Carmen

May ’22—in review

This month was a lot more successful, reading-wise, than last month. I read a total of eight books, and four of them were 4 or 5 stars, making it to my Books That Work list: Book Lovers by Emily Henry My first Emily Henry book was People We Meet on Vacation. I then read herContinueContinue reading “May ’22—in review”

March 22—in review

I only read two books this month. Well, I should say I only finished two books. I read a ton this month, but there were only two books that I started and finished and read cover to cover. One was a solid 3 stars (I liked it, it was fine), and Vladimir was my 5-starContinueContinue reading “March 22—in review”

February 22—in review

I’ve been wanting to start a blog series featuring books I read each month and talking about what I think works in them and why. Reading is the best way to learn the craft of fiction, but reading for fun isn’t the same as reading to learn. So this series will be a place whereContinueContinue reading “February 22—in review”

Favorite (romance) reads of 2021

Welcome to the final post of my favorite reads of 2021 series! This year was the year of the Romance (mostly romcom) novel, for a couple reasons: I beta read another writer-mom’s* romcom this summer and absolutely loved it. We’ve since become friends and CPs and she’s recommended so many great romance novels that IContinueContinue reading “Favorite (romance) reads of 2021”

Favorite (YA + nonfic) reads of 2021

The third post in the Best of 2021 series (previously: fave litfic and Gothic reads) YA (contemporary) Gabi, a Girl in Pieces by Isabel Quintero Gabi Hernandez chronicles her last year in high school in her diary: college applications, Cindy’s pregnancy, Sebastian’s coming out, the cute boys, her father’s meth habit, and the food sheContinueContinue reading “Favorite (YA + nonfic) reads of 2021”

Favorite (Lit Fic) Reads of 2021

The second post in this Best Of 2021 series: Literary Fiction (or, the list that gave me the worst book hangovers) The Turnout by Megan Abbott Bestselling and award-winning author Megan Abbott’s revelatory, mesmerizing, and game-changing new novel set against the hothouse of a family-run ballet studio, and an interloper who arrives to bring downContinueContinue reading “Favorite (Lit Fic) Reads of 2021”

Favorite (Gothic) Reads of 2021

2021 has been an amazing year for reading. I branched out into new-to-me genres that ended up heavily influencing (read: improving) my writing. I didn’t fully appreciate how many incredible books I read this year until I sat down to write this post (my first for this site, yay!), so I’m going to split itContinueContinue reading “Favorite (Gothic) Reads of 2021”