It’s time for my first half of February book review! I am sharing what I read in February so far, although I am skipping a few 5 star reads to share later in the month. The Amazon links to the books I’ve read are affiliate links and if you use them and make a purchase, I may receive a small commission. If you’ve read any of these books or are interested in them, I’d love to hear about it in the comments!
Title: Secrets of Our House
Author: Rea Frey
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Publisher: St Martin’s Griffin, 2/8/22
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 3.5 Stars (rounded up to 4)
Secrets of Our House was a family drama with some twists that I thought were predictable. Lots of bad things happen, especially to the daughter’s boyfriend’s family.
“Desi is the mastermind behind her dream getaway house. Nestled high into the mountains of North Carolina, it is a sleek place, a luxurious place, a dark place. A place full of secrets. Secrets about the man she longs for, a man who is not her husband. Secrets about the roots of her family that must never, ever, see the light of day. When Desi and her family arrive from Chicago to spend the summer in the mountains, the seeds for the tumultuous months to follow are planted―her marriage on the rocks, not knowing which way they’ll go. Her seventeen year-old daughter Jules, falling in love for the first time with a local boy―and forging a new path that will take her to uncharted places. And Carter―a man Desi knew long ago, before she expunged him from her life for good. All hurtling toward events none of them can undo.”
In this book, Desi is torn between her husband and the one that got away. It does include infidelity. I enjoyed the survivor skills part of the book a lot.
Title: The Nineties
Author: Chuck Klosterman
Genre: Non-Fiction
Publisher: Penguin Audio, 2/8/22
Source: Audio Publisher
Why I Read It: Looked interesting!
My Rating: 4 Stars
OJ Simpson, Nirvana, the Internet, the Gulf War, Dolly the Sheep, Seinfeld, Titanic, Michael Jordan, 1993 World Trade Center Bombing, Oklahoma City Bombing, LA Riots…that phone on this book cover…All of these things are mentioned in The Nineties by Chuck Klosterman and they are all things that I clearly remember as I truly came of age / grew up in the nineties. Klosterman argues that the decade can be defined as the time between the fall of the Berlin Wall (I was in 6th grade) and 9/11 (I was in grad school and married) and I would agree with that assessment. People who grew up in the nineties are the ones that saw the shift from analog to digital and can easily recall the time when we were chained to our home phones awaiting that one important call. The description of the sound of a dial up modem brought back much nostalgia!
“It was long ago, but not as long as it seems: The Berlin Wall fell and the Twin Towers collapsed. In between, one presidential election was allegedly decided by Ross Perot while another was plausibly decided by Ralph Nader. In the beginning, almost every name and address was listed in a phone book, and everyone answered their landlines because you didn’t know who it was. By the end, exposing someone’s address was an act of emotional violence, and nobody picked up their new cell phone if they didn’t know who it was. The 90s brought about a revolution in the human condition we’re still groping to understand. Happily, Chuck Klosterman is more than up to the job. Beyond epiphenomena like “Cop Killer” and Titanic and Zima, there were wholesale shifts in how society was perceived: the rise of the internet, pre-9/11 politics, and the paradoxical belief that nothing was more humiliating than trying too hard. Pop culture accelerated without the aid of a machine that remembered everything, generating an odd comfort in never being certain about anything. On a 90’s Thursday night, more people watched any random episode of Seinfeld than the finale of Game of Thrones. But nobody thought that was important; if you missed it, you simply missed it. It was the last era that held to the idea of a true, hegemonic mainstream before it all began to fracture, whether you found a home in it or defined yourself against it. In The Nineties, Chuck Klosterman makes a home in all of it: the film, the music, the sports, the TV, the politics, the changes regarding race and class and sexuality, the yin/yang of Oprah and Alan Greenspan. In perhaps no other book ever written would a sentence like, ‘The video for ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’ was not more consequential than the reunification of Germany’ make complete sense. Chuck Klosterman has written a multi-dimensional masterpiece, a work of synthesis so smart and delightful that future historians might well refer to this entire period as Klostermanian.”
While I was hopeful for a look back at the culture of my youth, I did find that the author tended to ramble and I wasn’t sure as to the points he was trying to make in his essays, other than to say the nineties were a time of technological change. I was previously unfamiliar with this author but I believe this may be his style.
