March 2020 Wrap-up

March TBR Pile (20/33):

Book of the Month Club: One Day in December by Josie Silver
BOTM: The Two Lives of Lydia Bird by Josie Silver
Girly Book Club: Vox by Christina Dalcher ✓
Friend Book Club: The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow ✓
Unread Shelf Random (Jan): Labyrinth by Kate Mosse
UnRead Shelf Selection (Feb): Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi
Unread Shelf Random (Mar): 1776 by David McCullough
Goodreads To Read Random (Jan): Wanderers by Chuck Wendig
Goodreads To Read Random (Mar): Archaeology from Space by
TBR Jar Random (Jan): The Jane Austen Project by Kathleen Flynn
TBR Jar Random (Feb): The Golden Hour by Beatriz Williams
January Theme Wrap-up: Fever by Lauren DeStefano ✓
February Theme Wrap-up: The Seduction of Lady X by Julia London ✓
February Theme Wrap-up: Kindred by Octavia Butler ✓
February Theme Wrap-up: An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Solomon ✓
Theme 1: The Vagina Bible by Jen Gunter
Theme 1: Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay ✓
Theme 1: How to Be a Woman by Caitlin Moran ✓
Theme 2: Queen of Hearts of Rhys Bowen ✓
Theme 2: The Secret Book and Scone Society by Ellery Adams ✓
Theme 2: Crocodile at the Sandbank by Elizabeth Peters ✓
Comic: The Complete Phonogram
Comic: Lumberjanes Vol. 9 ✓
Comic: Lumberjanes Vol. 10 ✓
Comic: Lumberjanes Vol. 11 ✓
Comic: Rat Queens Vol. 7
Library: Mythos by Stephen Fry ✓
Library: After the Flood by Kassandra Montag ✓
Series: The Night Country by Melissa Albert ✓
Nonfiction: The Splendid and the Vile by Erik Larson
Added: After I Do by Taylor Jenkins Reid ✓
Added: The Story of the World in 100 Species by Christopher Lloyd ✓
Added: Well Met by Jen DeLuca ✓

1,000,000 Page Goal:

Monthly Total: 6173 pages
Pages Remaining: 554,755 pages

Current Read - The Vagina Bible by Jen Gunter

Books I Gave Up On (0)

Books bought/received (8)

I took advantage of a my birthday month free Book of the Month deal and got two books this month.

The Two Lives of Lydia Bird by Josie Silver
All the Stars and Teeth by Adalyn Grace

I grabbed a clearance copy of Empress of the Seven Hills by Kate Quinn from Half Price Books.

For my birthday day out, I visited at cavern of a used bookstore. I limited myself to only buying five books. Seriously I could buy dozens from there. It’s the perfect bookstore of serendipity. I picked up:

Children of the Storm by Elizabeth Peters
The Hippopotamus Pool by Elizabeth Peters
Still Life by Louise Penny
Sea of Glory by Nathanial Philbrick
Buffalo Bill’s America by Louis S. Warren

April TBR Pile:

Book of the Month Club: Things in Jars by Jess Kidd
Girly Book Club: We Have Always Been Here by Samra Habib
Friend Book Club: The Golden Hour by Beatriz Williams
Unread Shelf Random (Jan): Labyrinth by Kate Mosse
UnRead Shelf Selection (Feb): Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi
UnRead Shelf Random (Mar): 1776 by David McCullough
UnRead Shelf Random (April): Bringing Down the Duke by Evie Dunmore
Goodreads To Read Random (Jan): Wanderers by Chuck Wendig
Goodreads To Read Random (Mar): Archaeology from Space by
Goodreads To Read Random (April): Planetfall by Emma Newman
TBR Jar Random (Jan): The Jane Austen Project by Kathleen Flynn
TBR Jar Random (April): The Five by Hallie Rubenhold
March Theme Wrap-up: The Vagina Bible by Jen Gunter
Theme 1: The Complete Phonogram
Theme 1: Rat Queens Vol. 7
Theme 1: The Oracle Code
Theme 2: The Splendid and the Vile by Erik Larson
Theme 2: Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin
Theme 2: All the Stars and Teeth by Adalyn Grace
Ebook: Horrostor by Grady Hendrix
Ebook: The Last Debutante by Julia London
Scifi: Redshirts by John Scalzi
Scifi: Planetfall by Emma Newman

