Happy Mum Happy Baby

By: Giovanna Fletcher
Published Year: 2017
Publisher: Coronet
Pages: 368

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Summary (Provided by Goodreads): A positive and uplifting book about what it is to be a mother and all things mum and baby by Celebrity Mum of the Year and phenomenally popular vlogger, author, TV presenter and actress Giovanna Fletcher.

Being a mum is an incredible journey, a remarkable experience that changes how we look, how we feel, who we are. As mothers we are strong, protective, proud. We feel a love like no other.

But being a parent can be hard too. It challenges us physically, mentally, emotionally. There are the days where just managing to fit a shower in amidst the endless feeding, entertaining young children and surviving on a lack of sleep feels like an achievement. With so many people ready to offer 'advice' on the best way to parent, it can feel like you are getting it all wrong.

Since Giovanna and her husband Tom Fletcher have had their sons Buzz and Buddy, they have been sharing glimpses of their family life. With an infectiously positive outlook and happy take on all things mum-related, Giovanna has developed a following of fellow parents and mums-to-be.

This is not a book about how to have the perfect family experience - Gi would be the first to admit she is winging it just as much as the rest of us - instead it is an honest, upbeat and incredibly personal account of her own experience of having a family. In Happy Mum, Happy Baby Giovanna shares her own journey through parenthood and in doing so, she looks at what it is to be a mother today, encourages you to be confident in yourself as a parent and celebrates how putting a focus on being a happy and confident mum can really make for a happy baby.

First Impressions

I bought this book years ago not long after it first came out and it has sat on my shelves ever since. I have been a fan of her husband’s band for a long time and became of fan of hers through him. I listened to the podcast for a long time and that is what convinced me to order the book.

What I thought

I specifically saved reading this book for when I was pregnant or had children so that I could reference and relate to it. I expected a little bit more of an advice book than a memoir, but I enjoyed it regardless.

Gi is a 30 something year old mom who lives in England. She is married to Tom, who is one of the lead singers in the band McFly. This book talks about her experience getting pregnant with their first son and then the birth and babyhood of her first and second. One of the things I have always loved about Gi is how honest she is. She doesn’t try to sugar coat anything but she’s also not a negative Nancy.

Like I said, I thought this was going to be a little bit more of an advice book which is why I saved it for so long. Her podcast by the same name doesn’t necessarily give advice, but it does cover a lot of babyhood and motherhood topics while offering knowledge. I learned so much about pregnancy and birth through her podcast. It also made me feel like once I went through everything I would be less alone.

Gi does a great job writing about things without judgement. I would love everyone who is considering becoming a mom to read her book or listen to her podcast. She breaks down stigma for endometriosis, pregnancy loss, post partum depression, and every other topic women are told not to talk about.

Her writing style is to the point, relatable, and no bullshit. I also loved the style of dropping pictures of her boys through the chapters. I do know that now, she has three boys and they’re much older. I think the eldest, who was 2 at the time this book came out is 10 now? I haven’t listened to the podcast in a few years, but this definitely made me remember why I enjoyed it so much and makes me want to go and listen to more episodes again

If you are someone who is considering becoming a mother, I would highly recommend this book. It feels like you’re reading a chat with a close friend. It will make you feel like you have someone to go through this experience with and answer so many questions. Even if you don’t plan on becoming a mom, if you know someone who is a mom or wants to become one, this could help you relate to and support those around you.

Wild Card

By Elsie Silver
Published Year: 2025
Publisher: Bloom Books
Pages: 464

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Summary (Provided by Goodreads): Sebastian Rousseau is a grumpy, hot as hell fire pilot who is too damn good with his hands.

It’s the perfect combination. But unfortunately for me, he’s also my ex-boyfriend’s dad.

A chance meeting brought us together and a missed connection has kept us apart.

One year later, a stroke of fate has us living under the same roof—which makes everything between us downright messy.

Because even after all this time, he’s still the man I think about when I fall asleep. The one I can’t get over no matter how hard I try.

He’s working on mending a fragile relationship with his son and we both know acting on these urges would be the ultimate betrayal.

But I see the heat in his eyes. That look of need that never fails to send a shiver down my spine.

