Genre: Young Adult

Recent Reads | The Chowder House Murder and The Unknown

Posted August 20, 2026 / Book Reviews, Recent Reads / 0 Comments

I saw this book at the library and grabbed it on a whim – a cozy mystery centered around a chowder house set in Coastal Maine? Perfect for me. I almost returned it without reading it like I unfortunately do with a lot of library books, but I decided to just push myself to actually read it… and I’m really glad I did! I think this is a promising start to a new cozy mystery series that I will definitely be continuing. I obviously loved the Maine and chowder restaurant. The mystery itself was interesting too! I didn’t put all the pieces together but did feel like I was coming to the same conclusions along with the characters. There was a fun multi-generational element here with the grandma, mom, and daughter, along with the sons of the grandma character (brothers or uncles for the other two obviously). I found some repetition in spots that could’ve used more editing. For example, on one page it said something about Tom being handsome and charming, “not to mention a real looker,” as if that isn’t the same thing has handsome? And in one paragraph one of the villains says something like “you think you’re real smart, don’t you?” and two seconds later “you think you’re real clever, don’t you?” My other main issue with the book is that there were a ton of characters. I know this is meant to set up some red herrings while also laying groundwork for future characters in […]

Recent Reads | Lies Between Us and The Someday Garden

Posted August 13, 2026 / Book Reviews, Recent Reads / 0 Comments

I always read Jessica Goodman‘s books when they come out because they’re typically easy and addicting reads, but overall pretty middle-of-the-road. I don’t know why but she’s an auto-read author for me, despite never giving her books more than 4 stars. This story follows three sisters in the wake of a mysterious death/possible murder of one of the local boys. The youngest, Frankie, decides she’s going to solve the crime, while the others (Lucy and Millie) are hiding secrets of their own. These girls are best friends with the three boys that live next door and that dynamic is heavily featured in the story. I thought some of it was unnecessarily cheesy (the girls last name is Silver and the boys last name is Gold…) but it felt somewhat realistic, with some of them dating each other or having crushes, etc. I liked the small beach town vibes of this one, which made it a good quick summer mystery. Goodman writes in a very accessible way without feeling “young” for a YA book. I know I’m not the audience anymore but I do find them pretty good for adult readers. Nothing groundbreaking happens in this one but I thought the resolution to the mystery was actually interesting and pretty unique. No spoilers obviously but I feel like it was generally something I hadn’t read before. I’m so surprised how Ashley Poston’s have turned into “hit or miss” for me. She’s been one of my favorite authors for years now, back […]

Recent Reads | The Romance Revival and Every Version of You

Posted August 6, 2026 / Book Reviews, Recent Reads / 0 Comments

It’s been far too long since I’ve read a Christina Lauren book and they are absolutely an auto-read/buy author for me. Their last book was a top favorite so I had pretty high expectations for this one, despite not really even reading the synopsis. I am a fan of magical realism (this was not really that) and the science-y books they’ve had in the past (definitely that except heightened) so I was cautiously optimistic. Emery is a scientist in a super secret job with a husband she loves but does not show up for enough. When Luca unexpectedly gets into an accident, Emery acts quickly thanks to her job, but he doesn’t remember anything about his life. She feels like she’s been blessed with a second chance to prioritize her relationship. You definitely have to suspend your disbelief on Emery’s work and what happens with Luca, but the premise was interesting and unique to me. I love romances with a unique concept and Christina Lauren have written quite a few of them. I do prefer when their books are funny with a lot of banter – more like a rom-com – and this was definitely more serious. I liked Luca and Emery and watching them fall for each other again, but there was a little something missing for me. I know a lot of people don’t enjoy second chance romances where the couple already knows each other and has this whole backstory involved, but this is a bit different – […]

Recent Reads | Heather and What Happened to Nina?

