Welcome to my October 2023 Favorite Books post! This monthly post is where I share the 5 star books I’ve read so far each month. I did not have very many 5 star reads this month but with the weekend left to read, there is still a chance of another 5 star finish, in which case I will share next week! You can see the first half of my October reading here and I will share the rest next week. 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.
Title: Only Love Can Hurt Like This
Author: Paige Toon
Genre: Romance
Publisher: GP Putnam’s Sons, 4/25/23
Source: Swap
Why I Read It: Sounded good
My Rating: 5 Stars
I received Only Love Can Hurt Like This by Paige Toon in a swap. I haven’t seen it around here much but I loved it and it is one I recommend, although in some ways it was a heartbreaking story. It is about Wren, who finds out her fiancé is in love with someone else and leaves to UK to see her father who lives on a farm in Indiana. There she meets Anders, who has lost his wife and cannot move on.
“When Wren realizes her fiancé is in love with someone else, she thinks her heart will never recover. On the other side of the world, Anders lost his wife four years ago and is still struggling to move on. Wren hopes that spending the summer with her dad and step-family on their farm in Indiana will help her to heal. There, amid the cornfields and fireflies, she and Anders cross paths and their worlds are turned upside-down again. But Wren doesn’t know that Anders is harboring a secret, and if he acts on any feelings he has for Wren it will have serious fall-out for everyone. Walking away would hurt Wren more than she can imagine. But, knowing the truth, how can she possibly stay?”
Wren reunites with her half sister Bailey and her step mother, as well as her father. These family relationships are a huge part of the story as is the relationship between Anders and his brother Jonas. The love story is slow burn, but the other story lines held my interest well.
Title: Nora Goes Off Script
Author: Annabel Monaghan
Genre: Rom Com
Publisher: Penguin Audio, 6/7/22
Source: Publisher Audio
Why I Read It: TBR and Book Group
My Rating: 5 Stars
We wanted something light for book group this month and this fit the bill. I had it on my TBR for awhile and I listened to the audio version. Nora is a rom com movie writer and she writes a screenplay about her relationship with her ex. Actor Leo is cast as her ex and the filming takes place at her house. Then, he asks if he can stay in her guest house after filming ends. Sure enough, they fall for each other!
“Romance channel screenwriter Nora Hamilton knows the formula for love better than anyone. But when her too-good-to-work husband leaves her and their two kids, Nora turns her marriage’s collapse into cash, writing the best script of her life. When it’s picked up for the big screen and set to film at her home with former Sexiest Man Alive, Leo Vance, cast as her ex-husband, Nora’s life will never be the same. After shooting wraps, Nora finds Leo on her porch with a half-empty bottle of tequila and a proposition. He’ll pay a thousand dollars a day to stay for a week. She could use the money, but it’s the need in his eyes that makes her say yes. Seven days: it’s the blink of an eye or an eternity depending on how you look at it. Enough time to fall in love. Enough time to break your heart.”
I really enjoyed this story and I love some forced proximity! Nora’s kids were great and her mother provided some much needed comedy. The conflict between the two was a bit frustrating and I found myself wishing for Leo’s point of view, but it all made sense in the end!
Title: Jawbreaker
Author: Christina Wyman
Genre: Middle Grade Contemporary
Publisher: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux Books For Young Readers, 10/24/23
Source: Storygram Book Tour
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 5 Stars
I loved this book about Max, who has a Class II Malocclusion, which means a severe overbite. She deals with extreme bullying at school, even coming from her own younger sister. Meanwhile at home her parents are fighting and the family is struggling with socioeconomic issues and alcoholism.
“Max Plink’s life is complicated. Her parents aren’t getting along. The school bullies are relentless―and her own sister is the cruelest of them. Worst of all, her mouth is a mess. With a mismatched puzzle of a jaw, Max has a Class II malocclusion, otherwise known as a severe overbite. She already has braces, which means she lives on Advil and soft foods after each orthodontist appointment. But now Max has to wear painful (and totally awkward) orthodontic headgear nicknamed ‘the jawbreaker.’ Could things get any worse? Yes. The journalism competition Max wants to enter has a video component. But being on camera means showing her face not just to her junior high classmates, but possibly the whole city. Going viral is the last thing Max needs, but winning this competition is what she wants most. Turns out, following her dreams is complicated, too.”
There is a lot happening and this book has something for everyone. I could especially relate to the stress on Max’s mom and how she came to support Max more throughout the story.
Title: Just Another Missing Person
Author: Gillian McAllister
Genre: Thriller
Publisher: William Morrow, 8/1/23
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 5 Stars
I recently read and loved Wrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister and I wasn’t sure I would also love Just Another Missing Person – but I did! The author has a way of writing that draws me in and a way of making her books thrillers about parenting which I love. This is about Julia, a detective on a missing person case who has a secret that someone is using against her.
“Twenty-two-year-old Olivia has been missing for one day…and counting. She was last seen on CCTV, entering a dead-end alley. And not coming back out again. Julia, the detective heading up the search for Olivia, thinks she knows what to expect. A desperate family, a ticking clock, and long hours away from her husband and daughter. But she has no idea just how close to home this case is going to get. Because the criminal at the heart of the disappearance has something she never expected. His weapon isn’t a gun, or a knife: it’s a secret. Her worst one. And her family’s safety depends on one thing: Julia must NOT find out what happened to Olivia – and must frame somebody else for her murder.”
The other viewpoints in the book are also from parents – a father of a missing daughter and a mother of a suspect in the case. This story is twisty and kept me guessing. I’m picky with thrillers but I loved this one!
Come back next week for the rest of my October reads!
Do you have a favorite book you’ve read this month?