Monday Minis…

Well, I haven’t done one of these in a really long time. I’m maybe…hopefully…getting back into a reading groove. Sadly, nothing has been WOW for me yet but I think the following books were all solid reads.


Love Lettering by Kate Clayborn ~ Goodreads
Source: Library – audiobook

My thoughts: This is the *IT* book right now and I adored the premise. Meg does hand-lettered, custom planners for NYC’s elite and had secretly encoded messages in her wedding packages previously. One of those clients was Reid who caught the message that his upcoming marriage was a mistake.

A year passes and Meg is suffering from creators block as she tries to resist adding more messages in her lettering while Reid is a numbers guy stressed out over his job and a reluctant resident of the city – but together they find inspiration and more walking the streets of New York.

This is a lovely, slow burn story/romance. Meg & Reid are both so pragmatic and a little sad yet perfect for each other. I love how Meg sees the world in bold swoops of letters & Reid sees things in numbers and patterns.

However, they are both so…uptight isn’t quite the right word…but proper? Prim? I don’t know – they lacked personality for me other than always feeling hurt and on audio that came off as sad. And at 11+ hours… it started making me sad.

I so wanted Meg to embrace her coded messages in her hand-lettering. I thought that was so cool! Nothing to be ashamed of. There are also several big blow ups and twists by the end and I guess they were necessary for character growth but came out of left field for me.

It’s a case of me expecting the book to have more whimsy (about the lettering & NYC) based on reviews that I had read, rather than a women’s fiction vibe, but it had important messages about standing up for yourself, evolving friendships and asking for what you need from those you love. If you love slow burn romances with a focus on craft and detail – both personal and professional - this is the book for you.

Finding Mr. Better-Than-You by Shani Petroff ~ Goodreads
Source: ARC provided by the publisher – Swoon Reads

My thoughts: Cam is dumped her senior year of high school by her boyfriend of 3 years and hatches a plan to follow her rom com movies and catch herself a new guy to make her ex - Marc jealous.

Don’t roll your eyes – this is the rare YA non romance book. Despite the description, Finding Mr. better Than You turns out to mean learning not to shape your entire life around a boy/girl friend, learning to be a better friend and to forgive and let go. This is a lighter read but full of positivity and great messages for all teens.



Heidi’s Guide to Four Letter Words by Tara Sivec, Andi Arndt ~ Goodreads
Source: Library – audiobook

My thoughts: Heidi is an out of work kindergarten teacher who accidentally starts a podcast – Heidi’s Discount Erotica - while drunk and drops all the truth bombs about her crush on her next door neighbor and (non existent) sex life.

Shockingly, she develops a growing following. Her new job at an audiobook recording studio, where they record steamy romance novels, sets Heidi on a wacky fun filled path where she learns to say dirty words, talk (coherently) to her sexy neighbor and become more confident in her own skin.

Heidi’s parents are incredibly overbearing and that usually drives me up the wall but I think it was resolved really well.

This veers very close to far fetched ridiculousness a few times but I think that’s what they were going for and embraced it with a wink to rom com readers.

I’m really enjoying this trend of using romance novels to empower characters without making fun of the genre or it’s readers.

What have you all been reading and loving? Hit me up with your recommendations!

A few books I have coming up are Lucky Caller by Emma Mills, Girls With Razor Hearts by Suzanne Young & Undercover Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams.