Synopsis: “A groomsman and his last-minute guest are about to discover if a fake date can go the distance in a fun and flirty debut novel. Agreeing to go to a wedding with a guy she gets stuck with in an elevator is something Alexa Monroe wouldn’t normally do. But there’s something about Drew Nichols that’s too hard to resist. On the eve of his ex’s wedding festivities, Drew is minus a plus one. Until a power outage strands him with the perfect candidate for a fake girlfriend… After Alexa and Drew have more fun than they ever thought possible, Drew has to fly back to Los Angeles and his job as a pediatric surgeon, and Alexa heads home to Berkeley, where she’s the mayor’s chief of staff. Too bad they can’t stop thinking about the other…They’re just two high-powered professionals on a collision course toward the long distance dating disaster of the century–or closing the gap between what they think they need and what they truly want…”
Review: I honestly thought this book was incredibly fun to read and I was very invested to see how far things would go with Alexa and Drew. I did not like the constant back and forth of oh its not meant to be, but I really want to be with them, but I can’t be with them.. blah blah blah. Another thing I did not like was how pretty much every time they were around each other, more or less they just had to have sex. The descriptions weren’t in so much great detail to the point it took away completely from the story, but it definitely went into more depth then a lot of other Romance books I have read in the past. This series does have more books, mostly about the other characters that were found in this book, which I cannot wait to get my hands on and read those books as well. The writing style was really good and easy to read, made it feel like I couldn’t put the book down and just had to keep reading.
Synopsis: “Ever felt like the last item left on the clearance rack? As a successful patent attorney, Ashley Stockingdale has all the makings of a perfect catch — the looks, the brains, even a convertible. But at 31, she’s beginning to wonder if she’s been passed over for good. Deciding to adopt a new attitude, Ashley suddenly becomes the romantic interest of three men within a matter of days. While her heart enjoys turning the tables on the dating game, the rest of her previously predictable world is being turned upside down. Is it more than Ashley can handle? Or is it exactly what she wants? “
Review: To be completely honest, I don’t have too much to say about this book. Amazing that the main character has a good job and friends that love her. Sucks that one of her love interests was a guy she turned down YEARSSSS ago because she wasn’t into him at the time. I did give this book a four stars on Goodreads, but I was actually turned off that it was a Christian Chick Lit book, too religious for me in my opinion. I will probably still want to read the other books for this series, but, I think I will stick to taking them out from the library instead of purchasing them.
Synopsis: The grass is always greener on your sister’s side of the fence… Divorce left Harper Szymanski with a name no one can spell, a house she can’t afford and a teenage daughter who’s pulling away. With her fledgling virtual-assistant business, she’s scrambling to maintain her overbearing mother’s ridiculous Susie Homemaker standards and still pay the bills, thanks to clients like Lucas, the annoying Playboy cop who claims he hangs around for Harper’s fresh-baked cookies. Spending half her life in school hasn’t prepared Dr. Stacey Bloom for her most daunting challenge — Motherhood. She didn’t inherit the nurturing gene like Harper and is in deep denial that a baby is coming. Worse, her mother will be horrified to learn that Stacey’s Husband plans to be a stay-at-home-dad… assuming Stacey can find the courage to tell Mom she’s already six months pregnant. Separately they may be a mess, but together Harper and Stacey can survive anything — their indomitable mother, overwhelming maternity stores and ex’s weddings. Sisters Like Us is a delightful look at sisters, mothers, and daughters in today’s fast-paced world, told with Susan Mallery’s trademark warmth and humor.
Review: I literally could not put the book down when I was reading it last Summer. I really liked that although the two Sisters were pretty much living two different lives, that they were able to come together and help each other out through their problems. And as much as I hated the old traditional ways and expectations that the Mother had for her two children, I did like how the two sisters had each others back no matter how difficult their Mother made things get. Another thing I did not like was how Harper kept referring herself as old, only because ONE guy she might be interested in, always went for younger Women. I feel like it kind of tells Women that its okay to sit around and hope for someone to change their ways… only for him to turn around and stab her in the back by going back to younger Women after they were together for a bit. Aside from those two situations, overall I really did enjoy the book, it had a really nice easy flow to read and it kept me on the edge of my seat… it was definitely a will they wont they moment between Harper and Lucas. I also felt super invested in seeing if Stacey would slow down on her career and consider her life as a Mom.
One major thing I did get from this book is that life can throw you some unexpected curveballs, and you need to find a way to just roll with the punches and to become your better self.
Favourite Quotes:
“None of us is exactly how we want to be. The goal is to be the best person we can be, given our flaws.”
