I’m a married, mother of 5 & I’m also an avid reader. I read many genres of books: thrillers, contemporary fiction, some sci-fi (hello, Blake Crouch!), YA, non-fiction, and more. I am also a huge fan of audio books, thanks to Libro.fm and the Libby app through my local library. Audio books are my go-to method of reading during the day when I am busy running around doing my usual “mom” stuff, and physical books are my morning with coffee and evening with herbal tea way to unwind.
I started this blog the first week of 2020 as an addition to my other social media outlets (Instagram, Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter) so I could have a more creative, personal space for my book reviews, recommendations, what I’m reading now, what I recommend, and also some more personal tidbits about my life as a mother of 5 (including identical twins with autism), living with autoimmune diseases, life in a small, lakeside (touristy) town and other interesting stuff.
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Hey! Long time, no blog post! My priorities took a big shift this past year & I spent way less time on all social media. I’d pop in here & there on Instagram, but I just can’t give that app the time that it wants from me in order for my [near 10k] followers to see my posts. (And don’t get me started on Insta wanting to be more like TikTok [which I don’t use] by trying to sway its users to make more reels & videos.)
Even though I wasn’t posting or blogging nearly as much as previous years, I was still reading every day. I also starting using more of the streaming services we pay for by watching some gems like Succession (oh, Roman, I’ll miss you!), The Dropout, Mr. Mercedes (based on the Stephen King novel), The Bear, Only Murders in the Building & most recently, Painkiller.
There’s No Coming Back From This is a funny, heartwarming, adult coming of age, womens fiction novel. There’s nothing offensive in the book, but it does cover a few subjects that may be sensitive to some. The main character, Poppy Lively [I just adore that name!] is relatable, likeable, & well-written. The side characters are also charming & enjoyable. This book is like a cozy blanket & a warm cup of tea, perfect for fall reading or any time of the year. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
Click the highlighted titles above to add them to your Goodreads list, [then add them to your shopping carts😉] & be sure to visit Ann Garvin on Instagram.
🅰️Have you read the classic, ‘The Scarlet Letter’, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne in 1850? Did you read it on your own or as a school assignment? I read it several yrs ago & I can honestly say, ‘Hester’—released earlier this month & a BOTM pick—is SO much better!
📖‘Hester’ by Laurie Lico Albanese is a stunning, poignant, masterfully created work of art! It’s a reimagining of the tragic heroine that inspired ‘The Scarlet Letter’ & from her point of view. I absolutely loved it! It’s very well narrated on audiobook as well! Thank you to St Martins Press for my autographed gift copy of the book along with the handkerchief seen in the photo.
🅰️Who is the real Hester Pryne? Isobel Gamble is a young seamstress carrying generations of secrets when she sets sail from Scotland in the early 1800s w/ her husband, Edward. An apothecary who has fallen under the spell of opium, his pile of debts have forced them to flee Glasgow for a fresh start in the New World. But only days after they’ve arrived in Salem, Edward abruptly joins a departing ship as a medic––leaving Isobel penniless & alone in a strange country, forced to make her way by any means possible.
🅰️When she meets a young Nathaniel Hawthorne, the two are instantly drawn to each other: he is a man haunted by his ancestors, who sent innocent women to the gallows––while she is an unusually gifted needleworker, troubled by her own strange talents. As the weeks pass & Edward’s safe return grows increasingly unlikely, Nathaniel & Isobel grow closer & closer. Together, they are a muse & a dark storyteller; the enchanter & the enchanted. But which is which?
🅰️In this sensuous & hypnotizing tale, a young immigrant woman grapples w/ our country’s complicated past, & learns that America’s ideas of freedom & liberty often fall short of their promise. Interwoven w/ Isobel & Nathaniel’s story is a vivid interrogation of who gets to be a “real” American in the first half of the 19th century, a depiction of the early days of the Underground Railroad in New England, & atmospheric interstitials that capture the long history of “unusual” women being accused of witchcraft.
💁🏼♀️Meticulously researched yet evocatively imagined, Laurie Lico Albanese’s ‘Hester’ is a timeless tale of art, ambition, & desire that examines the roots of female creative power & the men who try to shut it down.
