The Sunday Post #122

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Caffeinated Book Reviewer.

It's a chance to share news - a post to recap the past week on your blog, 

showcase books and things we have received, and share news about what is

coming up on your blog in the week ahead. You can find the info here:

Sunday Post Meme

Another busy week filled with work all day and then projects at home. Thursday was my company's Open House in honor of our 40th anniversary so there was a lot to do leading up to that. It was a good turn-out (around 250 guests) and a great event. 

Last night I used Target's new Drive Up service and all I can say is: I'm hooked. Place your order on the Target app, tap to say when you're on your way and when you've arrived, they bring your order out, and you're done. From the time I pulled into the special Drive Up spot until our order was brought out was about... 45 seconds! Now that's service. This is a total game changer. LOL

My bookshelves are (mostly) done. I did something revolutionary. Well, revolutionary for me. I organized by color. I have no idea how long this will last because my little Type A brain might just explode without having every book perfectly alphabetized by author, but I love the look and wanted to give it a try. I'm pretty jazzed with the result. Oh, and a note about the empty shelves on the bottom: because I had to leave my beautiful bookcase that my father made for me at the other house (it was custom-made for a particular space) I knew I was dealing with less shelf space. I did add another IKEA bookcase, I added additional shelves, I weeded out a lot of books, and I left off all the trinkets and baubles - all so I'd have more room. Well it all worked quite well because I definitely have room to grow! :)

Monday, September 24

The Sunday Post #121 (on a Monday... again)

Tuesday, September 25

Top Ten Tuesday:

Favorite Authors, Unread Books

Wednesday, September 26

WWW Wednesday #25

Saturday, September 29
Review: 
What If It's Us - Becky Albertalli & Adam Silvera

WHAT I FINISHED IN THE LAST WEEK:

   

What If It's Us - Becky Albertalli & Adam Silvera 

Further clinched my love for Becky and convinced me I need to try something by Adam.

WHAT I'M CURRENTLY READING: 

The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue - Mackenzi Lee

Such a good time!

              

KINDLE BOOKS:

TJR dropped a surprise short story on Amazon that is free to Prime members and I was all over that. Can't wait to read this one!

Evidence of the Affair - Taylor Jenkins Reid

    

How was your week? Any new books? Any news to share? 

I'd love to hear about it!

Review: What If It's Us by Becky Albertalli & Adam Silvera

What If It's Us 
Becky Albertalli & Adam Silvera
Publication date: October 9, 2018
Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance, LGBT
Source: Harper Teen & Edelweiss

Arthur is only in New York for the summer, but if Broadway has taught him anything, it’s that the universe can deliver a showstopping romance when you least expect it.

Ben thinks the universe needs to mind its business. If the universe had his back, he wouldn’t be on his way to the post office carrying a box of his ex-boyfriend’s things.

But when Arthur and Ben meet-cute at the post office, what exactly does the universe have in store for them?

Maybe nothing. After all, they get separated.

Maybe everything. After all, they get reunited.

But what if they can’t quite nail a first date . . . or a second first date . . . or a third?

What if Arthur tries too hard to make it work . . . and Ben doesn’t try hard enough?

What if life really isn’t like a Broadway play?

But what if it is? 

What If It’s Us is like getting a big squishy hug from your best friend – who just happens to be made of warm melted chocolate, cotton candy, and rainbows. I read most of this little gem with a big smile on my face because Arthur and Ben are Just. That. Precious.

“Sometimes I feel like New Yorkers do New York wrong. Where are the people swinging from subway poles and dancing on fire escapes and kissing in Times Square?” - Arthur

When Ben and Arthur meet at the post office, the clock is already ticking on their relationship. And the cards seemed stacked against them. Arthur’s days in New York are numbered before he returns home to Georgia, native New Yorker Ben is still in the throes of a recent break-up, and then there’s the fact that once separated they have no idea how to find each other again. But never underestimate the power of a hopeless romantic who is certain the universe is on his side (aka Arthur).