Posted July 23, 2026 / Book Reviews, Recent Reads / 0 Comments

Do you ever get a book stuck in your head so much that you just need to read it the minute it releases? That happened with HEATHER. I decided I didn’t want to wait for my Libby hold to come in and went to two different local bookstores to see if I could get it. I ended up grabbing it from the second and started pretty soon after for Summerween (which btw was a total fail this year since HEATHER is literally the only book I’ve read). I really loved THE GOD OF THE WOODS and ALL THE COLORS OF THE DARK, and this book kept getting compared to the first. I feel like any literary, slow-burn mystery is going to. But that’s why I needed to read it ASAP. I like the comparison to Liz Moore but I would absolutely agree that this is more LONG BRIGHT RIVER than THE GOD OF THE WOODS. There’s a heavy focus on sister relationships, drugs and addiction, inappropriate relationships, etc. The book follows a few POVs that generally worked well together to give us the whole picture: Callie (the cop), Annabelle, and Blair. I won’t say who the other two are to avoid spoilers just in case. I’m not a big cop fan but lately I’ve been enjoying more mysteries with detectives trying to solve cold cases like this, so I’ll give it a pass. Callie was a little slow on a few things and I was a bit frustrated with her […]

Recent Reads | Our Perfect Storm and The Season of Sinking

Posted July 9, 2026 / Book Reviews, Recent Reads / 0 Comments

Carley Fortune quickly became an auto-buy author for me and I’ve loved all of her books so far. Four books, each rated between 4-5 stars. The premise of this one specifically got me excited because I am a huge fan of the childhood best friends-to-lovers trope. When Frankie’s fiance unexpectedly leaves her the night before their wedding, he encourages her to go on the honeymoon still to take a break and recharge. Her best friend George ends up going with her and planning a week to get over her ex and move on. They quickly realize that maybe they’re something a little more than friends… I loved the descriptions of Tofino (a place I’d never heard of) and learning about Frankie and George’s history intermixed. Both characters had really interesting lives and fully fleshed out family backgrounds that added a lot to the story. Their progression from friends-to-more felt very natural; I loved being in Frankie’s head as she realized her feelings. So much natural chemistry! There is definitely a black moment/third act breakup but I think it was generally logical for the story. It explained some questions that lingered from earlier in the book as well. If I could think of a criticism, the book was a little long. I definitely think this could have been cut to a started 385-ish page romance. Carley Fortune continues to be a favorite of mine; I love seeing different tropical or lake town areas around Canada that I would have otherwise never […]

Recent Reads | Five and By Way of Sorrow

Posted June 18, 2026 / Book Reviews, Recent Reads / 0 Comments

Man, this was so underwhelming and I’m bummed! I saw this book gain some steam online and get really favorable reviews, so I decided to pick it as my Aardvark book for the month. I wasn’t initially interested but the hype got to me a little bit. The premise sounds good and thrilling: you know one of the main characters (there are five of them) will die at the train stop, but won’t know who until the end. The book goes between the train platform in present day and character-based chapters that are really summaries of each character’s life. The idea is a psychological thriller (?) with a strong character study element. Unfortunately it just didn’t work for me. I saw some reviews praising the deep psychological elements – can you forgive these people for their sins? Were you rooting for one person to die instead of the others? All of the characters have made mistakes and aren’t likable, so the reader is supposed to grapple with the morality of it all. The character chapters were just rundowns of the person’s life and the mistakes they made. Yes, they were all unlikable to various degrees but it didn’t really make me feel anything. I thought their problems were pretty stereotypical and predictable, so nothing really shocked me? Don’t go into this book expecting a tense thriller at all. I definitely enjoyed the chapters on the train platform way more than the character ones because that’s where it actually felt like […]

Recent Reads | Change of Plans and Dolly All the Time

Posted June 10, 2026 / Book Reviews, Recent Reads / 0 Comments

It’s well-documented on here how much I love Sarah Dessen. I’ve been reading her books since I was a teenager and was really disappointed when we didn’t get another book after her last release in 2019. I started reading her Substack and was surprised to learn of her publishing struggles after such a storied career. Nonetheless, I absolutely preoredered CHANGE OF PLANS when it was announced and read it right away. This story follows the tried-and-true Dessen formula, and I am not mad about it at all. Finley graduated from high school and is ready to head to college with her longtime boyfriend Colin. When she unexpectedly ends up at her mom’s lake house that summer and her relationship ends, she’s reeling from all the ~changes in plans.~ Does this remind me of old school Dessen and give me the same summery feelings? Yes. Does it lack the depth and oomph you get from most of her older books? Also yes. But I think Dessen is honestly stretching her writing muscle again and upcoming books may get back to what we’re used to? This was like her old stuff but faded a little bit lol. I enjoyed the premise a lot but wanted more from the characters and setting. It was almost like each person and plot point needed to be turned up a few notches on the dial, if that makes sense. A bit more punchiness and feels? I would definitely recommend this in general for Dessen fans but […]

