This was good! Loved The Goldfinch a bit more. But I am happy I was able to listen to the audiobook since I was not making a lot of progress on print.

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This book took me longer than I expected to finish because I was so emotional while reading it that I had to keep putting it down. I even considered DNF‘ing a few times, the emotions were running too deep.

I‘m so glad I stuck with it. This book was both beautiful and ugly, but a story that needs to be to told.

If you love multigenerational stories, this book is for you!

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Could not sleep last night and all the books I‘m currently in the middle of deal with heavy topics, so I decided to start this…Already so intrigued! #arc

Love this dedication! ❤️

I enjoyed this second book so much more than the first. In this one, we follow Diana after her separation from her husband, Oliver and how they are working through this new family dynamic. Diana also reconnects with a past love…Could the second time be the charm?

Loved this one. Can‘t wait to read the third installment!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Pub Date: 2/4/25 #arc

I went into this story completely blind and it turned out to be such a clever little book!

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Need a break from a super-intense read and decided to start this. Hoping I enjoy this second installment more than the first! #arc

The covers on these books are always gorgeous 🥰

I can already say that this is going to be one of my favorite books of 2025!

The story centers around Arabella, Naya and Zoya. Three generations of women who are trying to navigate the cards that were dealt to them as Palestinian women. This was so beautifully written that I wish I could read it again for the first time.

Read this! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Out tomorrow!

Currently reading… Really good, so far! #arc

In this memoir, the author recounts her time learning family recipes with her Grandma, and slowly digging out her Dad‘s life experiences by learning to make the dishes that brought him joy as a child.

I loved this one. One of the main issues discussed was how we carry our family‘s trauma and make it a central part of our identity, and how she eventually became her family‘s storyteller through food.

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This book sucked me in completely for a few days and it became the book that I thought about most about when I was not reading it. Loved the dual POVs for Max and Vincent, it was a great way to give us a more in-depth look at these 2 very complex characters. Loved, loved the ending!

This is my first time reading the author and I can‘t wait to read Bellies now.

I highly recommend this book!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ #arc Pub Date: 5/27/25

Audiobook hold finally came in. I loved The Goldfinch on audio and I couldn‘t wait to listen to this one.

This was one of the most heartbreaking but at the same time the most beautiful memoir I‘ve ever read.

I‘m sobbing…

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First encounter with Coates‘ writing and now I can‘t wait to read his backlist.

The 3 essays in this book were chock-full of information about the author‘s impressions during his travels and how history has a way of repeating itself throughout different cultures.

Loved!

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My Kindle will be attached to my hand until I finish this book! #arc

So excited to have received this ARC!

Current audiobook…I know this is going to wreck me…

I‘ve always enjoyed Eve‘s music, but can‘t say I was a fan so I didn‘t follow her career and how she got there. I enjoyed this memoir because it gave me the answers I was looking for. It also made me appreciate her more as an artist.

I love a book about a cult. Especially when it is done right, and Cuffy manages to do that.

We follow Faruq, a journalist, who immerses himself in the world of the “nameless,” trying to expose them as a cult.

I loved how in-depth this story got, it sometimes felt like you were really watching a cult doc.

Where this book lost me was on the “before” POV, it sometimes got a little boring and I felt like skipping (I didn‘t, 😅).

4⭐️ Out on: 3/18

This year, one of my goals is to read more from my backlist TBR, and not get so caught up in new books. I found this collection buried deep on my Kindle and enjoyed it.

3.5 ⭐️

Current audiobook…Love learning about the life of female artists ❤️

I started this audiobook yesterday and could not stop! Imagine being a preschooler and helping your Dad with his drug business…Imagine being raised by two parents who met in a psych ward…This and more (much more) is what Dana Trent had to endure growing up and well into her adult years.

One of the best memoirs I‘ve read!

Next on audio…First Coates!

I liked this memoir. It gave me a bit more insight about her and why she always seems so guarded. The audiobook narration by her was excellent!

I loved this…a lot. This multi-generational family story centers around Lila and Grace, and how looking for a connection and trying to figure out the past can lead you to information you might not want to find.

The supporting characters on this story were amazing, also! I chuckled every time “The Starbirds” made an appearance.

Read this!

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I loved how irreverent this book felt. It told the story of two characters (through their POVs), that entered a very complicated relationship with each other. Power dynamics, addiction, poverty, looking for your sense in the world are all portrayed here in a very unique format.

