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myevergrowingbookshelf's reviews
520 reviews
The Happy Ever After Playlist by Abby Jimenez
emotional
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
5.0
I say this way too often (which probably means I have too many good books on my tbr š š), but why did I wait so long to read this?! I felt the same when I first read The Friend Zone, so I shouldāve known not to leave it too long for the second one, but thatās me! šš
I loved Sloan and Jason! They had such a fun little meet cute, and Tucker, oh I loved him! š¶ š
I remembered Sloan really well from the first book and remember my heart going out to her at the end, and I fell back in love with her immediately as soon as I picked this up! I felt like I needed a great story for Sloan after how we saw how her story ended in The Friend Zone, and Abby Jimenez didnāt fail to give Sloan her love story!
I loved the chemistry, the banter, the music side of it, the adoration from Jason, the dog, the way grief was handled, the character journeys, I loved it all!
āI told you Sloan. Iād notice in a crowd of a millionā š©·
I loved Sloan and Jason! They had such a fun little meet cute, and Tucker, oh I loved him! š¶ š
I remembered Sloan really well from the first book and remember my heart going out to her at the end, and I fell back in love with her immediately as soon as I picked this up! I felt like I needed a great story for Sloan after how we saw how her story ended in The Friend Zone, and Abby Jimenez didnāt fail to give Sloan her love story!
I loved the chemistry, the banter, the music side of it, the adoration from Jason, the dog, the way grief was handled, the character journeys, I loved it all!
āI told you Sloan. Iād notice in a crowd of a millionā š©·
Happy Place by Emily Henry
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
5.0
Happy Place is an absolute beauty of a book! Itās not your typical romance but oh is this one hell of a love story!
I loved the flipping back and forth of timelines
I loved the friendship group
I loved the house itself (please someone take me there)
I loved the memories
I loved the tension
I loved how much it made me happy
I loved how much it made me cry
I loved the character journeys
I loved the girls
I loved the guys
I loved Wyn
I loved Harriet
Can you tell I loved it yet? š š
So if youāre like me and have had it on your tbr for a while, goā¦go now and pick it up! š©·
I loved the flipping back and forth of timelines
I loved the friendship group
I loved the house itself (please someone take me there)
I loved the memories
I loved the tension
I loved how much it made me happy
I loved how much it made me cry
I loved the character journeys
I loved the girls
I loved the guys
I loved Wyn
I loved Harriet
Can you tell I loved it yet? š š
So if youāre like me and have had it on your tbr for a while, goā¦go now and pick it up! š©·
The Hitman by Ellie Isaacson
dark
2.5
I was looking through the romance books on the āstuff your kindleā day and figured if I was ever going to branch out to a different type of romance, I might as well do it for free right? And the bit that sold me was when it said it was about a hitman who falls for his latest hit, I was intrigued! š¤·š»āāļø
Howeverā¦I donāt think dark romance or mafia romance is for me š«£ it was a bit much at points, I didnāt really want to pick it up as much as I normally want to pick up my book, and I was just glad when it was over š
So yeah, I tried something new, but nope! Donāt get me wrong, I like a steamy romance, but thisā¦not a fan! But, if you do like mafia romance, then maybe give it a go, it might be for you!
Me on the other hand, Iāll be sticking with my cosy small town romance from now on š
Hopeless by Colleen Hoover
5.0
I absolutely LOVED this one! But like I said, I read this last year, in fact I read in June last year so itās been a while š š
But what I do remember is that this one hit me in the feelings. I felt so much emotion with this one! I was hooked from the very beginning and needed to know what happened next after every chapter. Sky and Holder both had such interesting stories, but both with troubled backgrounds. There are definitely some CW to read up on with this one! Itās definitely NA not YA!
Thereās love, chemistry, protectiveness, intensity, trauma, drama, twists and turns and I need to read the rest of the series this year! (Although it actually turns out I read a novella further on this series a couple of years ago š š)
Seven Summers by Paige Toon
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Every time Paige writes a book, I think she canāt top it, but Seven Summers is such a beautiful heart wrenching read.
From the very beginning I knew I was going to love it, and I was right! The setting on this was so beautiful, I felt like I knew exactly where I was, I could picture it perfectly.
The characters all had incredible stories, Liv was such an incredible POV to read from. I loved her with her brother, with her friends, at her job. And of course, with Finn. I loved him, I kinda loved how their summers worked, but wanted more for them, even though I know it couldnāt. And then there was Tom - oh how I loved him! So then it gets hard to pick, but I knew which team I was on. I wonāt say, donāt want to even risk getting close to spoilers, because youāre going to want to read this one!
I criedā¦a lot š it was so heart wrenchingly beautiful and emotional, the tears just couldnāt stop. And it made me think back to the video that Paige put up of herself crying when finishing writing the book, and it all made sense! I had a feeling what would happen, but it didnāt make my tears stop, in fact if I had been wrong Iād have been so disappointed š
I felt serious Five Years From Now vibes from this one, and that was my very first Paige Toon read so itās always been one of my favourites so I loved that!
This was my first read of 2024, qnd as predicted, it means that I started off the year on such a high, itās going to be hard to top it!
Ooh also, that cover?! STUNNING š
From the very beginning I knew I was going to love it, and I was right! The setting on this was so beautiful, I felt like I knew exactly where I was, I could picture it perfectly.
The characters all had incredible stories, Liv was such an incredible POV to read from. I loved her with her brother, with her friends, at her job. And of course, with Finn. I loved him, I kinda loved how their summers worked, but wanted more for them, even though I know it couldnāt. And then there was Tom - oh how I loved him! So then it gets hard to pick, but I knew which team I was on. I wonāt say, donāt want to even risk getting close to spoilers, because youāre going to want to read this one!
I criedā¦a lot š it was so heart wrenchingly beautiful and emotional, the tears just couldnāt stop. And it made me think back to the video that Paige put up of herself crying when finishing writing the book, and it all made sense! I had a feeling what would happen, but it didnāt make my tears stop, in fact if I had been wrong Iād have been so disappointed š
I felt serious Five Years From Now vibes from this one, and that was my very first Paige Toon read so itās always been one of my favourites so I loved that!
This was my first read of 2024, qnd as predicted, it means that I started off the year on such a high, itās going to be hard to top it!
Ooh also, that cover?! STUNNING š
The Diary of a Bookseller by Shaun Bythell
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
3.0
Iāve had this one on my tbr for a while now and Iām glad I finally picked it up! I decided to listen to the audio of this one and the narration was fab! The narrator wasnāt Scottish, like the author, but he did have a great voice for narration and did a great Scottish impression at points during the story!
I loved hearing more about the insights of owning your own bookshop, I mean isnāt that always a dream of ours? But it turns out itās harder than it looks! Especially if you go for a second hand book shop too, thereās so much to it, but itās the effort and dedication you see in this book that makes it such a fantastic place.
I absolutely loved Nicky, Nicky cracked me up and was thoroughly entertaining, their relationship was unlike others and I loved that. I loved hearing about the regular customers he had and how he got to know them, even if they didnāt say too much to each other about anything other than books. I also liked seeing into Shaunās private life a bit too, although Iāll obviously disagree with his opinions on Disney and musicals š
A good book for book and bookshop lovers, if I ever get to Wigtown, I will definitely be paying it a visit ā¤ļø
I loved hearing more about the insights of owning your own bookshop, I mean isnāt that always a dream of ours? But it turns out itās harder than it looks! Especially if you go for a second hand book shop too, thereās so much to it, but itās the effort and dedication you see in this book that makes it such a fantastic place.
I absolutely loved Nicky, Nicky cracked me up and was thoroughly entertaining, their relationship was unlike others and I loved that. I loved hearing about the regular customers he had and how he got to know them, even if they didnāt say too much to each other about anything other than books. I also liked seeing into Shaunās private life a bit too, although Iāll obviously disagree with his opinions on Disney and musicals š
A good book for book and bookshop lovers, if I ever get to Wigtown, I will definitely be paying it a visit ā¤ļø
Jojo: Finally Home by Johannes Radebe
inspiring
medium-paced
4.0
I love Strictly and I love Johannes so when I saw this on audible I thought Iād give it a go and Iām so glad I did! It was so nice to get an insight into Johannes and the life that led him to where he is today.
First off, I LOVED that I did the audio for this, his voice is just so soothing and I could listen to him talk for hours on end. But what I really loved was that you could tell from his story just how genuine and humble he really is. He never forgets where he came from and just how hard he had to work to get to where is today, and of course the amazing people heās had support him along the way. You could feel his love for his mum, auntie and his found dance family too. I loved his relationship with his aunt and felt his grief through his spoken words. You hear his highs and lows, the lows being quite hard to listen to, especially those times in high school with the bullying of him for simply being who he was.
I of course loved the chapters about Strictly too as thatās where I know him from, I love any insight to what happens behind the scenes in shows like this! You can really tell just how much he loves being a part of the show and the connections he has made with his fellow dancers and celebrities. And the chapters on Burn the Floor were so great too!