UnRead Shelf Plans

For April, the prompt is the book you most recently acquired. I’ve gotten a few books in the past month; it was my birthday month. I decided to choose one of those books and I’m going with All the Stars and Teeth by Adalyn Grace. And here’s my ambitious UnRead Shelf TBR pile for April:

Movies watched

Little Monsters - Delightful zombie movie!
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker - The more I think about it, the less I like this movie.
The Gentleman - Thankfully this was a return to the good Guy Ritchie movies.
Birds of Prey - This was a lot more fun than I thought it would be.

TV Shows watched

Last Week Tonight - We caught up before the show had to change format.
The Magicians S5 - Last season… it has gutted me.
Doctor Who - Decent season finale.
Broadchurch S2 - Finally getting this season started.
Superstore - We caught up.

Comments - Being forced to stay at home has definitely helped my reading life, but has been a detriment to my mental health. I need a better balance. Hoping to focus on picking books that I will enjoy (not “required” reading) and get myself in a better place.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Crocodile on the Sandbank by Elizabeth Peters

Title: Crocodile on the Sandbank (Amelia Peabody #1)

Author: Elizabeth Peters

Publisher: 1975

Genre: Mystery

Pages: 262

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Ebook; Monthly Theme - March

Amelia Peabody, that indomitable product of the Victorian age, embarks on her debut Egyptian adventure armed with unshakable self-confidence, a journal to record her thoughts, and, of course, a sturdy umbrella. On her way to Cairo, Amelia rescues young Evelyn Barton-Forbes, who has been abandoned by her scoundrel lover. Together the two women sail up the Nile to an archeological site run by the Emerson brothers-the irascible but dashing Radcliffe and the amiable Walter. Soon their little party is increased by one-one mummy that is, and a singularly lively example of the species.

Strange visitations, suspicious accidents, and a botched kidnapping convince Amelia that there is a plot afoot to harm Evelyn. Now Amelia finds herself up against an unknown enemy-and perilous forces that threaten to make her first Egyptian trip also her last . . .

This series has been on my TBR list for decades. Probably since I was a teen… I finally got around to reading this one and was pleasantly surprised. I expected a bit of outdated language and conventions and they were there. It’s hard to tell if some of these are due to attempting to place the story in the time set or because of the time period it was written. Either way, I tried to look past some of those problematic areas and found a delightful wry story of adventure and intrigue. I love Amelia and her commentaries on people and situations. I At times she really reminded me of a Jane Austen heroine. The big mystery wasn’t really that big, but I realize that this is the first book in a very long series. I look forward to exploring Amelia’s world more.

Amelia Peabody

#1 Crocodile on the Sandbank
#2 The Curse of the Pharaohs
#3 The Mummy Case
#4 Lion in the Valley
#5 The Deeds of the Disturber
#6 The Last Camel Died at Noon
#7 The Snake, The Crocodile, and The Dog
#8 The Hippopotamus Pool
#9 Seeing a Large Cat
#10 The Ape Who Guards the Balance
#11 The Falcon at the Portal
#12 He Shall Thunder in the Sky
#13 Lord of the Silent
#14 The Golden One
#15 Children of the Storm
#16 Guardians of the Horizon
#17 The Serpent on the Crown
#18 Tomb of the Golden Bird
#19 A River in the Sky
#20 The Painted Queen

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Seduction of Lady X by Julia London

Title: The Seduction of Lady X (The Secrets of Hadley Green #3)

Author: Julia London

Publisher: Pocket Star 2012

Genre: Fiction

Pages: 399

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Unread Shelf; Monthly Theme - February

The surprising news that dashing steward Harrison Tolly, illegitimate son of the Earl of Ashwood, is the rightful heir to his father’s estate comes at a most inopportune time. With a wedding on the horizon and a baby on the way, a new life of privilege and prestige would be a blessing but for one problem: his heart belongs to another woman.

