literarilytrisha

[literarilytrisha]

the spanish love deception, elena armas

“You feel complete in my arms. You feel like my home.”

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[literarilytrisha]

yo bro, who got you smiling like that?

me:

-Aaron Blackford

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[literarilytrisha]

My Rating:  2/5 ⭐ Genre(s): romance, contemporary Published: February 23rd 2021 by Elena Armas Content Warnings: sexism Quick Reaction: 👀🩹🤏😮🙄

Description:

Catalina Martín desperately needs a date to her sister’s wedding. Especially since her little white lie about her American boyfriend has spiralled out of control. Now everyone she knows—including her ex and his fiancée—will be there and eager to meet him. She only has four weeks to find someone willing to cross the Atlantic and aid in her deception. New York to Spain is no short flight and her raucous family won’t be easy to fool. Enter Aaron Blackford—her tall, handsome, condescending colleague—who surprisingly offers to step in. She’d rather refuse; never has there been a more aggravating, blood-boiling, and insufferable man. But Catalina is desperate, and as the wedding draws nearer, Aaron looks like her best option. And she begins to realize he might not be as terrible in the real world as he is at the office.

My Thoughts:  ** OUTLIER ALERT! ** ♡ 2 stars. Hi. It's me, I'm the problem it's me. Let me start out with saying, I AM SO MAD AND FRUSTRATED at every booktok and just anyone who told me to read this book. Tiktok and instagram lied to me. They lied so BADLY TO ME. But I should be used to this by now when I don't tend to like a lot of the hyped up books. The Love Hypothesis being a grand exception to this rule since I ate that book up. Moving along. Here is what I was promised: work place romance enemies to lovers tension and slow burn banter and cuteness book boyfriend material addition Please, tell me where any of this was because I seem to have read a completely different book from the majority. This was in no way enemies to lovers and I wish I knew this going in. Maybe I would have had a different reading experience but we will never know now. This is pining and oblivious at best. From page one, we are able to tell he is super into her and she just doesn't get it. Not only does she not get it but she is MEAN. Like she is rude as heck and for absolutely no reason. Okay, no, I take that back. They didn't have the best first interaction but at what point do you LET. IT. GO. Lina is by far one of the least likeable protagonist I have read. She is rude as I said above, unprofessional, childish and whiny. Being stuck in her pov was not a fun experience and half of this book could have been trimmed down if we cut out some of her whine. I should have dnfed this at the first chapter, which read awkward and almost uncomfortable. I didn't get any chemistry whatsoever and where was my build up. Where was the tension! There were a few cute moments I will give the book this. The soccer scene was kind of cute. I actually really enjoyed her family and would have LOVED to read the book from her sister's prospective. I found her sister more compelling and interesting. Heck, even her cousin would have made for a more entertaining book. Let's get to this supposed book boyfriend material. Again, where is this and what am I missing. Lina thinks they are enemies and loathe each other so this man knowing everything about her is downright creepy. It reads stalkerish and it is not AWWW worthy. How she realizes wow he was just always around listening to what I had to say! Just no. Absolutely not. He touches her multiple times when she still thinks they hate each other without consent. Red flags all over the place here. It takes nearly 50% of the book to get them to the wedding and for Lina to accept his offer. I was internally screaming the entire time. Things improved some I admit when they got to Spain and the family entered the picture. As I said, I enjoyed the family and their dynamics were saving some of the chapters for me. The actual romance was eh at best for me. I didn't get the chemistry or the vibes I wanted. This was being compared to The Hating Game and just no. It's not in the same category at all and maybe this is what I expected too much of and why I was let down so badly. However, I DID enjoy the epilogue and started to see a little bit of a spark FINALLY. It just came way too late and still not the best pay off for the whole length of the rest of the book. As for the writing, I didn't mind it but being in Lina's pov was a no from me. I would have preferred it being in any other pov. It was a bit too bloated and so much of this could have been cut down and there is no way it needed to be this long. If this had been a thriller, it might have been more interesting to me. But I guess if the stalker angle was leaned into, it would have become more like You. It would have added some spice, though. All in all, this is one of my least favorite romances I have ever read and I am so upset by it. I read so many thrillers last month, I wanted something fun and swoon worthy to read to like cleanse myself. Instead I have knocked myself into a reading slump and it took everything I had to want to read and finish this. Don't be like me, if you're not enjoying this book just dnf it. It doesn't get better. For those who love this book and see this differently, I am so happy for you! I am so glad you enjoyed it and I really wish I could have. But this is another in the section of hype has let me down category.

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[literarilytrisha]

There was this one weekend, a million summers ago, when I sat on the shore drinking a frozen limeade, and I realized the only thing I wanted to look at was the way the sun hit the girls swimming in the lake. The problem has always been this: When I look at you, I taste lime, and I see light on water.