Recent Reads | The Anniversary and Rachel West and the Fallen Starlet

Posted May 27, 2026 / Book Reviews, Recent Reads / 0 Comments

Unlike many others, I enjoyed Finlay’s book last year – I know others have read and enjoyed a smattering of books from his backlist but I just kept putting off reading them for whatever reason. As I sometimes do, I requested a review copy last year for PARENTS WEEKEND to motivate me to read it. THE ANNIVERSARY was another great read and I really should prioritize his backlist now! The concept is what got me: the book follows two main characters annually on May 1st in the 1990s as they try to track down a serial killer who only strikes on that day. There are a handful of chapters set on each May 1st and the book goes in order to see what they’re doing and what the case updates are. The characters didn’t wow me but again, the concept was so interesting. I think Finlay did a good job of not making it feel like the book was just jumping ahead in time without any reason. It never felt like I “missed out” on major events from the May 2nd to April 30th in between. I liked seeing where Jules and Quinn were each year and if/when their stories overlapped on that day. I didn’t actually try to solve the mystery in this one at all so I was generally surprised by the outcome. I’m curious to see some other reviews to see if I’m just a dummy for not realizing. I’d definitely recommend this if the concept interested […]

Recent Reads | Stranger Things Have Happened and Tell Me What You Did

Posted May 21, 2026 / Book Reviews, Recent Reads / 0 Comments

I loved Kasie West’s YA books back in the day and the new trend of YA romance authors writing adult romance has been amazing. (I seriously need to read Steph Perkins one.) I haven’t read as many YA books at all lately and even missed some of West’s recent releases. I was planning on reading her adult debut before this one but for whatever reason this spoke to me when I was browsing my Kindle for something to read. The story follows Sutton, an LA restauranteur returning to her hometown to help her mom recover from an accident. She reconnects with her newly engaged high school friend Tara, and finds herself involved in a bet. Tara’s fiance Michael doesn’t want to go to couples therapy before their wedding and insists that two strangers could go and the therapist would never realize they weren’t an actual couple. Enter Sutton and Elijah, Michael’s brother. They begin a four-week session with a local therapist to see who wins – does Michael need to go to therapy with Tara or will she win the bet? Sparks fly between Elijah and Sutton while she also navigates complex family dynamics and co-managing her restaurant from afar. Candidly I didn’t love the characters in this one. It took me a while to like Elijah and root for them as a couple. Sutton had some annoying tendencies and her relationship with her mom was tough to read. Her friendship with Tara was underdeveloped, especially as they alluded to […]

Recent Reads | In Case I Go Missing and This Weekend Doesn’t End Well for Anyone

Posted May 14, 2026 / Book Reviews, Recent Reads / 0 Comments

Young adult mysteries are harder to win me over these days, but there was something about the premise here that got stuck in my head. I don’t like to request books on Netgalley by unfamiliar authors in genres I’m unsure of. I’m so glad I did because this book really impressed me! Fenny and her friend Sam were best friends with Sarah. When she suddenly went missing after acting weird for a while, and the two begin to unravel that Sarah was working on a new case baked into the history of the town. I liked that it was a mystery within a mystery and that the missing girl’s friends had to follow in her footsteps/investigation in order to also figure out what happened to her. I loved watching them come to realizations in the same way Sarah likely did by talking to people around town and learning what Sarah was up to, while also figuring out how her investigation made her a target. Candidly the actual characters were fine and not memorable, but they really didn’t need to be. This was exactly what I hoped it would be when I read the premise. The mystery was layered and not predictable. I liked seeing how the two mysteries (past and present) intertwined. I would definitely read more books by this author because as of now, Maureen Johnson is my only remaining YA mystery author. I’d recommend this if the premise interests you, since it delivered for me! I’ve really enjoyed this […]