Harrison keeps his desires for his employer’s wife, Lady Olivia Carey, so hidden that even she does not know of his devotion. Her callous husband, Marquis Carey, went into a rampage after Olivia’s troublesome younger sister returned from her tour of Spain pregnant, and Harrison impulsively stepped in to save the entire family from scandal. Now, like Olivia, he is trapped in a loveless arrangement. When a tragic accident claims the marquis’ life soon thereafter, can Harrison seize his chance and cast aside one sister for another? Or will doing so expose the Carey family’s darkest secret—and ruin his only chance to win Olivia’s heart?

I saw exactly how this book was going to play out from Chapter 3 and yet, I still really enjoyed it. Right now I’m definitely drawn to books where they live happily ever after (hmm, I wonder why…). This one is the perfect Regency Romance involving a handsome lead, a feisty heroine (or two), and a great villain. Throw in some colorful side characters and some ridiculous coincidences and we have the perfect mass market Regency Romance. I was totally on board with this one. Although I think I like the main characters from the previous novel (Lily and Tobias) a bit more than Olivia and Harrison.

The Secrets of Hadley Green

Next up on the TBR pile:

Music Monday - PVRIS "Dead Weight"

Really digging this song…

The Story of the World in 100 Species by Christopher Lloyd

Title: The Story of the World in 100 Species

Author: Christopher Lloyd

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing 2016

Genre: Nonfiction

Pages: 416

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library

In the retitled paperback edition of his book What on Earth Evolved?, Christopher Lloyd leads us on an extraordinary journey, from the birth of life to the present day, as he explains, in a jargon-free way, the phenomenon we call “life on Earth.” Lloyd starts with the Earth “before humans,” when loose strands of genetic code swarmed over the planet, and moves on to explore the creatures that evolved in the murky deep and crept up on the shore to become pioneers of life on land. He then investigates the world “after humans” and how the coevolution of humans and a range of other key species has transformed the planet over the last twelve thousand years. In the process, he identifies the hundred most influential species that have ever lived--with candidates as diverse as slime, sea scorpions, dragonflies, potatoes, ants, tulips, sheep, and grapes--and reveals those that have most changed life on Earth.

One of the books from the library that I grabbed on a whim but kept putting at the bottom of the To Read stack. With the library closures, I have extended due dates on all books. This one got moved up to the top of the pile. Over about a week I read through the 100 entires detailing very important species to life. I found the sections on early life (pre-human life) to be much more interesting that more modern species. The two entries about bony fish were especially fascinating. I think I gravitated towards those entries that focused on the mechanics of evolution to trace the path of life through the ages. An interesting science book for the week.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Life Right Now #10

As I look outside my window: Rainy rain all day

Right now I am: Reviewing the weekend task list. We knocked out a ton of the original list, but there’s still a number of tasks left.

Thinking and pondering: What will next week bring?

On my bedside table: Redshirts by John Scalzi; The Complete Phonogram; Rat Queens Vol. 7

On my tv this week: We watched a few movies including Birds of Prey and The Gentleman. Plus we caught up to The Magicians.

Listening to: So many podcasts. I might be in podcast overload. I think I need to focus on listening to music this coming week.

On the menu for this week:

Monday - Sloppy Joes
Tuesday - Blackened Salmon and Tilapia
Wednesday - Smothered Pork Chops
Thursday - Lablabi
Friday - Leftovers
Saturday - Cajun Chicken and Sausage Alfredo
Sunday - Chicken Tortilla Soup

On my to do list: Oh so much. I’m waiting for some deliveries so I can cross off a few more tasks.

Happening this week: Our new normal. We have nothing on the schedule except remote learning.

What I am creating: Other than lists of house projects, nothing much.

My simple pleasures: Marble torte cake (great choice for J’s birthday cake) and hot tea

Looking around the house: Things are getting done even if they are little things.

