January Book Review and Friday Favorites

It's Friday!  My favorite week day, my favorite blog post day, and a new one...my favorite kind of day, because I am talking about books!  I'm linking up with Andrea from Momfessionals, and her friends, for this post.

I cannot believe I've never done a book review on here before, but I was recently given this as a suggestion, so here goes nothing.  I hope you find yourself some books to read! 

First off, because January lasted approximately seventy four days long, I read a whopping eight books.  That is highly unusual, and I know I will not keep that up at all throughout the twelve months of 2019.  I would like to read about five books a month, but we will see.  Because I'm turning on the television way less nowadays (less Netflix, more reading), I've read a bunch.

1.  Girls Night Out, by Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke.

I have read their other books and loved them, but I did not care for this one.  I especially did not care for the way it ended, and I found myself feeling anxious while I was reading.  I won't give anything away, but this is a book about three best friends who are trying to make amends in their friendship.  One friend feels left out while the other two have gotten closer.  (Is that not the way it goes?)  To do this, they travel to Mexico, and the rest of the book spans about four days.  I'll stop there, because I don't want to ruin the rest of the book for anyone, should they decided to read it for themselves.

This book goes back and forth between the characters and time.  For instance, chapter one would be "the day of" and then the next one would be "four days before".  That drove me bonkers.  Also, I don't love when the chapters switch back and forth between characters.  I found myself constantly checking to see whose perspective was being told, and what day it was.

There is language in this book, that I don't approve of (I think this is the case for all of them except one), but I can overlook this, usually.  Out of five stars (five being best), I would give this one three.

2.  Cozy Minimalist Home, by Myquillyn Smith.

I sat down to flip through the pages of this book one night, and I kept reading until I was finished.  I loved this book!  It's all about decorating, and using and loving what you have.  My takeaway from this book is that if any type of decorating stresses me out (like when I pull out fall or Christmas stuff), I shouldn't let that happen.  I took on this mindset this year when we decorated for Christmas.  I added some favorite things to what was already out, and I didn't move as much out as I usually do.

She does actually give a good how-to on decorating, as well, and how to create the space you will love and use.  Out of five stars, I would give this one five.

3.  An American Marriage, by Tayari Jones.

I had been wanting to read this book, and while it started strong, it went on and on and on for about fifty pages too long.  It was a good story, don't get me wrong, and one that makes you think long after you've finished the book.  I'm not sure why I didn't love it, but I just did not.

Also, THERE WERE NO NORMAL CHAPTERS.  Just breaks, and the characters would switch.  I need chapters.  I really, really need chapters.  I'm slightly OCD about where I stop while reading a book, and the end of a chapter is a good stopping point.  I'm rolling my eyes at myself.

Out of five stars, I would give this one three.

4.  Little Fires Everywhere, by Celeste Ng.

Nowhere in the book does it ever allude to the whole book taking place in the eighties, but that would have been nice to know.  I can't remember if that was in the description of the book, but if it was, I missed that detail.  It doesn't matter, really, but it took me a while to catch on.  The back of the book mentions an adoption involving a Chinese baby, but once that part happened in the book, it either went on for too long about details that didn't seem to matter, or not much was mentioned at all.  I thought there was going to be some enthralling tale of an adoption gone wrong, but I was mistaken.  I think the back cover mentions how one family deals with two strangers that come to live in their house as tenants. 

Out of five stars, I would give this two.

5.  When We Were Young, by Karen Kingsbury.

I'm so sad to say this about this book, because this has been a favorite author of mine for over a decade.  But, friends.  All of her books have become redundant, and I no longer enjoy reading them.  Except for maybe two, I have read all the books she has ever written.  This book is all about a couple who met while they were in college, and later get married.  Their marriage goes through a few ups, but since social media takes over their lives, things start to fall apart for them.  All of that is mentioned on the cover of the book, so I'm not ruining anything for you, I promise. 

I found myself wanting this book to be over, but it seemed to go on and on and on.  I was ready to quit several times, but I persisted and just hurried through the last several chapters.  Many Christian fiction authors have become this way for me in the last two or three years, which is why I've branched out of that category...they all seemed exactly the same, without much substance.  There are two authors in this category that I still love, but I've read and re-read all their books in the last year, already, and they just don't write as fast as I'd like them to.

Out of five stars, I would give this three.

(I feel so harsh.)

6.  How To Walk Away, by Katherine Center.

I LOVED THIS BOOK.  I would consider it PG-13, so consider yourself warned.  This book is about a girl who is forever changed by a plane crash, and that happens in the first two chapters...the rest of it is even better.  I don't want to give anything away! 

I started this book and immediately was drawn into the story, and could not put it down.  I texted my sister Debi right away, because we like to share books and authors we like with one another, however I later found out that she read this book as she sat on a plane.  I may or may not have given her a mini panic attack.  (Sorry, Sissy!)  I think I lost sleep over this book, because I wanted to know what happens next.  The ending totally surprised me, but it was fantastic, which is like icing on the cake.  Just go and buy or borrow this book.  You will never regret the time you spend reading this book.  I posted a picture of this on Instagram and tagged the author, and she "loved" my picture and commented on the post.  I thought that was cool!

You know it's a good sign when you're hurrying through your day so you can sit down and read.  I found myself dragging it out, because it was so good.

Out of five stars, this one gets all five!

7.  Before and After, by Barbara Delinsky.

I used to read her books years and years ago, but I stopped somewhere along the way.  This one sounded good, so I borrowed it from the library, but I was disappointed.  The story was good, though the description on the back was misleading and the book wasn't about the story that was going on at the beginning.  It's about a girl with a past who moved to a new and small town to escape her history, but as the town is rocked by a scandal that takes place, she finds herself drawn back into the public eye.  (Think primary and secondary characters...it should have been more about the secondary character, according to the description, but it wasn't.)  It was interesting, but a little long, with a good ending.

Out of five stars, this one gets three.

And, last but not least...

8.  Something in the Water, by Catherine Steadman.

This is written by an actress that was in the show Downton Abbey.  (I am not familiar...I couldn't get into the show.)  This book was so good!  I finished it on the last day of January, which is why this review isn't posting on the last day of the month.  The story starts in a shocking way, then the rest of the book goes back in time to let you know what happened to get you up to that point.  The characters are good, my heart was racing most of the time, and I kept wondering how in the world they could have gotten themselves into the situation they did.  Because of strong language, I would give this one an R rating.  I didn't know that when I started it, or I might not have read it, based on that fact, but I was captivated with the story quickly, so I kept reading.  Just know that going into this, if you read it for yourself.  The language in this one is a little harder to overlook.  I feel bad about that, because I really try to be careful about what I let in (to my heart).

That being said, it was a fascinating read.  It's also part of Reese Witherspoon's book club selection, which I've found that I like.  She has good suggestions, and the books she picks make you think long after they're finished.   I love books like that, when I imagine what I would do if I were in that scenario.

Out of five stars, this one also gets five.

So, there you have it, friends.  Those are my thoughts and opinions about all the books I read in January.  I can't wait to read some more in February!  Let me know if you read any of these and tell me what you think.  I'd love to hear from you!  Also, feel free to comment on here with book recommendations...I am ALWAYS looking for new books and authors.

Thanks for reading!  Love to all.