I was in a pretty major reading slump at the beginning of the month, mainly tied to election stress. It was hard to focus on literally anything other than CNN. 

In order to shake the slump, I picked up a lot of lighter books and more fast paced books. I returned to and finished the Blue Heron series, which are basically Hallmark movies in book form. I also enjoyed a couple of good mystery/thrillers. My goal was nothing too heavy and nothing that would make me think that hard, and I largely succeeded in getting myself out of the reading slump by the end of the month.

Five Stars

Open Book by Jessica Simpson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I honestly can't believe I'm giving a celeb memoir five stars, but this book was really captivating. I listened to the audio version, and something about hearing Simpson tell her own story just really fascinated me. She also got choked up at times during some of the harder parts of her story, and hearing that was really powerful. Yes there's some good celeb gossip (you know I lived for the Tony Romo shade), but this is all around a great book about a celeb, I kind of only knew about from the tabloid covers.

The Last Flight by Julie Clark
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book was un-put-downable. I just needed to know what happened after two women switched plane tickets and boarded each others' flights. One plane crashed. The other arrived at its destination carrying a different person. I stayed up so late to finish this book, and it largely did not disappoint. Fast paced, fun thriller.

Four Stars

The Best Man by Kristan Higgins
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I read the last two books in the Blue Heron series first, and decided I should go back and start at the beginning. The Best Man introduces us to Faith Holland, one of the many Holland siblings that own and work at Blue Heron vineyard. Faith was set to marry her high school sweetheart until he shared that he was gay -- on their wedding day. The book follows Faith as she tries to move on from her heartbreak. Like all the books in the series this is a light and fun read.

Anxious People by Fredrik Backman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I started reading this book right around the election, which certainly made me in anxious person. It took me a little bit to get into the book -- see anxiety -- but once the story got going, I got pulled in quickly. I really enjoyed this book and it didn't end up where I thought it would. Not as great as Beartown, but a really enjoyable Backman book.

A Study in Charlotte by Brittany Cavallaro
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was a really fun read that followed the descendants of Sherlock Holmes and Watson as they solved a mystery on their college campus. It was the book I needed to pick up after what felt like several slower and heavier books.

Troubles in Paradise by Elin Hilderbrand
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I'm sad to see this trilogy come to a close, but also glad to finally know what really happened to Russ and Rosie and their respective families. After three books, I felt largely satisfied with how many of the characters' storylines wrapped up. The only one that I didn't totally buy was the ending for Cash. It seemed too unbelievable. I also loved the surprising guest appearance at the end of the book when Margaret Quinn from Hilderbrand's Winter Street series showed up on the island.

Anything for You by Kristan Higgins
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

After struggling to read because of election anxiety, I needed to dive into something that was familiar and fun and light. Enter another book in the Blue Heron series by Kristan Higgins. You don't need to read these books in order, though I sort of wish I had. This story follows Connor, a chef and owner at the popular O'Rourke's pub. The book opens with his long time fling rejecting his proposal, and then jumps back in time to follow the characters from high school to modern day. Fast, easy and fun read. I'm planning to finish out the series in the coming weeks.

Waiting on You by Kristan Higgins
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I read these books out of order, which doesn't much matter except for maybe this one and the last book. Certainly nothin was spoiled, it was just I knew the outcome of some of the events already, so it held a bit less intrigue at parts. But still a good heart-warming story, which is what I needed.

Broken by Karin Slaughter
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I'm enjoying diving back into the older Will Trent books and finding out how he became the investigator he is in the more recent books. This book took us back to Grant County, where Dr. Sara Linton used to work and dug into a mysterious death and one of the officers involved. This was a good audio book and kept me on my toes.

Three Stars

The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This came highly recommended as a good book to escape the pandemic with, but at times I found it a little slow. In fact, I set it down for a while and picked up a different book because I needed a break. I eventually came back to it and found it did pick up a bit, but ehhh I don't know, this wasn't for me.

The Perfect Match by Kristan Higgins
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I loved reading the books in the Blue Heron series, they really pulled me out of my reading funk, but this one wasn't quite as good as the others. I'm not sure if I just couldn't get into the main character's story for a while or if it was because it was just too far fetched, but I only felt meh about this one for the first half of the book.

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