My 2021 Goodreads Reading Challenge: September - October

The Spanish Love Deception by Elena Armas

A wedding. A trip to Spain. The most infuriating man. And three days of pretending. Or in other words, a plan that will never work. Aaron Blackford. The man whose main occupation was making my blood boil had just offered himself to be my date. Right after inserting his nose in my business, calling me delusional, and calling himself my best option. And much to my total despair, also right. Which left me with a surly and extra large dilemma in my hands. Was it worth the suffering to bring my colleague and bane of my existence as my fake boyfriend to my sister's wedding? Or was I better off coming clean and facing the consequences of my panic induced lie? Like my abuela would say, que dios nos pille confesados.

Fans of The Hating Game will no doubt love this just as much. Whilst there's not quite as much 'hating' going on between Aaron and Lina, I liked it all the same. By the time the two main characters do eventually get together it feels completely earned. And those sexy scenes truly were sexy. Apart from a few cringey words or sentences spoken mostly by Aaron, there was some real heat coming off those particular pages. It is worth bearing in mind if you don't speak/understand Spanish and are reading the paperback version, that there are quite a few passages and sentences that you might not understand. But I was able to highlight and translate when reading via Kindle Unlimited.

The Highland Fling by Meghan Quinn

Freshly fired from her third job in a row, Bonnie has lost her way. So when she and her best friend stumble upon a “help wanted” post to run a coffee shop in the Scottish Highlands, they apply on a whim. When they arrive in the tiny idyllic town of Corsekelly, they instantly fall for the gorgeous Highland landscape and friendly townspeople. But Bonnie finds a less-than-warm welcome in Rowan MacGregor, the rugged local handyman. Busy wrestling his own demons, Rowan’s in no mood to deal with the quirky American. As Bonnie and Rowan’s paths inevitably cross, insults - and sparks - fly. Can the pair build on their similarities to help each other find purpose and direction. And maybe romance too? Or will their passionate tempers fling them apart?

As a Scot myself, I adored the Scottish setting. Seeing things like tattie scones, Dundee cake and just the general Scottish environment was brilliant. As was seeing Rowan (and the other Scots) speak exactly like you would expect him to. You really do feel like you're there with them in that small Scottish town. There are some great funny moments but also a lot more depth when it comes to what the main characters are dealing with in this. It wasn't a true 'enemies to lovers' style romance. But there is a nice build up to them getting together. I did, however, find Bonnie a bit brash and immature at times. I get that she is 'the American tourist' in this situation but she feels quite brattish and obnoxious through most of the book. I'll definitely be keeping an eye out for more books from Meghan Quinn (as you will no doubt see below).

Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney

Alice, a novelist, meets Felix, who works in a warehouse and asks him if he’d like to travel to Rome with her. In Dublin, her best friend, Eileen, is getting over a break-up and slips back into flirting with Simon, a man she has known since childhood. Alice, Felix, Eileen, and Simon are still young - but life is catching up with them. They desire each other, they delude each other, they get together, they break apart. They have sex, they worry about sex, they worry about their friendships and the world they live in. Are they standing in the last lighted room before the darkness, bearing witness to something? Will they find a way to believe in a beautiful world? 

This is the first Sally Rooney book that I've read, despite enjoying the TV adaptation of Normal People. I found myself racing through this and the writing style was a nice departure from what I usually read. I could see a bit of myself in Eileen, which made me look forward to the characters from her perspective. And I did like the way in which the men's lives were explored and written about too. I understand where she was going with the character of Alice but it became quite difficult to read more and more of her complaining about her life as a writer. I wasn't entirely sure about Alice and Felix's dynamic either. I've written a lot more in my Goodreads review about the almost romanticism of unprotected sex and much more. But overall, I did like it, even if a few things stopped me from enjoying it more.

Don't You Forget About Me by Mhairi McFarlane

You always remember your first love. Don’t you? It began with four words; 'I love your laugh. x' But that was twelve years ago. It really began the day Georgina was fired from The Worst Restaurant in Sheffield (© Tripadvisor) and found The Worst Boyfriend in the World (© Georgina's best friends) in bed with someone else. So when her new boss, Lucas McCarthy, turns out to be the boy who wrote those words to her all that time ago, it feels like the start of something. the only problem? He doesn't seem to remember Georgina - at all.

This is the third book that I've read by Mhairi McFarlane. And whilst it wasn't my favourite of the three, I still enjoyed it. It did take me a bit longer than normal to get into this. But once it got about 50-60% of the way in, I was completely hooked. This isn't your typical rom-com in many senses. First, the actual romance between the two main characters doesn't really take off until pretty much the very end. And secondly, it's more about Georgina finding herself, her purpose and her life in general rather than all about her love life (even if Robin, her horrid ex keeps popping back up). I enjoyed the humour and the whole idea of lost love from high school. But even though I liked Lucas, it's hard to root for them to get together since throughout the majority of the book he 'doesn't know/remember' her and she's hiding the fact that she knows/remembers him. I was really happy to find this on Kindle Unlimited though.

See Me After Class by Meghan Quinn

It was never my intention to ever get involved in a workplace romance, let alone get involved with the most surly, agitating, and pompous man I’ve ever met who just so happens to be my new friend’s brother. My intentions were to show students how English and reading books could actually be fun and make a new life for myself in the suburbs of Chicago. But so far, I’ve managed to be called into the principal’s office. Coerced into participating in the teacher's badminton league. And instigated into passionate fights with Arlo Turner over education and decorum. Known as Mr. Turns Me On, he’s the reason I might get fired from my first ever teaching job.

First of all, this is one seriously steamy book. The sex scenes will no doubt have you feeling hot under the collar. And they're memorable ones at that.
There's also the grumpy/sunshine trope, which works really well in this.
I liked both Arlo and Greer and was rooting for them to get together properly in the end. And the school setting/cast of characters were brilliant too. I did take .5 off because of how it veered as it began to wrap up. The whole teacher assessment at the end was a bit annoying given that it was obviously going to have been written before they got together and you could tell that they both loved one another. If you already have or are thinking about getting Kindle Unlimited, Meghan Quinn's books are well worth seeking out.

Earn Your Extra Credit by Meghan Quinn

Normally I'm the one taking the girl home but with Stella, it's been one failed attempt after another and frankly, I'm done trying. But thanks to my best friend getting married in Hawaii right before the school year starts, I'm stuck on a tropical island, watching Stella parade around in what she claims is a bathing suit. Unfortunately, that's not the worst of it, just the tip of the iceberg. Because what I think is going to be a relaxing vacation, avoiding the one girl I can't seem to make it work with, has turned into a spectacle of being recruited as Stella's doting fake fiancé so she can save face with an old "friend" from high school. It's all fake, that's what I keep telling myself, even though it feels entirely too real.

A follow on from See Me After Class, I could not wait to read this. I loved that it was mainly set in Hawaii for Greer and Arlo's wedding. It gave me those vacation vibes and of course, I was always going to be here for a fake fiance storyline. It also didn't disappoint when it came to the steamy sex scenes. However, this was more of a frustrating read than Greer and Arlo's story. I got so frustrated by the way that Stella behaved for a large chunk of this and that was even after she was attempting to address her 'issues'. But I did like the chemistry between the two of them. And I can only hope that we get a book on Cora next.

Kiss And Don't Tell by Meghan Quinn

It all started when I got lost in the middle of the Canadian Rockies. A wicked thunderstorm sent my car mud sliding into a ditch. Forced to abandon my car in search of help, I stumbled upon a cabin in the middle of nowhere. I knocked on the door for help only to be greeted by five boisterous, burly, and insanely attractive men. Not just men. Professional hockey players. I hit the motherload of fantasies, right? Wrong. Because as it turns out, one of them is my ex-boyfriend's half-brother. And when I end up crashing in their spare bedroom for the night, things take a very unexpected turn. I'm not sure any amount of survival skills can protect my heart from star goalie, Pacey Lawes. But as long as we kiss and don’t tell, maybe everything will be okay.

I found it difficult to discern who was who in this, when it came to Pacey's teammates. Having them alternate between first names and last names didn't make that any easier. I liked the way Winnie found out how she should be treated. And it was nice seeing their relationship grow in a slow-burn over a very quick timescale kind of way. Because you know the Josh bombshell is coming, it kind of detracts from the story as you're just waiting for them to split up. I also would have loved a bit more from the ending. A bit on the hockey season starting back or a final sex scene would have brought it to a close much better.

The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix

In horror movies, the final girl is the one who's left standing when the credits roll. The one who fought back, defeated the killer and avenged her friends. The one who emerges bloodied but victorious. But after the sirens fade and the audience moves on, what happens to her? Lynnette is a real-life final girl who survived a massacre twenty-two years ago and it has defined every day of her life since. And she's not alone. For more than a decade she's been meeting with five other actual final girls and their therapist in a support group for those who survived the unthinkable, putting their lives back together, piece by piece. That is until one of the women misses a meeting and Lynnette's worst fears are realized - someone knows about the group and is determined to take their lives apart again, piece by piece.

