August 31, 2022

You Should Sit Down for This


"I realize there is no shame in staying home with a good book and a pair of comfy pajamas." ~ 39%

I was invited to stop by since I was in the area. Soon as I walked up the front steps, I was waved inside by a warm smile and bright eyes. I was told to make myself at home, and that I did. Before I could sit down good, a glass of crisp rosé wine, a full charcuterie board and freshly baked cookies were placed before me. I have never felt so welcome into pages.

"Something changes when we realize we are the authors of our own stories, because [they] are constantly trying to edit us, aren't they?" ~ 76%

Tamera Mowry-Housley—former co-host of The Real and co-star of Sister, Sister—is the welcoming spirit and author of You Should Sit Down For This: A Memoir About Wine, Life, & Cookies. In this new entertaining memoir, Tamera pulls up her big girl panties and tells the transition from a spunky twin to a grown married woman with children. Not very easy to do in the public eye. 

She goes through being raised in Hawaii to dating distress to grieving her favorite family member and more intimate milestones. Tamera recollects each moment in life as if we are old kindergarten playground buddies catching up one afternoon. The conversation leaves me with good advice but the sense that there's more not being said. Maybe next time.

"It's okay to fail as long as you fail up." ~ 16%

You Should Sit Down for This is giving sweet, wholesome, confident, don't fuck with my family vibes. Yup, all of the above at once. Tamera Mowry-Housley opened her heart and home to share wisdom, kind words, vulnerable moments and a gentle warning. The Tameraisms—gorgeous bite-size drops of wisdom that have the power to enlighten—will float in my head for a while to come. In fact, I highlighted majority to remember and reference.

Even though this memoir is less than 200 pages, it leaves no moment unaddressed. Although I get the feeling details were purposefully left out in some stories. That there is still a nagging need to keep the good girl image in tact. And that's okay because not every experience is meant to be told. As a result, You Should Sit Down for This is the story of a childhood TV star mixed with a variety of wine and cookie flavors that I didn't know I wanted. The format is so well done and fitting to Tamera's personality.

Happy Early Pub Day, Tamera Mowry-Housley! You Should Sit Down for This will be available Tuesday, October 4.

Disclaimer: An advance copy was received directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins.

Title: You Should Sit Down for This
Author: Tamera Mowry-Housley
Published: October 2022
Pages: 192
Edition: Galley
Genre: Memoir
Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤

August 30, 2022

Walking in My Joy


"Could I show myself not in a character but in my own skin?" ~ 72%

Where can you find sharp humor, smart truths and an unforgettable collection of stories? In Jenifer Lewis' new memoir titled Walking in My Joy: In these Streets!

The Mother of Black Hollywood has appeared in 68 movies, 40 animations, 4 Broadway productions and over 200 concerts worldwide. She is an accomplished actress, singer, dancer, community activist and author. With the help of Natalie Guerrero, she writes an entertaining collection of essays about memorable adventures and experiences in Walking in My Joy

Jenifer Lewis is Auntie-in-my-Head Jenny that I take advice from because I know she's done it. She's been there, done that and learned. Auntie knows! I was nodding in agreement, highlighting and literally LOL while reading Walking in My Joy. She shares stories of love, self-reflection, joy and pain with such an openness. I'm blessed to be one of the first to read it!

"That's not a sentence you hear every day, bitches." ~ 86%

Whew—there are some stories and sentences in this book that left my jaw open. Statements we may think but never say aloud. Well, Jenifer Lewis said it for us. She speaks her mind about racism in America, Kanye West, Flint, COVID-19 pandemic, air-fried chicken, aliens and more. She also takes readers along on incredible journeys across the world, unselfishly sharing her personal experiences all the while making us laugh and feel inspired. This memoir truly lives up to its title!

One month and a few books later, and I still recollect stories from Walking in My Joy. I can still hear Jenifer Lewis' distinctive voice telling anecdotes with her signature deep laugh. I am quite the avid reader so it is rare for books to hold space in my mental streets like Walking in My Joy does. The motivational message has stuck with me. I originally rated this memoir 4♥️ but the more I sit with it and write this review, it deserves every bit of 5♥️. It is so worth reading, Bookhearts! 

