I think we can all agree, March has been the longest month of 2020 and the weirdest as well. While we don’t entirely know how bad this coronavirus is going to get, we have all be instructed to stay inside and distance ourselves from friends, leaving us plenty of time to read books! I flew through these four books before the end of the month, and I know you will too! I hope you’ll follow along and try out one of these great reads!
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Book 1: Talking to Strangers by Malcolm Gladwell
If you think this book was written to teach you how to talk to just about anyone, you are sadly mistaken. Malcolm Gladwell wrote this book so we can better understand why there is so much misunderstanding in the world. We, as humans, do not know how to talk to strangers and therefore invite conflict into our everyday lives. Gladwell uses powerful evidence to prove this point such as Neville Chamberlain’s trust in Adolf Hitler, the Sandra Bland arrest, the Amanda Knox trial and the suicide of Sylvia Path (which I personally found to be the most mind-blowing).
By taking these huge scandals, Gladwell walks his reader through the different problems we have. For example, the mismatch problem. We are wired to believe the good in people until they prove us otherwise. We also correspond someone’s level of truthfulness by the way they look. Think of how people constantly stereotype others without knowing a thing about them. You may think someone is honest based solely on how they act or look but in reality they can totally be lying. But we can’t tell the difference! The book gives us many examples to prove this to be true! *cough Brock Turner *cough* Reading about how judges decide who receives bail and who doesn’t in the matter of seconds is reason enough to read this book. The entire novel is thought-provoking and will grip you during the first 30 pages. You can easily finish it in one sitting if you can digest the information.
Malcolm Gladwell needed to understand what happened with Sandra Bland, motivating the production of this entire book. If you like books that make you think, that discuss historical events (Sandusky scandal and more), and get into the wiring of our minds, then you will thoroughly enjoy this book! I gave it 4/5 stars simply because I desired more of a conclusion and felt the book was wrapped up too quickly.
Book 2: Verity by Colleen Hoover
Oh. My. God! Colleen Hoover has done it again, not that I had any doubts she wouldn’t. Hoover, typically a romance author, tried her hand at a psychological thriller and she killed it! If you read one book from this blog post – choose this one!
Lowen, our main character, is a struggling writer dealing with financial stress and the death of her mother when she meets Jeremy. Jeremy Crawford seems to have the answer to all her problems and offers her the job of a lifetime – to ghostwrite the rest of his wife Verity’s book series. Verity is unable to finish due to an unfortunate accident and while Lowen feels unqualified, she needs the money and quickly accepts the offer. Yet, she never anticipated what came next. While rifling through Verity’s notes and outlines, she comes across a never published autobiography that chills her to the bone and makes her question who this woman truly is.
Keeping the manuscript a secret, Lowen knows Jeremy would be devastated if he knew what his wife has written. But as she develops feelings for Jeremy, she begins to wonder if keeping the manuscript a secret is really worth it. If Jeremy knew what his wife was capable of, it would be almost impossible for him to stay by her side. I truly cannot tell you more about this book without spoiling something, but believe me when I say it is worth every second and you will be so disturbed.
If you end up reading this book, let me know in the comments below so we can discuss! Also count how many times you mentally told Lowen to “get out of the house! RUN!” If you like books that take your breath away, leave you wanting more, and have an oh my God ending then you will absolutely LOVE this book. A total 5 star for me, but then again all Colleen Hoover novels are! (To read more of my favorites from her, click here).
Book 3: You Were There Too by Colleen Oakley
Have you ever woken up from a dream and immediately took to Google to decipher what it meant? Why did my teeth fall out? Why was a stuck in an elevator crashing to the ground floor? Most dream analysts will tell you you’re stressed or you don’t feel like you have control in your life. Great! But what if you were dreaming of a man whom you never met? And what if he actually existed and you ended up meeting him in real life? And last but not least, what if he had been dreaming of you too? Cue You Were There Too by Colleen Oakley.
Mia and her husband Harrison, a surgeon, are seeking a change in their life. After suffering two miscarriages and a rigorous work schedule, they decide to move from the city to a small town in Pennsylvania in an attempt to slow down. Harrison becomes the main surgeon at their local hospital and immediately falls into a routine leaving Mia with little to do but worry about her current pregnancy and her dreams that have begun again.
Since Mia was a teenager, she has dreamt of a handsome man whom she’s never met. Her dreams about him are not necessarily innocent. Some are sexual, some are random, and some troubling. While out and about in her new town one day, she comes face to face with the stranger she has been dreaming about for years. And plot twist, she finds out that he has been dreaming of her too. Taking a trip down memory lane together, they try to sort out if their pasts have ever intertwined. When they haven’t, they are forced to consider the impossible – what if fate has been trying to bring them together all along?
Mia must choose between her husband, a man she loves, and a man who fate has seemingly chosen for her to love. I promise you, your emotions and heart will be pulled in every direction. As I read, I couldn’t wrap my head around which outcome I preferred. It seemed like a lose-lose situation seeing as both Harrison and the stranger are good men. Without spoiling anything, I will say there is an ending to this book. A choice is made and it is heart wrenching. Who will she choose? Why is she dreaming of this man? And why is her husband pulling away from her in a time she needs him most? Just go read it, I promise you will not regret it. 5 stars all the way!
Book 4: Uninvited: Living Loved When You Feel Less Than, Left Out, and Lonely by Lysa TerKeurst
Written from a Christian standpoint, Lysa TerKeurst wrote this book for all of us feeling left out, less than, and lonely. It was truly the perfect read for me at this time seeing as we are all struggling with being a bit lonely during this world pandemic. I, for one, have faced rejection more times that I can count. I’ve always been hard on myself for being passed up for a promotion when it was promised to me, or for staying with a boy that I knew wasn’t what God wanted for me. The message is clear in this book: the enemy wants us to feel rejected. And when we allow him to speak his lies, our dreams, hopes and purpose are impacted.
Written like a self-help book, TerKeurst weaves vulnerability, scripture, and real-life examples into her chapters. She introduces how to overcome the pain of past and present rejection and reminds us that we are not alone. I highly recommend taking your time reading this book. Allow the messages and chapters to soak in. Take time to truly comprehend what is being said. Reflect on your past and feel the hurt of situations where you were rejected. This book really allowed me to heal past wounds and believe that when God sets me apart from a group, it does not mean He is setting me aside. He always has a purpose.
If you are hurting or struggling during this season of life, I could not recommend this book more. Even if you are not Christian, I do think you can get a lot out of it! Reading this novel couldn’t have come at a better time for me. I hope it will heal and work in magical ways for you too!
My March lineup was definitely diverse! We have a self-help book, a thriller, a romance novel, and a thought-provoker! Moving forward, I definitely want to give you all more options as I know not everyone enjoys the same genres. Tell me, will you read one of these books this month? Let me know in the comments below if you do so we can discuss! As always, I am just a DM away on Instagram too if you want to chat and be friends. See you next month!
THE APRIL 2020 BOOK LIST IS BELOW! Make sure to purchase or download them before we officially enter the next month.