Lawd knows that it's hard to recover from a trilogy like Fifty Shades of Grey (review here), but I've finally managed to regroup myself and have read some really great books recently.
Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire and Love Unscripted by Tina Reber. If you're like me and still couldn't get enough of the Christian/Anastasia love games, these two books are natural follow ups. They are quick reads and both have the typical love story formula: bad boy meets good girl, they fall in love, something dramatic happens...you know the rest.
Once We Were Brothers by Ronald Balson. Mel has been raving about this book for some time and she was spot on. The book opens in present day Chicago as Ben Solomon aims a gun in the face of Eliot Rosenzweig, a prominent figure in the Jewish community, condemning him as being a Nazi officer. The story covers the events of the war that led to the accusation, told from Ben's point of view, as well as the present day lives of the two leads and Ben's feisty attorney Catherine Lockhart, who has had her own heartache. I loved the book both due to Ben's story and also for the author's depiction of Catherine's internal struggle with corporate work versus legal work that actually stands for something. Having read many books about the Holocaust in the past, this book takes you on a completely unique emotional journey. There are numerous themes that carry into all aspects of the story: family, love, loyalty, hope, despair, justice, etc. A phenomenal read.
Flat-Out Love by Jessica Park. After finishing the last book, I needed something lighter. This book was a perfect balance of being fun yet deep. The heroine in the book is Julie who finds herself apartment-less and lost in Boston her first year of college. She's quickly taken in by her mother's friend, Erin Watkins, and her dysfunctional family. The book leaves you guessing as to what happened in their lives that results in their thirteen year old daughter walking around with a life size cut out of her eldest brother. It's Lars and the Real Girl meets Flat Stanley. It was well-written, entertaining, and there's a small trace of that love story formula I just can't get enough of :)
Rules of Civility by Amor Towles. I'll save most of my thoughts on this one since we're reading it for book club. It may have been tough to get through at times, but it's one of those books that continues to make you think after the fact. As a girl living in Manhattan, I of course loved the relate-able aspect of it, granted it was set seventy years before I inhabited this great island. The best way I can describe it is a modern day author's Great Gatsby.
What I'm reading now: The World to Come by Dara Horn
Grab a book, cuddle up in a blanket at the park (and if you are somewhere where you don't need a blanket, you're a lucky duck), and have a great weekend!
Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire and Love Unscripted by Tina Reber. If you're like me and still couldn't get enough of the Christian/Anastasia love games, these two books are natural follow ups. They are quick reads and both have the typical love story formula: bad boy meets good girl, they fall in love, something dramatic happens...you know the rest. 
Once We Were Brothers by Ronald Balson. Mel has been raving about this book for some time and she was spot on. The book opens in present day Chicago as Ben Solomon aims a gun in the face of Eliot Rosenzweig, a prominent figure in the Jewish community, condemning him as being a Nazi officer. The story covers the events of the war that led to the accusation, told from Ben's point of view, as well as the present day lives of the two leads and Ben's feisty attorney Catherine Lockhart, who has had her own heartache. I loved the book both due to Ben's story and also for the author's depiction of Catherine's internal struggle with corporate work versus legal work that actually stands for something. Having read many books about the Holocaust in the past, this book takes you on a completely unique emotional journey. There are numerous themes that carry into all aspects of the story: family, love, loyalty, hope, despair, justice, etc. A phenomenal read.
Flat-Out Love by Jessica Park. After finishing the last book, I needed something lighter. This book was a perfect balance of being fun yet deep. The heroine in the book is Julie who finds herself apartment-less and lost in Boston her first year of college. She's quickly taken in by her mother's friend, Erin Watkins, and her dysfunctional family. The book leaves you guessing as to what happened in their lives that results in their thirteen year old daughter walking around with a life size cut out of her eldest brother. It's Lars and the Real Girl meets Flat Stanley. It was well-written, entertaining, and there's a small trace of that love story formula I just can't get enough of :)Rules of Civility by Amor Towles. I'll save most of my thoughts on this one since we're reading it for book club. It may have been tough to get through at times, but it's one of those books that continues to make you think after the fact. As a girl living in Manhattan, I of course loved the relate-able aspect of it, granted it was set seventy years before I inhabited this great island. The best way I can describe it is a modern day author's Great Gatsby.
What I'm reading now: The World to Come by Dara Horn
Grab a book, cuddle up in a blanket at the park (and if you are somewhere where you don't need a blanket, you're a lucky duck), and have a great weekend!
