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:
Mrs. Nash’s Ashes by Sarah Adler (Length: 344 pages) This is a lovely rom-com! The premise is that two young adults who are barely acquainted, Millicent and Hollis, are on an impromptu road trip from Washington D.C. to Key West after a missed flight. Millicent is heading to Florida to deliver the eponymous ashes of Mrs. Nash to her lost love, and Hollis is heading there for a romp in the hay with a casual lover. This novel is well-written, with fleshed out characters and very snappy dialogue (my favorite!). The plot is super memorable (rare with rom coms) and the central romantic device (curmudgeon and sunshine girl) is adorable. I give it 5 stars!
Book #2:
Heartburn by Nora Ephron (Length: 194 pages). For whatever reason, I never got around to reading this book which describes the protagonist, Rachel Samstat, a food writer who is very pregant, finding out about her husband’s affair. I listened to the audio because I read that it’s narrated by Meryl Streep and her narration is absolute perfection! The elements of the story here are a bit dated (ie, calling lesbians the “D” word) but much of the sentiments still resonate today. Allegedly this is loosely based on Nora Ephron’s second marriage (and divorce) from Carl Bernstein, the journalist. This is a delightful read, and chapter 2 (where Rachel describes her mother being in hospice) had me rolling with laughter. This is a super quick read (or listen) and since the audio is such a gem, I’d recommend going that route here.
Book #3:
Life After Life by Kate Atkinson (Length: 512 pages). This is my book club’s October read, and it’s a BIG book featuring Ursula Todd, born in England in 1910. Over the course of the novel, Ursula lives and dies over a dozen times (a la Groundhog Day). While I found this plot device to be super-annoying in the beginning, about a quarter of the way into the novel, it grew on me. The novel actually begins with Ursula killing Hitler in the early days of the war, and then starts right at the beginning of her “first” life. So you’re told up front what the purpose of her multiple attempts of life is. The writing here is very skilled and the characters are fully fleshed out (eventually, of course). Again, it’s a bit slow to start but it builds up quite quickly and you’ll find yourself not wanting to put it down (always a good sign in a long novel such as this). I’d recommend skipping the audio on this in favor of the print version as the various timelines are confusing without the benefit of the chapter titles.
Book #4:
Finlay Donovan Is Killing It by Elle Cosimano (Length: 368 pages). This is a fun mystery that’s been on my TBR for way too long. The first in a series of 4, this features an aspiring mystery novelist who is the mom of two young children and who is recently divorced. While meeting with her literary agent and discussing the topic of her next novel, a diner at the table next to them is eavesdropping and assumes that Finlay is actually a killer-for-hire. With the prospect of a much-needed $50,000 payday and some mistaken steps taken, the plot is on. This is NOT believable at all, by any stretch of the imagination, but just go with it here. The relationship between Finlay and her nanny Vero is my favorite, and while I wasn’t a fan of the romance(s) here (they feel rushed and not necessary to the plot), I will continue reading the rest of the series as I enjoyed the ride in this first novel. Definitely recommend this one!
Book #5:
The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren (Length: 429 pages). As soon as I finished this cute rom-com, I immediately texted a few of my rom-com loving friends and recommended this to them. The writing quality is great, the dialogue is snappy without being too snarky and the love scenes are minimally open door. The premise is that one twin sister marries a brother, and the entire wedding party is hit with a virus, leading to the other twin sister and brother to use the honeymoon tickets (which are, of course, totally non-refundable) for 10 days in Maui. The kicker is that the latter two hate one another. I enjoyed so much about this, including the fun details about the island, how the two purposefully call each other by the wrong name and how their evolving relationship is truly believable and aspirational. I am a fan of this author writing duo and I haven’t found a book yet written by them that I haven’t enjoyed.
Book #6:
Truly Darkly Deeply by Victoria Selman (Length: 330 pages). This is a very well written and creepy mystery written from the point of view of a 12-year-old girl whose mother is dating a suspected serial killer in London in the 1980s. This isn’t gruesome as the murders happen off screen and many of the details aren’t made known; the murders aren’t the focus, but the narrator’s relationship with her mother and Matty are the focus here and it’s fascinating to read. There are a few twists and turns in the plot but nothing too surprising. I went along for the ride and I was glad I did.
Book #7:
Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld (Length: 320 pages). I LOVE this book! Based on a Saturday Night Live type show called The Night Owls, this romance details a romance between one of the female comedy writers for the show who is of “average” beauty and one of the show’s musical guest stars/hosts who is stereotypically “hot.” I enjoyed the behind the scenes of the show which seems to be super accurate to the real thing, and the jokes and dialogue between all of the characters are often LOL funny. This is a rom-com that I’ll actually remember the details after reading and I’m already recommending it to several people in real life. Definitely pick this one up if you can!
Lora Terrill 