Author: Ashley Flowers

Recent Reads | A Proposal to Die For and The Missing Half

Posted May 16, 2025 / Book Reviews, Recent Reads / 0 Comments
Recent Reads | A Proposal to Die For and The Missing Half

I requested this book on a whim to try to get into other mystery authors – it seemed cozy and I loved the premise of a proposal planner going to a fancy spa/resort. Unfortunately this book didn’t really work for me! Jess used to be a wedding planner but after some drama and burnout, she decides to create a new venture in the proposal planning space. She links up with rich dudes who want to spend money on an over-the-top proposal and Jess handles all the logistics. When a frenemy from high school wants to redo her fiance’s proposal, she insists Jess help them and he’ll pay anything to make it happen. Jess needs the money and agrees – they head to a resort to work on the planning… and a dead body or two make an appearance. My biggest issue with this book is that it felt very disjointed – the way the characters interacted with each other and the scenes progressed felt so weird and underdeveloped. It’s very hard to explain but I was glad to see from other reviews that I wasn’t alone in feeling this way. The plot wasn’t the issue but the way the author wrote the dialogue, character relationships, and overall scene structure was just very hard to read and sometimes confusing. The romance was the most underdeveloped part; I didn’t believe any of it or see any progression for them throughout the book. All of a sudden they were kissing after a few […]

Review Round Up | One Italian Summer, All Good People Here, and The Final Gambit

Posted September 8, 2022 / Book Reviews, Review Roundup / 0 Comments
Review Round Up | One Italian Summer, All Good People Here, and The Final Gambit

In an effort to cut down on posts and burnout, my Review Roundups will feature 2-4 books I’ve read or listened to recently. Sometimes they’re newer releases and sometimes they’re all backlist titles. My ARC reviews usually get the solo treatment. Enjoy the mini reviews! I picked this one up from my shelves on a whim when I was trying to read 7 books in 7 days. It was short and had an audiobook available on Scribd, so I was able to read it in a day and feel good about my progress! I was pleasantly surprised for the most part, after really enjoying Serle’s other adult fiction books (and not loving her YA lol). She writes such unique and creative concepts! The book starts with a lot of raw grief as Katy is mourning the loss of her mom, Carol. Her mom was legitimately her best friend and it sounds like she really relied on her for pretty much everything. I don’t usually gravitate toward books where someone is actively grieving like this – I don’t mind books with someone trying to move on but usually not right after, if that makes sense… I try to stay away from sad reads! I also couldn’t relate to her relationship with her mom. I really love my mom and get along well with her, but she isn’t my go-to person for every problem or question. I just couldn’t wrap my head around the way Katy spoke about her, but it was clear they […]