ShayKay's Review of The Right Swipe by Alisha Rai

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

Rhiannon Hunter may have revolutionized romance in the digital world, but in real life, she only swipes right on her career - and the occasional hookup. The cynical dating app creator controls her love life with a few key rules: Nude pics are by invitations only, if someone stands you up, block them with extreme prejudice, protect your heart. Only there aren't any rules to govern her attraction to her newest match, former pro-football player Samson Lima. The sexy seemingly sweet hunk woos her one magical night.....and disappears. Rhi thought she'd buried her hurt over Samson ghosting her until he suddenly surfaces months later, still big, still beautiful - and in league with a business rival. He says he won't fumble their second chance, but she's wary. A temporary physical partnership is one thing, but a merger of hearts? Surely that's too high a risk....

Thoughts Before Reading

This really sounds perfect right now! I think it is going to be a fast and easy read, which is definitely what I need in my life right now. I'll be the first to admit that it is nice to read things that you don't have to put much thought into it because it is easy to just escape reality and I can bounce in and out of the book with no issues. I've actually already read the first couple of pages and I love it! I'm at the part where she just learned about Samson being apart of the competitor's company and let me tell you it is already getting so interesting! I can't wait to see how it goes. The synopsis makes it seems like she does give him another chance but I wonder if he works for that because Rhi sounds like a person who doesn't just let a guy walk right back into her life since he stood her up so I'm hoping for some resistance. I usually don't like it when the synopsis gives everything away so I'm really curious to see just how much has been given away within the synopsis because right now it seems like pretty much everything has been sold in it.

Half-Way Through Thoughts

I'm not technically a full 50% into the book yet but I think I'm at the perfect spot to stop and reflect on everything that has happened. First, let me say I knew this was one of the rom-com-y books but I didn't know how much in the romance genre it was and let me tell you there are some scenes in this book that will definitely push you off your feet if you aren't used to reading intimate scenes. I'm not a prude I've read books that have sex scenes but these ones are intense you guys and there have been quite a few and I'm not even 50% through the book yet. That being said I would say that they are semi-important to the story because that's all Samson and Rhi's relationship is. But if you read the book you'll see that there are a lot of undertones of both of these character's backgrounds. I really love how the book doesn't just throw all of the backstories right at you and you as the reader slowly read the undertones along with their backstories. I'm living for this drama though and I love both Samson and Rhi so much! I feel like at this point we kind of learned everything about Samson's backstory but only snippets of Rhi's and it just started to implode a little bit. I want to know what happened between her and Peter from Swype, all we know so far is that she left the company on very bad terms which led to everyone in this tech field to think horrible things about Rhi. Rhi does put on a very hard exterior but she seems like once you get to know her or even her close friends and family really see the true side of her and the public only knows the drama from the fallout with Swype so I think we are about to get more into her history with Peter and I'm very curious!

I haven't talked about Samson much but I love his character so much! His story just comes out a lot easier than Rhi's. Even though he says a lot about himself. Both of these two main characters are both likable people that have baggage, which everyone has baggage. Samson has a lot of different things going for him and I think I love them both but they are both guarded, definitely Rhi more than Samson. I want to rush through this book just to see how it goes but just all romance books they are going to end up together but how are they and when are they kind of thing. It's just intense right now.

After Thoughts

I just finished the book and Ohmylanta! I loved this book so much! There were never any down moments throughout the whole entire book. There are some pretty sexy scenes so people who complained about 50 Shades should probably stay away from this one. But it was overall so cute and a fun read! I loved Rai's writing style too, I really need to look into her other writings! This is the first book in a series and there are a lot of things left unanswered such as does Rhi ever end up working with Belle? Does this relationship work out in the end? I don't think the book itself really ended in a cliff hanger but there were unanswered questions. Even though there were unanswered questions that literally pop up in the last couple of chapters I still gave the book a 5 out of 5 stars because I literally could not put this book down! It was so good! 

I really hope the next book follows these two because I love them as the main characters. I think it would be cool to follow Katrina a little bit because I want to know how she ended up being so anxious because it sounded like she lived a pretty interesting life up until her husband died. I don't know, I think I will definitely pick up the next book even if it follows some of the side characters. I think the next book, Girl Gone Viral, follows Katrina so I'll definitely pick it up. I want to learn more about her for sure. It doesn't sound like Rhiannon and Samson are going to be in the book, or they'll just make flash appearances since she's roommates with Katrina but we'll just have to find out in April 2020. I can't believe I already have a book on my 2020 watch list! I usually only do backlog books with a few exceptions here and there.

