July 2021 Wrap-Up
3/5 Stars
I was honestly underwhelmed by this collection. I had heard good things and although there were some poems I enjoyed, the rest fell flat to me. Often the poems came across as very immature thinking and I was wondering how old this poet was. It could be read more like a journal than a collection.
3/5 Stars
I liked this collection but I can't say I loved it. There were some really amazing and strong poems in the beginning. I bookmarked so many I had high hopes, but that fell flat after about 50%. It started to seem really repetitive, and was more prose than poetry. I enjoyed how open and honest Hillery is in her writing but I felt like this collection could've used a little less detail. Sometimes there was an incredible line stuck in a really long poem, or paragraph that could've stood out more on its own.
3/5 Stars
This collection was rough. It had a lot of really raw and amazing metaphors. I liked a few of the poems in the beginning but this wasn't one of my favorites.
4/5 Stars
This book started off slow, I really wasn't sure if I liked it until the last half. January is a hard character to relate to, she's got a lot going on and it made me ask a lot of questions that never got answered. Like how did she blow through so much money from 5 book deals, why didn't she get another job? I also really didn't like the ending with the truth about her dad, it genuinely irked me. I can't say much more without spoiling it but it was a disappointment. I did like Gus but probably because he reminds me of my favorite ex, in all the ways I fell in love with him. Their relationship was surprising and definitely could've used more chemistry since they went from enemies to friends to lovers practically overnight. But nonetheless I did enjoy reading their story.
5/5 Stars
This story was truly incredible, one to keep you on your toes until the very end. Emma Fern is a completely flawed character that somehow makes you feel bad for her. Throughout the story I kept hoping her life would turn around but I don’t think she wanted it to. It follows Emma’s journey after agreeing to be the face behind a novel her ‘friend’ Beatrice wrote. It takes many dark turns and makes you question who truly is the villain in this story. My favorite part is when Emma (someone who has never written a day in her life) sits in front of her computer hoping to bang out the entirety of a novel in just a few hours. As a writer this scene was humorous and all too relatable, so many people think writing a book is just an easy and quick task.
3/5 Stars
I’m honestly incredibly disappointed in this sequel to Until I Meet Her. I wasn’t sure where it could possibly go after the ending of book 1 but it took me on such a far fetched journey, I was in disbelief. This story follows through the aftermath of Emma’s life from book 1. There were so many parts where I could see exactly where the story was going and how it was going to end. I wanted to scream at her “OPEN YOUR EYES” but she was so oblivious and didn’t think anything through but often acted like she was the smartest person in the room. She was paranoid, kind of insane, and needy. She often threw herself at people who very clearly wanted nothing to do with her and thought everyone loved her when they didn’t. The ending was EXTREMELY unbelievable and just annoying. There was no way that would happen, even in a novel it made me want to throw the book across the room.
3/5 Stars
I'm slowly starting to realize I don't like the enemies to lovers trope, like it's nothing personal just not my thing. Archer and Georgia's story was one I was looking forward to but it fell flat for me. She was such a strong character in Jamie and Cohen's story that I thought we would get to see more of them, or at least Noah and we rarely did. She also struck me as someone who was strong and independent but she clearly settled in this relationship. Her life also seemed to revolve around him, she didn't get any chapters about alone time with friends, family, or even work. The entire side of her story was how she could "save" him or how hurt she was by something he did.
I gave it three stars because I loved the writing, and the story is compelling but it just wasn't for me. The world building was perfect, just enough to keep me interested in the other characters stories but not too much where it overshadowed this book.
5/5 Stars
As a new parent, I’m always looking for advice or professional examples of what to do. My son is almost 2 and each day he is more and more independent which is amazing and scary. This book was informative in the gentle parenting that I was looking for. This book happened to be more guided toward teachers (I plan to homeschool in the future) so I highly recommend for any school parents, and teachers to read. It wasn’t just about staying calm, it provided real life examples, cartoons and questions with thought out responses which made me feel less alone. It’s a struggle for anyone trying to raise a child and this book helped guide in a holding hand sort of way with no shaming to how you already parent.