Title: Count Your Lucky Stars
Author: Alexandria Bellefleur
Genre: Rom Com
Publisher: Avon, 2/1/22
Source: TLC Book Tours
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
Count Your Lucky Stars is the third book in Alexandria Bellefleur’s sexy rom com series that gave us Darcy and Elle’s story in Written In The Stars, Brendon and Annie’s story in Hang The Moon, and now Margot and Olivia’s 2nd chance at love story in Count Your Lucky Stars.
“Margot Cooper doesn’t do relationships. She tried and it blew up in her face, so she’ll stick with casual hookups, thank you very much. But now her entire crew has found “the one” and she’s beginning tofeel like a fifth wheel. And then fate (the heartless bitch) intervenes. While touring a wedding venue with her engaged friends, Margot comes face-to-face with Olivia Grant—her childhood friend, her first love, her first… well, everything. It’s been ten years, but the moment they lock eyes, Margot’s cold, dead heart thumps in her chest. Olivia must be hallucinating. In the decade since she last saw Margot, her life hasn’t gone exactly as planned. At almost thirty, she’s been married… and divorced. However, a wedding planner job in Seattle means a fresh start and a chance to follow her dreams. Never in a million years did she expect her important new client’s Best Woman would be the one that got away. When a series of unfortunate events leaves Olivia without a place to stay, Margot offers up her spare room because she’s a Very Good Person. Obviously. It has nothing to do with the fact that Olivia is as beautiful as ever and the sparks between them still make Margot tingle. As they spend time in close quarters, Margot starts to question her no-strings stance. Olivia is everything she’s ever wanted, but Margot let her in once and it ended in disaster. Will history repeat itself or should she count her lucky stars that she gets a second chance with her first love?”
This is a sapphic romance and all three of the books have LGBTQ representation. Margot offers her extra room to Olivia – gotta love forced proximity – and the two finally communicate about what happened after they were together briefly back in high school. With some funny moments brought to us by a cat named Cat, I enjoyed this series conclusion – as I did the other two books as well!
Title: Operation Sisterhood
Author: Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich
Genre: Middle Grade Contemporary Fiction
Publisher: Random House Crown, 1/4/22
Source: Storygram Book Tours
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
A book that celebrates Black joy, this is the story of four young girls in the vein of All of a Kind Family and The Babysitters Club. Bo and her mom move in with Bill and his created family that includes his daughter Sunday and another couple and their twins Lil and Lee. All of the adults share parenting and the children freeschool – a concept I have not read about!
“Bo and her mom always had their own rhythm. But ever since they moved to Harlem, Bo’s world has fallen out of sync. She and Mum are now living with Mum’s boyfriend Bill, his daughter Sunday, the twins, Lili and Lee, the twins’ parents…along with a dog, two cats, a bearded dragon, a turtle, and chickens. All in one brownstone! With so many people squished together, Bo isn’t so sure there is room for her.”
The girls each have their own interests – Bo likes to bake and plays the drums, Lee is an animal lover who volunteers at a shelter, Lil enjoys fashion design, and Sunday is a piano player and writer. The new sisters bond together to help plan a party for their neighborhood, make a band, and babysit local children. This was such a sweet story!
Title: Happy and You Know It
Author: Laura Hankin
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Publisher: Berkley, 5/19/20
Source:Book of the Month
Why I Read It: Oldest BOTM on my shelf
My Rating: 4 Stars
If you like reading about adults behaving badly and mommy drama, you will enjoy Happy and You Know It! I thought the sometimes dark humor and satire around play group moms made for a fun read.
“After her former band shot to superstardom without her, Claire reluctantly agrees to a gig as a playgroup musician for wealthy infants on New York’s Park Avenue. Claire is surprised to discover that she is smitten with her new employers, a welcoming clique of wellness addicts with impossibly shiny hair, who whirl from juice cleanse to overpriced miracle vitamins to spin class with limitless energy. There is perfect hostess Whitney who is on the brink of social-media stardom and just needs to find a way to keep her flawless life from falling apart. Caustically funny, recent stay-at-home mom Amara who is struggling to embrace her new identity. And old money, veteran mom Gwen who never misses an opportunity to dole out parenting advice. But as Claire grows closer to the stylish women who pay her bills, she uncovers secrets and betrayals that no amount of activated charcoal can fix.”
