JUNE. Halfway through the year already? I cannot believe it.

SO MANY BOOKS, NOT ENOUGH TIME!

We are up early and taking an extra weekend day. Ankur unexpectedly has the day off and it’s supposed to be sunny and beautiful so we’re not sending Ishu to school. He can go back tomorrow when it’s expected to rain haha.

Before we jump into our day, I wanted to share the reviews of books I read last month! Copied and pasted from GoodReads (yes, I’m still using GoodReads. It feels hard to make the transition to anything else right now).

4 out of 5 stars

The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes: Seventeen-year-old Cassie has a knack for reading people, a talent the FBI recruits for a secret program solving cold cases with gifted teens. As Cassie joins the Naturals, she navigates tense dynamics with other prodigies while uncovering dark secrets. But when a new killer emerges, the team must rely on their unique abilities to stay alive.

This was a unique story. It felt very “X-men”-esque when reading about the program. The special kids with the special skills defeating the “bad guys.”

I wasn’t sure what to expect with a YA thriller. I wasn’t sure if I’d be invested in the storyline. But it was a good read and uniquely done. I loved everyone’s specific skillset and how valuable those kinds of skills were to the FBI.

Good read, will read the next in the series!

4 out of 5 stars

Four Sisters by Coco Mellors: Four sisters. All impacted by the same childhood traumas. Mellors takes you down all the different pathways of these adult women and the ways in which they dealt with the trauma – individually and together.

I appreciated the way that Mellors described childhood trauma that wasn’t necessarily physically abusive. “And like the weather, he had to be regularly checked to work out what kind of day they were going to have. Lucky and her sisters could tell his mood by the way he closed the front door. Just like you wouldn’t have a picnic in a hailstorm, you couldn’t do certain things around an angry dad.” And, “He was the only man in the house, but he also was the house. They lived inside his moods.”

A hand was not raised to these girls and nonetheless they were impacted by the less-than-stellar parenting.

“That was family, she thought sadly, the root of all comfort and chaos.”

Coco Mellors’ writing was really easy to get into. She made you very invested in the characters and the choices they were making. And she touched on a lot of the issues that happen in families when things go unaddressed and swept under the rug.

I’m also a sucker for a sister book because I truly understand the special bond between sisters.

4 out of 5 stars

Between Sisters by Kristin Hannah: Years after a painful betrayal drove them apart, estranged sisters Meghann and Claire are reunited as Claire prepares for her wedding. Meghann, a successful but emotionally guarded attorney, must confront her past and open herself to love again. Between Sisters is a heartfelt story of forgiveness, family, and second chances.

Fell in love with Kristin Hannah after reading some more of her recent reads so I wanted to dive back into some of her older books. I loved this one so very much. I picked it up thinking it’d be a nice read about a sister relationship (as someone who has an older sister myself). But it’s deeper than that. It brings up a lot of other issues like childhood trauma, cancer, death, grief, toxic relationships, abandonment, etc.

She’s – hands down – one of my favorite authors who forces me to feel the feelings and I can say that – like every other Kristin Hannah book – I couldn’t get through this one without crying. Especially toward the end when Claire is saying goodbye to her daughter.

I was a little annoyed at Joe for taking forever to connect the dots. I mean, hello, it’s a small town. Shouldn’t your ears perk up at the name Claire? Is there a town of 900 that has more than 1 Claire in it? GAH.

But, still a beautiful read. Loved all of the characters. Especially the sisters. I also liked reading the author Q&A at the back. Kristin Hannah says that this is the book that shifted her career and made her want to focus on women and all the different facets of women’s lives. I like that I got to read the book that made her do that.

4 out of 5 stars

All the Other Mothers Hate Me by Sarah Harman:31-year-old Florence Grimes has built a life around avoiding hard choices. Single, broke, and still nursing the wounds of her failed girl-band dreams, her only real motivation is her ten-year-old (possibly neurodivergent) son, Dylan. But when Dylan’s classmate, Alfie Risby, disappears on a field trip, Florence’s world flips upside down. Dylan is the main suspect.

