My January Reads
The 5 Books I’ve Read This Month: Reviewed
Ever since I got my Kindle last October, I have really been on my reading game! This month, I managed to get through 5 books and am super proud of myself. Listen, it isn’t high-brow literary fiction but you know what, at least I’m not doomscrolling before bed.
These books were a little tricky to review because honestly, none were absolute winners but here are my spoiler-free thoughts!
Never Lie by Frieda McFadden
Never Lie is my 4th McFadden book I’ve read and it’s my least favourite so far. It’s a fast-paced thriller about a young couple trapped in a mansion filled with secrets during a snowstorm. Like all her other novels, the chapters are quick and highly addictive. I devoured this but that doesn’t mean it didn’t fall flat for me in the end.
The last act really comes out of nowhere and without being hyperbolic, makes absolutely zero sense. It ignores the entire world it has built in the first 90% of the book. So disappointing and mostly confusing.
Birthday Girl by Penelope Douglas
This is a very popular recommendation on “booktok” aka Tiktok’s book community for a spicy romance read. It’s a forbidden age-gap love story and the romantic tension and build-up was really well done. I’ve been burned by a few viral romance books before but this was well-written.
Unfortunately, I had a tough time rooting for these characters overall. I found them to be annoying and I rolled my eyes a lot. The dynamic between Jordan and Pike was bizarre too. I couldn’t really move past him calling her a kid for the first half. Weird.
Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera
I was really looking forward to this whodunnit about a young woman who returns to her hometown as the number one suspect in her friend’s murder while a podcast covers the mystery.
I am unfortunately not relating to all the positive reviews. This was slow. I really had a hard time getting into the story and the beginning felt extremely repetitive. The resolution also felt so incredibly underwhelming… very “duh”. Even though I didn’t love this book, I will totally watch the movie adaptation as I actually think this will make a better movie than a book! Who will they cast as Ben? Hopefully someone cute.
Pucking Wild by Emily Rath
What can I say other than I love a guilty pleasure? This is the second instalment in Rath’s Jacksonville Rays series. These books are silly. I know that. They open with a crazy long list of characters, astrological signs and Taylor Swift playlists.
This series manages to be so saccharine while also being filthly. It’s a hilarious and puzzling blend. To me, they read like a dirty Hallmark movie. I enjoyed this one and will be reading the third.
The Intruder by Frieda McFadden
Well, Frieda… here we are again. I enjoyed the half of this book that followed Ella and Anton. I was really rooting for her to make it out of her awful home life. Casey’s story just didn’t interest me as much and her choices frustrated me throughout.
As with all McFadden books, the reader is waiting for a twist. The reveal in this one worked well enough. It definitely wasn’t mind-blowing but at least made a little more sense than Never Lie. I’m not sure I would recommend this one as my persisting thought is… meh.
Maybe not my best reading month but c’est la vie! I’m kicking off February with Liz Moore’s God of the Woods and I can already tell I’m off to a great start.
What recent reads would you recommend?
xoxo by fran