ShayKay's 2020 Reading Goals

I don't usually make new year goals in my life, especially not in reading. Mostly because I'm such a mood reader, and my books change so much throughout the year. But I think a few reading goals for the year will be beneficial and something to help structure my reading a little bit.

One of the biggest things I want to do is finish some of my current series that I have going on right now such as Me Before You trilogy by Jojo Moyes and To All of the Boys I Loved Before Trilogy by Jenny Han, both of which I only have the last books. A more adventurous one is the In Death series, I would've loved to have been caught up in time for the 50th book in February but that is clearly not going to happen since I'm only book 25 out of 50 and the 50th one comes out in just a couple of months. Also on that note, I would love to get a book signed by Nora Roberts at one of her book signings, she usually has a signing at her husband's bookstore for all of her new releases and that is only about 3-4 hours away. 

I would love to try Seanan McGuire's books, the Wayward Children series I think that's what it is called. They sound cute and their short reads. I think I've been staying away from them because their expensive and since their so expensive I've wanted to get the physical books but I can never find them in my bookstore either. So maybe 2020 will be the year for that.

Most of the books I read are older books or books that aren't very public. Lately, I've been reading some newer books thanks to Book of the Month and I would love to continue that trend a little more. I like being able to have an opinion in books that everyone is talking about instead of hearing about these books and think they would be fun to read but never actually pick them up for years. So it would be nice to continue on reading books as they come out.

That being said I would love to get caught up with my Book of the Month books and continue to read them during the months that I've ordered them. I have a pretty decent pile of backlogged books and I need to get caught up on them. Eventually, I would love to have my crate bookshelf filled with Book of the Month books, which is more of a long term goal.

It would be nice to get some more arcs, I don't know why I just think it is cool to have. I got my first one this year and I'm just now picking it up. There is definitely more pressure reading a book when it is an arc, but I usually only try to get ones I'm genuinely curious about.

As for my blogging experience, I would like to upload more regularly which I definitely go through spurts where I'm uploaded like crazy and then dead silence for a few weeks than back at it hardcore. As for the content I still love my reviews I think I finally got a layout I like the most and in my head makes the most sense. I think it would be fun to sprinkle in some book tags here and there. I thought about doing one every week but I think it gets too repetitious. Another thing I think would be fun and a little more spice to it is uploading pictures within my reading experience, which definitely ties into my Bookstagram I have started. I haven't really gotten the picture side down yet but I really want to try and keep up with that. Another idea I've been playing around with is reviews that are more comparisons. I want to read books that have movies, maybe even TV shows, coming out and read the book first, make the book review, and then go back and make a comparison between the book and movie where. I've been really captivated by movie comparisons and I definitely get my inner geek showing because I love taking notes and comparing the movie to the book is one my favorite past times. Another thing within my reviews is that I definitely want to go back to have pros and cons. I think at least three in each is perfect and I feel like I get better at explaining why I loved this part but hated that part. I try to stay spoiler-free and through that, I feel like I lose some of the details I should have in a review. 

So those are my bookish new year goals for 2020 and we'll see how it goes keeping up with these this year.

ShayKay's Review of Little White Lies by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

GoodReads: Little White Lies by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Synopsis from the Book

Eighteen-year-old auto mechanic Sawyer Taft did not expect her estranged grandmother to show up at her apartment door and offer her a six-figure contract to participate in the debutante season. And she definitely never imagined she would accept. But when she realizes that immersing herself in her grandmother's "society" might mean discovering the answer to the biggest mystery of her life - her father's identity - she signs on the dotted line and braces herself for a year of makeovers, big dresses, bigger egos, and a whole lot of bless your heart. The one thing she doesn't expect to find is friendship, but as she's drawn into a group of debutantes with scandalous, dangerous secrets of their own, Sawyer quickly discovers that her family isn't the only mainstay of high society with skeletons in their closet. There are people in her grandmother's glittering world who are not what they appear, and no one wants Sawyer poking her nose into the past. As she navigates the twisted relationship between her new friends and their powerful parents, Sawyer's search for the truth about her own origins is just the beginning.

Set in the world of debutante balls, grand estates, and rolling green hills, Little White Lies combines a charming setting, a classic fish-out-of-water story, and the sort of layered mystery only author Jennifer Lynn Barnes can pull off.

Thoughts Before Reading

Just reading this synopsis makes me think this book is going to be right up my ally. It sounds like it is going to be funny and follow a girl who doesn't know much about her past or where she comes from. I'm curious if she knew her grandmother or if she just found her, and if she just found her then how does she that this is her granddaughter? I wonder how this story is going to go? It sounds like it is going to be one of those short and sweet books but it is a series. I can't wait to find out how it goes.

Halfway Through Check-In

I know this book is taking me a minute to read through it but it's really because I've been busy. I feel like I start this section this way every single time, but it's really true. Reading books instead of listening to them will always take me longer, especially right now while I'm working and going to school. The book itself is pretty good, a solid three stars right now. The story itself is actually pretty good so far, and it is pretty expected from what the synopsis gives us, and it's one of those books you don't have to think about to get it, and I like it so far. But the thing that is really driving me nuts about the book so far? Well it is something that shouldn't bother me but it really aggravates me, and that is the freaking pictures! Every chapter ends with pictures and don't get me wrong I can get behind illustrations that goes with the story and make sense to what I just read, and usually want it. But before they were explained to me I kept looking at them and it was so annoying because they make no sense whatsoever. Even now that it's somewhat explained I'm still left confused and aggravated by them. Are they supposed to set up the next chapter? Their at the end of ever chapter, and it takes about the first fifteen chapters or so to even learn what they are supposed to be but even the explanation doesn't fit the pictures. So I'm not sure what I'm supposed to take away from them. Maybe by the time I finish this book it will be fully explained but for now they just really aggravate me. I try not to even look at them anymore since they are so aggravating to me.

Final Thoughts

I just realized that I never finished my final thoughts on this book and I've read it over a month ago! This just shows how much school brain effects the rest of my life. Anyways this book ended up being 3 out of 5 stars for me. I think the most aggravating part of the book was the pictures! They had nothing to do with the book whatsoever and it took the book forever to explain what the pictures even were. I think the pictures ended up being a blog but the explanation of the pictures and the pictures themselves didn't really match because the pictures were supposed to be written on a person and if I'm remembering correctly (my copy is at home) nothing about the pictures matched! They were pretty much just thrown into the book at the end of the chapter and even there they didn't go along with what just happened in the chapter! Me saying this is crazy because I love having some mixed media thrown into the story because I think it usually helps the book but in this case it just didn't go along with it. As the book goes on the pictures do fade away.

The story itself wasn't really bad it was just your typical YA book. I liked the idea of it and it had a few things that were interesting to me but overall the book was just in the middle for me. I'm at the point where if I continue on with the series, and that's a big if, it will have to be a really good sale to buy it or maybe pick up as an audiobook. I liked the premise of the story but I think it was more on the younger side of YA and I just wanted more from it. I think if middle or even high school me read this book I would've loved it but for me today it just didn't click that well. 

ShayKay's November 2019 Audiobooks

I love this author but this book was tough to get through. It had its ups and downs but I always felt that I would love it as an audiobook, so when I saw it on OverDrive I just had to borrow it! So far I do enjoy it more, especially since it is a full cast doing the reading instead of just one person. It is better listening to it in an interview-style versus reading it, but I think I still like Evelyn more so far, but I've never listened to Evelyn through the audiobook. This book wasn't bad to go through and it was better through audiobook but overall the book wasn't my favorite. I definitely enjoyed Evelyn Hugo more. I think I want to try to read more of her books.

ShayKay's November 2019 Book Haul

A New Series?

Since I have all this new empty shelf space in my life I've decided to do something a little bit different on how I organize my books. I've decided to move around the books on my crate shelf and make the second crate mt new books I've bought. This is great because I can see how many I buy each month and I'm also going to use it as a budget thing, so if I fill the crate up then I'm not allowed to buy more books in that month. I really haven't been that bad going overboard on buying books anymore, especially since I can see my books I have all the time. I don't love my bookshelf yet I think I need to rearrange the rest of the bookcase but for now, it's not looking too bad. There is definitely no organization to this bookcase right now other than the first crate is my read BOTM books and the second crate is the book haul books for the month. I don't know if I want to rearrange it into alphabetical order or just leave it a mess because there are three crates that I just love how they are (their even somewhat in order), two that are just thrown in there, and then there is just an empty one. It's definitely a work in progress. But the book haul crate hast to be the second one because I didn't want it on the floor and I want it to be a stacked crate, not a row crate so it just made sense to me. So without any further ado let's get into this book haul for the month.

