The Optimist's Guide to Letting Go Review

Thank you to Gallery Books and Netgalley for my digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Optimist's Guide to Letting Go is heartbreaking and heart warming all at once, if thats possible. The story follows Lorraine, her 2 daughters Gina and Vicky, and Gina's daughter May. Lorraine is difficult and harshly judges Gina. May and Gina are each struggling with the loss of Drew, May's father and Gina's husband. Lorraine suffers from a sudden stroke and her daughters end up discovering a family secret that will change everything. Gina will realize that her and Lorraine have more in common than what she realized.

I really enjoyed this book. I loved the different female characters and I had a hard time putting the back down because I had to know what happened next. The book has its upbeat, positive moments and there were times I smiled and the next page cried. I think this would be a great mother/daughter read because it is definitely about the bonds of family even things may be strained.

I haven't read any of Amy Reichert's other works, but I am planning on doing so because I loved this book so much. I highly recommend this book if you are looking for heartwarming read.

Campaign Widows Review

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Graydon House Publishing for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

I was very excited about this book and it did not disappoint. The political campaigns were interesting to follow and the characters were fun and smart.

The book covers the storylines of Cady, Birdie, Jay, Reagan, and Madison. Each character is incredibly well developed and enjoyable to learn about. They also each have a significant other that plays a role in a presidential election, which makes them "campaign widows".  Cady was my favorite character as I found her the most relatable, however, I did enjoy Birdie fabulous lifestyle.

I enjoyed this book so much and it definitely made me laugh. I also appreciated the fact that the author portrayed the sometimes less than glamorous side of running for office and it was refreshing to read the perspective of those who are involved in campaigns because their significant other is and how that effects them.

While there are male characters in this book, I did appreciate how many strong female characters were represented. 

Overall, I really enjoyed Campaign Widows. I think it will make a great summer read and I would recommend it to my friends and family.

The Ensemble Review

I received an advanced copy of this book from Penguin Publishing Group via Edelweiss.

First, can we just talk about how beautiful the cover of The Ensemble is? It is GORGEOUS. 

The Ensemble is a story about four friends as they navigate through the cutthroat world of music. The story covers their relationships with one another and how their lives and interests intertwine.

I have to admit that it took me a while to get into this book, but once I did I was hooked. The story spans over the four friends lives and I never felt that I was spending too much time in one time period. The story is told by the members of the quartet which lends itself to more character development and getting to know each character. 

I was concerned at first that having no music knowledge would hinder my ability to understand this book, but it didn't. In fact, I think it may have helped me enjoy the book more because I was seeing the world of music through Gabel's eyes.

The character development in this book is flawless and the characters are lovable. My only word of caution for those interested in this book would be if you have a hard time keeping up with different narrators or you prefer shorter books with less filler, then I would maybe skip this book. Otherwise, I would highly recommend.

The Ensemble is available on May 15, 2018.

Tin Man Review

Tin Man is a beautiful book. It is a short read but that doesn't make it any less heart breaking. It is hard to describe Tin Man without giving away spoilers and my advice is if you're interested in Tin Man try to avoid any synopsis that is too detailed - let this book be a surprise to you and you will be grateful for it. Ultimately, Tin Man is a story of love and friendship and its complications.

The book is told from different perspectives, but the perspectives are easy to follow and gives the book depth. The different perspectives also allows you to see the characters different points of view.

When I began the book, I thought it would be a story of Ellis mourning his wife and the story of how he lost her but it is so much more than that. That story alone would be heartbreaking, but what emerges from Tin Man is so much more.

Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win Review

“Charlotte Walsh Likes To Win” is the story of Charlotte Walsh running for Senate in her home state of Pennsylvania. Charlotte takes her family from California to Pennsylvania, leaving behind her life and job as COO of a Silicon Valley company. Charlotte will face the pressures of being a female politician, a mom, and a wife.

Before reading this book, I heard amazing things about Piazza’s work and I was not disappointed. I love when stories have a strong female character and even more so when that female character is relatable, and Charlotte Walsh is.  She is strong and smart but she is still insecure and I think that is something a lot of women can relate to – that feeling of never being quite good enough rather it be for your job or spouse, that feeling is still there when it shouldn’t be.

The pace of the book is quick enough to keep your interested but not so quick that you feel the book is going to be over too soon.

Piazza’s characters are real and believable and they face real situations and choices. This book is a must read given our political climate where more women are running for office and leadership positions. It says what should be said more often – that women face more pressure and scrutiny running for office than men do and are forced to tackle issues and answer questions that men never will (for example, the dreaded “what are you wearing?”).

The twists and turns towards the end left me surprised and the ending left me asking for more.

This book will be out on July 24, 2018 and is available for pre-order on Amazon.

I received an advanced e-copy from Netgalley and Simon and Schuster in exchange for an honest review.

The Glass Castle Review

I read The Glass Castle a few years ago. When I first read it, I was younger and I didn't appreciate the books I was reading. I decided to re-read The Glass Castle after finishing Educated because the two stories seem similar.

I'm usually a quick reader but it took me a while to get through this book. I don't mean that in a bad way - in fact, I mean it in the opposite. I enjoyed every page and every part of this story that Jeannette told.

One of the things I noticed while reading this book was at no point did I feel like Jeannette wanted us as readers to feel bad for her.  Of course, you do feel bad for her and her siblings but its not a feeling of pity, its more of a heart breaking sting and the urge to pull these children out of this bad situation or shake their parents and say "what are you doing!".

The sexual assault covered in the book also did not sink in the first time I read this book. Maybe its become I'm older or maybe its because of the #metoo movement (its most likely a combination of both) but I think those scenes hit me the hardest, especially those in which Jeannette's mother told her that if she wasn't hurt from the assault then she was fine. This part made me extremely uncomfortable and my heart broke for Jeannette.

I felt torn when it came to Jeannette's dad. I have a soft spot for fathers in books - especially those who suffer from addiction or mental illness. I never felt like Jeannette's father was mean spirited, but I felt he had a trauma from childhood that made him turn to alcohol and adventure as a way to escape. His death later on in the book broke me and it was one of the few moments in the book I found myself crying because the love between a father and a daughter, no matter how broken or unusual, is so strong.

Overall, I loved my re-read. I don't think I will re-read this book for sometime, but I am going to loan it to my mom. My mom is the Lorelei to my Rory so there's no hard feelings between us but I think she'll appreciate Jeannette's story. It's also a chance to thank her for being the best mom.