The month of June flew by, more than other flying months. It was a month that didn’t allow the maximum amount of reading time, I’ll tell ya that much. Even still, I was able to read a fair amount of books, as you’ll soon learn about. I mean just under 2 a week is pretty good numbers, right?
Olivia’s Only Pretending by Rebecca Jo Jackson
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Rating explained:
I’ve probably said I’m just not a fan of reverse age gap (where the guy is younger than the girl) but this… THIS WORKED. And I’m kind of a fan. 👀
They had instant chemistry from the moment they met in the previous book. I couldn’t wait to read this book! I mean I could… because I knew of the age gap, but I’m glad I didn’t wait too long.
Olivia is so smart and studious. I mean, she has a PHD! She’s a professor! Victor is helping her on her historical home renovations and honestly, they just start making up reasons for him to be there because they’d done everything over the months they’d been “friends.”
I loved the build up and the natural progression of their story. It was completely inevitable and sometimes those are some of the best stories ever. Like what else could have happened but they end up together? Everything is honky dory.
Notes:
- Olivia Rhodes – 29 – 5 foot – drives a white Prius
- Victor Hernandez – 24 – 6 foot – drives a black Silverado
- Single POV
- “Safe zone”
- Fake dating
- Friends to more
- Small town
- College campus shenanigans
Quotes:
Victor was passionate and impulsive, but in a way I trusted because he wasn’t carried by whims or desires. He was carried by his care and his values. His passion was an arrow pointed at whatever he cared about most.
Watson needed a home, so he gave him one.
I needed a copilot at a history department dinner, so he was my date.
“Crush?” He laughed, running a hand down his face. “It was always so much more than a crush. There’s no comparison. Crush was watering it down to make it easier to swallow. Nothing about how I feel about you, from the moment I saw you, has been small.”
This is book three in the Sweet River series AND BOOK FOUR RELEASED JUNE 30TH!! 🙂 It delivered Monday so I’m ready… obvi.
Make Your Bed by Admiral William H. McRaven
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Rating explained:
I actually knew of this book because Quinn Warmuth (a hockey player) mentioned it in a reel for the Allen Americans. 😂😂 He’s a bookworm, too. 🙂
So I looked it up and had it in my TBR for a while.
A great, quick read! It’s written in conversational style as he tells some stories of his time in SEAL training. Each chapter is applicable for anyone though.
Make your bed is about simple applicable steps to get through your day and life with a good attitude and find success.
I’ve always been (I mean, since like high school probably) one to make my bed. Especially as an adult, my day feels better somehow with my bed made. It’s wild.
Highly recommend adding this to your TBR.
Rival Season by Katie Bailey & Leah Brunner
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Rating explained:
I couldn’t decide if I liked this one or book one more so since I gave the first book 5 stars, I gave this one 5 stars, too. 🙂
Aside from the frequent cursing in this and innuendo, it’s a great book. I’ve had a trend of reverse age gaps and I’m not sure why… but now they’re growing on me. 😦
Notes:
- Hazel Palmer – 26
- Penn Matthews – 22 (turns 23 in story)
- foster system rep
- fake dating to more
- neighbors
- cheating ex
- nicknames
Quotes:
“I think you just missed me so much you couldn’t bear another moment apart.”
She rolls her eyes. “I don’t know how you walk around carrying an ego that large. Surely the weight of it is crippling.”
I flex my arms so my biceps strain under the thin fabric of my long-sleeved shirt. “Muscles, Bubbles. They come in handy for carrying heavy things.”
She’s the kind of pretty that makes you look then immediately want to look again.
“Wow, I think this is Santi’s best work yet,” he says, clearly in awe.
I take a few steps to get a closer look, and have to admit, the abstract painting is absolutely gorgeous.
“Is that the Palace of Fine Arts?” Penn asks me.
“It is,” I reply, still gazing at the unique depiction of the stunning San Francisco landmark.
Penn bends to speak softly in my ear. “I bet you know a ton of random facts about it…”
“I do, actually.” I smile. “Wanna hear them?”
‘Talk nerdy to me, Bubbles,” he whispers in a mock-seductive voice that makes me giggle.
This is book two in the Hockey Boys of Loft 3B. Book three will be out later this year and I think I know what it’ll be about based on clues, but we do know it’s Fischer’s story.