“He laces our fingers and shrugs. And I’m dead. I am actually dead. There’s no other way to explain it. I’m sitting in fucking Herald Square, holding hands with the cutest boy I’ve ever met, and I’m dead. I’m the deadest zombie ghost vampire who ever died. And now my mouth isn’t working. It's like I'm stunned into silence. That never happens.” - Arthur

What ensues is an adorably funny and sometimes bittersweet story of a relationship that almost wasn’t. How it can’t be forced, how it isn’t always what you expect it to be, and how it’s still worth taking a chance on. Albertalli and Silvera created two characters that I fell for immediately and only loved more as the story progressed. Arthur’s enthusiasm and utter guilelessness were contagious and Ben’s more reserved, introspective nature made him relatable. Arthur experiences his first crush/first date/first kiss and the reader gets to suffer through all the cringey awkwardness right along with him. Ben’s recent break-up has left his self-confidence shaken and questioning whether he is even worthy of love. He and his former friend-turned-boyfriend aren’t speaking so even his friend group is splintered just when he needs his friends most. Luckily, he still has best friend Dylan and that’s saying a lot. The bond between Ben and Dylan is total #FriendshipGoals and added so many laugh out loud (and heartfelt) moments.

“I think about the way Arthur smiled so hard during dinner when he thought no one was watching him and what I could do to win as many smiles out of him as possible.” - Ben

Speaking of friendship, it’s alive and represented well all throughout the novel. Both boys have strong friendships that have always been rock solid but are now showing the strain of growing up, new relationships, and circumstances.

What If It’s Us is chock full of pop culture references, Broadway talk (Hamilton lovers will rejoice!), first date do-overs, and the kind of witty banter than makes me grin goofily and actually giggle out loud. Sometimes I wanted to shake Arthur (the boy had no chill), sometimes I wanted to shake Ben (inertia, thy name is Ben). And yeah, maybe I was hoping for a little more from the ending (what can I say, I like my fictional endings tied up with a nice little bow). But none of that changes the fact that I adored these two boys and being a witness to their relationship filled me with all the happy.

4.25/5 STARS

Note: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. This does not my opinion of the book or the content of this review. I received no compensation and my review is voluntary.

WWW Wednesday #25 | September 26, 2018

WWW Wednesdays is a meme hosted by Taking on a World of Words.

Just answer three questions and share what you're reading.

WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY READING?

The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue - Mackenzi Lee
I just started this one - as in I'm page 8 or so - but already Monty is making me laugh. Humble and modest he is not. :)

WHAT DID YOU RECENTLY FINISH READING?

What If It's Us - Becky Albertalli & Adam Silvera
Sweet, funny, adorable, real.
Yeah, so maybe I wanted a little more from the ending, but it was still a totally enjoyable read and I was loving Arthur and Ben so hard. 

WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'LL READ NEXT?

After two YA novels in a row I'll be ready for something different so One Day in December might be calling to me.

What are you currently reading?
I wanna know! :)

Top Ten Tuesday: Favorite Authors, Unread Books

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.

This week's Top Ten Tuesday topic: 

Books I Have Not Read by My Favorite Authors

      

    The Great Alone - Kristin Hannah

I usually inhale anything from the second it releases so I can't believe I haven't read this one yet.

Without Merit - Colleen Hoover

A book by CoHo that I have not read? Shocking! I've seen such mixed reviews for this contemporary YA, but I'm looking forward to experiencing it for myself.

Keep Her Safe - K.A. Tucker

Somehow I never got around to this one before The Simple Wild came out so now I need to backtrack a bit and read this one.

The Edge of Never - J.A. Redmerski

I'm convinced Redmerski can do it all. I've loved her contemporary romance, her dark romance-thriller, and her post-apocalyptic dystopian. Now I need to dive into her new adult duology.

The Last Letter from Your Lover - Jojo Moyes

I really like Me Before You. And I *loved* The Girl You Left Behind. And this one has all the makings for another winner.

Leah on the Offbeat - Becky Albertalli

I love me some Becky Albertalli. And despite seeing a few meh reviews of this one, I'm still excited for it.

If There's No Tomorrow - Jennifer L. Armentrout

A JLA that I have not read? Gasp! Time to pull this one off the shelf and get it read.

Amour Amour - Krista & Becca Ritchie

I adore adore (see what I did there?) Krista and Becca Ritchie. They created the Addicted series, possibly my favorite contemporary series *ever.* So why have I not yet read Amour Amour? Time to change that.

The Days of Anna Madrigal - Armistead Maupin

I rarely talk about my undying love for The Tales of the City series and I don't know why. Maupin released this ninth book in the series in 2014 but I still haven't read it. Probably because I'm not ready to say goodbye to all the inhabitants of Barbary Lane.

