The salon I go to had latkes out on a table today for customers to celebrate Hanukkah (along with applesauce and sour cream)! Absolutely LOVE! And they were super delicious :). Happy Hanukkah!
I couldn’t decide which should be next up for me. Both about the same length. Synopsis of each sounded great. Both holiday themed.
So I decided to read the first page of each one to see if either jumped out at me. I opened the cover of Blame it on the Mistletoe and…first page read nicely.
Then I opened the cover of The Twelve Dates of Christmas and…
SIGN.
Who’s K?? Clearly I have no idea who K is (could it be one of you??) but being such a firm believer in signs and fate, this was so obviously the choice for my next read. Done.
I’ll let you know what I think! Thank you, K, for making this choice for me! Fingers crossed that you and I enjoy the same books, lol…
Click the links below to order the book through my Amazon affiliate links. When you order through these links, I receive a tiny commission. Thank you for your support, Xo
Thank you so much for reading Book Coffee Happy! I would be so thankful if you could do the following to support my favorite hobby…
*Follow me on Instagram* (I am VERY active on Instagram and usually update my Instastories daily)
*Please share this site with your book and blog loving friends!*
*Subscribe with your email address to my blog (scroll all the way to the bottom of this page on mobile devices OR check the top right of this screen to enter your email address)*
*If you already have a blog, please “follow” mine*
*”Like” my Facebook page (and please comment on, “like”, and share my posts)*
*Clicking and buying products through my Amazon Affiliate links. The cost to you is exactly the same and I receive a tiny commission off of your purchases.*
3 things that I should have bought on Black Friday at Barnes and Noble but didn’t:
Love.Zoom in: It’s Barnes and Noble!!!Drink coasters shaped like books!
The 2 library holiday books that I still have not read (although I’m hopefully starting one of them tonight after I finish reading the last 20 pages of Christmas by the Book…my Blogmas post tomorrow will tell you which one I’m starting and the special reason why I chose it…or should I say…it chose me…)
Gorgeous tote bag at Paper Source (not book related but so gorgeous):
My son asked me for a pencil while in my car last week. After I searched my entire glove compartment (no pencil), I DID find a ridiculous amount of pens, a ridiculous amount of tampons, a ridiculous amount of Splenda packets, and…a working book light. I totally forgot that I had put this in here months ago for when I want to read in my car and it’s too dark outside! I’ve been bringing my book light that I keep in my nightstand with me in these situations…no more!
Happy 1st Night of Hanukkah to all who celebrate!!!
Thank you so much for reading Book Coffee Happy! I would be so thankful if you could do the following to support my favorite hobby…
*Follow me on Instagram* (I am VERY active on Instagram and usually update my Instastories daily)
*Please share this site with your book and blog loving friends!*
*Subscribe with your email address to my blog (scroll all the way to the bottom of this page on mobile devices OR check the top right of this screen to enter your email address)*
*If you already have a blog, please “follow” mine*
*”Like” my Facebook page (and please comment on, “like”, and share my posts)*
*Clicking and buying products through my Amazon Affiliate links. The cost to you is exactly the same and I receive a tiny commission off of your purchases.*
Blogmas 2023: Happy Birthday to ME {Sephora Gift Card Giveaway}!
Day 2 of BLOGMAS! In case you missed my Blogmas 2023 welcome video yesterday, HERE is the link! I explain what Blogmas is and how Book Coffee Happy will be participating this year 🙂
I started blogging in September 2018 so this is officially the 6th birthday that I have celebrated as a book blogger. For the 1st 2 years, I simply wrote about my birthday adventures but during Covid I decided to share the birthday fun and host a giveaway as my present to YOU!
This year I’m giving away a $20.00 Sephora E gift card so you can buy anything that will make you feel BEAUTIFUL! Sephora has everything from makeup to skin care to hair…all things that I LOVE and want to share with you!
**And a Happy Birthday shout out to my favorite birthday twin Britney Spears!!**
Sephora Gift Card Giveaway
To be entered, just leave a comment below (on this blog post)! Your comment can be about anything!