As a huge horror/slasher movie fan, this was right up my street. I loved the nods to some of the biggest and best movies in that genre like Scream, Halloween and Friday the 13th. But I also liked the fact that Lynette's final girl scenario wasn't one that I'd seen before. The idea itself was a strong one but the execution didn't quite match up. And as soon as a certain character takes a phone call I pretty much guessed exactly how it would all end. And that's exactly how it all went down. It was also tricky at times to tell who was who, in terms of the other final girls and their 'origin' stories. I feel like it's quite difficult to translate what makes a horror/slasher movie so great into the written word.

The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren

Olive is always unlucky; her identical twin sister Ami, on the other hand, is probably the luckiest person in the world. While she's about to marry her dream man, Olive is forced to play nice with her nemesis: the best man, Ethan. Yet Olive's luck may be on the turn. When the entire wedding - except for Olive and Ethan - gets food poisoning, there's an all-expenses-paid honeymoon in Hawaii up for grabs. Putting their mutual hatred aside, Olive and Ethan head for paradise. But when Olive runs into her future boss, the little white lie she tells him spirals out of control. Forced to play loving newlyweds, she and Ethan find themselves in closer proximity than they ever expected. Soon, Olive finds that maybe she doesn't mind pretending. In fact, she's beginning to feel kind of... lucky.

I loved the Hawaii setting. It had me dreaming of an all expenses paid trip. I also loved the concept and definitely found myself smiling and having a chuckle throughout. But I will say, I wanted more from this. Even though they didn't really 'like' one another to begin with, it didn't feel like a true enemies to lovers-style story. Apart from the massage scene, which ramped up the sexual tension a notch, it wasn't too steamy at all, which was a bit of a letdown given the subject matter. You also had to suspend belief a few times. And once they get back to reality, the story falters and stutters a bit. It was good but it could have been so much better.

Conversations With Friends by Sally Rooney

Frances is twenty-one years old, cool-headed and observant. A student in Dublin and an aspiring writer, at night she performs spoken word with her best friend Bobbi, who used to be her girlfriend. When they are interviewed and then befriended by Melissa, a well-known journalist who is married to Nick, an actor, they enter a world of beautiful houses, raucous dinner parties and holidays in Provence, beginning a complex ménage-à-quatre. But when Frances and Nick get unexpectedly closer, the sharply witty and emotion-averse Frances is forced to honestly confront her own vulnerabilities for the first time.

Whilst this did have some brilliant lines, much like Beautiful World, Where Are You, the characters were much more unlikeable. As a protagonist, Frances is extremely selfish and self centred. The dynamic of the foursome, whilst alluring to begin with soon becomes pretty messy and stays that way. The characters have essentially zero growth or character development as the story goes on. And in the end, nothing feels resolved. Everything feels open-ended in a pretty unfulfilling way. I was hoping to see a bit more independence or growth from Frances. But that doesn't happen. Do I still read Normal People? I'm not sure at this stage.

The Deal by Elle Kennedy

Hannah might be confident in every other area of her life but she's carting around a full set of baggage when it comes to sex and seduction. If she wants to get her crush's attention, she'll have to step out of her comfort zone and make him take notice, even if it means tutoring the annoying, childish, cocky captain of the hockey team in exchange for a pretend date. All Garrett has ever wanted is to play professional hockey after graduation, but his plummeting GPA is threatening everything he's worked so hard for. If helping a sarcastic brunette make another guy jealous will help him secure his position on the team, he's all for it. But when one unexpected kiss leads to the wildest sex of both their lives, it doesn't take long for Garrett to realise that pretend isn't going to cut it. Now he just has to convince Hannah that the man she wants looks a lot like him.

This gave me much more than I expected, in a few different ways. Firstly, it deals with big issues such as sexual assault and domestic violence in a measured way. Yet, it's also quick and easy to read. I liked the relationship between Hannah and Garrett and the fake dating/boy falls first tropes actually worked really well. At times it does read a bit like a YA novel, whereas at other times it feels much more grown up, even with the college setting. It's currently free on Kindle which seems like such a good marketing move as I'd definitely read more of the Off-Campus series after enjoying this as much as I did. I'm already completely on board to read the third book in the series, which features Hannah's BFF Allie.

