Life Lately - January Recap

 It's February 1st - and so I wanted to look back at what I've been up to "lately" - as in, throughout the month of January! 

Eating - This picture would lead you to believe that I didn't eat a lot this month; maybe not a lot worth documenting, ha-ha! Looking back, I don't think I really did much where food is concerned - Ryan and I ate a lot at our new home in the back half of the month... although we did grab lunch at The Alamo while seeing a movie.

We also grabbed dinner at the Spring House Tavern - a delicious spot near our new home - the food is excellent and the menu is incredibly varied. My pictures are of some divine hot chocolate that my Aunt Sandy sends every year at Christmas... and a Unicorn Cinnamon Roll I got for breakfast at a local coffee shop called The Daily Buzz!

Watching - I haven't been watching a ton of TV - shows that is; I have watched plenty of football in the last month. I also got back into watching This Is Us and Home Town but that's really about it on the TV front. The movies this month were Spiderman: No Way Home and Redeeming Love; both of which were wonderful and delightful, just in very different ways! I'd recommend them both - they're each fabulous in their own ways!

Wearing - All my hats! The entire month of January seemed like it was one bout of snow or ice after the other and the temperatures went right along with that. There were a couple days when the temperatures didn't get above the single digits and so having a hat on my head was a necessity...

It snowed for the first time on January 3rd and then almost every week - like clock work, some more snow (and in one instance, ice) was added on top. I haven't seen the grass in the front yard since January 3rd! It's been a blanket of white ever since that first snowfall and that means - all the hats!

Bought - House things! Rugs! Floor mats! Curtains! Toilet paper! Spices! Things I didn't even think about needing when you have a house... but that are kind of essential, ha-ha! Ryan and I went to buy groceries and bought plenty of food but completely forgot about things like toilet paper and toothpaste. *face palm* New home owner excitement maybe?

Want - Warmer weather maybe! I know it's Winter and it's meant to be cold but I don't love the whole single digit cold - it is not my thing. I find that this year; more than years past, I am really craving the return of longer days and warmer weather. Only 39 days till daylight savings time! 

Reading - I have actually done quite a bit of reading this month; I'm pretty pleased with myself! I'm so glad I've gotten back on my reading kick and I've read some great books this last month!

Dark Places by Gillian Flynn - The synopsis from Good Reads: Libby Day was seven when her mother and two sisters were murdered in “The Satan Sacrifice" of Kinnakee, Kansas. She survived—and famously testified that her fifteen-year-old brother, Ben, was the killer. Twenty-five years later, the Kill Club—a secret secret society obsessed with notorious crimes—locates Libby and pumps her for details. They hope to discover proof that may free Ben. Libby hopes to turn a profit off her tragic history: She’ll reconnect with the players from that night and report her findings to the club—for a fee. As Libby’s search takes her from shabby Missouri strip clubs to abandoned Oklahoma tourist towns, the unimaginable truth emerges, and Libby finds herself right back where she started—on the run from a killer.

This one was a 3.5 out of 5 for me - it took me a little while to get into it but once I did; I couldn't put it down. It had some amazing twists near the end and finished really well.

Reckless Girls by Rachel Hawkins - The synopsis from Good Reads: When Lux McAllister and her boyfriend, Nico, are hired to sail two women to a remote island in the South Pacific, it seems like the opportunity of a lifetime. Stuck in a dead-end job in Hawaii, and longing to travel the world after a family tragedy, Lux is eager to climb on board The Susannah and set out on an adventure. She’s also quick to bond with their passengers, college best friends Brittany and Amma. The two women say they want to travel off the beaten path. But like Lux, they may have other reasons to be seeking an escape.

Shimmering on the horizon after days at sea, Meroe Island is every bit the paradise the foursome expects, despite a mysterious history of shipwrecks, cannibalism, and even rumors of murder. But what they don’t expect is to discover another boat already anchored off Meroe’s sandy beaches. The owners of the Azure Sky, Jake and Eliza, are a true golden couple: gorgeous, laidback, and if their sleek catamaran and well-stocked bar are any indication, rich. Now a party of six, the new friends settle in to experience life on an exotic island, and the serenity of being completely off the grid. Lux hasn’t felt like she truly belonged anywhere in years, yet here on Meroe, with these fellow free spirits, she finally has a sense of peace.

But with the arrival of a skeevy stranger sailing alone in pursuit of a darker kind of good time, the balance of the group is disrupted. Soon, cracks begin to emerge: it seems that Brittany and Amma haven’t been completely honest with Lux about their pasts––and perhaps not even with each other. And though Jake and Eliza seem like the perfect pair, the rocky history of their relationship begins to resurface, and their reasons for sailing to Meroe might not be as innocent as they first appeared.

