Jackpot Summer by Elyssa Friedland

Rating: 3 of 5 stars 

Pages: 384 pages
Published: June 2024

Jackpot Summer by Elyssa Friedland was a top pick in the Modern Mrs. Darcy Book Club's 2024 Summer Reading Guide. It was listed under family drama, and this book had plenty of that. A year after their mother dies of lung cancer, the four adult Jacobson children gather in their family's beloved beach home for one last vacation before their father sells it to retire in Florida. While cleaning out their things, the youngest sibling, Noah decides to buy a lottery ticket. The two sisters go in with him, but their older brother and his wife refuse to participate. As luck would have it, they win and are quite literally millionaires overnight. But as we have often learned in real life, money does not buy happiness. Instead this family gets a lot of unfulfilling material items, emotional baggage including guilt and resentment, and a large physical rift amongst the haves and have-nots within the Jacobson clan. 

The story was engaging and kept my interest in that I was curious to learn what happened to this fictional family, but I didn't really care. It wasn't like they were truly struggling before, and the winnings brought out some of their most undesirable traits. I do appreciate the greater lesson, the author crafted along the way. I do enjoy this particular author's writing style (see The Most Likely Club), but this story just didn't live up to the hype like I thought it would. It was a light summer read with a happy ending, and, upon reflected, I think that's all I should have expected.

Recommendation: This book was a little on the long side, and it wasn't my favorite read for the summer nor was it the worst thing I've read. I'm putting this one in the take it or leave it category. 

Until next time ... Read on!

Regardless of whether I purchase a book, borrow a book, or receive a book in exchange for review, my ultimate goal is to be honest, fair, and constructive. I hope you've found this review helpful.

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Georgie, All Along by Kate Clayborn

Rating: 4.5 of 5 stars 

Pages: 331 pages
Published: January 2023

I first learned of Georgie, All Along by Kate Clayborn through the Modern Mrs. Darcy Book Club — AKA one of the nicest places on the internet. During Anne Bogel’s spring preview webinar, this romcom was listed as one of the hot ticket items for the year. As Anne mentioned, romance books are a delight because you know there will be a positive, uplifting ending. And I wholeheartedly agree, but the rub is in how you get to that happy ending. 

In this book the main character, Georgie returns home to Darentville, Virigina from Los Angeles, California where set served as a personal assistant — often putting her client’s needs before her own. When her latest client decides to take a break from “Hollywood,” Georgie is somewhat forced to as well. In the midst of that break, she comes home to help her best friend in the latter part of her pregnancy. In doing so, she stumble upon this “friendfic” notebook she and said BFF created when they were in high school. Georgie realizes, like many of us do years post-high school, she hasn’t accomplished a lot of the popular teenagery things she wanted to. Amid recreating some of those antics, Georige meets Levi Fanning, who has a reputation for being a troublemaker as a teen and is now living a fairly secluded life because of it. To boot, Levi is the older brother of Georgie’s high school crush, who happens to take up quite a bit of real estate in that friendfic notebook. Levi offers to help Georgie on her quest of completing her high school wish list. And you can only imagine where things go from there. 

While the book is somewhat predictable, the character development and real life scenarios are what make this romance one of substance. Additionally, the endearing novel contains a variety of plot elements including humor, reflection, forgiveness, honesty … and yes, some juicy love scenes (This is not my favorite thing about romance novels, but I understand it to be a necessary device for the book to be labeled as such.) 

It took me a couple of days to get into the writing style of this book, but I am glad I stuck with it. The payoff in the end was worth it, and I truly enjoyed getting to know all the primary and secondary characters of the story. If I had one criticism to offer, it would be about a tertiary character of the book. Before I offer this, I will say I consider myself to be a progressive and inclusive person. I enjoy the company of a diverse set of friends, and I do believe that representation matters. However, what I don’t necessarily agree with is forcing diversity into a book to check a box. One of the tertiary characters was identified as being in a polyamorous relationship, which really had no bearing on the plot of the book or development of the character, but rather seemed there to check the diversity box. I think when we include characters in any creative form, it should be done with purposeful intent. And that’s all I will say about that. You’re welcome to disagree (respectfully) with me, but keep in mind I rated this book and its plot a 4.5, and I am just as entitled to my opinion as anyone else. 

Recommendation: I truly enjoyed Georgie and the people she met along the way … including her true self. I think the author put a great deal of heart into her writing style and story, and as a reader, I appreciated her craft very much. I highly recommend! 

Until next time ... Read on!

Regardless of whether I purchase a book, borrow a book, or receive a book in exchange for review, my ultimate goal is to be honest, fair, and constructive. I hope you've found this review helpful.

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Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson

Rating: 5+ of 5 stars 

Pages: 385 pages
Published: February 2022

I love Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson so much! This book is my favorite read of 2022 ... so far ... there are still a lot of reading days left; however, it will take something pretty substantial to replace it. 

This generational story begins with siblings, Bryon and Benny, coming together after Eleanor's their mother, death to discuss their inheritance with the family attorney. Much to their surprise, they learn the attorney has a voice recording their mother left behind that instructs them to partake of a family recipe - a traditional Caribbean black cake with someone from Eleanor's past. Through this final piece of communication, their mother reveals some long-buried secrets about herself, their father and the family they thought they knew.

Through flash backs and flash forwards to present day, we, as the reader, are able to put together the pieces of the puzzle of life Eleanor, which culminates in a beautiful love story of friendship, family and the perseverance to overcome the most challenging struggles. I really enjoyed the Wilkerson's writing style and ability to tell a story in such a way that is complex but also engaging and arresting. 

Recommendation: This book gave me all the feels. We never know where one choice may take us, but the choices we make can create an intricately-woven life for us and those we love. I highly recommend this read when you have time to really enjoy it. It is not long, but it is deep and should be consumed with care. 

Until next time ... Read on!

Regardless of whether I purchase a book, borrow a book, or receive a book in exchange for review, my ultimate goal is to be honest, fair, and constructive. I hope you've found this review helpful.

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56 Days by Catherine Ryan Howard

Rating: 4 of 5 stars 

Pages: 305 pages
Published: August 2021

56 Days by Catherine Ryan Howard is one of the few books that has already taken on the COVID-19 pandemic. The book is set in Ireland where protagonists Ciara and Oliver meet just before the world shut down in March of 2020. There's an instant connection, and when their town goes on strict lockdown (This is not like the U.S. lockdown.), the two decide to move in together to get to continue to see each other and get to know one another while staying within the guidelines of the pandemic quarantine. 

As the title suggest, fifty-six days later one of them is dead. The bulk of the book goes back in forth in time slowly building the story and providing clues as to who is dead, why and who is responsible for the death. I enjoyed reading this story. We are just far enough past the lockdown for it to be entertaining and relevant to the reader. Howard is an excellent suspense writer. She crafted a story just over 300 pages that provided a lot of detail for well-rounded character development. I felt like I could really picture the scenes and scenarios that she illustrated through her writing. 

Overall, I enjoyed this book. It was a great build, but if I am completely honest I was a little disappointed in the final twist. I think she could have left it one step/twist before the final twist. Maybe that's just me wanting believe in the goodness of people. Anyhow, I won't give too much away. You'll have to pick up a copy for yourself! 

Recommendation: If you're looking for a realistic escape from reality, I would strongly recommend this mystery thriller set in the not too distant past. 

Until next time ... Read on!

Regardless of whether I purchase a book, borrow a book, or receive a book in exchange for review, my ultimate goal is to be honest, fair, and constructive. I hope you've found this review helpful.

Read More