Hello Readers! Once again I’m scrambling to catch up on posts and blog hops. My middle child has moved to her first apartment (cue all the mixed emotions), and I’ve been busy helping her get ready—shopping, packing, moving, and then cleaning the room she left behind. 😉 It never fails that these big life events coincide with the end/start of the month. So bear with me as I catch up. <3

My March haul is a big one. But mostly because I added so many new ARCs. 10!! It never seems to fail that all my requests and invitations come in at the same time. My summer will be packed with early reads as usual. I’m trying hard to be selective and only accept those I know I really want to read. But I am super excited about all of these! I’m also having too much fun reading my backlist books to quit now.

Let’s see what I’ve added to my shelves!

(Link to synopsis on Goodreads through the book title.)

My ARCs

Growing Up Biden by Valerie Biden Owens is an unsolicited ARC I received from Celadon Books. The early reviews are good and it’s not a long book at all, so I’m excited to pick this one up.

Synopsis:

A memoir from Valerie Biden Owens, longtime political strategist, one of the first female campaign managers in United States history, and younger sister of Joe Biden.

In this revelatory, engrossing memoir, Valerie Biden Owens shares stories from growing up in Delaware as the only daughter of the close-knit Biden family. Later, after the tragic accident that killed her niece and sister-in-law, Valerie moved in to help raise Beau and Hunter while then-Senator Biden commuted to Washington, DC.

But beyond their deep sibling relationship, Valerie has been in lockstep with her brother throughout both of their political careers. She has run almost all of her brother’s political campaigns—starting from his run for high school class president. From speechwriting to debate preparation, Valerie has played an integral role in shaping her brother’s message and strategy.

Growing Up Biden details Valerie’s decades-long professional career in politics, and her fundamental presence in her brother’s life as a close confidante. This memoir, full of candor and warmth, brings readers into the Biden home, watching as the siblings were raised to live with deep empathy, to work hard, and to help wherever they can.

Expected April 12, 2022

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I received an invitation a few days ago from BooksForward to read several titles and Just the Two of Us by Jo Wilde is the first one to be publishing soon. I’m not sure I’ll get to it by the publishing date, but as soon as I can!

Synopsis:

A couple on the brink of divorce after 35 years of marriage gets a second chance to rediscover their love now that a pandemic lockdown has forced them to spend more time together.

Julie and Michael Marshall have stayed together through thick and thin, through better and worse — and, for the last few years, it has mostly been worse. As their thirty-fifth wedding anniversary approaches, Julie realizes something: she doesn’t want to pretend anymore.

Divorce papers at the ready, she’s just about to have The Talk with Michael when everything changes. Lockdown begins and Julie and Michael face the greatest terror they can imagine: uninterrupted time with each other. But, when stripped of all distraction and forced to meet eyes across the dinner table, could it be that Julie and Michael might find a way back to where they first began?

Expected April 12, 2022 (first published July 9, 2020)

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The second book I was invited to read through Booksforward is Blame It on the Brontes by Annie Sereno. When I saw that Sam @ We Live and Breathe Books enjoyed this one, I felt confident I would too since we so often agree on books. 😉

Synopsis:

She’s going to write her own happy ending.

English professor Athena Murphy is an authority on the novels of the Brontë sisters. But as they say in academia, publish or perish. To save her job, Athena decides to write a biography of C.L. Garland, the author heating up bestseller lists with spicy retellings of classic literature. Tracking down the reclusive writer and uncovering her secret identity, though, means Athena must return to her small midwestern hometown where Garland—and her ex-boyfriend, Thorne Kent—live.

Seeing Thorne again reminds Athena that real life never lives up to fiction. He was the Heathcliff to her Catherine, the Mr. Rochester to her Jane. Not only did their college breakup shatter that illusion, but they also broke each other’s hearts again a second time. Now she has to see him nearly every…single…day.

The only solution is to find C.L. Garland as quickly as possible, write the book, and get the heck out of town. As her deadline looms and the list of potential C.L. Garlands dwindles, Athena and Thorne bicker and banter their way back to friendship. Could it really be true that the third time’s a charm?

Athena and Thorne have a love story only a Brontë could write, and the chance for their own happily-ever-after, but first, they’ll need to forgive the mistakes of the past.

Expected May 3, 2022

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I’m a sucker for the Groundhog Day trope, so I was happy to get approved for See You Yesterday by Rachel Lynn Solomon.

Synopsis:

From the author of Today Tonight Tomorrow comes a magical romance in the vein of Groundhog Day about a girl forced to relive her disastrous first day of college—only to discover that her nemesis is stuck in the time loop with her.

Barrett Bloom is hoping college will be a fresh start after a messy high school experience. But when school begins on September 21st, everything goes wrong. She’s humiliated by the know-it-all in her physics class, she botches her interview for the college paper, and at a party that night, she accidentally sets a frat on fire. She panics and flees, and when she realizes her roommate locked her out of their dorm, she falls asleep in the common room.

