I was caught up in this story and found it sophisticated storytelling. Fantastical as it might be, there‘s a cautionary tale here when all citizens of one country are beholden to the beliefs of a single faith and when there is no freedom from those beliefs.

In my mind this story was an animated film with all the makings of a new fatherless Disney princess (with tats!) and a righteous mom-loving right-hand man in a matriarchal society. I‘m thinking Olivia Rodrigo for the Oscar-nominated song!

Helen and Grant (both 18) were impacted by the suicide of Michelle, 16. Now, 13 years later, Helen and Grant‘s lives are brought back together. …Honestly, it‘s not the plot that will stick with me as much how inconsequentially the impact of that death to Grant (non-family) was considered by Helen and her parents (family). It‘s one of those who-was-she-to-me things that always strikes an emotional chord with me.

Things are not going well for recent divorcee, Megan. She‘s an overworked critical care nurse raising a 16-yo daughter in an apartment by the L train. She‘s creeped out by a recent string of break-ins/rapes. She attends a divorce support group where she befriends an old HS classmate. That‘s a lot of lose threads and this author pulls them nicely into a tight story.

In a modern world of protecting vampyre colonies since 1983, it‘s best a human avoid drinking a vampyre‘s blood if bitten. But vampyres have rules too…stick with animal blood, don‘t kill other vampyres, don‘t turn a child, be prepared to live for centuries and die for decades. You‘ll put your entire colony at risk should you murder a human and a human anthropologist of vampyres (the MC) authorizes the culling of your entire community. 👇

This is very good historical fiction and I encourage anyone to read the author‘s note prior to reading the story. There is so much research of 1938 Philadelphia and the note helps you appreciate the genuine circumstances her fictional characters navigated.

Wow, an entire grid of newly published books and the princess wins the tag!

5* = Loved It, want to shout out loud about this book! I do/will own/keep a physical copy. A+
4*= I liked it, would love to discuss. Solid B
3*=Meh, no need to discuss. Avg C
2*=Nope D
1*=DNF F

Note: To equate quarter ratings to A-F scores, 3.5 and 3.25 both garner a C+, but 3.5 represents my quandary when I can‘t decide between a pick or a so-so!

I really love when Chanel Cleeton‘s books are wrapped in Cuban/American history so I was disappointed that we didn‘t experience in real time Carolina and Carmine growing up in Havana. As a mystery it was a bit of a slow burn but still satisfying. What I liked most was the atmospheric 1920s and 40s Miami vibe. And the peacocks - if you‘ve had daily experiences with a pride of peacocks (I have) you‘ll appreciate their characterization here.

This was fun. The story and characters pick up where the last sentence ended in Book 3, and all characters good and bad have a reason to show up in Atlantic City. My only issue is I wish I hadn‘t read each of these books in the weeks after publishing because I think it would be so much fun to binge this series.

This was such a feel good read with lovable characters and forward motion the whole way for MC, Eve. The few supporting characters are interesting on their own and I can imagine the author writing them into the MCs of their own stories.

I discovered Lisa a few years back through the essays she wrote with her author daughter about their lives together, and I‘ve kept up with her new releases. …There is stuff going down in this story that‘s bigger than the Devlin‘s, but I don‘t think I‘ll remember those details in a month or two because it was the interesting dynamics of the Devlin family themselves that caught my attention.

I‘m giving a pick to a book that made me feel … ick. I didn‘t want to stick with it and at the same time couldn‘t stop. The ick factor faded, and I found the last third intriguing. But here‘s something else I‘m thinking about… I would have DNF‘d well before the final third had this same story been written by a man, and that only adds to my wild thoughts on this one.

My favorite part of this book was the building of this family family because they are all just good people.
Although I respect the track this story took, I found it a bit heavy handed as it made its way to the end. (Also, the input of right-ring extremists frustrate me in my fiction as much as in real life.)

I like the plot of two gay women taking their favorite teacher (also gay) on a cross-country trip so he can die peacefully in his favorite place (surrounded by not beige). It lost credibility for me since the two 32yo women were college grads (UofWash and Yale) and HS teachers with the emotional intelligence of middle schoolers. I can‘t countenance a 32 yo woman (let alone two) pining for their potential 8th grade love that got away.

Hmmm, I started out liking this but began to lose interest as the murderery parts were told vs shown to the reader. Just when I thought this was a meh read things got twisty and the reader finally experiences crimes play out on Park Ave‘s Windermere Apartment. Note to Self: when I finally have the opportunity to move to NYC, find a loft in Brooklyn!

I always look forward to a new release from this author. Each book is so different from his previous works and I just buckle up for the ride I‘m about to embark. I couldn‘t stop reading this and loved Crissy, Betsy, and Marissa. Chrissy working a Las Vegas residency as a successful Princess Diana impersonator amongst contemporary things of today just somehow worked. Honestly, how does Chris come up with his stories!?

Happy Easter Everyone! I‘ll be sitting here testing myself to see how well I recall the notes scribbled on the backs of my cards this month!

