I randomly saw A.R.Torre’s Every Last Secret on the shelf at the library a few weeks ago and the synopsis immediately had me wanting more! I was so excited to read this book and review it!
Goodreads Synopsis of Every Last Secret {A.R. Torre}:
Welcome to the neighborhood. Watch your husband, watch your friends, and watch your back.
Cat Winthorpe has worked hard to get what she has: a gorgeous home; social standing; and William, her successful, handsome husband. Then a friendly new couple moves into the estate next door. While cautious, a good neighbor like Cat greets them with open arms and warm hospitality.
Neena Ryder isn’t a fellow lady of leisure. A life coach with off-the-rack dresses, personal issues, and a husband who hasn’t delivered, she’s anxious to move up in the world. This beautiful new town is a step in the right direction. It’s also making Neena aware of what she doesn’t have. Namely, William. When Neena’s infatuation escalates into obsession, it’s just a matter of eliminating a few obstacles to get the life she wants. The life next door.
As Neena’s secret fixation grows, so does her friendship with Cat. But beneath their cordial interactions is a wealth of temptations, secrets, and toxic jealousy. For both women, the desire for a perfect life can turn perfectly dangerous.
My Review of Every Last Secret {A.R. Torre}:
This book was GOOD…but lacked being GREAT. Predictable? Yes. Great? No.
The synopsis SOUNDS so great, right???
I just kept waiting and waiting for something to grab my attention and would suddenly turn all of my opinions around. Unfortunately that moment never came.
I can’t remember the last time I read a book where I didn’t like ANY of the characters! Each character in this book was so completely unlikable. I think that is what made this story feel like it was dragging at times. When there is nobody to root for… you don’t really care what happens to anyone, am I right?
I had to write this review immediately after I closed the back cover because I knew that if I waited even a few days…I would completely forget everything. That’s how detached from this story I was. When you finish a book, you want the characters in the story lines to stay with you for many years to come! These characters and storylines might stay with me for 2 days max. Speaking of covers, I could be wrong…but I’m pretty sure that the scene on the front cover never even happened in this story. Like, ever. I kept waiting! What???
Also, infidelity is disgusting and at times this book felt like a step by step how to guide on stealing someone’s husband. Gross.
Bottom Line
Eh.
Have you read this book? What did you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!
Xo,
Jenny
Clearly I’m not a big fan of this book…but you just might be, lol. 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:
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When I first started writing my blog, I regularly posted a series called “Let’s Chat” where I would bring up a discussion topic and then share my thoughts and feelings on it. Those posts always brought upon such wonderful discussions! It has been a VERY long time since I have written one of these posts! So today, I’m bringing back the Book Coffee Happy old school “Let’s Chat” with this discussion topic: Do you read the book synopsis before you read the book?
***I regularly use the term “book synopsis” on my blog to describe the brief description of what the book is about (what you would read on the back or inside cover of the book). Other terms that describe this same description which I don’t use can include “book blurb”, “book description”, etc. All of these terms are a bit subjective and interchangeable!It’s important to note that the synopsis that I am referring to is NOT a complete book summary which would include all major points in the book including the ending. ***
Do You Read the Book Synopsis BEFORE You Read the Book?
A few weeks ago, one of my very favorite Bookstagrammers Jenna Stop Reading mentioned not reading the book synopsis before reading a book and it got me thinking…I could NEVER do that!
This is quite a debatable topic in the book blogger world. Apparently some people prefer to read the book going into it completely blind as to what the book is going to be about while others (ME) absolutely, 100 percent read the synopsis on the back or inside cover EACH AND EVERY TIME.
I have no idea how someone could read a book without knowing what the book is going to be about! Like…how do you very literally just choose the book by it’s cover??? Mind. BLOWN.
The very first things I look at while choosing a book off the shelf is the front cover, the title, and the author’s name. Absolutely all important…BUT…then I immediately read the synopsis! There have been PLENTY of times where I pick up a book, I think it looks great aaaaaaaaand then I read the synopsis and I put it right back down. How does one go into that so blindly? (I did once write an entire post called “Judging Books by Their Covers”! You can read that post HERE).
Not only do I read the synopsis before deciding what the book is going to be about but I actually read it quite a few times to familiarize myself with the characters and overall story lines.
I also tend to go and read it a few MORE times WHILE reading the book as a reference as to the characters and story lines.
