Book Review: Someone Else’s Shoes by Jojo Moyes

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Contemporary Fiction
Length: 448 pages
Author: Jojo Moyes
Publisher: Pamela Dorman Books
Release Date: February 2nd, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A story of mix-ups, mess-ups and making the most of second chances, this is the new novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Jojo Moyes, author of Me Before You and The Giver of Stars.

Who are you when you are forced to walk in someone else’s shoes?

Nisha Cantor lives the globetrotting life of the seriously wealthy, until her husband announces a divorce and cuts her off. Nisha is determined to hang onto her glamorous life. But in the meantime, she must scramble to cope–she doesn’t even have the shoes she was, until a moment ago, standing in.

That’s because Sam Kemp – in the bleakest point of her life – has accidentally taken Nisha’s gym bag. But Sam hardly has time to worry about a lost gym bag–she’s struggling to keep herself and her family afloat. When she tries on Nisha’s six-inch high Christian Louboutin red crocodile shoes, the resulting jolt of confidence that makes her realize something must change—and that thing is herself.

Full of Jojo Moyes’ signature humor, brilliant storytelling, and warmth, Someone Else’s Shoes is a story about how just one little thing can suddenly change everything.

Thank you to PRHAudio for the gifted audiobook.

THOUGHTFUL.

Audiobook review: Daisy Ridley narrates this y’all. Enough said. I thought it was fantastically well done.

I’m not one to go out of my to pick up a contemporary fiction, BUT for Moyes? Yes, yes I will give that a go. And I really liked this one y’all. It’s full of complicated, and unlikeable characters. Many I wanted to shake, and give a hug too all over the course of reading. I like layered and dynamic personalities that showcase the full scope of what it means to be human and to be trying desperately to get by when life throws everything at you.

I liked the inter-mixing of mental health too. The effects it can have on so many levels of your life and those around you. It’s tough, it’s gritty and good and bad choices are made. I did NOT love every decision and action, but I think that was the point. It became a thoughtful examination of many themes.

The supporting cast held this book together too. I adored them all. Both Sam and Nisha had some rocky roads and I was grateful that ultimately they found their own feet to stand on for themselves and take the next step forward. Nisha’s closing scene actually made me tear up a little and hit me right in the heart. This was a solidly good book. Moyes did it again.

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary Fiction
  • Language: some strong
  • Romance: closed door
  • Violence: low
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: divorce, cheating, break-ins, emotional manipulation, a friend with cancer, bad work environment

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ARC Book Review: Love Buzz by Neely Tubati Alexander

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Rating: ★★★☆
Audience: Contemporary Fiction
Length: 304 pages
Author: Neely Tubati Alexander
Publisher: Harper Perennial
Release Date: May 2nd, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A chance romantic encounter during a wild night at a Mardi Gras bachelorette party sends strait-laced Serena Khan’s carefully constructed life into chaos.

A wretched maid of honor. A hangover from hell. Raucous Mardi Gras crowds. There isn’t much Serena Khan is enjoying about this four-day New Orleans destination bachelorette party for her semi-estranged cousin, the bride-to-be—until sparks fly with a handsome stranger, who, like her, is also from Seattle. After their conversation is cut short, Serena is overwhelmed by the desire to find the charming man with the brooding eyebrows, but her list of clues is pretty short:

His name is Julian.
He lives on Chamber Hill.
He works at a tech company.
He loves Lil Wayne and Nirvana.

The need to find him is, for Serena, both irresistible and totally irrational. In a few short weeks, her college alumni magazine is featuring her in a “Life at Thirty” feature, cementing her as a success story. She will have officially achieved the safe, stable life her late mother insisted upon. Julian is not part of the plan.

As she combs Seattle for her New Orleans flame, stripping away the perfectly curated life that would have made her mother proud, Serena must decide if the pursuit of real passion is worth it—and fast, before she destroys the life she always thought she wanted.

Thank you SparkPoint Studio for the ARC.

GREAT DEBUT.

I really did enjoy this read. I will say first off, it is NOT a romance. There’s a romantic super sub plot, but overall this is much more fiction. I loved watching Serena figure life out. I could easily relate and connect with her on finding what makes you passionate. What makes you want to get out of bed each day and who you want to spend those days with. It’s complex handling all of that and grief and I thought this was a beautiful debut within those themes.

I had two little things that niggled at me. One being, the only love scene in here was a dream?? I didn’t love that and it felt really misplaced. And secondly, I do wish there was a bit more romance!! It started off strong and I wish Julian was a bit more woven into the entire story.

Honestly though, great read. I finished it in a day and would easily recommend it to others. I loved the setting and the characters. They all helped Serena reach a place in life where she felt more at peace. And I love that.

