Welcome to Litsy!

#BookScavengerHunt prompt-knitting 15 pts

#HauntedShelf #FreightClub team @jadams89

1,610 pts (previous) + 15 pts (current) = 1,620 pts

Couldn‘t resist this cozy reads display at the library.

i had to read this for my university book club and it definitely brought me out of my comfort zone 😅 the constant pining and lusting over men was kinda grating

Another September review... This was just okay. I liked the premise but the story felt like it moved very slowly and not much happened. Normally I don't mind romances like that, character-focused, but I didn't think the couple had enough chemistry. I'm still planning to read the next book, since it was what drew me to this series to begin with and focuses on a different Strong brother.
#SeriesLove2023 @Andrew65 @TheSpineView

This was a fun mindless read. Exactly what I needed 😊

This was a really anticipated read for me and I ended up feeling pretty meh about it. I never clicked with the main characters and I had a hard time caring about them or the shop. A shame because I loved the premise.

I liked the setting, and that it highlighted the fact that yes, men knit too, but otherwise it didn‘t do much for me. The romance aspect felt too formulaic and predictable.

I am@down to the last hour of this book. I still feel like there should have been more knitting references, but it‘s a cute romance that took me by surprise. Minor erotica, but the I need a AMBW book with the hot firefighter brother!! He was delicious in this book. I would buy yarn if I knew he would be there!! Not finished but this is a good quick summer read. I feel like the ending might be rushed🤷🏾‍♀️. We will have to wait and see.

I am at the half way point and we still haven‘t gotten into the knitting aspect.lol. this book is cute and I love the Harlem references. I am not sure why the slow build up, but it‘s a fun read. I am still not a fan of the narrator. I think the voice in my head would be better if I actually read it. Anyone commuting like me, this is a fun read, maybe something to put on the summer list!

I just started this little gem. I spun a wheel and got this random audiobook. So far it‘s starting off way to sad for my taste, but the characters seem fun, I am not a fan of the narrator, the voice is killing the vibe a little. I rather have a man doing this whole story, but that is preference, not a requirement. I am still listening, I might crochet while listening

What I loved most was the story surrounding how the Strong Knits store had become such an important part of the community, and wanting to continue that tradition. I felt that the author took forever to get to the point and repeated information to the point where I was saying “I got it already, can we please move on”.
I learned more things through reading this book and had to google things….and now I want a chopped cheese.

review here: https://debbybrauer.org/#real-men-knit

This one was just okay for me. I liked the unique setting and premise but the writing was really repetitive and predictable to the point of being painfully formulaic. If I hadn‘t been listening on #audio while doing other things, I would have DNFed this one. #BookspinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

#currentlisten #audiopainting #BookspinBingo

3☆

Well, it did get better towards the end but it definitely takes far too long before anything happens, mainly because the main characters spend most of the time introspecting instead of doing things - and then you don‘t pay attention for a minute because you‘re refilling your pineapple punch and they‘re suddenly all over each other. Liked the premise and some of the other characters were great so I stuck with it till the end. Rum punch def helps!

What I liked: addressing the idea that “real men” don‘t do “girly things” although the way it‘s addressed is kind of abrupt and unconvincing.

What I disliked: everything else. No actual romance for 3/4 of the book; too much in-your-head insecure BS; and then BAM it turns out they‘ve always been in love and now they‘re going to live happily ever after and all drama is forgotten. Seriously? (Cont below)

3 hours left out of almost 9 and A MAN IS KNITTING! 🧶

Okay, stuff is starting to happen but although we‘re halfway through no men have knitted anything. I feel betrayed! Actually, all the knitting has been people thinking about having knitted something in the past. I do like the brothers - right now Damian is my fave because he told Kerry off because she knows “how to beat shit into the ground” - yep, that‘s exactly what she is doing.

Sooo ... Not sure about whether to stick with this one. The narrator of the audiobook is doing a great job and I really thought I‘d like it but I keep zoning out because nothing seems to happen and there‘s all this backstory/exposition/thinking (even in the middle of a dialogue) but not much plot so far. Does it get better once stuff happens? 🤔

That was cute, though REALLY slow. I feel like we move barely anywhere in the first 80% of the book, and then all of a sudden we‘re cramming in a ton of plot points & character development into the last 20%. I did really like the characters though — the hero/heroine had decent chemistry, & the side characters were a lot of fun. It seems like there‘re more stories to tell about the Strong brothers, & I‘d be interested to see where they go! ★★★☆☆.

