Genre: Contemporary

Midnight at the Blackbird Cafe by Heather Webber | Review

Posted August 24, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 0 Comments

Midnight at the Blackbird Café is a charming, contemporary adult novel that takes place in a small Southern community with a lot of heart, delicious food, and a hint of magic. The story follows Anna Kate, pre-med college student who has returned to her family’s hometown in the wake of her grandmother’s death to get her affairs in order and figure out to do with her iconic café. As one can imagine, what intends to be a quick month of cleaning and legal work turns into Anna Kate learning about family secrets, discovering the magic that her grandmother wove into […]

The Mall by Megan McCafferty | ARC Review

Posted July 22, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 2 Comments

90s historical fiction is something I didn’t know I needed but now can’t believe I’ve been living without! (Also, the fact that the 90s is considered historical fiction makes me feel ~old~). I absolutely flew through The Mall, which follows recent high school graduate Cassie as she navigates her last summer before college navigating retail life at The Mall. Which should have been a quick summer of serving up cookies and daydream of NYC, she finds her life turned totally upside-down with mall shenanigans, featuring everything from underground parties to Cabbage Patch scavenger hunts. In many ways The Mall is […]

Girl, Unframed by Deb Caletti | ARC Review

Posted July 13, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 0 Comments

It’s no secret that I absolutely ADORED A Heart in a Body in the World by Deb Caletti and it will forever be one of my favorite contemporary novels, so when I heard Deb Caletti was going to be writing a thriller set in San Francisco I clicked that NetGalley request button SO fast. Girl, Unframed proved to be a dark, unsettling story about the burdens of beauty, whether it be regarding artwork or a real, living girl who’s appearance is commodified, scrutinized, and weaponized at every turn. Protagonist Avery is the daughter of a stunning movie star who’s clinging […]

The Heir Affair by Jessica Cocks and Heather Morgan | ARC Review

Posted June 29, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 0 Comments

I’ve been waiting years for a sequel to The Royal We, so I was ECSTATIC when I found out The Heir Affair was being released. I am a fan of anything royalty related and this series definitely scratches that itch by feeling like an alternate universe version of today’s modern day UK royals. Readers left Bex and Co. in such a pickle at the end of The Royal We that I couldn’t wait to see how things picked up in the sequel, and I was not disappointed, as I ended up enjoying this book even more than the first! The […]

Head Over Heels by Hannah Orenstein | ARC Review

Posted June 15, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 6 Comments

I love a romance novel that has a good subplot that focuses on something other than the romance itself, and that’s exactly what I found in the pages of Head Over Heels by Hannah Orenstein, which has quickly risen to the top of my favorites of 2020 list! Following the story of Avery Abrams, a retired gymnast who just missed Olympic glory, the novel focuses on what comes next after dreams have been shattered and careers ruined by injuries. In just her mid-twenties, Avery feels as though her life has peaked and her identity ruined. I really loved this story […]

In Five Years by Rebecca Serle | Review

Posted June 1, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 4 Comments

It’s rare that I make it through an entire book in nearly one afternoon these days, but that was the case with In Five Years- I couldn’t put it down! I found this book to be very polarizing to me, as on the one hand I really enjoyed it, and on the other hand I had some fundamental problems with it that left me blindsided and feeling more than a little tricked. Nevertheless, it was an addictive reading experience that is nearly impossible to describe without spoilers, so be prepared for a few below (I won’t be spoiling the entire […]

What I Carry by Jennifer Longo | Review

Posted May 25, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 5 Comments

You know how every so often you pick up a YA book that is so quiet, yet so excellently crafted, it just really speaks to you? That’s how I felt about What I Carry, a contemporary YA novel that follows Muir, a seventeen year old girl who’s been in the foster care system her entire life. I can’t remember how I initially heard about the novel, but I remember it sticking on my radar after seeing it compared to Far From the Tree, another well written YA novel that tackles foster care/adoption topics in YA. I then saw it was […]

Tweet Cute by Emma Lord | Review

Posted May 18, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 5 Comments

It seems like Tweet Cute has been everywhere so far this year- popping up on my Twitter feed (how appropriate), mentioned on Instagram, and gushed about across multiple blogs I follow, praising the cute romance and plethora of grilled cheese. I anxiously awaited my library to have it available via Libby and eagerly devoured it (no pun intended) as soon as my hold came in! While I have felt in recent years that I’m become burnt out on high school contemporary YA romances, Tweet Cute was refreshing, fun, and overall adorable. Reasons to Read Tweet Cute Rivalry: The entire premise […]

American Royals by Katharine McGee | Review

Posted April 27, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 1 Comment

American Royals was a book I was SO excited for, actually went to the store and purchased a hardcover of, and then procrastinated for several months on actually reading, lol. I think it was an instance of being SO excited for a book but worrying I might be let down so I put off actually reading it (despite a few attempts at starting). I finally finished it through a combination of reading the hardcover and listening to the audio, and while I enjoyed reading it, it definitely didn’t live up to all of my (admittedly very high) expectations. If you’ve […]

Salty, Bitter, Sweet by Mayra Cuevas | Review

Posted April 20, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 3 Comments

Never have I read a book that has made me so hungry. I love YA books centered on food and am quite the foodie despite not really cooking much myself (I blame an obsession with Food Network shows) so I adore books about aspiring chefs. I’ve read quite a few over the years and have never found one with such vivid food descriptions as Salty, Bitter Sweet. In addition to the mouthwatering food descriptions, I genuinely enjoyed the story, which follows a half Latinx protagonist spending the summer in Europe…this book really had almost all of my favorite things! The […]