March 2024 #MonthlyWrapUp
#Indexcard collection

This grid is telling me that I‘m loving books published this year! And yet, the win goes to the tagged - a masterclass in writing.

5* = Loved It, want to shout out loud about this book! I do/will own/keep a physical copy. A+
4*= I liked it, would love to discuss. Solid B
3*=Meh, no need to discuss. Avg C
2*=Nope D
1*=DNF F

Come September I‘m able to nominate three books for consideration of my 2025 IRL Bookclub, and I may have a lock on my first nomination. This story was fascinating. I‘m left with so much to consider and talk about that I don‘t even know where to begin. Kudos for giving Frida Kahloa shout out because Anita was gave me Frida vibes all day long!

Wait, you mean it‘s almost time to pack up my bunnies!? January may have lasted 528 days, but February and March felt like 2 long weekends!
#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

I read my last self-help book on grief years ago, but can‘t quit a memoir of someone with the words to document their own unique experience. Sloane was grieving the violation of a home robbery (jewelry inherited from her mean grandmother) when hit with a grief no one anticipated – the suicide of her one-time boss, and best friend Russell. ⚠️ TW: This could hit hard if moving through a friend‘s suicide remains a struggle to a reader.👇

Oh, I don‘t know, I think I‘m too old to make it make sense for a 40-yo mother of a 14-yo to start a thing with the 20-yo star of the British boy-band her daughter fawns over. Honestly I didn‘t seem as though Solene was having real world fun - I mean outside great sex, then talking to her boy-toy about said great sex. I‘m am though intrigued to see Anne Hathaway take on the role in the adaptation of this story..

I didn‘t realize murder exchange was a trope in thrillers so had this déjà vu thing going as the plot unfolded. I finally went to GR to verify I was reading a newly released book and discovered the inspiration of a 1951 Hitchcock film, Strangers on a Train (it even gets a nod in this book?) I‘ve yet to figure out which remake(s) I experienced causing such vivid déjà vu all the way to the final page!

If you‘d love a RuPaul tell-all story about wild nights with drugs at the best clubs, this book might disappoint you. RuPaul is not in the business of trashing people. This is his origin story, how he stepped into his identity, the freedom he found through drag, his realization that he too had a long-time addiction and how he addressed it, his need for kindness, a his love for his family and Georges. 👇

Oh, this is a good one. It starts out and carries on as a fun romcom with a touch of magical realism that fits the story so seamlessly it‘s like yes, of course, some people just receive notice of how long a relationship will last. But this is Rebecca Serle and her stories have delicious layers making this so much more than a romcom.

Eddie and April, get the hell out of Dodge. What‘s wrong with you!? …Ohhhhh😳😳

Sophie and Max have become friends and side-gig business partners in the most unexpected of ways. Both have people with expectations that each couples-up with someone. They don‘t need to go as far as fake-dating, fake we‘re-just-friends should suffice. … The story driving the romance is a hoot, and I do wish more of the story was given to that layer rather than Sophie and Max spending so much time in their own heads contemplating the other.

I‘m sure I‘ve never read a story as masterfully told inside of 88 pages as this. My recommendation: Treat yourself to a master class in writing!

….Last month I unexpectedly hosted my IRL bookclub discussion on Small Things Like These. To prepare I watched several 30-90 minute YouTube videos about the book. Often, as much as the speaker liked STLT, they liked Foster even more and I thought, No Way. Then I read it.
…Updated thought, Way!!!

I find that I‘m very judgey on romances so I‘m always excited for those rare grids where a romance wins the grid!

5* = Loved It, want to shout out loud about this book! I do/will own/keep a physical copy. A+
4*= I liked it, would love to discuss. Solid B
3*=Meh, no need to discuss. Avg C
2*=Nope D
1*=DNF F

I‘m not sure if it will ever not be weird for me to read a pandemic ‘tox‘ story published before 2020. This is an Us against Them YA story with a particular angle on the origins of a toxin infecting the population. It had nothing to do with American politicians playing to their base, facts be damned - unfortunately that‘s where my head gets stuck these days when I attempt to read dystopian novels.

March #DoubleSpin Category: Pub 2016-2019.

I really enjoy Alex‘s unconventional twisty storytelling. He writes interesting characters and the bad ones are just fun to dislike.

This book - what a great reading experience! Soledad is married to the wrong guy and we are rid of that loser in short order. Soledad soldiers on with a dreamy cast of supporting characters - 2 bffs (Yasmen, the MC of book1) 2 sisters, 3 daughters, a love-interest who happens to be a wonderful dad to his 2 autistic sons and model behavior for ex-husbands. Y‘all know I‘m steam-shy and I‘m all like c‘mon guys get naked already!

I‘m slowly making my way through my collection of Maeve Binchy books. They‘re cozy, fun to read and I‘ve become accustomed to her large cast of characters (helps to have a physical copy). All characters across chapters had a tie back to St Ann‘s well -scheduled for destruction. Most chapters introduced characters that had a connection to previous chapters - so page flipping involved!

