There is something so splendid about picking up a Sophie Kinsella book.  You know that it will be the perfect mix of laugh out loud funny and realistic yet endearing romance.  When I start reading, I know I'm in for a treat.  Love Your Life was just the book I needed during this stressful time in our lives.  

Ava has recently booked a stay at a writers retreat in Italy in hopes of finally taking time to finish her novel.  The attendees aren't allowed to give their real names or any personal information to the other attendees so that they may only focus on their work.  While not on the lookout for romance, Ava does meet "Dutch".  Their romance blossoms in this unique bubble of the writers retreat, but doesn't give them much opportunity to learn about what their lives are like back home.  When they return home, Ava and Matt a/k/a "Dutch" have a lot to learn about each other.  As you might imagine, that is just the beginning of all the fun in store for you when reading Love Your Life.

I truly enjoyed this novel so much and appreciated the break from reality to just dive into Ava's world.  It isn't often enough that I read a book that is laugh out loud funny and I love Sophie Kinsella for providing me those moments.  Love Your Life is a really fun and rewarding read.  

I received this book courtesy of Dial Press Random House Publishing Group through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  

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Lisa Jewell has quickly become my "go to" author for all things suspenseful, dark and twisty.  The Invisible Girl was another perfect installment in that collection.

The story centers around three main characters: Cate Four, a physiotherapist whose husband Roan Fours is a child psychologist; Owen Pick, a mid thirties college professor who recently lost his job due to some sexual misconduct allegations and lives with his aunt across the street from the Fours; and Saffrye Maddox, a former patient of Roan Fours, who has been following and watching Dr. Fours in hopes of re-establishing that relationship.  All of these separate, yet connected, lives converge when young Saffrye goes missing and accusations are made.  

This story kept me guessing and trying to uncover the truth behind it all.  The pacing is always spot on with Lisa Jewell's stories and I really enjoy how she develops the plot and characters.  A really terrific book that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

I received this book courtesy of Atria Books through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.    

Thirteen year old Pia Lange has many wishes.  She wishes her father were back from the war.  She wishes they were living somewhere other than in the overcrowded Shunk Alley area of Philadelphia.  She wishes she didn't experience physical pain every time most people touched her.  She wishes her German heritage was something she could be proud of, instead of something she has to try to hide.  When the Spanish flu epidemic arrives in Philadelphia, all those wishes suddenly don't seem to matter anymore.  Suddenly, Pia is fighting for her own survival while also caring for her infant twin brothers in a city ravaged by disease.

Bernice Groves has seen her life shattered by the epidemic.  Her own infant son succumbed to the flu and all Bernice can think of is how she can join him as her life means nothing without him in it.  Then Bernice sees Pia leaving the apartment without her brothers.  She makes a decision at that moment that will have far reaching consequences for not only her own life, but many others.  

The Orphan Collector was well researched and vividly written so you could truly envision what the characters experienced.  As I was reading, I had to frequently remind myself that I was reading a historical fiction novel and not a novel set in present day.  So many things were eerily familiar from the 1918 Spanish flu epidemic with what we are currently experiencing during this COVID-19 pandemic.  At times, that made for interesting and compelling reading and honestly at other times, it was overload for me.    

Bernice Groves is truly one of the most evil characters I can remember reading about, even more so than some characters in horror or murder mystery novels.  The author did an excellent job of creating a character that not only do you want to hate, but one that you simply detest.  I couldn't help but be shocked at some of the actions she takes during the novel.  

I received this book courtesy of Kensington Publishing Corp. in exchange for an honest review.  

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Being a huge Jodi Picoult fan, as in I own all the books she's written, I was so excited to learn about her newest novel The Book of Two Ways.  When I found out it had connections with Egyptology, it heightened my anticipation to read it, because I find Egyptian history and archaeology interesting as well.  Unfortunately, I didn't connect with The Book of Two Ways and was left very disappointed.  

The book opens very dramatically.  Dawn Edelstein is one of only a few survivors of a plane crash.  In those moments right before the crash, the first person who enters her mind is Wyatt, the man she had a romantic relationship with over 15 years ago while working together in Egypt. Surprisingly, it is not her husband and teenage daughter at home in Boston that enter her mind first.  Told in two story lines, the book explores Dawn's travels to Egypt to track down Wyatt and her life in Boston where she serves as a death doula and is married to Brian, her physicist husband.  

Even though I have an interest in Egyptology, the book felt almost too academic and bogged down at points.  That combined with trying to understand all the quantum physics topics covered made for heavy reading.  Then also trying to cope with the topics of life and death for the terminally ill clients Dawn serves, and the body issues her teenage daughter is dealing with, made for a very difficult read.  I always appreciate how Jodi Picoult handles controversial subjects and makes you see different sides to issues, but this just felt like too many topics for one book.  Dawn was not a character that I could relate to or even really wanted to read about.  Her moral compass seems to skate both sides of issues, depending on which side serves her best at that moment, and those qualities didn't seem to match up with someone who has a career of helping people through the death process.  As the final stinger for me, the ending completely frustrated me. It was like reading a Choose Your Own Adventure novel and then you pick your ending, but when you turn to page 99 to see what happens, that page is missing.

Of course, I will always read Jodi Picoult's books and while this novel was not to my taste, I appreciate her work as a writer and will continue to buy her books.

I received this novel courtesy of Ballantine Books through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.