Book Review: Counting Miracles

📚 Book Review: Counting Miracles

Nicholas Sparks

📚 My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

🗓️ Publication Date: September 24, 2024

📚 My Review: This is a story of love, loss, family, trials and tribulations and overcoming grief.. the last 5-10% will make your heart hurt and be overly happy at the same time!

I enjoyed the pace of the story and the altering POVs. I wouldn't have expected anything less! If you've read and enjoyed novels by Nicholas Sparks before you know what you're getting into.. grab the Kleenex and enjoy!

Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Random House Canada for the eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

📚 Goodreads Synopsis: Tanner Hughes was raised by his grandparents, following in his grandfather’s military footsteps to become an Army Ranger. His whole life has been spent abroad, and he is the proverbial rolling stone . . . happiest when off on his next adventure, zero desire to settle down. But when his grandmother passes away, her last words to him are: find where you belong. She also drops a bombshell, telling him the name of the father he never knew—and where he might be found.

Tanner is due at his next posting soon, but his curiosity is piqued, and he sets out for Asheboro, North Carolina, to ask around. He’s been in town less than twenty-four hours when he meets Kaitlyn Cooper, a doctor and single mom. They both feel an immediate connection; Tanner knows Kaitlyn has a story to tell, and he wants to hear it. For Kaitlyn, Tanner is mysterious, exciting—and possibly leaving in just a few weeks.

Meanwhile, nearby, eighty-three-year-old Jasper lives alone in a cabin bordering a national forest. With only his old dog Arlo for company, he lives quietly, haunted by a tragic accident that took place decades before. When he hears rumors that a white deer has been spotted in the forest—a creature of legend that inspired his father and grandfather—he becomes obsessed with protecting the deer from poachers.

As these characters’ fates orbit closer together, none of them is expecting a miracle . . . but that may be exactly what is about to alter their futures forever.

Book Review: Just For the Summer

📚 Book Review: Just For the Summer

Abby Jimenez 

📚 My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

🗓️ Publication Date: April 2, 2024 - Out Now!

📚 My Review:A quirky romance with a unique premise, I thought this was a heartwarming book! The story takes some unexpected turns, especially when real-life complications like family responsibilities and toxic relationships force the characters to confront their feelings. You couldn't help but love Justin, and everyone needs a Maddie in their life!

📚 Goodreads Synopsis: Justin has a curse, and thanks to a Reddit thread, it's now all over the internet. Every woman he dates goes on to find their soul mate the second they break up. When a woman slides into his DMs with the same problem, they come up with a plan: They'll date each other and break up. Their curses will cancel each other’s out, and they’ll both go on to find the love of their lives. It’s a bonkers idea… and it just might work. 

Emma hadn't planned that her next assignment as a traveling nurse would be in Minnesota, but she and her best friend agree that dating Justin is too good of an opportunity to pass up, especially when they get to rent an adorable cottage on a private island on Lake Minnetonka.

It's supposed to be a quick fling, just for the summer. But when Emma's toxic mother shows up and Justin has to assume guardianship of his three siblings, they're suddenly navigating a lot more than they expected–including catching real feelings for each other. What if this time Fate has actually brought the perfect pair together?

Book Review: Your Little Lies

📚 Book Review: Your Little Lies

@Sue Fortin

➡️ For Goodreads synopsis 

📚 My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

🗓️ Publication Date: September 6, 2024

📚 My Review: Wow! I couldn't put this one down. This was a fast paced thriller with twists that kept me up reading late into the night! The author did a fantastic job of shifting between timelines laying the groundwork of the past and expertly weaving it into the present. This was my first book from this author but I'll be on the lookout for more! Add this one to your fall reading list for sure!

Thank you to Netgalley and Storm Publishing for the eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

📚 Goodreads Synopsis: Jasper puts his arm around my shoulder and kisses the top of my head. ‘Happy new home, darling.’ A shiver runs through me. Will I be happy here? Will I finally be safe?

When Hannah and Jasper move to Silverbanks, a luxury gated neighbourhood, it’s a dream come true. This house, with its floor-to-ceiling glass doors, direct access to the sandy beach, and close-knit, caring community, will be the perfect place to raise their precious daughter, Pia.

And then Hannah meets her next-door neighbour. The flicker of recognition in his eyes only lasts for a second, but it’s enough. Suddenly, her safe haven has become the most dangerous place she could be. Unless she does something about it…

Book Review: Here One Moment - Liane Moriarty

📚 Book Review: Here One Moment

Liane Moriarty 

📚 My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐💫

🗓️ Publication Date: September 10, 2024

📚 My Review: 3.5* This is a hard one for me. I enjoyed it, but it felt long (I guess at 500+ pages it is long!). Having read a few books from this author, I know she is known for writing with multiple POVs but there were so many characters that near the end I didn't remember some of them, and when they started connecting I just kind of kept reading hoping it would all click! I did really enjoy the premise and I liked how Cherry's backstory was woven throughout the book. It's definitely worth a read but it just wasn't my favourite from this author.

Thank you to Netgalley and Crown Publishing for the eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

📚 Goodreads Synopsis:

If you knew your future, would you try to fight fate?

