Yes, August seemed interminably long to me. It may have to do with the fact that my dear husband took a trip at the end of July and returned with COVID-19. It was my second bout with it, his first . . . and somehow the kid still has remained untouched by the disease. One of the ways it seems to affect me most is a blinding headache. So, many a day early in the month was spent in bed listening to audiobooks (and yes, I consider audiobooks to be books read, if you wish to debate me on this subject, feel free to leave a comment.)
One of the benefits of August seeming so long is I got a ton of reading done. You'll note from the image above that I plowed through several Jenn McKinlay cozy mysteries (these were the audiobooks previously mentioned). My first introduction to McKinlay was her newer romance titles. I loved Wait For It and Paris is Always a Good Idea. If you're a fan of Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka, I'd liken McKinlay's romances to their works. Her Library Lovers Mystery series is solid. It has a hint of romance . . . enough to string you along, but not enough to detract from the mystery itself. You'll definitely see more of them popping up in my monthly reads for the rest of the year.
Now for a quick roundup of the remaining eight books . . . stay with me! One of them is a 5-star read!
Hooked was interesting. I really want to like dark romance, but I have to space them out or they'll have an affect on my mood. That being said, I will eventually continue with this series, because the premise is awesome.
Do Me a Favor was good, but not as good as Role Playing which I read earlier this year. Still, Cathy Yardley has a way with making quirky characters come to life.
Something I obviously didn't space out was my Abby Jimenez reads. I recall reading one of her earlier books a year or two ago and then deciding not to continue with her. I have no clue what past me was thinking and if I could go back in time I'd smack her upside the head. I adore this Part of Your World series, both books so far have been 4.5-star reads.
Not in Love and Business Casual were both solid reads by authors who are firmly ensconced in my must-read authors list (something I'll eventually get around to actually writing down and posting).
Speaking of must-read authors . . . Ashley Poston. I don't want to say A Novel Story was a disappointment, but it took me two weeks to read. I wanted to love it because I love her so much. Dead Romantics is still living rent-free inside my head, it's that good. I knew to keep plowing through the book. I knew there would be a twist. But when it finally came, it was only meh. I have to hand it to Poston though, she brings something unique to the romance genre. I have faith that next year's offering will blow my socks off.
Why do I have such faith, you might ask . . . because Katherine Center did just that. Now, I will say up front, I haven't read everything Center has written. I started in 2022 with The Body Guard and loved it. Last year's Hello Stranger was okay in comparison, getting 4.24 stars. The Rom-Commers, which I finished on my 50th birthday I might add, became my fourth 5-star read of the year. I could say it was the COVID delirium or I was hyped up on sugar from birthday cake, but neither would be true. To be honest, I originally gave it 4.5 stars, but a week later when I was still thinking about the story and characters, I went back and amended it.
So that was my August . . . I wasn't consciously trying to adhere to my new year's resolution of one traditional, one indie, and one non-romance book, but I still managed to keep on track with it. I started September with a KU Indie book to make sure I don't mess up my record, and the non-romance is most assuredly going to be another Jenn McKinlay.
Until next month,
C.J.
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