After I Do - Taylor Jenkins Reid

I loved One True Loves. And The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hug was an absolute tour de force (amazing!) so why have I not inhaled everything by TJR yet? Good question.

     

Have you read any of these books? 

The Sunday Post #121 (on a Monday... again)

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Caffeinated Book Reviewer.

It's a chance to share news - a post to recap the past week on your blog, 

showcase books and things we have received, and share news about what is

coming up on your blog in the week ahead. You can find the info here:

Sunday Post Meme

Wow, what a week. Lots going on, stayed crazy busy, but much was accomplished. The last two weeks have been a bit overwhelming with trying to unpack 972 boxes (okay, okay, a slight exaggeration) and find a place for every single item we own. But we saw some real progress this past week and it's a good feeling. 

The Husband killed it with the master bedroom closet revamp and it looks ah-mazing. Room for hanging clothes, shelves for folded items and storage, drawers, a shoe rack... I swear I could live in there. :) Here's a peek (before, during and after):

          

Not everything has been moved into the closet yet, and the shelves aren't in the shoe rack (you can see them leaning against the drawers) but it's basically done and I couldn't be happier. Robert, you are a rock star!

I also finished unpacking all my books and got my bookcases organized (pictures coming!), the rug is down in the living room, the TV console table is together and in place, light switches have been replaced (the previous owners had dimmer switches in almost every room which we did not care for), and on and on it goes. It's an awful lot of work but it's also pretty rewarding to see it all coming together and feeling more like home every day.

With all of that, reading time has been scarce. I'm still reading What If It's Us (Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera) but I'm at about the 90% mark and I just adore these two characters so much. Arthur and Ben are amazing and precious and real and I just want the world for these two little cinnamon rolls. ♥ I demand a happy ending! LOL

         

I can't believe I managed to get any posts up last week, let alone three. So go me! :)

Tuesday, September 18

Top Ten Tuesday:

Fall TBR Edition

Wednesday, September 19

WWW Wednesday #24

Friday, September 21
Review: The Boy & His Ribbon by Pepper Winters

WHAT I FINISHED IN THE LAST WEEK:

   

The Girl & Her Ren (The Ribbon Duet #2) - Pepper Winters 

A total heart-breaker!

WHAT I'M CURRENTLY READING: 

What If It's Us - Becky Albertalli & Adam Silvera

This book makes me happy. And I want to hug Arthur and Ben to pieces.

              

Not a thing! Been too busy for book buying! :)

    

How was your week? Any new books? Any news to share? 

I'd love to hear about it!

Review: The Boy & His Ribbon by Pepper Winters

The Boy & His Ribbon 
Pepper Winters
Publication date: April 1, 2018
Series: The Ribbon Duet #1
Genres: Contemporary Romance, Dark Romance

"What do you do when you meet your soul mate? No wait...that's too easy. What do you do when you meet your soul mate and have to spend a lifetime loving him in secret?
I'll tell you what you do.
You lie."

REN
Ren was eight when he learned that love doesn't exist--that the one person who was supposed to adore him only cared how much he was worth.
His mother sold him and for two years, he lived in terror.
But then...he ran.
He thought he'd run on his own. Turned out, he took something of theirs by accident and it became the one thing he never wanted and the only thing he ever needed.

DELLA
I was young when I fell in love with him, when he switched from my world to my everything.
My parents bought him for cheap labour, just like they had with many other kids, and he had the scars to prove it.
At the start, he hated me, and I could understand why.
For years he was my worst enemy, fiercest protector, and dearest friend.
But by the end...he loved me.
The only problem was, he loved me in an entirely different way to the way I loved him.

And slowly, my secret drove us apart.

Ren was only ten years old when he escaped from a hellish existence of servitude and abuse. He had his freedom – but discovered he wasn’t totally free. He had unknowingly taken the daughter of his abusers. And he hated her for slowing him down, for the added responsibility. But those feelings changed and Della became everything to Ren. Uneducated but resourceful, responsible and wise beyond his years, Ren creates a life for the two of them that is unconventional but surprisingly stable.