The mutual longing is borderline unbearable and the simmering heat between us is downright palpable.

We both know there are rules when it comes to situations like this.

But then again…following the rules never has been my strong suit.

First Impressions

This is the 4th book in the Rose Hill series and I was so excited to read it. I love the color chosen and was looking forward to learning more about Bash who we have seen in the previous books.

What I thought

This series is just such a delight.

Bash meets Gwen when they’re stranded at the airport after he just met his 24 year old son he only just found out existed. After a missed connection, he runs into her months later, as the girlfriend of said son and the son’s birthday party. Months after that, Gwen shows up in town as the new yoga teacher and Bash has to decide whether or not he’s willing to rest his new relationship with his son for a new relationship with Gwen.

I’ve review some of the other books in this series and I have loved every one. The characters are all unique and so fun. While they might be rough around the edges at times, they always have good hearts. I also appreciate how realistically Silver deals with the miscommunication trope. While there are moments of miscommunication, the characters always acknowledge that they don’t have the full picture and then talk to each other about it! It’s great.

Bash has always seemed like such a good guy in the other books while also being so quiet and mysterious. I knew nothing about him before reading this book so I was excited to learn more. I didn’t put two and two together until I was reading the book that Gwen makes an appearance in the previous book.

I was a bit tentative when it came to the concept of this book. A dad dating his son’s ex girlfriend? Felt icky to me. But it’s much more than that. Semi-spoiler, but Gwen and Tripp (Bash’s son) barely dated. So the weirdness was significantly less. Gwen also was delightful. I wish we could’ve gotten a little bit more of her backstory and some resolution, but her maturity as a person is enviable.

While this wasn’t my favorite of the series, it was still absolutely wonderful. This entire series is delightful and I’m so sad to be leaving Rose Hill behind. I will definitely be checking out more of Silver’s series. IF you enjoy small town romances I would highly recommend this series.

Book Club November 2025- Mrs. Quinn's Rise to Fame

By: Olivia Ford
Published Year: 2024
Publisher: Pamela Dorman Books
Pages: 384

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Summary (Provided by Goodreads): A huge-hearted, redemptive coming-of-old-age tale, a love story, and an ode to good food

Nothing could be more out of character, but after fifty-nine years of marriage, as her husband Bernard’s health declines, and her friends' lives become focused on their grandchildren—which Jenny never had—Jenny decides she wants a little something for herself. So she secretly applies to be a contestant on the prime-time TV show Britain Bakes.

Whisked into an unfamiliar world of cameras and timed challenges, Jenny delights in a new-found independence. But that independence, and the stress of the competition, starts to unearth memories buried decades ago. Chocolate teacakes remind her of a furtive errand involving a wedding ring; sugared doughnuts call up a stranger’s kind act; a simple cottage loaf brings back the moment her life changed forever.

With her baking star rising, Jenny struggles to keep a lid on that first secret—a long-concealed deceit that threatens to shatter the very foundations of her marriage. It’s the only time in six decades that she’s kept something from Bernard. By putting herself in the limelight, has Jenny created a recipe for disaster?

What I thought

I listened to this book on audio in April and loved it. Recommended it to Denise who then ended up choosing it for book club. We also this month read a book picked by Denise’s 6 year old son. He picked The Land of Stories. I won’t do a full review o that one but I will do a quick review on that one too.

I thought I had written a review on Mrs. Quinn previously, so had planned on reposting that. However, I apparently did not and I didn’t re-read it for November. Therefore, my memory of the details of this book are a little foggy. I do remember really enjoy the storylines that were similar to Great British Bake Off. The audiobook was also very enjoyable.

Mrs. Quinn and her husband were both gems. I loved how this book wasn’t just a fluffy rip-off of GBBO but had a lot of substance to it. We realized at book club that this is Ford’s debut novel which made it all the more impressive.

For Land of Stories, I originally read this book back in 2015 and proceeded to read the next two books in the series. I was trying to think of books to recommend to Denise’s son and remembered how much the 2nd graders I had worked with loved this series. He listened to it and enjoyed it so much that he picked it and wanted us to read it for book club. I decided to listen to the book this time around since I had read the physical copy 10 years ago.

This series is so much fun. It has the magic of fairytales reimagined to appeal to kids in present day. I love how the series has little twists on the original Grimm fairytales so the dark stories are acknowledged but it’s light enough for children to read and enjoy. I will continue to recommend this series to children and am tempted to continue listening to the next few books and finish the series.

What Book Club Thought

We had a lot of great discussion regarding both of these books. Mrs. Quinn was fun to talk about because there are some heavier storylines within it that we got to pick apart and analyze. We also enjoyed comparing the baking show in the book to GBBO since we’re all fans.

Land of Stories was really fun to discuss, not just because we got to talk with a 6 year old about it, but because there are some fun adult jokes written in that we all got to enjoy. On top of that, we all like fairytales so it was fun for us to talk about what interpretations we liked and what we didn’t.

Both of these books are super fun reads. Mrs. Quinn’s Rise to Fame, even though it seems like a light novel, has a lot of good discussion points. Land of Stories would be a great recommendation if you have kids in your life. You could read it with them and enjoy it just as much as they do.

Pickle Perfect

By: Ilana Long
Published Year: 2025
Publisher: Berkley
Pages: 368

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I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This in no way shape or form influenced my opinion of this novel.

Summary (Provided by Goodreads): A second chance at love crashes one woman’s tropical pickleball vacation and serves up an adorkably swoony romantic comedy.

Lulu Gardner only takes predictable shots. After faulting on tennis stardom at eighteen, Lulu, now a thirtysomething single parent, is in control of her game. But when an unanticipated blunder threatens her teaching job, Lulu’s stable, well-planned—okay, boring—world spins out. And somehow, her godparents convince her to join them for a “de-stressing” destination pickleball vacation in Costa Rica. Maybe an all-inclusive picklecation is just the pick-me-up she needs to loosen her grip.

Or it would have been if she wasn’t backhanded by the sight of her high school fling Tyler Demming on the beachside courts. Fresh off the pickleball pro tour, the reigning bad boy of paddle sports is as studly and snarky as ever. Even though his public image took a hit with a ballsy publicity stunt, Tyler seems to be the big shot he’s always been.

But Lulu’s had years to steel herself against his rugged good looks and hypnotic charm. Despite the changes she sees in Tyler since their teenage days, Lulu will have no problem keeping her head in the game and her heart on the sidelines. Or so she tells herself….

First Impressions

I’m not personally into the pickleball trend, but one of my friends really enjoys it. When I was offered this book to review I figured it sounded cute so why not? The cover isn’t bad but I don’t know if it would’ve caught my eye on that alone.

What I thought

I should’ve realized this was a second chance romance…

Lulu was set to be a tennis pro until life got in the way. Her boyfriend at the time, Tyler Demming, went on to be a professional pickleballer. 15 or so years later, Lulu’s job is on the line so she takes an all inclusive pickleball trip with her aunt, uncle, and daughter. On vacation, she runs into Tyler who is doing some image rehab after getting kicked off of the pro pickleball tour. They then get thrown together on a separate adventure tour around Costa Rica that is being tested out by the resort.

I gave up on this book at about 70%. Like I said, this is mostly on me. I cannot stand second chance romances. Tyler disappears at 18, never contacts Lulu, she’s hung up on him for years and hates him. But then when she sees him again it’s all “my body immediately reacts to him”. Blech. Like, you don’t even know this man! I also found nothing redeemable about Tyler. He never appears to take responsibility for anything he did or does and just expects Lulu to fall back in love with him because they were in love at 17 and 18.

On top of that, I found the premise of this book to be very silly. Not only are they just thrown into the Costa Rican jungle to complete adventures such as zip lining and white water rafting, but then they’re also supposed to be playing pickleball? And Lulu who hasn’t picked up a racket in years is great? There also was a scene where Tyler’s wife/ex-wife literally just shows up in the forest. Like, Tyler and Lulu are in his cabin/hotel room situation and she literally just wanders up in the dark. It’s so bizarre.