**You must comment below to be eligible for the giveaway and you must comment here on this blog post (not on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram)**
Giveaway will close on Monday (12/4/23) at 6:00 pm CDT and the winner will be randomly chosen and announced here on my blog on Tuesday (12/5/23). I’ll have your gift card sent via email to you straight from Sephora’s website on Tuesday!
I will post a video here on Tuesday of me randomly choosing the winner!
Thank you so much for reading Book Coffee Happy! I would be so thankful if you could do the following to support my favorite hobby…
*Follow me on Instagram* (I am VERY active on Instagram and usually update my Instastories daily)
*Please share this site with your book and blog loving friends!*
*Subscribe with your email address to my blog (scroll all the way to the bottom of this page on mobile devices OR check the top right of this screen to enter your email address)*
*If you already have a blog, please “follow” mine*
*”Like” my Facebook page (and please comment on, “like”, and share my posts)*
*Clicking and buying products through my Amazon Affiliate links. The cost to you is exactly the same and I receive a tiny commission off of your purchases.*
To quote one of the greatest television shows ever created (Sex in the City):
“And just like that”…Blogmas is over.
Blogmas 2022 Wrap Up
I did it! 5 years of blogging and I finally completed a Blogmas. I’m super proud of myself, lol. Some days were easy, some days were not. I really loved it and I had FUN! I hope all of you enjoyed it as much as I did.
And now I start planning for Blogmas 2023…Let’s gooooo 🙂
I’m planning on taking the rest of the year off from blogging but NOT from Instagram! If you don’t already follow me on Insta, please do…I usually post in my Instastories daily. Love it.
The verrrrry start of the snow yesterday! SNOW HAPPY!
I have some awesome and big goals for Book Coffee Happy in 2023 (some already in the works…stay tuned) and I’m so excited to have you along for the ride.
Thank you for supporting me, Blogmas, and Book Coffee Happy all throughout the year. I hope that whatever the end of 2022 brings you that it includes lots of love and lots of BOOKS!
This blog is my favorite hobby and I would so love your support! Here are ways you can help my blog to GROW:
*Please share this page with your book and blog loving friends!*
*Please share this page with your book and blog loving friends!*
*Subscribe with your email address to my blog (scroll all the way to the bottom of this page on mobile devices OR check the top right of this screen to enter your email address)*
*If you already have a blog, please “follow” mine*
*”Like” my Facebook page (and please comment on, “like”, and share my posts)*
*Clicking and buying products through my Amazon Affiliate links. The cost to you is exactly the same and I receive a tiny commission off of your purchases.*
It’s the influencer’s golden rule: know your niche. Kit Kidding has found hers on Instagram, where she gets paid to promote brands and share expertly curated posts about her fun, fabulous, child-free life. Kit likes kids just fine, but she passionately believes that women who choose not to become mothers shouldn’t have to face guilt. Or judgement. Or really hot chefs who turn out to be single dads.
Will MacGregor is aggravating, sexy, persistent, averse to social media, and definitely a bad idea. As soon as Kit learns his parenting status, she vows to put their scorching one-night stand behind her and move on. But Will and Kit are thrown together on an Instagram campaign, and the more time she spends with him—and his whip-smart, eight-year-old daughter, Addie—the more difficult it is to stay away, much less sustain what Will so cleverly calls her “Resting Beach Face.” Kit’s picture-perfect career path is suddenly clashing with the possibility of a different future—messy, complicated, and real. Which life does she truly want? Will she have to re-invent herself? And will love still be waiting by the time she figures it out?
My Review of Instamom {Chantel Guertin}:
It was…good. Not great but good!
As someone who LOVES Instagram and follows tons of influencers, I loved the premise of this story and a behind the scenes look at how these people live their lives. Definately my favorite parts of the book were the parts where Kit would discuss her influencer status and all that it entails to be successful.
