What Happens In Paradise by Elin Hilderbrand 3 / 5 stars
Continuing the Winter In Paradise series with the second book! This one has me ready for a tropical getaway. I honestly am always surprised at how long these books can hold my attention since I never have the biggest urge to pick them up. There’s multiple story lines to keep up with but none of them have me eager to learn more or give me too much of any feeling really. Which is why I think these book make great beach reads- easy going and not overly complicated. There’s a lot of internal dialogue with Hilderbrand’s writing style- some that is necessary but otherwise can feel like an excess amount of fluff at times. I did enjoy the writing about the USVI which I always do- the crystal blue water, delicious food, and the warm weather activities. The cliff hanger at the end was great- I think I audibly said “FINALLY”, because this had all been such a long time coming. I’m looking forward to finishing this series.
Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn 3 / 5 stars
This book was described to me as Golden Girls, but make them assassins. With The Golden Girls being my favorite show this was an easy yes for me. However, the execution of this could’ve been much better. There were two timelines throughout the book, when they were younger and present day, and I really liked seeing the differences in the characters from when they were younger to their age now- it gave a sense of realness to the story. One thing this book lacked was a sense of depth. I wasn’t extremely emotionally invested in the plot or characters, nor was I rushing to pick this book up once I put it down. I actually think this story would do much better as a movie rather than a book- one I would definitely go see!
The Exception to the Rule by Christina Lauren 4 / 5 stars
Christina Lauren does it again with this cute novella that reminded me so much of You’ve Got Mail! A Valentine’s Day e-mail mix up causes two people to become friends on a whim- who later chat every year online on Valentine’s Day. This annual tradition goes on for years until one day they finally meet. This was my first time reading an Amazon short and it was so cute! A great pallet cleanser. I’m looking forward to reading more novellas in this Amazon series!