Aside from a delay, there will be no problems. The flight will be smooth, it will land safely. Everyone who gets on the plane will get off. But almost all of them will be forever changed.

Because on this ordinary, short, domestic flight, something extraordinary happens. People learn how and when they are going to die. For some, their death is far in the future—age 103!—and they laugh. But for six passengers, their predicted deaths are not far away at all.

How do they know this? There were ostensibly more interesting people on the flight (the bride and groom, the jittery, possibly famous woman, the giant Hemsworth-esque guy who looks like an off-duty superhero, the frazzled, gorgeous flight attendant) but none would become as famous as “The Death Lady.”

Not a single passenger or crew member will later recall noticing her board the plane. She wasn’t exceptionally old or young, rude or polite. She wasn’t drunk or nervous or pregnant. Her appearance and demeanor were unremarkable. But what she did on that flight was truly remarkable.

A few months later, one passenger dies exactly as she predicted. Then two more passengers die, again, as she said they would. Soon no one is thinking this is simply an entertaining story at a cocktail party.

If you were told you only had a certain amount of time left to live, would you do things differently? Would you try to dodge your destiny?

Book Review: The Book Swap

📚 Book Review: The Book Swap

Tessa Bickers

📚 My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐💫

🗓️ Publication Date: September 3, 2024

📚 My Review: I went into this one expecting a lighthearted romance but it was a lot more than that! Yes, it was a slow burn romance but it also included a multitude of topics including loss, grief, bullying, sickness, family, healing, friendship and more! There were lots of references to classics and if you are someone who annotates your books, you'll definitely want to check this debut novel out!

Thank you to Netgalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for the eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

📚 Goodreads Synopsis: Still reeling from a recent tragedy, Erin Connolly knows she needs to start living, but has no idea how. When she accidentally donates her favorite book—a heavily annotated copy of To Kill a Mockingbird containing a memento she can’t be without—to a local little community library, she’s devastated. But then the book turns up a week later, back in the library with fresh notes in the margins, along with an invitation in a copy of Great Expectations to meet her newfound pen pal.

A life-changing conversation, written only in the margins of beloved classic books, begins between Erin and her Mystery Man. Following each other through the pages of their favorite novels as the book exchange continues, they both begin to open up, falling into a friendship…and maybe something more.

But Erin and her pen pal have a shared history that neither of them has guessed. Faced with painful reminders of the past—and the one person she swore never to forgive—Erin finds herself at a crossroads. One that could change her life forever.

Book Review: In the Face of Catastrophe: How a Traumatic Brain Injury Became a Blessing

📚 Book Review: In the Face of Catastrophe: How a Traumatic Brain Injury Became a Blessing

@Jennifer Rose Goldman, Caryn Meg Hirshleifer 

📚 My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

🗓️ Publication Date: August 6, 2024

📚 My Review:This was a very inspiring memoir told from the point of view of 5 different people. What an amazing outlook Jenn has and so lucky to be surrounded by so much love. I have no doubt that she will continue to progress with all her goals and recovery!

The diary entries were well written and easy to read. What a wonderful gift to have done this together!

Thank you to Netgalley and Greenleaf Book Group for the eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

📚 Goodreads Synopsis: The Gift of Presence

When a stroke leaves Jenn comatose and clinging to life just days before her thirty-first birthday, she and her family face an overwhelming and painful journey. As they struggle to grasp what happened, to move forward and heal, they discover an unexpected how to be present in times of uncertainty while holding onto hope and the power of family and community to sustain them through these challenging times.

Structured as diary entries, this poignant memoir shares memories from each family member as they walk together through this profoundly life-changing event, grapple with grief, and learn to look for silver gratitude, intentional time together, and the closeness of family and friends to help them heal. Jenn was already a motivational speaker and professional advocate for wellness and self-care before her stroke, and now she and her family share a very personal and intimate time of their lives in the hope that those who are struggling with similar experiences of loss and change will find connection, solace, and the courage to overcome even the greatest challenges.

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Book Review: Everyone Here is Lying

📚Book Review: Everyone Here is Lying

Shari Lapena 

📚 My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐💫

📚 My Review: 3.5* rounded up on Goodreads! First, January LaVoy's narration of this was spot on! The book was a fast paced family drama/thriller with enough surprises to keep it interesting. There were so many suspects and really.. Everyone was lying!!!

My only problem through the whole book was Avery's character. She's aged 9, but the portrayal of her, the language she used, and her thought process throughout seemed SO much older and I felt that a teenager would have been more believable.

Regardless of that, it was still an enjoyable book with a good reminder that lies rarely work in your favour!

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for the eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. (Audiobook copy from my local library)

📚Goodreads Synopsis: Welcome to Stanhope - a safe neighbourhood. A place for families.

William Wooler is a family man, on the surface. But he's been having an affair, an affair that ended horribly this afternoon at a motel up the road. So when he returns to his house, devastated and angry, to find his difficult nine-year-old daughter Avery unexpectedly home from school, William loses his temper.

Hours later, Avery's family declare her missing.

Suddenly Stanhope doesn't feel so safe. And William isn't the only one on his street who's hiding a lie. As witnesses come forward with information that may or may not be true, Avery's neighbours become increasingly unhinged.

Who took Avery Wooler?

Nothing will prepare you for the truth

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