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary Fiction
  • Language: some strong
  • Romance: one open door
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: alcohol consumption, loss of a mother, grief depiction

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ARC Book Review: Why Trey Let Me Get Away (Famously in Love #1) by Kortney Keisel

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Contemporary Sports Romance
Length: 320 pages
Author: Kortney Keisel
Publisher: Self-Published
Release Date: April 28th, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Second chances are relationship Hail Marys. I’ll either win Whitney’s love or go home brokenhearted.

Trey:

Whitney Savittieri is the one that got away, and I’ll do anything—including strategizing with my teammates—to get her back.

Never mind that she’s giving me the stiff arm and wants nothing to do with me. We’re going head to head, and I’m playing for keeps.

I’ve been in a lot of pressure-packed games, but the stakes are higher this time—my heart and my happiness are on the line. 

Whitney:

I’m avoiding my ex like the plague—like a really, really handsome plague.

While Trey’s risen to fame in the NFL, my life has gone so far off track I’ve derailed and am careening into a ditch.

So I promised myself I’d never love again. It’s too risky—a woman can only take so much disappointment.

Giving us another chance is a mistake my future and my heart can’t afford.

Thank you to the author for an eARC.

ALL THE STARS FOR TREY.

This book was a good time and the lighter escapism read I was hoping for when it landed on my kindle. I LOVE sports romances and was ecstatic a closed door author I adore wrote one.

For the football aspects, I thought there was a perfect blend of Trey’s life and practices, games and such, but never so much to take over the point of the story, the romance. Easily one of the highlightable features of the plot. I have been missing football and this helped quench that!

I LOVED TREY. He was the shining beacon throughout the entire book. I loved how nervous he got trying to talk to Whitney. I loved how hard he worked for their relationship and the truly genuine good soul he has. He’s got that big golden retriever energy that never gets old to me. I want to soak up that optimism he holds on to so well.

Whitney was where I ran into issues. I was surprised at her reasoning for breaking up with Trey and how poorly it came off for her character growth. I understand some of her side of the story but I wish Whitney herself had put more effort into the relationship or at least apologizing in general.

In the end though, I loved this book. I needed something quick and enjoyable that made me laugh and grin and OH EM GEE I FORGOT TO MENTION THE KISSING SCENES. Absolutely the hottest thing about this book. Perfectly executed closed door romance kisses are my kryptonite and I was begging for them to kiss and THEY SURE DANG DID.

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary Sports Romance
  • Language: very little
  • Romance: kisses
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: absent parents, divorce (mentioned)

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Book Review: A Lily in Disguise (Wycliffe Family #1) by Jessica Scarlett

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Rating: ★★★
Audience: Regency Romance
Length: 312 pages
Author: Jessica Scarlett
Publisher: Self-Published
Release Date: July 4th, 2020
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

One woman.
Three identities.
A handsome lord trying to unmask them all.

To escape the scandals tied to her name, Lillian Markley has gone by an alias for eight years. It was the only way for her to get a reputable job and save enough money to reunite with her sister in America. But when Lily is suddenly let go just as she’s about to reach her goal, she’s offered a salary she can’t refuse in exchange for the unthinkable:

She must masquerade as an heiress at a country estate for the summer.

Being exposed means facing prison, or worse—never seeing her sister again. Run-ins with kidnappers, a suspicious young boy, and a dangerous gentleman who knows her secret quickly has Lily spouting lies as often as she sips her tea—all while battling her growing feelings for Peter Wycliffe, the smiling host who seems to best her at every turn.

Nothing is as simple as it seems. And as the falsehoods begin to mount, Lily must use her arsenal of wits to keep her three facades separate, while preventing Peter—and herself—from discovering the true woman beneath them all.

MOSTLY OKAY.

I am obsessed with book three in this series, A Lady on the Chase. And seriously go read it. This one…not my favorite, but I still plan to read the second book.

There’s a lot of potential here and I did enjoy plenty of moments between Peter and Lily. I thought things got off a bit too quickly on the romance side and it took me awhile to catch up. Some of those swoony ending scenes with confessions of love though? Those were fantastic and I adored everything about them.

I felt like too much was trying to happen in 300 pages. There’s the history behind why Lily goes by a different name. Multiple suitors. Highwaymen attacks. An estranged half-brother and more. Amidst this were fluff scenes of party games, etc. where I felt the pacing was a bit all over the place.

It’s a good book and maybe most of this is attributed to wrong time picking it up scenario. I would still recommend this easily as the writing is enjoyable and the slow burn is impeccable.

Overall audience notes:

  • Regency Romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: Kisses
  • Violence: low
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of parents, attempted kidnapping, brief weapons violence, domestic abuse

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