When your life is chaotic, what’s one more complication?
Jane Tanner’s friends are settling down, while she’s been settling for less. She longs for adventure and the big city, but caring for her ailing grandfather means she’s shackled to her small town. She’s excited her vintage gift shop is finally up and running, but it’s not enough.
Longing to fulfill at least one dream—to become a mother before her biological clock ticks out—Jane drunkenly propositions the worst possible candidate for Dad . Kurt Elway is off-limits with a capital O . He’s a good friend, but he’s too young, too busy running his family’s ranch. Plus, he and Jane’s sister, Kate, used to date. That kind of off-limits.
Unbeknownst to Jane, Kurt’s pining for her. When he’s fully on board to father her baby, she sees him in a new light. Then lingering baggage between Kate and Kurt suddenly surfaces and Jane is reminded of just how messy life is. But…so is parenting. Maybe it’s time to embrace the mess?
This is the last book of the Coyote Canyon trilogy, and I’m sad it’s over. Talulah, Ellen, and Jane are good friends. All are independent business owners – Talulah owns a dessert diner, Ellen a well-digging business, and Jane has a vintage store, and all are trying to make a go of it in a small town. The first two books were about Talulah and Ellen; this time, it’s Jane’s turn.
Jane has been feeling out of sorts. All her friends are getting married and having babies, and she doesn’t even date. It’s not easy finding someone in such a small town. She really wants a family, and decides to go the single parent route and use a sperm donor. Once she has the baby, she thinks she might move away, to a bigger city.
Jane is friends with Kurt, who actually dated her younger sister a few times. He’s five years younger than she is, but one drunken evening, she asks if he would consider being her sperm donor. She’s thinking of artificial insemination, but Kurt has always had a crush on Jane, and he agrees, but to get her pregnant the old-fashioned way. There is a lot to consider, and if Jane does get pregnant, there will be even more issues to deal with.
Friends to lovers is a time-honored trope in romance, and Novak does a great job here, throwing up one roadblock after another until they reach their happy ending. I loved how Jane’s friends had her back, but also forced her to face reality. Great characters, a lovely small town, and enough angst to really keep those pages turning made this a terrific read. These books don’t have to be read in order, they all stand alone beautifully, but I liked having the background of the other characters here. This is another good read from Novak, who has become one of my favorite authors.
3/2024 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch
THE MESSY LIFE OF JANE TANNER by Brenda Novak.Forever (June 7, 2022). ISBN: 978-1538754764. 352p.
Set in the glossy world of New York City media, this sharp and witty debut novel follows a young woman caught in a toxic mentorship with an older, powerful executive as she grapples with career, belonging, and the complexity of modern relationships in the digital age.
When cosmetics mogul Billie rolls down her town car window and offers Lily a ride home from a glitzy Manhattan gala, Lily figures this could be a useful professional connection. She’s heard of Billie’s storied rise as a business titan, the product of white New England privilege and one of the few queer women in a corner suite. Billie could be just the jolt Lily needs to manifest her next step.
A magazine writer, Lily interviews influencers, actresses, and fashion designers for her publication’s stylish pages, all while navigating office microaggressions. Stalled at work, she worries that her dream print career will soon succumb to the rise of social media. She is at a standstill, too, in her relationship with her girlfriend Alison. And Lily feels unable to voice her authenticity when others’ sliding perceptions of her mixed race and bisexual identity repeatedly drown her out.
Charming and hyperconfident, Billie seems invested in mentoring Lily out of her slump, from the screen of her phone. But their text exchanges and Billie’s relentless worldview begin to consume Lily’s life. Eager to impress her powerful guide, Lily is perpetually suspended in an ellipsis, waiting for those three gray dots to bloom into a new message from Billie.
Ellipses explores one woman’s struggle for wholeness, in a world shaped by digital half-lives and aspirational fantasies. In the end, this stunning debut novel reveals the rewards and challenges of forging an uncharted path on one’s own terms.
There is a lot to parse here, from microaggressions to racism, misogyny, and workplace power plays, all told through the lens of a young woman clashing with a changing culture. This debut novel revolves around Lily, a queer, mixed-race writer at a women’s print magazine in New York City, writing about social media influencers and not exactly loving it. Lily spends her life trying to blend in, whether it is at work or at the social gatherings she covers for the magazine. The industry is moving to digital, but there is a certain snobbism to print that Lily can’t seem to shake off. She meets Billie, a powerful lesbian running a beauty empire who seems to want to mentor Lily via text messages, but Lily isn’t always too fond of her advice. Nonetheless, Lily becomes somewhat obsessed with Billie, putting her own relationship with her long-term girlfriend at risk while her career feels like it is plunging downhill. This mentorship is quite toxic, but it takes Lily way too long to figure that out, leading to a somewhat surprising ending.
Verdict: Readalikes for this original literary debut may include The Adult by Bronwyn Fischer or We Are Water by Wally Lamb.
Last week was my craziest reading week ever – I was reading four books at the same time. Usually, I have at least two going. I like to read before bed, and I prefer light romances that won’t keep me tossing and turning. During the day, I read whatever I want. Last week I was also listening to an audiobook, which I haven’t finished yet. I have a hard time with audiobooks; my mind tends to wander.
I’ve never listened to a contemporary romance, and I was curious as to how I would handle it, especially ones with graphic sex scenes. I listened to all the Outlander (Diana Gabaldon) books and those held my attention, even though I had already read the print/digital version prior to listening. This has been an interesting experiment for me. So far, I think I’ve listened to most of it, but occasionally I find myself thinking about something else. Plus it takes so much longer to read a book by listening to it. I can read a typical contemporary romance in a few hours, and I’ve been listening for a couple of weeks now. I don’t listen every day, so that’s part of the problem, I guess. I was also reading Fourth Wing, a romantasy, while reading the other books, so that’s how I ended up reading four books at once. I don’t think I’ll be doing this again.
A bookshop in left-leaning Asheville is now sending children’s books back to the Sunshine State
Food News
I have tried making all sorts of different chocolate cakes. Not my favorite, but my family loves it. I finally found THE CAKE! This is the one that everyone loves best, family, friends, and co-workers. It’s called Beatty’s Chocolate Cake, and I got the recipe from the Barefoot Contessa herself, Ina Garten. I used Ghirardelli Majestic Premium Cocoa Powder and Trader Joe’s Pound Plus Dark Chocolate (the one in the brown wrapper, which is about 57% – the red wrapper is 72% so more bitter if that’s your preference.) I’ve tried so many other recipes, from Dorie Greenspan, Rose Levy Beranbaum, Deb Perelman, Claire Safitz, several from the New York Times cooking app, Bon Appetit, America’s Test Kitchen, etc. and this is, by far, everyone’s favorite. I don’t even love chocolate cake and I happily devoured this one. If you give it a try, please let me know!
Other News
My grandson’s first trip to DisneyWorld was a blast!
As always, thanks for reading, and stay safe.
Thanks to The New York Times and The Washington Post for allowing me to “gift” my readers with free access to these articles, a lovely perk for subscribers.
Comments Off on BookBitch Diary: March 1, 2024 | Ramblings | Permalink Posted by Stacy Alesi
Enter the brutal and elite world of a war college for dragon riders from New York Times bestselling author Rebecca Yarros
Twenty-year-old Violet Sorrengail was supposed to enter the Scribe Quadrant, living a quiet life among books and history. Now, the commanding general―also known as her tough-as-talons mother―has ordered Violet to join the hundreds of candidates striving to become the elite of Navarre: dragon riders.
But when you’re smaller than everyone else and your body is brittle, death is only a heartbeat away…because dragons don’t bond to “fragile” humans. They incinerate them.
With fewer dragons willing to bond than cadets, most would kill Violet to better their own chances of success. The rest would kill her just for being her mother’s daughter―like Xaden Riorson, the most powerful and ruthless wingleader in the Riders Quadrant.
She’ll need every edge her wits can give her just to see the next sunrise.
Yet, with every day that passes, the war outside grows more deadly, the kingdom’s protective wards are failing, and the death toll continues to rise. Even worse, Violet begins to suspect leadership is hiding a terrible secret.
Friends, enemies, lovers. Everyone at Basgiath War College has an agenda―because once you enter, there are only two ways out: graduate or die.
A #1 New York Times bestseller • Optioned for TV by Amazon Studios • Amazon Best Books of the Year, #4 • Apple Best Books of the Year 2023 • Barnes & Noble Best Fantasy Book of 2023 • NPR “Books We Love” 2023 • Audible Best Books of 2023 • Hudson Book of the Year • Google Play Best Books of 2023 • Indigo Best Books of 2023 • Waterstones Book of the Year finalist • Goodreads Choice Award, semi-finalist • Newsweek Staffers’ Favorite Books of 2023 • Paste Magazine’s Best Books of 2023
The Empyrean series is best enjoyed in order. Reading Order: Book #1 Fourth Wing Book #2 Iron Flame
I rarely read fantasy novels, and even though this one hit a lot of the best books of the year lists, I was happily ignoring it until my friend Judy recommended it. We don’t always love the same books, but neither of us reads much fantasy, so when she gave it a rave review, I decided to give it a try.
