The Book Bit: July 2016 Ed.

  First off, I had every intention of putting away four books this month.  I had this Stephen King book I was really looking forward to pop up on my read list for the month.  So I logged into my library account and was surprised!  They had six copies and only two holds for it!  Amazing!  So I reserved my copy along with my other titles for the month and waited.

  One book came in, then two and three and I couldn't figure out why I hadn't received the King book.  So I did some research.  Turns out I switched the numbers in my brain (more like wishful thinking) so there were actually two books and six holds.  Great.  So, I am hoping to get it in August.  I did, however, put away three pretty good books this month. 

"How to Be a Good Wife"- Emma Chapman

  Put this book away in twenty-four hours.  No joke.  A record (remember I have a toddler, two dogs and a husband to manage all by myself, so yes, a record it is!)  It is quick to grab you and leave you curiously flipping the pages.  At first I wasn't sure if the book was supernatural or if the woman was just plain crazy, but the not knowing is what keeps you interested until you are one hundred percent fully invested in finding the truth.  This book follows Marta as she deals with having an empty nest and being alone with her husband after being a dedicated wife and stay at home mother for years.  At first the sympathy rose inside me, but it quickly came to light that Marta's got some problems and her husband, Hector, is a controlling piece of work. I have to say this, it's a strange book.  It's set in a different country (not even sure where, actually, Chapman is pretty international) so the language barrier is sort of there and like I said, the first couple of chapters you are not even really sure what's going on.  Push through.  It's good.  It popped up on a suggestion list based off of "Gone Girl".  They are in the same wheelhouse and equally enjoyable.  I was a little disappointed in the ending, at first, but then really came around to loving it.  Because it was real.  It wasn't some cookie cutter, tie it with a bow ending.  It was real life.  And sometimes real life doesn't have the perfect ending.  Check this one out!

"Stranded With a Billionaire"- Jessica Clare

  It's a series.  And you all know how I can't resist series!  I fully expected this to be a BDSM novel (there's a post in the works), but it was not.  It, however, did not disappoint!  Like all erotic romances it's hot and heavy and had me blushing quite a bit, but Clare was careful to include a very strong minded female lead.  Which I loved.  So many times these books are just about sex (which isn't always bad) but sometimes you want a guy to like the girl for more than the fact that she's pretty.  And skinny.  And her breasts are the perfect size.  You know, like, how about her brain?  Clare hit the nail on the head with her characters, but the story can be shallow at times and contains holes (like so many romance novels).  Kirkus Reviews says it's "A Perfect Fantasy" and they got it right.  It's a fantasy.  It doesn't feel entirely real.  We follow a wealthy (ahem, billionaire) man, Logan, along with diner waitress Bronte when they meet for the first time during a tropical storm in the Bahamas.  They get trapped in an elevator.  They then become stranded together, Bronte unaware of her proximity to such a big shot and await rescue.  But of course, they don't just wait to be rescued.  Magic happens.  It's a feel good read.  So, feel good, read it.

"Fever"- Lauren DeStefano

  This is book two in The Chemical Garden Trilogy (haha, me and my series, I have so many on the hook!)  Book One is Wither.  Check it out before this one, obviously.  This book follows Rhine (awesome name, right?) and Gabriel post escape the Vaughn Mansion.  So the thing with trilogies, in my opinion, the first and last book are awesome and the middle book is just sort of there.  It holds true for this one.  There was a ton of stuff happening in this book, but it all just sort of happened.  There wasn't a lot of fanfare, I wasn't itching to turn each page like I was the last book, and it really didn't answer a lot of questions the first book brought up.  These books are set in a dystopian future where men only live to be twenty-five and women twenty.  Geneticists are always seeking ways to cure the "virus" that lives in every child born after a certain date in time.  Women are collected to breed and men to work.  If you are wealthy, you have many wives and make as many babies as possible, waiting for the cure; hoping that your children will live to see it.  The first book was all about escape, once Rhine gets collected to be a wife of a wealthy young man.  The second book is all about Rhine reuniting with her twin brother that she got snatched from.  I didn't dislike this book, but I hope the third and final installment blows my mind.

  That's all I had for this month.  It went by fast!  Any recommendations?  I love updating my reading lists!  Like, share, comment, subscribe; see you next time.