steca2's reviews
148 reviews

The Rural Diaries: Love, Livestock, and Big Life Lessons Down on Mischief Farm by Hilarie Burton Morgan

emotional funny hopeful inspiring medium-paced

5.0

Listened to the audiobook which is read by the author. A masterclass in storytelling! Hilarie was inspiring, insightful, and made me feel the love through her words. She made me laugh out loud, feel the heartbreak, and cry with her. I felt like she became my friend after finishing this book and I already miss her. Can’t wait to listen to her next book! 

What Happened To You?: Conversations on Trauma, Resilience, and Healing by Bruce D. Perry, Oprah Winfrey

hopeful informative inspiring medium-paced

4.75

Listened to the audiobook and it was fabulous! Loved all of Dr Perry’s anecdotes  

Ship Wrecked by Olivia Dade

funny lighthearted medium-paced

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

3.25

I didn’t love how much explaining there was (very much a tell not show kind of book) and it was sometimes confusing for pacing, but not horrible. Honestly this was a solid 4 star read up until the third act breakup. I loved Peter (who doesn’t love a burly introvert?) and Maria’s outspoken body positivity was  refreshing.

Maria’s traumatic childhood clearly lead to a strong fear of abandonment and her freak out/the breakup made sense from HER POV…. but from Peter? It felt like the author completely forgot about the stubborn man he was for the first 50% of the book! He was so quick to blame himself and give up everything for her and there was no accountability for her on her significant part of the conflict. It made me not like Maria, and I had really liked her up until then! I wonder if a different writer took the helm if they could have explored the complexities of their conflicting trauma responses…

all in all, a fun read though!  Got me out of a significant reading slump so I’m happy about that — prob won’t recommend it to others though bc of my issues with the last 15% of the book.  

Venom & Vengeance by Emma Slate

funny tense 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

4.25

I really liked this one but it needed an edit and/or a more detailed beta reader. There were a few noticeable typos and the timeline was inaccurate/confusing a lot of the time.  I just ended up ignoring any reference to the timeline because it just didn’t make sense to me. Also, how long is Brooklyn going to be pregnant?? 
Aside from that, still a really good book! I loved Sutton and Viper — their banter was top notch and I really liked their individual character growth. I also loved that they addressed the craziness of instalove — this is the way to handle it for sure! My only big complaint was

how Grey’s death was handled. He and Darcy were main side characters in all 5 books and his death could have been more impactful if the author just let the read sit in it. Instead, it was very much surface level, similar to Reap’s. It also felt repetitive to kill him off. South Paw’s death made sense for the story but Grey’s felt unnecessarily painful. Like we get it, people die. But people also live with lifelong injuries… I wish instead the author would have had Grey live but make him paralyzed. All of the characters who have been shot have been either killed or relatively fine in the long run. It would have been interesting to see a long term consequence that forced a character out of participating in the MC/unable to ride… a different kind of death? It also would have been interesting to see some disability rep. 

But in all in, really enjoyed it and look forward to reading the next book in December!   

Forget Me Not by Julie Soto

emotional funny medium-paced

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

4.75

Such a cute book! Everything I’ve read by Julie Soto has been great so I knew I’d love this one too! My only complaint is that I wanted more at the end — it ended beautifully but I just selfishly wanted more fluff because I didn’t want their story to end. I loved the Then/Now format and dual POV (switching for the flashbacks) — felt like I couldn’t put the book down!    Hopefully this becomes a series because I would love to read Mar’s story (or any of the step siblings!) and to see Elliot and Ama more! 

Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid

emotional inspiring medium-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

This was the best audiobook I have ever listened to. I tried reading the book and enjoyed it at first but put it down and never really picked it up again. I’m so glad I listened to it instead! Beautifully done with actors for each character. The story felt so honest and real that I found myself forgetting it was fiction. This story deserves all the accolades and more. If I was listening in private, I probably would have cried at the ending. 

Spare by Prince Harry

emotional funny reflective medium-paced

4.25

Listened to the audiobook - definitely recommend that way as it is read by the author. It’s so clear that HRH Harry has significant trauma when it comes to the need for honesty and wanted to use this book to right all the wrongs that the press published. But instead of being just enlightening, it was also heartbreaking bc behind it all you can see how scarred the entire family is and how those scars led to significant riffs in their relationships.  It also felt almost exploitative to listen to bc it feels like this book was written exclusively in response to the negative press, and that’s why he included SO many details. You can also tell that a ghostwriter wrote 90-95% of the book bc there are tonal shifts — strong poetic prose followed by “bro banter”

Peter Darling by Austin Chant

adventurous emotional hopeful medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.75

All you need is a little faith, luck, and pixie dust! The spirit of youth and joy reimagined. Super imaginative and genuinely sweet. Only thing that would have made this a five star read is if we had an extra 100 pages to build their love a little more, felt a little insta-love on Hook’s side because he had only known Pan as an adult for a few days. I desperately want a sequel to see what life has in store for James and Peter (and Ernest!) but it ended beautifully. 

Avidly Reads Guilty Pleasures by Arielle Zibrak

funny informative slow-paced

2.0

Felt overly repetitive and slow at times. Had to push myself to finish it even though in theory it should have been a very quick read. It was funny but far too many tangents, references, and anecdotes to feel consistent and concise. 

The Nanny by Lana Ferguson

funny lighthearted medium-paced

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

4.0

Super cute, fluffy little romcom! Sophie was adorable and very believable. Multiple spicy scenes but had a good plot so it was well balanced. Wish the epilogue was longer but all in all a great time!