What Books I’m Reading in 2021

TITLE: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

DESCRIPTION: The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night.

But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway: a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them both, this is a game in which only one can be left standing. Despite the high stakes, Celia and Marco soon tumble headfirst into love, setting off a domino effect of dangerous consequences, and leaving the lives of everyone, from the performers to the patrons, hanging in the balance.

TITLE: The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George

DESCRIPTION: Monsieur Perdu calls himself a literary apothecary. From his floating bookstore in a barge on the Seine, he prescribes novels for the hardships of life. Using his intuitive feel for the exact book a reader needs, Perdu mends broken hearts and souls. The only person he can’t seem to heal through literature is himself; he’s still haunted by heartbreak after his great love disappeared. She left him with only a letter, which he has never opened.
After Perdu is finally tempted to read the letter, he hauls anchor and departs on a mission to the south of France, hoping to make peace with his loss and discover the end of the story. Joined by a bestselling but blocked author and a lovelorn Italian chef, Perdu travels along the country’s rivers, dispensing his wisdom and his books, showing that the literary world can take the human soul on a journey to heal itself.

TITLE: : Home Girl Hood by Ebony Stewart

MY RATING: ☆☆☆☆☆

MY TOP-LEVEL THOUGHTS:

• A powerful commentary on life through a Black lens, I absolutely loved this book of poetry.
• I felt the compassion and authenticity of the author throughout the entire collection of work.
• As a biracial Black woman, there are poems I expected to go over my head or to not be written for me (which is 100% valid), however this is an important piece of work for EVERYONE to read, even if you aren’t the target demographic.
• The topics might be considered ‘heavy’ but they’re written about in a way that makes it easier to swallow, understand and empathize with.
• To see the world through Ebony Stewart’s eyes is a beautiful thing.

TITLE: : Gods & Monsters by Shelby Mahurin

MY RATING: ☆☆☆☆ 1/2

MY TOP-LEVEL THOUGHTS:

• I am so sad to see the end of this series! The first book, Serpent & Dove was the first ARC (advance reader’s copy) that I ever received, so this series holds a special place in my heart.
• Shelby is a great reminder of breaking the rules a writer might impose upon themselves when it comes to dialogue. I love the banter between all of them, especially anything that comes out of Beau. While others may not care for it, I really like the cursing and vulgarity because it helps remind me that I can write characters that speak like me!
• The different types of love, and the pain that comes from loving, is visceral in this book.
• Ugh that epilogue…way to kill me Shelby

TITLE: The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

MY RATING: ☆☆☆☆

MY TOP-LEVEL THOUGHTS:

• Neil Gaiman is just a creative genius and global treasure
• This short story combines childhood wonderment and the reality of losing that as an adult in such a beautifully, poignant way.
• I was left with unanswered questions at the end but for once it didn’t bother me!
• I really want a pond that feels like an ocean again

TITLE: : 84 Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff

MY RATING: ☆☆☆ 1/2

MY TOP-LEVEL THOUGHTS:

• This book is a short collection of letters between a writer in New York and an antique bookshop in London.
• Despite being a collection of letters, there’s still a decently defined arc of character and relationship growth
• It’s based in reality so I can’t really be mad about it but it bothered me that all of the letters felt like they were building up to an eventual event that actually never came to fruition
• A great, realistic glimpse into what life was like in post-war London, with food rationing and poverty

TITLE: The Highly Sensitive Person by Elaine N. Aron, PhD

MY RATING: ☆☆☆☆ 1/2

MY TOP-LEVEL THOUGHTS:

• This book was very eye opening for me as I was diagnosed as a ‘Highly Sensitive Person’ a few years ago
• It’s important for both HSP’s and parents/friends/partners of HSP’s to read and better understand the people in their lives
• Given that we didn’t always have a name for people who exhibited this behavior, this book was very helpful in giving me the tools to help better prepare myself and manage my processing in the future.

TITLE: Namesake by Adrienne Young

MY RATING: ☆☆☆☆☆

MY TOP-LEVEL THOUGHTS:

• This book felt like a beautiful love letter to varying relationships between children and parents
• There were several well-written & unexpected twists. Adrienne does a great job of writing misdirection, where you think the story or characters are plodding down one path and then BAM they surprise you!
• Great non-conventional villain

TITLE: Fable by Adrienne Young

MY RATING: ☆☆☆☆☆

MY TOP-LEVEL THOUGHTS:

• If you know me then you know I pretty much love all things pirate
• This book did a great job of balancing the beauty of a hard-lived life and the tenderness of femininity
• As usual the author captures tension so unbelievably well
• Wasn’t fully sold on the love story (at times it felt rushed) but thought it was well written

TITLE: Winter by Marissa Meyer

MY RATING: ☆☆☆☆ 1/2

MY TOP-LEVEL THOUGHTS:

• Found Winter as a character to incredibly interesting & a great way of delving into a spiraling mind
• A fantastic culmination of events that kept me on the edge of my seat for a lot of the book
• I loved the banter in this book

TITLE: Cress by Marissa Meyer

MY RATING: ☆☆☆

MY TOP-LEVEL THOUGHTS:

• Found Cress’ character endearing at some moments & annoying at others
• Very interesting take on the Rapunzel tale
• Great space elements and introduction to a few new characters
• Still not sure how believable I felt the semi-lukewarm love scenes were

TITLE: What Happened to You?: Conversations on Trauma, Resilience, and Healing by Oprah Winfrey

MY RATING: ☆☆☆ 1/2

MY TOP-LEVEL THOUGHTS:

