September Wrap Up

Starting the September wrap up I realized I read more books than I thought this month. I set a goal for myself in January to read 75 books this year and I am almost there. So far this month I have read 62 of 75 books so that means I just have to read 4 books a month for the next 4 months to reach my goal. That is totally doable and I am really excited that I will reach my goal this year. Do you guys count books like Whiskey in a Teacup and Bibliophile in your read list? 

Title: The Accidental Beauty Queen (Not pictured)
Author: Teri Wilson
Publisher: Gallery Books
Published Date: December 4, 2018
Stars:***
This book reminded me of Miss Congeniality in book form. I needed this book at the beginning of the month after reading some heavy books in August. It gave me a laugh at just the right times. It wasn’t super deep and you don’t have to think too much with this book. Great book to pick up if you need a good laugh and a little romance. I received an ebook from Gallery Books and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Title: The Banker’s Wife
Author: Cristina Alger
Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons
Published Date: July 3, 2018
Stars: ****
I really enjoyed The Banker’s Wife. I didn’t give it 5 stars because the main characters names were mixed up several times in the book. They started off talking about one of them and the next paragraph they call her someone else. It would be ok if it only happened once but it honestly happened a handful of times. I really liked that this book had three strong female characters. Books these days seem to have an unreliable female lead and this book didn’t take that path. I applaud Alger for that! This book has enough twist and turns for you to be kept guessing the entire time.

Title: Fruit of the Drunken Tree
Author: Ingrid Rojas Contreras
Publisher: Doubleday
Published Date: July 31, 2018
Stars: ***
​I am going to have a very unpopular opinion on this one. I just could not get into this book. I can usually finish a book in a couple of days but this book took me all month. I had to make myself finish it. It is hard for me not to give this book an excellent rating because the author went through some of these awful things. I can respect that but I just didn’t find Chula or Petrona were very relatable. I also found myself getting confused for much of the beginning of the book. On a happier note this book cover is beautiful!

Title: Playing With Matches
Author: Hannah Orenstein
Publisher: Touchstone Paperback
Published Date: June 26, 2018
Stars: ***
This one was just OK for me. I felt there was a lot going on with no real character development for anyone. That being said this book was meant to be a quick easy read and it delivers just that. I enjoyed Sasha but wanted to know more about her job and friends. I had memories of Patti Stanger and her matchmaking show with this book. Another lite, easy read to get you out of your reading slump. I received this book from Touchstone Paperback and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Title: Bibliophile: An Illustrated Miscellany
Author: Jane Mount
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Published Date: September 11, 2018
Stars: ****
This book is filled with gorgeous illustrations. I wanted to tear out every page and frame them till there was no wall left to see. If you like books about books this is another great book for you to pick up. This book will look gorgeous on your coffee table or mixed in with your other books on the bookshelf.
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Title: Whiskey in a Teacup
Author: Reese Witherspoon
Publisher: Touchstone
Published Date: September 18, 2018
Stars: ***
I so badly wanted to love this book. I love everything Reese does but I just didn’t connect with this book. Made me feel very Northern and well I am from the South! I don’t monogram anything. I did love the chapter about book clubs and some of her recipes looked easy and really good. I think this will look great on the coffee table but as a book it fell flat for me.
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Title: Evidence of the Affair
Author: Taylor Jenkins Reid
Publisher: Amazon Original Stories
Published Date: September 20, 2018
Stars: *****
​Super quick and easy read. A nice palate cleanser of a short story compared to the heavy books I’ve been reading. This story is told mostly through letters to the other character. Great short story with a slight twist.

Title: The Lies We Told
Author: Camilla Way
Publisher: Berkley
Published Date: October 9, 2018
Stars: ****
This is a great book told in two different time periods. I will admit I enjoyed the earlier time period more because Hannah is a super creepy kid. I was also invested more in the characters in the earlier timeline than the current timeline. This is a fantastic twisty read. I received this book from Berkley and Read It First in exchange for an honest review.

