• Cover image for The Dating Plan
    book review,  Books

    What I’m Reading Wednesday: The Dating Plan by Sara Desai

    It’s Wednesday, and time to share what I’ve been reading lately! This week, I’m here to share Sara Desai’s The Dating Plan, which was a fun, easy read, perfect for escaping into on the weekend! I received an advanced copy of the book from Berkeley Publishing Group via NetGalley; all opinions are my own. This post contains some affiliate links that may earn me a commission if you purchase through them. Synopsis of The Dating Plan My Thoughts The Dating Plan was a fun, fast, and easy read. There was so much to like about this story! First of all, I love a fake engagement trope, because you know it’s…

  • cover image for braver than you think, featured book in What I'm Reading Wednesday Redux
    book review,  Books

    What I’m Reading Wednesday, Redux

    I’ve been doing so much reading and not enough reviewing – at least, not here on the blog. Between my own writing (which was going well, and now is – not) and reading and life in general, I feel both overwhelmed and behind. (Is it possible for the year to have passed both quickly and painfully slowly at the same time?) Reflective of my brain, the blog feels both overweighted with book reviews and also…empty. What I need is consistency, and a schedule. So with that, I’m bringing back “What I’m Reading Wednesday“. With this, I can – at a minimum -share with you some of the good stuff that…

  • Books,  Reviews

    Two Middle Grade Books for Summer Reading

    My 10-year old is an avid reader, and her reading pile is ALMOST as tall as mine. We both have a problem walking away from a tempting book (and what a good problem to have), particularly as we are both making sure we are set for summer reading. Of all the books we’ve both read lately, two stand out as superb choices for your kids: The Real Boy by Anna Ursu, and The Girl Who Could Not Dream by Sarah Beth Durst. Both are excellent options for your kiddo to pick up over the summer because they are fun and engaging. I picked up The Real Boy at the encouragement of our…

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    Books

    The Feathered Bone – What I’m Reading Wednesday

    It’s Wednesday, and it’s BAAAAACCCKKK! Yes – it’s What I’m Reading Wednesday, and BOY do I have a doozy for you to kick off the year. (Never mind that January is almost over. There’s been too much reading and not enough writing, y’all). This week I want to tell you about Julie Cantrell’s latest book (just released yesterday), titled The Feathered Bone.  This one had me glued to my comfy chair until the wee hours of the morning, and she done near ripped my heart out with this tale. Read in one marathon sitting, my first response was: damn, y’all. This was hard. HARD. And beautiful. Cantrell manages to wind the themes…

  • Books,  Reviews

    What I’m Reading Wednesday – Lowcountry Bordello

    I confess, I can be a bit picky when looking for a new book, and the title plays a big part in what initially grabs my attention. I was unfamiliar with author Susan M. Boyer and the story summary for Lowcountry Bordello intrigued me when I first came across it. But with so many books loaded onto my Kindle, all vying for my attention, I have to be honest – the title of this superb cozy mystery was call to me once I forgot the gist of the story. (This is why I still love real books, where you can SEE the cover.) Boy, am I ever sorry that this one sat to the…

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    What Im Reading Wednesday: Little Girl Gone

    I’m back with another truly gripping novel! This week’s pick is NOT a light read – it’s a tale of  psychological suspense. And my lovely UK readers – this one you won’t have to wait for, as this is the UK version! (No fears, my lovely fellow Yanks – there’s a version for us, too.) I’m really anxious to talk about Little Girl Gone by Alexandra Burt! <“https://jenncaffeinated.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/LittleGirlGone-pinterest-photo-393×1024.jpg” alt=”LittleGirlGone pinterest photo” width=”393″ height=”1024″ /> This book has been compared to “Gone Girl” and “Girl on a Train”. I think the only similarity between these books (aside from the words “Girl” and “Gone” in the title) is the use of the unreliable narrator;…

  • Books,  Reviews

    What I’m Reading Wednesday – The Dead Key

    The days are getting longer and the weather is gorgeous here, so I’m enjoying this brief lull before mosquito season kicks by reading on the patio. My pick for this week’s edition of “What I’m Reading Wednesday” is the 2014 Grand Prize and Mystery & Thriller Fiction winner of the Amazon Breakthrough Novel award, D.M. Pulley’s The Dead Key. The Dead Key is the story of two women involved with behind-the-scenes dealings of the First Bank of Cleveland, separated by 20 years. The store vacillates between 16-year old bank secretary Beatrice Baker in 1978 and civil engineer Iris Latch, who in 1998 is freed from her tedious desk job to survey the now defunct…

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    What I’m Reading Wednesday: A Hope Remembered

    Guess what day it is? It’s What I’m Reading Wednesday! This week I’m talking about A Hope Remembered, the third book in Stacy Henrie’s “Of Love and War” series. I loved this book so I’m thrilled to be participating in her release week blitz – and not just because it means I had the chance to do a Q&A with her!  But first, the book: The final chapter in the “of Love and War” trilogy, A Hope Remembered is the story of Nora Lewis. Heartbroken over the loss of her fiancé in the Great War and the death of her parents, the inheritance of a sheep farm in England seems like the opportunity a new start.…

  • Books,  Reviews

    What I’m Reading Wednesday: Dead Wake

    I’ve been reading quite a bit of narrative non-fiction of late, and my book choice for “What I’m Reading Wednesday” does not disappoint. In the way that Erik Larson’s other books have entertained as much as educated, I have found his newest release  Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania to be a page-turner and an eye-opener. His telling has plenty of detail and brings the story to life. Did I know the story of the Lusitania? I thought I did, but this book proved that I had a back-cover summary of the events in contrast to the complex reality. The Lusitania was a ship in the British Cunard line that made…

  • Books

    What I’m Reading Wednesday – Stories With A Touch of Magic

    For having been on a vacation last week that entailed very little sitting, I’ve been tearing through a fantastic list of books on my Kindle. This week, I want to share two books that are perfect escapes. Since I first read Sarah Addison Allen’s The Sugar Queen I’ve been a fan, and I have been eagerly awaiting her most recent book, First Frost. . First Frost is a story of two magical sisters, Claire and Sydney Waverley,  their equally magical daughters (Mariah and Bay), a temperamental house and a cantankerous apple tree.  Sarah Addison Allen returns to Bascom, NC to pick up the story of the Waverley sisters ten years after we last…