Now there IS a very fine line between reading the book synopsis and learning a potential spoiler. I HATE SPOILERS. Hate, hate, hate (which is why I will NEVER have any book spoilers here on my blog). You can read more about my hatred for spoilers HERE.
Remember a few weeks ago when I was reading Simon Vs The Homosapien Agenda and I was planning on reading it’s sequal without knowing what it was about? I do think that’s a special circumstance as I was afraid if I read the synopsis to the sequel that it would give away spoilers from the original! HOWEVER, as soon as I finished reading Simon, the very first thing I did before reading it’s sequel was to read it’s synopsis! (You can read my review of those 2 books HERE).
When I hear of a book and want to look up the synopsis online the ONLY website that I will do this on is Goodreads. I have found that other websites (I’m looking at you, Amazon!) tend to reveal TOO much of the book description for my liking. Goodreads always shares juuuuuust enough about the book to let me know what it’s about without revealing too much. (FYI this is why I always only share the synopsis from Goodreads on Book Coffee Happy when I write my book reviews :))
So tell me…do you read the book synopsis before reading the book or do you like going in completely blind as to what the book will be about?
Happy Friday! I hope your weekend is filled with love and BOOKS!
Xo,
Jenny
This blog is my favorite hobby and I would so love your support! Here are ways you can help my blog to GROW:
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I took a shower on Thursday, January 21, 2021. A normal, everyday shower. And when I came out of that shower, I glanced over at my phone not expecting to see any type of text/email notification as my shower was only about 15 minutes long.
My phone was legit BLOWING UP with blog notifications. Like…every second it was lighting up. Why??? I was so confused! What was happening??? I looked into my blog’s stats and my mouth instantly dropped open. Literally within a span of 1 shower my blog suddenly had THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS of new views???
I still have no idea how it happened but apparently while I was in that shower…
….Google put a link to my Tennessee blog post ON. THEIR. HOMEPAGE.
Whaaaaat?!?
Hell yeah!
So here’s what I know:
As that initial night went on and continued throughout the next day, the numbers on my little blog literally kept climbing BY. THE. SECOND. My husband and I watched as the insanely high number of people visiting my blog climbed and climbed. It was CRAZY and so much fun to watch!
I’ve never seen anything like that and at this point I still had no idea how all of these new readers found my blog! Readers from allllll over the United States and in countries around the world were suddenly reading Book Coffee Happy! It was baffling (and super cool).
Finally, after receiving SO MANY private messages about that Tennessee blog post, I finally started asking people where they even found my blog. Their answers were all the same…it showed up on their Google homepages! A few kind people sent me screenshots:
I sent this screenshot to my best friend and she replied “THANK GOD you look cute in the picture that Google chose of you!” 😂🤷🏻♀️👍🏼 Turns out to be the most famous selfie I’ve ever taken, lol.
So here we are, 8 days later, and THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS OF NEW PEOPLE HAVE VISITED MY BLOG. I’ve received so many new blog followers/subscribers, new Facebook followers, and new Instagram followers! The amount of visitors to my blog continues to climb and climb each day, each hour, each minute, each SECOND! It has been FUN and definitely a huge highlight of my blogging journey thus far 🙂
So…it’s probably a good idea to introduce myself since many of you are new clearly around here 🙂
I’m Jenny! I’m a former teacher and am now a stay at home mom to my 2 young children. I absolutely LOVE being a stay at home mom and it was always my dream to be one. I truly treasure this time in my life! I will always and forever be thankful for my amazing husband for so many things including working so hard so I can stay home with our kids. I have always been an avid reader and I have always loved participating in book discussions! People used to ask me ALL. THE. TIME. for book suggestions and so 2.5 years ago, I decided to start writing this blog. It has morphed into such a creative outlet for me, and I have loved all of the opportunities it has provided! It’s mostly a book blog with bits of my personal life sprinkled in. I review books, lead book discussions, host book giveaways, etc.
Thank you to everyone for your support and love! If you are new here…welcome! The more blog followers I have, the larger our book community can grow! I’m so glad to have you here. And a special thank you to Google…I have NO CLUE how all of this happened but it’s been such fun! I so hope it will happen again!
If anyone has insight into how this could have happened, SEO (search engine optimization) knowledge, etc. please send me an email (bookcoffeehappy@gmail.com). I’d love to pick your brain!