Yarros wrote romances for years before this book, but I never read any. This book falls into the “romantasy” genre, a mashup of romance and fantasy and her publisher loved it so much, they actually created a new imprint for this book, Red Tower Books. Entangled Publishing is a female-owned publisher and was strictly romance, and I’m pretty sure this is the biggest bestseller they’ve ever had – and I’m just thrilled for them.
I never read The Hunger Games or Twilight, but I did see some of the movies so I had an idea about this genre. Fourth Wing is set in a school for dragon riders, and the students either die or graduate. Our heroine, Violet, is one of three children. Her brother died fighting, her sister is a fierce dragon rider, and their mother is one of the top generals. It was her mother’s decision to place Violet in this school.
Violet’s father was a scribe, a kind of historian, and she had been planning to follow in his footsteps until her mother ended that dream. Her childhood best friend is around to keep an eye on her, but Violet has some physical issues that impede her progress. She’s tiny, for one thing, and has a disease that causes her bones and joints to break easily. She is seen as weak, but smart, and it’s her smarts that save her.
The head of her section is Xaden, whose parents were killed by Violet’s mother, and Violet’s brother was killed by Xaden’s family. Let’s just say there is no love lost between these two, except instead of killing Violet, Xaden keeps helping her. And much to Violet’s surprise, she finds herself strongly attracted to the dark and brooding warrior.
Yarros has created a harsh world for these young people to maneuver through, and the action moves the story along at a breakneck pace. I must admit to skimming some of the battles, but for the most part, I did enjoy this book. That said, I’m not sure if I’ll read the rest of the series. I really have to be in the mood for something like this. I can see book groups (who aren’t afraid of 500+ page tomes) having a lot of fun with this, and I’m hoping that Amazon Prime Video does it justice. I will watch, probably hiding from a lot of it. Readers who loved Twilight and The Hunger Games will devour this.
2/2024 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch
FOURTH WING by Rebecca Yarros.Entangled: Red Tower Books (May 2, 2023). ISBN: 978-1649374042. 528p.
Fans of the Hallmark Channel and Gilmore Girls will adore this delightful rom‑com about a city girl who goes in search of small-town happiness, only to discover life—and love—are nothing like the TV movies.
Emerging journalist Adina Gellar is done with dating in New York City. If she’s learned anything from made-for-TV romance movies, it’s that she’ll find love in a small town—the kind with harvest festivals, delightful but quirky characters, and scores of delectable single dudes. So when a big-city real estate magnate targets tiny Pleasant Hollow for development, Adi knows she’s found the perfect story—one that will earn her a position at a coveted online magazine, so she can finally start adulting for real . . . and maybe even find her dream man in the process.
Only Pleasant Hollow isn’t exactly “pleasant.” There’s no charming bakery, no quaint seasonal festivals, and the residents are more ambivalent than welcoming. The only upside is Finn Adams, who’s more mouthwatering than the homemade cherry pie Adi can’t seem to find—even if he does work for the company she’d hoped to bring down. Suddenly Adi has to wonder if maybe TV got it all wrong after all. But will following her heart mean losing her chance to break into the big time?
They got me with the first sentence of the synopsis – I’m a huge Gilmore Girls fan, and while I’ve pretty much given up on Hallmark movies (not worth paying for,) I do enjoy them now and then. I was intrigued enough to check out this book, and I’m glad I did – even if I’m a bit late to the party. It came out in 2022!
Adi lives in the city – New York City – and while she loves living there, she hasn’t had much luck in the romance department. Struggling to pay the rent, she juggles different jobs but she really wants to be a journalist. She writes freelance but can’t afford to just do that, until one of the online magazines she writes for dangles a full time position over her head.
Adi comes up with a great premise for a story; she heard about a big developer moving into a small town in upstate New York. She proposes spending a week there to get the lowdown about how the people who live there feel about the big, bad developer moving in. Plus she’s hopeful she’ll meet some good-looking, small-town, fabulous guy who will sweep her off her feet.