Sarah Harman takes us on an adventure where Florence is trying desperately to prove her son’s innocence. With no allies, zero investigative skills, and every school mom against her, Florence must confront not only the truth about what happened to Alfie—but also the unsettling possibility that Dylan might be hiding something from her.

Florence had some questionable parenting practices, but I couldn’t help rooting for her because I totally resonate with that intense mama bear love. That you’d do anything and everything to protect your kid.

I was second guessing myself up until the very end. Even when Harman actually revealed the real suspect, I was like, “Okay but this person seems pretty suspicious still, sooooo….”

Made me want to keep reading which is exactly what we love for a mystery/thriller!

4 out of 5 stars

The Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins: I love a self-help book that gives you a tool that you could use IMMEDIATELY. That being said, this book did seem a little repetitive at times. But maybe that’s the point. To really drive the point home. That you can “let them” in all different aspects of your life. I also appreciated the author’s vulnerability and a peek behind-the-scenes into the not-so-glamorous moments. I feel like I’m 100% more likely to listen to your words when you can own that you’re not the master of the wisdom you’re dishing out. Does that make sense?

I liked this book enough to suggest it to others. And I find myself coming back to the lessons I learned when faced with some internal conflict. So I’d say that’s a win.

3 out of 5 stars

The House Hunt by C.M. Ewan: When a woman is asked to show a stranger around her home, something feels off. He refuses to leave and reveals a shocking secret about her, sparking a tense search for the truth.

Short chapters that start out with a single POV. That changes about 1/2 of the way through. It’s also at that point when you can start to piece things together. I wouldn’t say this is my FAVORITE thriller. But I did appreciate that when all was revealed, there wasn’t the typical “suspect admits to EVERYTHING” situation. Which I don’t love. I mean, what actual suspect is going to go through every detail and explain everything once they’ve been caught?! Zero. So the fact that things were revealed in a more natural way felt like it was probably harder for the author to do, but required them to be a little more thoughtful in their writing.

4 out of 5 stars

Famous Last Words by Gillian McAllister: On June 21st, the longest day of the year, new mother Camilla prepares to return to work after maternity leave—until she wakes to find her husband Luke missing and a cryptic note in his place. Soon, she learns there’s a hostage crisis in London, and shockingly, Luke is the gunman. As the police close in, only Camilla knows what his final message said. Famous Last Words is a gripping thriller about love, betrayal, and buried secrets, exploring how one moment can upend everything.

A totally different kind of thriller than I was anticipating. Found myself wanting to return to the book over and over and over to figure out what the heck was going on.

It’s just DIFFERENT. Even the reveal was something I couldn’t quite predict.

Told from the perspective of the hostage’s wife and the hostage negotiator, it was a combination of a thriller and a love story. And I can say that this is – without a doubt – unlike anything I’ve read before!

5 out of 5 stars

Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry: On Little Crescent Island, two writers—optimistic Alice Scott and brooding Pulitzer-winner Hayden Anderson—compete to write the biography of the elusive, scandal-shrouded heiress Margaret Ives. With only fragments of Margaret’s story and a strict NDA keeping them from sharing notes, their rivalry turns personal and romantic. As secrets unravel, it becomes clear that the true story—Margaret’s and their own—depends entirely on who gets to tell it.

Okay I’m coming here to write my review after we discussed at book club, after I watched BookTube, after I read a few reviews on the Interwebs. And all I have to say is that some people are really angry that there isn’t a full-on love story here. Or there wasn’t enough attention on it. And I guess I have to argue that there is ROMANCE and there’s also just so many other layers of love written into this story. And I, for one, AM A FAN.

This is definitely different than EmHen’s other stuff. But I loved it. It was Evelyn Hugo x Princess Diana + a slow burn love story (again, others might argue that it wasn’t enough or that they fell in love far too quickly). I felt giddy with anticipation every time they were feeling their feelings but couldn’t act on their feelings.

Even just reviewing my highlights in the book has me tearing up. EmHen has always had a way with words and this book is no different. Loved it so much.

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That’s it! I’m off to go get these little guys fed and dressed and out the door!

Packing my emotional support Kindle with me, along with this book I got from the library. We’ll see if they let me get any reading done.

Have a happy Monday!