Oh and HERE is a link to the (now apparently famous, lol) Tennessee blog post that has now been viewed thousands upon thousands upon thousands of times 🙂
Happy Friday! May your weekend be filled with love and books! I’ll be back here on Monday with a post for you containing 2 book reviews…see you then!
Xo,
Jenny
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*
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According to Merriam Webster, the definition of mindfulness is as follows: 1: the quality or state of being mindful 2: the practice of maintaining a nonjudgmental state of heightened or complete awareness of one’s thoughts, emotions, or experiences on a moment-to-moment basis also: such a state of awareness. The act of mindfulness is something that I have personally been working on over the past year. A few months ago, I took a virtual mindfulness course and it was amazing. I learned so much about how to center my thoughts and actions! I even had my children take the family friendly version of the same virtual mindfulness course that I had taken and it was largely beneficial for our whole family. I think practicing mindfulness is SUCH an important skill and one that could truly benefit everyone in their daily life, regardless of age. Melissa Steginus’s Everyday Mindfulness says right on the cover that it contains “108 simple practices to empower yourself and transform your life”. If THAT doesn’t grab your attention, I’m not sure what would! Who couldn’t use THAT in their life?!? I’m so excited for this giveaway!
Goodreads Synopsis of Everyday Mindfulness {Melissa Steginus}:
“Everyday Mindfulness” guides you through the most powerful daily mindfulness practices that help you rewire your habits and rewrite your life.
With step-by-step instruction and evidence-based exercises you can do in as little as 5 minutes a day, it’s never been easier to make positive changes stick in your life.
This is a powerful personal development program cleverly disguised as a book.
Connect with Yourself and Discover Your Capacity
Most of us are so busy that we forgot to focus on how we really feel, what we truly desire, and what we need to do to move our lives in the right direction.
This book is your master manual for reconnecting with yourself and your inner resources so you can take immediate action to transform your life.
The power to change your life is in the small things you do every day. This book guides you through over 100 simple practices, in small doses, so you can discover what works best for you and build on it.
This book is designed to help you master the six areas of your life:
• Physical: Listen to your body and reconnect with yourself • Emotional: Understand your feelings and learn to trust them • Rational: Observe your thought patterns to gain mental clarity • Spiritual: Explore your relationship with yourself and your truth • Occupation: Manage your time and energy to pursue your priorities • Network: Nourish relationships that deepen your sense of belonging
Each of the six sections has 18 exercises, complete with reflection questions, to help you reclaim, redefine, and realize your untapped potential within that area of your life.
With “Everyday Mindfulness” you will awaken to yourself, connect with your inner wisdom, and tap into your capacity for self-empowerment, fulfillment, and transformation.
It all begins with paying attention.
This book includes 108 daily mindfulness practices, explanations of the purpose behind each practice, and over 300 reflection questions that encourage profound self-exploration and transformative action.
My Thoughts on Everyday Mindfulness {Melissa Steginus}:
Back in November when I was asked if I would like to review Everyday Mindfulness on my blog I was so excited to say YES! I wanted to really take time to read this book and have the opportunity to practice it’s teachings in my own life before writing my review. I’m so glad that I did!
This book is beautiful. It outlines 108 mindful practices and breaks them down in a specific order, 1 practice to focus on each day. I actually kept this book in my closet so that each morning as I was getting dressed, I took literally 2 minutes to read about the practice that I would be focusing on for that day. Keeping it in my closet and so visible was a perfect visual reminder that this was now part of my morning routine and made it so easy to remember to read that day’s practice. At the end of each day, I again took 2 minutes as I was getting ready for bed to reflect upon the day’s practice and write a few details of how it went and what I learned.
When I first received this book, I took some random photos of a few of the pages to share with you. I made sure to do this BEFORE I filled them with my writing. Mindfulness is a deeply personal journey and as much as I love to share my thoughts and feelings with all of you, somehow this feels different and too personal to share. Here are some of the “before” photos to give you an idea of some of the simple practices (which are now all filled in with my own thoughts):
I would sum up my time working through this book as one of learning and connecting with so many aspects of my life. This book is a GIFT…it very literally gives you the tools to reset your thinking and help you to self connect.