• Very impactful discussions on the different views of trauma & its impact
• Important for parents to read, solid conversations on how what one person may not view as traumatic someone else might see it differently
• Important to take breaks & work your way through this book in case it stirs anything up in you emotionally
• Recommend the audio book, Oprah’s voice is so soothing

TITLE: Scarlet by Marissa Meyer

MY RATING: ☆☆☆☆

MY TOP-LEVEL THOUGHTS:

• Liked this one a lot more than Cinder
• Very interesting dynamic with Scarlet and Wolf
• I love that this takes place in real world cities in a future we’d all hope to avoid
• Story line jumps between Cinder & Scarlet
• A lot more action packed than Cinder
• I love the way Marissa Meyer writes banter between her characters

TITLE: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

MY RATING: ☆☆☆☆☆

MY TOP-LEVEL THOUGHTS:

• LGBTQIA+ representation, in particular discussions around bisexuality erasure
• Depictions on various types of love, not just passionate super-sexual love but the power of friendship and the family that you make
• The unlikable main character was incredibly dynamic
• I was NOT expecting the twist at the end!
• Some of her descriptions about being biracial and the identity issues we experience don’t sit well with me

TITLE: Atomic Habits by James Clear

MY RATING: ☆☆☆

MY TOP-LEVEL THOUGHTS: 

• A lot of the things he recommends I was already doing to help curb my bad ADHD habits
• The problem with sticking to habits has less to do with the action and more to do with the goal
• Set yourself up for success by reframing your mindset about your goals
• The end game isn’t to complete a task or hit a milestone, it’s to build sustainable habits that help you become the person you want to be

TITLE: The Grownup by Gillian Flynn

MY RATING: ☆☆ 1/2

MY TOP-LEVEL THOUGHTS: 

• I don’t normally go for ghost stories but I was in the mood for something short and sweet
• Less than 100 pages so easy to read in one sitting
• It felt like it was being provocative just for the sake of it
• No real resolution at the end, which isn’t necessarily good or bad but the reader is left wondering who the real “enemy” is
• Overall wasn’t super impressed

TITLE: Cinder by Marissa Meyer

MY RATING: ☆☆☆  1/2

MY TOP-LEVEL THOUGHTS:

• An interesting new take on an old tale
• I love the use of technology in this book
• Started to get a bit predictable
• Some of the relationships seemed force and I could tell they were there as plot devices
• The last act of the book was solid, I stayed up late to finish it!

TITLE: Daring Greatly by Brené Brown

MY RATING: ☆☆☆☆  1/2

MY TOP-LEVEL THOUGHTS: 

• Really impactful for any audience member but I truly think that men, in particular, would benefit from the discussions around internalized shame they may not realize they’re carrying
• I’m not a parent but this is definitely a book I’ll reference should I ever choose to become one
• I think this can also benefit people in work environments to relate or connect with their bosses and peers

TITLE: Circe by Madeline Miller

MY RATING: ☆☆☆☆  1/2

MY TOP-LEVEL THOUGHTS: 

• Months later and I’m still thinking about the power of this book
• A beautiful depiction of life as a woman, mythological tale or not
• The style of writing/prose was a bit difficult to get into for me but once I got used to it, I couldn’t imagine the story in any other tone
• There is so much power and versatility in what it means to carry feminine energy

TITLE: The Nature of Witches by Rachel Griffin

MY RATING: ☆☆☆☆☆

MY TOP-LEVEL THOUGHTS:

• Amazing book weaving the problems of climate change with a magic system
• The MC has a piece of my heart
• This book was written for any reader who was ever told they were ‘too much’
• Your feelings don’t make you weak
• Find forgiveness and grace for yourself to unlock your power
• A love that lets you be wholly and completely yourself is the greatest magic of all

TITLE: The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E.Schwab

MY RATING: ☆☆☆ 1/2

MY TOP LEVEL THOUGHTS:

• LGBTQIA+ representation, especially bisexuality
• Beautiful depiction of mental health & struggles
• Writing is prose, bordering on poetic
• It took my brain a while to get into the writing style (not uncommon for me & VE Schwab) but it packs a punch and is beautifully done
• The chapters time jump from past to present, so pay attention to the chapter headers
• Time waits for no one…well maybe just one

TITLE: All the Tides of Fate by Adalyn Grace

MY RATING: ☆☆☆☆ 1/2

MY TOP-LEVEL THOUGHTS:

• Not sure how she did it, but Adalyn Grace smashed it out of the park with the sequel to All the Stars & Teeth
• Heart crushing depictions of grief, anxiety, and depression
• Depicting various kinds of love
• Amazing mythology and lore woven through the book
• Betrayal and forgiveness are strong themes

TITLE: All the Stars and Teeth by Adalyn Grace

MY RATING: ☆☆☆☆☆

MY TOP-LEVEL THOUGHTS:

• You had me at pirate adventure
• You doubly had me with a morally gray female lead who doesn’t shy away from things stereotypically seen as masculine
• Shout out to just one line of the book helping to normalize discussions around periods
• Brilliant magic systems & great mythological creatures
• Amazing pace, action-packed but perfectly balanced with the emotional tones

TITLE: Lore by Alexandra Bracken

MY RATING: ☆☆☆☆☆

MY TOP-LEVEL THOUGHTS:

• This book…THIS BOOK!!! Y’all, to start my year off with a 5-☆  read is unheard of for me.
• Family, friendship, loyalty and tradition are big themes in this book
• Trust is earned, lost, and won
• Greek mythology meets the hunger games in the most amazing way!
• The twist was so beautifully executed I legit teared up
• Divine feminine power…this book is just beautiful