Click HERE to visit my Instagram post & give it a LIKE❤️ (please & thank you!).
Click HERE to add ‘Hester’ to your Goodreads list.
Click HERE to find ‘Hester’ at a local or online independent bookstore using BookStoreLink
⛱📖☀️Do you have books that you saved for spring/summer reading? Or maybe some books that are releasing soon & are going on your TBR, summer reading list? Today’s featured book is one you’ll want to add to that list for sure!
🎉Happy Pub Week to @catherinedrakewrites & her gorgeous new novel, ‘The Treeshouse on Dog River Road’, with a cover that practically screams “perfect summer read”! Thank you @booksparks for my gift copy of the book!😘
💁🏼♀️You won’t have to wait long to get this one in your hands! Releasing on 5/10, ‘The Treehouse on Dog River Road’ by Catherine Drake is about a young, determined woman trying to figure out life & love while staying true to herself. It’s a whip-smart, atmospheric, entertaining, & genuinely witty debut w/ wonderful characters you’ll love getting to know.
📖Twenty-eight-year-old Hannah Spencer wants nothing more than to change everything about her life. After ten years of living in cities, Nathan Wild has just moved back home to Vermont & doesn’t want to change anything about his.
📖Recently laid off from her depressing job in Boston & ready for a challenge, Hannah heads to Vermont for the summer to take care of her sister’s kids & do some serious soul searching. There, against the stunning landscape of the Green Mountains, she embarks on an ambitious project: building a treehouse for her niece & nephew.
📖As she hammers away, she formulates a plan to jump-start her life w/ a new job out West. But will Nathan-next-door complicate her desire to change course? A humorous, romantic, & inspiring story of a young woman taking control & making tough choices about love & work to build the life she wants, ‘The Treehouse on Dog River Road’ will have you rooting for Hannah every step of the way.
🌳🏠The treehouse sketch above, ‘Hannah’s Treehouse’, is from the book, ‘The Treehouse on Dog River Road’, & is original artwork by Bridget Phillips that I used as a Photoshop backdrop with the book as the top layer.
You can click on any of the highlighted book titles above to add them to your Goodreads lists. You can also click HERE to visit my Instagram post & show the author (& me!) your support by hitting that ♥️ , maybe even SHARE the post to your stories.
✒️📖Catherine Drake enjoys life with her husband, dog, and extended family in Vermont. ‘The Treehouse on Dog River Road’ is her first novel. To learn more follow her on Instagram @catherinedrakewrites or www.catherinedrake.com
☀️Happy Sunday readers! I’m excited to tell you about one of my most anticipated books of 2022, coming to bookstore shelves this Tues, 5/3!
🥰I read & completely fell in love with ‘The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek’ last year. Not only did it become one of my top 20 reads of all time, but it’s a book I recommend often to other readers looking to branch out of their usual bookish comfort zone or who love a well-written historical-fiction novel.
🎧If you’re like me & have a hard time getting into historical fiction in physical book format, I implore you to try it on audiobook. It can make all the difference when it comes to bringing the pages alive with atmosphere, especially when it’s read by a great narrator. I listen to audiobooks nearly every single day while going about my usual mundane chores, while driving, exercising, grocery shopping, cooking, & even showering.
✒️Bestselling author Kim Michele Richardson is back w/ the perfect book club read, ‘The Book Woman’s Daughter’ (5/3). The story is about Honey Mary Angeline Lovett, the daughter of the beloved Troublesome Creek book woman, who must fight for her own independence w/ the help of the women who guide her & the books that set her free.
📖In the ruggedness of the beautiful Kentucky mountains, Honey Lovett has always known that the old ways can make a hard life harder. As the daughter of the famed blue-skinned, Troublesome Creek packhorse librarian, Honey & her family have been hiding from the law all her life. But when her mother & father are imprisoned, Honey realizes she must fight to stay free, or risk being sent away for good.