I very highly recommend this book…for everyone. Every single person can and will benefit from the simple practices in this book. Whether you already practice mindfulness on a regular basis or this is a completely new area of exploration for you, the tools that this book will give you will be so beneficial in so many areas of your life. I’m so happy to introduce you to this lovely book!
There has never been a more perfect time to practice mindfulness than right now. With so much uncertainty in the world, learning how to better connect with your own self is so important.
I love this book.
To learn more about Everyday Mindfulness, here are some helpful links:
Would you like to win a copy of Everyday Mindfulness? I have 1 copy to give away (open to US only for this 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 tomorrow (1/26/21) at 6:00 pm CDT and the winner will be randomly chosen and announced here on my blog on Wednesday (1/27/21).
Make sure you check the blog on Wednesday to see if you’ve won (you will have 48 hours from the time I post the winners to email me your mailing address. If I don’t hear from you within 48 hours, I will pick a new winner).
Good luck! Can’t wait to read your comments!
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’s newest series where I share the book I’m currently reading, the coffee I’m currently drinking, and 1 thing that is currently making me happy!
Book I’m Currently Reading:
Goodreads Synopsis ofEvery Last Secret {A.R. Torre}:
Welcome to the neighborhood. Watch your husband, watch your friends, and watch your back.
Cat Winthorpe has worked hard to get what she has: a gorgeous home; social standing; and William, her successful, handsome husband. Then a friendly new couple moves into the estate next door. While cautious, a good neighbor like Cat greets them with open arms and warm hospitality.
Neena Ryder isn’t a fellow lady of leisure. A life coach with off-the-rack dresses, personal issues, and a husband who hasn’t delivered, she’s anxious to move up in the world. This beautiful new town is a step in the right direction. It’s also making Neena aware of what she doesn’t have. Namely, William. When Neena’s infatuation escalates into obsession, it’s just a matter of eliminating a few obstacles to get the life she wants. The life next door.
As Neena’s secret fixation grows, so does her friendship with Cat. But beneath their cordial interactions is a wealth of temptations, secrets, and toxic jealousy. For both women, the desire for a perfect life can turn perfectly dangerous.
I’ll post a full review once I finish reading!
Coffee I’m Currently Drinking:
Earlier in the week, I went through a Dunkin’ drive thru (NOT one of my usual Dunkins) and ordered a coffee. The nice man working told me that they needed to brew a new pot of coffee and it would be a few minutes. He asked me to pull around to the front of the store and he would bring it out to me. A brand new pot of fresh coffee just for me? Delightful! So fresh! I paid the man and then happily pulled into a parking spot to wait for my fresh coffee.
A few minutes later, I was watching through the window as a customer was paying for his purchases and on his way out, he walked over to my car to hand me my coffee! Let me recap that for you…a random CUSTOMER was leaving with his purchases and the man working must have said something along the lines of, “Hey on your way to your car, would you please bring this coffee to the lady in the black SUV?” So the random customer walked over to me, handed me my coffee, apologized for the wait (lol), and then got into his car and drove off. It was so weird! My daughter was all, “Did that random man just give you coffee?” Um yes, yes he did. Aaaaand to make the story even better, we were behind that random good samaritan for quite a long time on the highway once we pulled out of the parking lot. My daughter and I kept laughing and talking about it the whole ride home, it was so funny and random.
Thank you, random customer!
Currently Making Me Happy:
WAERING MAKEUP!
In normal, non pandemic times I wear makeup every single day. During these weird times, wearing makeup in public feels like such a treat! The only issue is that I keep forgetting that I’ll be wearing a mask and still keep putting on lipstick, lol. Anyone else keep doing that??? Almost a full year in and I STILL haven’t figured this out yet. All of my masks have bright red lipstick marks on the insides!
Happy Friday! I hope your weekend is filled with love and BOOKS! Be sure to check the blog on Monday because I’ll be hosting an AMAZING giveaway 🙂
What are you currently reading?
What coffee are you currently enjoying?
What is 1 thing currently making you HAPPY?
Xo,
Jenny
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!*
*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.*
For the love of GOD thank goodness I didn’t read Ruth Ware’s One by One while I was stuck on that mountain in Tennessee! For REAL. It’s insane to me that I actually had it packed in my suitcase! No words can explain how thankful I am that I chose not to open the cover until I was safely back at home and not freezing and hungry while snowed in on top of that mountain. Omg. That would NOT have been a good choice. Nope, not a good choice at all. Holy hell. Once I safely returned home with heat, food, and a working vehicle was when I decided to read and review this one. Yikes!
