Reading Recently

One thing that's fallen to the wayside since becoming a mama is reading. I have no idea why, because I love it, but it's often the first thing to go when life gets busy. I really should get disciplined with it though.. because I'd much rather read on my kindle app while waiting for an appointment than scroll through social media. We'll work on that. :) Also, enjoy this random Disney photo of Beau and I because what is a post without a photo? :)

Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld

This version of the Bennet family—and Mr. Darcy—is one that you have and haven’t met before: Liz is a magazine writer in her late thirties who, like her yoga instructor older sister, Jane, lives in New York City. When their father has a health scare, they return to their childhood home in Cincinnati to help—and discover that the sprawling Tudor they grew up in is crumbling and the family is in disarray. Youngest sisters Kitty and Lydia are too busy with their CrossFit workouts and Paleo diets to get jobs. Mary, the middle sister, is earning her third online master’s degree and barely leaves her room, except for those mysterious Tuesday-night outings she won’t discuss. And Mrs. Bennet has one thing on her mind: how to marry off her daughters, especially as Jane’s fortieth birthday fast approaches. Enter Chip Bingley, a handsome new-in-town doctor who recently appeared on the juggernaut reality TV dating show Eligible. At a Fourth of July barbecue, Chip takes an immediate interest in Jane, but Chip’s friend neurosurgeon Fitzwilliam Darcy reveals himself to Liz to be much less charming. . . .  And yet, first impressions can be deceiving.

This book is a modern retelling of Pride & Prejudice and I LOVED it. Super easy to read if you love chick lit. I read this in about a day because I was so wrapped up in it. I'd highly recommend. I'm currently reading another Sittenfield book and really enjoying it.

My (not so) Perfect Life by Sophie Kinsella

Sophie Kinsella has been a favorite author of mine since high school. She's British, and her books always feel a little bit like home to me. Some of her other books are more of my favorite but this one followed a different storyline and I really enjoyed a mindless read.. it was wonderful!

Nine Women. One Dress. by Jane L. Rosen

Natalie is a Bloomingdale's salesgirl mooning over her lawyer ex-boyfriend who's engaged to someone else after just two months. Felicia has been quietly in love with her boss for seventeen years and has one night to finally make the feeling mutual. Andie is a private detective who specializes in gathering evidence on cheating husbands—a skill she unfortunately learned from her own life—and lands a case that may restore her faith in true love. For these three women, as well as half a dozen others in sparkling supporting roles—a young model fresh from rural Alabama, a diva Hollywood star making her Broadway debut, an overachieving, unemployed Brown grad who starts faking a fabulous life on social media, to name just a few—everything is about to change, thanks to the dress of the season, the perfect little black number everyone wants to get their hands on . . .

This was a chick lit book that followed a different plot than the usual.. it followed nine different women and their connection to one dress as several stories unfold in New York City. I really enjoyed this book and would highly recommend.

Cancel the Wedding by Carolyn Dingman

On the surface, Olivia has it all: a high-powered career, a loving family, and a handsome fiancé. She even seems to be coming to terms with her mother Jane’s premature death from cancer. But when Jane’s final wish is revealed, Olivia and her elder sister Georgia are mystified. Their mother rarely spoke of her rural Southern hometown, and never went back to visit—so why does she want them to return to Huntley, Georgia, to scatter her ashes? Jane’s request offers Olivia a temporary escape from the reality she’s long been denying: she hates her “dream” job, and she’s not really sure she wants to marry her groom-to-be. With her 14-year-old niece, Logan, riding shotgun, she heads South on a summer road trip looking for answers about her mother. As Olivia gets to know the town’s inhabitants, she begins to peel back the secrets of her mother’s early life—truths that force her to finally question her own future. But when Olivia is confronted with a tragedy and finds an opportunity to right a terrible wrong, will it give her the courage to accept her mother’s past—and say yes to her own desire to start over?

I LOVED THIS BOOK. I read it a few months ago but I remember the character development being great and really loving the unfolding of this story. It's not the usual for a beach read but it was a much better version, honestly.

