No… Where Did November Go?!

I can’t believe the year is closing in so rapidly, and my reading has taken a nosedive of late, but here we are…

–Marissa

You Can’t Hurt Me by Emma Cook seemed like an promising premise – a woman born without the ability to feel pain and her doctor husband who is researching on her behalf until she’s found dead – but this one was just kind of flat. It was eh at best for me.

Be Ready When the Luck Happens by Ina Garten was an absolute joy. I have adored her since watching her many, many years ago with my late mother (who revered her!), and so it was wonderful to peek “behind the curtain” of her perfect-appearing life. Even though I read this, I could *hear* her voice telling all the stories of her childhood, love with Jeffrey, love of Paris, her hard work, and her television show. This is a must-read, even if you are only a casual Ina fan.🙂

A Novel Love Story by Ashley Poston was a lovely little romance read. Eileen LOVED romance novels, but when her book group falls through on a planned weekend, she ends up in a small town right out of a novel – the novel series she is obsessed with. She knows and loves the town and townspeople, but will her appearance be the butterfly wings that throw everything off kilter on the pages of her favorite stories? This was unique, clever, and perfectly romance-y.

Pictures of You by Emma Gray was one I was excited for, since I liked her debut The Last Love Note. In this novel, Evie has no memory after a traumatic accident that has killed her husband – whom she has no memory of. Instead, she flees the funeral and tries to connect the dots with the help of a photographer who was outside the funeral and may hold the key to her past. I thought this was an interesting premise, and the dual timelines really worked on this one.

Five Star Stranger by Kat Tang was an brief audiobook listen at less than 7 hours, but I really tumbled into this story. Our unnamed narrator is a top-rated man on the Rental Stranger app, which is exactly what it sounds like. But, he endures complications from a girl he has served as “father” for for a number of years, and a nosy new renter who wants to know more about him. This unpacks the gig economy, personal connections, trauma and what we risk and what we hide from the world. I really loved this one.

The Author’s Guide to Murder by Beatriz Williams, Lauren Willig and Karen White was (obviously) co-written by these three authors, who wrote a novel featuring… three authors who are in Scotland on a retreat when murder and mystery spring up, putting their tenuous relationship to the test. This was a fun-enough locked-room mystery and a fun peek behind the curtain of being an author, but the friendship between the women definitely spoke louder than any romance that was included.

What’s Next by Melissa Fitzgerald and Mary McCormack was a delight from start to finish if you are a Wing Nut (guilty for sure!). Chef’s kiss!

The Close Up by Pip Drysdale started off eh, got a bit faster, than I ended up skimming through to the finish. Not it for me.

I also started The Paris Novel by Ruth Reichl on audiobook, but it SO didn’t capture me, so I… quit.