Synopsis of One by One {Ruth Ware}:
My Review of One by One {Ruth Ware}:
Some of the characters were very well developed while some lacked some pretty big character development and as a result…I kept confusing everyone throughout the ENTIRE book! Pair this with the fact that some of the characters had some pretty unique and possibly gender neutral names (Inigo, Ani, Tiger, etc.) and I truly had no idea who anyone was while reading. This is a MAJOR con and the number one thing that I absolutely hated about this book…I couldn’t keep anyone straight! I spent the majority of this book feeling frustrated by this and wasn’t able to properly focus on the story lines because I was too busy trying to figure out who everyone was! Ugh.
There were 2 major ongoing topics in this book that I have absolutely zero background knowledge of and as a result I had to do some Googling while reading. The inner workings of a tech company? The terminology and logistics of skiing? I truly know nothing about either and my lack of background knowledge was a definite hindrance to my understanding of this book while reading. I LOVE when books teach me new things and although I DID learn a bit about these topics, unfortunately my research is what taught me, not the words in this book. If you are like me and have zero knowledge of these 2 topics, get ready to Google.
The beginning of this book and the end of this book were undoubatly the best parts. I was honestly pretty bored throughout the middle. There were absolutely times where I debated putting it down and moving on. I’m glad I stuck with it because the end was great (BUT using words like “stuck with it” should never be used when describing a book that it supposed to be enjoyable sooooo…)
I’ve now read 4 Ruth Ware books. The Woman in Cabin 10…I don’t believe I ever reviewed this on my blog? I read it years ago. I remember really liking it, not necessarily loving it? The Turn of the Key…LOVED LOVED LOVED it! You can read my review of that book HERE. In A Dark, Dark, Wood…I read this over the summer and put it down without finishing. You can read more of my thoughts on that book HERE.
Bottom Line:
I wish the whole book could have somehow just consisted of the beginning and the ending…the entire middle was pretty boring.
Have you read this book? What did you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!
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’s newest series where I share the book I’m currently reading, the coffee I’m currently drinking, and 1 thing that is currently making me happy!
Book I’m Currently Reading:
Synopsis of One By One {Ruth Ware}:
What on EARTH was I thinking when I packed this book in my suitcase to read on our recent trip to Tennessee??? Thank GOODNESS I chose to read a different (absolutely beautiful) book while my family was stuck on that mountain (review of it HERE)! If I would have read One by One while in that situation, that would NOT have been a good choice, lol. I am currently reading One by One while safely at home with power, an abundance of fresh food, and our car with all 4 tires in working order. PHEW.
Coffee I’m Currently Drinking:
I bought this mug at the beginning of the quarantine, love it so much 🙂
I am such a sucker for always buying new-to-me brands of coffee to make at home….aaaaaand I ALWAYS end up going straight back to my all time favorite Dunkin’. Why do I even bother ever buying anything else?
Currently Making Me Happy:
BOOK MAIL!
I have received some amazing book mail this week!
Kendra Esbrook has written a new book and it’s ADORABLE. I reviewed Kendra’s last book on the blog back in 2018 (you can read my review of A Bag for SantaHERE) and I was so excited when she reached out to see if I would like to review her newest book, The Gift of Time!
I will have a full review (and giveaway!!) posted next month but in the meantime, you can learn more about both of Kendra’s wonderful books and purchase them HERE.
Another package arrived for me this week and I’m SO EXCITED that I have a copy of this book in my possession even though it isn’t being released until May!
It’s not a secret that I absolutely adore Mary Kubica and I am beyond excited to read her newest book. If you haven’t yet read any of Mary’s books, here are links to 2 of my favorites:
I also loved Don’t You Cry…but for some reason I don’t think I ever reviewed it on my blog?
Thank you Melissa Amster of the wonderful blog Chick Lit Central for sending me this book! Melissa and I will be doing a joint blog review for this one in the spring. I can’t wait to see if we have similar thoughts on this book (the last time Melissa and I worked together we did NOT have similar thoughts on the book we were reviewing! You can revisit that post and our conflicting thoughts HERE)!
