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.

A gorgeous setting, a twist I NEVER saw coming, a creepy ending.

Beautiful Ugly did not disappoint.

While listening to this audiobook, I found my mind wandering.

The female main character is orphaned, and her sister has been taken to be part of the evil king's harem. She vows to rescue her sister no matter what.

The story is based on true events in Korea in the 1500s.

Bookish birthday gifts from my sister who always knocks the gift-giving out of the park!

I have enjoyed every book that I've read by Lucinda Berry.

She used to be a psychologist and uses her expertise to write psychological thrillers.

Her stories are gripping and suspenseful. "When She Returned" is all of the above.

Loved it!

The main characters, the mystery, the little bit of romance... I loved it all.

I normally don't read seasonal books, but this year, I've read two and am really enjoying it 😄

Loved it! ❤️

A romance 10 years in the making that is totally worth the wait.

Denise!! You are so kind and generous ☺️ Thank you, friend 💕 I'm so excited!

@dabbe

@Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Thank you, Misty, for the #LitsyLove 🥰 📚

@AmyG My Jolabokaflod AND a birthday surprise arrived today (on my actual birthday!!) 😁🥳

Thank you so much!!

#jolabokaflod #jolabokaflodswap24 #jolabokaflodswap #js24
@MaleficentBookDragon

Even though my kids were more Nickelodeon than Disney, I found this book interesting.

Shia LaBeouf, Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez, The Jonas Brothers, Demi Lovato - all very interesting.

My only gripe is with the audiobook narrator and her pronunciations. The word 'complimentary' was pronounced "compliment-airy." The era of the 90s was the "nigh-knees."

It drove me crazy, but I'm told that's how the kids these days speak ???

I really wanted to like this better.

It started off fine, but then it got too repetitive, angsty, and annoying.

I'm glad everything worked out for Poppy and Ryan, but, man, getting to the HEA was exhausting.

I feel really bad because I know Maisey.

It's off!
@MaleficentBookDragon

#jolabokaflod
#jolabokaflodswap24
#js2024

Valerie Bertinelli details how she went from constantly worrying about her weight to finally being happy.

There was a lot to like, but I found this repetitive and very common sense.

The recipes sound delicious, the photo section was fun, and the stories about Eddie were great.

I liked more than I disliked, but I am happy to move on to my next read.

November wrap-up

I squeezed one last book in for November and loved it!

A fake dating trope, likable but damaged characters, and witty banter made for a very enjoyable read.

My Romance Book Club will be discussing this at our December meeting 😊

Cute little vintage bookend that I found at an estate sale today 😊 📚 🦉

Loved it!

What a life. Privileged, exciting, tragic.

I wish I could find a who's who for this photograph. There are a few faces I'm not sure about. Google didn't help at all.

Noodle doesn't know what to think, but I do! I really liked this twisty thriller!

And I'm not just saying that because the heroine posted a 1 star review and was stalked by the disappointed and deranged author 😄

A suspenseful and enjoyable page-turner.

I overdid it yesterday when I was feeling good post surgery 😔 but at least I have a good book and the BEST cozy blanket to snuggle under today!