March #BookSpin Cat: Love That Cover 👇🏿

I‘m fascinated by mid 19th century socialites (Babe Paley being my fav and she gets a shout-out here.) To my chagrin I did not know of Maria Callas and her impact on opera. I didn‘t feel like this book succeeded in making these IRL characters compelling. But I have to at least give it a slow pick because it led me to over 5 fascinating hours of subsequent YouTube and googled interviews and documentaries.

This is best read when in the mood for a 35 yo struggling comic suffering the breakup from the love of his life - I didn‘t think I was in that mood, but since I purchased a physical copy I stuck with it, and darn if Andy didn‘t grow on me. I especially liked how the last chapter 31Jan2020 pulled it altogether. Also, Andy‘s mom provides some great insight for anyone grieving the end of a relationship.

The Book of Unknown Americans is among my favorite fictional immigrant stories so I couldn‘t wait for this one. I liked it but did myself a disservice sans my own physical copy. This is a character driven story with each character representing a different facet of the personalities living in and coming to Panama during the building of the canal. It was just really hard to keep track of everyone so I focused on Omar and Ada.

It‘s always fun to read Were and Vampire rules implemented for new generations existing in a world of prolific-breeding humans. These were fun characters with a romance that did not lean into the miscommunication trope - kudos for this because with all that interspecies steam it would have been easy to fall victim to it. The steam comes in at the halfway mark so Ali gave us a chance to know Misery and Lowe first - I appreciate that.

It is such a privilege to grow gracefully old with the person you love. Would that every couple could approach their 60th wedding anniversary with the feelings Jenny and Bernard share for each other. This book was as sweet as a baked goods story should be. I wasn‘t expecting the mother-baby home storyline - it‘s just heartbreaking. I‘d like to think we‘d never disrespect unwed pregnant women so callously again, but I‘m worried about that.

I love building these grids because it‘s not until I build one that I consider the entire reading experience. The tagged is epic!

5* = Loved It, want to shout out loud about this book! I do/will own/keep a physical copy. A+
4*= I liked it, would love to discuss. Solid B
3*=Meh, no need to discuss. Avg C
2*=Nope D
1*=DNF F

I think the cover art here is misleading. Although a Midwest 19th circus is the origin story of a 4-generation Minnesota family, this is much more about the potential discoveries to be found when submitting your DNA sample to an ancestory company. I find that fascinating because 👇

Depending on where the reader is on their own journey with grief, this is a meaningful story. Annie has died at the onset of the book devastating her husband and their 4 kids - the oldest only 13. She also left behind her lifelong BFF, who never thought she would survive Annie. It details how each person who loves this one woman so much has their own unique journey with grief.

Perhaps because Part 1 of this book read as YA, it gave me The Giver vibes. I liked the premise with adjoining valleys living the same lives separated by 20 years from the valleys east and west. Part 2 jumps twenty years which was intriguing my issue was the story didn‘t didn‘t have the tension needed to make the premise unforgettable.

Last summer I decided romantisies might not be my jam as I sped read through steam to return to world building. But I gave this a try and I‘m glad I did. The romance (not too steamy) was integral to the witchy world being built, and I look forward to Book2. This new series‘ use of blood is a little cringey, but I‘m very blood shy🩸

It‘s a wrap on February 2024 and most of these books were pulled from my physical shelves.

….My read & unread books are mixed together on my shelves with a translucent paragraph tab on the spine of unread books. It feels good to finally pull more tabs than I add in a given month. If I plan to donate the book, I'll turn the spine out on my shelves.

#MonthlyWrapUp #IndexCard

What did I just read! I finished sections of this book and spoke out loud to the universe and author as though I could somehow effect change or come to terms with my nooooo‘s. My IRL bookclub does not discuss this book until June so I just want to reread these 715 pages over and over again.

For March 2024 #BookSpin I‘ll just quote my grand twins‘ departing salutation to family, friends, and strangers alike…
Make Good Choices!

@TheAromaofBooks #BookSpinBingo

I just did not connect to these characters and had little interest in the resolution for 3/4 of this book. I thought this was going to be my first pan of 2024, but I liked the last quarter of this story, so yeah, a meh. 👇

I‘m was humbled reading this realizing how little I know of the women serving in Vietnam. I‘m self-taught about this conflict because I‘m of the age where Vietnam was neither history nor current events in my schooling. Part 1 is fast-paced and I couldn‘t stop reading. Part 2 is a testament to the resources we owe troops who‘ve been under fire. 👇

I was intrigued by the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and fire setting, and I liked the background stories of each of the women. This is a pick with a but - where I'm the problem… This historical setting is necessary for the story of these fictional characters. I guess I wanted was more the opposite where characters are created to tell the fascinating history of the 1900 SF aughts. Does that make sense - more H, less F?

Author Diane Oliver died at 22 in a 1966 motorcycle accident. She had 4 published short stories then 3 more posthumously. Now 14 of her stories are published together and provide her contemporary look at racism playing out in the 1960s, a raw and intimate look of the everyday moments of disparate African American families. I can only imagine the works Diane would‘ve completed, and bravo to those who decided to publish her collection in 2024.