I thought this book was going to make me clutch my pearls, but I quite enjoyed it 😁🥵🖤🌶🌶🌶🌶

More than the title suggests. I loved the witty banter, the mysterious element, the kickass heroine.

This is part of a series that I just might continue.

An ugly story about writing, publishing, opportunism, ambition, racism, cancel culture, etc.

Despite the tough topics, I thought this was very well-done.

Bravo!

Folio Society did an edition of my all-time favorite book, The Book Thief.

I HAD to have it. It's gorgeous 😍

I don't particularly like fantasy OR dark romance, but this wasn't bad.

Phantasma was the only Book of the Year choice from BOTM that I hadn't read, so here we are!

**Husband took the photo. I just can't with snakes 🐍

Cute.

I won't remember it in a week, but cute.

Fantastic!

My co-worker left this in my cubby at work, and I didn't really think I wanted it...I was wrong.

This was so good, uplifting, and delightful!

I chose this audiobook on a whim, knowing almost nothing about Selma Blair.

Now I know I really like her!

What a great book!

Very atmospheric.

Towards the end, I was flipping pages as quickly as I could while mysteries were being revealed and questions were being answered.

Dollar Tree was on 🔥 today!

Whenever I decide to read a Lucinda Berry book, I know that I am in for a suspenseful, twisty ride. Under Her Care was no exception!

I should be better at guessing the twist by now, but I was once again surprised 😄

I really enjoyed this book about a good girl/bad boy and how history affects our relationships.

My favorite Maisey Yates book so far!

Eve finds herself pregnant after a one night stand.

What happens after is the start of a slow-burn romance - not with the baby daddy, but with a man she has been friends with since childhood.

The audiobook was narrated fantastically!

Another good historical romance that I read for Romance Book Club.

What I like about historical romance is that the women have very few choices but somehow find a way to work around the constraints placed on them by society.

This is nothing short of a masterpiece.

Drop what you're doing and read this book.

Trust me.

"Does a story's ending excuse its beginning?"

If it's wrong for a 17 year old girl to sleep with her 47 year old art teacher, does it make it any better that they marry and stay married for decades until he dies??

This memoir was thought-provoking and well done.

This was good!!

A pretty teacher charms her impressionable class of 12 year olds, but she is far from perfect - maybe even deranged...

This was a page-turner

Excited for this one!

Happy publication day to Maisey Yates 🩷

The first 90% of this book was good, creepy fun...

But then it just went off the rails for me.

I'm no prude, but there was a REALLY raunchy scene that was thrown in unnecessarily. Why?? It served no purpose for the plot.

Too bad because it was a good story initially.

Oh my gosh, you guys!

This was good!

It's the story of a marriage rocked by loss, depression and grief. But the couple never stopped loving each other.

Their journey back to each other after divorce is told realistically and with great empathy.

The spice in this one is spicy 🔥

This was a great retelling of the Biblical story of Tamar.

Fourteen year old Tamar is betrothed to Ur, the son of Judah. She is terribly mistreated by her husband and mother in law.

Worst of all, she is left widowed and childless.

Tamar does what she feels is best to insure an heir for the family of Judah.

This was excellent!

My first Nora Roberts (Bay of Sighs) was such a dud, I didn't expect to read any more books of hers.

My co-worker was reading Inheritance and telling me all about it. It sounded very interesting, so I borrowed it from Libby.

I really liked it!

Loved this story of young love, angst, and the search for acceptance ❤️

The alternating narrators were great.

The story took an unexpected turn near the end when they found out who Eleanor's bully is.

This controversial romance is brought up every month in my Romance Book Club.

I finally decided to see what the fuss is about 50 years after it was written.

Women in historical romances didn't have the freedom of choice most of us have today. They did their best with what they had, and sometimes, their womanly wiles were the only leverage they had.

My collage turned out weird but still gets the point across 😄

When Andrew agrees to help an old friend with his legal cannabis business, he has no idea what he's getting into or what he is about to uncover.

Interesting story, great setting (the Mojave desert).

At the beginning, I skimmed a lot of the detailed descriptions of the business and machinery, etc, but once more characters were introduced, I got into the story.

Book Sparks sent me an early copy in exchange for a review.

My sister-in-law gifted this book to me, and rest assured, next time this author writes a book, I will buy it on my own!

This complicated love story takes place in the deaf community. The author did a great job representing this community and put anything said in ASL in italics.

Scarlett finds herself in a love triangle between life-long friend Lorenzo and practically perfect Eli (I'm team Eli).

But things get twisty...

This was really good!

Katarina and Heath are an ice dance couple.

She is obsessed with winning.

They are obsessed with each other.

I am obsessed with this book!!!! SO GOOD!

This started off strong but got so annoying in the second half that I wished they'd all just jump off a cliff.

I'm glad I listened to the audiobook for this one since I didn't know how the word "viscount" was pronounced ?

The warning on the back cover perfectly sums up the mood of this short, fun, naughty, and entertaining book 🤭😄🫦🔥

You never know what you're gonna get when it comes to Amazon First Reads, but I thoroughly enjoyed this thriller 🙂

Another slow burn romance from Mariana Zapata.

This was about a young woman who accompanies her brother's band on tour to sell merch.

Famous soccer player, Kulti, is mentioned a few times...

A short book that felt really long.

Orbital has poignant moments, but, unfortunately, I've already forgotten them.

I'm loving this sweet, heartwarming series ❤️

I can't believe Liesel posed with this book 😄

Very sweet book about the wonderful Betty White.

Since I liked Kulti so much, I went ahead and stocked up on more books by Zapata 📚

Excuse me while I make this book my entire personality!

I absolutely loved this ❤️ 📖 ⚽️

A slow burn romance that is absolutely worth the wait.

🏃🏻‍♀️ to get more books by Mariana Zapata

I'm late to the party, but better late than never!

I plan on downloading book two tonight 😁

After reading 13 books in December, I ended up with a nice, even 120 for the year!

I didn't even add up until yesterday and was thrilled with the total number 😊

My love affair with my local Dollar Tree book section continues...
💵 🌳 📚 ❤️

I really didn't know very much about Maureen's life and enjoyed hearing about it.

This book is a great reminder to look for God in all of our everyday activities.

I surprised myself by highlighting a handful of lines.

Squeals of delight!

@AmyG This is exactly what I was hoping for!! Thank you so much 😃

#jolabokaflod #jolabokaflodswap24 #js2024 @MaleficentBookDragon

I normally don't read anything that can be considered "self-help" because those kinds of books always seem common sense to me.

I honestly downloaded this because it was a short audiobook.

Turns out something happened this week that left me feeling rejected and blindsided...this book addresses those feelings.

I love when books show up at just the right time ? This felt like divine intervention

I loved this romance between a rodeo star and the woman who has loved him since she was thirteen.

I also appreciated that this was hot without being explicit.

Jane Porter is becoming a favorite.

The book cover is also a poster!

This is a short, funny book full of quotes much like the one shown. However, if you read the introduction, you see that there is more to the story.

These feelings are universal, and we use sarcasm and dark humor to get through them.