Review: Pity Parade by Whitney Dineen

The Pity Parade, the latest book in the Pity series by Whitney Dineen, follows Trina Blackwell. If you’ve been following the series, then you know Trina is a tv show host for a matchmaker show that brought Tim and Paige together in the last book.

For those new to the series, Trina has been a matchmaker on a hit tv show for awhile but most importantly for everyone but herself. Almost lucky, she met a guy at a charity event that had great potential but to her disappointment, he didn’t want a relationship.

Due to the circumstances that led to her show being canceled, she was given an ultimatum for redemption by putting herself out there to be the center of attention of a new upcoming show for eligible men to potentially date her. The idea has her running for the hills. Trying to find a way to get out of this situation, she comes up with a plan to find a guy but little did she know that someone from her past would come back showing the hand of fate that would give them the second chance they both needed.

I honestly couldn’t stand Trina before but found myself keeping an open mind going into this book. Getting to know her and her journey kept me engaged and wanted to see what was to come with her potential love interest. This had some really fun moments, heartwarming reflections and she became someone to root for. It was wonderful seeing familiar faces that added to the charm and the importance of friendship and love that made the book wonderful.

The series will conclude this fall with the upcoming, Pity Present. There aren’t any details yet but from what I read, we can assume from the ending someone else will get their hea in this sweet town, Elk Lake. Another wonderful book in this series and I can’t wait to see what’s to come in the next.

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Review: Love Unwritten (Lakefront Billionaires Book 2) by Lauren Asher

About the Book

Rafael

Ellie Sinclair is a hopeless romantic who writes love songs.

I’m a struggling workaholic who could inspire a hundred breakup albums.

On paper, we have nothing in common except for my son.

For eight months, I avoid her until our summer trip.

Fourteen days. Two islands. And one nanny I shouldn’t be attracted to.

Spending time with Ellie is expected, but enjoying her company?

That isn’t part of our travel plans.

After my divorce, I swore to protect my heart at all costs.

Even if it means breaking hers in the process.

Ellie

What’s worse than working for a grumpy single dad?

Admitting that I once had a secret crush on him in high school.

Thankfully, Rafael Lopez and I have changed since we graduated from Wisteria High.

He is a billionaire with a company to run and a child to take care of.

I’m an unemployed songwriter he hired to watch his son and teach music.

We coexist without any issues until a vacation changes everything.

Lines blur and old feelings for Rafael return with vengeance as I face a new dilemma.

Being his son’s nanny is one thing, but wishing for more?

Sounds like a heartbreak song waiting to be written.

Review

The Lakefront Billionaires series is shaping out to be Lauren Asher’s best series. I adored the first book, and I very quickly fell in love with Love Unwritten. As it stands, it is my favorite within the series. I only have one complaint with this book. More on that later. Right now, I want to gush about the book.

This is such a heartwarming story. It’s not just a romance, it’s a story about family relationships. Life experiences and a messy divorce have left Rafael with a struggling relationship with his son. He loves his son deeply and doesn’t know how to fix the situation. I loved Rafael’s character growth. He was imperfect and vulnerable and was willing to put in the work. He and Ellie were able to build the trust needed and open up about their childhood experiences.  

Ellie fits perfectly in Nico (Rafael’s son) and Rafael’s life. Like Rafael, she didn’t have a perfect childhood. She made tremendous growth in the past; however, she’s still affected. She was able to be vulnerable with him and work to further grow in her career. While also harboring a sweet relationship with his kid.

Nico was adorable and so lovable. I loved how he had depth and relationships with the characters in the book. He wasn’t just a plot point. It was also wonderful to see Dahila and Julian from the first book. Julian is so connected to Rafael’s story, and I loved their friendship.

My only complaint with this book is that I felt that the author got tired in the final stretch. This is a 600-page book. At the end, everything was told, instead of her painting this beautiful picture as she had previously done. It felt rushed, and I finished the story slightly disappointed. This could very well be me craving more of Ellie and Rafael.

Final Thoughts

Love Unwritten is another highlight in Asher’s career. Ellie and Rafael are beautiful characters that I hold so dearly to my heart. These are two deep and compelling characters who hold so much in. It’s a slow-burn romance, that works well for them as they create this deep connection with each other and build trust. They are special.  

