Audiobook Review: And Then There Was You by Sophie Cousens

Posted in Book Reviews by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Title: And Then There Was You
Author: Sophie Cousens
Narrator: Kerry Gilbert
Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons
Publication date: November 18, 2025
Print length: 352 pages
Audio length: 9 hours 10 minutes
Genre: Contemporary romance
Source: Library
Rating:

She’s found the perfect man . . . There’s just one big twist.

Stuck in a Production Assistant job and living at home with her parents after a painful breakup, thirty-one-year-old Chloe Fairway isn’t where she wants to be in life. The last thing she needs is to face the people who once voted her “most likely to succeed” at her upcoming ten-year college reunion. And she definitely doesn’t want to see her former best friend, Sean Adler, who is now a hotshot film director living the life Chloe dreamed of. Desperate to make a splash—and to save face in front of the man who might be the one that got away—she turns to a mysterious dating service.

Enter Rob, her handsome, well-read, and charming match, the perfect plus-one to take to her reunion. The more she gets to know him, the more perfect he appears to be. Could it be that this dating service knows her better than she knows herself? And can she overlook the one big catch? As Chloe reconnects with old friends, she begins to question everything she thought she wanted. Maybe, just maybe, revisiting the past is exactly what she needs to move forward.

After really enjoying my last audiobook by Sophie Cousens (Is She Really Going Out With Him?), I grabbed her newest when I saw it was available through the library. And while I enjoy her upbeat storytelling and the terrific narration by Kerry Gilbert, this romance had certain elements that just didn’t work for me.

Ten years after graduating from Oxford, Chloe feels like a failure. Once considered most likely to succeed, sure of a brilliant career ahead of her as an actress and playwright, Chloe now lives with her parents and works as the personal assistant to a highly unpleasant man at a mediocre production company. All of her old schoolmates have gone on to do amazing things, especially Sean, once her best friend and writing partner, now practically a stranger, who’s a big-time Hollywood director. With the reunion looming, Chloe’s instinct is to hide and avoid it all. A chance encounter with a friend who seems to be radiantly happy leads Chloe to an exclusive matchmaking company that promises to find her the man of her dreams, someone who’ll be perfect for her. And when Chloe meets Rob, they just click. He’s gorgeous, smart, and sweet… so maybe attending the reunion with this impressive guy on her arm will be just the confidence boost that Chloe needs?

There’s a catch, of course… and here’s where I’m going to insert a big, fat…

SPOILER ALERT!

I’m guessing Goodreads reviews will already have spilled the beans, but in case you don’t want to know, here’s where to look away.

Seriously!

I’m going to get into the details of what I really did not like about this book.

SPOILERS COMING RIGHT NOW!

Okay, you’ve been warned.

The reason that Rob seems perfect for Chloe is that… he is. Rob is an AI robot created to Chloe’s exact specifications, based on an exhaustive questionnaire that she’s required to complete as part of her intake at the matchmaking company. She (and we) have no idea what she’s signing up for until after she’s signed an NDA and is introduced to Rob, who instantly impresses her with his good lucks, excellent manners, and sensitivity. He’s everything she thinks she wants in a man… because he’s been built and programmed that way.

Taking Rob to her reunion seems like a crazy idea. And it is. Convincing herself that she could have a future with Rob also seems ridiculous. And it is. Chloe spends a lot of mental energy trying to figure out whether a robot boyfriend might be her best bet for a happy life. Meanwhile, the entire reunion weekend is rife with moments when Rob’s perfection or stilted manners or weird affect threatens to reveal Chloe’s secret and undermine everything she’s trying to achieve.

From the moment of the reveal about what Rob really is (somewhere around the 15% mark), I was kind of over this book. I stuck with it because I liked certain elements of the story — but this was very nearly a DNF. The sad thing is that I don’t think this story needed the robot storyline at all. Rob could have simply been a date-for-hire, and the plot could have played out practically the same way. The AI/robot piece is a distracting novelty that just doesn’t work at all.