Happy Pub Day, Jenifer Lewis! Walking in My Joy is now available.

Disclaimer: An advance copy was received directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins.

Title: Walking in My Joy
Author: Jenifer Lewis 
Published: August 2022
Pages: 256
Edition: Memoir
Genre: Galley
Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤 🖤 🖤

August 28, 2022

Series Sunday: Leslie's Curl & Dye & Second Time Around

(Potter Lake #1-2) 


Series Sunday is a bookish meme hosted by Literary Marie. I encourage all of my fellow book bloggers and bookhearts to play along.
  • Read an installment of a series.
  • Share your review/recommendation below.
  • Include the title, author and series name.

"If the barber shop was where men gathered to bond with other men, chat about man things and dap each other up, then the beauty shop was the same for women. It was where we found solace and camaraderie, and a bit of gossip on a hot day in a full salon." ~ pg. 2

My Series Sunday pick is Leslie's Curl & Dye, the first book in the Potter Lake series by D.L. White. Bookhearts know that small town series with characters of color are my jam! I don't know what it is about made up towns that make me giddy for new stories. I get lost in the fictional streets, caught up in the drama, imagining myself as a neighbor to the romance and enjoy the ride of new characters. Let's double dive into this new-to-me series!

Potter Lake is a Black mini-metropolis set in middle Georgia. The lakeside residents are strong-minded, resilient and destined for growth. The newly elected Mayor is a former NBA athlete named Kade Cavanaugh (KC). He also owns Guys N'Dolls, the new co-ed salon in town that directly competes with his college sweetheart's beauty shop. Leslie Baker is the inherited Curl & Dye owner currently struggling for business. But KC has a plan to fix that. The cliché proves right once again: if you can't beat 'em, join 'em! 

"Try having a private life in this town." ~ pg. 128

Why, oh why, did I let Leslie's Curl & Dye sit on my Kindle unread for two (2) whole years?! My purchase date was March 24, 2020; do you see today's date?! Well no better time than the present perfect afternoon with no plans so that I could fully enjoy its content then excitedly move on to Second Time Around

Sage Owens and Bennett Alexander are new to Potter Lake. Both seasoned with age, they have a lot in common on the surface. Their souls are drawn together, perhaps proof that broken hearts are connected. It makes their meeting seem more like fate than by accidental repair. Their story continues the theme of second chance love. This holiday short packs a lot of cute mature romance!

"And even more so when I learned you were a widow. There's a special understanding between us." ~ pg. 38

I began the series rooting for the growth and success of the Curl & Dye. I wanted the dwindling customer base to see success for its third generation. For the owner to work it out without help from a man. But the budding romance was what won me over. 

In Second Time Around, it was the grown flirtation for me. Even though the characters seemed way more older than the 40-ish age they were written as. Their kids were grown and their speech was dated with phrases like, "getting fresh." It threw me off. 

While the endings are predictable like most romance stories, the main characters' chemistry is magnetic and blooming off the pages! The author gracefully worked her pen when creating Potter Lake and its charming residents. I have one more chance to join their love-filled community when I read the third—and hopefully not final—book of the series.

Author: D.L. White
Published: September 2017
Pages: 316
Edition: eBook
Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤

Author: D.L. White
Published: December 2018
Pages: 100
Edition: eBook
Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤

August 26, 2022

First Lines Friday


First Lines Friday is a bookish meme hosted by Literary Marie. I encourage all of my fellow book bloggers and bookhearts to play along.
  • Grab your current read(s).
  • Share the first line(s).
  • Include the title and author.

"Mikaela took a deep, cleansing breath and rolled her shoulders back. Breathe, she chided herself. She hadn't even darkened the doorstep yet; a heart attack in advance of that seemed premature."

~ Long Past Summer by Noué Kirwan

August 24, 2022

Drunk on Love


"She couldn't risk her winery just for more good sex." ~ 39%

Can anyone else hear Beyoncé singing, 🎵 drunk in loooooooove / we be all night 🎵 No? Just me? Okay then. I'll get on with why you're here. 