Everything Adi knows about small towns is what she’s seen in Hallmark movies and from the Gilmore Girls, so her expectations are high. They are also quickly crushed as she arrived a bit early for check-in and the innkeeper not-so-politely tells her to come back later. She’s not greeted warmly at the local restaurant either, and when she smiles at people on the street, she gets dirty looks in return. And worst of all, the first good-looking guy she meets is running the new project in town – and he’s from NYC.
The town itself is nothing like Stars Hollow (Gilmore Girls). There are no quirky residents waiting to greet the newcomer. There are no celebrations or fairs or pie-eating contests. There are no bizarre town meetings. Everyone seems to mind their own business and no one seems interested in Adi’s ideas for turning this town into the one of her dreams.
Finn is a really nice guy, even if he isn’t from the small town. But he’s happy to help her with her article, shows her the plans for the project, and so forth. Adi quickly learns her article may not go the way Hallmark movies do when no one in town seems the least bit upset about the big, bad developer moving in. Adi is going to have to come up with another angle, and she is stumped.
Meanwhile, Finn is trying his best to be helpful and the more time they spend together, well, you know what happens. I have to say the publisher was spot on – this is a really fun read for anyone who enjoys Hallmark movies and the Gilmore Girls. I loved it!
2/2024 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch
AS SEEN ON TV by Meredith Schorr.Forever (June 7, 2022). ISBN: 978-1538754764. 352p.
#1 New York Times bestselling author Susan Elizabeth Phillips returns with the next book in her Chicago Stars series where a successful sports agent and the sister of his biggest client engage in a take-no-prisoners battle of the sexes.
Take one hard-driving sports agent…
Throw in a failed chocolatier…
And her superstar football player brother…
Add a quirky pink and purple food truck…
Then, to really screw things up, mix in a very unfortunate murder.
Brett Rivers is the hottest sports agent in the business—fast and furious, swift and deadly. Failure? Not an option.
Rory Garrett is—let’s be honest—a disaster. She has a big heart, an empty bank account, a passion for making exquisite chocolate, and a huge inferiority complex from living in the shadow of Brett’s most important client, her football legend brother.
Brett and Rory should never have met, and they absolutely, positively should never have had to deal with the consequences of one stupid, drunken night…one disastrous lie…one career in jeopardy…one missing football player…and a very dead body.
It’s going to get messy…and dangerous…and heartbreaking…and sexy. To Rory, Brett represents skewed values and a devious mind. To Brett, Rory is forbidden fruit, off limits, do not disturb, and no entry—definitely no entry.
A woman who has succeeded at nothing and a man who’s succeeded at everything confront the challenge of their lives as they struggle with themselves and each other. When it comes to love—what price are any of us willing to pay to be simply the best?
“The queen of the football romance is not Taylor Swift. It’s Susan Elizabeth Phillips.”—Wall Street Journal
Susan Elizabeth Phillips started this series in 1994! She is credited with creating the first sports romance, or the first football romance, depending on who you ask. Either way, she’s been doing this for a long time, and doing it well.
If you are not familiar, the Chicago Stars are a fictitious football team, and this book centers around their star quarterback’s sister, Rory, and his agent, Brett – and it has a touch of suspense when that quarterback is arrested for the murder of his ex-girlfriend. But that’s a secondary plot line; this is a romcom at heart.
Rory is a wannabe chocolatier with some money troubles. She lost her mother when she was a young child and never really got along with her stepmother, especially after Clint was born. Then she lost her father, too. Clint was the golden child, and they are not close either. She won’t take money from either of them and is struggling to make a living. She bought a food truck with a partner, hoping to make enough selling store-bought candy to upgrade the truck with air conditioning, among other things. But the partner takes all the candy and disappears, leaving Rory with a $2000 fine from the city and nothing to sell.
Rory is somewhat friendly with her neighbor, who is a beautiful young woman determined to marry rich. When she starts dating Rory’s brother, her protective instincts kick in and she tries to warn him. But he’s in love, bought the ring, and Rory has visions of a brother marrying a gold digger without a prenup. Since he won’t listen, she tells the girlfriend that her brother is a gambler one step away from losing his job. When the girlfriend ends up dead on Clint’s patio, he is assumed to be the murderer.
