It’s Show us Your Books Day again aka one of my favourite days of the month. I love seeing what other book friends have been reading and adding to my TBR. I also love sharing some thoughts on what I’ve been reading lately!! I read some good books this month so I’m curious if anyone agrees with my opinions on them! 🙂 Check out Steph & Jana’s blogs today to see what everyone else has read lately.

A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

This book took me forever to read and it wasn’t always constantly absorbing but I absolutely loved it. The prose is beautiful, the characters are more interesting than I expected, and it reads a little bit like a long book of short stories in some ways. I found myself telling my husband and kids about some of the plot points in the hotel that I really enjoyed. I studied quite a bit of Russian history around this time period in high school so it was interesting to read about some aspects of it here from a very unique perspective. I highly recommend this but it’s definitely a commitment and if you fall on the side of needing fast-paced plots as opposed to a lengthy character study, it might not be for you. In some ways, it reminded me a bit of The Heart’s Invisible Furies (following one man through a lifetime in an ever-changing country) but not in plot and this was not as emotionally fraught as that book.

The Lost Man by Jane Harper
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I read and enjoyed Jane Harper’s previous two books but this one might be my favourite of hers. It was very riveting and I thought I had a few things figured out which I was quite wrong about. It came together so interestingly at the end. The characters were hard to figure out and it was easy to feel for them for their own reasons. I was baffled that a book with so few characters could actually leave me totally uncertain as to who did what – but that was absolutely the case here.

This book also definitely served as a reminder that I am a city girl – haha – the remoteness of the setting was giving me a bit of anxiety and unlike other books I’ve read, I don’t have a strong desire to visit that area of Australia…lol 🙂

 Lies, Love, and Breakfast at Tiffany’s by Julie Wright
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

3.5 stars This was such a fun book to read and I gobbled it up mostly in one sitting. I loved reading more about what a career might be like as a film editor. LOVED the characters and the Hollywood-ness of it all. It was SO FUN!!! Shadow Mountain’s books have yet to let me down – I really enjoy their books and they fall much more on the sweet side than some romances.

I was provided with an advanced review copy of this novel from Netgalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing in exchange for an honest review.

Lethal White by Robert Galbraith
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I think this is my favourite so far in this series – loved the audiobook version immensely. These books are a bit longer and more fleshed out than your typical crime type novel, but they are still very interesting and the character development is spot on. I will absolutely continue with the series when the next one comes out, especially after enjoying this one more than the previous few. Strike is just such a fun character to read about and his dynamic with Robin works well for the storylines.

Watch Me by Jody Gehrman
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book CREEPED ME OUT!!! I couldn’t put it down though — it was fast-paced and definitely very readable. I wish some of the characters had been a bit more fleshed out but wow, this author definitely writes the stalker character well!!

I enjoyed the setting and career choices – it was fun to read about that literary world. I enjoyed Zoe. I felt rage at some of Kate’s choices at times but also understood her motivation. So many elements of this book just fit together nicely and it was definitely quite thrilling to get to the ending. Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the advanced review copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. It came out in 2018. 

No Other Duke But You by Valerie Bowman
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was cute and if you’re a fan of this genre you might like it too. Loved Thomas and Delilah. Definitely stood on its own despite many references to past couples in the series (did not realize there were so many books in this series before this one!)

I love women characters set in this time period who stand up for themselves and I’m glad that Delilah was that type of character particularly near the end of the book. Her family life was tragic and I’m so glad for her wonderful friends, which really made the book for me. Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the advanced review copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. It came out in 2018. 

Two Can Keep a Secret by Karen M. McManus
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I think I liked this better than One of Us Is Lying. It was a great YA mystery with fun characters (I LOVE twins) and an interesting setting. Did not figure out the ending, so that always makes a book a bit more interesting too 🙂 Very YA but probably not super recommendable under the age of 14ish.

Devil in Spring by Lisa Kleypas
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

So far, maybe my favourite in the series although I loved Marrying Winterborne and Hello Stranger too. The heroine in this book makes board games! SO fun.

As you can see above, I plowed through a bunch of The Ravenels series by Lisa Kleypas this month (I just started the 5th this morning – I LOVE these books so much), I read a less-than stellar Pride & Prejudice retelling via Netgalley, and read a bunch more Lauren Layne books. I am loving Lauren Layne’s Oxford Series and the last book in her 21 Wall Street trilogy was wonderful too. I share everything I read over on Goodreads!!

Currently reading:

Daisy Jones & the Six (almost done – obviously I am loving it)
A Study in Scarlet Women (audio) – I had this from Netgalley ages ago so now I’m trying it in a different format after a few friends highly recommended it.
The Devil’s Daughter – just started this one & of course I love it already.