Hey Everyone! This period of Quarantine and self-isolating etc, has really changed lives for everyone. I’m working from home now full time, but have so much extra time still to kill now.
One of my favorite hobbies growing up has always been reading. I’m a #potterhead through and through, and that really engrained the love of reading in me.
Fiction books are always my go to, I know I should read more non-fiction but their always so horrifically boring I can’t get into it. The best thing with fiction books is just getting lost in a new story.
So I picked up a lot of books so far during this 7-8 week period we’ve been in this stay-at-home life, and i’m averaging 1 book/week~10days and I am LOVING it. I’ve read books in a lot of different genres and i’ll share with you everything i’ve read so you can also pick up a good read this season. This list is in the order I read the books, but enjoy!
- Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
Where do I start with this book? It touched me in ways I didn’t think it would…I cried at the end. It’s rare for a book to do that to me, so I proudly own this one out of the collection I share below. This story delves into themes like the bias we all have without knowing, race, class and discrimination and the value of self education. Out of all of the books I mention here, I 1000% recommend this one because I truly believe everyone can relate to it somehow. The writing is also superb and the time flashes back and forth through the book. Just take my word and read it! Rating: 10/10 - You Are Not Alone – by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen:
These authors are the same ones who wrote The Wife Between Us another book i’ve read in the past, so I knew I had to pick up their latest release. This book surrounds the story of Shay, a 20-something (like myself) living in NYC feeling depressed by her life. It takes a major turn when she witnesses a suicide at the subway station. And to add further twists to the plot, the Moore sisters are introduced and seem to have everything Shay wishes she had. But these sisters have an agenda that proves to be super dangerous for Shay. The book keeps you on your toes wondering what happens next. A decent thriller all in all, for everyone out there who is into thrillers like me! Rating: 7/10 - Such a Fun Age – by Kiley Reid:
This genre was a bit different for me, so it was a risk picking it up I knew that but I was willing to give it a try. The story focuses on Emira who is a nanny/babysitter for a rich white family. She’s in her 20s and the owner of the house, Alix, seems to just be obsessed with Emira and her youth and the whole mentality of ‘saving the black people’. I couldn’t enjoy that enough. Overall, some parts of the books are heartwarming when you see the relationship between Emira and the kids she nanny’s for. I have mixed feelings on this mostly because I felt the ending was anticlimactic but I think it’s just the writing style. There’s a lot of drama in the book, it focuses on a black narrative however, doesn’t develop it properly enough to fully understand. Rating: 6/10 - More Than Words by Jill Santopolo:
Again, this one was a bit different genre for me too. More of coming of age. It has really short chapters so it’s really easy to fly through it, which I like. The story is about Nina who is an heiress to a hotel, and when her father dies, she unexpectedly and ill-prepareidly needs to take over the family business. She has a ‘solid’ relationship with her childhood best friend, a seemingly perfect life, until she discovers some truths about her parents marriage and it deeply affects her. It’s a classic story of choosing between doing what is expected of you vs. what you want. Rating: 6.5/10 - The Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware:
This author has a lot of other famous books, including The Woman in Cabin 10, I loved this one! It has a murder-mystery aspect to it and also flashes back and forth in time. Focuses on the main character, Hal, who after the death of Mrs. Westaway, is summoned to this eerie castle like mansion, where she meets long lost family she didn’t even know she has, and is the sole inheritor of the house. The story delves into this family Hal finds; 3 uncles and their families, the mystery of the house, old journal entries by Hal’s mother and Hal discovering who her father is and who truly committed the crime. I enjoyed the descriptiveness and the style of writing as well as how the story progressed. Well-written page turner for sure. Rating: 9/10 - Every Breath by Nicholas Sparks:
I haven’t read a Nicholas Sparks book in forever. This hits all the feels. The story begins in the main characters early 30s, Hope, who had dreamed of being married with kids, and is watching all of her friends live that life, while her boyfriend of 6 years still hasn’t proposed. She is visiting sunset beach, NC where she meets Tru Walls, and both of their lives are forever changed from that point on. The story is written nicely and with a lot of emotion that really gets you invested in the characters. A tale of love that spans continents and time, but proves to us readers that love truly prevails all. Rating: 8/10 - Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng:
This is the author of the famous, Little Fires Everywhere, which has turned into a show on Hulu which I loved! I haven’t read that one but when I heard of this author, and this book by her, people loved it just as much so I wanted to try it. My husband ordered this one for me as a gift randomly, from Amazon. It took 2 weeks to get here but got here just in time as i was finishing the last book I mentioned. The story explores an interracial couple, Chinese American father and a White mother, their family life of 3 kids and the classic cultural clash and the parents expectation of kids, is super relatable for me as a first-generation kid too. Lydia, the older daughter and middle child is found dead and the entire story unwinds the family history and what led to what. Rating: 9/10
And that’s everything i’ve read so far! I love the mix of genres I chose for myself because each story was unique.
Have you read any of these? Let me know below! And if not, I hope this helps give you some inspo of what you could read whenever you need to get lost in a story.
I’m looking for more recs as usual so let me know what you’ve read and enjoyed!
Until next time, XOXO