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Review: Almost Family by Ann Bancroft

Almost Family, takes us through the emotional and transformative journey of Liz Millanova, a woman facing the reality of her life during stage 4 cancer. Haunted and coming to terms with the relationship that ended her marriage, an estranged daughter and finding hope among strangers, this book makes you appreciate the limited time we have and to surround it with people that will make it valuable.

With confirmation of her cancer returning, Liz was encouraged to join a support group so that she could find comfort and support with others who faced the same. Initially reluctant, Liz found herself unexpectedly connecting with two other members, Dave and Rhonda.Not feeling they were getting the support they needed, they decided to form a smaller group among them, not realizing how much it would change their lives.Hitting it off, deciding to meet on their own, they instantly formed a friendship, finding comfort and joy with the hope to give each other while they were still here. As their bond deepened, their determination to live despite their terminal diagnosis helped Liz confront her unresolved issues and find strength and support where she least expected it. Their time together also allowed them to support each other through facing the end on their terms and leaving this world with no loose ends. 

This book was a beautiful book that balanced humor and the complexity of the emotional toll of facing the end of life with a terminal illness. The balance of their personalities brought such an authentic, relatable narrative that makes them engaging and heartwarmed to invest in the last stages of their lives with them to live it out to its fullest. This was a testament to the power of friendship and the importance of finding joy in our most arduous moments and how the power of human connection can heal the souls.

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Review: Maybe Next Time by Christina C. Jones

About the Book

For better or worse… That was the promise Denver and Kensa made, but it’s a sentiment they’ve somehow lost along the way. What started as a passionate wildfire has diminished to a flicker, all but snuffed out by unspoken fears, perceived betrayal, and a complete breakdown in communication. Can either of them tuck their ego away long enough to rekindle their flame?

Review

Books regarding marriages in trouble are always a hit-and-miss for me. However, I found Maybe Next Time to be one of the ones that I think it worked. Despite the short length, the author provides a thorough, emotional story with Denver and Kensa. At the start of the novella, Kensa is done with her marriage, and Denver isn’t. I enjoyed how they were able to communicate and realize that everything boiled down to grief. And in the end, both of them let go of their pride and their ego to save their marriage.

Out of the two main characters, I enjoyed Kensa more. Denver felt too reckless, and I wish that Kensa would have made him grovel for her more.

Final Thoughts

Maybe Next Time is a short, quick read about two characters who had experienced heartbreak and had drifted apart from each other. Denver has a few questionable moments, and Kensa should have made him work harder; however, something can be said about how the two of them were able to communicate and come back together.

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Review: The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston

About the Book

An overworked book publicist with a perfectly planned future hits a snag when she falls in love with her temporary roommate…only to discover he lives seven years in the past, in this witty and wise new novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Dead Romantics.

Sometimes, the worst day of your life happens, and you have to figure out how to live after it.

So Clementine forms a plan to keep her heart safe: work hard, find someone decent to love, and try to remember to chase the moon. The last one is silly and obviously metaphorical, but her aunt always told her that you needed at least one big dream to keep going. And for the last year, that plan has gone off without a hitch. Mostly. The love part is hard because she doesn’t want to get too close to anyone—she isn’t sure her heart can take it.

And then she finds a strange man standing in the kitchen of her late aunt’s apartment. A man with kind eyes and a Southern drawl and a taste for lemon pies. The kind of man that, before it all, she would’ve fallen head-over-heels for. And she might again.

Except, he exists in the past. Seven years ago, to be exact. And she, quite literally, lives seven years in his future.

Her aunt always said the apartment was a pinch in time, a place where moments blended together like watercolors. And Clementine knows that if she lets her heart fall, she’ll be doomed.

After all, love is never a matter of time—but a matter of timing

Review

I started listening to this book while running errands, and I would spend extra time sitting in the car just to hear what was going to happen next. Eventually, I ended up buying the book because I couldn’t stand waiting to finish. The Seven Year Slip was great. I knew I was going to love this book at around 20% in. The story is original, emotional, and gripping.

