Title: Here One Moment
Author(s): Liane Moriarty
Genre(s): Contemporary
Format(s): Audio
Pages: 512
Length: 15h 53m
Narrator(s): Caroline Lee, Geraldine Hakewill
Source: Owned
Reason(s): Book Club
Rating: Spice: 
My Thoughts
I adored HERE ONE MOMENT. I loved the premise of the story and all the characters. I laughed, cried, and stayed up way past my bedtime finishing it. I loved the message of using our one life to love, learn, live, and overcome our fears and anxieties.
I loved the way Moriarty portrayed how personal, all-consuming, and physical grief can be. I loved the serious look at and discussion surrounding mental health. I loved the advocacy of therapy and not suffering alone, that reaching out for help doesn’t mean you’re weak. I also loved the use of math and statistics to show the probability of how life and death sometimes feels cold and calculating, and unfair, how it can be sudden or expected.
The Slowest Burn
Author(s): Sarah Chamberlain
Genre(s): Romance
Format(s): Audio
Pages: 336
Length: 11h 12m
Narrator(s): Hunter Johns, Kate Handford
Source: Library
Reason(s): None
Rating:
Spice:
My Thoughts
I really enjoyed THE SLOWEST BURN. I loved both Ellie and Kieran, their chemistry, and banter. I loved that the story switched between Ellie and Kieran’s POVs. I thought it was a fun, spicy, enemies-to-lovers romance that dealt with some hard topics.
I really appreciated the look at grief from different perspectives and how messy it can be. I also loved the look at what it feels like to be a square peg in a round-hole family and never measuring up for the people who are supposed to love you. I loved the sense of found family, the look at neurodivergence, and the lesson of learning to love yourself the way you are.
One-Star Romance
Author(s): Laura Hankin
Genre(s): Romance
Format(s): Audio
Pages: 400
Length: 10h 57m
Narrator(s): Laura Hankin
Source: Library
Reason(s): None
Rating:
Spice:
My Thoughts
I really enjoyed ONE-STAR ROMANCE. It was a fun, enemies-to-lovers romance. I loved the chemistry between Natalie and Rob from the very beginning. I normally like romances that don’t span years, but I liked how ONE-STAR ROMANCE handled the passing of years. It felt like the romance was that much more sweet because of how long it took the characters to admit to and act on their feelings. I also loved that the author narrated the audiobook.
Here One Moment
Author(s): Liane Moriarty
Genre(s): Contemporary
Format(s): Audio
Pages: 512
Length: 15h 53m
Narrator(s): Caroline Lee, Geraldine Hakewill
Source: Owned
Reason(s): Book Club
Rating:
Spice:
My Thoughts
I adored HERE ONE MOMENT. I loved the premise of the story and all the characters. I laughed, cried, and stayed up way past my bedtime finishing it. I loved the message of using our one life to love, learn, live, and overcome our fears and anxieties.
I loved the way Moriarty portrayed how personal, all-consuming, and physical grief can be. I loved the serious look at and discussion surrounding mental health. I loved the advocacy of therapy and not suffering alone, that reaching out for help doesn’t mean you’re weak. I also loved the use of math and statistics to show the probability of how life and death sometimes feels cold and calculating, and unfair, how it can be sudden or expected.
The Last Word
Author(s): Taylor Adams
Genre(s): Thriller
Format(s): Audio
Pages: 337
Length: 9:57
Narrator(s): Carlotta Brentan, Jim Meskimen
Source: Owned
Reason(s): BotM Backlist
Rating:
Spice:
My Thoughts
I read THE LAST WORD pretty quickly. The suspense kept me reading, but I figured a lot of it out by the end. The author going crazy because of a 1-star review on Amazon was a fun premise, but I didn’t like the “book within a book” idea. Every time the narrative switched over to horror novel Deek was writing, I just kept waiting for that part to end. I especially hated the ending of his novel and gritted my teeth during his acknowledgments. I wish he had gotten what he deserved. I also disliked the male narrator during those parts.
THE LAST WORD dealt with some pretty heave topics–death of a child, death of a parent, grief, and suicidal ideation. I actually preferred the non-thriller part of the story more than the actual thriller. I liked Emma and Laika a lot. I liked her story with Shawn, and I would’ve much preferred reading a whole story about them.
Ink Blood Sister Scribe
Author(s): Emma Törzs
Genre(s): Fantasy
Format(s): Audio
Pages: 416
Length: 13h 53m
Narrator(s): Saskia Maarleveld
Source: Owned
Reason(s): BotM Backlist
Rating:
Spice:
My Thoughts
I really enjoyed INK BLOOD SISTER SCRIBE. I thought the concept and magic system were very intriguing. I also thought the mystery aspect of the story was fun. I guessed a lot of what was going on but I still enjoyed reading the story as everything came to fruition.
I loved both Esther and Joanna. I felt for them as they learned the truth that had been hidden from them for most of their lives. Even though I liked Nicholas, I thought he was really naïve and needed to ask more questions. I also liked Collins, just not as a romantic interest for Joanna. I would’ve rather seen her with Nicholas.