Tag: relationships

Book Review | After I Do by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Posted September 6, 2024 by Haze in Book Reviews / 0 Comments

After I Do by Taylor Jenkins Reid

When Lauren and Ryan’s marriage reaches the breaking point, they come up with an unconventional plan. They decide to take a year off in the hopes of finding a way to fall in love again. One year apart, and only one rule: they cannot contact each other. Aside from that, anything goes.

Lauren embarks on a journey of self-discovery, quickly finding that her friends and family have their own ideas about the meaning of marriage. These influences, as well as her own healing process and the challenges of living apart from Ryan, begin to change Lauren’s ideas about monogamy and marriage. She starts to question: When you can have romance without loyalty and commitment without marriage, when love and lust are no longer tied together, what do you value? What are you willing to fight for?

This is a love story about what happens when the love fades. It’s about staying in love, seizing love, forsaking love, and committing to love with everything you’ve got. And above all, After I Do is the story of a couple caught up in an old game—and searching for a new road to happily ever after.

For the Reading Challenge(s):
2024 Audiobook Challenge
2024 Library Love Reading Challenge

The Reason

It’s Taylor Jenkins Reid! And it’s Julia Whelan narrating! I don’t need any other reasons.

The Quotes

“Isn’t it nice … once you’ve outgrown the ideas of what life should be and you just enjoy what it is.”

“Here is what I can tell you. All that matters in this life is that you try. All that matters is that you open your heart, give everything you have, and keep trying.”

“I know it will be OK because everything is OK in the end. And if it’s not OK, it’s not the end.”

“I’ve come to realize that resentment is malignant. That it starts small and festers. That it grows wild and unfettered inside of you until it’s so expansive that it has worked its way into the furthest, deepest parts of you and holds on for dear life.”

The Narrator(s)

Julia Whelan. She’s the GOAT!

My Thoughts

TJR is so good at writing about relationships and family. While reading this book, I kept thinking that she really knew how to capture the essence of relationships, the everyday things that make up a life together, and it’s just so relatable. I don’t necessarily agree with some of her take on relationships, but I do feel that she definitely captures them well.

This book isn’t my favorite from TJR, but I did like it and it made me appreciate my own relationship with my husband very much. We’ve got our own ups and downs, but I think the one thing we do right is that we are always interested in each other. We talk all the time and it never gets boring, we play together, we listen to each other and never take the other for granted. Don’t get me wrong, we have disagreements and bad days too, but it’s always us against the problem.

One of the things I love most about reading is that it make me think and reflect on my own life, and I think this one did a great job of it. I’m not the biggest fan of the story and the MCs themselves, but it was fascinating to see how their marriage worked.

My Rating

⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.

Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?

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Top Ten Tuesday | Books Featuring Mothers

Posted August 19, 2024 by Haze in Top Ten Tuesday, Weekly Book Memes / 25 Comments

Welcome to Top Ten Tuesday, a weekly bookish meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl that features a different bookish topic every week.

Today’s topic is Relationship Freebie (Pick a relationship type and choose characters who fit that relationship as it relates to you. So, characters you’d like to date, be friends with, be enemies with, etc. Bookish families you’d like to be a part of, characters you’d want as your siblings, pets you’d like to take for yourself, etc.)

To be clear right off the bat, I don’t actually want a relationship with many of the mothers featured in these books (some are great but most are not!). I was having a hard time thinking of books with characters I’d like to be in some kind of relationship with, especially mother/daughter relationships, so I thought I’d just do books featuring mothers regardless of whether they’re good or bad.

Surprise! There are a lot of bad mothers in fiction… and nonfiction. Also surprise! There seems to be a lot of Asians with complicated relationships with their mothers.

