I Owe You One by Sophie Kinsella

I Owe You One

Author: Sophie Kinsella
Publisher: The Dial Press
Year: 2019
Genre: Chick Lit
Age: Adults 18+
Page Count: 435

Audio Publisher: Books on Tape
Audio Year: 2019
Audio Reader: Fiona Hardingham
Audio Length: 12 hours & 23 minutes

Rating:

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I got this book on audio & in book form, my MO as of late. Our digital audiobook provider recently increased the length of time you can have audiobooks & it's helped me a lot. That being said I'd like to increase how fast I read books/listen to them.

I was dying laughing about 30 seconds into starting this book! Then I laughed throughout the entire thing, I think this was her funniest book yet. I would lay in bed at night & listen to it & start laughing instead of keeping my eyes closed, trying to sleep. This book also had a serious side that I think made the story very believable. Her books typically have the main character facing a difficult problem that she either ran away from, or develops throughout the story, this one was a little different though. This family & espically our main character Fixie have been through SOOOOO much & they just keep getting hit with things, luckily Fixie is there to help save the day.

P.S. Fixie Farr...what a perfect name! I really like names that start with the same letters, much like my own, I think they have a certain ring to them. The men in this book were very over the top! First there's Ryan, Fixie's high school crush come back into her life for the better...maybe? Then there's Seb, he's handsome, successful, & down to earth...but he's in a relationship with an awful mean girl! Of course if you've read any of this author's previous books you know what will happen in the end & that makes all the ups & downs of the relationships worth it.

This book was also very "modern", I use that term loosely because most of her other books that I've read have been older & so they each had their own unique stuff going on & happening that went with the time it was written. This is the first time I've read one of her books right after it came out. So in comparison this author keeps up with the times & whats in, etc. For example in this book Fixie's sister is going through a bit of a crisis in her life, but it's actually pretty funny. Nicole's husband is in the UAE for work so she's freaking out about not seeing him. This makes her want to do yoga with all her friends, take weird pictures of herself for Instagram, & buy those kitchy hipster home decorations like the pillows with sayings, & she can't do anything for herself. She also goes on & on about the meaning of life & what her spirit animal is, & everyone around her has to be mellow & chill & do what she says. We all know someone like this! This story has a little twist though by using an age old concept of an IOU to bring together 2 people that may not have met otherwise.

Overall this is a great, funny, inspiring, warm, & charming book that is perfect for chick lit lovers. I can't wait to read more from this author! My goal is to read all her books. I've read 6 so far & loved them all, highly recommend!

Charms & Chocolate Chips by Bailey Cates

Charms & Chocolate Chips

Author: Bailey Cates
Publisher: Penguin Random House
Year: 2013
Genre: Mystery
Age: Adult 18+
Page Count: 227

Rating:

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This is the third book in the Magical Baking Mysteries series! Our main character is Katie Lightfoot & she has recently discovered that she is a witch. She's a hedge witch to be exact which means she uses nature & plants to get her power. In the last book she found out from someone else that she is also a catalyst for light magic. This new level to her witchery comes in handy, but can also be a problem as we discover in this book.

I didn't enjoy this book as much as the others but I'm not so turned off that I don't want to continue the series. The main reason I didn't like certain parts of the book as much is because I feel it was a little confused & rushed, especially in the big magical moments. Overall though Katie's relationship with her boyfriend seems to grow & we also get to meet her mother which was a surprise since they don't get along very well. We also get to see some interesting new animals in the form of familiars that belong to some of Katie's coven members, as well as a big scary two-headed snake in the swamp!

The recipes included in this book sound good but I wish there was more of them, she always just includes 2!

We read this book for our monthly book club called Cook the Books. Half of the ladies had like me read the first 2 books in addition to this one & the others had only read this one. Overall everyone enjoyed it but we were left slightly confused by what happened & are hoping for more info in the next book(s).

Confessions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella

Confessions of a Shopaholic

Author: Sophie Kinsella
Publisher: Bantam Dell (Random House)
Year: 2001
Genre: Chick Lit
Age: Adult 18+
Page Count: 312 pages
Audio Publisher: Recorded Books
Audio Year: 2018
Audio Reader: Emily Gray
Audio Length: 11 hours & 43 minutes

Rating:

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This is the first book in the Confessions of a Shopaholic series. I have read many books by this author, she is one of my favorites. This was her first novel & I can see now how people got hooked right away. Her books are always funny & full of character, this one was no different. I have all the books in this series & I plan to read them all, hopefully this year. This one in particular is apart of a special book club addition that has the first 3 books all in one.

 I saw this movie years ago & I'm gonna try & find it at the library so I can do a little comparison. Overall I'd say that this would be a great book to start with if you've never read anything by this author. I listened to it on audio too & the reader was very good. She has an accent so if you don't like that or it is hard to follow someone with an accent just keep that in mind. I listened mostly at night before bed & I would be laughing out loud sometimes because of some of the stuff Rebecca, our main character, says.

