The Reading Chemist

Out of the lab & into the books!

Menu Skip to content

Home
About Me
- Contact
Book Reviews
Bookish
Review Policy

Tag: No We Can’t Be Friends

January 10, 2020 the reading chemist

Book Review & Blog Tour: No, We Can't Be Friends by Sophie Ranald (eARC)

Follow Me

Twitter
Facebook
Instagram
Goodreads

Follow The Reading Chemist on WordPress.com

NetGalley Reviewer

The Write Reads Member

Fantastic Flying Book Club Tour Host

TLC Book Tour Host

Xpresso Book Tours Host

Instagram

♥️🧡💛 𝑯𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒚 𝑭𝒓𝒊𝒅𝒂𝒚 ♥️🧡💛⁣ ⁣ Recently, @beritaudiokilledthebookmark shared an incredibly personal post about her battle with a degenerative eye disease. She has called for awareness to accessibility features, specifically alternative text features that Instagram has to make our pictures and captions more accessible to individuals inflicted with visual impairment.⁣ ⁣ Additionally, she has asked us to create a stack with red, orange, and yellow books and tag #accessibilityawarenessstack by January 31st. For every post with the hashtag, $1 will be donated to the American Foundation for the Blind. ⁣ ⁣ If you have the time, please join in to support Berit! ♥️🧡💛⁣ ⁣ ⁣ ⁣ #accessibility #accessibilityforall #visualimpairment #booksharks #bionicbookbabes #bookwineandmetime #rainbowbooks #bookstagrammersunite #bookstack

𝓑𝓸𝓸𝓴 𝓡𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓮𝔀 & 𝓣𝓸𝓾𝓻⁣ ⁣ Today I’m on tour with @katerockbooktours for 𝙇𝙞𝙚𝙨 𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝘽𝙞𝙣𝙙 by @ashleyhfarley, which is available now! ⁣ ⁣ Lies That Bind is told from three different POVs that follows the lives of three women: Maggie, Eva, and Reese, and each of them have their reasons for the intricately woven lies they hold onto. Maggie rushed into a marriage with her dream husband only to find out he’s actually an abusive monster. Eva’s past is full of tragedy (husband died in an accident and her daughter has been missing for a decade), and she has turned to alcohol to occupy the shell of herself that has been left behind. Reese made some questionable decisions that lead to life changing consequences that leave her hanging on by a thread.⁣ ⁣ Farley tackles so many tough real life scenarios (e.g. domestic violence, rape, unplanned pregnancy, alcoholism, addiction, etc.) without cheapening the plot or ticking off an artificial box. Each of the POVs were both engrossing and immersive, and I found myself tearing through the pages as I wanted to know more about each of the three women and how their stories would ultimately intertwine and end. Their characters were beautifully developed and the plot constantly propels forward.⁣ ⁣ Overall, if you love character driven plots that unravel lots of secrets and twists, definitely check this one out!⁣ ⁣ Rating: 4/5 ⭐️’s⁣ ⁣ ⁣ 𝚁𝚊𝚗𝚍𝚘𝚖 #𝚀𝙾𝚃𝙳: 𝙰𝚛𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚊𝚗 𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚕𝚢 𝚋𝚒𝚛𝚍 𝚘𝚛 𝚊 𝚗𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚘𝚠𝚕?⁣ ⁣ I wake up at 4:30 am for work every day, so definitely an early bird 🐦 ⁣ ⁣ ⁣ ⁣ ⁣ #LiesThatBind #AshleyFarley #KateRockBookTours #womensfiction #chicklit

