The Floating Feldmans by Elyssa Friedland
I checked this book out because we were getting ready to head out on a cruise ourselves and it seemed fitting. Ultimately, I found this book to be just okay. It was less about cruising than the family dynamics and the fact they were trapped on this ship together. It’s really important for me to have likable characters and I didn’t feel that with this book. I barely liked any of the characters and found most of them to be selfish and exhausting. Overall, this book was fine. The ending was wrapped up in a bow and we were more told about character development than shown it. 3/5
Portrait of a Thief by Grace Li
This book did a great job depicting how it feels to be the child of immigrants. The disconnect but also the ties you feel to your heritage. The feeling of not quite fitting in anywhere. How it actually feels at times to be Chinese American.
I also liked how I felt the heists seemed more realistic? I mean, I guess I don’t actually know, but it’s not like these college students had all this tech or special niche experience to help with the heists.
An issue I had was that I didn’t LOVE any of the characters. I didn’t really feel drawn to any of them or like I was really rooting for any of them. I also felt like $10 million apiece was put on this pedestal of enabling whatever life each of the five wanted. But that doesn’t actually seem like that much money to me? Life changing for sure, but it just feels like a small amount compared to what they’re putting on the line.
Overall, as someone who loves heist movies, this book was pretty heisty and again, the child of immigrant experience was perfectly portrayed. 3.5/5
Nora Goes Off-Script by Annabel Monaghan
What can I say? I’m a sucker for a celebrity romance. There’s just something about the improbability of it. But also, the glimpse into a glamorous life while also celebrating the simple things. Either way, this was a good one. I liked Nora a lot as a character. I felt like she was a great mom and it was clear that that’s the role she holds dearest above all others.
Secondary characters didn’t get as much of an explanation as I would have liked. It took me an embarrassingly long time to realize that Penny was Nora’s sister and not just some girl she grew up with.
I also felt like the pacing could have been a little better. I thought the play was really rushed through and the ending felt a tad rushed as well. But I did like the way that the story played with those cliche romance movie tropes.
Overall, I think I read this book at the exact right time. It hit almost every note for me. 4/5
Note: I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Love Lettering by Kate Claybourn
I MOSTLY liked Meg and Reid. There were some things about them I didn’t like so much. And there were some elements of the story that I wasn’t in love with. I didn’t totally get the entire ending. I felt like it was sudden and didn’t get explained all that well. Overall, though, a light read and good for Summer. 3.5/5
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