The next morning, Barrett’s perplexed to find herself back in her dorm room bed, no longer smelling of ashes and crushed dreams. It’s September 21st. Again. And after a confrontation with Miles, the guy from Physics 101, she learns she’s not alone—he’s been trapped for months.

When her attempts to fix her timeline fail, she agrees to work with Miles to find a way out. Soon they’re exploring the mysterious underbelly of the university and going on wild, romantic adventures. As they start falling for each other, they face the universe’s biggest unanswered question yet: what happens to their relationship if they finally make it to tomorrow?

Expected May 17, 2022

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I was invited to read Meant to Be Mine by Hannah Orenstein. This will be my first novel by the author. I’m loving the concept of this one!

Synopsis:

From the author of Playing with Matches, a sweeping love story in the vein of Rebecca Serle and Chloe Benjamin about a woman who knows the date she’ll meet her true love—only he isn’t quite as perfect as she always imagined. 

What if you knew exactly when you’d meet the love of your life? Edie Meyer knows. When her Grandma Gloria was a young woman, she had a vision of the exact day she would meet her soul mate—and then Grandpa Ray showed up.

Since then, Gloria has accurately predicted the day every single member of the family has met their match. Edie’s day arrives on June 24, 2022, when she’s twenty-nine years old. She has been waiting for it half her life. That morning, she boards an airplane to her twin sister’s surprise engagement, and when a handsome musician sits beside her, she knows it’s meant to be.

But fate comes with more complications than Edie expected and she can’t fight the nagging suspicion that her perfect guy doesn’t have perfect timing. After a tragedy and a shocking revelation rock Edie’s carefully constructed world, she’s forced to consider whether love chooses us, as simple as destiny, or if we choose it ourselves.

Expected June 7, 2022

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My third selection from BooksForward is The Life We Almost Had by Amelia Henley. I couldn’t resist the first line of the synopsis for this one. I do love an atypical love story!

Synopsis:

This is not a typical love story, but it’s our love story.

Anna wasn’t looking for love when Adam swept her off her feet but there was no denying their connection, and she believed they would be together forever.

Years later, cracks have appeared in their relationship. Anna is questioning whether their love can really be eternal when a cruel twist of fate delivers a crushing blow, and Anna and Adam are completely lost to one another. Now, Anna needs Adam more than ever, but the way back to him has life-changing consequences.

Is a second chance at first love really worth the sacrifice? Anna needs to decide and time is running out…

A beautiful and emotional love story that asks, how far would you go for a second chance at first love? Perfect for fans of The Man Who Didn’t Call and Miss You.

Expected June 14, 2022 (first published July 23, 2020)

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The early reviews for Long Story Short by Serena Kaylor are glowing, and as a mom who homeschools, I couldn’t resist this one.

Synopsis:

Growing up homeschooled in Berkeley, California, Beatrice Quinn is a statistical genius who has dreamed her whole life of discovering new mathematical challenges at a school like Oxford University. She always thought the hardest part would be getting in, not convincing her parents to let her go. But while math has always made sense to Beatrice, making friends is a problem she hasn’t been able to solve, so her parents are worried about sending her halfway across the world. The compromise: the Connecticut Shakespearean Summer Academy and a detailed list of teenage milestones to check off. She has six weeks to show her parents she can pull off the role of “normal” teenager and won’t spend the rest of her life hiding in a library.

Unfortunately, hearts and hormones don’t follow any rules, and there is no equation for teenage interactions. When she’s adopted by a group of eclectic theater kids, and immediately makes an enemy of the popular—and, annoyingly gorgeous—British son of the camp founders, she realizes that relationships are trickier than calculus. With her future on the line, this girl genius stumbles through illicit parties, double dog dares, and more than your fair share of Shakespeare. But before the final curtain falls, will Beatrice realize that there’s more to life than she can find in the pages of a book?

In this sparkling debut from Serena Kaylor, Long Story Short is a YA rom-com about a homeschooled math genius who finds herself out of her element at a theater summer camp and learns that life—and love—can’t be lived by the (text)book.

Expected July 26, 2022

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The Witchery by S. Isabelle is an ARC that was included in my subscription box. I’d never heard of this YA debut, but now I’m super intrigued.

Synopsis:

A bewitching debut by S. Isabelle, perfect for fans of Maggie Stiefvater, Zoraida Córdova, and Leigh Bardugo!

THE HAUNTING SEASON IS HERE AND THE WOLVES ARE AWAKE.