Today I’ve partnered with @simonandschuster @bibliofinder @bibliolifestyle to tell you about 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒔𝒆 𝑮𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒕𝒔 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝑭𝒂𝒎𝒊𝒍𝒚 by @librarylovefest! ⁣ ⁣ I can’t tell y’all how excited I am to read this #ownvoices novel, which comes out on March 3rd! I’ll be savoring this one next month in celebration of #blackhistorymonth. ⁣ ⁣ Synopsis:⁣ A transporting debut novel that reveals the ways in which a Jamaican family forms and fractures over generations, in the tradition of Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi.⁣ ⁣ Stanford Solomon has a shocking, thirty-year-old secret. And it’s about to change the lives of everyone around him. Stanford Solomon is actually Abel Paisley, a man who faked his own death and stole the identity of his best friend.⁣ ⁣ And now, nearing the end of his life, Stanford is about to meet his firstborn daughter, Irene Paisley, a home health aide who has unwittingly shown up for her first day of work to tend to the father she thought was dead.⁣ ⁣ These Ghosts Are Family revolves around the consequences of Abel’s decision and tells the story of the Paisley family from colonial Jamaica to present day Harlem. There is Vera, whose widowhood forced her into the role of single mother. There are two daughters and a granddaughter who have never known they are related. And there are others, like the house boy who loved Vera, whose lives might have taken different courses if not for Abel Paisley’s actions.⁣ ⁣ These Ghosts Are Family explores the ways each character wrestles with their ghosts and struggles to forge independent identities outside of the family and their trauma. The result is an engrossing portrait of a family and individuals caught in the sweep of history, slavery, migration, and the more personal dramas of infidelity, lost love, and regret. This electric and luminous family saga announces the arrival of a new American talent.⁣ ⁣ ⁣ 📖 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗱𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿? 📖⁣ ⁣ ⁣ ⁣ #theseghostsarefamily #maisycard #bibliofinder #bibliolifestyle #simonandschuster

📖 𝓖𝓲𝓿𝓮𝓪𝔀𝓪𝔂 📖⁣ ⁣ ᕼᗩᑭᑭY TᑌEᔕᗪᗩY EᐯEᖇYOᑎE!⁣ ⁣ Last night I started 𝘉𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘊𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘴𝘴 by @lanalyte. I’m just under a 100 pages in, and I’m already hooked (synopsis in comments). ⁣ ⁣ This story is about the infamous Countess Elizabeth Báthory, one of the deadliest serial killers to date. It’s rumored that she slaughtered up to 650 young women...and she bathed in the blood of virgins to retain her youthful beauty. 😱⁣ ⁣ This book comes out one week from today! BUT, my friends over @piquebeyond were generous enough to gift me with an extra finished copy to share with one of you!⁣ ⁣ To enter:⁣ 📖 Like this post⁣ 📖 Must be following me & @piquebeyond⁣ 📖 Tag a friend in the comments ⁣ 📖 Must have a US address (sorry international 😭)⁣ ⁣ Extra Entries:⁣ 📖 Tag more friends (unlimited as long as different tags) ⁣ 📖 Share in your stories for 24 h & tag me⁣ ⁣ Giveaway ends Saturday January 25th at 5 pm CST. Winner will be randomly selected and announced shortly after. Giveaway not affiliated with Instagram. ⁣ ⁣ ⁣ ⁣ #PiqueBeyond #PiqueAmbassador #LadySlayerSeries #horror #yabooks #ireadya #bookwineandmetime #bionicbookbabes #booksharks #elizabethbathory #countessdracula #serialkiller #giveaway #bookstagram

