Thursday, May 30, 2019

May Reading Recap & Reviews

I feel like I say this at the end of every month but how did May go by so quickly? I seriously can't believe how exciting and crazy packed this month was.
Even though it was a very busy month, I still managed to read several great books. I can't wait to share all 5 of them with you. Let's dive in!



This is the story of two best friends who go on a European backpacking trip but because of previous travel circumstances, end up at multiple of the stops with one of the girls ex-boyfriends and his friend as well. There are a lot of different twists and turns throughout this novel as you travel through Europe with two college aged girls who are trying to figure out love, life, and family.

I will just come out and say it. I hated this book. The cover is truly the only thing it has going for it. The main characters are desperate girls who will belittle themselves for a guy and the way the male characters talk about the girls in this book is just gross. It reminded me a lot of my middle school bus ride, the characters were so immature. Not to mention, a backpacking trip through Europe is something a lot of people only get to do once and they completely winged it. The main characters didn't plan out their expenses, travel, hostels, nothing. It was stressful to read. 

We didn't start off well, but I promise it get's better from here. (:

Rate: 1 Star (that only goes to the cover)



A blogger friend recommended this author to me for a good mystery novel and I found this one at my library. I had no clue what this book was about but decided to give it a shot anyways. 

This book is about a misfit of rich and high society adults who take a cruise on a boat resembling the glitz and glamor of the Titanic. Unfortunately, the experience resembled the Titanic as well. After several of the passengers turn up dead, the search ensues for the killer on board. 

I truly didn't guess who the killer was and that always marks a successful mystery novel in my book. I will say that the characters weren't as relatable or interesting as I would have liked. Other than that, it was a quick read and a great mystery. I have heard great things about this authors other books as well and can't wait to give it a try.

Rate: 4 Stars!




The perfect summer read if there every was one!!

This book is about a high school aged girl and guy who meet on an airplane on their way to a culinary institute in France, where they will both be studying under the most impressive chefs in the world. These two believe they have found their true love in one another, but things get more confusing as they arrive and meet young, attractive, and famous chefs. There is love, delicious food, fun characters, and France. Is there anything else you could want in a summer book?

I absolutely adored everything about this story and it made up for the first book I read about Europe. This had all the charm a book set in France should have and I loved every page.

Rate: 5 Stars!



I have heard non-stop buzz about this author and her newest book so I decided to give it a read.

This book is about a band called The Six and a girl named Daisy Jones. When they join forces to take the Rock world by storm in the mid-70's they find that keeping seven creatives in a band is harder than they thought.

I have very mixed feelings about this book. First, I want to let you know that the entire book is told in interview format. This made it harder to get into for me, but around halfway through, it stopped bothering me. 
Second, I have to give credit where credit is due. Reid somehow makes very unlikeable characters, likable. This band is full of selfish, conceited, rock stars and somehow, I was rooting for them. Reid also does a great job at making these characters feel real. I am ashamed to admit, the entirety of the book, I thought this was a real band, ha! I googled them afterwards and to my disappointment, they don't actually exist.
Lastly, I have to admit that I bumped my rating of this book down a lot due to the glorification of things I don't agree with. Cheatings spouses, dishonest relationships, drugs, sex, alcoholism, and even abortion were glorified as "part of rock n' roll" and that just wasn't okay with me. I have yet to read a book set in the 70's and thought this would be cool, but I don't think Reid did it justice. 

Rate: 2 Stars




Famous in a Small Town by: Emma Mills 
I have heard a lot of people mention how Emma Mills is a go-to author for a fun, easy-going read so I was eager to try one.

Famous in a Small Town is about a group of friends who live in the small town of Acadia who are trying to raise money for a trip their band needs to take for a big a parade. They work together to try and get the only famous singer to ever come out of Acadia to return for a concert. This is a story of love, friendship, heart ache, and strength.

I love this book. It was a quick read and wasn't too heavy of a story, but definitely had some shocking and surprising moments. I really didn't care for one of the friends in this book but loved some of the families we learned about. I was truly shocked on multiple occasions and didn't see some of the heart wrenching moments coming. I really liked this sweet book.

Rate: 4 Stars!


What book sounds good to you? If you ever have any recommendations for me, please drop them in the comments section below or in my inbox. I love reading what you recommend.

I will talk to you soon.

xoxo

3 comments :

  1. Definitely need to read some of these books!

    Jennifer
    Effortlessly Sophisticated

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes girl! There were several that just make for super fun summer reads. (:

      xoxo

      Delete
  2. Thoughtful blog, thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete

Go ahead and leave me a comment! I will get back to you as soon as I can!