If you didn’t catch my post about my 2022 goals, I’m challenging myself to read 10 books this year. I know this does not sound like a lot to seasoned readers, but to me this number is a sweet spot. I think it’s manageable, but also stretches myself just a bit more when it comes to developing my reading habit.
The Books I Read In January
I thought I would share a round-up of all the books I read in January to kick-off my challenge. Maybe I’ll make this into a series, and do a round-up for each month going forward. What do you think?
Alright, let’s get to it.
THE STAR-CROSSED SISTERS OF TUSCANY
Author: Lori Nelson Spielman
My Rating: 4 stars
Synopsis…
Since the day Filomena Fontana cast a curse upon her sister more than two hundred years ago, not one second-born Fontana daughter has found lasting love. Some, like second-born Emilia, the happily-single baker at her grandfather’s Brooklyn deli, claim it’s an odd coincidence. Others, like her sexy, desperate-for-love cousin Lucy, insist it’s a true hex. But both are bewildered when their great-aunt calls with an astounding proposition: If they accompany her to her homeland of Italy, Aunt Poppy vows she’ll meet the love of her life on the steps of the Ravello Cathedral on her eightieth birthday, and break the Fontana Second-Daughter Curse once and for all.
Against the backdrop of wandering Venetian canals, rolling Tuscan fields, and enchanting Amalfi Coast villages, romance blooms, destinies are found, and family secrets are unearthed—secrets that could threaten the family far more than a centuries-old curse.
[Synopsis via Amazon.]
My Thoughts…
This was my first book to kick off the challenge, and it was an enjoyable read. I really loved the multi-generational aspect and the lovability of the Fontana family despite their flaws. I especially enjoyed Aunt Poppy’s character and the influence she had upon Emilia and Lucy – waking them up to their own pre-conceived notions about their future, and how it all changed after their trip to Italy. Speaking of, who doesn’t love a book set in Italy?
LOVE AND OTHER WORDS
Author: Christina Lauren
My Rating: 4 stars
Synopsis…
Macy Sorensen is settling into an ambitious if emotionally tepid routine: work hard as a new pediatrics resident, plan her wedding to an older, financially secure man, keep her head down and heart tucked away.
But when she runs into Elliot Petropoulos – the first and only love of her life – the careful bubble she’s constructed begins to dissolve. Once upon a time, Elliot was Macy’s entire world – growing from her gangly teen friend into the man who coaxed her heart open again after the loss of her mother…only to break it on the very night he declared his love for her.
Told in alternating timelines between then and now, teenage Elliot and Macy grow from friends to much more – spending weekends and lazy summers together in a house outside of San Francisco reading books, sharing favorite words, and talking through their growing pains and triumphs. As adults, they have become strangers to one another until their chance reunion. Although their memories are obscured by the agony of what happened that night so many years ago, Elliot will come to understand the truth behind Macy’s decade-long silence and will have to overcome the past and himself to revive her faith in the possibility of an all-consuming love.
[Synopsis via Amazon.]
My Thoughts…
I would describe this book as sweet, but not too sweet. Sweet with some substance, if you will. Macy and Elliot’s relationship was one you could get behind and the alternating timelines kept me turning the page after each chapter. A great read if you’re looking for something light-hearted, a little steamy, and an overall enjoyable story.
IN FIVE YEARS
Author: Rebecca Serle
My Rating: 4 stars
Synopsis…
Dannie Kohan lives her life by the numbers. She is nothing like her lifelong best friend – the wild, whimsical, believes-in-fate Bella. Her meticulous planning seems to have paid off after she nails the most important job interview of her career and accepts her boyfriend’s marriage proposal in one fell swoop, falling asleep completely content.
But when she awakens, she’s suddenly in a different apartment, with a different ring on her finger, and beside a very different man. Dannie spends one hour exactly five years in the future before she wakes again in her own home on the brink of midnight – but it is one hour she cannot shake.
In Five Years is an unforgettable love story, but it is not the one you’re expecting.
[Synopsis via Amazon.]
My Thoughts…
I flew through this book pretty quickly – it’s short (and I’m not complaining). It gave me “Something Borrowed” vibes. But, also a bit more serious given the circumstances that arise. The ending was unexpected (to me anyway), and I’m not mad about it. Overall, a binge-able book that will pull at your heartstrings.
THE GOWN
Author: Jennifer Robson
My Rating: 4 stars
Synopsis…
London, 1947: Besieged by the harshest winter in living memory, burdened by onerous shortages and rationing, the people of postwar Britain are enduring lives of quiet desperation despite their nation’s recent victory. Among them are Ann Hughes and Miriam Dassin, embroiderers at the famed Mayfair fashion house of Norman Hartnell. Together, they forge an unlikely friendship, but their nascent hopes for a brighter future are tested when they are chosen for a once-in-a-lifetime honor: taking part in the creation of Princess Elizabeth’s wedding gown.
Toronto, 2016: More than half a century later, Heather Mackenzie seeks to unravel the mystery of a set of embroidered flowers, a legacy from her late grandmother. How did her beloved Nan, a woman who never spoke of her old life in Britain, come to possess the priceless embroideries that so closely resemble the motifs on the stunning gown worn by Queen Elizabeth II at her wedding almost 70 years before? And what was her Nan’s connection to the celebrated textile artist and holocaust survivor Miriam Dassin?
With The Gown, Jennifer Robson takes us inside the workrooms where one of the most famous wedding gowns in history was created. Balancing behind-the-scenes details with a sweeping portrait of a society left reeling by the calamitous costs of victory, she introduces listeners to three unforgettable heroines, their points of view alternating and intersecting throughout, whose lives are woven together by the pain of survival, the bonds of friendship, and the redemptive power of love.
[Synopsis via Amazon.]
My Thoughts…
I think this was my favorite of the bunch. I thought I was over historical fiction for a while, but I was also intrigued by the premise and anything having to do with the royals. The setting takes place just after World War II, so there are narratives sprinkled throughout the book describing the War. But, with the alternating timelines, and much of the focus on the friendship of Ann and Miriam, this book is still worth the read even if you’re not into the war-time period. I enjoyed immersing myself into each of the character’s lives, and the ending was just right for me.
[…] was a slower month in my reading challenge, so I’m combining it with March. Below are my ratings and thoughts on […]