There isn't as much romance in this book as with her others I think. It's definitely there but it's not the main focus of the story. I think if I ever got a credit card this would be the story of my life. I'm kinda surprised that Rebecca doesn't get into more trouble than she does. Her credit cards don't get turned off until 6 months & about $4000 in debt get wracked up. She also never gets sent to collection or anything. Maybe things are different in the UK but I'm happy she got it together in the end...for now LOL!

Cherry Cheesecake Murder by Joanne Fluke

Cherry Cheesecake Murder

Author: Joanne Fluke
Publisher: Kensington Books
Year: 2006
Genre: Mystery
Age: Adult 18+
Page Count: 288
Audio Publisher: Recorded Books
Audio Length: 10 hrs & 31 mins
Audio Reader: Suzanne Toren

Rating:

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This is book #8 in the Hannah Swensen series. This series is still on going, the newest book was just released this last month.

I think for now I'm going to take a break from listening to these books just to get some other stuff listened to. This one in particular was a little annoying. At the end of the last book Mike & Norman both proposed to Hannah almost at the same time! Then she turns them both down & ends up dating/flirting/kissing one of her friends from college that makes an appearance in this book. But throughout the entire book she's going between all the men. I feel like they even know that she is basically using them all but they don't do anything about it.

The other thing that was interesting about this book is that the murder didn't even happen until chapter 20! There is only 33 chapters in the book. There also wasn't a 2nd murder but there was a body, different twist. Overall I like the series I'm just a little bit annoyed at how it's going in the last 2 books. I'll come back to them next month after I catch up on some of my other reading.

There was a lot of recipes in this book! About a dozen total, the one I'm going to include seems good but easy. I'm also pleased that we have had the sme reader for the audio throughout the series so far, I hope that continues.

March 2019 TBR

This month as per usual I have WAY too many books checked out & I'm hoping to read all of them *wink wink*, we'll see what happens. I'm currently listening to one of them that I'll finish tonight, I guess that's a good start. I'm also about 100 pages into another so that's not a bad sign either. So here is the potential list!

Cherry Cheesecake Murder by Joanne Fluke

 I'm currently listening to this book now, I'll finish it tonight for sure. Things are starting to get weird in the story so I'm not sure I'll keep going with the series. I definitely need to take a break & listen to something else for a little bit.

Charms & Chocolate Chips by Bailey Cates

This is our Cook the Books pick for March. This book is 3rd in the series & they have been pretty good so far.

Seed Libraries by Cindy Conner

I'm working on a starting a seed library at our library! This book was recommended to me by our partner in the project. I got it in on ILL & it's short so it should be a quick read.

Death by the Dozen & Red Velvet Revenge by Jenn McKinlay

This is book #3 & #4 in the series we started this month in Cook the Books, I'm enjoying it so I requested these 2 books on ILL. 

I Owe You One by Sophie Kinsella

This one is obvious, she is one of my fav authors so of course I'm reading her new book!

The Wonder by Emma Donoghue

This book was recommended to me by a former coworker, she said it was very strange but good LOL so I'm gonna try it. I read Room in college & it was good so I think I'll like this one.

Effortless & Reckless by S.C. Stephens

I read the first book in this series a few months ago & I finally got around to getting these. I started Effortless this weekend & I'm happy I decided to keep going, it's a really good series. 

Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen

During our Cook the Books meeting one of the other ladies said she was reading a series that was Pride & Prejudice with dragons. It sounded interesting & we started talking about it. I confessed that I have never read a Jane Austen book or seen a movie....so I decided to check it out on audio & give it a try!

Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

I also got this book on audio. I have another librarian confession...I've never read these books! I've read several spinoffs & I love all the movies. Let's hope I can get through this one & the previous one this month.

 The Healer's Apprentice by Melanie Dickerson 

This series is being checked out a lot at my library so I decided to give it a try. The only thing that worries me is the description says this author is a member of a Christian authors organization, I'm not sure if that will affect her writing, we'll have to wait & see. The series sounds really good so I hope not.  

The Librarian of Auschwitz by Antonio Iturbe

This book has also been very popular at my library & in general. I'll try & get to it but it's a new book so if I don't I can come back to it later. 

February 2019 Wrap-Up

This month I only managed to read 4 books, 1 of which was an audiobook & one that was for our book club. February went by REALLY FAST!!! I once again have way too many books checked out, aren't you all shocked LOL! Let's hope I can get it together in March, I really want to get some of my TBR list read...it just keeps growing. Here are the books I read this month.

First Frosy by Sarah Addison Allen

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21853633-first-frost 

My review is here.

We read the first book in this duology for Cook the Books the month before last & I liked it so much I wanted to read this one. I'm happy I did & I'd like to see more from this author. 

Peach Cobbler Murder by Joanne Fluke

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/33438.Peach_Cobbler_Murder?ac=1&from_search=true 

My review is here.

This is #7 in the series. I'm currently listening to #8, I'm not sure I'm going to continue with the series. I might need a break at the very least.   

Sprinkle with Murder & Buttercream Bump Off by Jenn McKinlay

https://www.goodreads.com/series/47302-cupcake-bakery-mystery 

My reviews are here & here.

Buttercream Bump Off was our Cook the Books pick for February & I had to read the first one. I really like this series, it's very funny & I'm going to continue with it.