Show Us Your Books (June 2021)

Click the pic below to join in with Step & Jana as they host another  month of book reading happiness!

Thanks to NetGalley

If The Shoe Fits / Julie Murphy

**** / Really Liked It

Quick Summary: A woman just graduates Parsons for design & wants to start her shoe design business. She gets the opportunity to go on a "Bachelor" type show & wants to get exposure to help her new business get started, but what happens when the man that is there is the one she met earlier in the airport & really liked. Could love be a possibility?

I really enjoyed this.. I mean, first of all, I love any spoof off the The Bachelor franchise.  Plus, Julie Murphy is known for body positive characters, or people dealing with different body styles that aren't the "norm"  I appreciate that this character was real life with her emotions on her weight & Henry didnt make it a focal point.  It was just refreshing.

This was a super cute read & it did give me some "One to Watch" sort of vibes - but cant pick a favorite out of the two - just similar.

“Being brave is one of my biggest pet peeves. When someone calls me brave for going out or wearing a fitted dress or for some other normal thing that every other girl does, what is it really means is: I would be mortified to look like you, but good for you for merely existing even if all I can think about is how fat you are & how I'm terrified I'll one day look like you. SO BRAVE.”

The Audacity of Sara Grayson

**** / Really Liked It

Quick Summary:  Sara's mother is the author of a huge book series that has also been made into movies.  When her mother passes away before the final book is released, Sara is left to write the book. Can she live up to being in her mother's shadow & find her own voice?

I started reading this & thought it was going to be really drawn out. it started out with some long parts & I thought, where is this book going? It really held my attention though & turned out to be something that held my attention.

Sara & her sister have to learn more about their parents & the mystery there really gripped me.  Plus, Sara has to find her confidence & I enjoyed her character - relatable - & even funny.  Plus, there's some romance in there - so it really had it all.  This really goes through a process too of publishing a book so it really held my interests because I think that world of publishing is so interesting.

By the end of this book - I just really enjoyed it & had a smile on my face.

“She heard her mother joke once that his basic requirement for survival included coffee, oxygen & books. In that particular order.”

The Sanatorium

* / Did  not like it

Quick Summary:  A cop who is on leave goes to a new hotel that used to be a hospital to celebrate her brother's engagement when murders & disappearances are happening & she has to tap into strength to figure out what is going on after they are trapped at the hotel.

I've seen a lot of people either LOVE this book.... or not feel it. I'm in that 2nd category.  For me, I just found it really BORING. Which is crazy when all sorts of chaos is going on. I just never really connected to the main character - she got on my nerves & I honestly didnt get invested in the story.  I felt like the writing was strange too.  

The mystery side of it all - I really wasn't that surprised by it so that was a let down too.  The best part of it all was the one & a half pages of epilogue at the end.  So there's that.

I did also enjoy the short chapters - it was the only way I could muddle through this.

I will say, if you read the reviews, you really will see the extreme of both opinions on this book so I guess this is one that you would have to read yourself & see if this is your jam or if you're ready to get through it like I was.

“The ego always wins. It's a weakness in everyone, the desire to know the most, be the hero, the one to save the day.”

What is your Summer Read you are planning on reading - or enjoying?

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