Top Ten Books Featuring Mothers

  1. Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng – A couple of different but equally complicated mother/daughter relationships represented here. I watched the show but haven’t read the book. The show was really good, but so intense and heavy too, and it makes me a little scared to read the book, but I will eventually!
  2. Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn – Someone said about this quote from the book:
    “Even I, in public, was a beloved child. Once her period of mourning for Marian was over, she’d parade me into town, smiling and teasing me, tickling me as she spoke with people on the sidewalks. When we got home, she’d trail off to her room like an unfinished sentence, and I would sit outside with my face pressed against her door and replay the day in my head, searching for clues to what I’d done to displease her.”
    about how it made them realize that you can be a well-cared-for child, but still be unloved, and that alone made me read the book.
  3. On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong – This book is presented as a letter from a son to his mother who cannot read. It’s also presented as fiction but the feelings are so raw and real, it wouldn’t be hard for me to believe it was all true. I read this recently and I love how beautiful and lyrical it is.
  4. Please Look After Mom by Kyung-Sook Shin – I haven’t read this one but I am fascinated because it’s written in second person POV and I’ve heard a lot of praise for it. I’m a little averse to reading books about complicated relationships with Asian moms in general because it’s a little close to home for me, but maybe my curiosity will win out.
  5. The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan – Same deal as the above for why I haven’t read it, but sort of worse. I couldn’t even finish the movie because of all the feelings it dragged up.
  6. Room by Emma Donoghue – A mom and her child locked in a room for the first five years of his life. It was so powerful and painful to read. And I loved the movie too.
  7. From Cradle to Stage by Virginia Hanlon Grohl – I just found out about this book last week and have requested a hold from my library! It’s from the POV of mothers to famous rock stars and I’m excited to read it!
  8. I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy – Well, this one was painful, and I guess the other side of the coin of how mothers to famous people can be horrible too.
  9. Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus – Ooh, just realized that Brie Larson acts as the mother in this film adaptation as well as Room. This one is a little more lighthearted than Room, but still covers some sensitive topics.
  10. A Sorceress Comes to Call by T. Kingfisher – I just found out about this new book from T. Kingfisher and I’m excited to read it! All I know is that there’s a lot of reference to the protagonist’s mother in the description, so I’m just assuming that it fits the topic!

Have you read any of these books? What did you think of them? Would you read any of these books?

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Book Review | The Soulmate by Sally Hepworth

Posted May 22, 2024 by Haze in Book Reviews / 0 Comments

The Soulmate by Sally Hepworth

A thrilling, addictive novel about marriage, betrayal, and the secrets that push us to the edge…

Picture a lovely cottage on a cliff, with sloping lawns, walking paths, and beautiful flowers. It’s Gabe and Pippa Gerard’s dream home in a sleepy coastal town. But their perfect house hides something sinister. The tall cliffs have become a popular spot for people to end their lives. Over the past several months, Gabe comes to their rescue, literally talking them off the ledge.

Until one day, he doesn’t. When Pippa discovers Gabe knew the victim, the questions spiral. . . .Did the victim jump? Was she pushed? And would Gabe, the love of Pippa’s life, her soulmate . . . lie? As the perfect façade of their marriage begins to crack, the deepest and darkest secrets begin to unravel. Because sometimes, the most convincing lies are the ones we tell ourselves.

For the Reading Challenge(s):
2024 Library Love Challenge

The Reason

Several people in my online book club was reading it and I got enticed by their comments about it.

The Quotes

“Sometimes,” I said thoughtfully, “the road to our destination leads us in a direction we don’t want to take. But does it matter, in the end, if it gets us where we want to go?”

“We trust people based on the strangest, most arbitrary things, none of which have any bearing on whether or not you are inherently good.”

“The thing about marriage a lot of people don’t understand is that you don’t get everything. Some people get passion, others get security. Some get companionship. Children. Money. Wisdom. Status. Then there is trust and fidelity.”

My Thoughts

I loved the whole ride! There were so many twists and turns and you don’t know who to trust and what is actually going on. I really enjoyed speculating and coming up with the most outlandish theories, and yet there was a lot to the story that was meaningful and important. I loved that it spoke to relationship dynamics, blind love, communication, trust and fidelity. The characters were flawed and stupid and I loved that for the story. It’s very human, and we all do stupid things.

My Feels

This book made me frustrated and angry at times. I feel like there’s so much unnecessary tragedy and unresolved issues but I also recognize that sometimes you don’t get everything all wrapped up nicely. It worked out in the book and it was a great story and very well told. I had a lot of fun reading it!