Title: ​Where the Crawdads Sing
Author: Delia Owens
Publisher: G. P. Putnam’s Sons
Published Date: August 14, 2018
Stars: *****
​This book was my favorite in September and quite possibly my favorite of 2018. Delia Owens wrote a lyrical book that tugs at your heart-strings. This book checks off so many boxes. It is a romance, a mystery, and a coming of age novel. You root for Kya the entire book. This book deserves all the awards. I hope it gets picked up for a movie.

 

Do you have a favorite from September? any suggestions for my October list?

THE HUNTRESS

TITLE: THE HUNTRESS

AUTHOR: KATE QUINN

STARS: 4

I received a copy of this book from Edelweiss and William Morrow in exchange for an honest review.

I was really looking forward to this book because The Alice Network is one of my favorite books of all time. I really enjoyed the book. Not quite as much as The Alice Network.

I really enjoyed all of the main characters. You wanted Jordan to succeed and be believed. Nina as a whole was super interesting and compelling as was Anna. The three main characters were strong women surrounded by strong women. Kate Quinn knows how to write a strong character. Characters that draw you in.

Quinn has very strong themes of Love, Loss, Revenge and War running through this book. I could see this book being turned into a movie.

Around the middle the book dragged a bit for me. I had to make myself push through several chapters but towards the back half it really picked up. I didn’t want to put the book down at that point.

Quinn knows how to teach you about feminist history and WWII like no other. She makes you want to learn more about history just from reading her novels.

I loved Jordan and the Night Witches the most. I felt like they could each have their own books.

NOVEMBER ROAD

I picked this book as my September Book of the Month because the description mentions JFK, New Orleans and the mob. I am highly interested in all three of those subjects so I thought this would be a great book to pick up. I am really drawn to books about the Kennedy’s. I know this one isn’t really about them. They are just a mention, a back story.

I didn’t hate the book it was ok. I flew through the first half of the book but got a little bogged down on the back half. I felt the romance was a little forced but needed for the ending.

I liked the main character Frank Guidry and want to know more about him. I would like to have seen the dynamic between Frank and some of the New Orleans mobsters more than the tiny bit we were given. I also thought that Charlotte’s story was a bit thrown together. I wanted to know more about her family life. I felt that both characters were flawed but likable.

Lou Berney did make me want to pick up more books about Carlos Marcello and see the affect he had on the city of New Orleans. All in all I think this is a great book to pick up from the library. It plays like a good movie.

Have you read this book? If so what did you think? Do you have any subjects that will drive you to pick up a book no matter what?

The Seven 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle

Started this book because I joined a buddy read on instagram. I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I will admit that this book felt like a big game of Clue or an episode of Quantum Leap and I had to make sure I had a bunch of time to read this weekend.

This book is a twisty trip over 8 days. In 8 different host bodies for Aiden Bishop. Aiden must solve the murder of Evelyn Hardcastle before the end of the day in his host body or he will lose his memory and have to start over. To make things even harder Aiden is being stalked by a footman who will kill him if he finds Aiden in his host body.  I don’t want to give away too much but if you follow closely Stuart Turton gives you all the clues to figure out the mystery. 

Stuart Turton wrote an incredible book with a very layered plot. Do yourself a favor and pick up this book. Maybe hideaway for a couple of days and decor this story. 

If you are in the middle of it and would like to join our November Buddy Read my instagram handle is @sweethoneyandBrei.

Also I will be running a giveaway with Source Books and Paige Jeanty of @one_more_paige on Instagram November 5-7. Head on over and you can have a chance to win one of two copies! Good Luck if you enter!

The Royal Runaway

I received an advance copy of The Royal Runaway from Gallery Books in exchange for an honest review.

I loved Princess Thea of Drieden. Thea’s fiancé jilts her at the alter and she is sent off for a few months to get her self straight. Once Thea comes back from exile she is expected to resume her Royal duties. Thea decides she needs a little adventure and begins to sneak out of the castle to different pubs. This is where she meets Nick. Nick turns out to be a spy looking for Thea’s ex-fiance. Thea gets blackmailed by Nick into helping him find Christian.

Thea is a strong character and I loved her. She didn’t want to stand by and let other people help her she wanted to be involved herself.