This book does contain infidelity and some cringey sex scenes. I think this book would make a great tv series – similar to Desperate Housewives!
Title: American Betiya
Author: Anuradha D. Rajurkar
Genre: YA Contemporary Fiction
Publisher: Listening Library, 3/9/21
Source: Library Audio App
Why I Read It: Had via Net Galley
My Rating: 4 Stars
American Betiya shows us the struggle between family tradition and the teenage desire for love. Rani is Indian American whose family does not allow dating. Oliver, a teen with a difficult home life, does not understand her inability to bring him home to her parents.
“Rani Kelkar has never lied to her parents, until she meets Oliver. The same qualities that draw her in–his tattoos, his charisma, his passion for art–make him her mother’s worst nightmare. They begin dating in secret, but when Oliver’s troubled home life unravels, he starts to ask more of Rani than she knows how to give, desperately trying to fit into her world, no matter how high the cost. When a twist of fate leads Rani from Evanston, Illinois to Pune, India for a summer, she has a reckoning with herself–and what’s really brewing beneath the surface of her first love.”
Oliver has a lot of struggles himself, but the way he fetishizes and manipulates Rani is very cringe worthy. He uses her as an inspiration in his art and although Rani feels uncomfortable by this, as well as the things he says, she doesn’t have the experience to know that what he is doing isn’t right. I listened to this book and it kept my attention throughout. It was a worthwhile listen.
Title: Turning
Author: Joy L. Smith
Genre: YA Contemporary Fiction
Publisher: Denene Millner Books, 3/1/22
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 3 Stars
I am attracted to reading books about dancers since my daughter is one! Turning is about a former ballerina who is now paralyzed and uses a wheelchair. Genie is determined to do things for herself, though she is dealing with a manipulative ex boyfriend, her mom’s struggles with alcoholism, her absent father, and the loss of her dancer dreams.
“Genie used to fouetté across the stage. Now the only thing she’s turning are the wheels to her wheelchair. Genie was the star pupil at her exclusive New York dance school, with a bright future and endless possibilities before her. Now that the future she’s spent years building toward has been snatched away, she can’t stand to be reminded of it—even if it means isolating herself from her best friends and her mother. The only wish this Genie has is to be left alone. But then she meets Kyle, who also has a ‘used to be.’ Kyle used to tumble and flip on a gymnastics mat, but a traumatic brain injury has sent him to the same physical therapist that Genie sees. With Kyle’s support, along with her best friend’s insistence that Genie’s time at the barre isn’t over yet, Genie starts to see a new path—one where she doesn’t have to be alone and she finally has the strength to heal from the past. But healing also means confronting. Confronting the booze her mother, a recovering alcoholic, has been hiding under the kitchen sink; the ex-boyfriend who was there the night of the fall and won’t leave her alone; and Genie’s biggest, most terrifying secret: the fact that the accident may not have been so accidental after all.”
This book had a lot of potential, as it features a person of color who did ballet and is now a wheelchair user and all that goes along with these identities. I found it somewhat slow though. As a note – there is no scene in the book with Genie’s mother having booze under the sink, although Genie does search her bedroom for alcohol. The second book I read in a row with a manipulative boyfriend!
Title: The Golden Couple
Author: Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen
Genre: Thriller
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press, 3/8/22
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
I have loved the books I’ve read by these two authors and was excited to read this one! There was a lot happening in this book and I was wondering how all the threads would tie up in the end. While some of the connections seemed obvious, others seemed a bit out there!
“Wealthy Washington suburbanites Marissa and Matthew Bishop seem to have it all―until Marissa is unfaithful. Beneath their veneer of perfection is a relationship riven by work and a lack of intimacy. She wants to repair things for the sake of their eight-year-old son and because she loves her husband. Enter Avery Chambers. Avery is a therapist who lost her professional license. Still, it doesn’t stop her from counseling those in crisis, though they have to adhere to her unorthodox methods. And the Bishops are desperate. When they glide through Avery’s door and Marissa reveals her infidelity, all three are set on a collision course. Because the biggest secrets in the room are still hidden, and it’s no longer simply a marriage that’s in danger.”