Today I’m on tour with @wednesdaybooks for 𝘛𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘵 𝘊𝘶𝘵𝘦 by @dilemmalord (thank you to @wednesdaybooks & @netgalley for my copy!)⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ Pepper Evans is top of her class at Stone Hall as well as swim captain. She’s gunning for the Ivies, and nothing will stand in her way. Her family started the wildly successful chain Big League Burger, and her mother recently appointed her to controlling the companies social media accounts.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ Jack Campbell is a tech wiz who lives in the shadow of his identical twin brother, Ethan who is the all-around golden child. While Ethan is free to follow his dreams, Jack knows that it is his responsibility to take over the family deli: Girl Cheesin’, even if he wants more out of life. When Jack discovers that Big League Burger has stolen his Grandma’s top secret grilled cheese recipe, it’s all out war on Twitter.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ Jack and Pepper have known each other since they were freshman, but they’ve always just thrown snide remarks at each other. As they start to develop a friendship thanks to a mix up with the swim and dive team, neither one realizes they are battling each other on Twitter as well as secretly talking to each other on the anonymous app that everyone uses to chat with at Stone Hall.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ 𝘛𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘵 𝘊𝘶𝘵𝘦 is fun coming age novel that explores sibling rivalry, parental expectations, love, social media, teen angst, secrets, divorce, college app/interview pressure, etc. I loved that while there was definitely a lot of comedic relief in this story, some pretty heavy topics were also discussed. Both Pepper’s and Jack’s characters were well-developed and relatable. The plot was fast paced and engaging. One thing I will say about this one, don’t read this book on an empty stomach because everything in here sounds utterly decadent.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ Rating: 4/5 ⭐️’s⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ 𝔸𝕧𝕒𝕚𝕝𝕒𝕓𝕝𝕖 𝕥𝕠𝕞𝕠𝕣𝕣𝕠𝕨!⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ #QOTD: ᗯᕼᗩT Iᔕ YOᑌᖇ GO-TO ᑕOᗰᖴOᖇT ᖴOOᗪ?⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ Mine is Mac and cheese 🧀 ⁣ ⁣⁣ ⁣ ⁣ ⁣⁣ #TweetCute #EmmaLord #wednesdaybooks #bookwineandmetime #bionicbookbabes #booksharks #ireadya #yabooks #yabookstagram #newbookalert #booksilove #goodbooks #romcom #romance #bookreview #readingchemistreviews

Coming in at under 175 pages, 𝘙𝘪𝘰𝘵 𝘉𝘢𝘣𝘺 by @treize64 (thank you to @tordotcompub for my gifted copy!) is a harrowing and visceral account of what it’s like growing up black in America. I can’t begin to explain the amount of rage, pain, and injustice that is portrayed in this book. ⁣ ⁣ This story follows siblings: Ella and Kev who are both gifted with incredible powers. Ella is able to walk through people’s memories as well as see glimpses of the future. ⁣ ⁣ Kev was born in 1992 amid the Los Angeles riots hence his nickname “Riot Baby”. Their mother moves them to Harlem in search of a better life to only face similar injustices in a different community. Even though Kev is incredibly intelligent as a tech wiz in love with computers he books, he finds himself a victim of being a black man in America and ends up incarcerated. He powers through through his telepathic connection that he has with his sister. ⁣ ⁣ This story covers so many real life events that black people in this country have faced and are facing: the beating of Rodney King in 1992, the Watts riot in the 1960s, the KKK, police brutality, racial profiling, etc. This book is NOT an easy read but it educates you on the sheer amount of systemic racism and social injustice that black people have faced in this country. ⁣ ⁣ This book was absolutely incredible. I haven’t read a story this raw and heartbreakingly honest in a while. Again, this will not be an easy read by any means. It will be tough to digest. That being said, read this book! ⁣ ⁣ Rating: 4.5/5 ⭐️’s⁣ ⁣ 𝑨𝒗𝒂𝒊𝒍𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝑻𝒖𝒆𝒔𝒅𝒂𝒚!⁣ ⁣ ⁣ 𝚆𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚠𝚎𝚎𝚔𝚎𝚗𝚍?⁣

Categories

Categories

Recent Posts

Book Review: Lies That Bind by Ashley Farley (ARC)
WWW Wednesday: 22 January 2020
Book Review & Blog Tour: Tweet Cute by Emma Lord (eARC)
Book Review: Riot Baby by Tochi Onyebuchi (ARC)
Book Review: The Moonshiner's Daughter by Donna Everhart (ARC)

Archives

January 2020
December 2019
November 2019
October 2019
September 2019
August 2019
July 2019
June 2019
May 2019
April 2019
March 2019
February 2019
January 2019

Search

Search for: