God-Shaped Hole by Tiffanie DeBartolo: The god-shaped hole is a hole that each one of us fills with different things. Some with religion, some with alcohol, others with art, music, or words. The story about Trixie and Jacob starts with with an ad in the paper and ends exactly as spelled out in the beginning. So it was always just about how we get to this ending. Sometimes during the story I already it was about to happen, but there was still too much of the book left. So when we come to the predictable end, I felt happy that we had arrived. Probably not what the author had in mind. Still, it’s a good book and reads quick.
Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez: Wow, what a book. It made me laugh and cry within the span of ten minutes. I started it on my last day in the Philippines and and I finished it while eating dinner on my long haul back to Vienna. The story of Alexi and Daniel and the magic village of Wakan was just so unexpectedly perfect. I am happy to report that there will be a follow up book, so hopefully these two characters will pop up again. ‘Part of Your world’ is just the right book, if you need some time away from your daily grind. It catches your attention immediately and holds you hostage in wonderful book land.
My Oxford Year by Julia Whelan: Ella arrives in Oxford as a Rhodes scholar and looks forward to a year of fun and academic achievements. But a meeting with Jamie on her first evening in town changes the course of things. I loved the chemistry between these two and also that each chapter started with a short poem. Alfred Tennyson has become a familiar name, as well as other poets from the 19th century, and Oxford is now on my travel list. A very enjoyable book!
The End Zone by L.J. Shen: This short novella will be my last book from L.J. Shen for a while. As much as I like the spicy details, if that’s the main story, it’s a little bit thin. JoLo and Sage’s story starts already when they are children. Eventually at college it turns into more than that. And of course he realizes it the moment she drops her towel after a shower. It all felt kind of flat with rushed secondary stories. I guess I am ready to take a break from these books for some time.
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