That being said, I didn’t enjoy the relationship between Kit and Will. In fact, it was so forgettable that I just had to pick up the book to even remember Will’s name, lol. I found their relationship completely unbelievable and I never felt whatever spark they claimed that they had. Eh.
The overall message of the book was a good one although I disliked so many of the characters that the delivery just wasn’t there for me. I found myself struggling to finish the book and never wanting to pick it up although it was an easy read!
Eh…if you’re looking for a light, easy book this one is ok although honestly, I’d probably just skip it.
Bottom Line:
Eh.
Have you read this book? What did you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!
Clearly this wasn’t my favorite book but you might love it! Click the image below to order the book through my Amazon affiliate link. When you order through this link, I receive a tiny commission. Thank you for your support, Xo
This blog is my favorite hobby and I would so love your support! Here are ways you can help my blog to GROW:
*Please share this page with your book and blog loving friends!*
*Please share this page with your book and blog loving friends!*
*Subscribe with your email address to my blog (scroll all the way to the bottom of this page on mobile devices OR check the top right of this screen to enter your email address)*
*If you already have a blog, please “follow” mine*
*”Like” my Facebook page (and please comment on, “like”, and share my posts)*
*Clicking and buying products through my Amazon Affiliate links. The cost to you is exactly the same and I receive a tiny commission off of your purchases.*
Blogmas 2022: 11 Non Book Gift Ideas for Book Lovers
Gifting a book to someone else is a tricky thing unless you are 100% sure it’s a book that they want to read. There are plenty of other wonderful gifts that any book lover would be so lucky to receive!
Gift Idea #1: Book of the Month Membership
I’m not a member but I’ve heard such great things! Check out their website to learn more.
Gift Idea #2: Book Light
If you have been following me for any length of time, you know my ongoing struggle with finding the perfect book light. Well friends, I HAVE FOUND IT! (Fun fact: I receive messages ALL. THE. TIME. from people asking what book light I recommend.)
HERE is a link to a post I wrote about the very best book light I have found (and I have gone through many, many book lights). This one is fantastic! Although I do wish it came in pink…
Gift Idea #3:Candle
Might I suggest my most favorite holiday smelling candle…Bath and Body Works Winter Candy Apple??? It’s perfecton. I currently own 7 of them and burn them daily throughout the holiday season.
Gift Idea #4:Gift Card to Thrift Books
I’ve never actually bought anything from this website but it looks so amazing, I’m intrigued!
Gift Idea #5:Electric Fireplace/Crackler
Love mine so much. You can read about them both HERE.
Gift Idea #6: Book Weight
I will always and forever think that this looks like something….dirty. It’s not. It allows me to read a book hands free (aka while I dry my hair) and it’s the book accessory you never knew you needed. I explain this little gem in more detail HERE.
Gift Idea #7:Gift Card to Barnes and Noble, Half Price Books, or even better…INDEPENDENT BOOKSTORES!
Can’t go wrong with a gift card. Ever. Especially when one can use it to buy books.
Gift Idea #8:Book themed Mug
Here are mine. They are gorgeous. HERE is where I bought the one on the left and HERE is a blog post solely dedicated to the one on the right.
Gift Idea #9:Book Tote
I’m obsessed with mine! I bought mine on a recent mountain vacation (post HERE).
Gift Idea #10:Book Clothes
Literally wearing mine as we speak! Here is a picture of me typing up this blog post 🙂
And lastly….
Gift Idea #11:A Recommendation to Follow Book Coffee Happy 🙂
Ha ha but seriously…if you know a book lover, please tell them to follow me on the various platforms (my blog, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter)! I would love to have them join our little book loving community that I created 🙂
What else would a book lover be thrilled to receive as a gift??
