Share Your Shelf!

 

Happy Thursday and bonus post day, friends! I'm joining up with Joanne, Tanya, and Marilyn to talk about the great books I read this month and hope you'll chime in at the end of this post. If you want to check the book out for yourself, just click on each picture and you'll be redirected to a separate link to Amazon. 

My first book this month was the latest book in the  Finlay Donovan series, Finlay Donovan Rolls the Dice by Elle Cosimano.

This may have been my favorite book in the series! It was fun because Finlay and Vero find themselves in Atlantic City and off on a wild goose chase. Before long, some of their friends from their hometown start showing up at their hotel and they're having to sneak off and cover their bases. I was so sad to finish this book, because I'll have to wait a whole year to read the next one, if she writes another installment. Are you reading them yet?? 

The second book I read in April was this short story about a character in the Finlay books, Vero.

I loved reading about Vero, and how she came t/o know Finlay! You'll see some other familiar faces in this short story in her cousin Ramon and friend/ex-boyfriend/current love interest, Javi. If you decide to read this one, I would almost read this before I read the first book in the series. This would be more like a short prequel to the series, but it's not described as that on Amazon. They should ask me my opinion! 

My fourth book of the month was this one that got a really bad rap last summer, but thanks to a review that sweet Sarah did on her blog last year, I came into this one with new and fresh eyes. She encouraged us to read this book as exactly what it was: another book by an author most of us loved after reading her previous novel. I love that she reminded us of this and to encourage us to read it as just another book, not comparing it to the debut novel. I think because of that, I can say that not only did I love this one, but that I loved it even more than her first book!

It's shocking to me that this book is only Carley Fortune's second book. Her debut novel was a blockbuster hit in 2022, Every Summer After, and though this one was reviewed by many bloggers as a big miss, I beg to differ! I liked this one more than her first one, and even the author herself acknowledged that this is a better story line than her first book, though she wrestled with this one for much longer than her first book. Do you ever read those author acknowledgements at the back of every book? They're enlightening! 

Anyway, about this book...

Fern Brookbanks always swore that she would never go into the family business of owning and operating the resort that took up her mom's entire life, but that is exactly where she finds herself a few months after the death of her mom. Back at home at Brookbanks resort, she is flooded with all kinds of memories from her childhood, and running into the man that stole her heart and her thoughts ten years ago sends waves of shock through her. She always wondered what happened to the mysterious Will that she met one summer ten years ago. She spent one perfect day with him touring the beloved Toronto that she would soon be leaving, but she was heartbroken when he stood her up at the resort she had to get back to...so much so that she never got over the heartbreak of it all. This book alternates between past and present day, which I always love!

I'm stopping with the description there, because I think you should read this book if you missed it last year. This book takes you back and forth between present and past, and it also shares snippets of an old journal of her mom's that Fern found in the cabin she grew up in. I love stories like this! 

Book number 5 of the month was a quick read by another favorite author.

I love all of Fiona's books! They're all short, practical, easy to read, and inspirational. She wrote this one with people like me in mind: aspiring authors. This book was filled with great and practical advice that I immediately put to good use! 

My sixth book was one recommended to me by our local Indie bookstore Instagrammer, Novel. (I almost always buy their 5 star rated books!) This was an author I've never read before, but can now say that I am a huge fan of. I'll be finding more books by her in the future, but this one was her latest release.

Eve Hatch finds herself accidentally pregnant and dreading breaking the news to her best friend, who has been unable to conceive a baby with her husband. More than not wanting to tell Willa, she really doesn't want to break the news to the guy from that one night...she doesn't want to pressure him into being a part of the baby's life, but she feels like she has to tell him before she loses her nerve. Thankfully she has her other best friend (and brother of Willa) to lean on, and Shep is the rock that she needs to get her through. She becomes confused about all of her feelings as the baby's dad grows more and more excited with each passing day, and as she starts to see Shep in a new light...

Who knew this would be a trope I would love?? I didn't see this one coming, but I loved it so much that I could barely put it down. 

Book number seven was this much anticipated book by someone whose blog I have read forever. 

The first sentence to describe this book is, "How do you stand when life keeps knocking you down?". This book is partly personal testimony of Courtney and what all has taken place in her very public life over the last decade or so, and is filled with stories of God's redemption, His goodness, and His faithfulness. She went through a very public and painful divorce against her will, and this book was part of the road to her recovery. She's very candid in this book as she shared all that took place, but she wrote it beautifully and tastefully. I love that the pages within are filled with Scripture! This book is a great recommendation for anyone going through anything in life, which means that is for all of us. Somehow it was also very uplifting and encouraging, and there were times when I laughed out loud and a few time that I was teary. I read this book in one day, it was that good. 

The eighth book I read was another new author to me...

The opening descriptive question for this book is, "How far would you go to protect your child?". Samantha knew something was wrong with her son the minute he walked in from school that one afternoon. He didn't greet her, he didn't come to have his normal afternoon snack, he just walked straight up to his room and stayed there until late that night. As much as she hates to think of it, she can't help but wonder if he is the newest victim of a bully at school. Even her husband agrees with her as the night goes on, and Guy wakes up to his son crying in his room. If the school won't protect their son, and the police seem reluctant to get too involved, Samantha and Guy are forced to take action. 

This book was so good! I thought I had it figured out and gasped when it played out differently than I'd thought. I've never read one of Hurst's books before, but I'm a fan! This one is free right now with Kindle Unlimited. 

The ninth and last book that I read in April was one by a favorite author...

(Don't judge it by the ridiculous cover.) This is the 2nd book in a series, and this one is about Annie, the sweet younger sister with the reputation of an angel. She doesn't understand why she isn't good at going on dates, but the expectations of her siblings are not helping her. She's surprised to see Will back in town...he's there to be Amelia's bodyguard again until after her wedding to Noah takes place. When Will walks into a restaurant and witnesses Annie's terrible date with John, he can't help but stick around and make the guy a little more uncomfortable. Annie can't figure out why she can't talk to men, but she isn't shy at all around Will, especially with the way he looks with the sleeve of tattoos he has. Amelia comes up with a great idea inspired by their favorite Audrey Hepburn movie...she gets Annie to ask Will to be her dating coach. What Annie doesn't know is that Will has liked her since the first time he ever saw her, but he wants no part of anything having to do with a relationship and that takes place in a small town. Can he really pull that off? And can Annie keep quiet about her own feelings? 

This book was un-put-down-able. All I wanted to do was read after I first started it the other night; it was swoon-worthy and laugh out loud funny, all at once. You should check it out for yourself! 

It's your turn! Tell me what you read and loved this month. I always need to know all the details on things like this. 

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