From the camera: Birthday cakes for J and Nick and Alex

Well Met by Jen DeLuca

Title: Well Met (Well Met #1)

Author: Jen DeLuca

Publisher: Berkley 2019

Genre: Romance

Pages: 319

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: UnRead Shelf

Emily knew there would be strings attached when she relocated to the small town of Willow Creek, Maryland, for the summer to help her sister recover from an accident, but who could anticipate getting roped into volunteering for the local Renaissance Faire alongside her teenaged niece? Or that the irritating and inscrutable schoolteacher in charge of the volunteers would be so annoying that she finds it impossible to stop thinking about him?

What an utter delight! I read the first 40 pages of this book before bed one night. The next day, I picked it up and could not put it down until the story had ended. I was completely sucked into the Ren Faire setting (I used to do living history!). I loved meeting Emily and her sister and niece. I was immediately taken in by the rest of the cast of characters, especially Chris! I couldn’t wait to see what happened in the hate to love romance brewing over the course of the summer. When Captain Ian showed up, I even swooned a bit! Definitely love a pirate! I’m keeping this one my shelf for when I need a feel-good romance to lift my spirits.

Well Met

#1 Well Met
#2 Well Played
#3 Well Matched

Next up on the TBR pile:

How to be a Woman by Caitlin Moran

Title: How to Be a Woman

Author: Caitlin Moran

Publisher: Harper 2012

Genre: Nonfiction - Essays

Pages: 323

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Perpetual - Feminism; Monthly Theme - March

Caitlin Moran puts a new face on feminism, cutting to the heart of women’s issues today with her irreverent, transcendent, and hilarious How to Be a Woman. “Half memoir, half polemic, and entirely necessary,” (Elle UK), Moran’s debut was an instant runaway bestseller in England as well as an Amazon UK Top Ten book of the year; still riding high on bestseller lists months after publication, it is a bona fide cultural phenomenon. Now poised to take American womanhood by storm, here is a book that Vanity Fair calls “the U.K. version of Tina Fey’s Bossypants….You will laugh out loud, wince, and—in my case—feel proud to be the same gender as the author.”

Another collection of personal essays focusing on feminism. I think this collection was executed better than Bad Feminist. This focused more on Moran’s personal experiences and how they have shaped her worldview and her specific take on feminism. I definitely did laugh out loud many times throughout the essays. My favorite was definitely the story about what to name our private parts. But… then we get lots of casual bigotry and racism throughout the essays. And her complete dismissal of women’s history and those that came before us really got my goat. So while I think this was a better themed collection, I found it lacking in many areas.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Fever by Lauren DeStefano

Title: Fever (The Chemical Garden #2)

Author: Lauren DeStefano

Publisher: Simon & Schuster 2012

Genre: YA Science Fiction

Pages: 354

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library

Rhine and Gabriel have escaped the mansion, but they’re still in danger. Outside, they find a world even more disquieting than the one they ran away from. Determined to get to Manhattan and find Rhine’s twin brother, Rowan, the two press forward, amid threats of being captured again…or worse.

The road they are on is long and perilous—and in a world where young women only live to age twenty and men die at age twenty-five, time is precious. In this sequel to Lauren DeStefano’s harrowing Wither, Rhine must decide if freedom is worth the price—now that she has more to lose than ever.

Mixed feelings about this one… I definitely wanted to continue reading this series after enjoying the first book. I was concerned about where the second book was going, but thankfully most of the book was good. I really liked being able to change setting from the mansion and explore a bit more of the world. The plot moved at a pretty good pace keeping the action. I really enjoyed that bit. My only issue is with Rhine. She can be very annoying at times and I really wanted her to own up to some things at times. Plus I really wanted to see more her relationship with Gabriel. Guess I might need to read the last book to see how everything ends.

The Chemical Garden

#1 Wither
#2 Fever
#3 Sever

Next up on the TBR pile:

New House Videos

This list is so much fun!

