February is the month of love! Whether you are single, in a relationship, or currently riding the “it’s complicated” train, I have a book for you! Hope you guys will follow along and try out one of these reads.
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Book 1: Things You Save in A Fire by Katherine Center
Cassie Hanwell is a female firefighter in Texas that has one rule for herself: don’t ever date a coworker. It’s easy to do when her colleagues are more like brothers to her; but, when her mother’s health starts to decline, Cassie moves to Boston to help out and her rules get blurry. She’s officially on the lower end of the totem pole in her new unit, joining firefighters that have worked at the station for years and never accepted a woman joining the team. She finds one person who actually seems happy to have her in Massachusetts and befriends him – the new rookie. But soon feelings start to develop and Cassie has to learn the hard way that romance can sometimes jeopardize your career.
The book will not take you long to finish at all! You’ll want to know if Cassie and the rookie develop more than a friendship, whether Cassie’s mom will pull through her illness, and who is out to get Cassie at the station? That’s right. While hazing is typical in the station, someone is not happy Cassie is there and they make it known adding a new twist to the story. All in all, I gave this book 4/5 stars.
Book 2: Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty
I had just finished watching the Goop Lab by Gwenyth Paltrow on Netflix when I started reading this book. For some reason Liane Moriarty’s book reminded me so much of the fads the Goop employees tested out. Anyways – on to the book review (but let me know if you agree)!
Nine perfect strangers are desperately seeking to change an area in their life. They don’t know each other and they don’t know why their counterparts are also at this retreat but they are all hopeful that 10 days at the Tranquillum House will cure them. What they don’t know is that it will change them forever.
Frances Welty is visiting the health resort after being conned out of lots of money, energy, and trust by her latest boyfriend. She is a famous romance novelist but can’t seem to find the One meant for her. Ben and Jessica used to be the perfect couple but in one day their life was forever altered and now the two of them can barely stand to be in the same room. Carmel is a divorced single mother of three thinking life would be so much easier if she could just lose a couple pounds! She wants to show her ex-husband that she is thriving! This health resort has to help. Then there is Napolean, Heather, and Zoe – the only family to be at this retreat together. Tony and Lars add a layer to the group, as well.
The retreat promises luxury massages, daily smoothies, fasting, and meditation, but also asks the guests to put true work into it. I don’t think I, personally, would have made it beyond day 4. The story follows 11 different viewpoints – yet somehow doesn’t get too confusing to follow. My favorite part of the novel was watching the characters peel back different layers of themselves and unfolding the real reasons they came to the retreat. If you like hearing people’s intricate stories, you will really enjoy this novel.
I gave this book 3/5 stars solely because I thought it was going to be a psychological thriller when in reality it was simply a book about a wellness retreat. Not to mention, I have read lots of Liane’s books so I had high hopes for it, but it just didn’t do it for me.
Book 3: The Flight Attendant by Chris Bohjalian
Cassandra is fairly comfortable with random hotel beds, hooking up with strangers internationally, and basically any brand of gin. As long as she can do her job, serving travelers their drinks and a pack of pretzels, she is doing just fine! Until one night in Dubai changes her life forever. After working her shift as a flight attendant, Cassandra swaps numbers with the guy in first class who kept flirting with her the entire flight. They meet for drinks, have a few too many, and end up spending the night together. When she wakes up the next morning, she realizes that she is in an unfamiliar hotel room in bed with the first-class stranger. Her head is pounding with a hangover, a feeling she is quite used to, as she quietly packs up her belongings to leave. However, as she sneaks away, Cassandra notices that the man she spent the night with isn’t moving. On further inspection, she sees that he is laying in a wet pool of blood, and it’s a lot of blood. Scared to call the police, she cleans the room of any evidence that she’s been there and flees to catch her next flight.
As an alcoholic, the lies flow out of her just as easily as tequila slides down her throat. But when her flight lands in New York, FBI agents are awaiting its arrival and her jig may just be up. The book is a psychological thriller that allows you to get in the head of Cassandra as she questions if there was any way she killed this man. And if it wasn’t her, who did it?
I’m usually not one to read thrillers – I like to sleep without nightmares, thank you very much. But I did enjoy the plot of this story and found her anecdotes about flight attending to be fascinating, especially since I’ve considered this career for myself! I will say there were certain parts of the book that I found hard to follow but overall it was a quick, entertaining read. One with an ending you will not see coming! 4/5 stars.
Book 4: Becoming by Michelle Obama
I finally jumped on the bandwagon and read Michelle Obama’s memoir. And let me tell you, it did not disappoint. I always knew she was known as an excellent mother and First Lady but hearing how she came to be was truly an amazing story to read. Michelle Obama shares not only her story as the first African American First Lady of the United States but also of her upbringing in Chicago, her acceptance into college and her many years of working for law firms.
She starts the book of by stating “I used to tell people that when I grew up, I was going to be a pediatrician. Why? Because I loved being around little kids and I quickly learned that it was a pleasing answer for adults to hear.” This sentence in itself captures what the book is about. Michelle Obama, during her time in the White House and even after, is an advocate for girls in the US. She gives speeches and travels the world talking about the importance of having a dream, following it, and also on the topic of moving and staying active! She is super passionate about healthy lives and was the first to grow a garden at the White House and bring along her own chef to be staffed. She didn’t just stand by her husband’s side and become a stay-at-home mother, although she could have. Instead she decided to make a change in the world alongside her husband and continues to do so today. She’s done it all, from growing up in the Southside of Chicago, balancing home and work life , and standing by her husband as he accepted an overwhelming job, one in which she did not sign up for.
I love reading biographies because it gives you an intimate look inside a person’s life. Whether Michelle Obama married the president or not, her life was going to be extraordinary. If you like reading about people who have conquered their biggest fears and beaten adversity time and time again, you will love this book! It was motivating, heartfelt, and if anything made me realize how grateful I am to live where I do and have the things I grew up with. Don’t make me tell you twice – go read this book! 5/5 stars.
There you have – 4 great books I read in February! If you end up reading any of them, comment below your thoughts! Is there a certain genre you’d like me to read and recap for you? Let me know in the comments below! See you next month!
THE MARCH 2020 BOOK LIST IS BELOW! Make sure you purchase them or check them out at your local library before we officially enter the next month.