My First Read of 2023 (and it was a good one!)

January 6, 2023 ~ Genevieve

{Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for my gifted review copy}

Was was/is your first book of 2023?

A book about how books bring us together was my first book of 2023 (which I thought was quite fitting!) and I LOVED it!

Have you heard of No Two Persons yet? I was first introduced to author @ericabauermeister when I devoured her novel The Scent Keeper back in the spring of 2019.

And I am excited to announce that spring of 2023 is looking good too, with her newest work of fiction making its arrival on May 2nd!

Book Synopsis of No Two Persons:

“One book. Nine readers. Ten changed lives. New York Times bestselling author Erica Bauermeister’s No Two Persons is ‘gloriously original celebration of fiction, and the ways it deepens our lives.’

That was the beauty of books, wasn’t it? They took you places you didn’t know you needed to go…

Alice has always wanted to be a writer. Her talent is innate, but her stories remain safe and detached, until a devastating event breaks her heart open, and she creates a stunning debut novel. Her words, in turn, find their way to readers, from a teenager hiding her homelessness, to a free diver pushing himself beyond endurance, an artist furious at the world around her, a bookseller in search of love, a widower rent by grief. Each one is drawn into Alice’s novel; each one discovers something different that alters their perspective, and presents new pathways forward for their lives.

Together, their stories reveal how books can affect us in the most beautiful and unexpected of ways—and how we are all more closely connected to one another than we might think.”

The premise of No Two Persons had the potential to be complicated and hard to follow, but it was anything but and I was engrossed from the beginning. I loved starting out learning about the main character, who after a challenging young adulthood goes on to become a reclusive best-selling author. The subsequent chapters tell the story of one reader at a time, and each is done so well.

I found myself both sad to see each chapter end, as well as excited to learn how someone else was impacted by the book next. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again- fiction has as much potential to impact its readers as nonfiction/personal development does (which I am a big fan of!) And this book did just that- I loved this uniquely curious and moving read and I highly recommend it!

QOTD: What was your first book of 2023? And what format was it? Audiobook, kindle or a hardcopy? I would love to hear and you can join in on the conversation over on @genthebookworm right now!

Disclosure: Some of the links above are Amazon affiliate links. This means if you click through and make a purchase, I may receive a small commission that helps support this blog at no cost to you. Thank you!

Mika in Real Life by Emiko Jean {Five Star Read!}

August 8, 2022 ~ Genevieve

{Thank you to @williammorrowbooks for my free copy to read, review & share with all of you!}

Mika in Real Life by Emiko Jean

My August reading is off to a great start, and I am excited to share that I had my first #FiveStarRead of the month! 🤩⁣
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Mika in Real Life surprised me, in the best possible way. It’s been a while since I read a book about family that just felt so real, and human. Don’t let this cute book cover deceive you, because while this book is totally heartwarming, it’s also real and covers some heavy topics that made this book really stick. 💗⁣
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Mika is a Japanese-American woman in her mid-30s who’s life looks nothing like the one she had once imagined. Mike is at a low point when her daughter she had given up for adoption 16 years earlier, reaches out to her, hoping to connect. ☎️⁣
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In her quest to be a person her daughter Penny is proud of, Mika creates a few white lies which, of course, end up snowballing into something way bigger than she ever imagined. While this storyline seems predictable at first, it ends up being the foundation of a novel that captures the essence of what makes a parent and what makes a life. 📖⁣
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Not only is Mika endearing but she’s also beautifully flawed. Author Emiko Jean delves into how our own pasts have made us who we are, and how our families expectations have shaped us but also don’t make us. The Japanese American immigrant experience was woven in throughout this story. In addition, the side characters are multifaceted and add so much to this brilliant novel. 🙌⁣
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I can’t say enough about this book and I know it will stick with me for a long time. It was also picked as the @gmabookclub August selection and I highly recommend adding to your end of summer reading list. Is Mika In Real Life on your reading radar yet? ☀️📝⁣

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✨QOTD: What was your last five star read? I am discussing this one over on my @genthebookworm Instagram feed and I would love to hear your thoughts!

Five Star Beach Read Alert!! // The Hotel Nantucket by Elin Hilderbrand

June 9, 2022June 9, 2022 ~ Genevieve

The Hotel Nantucket by Elin Hilderbrand

I read The Hotel Nantucket back in April and it made for the perfect spring vacation read! I am a big fan of author ElinHilderbrand’s older books and this one brought me right back ! I enjoyed that it featured the hospitality industry, much like The Blue Bistro did…which is my favorite Elin book! 💙⁣

⁣It has a large cast of characters who all have their own storylines but also all intertwine. I even loved the paranormal element which I wasn’t sure about at first! 👻⁣

⁣All in all, this was just the perfect easy and engaging read! It had enough depth to not feel like total fluff, and the food descriptions and amazing summer vacation location just made it so incredibly fun to read. 👏⁣

⁣I loved it so much I knew I needed a hard copy for my shelf and @bookofthemonth came through when it was one of the June add-ons! And how perfect does it look with this adorable cookie I found at @klingersbakery today? 👙💓⁣

{Want to join Book Of The Month? You can use my referral link HERE!}

⁣I found this book totally engrossing and the ending felt so satisfying and full circle that this one really deserves all the stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⁣

⁣Whether you are an #ElinHilderbrand fan already, or just want a fun summer read that will keep you totally entertained, I highly recommend adding The Hotel Nantucket to your reading list! 📚⁣

⁣This title publishes next week, 6.14.22, which is the perfect timing for beach bags everywhere! ☀️👜⁣

⁣✨QOTD: Do you have a favorite beach read author? Did you choose any add-ons for your June Book Of The Month box? I am discussing The Hotel Nantucket over on @genthebookworm and I would love to hear your thoughts!

Our Little World by Karen Winn // New Book Release!

May 3, 2022May 3, 2022 ~ Genevieve

{@duttonbooks #partner. Thank you for my free copies to read & review}

Our Little World by Karen Winn

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I picked up Our Little World on a whim earlier this year. I hadn’t heard much about it yet, which also meant I was going into it with not a lot of expectations either way! And this book, it ended up blowing me away!!

This spring 2022 release atmospheric and totally compelling. It’s a coming of age story set in a cul-de-sac in the 1980s. It’s a small town mystery but it’s also a character driven novel focused on relationships, especially sisterhood, after a young girl named Sally goes missing. The story is told through the adolescent eyes of Bee, and the angst, worries and emotional ups and downs are totally spot on. Our Little World is not exactly a past paced page turner, but it’s no less intriguing because of it. It totally has #NowAndThen movie vibes and was just exactly the kind of book I didn’t know I needed!! I loved this book and highly recommend it!

I highly recommend adding this one to your spring reading list, and then coming back to tell me your thoughts when you read it!! 📝

Our Little World hit bookstore shelves today (5.3.22!) and you can grab your copy using my Amazon affiliate link HERE.

✨QOTD: Do you like reading hyped books or do you prefer to go into a new read with less expectations overall? I discussed this book over on my Bookstagram feed @genthebookworm and I would love to hear your thoughts!