My Rating

⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.

Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?

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Top Ten Tuesday | Favorite Book Relationships

Posted February 12, 2024 by Haze in Top Ten Tuesday, Weekly Book Memes / 50 Comments

Welcome to Top Ten Tuesday, a weekly bookish meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl that features a different bookish topic every week.

Today’s topic is Love Freebie and I’m doing my Top Ten Favorite Book Relationships

Happy Valentine’s Day! This list will include all kinds of relationships; romantic, platonic, familial, symbiotic… I wanted to feature all the characters I love and their love for each other.

Top Ten Favorite Book Relationships

  1. Anne Shirley and Gilbert Blythe from Anne of Green Gables – I think the books represent the evolution of their relationship a lot better than the mini-series but it was just so sweet to see them grow up and grow older together. They were horrible to each other when they were children, but once they grew up, they were just perfect together.
  2. Jaime Lannister and Brienne of Tarth from A Song of Ice and Fire – An actual enemies to (sort-of) lovers story? I’d say respected comrade, but it’s clear they trauma-bonded in some way and feel deeply for each other. Look, I’m not saying that it’s a healthy relationship, but it was clearly a meaningful one. It was just amazing to see the way they had to trust each other, first out of necessity, then later out of respect and feelings.
  3. Darrow and Sevro from the Red Rising series – Darrow and Sevro are my ride-or-die people. I can’t bear it when they are at odds with each other. I need them to be okay with each other, more than I need Darrow with Virginia. If anything happened to their relationship, I will riot!
  4. Aurianne and Marcus from The Light Bearer – This is a very underrated book that I love with my whole heart. I love Aurianne because she’s one of the strongest, smartest, bravest woman I’ve ever met (read about), and Marcus is an incredibly intelligent strategist. And while they are both amazing as individuals, together they are the most powerful of power couples, and I love them!
  5. Vargo, Ren, and Gray from the Rook and Rose series – This isn’t a throuple, I promise, but a very unique relationship that comes from complete love and trust for each other. I love Vargo especially because of how badass his reputation is to everyone else, but how vulnerable he is with Ren and Gray. I am in love with them all!
  6. Pi and Richard Parker from Life of Pi – This was one of the most intense relationships I loved reading about. I don’t think Richard Parker loved Pi in any way except symbiotically, but they had such a beautiful relationship, nonetheless. I mean, not that it’s anything I’d want to aspire to, but in the context of the story. From fear of each other, to tolerance, to trust. Oh, I don’t know, it’s just such a complex thing to read about and it elicits so many feelings.
  7. Rocky and Ryland Grace from Project Hail Mary – Amaze! I am in love with Rocky, and I love Ryland Grace more because I see him through Rocky’s POV. I love how they bonded. I love how they learned about each other, how they adapted and respected each other’s needs, customs, and more. It’s just such an example for how we should treat people different from us. Do you agree? Fist my bump!
  8. Peter and Bea from The Book of Strange New Things – Full disclosure, it’s been 10 years since I read this book and I don’t remember very much, but I remember thinking that this was one of most interesting books I’ve ever read that showcased what a marriage was like, and this while Peter and his wife, Bea, lived on different planets for pretty much the whole book! You know what, I should probably reread this sometime soon.
  9. Alice and Leonard from This Time Tomorrow – This was one of the more recent books I read, so you can read more about what I thought about the book here. Alice and Leonard are daughter and father, and I loved how they loved each other. I loved how present Leonard was for his daughter. I loved how Alice realized that having more time with her father was what was most important for her. It was just such a wholesome relationship, with all its beauty and bittersweetness.
  10. Katniss and Peeta from The Hunger Games series – I’m sorry if it’s overdone and overrated, but there are so many reasons why I love The Hunger Games, and Peeta with Katniss is just one of the reasons. Peeta accepts Katniss as she is, with all her flaws, and he’s totally willing to die for her. It might have taken Katniss some time to feel her feelings, but that’s part of what I loved about their relationship; that it wasn’t insta-love. They had real reasons for falling for each other, each in their own time.

Who are your favorite book relationships? Why do you like them? Have a Happy Valentine’s Day!

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