It’s a shame, because there are other elements that are very good. Who can’t relate to the feeling that everyone else is doing better at life than you are? Or the anxiety of reuniting with people who were once the center of your world? It’s not exactly surprising that at the reunion, Chloe discovers romantic feelings for an old friend and learns secrets that change what she thought she knew about their past. This part was very good! I liked Chloe’s process of understanding her past, admitting where she’d made mistakes, and getting past the roadblocks that had her feeling stuck professionally and emotionally.

END SPOILERS

All in all, And Then There Was You has some very engaging bits and pieces that unfortunately get swamped by a ridiculous overarching storyline. Sticking with this book all the way to the end tried my patience, despite the great audiobook narration and the generally interesting, quirky characters. The clever and entertaining bits just can’t save an unconvincing storyline. My eyes hurt from too much rolling.

Purchase links: Amazon – Audible – Bookshop.org – Libro.fm
Disclaimer: When you make a purchase through one of these affiliate links, I may earn a small commission, at no additional cost to you.

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25Mar2026

Audiobook Review: Grace & Henry’s Holiday Movie Marathon by Matthew Norman

Posted in Book Reviews by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Title: Grace & Henry’s Holiday Movie Marathon
Author: Matthew Norman
Narrators: Alex Finke, Jay Myers
Publisher: Random House
Publication date: October 14, 2025
Print length: 337 pages
Audio length: 8 hours 43 minutes
Genre: Contemporary fiction
Source: Library
Rating:

A sentimental advertising creative and a blunt, no-nonsense bar owner find a second chance at love while binge-watching iconic holiday movies in this poignant and heartwarming romance, from the author of Charm City Rocks and All Together Now.

“Norman weaves nostalgic references to modern holiday classics . . . throughout this comforting romance.”—The Washington Post (Noteworthy Books of the Month)

The new year had barely begun when Grace White and Henry Adler both lost their spouses. Now, nearly a year later, the first holiday season since their “Great and Terrible Sadnesses” approaches. Although their mothers scheme to matchmake the two surviving spouses, it’s clear that neither is ready to date again. Yet no one understands what they are going through better than each other, and a delicate friendship is born.

When Henry sees an ad for a Christmas movie marathon—once an annual tradition for him and his wife—Grace offers to watch some films with him, despite her aversion to a few of his picks. Her two young kids, Ian and Bella, also join in whenever possible—bedtimes permitting, of course.

With each movie, Grace and Henry’s shared grief eases as they start to see a life beyond the sadness. But as they draw closer, other romantic possibilities leave them uncertain about their future together. Is their bond merely the result of loneliness and shared circumstances, or have they found something that’s worth taking a shot at . . . again?

Grace & Henry’s Holiday Movie Marathon was an unusual pick for me — I don’t tend to read a lot of holiday-themed fiction, especially when it’s not even the holiday season! And yet… the charming title caught my eye, and then the story drew me in.

Grace and Henry both suffered terrible losses at the beginning of the year: Grace’s husband Tim died after a fast-moving cancer diagnosis, and Henry’s wife Bryn died in a shocking plane crash. Now, as the holidays approach, neither is doing particularly well. Grace is busy with her two children Ian and Bella (and their hilariously-named dog Harry Styles), but she spends most of her down time in her Costco sweats talking with the version of her dead husband who lives in her head. Henry can’t bring himself to return to the home he shared with his wife, so he’s rented a mostly empty apartment but mainly hangs out in his parents’ basement playing Mario Kart.

When Henry’s mom asks him to pop over to Grace’s mom’s house to “fix the internet” (which isn’t working due to a sneakily unplugged modem), Henry and Grace are helpless in the face of motherly matchmaking. Neither are interested in being fixed up or even considering dating again, but they do recognize that they might actually fit together as friends. As they talk about holiday movies, they find common ground, and soon, Henry is popping by for family movie nights, and then hanging out with Grace and the kids to help with Ian’s art projects, free captive mice (don’t ask), and discovering a mutual friendship that helps them all start finding a little joy in their lives.

