Sloth Goes Places - California

 

Sloth Goes Places is a feature where I share books I have tracked from previous Literary Escapes reading challenge hosted by Escape With Dollycas Into a Good Book.

Today we are looking at books set in ....

California

I say this all the time, but California is a super popular setting. I have already read 27 books set in CA this year. It's been almost 15 years since we visited, but Sloth has been to Hollywood and Disneyland. 

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The Book of Silver Linings by Nan Fischer
Published by Berkley on August 15, 2023
Age/Genres: Adult, Fiction

Goodreads

Within the margins of an antique book, a timeless love waits for a young woman on the precipice of a terrible mistake in this enthralling exploration of fate and independence from the acclaimed author of Some of It Was Real .

Constance Sparks always says yes …when her capricious best friend needs money; when her boss gives her more responsibility without a raise; and when her boyfriend, Hayden, who is very kind but also secretive, asks her to marry him.

While planning their wedding—and struggling with anxiety about the right course for her future—Constance researches the history of her antique engagement ring and unearths the name of a man who might be connected to it, plus his tragic love story. When she finds a book of letters in her library’s old manuscript section written by the long-dead man, Constance is deeply touched by his words and leaves a note for him confessing her uncertainty and doubts. She’s shocked days later to find a response tucked among the pages.

As the notes continue to arrive, Constance finds herself quickly falling in love with a ghost and putting her real-life relationship in jeopardy. Will a bond based on letters impossibly sent from the past derail her future? Or will Constance discover her voice and risk everything for the chance to somehow connect with her true soul mate?

I chose California this week because my favorite book last week was set there. This book was set in the Bay area, and the author did a nice job sharing some of the geography and style of the area with me. As far as the story, I adored it! Constance's search for the history of her ring was a great way to explore her anxiety regarding her future. It was a great journey made even better with precious rescue animals. 

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Mansplainer by Avery Flynn
Published by Entangled: Amara on June 27, 2022
Age/Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Goodreads

As the only Beckett cousin who is still unattached, I'm a shoo-in to win the bet with my cousins to be the last man blissfully not in love by Christmas. Of course, I know they're still going to make me follow the rules of our bet and go on six dates with the same woman—but I've figured out a way out of that too. I'm getting married. Is it love? Not even close. Chelle Finch needs a temporary husband and I need to win this bet. We agree to put a ring on it knowing that in six months this marriage of convenience will end in divorce. Except, somehow dating my wife has me realizing that I don't ever want to take this ring off if it means losing her.

What does the guy who can talk his way out of anything have to do to sweet talk his temporary wife into forever?

So, I am pretty sure this book took place in the Bay area too. Look at that! This was the final book in a very fun series where the cousins were competing to see who could join a dating app and stay unattached. I thought I would hate this mansplainer, but Nash won my heart. There were reasons for his mansplaining ways, and those reasons broke my heart. I think the choice of a "mature" heroine was a smart one for him as he needed an older, wiser woman to handle him. 

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The Celebrants by Steven Rowley
Published by G.P. Putnam's Sons on May 30, 2023
Age/Genres: Adult, Fiction

Goodreads

A Big Chill for our times, celebrating decades-long friendships and promises—especially to ourselves—by the bestselling and beloved author of The Guncle.

It’s been a minute—or five years—since Jordan Vargas last saw his college friends, and twenty-eight years since their graduation when their adult lives officially began. Now Jordan, Jordy, Naomi, Craig, and Marielle find themselves at the brink of a new decade, with all the responsibilities of adulthood, yet no closer to having their lives figured out. Though not for a lack of trying. Over the years they’ve reunited in Big Sur to honor a decades-old pact to throw each other living “funerals,” celebrations to remind themselves that life is worth living—that their lives mean something, to one another if not to themselves.

But this reunion is different. They’re not gathered as they were to bolster Marielle as her marriage crumbled, to lift Naomi after her parents died, or to intervene when Craig pleaded guilty to art fraud. This time, Jordan is sitting on a secret that will upend their pact.

A deeply honest tribute to the growing pains of selfhood and the people who keep us going, coupled with Steven Rowley’s signature humor and heart, The Celebrants is a moving tale about the false invincibility of youth and the beautiful ways in which friendship helps us celebrate our lives, even amid the deepest challenges of living.

The bulk of this book takes place in Big Sur which is near Berkley (where all the characters met) which is in the Bay area. Whoa! Anyhow, this book spanned quite a few years as these college friends grew and changed. Their lives took turns, and when these turns were difficult, they called on each other for these mock funerals as a reminder that they matter and are loved. I am always here for stories of friendship, and this one was very touching though a bit painful. 

[review]

Have you read any books set in California?
Let us know in the comments!