I studied English Literature at Trent University, and let me tell you, I HATED reading! When someone forces me to read a book for "educational" purposes, I immediately dislike the book before I start it. English professors try to make you look for the deeper meaning, symbolism, all that jazz, but honestly, the author probably just made that character's shirt red because why not? I can almost guarantee the shirt isn't red because that is the antagonist with a fiery personality.
Shameless plug before we get going: check out my Goodreads (Michelle - Canada (52 books) | Goodreads). I have a bunch of my reviews and favourite reads here.
Since I graduated a little over a year ago, I find myself constantly reading or at the library, which is vey out of character for those of you that didn't know me in university.
In the past month alone, I have read upwards of ten novels. Usually, my go to genre is thriller, mystery, or romantic comedy, but there's the occasional random book in there when someone has a good recommendation.
This post is solely to talk about some of my favourite reads from the past month and give my suggestions.
My Top Mystery Pick
In the mystery genre, my favourite novel this month was Verity by the very famous Colleen Hoover. A friend recommended this book with the caveat that it suits a female audience more than males. While I see where they were coming from, I argue that no matter your gender, Verity will help you build a relationship with the characters and has enough twists to keep even those with the smallest attention span engaged.
Essentially, the book is about a struggling author that comes to a famous author's house to finish her infamous series since she has been injured and cannot complete her novels. Mysteries include the death of the incapacitated wife and husband's children, how ill the author really is, and more! I'm picky when it comes to mystery novels because I've come to expect a lot, but this was one of my favourite books ever, so give it a read and let me know what you think.
My Top Romantic Comedy Pick
I've read several top-notch romantic comedies lately (call me a hopeless romantic), but the top pick for me this month is The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood. Hazelwood is known for writing about women in STEM and the struggles they face in their personal and work lives. When my sister told me it was a book about STEM, I placed it back on the shelf and decided to read something else.
Well, I was bored on a bus in Iceland and needed something to do and it just so happens
I already has the eBook downloaded for The Love Hypothesis. I felt so drawn into the main character, her awkwardness and the educational struggles she went through. Thanks to this personal connection, I finished the 300-something page book is less than four hours.
The book follows Olive Smith, a Ph.D. student that accidentally stumbles upon making out with a professor in the hallway. For some reason, they decide to continue fake dating for both their benefit and the rest is history. Sorry for my very vague book descriptions, but I hate spoilers, so I am not about to be one of those people.
The 2021 Book of the Year
Given that I just now had time to start reading again, I finally picked up the most raved about book of 2021, Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid. Safe to say, it was not what I expected. The book flops back and forth between past and present, showing the
struggles of four young-adults parents. The parents face divorce, remarriage, death, financial hardship, cheating, and more. Reid does a great job showing the intergenerational trauma of the now adult children, while also providing a story of hope; how the children overcome struggle and reach fame.
I can't say this is one of my favourite books ever, but I had to see it through for the sake of seeing if it's worth all the hype. In my humble opinion, it's not, but that's just me.
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