Lulu didn’t redeem this book for me at al either. I found her daughter completely unnecessary to the story and she was insufferable. She doesn’t like new things because she doesn’t like the unexpected. So this entire adventure she doesn’t want to participate in anything. To the point of even giving up on ziplining after one try. I would be so over her.

Nothing about this book worked for me unfortunately. I didn’t like the plot, the characters, or even the writing. If you enjoy pickleball and second chance romances, you might end up enjoying this on. However, it was not for me and I only skimmed the last 30%.

Book Club October 2025- Finders Keepers

By: Sarah Adler
Published Year: 2025
Publisher: Berkley
Pages: 400

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Summary (Provided by Goodreads): Two estranged best friends find that a long-abandoned treasure hunt might be the key to a fresh start—for both their futures and their feelings, from USA Today bestselling author Sarah Adler.

Last week, Nina Hunnicutt was a professor about to move into a gorgeous new apartment with her long-term boyfriend. Now, she’s single, unemployed, and living with her parents. Even more surprising is the fact that Quentin Bell, her childhood neighbor (and okay, fine, crush), is also back in town—and wants to resume the treasure hunt that ended their friendship almost two decades ago.

Hoping the reward promised to whoever finds the rumored riches left behind by the town’s eccentric turn-of-the-century seltzer magnate will help her get her life back on track, Nina agrees. Granted, last time the search resulted in a broken heart and seventeen years of silence. But Nina’s older and wiser now—surely things will be different.

Except, Quentin is also older and wiser…not to mention distractingly handsome. As they resume their hunt, Nina and Quentin begin to rediscover all the things they once loved best about each other. But unlike the treasure, the secrets that left them empty-handed the first time refuse to stay buried. If there’s any hope of finding what they’re looking for—and for a future together—Nina and Quentin will have to be brave enough to excavate their past as well.

What I thought

We had previously read Happy Medium by Adler, and Logan enjoyed it so much she wanted to pick a second book written by her.

Nina moves back to her parent’s house after losing her job, boyfriend, and apartment in one week. When she pulls up to their duplex feeling like a complete and utter failure, she finds her old crush/best friend Quentin on the front porch. She hasn’t spoken to Quentin in over 15 years and isn’t ready to deal with the heartbreak over the friendship on top of the implosion of her life. When Quentin shares he’s back because his life has also imploded, he challenges Nina to join him in finishing the treasure hunt that ended their friendship all those years ago.

I really enjoyed this one. It was so much fun. Quentin and Nina were really cute together. They had some good banter that was never mean or over the top. I also appreciated that it was obvious that Quentin was trying to be clear in his feelings but he could tell Nina wasn’t picking up on things. So when there was a misunderstanding at any point in the book, he would catch it and explain it!

The treasure hunt itself was a little silly, but I did enjoy it in the end. I liked the action and activity of the hunt more than I liked what they were hunting for. The seltzer king felt a little Willy Wonka-esque to me and not like something that would’ve existed and I found the treasure itself to be a slight letdown.

I also liked Nina’s parents. I found her mom to add some good comic relief without being over the top. I think in general I enjoyed this book more than Happy Medium. I didn’t feel the pull to pick up more by Adler after reading that one, but I do now.

What Book Club Thought

The funny thing is that book club enjoyed Happy Medium more than I did, yet I enjoyed this one more than they did. One of our members even chose not to finish it because she couldn’t get into it. While we were talking about it, I did realize there were more parts of the book that bugged me than I had initially realized, but I don’t like to change my ratings when reflection changes my feelings. It was interesting to see how we differed on our feelings with the author’s writing. I don’t know if we’ve ever had and instance where we’ve read two books by the same author and had such differing opinions on their books. I would recommend checking Adler out if you’re looking for something light. She’s not a new favorite romance author, but I do enjoy her.

Overdue

By: Stephanie Perkins
Published Year: 2025
Publisher: Saturday Books
Pages: 416

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I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This in no way shape or form influenced my opinion of this novel.