📖Picking up her mother’s old packhorse library route, Honey begins to deliver books to the remote hollers of Appalachia. She’s looking to prove that she doesn’t need anyone telling her how to survive, but the route can be treacherous, & some folks aren’t as keen to let a woman pave her own way. If Honey wants to bring the freedom that books provide to the families who need it most, she’s going to have to fight for her place, & along the way, learn that the extraordinary women who run the hills & hollers can make all the difference in the world.
💕Stunning & profound, ‘The Book Woman’s Daughter’ is a story about women with raw courage, fierce strength, & who are true heroines of the Appalachian Trail. Highly recommend both books! Thank you SourceBooks Landmark for my gift copy!
➡️Click any of the highlighted titles above to add them to your Goodreads lists. Also, visit my Instagram page post HERE & show the author (& me!) your support by giving it some LIKE love!🥰
✒️About the Author: The NEW YORK TIMES, LOS ANGELES TIMES & USA TODAY bestselling author, Kim Michele Richardson is an multiple-award winning author & has written four works of historical fiction, & a bestselling memoir. Her latest critically acclaimed novel, The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek has earned a 2020 PBS Readers Choice, 2019 LibraryReads Best Book, Indie Next, SIBA, Forbes Best Historical Novel, Book-A-Million Best Fiction, & is an Oprah’s Buzziest Books pick & a Women’s National Book Association Great Group Reads selection. It was inspired by the real life, remarkable “blue people” of Kentucky, & the fierce, brave Packhorse Librarians who used the power of literacy to overcome bigotry & fear during the Great Depression. The novel is taught widely in high schools & college classrooms. Her forthcoming fifth novel, ‘The Book Woman’s Daughter’ is both a stand-alone & sequel to ‘The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek’ & will be published May 3, 2022. Born in Kentucky, Kim Michele lives with her family there & is the founder of Shy Rabbit.
🎉📚Happy Independent Bookstore Day! Did you visit any indie bookstores today or this week? If so, did you buy any new books & which ones? My day & weekend started with an iced coffee, a fruit & yogurt bowl, & finishing up ‘A Wedding on Sunshine Corner’ (3/29/22), the 2nd book in the series by Phoebe Mills.
☀️The first book in this series is ‘The House on Sunshine Corner’ (8/21), which I read, enjoyed, & posted about sometime last year. This second book in the Sunshine Corner Series is a delightful small-town romance between a daycare teacher & single dad who must overcome their differences to help plan the ultimate wedding.
📖They’ve driven each other crazy for years, but were they fighting each other—or the chemistry between them?
📖As the youngest in her loving, overprotective family, Savannah Lowe has always gone w/ the flow instead of going out on a limb…until now. Her new job running a preschool requires her to be all in. If only the father of one of her students wasn’t her brother’s incredibly infuriating, impossibly attractive best friend. Savannah has no clue what she ever did to make him dislike her, & now they’re stuck spending even more time together planning her brother’s wedding.
📖Single father Noah Adams has his hands full between his job as a paramedic & caring for his young daughter. The last thing he needs is a complication like Savannah in his life—a girl he remembers being constantly pampered by her family. But the more he gets to know her, the more he sees how kind & compassionate she really is. Now their long-ignored, off-the-charts chemistry has them on a collision course…with each other.
💁🏼♀️‘The Wedding on Sunshine Corner’ is an uplifting, engaging, charming & sexy small-town, contemporary romance novel & being a small-town gal myself, these are the type of books that are perfect for relaxing on the weekend, poolside or while listening to waves off of Lake Erie. Look for the next book in the series winter ‘23.
➡️Click the highlighted book titles above to add them to your Goodreads lists. Visit my Instagram to see my post about this book & give it some “LIKE” love while you’re there. Enjoy the rest of your weekend, readers!♥️
✒️About the Author: Phoebe Mills lives near the Great Lakes & loves her family, coffee, & binge watching in that order. During the day she wrangles kids & by night she dreams up strong women, dreamy men, & ways to wreak havoc on their lives—before giving them a happy ending, of course! It’s a tough job but there’s nothing else she’d rather do.
*Mom Loves Reading* 