I usually have two or three books going at a time. One is my downstairs book and it's usually a book made of paper that I borrow from the library. Occasionally I'll have two downstairs books - one by the couch and one on the table for reading during eating. One is my upstairs book that I read before going to bed at night and it's generally on my Kindle.
Frankly, I don't finish a ton of books, so if it even makes this list, it's probably not terrible. Unless it turns terrible in the last half in which case I feel obligated to finish.
1/2: Rebel Heart by LK Farlow (free on Kindle): A not-great romance novel in which the main characters really needed to just have a conversation. Nice guy with a trust fund falls for a rebellious girl with a trust fund (she's a rebel because she dyes her hair and has piercings, but...uh, in that case, I guess I'm a rebel?). I think I disliked this novel because there were NO real world problems. Money? No biggie. Trust funds. Abusive father? No biggie. Mom will embarrass him and get him arrested. School woes? No biggie. Just study a little more! Argh. No thank you.
1/3: Charm City by Laura Lippman (library)
1/6: The Purity of Vengeance by Jussi Adler-Olsen (library)
1/7: The Crime Beat by A.C. Fuller (free on Kindle): This was apparently the first third of a series. It was sold as a standalone novel, though. It was...not. Also, it didn't entice me into buying the rest. Pretty lackluster "mystery" in which a reporter and cop who have traditionally been at odds with each other get together to tackle a tough case. Since I'd just finished a great reporter book in Charm City, this just didn't do it for me.
1/13: Well-Read Black Girl edited by Glory Edim (library)
1/15: Dark Path by Melissa F. Miller (free on Kindle) - The first book in a series about a forensic pathologist who happens to be a practicing Buddhist. It was...fine.
1/17: A Column of Fire by Ken Follett (library)
1/17: Falling for Ryan Part I: Falling for Ryan by Tracy Lorraine (free on Kindle) - This book came as part of a five part series. I read the first part and declared it to be a "stupid book." The characters are just so inane. If I were either of the main characters, I wouldn't want to be with the other one, either. No thanks from me!
1/20: Butchers Hill by Laura Lippman (library)
1/22: Beard Science by Penny Reid (free on Kindle) - This is the third book in a series and it felt like it. I was just dropped into a world with a gazillion characters and not a lot of explaining as to who everyone was. On the other hand, both of our main characters were quirky enough to stand out in a sea of canned romance characters. I will probably read more Penny Reid, maybe starting at the beginning of a series.
1/24: Dream with Me by Kristen Proby (Kindle purchase) - I really loved the early books in Proby's With Me series, but I have found that since the sixth book, the characters have been boring and forgettable. Since this is the 13th book in the series, maybe I should stop reading it?
1/30: Be with Me by Lea Coll (free on Kindle) - The dialogue is artificial, the woman is a door mat, and the bad guy is so obviously the bad guy. Definitely did not entice me to buy more Coll books.
1/31: Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones (library)
2/1: Trust Exercise by Susan Choi (library)
2/3: In Big Trouble by Laura Lippman (library)
2/6: Lethal Balance by Cherise Sinclair (Kindle purchase) - Sinclar is the author of the actually amazing Masters of the Shadowlands series. This is the second novel in her followup series, Sons of the Survivalist. It's a fine series, but the Shadowlands novels are so much better with better developed characters who stand out in my mind. Lethal Balance involves insta-love between a man and a child and the child drives most of the conflict in the novel. Since I'm not what you would call a kid person, this whole plot left me cold. Eh. I'll still read them because Sinclair is head and shoulders above the writing of an average romance author.
2/12: The Outsiders by SE Hinton (library)
2/13: Sated in Ink by Carrie Ann Ryan (Kindle purchase) - Ryan's Montgomery Ink series is a fun contemporary series in which many of the couples face real-life issues like money, health, and problems in raising/combining families. And then there's this book in which the main characters really just all have crappy jobs (hint: just get new jobs). It was a disappointing entry into what is a traditionally solid family saga.
2/17: Bare Ass in Love by Sasha Burke (free on Kindle) - There are some legitimate beefs with this novel. The heroine is naive and childlike in some ways. The hero is oddly busy working, but it's not clear what he actually does. But here's the thing. The characters do stand out to me in a real way. They are not traditional characters who are just like all the other characters in contemporary romantic fiction. It was enough to get me to download the next book in the series.
2/18: The Bromance Book Club by Lyssa Kay Adams (library)
2/21: Hard Ass in Love by Sasha Burke (Kindle purchase) - This is the followup to Bare Ass in Love. This book was boring. It also had so many tropes (dead wife, precocious child, "bullying" taking place off page, "quirky" heroine whose quirks are not charming but annoying). I will not be buying any more Burke books.
2/22: Meanwhile, Elsewhere: Science Fiction and Fantasy from Transgender Writers edited by Cat Fitzpatrick (library)
2/23: Charming Hannah by Kristen Proby (free on Kindle) - Thumbs way down. I did love some of Proby's earlier books, but her new ones aren't cutting it for me. The last straw was when the hero told the heroine that she was moving in with him and she was (obviously) going to sell or rent her house. I was astounded. What if she didn't' want to move in with him? What if she wanted him to move into HER house? No thanks from me.
2/24: Accidentally All of Me Book 1 by Ali Parker (free on Kindle) - Sort of a boring book about a man raising his niece after his sister died and how he falls for a local veterinarian. I'm a sucker for a book with a dog as a main character in it, but not necessarily sold on precocious kids.
2/26: Strike a Match by Lindzee Armstrong (free on Kindle) - Woman falls in love with a firefighter who saved her life. This has been done better (see Can't Help Falling in Love by Bella Andre).
2/26: The Marco Effect by Jussi Adler - Olsen (library)
2/27: Just One Night by Melanie Shawn (free on Kindle) - I don't know. Having the thirteenth novel in your series as the freebie is maybe not the way to introduce an audience to your world. I just felt like there were a number of awesome characters who I was barely introduced to. Also, this was (spoiler) a situation in which a five-minute conversation could have prevented the entire story. I liked Shawn's writing and maybe if I'd started at the beginning of this Crossroads series, I'd feel differently, but as is, I don't think I'm sold on these books.
3/2: Blind Man's Bluff by Ivy James (free on Kindle) - I honestly see this novel as sort of anti-disability and was disgusted by the ending. Hard pass from me.
3/3: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams (library)
3/9: The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler (library)
3/12: Just One Regret by Stacey Lynn (free on Kindle) - I'm a bit surprised I finished this book, to be honest. I just do not resonate with people who a) are obsessed with children and procreation and b) do not just tell the truth for no discernible reason. Grr.
3/17: Fleishman is in Trouble by Taffy Brodesser-Akner (library)
3/22: Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo (library)
3/22: The Neanderthal Box Set (Knitting in the City #1 - 1.5) by Penny Reid (free on Kindle) - I vowed to read more Penny Reid because I think her female characters are fun. I do not find arrogant, bossy men to be my cup of tea, however, and I think it's possible that while I want to like Reid, I don't actually. No go for me.
3/25: Grit and Grind by Kat Addams (free on Kindle) - Steamy romance. Pretty good.
3/27: The Nanny by Gilly Macmillan (library)
3/30: Bright Young Things by Anna Godbersen (library ebook)
Total: 37 books
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