Thank you for joining me here! I hope you enjoy this series and I’d love to hear from you about what you are reading these days.
Book #1:
Nora Goes Off Script by Annabel Monaghan (Length: 268 pages). I LOVED this book! It’s a rom com that’s well-written (the only type I enjoy) and the characters have depth. The set up here is screenwriter Nora hosts the filming of her latest script (based on her recent divorce) at her home, in her “tea house” in her backyard. Her worthless ex-husband and father to their 2 kids essentially abandons her to chase his own dreams. The Hollywood hunk who plays her ex in the movie stays on a while in the tea house to escape the Hollywood pressures. The plot goes on from there, and while it’s a bit unbelievable, I didn’t care . . . thanks to the author’s writing style, and how likeable Nora is, I loved every single page of this delightful novel.
Book #2:
When No One is Watching by Alyssa Cole (Length: 364 pages). Whoa–this thriller is a wild ride! Think the movie “Get Out” plus gentrification/redlining in Brooklyn and you have this very unusual thriller. This is very well-written and VERY disturbing. The first 25% was a bit slow for me, but if you have the same thoughts, push through–I promise you it’s worth it. This book made me sick to my stomach in parts (not due to gore but due to the racism at its core/premise) but there are very important themes with an even more important message here. (All Realtors should be required to read this, in my opinion). A thriller for a thinking person is what I’d label this one as.
Book #3:
Rules at the School by the Sea by Jenny Colgan (Length: 283 pages). This is the second book in a trilogy which was reissued by the author’s publisher after she gained some fame with her other books. I’m a huge Jenny Colgan fan, and I’m a sucker for novels about boarding school. I read (and reviewed) the first book in the series and enjoyed it sufficiently to want to grab this one. The author is still hyper-obsessed with the weight of the teen girls in this series for some reason, this time focusing on an anorexic student. However, overall, this is mindless entertainment that is sufficiently well-written for me to just enjoy the ride and the author’s writing. Now that I’m thoroughly invested in these characters, I’ll be reading the last one in the series which is due to be re-released in March of next year.
Book #4:
Downton Shabby by Hopwood Dupree (Length: 315 pages). This memoir written by an American film producer (and actor) who discovers and then renovates his family’s ancestral castle in England is an absolute delight! I listened to this one and the narrator is fantastic–my attention never faltered and I loved every minute. Hopwood doesn’t hesitate to poke fun at himself, and his self-awareness makes him very likeable. I immediately checked out the photos online of the dilapidated castle and I also watched a few news clips on YouTube and those added to my enjoyment of this fun book. I hope you enjoy it as well.
Lora Terrill 