I suppose most people would shelve this as a romance — and yes, of course there’s an underlying romance brewing slowly between Henry and Grace. But that, to me, isn’t the main point. The story overall is much more about loss and grieving, about the process of remembering and letting go, about finding ways to move on when everything you expected for your life is taken away.

The narrative is organized by the movies Henry and Grace watch, together and separately, as the holiday season advances. There are plenty of fun little references to a wide range of holiday (and holiday-adjacent) movies, from Die Hard and Edward Scissorhands to Love Actually, The Holiday, The Family Stone, and more. Point-of-view chapters shift between Henry and Grace; the audiobook has a narrator for each, and both are terrific at voicing the lead and supporting characters and adding humor (and sadness) as the story progresses.

I found both characters’ stories to be quite moving, each loss awful in its own way. Grace is forced to carry on for the sake of her children and does a wonderful job, but there’s a sadness in their home that they can’t quite overcome. Henry’s loneliness is different yet also deep and real. It’s easy to see why these two need one another, first as “grief buddies”, then as friends, to get through the worst of times — or even just normal days when a sudden memory or association can knock them out of orbit. Their ability to understand one another’s pain forms the backbone of what becomes a beautiful support system.

I also appreciated how well both Grace and Henry are supported by their families and friends. While their well-meaning mothers may be pushing a bit too hard for them to get back into the dating world, it’s clear that the people who love them want to help — somehow — and are often stuck on how to do it.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that Baltimore, the book’s setting, feels like a living, breathing character in this charming story. Grace and Henry have rich, deep connections to the city and the community, and it comes to sparkling life on every page.

All in all, I truly enjoyed Grace & Henry’s Holiday Movie Marathon. The holiday spirit, the sense of fun, and the straightforward treatment of loss and grieving all contribute to making this sweet book feel like something special. The audiobook delivery is terrific — but in whatever format, I think this is a book well worth picking up and experiencing.

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22Mar2026

Book Review: Once and Again by Rebecca Serle

Posted in Book Reviews by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Title: Once and Again
Author: Rebecca Serle
Publisher: Atria Books
Publication date: March 10, 2026
Length: 256 pages
Genre: Contemporary fiction
Source: Review copy courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley
Rating:

New York Times bestselling author Rebecca Serle, the author behind “heartbreaking, redemptive, and authentic” (Jamie Ford, New York Times bestselling author) modern classic In Five Years, returns with an unforgettable tale of a family of women with an astonishing gift: the ability to redo one moment in their lives.

The women of the Novak family were each born with a gift: they can, just once, turn back time.

Lauren has known since she was fifteen that her mother Marcella saved Lauren’s father from a deadly car accident. Dave is alive and happy, and out on the Malibu waves. But ever since, Marcella, her power spent, has lived in fear of what she won’t be able to reverse. Her own mother, Sylvia, is her polar opposite: a free-spirited iconoclast with a glamorous past she only hints at. Lauren has spent her life between these two role models—and waiting for her own catastrophe to strike.

Then one summer, Lauren’s husband takes a job in New York and she moves back to Broad Beach Road, back into her childhood home on the shores of Malibu. Lauren looks forward to surfing with her dad again and perhaps repairing an unspoken fracture in her relationship with her mother. What she doesn’t expect is for the boy next to door to return home as well: Stone, Lauren’s first love, who broke her heart nearly a decade before.

As Lauren falls into familiar patterns, with her family and, more dangerously, Stone, she finds herself thinking about all the choices, large and small, that have brought her to this moment. And wondering, finally, if one of them should be undone.

In Once and Again, main character Lauren’s family has a secret — a superpower, of sorts. Each woman in the family is gifted with the ability to undo one event that’s already happened, but it’s a gift that’s a one-time deal. Use it, and it’s gone forever. While we might think of this as an amazing opportunity, in these women’s lives, it’s also a burden. How do you know when is the right time to use it? What if you use it, and then end up needing it even more later on?

Lauren is 37 years old, married for three years at this point to her wonderful husband Leo — but things have become fraught between them as they struggle with infertility. After multiple attempts at IVF and IUI, Leo is ready to stop trying, but Lauren is not, and the stress of the financial, physical, and psychological burdens is straining their marriage almost to the breaking point.