When it becomes clear that the group is even more cut off from civilization than they initially thought, it starts to feel like the island itself is closing in on them. And when one person goes missing, and another turns up dead, Lux begins to wonder if any of them are going to make it off the island alive.

Probably another 3.5 out of 5 - again with a rather slow ending but then when the book hits it's stride, it absolutely is hard to put down. The ending was a little predictable but it was still enjoyable. 

The Holiday Swap by Maggie Knox - The synopsis from Good Reads: When chef Charlie Goodwin gets hit on the head on the L.A. set of her reality baking show, she loses a lot more than consciousness; she also loses her ability to taste and smell--both critical to her success as show judge. Meanwhile, Charlie's identical twin, Cass, is frantically trying to hold her own life together back in their quaint mountain hometown while running the family's bustling bakery and dealing with her ex, who won't get the memo that they're over.

With only days until Christmas, a desperate Charlie asks Cass to do something they haven't done since they were kids: switch places. Looking for her own escape from reality, Cass agrees. But temporarily trading lives proves more complicated than they imagined, especially when rugged firefighter Jake Greenman and gorgeous physician's assistant Miguel Rodriguez are thrown into the mix. Will the twins' identity swap be a recipe for disaster, or does it have all the right ingredients for getting their lives back on track?

This book was a feel good read, perfect for the Christmas season. It was filled with hijinks & romantic comedy style plot points - it would make for a great Christmas-themed romantic comedy. Hallmark movie anyone? I'd give it a 3 out of 5. 

The Collective by Alison Gaylin - The synopsis from Good Reads: Just how far will a grieving mother go to right a tragic wrong?

Camille Gardner is a grieving—and angry—mother who, five years after her daughter’s death, is still obsessed with the privileged young man she believes to be responsible.

When her rash actions attract the attention of a secret group of women—the collective—Camille is drawn into a dark web where these mothers share their wildly different stories of loss as well as their desire for justice in a world where privilege denies accountability and perpetrators emerge unscathed. Fueled by mutual rage, these women orchestrate their own brand of justice through precise, anonymous, complexly plotted and perfectly executed revenge killings, with individual members completing a specific and integral task in each plan.

As Camille struggles to comprehend whether this is a role-playing exercise or terrifying reality, she must decide if these women are truly avenging angels or monsters. Becoming more deeply enmeshed in the group, Camille learns truths about the collective—and about herself—that she may not be able to survive.

This book was somewhat dark - but I somehow felt myself understanding why the main character had the feelings she did....until I didn't, ha-ha! And I think that's exactly the point of the book's story! To make you question things! The ending had a nice twist and I'd give this one a 4 out of 5.

Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid - The synopsis from Good Reads: Malibu: August, 1983. It’s the day of Nina Riva’s annual end-of-summer party, and anticipation is at a fever pitch. Everyone wants to be around the famous Rivas: Nina, the talented surfer and supermodel; brothers Jay and Hud, one a championship surfer, the other a renowned photographer; and their adored baby sister, Kit. Together, the siblings are a source of fascination in Malibu and the world over—especially as the offspring of the legendary singer, Mick Riva.

The only person not looking forward to the party of the year is Nina herself, who never wanted to be the center of attention, and who has also just been very publicly abandoned by her pro tennis player husband. Oh, and maybe Hud—because it is long past time to confess something to the brother from whom he’s been inseparable since birth.

Jay, on the other hand, is counting the minutes until nightfall, when the girl he can’t stop thinking about promised she’ll be there.

And Kit has a couple secrets of her own—including a guest she invited without consulting anyone.

By midnight the party will be completely out of control. By morning, the Riva mansion will have gone up in flames. But before that first spark in the early hours before dawn, the alcohol will flow, the music will play, and the loves and secrets that shaped this family’s generations will all come bubbling to the surface.

Malibu Rising is a story about one unforgettable night in the life of a family: the night they each have to choose what they will keep from the people who made them... and what they will leave behind.

This was my very favorite book this month - a definite 5 out of 5! The story picked up quickly and the characters were all fascinating and interesting to follow. I've read another of Reid's books and loved it as well. Her writing style is excellent and I'm definitely a fan of her work!

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And if you've made it all the way to the end - well done on you! I read a lot of books this month and wanted to include those synopsis, even if some of them were long! Y'all have a great February!