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2023 - Week 32 - A book set in a UNESCO City of Literature | City - Melbourne

My Pick: The Soulmate - Sally Hepworth

Loved this book. The chapters are short making it a pretty quick read. The storyline is told from 2 people’s perspectives as wells as from the past and present. Mental health and how it can effect a person, marriage, and family is a key component and Hepworth nailed it.

My Rating: 5 out of 5

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2023 - Free Read

My Pick: Night Will Find You - Julia Heaberlin

I listened to this on a recent road trip. Heaberlin was able to keep me guessing and on the edge of my seat. Super quick read and a great story. Would recommend.

My Rating: 5 out of 5

#goodreads #goodreadschallenge #bookofthemonth #bookofthemonthclub #bookofthemonthaudiobook #audiobook #nightwillfindyou #juliaheaberlin

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2023 - Free Read

My Pick: Adelaide - Genevieve Wheeler

Ever live through a horrible, life changing breakup? Unfortunately, I’ve been there and done that. I related a lot to Adelaide. I’ve never been the same person since that breakup. However, it’s something that we go through and if the right support system is in place it’s something that helps us learn more about ourselves.

Here is to loving, heartbreak, and growth. Here is to Adelaide.

My Rating: 5 out of 5

#bookofthemonth #bookofthemonthclub #bookofthemonthaudiobook #goodreads #goodreadschallenge

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2023 - Free Read

My Pick: Darling Girl - Liz Michalski

I love a good retelling of the fairy tales I grew up reading and watching. A dark retelling always piques my interest. It’s a good reminder that there are always two sides to every story. Liz Michalski doesn’t disappoint with retelling of Peter Pan’s story.

My Rating: 4 out of 5

#bookofthemonth #bookofthemonthclub #darlinggirl #goodreads #goodreadschallenge #booksandcoffee #rainydayreads

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2023 - Free Read

My Pick: A Welcome Reunion - Lucinda Berry

This is what I get for not reading the description before diving in. However, my feelings for the characters in this book didn’t change.

My Rating: 3 out of 5

#goodreads #goodreadschallenge #shortstory

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2023 - Week 10 - A book related to one of the Spice Girls' "personalities" | Scary Spice 😱

My Pick: Ward D - Freida McFadden

As a mental health professional, I think it is important for readers to know that not everything in this book is depicted accurately. Working on inpatient psychiatric units for years I can tell you most of the incidences mentioned in this book are impossible to occur in real life on psychiatric units. It is also imperative for the readers to know that not everyone experiencing mental illness is dangerous. That is not saying there can't be dangerous people with mental health diagnoses. However, those like some of the characters described in this book make up a very small percentage of those with mental health diagnoses.

The depiction of Spider-Dan was spot on to the characteristics I've seen with some of my patients. He is a very lovable character and for me is totally worth reading this book (I should also mention I am a Spider-Man fan). To me his character illustrates that people with mental health diagnoses are more than their diagnoses. The author does a wonderful job of illustrating Spider-Dan's character as a person with a diagnosis (schizophrenia) who sees the world differently, but is still a person who is capable of caring for others.

This book wasn't as predictable as I thought it might be from reading the description. I also enjoyed the twists and turns throughout this read.

My Rating: 5 out of 5

#aroundtheyearin52books #aroundtheyearin52books2023 #goodreads #goodreadschallenge #thrillers #kindle #kindleunlimited #wardd #freidamcfadden

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2023 - Week 27 - A book by an author from continental Europe

My Pick: Palm Beach, Finland - Antti Tuomainen

I had high hopes for this book. The cover screamed “READ ME!!!” but something about it was hard to get into. Not sure if it had something to do with the book being translated to English but it didn’t grab my attention or make me want to go back and reread it. There were a few humorous parts but I felt they were few and far between.

My Rating: 2 out of 5

#aroundtheyearin52books #aroundtheyearin52books2023 #goodreads #goodreadschallenge #kindle

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2023 - Kindle Summer Challenge - Series Summer

My Pick: The Last Sister - Kendra Elliot

I enjoyed this book more than expected. There were some twists and turns that kept me interested. However, I don’t see myself dying to start the next in the series soon, but would put it on my TBR list. Mainly as I didn’t feel like there were any cliffhangers with this ending.

My Rating: 4 out of 5

#goodreads #goodreadschallenge #kindlesummerreadingchallenge #kindlesummerchallenge #kindlepaperwhite #kindleunlimited

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2023 - Week 6 - A book where books are important

My Pick: - The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires - Grady Hendrix

Being born a Southerner I loved this book and all it’s Southern references. The book club in this story is my kind of book club. Strong friendships that get pushed to their limits. True crime and spooky reads is the way to go.

“. . . Let me tell you something…there’s nothing nice about Southern ladies.”

My Rating: 5 out of 5

#aroundtheyearin52books #aroundtheyearin52books2023 #goodreadschallenge #goodreads #gradyhendrix #thesouthernbookclubsguidetoslayingvampires #kindle

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2023 - Free Read

My Husband’s Fiancée- Wendy Owens

Found this gem on Kindle Unlimited. It was a super quick read. Also, some people just deserve one another while others deserve better, I will let you decide. I will definitely be following up with the 2nd in the series, My Wife’s Secrets to see if what I am thinking is true.

My Rating: 5 out of 5

#goodreads #goodreadschallenge #thrillerbooks #thriller #myhusbandsfiancèe #kindle #kindleunlimited

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2023 - Week 18 - A book related to science

My Pick: Love on the Brain - Ali Hazelwood

Absolutely loved this book! If you’re a fan of The Love Hypothesis then Love on the Brain won’t disappoint. That saying both books are very similar but definitely have their differences. Needless to say Schrödinger was one of my favorite quirky parts of the book. There is so much to love about this book from nerdy Star Wars references to spice to cats.

My Rating: 5 out of 5

#aroundtheyearin52books #aroundtheyearin52books2023 #goodreads #goodreadschallenge #booksaboutscience #alihazelwood #loveonthebrain #bookofthemonth #bookofthemonthclub

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2024 - Free Read

Run on Red - Noelle W. Ihli

Ihli knows how to start off a thriller. From the first chapter you start off with an eerie feeling. The rest of the book you’re on the edge of your seat. The book isn’t as predictable as I thought it might be. Definitely recommend for this who love thrillers.

My Rating: 5 out of 5

#goodreads #goodreadschallenge #thrillerbooks #runonrednoellewihli #booksandcoffee

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2023 - Bookish Bingo Read - Paranormal

My Pick: The Coven - Harper L. Woods

This book started off slow and was hard to get into. However, once Woods got the story going I was hooked. There is a little something for those who love paranormal stories and spicy reads. I will definitely be looking forward to seeing where Woods brings us in the 2nd installment of this series.

My Rating: 5 out of 5

#goodreads #goodreadschallenge #bookishfirst #bingochallenge #paranormalreads #spicyreads

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2023 - free read

Scott Pilgrim 3 | Scott Pilgrim & the Infinite Sadness - Bryan Lee O’Malley

Loved this read. It really had me hating Todd so much more than in the movie. The backstory that you don’t get in the movie is also totally worth the read. O’Malley really gives the characters so much more depth than the movie did them justice.

My Rating: 5 out of 5

#goodreads #goodreadschallenge #graphicnovel #scottpilgrim

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2023 - Week 34 - A novella

My Pick: We Have Always Lived in a Castle - Shirley Jackson

I really wanted to like this book. However, I found it hard to follow. The ending helped wrap up things. It wasn’t a terrible story, but it also didn’t grab me in. I can’t say I would read again or recommend.

My Rating: 2 out of 5

#aroundtheyearin52books #aroundtheyearin52books2023 #goodreads #goodreadschallenge #novella

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2023 - Week 20 - A book with a cover or title that includes a route of travel

My Pick: A Fatal Affair - A.R. Torre

My only complaint about this book is it took so long to get into. Usually with Torre’s books I’m invested in the first chapter. I actually thought about adding this to my DNF list. However, several chapters in she finally got me and I was hooked on the story. You learn to love/hate/sympathize with the characters through the book.

My Rating: 4 out of 5

#aroundtheyearin52books #aroundtheyearin52books2023 #goodreads #goodreadschallenge #thriller #mystery #artorre #kindle #kindleunlimited

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2023 - Free Read

Are You Awake - Claire McGowan

This book was interesting. At times hard to follow. It didn’t grab me in like it’s description on Kindle Unlimited did. If you have ever struggled with insomnia it’s a very relatable book. Overall, not a bad read if your into crime novels and mystery.

My Rating: 3 out of 5

#kindleunlimited #goodreads #goodreadschallenge #areyouawake