Books I've Read Lately - pt. 2

Okay, here's the latest edition of what I've been reading and whether or not you should read it. Before I get started, send me all your book recommendations! I can't decide which book I want to start next :) And now, in chronological order... books I've read lately.

See Me by Nicolas Sparks

Summary:

Colin Hancock is giving his second chance his best shot. With a history of violence and bad decisions behind him and the threat of prison dogging his every step, he's determined to walk a straight line. To Colin, that means applying himself single-mindedly toward his teaching degree and avoiding everything that proved destructive in his earlier life. Reminding himself daily of his hard-earned lessons, the last thing he is looking for is a serious relationship.

Maria Sanchez, the hardworking daughter of Mexican immigrants, is the picture of conventional success. With a degree from Duke Law School and a job at a prestigious firm in Wilmington, she is a dark-haired beauty with a seemingly flawless professional track record. And yet Maria has a traumatic history of her own, one that compelled her to return to her hometown and left her questioning so much of what she once believed.

A chance encounter on a rain-swept road will alter the course of both Colin and Maria's lives, challenging deeply held assumptions about each other and ultimately, themselves. As love unexpectedly takes hold between them, they dare to envision what a future together could possibly look like . . . until menacing reminders of events in Maria's past begin to surface.

As a series of threatening incidents wreaks chaos in Maria's life, Maria and Colin will be tested in increasingly terrifying ways. Will demons from their past destroy the tenuous relationship they've begun to build, or will their love protect them, even in the darkest hour?

My Review: 3/5

Judge me or don't, but I'm usually a fan of Nicolas Sparks. I can't read them all day every day but a little romance novel is nice every once in awhile. This book though... I was halfway through the book and people would ask me how it was... my response: "not worth it." But I must admit that as I neared the end, it did end up hooking me. So if you're a Nicolas Sparks fan and are willing to wait a good chunk of the book for it to get good, then read it! If you don't do well with slow beginnings than this one probably isn't for you.

Blackmoore by Julianne Donaldson

Summary:

Kate Worthington knows her heart and she knows she will never marry. Her plan is to travel to India instead—if only to find peace for her restless spirit and to escape the family she abhors. But Kate's meddlesome mother has other plans. She makes a bargain with Kate: India, yes, but only after Kate has secured—and rejected—three marriage proposals.

Kate journeys to the stately manor of Blackmoore determined to fulfill her end of the bargain sooner rather than later and enlists the help of her dearest childhood friend, Henry Delafield. But when it comes to matters of love, bargains are meaningless and plans are changeable. There on the wild lands of Blackmoore, Kate must face the truth that has kept her heart captive. Will the proposal she is determined to reject actually be the one thing that will set her heart free?

My Review: 3/5

I read this because I loved the first book I read by this same author. I did like it, but not as much. The one thing that kept me reading it was that it kept alluding to a particular moment and I just HAD to know! Overall a good book but definitely not my favorite.

Truly Madly Guilty by Liane Moriarty

Summary:

Sam and Clementine have a wonderful, albeit, busy life: they have two little girls, Sam has just started a new dream job and Clementine, a cellist, is busy preparing for the audition of a lifetime. If there’s anything they can count on, it’s each other.

Clementine and Erika are each other’s oldest friends. A single look between them can convey an entire conversation. But theirs is a complicated relationship, so when Erika mentions a last minute invitation to a barbecue with her neighbors, Tiffany and Vid, Clementine and Sam don’t hesitate. Having Tiffany and Vid’s larger than life personalities there will be a welcome respite.

Two months later, it won’t stop raining, and Clementine and Sam can’t stop asking themselves the question: What if we hadn’t gone?

My Review: 4.5/5

This was so good! My only complaint is that there were a few times that I found myself wanting it to move faster. There was so much time spent trying to figure out what had happened at that dang barbecue! But, the ending just about blew my mind which makes it a favorite.

The Rent Collector by Camron Wright

Summary:

Survival for Ki Lim and Sang Ly is a daily battle at Stung Meanchey, the largest municipal waste dump in all of Cambodia. They make their living scavenging recyclables from the trash. Life would be hard enough without the worry for their chronically ill child, Nisay, and the added expense of medicines that are not working. Just when things seem worst, Sang Ly learns a secret about the ill-tempered rent collector who comes demanding money--a secret that sets in motion a tide that will change the life of everyone it sweeps past. The Rent Collector is a story of hope, of one womans journey to save her son and another womans chance at redemption. It demonstrates that even in a dump in Cambodia--perhaps especially in a dump in Cambodia--everyone deserves a second chance.

My Review: 4/5

I got this book for Christmas and was so excited to read a hard copy! I've been reading on my kindle for so long it was a fun change. This book was a slower read (meaning: it wasn't exciting enough to keep me awake if I tried to read it during night shifts) but overall it had a great message.

A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman

Summary: 

Meet Ove. He’s a curmudgeon—the kind of man who points at people he dislikes as if they were burglars caught outside his bedroom window. He has staunch principles, strict routines, and a short fuse. People call him “the bitter neighbor from hell.” But must Ove be bitter just because he doesn’t walk around with a smile plastered to his face all the time?

Behind the cranky exterior there is a story and a sadness. So when one November morning a chatty young couple with two chatty young daughters move in next door and accidentally flatten Ove’s mailbox, it is the lead-in to a comical and heartwarming tale of unkempt cats, unexpected friendship, and the ancient art of backing up a U-Haul. All of which will change one cranky old man and a local residents’ association to their very foundations.

My Review: 5/5
Guys, from page 11 this book had me saying, "exactly!"
A few examples:
"The poser was jogging. Not that Ove is provoked by jogging. Not at all... What he can't understand is why they have to make such a big thing of it."
"A shed-load of men with elaborate beards, changing jobs and changing wives and changing car makes. Just like that. Whenever they feel like it."
"It's all loans nowadays."
I cannot say enough how much I loved this book. It was charming, funny, and it is heart breaking. Am I crazy to say that I think I might be Ove, a younger female edition? But seriously, such a great read!

Behind Closed Doors by B.A. Paris

Summary:

Everyone knows a couple like Jack and Grace. He has looks and wealth; she has charm and elegance. He’s a dedicated attorney who has never lost a case; she is a flawless homemaker, a masterful gardener and cook, and dotes on her disabled younger sister. Though they are still newlyweds, they seem to have it all. You might not want to like them, but you do. You’re hopelessly charmed by the ease and comfort of their home, by the graciousness of the dinner parties they throw. You’d like to get to know Grace better.

But it’s difficult, because you realize Jack and Grace are inseparable.

Some might call this true love. Others might wonder why Grace never answers the phone. Or why she can never meet for coffee, even though she doesn’t work. How she can cook such elaborate meals but remain so slim. Or why she never seems to take anything with her when she leaves the house, not even a pen. Or why there are such high-security metal shutters on all the downstairs windows.

Some might wonder what’s really going on once the dinner party is over, and the front door has closed.

My Review: 4.5/5
The only reason I'm docking a half point is because it ended too abruptly for me. This book took me by surprise. I'm not sure why, but I was expecting a physically abusive relationship but this is so far beyond that. The amount of crazy is appalling and quite terrifying to think that there are actually people like this out there! I loved the format: present day and past day until they merge together. I could not put this book down! I usually only read during down time at work but I brought this one home with me... taking baths rather than sleeping after night shifts and reading while trying to make dinner. I just could not stop!

** all summaries come from amazon, they are not my own **