Books! :)

The first two books I got this month are Save the Date and Us Against You. I was lucky enough to take my baby brother shopping this weekend and we had to stop at the bookstore. But I can't leave that store without getting me something so I got two books and a new mug. I've been wanting to read Save the Date for a little while now when I see a book that is on my TBR pile in the clearance section it is so hard to pass them up! Us Against You was definitely a splurge buy cause look at this cover! It is insanely beautiful and I haven't read the first book, Beartown, yet. I just feel like I have to love this author because there is so much hype between them.

 

My next set of books I got came from the Book of the Month! The actual Book of the Month book that I picked for November was Get a Life, Chloe Brown. I swear every month when I see the spoilers for the month I think I'm going to skip it for the month but then they are launched on the website and I actually look into them and I always find one that I think will be interesting. This is how I found Things You Save in a Fire, The Wife Between Us, Well Met, and even A Woman is No Man. All of these were 4 out of 5 or 5 out of 5 stars! The next one I have been wanting to read for a little while now and it is relatively new still, and that is Frankly in Love. Let me tell you guys the day after I placed my order I saw this book at Walmart and I was so freaking bummed that I didn't buy it in-store because it had sprayed edges!!!! This is my new obsession and I love this trend so much! Anyways I think this book is going to be right up my ally because this trope just seems like my genre at the moment. Then my final book, yes I splurged this month and got three books, was a rebuy sort of. I had a copy of Ready Player One but I gave it to my cousin, I read it and it was the movie cover and I just didn't want it anymore. But as soon as I got rid of it I pretty much kept telling myself I would get the BOTM version every month I but I never did it. Well, I finally did it and I'm so glad! This is another one that is my favorite book and I reread it all the time. It's also one of those rare books that I love the movie just as much as I love the book and I think that's because their completely different yet have a lot of the same scenes tied in. I think this is another thing that I want to do with my blog is comparing the movies to the books which I know is an old thing but I really like this and one of my all-time favorite things to do is point out these differences. Anyways this being only the fourth day into the month I think I'm doing pretty good with books but bad with my money! 

  

Guys let me tell you all something, and most of you might even know what I mean when I'm frustrated I like to buy things especially books! The bookstore is my happy place and I love going to it whenever I get the chance. I even use it as a motivation a lot for work because when I don't want to go to work and I really want to call in I compromise with myself by saying if I go to work then I can go to the bookstore on lunch. Well, last week I had some extra money from my last paycheck so of course, I had to! Plus I had a $5 off of $25 and I don't know why but these coupons always pull me in and also give me a limit to spend because I have to spend $25 to get the $5 off! This is just how my brain works, and I can't help it. This time at the bookstore I first picked up How to Walk Away by Katherine Center. Ever since I read Things to Save in a Fire by Center I wanted to pick her other book up too and I was really debating on getting it through BOTM for my December box because I just really wanted to try her other book out since I loved the other one so much! So when I was walking through the discounted books aisle and I saw this red book in the stacks that looked so similar I had to pick it up. I looked at it and I was like OMG! I was just about to spend my $10 add on for this book and this one was only $5. I was thrilled to find this one! Since this was a must buy and I had that coupon I needed to find something else to get my total to $25, even though I could've walked away with just this book and call this trip a success! My next stop in the store was the YA section. Since Christmas is coming and I'm going to start reading my Christmas books soon I thought about The Afterlife of Holly Chase, I figured this book should be about $10 since it came out the previous year and I never had the chance to get it last year. I ended up finding a hardback copy that was used in the stacks so it was only $4.50! I was so excited and I just had to get it! My last book was definitely a struggle for me. I had no clue what to get and the ones that I really wanted would be way too much. So I walked around a bit and I was carrying Part of Your World, something that I really wanted to get but I wasn't sure if I wanted to pay for it yet. I went and looked at the Kiss Quotient and I'm not gonna lie I stood there in aisle with both books and debated which one I wanted to get, the Kiss Quotient was $15 while Part of Your World was $17. So I started looking on Amazon to see what the two were on ebook because I wanted the best deal and I ended up getting Part of Your World because I wanted it more and the Kiss Quotient would be cheaper as an add on for BOTM! At least this is the conclusion that I came too while debating books.

  

***I'm so sorry this is late posting! Finals week had me in its clutches and I just escaped! Hopefully I can catch up on some reading during this Christmas break!