And just when you think you have reached the end…Enter Part 3… 😅

Wonderful read! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Current audiobook… I know that Kerry Washington is a great actor, I‘ve enjoyed everything that I‘ve seen her in, but there is something about her that does not warm me up to her completely, and I‘m curious to see if listening to her memoir would have an impact on this feeling.

What a powerful audiobook. On this one, Chimamanda talks about the impact her father‘s passing had on her.

Loved!

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Looking for an audiobook to start yesterday, and I had this one waiting for me. I was immediately hooked on the story, but didn‘t feel like I wanted to continue it on audio.

I‘ve been trying to wrap up other books I‘m currently in the middle of on Kindle, but I could not stop thinking about this one…What‘s one more book, right? 🤣

Stanley Tucci is one of my favorite actors and listening to his audiobook was such a treat!

It also made me crave all the foods he talked about 😅

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Currently reading…Loving the banter and the complicated family dynamics on this one!

A very raw account of a Japanese woman with a rare disability who resides in a group care facility.

This is not an easy read, it will make you uncomfortable, might even gross you out, but I felt it helped get the author‘s message across: How society dismisses the sexual desires of those suffering with a disability. Ending was unexpected.

Loved!

4.5 ⭐️ #arc

US Pub Date: 3/18/25

This is such a good story that I found myself putting it down just so that it would not end.

The way the author gave even minor characters their own POV was a great move in my opinion.

I didn‘t get the comparison with Evelyn Hugo while I was reading (and after I finished) the book. But, now that I think about it, I see it.

If you picked this as a #BOTM selection, you‘re in for a treat!

Read this!

5⭐️ #arc Pub Date: 1/7/25

I always set my goal at 50 and I‘d never dreamed that this would be a number of books read for me ❤️🎉

Thanks Litsy fam for all the fun and here‘s to a 2025 of more great reads! 🤗

Currently reading… I started reading this a few days ago and was immediately hooked by the writing.

I‘m almost at 50% and hoping that this debut continues to deliver. Review coming soon! #arc

Imagine being a young college student and thinking you‘ve met the man of your dreams? That is what Patricia thought was happening when she met Rahman.

We follow Patricia‘s seemingly jet-set life, but underneath is a life full of uncertainties and deception which eventually leads to divorce and the kidnapping of her 2 children by their father.

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As with all memoirs I read that deal with escaping a cult, I commend the author for being so vulnerable and sharing her experience.

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Current audiobook…This actress was unknown to me, but put “cult” in a title and I am all over it.

I found this while researching another book on #NetGalley and immediately snatched it up. It‘s weird seeing my name on a book so much, especially when it is such a tough subject.

Can‘t put this down! #arc

Current audiobook…

No words for this. Human resilience at its best.

This was good, but there are so many characters and storylines happening that it took me about 50% of the book to start getting a hang of who everyone was.

I wanted to like this much more than I did. I feel that the miscommunication trope was overplayed on this one.

Soft pick

This is my first Haslett novel and the way that this author started peeling away the complexities of this mother and son to give us such a beautiful story makes me just want to read it again so that I can appreciate the journey more.

And the side characters in both of their lives added so much to this story.

Read this!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ #arc Pub Date: 1/7/25

#Two4Tuesday @TheSpineView

1. Coffee and reading in the morning.

2. Tagged. This is a memoir and I would say his best trait is his courage, being that this happened when he was 11 years old.

Thanks for the tag @Sace

This hold came in a few days ago and I‘m prioritizing it since there are a lot of people waiting…So far, so good.

I‘m in the middle of about 6 books and they‘re all hitting right now! 🙌🏽

I like books that deal with death and grief and how to process it.

I found this book interesting since it focused on helping the patients and their loved ones prepare for death and come to terms with any regrets they‘ve had in their life.

Even though I enjoyed the book, I found it slow at times, but I am glad I put it down and came back to it. It ended up being a story that will stick with me for a while.

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It was time for this…

Current audiobook, and already hooked!

As a GG fan and acquiring an admiration for Emily Gilmore during my re-watch (and long-winded voice note discussions with a friend and fellow fan), I‘m so happy I got to listen to the audiobook. Hearing Kelly recount her wonderful career and life experiences was such a treat!

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After seeing a review of her trilogy of novels recently, I became curious about Kristóf‘s writing. I was not able to find the novels at my library but found her memoir.

This is a very short read, but spoke to me in so many levels. In this book, and through short vignettes, she talks about what it felt like to emigrate to Switzerland as a refugee, learning French and publishing all her work in a language she had to learn from scratch.

Loved!

I love when books have the ability to shock me, this one certainly did!

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