Meanwhile, Rory is at a party where she has a one night stand with a super hot guy, except when he takes off early the next morning, he leaves $500 in cash on the dresser. Incensed, she finds him, but they quickly realize they have entered no man’s land. He thought she was a call girl, and she thought he was an athlete. But Brett is Clint’s agent, and Rory is his sister, and there is an unwritten but very strong rule about screwing around with the client’s family.
Rory is nothing like any woman Brett has ever been with. This is a guy who is on call basically 24/7 for his mega-successful clients, and is a workaholic, which is also why he’s so successful. But he can’t stop thinking about her, and when Clint is arrested, they start working together, trying to prove his innocence. The cops took the easy way out by arresting the homeowner/ex-boyfriend. Rory runs down one lead after another but gets nowhere fast. And Brett is always one step behind her, helping out when he can. Their chemistry is off the charts, but she knows he is a player and he can’t even understand his own fascination with Rory.
Everyone gets their happy ending, but it is so much fun getting there. SEP is in fine form with this story – there are lots of laughs, some steamy scenes, and the touch of suspense ratchets things up even more. This series does not need to be read in order, each book operates as a standalone. Highly recommend to readers who enjoy sports romances – SEP is the Queen for good reason.
2/2024 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch
SIMPLY THE BEST by Susan Elizabeth Phillips.Avon (February 13, 2024). ISBN: 978-0063248564. 384p.
Strangers on a Train meets The Family Next Door in this page-turning thriller by the author of The Perfect Escape
How well do you know your friends?
Isolated and embroiled in a custody battle, Mary is desperate for a friend. So when she meets the charming and enigmatic Willa at a Brooklyn playground, their connection feels fated. But during a margarita-fueled moms’ night out, Mary shares her darkest secret about her ex, George, and the next morning Willa simply disappears. No calls, no texts, nothing.
Two months later, Mary’s divorce is almost finalized, and she’s trying to build a new life for her son in upstate New York. On her first day in town, she runs into Willa . . . only Willa’s name is now Annie, and she’s got an entirely new family in tow. When George turns up dead and Mary becomes the prime suspect, she has no choice but to turn to her only friend in town: Willa. As coincidences—and evidence—pile up, Mary begins to wonder whether Willa had something to do with George’s death. Is the woman a friend or a foe, a confidante or just a con? Mary must uncover the truth before she loses everything.
Konen (You Should Have Told Me) pens this new domestic thriller in two voices: Mary, a wealthy Brooklyn housewife and mother, and Willa, the friend she makes on the playground. Mary is mid-divorce from George, but George comes from generational family wealth, and Mary only has what he gives her. All she wants is shared custody of their toddler, but George wants her back – and he is used to getting what he wants. Willa has become her sounding board and friend until she abruptly ghosts Mary. Hurt but unsure how to fix things with the only friend she has, Mary is checking out a small town halfway between her family’s home in upstate New York and Brooklyn, when she sees Willa; except this Willa has changed her hair color and insists her name is Annie. Mary quickly figures out that Annie/Willa is lying, and the story really goes off the rails when George is murdered, and Mary is the prime suspect. It seems like everyone is prevaricating in this fraught battle to get to the truth – and the murderer. It all unravels at breakneck speed, careening crazily to the dramatic ending.
Verdict: This twisty tale told by an unreliable narrator should appeal to fans of Gillian Flynn, Shari Lapena, and Paula Hawkins.
A grumpy lobster fisherman tosses a fashion influencer’s impeccably curated life overboard in the next romantic comedy from international bestselling author Amy Lea.
In a last-ditch effort to rescue her brand from the brink of irrelevance, Boston fashion influencer Melanie Karlsen finds herself in a rural fishing village on the east coast of Canada. The only thing scarier than nature itself? The burly and bearded bed-and-breakfast owner and fisherman, Evan Whaler—who single-handedly disproves the theory that Canadians are “nice.”
After a boating accident lands Evan unconscious in the hospital, Mel is mistaken for his fiancée by his welcoming yet quirky family, who are embroiled in a long-standing feud over the B&B. In a bold attempt to mend family fences, Mel agrees to fake their engagement for one week in exchange for Evan’s help with her social media content.
Amid long hikes and campfire chats, reeling in their budding feelings for each other proves more difficult by the day. But is Mel willing to sacrifice her picture-perfect life in the city for a chance at a true, unfiltered love in the wild?