The Seven Ages Of Death by Dr Richard Shepherd

Dr Richard Shepherd, Britain's top forensic pathologist, has spent a lifetime close to the dead. As a medical detective, each autopsy he carries out is its own unique investigation, uncovering the secrets not only of how a person died, but also of how they lived. Through twenty-four of his most intriguing, enlightening and never-before-told cases, Dr Shepherd shares autopsies that span the seven ages of human existence, and have taught him as much about the marvels of life as the inevitability of death. From old to young, from murder to misadventure, and from illness to accidental death, each of these bodies has something to reveal: about human development, about mortality, about its owner's life story, about justice and even about Shepherd himself.

Unnatural Causes continues to be one of my favourite books and was easily a 5 star read for me. So when I heard that Dr Richard Shepherd had released a second book, I could not contain my excitement. There are some truly fascinating and intriguing cases in this book. But certain sections are rather bogged down with medical jargon, much more so than in Unnatural Causes. It was still a captivating read and I definitely learned a lot but it goes into a bit more depth than I felt necessary about certain areas of the body. I would have loved more cases and less 'padding' overall, however it is still well written and worth a read. Dr Richard Shepherd writes with compassion and not only makes the subject matter incredibly interesting but honest and relatable too.

It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover

Lily's come a long way from the small town in Maine where she grew up. So when she feels a spark with a gorgeous neurosurgeon named Ryle, everything in Lily's life suddenly seems almost too good to be true. Ryle is assertive, stubborn, maybe even a little arrogant. He's also sensitive, brilliant and has a total soft spot for Lily but Ryle's complete aversion to relationships is disturbing. Even as Lily finds herself becoming the exception to his “no dating” rule, she can’t help but wonder what made him that way in the first place. As questions about her new relationship overwhelm her, so do thoughts of Atlas, her first love and a link to the past she left behind. He was her kindred spirit, her protector. When Atlas suddenly reappears, everything Lily has built with Ryle is threatened.

I wasn't necessarily sure what to expect with this. But it wasn't the story that unfolded before me. I really enjoyed the letters to Ellen Degeneres of all people and learning about Lily's life with Atlas and her life as a teenager at home with her parents via this medium. It is frustrating to read at times but you begin to understand why Lily acts the way that she does, even after promising that she would never end up like her mother. I would have loved a bit more of Atlas, as we only see him rather fleetingly in the current day. I've also seen a lot of people say that they cried whilst reading this and maybe it is just me but I never felt even close to tears. However, it is definitely a book and a story that will stay with me for some time.

A Stranger On Board by Cameron Ward

When ex-marine Sarah joins a luxury superyacht as on-board security, she's excited to get her life - and career - back on track. Surrounded by crystal waters, it seems like the perfect place to start over. As they head into open water, though, tensions between the crew quickly build. And when someone goes missing, Sarah has a terrifying realisation. One of them is a killer. All of them are suspects. To protect the other passengers, Sarah needs to uncover the killer's identity, and return the boat safely to shore. But there's a storm on the horizon - and not all of them will make it out alive.

I liked the fact that there were so many of the crew who could have been responsible that it wasn't incredibly obvious who was behind the sabotage and things going wrong with the ship. The way in which each thing that was going added to their issues really ramped up the tension and kept me reading to find out more. I also liked the fact that even though there were a lot of different characters, I knew exactly who was who from the very beginning. I will say though, I feel like if you don't have some knowledge of yachts or sailing (thankfully I've watched season after season of Below Deck), it may take you a while to absorb some of the terminology. However, the setting was great and I could imagine myself on board. This was a definite page turner that kept my attention the whole way through.

Publication date: 23rd June 2022

One In A Million by Lindsey Kelk

Annie has given up on love: she’s too busy trying to get her tiny business off the ground. Infuriated by the advertising agency across the hall making fun of her job, Annie accepts their crazy challenge – to make a random stranger Instagram-famous in just thirty days. And even when they choose Dr Samuel Page PhD, historian and hater of social media, as her target, Annie’s determined to win the bet – whether Sam likes it or not. But getting to know Sam means getting to know more about herself. And before the thirty days are out, Annie has to make a decision about what’s really important.

This book just confirmed how much I adore the way in which Lindsey Kelk writes. It's smart, witty and makes me smile and chuckle every time. Annie was a great main character. And I liked Dr Samuel Page as the love interest, even though he's not necessarily that until the very, very end. It was nice to see Annie's career have such a big role in this. And as someone who works in social media/blogs, seeing this handled without being belittled was quite a change from how it's usually portrayed. This was a slow burn and included some of my favourite romance tropes such as them both having to share the same bed. It wasn't necessarily all that memorable. But I enjoyed it all the same.