AND Melissa also included a bonus book in my package! I had not previously heard of this book but I think it sounds wonderful. Have any of you read it? Thank you SO much, Melissa! Book surprises are the best 🙂
Happy Friday! I hope your weekend is filled with love and BOOKS!
What are you currently reading?
What coffee are you currently enjoying?
What is 1 thing currently making you HAPPY?
Xo,
Jenny
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!*
*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.*
If you follow Book Coffee Happy on Facebook you know that I often ask my followers to share what they are reading. I love reading the comments on those posts and seeing how everyone interacts with each other to discover new books to read. The book community is so amazing! When I asked for everyone to share a few weeks ago, my dear friend Julie commented that she was reading Kelly Rimmer’s Before I Let You Go. As soon as I Googled the synopsis, I immediately knew that this was a book I wanted to read and review on the blog…it sounded SO GOOD. When the library called the day before we were leaving for our trip to Tennessee, I took that as a sign that this should be my vacation read. Who knew that I would eventually be stuck on that mountain with little food, no power, and our car in a ditch??? Yup if you missed that crazy story, you can read all about our trip HERE! 1 thing that I DID have up on that crazy mountain with me was a good book 🙂
Goodreads Synopsis of Before I Let You Go {Kelly Rimmer}:
The 2:00 a.m. call is the first time Lexie Vidler has heard her sister’s voice in years. Annie is a drug addict, a thief, a liar—and in trouble, again. Lexie has always bailed Annie out, given her money, a place to sleep, sent her to every kind of rehab. But this time, she’s not just strung out—she’s pregnant and in premature labor. If she goes to the hospital, she’ll lose custody of her baby—maybe even go to prison. But the alternative is unthinkable.
As weeks unfold, Lexie finds herself caring for her fragile newborn niece while her carefully ordered life is collapsing around her. She’s in danger of losing her job, and her fiancé only has so much patience for Annie’s drama. In court-ordered rehab, Annie attempts to halt her downward spiral by confronting long-buried secrets from the sisters’ childhood, ghosts that Lexie doesn’t want to face. But will the journey heal Annie, or lead her down a darker path?
Both candid and compassionate, Before I Let You Go explores a hotly divisive topic and asks how far the ties of family love can be stretched before they finally break.
My Review of Before I Let You Go {Kelly Rimmer}:
Oh this is such a beautifully written book.
I read this entire book while on my vacation in Tennessee. Couldn’t put it down!
This isn’t the usual type of book I read but I’m so glad I did. This is such a complicated topic and one that I’ll admit I’ve never given much thought to. This book really opened my eyes and gave me so much to think about.
Before I Let You Go tugged at my heart and I found myself crying at many points throughout. It was heartbreaking, beautiful, and SO wonderfully written. It was HEAVY, not a light read by any means…but it was so wonderfully written.
This is the first Kelly Rimmer book that I’ve read and I’ve already added 3 of her other books to my list to read. I absolutely love her beautiful and descriptive writing style! I’m already a huge fan and I’ve only read 1 of her books!
I finished reading this beautiful book over a week and a half ago and there hasn’t been a single day since where I haven’t thought of these characters and reflected upon their stories. Their characters and their stories will stay with me for a long, long time.
I highly recommend this one!
Bottom Line:
A beautifully written, extremely thought provoking, absolutely heartbreaking story
Have you read this book? What did you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!
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
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Book Coffee Happy was tagged in The Festive Christmas Book Tag by The Reading Addict. Thank you so much for the tag! Although I’m Jewish I ABSOLUTELY LOVE CHRISTMAS and actually have Christmas music playing as I type this 🙂 This was a fun tag to complete even if I didn’t quite understand one of the questions, lol…
The Festive Christmas Book Tag was originally created by ReadingGirl on YouTube, and you can check out her video here.
I feel like this post deserves a nice Christmasy picture inserted here but since I clearly don’t have one…here’s my menorah, lol:
The Festive Christmas Book Tag:
1) A fictional family you would like to spend Christmas dinner with?
The Quinns! Oh how I miss them this time each year. I loved Elin Hildrebrand’s Winter series so much (read more about this wonderful holiday themed series and my review of it HERE). If you haven’t yet read the Winter series, this is the very BEST time of the year to read them!
2) A bookish item you would like to receive as a gift?
My husband actually bought me the cutest bookish item last week! How awesome is this candle???
LOVE!
3) A fictional character you think would make a perfect Christmas elf?
Ok…Jewish girl here. Help! An elf like one who helps to make the toys? Or like the Elf on the Shelf who does naughty things? I don’t really get it. I’m over here picturing Will Ferrell? So clearly I’m not sure how to answer this question? Please someone educate this Jew…???
4) Match a book to its perfect Christmas song.
Hmmm. Well I would have to assume that Mallory and Jack from 28 Summers would agree that “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” would fit them perfectly. Read my review of 28 Summers HERE.
5) Bah Humbug. A book or fictional character you’ve been disappointed in and should be put on the naughty list?
Landline by Rainbow Rowell. Truly one of the worst books I’ve ever read although somehow it WON The Goodreads Best Fiction Book of 2014?! Howwww?! I hated that book. I once wrote a blog post about it titled “One of the Worst Books I’ve Ever Read”. I got absolutely ripped apart on a Facebook book group for that post because it said such negative things and people got allll riled up saying that I shouldn’t have said them (insert eye roll here). I stand by my words…that was quite literally one of the very worst books I’ve ever read! Also, I will always give my honest opinion on the books that I read (and on everything else in life). You can read that (apparently) controversial blog post HERE.
6) A book or a fictional character you think deserves more love and appreciation and deserves to be put on the nice list?
Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata! It’s such a quirky book but something about it totally sucked me in. I really loved that book! You can read it’s synopsis and my review HERE.
7) Red, Gold and Green. A book cover that has a wonderfully christmasy feel to it.
How beautiful is this book cover???
I took this book from a Little Free Library last year and have yet to read it. Maybe this year? If you know me at all, you know that I could only read a book like this during the holiday season! If I don’t read this book this month…it will sit on my bookshelf until December 2021.
8) A book or series you love so much, you want everyone to find under their Christmas tree this year so they can read it and love it too?
American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins. It’s so amazing! I LOVED IT. Everyone should read this book! Read it’s synopsis and my (glowing) review of it HERE. American Dirt was definitely included in my 12 Best Books I Read in 2020 list that I had posted earlier in the week. You can read that post and check out the other 11 books that I LOVED reading the most this year HERE.
Happy Friday! I hope your weekend is filled with love and BOOKS!
Xo,
Jenny
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.*
Thank you for all of your support on my last post “The 12 Best Books I’ve Read in 2020” (you can read that post HERE)! So many of you read it that it is now the most viewed post that I’ve ever written on this blog 🙂 I absolutely love sharing my book suggestions with you and I’m SO excited to share another AWESOME book with you today! Samantha M. Bailey’s Woman on the Edge had been on my to read radar for months ever since my friend Melissa read it and told me how much she had loved it (check out Melissa’s wonderful book review blog HERE). I was SUPER excited when my copy came in at the library and I immediately raced to pick it up! Once I started reading and I told Melissa how much I was enjoying it, she so kindly introduced Samantha M. Bailey and I. I’ve truly loved communicating with Samantha over the past few months…she’s not only an AMAZING writer but a super sweet person. Thank you so much, Samantha and thank you to Melissa for introducing us 🙂 I’m so excited to share Samantha’s AWESOME book debut with all of you today and to host a GIVEAWAY for it as well!
Goodreads Synopsis of Woman on the Edge {Samantha M. Bailey}:
A total stranger on the subway platform whispers, “Take my baby.”
She places her child in your arms. She says your name.
Then she jumps…
In a split second, Morgan Kincaid’s life changes forever. She’s on her way home from work when a mother begs her to take her baby, then places the infant in her arms. Before Morgan can stop her, the distraught mother jumps in front of an oncoming train.
Morgan has never seen this woman before, and she can’t understand what would cause a person to give away her child and take her own life. She also can’t understand how this woman knew her name.
The police take Morgan in for questioning. She soon learns that the woman who jumped was Nicole Markham, prominent CEO of the athletic brand Breathe. She also learns that no witness can corroborate her version of events, which means she’s just become a murder suspect.
To prove her innocence, Morgan frantically retraces the last days of Nicole’s life. Was Nicole a new mother struggling with paranoia or was she in danger? When strange things start happening to Morgan, she suddenly realizes she might be in danger, too.
Woman on the Edge is a pulse-pounding, propulsive thriller about the lengths to which a woman will go to protect her baby—even if that means sacrificing her own life.
My Review of Woman on the Edge {Samantha M. Bailey}:
This book was GREAT.
As you know, short chapters are my favorite and this book was PERFECT. Chapters that are only a few pages long make it SO easy to FLY through a book that was exactly what happened here. I also appreciated that this story was only told from only 2 alternating points of view. More than that and it would have been confusing. 2 was perfection.
As someone who lived in downtown Chicago for 8 years, I absolutely LOVED all of the street references. My exact neighborhood was a major reference in this story!
This book had so many twists. Just when I would think I had the ending all figured out, something would happen to make me completely change my mind. LOVE. I was completely invested in this story and these characters. I was on the edge of my seat trying to figure out how everything was going to end! Kept me guessing right up until the very end. I truly couldn’t put this book down.
I absolutely love the writing in this book and I am eagerly looking forward to future works by Samantha M. Bailey! This is her debut novel…and what a wonderful debut it is.
As someone who lived in downtown Chicago for many years, I absolutely loved reading about the streets, neighborhoods, etc. I was shocked to learn that you live in Canada! Have you ever lived in Chicago? If not, how did you conduct your research to learn each neighborhood’s personality so perfectly?
Thank you! I’m so happy to know I got it right! I’ve never lived in Chicago, but I’ve visited, though it was when I was much younger. For my debut, I wanted an American city to reach a wider audience and because it felt too close to home to set it in Toronto, where I live. When I was thinking about which city I wanted, Chicago felt so right because it seems to have a similar landscape, architecture, diversity, and sensibility to Toronto, which helped me envision it. Because my budget didn’t extend to traveling, I relied on Google, Google Earth, and the little person who walks along the streets in Google Maps. I was also lucky that my copy editor, Erica Ferguson, lived in Chicago so she could tell me when my characters were driving into the lake.
How did you choose the names for the characters in Woman on the Edge?
It was such a process! It always is for me. I look at baby name websites for the years my characters were born and wait for the right name to hit me. But as I revised, I changed the names of many of the characters, like Morgan, because with edits I would re-imagine who the characters are. In my next book, I’ve already changed characters’ names a few times, and I’ll probably change them again.
This book explores many themes including mental health, motherhood, marriage, friendship, and love. Of these themes, which was the hardest for you to write? Which was the easiest? Why?
I don’t think any of the themes were easy for me, except maybe the love a mother has for her child. Even that, though, is deeply emotional for me. While I didn’t experience postpartum depression myself and depended on the struggles of my friends, ones I watched firsthand and those they generously shared with me, I definitely felt anxiety about being the best mother I could to my own two children. It’s such a sudden, shocking, beautiful, frightening life change when your baby is put in your arms for the first time. Writing about Nicole’s struggles was complex and cathartic, as was writing about suicide, loss, relationships, and family. I’m grateful to have an incredibly loving and supportive family and the best friends in the world, which helps, I think, to separate my own life from my characters’ so I can really dig deep.
Woman on the Edge was such an amazing debut, I’d love to hear more about your future literary plans. Are you working on another book? Can you tell us anything about it? If you aren’t currently working on another book, what type of book (if any) can you see yourself working on in the future?
This means so much to me. Releasing a debut is both joyous and scary, and doing so in 2020 has been a roller coaster. Besides my family and friends, what’s kept me grounded during the pandemic has been writing my next thriller. Writing is where I put my fears and worries, and it helps me handle them when I can unleash them on my characters. I’m so thankful to you, Jenny, and the entire book community for giving me the career I’ve longed for. I just finished my draft of my untitled-for-now next book, set in Canada, that is about middle-aged motherhood, obsession, addiction, neighbors, and…a dead body. It’s tentatively slated to release in late 2021, but until then, the mass market paperback of Woman on the Edge is up for pre-order and out on February 23, 2021.
***GIVEAWAY DETAILS***
Would you like to win an electronic copy of Woman on The Edge? I have 1 ebook to give away (open to US and Canada only for this 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 tomorrow (10/17/20) at 6:00 pm CDT and the winner will be randomly chosen and announced here on my blog on Friday (10/18/20).
Make sure you check the blog on Friday to see if you’ve won (you will have 48 hours from the time I post the winners to email me which email address where you would like your ebook sent. If I don’t hear from you within 48 hours, I will pick a new winner).
Good luck! Can’t wait to read your comments!
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 