“Lea’s talent for writing complicated but ultimately likable characters is on full display as things between Melanie and Evan become more and more comically disastrous before they start to get better, and her expert knack for comedy makes this story a standout. This last chapter in Lea’s Influencer series is a heartwarming wrap-up with a strong sense of place and hilarious side characters. A sweet conclusion to a swoony contemporary romance trilogy.”—Kirkus (starred review)
“Lea tugs heart strings in her final Influencer romance… Lea handles these heavy themes with grace, never allowing them to overpower the fun, or vice versa. Readers will both laugh and cry.”—Publishers Weekly
“Snarky bickering between the main characters makes for enjoyable dialogue, and the romantic development is wonderful despite Melanie and Evan’s opposing personalities and different backgrounds… Lea’s final “Influencer” novel is a fabulous rom-com brimming with magnetic chemistry and delightful tropes.”—Library Journal
Much to my surprise, this is the final book of a trilogy, and I had no idea reading it that I was missing anything. It took me a little while to get into this, but once I did, I couldn’t put it down. Turns out I read the second book, EXES AND O’S, and it even made my best books of 2023 list!
Melanie is a social media influencer in Boston, but she’s been losing followers and branding partners. When she is offered an opportunity to partner with a swanky resort in Nova Scotia, she jumps at the chance. But when she arrives, she is told they gave her the wrong date; they weren’t expecting her for another week and have no rooms available. It’s the height of tourist season, and it takes a while before she finally finds a place to stay, a bed and breakfast more than an hour away. Nonetheless, she books it through Airbnb, but when she arrives, things are not off to a great start.
The big grumpy guy, Evan, who greets her, tells her she is mistaken; they are not open for business. As they argue, his sister Lucy turns up, takes matters into her own hands, and gets Melanie situated. But the B&B is a mess, with all sorts of projects going on, and a lot more fixing up is needed. But it’s a bed, and she needs one.
The constant bickering between Melanie and Evan takes a turn when he agrees to take her whale-watching out on his boat. But when he falls overboard and loses consciousness, Mel is beside herself. He is rescued, and she goes with him in the ambulance to the hospital, with no way to contact any of his family. At the hospital, things go a bit “While You Were Sleeping” when the only way they will let her in is by telling them she is Evan’s fiancée. Eventually his family shows up en masse, and they are thrilled to meet her. She doesn’t have to heart to tell them she isn’t really engaged to Evan, and when his sister begs her to keep the secret for another day, the guilt lets her agree.
That day turns into a week, and it also turns into a bit of a family reunion for Evan’s family. There had been a major falling out between his mother and aunt, but they pulled together to help Evan and his fiancée. The more time Evan and Mel spend together, the more they realize they have feelings for one another, but Mel has to get back to the resort and then home to Boston. Evan is a lobster fisherman, so he can’t leave. They are in a bit of a pickle – first, Mel decides to blow off the resort and spend another week with Evan. But she still has to return home, and just when you think that’s that, they find a way to make it work and get their happy ever after. Lots of fun, snarky dialogue, some heat, and an ensemble cast of terrific secondary characters make a good read. Now I must find the first book in this series, Set on You! Read an excerpt below.
2/2024 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch
THE CATCH by Amy Lea.Berkley (February 13, 2024). ISBN: 978-0593336618. 416p.
“Put me down! My underwear is showing,” I demand as a gust of wind hits my ass cheeks. At least I’m wearing a cute lace thong.
“Rest assured, I’m not looking,” he mutters as I flail like an eel the entire ascent up the staircase. He doesn’t put me down until we’re outside my bedroom.
“I’m taking a star off your Airbnb review for manhandling,” I warn as he attempts to steady me against the wall just as Lucy passes by with a mini garbage can.
“Double bagged. Just in case. Looks like she might need it,” she says, giving Evan a troubled look as she turns to get out of my vicinity. “Sorry, I’m out. I don’t do puke. Night, guys.”
“I won’t puke. I’m feeling fan-tas-tic!” I shout after her with unfounded confidence. I push the door open the tiniest crack, revealing the disaster I left my room in. My cheeks flush with embarrassment. I’m a secret slob—someone who looks neat and tidy to others but is most comfortable in my own chaos (when no one’s looking).
“I can take it from here,” I assure Evan, righting myself.
His expression is quizzical. “No. You can barely stand.”
“I’m great. You can retire to your underground candlelit lair now.” I take an eager stride into my room, which to me was pretty smooth, but apparently I’m useless.
He leads me to the bench at the foot of the bed, where I proceed to topple face-first into the mattress, legs spread like a mannequin. The compromising position isn’t lost on me.
