Monthly Rewind: December

I wanted to try a little something new here and see how it goes. I thought it might be fun to see how the books I read the previous month fell out. I'll include both books I've read and listened to for the month. 

* Denotes Audiobooks

Home Run (You should run and get this): 

*

Triple (You really don't want to miss it):

*

Double (You could get on the waiting list at the library and be ok):

Single (Wait it out): N/A

StrikeOuts (Don't bother):  N/A

I am not going to complain how my reading went in December at all. With the last 2 weeks off, I knew I wouldn't get any audiobooks done but I made up for it elsewhere. I hope you all had a great December of reading as well. 

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Julie's Review: My Darling Husband

Author: Kimberly Belle
Series: None
Publication Date:  December 28, 2021
Publisher: Park Row
Pages: 331
Obtained: Publisher Blog Hop
Genre:  Domestic Suspense, Psychological Thriller
Rating: 5/5
Bottom Line: Page-turner of a thriller/suspense
Grab, Just get it at the library, or Remove from your TBR list? Grab

Summary: Everyone is about to know what her husband isn’t telling her… Jade and Cam Lasky are by all accounts a happily married couple with two adorable kids, a spacious home and a rapidly growing restaurant business. But their world is tipped upside down when Jade is confronted by a masked home invader. As Cam scrambles to gather the ransom money, Jade starts to wonder if they’re as financially secure as their lifestyle suggests, and what other secrets her husband is keeping from her. Cam may be a good father, a celebrity chef and a darling husband, but there’s another side he’s kept hidden from Jade that has put their family in danger. Unbeknownst to Cam and Jade, the home invader has been watching them and is about to turn their family secrets into a public scandal. ~amazon.com 

Review: Let's just make this clear from the get-go Cam Lasky isn't really a likable guy and while the story is a result of his actions, the tale is all Jade's. It's not to say that you are totally sure Jade is likable off the bat but she's the one being held hostage by a man in their house for choices/decisions her husband made. 

Ms. Belle writes the story as a flashback between Cam's story and Jade's story as it unfolds. Cam's part is told as he is being interviewed after this has all unfolded. Very quickly you are swept up into the story and is starts out quickly and never really lets up. 

You feel the fear of Jade and her kids as the man who is holding them captive starts to escalate his behavior. Jade is trying to keep her kids safe while also trying to figure out how to get out of this situation. Meanwhile, Cam is trying to get the money together for the ransom. Except you aren't really sure that he can.

Throughout the novel you realize that Cam's success is pretty much smoke and mirrors or that he took his fame a little too far and overextended himself and now his family is in harm's way. I really loved the twist at the end and then the last line. 

The Marriage Lie will always be my favorite Kimberly Belle novel, but My Darling Husband is a close second. 

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Sunday Skim

 

Week of 12/19/2021:

Finished:

Currently Reading:

Looking Forward To:

My plan for the rest of the year is to alternate January 2022 releases with some backlist books from 2021. I'm hoping this way I stay ahead a bit and get caught up a little bit as well. 

Hope everyone who celebrates had a wonderful Christmas! 

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Merry Christmas

Hope all of you are enjoying the season and however you chose to celebrate! I hope you get the books you asked for. 

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Julie's Review: The Last Green Valley

Author: Mark Sullivan
Series: None
Publication Date:  May 4, 2021
Publisher: Lake Union Publishing
Pages: 328
Obtained: Amazon First
Genre:  Historical Fiction
Rating: 5/5
Bottom Line: A courageous story about a family that never gave up, even in their darkest times
Grab, Just get it at the library, or Remove from your TBR list? Grab

Summary: In late March 1944, as Stalin’s forces push into Ukraine, young Emil and Adeline Martel must make a terrible decision: Do they wait for the Soviet bear’s intrusion and risk being sent to Siberia? Or do they reluctantly follow the wolves—murderous Nazi officers who have pledged to protect “pure-blood” Germans? The Martels are one of many families of German heritage whose ancestors have farmed in Ukraine for more than a century. But after already living under Stalin’s horrifying regime, Emil and Adeline decide they must run in retreat from their land with the wolves they despise to escape the Soviets and go in search of freedom. Caught between two warring forces and overcoming horrific trials to pursue their hope of immigrating to the West, the Martels’ story is a brutal, complex, and ultimately triumphant tale that illuminates the extraordinary power of love, faith, and one family’s incredible will to survive and see their dreams realized. ~amazon.com

Review: This book is not an easy read at all. It is criminal what other humans will do to each other under the guise of war. It is heartbreaking to know that The Last Green Valley is based on a family's 

story at the end of WWII. Emil & Adeline live a simple life on their farm in the Ukraine when they decide that they can no longer live under Stalin and use the offer of the Nazi's to go West. 

For Emil and Adeline the question becomes to stay with the devil you know or to travel with the devil you don't know but that might get you closer to freedom. They know the travel won't be easy, but they are hoping it's worth it. Through flashbacks we learn about the struggles they have gone through both together and separate. Through it all Adeline retains her faith and never doubts God. The opposite is true for Emil who struggles with his faith and to trust in God. It is one area where the Martel's disagree. 

Throughout their travel West, they suffer difficulties, horrors and others all while continuing to believe that they will find their "Green Valley" that Adeline believes is their end game. 

For most of the book you are holding your breath as you read about their struggles and their flee to cross various countries. Their sons are incredibly strong and brave to endure what they did as well. While this book isn't a biography, it is based on the true story of the Martel family, which is seriously amazing. At the end of the novel, I cried because of so many things but the sheer grit of this family will astound you. 

Mr. Sullivan has written another brilliant historical fiction novel. Highly Recommend. 

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Sunday Skim

 

Week of 12/12/2021:

Finished:

Currently Reading:

Looking Forward To:

The Wicked Widow will be my last audiobook for 2021 and it was a great one to go out with. Now I want the next one to come out. This will be a series I continue to do on audio. 

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Julie's Review: Eight Perfect Hours

Author: Lia Louis
Series: None
Publication Date:  September 28, 2021
Publisher: Atria
Pages: 336
Obtained: publisher via NetGalley
Genre:  Contemporary Romance
Rating: 4/5
Bottom Line: Not just a light romance
Grab, Just get it at the library, or Remove from your TBR list? Grab

Summary: On a snowy evening in March, thirty-something Noelle Butterby is on her way back from an event at her old college when disaster strikes. With a blizzard closing off roads, she finds herself stranded, alone in her car, without food, drink, or a working charger for her phone. All seems lost until Sam Attwood, a handsome American stranger also trapped in a nearby car, knocks on her window and offers assistance. What follows is eight perfect hours together, until morning arrives and the roads finally clear. The two strangers part, positive they’ll never see each other again but fate, it seems, has a different plan. As the two keep serendipitously bumping into one another, they begin to realize that perhaps there truly is no such thing as coincidence.~amazon.com

Review: Fate has a weird way of interrupting our lives, just ask Noelle Butterby who is stuck on a road due to a blizzard and was completely unprepared. Most of us would probably enjoy it (if our phone was charged) to just chill out a little but Noelle is stressed out because she cares for her mom and wasn't planning on being gone this long. Plus her reason for being where she is was also emotional for her. Enter Sam Attwood, handsome and helpful who allows Noelle to hang in his car to charge his phone. Eight hours is a long time to spend with someone without any other distractions, so Sam and Noelle talk for that time and get to know each other. When the roads open, Sam drives off for Noelle to never see him again. 

Except their paths keep crossing over the next year but neither of them is ready to admit to their feelings for each other. Ok well Noelle might be, but she's fallen back in with her former paramour, Ed. It's really easy to fall into past comfort. Plus, Noelle is dealing with a lot taking care of her mom, her best friend and her irresponsible brother, Dilly. 

Sam is dealing with his own issues with his dad and his own past. In other words, they both have baggage that they are working through. Yet fate keeps putting them together. The best part is how it all comes together at the end. I actually had to reread a little bit because it was such an "AH HA".

This is a great romance novel that deals with some serious issues, but Ms. Louis incorporates them so well into the novel and it isn't preachy. 

Sunday Skim

 

Week of 12/5/2021:

Finished:

Currently Reading:

Looking Forward To:

Yep, I'll be catching up on some books over the next few weeks that I didn't get to earlier in the year. Honestly, I can't wait. I'll probably also start on the 2022 releases as well. 

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Sunday Skim

 

Week of 11/28/2021:

Finished:

Currently Reading:

Looking Forward To:

I really am hoping to finish up these December quickly so that I can start to make some progress on books I have sitting on my nightstand and earlier 2021 published books. I have some great time off at the end of the month, so I think I can accomplish a lot. Do you have any goals for December with your reading? 

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