September was a little all over the place reading-wise! I read 12 books with one DNF, ranging from a 5-star little self-help book from the 1920s to cowboys, mafia men, older romance characters, witches, thrillers and a few books that definitely did not live up to the hype. There were some really fun surprises, a couple great audiobooks, several endings that knocked otherwise good books down a star, and apparently this was the month I kept thinking, I wanted to love this more than I did. Still, plenty of good reads mixed in—and as always, life is too short to finish a book you’re not enjoying! Here are all my past reviews.
The Game of Life and How to Play It by Florence Scovel Shinn – 5/5 (Audiobook) – I got this one on Libby from the library. I hate rating self-help books because they’re so subjective, but I LOVED this little book. I don’t even know where I heard about it, but I rented it from the library and it was fantastic. It’s from the 1920s, I believe, but the concepts seem to really hold up.
Go Gentle by Maria Semple – 4/5 (Paperback) – I had such high hopes for this! I loved that they started a little group where the women went to the grocery store and shared stuff they wouldn’t eat all of (it started when they shared a loaf of bread and a bunch of celery so it wouldn’t go to waste). Loved the philosopher’s job!!! So cool and unique. I love Stoic philosophers and their sayings (I personally read The Daily Stoic in the mornings). Love when Adora is talking about everything included in the Coven and their plans for getting old—seriously, genius! I will say there were a lot of big words I didn’t know lol, I felt a little stupid. Died laughing when she got asked out on a date and what happened lol!! Also loved the stuff her friend Minna left her to get ready for her date—that’s a friend! It’s a little choppy at parts. Man, that stuff with TJ was hard to read, so awful, and how she hated herself and her body so much was so sad. The whole crew, men and women, and Laugh Riot were horrible. What happened after was so friggin sad!!! Her whole marriage and the demise of it were more sadness. I don’t understand why parts and words were bolded, very distracting. That letter from Digby explaining who he is—just wow, beautiful! It was fine overall, but the plot got very weird, fantastical, and unrealistic toward the end. Tags: Older characters
Come As You Are by Jess K. Hardy – 4/5 (Kindle Unlimited) – Omg I loved this story so much! She’s trying to save a ski hill and he runs a sober living house and she hires his men. His fear of skiing is so sweet and I loved how she teaches him to ski! Gah, I just loved this! Her ex is the worst. Love that they were older—he’s 53 and she’s 46!!! Ok, what’s with Mom’s name and them saying the full “Maude Alice” all the time lol? Very cute, but I don’t know, I just wished for a little more!! Tags: Older characters
Fallen Rook by L.J. Shen – 4/5 (Audiobook) – I was sooooo anticipating this one because I love how ridiculous the other two were. This is an MM one and it’s very spicy from the very start, I repeat, VERY SPICY. Like OMG spicy. And mob!! Omg the gym scene when Tomcat sees Enzo’s arm, and then the reason behind the arm—I died a little!!!! I have psoriasis so I totally felt for Enzo! Love that Enzo gives Tom the nickname Tomcat. Enzo is just amazing—I love how he’s so sweet and crazy. I died laughing at Tom’s middle name. And how cute that he makes sure Tom smiles every day. Love Tom’s grandma. Omg the nickname Tom gives him and the meaning behind it. The gay coming out story was beautifully done. Could have done without the skin jackets. Just loved this one. Tags: Mafia, Very Dirty, MM
Colt by Jessica Peterson – 4/5 (Kindle Unlimited + Audiobook) – I could really relate to Colt’s struggle with potty training Dean! It feels like this was really written by a parent or someone who knows kids. Love how much Colt loves coffee. I love the reality of this book—he’s like, “I’ve interacted with her twice—twice—and you’re thinking about her inappropriately,” like so normal lol. Fave line: “Is there such a thing as too many hot cowboys on one ranch?” I love their banter; I literally found myself laughing out loud. Omg the handcuffs! So hot! They were so cute, and I loved the no third-act breakup, but ummm…what happened with the mom storyline? That just faded away, which was disappointing and felt like something was missing. Overall cute, though, but it didn’t make me want to read any more. Tags: Has a playlist, Single dad, Has big hands, Cowboy, Good banter