“I feel the need to warn you, I have some pretty lethal hair spray. Just as effective as bear mace, according to Cosmo,” I say, voice muffled by the mattress.
“What are you gonna do? Blind me with it?” he asks, bending over to retrieve it from under the bed.
“If you try anything, I’ll have no choice.”
“You don’t have to worry about that, Mel.” He softens his tone considerably, which is comforting. I’m pretty sure this is the first time he’s ever referred to me by name.
Any lingering appreciation is short lived when he jabs my shoulder without an ounce of delicacy. I must have drifted out of consciousness for a minute or two, because when I open my eyes again, Evan is placing a garbage bin next to me.
“It’s right beside the bed if you need it,” he says slowly, like I’m a small child. “Do you need me to ask Lucy to help you change? A glass of water?”
“No. I’m perfectly fine,” I mumble, flopping over onto my side. He’s weirdly attractive from a horizontal perspective, and I don’t like it one bit.
He watches me for a couple of peaceful breaths before abruptly pivoting on his heel. “This is going in your Airbnb guest review, by the way.”
I glare at him, blowing at the hair stuck to my lip gloss. “The intoxication? Or my veiled threat?”
“Both. Mostly the drunk part. I did warn you about the Screech,” he reminds me, hands flexing at his sides.
“It wasn’t the Screech. Your friends were the ones pouring shots down my throat. Who am I to deny Canadian hospi-taly?”
He cocks his head. “Hospitality, you mean. And you’re wasted.”
“Perfectly sober,” I mumble, sliding under the covers without taking my shoes off.
“Wears shoes in bed. Another star off,” he mutters.
“Mean host. One and a half stars off,” I retort, squeezing my eyes shut when the room starts to spin.
“Scratched the shit out of me with those claws. Minus two stars,” he says, pretending to rub a hand over his shoulder. I definitely scratched him while holding on for dear life as he hauled me up the stairs.
“Hey, I paid a lot for these nails.”
Despite my questionable eyesight in my current state, I’m pretty sure I catch his lips draw upward into the tiniest smile before my eyes close.
From the #1New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Things We Left Behind
The bride is a doll. The groom is the perfect gentleman. But the rest of the wedding party? They’re the stuff of nightmares. Rich? Check. Vapid? Double Check. Entitled? Not enough checks in the world. And the Best Man? More like the Worst Man.
But Maid of Honor Franchesca Baranski takes her duties seriously. Kidnapped groom? She’s got this. Rude attendees? You just watch her handle them. So a Best Man with a big attitude and an even bigger…checkbook? Yeah, there’s no way she’s going to let that pretentious, judgmental jackhole ruin her best friend’s wedding. No matter how sexy he is. (Well, that’s the plan anyway…)
Aiden Kilbourn doesn’t do long-term relationships. He’s busy ruling the business world, and has yet to find a woman he can tolerate for longer than a month, two at the outside. Conquering the unconquerable is basically his bread and butter. And he hasn’t met a challenge that he can’t win. But Franchesca Baranski? This smart-mouthed girl from Brooklyn may just be his downfall.
I’ve read several Lucy Score books lately and thought this was a newer one, but it turns out it’s only a newer publisher. It looks like it was originally released in 2018, probably self-published. But like I tell people who are looking for a new book, if you haven’t read it, it’s new to you!
Franchesca Baranski, AKA Frankie, is a Brooklyn born, curvy brunette whose best friend is getting married. The bride is lovely, but all her other attendants are wealthy, skinny, obnoxious blondes. The best man, Aiden Kilbourn, is your typical snotty billionaire, only interested in the blonde trophy on his arm for a week or two. And he cannot understand why he is so drawn to Frankie.
Frankie is smart, quick, funny, and is quite good at skewering Aiden, probably part of his attraction to her. She thinks he is gorgeous, but she is not looking for a one-night stand. As they spend time together sparring, they end up giving in to their sizzling chemistry. But the road to love is never easy, especially when there is class disparity and blonde roadblocks in the way.
This was a pretty good read – it held my attention, the characters were quirky enough to be interesting, and the sex was hot, but I really had to suspend my disbelief more than I like to buy some of the more outlandish plot points. I’ve enjoyed all of Score’s books, including this one, and look forward to whatever is coming next. She is an author to watch for me.
2/2024 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch
THE WORST BEST MAN by Lucy Score.Bloom Books (January 16, 2024). ISBN: 978-1728295169. 432p.