Like I said, there are many things happening in the book and for the characters and I don’t want to give anything away! I loved that Avery rescues a dog that she met at a shelter. I read this one quickly!
Title: One Italian Summer
Author: Rebecca Serle
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Publisher: Atria Books, 3/1/22
Source: Publisher via Net Galley
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review and loved her previous book.
My Rating: 3 Stars
This book was short and disappointing. While I loved In Five Years by this author, One Italian Summer did not hold up. I feel that with a bit more length and development, this could have been a much better read, as it did contain a lot of aspects I normally like in books.
“When Katy’s mother dies, she is left reeling. Carol wasn’t just Katy’s mom, but her best friend and first phone call. She had all the answers and now, when Katy needs her the most, she is gone. To make matters worse, their planned mother-daughter trip of a lifetime looms: to Positano, the magical town where Carol spent the summer right before she met Katy’s father. Katy has been waiting years for Carol to take her, and now she is faced with embarking on the adventure alone. But as soon as she steps foot on the Amalfi Coast, Katy begins to feel her mother’s spirit. Buoyed by the stunning waters, beautiful cliffsides, delightful residents, and, of course, delectable food, Katy feels herself coming back to life. And then Carol appears—in the flesh, healthy, sun-tanned, and thirty years old. Katy doesn’t understand what is happening, or how—all she can focus on is that she has somehow, impossibly, gotten her mother back. Over the course of one Italian summer, Katy gets to know Carol, not as her mother, but as the young woman before her. She is not exactly who Katy imagined she might be, however, and soon Katy must reconcile the mother who knew everything with the young woman who does not yet have a clue.”
While this is a story about Katy finding out who her mother was as a younger woman, she also leaves her husband to take this trip on her own and it does involve infidelity as she considers the life she wants in her future. She realizes that her mother was doing the same as a young woman, and if this was fleshed out more, I would have loved this book a lot more than I did.
Title: The Maid
Author: Nita Prose
Genre: Mystery
Publisher: Random House Audio, 1/4/22
Source: Audio Publisher
Why I Read It: Recommended by many!
My Rating: 4 Stars
Molly the Maid is quite a lovable character. She is neurodivergent and navigates the world based on cues she has learned to understand from her Gran, who recently passed away, leaving her on her own. She works as a maid in a fancy hotel and prides herself on a job well done. When she finds Mr. Black dead in his bed, everything changes for Molly.
“Molly Gray is not like everyone else. She struggles with social skills and misreads the intentions of others. Her gran used to interpret the world for her, codifying it into simple rules that Molly could live by. Since Gran died a few months ago, twenty-five-year-old Molly has been navigating life’s complexities all by herself. No matter—she throws herself with gusto into her work as a hotel maid. Her unique character, along with her obsessive love of cleaning and proper etiquette, make her an ideal fit for the job. She delights in donning her crisp uniform each morning, stocking her cart with miniature soaps and bottles, and returning guest rooms at the Regency Grand Hotel to a state of perfection. But Molly’s orderly life is upended the day she enters the suite of the infamous and wealthy Charles Black, only to find it in a state of disarray and Mr. Black himself dead in his bed. Before she knows what’s happening, Molly’s unusual demeanor has the police targeting her as their lead suspect. She quickly finds herself caught in a web of deception, one she has no idea how to untangle. Fortunately for Molly, friends she never knew she had unite with her in a search for clues to what really happened to Mr. Black—but will they be able to find the real killer before it’s too late?”
I was very intrigued to find out what happened to Mr. Black – and every time the audio narrator said “dead in his bed” I laughed – and I loved Molly and the cast of found family who supported her. The end reveal came as a surprise which seemed somewhat out of nowhere, which is what caused me to remove 1 star from my rating. However, I really enjoyed this book about assumptions and which was full of life lessons.
There you have it – 10 of the books I read this month. Of these books, 6 were print , 3 were audio books, and 1 was an ebook. 7 were adult, 2 were YA, and 1 was Middle Grade. Genres included contemporary, non-fiction, rom com, thriller, and mystery.
Have you read any of these books or do you want to? What have you been reading lately?