Sundays with Sam - The Sunday Post

Sundays with Sam is a combination of Sunday Post hosted by Caffeinated Book Reviewer and Stacking the Shelves hosted by Tynga's Reviews.

My Week in Review

I think we had three different seasons this week, as the temperature rose and rose, hitting 65 on Friday! I slept with my window open in January. In NJ. This is not normal. I am pretty excited about the three day weekend. Seriously, last week was the first 5-day week I worked since October. It was tough.

Other than the mundane, I read a lot, and I finally watched Everything, Everything. I really enjoyed the film. The casting was excellent, and I must commend whoever scored the film. The musical choices were superb and perfectly set the mood for each scene.

Speaking of adaptations, I kept seeing the trailer for Forever My Girl on Goodreads, so I decided to listen to the audiobook. It's looks very Nicholas Sparks, but that is not necessarily a bad thing.

I was also really excited to see the trailer for Every Day. I LOVED that book!

I saw a bunch of tweets that intrigued me.

Hey friends! If you go to this Buzzfeed article about new books to watch for, scroll to the bottom and you'll see a familiar face 🙃💕👑 https://t.co/y3QiUMhe96

— Sarah Glenn Marsh (@SG_Marsh) January 6, 2018

I have already read three from the list above, and I want to read a bunch more.

Don't leave 2017 behind just yet! We've got a ton of books you might've missed—but definitely shouldn't have! 🙌🏽📚 https://t.co/QZtq5d1FJD pic.twitter.com/yiYOMa8X3w

— Epic Reads (@EpicReads) January 11, 2018

On the Blog:

• Monday: Review - A Quiet Kind of Thunder by Sara Barnard
• Tuesday: Top Ten Tuesday - 2017 Reading Regrets
• Wednesday: Can't-Wait Wednesday - Emergency Contact by Mary H.K. Choi
• Thursday: Discussion - My Year in Books 2017
• Friday: In a Nutshell Reviews featuring Layover, As You Wish, Poison's Cage

STACKING THE SHELVES

The publisher love continues. I got a massive amount of approvals, but these were hanging in limbo forEVER, and I honestly did not believe I was getting them. Some of my most anticipated reads are in this haul, so I was doing a happy dance when I got my approval email.

I also got sent a physical ARC of Honor Code, which I already have an eARC of. I haven't read it, but I will probably give the physical copy away, so someone else could review it. If you are in the US and interested, DM/email me.

Free

• After We Fall by Melanie Harlow

ARCs

• Crazy Love by Kendra C. Highley
• Kasey & Ivy by Alison Hughes
• Alternative Remedies for Loss by Joanna Cantor
• Valley Girls by Sarah Nicole Lemon
• In Her Skin by Kim Savage
• Winner Take All by Laurie Devore
• Notes from My Captivity by Kathy Parks
• The Other Side of Lost by Jessi Kirby
• My Plain Jane by Cynthia Hand, Jodi Meadows, Brodi Ashton
• Tradition by Brendan Kiely
• A Kiss in the Dark by Gina Ciocca
• Starry Eyes by Jenn Bennett
• From Twinkle, with Love by Sandhya Menon
• Letting Go of Gravity by Meg Leder
• All That I Can Fix by Crystal Chan
• Save the Date by Morgan Matson
• Social Intercourse by Greg Howard
• Learning to Breathe by Janice Lynn Mather
• Emergency Contact by Mary H.K. Choi

What I Read Last Week

I had some pleasant surprises last week. Truly Devious was the standout of the week. I knew I would like it, but I absolutely loved it. The most surprising thing was how satisfying the ending of almost every book I read was. You know how I need closure, and I think most of the books gave me that. So, I was very satisfied.

• Thicker Than Water by Brigid Kemmerer: This was nice change of pace, because i haven't read a paranormal in a while. I enjoyed the mystery (boy did she make us wait!), and I really loved the sibling bond in this one. ★★★ 1/2
• Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson: This reminded me how much I love Johnson. We got not one by TWO mysteries and lots of intriguing characters, who were witty and amusing. I cannot wait to get my hands on the next book. ★★★★ 1/2
• The Wedding Date by Jasmine Guillory: This was a fun fauxmance to romance. I loved the both the hero and the heroine, but what really got me was the ending. Fantastic! ★★★★
• Last Year's Mistake by Gina Ciocca (audiobook): This friends-to-more story had me wanting to smack these two a few times, but I was fully engrossed and throughly entertained. ★★★ 1/2
• Winner Take All by Laurie Devore: I expected this to be a on the darker side, however, it wasn't quite what I expected. Lots of really thought provoking ideas about the messages society sends to women and the caveats of being female in this world. ★★★ 1/2
• The Dangerous Art of Blending In by Angelo Surmelis: This was a tough read. It pained me to stand by as Evan was mentally and physically abused. I let a few tears go, but reading the author's note at the end was when the real tears started, because that is when I found out this was based on his own life. ★★★ 1/2
• The Fortunate Ones by R.S. Grey (audiobook): I was so in love with the heroine. Her voice and commentary were amusing and whip smart. There were SO many times I wanted to shake these two, but it culminated to a great conclusion. ★★★★

What I Am Currently Reading

I just started both of these today, so I am not very far in, but The Last to Let Go was one of my Can't-Wait Wednesday books, so I am really excited to read it.

• The Last to Let Go by Amber Smith
• Forever My Girl by Heidi McLaughlin (audiobook)

What I Plan to Read

I need to read my library loan before it returns, so I Liked My Life is on my weekly TBR. The other three are ARCs. I have liked YA books by Highley, so I jumped at the chance to read her adult novel. Shoot the Moon is a sequel to Seeking Mansfield, which I really enjoyed last year, so I am interested in catching up with the characters.

• I Liked My Life by Abby Fabiaschi
• Crazy Love by Kendra C. Highley
• American Panda by Gloria Chao
• Shoot the Moon by Kate Watson

How was your week?

Let us know in the comments!