On a very different topic:

Back to the fun

Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay

Title: Bad Feminist

Author: Roxane Gay

Publisher: Harper Perennial 2014

Genre: Nonfiction Essays

Pages: 336

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Perpetual; Monthly Theme - March

A collection of essays spanning politics, criticism, and feminism from one of the most-watched young cultural observers of her generation, Roxane Gay.

In these funny and insightful essays, Roxane Gay takes us through the journey of her evolution as a woman (Sweet Valley High) of color (The Help) while also taking readers on a ride through culture of the last few years (Girls, Django in Chains) and commenting on the state of feminism today (abortion, Chris Brown). The portrait that emerges is not only one of an incredibly insightful woman continually growing to understand herself and our society, but also one of our culture.

I loved every essay that Gay focused on her own experiences and thoughts. Learning her personal take on various aspects of life was eye-opening. I love feminist texts that embrace intersectional feminism. Gay excels as laying out the all the different aspects of life and how feminism affects them. I really fell into those essays. Unfortunately, she also included very academic essay focused on pop culture. Those took me right back to college and not in a good way. I was thoroughly bored with those. And of course, they were very dated 6 years later. I would have loved to delete those essays and just keep the personal ones.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Currently #6

Reading: Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay - Some of these essays are amazing.

Watching: J and I are in the middle of a rewatch of the Cornetto Trilogy. Last night we rewatched Hot Fuzz (J’s favorite; mine is Shaun of the Dead).

Listening: Arthur and Quentin have really amped up their fighting in the past week. It’s a bit much…

Making: Trader Joe’s lava cakes are oh so good and so easy to make!

Feeling: The twins have arrived at our house. I am relieved.

Planning: . This week I need to go to the grocery. I need to think on my strategy.

Loving: I’m managing to find quiet moments to read in between the school lessons and kids fighting.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow

Title: The Ten Thousand Doors of January

Author: Alix E. Harrow

Publisher: Redhook 2019

Genre: Fantasy

Pages: 385

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Ebook; TBR Jar Random

In a sprawling mansion filled with peculiar treasures, January Scaller is a curiosity herself. As the ward of the wealthy Mr. Locke, she feels little different from the artifacts that decorate the halls: carefully maintained, largely ignored, and utterly out of place.
Then she finds a strange book. A book that carries the scent of other worlds, and tells a tale of secret doors, of love, adventure and danger. Each page turn reveals impossible truths about the world and January discovers a story increasingly entwined with her own.

I can’t stop smiling a bout this book. I loved diving into the January and Julian and Adelaide’s world of doors and terrors. This was definitely my kind of fantasy. We get some romance, some terror, some adventure, and most of all, a story of growing up. Mr. Locke and the his fellow society members were great villains setting up just enough terror to keep the other characters on their toes. Havemeyer was particularly terrifying. I loved visiting all the other worlds and eventually spending more time in Written. I can just imagine January and her tattoos and words. I will be rereading this one soon I imagine.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Music Monday - Asking Alexandria "They Don't Want What We Want (And They Don't Care)"

Oh yes! Love this song.

Queen of Hearts by Rhys Bowen

Title: Queen of Hearts (Royal Spyness #8)

Author: Rhys Bowen

Publisher: Berkley 2014

Genre: Mystery

Pages: 306

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library; Monthly Theme

England, 1934. Georgie's mother, the glamorous and much-married actress, is hearing wedding bells once again—which is why she must hop across the pond for a quickie divorce in Reno. To offer her moral support, Georgie agrees to go along on the all expenses paid voyage across the Atlantic.

While her mother meets movie mogul Cy Goldman—who insists on casting her in his next picture—Georgie finds herself caught up in the secret investigation of a suspected jewel thief. Lucky for her, the lead investigator happens to be her dashing beau, Darcy!

Her mother's movie and Darcy’s larceny lead everyone to Cy’s Hollywood home, where the likes of Charlie Chaplin are hanging about and there’s enough romantic intrigue to fill a double feature. But they hardly get a chance to work out the sleeping arrangements before Cy turns up dead. As if there wasn’t enough drama already...