I often found my heart swelling with warmth for my young, tiny friend and cracking in pain knowing this life we shared couldn’t go on forever. She would eventually need more. She would eventually outgrow me. - Ren

Ren was a complex character. Selfless, protective, willing to do anything to provide for Della and do his absolute best by her. But he is also a product of his past – sold by his mother for a paltry sum, bought by a sadistic man for labor, forced to fight for his very survival – and that past has left its mark on Ren. Knowing he was unwanted and unloved, experiencing only cruelty and abuse, he understandably trusts no one (beyond Della), is suspicious of everyone, and feels unworthy of love or even simple kindness. Ren was always happier removed from society, away from people, surrounded by nature in the woods. But for Della, he sacrificed even that.

She might have upset me, messed up my mind, and ruined my trust, but nothing could change the fact that where she was, I was happiest, and she was all I needed. - Ren

Told in dual points of view, The Boy and His Ribbon spans more than 15 years and follows the evolution of Ren and Della’s relationship from children to young adults and, in Ren’s case, adulthood. Their bond is close, their loyalty is unmatched, and their feelings change over time and morph into something beyond friendship, beyond companionship and beyond innocence. The boundaries of their relationship are tested and stretched - and they both suffer for it.

How many times do you think a person can survive a broken heart? I would like to know because Ren has successfully broken mine, repaired it, shattered mine, fixed it, crushed mine, and somehow glued it back together again and again. - Della

Ren and Della’s story required a certain suspension of disbelief. (Because really, could a 10 year old boy really single-handedly care for a baby and raise her on his own? Could he provide food and care by himself year after year?) And at times the prose drifted into melodrama. But neither of those things stopped me from falling for their story. Whether the focus was on their day to day existence in the woods or in an abandoned building, or on their ever-changing dynamic and how it was impacted by other people in their lives, I was hooked. Ren and Della are not ordinary characters and their story is not a typical story. It was emotional and angsty, sweet and heartwarming, forbidden and heartbreaking. Winters never took the easy way out, didn’t hesitate to make her characters hurt, and when I thought I knew what direction the story was going to take, she threw in a twist that I didn’t see coming.

How could you not fall in love with a boy like Ren Wild? How could you not fall in love with a boy who puts you first in everything, protects you at all costs, worships the ground you walk on, gives you things you didn’t know you wanted, who can hear your thoughts and see your fears? A boy who sacrificed so much without even telling you, leaving you heartbroken when you’re old enough to figure it out for yourself? - Della

The Boy & His Ribbon is a different kind of story. It doesn’t follow the usual tropes and conventions. But I liked the differences and the unpredictability – even while the angst was doing me in and hurting my heart. Even while the cliffhanger left me heartsick and desperate for answers. When you’re in the mood for something out of the ordinary, something emotional that will captivate you and have you questioning what’s right and wrong, pick up The Boy & His Ribbon and experience Ren and Della’s story for yourself.

4/5 STARS

Note: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. This does not my opinion of the book or the content of this review. I received no compensation and my review is voluntary.

WWW Wednesday #24 | September 19, 2018

WWW Wednesdays is a meme hosted by Taking on a World of Words.

Just answer three questions and share what you're reading.

WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY READING?

I just started What If It's Us and though my reading time is sparse right now (unpacking boxes is my life) I can't wait to really get into it. I'm still in chapter one and Arthur and Ben are having their meet-cute at the post office. So adorable! 

WHAT DID YOU RECENTLY FINISH READING?

The second book in the Ribbon duology, The Girl & Her Ren pretty much broke my heart. OMG, the angst, the sadness. Hence my need for the utter preciousness of What If It's Us right now. 

WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'LL READ NEXT?

The current plan is to start The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue just as soon as it's available (I'm #1 on my Overdrive hold).

What are you currently reading?
I wanna know! :)

Top Ten Tuesday: Fall TBR Edition

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.

This week's Top Ten Tuesday topic: 

Top Ten Books on My Fall* TBR
If you know me at all you know that I don't make TBR lists.
And why don't I make TBR lists?
Because I don't stick to them.
And why don't I stick to them?
Because I'm a total mood reader and never know what I'll want to read from one book to the next.

But that doesn't mean I don't have books I want to get to sooner rather than later. Or a mental kinda-sorta TBR. You get the idea. So here's my Fall non-TBR. 

*We are using the term Fall in the loosest sense of the word. This is Florida. We don't have Fall. It's currently 93 degrees and feels like 102. So yeah... Fall.

      

      

    

  

Have you read any of these books? 
What's at the top of your Fall TBR?