This blog is my favorite hobby and I would so love your support! Here are ways you can help my blog to GROW:
*Please share this page with your book and blog loving friends!*
*Please share this page with your book and blog loving friends!*
*Subscribe with your email address to my blog (scroll all the way to the bottom of this page on mobile devices OR check the top right of this screen to enter your email address)*
*If you already have a blog, please “follow” mine*
*”Like” my Facebook page (and please comment on, “like”, and share my posts)*
*Clicking and buying products through my Amazon Affiliate links. The cost to you is exactly the same and I receive a tiny commission off of your purchases.*
Blogmas 2022: My Favorite Book Coffee Happy Posts of 2022
Last week we stopped at a gas station to get gas. While my husband was filling up the tank, I was sitting in the car…and watched as this drove by right in front of our car. It was so random and awesome, lol.
It has been such a wonderful year here on Book Coffee Happy! I’ve reviewed so many amazing books, hosted some wonderful giveaways, have written some really fun blog posts, have attended some incredible literary events, etc. I’ve made some delightful new friends this year…authors, publishers, fellow book bloggers, and so many more.
Here are my favorite posts that I’ve written over the past year categorized by month. As always, THANK YOU for visiting my little corner of the Internet. Thank you for always supporting Book Coffee Happy and for always supporting ME! Xo!
This blog is my favorite hobby and I would so love your support! Here are ways you can help my blog to GROW:
*Please share this page with your book and blog loving friends!*
*Please share this page with your book and blog loving friends!*
*Subscribe with your email address to my blog (scroll all the way to the bottom of this page on mobile devices OR check the top right of this screen to enter your email address)*
*If you already have a blog, please “follow” mine*
*”Like” my Facebook page (and please comment on, “like”, and share my posts)*
*Clicking and buying products through my Amazon Affiliate links. The cost to you is exactly the same and I receive a tiny commission off of your purchases.*
I originally saw this book tag on One Book More and knew that I wanted to participate! Let’s GO!
Smash or Pass Book Tag:
Bookish Tropes
Eh not a huge fan of the overdone ones so overall PASS. Enemies to lovers, love triangles, etc.
Alternating POV
Smash but only if it’s done in a way that isn’t annoying or confusing. This one is a hard one to get right but when an author does, it’s a wonderful way to read a book!
Ambiguous Endings
PASS. Authors, please wrap up every single storyline and tie everything together with a beautiful bow. This also applies to series finales of television shows. Please and thank you.
Non/Fiction
Smash! I love non fiction and have turned to books throughout my life. HERE is my list of non fiction recommendations for pregnancy, new parents, baby showers, etc.!
Historical Setting
Smash. 5 that instantly come to mind are THIS BOOK, THIS BOOK, THIS BOOK, THIS BOOK, and THIS BOOK (click each link to read the book synopsis and my full review). Absolutely loved them all!
Morally Grey Characters
Smash. Love them, especially when they switch back and forth and ESPECIALLY in thrillers! The best!
First Person POV
Smash. When done well, I love reading books with a first person POV.
Audiobooks
Overall smash BUT there are aspects of it that are most definitely pass! I explainallll my feelings about audiobooks (good and bad) in THIS POST.
Re-Reading
Pass. I mean, I’ve done it but overall I would rather enjoy a new-to-me book than go back and reread one.
Classic Novels
SMASH when I was younger but PASS now that I’m older, lol. I used to LOVE to read classic novels (I once filled an entire binder with my thoughts and feelings on The Catcher In The Rye‘s characters, plot, settings, etc. when I was in high school just for fun)…
Annotating
Pass. Haven’t actually done this since college.
Cracking Book Spines
SMAAAAAAASH! I crack pretty much every book that I read. Always. Love it. And I dog ear, too…
Smut
SMASH. ALL. DAY. I looooooooove hot smutty sex scenes (add THAT to things I wasn’t planning on saying on the Internet today). Some of the hottest sex scenes I’ve read are in THIS BOOK and I loved every second (and aside from the hot sex scenes that book is just awesome in every way….a definite must read).
Character Driven Books
HARD. PASS. I typically enjoy plot driven books a million times more than character driven books…
Past/Present Split Timeline
Again, when done correctly this is a wonderful way to tell a story. However, I’ve found that there is a fine line between doing this correctly vs confusing the reader…
Heavy World Building
HARD. PASS. Not much more for me to say about this other than just…NOT. FOR. ME.
