds after the blindfolds came off.

For a year, they danced between friendship and romance—until Penny made The Decision that forced them to settle for friendship. Now, fourteen years later, both of their lives are about to radically change—and it’s his turn to decide what will become of their once-in-a-lifetime connection. - from Goodreads

5 Highly-Rated Books I Didn't Enjoy

Previously inspired by Hannah at So Obsessed With and her list of low-rated books she really enjoyed, I made my own list here.  Today I'm doing the reverse, just like Hannah did, and putting together a list of highly-rated books that I didn't enjoy.  I chose books that had an average rating of 4 stars or higher on Goodreads.

Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult: Goodreads rating of 4.34.  I typically enjoy Picoult's books, but for me her take on racism was filled with clichéd characters and her signature twist ending didn't work.

The Midnight Rose by Lucinda Riley: Goodreads rating of 4.27.  This dual timeline story travels from India to England.  At first glance, it seems to have everything I enjoy in a novel, but the writing is so stilted and the story is predictable.

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green: Goodreads rating of 4.25.  I was so happy to see that Hannah had this one on her list, too.  I tend to feel a little weird when I dislike a book that everyone else seems to love, but I can't even with this one.  This book is just so pretentious and the characters are wildly unbelievable.

The Mother's Promise by Sally Hepworth: Goodreads rating of 4.15.  I loved an earlier novel by Sally Hepworth, but this novel about a single mother dying from ovarian cancer was a mess for me.  I gave it 2.5 stars.

Where the River Ends by Charles Martin: Goodreads rating of 4.10.  I thought I would like this story of a man who takes his sick wife on one last trip down the St. Mary's River, but the pretentious main character, confusing timelines, and general over-the-top-ness of the book turned me off.

Are there any highly-rated books that you haven't enjoyed?