Bestselling author Jasmine Guillory has a new intoxicating novel! Margot needs stress relief from running Black-owned and operated Noble Family Vineyards. She feels it's necessary to constantly prove herself to brother that she is a valuable asset to the family winery. Enter the relief in the form of a sexy charming man named Luke. He is new to the small world of Napa; therefore, the perfect one-night stand. Until he walks in the next morning introduced as the new hire.

The cover is colorful. The setting is romantic wine country. The characters are Black, proud and successful. And most importantly, the story is steamy! Jasmine Guillory once again graced us with a seductive read that allows readers to escape for a few fun hours. Both Luke and Margot are afraid to admit feelings which makes them even more relatable and more of a page-turner. Not "come on with it" but more "cannot wait until they fall in love."

Bookhearts, Drunk on Love is a cute romance story to be paired perfectly with a chilled bottle of sweet red wine. Kick your feet up and enjoy both to the last drop!   

Happy Early Pub Day, Jasmine Guillory! Drunk on Love will be available Tuesday, September 20.

Disclaimer: An advance copy was received directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins.

Title: Drunk on Love
Author: Jasmine Guillory
Published: September 2022
Pages: 400
Edition: Galley
Genre: Romance
Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤

August 23, 2022

Scenes from My Life: A Memoir


"You can't heal what you never reveal." ~ 51%

I did not know much about Michael K. Williams beyond his character of Omar "coming" Little on my favorite television series, "The Wire" on HBO. Yet by the time I turned the last page on my Kindle, I felt like an old friend. Michael K. Williams shares his incredible life story in new memoir titled Scenes from My Life.

I rarely forget a face. Well the late iconic actor, Michael K. Williams, has a memorable one. You may recognize him from The Wire, Boardwalk Empire, Lovecraft Country, The Night Of or Black Market. No matter the role he portrayed, his rawness and personality leapt off the screen. Unfortunately at the time of his death, Williams had almost finished this memoir with Jon Sternfeld to tell the story of how his life merged with his life's work.

"If someone asked me to describe the common thread in all that I do—my mission in acting, producing, community, and even just my living day-to-day—that's it."
 ~ 91%

Scenes from My Life is one of thee best memoirs I have ever read! No exaggeration. Drew me in from the first page with his transparency, honesty and detailed recollections. From childhood to early years of dancing to his battles with addiction and the fight that left the famous face scar, Williams does not mince memories. He achieved and conquered so much during his lifetime that otherwise I would not have known. Michael K. Williams was the perfect example of hard-won success.

The publication of Scenes from My Life is perfect timing. Pair this book with your rewatch of "The Wire" for its 20th year anniversary. Be sure to listen to the "Remembering Michael Kenneth Williams" episode of "The Wire at 20" podcast hosted by Method Man. Reading about his life will give whole new meaning to watching him on screen. Hearing the impact he had on others is very touching after knowing what he went through, survived and struggled with all while fulfilling his lifelong mission to give back. 

"Addiction is my legacy as much as the darkness of my skin and the sound of my voice." ~ 31%

I am honored for the opportunity to read and review the advance copy. Bookhearts, take my recommendation to heart and add this new memoir to your reading list. Scenes from My Life is so well written that you can visualize the words as you read. Even the book cover is striking! Need I say more?

Happy Pub Day to the late great, Michael K. Williams! A special thank you to Jon Sternfeld for making sure Williams' story reaches readers, maintained in his own voice, in his own impactful words. Scenes from My Life is now available.

Disclaimer: An advance copy was received directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins.

Title: Scenes from My Life: A Memoir
Author: Michael K. Williams with Jon Sternfeld
Published: August 2022
Pages: 288
Edition: Galley
Genre: Memoir
Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤 🖤 🖤

August 21, 2022

Series Sunday: Before I Let Go

(Skyland #1) 


Series Sunday is a bookish meme hosted by Literary Marie. I encourage all of my fellow book bloggers and bookhearts to play along.
  • Read an installment of a series.
  • Share your review/recommendation below.
  • Include the title, author and series name.

My Series Sunday pick is
 Before I Let Go, the first book in the Skyland series by Kennedy Ryan. When you marry, the love is supposed to last forever. But when life delivers blow after blow, death after death, grief over understanding, it all becomes too much to save a marriage.

