Perfect on Paper by Sophie Gonzales

Publication Date: March 9, 2021
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Rating: ★★★★★

Her advice, spot on. Her love life, way off.

Darcy Phillips:
• Can give you the solution to any of your relationship woes―for a fee.
• Uses her power for good. Most of the time.
• Really cannot stand Alexander Brougham.
• Has maybe not the best judgement when it comes to her best friend, Brooke…who is in love with someone else.
• Does not appreciate being blackmailed.

However, when Brougham catches her in the act of collecting letters from locker 89―out of which she’s been running her questionably legal, anonymous relationship advice service―that’s exactly what happens. In exchange for keeping her secret, Darcy begrudgingly agrees to become his personal dating coach―at a generous hourly rate, at least. The goal? To help him win his ex-girlfriend back.

Darcy has a good reason to keep her identity secret. If word gets out that she’s behind the locker, some things she’s not proud of will come to light, and there’s a good chance Brooke will never speak to her again.

Okay, so all she has to do is help an entitled, bratty, (annoyingly hot) guy win over a girl who’s already fallen for him once? What could go wrong?

Review:

Thank you to NetGalley, Wednesday Books, & Sophie Gonzales for a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

ALL OF THE STARS!

First, the writing. THE WRITING. I felt like I was completely and totally immersed in this story. It was quick, had some twists and was very fresh with new perspectives.

This is exactly what a new, contemporary young adult novel should be like! I am someone who thrives off of good character development and ever single character int his book develops. There was not a single straggler!!

This concept is fresh, something that I really haven’t read before. Every year, locker 89 is left empty and no one was sure why. When Darcy took advantage of this and started a business giving advice, I just knew I was going to love this story! We just LOVE young women entrepreneurs!

Overall, this was my second Sophie Gonzales novel! I read Only Mostly Devastated and gave that four stars! Two great books with high ratings, I think Sophie Gonzales might be becoming an auto-buy author for me!

Little Free Love – Charter 30214

Located in Mount Ephraim, New Jersey.
County: Camden

Listed on the LFL website by the steward: “I just love books and enjoy when I can share them with others. We live in a fantastic small town where we do a lot of walking around town. We know there’s a strong sense of community here, but we are a little bummed that Main Street lacks any space in walking distance like a cafe, bookstore or even township library. This handmade LFL will provide a destination on walks, a place to share great books and a way to grow our community and utilize the many beautiful parklets our town has set up!”

This LFL is located in such a cute little area. It’s right next to a railroad, but has benches and even a Little Free Pantry! There’s also a beautiful clock, almost like a town center. See below pictures!

If you’d like to see all of the charters we’ve visited in NJ, GA & beyond, follow us on Instagram @littlefreelove!

The Summer Seekers by Sarah Morgan

Publication Date: May 18, 2021
Publisher: HQN
Rating: ★★★

Kathleen is eighty years old. After she has a run-in with an intruder, her daughter wants her to move into a residential home. But she’s not having any of it. What she craves—what she needs—is adventure.

Liza is drowning in the daily stress of family life. The last thing she needs is her mother jetting off on a wild holiday, making Liza long for a solo summer of her own.

Martha is having a quarter-life crisis. Unemployed, unloved and uninspired, she just can’t get her life together. But she knows something has to change.

When Martha sees Kathleen’s advertisement for a driver and companion to share an epic road trip across America with, she decides this job might be the answer to her prayers. She’s not the world’s best driver, but anything has to be better than living with her parents. And traveling with a stranger? No problem. Anyway, how much trouble can one eighty-year-old woman be?

As these women embark on the journey of a lifetime, they all discover it’s never too late to start over…

Review:

Thank you to HQ, NetGalley & Sarah Morgan for a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

I read this book pretty fast and found it to be predictable. It was definitely fun and full of romance, but something I was totally interested in. It definitely got me in the mood for warmer/summer days!

I really enjoyed the message behind this story and that you can never be too old to change your life. You can make your life the way you want it at whatever age. This message was a major part of this storyline and novel, and I think that was written well.

The reason that this book got a three star rating from me is because I am someone who loves to read and connect with the characters. I feel like I had a really hard time doing that. Also, the ending seemed pretty abrupt and I was surprised at that because this book wasn’t all that short.

I like Sarah Morgan and have a bunch of her books on my TBR that I cannot wait to read! I am definitely hoping that the next one up is one I can connect to more.

Little Free Love – Charter 56011

Located in Haddon Heights, New Jersey.
County: Camden

I immediately became obsessed with this charter due to the look of it. I love when a LFL looks just like the house! There is something so special about making your charter really something that you enjoy and it makes for awesome pictures!

This area was beautiful, full of old houses and lots of beautiful architecture! This is a pretty small town with a population of less than 7,500 people! For New Jersey, that’s definitely small.

Haddon Heights has an amazing Main Street with a lot of shops to enjoy! For example, there’s a flower shop, coffee shop, karate dojos & more!

To see all of the charters we’ve visited in NJ, GA & beyond, follow us on Instagram at @littlefreelove!

A Star is Bored by Byron Lane

Publication Date: July 28, 2020
Publisher: MacMillan Audio
Rating: ★★

She needs an assistant.
He needs a hero.

Charlie Besson is tense and sweating as he prepares for a wild job interview. His car is idling, like his life, outside the Hollywood mansion of Kathi Kannon, star of stage and screen and People magazine’s Worst Dressed list. She’s an actress in need of assistance, and he’s adrift and in need of a lifeline.

Kathi is an icon, bestselling author, and award-winning movie star, most known for her role as Priestess Talara in a blockbuster sci-fi film. She’s also known in another role: Outrageous Hollywood royalty. Admittedly so. Famously so. Chaotically so, as Charlie quickly discovers.

Charlie gets the job, and his three-year odyssey is filled with late-night shopping sprees, last-minute trips to see the aurora borealis, and an initiation to that most sacred of Hollywood tribes: the personal assistant. But Kathi becomes much more than a boss, and as their friendship grows Charlie must make a choice. Will he always be on the sidelines of life, assisting the great forces that be, or can he step into his own life’s leading role?

Laugh-out-loud funny, and searingly poignant, Byron Lane’s A Star is Bored is a novel that, like the star at its center, is enchanting and joyous, heartbreaking and hopeful.

Review:

Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio & Byron Lane for a copy of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This book is by Byron Lane who used to be the personal assistant to actress, Carrie Fisher. It was mentioned multiple times, for legal reasons, that this is a work on fiction. In my eyes, that didn’t really matter. It was very clearly based on his experiences and this book did not sit right with me after Carrie Fisher’s death. This felt extremely exploitative. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve never connected with Carrie Fisher or have seen a Star Wars move, but this did not feel right to me at all.

I am someone who really tries to connect with the characters and see character development. As this was a work of fiction, this should’ve been easy enough. I did not connect to Kathi Kannon or Charlie at all. I’m not sure if it was the narration, but this was rough.

The writing of this book felt a little forced only a few chapters in. It gave off very anxious energy and I didn’t like that. When I picked this book off of NetGalley, I really really thought that this would be a lighthearted read. I was wrong.

Lastly, if you are listening to this on an audiobook, make sure you’re using headphones or you’re by yourself. There’s excessive usage of language that is definitely not safe for work.

Overall, I gave this book two stars and I thought that was generous. I think it’s because it was of the narrator overall that I was able to finish this book completely. To be honest, I think I will be removing Byron Lane from my author’s list.