This was a fun, quick romp of a read. It had romance, suspense and comedy. Everything you could want in a romance. This book did not disappoint! I hope to see more of Princess Thea.

Have you read this one? If so what did you think?

The Last Time I Lied

I picked this novel by Riley Sager as one of my Book of The Month picks and was pleasantly surprised. I read Riley’s other novel Final Girls and figured I would like his new book too. I love a good Thriller!

Riley switches between present day Emma and 13 year old Emma. 13 year old Emma attends Camp Nightingale for the first time and is befriended by Vivian (she is basically the Queen B, Mean Girl of the Camp). Vivian takes her under her wing as a “little sister”. Emma feels responsible for her cabin mates disappearance and she can’t quit painting them. Emma is invited back to Camp Nightingale as the new art counselor and is placed back in her old cabin. As can be expected drama ensues.

I really liked this book. I thought I knew the ending but was surprised that I didn’t. After reading a second book by Riley Sager he is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors.

Are you a Book of The Month member? Let me know if you would like a code to join! I have loved it so far.

New Orleans Skeleton House

Beignets from Cafe Du Monde

THE SEVEN HUSBANDS OF EVELYN HUGO

I put off reading this book because so many people gave it excellent reviews. I was afraid it would not live up to the hype. I honestly did myself a disservice by not picking this book up right away.

The cover is beautiful and inviting. The green of her dress just pops off the cover. I started this book last night late and finished it this afternoon. I didn’t want to go to sleep last night because I was so involved! I wanted Evelyn to be real. I wanted to be reading a real memoir.

Evelyn was such a complex character. You know she did wrong but you still love her. You still want her to come out on top. You want to know every little detail of her life.

I found myself devouring this book. I would get mad when my boyfriend tried to talk to me. I kept shooing him away. I spent hours out in the back yard with the breeze blowing while Evelyn told me her story.

I give this book 5 stars and have added it to my all time favorite reads. Run don’t walk to pick up this book. You will not be disappointed. I feel like Taylor Jenkins Reid can do no wrong lately.

Fruit of the Drunken Tree

“Inspired by the author’s own life, and told through the alternating perspectives of the willful Chula and the achingly hopeful Petrona, Fruit of the Drunken Tree contrasts two very different, but inextricable coming-of-age stories. In lush prose, Rojas Contreras sheds light on the impossible choices women are often forced to make in the face of violence and the unexpected connections that can blossom out of desperation.”

I am probably going to have a very unpopular opinion on this novel. I had a hard time getting into this book. I can usually finish a novel in 2 to 3 days tops and this one took me all month. I kept having to put it down and read something else.

I really didn’t connect with the characters. And there were times I just got lost. I didn’t understand what was going on.

It is really hard to say I don’t like this book because some of these things actually happened to the author. Because she went through some of the terrors or knows multiple people that did I thought there would be more emotion.

Like I mentioned earlier I have a very unpopular opinion so you may like this book. I originally picked this book up to participate in the Doubleday Book Club and Read Across Instagram.

CHARLOTTE WALSH LIKES TO WIN

Book: Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win
Author: Jo Piazza
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Stars: 4 STARS

​Charlotte Walsh Likes To Win will go on my shelf as one of my favorite summer reads this year. This book wasn’t just about politics. It covered marriage, family, friendships and even touched on racism. Piazza shows the reader the ugly side of politics and the gender gap. This story could have been ripped from the headlines of any political race involving a good ole boy incumbent and a woman running against him. Charlotte, her family and friends all handle themselves with wit and I love it.

Piazza created a strong female character we all can look up to. She has her flaws but don’t we all? Charlotte is smart, funny and just a bit insecure.

Pick up this book if you like having someone to champion. Pick it up if you like being invested in your characters. Charlotte is someone you will root for but so are her supporting characters.

This book is very relevant for the times we are in right now.

The Journey Begins

Thanks for joining me! My name is Brei and I am a Book Reviewer and Bookstagrammer. I love books and you will most often find my nose stuck in one. I live in New Orleans and you will see some of my pictures set in and around the city. Join me in my journey around New Orleans and in the middle of a good book. I am always open for suggestions so send them my way.