Reading Update: Page 1

 

Last week was crazy busy for me, so taking this beautiful Tuesday to enjoy the sun, strawberries, and a contemporary romance 

🌞🍓📖❤️

Phoebe is living in Hollywood Hills and with romance already on her mind as a greeting cards copywriter, she's determined to play matchmaker for her sister's personal trainer Bel and neighbor Ren. 

Phoebe likes Bel and Bel has a huge crush on Ren, but he doesn't seem to be aware of her that way. When Phoebe steps in to try to help with some love letters, things go awry in sunny Los Angeles. 

Love Me Do by Lindsey Kelk preorder (Sept. 5th) link

Avocado Strawberry Spinach Salad recipe

I loved this one, so refreshing on a sunny late summer day

Review: Tastes Like Shakkar

Tastes Like Shakkar by Nisha Sharma
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review 

“We think someone is trying to sabotage Kareena and Prem's wedding.” 

After getting a look at the combustible energy between Benjamin and Bobbi in Dating Dr. Dil, it was obvious that in this second in the series, the steam factor was going to be turned up. With some forced proximity, since Bobbi works for her uncle's wedding planning business, it's obvious she's going to be taking charge of Kareena's wedding but when the venue needs Chef Benjamin to explain and help with the menu, these two combatants need to work together, especially when it becomes clear that a shaadi saboteur is trying to ruin the wedding. 

“Your heart is pounding,” she whispered against his shoulder. 

He rested his large palm at the center of her chest, feeling the soft curve of her breasts against his fingers. The steady rhythm was as fast as his own. “So is yours,” he said. 

With a prologue that gives us a flashback to why Bobbi and Benjamin are antagonistic towards each other, Benjamin ruined a heated moment with foot-in-the-mouth syndrome, we're then jumped to the present and impending wedding between their friends and main couple from book one. It would be possible to jump into the series here, like I did, but I did wonder at times if there was some foundation for Bobbi and Benjamin's relationship laid a bit in book one. These two had steamy chemistry, their first couple meetings, Benjamin having to tie up Bobbi's dress, was spine tingling and they had sparking byplay. Benjamin introduces Bobbi to rope play, and with contemporary romances slamming the door shut more often than not lately, it did add some nice heat. However, because Bobbi is dealing with trying to give Kareena the best wedding ever but having to contend with the saboteur and an uncle who seems to have lost faith in her ability to some day take over the business and Benjamin is dealing with pressure from his family to move back to the west coast, help his brother take over the family business and open his next restaurant out there, these two start spending more time apart than together. 

They'd stopped pranking each other, stopped poking at each other in a way that had bite to it, and now every word had more meaning. She needed to know what that meaning was once and for all. 

I liked all the dynamics at play here, family, friends, and romantic but it left Bobbi on the east coast and Benjamin on the west for too much of the second half of the book. Then when they did get some time to spend together, the focus became on the bedroom and the rope play. The bedroom scenes weren't necessarily long but I was just looking for more of their fun byplay to see some of that relationship development outside of the bedroom so I knew them better and could then enjoy their bedroom scenes more; this could have been shown more in book one. There was also a couple times that I was disappointed in how there would be an emotionally charged scene, then it would cut away from the aftermath/ending to the next day and readers would have to hear Bobbi or Benjamin talk about what happened, instead of “seeing” it, experiencing it with them. 

She was in so much trouble. She had to be careful, so very careful, if she wanted to come out of this with her heart intact. 

The ending gives us Benjamin working out if he wants to live his life according to what his father wants or for himself and Bobbi learning to ask for help and working things out with her uncle. I thought the reveal of the shaadi saboteur was a little obscure and the coming together of Bobbi and Benjamin went too far to the end with only a couple pages left to give them their happily ever after; it makes it feel rushed and harder to believe in and enjoy. There's one friend left in the circle of Bobbi and Kareena, Veera, and the epilogue gives a sneak-peek to what her book is going to be about. I enjoyed this because the author is always so good at family dynamics and creating a world with all it's emotions and layers that it ends up absorbing you, I just would have liked to have experienced more with Bobbi and Benjamin, as their time apart with only text message exchanges didn't hit as well as their face-to-face chemistry.

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12%

With his eyes on her in the vanity mirror, their masks adding another layer between them, he skimmed an index finger down the center of her spine, and she shivered hard.

I'm only on page 40 and the heat between these two is already scorching 🥵

Reading Update: Page 1

 

End of summer but I'm already craving soup, so Sunday Soup it is! 

🍲📖 

A Much Ado About Nothing inspiration where Bobbi is trying to plan a celebration for her best friend's wedding but bestman and Chef Benjamin "Bunty" is being his egotistical and annoyingly, sexy self. 

Along with her bf's happiness, Bobbi also doesn't want to give her uncle a reason to not promote her in her family's event planning business, but someone is trying to sabotage the wedding. 

Bobbi and Bunty are going to have to call a truce if they want their friends' wedding day to go smoothly and discover who the saboteur is. 

This author is always so good with family dynamics, so I'm anticipating some meddling shenanigans, along with the steamy romance. 

Tastes Like Shakkar by Nisha Sharma purchase link

Tuscan Ravioli Soup recipe

I used turkey sausage, a mixture of Hot and Italian 

Review: Meet Me at the Wedding

Meet Me at the Wedding by Georgia Toffolo
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

3.5 stars

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review 

Every time Lily Atwell punched a fist into the icing she was kneading, she imagined Henry Hawkesbury's face. 

Meet Me at the Wedding is the conclusion of a four book series about a group of friends that grew-up together, experienced tragedy, and now ten years later getting ready to attend one of their wedding. I haven't read the other books in the series and while enough of the past is relayed here, as our heroine Lily is still working through the pain of the past, you could randomly pick this up, but because of how well this group of friends was written, I'd suggest starting from the beginning so you could experience all the emotions. The four friends, Victoria, Malie, Zoe, and Lily were on their way to their last school dance when a car accident derailed their lives. Lily only sustained some scratches and scarring, but Victoria was injured enough she learns she won't be able to have children naturally, and Zoe lost feeling in her legs. The way this affected and shaped the characters obviously gets dealt with throughout the series and this last installment focuses on Lily. 

He'd had no idea how involved in the estate she'd become in the last ten years. 

Also involved in the accident, in the car with his girlfriend that hit Lily's, was Henry, the local troublemaker. His girlfriend ended up dying in the accident and this caused a huge fight with his dad and had them not speaking for ten years. When Henry comes back home to Hawke's Cove after his father dies, he plans on selling the family estate, an estate that has been a haven for Lily over the last couple years and the place where Victoria planned on having her wedding. Henry initially cancels all events, planning to sell, but needs help from Lily on conducting a tour, specifically of the winery part of the hotel estate, and has to agree to letting the wedding happen to get her to help him. There's immediate raw feelings from both sides toward each other, Henry jealous, hurt and angry over how his father seems to have made time to be Lily's father figure but couldn't make time for him and Lily angry over thinking Henry is a spoiled rich boy and how thoughtless he is in selling the estate and not thinking about how it will affect the small town and it's citizens. There's also that inconvenient attraction for each other between them. 

“The wedding for the tour.” 

This was pretty much contemporary romance, maybe a touch of chik-lit/women's fiction but Lily and Henry have their own baggage to work through and get fairly even page time to do so. Their relationship and attraction also gets top billing along with their inner emotional strife; there was a closed door bedroom scene. They both started off with some hackles raised by-play that couldn't help but morph into flirty teasing poking because of their attraction. They actually have it out in the first half and I was a bit worried about what was left to keep them apart in the second, but, with just a little steam lost at times, them finally putting to bed their individual baggage, had them ultimately being fully open to each other. Henry had to learn how to forgive himself for his troubled past, any blame he took on for the accident, and how off the rails his relationship with his father went, and Lily had to let go of any responsibility she took on for the awful way her ex-fiancé treated her and not bury herself in work. 

It's just that she wasn't used to being the “rescued.” She was used to being the “rescuer.” 

If you're a reader of the series, you're going to love how the “Awesome Four” friendships get some time to shine, as a newcomer to the series, I didn't feel like the previous couples overtook or over stayed their welcome, just made me want to go get their books and read about their romances. Henry even gets some time with his own friend and readers get to see an important other side to him in the beginning. I would have liked Lily to have even more time with her mother because of how sweet their relationship seemed to be. This was fairly low angst but with some emotional issues, if that makes sense. I liked how it was shown how friendships change after romantic partners come into the picture and how Lily did feel lonely but happy for her already partnered friends. 

As if she'd cast a spell over him, over the estate, and he was beginning to see less of the past and more of the future. 

The ending had a sort of felt forced to try and create one last emotional drama with Henry acting in a, what felt like out of character after how he was so caring and thoughtful towards Lily, moment to drag out will there be a HEA or not (spoiler alert, there's an HEA). Lily decides to not be scared anymore and Henry sheds his not thinking he's worthy and these two find a path together. There were at times I felt like Lily and Henry's personal baggage almost took too much time away from developing their romance, I could believe in the growing attraction when they had their flirty teasing and sweet taking care of each other moments, but I did finish thinking maybe there was less depth and too much, “she has beautiful auburn hair” and “look at his broad shoulders”. Series readers are going to love the wrap-up epilogue set in the future that delivers a sugary sweet look at all the couples happiness. This was sweet, laced with emotional issues, and had a charming couple. If looking for a shorter series with an engaging group of friends to read about, this would be one to pick up.

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Reading Update: Page 1

Heading into the weekend with what sounds like a sweet and tart bantering contemporary romance! 

Lily needs to convince the new owner of the estate where her best friend planned on having her wedding to not sell until after the event. The new owner turns out to be Henry, a man she hasn't seen in 10yrs, one fateful night that changed her life forever. 

But Henry has to agree to Lily's demands, and these two enemies-to-lovers might just get their second chance. 

Meet Me at the Wedding by Georgia Toffolo purchase link

BBQ Chicken Burger recipe

A little plain for me but quick and easy for a one and done recipe

Review: Kill Radio

Kill Radio by Lauren Bolger
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review 

He stood in the dark bathroom doorway, holding a handmade radio. 

Five year old Rory sees things, houses on fire and a green grid that seems to underline the real world. Realizing that it scares his mom and she doesn't see the same things he does, he starts to keep his visions to himself, until one day he turns on a handmade radio. In the mad dash to leave Chad, Rory's dad, Rachelle didn't even know she had the radio that used to have Chad madly tinkering away with. When Rory turns it on and a high pitch scream sound emits and suddenly a mad coyote is breaking into their home, Rachelle can sense the nightmare of what Chad turned into, happening again. With her bestfriend, a warlock, and helping stranger, Rachelle will have to work to figure out what is going on and visit her past if she wants a future for her and her son. 

“Lake of fire...” Rachelle's quiet whisper was involuntary. 

Kill Radio was a creepy building horror with some of the usual suspects, ghosts, demons, occult members, witches, magic, and possession. The story gets going right away with Rory running scared and getting a stranger named Stanton to come back to his home to help his mom, who he says is being attacked by a monster. The story, in a structured style it liked to use for the rest of the book, then jumps back in time and readers learn what happened to cause Rory to be on the run. I don't have to be linear reader, so I didn't mind the flashbacks and thought the style did add to some of the thriller aspects. What I did have problems with at times was some continuity, Stanton seems to be forgotten in a scene and at one time Rachelle was in a rush to get Rory to daycare but then that's forgotten as she goes back in the house to talk with someone. I also thought Stanton's character struggled in the story. He starts to sleepover at Rachelle's house because she's scared but this guy must be able to sleep through a World War because he never wakes up and it's as if he's not even there most of the time. It became clear why the author had him lingering around when you get to the end and he plays an important role but his character just never felt utilized quite right in the vast majority of story. 

Rachelle opened her mouth to scream, but her breath caught in her throat. Its legs lengthened. It looked like a deer with no torso or hind legs. 

You won't get the full story on the radio until the end but it's obvious that it's some kind of portal opener or attraction for demons, as they start to show up after it gets turned on. The demons were suitably creepy, even if I wasn't fully on board with the plotting of why they were possessing people but I did like the twist on how and why ghosts were used in the story. Rachelle gets a little romance arc when she gets a new boss, James, at work, who then turns out to have secrets of his own. James background of why and how he became a warlock wasn't quite worked out as well as I would have liked, it reminded me of Stanton and the just go with it, because the story needs his magic knowledge. By sixty percent the puzzle pieces are mostly together for the characters and the final battle is building when Rachelle realizes she will have to face Chad again. 

They were coming up from deeper within now. From the underworld. From hell. The bad ones were coming. And it would only get worse and worse. 

The ending gave us flashbacks from Chad and we learn why the radio was made and how Chad has been haunted by it. This leads to a horror action battle with ghosts, demons, dads, and magic. Like I said, it becomes clear why some characters, Stanton, were left lingering around (except for Gaia?? she was Rachelle's bf but not much bfing from her and felt like a pretty empty character) and why James had to have been a warlock. Around 70% I felt it started to lose steam because of some of the issues I mentioned, not fully worked out or put together well in some aspects, but the story did have a pretty cool concept and some creeptastic imagery scenes if looking to dive into some fun Fall vibes.

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Reading Update: Page 1

 

I'm back from vacation and what's that?

👻 

Is that the spooky rumblings of Halloween Bingo I hear dragging its chains? 

🎃!!! 

I'll still be reading romance but get ready for more horror, paranormal, and supernatural stories to make their way into my reading! 

Rachelle's ex's handmade crystal radio is bringing a reign of terror. Hellhounds, Shadow figures, and possessions. Oh my! 

A warlock named James, offers her protection and they start to figure out that Rachelle's ex may have been possessed. 

The clock is ticking on finding the ex and discovering the origins of the radio, before Rachelle loses even more to the radio. 

Kill Radio by Lauren Bolger purchase link

Red Curry Peanut Noodles recipe

I love recipes like this, you can adjust flavoring (moar peanut butter!), they're quick, and if I want to go meatless I can but others (as in my partner who claims if he goes a day without meat, he "feels weak") can add some chicken tenderloins.

Review: The Summer Skies

The Summer Skies by Jenny Colgan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

3.5 stars 

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review 

I had...I had fooled them, I supposed. This made me feel unusually grim. 

Coming from generations of pilots, with a brother who's only into art, Morag felt a certain pressure growing up to fly. Luckily, she loves it, the feeling of her, the plane, and open air. Her life's been go go go, as she co-pilots for a big airline away from home but when an accident happens, she's shaken up and begins to question if a promotion and moving even farther from home is what she really wants from life. 

And suddenly nothing else mattered: not my fears, not the job, not my future, not Hayden. Not Gramps, not the airline. Not every stupid problem in my life. Nothing but this---me and Dolly---versus the world, versus the elements.

Summer Skies was a standalone pleasant story to read. The history of Morag's family and why she feels the pressure she does and how her love of flying was formed gave readers a character that they could bond with and understand. Coming into the story after Morag's close call while flying and having to pass psych evals and flight simulation tests, added some tension as we see her passing everything she needs to pass but having her first person pov letting us readers know that she is in fact not emotionally ok. Adding in a blooming romance with a man she meets on the job, Hayden, having for the first time a partner, and then a chance at a promotion, Morag's life is moving in the direction she has planned all out. When she gets called back to her home, her grandfather is sick and they need her to fly their family's Cessna that island hops the archipelago, it leads to her finally getting time to sit still and realize maybe what she planned for in life, isn't what she truly wants. 

A place to which I belonged utterly; a place where I could breathe. 

The charm of the story really shines when Morag goes back home and we get to meet her family and friends, who with some shenanigans and tough love, help Morag start to heal. When another emergency happens in the air, Morag has to break through her fear and fly, which leaves her landing the plane but getting stuck on a tiny island because of a storm. Having meet the ornithologist who is temporarily staying on the island, and thinking him a grump then, her and Gregor have a less than friendly beginning. I loved their back and forth, especially the dry teasing from Gregor about Morag eating all of his bread he baked for his lunch, and because Morag just recently got a nasty shock about Hayden, it's pretty clear where Gregor and Morag's relationship is going to end up. The second half of the book is Morag forced and gradually learning to slow down, breath, and take the time to think about what she really wants from life as she's stuck on the tiny island for a few days. We get a closer look at Gregor and an eventual reveal about a tragedy he experienced in his own life that has lead to his little more taciturn personality. 

This had cuteness with goats and chickens showing their personalities, learning to heal from emotional tragedies, stillness, some romance, and taking the time and courage to decide what you really want out of life; a contemporary fiction story to escape into and feel good after reading.

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Reading Update: Page 1

 

Heading into the weekend with pasta and contemporary fiction! 

Morag is a third generation pilot who delivers essential supplies to people living on islands that stretch from Scotland to almost Norway. 

Up in the sky is where everything makes sense, down below, Morag is struggling if she wants to take over her grandfather's business or leave with her boyfriend to fly in Dubai. 

When she finds herself marooned on an island, she has the time to get perspective on what she really wants out of life, with the help of a visiting ornithologist. 

Planes and ornithologists, where's this story going to go?! 😆 

The Summer Skies by Jenny Colgan purchase link

Cajun Shrimp Pasta with Sausage recipe

I used turkey kielbasa sausage (don't be made at me for not using andouille, I don't eat red meat!)