The Austen Playbook | 
Enjoying a Mystic Dragon Cider at the top of Beech Mountain on the deck of their sky bar while catching a little reading time.
pickThe books I finished tonight. It‘s always nice finding notes at the beginning of books that remind you they were a gift from your aunt and uncle for your fourth birthday (Berenstain Bears, obviously). I enjoyed this romance more than most books I‘ve ready lately. Give this one a go; my favorite in the series. #romantsy
pickSuper-cute contemporary romance between a frosty, Jason Isaacs look-alike theatre critic and a bubbly, musical-theatre actress at a career crossroads. I really liked how Griff and Freddy worked out the mystery and that what looked vaguely like a love-triangle in the making did NOT go there. However, the resolution of the novel is a bit overstuffed with extra side-plots, especially the one about the sister and her hideous boyfriend.
pickSuper cute. Low angst. Features a slightly grumpy theater critic and a West End stage actor; he has historically given her negative reviews and yet they‘re able to develop a healthy, honest relationship and not let the work tension come between them. Delightful! There‘s also a mystery in here and a cool one-night-only Austen-inspired theater production too #romantsy
I‘d love to know more about Griff‘s brother Charlie and Freddy‘s sister Sabrina!
pickThis was a great #romance #audiobook! I really liked the dynamic between the couple: an icy Slytherin no-beating-around-the-bush theatre critic and a bubbly optimistic Hufflepuff actress. The romance wasn't the only or even most important plot: discovering an old family secret, a Jane Austen mashup audience collaborative play, how Freddie is going to learn to stand up to her dad/business manager, and how Griff is going to save his family estate.
pickYup, fun. 4⭐️
Okay so this book is amazing so far. I love the characters and I love the premise that they are going to be brought together by a choose-your-own-adventure style play with a mash-up of Jane Austen characters. I would love to see that play!! #Romantsy
Another from the Maya Rosalie NPR recs list. (April‘s recs are here: https://www.npr.org/2019/04/15/710424594/for-april-3-novels-of-love-at-any-age-i... ) I‘ve heard a lot of good things about this one! #romance
pickShe is a Hufflepuff theatre legacy forcing herself into dramatic theater roles instead of the bubblier ones she prefers for love of family.
He is a Slytherin theater critic with a penchant for sharpening his wit on her and a crumbling estate in dire need of a cash injection.
His brother has a get-rich-quick scheme to host an Austen character cozy mystery choose your own adventure play at the estate.
Sparks and historical family drama ignite.
I am really enjoying my current #audiobook (Spinning Silver) but I am also very much looking forward to these two #romance books! #Romantsy #AwesomeAudiobooks
pickFunny and tender. Two people who find tenderness, passion, support and love in the most unlikely person. Freddie and Griffin are adorable and not in a sticky, too cute way. I like Lucy Parker's plotting, writing. Her main characters are fun and act like grown ups, are there for each other, listen to each other. Short cut summary. Amy Pondsmeet Draco Malfoy theater AU. With Jane Austen characters thrown in for fun. This was a #NetGalley ebook.
Almost at 50%. Game 6 in both Carolina and Dallas. There is nothing like playoff 🏒
#readingandwatchinghockey
pickLucy Parker is as good as everyone says. This fourth London Celebrities book (which totally stands alone; I haven‘t read the others yet) comes equipped with two excellent protagonists who have tons of chemistry, craploads of theatrical shenanigans, familial stressors of the frivolous parent/responsible child AND beloved-siblings-in-semi-conflict varieties, and an enticing historical conundrum that‘s deeply personal to the characters. ⬇️
I love when my pre-orders just magically show up in my kindle #romantsy
Game 6. Toronto can take the series this afternoon.Go 🍁
#readingwatchinghockey
Game 5. 🍁 in Boston. Do or die kinda. They need to win tonight.
#readingandwatchinghockey
#friyayintro time!
1. ⬆️
2. IKEA breakfast tomorrow, baby! I‘m also gonna read a bunch and visit with my family.
3. Love ‘em, especially chopped up on salad.
4. Writing novels is What I Do, friends. My current WIP‘s protagonists are named Xepher and Ardu, and I‘m almost ready to give their story a wee rest so I can revise Sim, Bear, and Selena‘s book.
5. On it.
First day off of my spring break. Will do nothing but read and veg in my PJ. #perfectday
I‘m engaged in some v. important outdoor reading: a critical essay collection, more Squirrel Girl, and the latest (/forthcoming) book in Lucy Parker‘s London Celebrities series. The opening was so good that I‘m pretty sure I‘ll need to buy the other three.
Game 4. 🍁 can push Boston into the cables. Lucy Parker's new novel in her London series so far is funny, sweet and fluffy. Just what I need to get over my team being out. #readingandwatchinghockey
Game 4. 🐧 could be 🧹. I'm starting on my netgalley Lucy Parker.
#readingandwatchinghockey
pick***#earc thanks to #netgalley for a fair review***
Hello, James Ford-Griffin, you sexy, sessy Richard Armitage-like beast of wonderment. You, my fictional friend, do not exist in real life. Nope, they don‘t make ‘em like you!
That was really all I took away from this Austen inspired dramarom. It had a good villainous vixen, several subplots to keep things moving, and Freddy as our charactress was captivating in the sense that ⬇️⬇️⬇️
For a moment, I thought NetGalley somehow got word of my epic Squirrel Girl reread and adjusted my menu accordingly. Then I remembered it‘s April Fool‘s Day, and I realized they transformed the whole site into a nut-fest.
I read 20 books in February! So many that I got behind on reviewing... stay tuned for reviews in a min.
But for a general idea — Top row are my favorite 5, bottom row my least favorite, and the rest are my “in betweeners”.
And before I forget to tell you... I‘m giving away the tagged book on IG. (@howjessreads there too). Giveaway ends today.
#howjessreadsin2019
pick⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I loved this one! So much, that I‘m going to give away a copy. Enter to win here: https://www.instagram.com/p/BuPNDmOn9LQ #giveaway #howjessreadsin2019
I feel like everybody and their dog is into Lucy Parker's London Celebrities books right now, so I leaped at the chance to try THE AUSTEN PLAYBOOK. Casey and I will read it and report back (ie, I'll read it while Casey either naps or destroys one of his toys in my general vicinity).
