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The Consequences, by Manuel Munoz: Two Mugs

I liked the insight on immigrant stories in the Central Valley of California, but was reminded that I’m not a huge fan of short stories. These end up being interconnected to some degrees, but it’s not clear until pretty far into the book, and then I had to think back to put the pieces together. And they were loose connections, which was neat, to an extent. As someone who grew up looking white in a Hispanic family, and then marrying into a white family, I love reading stories that take me back, culturally speaking. It taps into a sense of melancholy, I think.

The Ex-Mas Holidays, by Zoe Allison (ARC, publication date: September 26, 2023): Three Mugs + a Jalapeno

This was the first Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) I read, so that, in itself, is pretty exciting. Being able to read something before it’s published, and for FREE! I do imagine there’s a fine line between giving a good review because it’s been given for free, and not wanting to loose credibility by giving amazing reviews to everything you read. I’m glad that’s not a line I’ve had to walk, yet. I loved this book for what it is: a wonderful holiday romance book. A very, VERY spicey wonderful holiday romance book, haha. Like most romance books I’ve been reading lately, this one leaned heavily on the miscommunication trope, so fair warning there.

One True Loves, by Taylor Jenkins Reid: Three Mugs

I really enjoyed this book, and think it would be great for book club discussions. There are definitely sides to be taken, and I was happy with the outcome at the end of this book. I loved the exploration of we, as humans, being different people at different points in our lives: we are not static, and our relationships may or may not evolve with us.

The Wake Up Call, by Beth O’Leary (ARC, publication date: September 26, 2023): Three Mugs

This was another pleasant Christmas holiday romance read, but it felt a little like the holiday references were thrown in just to make it a Christmas romance book rather than simply a romance book. And another romance book with a miscommunication trope. I enjoyed the point of views from each character, as well as the Brazilian and Portuguese angles.

Favorite quote: If you want something as passionately as you clearly want this, that means you owe it to yourself to make it happen.

All The Ways We Lied, by Aida Zilelian (ARC, publication date: January 9, 2024): Three Mugs

I’m quickly realizing that family-centered novels are my sweet spot. And this one was great. I loved the exposure to Armenian family dynamics and food and culture (the cover art is a beautiful depiction of this), and the complicated relationships that make up a family. I loved the juxtaposition of the relationship between the children and their biological father versus their step-father (blood isn’t always thicker than water, metaphorically speaking). I also loved how each of the characters had to work through their issues, or chose not to. The mother’s relationship with each of her daughters revolves around very toxic traits, and it was interesting to read how each daughter was affected differently by their relationship with their mother.

Kohar realized that it had been Gabriel who had kept them all together. Because he himself was a whole person.

The Summer Place, by Jennifer Weiner: Three Mugs

Another family novel that I inhaled. This one centered around a home in Cape Cod, and now I really want to spend a summer…on the Cape….is that how you say it? In the Cape? Either way…it sounds pretty great. This novel follows all the extended members of a family, from their own points-of-view, as they each deal with some pretty big life events. I had lots of thoughts on this book, so bear with me.

I thought the topic of infidelity was discussed quite beautifully, if you’ll allow me to say so. It explored not so much how the other partner would judge or feel, but how the person committing it deals with the aftermath, which I don’t think is often acknowledged in our society. I realize this is a very black and white issue for most people, and most likely not a popular take on infidelity, but I enjoyed reading it.

Staying married, she’d decided, was a choice; one that had less to do with love and more with forbearance. You recommitted yourself to your spouse every time you overlooked a pair of sweat-soaked boxer shorts in the corner of the bathroom; every time you swept, without comment, toenail clippings from the bedroom floor; every time you’d pick a different coffee shop after finding yourself buoyant and flushed and a little too eater to see that one barista with tattoo sleeves and the large, capable looking hands.

I also think this is the first post-COVID book that included it in a way I didn’t find annoying. Instead, it simply stated our collective experiences:

They were all trying to do too much, for too many people, in too little space, trying to manage their jobs and their kids’ schooling, the meals and the housework and their working-from-home partners or spouses while they clung to sanity with their fingernails.

One of the characters has serious doubts about the choices they made with their life, and I loved their conclusion:

Maybe you couldn’t get the life you wanted, but you could have a life you wanted.

It reminded me a little of The Midnight Library, which I also loved. You might be able to take so many different paths in life, that would lead you to completely different lives, but it’s very likely you’d still want the one you have.

Finally, the different perspectives from the daughter and the mother on how they remembered the daughter’s childhood summer’s on the Cape reminded me of a couple books I read a while back that made me realize there may be no such thing as perfect parenting. The mother thought she was giving her daughter these amazing summers, but the daughter still had resentment towards the mother because of how she remembered these summers (her mom working too much). That is also a topic that hit home: how two people can have very different interpretations of the past. I’ve experienced this myself and realized early on that I would never really know what the “truth” was: each person was remembering their interpretation of the past. And I think to an extent, they’re both right.

Oh, one more thing! There’s a character that makes a brief appearance that I recognized from another book, and realized I’d read another book by this author. I then had to think back to that book to figure out how these characters fit into THAT book (which I still can’t quite remember). I LOVE when characters intersect different books.

Who We Are Now, by Lauryn Chamberlain (ARC, publication date: August 8, 2023): Three Mugs

I really enjoyed following the four characters in this book as they navigated life after college graduation and the first couple decades of adulthood. I loved seeing how friendships change over time, which is so accurate: people change and evolve over time, and not all friendships can survive that. And maybe they’re not all meant to?

La Vie, According to Rosie, by Lauren Parvizi (Amazon First Reads): Two Mugs

This was an Amazon First Reads free book for me, and it was an enjoyable read. If you have Amazon Prime, every month you get to pick one free book from books that will be published soon.

This book was cute enough, but did feel very self-helpy – the main character had to work a lot on her self-worth. I enjoy reading that to an extent, because we all have flaws and what not, but I felt like it was a little over done. I also saw the ending coming a mile away, haha.

I’ve mentioned before how I love when books I’m reading around the same time have themes in common. In this case, one of the characters in Who We Are Now had a big theme in common with Rosie: they were both from immigrant families and felt a lot of pressure to live up to certain expectations from their parents. Actually, so did All the Way we Lied, so it was a pretty prevalent theme this month. I was so intrigued to see this portrayed in three totally different books, and I really REALLY hope I never put that kind of pressure on my own children.

Did not finish – One Mug

  • The French Art of Living Well, by Kathy Yandell (audio book). I was expecting something different from this book, but really just picked it up because it was an “available now” audiobook on Libby.
  • The Hurting Kind, by Ada Limon (audio book). I’ve been wanting to explore some poetry, but maybe audiobook isn’t the way for me to explore it: the narrating was so dramatic, it felt super cheesy to me.
  • Good Morning, Monster, by Catherine Gildiner. This was our Literate Lushes pick for the month. It provided some really great discussion topics at book club, but I jus wasn’t feeling it when I was reading it and I’m trying to be better at not forcing myself to finish a book just to finish it.

What have been your favorite reads lately?

If you’re looking for your next read, here are some of my TBR lists:

You can also follow me along on Instagram for regular posts on what I’m reading (@alexs.reading.nook)

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