Oh so much fun! I love this cozy mystery series and am so glad that we get to see more growth from Georgie. She’s definitely not the innocent anymore. I loved the change in setting to a ship and then to California. It was fun to see all the Brits deal with the Americans in a very loose setting. We get major Hearst Castle vibes from Cy’s house including the menagerie. Lots of fun! And then we get the actual mystery (or should I say mysteries). I totally solved both of them about 2/3 of the way through the book. Overall it was very entertaining. Here’s hoping we get to see more of Darcy next book.

Her Royal Spyness:

#0.5 Masked Ball at Broxley Manor
#1 Her Royal Spyness
#2 A Royal Pain
#3 Royal Flush
#4 Royal Blood
#5 Naughty in Nice
#6 The Twelve Clues of Christmas
#7 Heirs and Graces
#8 Queen of Hearts
#9 Malice at the Palace
#10 Crowned and Dangerous
#11 On Her Majesty’s Frightfully Secret Service
#12 Four Funerals and Maybe a Wedding
#13 Love and Death Among the Cheetahs
#14 The Last Mrs. Summers

Next up on the TBR pile:

After the Flood by Kassandra Montag

Title: After the Flood

Author: Kassandra Montag

Publisher: William Morrow 2019

Genre: Fiction

Pages: 432

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library

A little more than a century from now, our world has been utterly transformed. After years of slowly overtaking the continent, rising floodwaters have obliterated America’s great coastal cities and then its heartland, leaving nothing but an archipelago of mountaintop colonies surrounded by a deep expanse of open water.

Stubbornly independent Myra and her precocious seven-year-old daughter, Pearl, fish from their small boat, the Bird, visiting dry land only to trade for supplies and information in the few remaining outposts of civilization. For seven years, Myra has grieved the loss of her oldest daughter, Row, who was stolen by her father after a monstrous deluge overtook their home in Nebraska. Then, in a violent confrontation with a stranger, Myra suddenly discovers that Row was last seen in a far-off encampment near the Arctic Circle. Throwing aside her usual caution, Myra and Pearl embark on a perilous voyage into the icy northern seas, hoping against hope that Row will still be there.

On their journey, Myra and Pearl join forces with a larger ship and Myra finds herself bonding with her fellow seekers who hope to build a safe haven together in this dangerous new world. But secrets, lust, and betrayals threaten their dream, and after their fortunes take a shocking—and bloody—turn, Myra can no longer ignore the question of whether saving Row is worth endangering Pearl and her fellow travelers.

I heard great things about this book and the author is from my town. I sped through the pages wanting to see what happened to the characters, but ultimately I didn’t really care about them. Most of the characters had too many flaws and not enough redeeming qualities. The amount of secrets kept really grated on me throughout the book. I was not so enamored with the world setting even though post-apocalypse is one of my go-to settings. And the ending really fell flat for me. I just couldn’t seem to muster any concern for the characters or their futures. I was constantly confused by the tone of the book and still can’t decide if it was optimistic or pessimistic. Definitely not a book for me.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Spring TBR

Let's see how I did with my Winter TBR (2/10): Oooofff… what a terrible showing for winter. Hoping the spring goes better.

The Art of Theft by Sherry Thomas ✓
Crocodile on the Sandbank by Elizabeth Peters
Friends without Benefits by Penny Reid
Kate Chopin by Emily Toth
The Lady from the Black Lagoon by Mallory O’Meara ✓
The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern
The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson
Well Met by Jen DeLuca
The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead
Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay

Spring TBR:

Circe and Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller - Circe is a reread for GBC, but I haven’t read Song of Achilles yet.
Two More Her Royal Spyness Novels by Rhys Bowen - Cozy mysteries are perfect for this very uncertain time. Hoping to read two this season.
The Splendid and the Vile by Erik Larson - Really excited to read this one! and I even won a copy in a giveaway.
All the Stars and Teeth by Adalyn Grace - BOTM selection and UnRead Shelf
Serpent and Dove by Shelby Mahurin - Gift from a friend
Uprooted by Naomi Novik - Seriously been on my shelf for too long…
The Beautiful and the Danmed by F. Scott Fitzgerald - A classic I’ve had for too long.
The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry - Another gift book
How to Be a Woman by Caitlin Moran - Put off for too long.
A Nonfiction Library Find - I love discovering random interesting nonfiction at the library.