Yasmen and Josiah (Si) Wade tried. Now they are finding a new rhythm in co-parenting two kids and running Grits, their third baby which is a thriving restaurant. Working and living so close together makes them wonder if they truly should have let go. Like magnets, Yasmen and Si are drawn together then one kiss leads to another...and another...and more until old wounds reopen and joy is in jeopardy. 

"My feelings are a hot stove I want to test, even knowing the last time how it burned." ~ 70%

Let's address the book cover first. Shall I say it is FLAWLESS?! How can you not stop and be intrigued as to the contents within? Then add the book title (a nod to Frankie Beverly & Maze and Beyoncé Homecoming stans). Award-winning, bestselling, "powerhouse" author Kennedy Ryan couldn't have packaged this any better. 

Did I judge this book by its cover? Damn right I did! And I was not disappointed. The supporting characters played a backseat but just enough to garner interest in their own personal stories (perhaps later on). There was the perfect amount of family drama with a heavy dose of healing and genuine love told in smooth alternating points of view. 

"I see the calm, the certainty, the love suffocate her doubts, smother the hesitations." ~ 2%

I am assuming the next books in the series will focus on different residents of Skyland. Perhaps Yasmen's friends and the Grits chef. Either way, I am excited and looking forward to what Kennedy Ryan has planned next for the new Skyland series. So well done!

Happy Early Pub Day, Kennedy Ryan! Before I Let Go will be available Tuesday, November 15.

Disclaimer: An advance copy was received directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins.

Author: Kennedy Ryan
Published: November 2022
Pages: 384
Edition: Galley
Genre: Romance
Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤 🖤

August 19, 2022

First Lines Friday


First Lines Friday is a bookish meme hosted by Literary Marie. I encourage all of my fellow book bloggers and bookhearts to play along.
  • Grab your current read(s).
  • Share the first line(s).
  • Include the title and author.


"Do people remember the exact moment they fall in love?"

~ Before I Let Go by Kennedy Ryan




"Iris stood at the counter in the school office, detention slip in hand, anticipating a hand-smack from Mr. Lucas, the vice principal."

Y is for Yesterday by Sue Grafton

August 17, 2022

Rabbit: A Memoir


"It's funny how you can spend your whole life chasing a dream only to find out when you get it that it's just not enough." ~ pg. 203

This that lemme-take-a-breath-before-moving-to-next-chapter type of memoir. At the same time, I could not stop reading until the last page. Ms. Pat opened the doors of her memories and let readers in to her story of crime, struggle, strength, motherhood and redemption. 

The story begins with Patricia growing up in a poor Atlanta hood during the crack epidemic. She was one of five children and watched her alcoholic mother make ends meet by cons. At age 7, she was conning drunks for money. At age 12, she was targeted for sex by a 20-year-old man. At age 13, she was pregnant and by age 15, she had two kids. With an eighth grade education, her options were limited. She turned to hustling, determined to make a better life for her children.

"Instead, I feel like I was specially blessed. How else can I explain the angels who seemed to come out of nowhere when I needed them most?" ~ pg. 212

Rabbit: A Memoir is free for Prime or Kindle Unlimited members. I recommend it before watching her television series on BET+ to give a more detailed background on the characters. Be warned—it is tough material to read and is in the category of Push and Cupcake Brown. The only reason it is not a solid 5 hearts is because of the many errors that could be fixed with good editing. However, the happy ending will make you oh so proud of Ms. Pat for overcoming the odds and becoming a success!

Title: Rabbit: A Memoir
Author: Patricia Williams with Jeannine Amber
Published: May 2018
Pages: 214
Edition: eBook
Genre: Memoir
Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤 🖤

August 16, 2022

None of This Would Have Happened If Prince Were Alive


"Like we can't be complacent that Prince is always going to be around. So we have to get our joy when we can." ~ 53%

A lot can happen in 48 hours! Ramona discovers her husband is having an affair as a Category Four hurricane approaches. She has to put that startling revelation on the back burner as she prepares to evacuate with a potty-training toddler, a teenager, a critical mom and the class guinea pig named Clarence Thomas. The entourage is funny in itself! 

