I just finished Beach Reads and Deadly Deeds by Allison Brennan and here are my thoughts. Mia lives to work. She is responsible and hardworking, not taking any time for herself… Except to read. She loves her books! When the company she works for promotes her, they also send her on a forced vacation to a remote island. Deciding to take the time to read, she comes across a book at the hotel with notes in the margins.. Clues to a woman who just went missing on the island and Mia can’t help inserting herself into a real life mystery. Well color me surprised. This was actually a really enjoyable audiobook. I thought the main character, Mia, was going to annoy me the whole way through but she grew on me. The narrator did an excellent job of bringing the book to life for me. I actually went from being ambivalent to Mia to actually loving her. She really found herself and I loved the ending where she found the strength to live the life she wanted and not the one that was safer. I thought the plot was great, it had a really cozy feel to it without it being a cozy mystery because the tone of the book was a bit more ominous and it really had a great balance in my humble opinion. I liked how the mystery unraveled and I didn’t figure out what was what and I was kept in the dark which I liked a lot. It was clever, beautifully written, with a great pace and entertaining AF! 4.5 stars I wasn’t a massive fan of Jason… I didn’t warm to him, hence the loss of half a star! Grab your copy here >>> https://amzn.to/4outLbz <<< Come watch my podcast youtube.com/@litdulterous Thank you to @netgalley and @htpbooks_audio for my gifted ALC #beachreadsanddeadlydeeds #allisonbrennan #romanceread #thrillerreader #mysterybook #bookrecs #bookrecommendation #readersofig #bookalorian #litdulterous #lionessofliteracy #bookreview #readerreview #bookloversofig

I just finished The Almightier - How money became God, Greed became virtue and Debt Became Sin by Paul Vigna and here is my review. Ever wondered how we ended up being a civilization that can’t function without a monetary system? You should check this book out. It was enlightening for sure. Do I feel it's 100% correct? No. It was a weird angle to talk about christianity and its pursuit for wealth but only capitalism needs reform? It makes me think that the author believes money and not religion is 100% at fault and yet the Pope sits on enough gold to end world hunger and still dresses in jewels… I see what the author was trying to do but I really don’t feel like their reform ideas were correct. I did enjoy the historical aspects of the book and it was well researched and written but I just think their opinions are a bit flat. Some things I did agree with and some things I did not. You can’t just abolish debt. It does not work like that. Do you know what happens? Things go up in price and the cost of living.. There is always a pitfall of things like this. Money is worth LESS! Counterintuitive as it may well feel… It’s a fact. Anyone with basic knowledge of economics and the power of borrowing vs using their own money. That debt is wiped from businesses who make money from interest. They don’t give up money easily so I have some serious doubts about the validity of the ideology being used. I did enjoy reading the book because I felt there is a lot of good quality info in here and a lot of jumping off points to do your own research. 3.5 stars Thank you to @stmartinspress for my gifted copy Come check out my bookish Podcast youtube.com/@litdulterous #thealmightier #paulvigna #nonfiction #nonfictionbook #smpearlyreader #booklover #bookreview #bookalorian #litdulterous #bookishblog #readerpodcast #podcast #readerblog #bookstagram #booktok

I just finished Claire Casey's Had Enough by Liz Alterman and here are my musings. Claire Casey has hit her limit! Spending the night outside because her husband didn’t pick her up from the airport and he was asleep when the uber arrived at the house. She is done. This was the last straw. Kicking his ass out of the house, Claire tries to reclaim the life she lost and the former flame who happens to be single and interested in her… I haven’t laughed this hard in ages. I loved the wit and wonder of Claire. I totally get it. You put 100% in all the time and you feel like you get nothing in return. Watching her navigate her life during separation was a riot! The audiobook was absolutely perfect but I did order a hardcover too. Claire is me. She is extra and a half! Her in your face, here I am and F you attitude is so me. She is definitely having buyers remorse on her marriage but kids and married life, makes you complacent and you forget to communicate, so watching all the revelations and mishaps just had me revelling in how relatable Claire is. She was pretty unhinged but that’s what happens to us mothers when we don’t feel supported haha. It’s funny because it’s kind of a second second chance romance read and that made for some interesting dynamics. It will peak your anxiety watching Claire make mistakes and muddling her way through the insanity that is her life. It had a great tone and pace and I couldn’t get enough! I haven’t been this entertained and seen in years! 5 stars Grab yours today >>> https://amzn.to/4ozrnAA <<< Thank you to @dreamscapemedia and @netgalley for my ALC!!! #dreamscapemedia #audiobook #clairecaseyshadenough #bookreview #bookishreview #bookreadersofinstagram #readingallday #audiobooklover #audiobooksofinstagram #readreadread #booktok #bookstagram #lionessofliteracy #litdulterous #bookalorian

I just finished For the Record by Emma Lord and here are my thoughts. The pop princess and the Punk Rockstar bad boy used to smash headlines with their clashes on the stage but that is in the past. Behind the scenes it wasn’t so wild but a quiet simmering of something more… That is until both bands fell apart and they lost touch. 2 years later Sam has been quietly raising his son and Mackenzie has been releasing music under a pseudonym.. Wanting to revive their careers the idea is floated that the once rivals create a comeback album.. TOGETHER! What could go wrong! I’m going to be honest. I have a soft spot for Emma Lord’s books so I had seriously high hopes for this one. I received an ARC and an ALC and switched between the two so I could hear their voices in my head when I was reading. The book gave me all the feels!! I really felt the connection between Sam and Mac and the tension, the undercurrent of the romance long before it came to fruition.. I do wish there had been witty banter, I think the book could have really knocked it out of the park had that been better. What this book has : A solid dual pov - If you know me, you know I am not a fan of more than one POV but this worked well reading and via audio. Rivals to lovers - It was clever because while most of it was an act for the stage, their hostility was more to cover their attraction to each other so I loved that. Second chance romance/careers - which I normally hate but it worked here. I actually think my favorite part of the book was the family story with Sam and the child he didn’t know he had and becoming a dad then finding out who his own dad is and the problems that causes. It was all very well done. It did feel a bit juvenile, the band stuff from the past but it was easy enough to not let that dull the enjoyment. 4 stars! The narration was absolutely perfect and if I had to tell convince you of a format… Go audio! Grab your copy here >>https://amzn.to/4fBdn5g<< Thank you to @netgalley and @stamartinspress @macmillanaudio for my gifted alc and arc #bookish #booklover #bookalorian #fortherecord #emmalord #bookstagram #bookreview #bookinfluencer #rivalstolovers

I just finished Friends to Lovers by Sally Blakely and here are my musings. Best friends Joni and Ren have been friends since they were kids and even with a whole country between them, they make time for each other by being each other plus ones for weddings. It worked until that friendship line was crossed.. When her sister's wedding has her back at the summer home the 2 families share, she knows she has to fake a friendship with Ren but can they both get past the heartache to move forward? This one was a slowwwww burrnnnnnnn. I have to be in the right mindset to tackle books like this and I was lucky to be in the mood for it because the whole story took its sweet time unravelling into the main point. Anyone who reads my reviews knows I hate miscommunication in tropes and this one was no exception because it really did drag out but the last part of the book when it is all cleared up. That’s the money baby. The emotion and depth made it all worth the wait but it was a close DNF. I am so glad I kept going because that was the past end of a book I have read in a very long time. I can see why Emily Henry fans seemed to favor this book but I didn’t really see much of a comparison. The writing was solid and I did love the self discovery journey that Joni was on and honestly, that was the only thing that kept me invested until the last part. I felt Ren was a solid MMC and I would have loved more of him. Overall I am really glad I finished it and if you love Childhood friends to lovers Slow Burn Miscommunication Second chances Forced Proximity… This would be a win for you. 4 stars Grab your copy here >>> https://amzn.to/40Zv0Wp <<< Thank you to @netgalley and @htpbooks for my gifted copy. Come watch my podcast at youtube.com/@litdulterous #friendstolovers #sallyblakely #romance #friendstolovers #forcedproximity #bookishreview #bookblog #igbooks #booksbooksbooks #slowburn #romancereader #romancerecs #romancebooks #bookalorian #lionessofliteracy #kindle #litdulterous

I just finished Plays Well with Others by Lauren Myracle and here are my musings. Jake Nolan has suffered so many losses. Stillborn child and the loss of her marriage, job and reputation. She has to start over and when she settles into a new home and starts a friendship with a woman, Mabel, things seem better. Trouble is the charming neighborhood isn’t what it seems. This one was a weird one. I saw it all over booksta and I was super excited to read it but the multiple POVs and messy pacing, made me glad I was doing the audio version. It’s the only reason I kept going. The narration was well done. It was loaded with neighborhood drama and there were a lot of twists and turns but it wasn’t brilliant for me. It was a quick read and the storyline was at least decent enough to keep me intrigued. There was some really great meat to the story with some complex themes but nothing was dug into enough for my liking. I kinda feel ambivalent about it. I didn’t hate it but I didn’t love it either. I think the concept was excellent but the execution needed a bit more tweaking. Audio is definitely the right way to go with this one. 3.5 stars Thank you @blackstonepublishing and @netgalley for my gifted ALC Grab your copy here!! >>> https://amzn.to/3UUDb2y <<< #playswellwithothers #laurenmyracle #thriller #uniquereads #bookreview #literaryinfluencer #literary #literarylife #booklover #readersofinsta #readstagram #readingislife #readingissexy #audiobookreview #audiobookstagram

I just finished Bad Creek by Peyton June and here are my thoughts. Bad creek is the holiday destination every summer for 3 friends. Iris has a mission… Her sister Iris died in the water the year before and she can't move on from it. She needs to know what happened to her sister but she may not like what she finds out. This was an odd book. A lot of what the book is about seemed irreverent and I wondered why it was in there… Then BOOM! Everything made sense and my eyes had popped wide open and I devoured the rest of the story. It was pretty dark toward the end and I kind of wish the tone of the book had all been that dark because it was really a solid ending. It felt a little too fluffy at the beginning. I needed that ominous feeling because the characters were a little blah for my liking. It was like two different people wrote it! I kinda loved it.. I also kinda was ambivalent about it. I have really mixed feelings on this book but…. I won’t be forgetting it in a hurry. The plot was good. I thought the writing was decent but it took too long to really get interesting and that's a real gamble with the DNF culture that reigns supreme now. It needed to come out of the gate stronger or not drag the story out. Would I recommend it? Yeah, I can see people enjoying it. It will definitely hit the spot for people who like a slower paced build up. 3.75 stars from me. 😍😍😍😍😍😍 Grab your copy today!!! https://amzn.to/3J8t0F1 😍😍😍😍😍😍 You can find my bookish podcast youtube.com/@litdulterous #peytonjune #badcreek #bookalorian #lionessofliteracy #bookish #bookreviews #bookblog #bookblogger #readersofig #litdulterous #bookishpodcast #bookinfluencer #netgalley #audiobookreader

I just finished Relationship Goals by Brittany Kelley and here are my thoughts. Abigail dreams of making it big and when she is offered a breakout role, it comes with homework.. Shadowing her real-life counterpart to be able to act the role with authenticity. She doesn’t expect to meet Luke, soccer player and all around asshole.. Things begin to sizzle and Abigail cannot believe how happy she is. That is, until she discovers the truth, Luke was coerced into fake dating her for ticket sales so he could be traded. She isn’t just angry… She is going to make him pay in the funniest of ways. I did not expect a sports romance to be so good. I am not a massive fan of all the sporty stuff usually but I was fully invested in both of the characters and the soccer stuff really added to the story in my humble opinion. It was a seriously entertaining book. I love how extreme the grumpy sunshine was. Luke was such a bummer at first! I don’t find negative people attractive so he set my teeth on edge from the get go but the more you learn about him, the more you start to understand him. Abigail had things to prove but she didn’t let it dull her shine and I felt honest to God… extreme anger that Luke didn’t just tell her he needed to fake-date and why. Having said that, had he said something, she may not have opened up the same so while I am glad they did break past it, it really rubbed me the wrong way. The chemistry was amazing and the build up was decedent. I loved how light and playful the whole thing was. It was definitely one of my faves of the month. 4 sexy stars Grab yours here today >>>>> https://amzn.to/4mzdyQz <<<<< Thank you to @berkleypub and @netgalley for my gifted copy. #relationshipgoals #brittanykelley #sportsromance #fakedating #booklover #bookalorian #litdulterous #bookpodcast #bookinfluencer #literaryinfluencer #bookishreview #booksbooksbooks #tiktokbooks #booktok #bookstagrammer

I just finished Mob Queen by Erin Bledsoe and here are my musings. Virginia is worried. Her friend is missing and she knows it's something to do with the mob. What she doesn’t expect is to climb the ranks within the organization and amass power no one could have foreseen. She is ruthless because that’s how you survive in the dark world of organized crime. YEEE-FING-YAWWWWWWW This audiobook was too brilliant. I loved how I was transported to the 1930s and wish I had dressed for the occasion. Virginia really changed over the course of the book. It was amazing. I loved watching the evolution. The girl who was terrified for her missing friend but needed to know the truth so she took a step into the seedy underbelly of Chicago… Into the self contained woman who became an integral part of the mob’s operation. She is based on a real person and her life was totally fascinating. I love historical fiction like this. It was gritty and raw. I felt like I was really taken back in time and I was fully immersed into a world of murder, money laundering and mob bosses. There is some abuse in here so be mindful. I love books based on real events and the author did an amazing job of researching all the key players back then while staying true to who Virginia Hall was. Couldn’t have loved it more. 5 stars Grab your copy here!! >>>> https://amzn.to/3UTu9mq <<<< Thank you to @netgalley and @blackstonepublishing for my gifted alc #blackstonepublishing #themobqueen #Erinbledsoe #historicalfiction #bookreview #bookishreview #bookblog #readervlog #bookalorian #litdulterous #bookishpodcast #bookpodcast