Someone Else's Love Story by Joshilyn Jackson

Shandi Pierce is juggling finishing college, raising her delightful three-year-old genius son Nathan, aka Natty Bumppo, and keeping the peace between her eternally warring, long-divorced parents. She's got enough complications without getting caught in the middle of a stick-up and falling in love with William Ashe, who willingly steps between the robber and her son. Shandi doesn't know that her blond god Thor has his own complications. When he looked down the barrel of that gun he believed it was destiny: It's been one year to the day since a tragic act of physics shattered his world. But William doesn't define destiny the way others do. A brilliant geneticist who believes in facts and numbers, destiny to him is about choice. Now, he and Shandi are about to meet their so-called destinies head on, making choices that will reveal unexpected truths about love, life, and the world they think they know.

First off, this book is currently CHEAP on Amazon. Especially kindle edition. Get it! As I'm writing these little blurbs.. I feel like I have the same thing to say about several of them. They were better than the average chick lit reads. The stories made me feel a bit more and wonder a bit more. This one is no different. Order it!!

The Hopefuls by Jennifer Close

When Beth arrives in D.C., she hates everything about it: the confusing traffic circles, the ubiquitous Ann Taylor suits, the humidity that descends each summer. At dinner parties, guests compare their security clearance levels. They leave their BlackBerrys on the table. They speak in acronyms. And once they realize Beth doesn't work in politics, they smile blandly and turn away. Soon Beth and her husband, Matt, meet a charismatic White House staffer named Jimmy, and his wife, Ashleigh, and the four become inseparable, coordinating brunches, birthdays, and long weekends away. But as Jimmy’s star rises higher and higher, the couples’ friendship—and Beth’s relationship with Matt—is threatened by jealousy, competition, and rumors. A glorious send-up of young D.C. and a blazingly honest portrait of a marriage, this is the finest work yet by one of our most beloved writers.

This book was kind of sad at times, but overall really interesting. It gave a lot of insight on what life in DC looks like (or I'm imagining after reading this!) And although I didn't love the ending, it was a really quick read for me.

The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware

In this tightly wound, enthralling story reminiscent of Agatha Christie’s works, Lo Blacklock, a journalist who writes for a travel magazine, has just been given the assignment of a lifetime: a week on a luxury cruise with only a handful of cabins. The sky is clear, the waters calm, and the veneered, select guests jovial as the exclusive cruise ship, the Aurora, begins her voyage in the picturesque North Sea. At first, Lo’s stay is nothing but pleasant: the cabins are plush, the dinner parties are sparkling, and the guests are elegant. But as the week wears on, frigid winds whip the deck, gray skies fall, and Lo witnesses what she can only describe as a dark and terrifying nightmare: a woman being thrown overboard. The problem? All passengers remain accounted for—and so, the ship sails on as if nothing has happened, despite Lo’s desperate attempts to convey that something (or someone) has gone terribly, terribly wrong…

After having Beau, something that was hard for me to get back into was reading. I know that's kind of random but it's true. Once we were settling in after moving, I downloaded this book... and read it all in two nap times and an evening. It HOOKED me big time.

Balancing in Heels by Kristin Cavallari

For the first time ever, entrepreneur, designer, and TV star Kristin Cavallari shares how she juggles all facets of her busy life with style and grace. From outlining health and wellness, food, fitness, fashion, and her success as a businesswoman to more private matters of family, motherhood, and her relationship with her husband, Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler, Kristin leaves no stone unturned to give fans of Laguna Beach and The Hills all of the answers they’ve been looking for.
Tracing her journey from reality stardom to real life―the good, the bad, and the ugly―Kristin digs down to the most personal of relationships in her life and discusses how they made her who she is today. She also talks about the amazing effects of her healthy diet and exercise, which have made Kristin and her family the happiest and healthiest they’ve ever been. Kristin shares the family’s favorite recipes and even reveals how her food philosophy has drastically improved Jay’s type 1 diabetes. Balancing in Heels is a behind-the-scenes, in-depth look at who the real Kristin Cavallari is―unscripted.

You might have just rolled your eyes at this book recommendation.. but this book was SO GOOD. It read like a blog, and just was plain interesting. Kristin was never my favorite character on my fave Laguna Beach but this book made her incredibly likable. I read it really fast one night when I couldn't sleep.