I think I’m finally getting back into a good reading groove. It was so tough to read during my first trimester. If I wasn’t working, I was pretty much sleeping or curled up in bed watching something on my phone. It feels phenomenal to be excited (and able) to pick up a book before falling asleep! AND, my favorite time of the year is starting up…. it’s warm enough to read outside. I am already picturing lazy weekends outside with a good book and a big hat. Can’t. Wait.
WHAT I READ IN MARCH 2021
SORROW AND BLISS by Meg Mason
3.5/5 Stars
Sorrow and Bliss seems to be everywhere right now. I will say, I am in the minority for not enjoying it, so don’t be dissuaded from reading it just because I didn’t love it. the novel follows the main character Martha as she navigates her life while struggling with an undiagnosed mental illness. It’s deep and light; funny and serious. Books about mental illness can be challenging to read, but Meg Mason strikes the perfect balance of being realistic, showing the good and bad through a humanizing lens. My biggest issue was that at times it felt too real. Martha was struggling so much at points and it was really difficult to read how she was treating her friends, family, and husband. It was real, but also tough to read at times.
ELIZA STARTS A RUMOR by Jane L. Rosen
3.75/5 Stars
Okay, I overall really liked Eliza Starts A Rumor. If you read and liked The Gifted School and Friends and Strangers, I think you’ll like this as well. Bouncing between a rotating cast of characters, the book follows a group of friends and neighbors with a central theme of the goings on from a locally run and crowdsourced internet forum. Honestly, I think half of the reason why I enjoyed it so much is because I love being in various local Facebook groups– part informative, part entertainment. The book has a super lighthearted tone while carrying some heavier subject matter (the #metoo movement, internet catfishing, anxiety disorders, infidelity). There is more depth to it than originally meets the eye.
THE FLATSHARE by Beth O’Leary
5/5 Stars
Is this the perfect British Rom-Com? I loved The Flatshare so much. It was exactly what I was in the mood to read: something sweet and charming. I fell in love with all the characters and thought the concept was unique. Two strangers are strapped for cash so they decide to become roommates. Not in the typical sense though. Leon works the night shifts, so he occupies the room during the day and Tiffy sleeps in the room at night. They’ve never met and start a friendship through sticky note correspondence… I couldn’t get enough.
THE KINDEST LIE by Nancy Johnson
3.5/5 Stars
This is Nancy Johnson’s debut novel. I absolutely loved the premise of this book, but found it to be a tiny bit lacking in…. something. I kept reading because I wanted to know how things turned out for the main characters, but I did want more. Ruth, one of the main characters, returns to her hometown from Chicago after she tells her husband that a secret she’s been keeping since she was a teen. Before college, she gave birth to a son who she gave up for adoption. The circumstances around the adoption were a secret to her so she returns home to find out more information about where her son ended up. The second main character is a troubled young white boy nicknamed Midnight who Ruth befriends while back home. The plot tackles motherhood, personal identity, and race in a unique way.
THE NATURE OF FRAGILE THINGS by Susan Meissner
4/5 Stars
My sister recommended this to me and I enjoyed it! I think if I hadn’t just read The Four Winds, I would have enjoyed it even more. This is about a woman who answers a mail-order-bride ad in a newspaper and moves across the country from NYC to San Francisco to become a stranger’s wife and his daughter’s mother. One morning, while her husband is away on business, a pregnant woman knocks on the door and their lives unravel and intertwine as they uncover secret after secret. I couldn’t put this down! My only issue is that I wish it had been longer… I felt like it wrapped up a little too quickly!