Haelsford, Florida is a Hellmouth. Or at least, that’s what Logan, a baby witch struggling to control her powers, thinks as she arrives to the witchtown to begin the new school year at Mesmortes Coven Academy. She is immediately taken under the wing of the infamous Red Three. Iris is a deathwitch who wants nothing more than to break the town’s curse; Jailah is one of the most powerful witches at the academy but her thirst for power may lead her down a dark path; and Thalia, the talented greenwitch, is on the run from her religious family and a past that still haunts her.

Fear and prejudice still fuel the uneasy truce between humans and witches who are forced to work together when the Haunting Season begins and Wolves rise from the swamp to feed. With this approaching, two Hammersmitt boys prepare to make their first sacrifices to the witches in exchange for protection. But as they become involved with the Mesmortes witches’ plan to end the Wolves’ reign of terror once and for all, old dangers lie in wait.

The cost to break the curse may be greater than any witch or human could ever know.

Expected July 26, 2022

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Since I enjoyed Minnie Darke’s previous book The Lost Love Song—one I still think doesn’t get enough attention (My Review)—I was invited to read her next one, With Love From Wish & Co.

Synopsis:

A heartwarming novel about what we are prepared to give–and give up–in the name of love, from the author of Star-Crossedand The Lost Love Song. 

Two boxes, both alike in size and shape . . .

Marnie Fairchild is the brains and talent behind Wish & Co., a boutique store that offers a bespoke gift-buying service to wealthy clients with complicated lives. Brian Charlesworth is Marnie’s most prized customer, and today she’s wrapping the perfect anniversary gift for his wife, Suzanne . . . and a birthday present for his mistress, Leona. What could possibly go wrong?

For years, Marnie’s had her heart set on moving Wish & Co. to the historic shopfront once owned by her grandfather. When the chance to bid for the property unexpectedly arises, Marnie–distracted–makes an uncharacteristic mistake. Soon Brian is in a fight to rescue his marriage, and Marnie is scrabbling to keep her dreams alive. With the situation so complicated, the last thing Marnie needs is to fall for Brian and Suzanne’s gorgeous son, Luke. In the end, will it be her head or her heart that wins out? 

Expected August 16, 2022

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I adored Erin Hahn’s recent YA title Never Saw You Coming (My Review), and I was excited to be approved for her debut adult rom-com Built to Last!

Synopsis:

Two childhood sweethearts find a second chance at love in this adult romance debut from a critically acclaimed young adult author.

Shelby Springfield has spent the last ten years trying to overcome her past, sanding it away like she does the rough spots on the vintage furniture finds she makes over. But as a former child star, it’s hard to forget a mediocre pop career, a meltdown widely documented by the paparazzi, and a huge public break with her former co-star Lyle Jessup. It’s also hard to forget her other co-star and childhood sweetheart, Cameron Riggs — the one who got away.

Anytime Shelby has called, Cameron has come running… And then he runs right off again to chase stories around the world by making documentaries, too scared to admit what he really wants. But when Lyle stirs the pot, getting the two back in the spotlight with a home renovation show, Cameron can’t help but come on board.

There’s something in it for everyone — almost. Cameron wants to come home and set down some roots. Shelby wants to prove to the world she’s not the messy party girl anymore. And Lyle wants to twist the screws on his two childhood friends who had more chemistry than he could dream of with anyone. Sparks and sawdust fly as Shelby and Cameron film the pilot for “Homemade” and battle Lyle’s shenanigans at every turn.

Erin Hahn’s sparkling rom com debut, Built to Last, is a second chance romance sure to have readers falling in love fast. 

Expected October 18, 2022

My Paperbackswap Books

I added some books from Paperbackswap this month, as well. It’s fun when those books that have been waiting on my wishlist for years finally become available.

• Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief by Lawrence Wright
• Lord John and the Private Matter (Lord John Grey, #1) by Diana Gabaldon
• Underwater by Marisa Reichardt
• Violent Ends by Shaun David Hutchinson and various YA authors
• First & Then by Emma Mills

Thrifted Finds

My husband and I took a quick trip to Austin and I stopped in at a Savers thrift store, one of my favorite chains, which I mentioned recently on Let’s Talk Bookish: Buying Secondhand Books. I only found two books this time, though.

• 28 Summers by Elin Hilderbrand
• Dead in the Family (Sookie Stackhouse, #10) by Charlaine Harris

My Book HookUp Subscription Box

I received my quarterly YA subscription box from The Book HookUp this month. You can see my unboxing post here. I included The Witchery above with my ARCs, but I also received Loveless by Alice Oseman, which I’m excited to get to!

Amazon First Reads

I chose Scarlet Carnation by Laila Ibrahim as my Amazon First Reads choice for March. It’s an historical fiction novel about racial injustice and class divides during WWI.

Available April 1, 2022

My kitty Sophie insisted on being included in my haul photo. 😻 What a haul! Have you read any of these books? Did you add any of them to your TBR? Let me know in the comments!

Happy Wandering!