I never considered bailing on the book, so I have to give it three stars, but the ending has made it a super low pick for me. There were parts of the narrative never resolved, I couldn't stand the Jutya storyline (why are women cops always written so poorly?) and while the pacing was good and the dueling timelines ratcheted up tension, the ending fell so flat as to nearly ruin the good parts of the book.

"It could have been any mother and daughters. It could have been any house, any birds. In all likeliness, I'm lying to you still."

You probably already feel a certain way about Chris Hayes. You either find him boyishly charming, cute as a button and nerdily sexy or.... wait what was I talking about? Audio read by the author A+, an excellent analysis of an issue we all know deep down is at the heart of what ails us.

January reading! My favorite for January is tagged 😊

A middle aged female artist facing a midlife crisis writes about a middle aged female artist facing a midlife crisis with all the credulity of a teenager who has just figured out how to have an orgasm, certain the rest of the world must not be clued in to the experience.

I still really liked it though, there were moments of real insight and while the main character remains insufferable from beginning to end, I still liked her. 💜

"I'd thought the two paths were:

sex with Davey vs. a life of bitterness and regret

But maybe the road split between:

a life spent longing vs. a life that was continually surprising"

I'm still not sure about this book but I feel this quote deeply, and it's one of the few times I've felt any genuineness from the main character, who hides herself from everyone, including the reader.

"It took me two days to call Brian the neighbor because I was busy savoring my position, like when a crush finally texts back and you want to enjoy having the ball in your court for a while."

Y'all know I have a soft spot for unlikeable female main characters but it is only page five and I am really being tested on this one. Also this particular quote had me ??? I have no idea why it's not THAT funny

After having a disastrous date with someone found on an app, Daphne says: "she didn't want to go straight home, she needed time to decompress, so the memory of that oaf didn't infect the atmosphere of her lovely apartment. Her safe place."

This is seriously wisdom we all need from our elders!

I'm three quarters into the book and I still don't really grasp what is happening in these scenes where he and his son are on different planets... I think I get it but I'm not sure and I think the author could use a bit of clarity here, I mean I know we're all supposed to be smart AF and just GET IT but I don't. And this far into the book that's just annoying, not literary. 😒

"She felt like a prediction, a thing on its way here."

The friend who gave me this book indicated it was a bit of a challenging read, but I didn't find it to be so. I mowed right through this book, it was a really engaging plot and characters, I very much enjoyed it!

What a romp!! I had such a good time reading this book, which is about vampires and book clubs, but also about racism, caste, patriarchy, and the power of women's friendships. It got kind of silly and gross at the end, but it didn't take away from a thoroughly enjoyable novel!

"Once you've washed a man's underwear you realize the sad truth about 'hidden depths'" - Kitty

Man, the characters in this book are lively!!!!! ???

I'm giving up on the goal of reading all 19 of these already on book 2 😂 There are just so many Georges and Edwards and Elizabeths, I cannot keep them all straight and it is just so boring, I am out.

"They'd driven all the way to Mr. Styles's house before Anna realized that her father was nervous." This book has been on my TBR shelf for nearly a year, a gift from a friend. I'm now finally getting to it and what a wonderful opening sentence! It bodes well, I'm looking forward to the novel.

I read this book several years ago in audio format. I read it again for a book group, this time in print. What I recall most about the previous reading is the palpable anxiety and dread I experienced in watching Eleanor's obsessive crush and the general train wreck of her life. Reading it again I was struck by the sadness in the character and I wonder if that was somehow made more clear in print. A five star book for sure!

58 total books read, my top five fiction for 2024 is pictured. I feel like I read a lot of books but was only truly in love with very few! Anyway, cheers Litsers!! 🍻

I did not love this book the way I expected given how many people have raved about it, I have no idea why. I had a hard time connecting with the characters even though I did love Marcellus. I am still giving it a pick because it really was a lovely story!

On a lark I've decided to read all 19 of the Plantagenet and Tudor novel series. This first one is a pretty soft pick for me, the characters don't resonate well and the plot confusing (they're in France, they're in England, they're back in France who can even keep up or care) but it did feature tarot cards and common witchery so that redeems it somewhat.

I went to an exhibit of Sendak's art at the Denver Art Museum yesterday, and I'm so glad I did! I was surprised and delighted by so much that I saw and learned about him. This little drawing was one of my favorite things I saw.💜

I don't quite understand how I missed this one, this is one of my favorite authors. At any rate, it is so serendipitous that this book came up on my Audible because I am seeing Antigone staged in a week! I'm looking forward to understanding the story by learning it with Natalie Haynes, she's my all time favorite reteller of myths. 💜

I am listening to this book while moving to a new place and entering into a huge transitional phase of life. I'm not catching everything, it is a long book and heavy on facts, but well written and easy to read. I also just find it incredibly soothing to read history about women during this time, a reminder that despite being written out of the story of humanity, we are, we do, and we have always done. 💜

LOVED this one! I live in Denver and it was so interesting to read about how it was during the time the novel is set. Compulsively readable, I could not put it down. Excellent writing, with nothing repetitive, the pacing and length of the novel are impeccable, there is not a single boring page or character. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

"If I was going to kill myself," Plath continued, "I'd leave a note just to get a few last digs in. Insult the guy who took me to prom. Give my parents one last guilt trip. Criticize my ex-husband's penis. Make it count, you know? It's not like you'd have anything to lose."

I really feel this ???

I really enjoyed this novel, I liked the main character Phoebe and the entire cast of characters was fun to read.

I'm a real sucker for an Arthurian tale, and I finally got this from the library, the waiting list was quite long! I bailed on the Magician books by this author, they just weren't for me, I think, but so far I am loving this one!

One more thing about this book, I really appreciated how the platonic love story between Daphne and Ashley was just as important to the story and character development as the romantic love story, very refreshing and well done. So I guess the author is forgiven for all the hair-behind-ear tucking. 🤣

Is it just me or are sex scenes in novels awkward to listen to in audio books in a way they aren't awkward to read in print? Anyway this was a cute little rompy story that I mostly enjoyed. Tiresome and repetitive imagery at times (Miles must have tucked locks of Daphne's hair behind her ear a hundred times 🙄), but overall a good read for the end of summer.

Our concept of well-being must move from the individual to the global in every sense of that word.

"We are afraid of dying alone, but no one really knows lonely better than a married woman sitting next to her silent husband." Ooooooooooofff. I'm not sure about my feelings on this book, but the author does know how to cut to the bone on this subject.

This book is what would happen if The Corrections and Atlas Shrugged had a book baby. It works disturbingly well.

A surprising amount of Henry Kissinger.

I picked up this book last Fall at this coffee shop we have in Denver called The Bardo, and I found this postcard tucked inside. It is from when the book was published in 1998, postmarked from Anaheim and announcing the release of that dumbo ornament... I just love finding old ephemera in used books, it's my favorite thing! And incidentally this appears to be a first edition printing of this book, what a good used book find! 💜

This is a pick for me, but I have to admit not enjoying it nearly as much as the other books by this author. I did not like the audible narration, so perhaps I would have enjoyed it more in print format. For some reason the love story just didn't hit the mark for me and I think the entire novel could have done without it.

I enjoyed all the characters in this book so much, and having seen up close single mothers dealing with similar issues with agents of the state, baby daddies and other family seemingly determined to upgrade a difficult situation to a tortuous one, it was nice to read a story where the young mother wins.

This was a weird and engrossing tale, the dynamics between characters was fascinating and right now this audiobook is included with my Audible membership!

I enjoyed this novel immensely, books by this author are always such learning experiences for me, which I always appreciate.

HMPH.

I didn‘t feel like this novel was very deep or anything, it didn‘t really address any of the enduring questions on being a human in the world, but I will say this: there is a scene towards the end that had me just crying with laughter and that is enough for me! The main character is genuinely amusing and I liked her, I hope this one gets made into a tv show I think it would work. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Y‘all listen UP!! Do not sleep on this one, I only just finished the prologue but I am thinking about playing hooky from work to listen to it all day long.

What a strange and beautiful novel! I found this to be a challenging read, I read it in audio format with an A++++ narration by Arian Moayed. Intensely readable, with characters that are easy to love. This was outside my usual reading comfort zone, I‘m so glad to have not passed this one up, I just loved it. 💜

The second book in the trilogy, much less bodice ripping, more just violent! But I enjoyed it, moving on to the third!

I enjoyed this novel!! I see echoes of Scarlett O‘Hara in the main character (although Scarlett was never such a psychopath as Beatrice of Wideacre), but I have a real soft spot for unlikeable female characters, so it‘s definitely not for everyone. Still, to me it was a classic and enjoyable bodice ripper, best paired with 🍷and your favorite 📳. 😉🤣

I am out of Audible credits, this entire trilogy is free right now with my membership and it is Springtime in the Rocky Mountains, which means I have a lot of walking to do!! I must say I have rarely giggled so much, this is obviously a novel not to be taken as seriously as some seem to have done. Yes, the main character is a wicked slut…. I love her and I can‘t wait to hear all she gets up to 🤭😂

I loved this book, but I can also understand some of the criticisms of it. It sometimes felt a bit crowded and meandering and in thinking about it this morning there are things that I‘m still not sure why they were included, so I‘m looking forward to talking about it at book club, but overall it is a lovely book about the fragility of life and friendship.

I have around 100 more pages and it‘s my bedtime but I know I‘ll be staying up late to finish it and this is making me cry…

Scottish love, intrigue, Russia and some bonus E.S.P. because WHY NOT!? 💜

“From the first time I met them, they‘ve been on the knives,” he said, using the Russian expression for people who shared a dislike for each other.

I just LOVE this expression and plan to incorporate it into my life. I‘m on the knives with all kinds of people, it shouldn‘t be hard. 🤣

This is really a very sweet story. It also made me think about how much more common “open adoption” is these days (lots on this topic in my last book “Relinquished”) and how maybe it‘s not so much because it‘s the right thing to do, but also because it‘s just not optional anymore. With DNA testing the truth will out, anyone keeping an adoption a secret is sitting on a ticking time bomb.
Also, I would like to learn to make Cecily‘s 15 layer cake!