Next up on the TBR pile:

After I Do by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Title: After I Do

Author: Taylor Jenkins Reid

Publisher: Washington Square Press 2014

Genre: Fiction

Pages: 353

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Ebook

When Lauren and Ryan’s marriage reaches the breaking point, they come up with an unconventional plan. They decide to take a year off in the hopes of finding a way to fall in love again. One year apart, and only one rule: they cannot contact each other. Aside from that, anything goes.

Lauren embarks on a journey of self-discovery, quickly finding that her friends and family have their own ideas about the meaning of marriage. These influences, as well as her own healing process and the challenges of living apart from Ryan, begin to change Lauren’s ideas about monogamy and marriage. She starts to question: When you can have romance without loyalty and commitment without marriage, when love and lust are no longer tied together, what do you value? What are you willing to fight for?

This is a love story about what happens when the love fades. It’s about staying in love, seizing love, forsaking love, and committing to love with everything you’ve got. And above all, After I Do is the story of a couple caught up in an old game—and searching for a new road to happily ever after.

I loved Reid’s The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and Daisy Jones and the Six so I thought I would read some of her backlist titles. Unfortunately this one just fell really flat for me. I wasn’t invested in the main relationship at any point in the novel. Lauren and Ryan just didn’t seem like a relationship that I wanted to root for. Plus we only really get Lauren’s perspective which irked me. I wanted to see both sides of the story before attempting some type of resolution. The ending was basically a non-ending to me. Nothing was actually resolved and I was annoyed…

Next up on the TBR pile:

Odds and Ends

Here's my randomness for the week:

Happy Birthday to my two first babies! They definitely aren’t babies anymore and are taller than I am.
Meal planning and grocery shopping are terrible right now. I have so much anxiety over food…
This social distancing is really doing wonders for my reading. So many pages read this past week.
We finally have finished moving everything to the new house and got the old house cleaned on Tuesday. Hoping to sign off on everything by tomorrow. One less worry.
If my sandpaper would ever get delivered, I could start prepping the craft/library room for painting.
Related, I need to finish removing the caulk from the blue bathroom so we can recaulk it and prep for painting.
Home school with Arthur is going fairly well. We’re relaxed but still trying to structure our days a bit so they don’t devolve into fights and too much television.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Spring Bucket List

A new season has begun! The global pandemic has really put an interesting twist on planning for the spring. We didn’t end up traveling anywhere this month and have loaded up on home activities and schedules. And due to the uncertainty of the near future, I’m shortening the Spring Bucket List to create some manageable goals.

Read 50 books - I came so close to my winter goal of 45 books. Here’s hoping settling into the new house and health concerns lead to more reading.
Make fun cupcakes - I want to try some new-to-me recipe for these.
Create an Easter Egg Hunt - I need to put this on my calendar to collect small items and brainstorm some ideas.
Make a planter for the front porch - I want to do something to spruce up our front porch. It’s so boring right now…
Find two good parks - One of these days, the kids will be able to play outside. We need to scout out some fun parks!
Tie Dye Shirts with the boys - We have shirts and some dye, just need to get it all out and play!
Create a spring Spotify playlist - I need something fun to listen to in the house or when doing chores.
Mini golf family night - Hoping we can go in a few weeks.
Go berry picking - I hope we can go again this late spring…
Sign Arthur up for summer camps - I’m waiting for this due to health concerns.
Go on a hike - Maybe a state park? Or along the river?
Have a picnic - Even if we just have lunch or dinner on the back deck…
Put together the littles’s room - Right now everything is very much in pieces.
Monthly Massage - Yes please!
Go antiquing - I’m loving finding mid-century pieces for our new house. Hoping to go out soon.

Next up on the TBR pile: