Today I’m linking up with Steph and Jana for Show us Your Books!! I’m looking forward to reading what others have been reading lately over here at the link up.

My reading life is all over the place this year. This past month included a few more “lighter reads” than the past 4 months in that I read a lot less books about WWII or historical fiction and some more contemporary adult fiction. I think I’ve also decided that 2016 is my year to read all of Louise Penny’s books and all of Kate Morton’s books, so you will probably see some redundancy in my Show Us Your Books posts for the rest of the year (#sorrynotsorry #beyou) as well as some more variety when this summer reading challenge recaps come up in July and August. I read a lot of really enjoyable books this month. Some of them I listed as 3/5 and for me that rating means that I still really enjoyed the time I spent on them and would recommend them but I might not re-read them or purchase them myself.

Dead Cold by Louise Penny
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I am officially incredibly hooked on Louise Penny’s writing and her wonderful characters. Her writing is beautiful, captivating, and I love the Canadian-ness of it all. I had some hunches about the way this book would pan out, but there were still some twists I didn’t see coming. The hints at what is to come in the series have intrigued me a lot and I will be picking up the third book as soon as I can. I highly, highly recommend this series. It’s not very often that I read books in this genre that are so incredibly well written. Her words are lyrical, and I really enjoy the snippets of poetry and art that are scattered throughout the books (especially this one).

The Cruellest Month by Louise Penny
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Another fantastic Louise Penny book (Book 3 in the series).  In this book, the main murder mystery didn’t seem quite as shocking to me but the story line about the Arnot case and Gamache’s career was captivating, and I look forward to more of that in the future (undoubtedly). I really think that this book shed some light on a few important characters from previous books too, and I enjoyed learning more about Gamache’s family.

Because of Miss Bridgerton by Julia Quinn
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

I soaked this book right up and finished it basically in one night. I’d highly recommend it if you like regency era novels such as Edenbrooke, although it is a bit different from that one too (and slightly different time frame). The characters were witty and fun. One thing I always find funny about books from this (general) time period is how they keep themselves entertained – not that they don’t do anything, but in this book, a typical “indoor” activity is making a house from playing cards. There is some dancing etc. too 🙂 The love story was cute albeit predictable – but that’s what I usually expect out of a book like this, so I was happy with it. I will definitely be seeking out other titles from this author because I didn’t realize this one was a prequel to her much more famous Bridgertons series.

The Nest by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I COULD NOT put this book down. The character development was fantastic. I didn’t necessarily relate to any of the characters 100% but I did really enjoy reading about their lives. I found myself thinking of some other books about the power of family, and this one (to me) resolved really well at the end. It’s not a completely happy ending (arguably), but it was satisfying. I’m not exactly sure what it was about this book that was so captivating to me, but I would highly recommend it and I think it makes for a perfect summer read (but it’s not too fluffy in my mind either). I don’t know if I’d consider it to be a re-read, but it was very entertaining and really enjoyable and dare I say  unique?! I can see absolutely see why this book has received so much hype this summer.

The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was my second Kate Morton book, and I have no doubt that I will read them all before the end of the year. Although I’ve heard that her books follow a bit of a formula, and I can definitely agree after reading 2 of her books, I still find the plots to be abundantly interesting. I am recently really enjoying books that go back and forth between time periods (if it’s done well). This book kept me guessing until the end, and I did not see the twist coming AT ALL. I loved this book. If you haven’t read it yet, you absolutely should.

The Crown by Kiera Cass
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

I had been awaiting this book since I realized near the end of The Heir that it wasn’t the end of the series (how I missed that before, I’m not too sure). This was a satisfying conclusion to the series and I really enjoyed Eadlyn’s character. It was a very quick read for me, and I don’t think I felt quite as deeply for these characters as I did for the characters in the original 3 books, but I still embraced the ending and the resolution of the series. These books still remind me so much of what The Bachelor (Bachelorette) would be like in a royal setting, but they are pretty entertaining nonetheless and a lot more innocent. These books aren’t for everyone, and they aren’t fantastic literature, but they pass the time quite nicely.

Naked in Death by J.D. Robb
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Although I did enjoy this book, and I am a fan of other Nora Roberts books, I probably won’t seek out the rest of the (very long!) series immediately. However, I will seek out the series when I am in the mood for this type of book. The mystery was interesting, and I liked the futuristic but very believable and not too “out there” setting. I really liked Eve Dallas & Roarke. It was a pretty good (and pretty quick) read that I’d recommend.

Sleepless in Manhattan by Sarah Morgan
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was a pleasant read which had some really enjoyable characters and a cute love story. Sometimes it’s nice to just escape in a book like this. It reminded me a bit of Nora Robert’s bride quartet, which I enjoyed a few years ago. Although the story as a bit predictable, it still passed the time nicely and sometimes it’s nice to just read a book with a happy ending. I can definitely see where this series is going too, and it will be fun to follow along with it. This one really falls in the contemporary romance category so if that isn’t something you enjoy, then this book is not for you…but if you like a cute story, I liked this one. I read this one for the #SCSBC16.

Thanks to Netgalley and HQN for providing me with an advanced review copy of this book.

The Girls in the Garden by Lisa Jewell
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

More like 3.5. I enjoyed this book but the pace didn’t pick up enough for me right away. It reminded me a bit of Big Little Lies in the sense that you get the primary event right at the beginning and then go back to piece together what happened. As a mother of two (much younger) girls, this book made me feel a bit queasy with its possibilities although I feel like the communal garden part is a bit unrealistic in today’s society. The clique and mean girls is definitely a part of life now though, unfortunately. The characters in this book were well developed and I must admit that I really had no idea how it was going to end until it got there. 
 Thanks to Atria and Netgalley for providing me with an advanced review copy of this book.


A Share in Death by Deborah Crombie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I enjoyed this audiobook, and the narrator was quite good. I will likely make my way through the rest of this series bit by bit, because Kincaid is an interesting character and I like the British setting. I have to admit that I “figured out” the mystery before the end but I was definitely guessing for quite awhile. I am interested to read about Kincaid in his more usual jurisdiction.
This cast of characters was quite diverse and entertaining and I can see these books being a nice diversion. This was my first time listening to this genre of book on audio (normally I’d plow through it in a paperback in a day or two), and it was great.

The Secrets of Castle Du Rêve by Hannah Emery
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book had some suspenseful and interesting parts, and it was a pretty quick read. I was intrigued to find out how all of the characters were linked. I definitely felt like something MUCH worse was going to happen to one of the characters because I kept thinking of Tom from The Girl on the Train for some reason, but I was pleasantly surprised that that storyline wasn’t what I expected. This wasn’t my favourite book of the year, but it was an okay read. The changing perspectives felt a bit confusing at times.

Thanks to Netgalley and Harper Impulse for providing me with an advanced review copy of this book.

And a DNF from this month, which is rare for me…

Exposure to a Billionaire by Ann Menke
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This book had an interesting premise and I was so fortunate to the author for sending out an advanced copy but it really fell short with me. I think people who have similar lifestyles might find it more interesting. For me, try as I may, I just couldn’t get into the book or the writing style but I’m sure there are others who would enjoy the story more. I have more thoughts about this book but this is the gist of it for this review. Thank you to Ann Menke for sending me this ebook to try out.

I am currently reading (and REALLY enjoying) The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin. I am also re-reading Harry Potter in anticipation of the upcoming release in July. I am listening on audiobook (Stephen Fry version) for this first time and LOVING it. It feels kind of like watching the movies in more detail.

I’m still trying to read my own books in June but I’m also working on some categories from the SCSBC 🙂