Jennifer Reads {March 2022}

I’ve spent most of the month living at my parent’s house in Texas as we transition from Oklahoma to Michigan. I’ve had a lot of time to read. I’ve been enjoying my own books and also reading out loud to Jackson a lot.

My mom called me a Book Nerd – what a compliment.  😉

Here’s what I read this month…

One Night Only by Catherine Walsh

I saw this book on Instagram and it looked like a cute rom-com. Sarah is known for one-night stands. She doesn’t do serious. After waking up to an Irish stranger in her bed, she promptly shoves him out the door and figures she’ll never see him again. She boards a plane to Ireland for her best friend’s wedding and runs smack dab into her one-night-stand. She’s shocked to discover Declan is her best friend’s new brother-in-law. Declan soon becomes a two-night-stand and makes Sarah question everything about relationships.

I liked this book, but honestly I thought it was a little bit too long. I felt like there were too many “almost” moments between Sarah and Declan. I also felt like there were some pointless parts to the storyline that could have been left out.

Find Your People by Jennie Allen

I decided to read this book because I really desire to find strong community when we move to Michigan in April. There were definitely some great nuggets of wisdom in this book, questions that made me think about my relationships and advice on how to grow deeper with your people. At times the book seemed a little repetitive, and if I’m being honest a little bit unrealistic. I totally desire the type of community that Jennie writes about, but I question if it’s really possible when the Church is such a divided place. When people’s lives are so busy. Overall, I’m glad I read the book. It definitely gave me ideas on how to find and build community during this next chapter of my life.

The Roughest Draft by Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka

Sometimes a cover just catches your attention and that’s exactly why I picked up this book at Barnes and Noble. Three years ago Katrina and Nathan wrote a best-selling book together, but something happened that ruined their friendship and writing partnership. Katrina stopped writing completely and Nathan’s solo work wasn’t nearly as good as what he created with Kat.

They haven’t spoken since the falling out, but their contract says they have to write one final book together – a romance. For personal and professional reasons, they agree to meet up at the Florida beach house to write together one last time.

I have to admit I think I let a review I read of this book skew my opinion of it. Had I not read the review, I think I would have enjoyed this book more. I just kept thinking about the review as I was reading and it kind of ruined it for me. It was a slow read for me at times, but I definitely wanted to finish the book to see how things played out for Katrina and Nathan personally and professionally.

The Golden Couple by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen

The basis of the book is this…Marissa Bishop schedules an appointment with an unconventional therapist because she’s cheated on her husband and is desperate to save her marriage. From the outside, The Bishops look perfect, but they’re both hiding secrets. So is their therapist, Avery.

People were raving about this book on social media, so I added it to my monthly book box. Ugh. I wish I had loved it more than I did. The book felt slow – I kept expecting some huge plot twist, but it felt like the build up was drawn out and not that exciting, to be honest. The one big moment towards the end of the book didn’t really leave me surprised.

The Silver Arrow by Lev Grossman

Jackson and I read this book about a magical train. Kate’s Uncle Herbert gives her a steam locomotive for her eleventh birthday. Soon, she and her brother Tom, set off on a magical adventure aboard the Silver Arrow. They meet a fishing cat, a mamba snake, a heron and a cranky porcupine. The siblings visit distant lands and realize they have a big responsibility – to save the animals.