Summary (Provided by Goodreads): Ingrid Dahl, a cheerful twenty-nine-year-old librarian in the cozy mountain town of Ridgetop, North Carolina, has been happily dating her college boyfriend, Cory, for eleven years without ever discussing marriage. But when Ingrid’s sister announces her engagement to a woman she’s only been dating for two years, Ingrid and Cory feel pressured to consider their future. Neither has ever been with anybody else, so they make an unconventional decision. They'll take a one-month break to date other people, then they'll reunite and move toward marriage. Ingrid even has someone in mind: her charmingly grumpy coworker, Macon Nowakowski, on whom she’s secretly crushed for years. But plans go awry, and when the month ends, Ingrid and Cory realize they’re not ready to resume their relationship― and Ingrid’s harmless crush on Macon has turned into something much more complicated.

Overdue is a beautiful, slow-burn romance full of lust and longing about new beginnings and finding your way.

First Impressions

When I got out of graduate school I had been in a reading rut for years. Stephanie Perkins’ novel Anna and the French Kiss was what got me out of it and back into reading. I was so excited to see that no only was she coming out with something new but that it was an adult novel. I could not wait to read it.

What I thought

Ingrid is a librarian who has just kind of sort of broken up with her boyfriend of 9 years. When her sister got engaged, she and Cory talked about how they had never dated anyone else and that if they were going to get married, they should take a break for a month and date other people. But that one month turns into another and another. Ingrid also realizes that her friendship with her coworker Macon might be something more and maybe she wants to explore it.

I found this concept interesting and relatable. I started dating someone at 19 and when we started talking about marriage, I worried about waking up at 40 and having regrets about never having dated anyone else. However, the way Ingrid and Cory talk about other people and not each other felt very obvious to me that they needed more than a break from their relationship.

This book moved month by month through a full year. It moves very slowly, but is definitely the kind of book that would be great in the cold winter months. You really get to live with Ingrid and Macon and all of Ingrid’s friends. It is more of a romance and more of a coming of age novel about Ingrid’s growth. Yes, she and Macon have a romance but she also explores who she wants to be as an adult. I found those parts of the story almost more interesting than I did the romance side.

Don’t get me wrong, I loved Macon. And I thought he and Ingrid together were very cute. But to me, it wasn’t the center of the story. This story does kind of hammer home the “when it’s right you’ll know” kind of mentality. Both romantically and life wise. I am a believer in fate, so this didn’t bother me at all. But I could see it being annoying if you don’t think that way.

This is a solid 3.5 stars for me. I found a lot of it really enjoyable, but I also felt it could’ve moved a bit quicker. I think this is a solid first adult novel for Perkins and I hope she continues to write new stories. While this book didn’t have the same magic for me that I remember Anna and the French Kiss having, I still enjoyed it a lot.

Dead and Breakfast

By: Rosiee Thor & Kat Hillis
Published Year: 2025
Publisher: Berkley
Pages: 336

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I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This in no way shape or form influenced my opinion of this novel.

Summary (Provided by Goodreads): The new vampires in town are sinking their teeth into solving a murder…

Married odd couple Arthur and Sal are totally normal. They wear sunscreen, not because the sun can kill them, but because even the undead need a skincare regimen. They eat garlic whenever they want, though it gives Sal indigestion. They can talk to creatures of the night, but only the raccoons that rifle through their garbage. Really, they don’t bite… except into delicious baked goods.

Ready to settle down and stay out of trouble, the two have opened a bed & breakfast in the idyllic, if not-so-paranormal-friendly, town of Trident Falls, Oregon. But trouble finds them when the mayor is discovered dead in their begonias with two puncture wounds in his neck. With the help of a werewolf barista, the elven town coroner, and a very human city manager, Arthur and Sal will need to prove they aren’t literally out for blood by catching a killer…

First Impressions

The punny title and the cute cover definitely sucked me in with this one. I was intrigued by a cozy mystery that involved vampires and a bed and breakfast. Because of these factors, this book was on my list well before I was offered the opportunity to read it for review.

What I thought

Maybe my expectations were too high?

Arthur and Salvatore are two married vampires that recently moved to the town of Trident Falls and bought a bed and breakfast. Unfortunately, Trident Falls isn’t very paranormal friendly and it gets less so when the mayor’s body is found in their garden drained of blood with puncture wounds. When the Sheriff takes in Salvatore for questioning, Arthur decides to take it upon himself to solve the murder.

