Review: You Are Not Alone

 

You Are Not Alone
by Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen

Greer: Website | Twitter | Instagram
Sarah: Website | Twitter | Instagram

Publication Date: March 3 2020
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Pages: 343
ISBN: 9781250202031
Genre: Adult Fiction | Thriller | Mystery
Source: Library

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Available for Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Synopsis: Shay Miller lives a mundane and ordinary life. Having recently been let go from her job, she finds herself bouncing around from temp job to temp job, in search of a new permanent position. She has no friends and no love life. She secretly pines for her roommate but he is dating someone else, much to Shay's dismay. One morning Shay finds herself a witness to a suicide. Rattled by the event, Shay can't get the woman out of her mind. She tracks down the woman's info online and finds herself delivering flowers to her apartment and attending her memorial service. That's where Shay meet's the Moore sisters, Cassandra and Jane. The Moore sisters live a life of perfection and glamour and Shay finds herself being sucked into their circle.

Shay's friendship with the Moore sisters is everything she has always dreamed of. But what Shay doesn't know is that it's too good to be true and that her life may be in danger.

Review: This was such a dark and twisty read! I wanted so badly to like the characters, or at least one of the characters, and it was impossible. None of these characters are likable, I didn't trust any of them and I was trying the entire time to figure out what their motives were. I knew something would happen but I couldn't figure out what it was, and then I was completely blindsided by the twist. How did I not figure it out?!

Everything was a mind game, right from the first chapter until the very end. Before reading this, I really hoped it would live up to my expectations. I have read Greer & Sarah's other two co-authored books and really enjoyed them. This one definitely didn't disappoint at all! I also really enjoyed the short chapters of this book and the bouncing back and forth between narratives. I loved this book so much that I read it in two days because I couldn't put it down and I NEEDED to know what the heck was going on.

“Some people contend there are two primal fears. The first and most basic is the end of our existence. The second is isolation; we all have a deep need to belong to something greater than ourselves.”
― Greer Hendricks, You Are Not Alone

I definitely recommend this to anyone who enjoys a good thriller and mystery. It was exciting, with strong and smart female characters. The storyline is riveting and entertaining. Well worth the read!

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Review: One to Watch

 

One to Watch
by Kate Stayman-London

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Publication Date: July 7 2020
Publisher: Dial Press
Pages: 432
ISBN: 9780525510444
Genre: Adult Fiction | Romance | Contemporary
Source: Book of the Month Club

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Available for Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Synopsis: Bea Schumacher is a plus-size fashion blogger with thousands of Instagram followers. Bea loves to watch her favorite guilty pleasure, Main Squeeze, a reality dating show, but she's fed up with the lack of diversity on the show. Frustrated by the outcome of the show, Bea blogs about how being a size zero shouldn't be a prerequisite for getting engaged on the show. Then Bea gets an interesting phone call, the producers want Bea to be the next Main Squeeze, surrounded by men who are all vying for attention.

Bea has no interest in joining the show, she is not a size zero and she is not looking for love. But the producer of the show pushes her to say yes, claiming it will be great publicity for her blog and lead to more future opportunities. Bea decides to give it a go, but there is no way she is actually going to find true love, or even anyone interested in dating her.

Once the cameras begin rolling, Bea finds herself in a whirlwind of sexy suitors but wonders if they are really interested in her or just using her to get ahead. Bea needs to start trusting herself and trusting them in order for her to find her happily ever after.

Review: I don't watch a lot of reality dating shows but the premise of this book sounded intriguing enough that I wanted to give it a go. It was such a fun quick read and I found it difficult to put down because I wanted to know what would happen next. I loved Bea's character and found her to be very relatable. This book is definitely a roller-coaster of emotions. There are so many good parts but then so many heartbreaking parts. I hated to see how some of the men treated Bea and the awful, hurtful things they said to her. My heart really broke for her.

I read this book with zero expectations and was pleasantly shocked. While the premise of the book is Bea's journey to find love, it's also centered around her inner journey to realize that she deserves to be loved and cared for, that she is worthy. I feel like that's an inner battle most women have at some point in their lives.

“No, Beatrice, it's the hardest thing in the world. To have been that hurt, to feel that afraid, and to know that the only way you can be really, fully happy is to risk going through it all again.”
― Kate Stayman-London, One to Watch

I definitely recommend this book. It was such a fun and cute read. There are some really notable moments in the book and readers can't help but root for Bea. The dating parts were kind of lack-luster and superficial, and some parts really felt rushed while others seemed drawn-out. Despite all of those things, it's still worth a read!

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August 2020 TBR

Happy first day of August, bookworms!

Did you have a good reading month in July? My goal was to read 5 books and I knew that was a pretty realistic goal for me. I ended up finishing the month by reading 6 books. Not bad!

This month I have another small TBR picked out, mostly because I know not to overreach with my goals. Being back at work is leaving me with less time to read and even when I am home, I feel so exhausted and sometimes fall asleep in the middle of reading. Anyway, I am hoping to read 5 books this month which is my average.

Here's what I'm reading this month:

Girl Gone Viral by Alisha Rai

Island Affair by Priscilla Oliveras

Alex & Eliza by Melissa de la Cruz

The Empire of Gold by S. A. Chakraborty

You Are Not Alone by Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen

Here's to hoping for a great reading month! What about you? What are you reading this month?

