Update on Making a Dent in the Stacks

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I'm working through my books. Here is an update of how I did this week:

Books Finished:

I obtained The Editor (in hardback) from the library.  Naked in Death was a Kindle book I had previously purchased (yay me for getting through a Kindle book!). First in Line was from Hoopla on audio. 

If you like reading about the Kennedy family, you will enjoy The Editor. I have always been fascinated by Jackie Kennedy, so this was a fun read for me. Basically, the premise is a writer finally sells his novel and is surprised to find out that his editor is none other than Jackie Kennedy Onassis. I loved all of the parts of this book that dealt with Jackie. Like could not get enough of those scenes. Unfortunately, the "other" story...which is really the main story of the book...regarding the main character's relationship with his mother was just okay for me. I honestly found myself skimming these parts to get back to the scenes with Jackie.  This was a fast, easy read, and I will still recommend it. I've heard other people have the opposite reaction. They love the mother/son dynamic but don't care much about the scenes with Jackie. I also really enjoyed that the book was set in the 90s...it was fun to relive that time in history-no social media, iPhones, etc.

Rating for The Editor: 💖💖💖💖

I LOVE Nora Roberts, but this was my first J.D. Robb book (I know, where have I been?) I've known about this series forever but have always been a little unsure if it was for me. Plus, it has approximately a million books in the series...ok, I think it's up to fifty books but still. That's a LOT of books in one series. Nora Roberts is probably hands down my favorite author, so it is surprising that I'm just now giving the series a try. This is the first book I read in my Making a Dent in the Stacks plan.   This is a futuristic novel set in 2058. I thought this futuristic setting would not be my thing, but it was fine. It was kind of neat to imagine different gadgets and technology. The funny thing is though that this book was written in the 90s, so 2058 seemed very far away. Now, it doesn't seem that "futuristic." 

This series follows cop, Eve Dallas, and Roarke, a mysterious, handsome, rich as sin businessman. I enjoyed parts of this book and flew through it. However, I'm not sure if I will continue in this series. It's a little too dark and gritty for me. Of course, that is completely personal preference. It is a well written, exciting page turner. I recommend it if dark thriller/romantic suspense is your thing. Just be warned that there is some dark content. Rating for Naked in Death: 💖💖💖


I have been on a kick of reading/watching content about the Presidents and First Ladies. I will share more reviews of those books later. I finished First in Line: Presidents, Vice Presidents, and the Pursuit of Power by Kate Andersen Brower. I really enjoyed this book, which focuses on the modern day Vice Presidents' relationships with the Presidents that they serve along side. It was a fascinating look at the VP's job description and how different men have interpreted the role of VP. I highly recommend this book if you enjoy reading about U.S. history. Rating for First in Line: 💖💖💖💖


DNF Books:

Hustle, Believe, Receive by Sarah Centrella is a book I purchased several years.  I can't really remember how I found out about Sarah...maybe on a blog or Pinterest? I do remember I was going through a hard time personally when I bought this book. When I opened it up on Kindle, I had read about 10% of the book, but I started over. I just couldn't get into it. While I agree with working hard and thinking positive thoughts, I found that the writing style turned me off. For one thing, the book has hashtags all throughout, which were really distracting to me. I know I enjoyed Sarah's writings that I read online in the past, or I wouldn't have paid for this book. However, I wonder if this might be a case of "right book, wrong timing." Maybe this book was for me years ago when I bought it, but now that I'm in a much happier, peaceful place, it is not for me? At any rate, I DNF'd this book.

Hope you all have a good week and a happy Fourth of July!