sincerelyadi's reviews
276 reviews

Happily Never After by Lynn Painter

adventurous funny hopeful lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Lynn Painter gets me every time with her books in the best possible way. I’m so glad we live in a world where Lynn gets to write and share her stories because she is an incredible author that makes me feel so dang happy. 

Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder

adventurous funny lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

As a little girl we read this in third grade and this is the book that made me fall in love with reading. It also was my favorite of the entire series. Reading it as an adult, I’m happy to report it brought back all the same feeling I felt when I was little. That is something special. 

Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder

adventurous funny hopeful lighthearted reflective relaxing fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

I’m in my rereading my favorite books from my childhood era and I’m not mad about it! 

The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin

funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

“There ain’t no body in the world like book people.”

I listened to this on audio. A must read for any book lover. So many relatable quotes but I’ll leave you with one. This is a quick read too! I wanted to read it before I watch the movie later this week. If I remember I’ll update you with my thoughts after watching the movie. 

Also I have a book on my bookshelf called The Secret Life of Albert Entwistle that I haven’t read but I have a feeling will have a similar vibe - without a focus on books. So I think that one will move up on my already endless TBR. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Death, Suicide, Vomit

If Only I Had Told Her by Laura Nowlin

dark emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

I’ve been over my sad girl era for quite some time, but when I heard there would be a companion book to If He Had Been With Me, I knew I needed to read it. This was certainly a heavy read that I feel like as a teenager I don’t think I would fully appreciate it for the story being told. But I am not a teenager so that didn’t happen. I did really appreciate seeing from two people who loved Finny deeply and how they navigated their own grief. Grief is different for everyone but also so relatable at the same time. I also appreciated while every character had their flaws (as we all do) these characters are still innately good to the core and I really respect the author built them that way. 

As someone who is just coming out in the early stages of grief I felt this book to be rather healing and of course relatable. Though I don’t think I would have been ready to read this when my grief was so very fresh. All that to say this is a very heavy book to read so if you are not in the place mentally to read something like this, hold off until you’re better spot.  

I will definitely be carrying this story with me for a while - partly because it’s a heavy one, but also it’s a reminder of those once lost and how they would want us to carry on. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Vomit, Suicide attempt

If He Had Been with Me by Laura Nowlin

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

Updated review:
3.75 stars 
I should mention I’ve read this before, 4 times. The first four times I’ve read it, each time I didn’t know I had read it before until the very end. The 5th time reading it I listened to the audiobook after hearing the authors comment about how the audiobook changed her mind on writing a follow up book. I did remember reading this book from all the previous times so I knew how it was going to end. I will say the first 4 times I gave it 3 stars and was rather annoyed at the book, but I think as I’ve gotten older I have more appreciation for what the book is. Which is interesting to me because I’m far past my sad girl era. The only reason why I read it again is was for a refresher before I read the follow up book. All that to say, it’s a pretty depressing book and it’s cruel what the author does in the end. But I get that’s what makes the story. Though If it had been me (hehe) I would have traded it for a happy fluff version, then again that story has been told many times over with the best friends to lover troupe. Which is my favorite troupe. Anyway upping my star ratings for this book a smidge! 

Old review :
3 stars 
Okay so I started re-reading this book, I knew I started it but thought I only read a few chapters. Turns out I actually read the whole book more than once  but didn’t remember. But as I’m reading it I was like I’ve read this, this and then it was over. It was a good book except I guess not very memorable! I however would at least recommend reading it, but make sure you have a happy book lined up next!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Suicidal thoughts, Car accident, Suicide attempt

Beyond the Wand: The Magic & Mayhem of Growing Up a Wizard by Tom Felton

adventurous emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing medium-paced

5.0

Wow, this book was incredible. I listened to the audio version which Tom read which honestly now I want him to read every single book to me. I plan on grabbing a physical copy as there are many moments that I would like to go back and highlight. With endless books to read, I can confirm I will be rereading this book. So I’ll add more thoughts when I do. Thank you Tom for sharing your story. 

Advice from a Blob: How to Find Peace in this Messy, Beautiful, Chaotic Existence by Lennnie

adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing fast-paced

5.0

Lennie is one of my favorite social media follows so when I saw this cute positive little blob had a book, I knew I had to read it. Though I gotta say it’s not the same without hearing Lennie’s adorable voice. This is a cute little read especially if you need a pick me up!

The Simple Wild by K.A. Tucker

hopeful lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

It was a cute quick read. I’m now curious about the rest of the series. This was the first book I finished in quite some time as I’ve been going through commitment issues with books since losing my dog. 
As someone who has lost their parents I do appreciate how this one was not as heavy, because that can sometimes be challenging to read through. 

The Comfort Book by Matt Haig

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective fast-paced

5.0

I came across this book (yesterday 2/6/24) the day we said goodbye to our dog of 16.5 years and this book really helped as I navigated through my own grief after losing my soul dog. Matt, I thank you for this book and sharing these words. 

Part 1 really helped me the most.