“Every failure brings us closer to our ultimate goal.”
Synopsis: The trip of a lifetime! Rosie Lewis has her life together. A swanky job as a Michelin-Starred Sous Chef, a loving husband and future children scheduled for exactly January 2021. That’s until she comes home one day to find her husband’s prepacked bag and a confession that he’s had an affair. Heartbroken and devastated, Rosie downs her sorrows in a glass (or three) of wine, only to discover the following morning that she has spontaneously invested in a bright pink campervan to facilitate her grand plans to travel the country. Now, Rosie is about to embark on the trip of a lifetime, and the chance to change her life! With Poppy, her new-found travelling tea shop in tow, nothing could go wrong, could it…?
Review: I loved everything about this book, mostly because I have secretly liked the idea of having a used book store/tea shop on wheels. My personality also was similar to Rosie, where I am a huge planner and barely ever do anything spontaneously, so I was very invested in seeing how her life would turn around once the least expected happened to her. Once her husband had left her, he said the one thing he did not like about her was that everything had to be by her books and within her timing, everything had to be planned and was predictable. She then felt like she needed to not only prove him wrong, but prove herself wrong and that she can change how she has managed her own life, that is when she spontaneously quit her job and purchased a campervan (under the influence of far too many glasses of wine). She then decided to get on the road and travel, selling different teas and making a whole new life for herself.
I am truly thankful for this book, as it taught me that not everything goes according to plan. And sometimes it is okay for you to be spontaneous and make different plans with your own life to fully enjoy it to the best of your ability. It also covers some Romance with someone she least expected to be with and online dating with someone who pretended to be someone he wasn’t.
Favourite Quotes: “And one thing I’ve learned is there is no right way to walk this earth, and we can only learn from those in our lives, take whatever lesson we can from it and keep going.”
“It strikes me that we humans build these lives for ourselves that have the tendency to trap us.”
“Bookworms do that a lot, fall for the hero in their latest read and get terribly down about the fact they’re fictional.”
Synopsis: Daughter of immortals. Princess Diana longs to prove herself to her legendary warrior sisters. But when the opportunity finally comes, she throws away her chance at glory and breaks Amazon law-risking exile-to save a mortal. Diana will soon learn that she has rescued no ordinary girl, and that with this single brave act, she may have doomed the world. Daughter of death. Alia Keralis just wanted to escape her overprotective brother with a semester at sea. She doesn’t know she was being haunted by people who think her very existence could spark a world war. When a bomb detonates aboard her ship, Alia is rescued by a mysterious girl of extraordinary strength and forced to confront a horrible truth: Alia is a Warbringer-a direct descendant of the infamous Helen of Troy, fated to bring about an age of bloodshed and misery. Together, two girls will face an army of enemies-mortal and divine-determined to either destroy or possess the Warbringer. Tested beyond the bound of their abilities. Diana and Alia must find a way to unleash hidden strengths and forge an unlikely alliance. Because if they have any hope of saving both their worlds, they will have to stand side by side against the tide of war.
Review: Wonder Woman is honestly on of my all time Super Heroes, and any novels to do with heroes.. especially heroes that already exist I find could be a hit and miss in terms of it being good. I overall think that Leigh Bardugo did a wonderful job to capture what Wonder Woman stands for. She was treated as if she was too little to be a true warrior, but when she was going to prove the other Amazons wrong, she had decided to go off course to protect this girl that had a boat which was being attacked.
This book did have some funny moments, especially how Alia would react when it came to Diana’s super strength. I really enjoyed the amount of girl power in this novel and how Diana pretty much tried to tell Alia how she can rewrite her own path and not be the evil she was destined to be.
I really did enjoy Leigh Bardugo’s writing style as well, so I am hoping to read more of her work. I am also looking forward reading more Super Hero novels written by some other amazing authors.
My favourite quotes: “I am done being careful. I am done being quiet. Let them see me angry. Let them hear me wail at the top of my lungs.”
“We cannot spend our lives in hiding, wondering what we might accomplish if given the chance. We have to take that chance ourselves.”
“You can’t live in fear. You make things happen or they happen to you.”
“We can’t help the way we’re born. We can’t help what we are, only what life we choose to make for ourselves.”
“Because people are always going to look. They’re always going to judge, so you can say nothing or you can at least answer back.”
America’s pregnancy bible answers all your baby questions.
When can I take home a pregnancy test?
How can I eat for two if I’m too queasy to eat for one?
Can I keep up my spinning classes?
