eyreibreathe's reviews
369 reviews

I am so late to the party with this book, but oh how happy I am to finally have read it!  The Girl with the Louding Voice was at once moving, inspiring, and plucky.  Adunni completely stole my heart, and I found myself cheering her on.  The strength and courage she displayed within these pages was incredible. Her ability to also hold on to her kindness and gentle spirit even after all she faced endeared her to me even more. This book was a treasure. 

My rating:  ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Typically, if I'm not enjoy a book, I have no problem DNFing it. However, this was the one my husband and I chose to read and discuss together, so I saw it through....thus one of my few low ratings.

I love twisty domestic thrillers, and this book delivered!  In fact, a couple of the bombshells it dropped on me turned everything I thought I knew on its head, and I found myself flipping back through pages and rereading passages with new eyes.  I LOVE when that happens!  This is a book that does require the reader to suspend disbelief, and I am okay with doing that, though admittedly there were a couple times I felt things became borderline over-dramatic.  All in all, this was a super fun thriller with twists and turns I didn't see coming, and I enjoyed it immensely. 


My rating:  ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Ahh, Susan Meissner did it again, you guys! 

Grace and her husband Arthur adopted Penny when she was found, as a little girl, abandoned in a nearby park.  Years later, Penny is diagnosed with Dissociative Identity Disorder (sometimes referred to as "multiple personalities").  Grace is stunned one night when she there is a knock on her door and she is told 16-year-old Penny has been arrested for brutally murdering her birth mother. The evidence against her is staggering. Penny is sent to a psychiatry hospital, as she awaits trial, where she is treated by Dr. Mitchell McHugh.  As Grace fights to prove her daughter's innocence, Mitch works relentlessly to unravel the truth.  ⁣
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Writers and Lovers is part literary fiction, part character-driven romance. I loved the depth of the characters, the gorgeous prose, and the fact that it was a story that took its time unfolding without dragging.  There was a lot of emotion between these pages; pair that with beautiful, lush language, and it's a fine balance.  These elements can easily veer over to cheesy or saccharine, but they didn't. They found that perfect balance, and the result was beautiful. ⁣⁣
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My rating⭐⭐⭐⭐

I came across Good Morning, Monster recently when I was researching books that are similar to Maybe You Should Talk to Someone (my favorite read of 2020

This book gripped me in the beginning, and I found myself eager to keep reading. I did struggle more as it progressed, though, for a couple reasons.  For one, I found that there are many characters in this book and it spans quite a few years, but I didn't feel the story was lengthy enough to get to know any of these characters in-depth. With the exception of Gee, I  never formed any real attachment to anyone. Secondly, I felt like it started slowing somewhere in the middle, and my attention began to wane.  I love how this read delved into important issues, and the premise is one that is intriguing, but ultimately, I struggled a bit with this one.  


My rating:  ⭐⭐⭐

Left Neglected has been on my TBR for a long time, and I'm so happy I finally picked it up. I found this book surprisingly fascinating. Until I looked at her author bio, I hadn't realized that Lisa Genova has a Ph.D. in Neuroscience from Harvard. Her using this expertise when writing a fictional narrative about a neurological condition called left neglect combined to make both a gripping read and a super interesting lesson on this condition.  I was also surprised to find that this wasn't a sad story. Rather, it was written in an inspirational, more upbeat voice.  I felt connected with Sarah as she learned to navigate her new world while simultaneously fighting to recover lost skills.  She was an inspiration!  Another thing I was drawn to was the family dynamics. This was more than a book about brain injury - it was a book about relationships, adapting, gaining new perspectives, and growing and changing together. If you loved her book Still Alice (one of my all-time favorites!), this is definitely one you'll want to check out. 


My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Star-crossed Sisters of Tuscany was a heartfelt and beautiful read, and I found myself falling pretty hard for the endearing women in this story...especially feisty Poppy. I can only hope I have that much spunk when I'm her age!  Were parts of this book a little unbelievable, a little over-romantacized?  Maybe. But if you're anything like me, sometimes I crave a little of that sweet magic in my life, and The Star-crossed Sisters delivered! After over a year of not hopping on a plane, I loved being swept away to Italy...the sights, the sounds, the flavors...swoon! In fact, I have to confess that this setting seeped its way into my dreams at night, and I kept waking up telling my husband we must go to Italy someday.