Distance: A Dark Mafia Romance by Luna Mason – 3/5 (Kindle Unlimited) – I mean, it’s a dark romance so we root for the morally gray man, right?! Lol! Keller is super manly from the get-go—a fighter who owns a club, right? And of course he owns an Aston Martin (they start at $200k) and other cars. I love how he knows what he wants. This book is verrry spicy. He’s kind of bossy in bed, but it’s cute, though. And he calls her a Good Girl! What I don’t understand is that he threatens her ex like three times at the beginning of the book—why doesn’t he just kill the dude, end of story? I guess there wouldn’t be much of a story lol, but still seems pointless. Ummmmm what’s with telling her to wait to come? Don’t buy that. I don’t think anyone has that much control over their orgasms. Oh my god, what he had her relive in the elevator by turning off the lights—so mean. I realize he didn’t know what was going to happen, but Jesus! Tags: Dark romance, Very Dirty, Has a playlist
Dance For Me by D.E. Ren – 3.5/5 (Kindle Unlimited) – This was cute and I really liked Harper—she was so headstrong and I loved that she was the powerful, in-control one in the relationship. Colton was sweet and completely down bad for her, and their dynamic was fun. I was honestly leaning toward 4 stars until the big twist. There was basically zero indication that it was coming, so instead of having that satisfying “OMG, how did I not see this?!” feeling, it was more of an eye roll for me. I like a twist that makes me want to go back and find all the clues I missed, and this one just felt thrown in for shock value. Overall I liked it, but the ending knocked it down to a 3.5 and I didn’t finish wanting to immediately pick up the next book in the series. Tags: Strong FMC
Still Into You by Erin Connor – 3/5 (Audiobook) – If you like music and live music/shows, this is for you. It was a little much with the “oh no one can know about our past”—like, we get it. Lots of hesitation. She’s kinda whiny…correction, she IS whiny. There is so much talking over nothing. Ugh, the third-act breakup situation where she kept saying “push pull” is just so tired and lazy. It moved this from a 4-star to a 3-star for me. And we never find out who the leak is?! I wanted to love this one more than I ultimately did. Tags: Second chance romance
What Lies Between Us by John Marrs – 3/5 (Paperback) – I loved The One by John Marrs, so I was excited to read another one of his books, but this one just didn’t do it for me. There were some good twists, but it felt drawn out and was just so bleak—soooo many murders. Definitely dark and twisty, just not really my kind of thriller.
The Witches of Moonshyne Manor by Bianca Marais – 2.5/5 (Audiobook) – Read this for book club and it was fitting for fall. I read some of the reviews, which are wild, talking about old lady witches getting it on…and this book was NOT that. It was fairly tame. There are a few mentions of old lady loving, but nothing to warrant those reviews. After reading it, it’s like those reviewers just read the first or second chapter and stopped. Lol when she was told to burn a candle and pleasure herself and think of him until the candle burns down—ummm…that’s a long time. 😂 Very cute story of how they all got to the manor. Ivy’s cocktail recipes sound delicious!! The crow is cool and funny. Ruby’s storyline is so neat and heartbreaking. Her with Magnus—heartbreak—and you only find out what really happened after chapter 50. The story just seemed long. Tags: Older characters, Too Much Plot
Vicious Secret by Morgan Bridges – 2.5/5 (Audiobook) – My friend and I immediately purchased because…TEDDY! God, his voice!! But the stars are for him alone lol. The story was so unrealistic. Um…they’re a little young, which always makes me uncomfortable. Like, at the start they’re not even 18. Also, a little (a LOT) dramatic the whole time, like eye-roll levels. This group is so odd. X is waaaay obsessed, and I didn’t get where the obsession stemmed from—it just went from 0–60. Really seems stupid and unrealistic and just over the top; this group is insane. An assassin group who forces these poor women into contracts and servitude…mmmk, girl, RUN! It’s very dirty, but not in a sexy way—in a “no girl, don’t” way. It feels like they have a super toxic relationship. Just eww by the end of the book. Tags: He’s obsessed, Story was so stupid
God of Wrath by Rina Kent – DNF (Audiobook) – I got this because it was on super sale (like $4, I think) and had Teddy Hamilton in it, and he’s the best—see above, although usually he’s in 5-star books. Umm, what’s with the hunting people for these societies/groups? So weird. Is this a thing? I just couldn’t. I didn’t read the trigger warnings, but I’m apparently not into something called primal play. Nothing wrong if that’s what you’re into, but it’s not for me. And then their age—I can’t get over really young characters; I just want to give them a hug and get them into therapy. I didn’t even make it 25%, but that’s okay. Life’s too short for books you don’t enjoy.
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