Hurricane Season by Lauren K. Denton - Reshelved Books

Hello Dewey Readers!

It's HOT here in northern New Jersey and dare we say it's Hurricane Season?  Well, it's definitely been thunderstorm season.  I absolutely adore thunder and lighting, which Jillian thinks is absolutely insane.  She's probably right.... I recently finished Lauren K. Denton's novel Hurricane Season.  I'm guilty of the fact that I smuggled this book of the donation cart at work and brought it home because I fell in love with the cover.  Isn't it gorgeous?  I also spilt ginger tea on this lovely cover last night about 40 pages before I finished it. 

Before the ginger tea spillage.

I almost wasn't going to write a review of this novel 1) Because I've been busy writing other stuff and 2) I just didn't love it as much as I thought I was going to.  I guess what they say is true.  You shouldn't judge a book by it's cover... but do I really want to waste my precious book space by not bringing home a book that's pleasant to look at?  

Onto the book!  This novel is about a young single mother of two named Jenna.  Jenna works in a coffee shop to support her family even though she dreams of pursuing her passion for photography. Now, Jenna's sister Betsy lives on a dairy farm with her husband Ty.  Yup, they have cows AND chickens.  Betsy does not have a good relationship with her parents because she married a farmer rather than a business man, but she lives a somewhat happy life with the man that she loves.  The one problem the couple faces?  They can't get pregnant.  (Is this bringing up memories of Colleen Hoover's All Your Perfects!?)  Then Jenna decides to go on a photography retreat and she leaves her children with Betsy and Ty for a couple of weeks.

I felt that this book was too neat, and even the problems resolved themselves almost too happily.  I also felt as though I was heading towards a reading slump and this book just pushed me into it a little bit quicker than I would have liked.  (Does anyone ever really like to be in a reading slump?)  When I finished reading this book I had trouble remembering what I read.  

So Dewey Readers, I leave you with a rating of 3 out of 5 Coffee Beans. The cover IS really pretty.  

Until the next read!
~Jessica       

The Two Family House by Lynda Cohen Logiman -- Battle of the Book

Hello Deweys!

I stole this picture from Jillian's post...

We did not meet with the Spine Breakers this month for a & I'm behind on my book club books for work, so Jillian agreed to let me read a book that's my next book club choice for work and that she has already read.  Thank God.

Which brings us to tonight's review of Lynda Cohen Logiman's novel The Two Family House. & OMG this book is just wow.  I wasn't sure what I was digging into when I picked it up.  I just know that everyone that has read it has LOVED it, and now I know why.

So a bit about this book.  This book is about, you guessed it, a two family house.  The house is owned by two brothers who live there with their wives and children.  Mort and his wife Rose have all daughters, and Mort isn't the nicest or most affectionate husband.  Mort seems to always be bothered, and Rose thinks that if she could give him a son that things might start to be better in their home life.  Abe and Helen have all boys.  Helen desperately wants a daughter and I think her husband does too, but unlike Mort, Abe is affectionate, loving, and happy.  Miraculously, the two sister-in-laws get pregnant around the same time by accident.  

Then one night when the brothers are away on a business trip,  both sisters go into labor during in a terrible blizzard.  They can't get to the hospital, but a midwife happens to be in the area delivering a neighbor's baby.  One woman gives birth to a boy and the other to a girl.....and you can probably guessed what happened.

This novel is about motherhood, connection, relationships, love, and ultimately about forgiveness.   & It's safe to say that if you read this book, you won't be disappointed.  

So Dewey Readers I leave you with a rating of 5 out of 5 Coffee Beans.

Until the next read!
~Jessica 

P.S. Check out Jillian's review here. 

All Your Perfects by Colleen Hoover - Reshelved Books

Hello Deweys!

I am addicted to Colleen Hoover.  I fall in love with her characters right away.  The way she writes is phenomenal, and it's so inspiring to know that she was first a self-published author before she hit it big.  SO I was super excited to check out her latest novel, All Your Perfects from my library.

This novel did not disappoint.  So what would you do if you if you went to your fiancé's apartment to surprise him and found a strange man sitting outside the door?  What would you do if that man told you that his (soon to be ex) girlfriend was inside having sex with your fiancé?  Yup.  You guessed it. This is the scene that this novel opens up with.  Throw in some Chinese food in the hallway, a wedding that will never happen, and some pride in the face of heartbreak and you get the beginning of this wonderful novel.

Quinn was 25 years old when she found out her fiancé was a jerk, but through the devastation 1) She got out before she exchanged vows and 2) She met Graham.  The novel flashes between the past (the break-up / post break-up) and the present (the the marriage between Quinn and Graham.)  This relationship which was founded through a not-so happy, yet lucky, coincidence is basically the ideal romance of two soulmates.  However, their current marriage isn't so happy.  Mainly because Quinn is dealing with the fact that she is infertile and cannot conceive.  The couple is unable to adopt for legal and financial reasons, and Quinn has become so consumed with this grief of not being able to have a baby that she has changed as a person and as a wife.  

Hoover crafts a story about two people who are supposed to be together, but are struggling.   The reader watches them fall in love, but the reader also watches their love fall apart.  Perhaps things would be better if they could just communicate about their pain, their fears, and their grief, but like so many of us, they don't.  The reader's heart breaks for Quinn and Graham as we slowly watch their relationship silently dissolve.

I silently cried while reading this and I give it 5 out of 5 Coffee Beans.

~Jessica 

A Date for Hannah by Callie Henry - Reshelved Books

Hellooooo everybody!

We were reached out by an awesome team to review A Date for Hannah by Callie Henry. (Who happens to be New York Times Bestselling Author Katy Regnery!!)

Stock Imagine for "A Date with Hannah" cover

In the beginning of a July, we were able to post the cover reveal (just a cool experience!).  Earlier this month, we received a copy of A Date for Hannah.  Which I have to say that I’ve been waiting for since we had posted the cover and I got to read the synopsis of the book.  (On a side note: the cover is beautiful!)

Hannah Giacomina is down in California for the weekend of her sister, Bree's wedding.  So, Hannah isn't alone and the only one under the age of 30 at the wedding, Bree enlists the help of 17 year old Liam to keep Hannah company. 

Little does Liam know, he starts to fall for Hannah.  With the intense connection that is felt between the both of them, Hannah starts to fall for Liam too. 

Hannah accidentally hears between Bree and her friend, Abby that Liam was essentially HIRED for solely that night for Hannah.  Like anyone, Hannah is horribly upset when she finds out.  Not only is she understandably upset at Bree but she's also upset with Liam.  Now, Hannah doesn't know what to think!

And really, who could blame her? 

Hannah and Liam had both confided in one and another and they both let their guards down. 
Liam told Hannah all about his past and Hannah told Liam that she didn’t think anyone was capable of loving her because of her size. 

That’s intense stuff to be sharing right away with someone who you just met. 

One thing that I liked about the story was that it tackled how being self conscious can really steer your direction and the choices you make. The affect that it had on Hannah. How she felt that a guy would be in capable of loving her because she was a size 16. 

I was sad to see that was happening because I was happy for Hannah as time went on and how she was able to believe in herself and how Liam helped her see herself in a different light. 

Now. Liam. 

His past consisted of a mistake. Regnery showed how one mistake can turn into something so big and life changing. 

As the reader, you feel bad for Liam too.  One mistake and his entire life shifted - changing not for the better. 

Deep down though, Liam is a good guy.  He won Hannah over in ways that would make ALL girls swoon!  The manner in which he won (? maybe... You'll have to read the book to find out!) was adorable.  It was romantic and super heartwarming. 

Without giving too much of the book away! I hope I didn't give too much of it away :/

I give A Date for Hannah 5 coffee beans out of 5! It was a quick read, that was cute and meaningful. Henry (Regnery) definitely packed a lot of punch into this book.  It covers everything from love to honesty to sadness.

Go and grab yourself a copy.  It's the first book in a series of 3 books (Love is for Everyone). 


~ Jillian


*A Date for Hannah was given to us in exchange for an honest review!*

A Spark of Light by Jodi Picoult - Reshevled Books

Hellooooooo Dewey Readers!

I received a copy of Jodi Picoult's novel A Spark of Light which is to be released this Fall.  *Yippeeeee!*


Picoult is known for her novels that tackle controversial issues.  A Spark of Light tackles the abortion controversy and mass shooting epidemic.  I was really excited for this book and I was 110% sure that I was going to love it... only I didn't.  

Usually when I read a Picoult novel, I have trouble putting it down.  And I did read this one rather fast, but only because I wanted to finish it quickly so I could pass on to my grandma and then give it back to the co-worker I borrowed it from.  

So, to give you a gist of the main story line: In this novel a shooter opens fire inside a women's health clinic, and yes, this clinic preforms abortions.  But just as other Planned Parenthood-esc clinics do, they also preform other health services.  One of these services is to supply birth control, and we meet a young girl and her aunt who are in the waiting room when the shooter opens fire.  The young girl is the daughter of a police officer / hostage negotiator is is called to the scene.  He is a single father, and the daughter was too embarrassed to tell him that she wanted birth control.  

But now let's talk about why I didn't love it.  This novel focuses on the controversay surrounding abortions, but I wanted it to go into more depth about the other services these clinics offer such as STD screenings, prenatal care referrals, birth control for pregnancy AND health reasons, cancer screenings, etc.  There is one woman in the novel who uses the clinic for regular visits.  This is where she finds out she has cervical cancer.  I think the novel would have benefited in strength if more examples such as these were discussed.  

The novel also focuses primarily on what is going on inside the hostage situation.  There are bits of flashbacks to the past, and there are also flashes to another character named Beth, a teenager who is in a hospital after having almost bled to death from an illegal self-preformed abortion.  She's being persecuted for murder, but there just wasn't enough of her story line throughout the greater whole of the novel to make much of an impact.  

Basically, I wanted to see more.  More of the shooter's life before he entered the clinic.  More of Beth.  And more of the clinic itself.  This novel could have been so much more powerful, and I'm little disappointed.

So Dewey Readers, I'm giving you a rating of 3 out of 5 Coffee Beans.  

Until the next read!

~Jessica 

I've Got One Less Problem Without You By Beth Haribson - Reshelved Books

Hello Deweys!  

My latest book review was a book that was gifted to me by Jillian.  Jillian gave me Beth Harbison's I've Got One Less Problem Without You for my birthday, and honestly, could it have been a better fit?  No it could not.  Not only is the title ADORABLE and totally relatable, but the characters just fit me.  Here's why:  

This novel follows the intertwining stories of 3 chracters. We have Diana, the woman who finds out by accident that her husband, Leif, has been cheating on her with many women, one of which who's name he has saved as "The Plumber."  We also have Prinny, the sister-in-law of Diana and half-sister of her husband who was tormented by Leif since she was a baby. Leif HATES her.  Prinny also owns a crystal shop.  (This is important so take note.) The final main character we meet is Hannah, a young girl who wants to be an actor, but actually is one of those people who dresses up as characters in Times Square.  She also works at Prinny's crystal shop. 

Selenite is the white stone, Ceslestite the pale blue cluster,
 & Amethyst is the purple cluster pictured above

If you know me, you'd know that I LOVE crystals and crystal shops.  My favorite crystal shop is Blu Lotus in Montclair.  When I'm upset, simply walking in the store and smelling the sage laced air makes me feel better about myself.  Diana is also BIG into herbal teas for healing ailments.  She likes to spike her herbal teas with vodka.  Big surprise here, I also love herbal teas.  My mom get's mad because I have a million different herbal teas in our pantry.  I also like tequila. Tequila is my vodka.  I like tequila, crystals, and books all at the same time.  So it's safe to say that I adore the setting and the interests of the characters.

This book was a quick weekend read.  It was fast-passed, it was fun, and it was incredibly well written.  The only issue I had with the novel was around page 25 give or take, where it mentions that selenite is a stone that connects people to the angels.  Selenite is a white stone primarily used for charging other crystals.  It's white and instead of clusters, it's sort of made into perpendicular lines.  Celestite connects you to angels during meditation.  This stone is made of pale blue clusters.  Think amethyst but blue.  They sound the same, but are totally different.  

So Dewey Readers, I give this book a rating of 4.5 out of 5 Coffee Beans.  

Happy Reading~
~Jessica 

Below are some of my favorite tea's and why I use them!

Ginger: Sinuses, Bloating 
Jasmine Green Tea: Colds, Purification 
Raspberry Leaf: PMS and Immunity Boost 
Lavender: Stress    

The Lost Vintage by Ann Mah - Reshelved Books

Hello Deweys! 

The July Once Upon a Book Box came in the mail *yay*!!!! A new book & new gifts that go along with the pages!  What could possibly be more exciting?! Nothing.  Nothing could ever be more exciting.

This month's book selection was Ann Mah's The Lost Vintage.  The gifts were ADORABLE and perhaps even better than last month's which surprised even me, but the book was... eh.

This novel takes place on a winery in France and jumps between the present and the historical time period of WWII.  I'm not a big fan of historical fiction.  I did read The Nightingale and the Lilac Girls, and wasn't blown away by them either (even though I adore Kristin Hannah). So that's probably why I was eh about this one.

So about the novel: Kate live in California, but travels back to France where her family and past love interest live on a winery as she studies for her Master of Wine exam.  In this exam, the applicant must identify different wines and the regions they come from purely by taste.  Then, while in the basement of the winery, Kate discovers bottles and bottles of wine from the WWII era hidden away in a "cave."

During WWII, Helene and her father hid the bottles of wine to protect them from getting into the hands of the Nazis.  Helene and her father were part of the resistance, but her stepmother was a sympathizer....

This novel picked up in pace about 2/3 of the way through, but I just didn't love reading it.  

So Dewey's I'm giving it 2 out of 5 Coffee Beans. 
   
Until the next read!
~Jessica