This was such a lovely memoir and I definitely recommend going for the audio if you can! Itās a perfect Christmas gift for Strictly fans! šš¼šŗ
First off, I LOVED that I did the audio for this, his voice is just so soothing and I could listen to him talk for hours on end. But what I really loved was that you could tell from his story just how genuine and humble he really is. He never forgets where he came from and just how hard he had to work to get to where is today, and of course the amazing people heās had support him along the way. You could feel his love for his mum, auntie and his found dance family too. I loved his relationship with his aunt and felt his grief through his spoken words. You hear his highs and lows, the lows being quite hard to listen to, especially those times in high school with the bullying of him for simply being who he was.
I of course loved the chapters about Strictly too as thatās where I know him from, I love any insight to what happens behind the scenes in shows like this! You can really tell just how much he loves being a part of the show and the connections he has made with his fellow dancers and celebrities. And the chapters on Burn the Floor were so great too!
This was such a lovely memoir and I definitely recommend going for the audio if you can! Itās a perfect Christmas gift for Strictly fans! šš¼šŗ
The Dance Deception by Becky Ward
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
2.5
I picked this one because I read it was ālike seeing the Strictly curse play out in real timeā and I am a huge Strictly fan! Except in this story, itās not celebrities on the dance show, itās just us regular people, and I loved that idea! I would love to go on Strictly but seeing as Iām clearly not a celeb thatās never going to happen so it was so nice to see that idea on a page!
And like the description hinted, thereās definitely some spice in this book, with Kate, the main character, getting involved with her dance partner, Merle. The spice was good š„ but I wonāt lie, it happened way too quickly for my liking and I donāt think I was a fan of all the insta-love in this. I was however fully invested in the dance show itself š
I liked the way the story went, the characters definitely had chemistry, and there was a little more to the story than just the spice which I liked. I wonāt lie, it wasnāt one of my favourite romances, but I hadnāt read a book in a while that had me hooked and I read this one quite quickly considering the reading slump I had been in before I picked it up! šš¼
Itās definitely one for a romance reader who likes Strictly! šŖ©šš¼
The Mistake by Elle Kennedy
medium-paced
5.0
Yet again, Iām in love with the Briar Off Campus series! I read The Deal a while ago and read it in one day and absolutely adored it, so why has it taken so long to read the next in the series?! š©
Just like the first book, I devoured this book from start to finish, falling in love with the main characters and the stories they come with. Logan and Grace were such incredible characters, I particularly liked finding out more about Loganās backstory. What I love about this series, is that it has the perfect romance that we want, the spice, characters you just fall in love with, but Elle Kennedy also through in deeper stories that donāt get lost in the romance. Itās the perfect balance of story telling for me!
Also you can tell I loved it, because I havenāt reviewed a book on here in ages and I wrote this one the morning after I finished it! Itās given me my booksta vibe back šš¼
Loveless by Alice Oseman
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
5.0
Once again Alice Oseman has written another easy 5 star read! Thereās something about how she writes her books, you just fall into the story completely, it feels like youāre part of the group. I loved the narrator Georgia and her whole journey.
This book has so much. The friendships in this are fantastic. There are five friends, and although Georgia is the main character, all five of them stand out for me. This is Georgiaās story but itās also an ensemble story. None of them are just a side character, they all have their own story to tell which we see through Georgiaās eyes. I loved how Georgiaās relationship with each of them, Pip, Jason, Rooney and Sunil, is different but beautiful in its own way.
This is such a positive book, it has incredible representation (as always with Alice Oseman), itās sex positive, itās open, and I honestly think itās a perfect read for every young person. Iāve never read a book with an asexual aromantic MC before, and now Iām going to be on the look out for some more after this! Struggling to know who you are must be so hard, and the representations and the way Alice Oseman clearly defines different sexualities without sounding like a dictionary, is amazing.
Another incredible Alice Oseman read that I think you should all pick up š
This book has so much. The friendships in this are fantastic. There are five friends, and although Georgia is the main character, all five of them stand out for me. This is Georgiaās story but itās also an ensemble story. None of them are just a side character, they all have their own story to tell which we see through Georgiaās eyes. I loved how Georgiaās relationship with each of them, Pip, Jason, Rooney and Sunil, is different but beautiful in its own way.
This is such a positive book, it has incredible representation (as always with Alice Oseman), itās sex positive, itās open, and I honestly think itās a perfect read for every young person. Iāve never read a book with an asexual aromantic MC before, and now Iām going to be on the look out for some more after this! Struggling to know who you are must be so hard, and the representations and the way Alice Oseman clearly defines different sexualities without sounding like a dictionary, is amazing.
Another incredible Alice Oseman read that I think you should all pick up š