#currentlyreading | this romcom looks like it wants to tell toxic masculinity to get 👏🏽 off 👏🏽 our 👏🏽 backs 👏🏽

Kimchi noodle soup + new book. REAL MEN KNIT starts off a bit slow, presumably because Jackson‘s setting up a series, but it feels like it could be a really good, community-focused read.

⭐️⭐️⭐️🎧2020.10.12 Nice, light, fun read.

#BlackLitsy #Blitsy #BlackAuthor #BIPOCAuthors #OwnVoices

My review of this book by Kwana Jackson is up on my blog. Come check it out. https://wwwjustagirlkindleing.blogspot.com/

Ehh, good book to pass the time but terrible dialogue and the build up of friendship to something more was just bad

🌟🌟🌟

So. I love the idea. I like the characters. But the pacing is a bit off and it doesn‘t quite feel like a romance-romance iykwim. And in my (UK) kindle edition there are some proofing errors that drove me mad.

Book #9 of my Month of Romance.

Latest preorder to drop onto my kindle! Only how many months after the US?!

This was a fun lighthearted romance that is a perfect beach read.

August Book 7/20 #LitsyLove

Loving this book so far! The characters draw you in to their knitting world after the loss of their mother the owner of the knitting shop. Can‘t wait to read more and see what happens to the shop!

I wanted to like this so much but it was just ok. Pretty wordy, not a lot of anything happening and the romance doesn‘t happen until close to the end. I also have this issue with some romance books-the main characters are actively against each other for most of the book and then, BOOM, they‘re in bed with each other. There‘s little to no transition in their thinking that makes it believable. Definitely felt that was an issue here.

It feels like a million degrees outside but it‘s supposed to rain later so I feel like I need to take advantage of the sunshine right now! This book is pretty fun and light so far. Just what I needed after reading The Knockout Queen (review hopefully coming soon).

Excited for the weekend! #libraryhaul

How‘s this book?
Gas anyone read it?

I chose this book solely because I liked the cover.
Dexter wanted to be in the photo with the pretty book. #doggiedreamingdexter

Guess this the year of the romance for me. This wasn‘t bad just there was something weird with the pacing.

Since Manhattan is an island, for #RippedBodiceBingo - set on an island.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ I really liked the characters, setting, & story in this but found the execution a little clunky. The amount of willful misunderstandings was way too high & the romantic resolution came so late in the book you had no time to enjoy it. I do hope Jackson writes books about all the Strong brothers, because I would read them, but this was not the favorite I wanted it to be.

4/5

This is a super cute romance. After his mother died unexpectedly, Jesse Strong has to figure out to make his mother's yarn store profitable fast with the help of the store's part time employee, Kerry. It's a great book that deals with healthy masculinity and strong family ties that can survive and hardship. It's a really great romance read.

#netgalley

1. Real Men Knit by Kwana Jackson, Network Effect by Martha Wells, and Me And White Supremacy by Layla F. Saad

2. When They Call You a Terrorist by Patrisse Kahn-Cullors Asha Bandele

3. The Lady's Guide to her Mysterious Illness by Sarah Ramey

#weekendreads @rachelsbrittain

There was nothing cute about the first time Kerry Fuller met Jesse Strong.

#FirstLineFridays @ShyBookOwl

Today‘s #bookhaul from BN (the kiddo and I braved the masses today; most people were not masked and not making any efforts at distancing 😡), including two Black authors that were mostly impulse buys. The POC authors‘ books I really wanted weren‘t in stock or are due in paperback in the coming months so I‘m holding out. I know my recent Book Outlet haul has at least a couple books from Black authors, too. I‘m trying!
#blackoutbestsellerlist

I‘m reading a lot more nonfiction right now about how white politics have affected BIPOC lives since, well, before we set up our current political structure, but I‘ve been intentionally integrating my fiction reading for the last few years now.

This was a great contemporary romance that included family dynamics, dismantling toxic masculinity, and a beautiful grand gesture. I hope the author writes more stories for the Strong boys! ❤️
#blackvoices

This was cute no doubt about it, but I couldn‘t help thinking it held back a little. It set up a lot of emotional depth but shied away from fully exploring the messiness of that depth.

Super cute romance novel about four brothers who inherit their mothers yarn shop in Harlem. Also one of them falls in love.

#MagicalMay #MayStats

Listened to 3 #audiomysteries
Read: 2 #historicalmysteries
2 mysteries; 1#readeurope2020 1 #botmbuddyread
1 #memoir
1 novel #bookclub
3 novels #fun #chicklit #escapism
12 books in total

I read more than I realized. #stayhomeandread