If you just read this book tag, consider yourself tagged! Please link back to me if you post on your blog. If you don’t have a blog, feel free to answer any of these in the comments…I’d love to hear your thoughts!
This blog is my favorite hobby and I would so love your support! Here are ways you can help my blog to GROW:
*Please share this page with your book and blog loving friends!*
*Please share this page with your book and blog loving friends!*
*Subscribe with your email address to my blog (scroll all the way to the bottom of this page on mobile devices OR check the top right of this screen to enter your email address)*
*If you already have a blog, please “follow” mine*
*”Like” my Facebook page (and please comment on, “like”, and share my posts)*
*Clicking and buying products through my Amazon Affiliate links. The cost to you is exactly the same and I receive a tiny commission off of your purchases.*
BLOGMAS 2022: Review of the Christmas Book With One of the Prettiest Book Covers I Have Ever Seen
Annual holiday drive thru AKA one of my favorite family holiday traditions! This lit up tunnel was STUNNING!
Ok so WOW. My little book blog BLEW UP with page views yesterday…apparently you guys really liked my list of the 13 best books I read in 2022! I hope you found some good suggestions as obviously every book on that list is coming at you highly, highly recommended. If you missed that post, HERE it is :). It’s filled with the very best books I read this year (and I read many, many, MANY books this year)…
Review of the Christmas Book With One of the Prettiest Book Covers I Have Ever Seen:
The Christmas Bookshop {Jenny Colgan}
I received this book during last year’s holiday season from a wonderfully kind blog reader. I couldn’t get my hands on a copy and I desperately wanted to read it! I’m still not over the generosity of this person. SO AMAZINGLY KIND!!! You can read about that lovely gesture HERE.
So halfway through reading Joanne Demaio’s Winter Novels, I pivoted my reading plans and basically stopped everything to read this book! You can read all about that decision HERE.
Out of the 8 holiday books that I was excited to read, THIS book was the one that I was the MOST excited to read (you can read that post with the other 7 titles HERE).
Can we talk about this GORGEOUS cover??? It’s BEAUTIFUL! The colors are so bold and amazing. Bookshop AND Christmas?! Absolutely love everything about this cover!
Goodreads Synopsis of The Christmas Bookshop {Jenny Colgan}:
When the department store she works in closes for good, Carmen has perilously little cash and few options. She doesn’t want to move in with her perfect sister Sofia, in Sofia’s perfect house with her perfect children and her perfectly ordered Edinburgh life.
Frankly, Sofia doesn’t exactly want Carmen there either. Her sister has always been sarcastic and difficult. But Sofia has yet another baby on the way, a mother desperate to see her daughters get along, and a client who needs a retail assistant for his ailing bookshop, so welcoming Carmen might still have some benefits for everyone.
At Sofia’s behest, Carmen is thrown into the daily workings of old Mr. McCredie’s ancient bookshop on the streets of the old dark city. Can she use her design skills to revamp the store and bring it back to popularity in time to benefit from Christmas shopping traffic? Can she choose between bad boy literary rock star Blair and quiet Quaker student Oke? And will she heal the rift with the most important people of all: her family?
My Review of The Christmas Bookshop {Jenny Colgan}:
It’s a beautiful story! So descriptive and lovely with wonderful characters and beautiful settings.
In our hotel room last Christmas Day! We took a staycation in downtown Chicago and this book came along for the journey!
My ONLY complaint…so…the bookshop was just 1 of the many storylines in this book. I wanted the bookshop to be the MAIN storyline. I wanted this entire book to revolve around a lovely Christmas bookshop
I think I went into reading this book thinking it was a light, easy read and wasn’t prepared for the depth that it provided. At ANY OTHER TIME during the year, I would have wholeheartedly welcomed that depth but during the holiday season I really just want light, easy, fluffy books.