Is fish safe to eat? And what’s this I hear about soft cheese?
Can I work until I deliver? What are my rights on the job?
I’m blotchy and broken out—where’s the glow?
Should we do a gender reveal? What about a 4-D ultrasound?
Will I know labor when I feel it?
Your pregnancy explained and your pregnant body demystified, head (what to do about those headaches) to feet (why they’re so swollen), back (how to stop it from aching) to front (why you can’t tell a baby by mom’s bump). Filled with must-have information, practical advice, realistic insight, easy-to-use tips, and lots of reassurance, you’ll also find the very latest on prenatal screenings, which medications are safe, and the most current birthing options—from water birth to gentle C-sections. Your pregnancy lifestyle gets equal attention, too: eating (including food trends) to coffee drinking, working out (and work) to sex, travel to beauty, skin care, and more. Have pregnancy symptoms? You will—and you’ll find solutions for them all. Expecting multiples? There’s a chapter for you. Expecting to become a dad? This book has you covered, too.
Review:
Before reading this book, a lot of people were telling me not to waste money on it, and that it is a waste of time to read. But in compete honesty, I am glad I purchased this book, it has all the updated information necessary as it is the 5th edition. It was also what helped me get through 9 months of my Pregnancy without freaking out over every possible symptom I get.
There were a lot of stuff I was able to skip, like the beginning talked about before pregnancy, and well.. I purchased the book after finding out I was pregnant. I was able to skip a lot of the information about health concerns, and having multiples and etc.. literally anything that didn’t apply to me, but when it came to all the pregnancy symptoms that could happen each month, I made sure to read all of that, so in case something did happen, I knew it was normal. It is also good knowing that if anything did change with my health, I could just easily go over the chapter that I skipped, because I had it all accessible in my hands.
I also really like that the original What to Expect When Expecting book gets updated as the years go by. More access to research = more information needing to be shared and known. And it avoids only getting outdated information from 13 + years ago.
Overall book review: *****
Synopsis:
Announcing a brand-new edition of the pregnancy food bible. With over 1.4 million copies in print, What to Expect: Eating Well When You’re Expecting is the essential companion to What to Expect When You’re Expecting. This cover-to-cover update provides a fresh, fun, realistic, and body-positive approach to help moms-to-be navigate healthily and tastily through the nine months of pregnancy—at home, in the office, over the holidays, in restaurants. Thorough chapters are devoted to nutrition, including all the latest facts on superfoods, food trends, food safety, foods to chow down on, foods (and drinks) to limit, and those to cut out altogether. How to eat well when you’re too green to come face-to-fork with broccoli, or too bloated to eat at all. How to eat well on a budget. On the run. Whether you’re vegan or a red-meat eater, a carb craver or a gluten-free girl, a confirmed fast-food junkie or slow-food foodie. Readers hungry for nutritional facts (which vitamins and minerals the pregnant body needs and where to find them) will get their fill of those, too. Plus, how to put it all together with dozens of practical tips and 175 recipes that are as delicious as they are nutritious, as easy to love as they are easy to make.
At the heart of the book are hundreds of pressing questions that every reader has: Do I have to skip my morning latte—or my afternoon energy drinks? I’m too sick to look at a salad, never mind eat one—do I have to? Help! I’m entering my second trimester, and I’m losing weight, not gaining. How do I get enough calcium if I’m lactose intolerant?
Written with Heidi Murkoff’s trademark warmth, empathy, reassurance, and humor, it is the must-have guide for a new generation of moms-to-be.
Review:
I read some reviews where people took this book in as just another diet book, or they thought it was just a book entirely full of recipes. Honestly, if you’re looking for a book that isn’t going to tell you what you should eat, you really should not be buying this book (lol).
This book was exactly what I expected it to be and more. It broke down exactly what foods fall into which vitamin and mineral category and why it is important for the expected mom-to-be to eat those specific nutrients. It also goes more into depth health wise, like if you are experiencing a specific situation, that is when you should be eating more of this and etc..
Another good thing I liked about the book is that it went into depth of what you should not be eating, more so what foods are dangerous to the baby and it compares empty calories verses smart calories. It also taught me how to read the nutrition labels at the grocery stores more smart, because sugar and sodium are some times hidden with words we don’t even think about. It also goes into depth of how to be smart when eating out or when always on the go, so you don’t fall into the bad habits of eating the most worst foods possible.
