“We’re all a little broken, Briana. We are a mosaic. We’re made up of all those we’ve met and all the things we’ve been through. There are parts of us that are colorful and dark and jagged and beautiful. And I love every piece of you. Even the ones you wish didn’t exist.”
Abby Jimenez, Yours Truly
It's no secret that I am obsessed with everything Abby Jimenez book. She writes these fun rom-coms that have a little more depth to them. This one is no different. The story follows Briana who is a doctor that has everything that can go wrong, going wrong. Her divorce is just about to be finalized, her brother is in serious need of a kidney donor, and the promotion she's been dreaming of having, is now probably going to the new doctor at the hospital.
Dr. Jacob Maddox just started at the hospital, and this fresh start isn't going exactly as planned. Just when he gets an earful from Briana, he decides to write her a letter. And it's a really good letter. From there, their friendship starts.
There are a lot of things I really like about this story. I love the anxiety representation, because it's just something I can really relate to. I'm always a fan of the fake dating trope, so that's always fun.
The two things that really stopped me from giving this a full 5 stars was the miscommunication trope and the random plot point added towards the end of the story. With the miscommunication trope, I could overlook it, because as humans we sometimes make assumptions, and don't communicate properly, but I felt like the extra plot point was thrown in randomly just for the sake to add on some conflict, and I could have done without it completely.
Practice Makes Perfect by Sarah Adams - ★★★★½
“But the thing about quiet people is, we’re only quiet because our brains are so busy overthinking everything.”
Sarah Adams, Practice Makes Perfect
I have read many of Sarah Adams' romance novels. I feel like her books are cozy feel-good romances. There are no third act breakups, and usually the conflicts are pretty minimal. I rated The Cheat Sheet 3.75 stars, then I read When in Rome, which I rated 4 stars. I did go back and read some of her older work, which I would put them in the 3.5 star range (I haven't read all of her old stuff yet!), but then I read this one.
It may have been when I read it, or maybe it was because I related to Annie a lot, but I really enjoyed this one! There's something really special about her Rome, Kentucky series. The characters go through so much character growth, and you just genuinely care about them.
Again, this book had really good anxiety representation, and I related to that aspect a lot. In some ways, I feel like she was talking about me and the way my anxiety works. When I relate to a character, especially a character like Annie, I automatically feel really connected to her.
While I really loved Will, I do wish that there were more build up to their relationship. I felt like, what made this book special wasn't necessarily the romance? Which is strange to say, because the main plot line is the romance. The scenes that they did have together was super cute though, and I'm honestly really looking forward to reading Sarah Adams' next book!
Better Than the Movies by Lynn Painter - ★★★★★
“She’s not you.”
“What?”
“She. Isn’t. You.”
Lynn Painter, Better Than the movies
I have always loved YA. In 2023, I read very little of it. What I did read, I really enjoyed, but for the most part, I stuck to adult romance, and other genres. Even the YA I have read lately, has always been fantasy or thriller, so to read a YA romance and love it as much as I loved this one, was really special.
People have been hyping up Lynn Painter for years. I read a book by her in 2022, Accidentally Amy, and while there were aspects of the book I really enjoyed, I didn't love it. I wasn't sure if I was going to give her writing another shot, but I am so glad I did. This book made me feel so many things. It had the vibes of an early 2000's teen romance movie, in all the best ways.
I felt grief, I felt giddy (literally cheesing so hard, a smile on my face), I laughed, and I just fell in love with Wes and Liz. While the plot line has been done before, the execution was perfect.
The main story is told from Liz's point of view, but over the past year or so Lynn Painter has released multiple extra scenes! Some of them from Wes' point of view, some of them take place during BTTM, some of them take place afterwards, but all of them make me so happy.
I 100% understand the Lynn Painter hype now, and am going through the rest of her catalogue in 2024.
I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy
“I don’t like knowing people in the context of things. "Oh, that’s the person I work out with. That’s the person I’m in a book club with. That’s the person I did that show with." Because once the context ends, so does the friendship”
Jennette McCurdy, I'm glad my mom died
I don't really give reviews to bi0graphies, but I want to 100% put this on my list. While I had heard some audiobooks, this was my first audiobook in 2023. It's about Jennette McCurdy's life, most people would know her as Cat from ICarly & Cat and Sam. It was so strange listening to, because I spend my childhood watching those shows, and thinking that it must have been so much fun being a child star.
Her story paints a really different reality. It's really interesting being able to get a behind the scenes look at her life. It's really sad, and such a stark difference from anything I could have imagined. Highly recommend giving this a read, especially if you listen to her audiobook.
Pretty Girls by Karin Slaughter - ★★★★
“It's the truth. I'm sorry to be blunt about it, but girls don't like guys who are doormats. Especially pretty girls, because there's no novelty in it. Guys are hitting on them all of the time. They can't walk down the street or order a coffee or stand on a corner without some idiot making a comment about how attractive they are. And the women smile because it's easier than telling them to go fuck themselves. And less dangerous, because if a man rejects a woman, she goes home and cries for a few days. If a woman rejects a man, he can rape and kill her.”
Karin slaughter, pretty girls
I bought this book at a thrift store a few years back. I mainly bought it, because it was a signed copy. I never expected this to be one of my favorite books of 2023. Claire's oldest sister went missing 20 years prior. No one ever found out where she went. There was no note & no body. Now, in present day, another girl has gone missing, and she looks really similar to Julia. Claire is convinced that this disappearances are linked. As she starts to unravel the truth, things are not what they expected.
There were so many twists and turns, there was just enough character development for you to care about these characters, and I really enjoyed every minute of this one! I can't say too much, because I always feel like it's better to go into a thriller as blind as possible, but just know that I highly recommend this one.
Now those were some more of my favorite books read in 2023. We're finally past the half way point on my favorites. Have you read any of these? What are your thoughts? Please let me know down below!
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Oh thank you so much for sharing this! I need to read Practice Makes Perfect, I love a good book with anxiety rep 🥰 and Lynn Painter's books are on my TBR as well, they sound so good. So happy you enjoyed them!!
I think you'll love Better than the Movies. I have her two other YA books, but haven't had the chance to read them yet. I have high hopes for them though! Thanks for reading and commenting 🙂 x
Oh thank you so much for sharing this! I need to read Practice Makes Perfect, I love a good book with anxiety rep 🥰 and Lynn Painter's books are on my TBR as well, they sound so good. So happy you enjoyed them!!
I think you'll love Better than the Movies. I have her two other YA books, but haven't had the chance to read them yet. I have high hopes for them though! Thanks for reading and commenting 🙂 x