Showin' You My Books

The last month I slowed down with reading a bit since I started work, but I still managed to get through 4 books!

Secret Lives by Diane Chamberlain

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This one was written in the early 90's, so when you read it, keep in mind when she talks about "word processor" just pretend she means "laptop". 

This is a story about an actress who goes back to her hometown in order to research more about her mother (a famous author) who was known as kind of a recluse. Along the way, she discovers some deep seeded family secrets. There's also a love story that has it's own complications, too.

I really enjoyed this book, and it was the second Diane Chamberlain book that I read, that convinced me that I really like this author.

I give this one 4 out of 5 stars.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child -Parts One and Two by J.K. Rowling

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I was incredibly excited when I saw that a new HP book was coming out, but then I saw some mixed reviews on this one and it got me wondering. My father-in-law gave me this one (he's the best) and I read it in about 1 day I think. You have to keep in mind that this is a play, so it doesn't read like a typical Harry Potter book does. There's not as much character development, and things/time skip around, much like they would in a play. I think I would have liked this better if I'd SEEN the play, rather than reading it. I gave it 3 stars since it was still enjoyable (mainly halfway through it got better), but it wasn't up to my expectations of a typical HP book.

Stepdog by Nicole Galland

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I got this one from my mom and was immediately intrigued since I love stories centered around animals, especially dogs (hello, Art of Racing in the Rain!). This story is about a guy who isn't a citizen, but gets into a relationship with a coworker, and subsequently inherits her dog as part of the relationship, which he's not thrilled about.

They get into some adventures with another character in the book (I won't give it away), and that part of the book kind of drags on for a bit too long, in my opinion. I also felt disconnected from the main character because he wasn't connected to the dog, and I just couldn't relate. 

The story was still interesting, but it definitely dragged towards the middle/end of the book. I gave it 3 stars.

Keeper of the Light (Kiss River #1) by Diane Chamberlain

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Another Diane Chamberlain book that I thoroughly enjoyed. I borrowed this one from my friend Trish (again--she's a good friend!) and I'm so glad that I did. It's another older book of Chamberlain's but the story is still good.

It starts off a bit slow, but picks up pretty quickly and soon you're really invested in the characters.

I'll give you the Goodreads synopsis, since I'm not really sure how to put it into words well:

"Dr. Olivia Simon is in the middle of treating a gunshot victim while on duty Christmas night when she realizes that the patient is Annie O'Neill, the woman with whom her husband, Paul, is in love. Despite Olivia's best efforts to save her, Annie dies in surgery. For Olivia, Paul and Annie's husband, Alec, life will never be the same."

This was the book that I was reading every night last week, and even while Bravo shows were on, because I wanted to find out what happened. I definitely recommend this one.

I gave it 4 stars.

That's all I got through this month. Hopefully I'll get into a few more good ones in the coming weeks!