Trifecta.
I did love that I found myself googling picturesque Edinburgh (and various tree types that were mentioned throughout the story) and seeing pictures of the exact area where the fictitious bookshop is supposed to be. What a stunning backdrop for this story! If you do read this, I highly suggest doing a bit of research on this beautiful area. It helped to have a bit of background knowledge when reading the descriptions of the area.
Side Note: One of the most beautiful book covers I have ever seen.
Bottom Line:
A beautiful book…just don’t expect the majority of it to be about the bookstore, lol.
Have you read this book? What did you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!
Click the image below to order the book through my Amazon affiliate link. When you order through this link, I receive a tiny commission. Thank you for your support, Xo
This blog is my favorite hobby and I would so love your support! Here are ways you can help my blog to GROW:
*Please share this page with your book and blog loving friends!*
*Please share this page with your book and blog loving friends!*
*Subscribe with your email address to my blog (scroll all the way to the bottom of this page on mobile devices OR check the top right of this screen to enter your email address)*
*If you already have a blog, please “follow” mine*
*”Like” my Facebook page (and please comment on, “like”, and share my posts)*
*Clicking and buying products through my Amazon Affiliate links. The cost to you is exactly the same and I receive a tiny commission off of your purchases.*
Blogmas 2022: Book Review: The Twelve Topsy-Turvy, Very Messy Days of Christmas {James Patterson, Tad Safran}
Obsessed with how this picture turned out…
Goodreads Synopsis of The Twelve Topsy-Turvy, Very Messy Days of Christmas {James Patterson, Tad Safran}:
Every year at Christmastime, Will and Ella Sullivan, and their father, Henry, come to a family agreement: Christmas is a holiday for other people.
At their brownstone in Harlem, stockings go unstuffed, tinsel unstrewn, gifts unbought, mistletoe unhung, chestnuts unroasted, carols unplayed, cookies uncooked, a tree un-visible, and guests uninvited.
Until guests start arriving anyway. In pairs and sixes, in sevens and tens—they keep coming. And they stay. For twelve long, hard, topsy-turvy, very messy days. That’s when the Sullivans discover that those moments in life that defy hope, expectation, or even imagination, might be the best gifts of all.
My Review of The Twelve Topsy-Turvy, Very Messy Days of Christmas {James Patterson, Tad Safran}:
This book is…cute.
I definitely found myself smiling throughout reading. The descriptions in my head of what was happening in each scene were hilarious and delightful. It’s nearly impossible to write this review without giving away so many spoilers so I will just leave it at this: Not what I was expecting (not even close, lol) but a cute little holiday read. Would make a precious movie.
I LOVED the ending.
Such a short book, such an easy read. Chapters were just a few pages each…the best! I WILL say that I was expecting so much MORE from James Patterson which leads me to believe that he had very, very little with the actual writing of this book, lol.
Bottom Line:
Would I recommend it? Eh…it’s cute…but there are WAY better holiday books out there.
Have you read this book? What did you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!
The Mommy Clique Giveaway Winner Video:
Thank you to everyone who entered! If you missed it, HERE is the giveaway post with the awesome book synopsis and my review.
Happy Friday! I hope your weekend is filled with love and BOOKS!
Xo,
Jenny
Click the image below to order the book through my Amazon affiliate link. When you order through this link, I receive a tiny commission. Thank you for your support, Xo
This blog is my favorite hobby and I would so love your support! Here are ways you can help my blog to GROW:
*Please share this page with your book and blog loving friends!*
*Please share this page with your book and blog loving friends!*
*Subscribe with your email address to my blog (scroll all the way to the bottom of this page on mobile devices OR check the top right of this screen to enter your email address)*
*If you already have a blog, please “follow” mine*
*”Like” my Facebook page (and please comment on, “like”, and share my posts)*
*Clicking and buying products through my Amazon Affiliate links. The cost to you is exactly the same and I receive a tiny commission off of your purchases.*
Book Coffee Happy 