-i kissed shara wheeler

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[literarilytrisha]

Kissed and ditched by Shara Wheeler 💋💌

+ bonus Shara:

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[literarilytrisha]

Today’s ship dynamic: supervillain who works as a bounty hunter for other villains to fund their scenes x cocky, devilishly attractive hero who wants to catch the supervillain themselves [and thinks the supervillain is super-cute]

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[literarilytrisha]

When new planets are introduced to the galactic community, there is typically a rush from the elite to procure expensive and rare pets, which are promptly discarded after a few months. This is normally no problem, until Earth was discovered and the universe learned about invasive species.

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[literarilytrisha]

Focus more on your desire than on your doubt, and the dream will take care of itself.

Mark Twain (via writingdotcoffee)

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[literarilytrisha]

My Rating: 4/5 ⭐ Genre(s): ya, contemporary, romance Published: May 3, 2022 by St. Martin's Press Content Warnings:  homophobia, bullying, racism Quick Reaction:  📝👀🌊💞🥺 

Description:

Chloe Green is so close to winning. After her moms moved her from SoCal to Alabama for high school, she’s spent the past four years dodging gossipy classmates and a puritanical administration at Willowgrove Christian Academy. The thing that’s kept her going: winning valedictorian. Her only rival: prom queen Shara Wheeler, the principal’s perfect progeny. But a month before graduation, Shara kisses Chloe and vanishes. On a furious hunt for answers, Chloe discovers she’s not the only one Shara kissed. There’s also Smith, Shara’s longtime quarterback sweetheart, and Rory, Shara’s bad boy neighbor with a crush. The three have nothing in common except Shara and the annoyingly cryptic notes she left behind, but together they must untangle Shara’s trail of clues and find her. It’ll be worth it, if Chloe can drag Shara back before graduation to beat her fair-and-square. Thrown into an unlikely alliance, chasing a ghost through parties, break-ins, puzzles, and secrets revealed on monogrammed stationery, Chloe starts to suspect there might be more to this small town than she thought. And maybe—probably not, but maybe—more to Shara, too. Fierce, funny, and frank, Casey McQuiston's I Kissed Shara Wheeler is about breaking the rules, getting messy, and finding love in unexpected places. 

My Thoughts:

      “She feels like spine of a book about to crack and spill out all the love story guts.”  

Isn't it just the worst when your moms move you from a progressive state to one far more conservative? This is the complicated status for one Chloe Green who goes from sunny SoCal to Alabama for high school. For the past four years she has somehow survived the hollow halls of Willowgrove Christian Academy and she's so close to victory she can taste it.

What makes it even better? Beating her arch-nemesis and beautiful prom queen, Shara Wheeler. The two have competed academically for years but Chloe knows this time she's going to be the ultimate victor.

With a month towards graduation, Chloe can taste the sweet victory until Shara kisses her and vanishes. Who even does such a thing? She soon discovers Shara kissed two others the same night - her boyfriend, Smith and then another boy named Rory. What does it mean and more importantly why?

Shara - why did you have to go and make things so complicated?

Unable to just brush it off, Chloe decides to hunt down Shara and demand the answers. The three form an alliance but along the way they learn more than a few things about themselves. Some of which will change things forever but that's what growing up is all about. Sometimes you unlock who you really are and other times you do a kiss and run.

All's fair in love and war they say and this time it's really going to be a battle royale. Shara may have started the puzzle but Chloe is not only going to solve it, she's going to destroy it.

      “What do you say when The Girl tells you that you're The Girl to her?”  

Before I say anything else, I must fully gush about Casey McQuiston's writing and how much I love the banter. I can't even say how many times I end up squealing or awwing but it's very, very often. Who can blame me at all? The other thing I have to highlight is just how memorable McQuiston makes their characters and how they really do become larger than life.

What didn't I enjoy then? Given I gave this four stars rather than a five. Two main things and one of them is an issue I had with One Last Stop as well.

1. I was letdown by Shara when she finally came into the picture because there was so much built up about her. She was more lackluster than the other characters who were really sparkling. I also didn't love the romance between Shara and Chloe. It seemed rivals to lovers but it just really didn't fit well into the category for me. Since there was a lot of obsession on both sides even from the start. Likewise, Chloe is a very difficult character to like but I started to come around to her towards the end of the book. The very same with Shara. I didn't love her as a character but appreciated her a bit more towards the end of the book.

For me, my investment was much more with Georgia, Rory and Smith. The friendships and found family vibes really are top tier and what won me over. I loved how flawed, messy and real all of it is. Growing up in a small town is so difficult, especially when you're trying to skip around to your own beat and having those who get it is vital. It's really everything and this book shows it in spades.

2. The tone of the novel is a little off and this is the issue I had with One Last Stop, Both books were trying to be two different things meshing together and it just didn't gel for me.

I Kissed Shara Wheeler is a ya contemporary but also a mystery. I saw comparisons to Gone Girl and similar things, which did not really work? The mystery is very, very light and not really what the book is in my opinion. This might be one reason I was disappointed! This really is more of a coming of age queer ya contemporary. Having the right mindset when going into the book makes it more enjoyable!

The signature lovable style and distinct characters still won me over, however. I will always read anything Casey McQuiston puts out because I really do enjoy their books. The writing style just works so well for me and I am a say yes to witty banter.

What really works for me most of all, though, is the hopefulness throughout the book and the obvious beating heart of positivity and acceptance. It's a radiating warmth I just want to curl up in. A sort of sunshine we all need to cascade down on us.

      “I have done some of the best work of my life because of you. And I know you have done some of the best work of your life because of me. I don’t know a better way to explain what love means to two people like us.”  

I Kissed Shara Wheeler is a queer coming of age story tackling all kinds of issues, including identity crises and questioning sexuality. It's a safe haven for those who usually feel invisible to be heard. It's for the ones who want to find themselves in pages and linger in the breaths before the sighs. It's a book I would recommend!

p.s. I noticed the faberry comparisons and, yes, I can see it.

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[literarilytrisha]

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[literarilytrisha]

“They weren’t bad books… They were books that you didn’t enjoy. It’s not the same thing at all. The only bad books are books that are so badly written that no one will publish them. Any book that has been published is going to be a ‘good book’ for someone”.

Lisa Jewell, The Family Upstairs (via chasingpagesquotes)

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[literarilytrisha]

books I’ve read in 2022 📖 no. 074

The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell

“I know it sounds like it was all just a terrible disaster. Of course it does. Any situation involving four dead bodies is clearly far from ideal.”

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[literarilytrisha]

My Rating: 4/5 ⭐ Genre(s): thriller/mystery Published: November 5, 2019 by Atria Books Content Warnings: murder, violence, disturbing imagery, consent issues, cults

Quick Reaction: 👀🐶😮🍷📝

Description:

Soon after her twenty-fifth birthday, Libby Jones returns home from work to find the letter she’s been waiting for her entire life. She rips it open with one driving thought: I am finally going to know who I am.

She soon learns not only the identity of her birth parents, but also that she is the sole inheritor of their abandoned mansion on the banks of the Thames in London’s fashionable Chelsea neighborhood, worth millions. Everything in Libby’s life is about to change. But what she can’t possibly know is that others have been waiting for this day as well—and she is on a collision course to meet them.

Twenty-five years ago, police were called to 16 Cheyne Walk with reports of a baby crying. When they arrived, they found a healthy ten-month-old happily cooing in her crib in the bedroom. Downstairs in the kitchen lay three dead bodies, all dressed in black, next to a hastily scrawled note. And the four other children reported to live at Cheyne Walk were gone.

The can’t-look-away story of three entangled families living in a house with the darkest of secrets.

My Thoughts:

 “I’m really sorry I can’t pay you back,” I said. He shook his head. “My father’s going to take everything you own and then break your life. It’s the least I can bloody do.”  

Well, this certainly plunged all the way into mayhem and darkness. I can't even begin to describe how unsettling and taboo this book is and how it just drips with darkness. It pulled me right in from page one and I couldn't stop reading, needing to know what would happen and how everything would be resolved. It was so difficult to focus on other things when I couldn't be reading! The secrets were plenty and the narrators were very unreliable, especially one of them. Only offering the tiniest bits of information until everything imploded all around them. The eerie gothic feel added to the tension and the mystery. It's overall highly atmospheric and incredibly messed up. I can't stress the latter enough and for those who aren't fond of VERY dark reads, I would skip this one.

The tale is told in three different points of view, which I will admit took me a few chapters to gel with but once I did I really loved it. The narrators uncover information little by little in both the present time period and the past. Some of what is revealed might be unreliable or it might be real. It takes reading further along to find out the truth and this is what hooked me most of all. I wanted to figure out what was actually happening!

I'm keeping this review vague because I think it's best to not know the details and to go in mostly unaware of the story details. It makes the twists and turns a little more GASP worthy. I can't say any of them shocked me too much but there were a few times I stopped reading to go WAIT. This is one of my favorite things about reading thrillers and mysteries.

What a story for my first book by Lisa Jewell and this certainly won't be the last. I loved how everything wasn't what it seemed and gave the reader a chance to piece some things together.

“They weren’t bad books,” Phin countered patiently. “They were books that you didn’t enjoy. It’s not the same thing at all. The only bad books are books that are so badly written that no one will publish them. Any book that has been published is going to be a ‘good book’ for someone.”    

The Family Upstairs is creepy, disturbing and with highly dysfunctional characters. It pushes at the limits and leaves readers winded from all that's revealed. The darkness surrounds but the worst of which is inside all of them. I would recommend this to all those who enjoy darkly engrossing reads that can make the skin crawl a little.

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[literarilytrisha]

Strolling aimlessly in a bookshop is self care

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[literarilytrisha]

Autumn weather and books are my favorite combination🤍

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[literarilytrisha]

I don't think I could ever stop writing completely.

permillion44

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[literarilytrisha]

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