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July Book Haul & Wrap Up

It's the end of a month which means a quick recap on my reading goal and book haul. This was by far my biggest book haul month, I got a little bit carried away. When I took this picture I was thinking that With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo was a July book purchase but it was really June, so I accidentally photographed it with my July book haul.

My reading goal for July was to read 5 books. I figured I should play it smart and keep it realistic since I've managed to average 5 books for the past few months. I met my reading goal and I managed to read one book, not pictured, rounding my total up to 6 books. I actually surpassed it this month by one. Yay!

What You Wish For by Katherine Center

Head Over Heels by Hannah Orenstein

Carve the Mark by Veronica Roth

The Empire of Gold by S. A. Chakraborty

Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins

How to Catch a Prince by Rachel Hauck

The Wedding Date by Jasmine Guillory

Modern Lovers by Emma Straub

Alex & Eliza by Melissa de la Cruz

Love & War by Melissa de la Cruz

Party of Two by Jasmine Guillory

Take a Hint, Dani Brown by Talia Hibbert

Beach Read by Emily Henry

The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes by Suzanne Collins

One to Watch by Kate Stayman-London

Navigate Your Stars by Jesmyn Ward

How did you do with your monthly reading goal? Did you hit it or fall short? What about your July book haul? Did you get anything really awesome?

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Review: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

 

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes
(Hunger Games, #0)
by Suzanne Collins

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Publication Date: May 19 2020
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Pages: 517
ISBN: 9781338635171
Genre: Young Adult | Dystopian | Science Fiction
Source: Own

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Available for Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Synopsis: It's been 10 years since the war ended and the penance for the districts retaliation against the capital is the Hunger Games. Every year each district must send 1 boy and 1 girl to the Capital to fight against the other tributes in a battle to the death game that is aired publically. This is the 10th Annual Hunger Games and the Academy has chosen 24 of its top students to act as mentors to the tributes. Being chosen as a mentor is a sign of respect and standing within society and Coriolanus Snow finds himself selected as a mentor. The odds are against Snow as he finds himself the mentor of the District 12 girl, a humiliating assignment. Their fates are now intertwined and her survival is directly linked to his. Tasked to make the tough decisions, Snow needs to use brains not brute to help Lucy Gray survive in the arena.

Review: When I first heard that this book was coming out I was told it would be about Haymitch and his time in the Hunger Games, I was so excited because Haymitch is one of my favorite characters in the entire series. When details were released that the book would take place during the 10th Hunger Games and revolved around Coriolanus Snow, I was a bit disappointed. I hated Snow. Absolutely despised his character because of how pure evil he was. After thinking about it some more I realized that as much as I hate him, he is still perhaps one of the most fascinating characters to read about because his story would unlock the reasoning of his evil. It's a great way to "study" human behavior and see the cause and outcomes.

I know this book has gotten a ton of mixed reviews, but I absolutely loved it. It's definitely one of my favorites. You really can see and understand how his mind works and the series of events that transpire to set up the rest of the series. At the beginning of the book, I really felt for Snow. His family was poor, having lost all their money in the war. He was still dealing with the loss of his parents, his mother who he absolutely adored and looked upon fondly, and his father who he appeared to have a somewhat contentious relationship with. He came from an affluent noble family with a high standing within the capital. The war transpired in his youth and he ended up losing his parents, his family fortune, and essentially their place within society as one of the founding families.

I really was rooting for Snow at the beginning of the book. He was just down on his luck and trying desperately to cling to a society he believed he still belonged in. It was abundantly clear from the beginning that not only was his focus only on himself and his presumed rise to power, but also on his allegiance to the capital. He was friendly with his classmates but didn't truly have any real friendships, except perhaps with Sejanus - which was sort of forced upon him unwillingly.

Loss of parents. Loss of money which led to not enough food to eat, no money for new clothes and items. Feeling like an outcast due to the fact that his family's social standing was in jeopardy without the money to support the lifestyle he had been accustomed to and felt like he deserved. He seemingly had no moral compass. He cheated his way to winning the games and then he just seemed to spiral from there - murdering two, presumably three people, and being responsible for the death of his only friend. Snow had a lot of reasons for his anger, and it eventually was just too much for him that it's no wonder he became the evil person he was.

Snow was truly a sociopath. He was incapable of loving and caring about others. He had no empathy and wasn't able to relate to others. Everything was centered around the fact that he felt like he deserved better because of who he was, and his family's legacy and notable name. His infatuation with Lucy Gray was because she benefited his own advantage. He ended up using her for personal gain but when she was no longer needed, he cast her aside.

One thing I really loved about this book was all the philosophical situations that arose. I loved the foreshadowing of the future and the 74th Hunger Games. There were many characters and their families who were introduced that play a large part in the future of the games, such as Crane and Heavensbee. There were also some really notable quotes that I felt really foreshadowed the other books in the series.

“The show’s not over until the mockingjay sings,” she said.
“The mockingjay?” He laughed. 
“Really, I think you’re just making these things up.”
“Not that one. A mockingjay’s a bona fide bird,” she assured him.
“And it sings in your show?” he asked.
“Not my show, sweetheart. Yours. The Capitol’s anyway.”
― Suzanne Collins,The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

 

“Nothing you can take from me was ever worth keeping.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

Snow made horrible decisions. He used people for his own gain. He discarded those he longer needed. Everything he did was a calculated move to make it to the top. Not only did he think he was better than everyone else, he truly believed that he was. He had no respect for human life and would happily run someone over to get what he wanted.

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