When Leo heads to New York for a short-term work opportunity, Lauren decides to rent out their West Hollywood home and spend the summer at the shambling Malibu bungalow where her parents and grandmother live. Back home in Malibu, Lauren reintroduces herself to the surfing and slower beach rhythms that she grew up with, while also spending time with her cool surfer dad, uptight mother, and loving, super-hip grandmother. But being there also brings up memories for Lauren of the intensity of her teen years, especially her mother’s obsessive worry over her father’s health.

Meanwhile, Lauren encounters Stone while out surfing — the man she loved and was involved with for a solid ten years, only ending the relationship when he moved away from Malibu and left her behind. Seeing Stone again brings up old feelings, even as Lauren juggles her love for Leo and how much she misses him with the pain of their current marital problems.

Lauren has an opportunity to fix something using her gift — but is this the right moment? If she uses it, will she regret it later? And what will her choice mean for the rest of the family?

Once and Again presents a unique take on the subjects of regret and second chances. There’s no explanation offered for the family’s gift, and there doesn’t need to be. It’s a magical element that just is — and if you have a hard time with this sort of magical plotline, this may not be the book for you. To be clear, there’s nothing else that’s fantasy or magic-based in the story. This is a family that’s ordinary in every way… but one.

I appreciated the insights we get from the intermittent chapters that provide Lauren’s mother’s and grandmother’s backstories, as well as the story of the first woman to have the gift. The family’s Jewish heritage features in both the gift and their ongoing lives as a lovely background element. It’s fascinating to learn more about how each woman chose to use the gift and what the ramifications were — and there’s a major twist later in the book that made me look at it in an entirely new way.

The ability to turn back time isn’t trivial and has consequences. The characters experience joy with their second chances, but also carry a unique pain: The woman who uses the gift still remembers what they’ve changed, even if no one else does, which means they may be grieving for something that no one else understands. Another fascinating element is the choice to undo everything that’s come since the event that they’re changing. How far back can or should they go? And if they change something terrible that happened, can they live with losing all the good things that happened too?

I’ve had hit or miss experiences with Rebecca Serle’s books in the past — I’ve loved two of her books, and felt less connected with two others. Once and Again belongs firmly in the “hit” category. I found it emotional, thought-provoking, and engaging, with characters to care about and a plot strongly rooted in reality even with a magical gift in the mix. Highly recommended.

For more by this author:
The Dinner List
In Five Years
One Italian Summer
Expiration Dates

Purchase links: Amazon – Audible audiobook – Bookshop.org – Libro.fm
Disclaimer: When you make a purchase through one of these affiliate links, I may earn a small commission, at no additional cost to you.

19Mar2026

Book Review: Mania by Lionel Shriver

Posted in Book Reviews by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Title: Mania
Author: Lionel Shriver
Publisher: Harper Collins
Publication date: April 9, 2024
Length: 388 pages
Genre: Dystopian / alternative reality
Source: Library
Rating:

What if calling someone stupid was illegal? In a reality not too distant from our own, where the so-called Mental Parity Movement has taken hold, the worst thing you can call someone is ‘stupid’.

Everyone is equally clever, and discrimination based on intelligence is ‘the last great civil rights fight’.

Exams and grades are all discarded, and smart phones are rebranded. Children are expelled for saying the S-word and encouraged to report parents for using it. You don’t need a qualification to be a doctor.

Best friends since adolescence, Pearson and Emory find themselves on opposing sides of this new culture war. Radio personality Emory – who has built her career riding the tide of popular thought – makes increasingly hard-line statements while, for her part, Pearson believes the whole thing is ludicrous.

As their friendship fractures, Pearson’s determination to cling onto the ‘old, bigoted way of thinking’ begins to endanger her job, her safety and even her family.

Lionel Shriver turns her piercing gaze on the policing of opinion and intellect, and imagines a world in which intellectual meritocracy is heresy. Hilarious, deadpan, scathing and at times frighteningly plausible, MANIA will delight the many fans of her fiction and journalism alike.