From the celebrated author of The Nightingale and The Four Winds comes Kristin Hannah’s The Women―at once an intimate portrait of coming of age in a dangerous time and an epic tale of a nation divided.
Women can be heroes. When twenty-year-old nursing student Frances “Frankie” McGrath hears these words, it is a revelation. Raised in the sun-drenched, idyllic world of Southern California and sheltered by her conservative parents, she has always prided herself on doing the right thing. But in 1965, the world is changing, and she suddenly dares to imagine a different future for herself. When her brother ships out to serve in Vietnam, she joins the Army Nurse Corps and follows his path.
As green and inexperienced as the men sent to Vietnam to fight, Frankie is over-whelmed by the chaos and destruction of war. Each day is a gamble of life and death, hope and betrayal; friendships run deep and can be shattered in an instant. In war, she meets―and becomes one of―the lucky, the brave, the broken, and the lost.
But war is just the beginning for Frankie and her veteran friends. The real battle lies in coming home to a changed and divided America, to angry protesters, and to a country that wants to forget Vietnam.
The Women is the story of one woman gone to war, but it shines a light on all women who put themselves in harm’s way and whose sacrifice and commitment to their country has too often been forgotten. A novel about deep friendships and bold patriotism, The Women is a richly drawn story with a memorable heroine whose idealism and courage under fire will come to define an era.
“Hannah again shines her light on overlooked women in history” ―People Magazine (Book of the Week)
“Hannah is in top form here… Hannah’s real superpower is her ability to hook you along from catastrophe to catastrophe, sometimes peering between your fingers, because you simply cannot give up on her characters. She gathers women into the (Vietnam) experience with moving conviction.” ―The New York Times
Fans of women’s historicals will enjoy this magnetic wartime story.” ―Publishers Weekly
“a moving, gripping tale that pays tribute to the under-appreciated skill and courage of combat nurses.” —Booklist, starred review
I started reading Kristin Hannah back in the last century when she was writing women’s fiction or domestic fiction. She was always a popular author, but became a mega-best-selling author with The Nightingale, historical fiction about two sisters during World War II that stayed on the New York Times bestseller list for an incredible 58 weeks. That was followed by The Four Winds, another historical novel, this one set during the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl. This new one, The Women, is about the nurses who served during Vietnam, what they went through, what they returned to, and how they survived.
The story is based around our protagonist, Frances McGrath, who goes by Frankie. It is the 1960’s, the start of the Vietnam War, and Frankie’s brother has just enlisted. Theirs is a military family, with the exception of their father, who was 4F. They live in a wealthy enclave in California, and Frankie was brought up to be a wife. She attended Catholic schools throughout her life; she became a nurse, one of the three acceptable women’s careers (secretary, teacher, nurse.) Shortly after she graduates, she decides to follow her brother to Vietnam. As proud of her brother as her parents were, they are horrified by Frankie volunteering and, in fact, lie to their friends about where she is.
Hannah brings the Vietnam War and the role combat nurses played into sharp focus. The horrors of war play out in the MASH unit where she is first assigned, followed by a stint on the front lines. Yet when she realizes she needs help after she returns, the VA tells her there were no women in Vietnam, and only combat veterans are entitled to any kind of help.
The first half of the book or so is about Frankie’s experiences in the war, from her first day when she is told not to salute as “Charlie” likes to kill officers, to the married men who want her, to the two women she serves with who become her closest friends. The second half of the book is about reentry into the “real world”, a civilization that spit on returning veterans, even the women. Frankie turns to alcohol and drugs and eventually gets the help she needs, but it is a long, difficult road to get there. I really loved the ending – instead of everything tied up neatly, we see progress made, both for Frankie and all Vietnam veterans, and the hope of a happy ending for Frankie.
There are so many important themes here, from war to racism to alcoholism and other addictions, and family discordance, and reading groups will have much to discuss. I lived through most of this through elementary school and junior high, but Hannah took me deeper into Vietnam than I’ve been since Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried, which I’ve always considered to be the essential read of the Vietnam War. The Women is also an essential read and the first book to be guaranteed a place on my best books of the year list. While it was gut-wrenching at times, it is also poignant, provocative, and too important to be ignored. This is the kind of book that makes me glad I have this platform so I can encourage people to read it. I hope you love it as much as I do.
2/2024 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch
THE WOMEN by Kristin Hannah.St. Martin’s Press (February 6, 2024). ISBN: 978-1250178633. 480p.
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