My SPOILER ALERT Book Reviews!

  🌊 Book Review (With Spoilers!): Creation Lake by Rachel Kushner ⭐️ 2 out of 5 stars | Genre: Literary Spy Thriller / Eco-Philosophy Full spoiler alert! If you plan to read this and want to go in blind — run, don’t walk, away from this post. 📍 Creation Lake — I Tried, Y’all Okay, I’m just going to say it: I knew what I was getting into. ➡ Neanderthals? Not my thing. ➡ Espionage? Meh, I’ve seen Mission Impossible ; I’m good. But sometimes I like to challenge myself with books outside my interests, because once in a while they surprise me! This one? Well… let’s just say it was a mix of “Maybe I’ll learn something!” and “Why did I do this to myself?” That said — I finished it. I learned a little. And I definitely have thoughts. 🧵 Creation Lake — The Detailed Plot (Spoilers Inside!) 🕵️ Part I: The Setup We meet Sadie Smith (not her real name — because, of course, spy stuff). She’s a former FBI agent with some questionable ethics , sent to France to infiltrate Le Moulin ...

  🌙 Book Review (With Spoilers!): The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James ⭐️ 3.5 out of 5 stars | Genre: Mystery / Supernatural Thriller Spoilers ahead! This is your last warning if you're not ready to know who lived, who died, and who just vanished and ghosted everybody for decades... literally. 📍 Welcome to the Creepiest Motel in Fell, NY Simone St. James serves up a ghost story with a true crime twist , and let me tell you— The Sun Down Motel has all the vibes: ✔️ Cold spots ✔️ Ghost women floating in the hallway ✔️ Dingy motel carpets you can smell through the page I read this one fast. I needed answers. Unfortunately, some of the answers made me want to write angry letters to fictional characters. 🧵 Let’s Break It Down: The Dual Timeline Plot (Spoilers Included!) 👻 1982 Timeline – Meet Viv Viv Delaney is 20, newly arrived in Fell, New York, and working the night shift at—you guessed it—the Sun Down Motel . The place is sketchy, cheap, and also haunted as hell . Viv ...

📚 Book Review: The Perfect Husband by Lisa Gardner ⭐ My Rating:  ⭐⭐⭐ 3 out of 5 A thriller with a killer premise… but not enough steam for this reader’s taste. 🔪 The Premise Tess Williams thought she married the perfect man. Jim Beckett was a decorated cop, the kind of guy who made everyone swoon. But beneath the charming exterior? A monster. 👉 Jim murdered ten women — and planned for Tess to be number eleven. 👉 Tess managed to survive, testify, and send him to prison. 👉 Six years later, Jim escapes — and Tess knows he’s coming for her and their daughter. So what does a terrified woman do? Hire a broken, broody ex-mercenary (J.T. Dillon) to teach her how to survive. 💥 What to expect (spoiler-lite) Lots of intense survival training — guns, hand-to-hand combat, wilderness prep A simmering, slow-burn tension between Tess and J.T. A smart and vicious villain leaving bodies in his wake A final showdown that’s brutal and satisfying 🌶 Was there smu...

  🗼 The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley A Locked Room Mystery with Croissants, Creepy Neighbors & a Whole Lotta Secrets Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5 out of 5 stars) Let me start by saying this: I devoured this book like a fresh pain au chocolat . And if you’ve ever read a Lucy Foley book before, you already know what to expect— murder, secrets, unreliable narrators, and a rotating cast of people who all look suspicious and need therapy . But The Paris Apartment ? This one had me guessing all the way until the last page, gasping like I'd just walked up five flights of Parisian stairs with no elevator . Let’s break it down. 🧳 The Setup: Jess Needs a Break (Don’t We All) Our girl Jess Hadley needs to escape her messy life in England (been there). She quits her crummy job, grabs a bag, and heads to Paris to crash with her half-brother Ben Daniels , a journalist who just moved into a gorgeous, bougie apartment. Except... plot twist: Ben is missing . Like, she shows up at his apartment, ...

  ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️  3 out of 5 stars   | Genre: Horror / Magic Realism  What Did I Just Read?! Bunny by Mona Awad, Explained (Kind Of) 🐰 What the Heck Happened in Bunny ? Samantha Mackey is your stereotypical MFA outsider— sharp-witted , socially awkward, and utterly not into the clique of hyper‑feminine writing students nicknamed the Bunnies . Think satin dresses, cult vibes, and way too many disturbing “drafting parties.” Enter the surreal: these Bunnies literally murder rabbits and revive them as men —their so-called Darlings .  Samantha (Sam) reluctantly joins their Smut Salon —a bizarre ritual where reality and fantasy fuse into one hallucinogenic buffet. She meets charming yet strange figures: Ava (her fierce childhood bestie), the mute “Lion,” mysterious Max , and poetic Jonah (Sam’s crush). 🔍 As things escalate, identities slip. Ava might be a hallucination, the Bunnies may not be human, and the creation of “hybrids” is so freaky that your kitchen sink mi...

  📘 Finding Chika by Mitch Albom — A Memoir That Wrecked Me (in the Best Way) ⭐ Rating:  ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐  5 out of 5 Genre: Memoir / Nonfiction / Heartstrings-Tugging Emotional Rollercoaster Author: Mitch Albom Content Warning: Terminal illness, child death, medical trauma 🍼 I Didn't See It Coming, and Then I Was Crying in the Produce Aisle Let me start by saying I’m not the kind of person who cries while reading. I'm a parent, I read a lot, I can handle hard topics. But Finding Chika ? Oh boy. This one snuck up behind me and drop-kicked me in the heart. I’d originally picked up the audiobook , and let me tell you: listening to Chika's actual voice clips sprinkled throughout the chapters? Yeah, that hit different. I thought I knew what I was getting into. Spoiler: I absolutely did not. 🌍 What Is Finding Chika About? Mitch Albom , the beloved author of Tuesdays with Morrie , tells the story of Chika Jeune , a vibrant little girl born in Haiti , who came to liv...

  📚 The Story She Left Behind by Patti Callahan Henry -  She Left Her Kid in a Fire and We're Supposed to Root for Her?! ⭐️⭐️ (2 out of 5 stars) 🏡 It begins with a fire... The story opens in 1927, Bluffton, South Carolina , with a shocking event:  Bronwyn Newcastle Fordham accidentally sets her house on fire. She manages to get her 8-year-old daughter, Clara, out—but not before Clara is severely burned. A fireman loses his life. Then Bronwyn disappears . No note, no explanation. She vanishes, leaving her daughter Clara and her husband Timothy behind. Let me just say—this is where the book lost me a little. More on that later. 🎨 Fast-forward 25 years... Clara is now an art teacher and a single mom to her daughter, Wynnie. She's accomplished in her own right, having just won the Caldecott Medal for children’s book illustration. But she’s still living in the shadow of the mother who abandoned her— Bronwyn , who at age 12 wrote a wildly famous children’s book called The...

  🕵️‍♀️ We Solve Murders by Richard Osman — The Most Confusing Book I’ve Ever Read? ⭐️⭐️ (2 out of 5 stars) ❓My Honest Take I was really excited to read We Solve Murders , especially since it’s my first Richard Osman novel and he’s got quite the reputation. I expected clever mysteries, dry humor, and a quirky ensemble cast. Instead, I got... a whirlwind of characters, a dizzying plot, and a whole lot of confusion . I eventually pieced it all together (so if you're lost too— you’re not alone ), but this was hands-down one of the most confusing books I’ve ever read. 🚢 1. The Setup Meet Amy Wheeler , a private security officer at Maximum Impact. She’s assigned to protect bestselling crime writer Rosie D’Antonio , who’s hiding out on her private island in South Carolina after offending a Russian oligarch. Suddenly, social media influencers start turning up murdered in bizarre ways—shot, dumped at sea—and Amy always happens to be nearby. 🎯 2. Amy Gets Framed Amy starts to realize...

  The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough – A Sweeping Saga or Just... Long? (Spoiler Warning – Major plot points ahead!) Let’s talk about The Thorn Birds , Colleen McCullough’s famously epic, deeply dramatic, and—let’s be honest—sometimes painfully slow novel. First published in 1977, this multi-generational saga is often dubbed “the Australian Gone with the Wind ,” and is still one of Australia’s most iconic books of all time. It even spawned a wildly popular 1980s mini-series starring Richard Chamberlain. But does the book itself live up to the hype? What Is The Thorn Birds About? At its core, The Thorn Birds follows the Cleary family over several decades, with a special focus on Meggie Cleary , the only daughter in a brood of sons. The story begins when Meggie is a child, and we quickly learn her mother Fiona prefers the boys, while her father Paddy is mostly focused on hard work. Meggie is largely neglected—until she meets Father Ralph de Bricassart , a handsome, ambitious Cat...

  If He Had Been with Me by Laura Nowlin – A Tragic YA Love Story (Spoiler Warning – Major plot twists ahead!) Looking for an emotional, fast-paced YA romance to curl up with this summer? Let me introduce you to If He Had Been with Me by Laura Nowlin —a heartbreaking coming-of-age novel that leans hard into the genre's familiar tropes: childhood friends, missed chances, love triangles, and the gut-punch of tragedy. And just in case it isn’t clear yet: spoilers ahead! The Goodreads summary heavily hints at what’s coming, but if you want to go in blind, now’s your cue to close the tab. What’s If He Had Been with Me About? The story centers on Autumn Davis and Finny Smith , childhood best friends who grew up next door to each other. Their moms are best friends too, so it’s kind of a given that they’d be inseparable as kids. But, as so often happens, middle school hits , hormones strike, social groups shift, and they drift apart. Still, they remain neighbors and quietly orbit eac...

  Isola by Allegra Goodman – A Gripping Survival Story You Won’t Believe Is (Mostly) True (Spoiler Warning – Full plot details below!) Sometimes a book grabs you by the throat halfway through and doesn’t let go—and Isola by Allegra Goodman is absolutely that kind of book. I went into it curious, then cautious, then completely hooked. And by the end? I was literally shaking . Yes, this one’s that good. Based on the jaw-dropping true story of Marguerite de la Roque , Isola is a historical fiction survival tale that goes places most novels wouldn’t dare. Honestly, I finished the last page and immediately Googled the real story—and couldn’t believe how closely the book sticks to the truth. So, if you’re a fan of historical fiction based on real women’s stories , female friendship , gritty survival drama , or books that emotionally wreck you in the best way—add Isola to your TBR, stat. What’s Isola About? Isola tells the story of Marguerite de la Roque , a French noble girl whose ...

  The Stranger Beside Me by Ann Rule – When the Killer Was Your Friend (Spoiler warning – Includes key plot points and historical facts about Ted Bundy) Okay, so here’s the irony: I’ve read so much about Ted Bundy that I thought this book would still bring something new to the table. Spoiler alert—it didn’t. But that’s not exactly the book’s fault. The Stranger Beside Me by Ann Rule is often hailed as one of the definitive true crime books—and not just because of its subject matter. What makes this one stand out is that Ann Rule actually knew Ted Bundy personally . Like, really knew him. They worked together, shared meals, laughed over coffee, and confided in each other—all while Bundy was secretly becoming one of the most notorious serial killers in American history. If that doesn’t pique your curiosity, I don’t know what will. What Is The Stranger Beside Me About? In short: it's the true crime memoir of a woman who was friends with a serial killer , written while she was slow...

  Conclave by Robert Harris – A Thrilling Vatican Drama with a Questionable Twist (Spoiler Warning – Major plot points, including the ending, are discussed below!) If you’ve ever been curious about what happens behind the closed doors of the Vatican when a Pope dies, Conclave by Robert Harris is the political thriller for you. Well—mostly. This novel had me totally hooked for about 90% of the way. I was flying through the pages, completely invested in the secretive, high-stakes process of electing a new pope. And then... came the final twist. One that, in my opinion, nearly derailed the whole thing. Let’s break it down. What Is Conclave About? Conclave follows Cardinal Jacopo Lomeli , the Dean of the College of Cardinals, as he oversees the election of a new pope after the unexpected death of the current one. Set entirely within the walls of the Vatican over a few tense days, the novel dives deep into the backroom politics, moral calculations, and secret ambitions of the Catholi...

  To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han – Adorable, Addictive, and All the Feels (Spoiler Warning: This review contains key plot details!) Let me just start by saying: I LOVED LOVED LOVED THIS BOOK. Seriously, this is the kind of story that wraps around your heart like your favorite cozy blanket, especially if you’re into sweet, awkward, swoony teen romances. To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han is everything a young adult contemporary novel should be: funny, heartfelt, slightly dramatic, and completely addictive . Even though it’s clearly written for a younger audience, I devoured it in one sitting—and I’m not ashamed. What's the Book About? This book centers on Lara Jean Covey , a quirky, sentimental 16-year-old girl who writes private love letters to all the boys she's ever had a serious crush on. But here’s the catch: she never meant for anyone to read them. That is… until the letters somehow get mailed. Suddenly, Lara Jean’s love life spirals into tota...