All the while, Ramona reminisces on the days when life was like a Prince song. Sexy, creative and joyful. None of This Would Have Happened If Prince Were Alive is the perfect example of how women wear many hats, push their personal problems to the side and be the caretaker for all.

"Or do I let the storm awaken my dormant powers like Prince at the Super Bowl, so I rise up, tear off this flimsy costume made up of people I think I should be, to become myself?" ~ 81%

Cute hilarious concept along the lines of Maria Semple or Jennifer Weiner. The author made great use of incorporating Prince references at the appropriate time. However, without this element it would have been meh. Hence the "it was okay" rating. It is great marketing though because the purple cover and title is what caught my attention!

Happy Early Pub Day, Carolyn Prusa! None of This Would Have Happened If Prince Were Alive will be available Tuesday, November 8.

Disclaimer: An advance copy was received directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins.

Title: None of This Would Have Happened If Prince Were Alive
Author: Carolyn Prusa
Published: November 2022
Pages: 336
Edition: Galley
Genre: Chick Lit
Rating: 🖤 🖤

August 14, 2022

Series Sunday: To Catch a Raven

(Women Who Dare #3) 


Series Sunday is a bookish meme hosted by Literary Marie. I encourage all of my fellow book bloggers and bookhearts to play along.
  • Read an installment of a series.
  • Share your review/recommendation below.
  • Include the title, author and series name.

My Series Sunday pick is To Catch a Raven, the final book in the Women Who Dare trilogy by Beverly Jenkins. Raven Moreaux is a self-proclaimed proud grifter. She comes from a long line of liars, cheaters, thieves and conmen. She's a little too good at what she does; her crafty work acknowledged by the government. So much so that Raven is hired and forced to do a job.

Raven is tasked with going undercover to recover one of the original copies of the Declaration of Independence stolen by a former Confederate official. She poses as the housekeeper while the oh so handsome Braxton Steel is her husband, working as the driver. They both hold their families fate in their success of completing this job while also fighting to protect their hearts and opposite ways of life.

"Love me like he loves breathing." ~ 42%

Let's be clear...Ms. Bev never disappoints! She shows up and shows out. I know when I get my grateful hands on an advance copy of a Beverly Jenkins release, that I will be in bliss reading for a couple days, preoccupied with the romantic storyline, taking notes and googling historical references (such as The Mississippi Plan, yellow fever, Black soldiers of the Massachusetts 54th, etc.) and ending with the notion that love happens when you least expect it.

I have thoroughly enjoyed this Women Who Dare series. It features fierce independent women in circumstances that seem impossible to survive. To Catch a Raven is no exception and sadly concludes this trilogy with a pang of passion. Braxton and Raven fell into a deep steamy romance but the development of their relationship along with a side of suspense was the real treat.

"Her sarcasm rivaled her beauty."
 ~ 11%

Even if romance is not your thing but history and a good plot is your jam, then I highly recommend reading To Catch a Raven. Go ahead and add to your reading lists and pre-order now.

Happy Early Pub Day, Ms. Beverly Jenkins! To Catch a Raven will be available Tuesday, August 23.

Disclaimer: An advance copy was received directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins.

Author: Beverly Jenkins
Published: August 2022
Pages: 304
Edition: Galley
Genre: Historical Romance
Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤 🖤

August 12, 2022

First Lines Friday


First Lines Friday is a bookish meme hosted by Literary Marie. I encourage all of my fellow book bloggers and bookhearts to play along.
  • Grab your current read(s).
  • Share the first line(s).
  • Include the title and author.

"Victoria's world shook for the first time on the day Caitlin Somers sashayed up to her desk, plunked herself down on the edge, and said, 'Vix...' It came out sounding like the name of a beautiful flower, velvety and smooth, not like a decongestant."

~ Summer Sisters by Judy Blume 

August 10, 2022

Mad Honey


"Better to have a boy, who would never be someone's victim." ~ 1%

Olivia McAfee had a picture-perfect life in Boston, married to a cardiothoracic surgeon and raising a son, Asher. Until her husband revealed a darker side. Now she is back in her New Hampshire hometown, living in the house she grew up in, taking over her father's beekeeping business.

Lily knows about starting over too. She relocated to New Hampshire with her mom for the final year of high school. You can imagine what comes next: Asher falls for the new girl. Him and Lily fall for each other hard.

Then Olivia receives a frightening phone call: Lily is dead and Asher is being questioned by the police. He is the main suspect having found Olivia's body with fingerprints in places he claims to have never been. Olivia is adamant that her son is innocent but she cannot deny the flashes of his father's temper in him. The case against Asher unfolds to a shocking revelation.

"This has always been my favorite fact about bees: in their world, destiny is fluid. You might start life as a worker, and end up a queen." ~ 94%

Bookhearts, can you hear my heart strings tugging a little bit? Can you see my mind interpreting the words within this soon-to-be bestseller? Listen. Whatever Jodi Picoults puts her pen to is sure to be a good read. I really like the dynamic between her and new-to-me author Jennifer Finney Boylan. I could not tell when one or the other was writing. It flowed. It meshed. It riveted. And most of all, it is a moving story of what is secret and what is private...because there is a difference!

I recommend Mad Honey for my chick lit with substance Bookhearts. The readers that enjoy a good suspenseful unforgettable love story with a dose of the justice system. Take your time reading this one too! I spent five (5) days with it to let each chapter soak in. Upon turning the last page, I thought, "Whew, imagine!"

Happy Early Pub Day, Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan! Mad Honey will be available Tuesday, October 4.

Disclaimer: An advance copy was received directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins.

Title: Mad Honey
Author: Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan
Published: October 2022
Pages: 464
Edition: Galley
Genre: Chick Lit
Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤

August 9, 2022

Sister Friends Forever


"So maybe it's time for you to become more prayerful about it."
 
~ 13%

Four best friends, aged forty, have known each other since they were little girls. They meet for lunch on the first Saturday of every month, but their lives are oh so different. Serena was single, Michelle was engaged, Kenya was married and Lynette was divorced. But they all had established careers or owned businesses, shared Christian values and supported one another whether it was praying together or burning a man's clothes.

Sound familiar, right? Yeah, it sounds way too familiar to me too. Sister Friends Forever is the 2022 lackluster version of a certain Black woman classic novel turned movie. But it tried to steer its own course. I lost focus early on because of the alternating narrators. When there are too many, it is very distracting. To follow the story closely and hold my attention, I had to skip around chapters and read out-of-order. Yet still I was left meh.

"One of the most important things women can do is support other women." ~ 38%

I loved Kimberla Lawson Roby's famous Reverend Curtis Black series and previous standalone novels. My hopes were up for a page-turning comeback novel. I know Roby is a great writer but this missed the mark. However, it may fancy your reading tastes so read the synopsis and give it a try.

Happy Pub Day, Kimberla Lawson Roby! Sister Friends Forever is now available.

Disclaimer: An advance copy was received directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins.

Title: Sister Friends Forever
Author: Kimberla Lawson Roby
Published: August 2022
Pages: 336
Edition: Galley
Genre: Chick Lit 
Rating: 🖤 🖤

August 7, 2022

Series Sunday: 22 Seconds

(Women's Murder Club #22) 


Series Sunday is a bookish meme hosted by Literary Marie. I encourage all of my fellow book bloggers and bookhearts to play along.
  • Read an installment of a series.
  • Share your review/recommendation below.
  • Include the title, author and series name.

My Series Sunday pick is 22 Seconds, the 22nd book in the Women's Murder Club series by James Patterson & Maxine Paetro. Drugs and weapons are crossing the Mexican border. Sergeant Lindsey Boxer gets a tip from an informant that sets her into action. Add in former cops, professional hits and threatening messages and 22 Seconds has all the makings of a good mystery...or so I thought.

"Pathetic. Awful. Beyond awful." ~ pg. 116

Very few series can last this long and have a page to stand on. To create four (4) strong female characters, show their growth and continue a series that readers literally all over the world anticipate and remain fans. I am sure it is challenging for the co-authors to keep a mystery interesting over time. Yet the quote above sums up my feelings perfectly. 22 Seconds is awful. The only reason I finished is for the "Keeping Up with Patterson" reading challenge. Otherwise, I would have quit very early on. 

Title: 22 Seconds
Author: James Patterson & Maxine Paetro
Published: May 2022
Pages: 383
Edition: eBook
Challenge: Keeping Up with Patterson
Rating: 🖤 

August 5, 2022

First Lines Friday


First Lines Friday is a bookish meme hosted by Literary Marie. I encourage all of my fellow book bloggers and bookhearts to play along.
  • Grab your current read(s).
  • Share the first line(s).
  • Include the title and author.

"My granddaddy is the only black man I've ever met who was never broke a day in his life."

~ Rabbit by Patricia Williams with Jeannine Amber

August 3, 2022

Rules of Engagement


"Trust was the currency of fools in their world, and he'd gambled on her and lost." ~ 90%

Dr. Raleigh Foster is an operative for a top-secret intelligence organization. Undercover work has its risks though she does not hesitate when asked to infiltrate a terrorist group that has stolen lethal technology. The hard part of the assignment is her partner—Adam Grayson, posed as her lover. Adam blames himself for the botched mission that killed his best friend. But he believes that Raleigh also contributed to the death. Nevertheless, his feelings of suspicion and hate turn to trust and desire.

Perhaps I was too excited to read another Stacey Abrams writing as Selena Montgomery novel. Maybe my expectations were too high. I was tempted to DNF at least three times but held on to the hope it would becomes less confusing and finally flow. There are too many characters. The espionage plot is over my head. The objective is hard to follow. The only thing I clearly understood were the clearly stated rules of engagement...I think. A book is just not enjoyable when I am totally lost. It can very well be my own lack of following so please read an excerpt or other reviews first.

Happy Early Re-Pub Day, Stacey Abrams! Rules of Engagement will be available Tuesday, September 6.

Disclaimer: An advance copy was received directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins.

Title: Rules of Engagement
Author: Stacey Abrams writing as Selena Montgomery
Published: September 2022
Pages: 336
Edition: Galley
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Rating: 🖤 

August 2, 2022

All the Lonely People


"Me just want to be left alone." ~ 83%

Widower Hubert Bird talks to his daughter in Australia every week on the phone. He paints a picture of perfect retirement. But almost every word on those weekly phone calls to his daughter are lies. There is no trio of close friends and fun outings. Their extensive backstories are made up. The truth is he's lonely. He doesn't see a single soul and barely leaves the house. Cue the tears! 

Then when his daughter announces a visit, oh goodness grab your tissues because this will get emotional (and funny at appropriate times). Now Hubert faces a huge task: step outside, make friends and live the life he's pretended to have for so long.

"He'd made a rod for his own back with those lies and now they were taking the opportunity to beat him black and blue." ~ 10%

Is this a story about all the lonely people like the titles states? Yes indeed! The cast of characters and raw feelings hit me in the gut. I took a liking to this bunch and especially to young Hubert and his bride over the years raising their family. Many themes are explored but the focus stays on the commonality of loneliness, loss and finding friendship.

Through the language and "me" instead of "I" said by Hubert, I could pick up on the diction of a Jamaican man without slowing down my reading flow. The author does an excellent job of showing England as Hubert's home while representing his roots.

"...lonely alone." ~ 50%

ALL IN MY FEELINGS, FEELINGS! Mike Gayle strung words together in such a way that it touched my heart of stone. Each chapter blended present day with the past. It showed excellent character development and a family saga that brings tears, joy, empathy and fullness.

All the Lonely People is a gem that was hidden in my Kindle until I was granted an advance copy of the re-pub. Truly one of my favorite books read this year. If you have not yet read this treasure, add to your reading list then go hug somebody. As Mike Gayle perfectly states, it is the story of how someone's life fills and then empties again.

Happy (Re)Pub Day, Mike Gayle! All the Lonely People is now available.

Disclaimer: An advance copy was received directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins.

Title: All the Lonely People
Author: Mike Gayle
Published: August 2022
Pages: 400
Edition: Galley
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤 🖤 🖤