It’s Top Ten Tuesday time once again friends and this week the prompt is books I hope Santa brings. I haven’t been doing a lot of book shopping throughout the last couple years so there are a lot of books I read and loved but don’t own yet, so these are the ten I would love to add to my collection!
I figured it would be nice to do a little wrap up of the Buzzword Readathon I’ve been doing throughout the year since I’ve figured out I have completed all the prompts! I didn’t really look ahead throughout the year and see what the next prompt was going to be I would just look at the start of every month and find something on my TBR that matches. There were some months I didn’t get to the prompt but I did read something either before or later in the year that fit so everything worked out. This is such a fun easy readathon that I think I will continue to participate in for sure!
It’s Top Ten Tuesday time friends!
10 book setting I would love to visit are:
Well Matched by Jen DeLuca – I wanna go to this Ren Faire and see the wonderfulness for myself!
Ruin & Rising by Leigh Bardugo – I would visit Ravka and see the Grishas!
The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley – I would love to go to Paris & the apartment building without the creepiness does sound amazing lol
Reckless Girls by Rachel Hawkins – a few days stranded on a tropic island sounds great right now
Siren Queen by Nghi Vo – Hollywood in the 30’s sounds magical!
The House Across the Lake by Riley Sager – a retreat at a quiet and peaceful lake house, sign me up!
Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller – I would die to be on an old school pirate ship!
The Monarchs by Kass Morgan & Danielle Paige – I never went to college or uni so I would love to visit a campus and a sorority house!
The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune – duh!
One by One by Ruth Ware – a rustic mountain chateau, yes please!
*SPOILERS AHEAD*
Jess needs a fresh start. She’s broke and alone, and she’s just left her job under less than ideal circumstances. Her half-brother Ben didn’t sound thrilled when she asked if she could crash with him for a bit, but he didn’t say no, and surely everything will look better from Paris. Only when she shows up – to find a very nice apartment, could Ben really have afforded this? – he’s not there.
Jess’s character felt new and fresh to me. I liked the fact that she’s led a completely different life to Ben and even though they’ve had their differences and grown apart she doesn’t give up her search. She’s definitely wary of those around her and I appreciated how she didn’t just take everyone’s word at face value and dug around a little more to unearth all the dirty little secrets.
The multiple POVs were a great touch I think. It made it easier to differentiate between all the different characters and added depth to the plot. Learning what everyone was doing prior to Ben’s disappearance and seeing how they all weave together was very satisfying.
The setting of this apartment building in Paris was fantastic. We really get a sense of just how gritty and dark Paris can be and how one’s perception of a place can just be so wrong. Having all the secret passages between the apartments and the mysterious nature of the concierge added to the overall tone of the book.
In terms of all the different twists and reveals it was very dramatic for sure. I can’t say it was the most shocking thriller book I’ve read but I feel like the entertainment factor was so high that I was just happy to go along for the ride. In retrospect the main twist was quite obvious but during my read I really didn’t predict any of the main plot points which made for a easy and fun experience.
⭐️4/5 stars I was here for the drama of it all!
If you are unaware what the Buzzword Readathon/Challenge is see my prior post HERE. Last month the buzzword was pronouns/possession words and I ended up completing Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke by Eric LaRocca which was a memorable book for sure. With February the prompt is to pick a book with a location in the title and I already know the book I am going to read which is:
The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley
Amy Leigh Reads 