It’s a touching story about a woman who, although dealing with such a career high, is dealing with the loss of her aunt. She’s living in her apartment, and growing up she was told several times that the apartment is magical. However, she’s never experienced that—until one day she enters the apartment and is transported seven years back in time. Her aunt is alive and out of town for the summer and has rented her apartment out to an inspiring chef—Iwan. Clementine couldn't help but be intrigued by him, even though her aunt had two rules. The second being to never fall in love in that apartment because they will never stay.

Everything about Iwan and Clementine worked. I loved them dearly. I was terrified for how this was going to play out. Because where was he in the future? Did he know that Clementine wasn’t from that time? Both questions are answered. Those scenes had me on the edge of my seat, holding back tears.

As I was reading, I was wondering how time travel would be executed. This is a concept that can be confusing. I thought the author did a wonderful job. It was simple and magical.

Final Thoughts

The Seven Year Slip was a heartbreaking story where I could barely hold back tears. This was an original idea that remained fresh and engaging the entire time. I was not prepared for the plot twists and the nuanced characters. I can’t help but recommend this book. 

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Review: The Danger Imperative by Michael Sierra-Arévalo

About the Book

Policing is violent. And its violence is not distributed equally: stark racial disparities persist despite decades of efforts to address them. Amid public outcry and an ongoing crisis of police legitimacy, there is pressing need to understand not only how police perceive and use violence but also why.

With unprecedented access to three police departments and drawing on more than 100 interviews and 1,000 hours on patrol, The Danger Imperative provides vital insight into how police culture shapes officers’ perception and practice of violence. From the front seat of a patrol car, it shows how the institution of policing reinforces a cultural preoccupation with violence through academy training, departmental routines, powerful symbols, and officers’ street-level behavior.

This violence-centric culture makes no explicit mention of race, relying on the colorblind language of “threat” and “officer safety.” Nonetheless, existing patterns of systemic disadvantage funnel police hyperfocused on survival into poor minority neighborhoods. Without requiring individual bigotry, this combination of social structure, culture, and behavior perpetuates enduring inequalities in police violence.

A trailblazing, on-the-ground account of modern policing, this book shows that violence is the logical consequence of an institutional culture that privileges officer survival over public safety.

Review

With the country at an elevated temperature involving policing and public intolerance of their policies and procedures, this was a very thought provoking book that definitely could inspire some real conversation and promote possible change in the narrative on policing and public perception and experiences.

This book unpacks so much but most importantly captures an understanding of the social dynamics of police officers. Inspired to see what that looked like, objectively author Michael Sierra-Arévalo, captured a sociological perspective from gained access to three different police departments, 1000 hours of ride alongs and interviews to depict the realities of work as a police officer and the influences that shape their experience.

With the news and social media elevating the temperature of criticism of police, this tends to walk a very sensitive line for the officers and their interactions with the public and vice versa. With many conversations saying what should be done, one thing that stands out is the culture of doing what needs to be done with the intention of perceived threats and concern for safety. As we’ve seen in the news, many situations have had fatal consequences and others could’ve been handled differently. This book documents and gives psychological insights on how police culture, from training to on the street level policing is affected by that and how certain situations by the given circumstances were handled. Also, situations involving actions done towards police as a result of the heightened climates after high profile situations and the impact of how it affected interactions with the public. 

The commentary and analysis opens the discussion of reform and rexamines some policies that are in place. The aspect of prioritizing safety in many situations, brings unspoken issues front and center, especially police violence where racial disparity is felt. This book empathized the challenges officers encounter on a daily basis but explored areas that could be improved and lead to better outcomes. It objectively puts you in a frame of reference to understand why some choose to make the decisions that they did/do in the circumstances they were presented with.

Overall, this was a balanced, objective read that has the potential to open conversation and evaluation of current policies and training opportunities that would better impact when involved with certain situations. The various examples of the good, bad and indifferent involving these situations give you a better insight to policing and its complexity, especially dealing with violence and threats while trying to stay alive on the job. This would be a great read for law enforcement or those aspiring to become a part of, legislators and those interested in criminal justice.

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