A very good chunk of the book (maybe more than half) is all recipes. Gives you ideas of what to eat for breakfast, lunches, dinners and even snacks. I do wish I read this book earlier on in my pregnancy, I kind of read it so slow that I reached 9 months in, so I unfortunately did not get to try any of the recipes myself, but I did learn a lot about eating, shopping and cooking smarter. I do plan taking the information I have read to heart and will apply it to when I am attempting to Breast Feed my baby along with when I am trying to get back into a more healthier nutritious routine post-partum (cause lets face it… I was far from healthy prior to getting pregnant and only started making wiser choices when I had another human dependent on me for nutrition).
Overall book review: *****
P.S: I highly recommend both books to all expecting MAMA’s to be.
Synopsis: Carmen got the jeans at a thrift shop. They didn’t look all that great: they were worn, dirty, and speckled with bleach. On the night before she and her friends part for the summer, Carmen decides to toss them.
But Tibby says they’re great. She’d love to have them. Lena and Bridget also think they’re fabulous. Lena decides that they should all try them on. Whoever they fit best will get them.
Nobody knows why, but the pants fit everyone perfectly. Even Carmen (who never thinks she looks good in anything) thinks she looks good in the pants. Over a few bags of cheese puffs, they decide to form a sisterhood and take the vow of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants . . . the next morning, they say good-bye.
And then the journey of the pants — and the most memorable summer of their lives — begins.
Review: Another book I have had kicking around for quite some time now, I originally read this book last Summer and finally decided it was about time I gave my review before I completely forget about it. I have watched the movie a long time ago, and have full intentions of re-watching it, so I can do a comparison of both the book and the novel together.
Four Best Friends that have never been a part during the Summer came across a pair of old worn out jeans and have decided that even though this Summer was going to be the Summer they spend away from each other, they will mail it out to each other (NEVER TO WASH THEM) and will wear them during the most important or scary parts of their Summer. The pants brought them good luck or even helped to keep them feel secure, kind of as if the friends were still together. What made these pants feel like magic was the fact that they fit all four of them, even though their body types were completely different.
Carmen ends up heading South to go visit her Father, which she eventually finds out that her dad is due to be Married to another Woman, and she also finds out that he has future step-daughters.
Lena and her sister go to Greece to visit and bond with their Grandparents. Lena also learns that not every guy is shallow and that just maybe someone is genuinely interested in her.
Bridget goes to Mexico for a Soccer camp and ends up falling for her coach, a forbidden love for a young girl like herself.
Tibby is the only one of the four girls that is stuck staying at home working her day job, when she meets a younger girl and becomes friends with her despite of the age difference.
I honestly did love this book, and I think it is a series I may want to introduce to my soon-to-be-daughter when she becomes of age to read young adult books.
The author for this book is Ann Brashares and she has written a total of 5 books for this series, which I own most, I cannot wait to get my hands on the last book or two. I will definitely also write reviews for the other books as I read them.
Synopsis: Rachel is Stephanie’s best friend. Since second grade, they’ve shared secrets, good and bad. Now in seventh grade, Alison moves into the neighborhood. Stephanie hopes all three of them can be best friends, because Stephanie really likes Alison. But it looks as if it’s going to be a case of two’s company and three’s a crowd. Can the girls’ friendship be saved?
Review: I have had this book kicking around in a box and book shelf for such a long time, happens to be one of the books I took from my mom or my sister and have never read it till a week or two ago. This was also the first book I picked up and read in less than a month…as I’ve been experiencing a reading slump for the past few years now.
This is I believe my second Judy Blume book, and I can honestly say she is probably one of my favourite writers, I do need to get my hands on some of her other books. The writing style and just how smooth the story goes makes it such an easy read. I do wish I read this book when I was younger, as that probably would’ve prepared me for friend drama.
This book has pretty much everything… puberty and experiencing body changes, learning if it is possible to have more than one best friend, family drama/issues, weight gain from poor choices when being stressed and crushes.
Rachel is a brilliant girl, she moved up to an older class for Math because of how Smart she is. Alison is worried about her parents not loving her anymore when she finds out her mom is pregnant with a baby of her own. And Stephanie deals with family issues when she discovers that her Father’s job away from home is not only about his job.
The ending of the book made me feel like it came up out of the blue, there was lots of space to at least tell us more about how their friendship ended up after they forgave each other. But nevertheless I’m glad Rachel and Stephanie fixed their friendship. There is definitely space for an opportunity to create another book in the future with the same characters.
The cover is perfect to the story, helps to sum up the characters personality and how much fun they did have whenever they were together. It also gives that vintage feeling in comparison to a lot of new covers these days. This book will definitely be a book I set aside for my future child.
ATrueBornWriter 