Fragmented thoughts: underlying sadness, coming of age, loss and grieving, character driven, flashes of humor, tiny lull in the middle, strong start and finish, a definite pick, autoread author now. The comparison to Tell the Wolves I‘m Home is spot on, and I really liked her other novel, The Adults. Solid read 💪

LOVEEEE!!! This book is really great. A mix between The House in the Cerulean Sea and Harry Potter. Fun, funny, lighthearted; I loved it!

“…boil her in a cauldron or turn her into a newt.” I‘m immediately taken to the scene in Monty Python and the Holy Grail 😂😂🤣

(I‘m borrowing this screenshot from a FB BOTM group). I love this so much 🤩 Her Instagram handle is @julieclarkauthor

🗣 “Library. For. The. Win!!!!!!!” 🙌🤩🥳😍 I practically skipped into the library to pick up this hold! 😎👏🤗🙌

I couldn‘t really relate to the young, foreign party girls that made up the first half of the book. I almost put it down, but I‘m sure glad I didn‘t. The second half really picks up, and that last line made my jaw drop.😧😳 Is this book a favorite? No. Will it be one I remember a year from now? Also no. But it kept my interest and was definitely entertaining. ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Josh Hartnett??!! And with that, I‘m right back to the days of high school and college swooning over Josh Hartnett. Even though decades have passed, some things never change! 😅❤️😍🤩

I hate being between books. I start one then forget what‘s happening and who‘s who. Going to carry this one around today and see what happens… 🙃🤷‍♀️😩🤓

A neat whodunit written completely in emails and text messages. That part was super interesting. IMO, there was one too many side plots occurring and the book was about 50-100 pages too long. But still, definitely a pick and highly entertaining. Loved reading about the busybody main character and how the other characters truly saw her. A fun read!

Will I be reading this memoir?! Ya damn skippy I‘ll be reading this memoir. Glad the NYT Books Insta page let me know to be on the lookout for it. I LOVE Dirty Dancing ❤️🤩👏🙌🤓😍

It‘s my Litsyversary (I ❤️ Litsy) and my actual anniversary (I ❤️ my husband, even if he isn‘t a reader 😏) all wrapped up in the same day. Thanks for the reminder @HappyLitsyversary 🙌🤩👏🥳

Entirely unsettling, but it‘s a pick for me. I know the ending (or non-ending) is a point of contention for some. For me, I‘m good with not knowing what happens but being left with enough clues to guess at a couple of outcomes. Alam sprinkles in details about what‘s going on in other places across the US that are really interesting, but I definitely could‘ve done without the unnecessary and unwanted sex/bodily fluids/body parts details.

“She packed a book, as you never knew when you‘d need a book.” My book goes everywhere 🤷‍♀️✊🤓 #lifemotto

“She wasn‘t terrible, his sister, and she was still a little kid, so she couldn‘t help being a dumbass. Had he been that stupid at thirteen?” 😏😆😂🤩 #siblings

A superbly written and nuanced look into, first, the swimmers and secondly, Alice‘s battle with dementia and the effects it has on her husband and adult daughter. I loved this book! ❤️

How in the world does this book about a pool closing have me tearing up right now?! ‘…—the lifeguard lifts his hand and says, quietly, “One more lap.”‘ 😩😭😭😭❤️.

Like my favorite podcast, I‘m “diving in.” 🤓🤩🌊

When I should want to come home and read this book, I just don‘t because I‘m not entirely interested in what‘s happening. Possibly because it‘s taking so long to figure out what the protagonist did at her old school that was so bad and that she‘s so obsessed with pot. It weirds me out a bit. Do I think Jackson can write? Yes. Do I know there‘s a widespread audience that does/will love this book? Yes, but it‘s not me and that‘s ok.

Won this in a Goodreads Giveaway 🤩. Pretty excited considering I‘ve only read one Murakami that was assigned to me in college, and I‘m sure I didn‘t understand it (nor do I remember anything about it except the title). Hoping this starts a Murakami deep dive 🤿

Wowza! A Handmaids-esque look into the strain and double standards placed on mothers. This book is one of my recent favorites. I knew I‘d like it, but I didn‘t know the emotions it would pull out of me. I‘m angry for Frida and ready to fight the patriarchy. ✊💪. A perfect book for book clubs!! 🤩💯📚🤓

🗣🗣🗣I am LOVING THIS BOOK!!!

It‘s a three dog night for me, and I‘d have it no other way. Following up Bright Burning Things with this look into the pressures of motherhood. I didn‘t mean to turn this into a book flight, but the library hold came in and I must read this most anticipated gem 💎 Sixty pages in, and I‘m loving it!

I can‘t find my words, but here‘s what I know. I LOVED this book. Every bit of it. Excellent writing, an interesting look at addiction and family and what‘s perceived as “good” by the outside world. I thought it was great! 🤩👏🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 Edited to add that no character has made me more anxious than David.

In my opinion, Jenna is the best. I love her book club picks and her love of books! Her book club is a great follow on Insta 🤩🙌

Got this book from the library then discovered it was on my shelf at home, lost amongst the other trillion books I own but haven‘t read. It‘s just who I am. And I didn‘t realize a woman was on the cover, which is shocking considering my unmatched attention to detail. 😜😏

Cute, wholesome, and so far out of my wheelhouse that my book friend asked if I was okay when I told her what I was reading. I might‘ve skimmed a couple of pages, but if this genre is your jam, I highly recommend. Yinka was a great lead and the book touched on important topics. One small gripe: “kiss my/his/her teeth” was an overused term that I had to Google, but outside of that, good stuff! ✊

I love this book! It‘s super entertaining, snarky, and thought provoking. The characters were intriguing, and I really enjoyed the careful dissection of the ways some people become their worst when times get tough. And the ways other people become a better version of themselves. This is a gem 💎

😩😟😭I‘m giving this a pick even though it got swiped back before I could finish. Libby shows no mercy. Libby doesn‘t care if you‘re 32 chapters into the book when your time is up. Libby doesn‘t care if you‘re literally listening to it when the buzzer rings. GONE! I know this one‘s a pick though because being in Joe‘s head is funny and disturbing and thoroughly entertaining! So I put it on hold once again…

Stopped by the thriftstore today and found this treasure 🤩

When the #BOTM box, latest #LMPBC book, and Target deals all arrive on the same day 🤩🤓🤩🥳

100 or so pages in, and I‘m loving this snarky tale of a suburban family facing an infrastructure breakdown. No devices work, cars won‘t go, no power, but their first concerns are a lost airpod, the undelivered grocery order, and an unfinished AP Exam. This book is cracking me up. 😏

Well, look at Whitman coming through with some well-timed words I needed to hear tonight. 🏆✊👌🤓

Right now, I‘ve got to set it down. I think the timing is off, and this one is going to take more concentration than I can put out at the moment. I‘ll come back to it one day. In fact, Marie and I will probably be big friends one day. Just not today.

The last page of this book is so on point. I think I enjoyed Lucy Barton a tad bit more than this one, but that shouldn‘t diminish this as an absolute pick. I love Strout; she‘s an autobuy author for me. ❤️🌟🤓

Word on the street is that this book is a #BOTM pick for February. The synopsis sounds interesting but that cover is 😖🙈

This novel is a deep dive into the details and nuances of the normal lives and the attempt to just be okay. Lucy Barton is everyone who has faced difficulties and searched for the kindness that eluded them in childhood. I loved it! ❤️

Just some more Elizabeth Strout magic 🤩

I just don‘t think there‘s a more talented writer out there than Elizabeth Strout. I‘m looking forward to diving into her backlist. She‘s the bees knees! 🤓🤗

Surely it‘s just me. The premise of this book is a really interesting concept, but something is off. Eighty-four pages in and I‘m not invested. Is the book super great? Absolutely not, but is it better than a DNF? Probably, but not for me at this moment. Moving on ✌️

Do y‘all listen to this podcast? I love it so much! 🤩🏆

I heard about this one from a podcast and saw it in a bookstore that had a sign saying you could get an ARC with purchase. I was most definitely game for that. Excited about this one 🤩

So I guess the book I finished today goes on the 2022 list 😕

I‘m a big Toews fan, and Women Talking is one of my favorite novels. This one didn‘t disappoint. I liked the first half better than the second, but Toews writing is just superb and that trumps all. 🤓📚📖❤️

‘Then at security it took eighty hours to get through with Grandma and all that “rigamarole” which she pronounced like it was Italian pasta with rolling r‘s.‘😏🍝🤌

I LOVE Miriam Toews. She does not get enough love for her fantastic writing. This book about young Swiv dealing with her (crazy) pregnant mom and being homeschooled by her spunky grandmother has me in stitches 😁😎🤩❤️

This book is one of my favorites and it‘s super cheap on Kindle today 🤩🥳🤓

When a Killer Calls tells the story of two murders that take place in rural South Carolina and has connections to Charlotte, NC. The proximity to my hometown was just an added bonus. Much like American Predator and I‘ll Be Gone in the Dark, the writing is propulsive. I can't recommend this book enough, and it‘s absolutely one of my top books of the year. Go ahead and preorder this one. It comes out 2/22, and you're going to love it!

Y‘all, this one is reallllllllllllly good! About a quarter in and I can‘t put it down. 🤩✅ Coming out 2/22

Yayyy!! This #goodreadsgiveaway came with a tote bag. Totes are fun! And I‘m always down for a good true crime story. Looking forward to this one 🤩

This guy and I have been doing some thinking. Maybe for 2022, I should read the FLIPPIN BOOKS ON MY SHELVES instead of obsessively searching for (and buying) new and upcoming books. My goal for ‘22 is to not buy new books. We shall see. Wish me luck 🤪