I don’t know what it was about this story but it just did not hook me in. I didn’t find any chemistry between Arthur and Salvatore and actually found both of them a little irritating, especially Salvatore. I felt more that Arthur found him irritating too rather than in love.

They frequently make fun of the sheriff for being a bumbling idiot, but Arthur runs off with any small clue to immediately suspect the next person. He rarely has anything more than one piece of evidence and then he becomes heavily convinced they’re the murderer. I honestly don’t know how he solved the murder other than pure lock.

I did like the medical examiner, but found she wasn’t in enough of the story for my liking. The mystery aspect was just ok. I found the murderer to be relatively obvious and even at the end wasn’t quite sure why he did what he did.

This story was fine. I don’t know if the miss for me was my high expectations or the writing itself. I wasn’t crazy about the two main characters and can tell this is going to be an ongoing series. I would be willing to try one more to see if it works a little better, but wouldn’t be surprised if I forgot it existed by the time a sequel comes out.

Lion Women of Tehran

By: Marjan Kamali
Published Year: 2024
Publisher: Gallery Books
Pages: 327

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Summary (Provided by Goodreads): An “evocative read and a powerful portrait of friendship, feminism, and political activism” (People) set against three transformative decades in Tehran, Iran—from nationally bestselling author Marjan Kamali.

In 1950s Tehran, seven-year-old Ellie lives in grand comfort until the untimely death of her father, forcing Ellie and her mother to move to a tiny home downtown. Lonely and bearing the brunt of her mother’s endless grievances, Ellie dreams for a friend to alleviate her isolation.

Luckily, on the first day of school, she meets Homa, a kind girl with a brave and irrepressible spirit. Together, the two girls play games, learn to cook in the stone kitchen of Homa’s warm home, wander through the colorful stalls of the Grand Bazaar, and share their ambitions of becoming “lion women.”

But their happiness is disrupted when Ellie and her mother are afforded the opportunity to return to their previous bourgeois life. Now a popular student at the best girls’ high school in Iran, Ellie’s memories of Homa begin to fade. Years later, however, her sudden reappearance in Ellie’s privileged world alters the course of both of their lives.

Together, the two young women come of age and pursue their own goals for meaningful futures. But as the political turmoil in Iran builds to a breaking point, one earth-shattering betrayal will have enormous consequences.

“Reminiscent of The Kite Runner and My Brilliant Friend, The Lion Women of Tehran is a mesmerizing tale” (BookPage) of love and courage, and a sweeping exploration of how profoundly we are shaped by those we meet when we are young.

First Impressions

This was a book club pick but I was unable to attend book club. Decided to read it on my own time. I was honestly a little hesitant about this pick and would not have picked it up off the shelf myself.

What I thought

This book was such a pleasant surprise!

Ellie is growing up in Iran in the 1950’s-1960’s. When her father dies, she and her mother are forced to leave their large home for the slum neighborhoods where she meets her best friend Homa. When Ellie moves back to the rich side of town, she and Homa lose touch until she shows up at Ellie’s high school. The story follows the two girls as they deal with the trials of friendship, womanhood, and political upheaval of Iran.

I was worried that this book was going to be really heavy and slow and it was not. Sometimes when dealing with heavier topics, these types of books can come off preachy but I never felt that way. Even though Ellie was frustrating a lot of the time, I couldn’t fault her. She was naïve and a lot of her actions were explained by her upraising.

I loved all of the relationships in this book. The friendship between Ellie and Homa was so interesting to see how it developed over time and maturity. I also adored Mehrdad and Abdol as well as Ellie’s high school friends Noomi and Sousana. Of course, her relationship with her mother was a bit tough but it felt realistic.

I did talk about the book briefly with one of the other book club members and we talked about how this book sparked curiosity about the Iranian revolution and taught us things we didn’t know before. I appreciated the history about the political activism in the country because the Iran we know now is so starkly different from the Iran of the 1970s.

This was a beautifully written story about friendship and life. It moved quickly and captured my interest from early on. I’m curious to read more by this author given how she took topics that could’ve been dry and depressing and made them so colorful and full of life.