It’s amazing how things work out. If you’ve been around here before, you might know that I like participating in Middle Grade March and focusing extra attention on that genre in March (here’s what I’m reading this year).
The blessing that I didn’t see coming is the timing of this reading plan. Things have been crazy and extra stressful around here for the last few weeks, which makes these fun, low-stakes stories a perfect fit when I need to relax. I’ve started using Jon Acuff’s soundtrack ‘Everything is always going my way’ and this is just another example of that truth!
Whether you participate in Middle Grade March or not, I think you’ll still find some variety on my list today since I haven’t entirely set aside grownup books this month. I still need to get my rom-coms in (another great de-stressing genre!) so there are a few of those, plus some suspense novels too.
Happy reading!
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Just Finished:
The third in the Pelican Harbor series, this book follows Chief Jane Hardy as she investigates the false accusations that have landed her teenage son in prison, and the three days she can’t remember that might hold the biggest clue to who set him up.
It’s an excellent conclusion to the series that includes some elements of romance and a wrap-up that feels satisfying. I will say I think this book would be best enjoyed after having read the other two. You could read it as a stand-alone, but I think the plot points that start in the first book and continue on make this one more enjoyable as a set.
Who doesn’t love a good modern-day fairytale? This is the story of an arranged marriage gone wrong, and the choices Serafina must make for herself and her kingdom. As the legal deadline for her to take a husband and claim the throne looms ever nearer, she has to evaluate how she really feels about Callum, her childhood friend and resistant intended, and Rafe, a duke with a reputation as a rogue who might have more beneath the surface than the media portrays.
This is a sweet rom-com, so not too much spice and there are plenty of humorous scenes to keep you chuckling.
I would classify this book as a historical rom-com. Flora comes to New Orleans with her family with the express purpose of winning Teddy Day’s heart, but this is easier said than done. Between the parade of other socialites with similar intentions and Teddy’s insecurities after being jilted twice, Flora has her work cut out for her. From misunderstandings to pirate plays and social functions gone awry, this story is fast-paced and fun.
In Progress:
Owen is astounded and elated when he sees classmate Bethany climbing out of a book. He always knew there was more to this boring life! Bethany is half-fictional and has secretly been searching books for her father for years. Owen agrees to keep her secret if Bethany takes Owen into his favorite book, but things go awry when he breaks the cardinal rule of book jumping — don’t change the story! Now her secret, Owen, and his favorite book series are all in peril.
When the police find explosives in Dustin’s trunk, he reaches out to Jamie, his childhood friend and now an attorney. Jamie believes Dustin when he says he’s been framed, but with the evidence in his trunk connecting him to a recent bombing that killed dozens, it’s going to be an uphill battle to prove his innocence. Together they must uncover who set Dustin up and why before his life and Jamie’s career are both destroyed.
Just when Amari thinks she’s finding her place in the supernatural world as a Junior Agent, she is uninvited from summer camp in the wake of a magical event that has the supernatural community even more suspicious of magicians like her than usual.When the League of Magicians offers her a chance to join them as a leader, she turns them down for fear of making things worse. But this leads to someone else accepting the role — someone with a dangerous agenda.
I’ve heard this series described as Artemis Fowl meets Men in Black and I think that’s a pretty apt description. I really enjoyed the first book, Amari and the Night Brothers, so I’ve had this book on my list ever since I finished that one. At the time, this one hadn’t been released yet, so I had to wait a while but now I’m diving right in!
Up Next:
The Happy Life of Isadora Bentley
I just got a NetGalley copy of this book that releases on June 13th and I am super pumped! I love Courtney Walsh books (My Phony Valentine is the most recent example; five stars, highly recommend) so I can’t wait to start this one. I’m including the publisher description here:
Isadora Bentley follows the rules. Isadora Bentley likes things just so. Isadora Bentley believes that happiness is something that flat-out doesn’t exist in her life—and never will.
As a university researcher, Isadora keeps to herself as much as possible. She avoids the students she’s supposed to befriend and mentor. She stays away from her neighbors and lives her own quiet, organized life in her own quiet, organized apartment. And she will never get involved in a romantic relationship again—especially with another academic. It will be just Isadora and her research. Forever.
But on her thirtieth birthday, Isadora does something completely out of character. The young woman who never does anything “on a whim” makes an impulse purchase of a magazine featuring a silly article detailing “Thirty-One Ways to Be Happy”—which includes everything from smiling at strangers to exercising for endorphins to giving in to your chocolate cravings. Isadora decides to create her own secret research project—proving the writer of the ridiculous piece wrong.
As Isadora gets deeper into her research—and meets a handsome professor along the way—she’s stunned to discover that maybe, just maybe, she’s proving herself wrong. Perhaps there’s actually something to this happiness concept, and possibly there’s something to be said for loosening up and letting life take you somewhere . . . happy.
Apparently I’m in the mood for stories about people who are innocent being accused of something because this is the third book on this list that follows that theme. This is about a boy named Coop is intent on clearing his grandfather’s name when a skeleton is discovered underneath a playground and Gramps takes the blame. Reviews say this book is funny with some surprising twists, so I’m looking forward to it. It’s also on my ten-year-old’s TBR, so hopefully we can talk about it when we both finish!
I’ve actually already read this book several years ago, so this will be a reread for me for a book club. I remember this being a fun romance with lots of food references, so I’m prepared to be inspired to bake things as I read. The basic premise is that a pastry chef and a pilot hit it off, but then there are challenges that make them think they might not be able to make their relationship work. Spoiler alert: They make it work.
Don’t forget to check out Modern Mrs. Darcy’s quick lit post for even more book talk!