2021 Book Reviews

I am so hooked on the You series by Caroline Kepnes. You Love Me is the third in the series with You and Hidden Bodies being the first two. I always find myself so invested in the mind of Joe Goldberg and this one was no different.

What can you say about Joe? Anyone who has read these books knows there is plenty to say. The third book finds Joe done with city life and even more done with Love. He heads to the Pacific Northwest and gets himself a job in a library and, wait for it … meets Mary Kay DiMarco. This time Joe promises himself not to obsess. He’s going to take things slowly. One thing is for sure though – he must win Mary Kay’s heart and finally get his happily ever after.

I really enjoyed this instalment in the life of Joe. It’s interesting to see how he changes things up over the series. I’m also a big fan of the Netflix series as well. The first two seasons are available with the third coming on October 15. I can’t wait!

I listened to the audio of all three books. Santino Fontana does such an amazing job as the voice of Joe. I couldn’t imagine anyone else narrating these books. The audio is almost fifteen hours but it could have gone even longer and I would have been happy. I can’t wait for the next book to come out!

Personal copy

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I am a huge fan of Lisa Scottoline having read many of her novels. Eternal is her first work of historical fiction and it is an absolutely beautiful novel. Loving historical fiction as I do I can only hope she writes another.

This story is set in WWII and is the tale of three young friends who have to learn to live in a very different world. Their journey is both harrowing and heartbreaking. I say this every time I read a novel about wartime – it always humbles me to think about the strength and resilience that the people had to live through some of the worst times of their lives. I loved so much about the characters of this novel and what would happen to them. It’s one of those novels that you what to last long past the final page.

The audio is amazing and so well done! Cassandra Campbell, Edoardo Ballerini, and Lisa Scottoline narrate this story. I know this is another thing I’ve said many times over but I always feel Cassandra Campbell adds that special something to any book she narrates. Coming in at nineteen hours this audio flew by for me. I really didn’t want the story to end. Eternal will define make my list of favorites for this year!

Review copy via the publisher. All opinions are my own.

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If the Shoe Fits by Julie Murphy is a romantic comedy and most know I’m not find of those. This one though I thoroughly enjoyed. It’s a retelling of Cinderella but along the way it tackles some real life issues and I appreciated that plus I adored the main character Cindy.

Cindy loves fashion and adores shoes. She is also a plus size woman and proud of it. While working for her stepmother she gets wrangled into being on a reality tv show called Before Midnight (think very Bachelor-like). She is a great fit for the show and she becomes such a positive figure for women everywhere. While she went on the show for possible exposure to the fashion world she doesn’t expect to feel the real feelings she begins to have for the man they are all fawning over.

Wheat I loved most about the book was Cindy herself. She fiercely loves her family and most importantly herself, plus size or not. I think this is such an important issue as so many women feel so body conscious (me included). It was nice to read about a woman proud of how she looks and feels comfortable in her own skin. I think readers will relate to that and how funny Cindy is and how she is one of those who feels if someone doesn’t like her, well then they don’t have to know her.

The audio was fantastic! It’s about ten hours and narrated by Jen Ponton. I’ve never listened to her before but she does such a wonderful job with this story. If the Shoe Fits us the first in the Meant to Be series and I’m looking forward to reading the next one!

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Reset is one of those books that will have you pondering many things about life, those we love, the memories we make, and the lives we live.

The Four Cities encompass the survivors that were left after the Last War destroyed most of the world. These cities are different in that they are self-sustaining. Everything is controlled including the weather, the seasons, and the very people who live in them. However the most unique aspect of these cities is that every four years a person’s memory is completely wiped clean. People are left to start over with new names, jobs, lives, etc. The reasoning behind the memory wipe is to ensure mankind never has the opportunity to destroy each other again.

The main character in this novel is Aris. In this life she is a scientist. She respects the system and has no use for attachments since she feels there is no point with a memory wipe looming. Yet she is haunted by a dream she continues to have and after meeting someone she is left questioning everything she thought she knew, both about herself and the world she lives in.

The audio was really great and so well done. It is a little over ten hours and narrated by Shiromi Arserio. I’ve listened to her before and I love her voice, very soft and melodic. I really enjoyed this novel. It’s a little different and I still find myself thinking about the story weeks after having read it.

Personal copy

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The Sanatorium is the first in the Detective Elin Warner series. I read it with my book club The Reading Cove. The overall thoughts on the book were good. For me personally I did enjoy listening to it.

Le Sommet, now a renovated hotel, was once a sanatorium and still holds that sinister feeling to it. It’s located in an isolated area in the Swiss Alps. It is here that Elin Warner unhappily finds herself when her estranged brother invites her to celebrate her engagement.

Arriving to a terrible snow storm coming in Elin feels right off that something doesn’t feel right to her about the hotel. She has a good reason to feel ill at ease, when the next morning, they learn that her brother’s fiancé has gone missing. As tensions rise Elin begins to investigate. She has no idea yet just how dangerous things are going to get.

I really enjoyed the audiobook. It’s narrated by Elizabeth Knowelden and I always enjoy her narration. She has a nice smooth voice that’s easy to listen to and always adds that ‘extra’ to any book she narrates. The audio is twelve hours and went by quickly for me. I really enjoyed the book and I’m looking forward to the second book in the series called The Retreat.

Copy provided by the publisher. All opinions are my own.

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I have long been a fan of Shari Lapena. Right from her first book I was hooked and I’ve read every book since as soon as I could get my hands on it. I was so excited to start her new one, Not a Happy Family, and I was not disappointed! I do have to say it was one of those books I wanted to last but I listened to it in a day and a half. I couldn’t stop listening!

Brecken Hill is a place where the upper class live. Fred and Sheila Merton are one such couple, being filthy rich. Yet as we know money can’t buy everything and it certainly didn’t save the Merton’s lives when they ended up brutally murdered.

The Mertons have three adult children. Now let’s just say up front that they stand to inherit literally millions. There’s also another problem lurking. The Mertons were never a ‘happy family’. Dad was controlling and Mom pretty much ignored everything. So… the big question is did one of them do the unthinkable and murder their parents?

The audiobook is a little over nine hours and as I mentioned earlier those hours flew by for me. The book is narrated by Ellen Archer and I’ve listened to her a few times before. She has a nice voice for telling a story. In a nutshell I loved this one! It’s a fantastic psychological thriller!

Library copy

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