No Match Found by Martha Keyes
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Rating explained:
I devoured this book (I know, in 4 days). I loved it so much. I kind of thought I would since, ya know, it’s Martha Keyes, but wow. And I barely took any notes!!
I loved that it was only from Vivian’s POV actually. Which, I know, is shocking. I kind of turn my nose up at single POV but it most of the time works so well. I’d have loved to have Grant’s POV because he was patient and sweet with her, even though he gave me arrogant vibes at first. I was like wait, this is the guy?? This is the MMC??? LOL
Vivian West (30) is the CEO of the Matchify app (matchmaking/dating) that she started with her group of friends (who will be getting their own stories in this series!!!) and Grant Wilder is the journalist that is doing an article on the company. They spend like three hours together over a few days and his boss says he needs more, blah blah blah. She ends up having to date guys she gets matched with on the app and he’s just tagging along. But the whole time, they’re just fighting their own attraction to one another. It’s hialrious! So much more happens in this so I’m not really ruining anything. 🙂
The ending was perfection.
Notes:
- female CEO
- journalist
- opposites attract
- workplace romance
- banter for days
- donuts
This is the first book in the Matchify series. Off Script releases NEXT MAY so I have to wait a while (and so will you).
A Beautiful Love by Megan Walker
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Rating explained:
Is it sad that I don’t remember the story of the ugly duckling? 😦
So Preston and Caroline were friends along with Preston and her brother Thomas. Caroline was a year or two younger than Preston so he couldn’t ask after her for some time, but he promised to be there when she came of age.
Preston ran into a fire to rescue people and got burned. His face was scarred and he suffered from nightmares. Because of all that, he didn’t see himself worthy of Caroline any longer. The story follows along with them as they reconnect and Caroline tries to get him to see she loves him with his scars and all.
This is part of the Forever After Retellings multi-author series.
Love & Lidocaine by Kendra Hope
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Rating explained:
A new-to-me author and OH MY GOODNESS. I loved this one. I hadn’t ever read about a hygienist and a dentist, but now I kind of want more. LOL
This was over 450 pages of wow.
So Hope has issues at home, especially with her father’s dental practice partner, so she runs away to her brother’s cabin and that works so well…. She ends up at the last place she wants to be: a dental office. It was a wild ride, but she ends up working for Jay, her neighbor and also the local dentist everyone loves.
I have zero quotes, but just know that Jay was completely swoony. He was so, so sweet to Hope. He was always watching out for her and caring for her, supporting her, etc.
Notes:
- Hope Elmswood – 24
- Jay Alarcon – 31
- Tyler – 26
- Macey – 24
- workplace romance
- neighbors
- physical abuse
- mental health rep
- family manipulation/issues
- knitting ladies
- THE LIBRARY
- the water scene
- single POV
The ending was shredding me to pieces, but it was so good, too. Gotta add to your TBR!
She does have warnings with this book related to the abuse and mental health recounted and talked about in this story.
This is a standalone, but I wonder if she’ll soon write another and make it a series because some side characters could definitely use a novel of their own.
Why Trey Let Me Get Away by Kortney Keisel
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Rating explained:
This was funny, in the usual way all of Kortney’s books are, but I’ve noticed her older stuff just isn’t as good as her newer stuff, IMO.
I took zero notes on this. I did listen mostly with the audiobook (thank you Spotify and BrightHaven) and that was well done. Have I mentioned how much I love a dual audio where there’s a man and a woman doing the voices?
Trey let Whitney go years ago when she broke things off. He never went after her, but they’ve always had feelings for each other. Whitney went off and got married to a jerk and now she doesn’t want to marry again at all. Trey’s working on a game plan to get her back – AFTER he finds out she’s single, because at first he assumed she was still married.
I did enjoy how they met again and how they had to spend the forced proximity thing because she was tasked with doing a special on Trey for the news outlet.
This is book one in the Famously in Love duology that follows Trey and his sister Jenna.
Books read this month: 7
Books read this year: 74
Book goal for year: 96
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/notyourseason?igsh=MW5kMnltOXJocTEyOQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
Books I have for sale:
https://pangobooks.com/bookstore/notyourseason
GoodReads:
https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/131896341-summer
Thanks for reading! Feel free to drop in the comments all you read in the month of May as well! Did we read any of the same books?
Not Your Season: Summer's Blog 