Mania has got to be one of the strangest books I’ve ever read. This depiction of an alternate reality where Mental Parity is the new normal imagines a society where variation in intelligence is considered a myth. All are equally capable. All are equally intelligent. Some people may just process differently.

As narrated by main character Pearson Converse, what starts as a ridiculous idea — the idea that mental parity is the “last great civil rights fight” — takes over the country and much of the world. From a fringe cultural phenomenon, mental parity (MP) becomes a strident, powerful force for overturning everything from school (grades are eliminated, because all children are equally intelligent) to university admissions (strictly lottery based, because all are equally qualified) to employment opportunities, parenting, and all manner of social discourse.

Pearson, an English instructor at what was once considered a high-prestige liberal arts college, finds her hands increasingly tied as her surly students practically dare her to step out of line so they can report her to an MPC (Mental Parity Champion).

Even language becomes strictly policed. Words used to denote levels of intelligence are grossly offensive — stupid and dumb being prime examples — but over time, even words used in other contexts are stricken because they could possibly denote judgment that defies the concepts of mental parity. Can’t talk about the deep end of a swimming pool, because “deep” has a nasty association with the myth that some people are “deeper” than others — so let’s just refer to the end of the pool with more water. Also ruled out are words like dull or sharp, even in the context of kitchen knives, or brilliant as in the stars in the sky, or profound… as in deep… as in… oops, never mind.

As time passes and adherence to MP becomes absolute, Pearson finds herself increasingly on the outs with her former best friend Emory, someone with whom she was once aligned on just about everything. Now, Emory seems to have traded in her personal belief system in order to bolster her broadcast career, becoming a star commentator on CNN by offering high profile opinion pieces on the evils of those who oppose MP. Meanwhile, Pearson’s family life is increasingly at risk, as stepping a toe out of line brings down the wrath of Child Protective Services and puts her job (and financial survival) in danger.

Mania is clearly satirical, but what exactly is the author satirizing? At times, the MP world seems to be aligned with MAGA viewpoints denigrating academics and intellectuals as out-of-touch elitists, and the total undermining of scientific rigor mirrors some views of the MAHA movement. And yet, the hyperfocus on policing word choice and sanding away the edges of anything that ever might possibly offend anyone can also speak to what some see as the excesses of “wokeness”. The point, I think, is to show the damage of any sort of extremism taking over rational society — and as we see in Mania, bouncing from one extreme to another as the pendulum of societal norms swings to correct itself poses fresh set of dangers too.

I puzzled over the language in Mania. Pearson’s narration of her life is full of overstuffed sentences and pretentious, convoluted wording. I often had to stop to parse out what a particular sentence might mean. Not having read anything by this author previously, I was left to wonder: Is this delivery typical of this author, or is this meant to show how Pearson holds herself apart and embraces her intellectual superiority even while trying to survive in a world where the use of big words is derided as “brain-vain” or “smartist”? Yet Pearson repeats throughout the book that even while she’s adamantly opposed to MP and its concepts, she herself isn’t all that smart. And so, I remain a bit baffled by the character’s delivery of her life story.

A few examples:

To my embarrassment, here I am relating picayune points of philological fascism—the death of the “dumbbell”—while, out in the rest of the world, events of more considerable moment were afoot.

Emory’s ducking-below-the-parapet strategy had much to recommend it. We could keep our heads down, shuffling the world in camouflage like soldiers wearing dun in the desert, duly observing every new linguistic prohibition and suppressing perceptions of our species once prevailing, now retrograde, the better not to stand out.

Needless to say, heroin users were no longer “dope fiends,” although if you were an opioid addict, surely having your perspicacity traduced was the least of your problems.

The author weaves our own world into the story, warping people and events to suit this strange alternate reality. Obama is president… but only for one term. His brand of intellectualism is a huge turn-off — prime example of being brain-vain! — but his VP, Biden — with his lost trains of thought and awkward public speeches — is a perfect MP president. He’s just as intelligent as everyone else! Because everyone is just as intelligent as everyone else!

Even later, political standards become yet more entrenched in MP:

It’s now taken as a given that for any candidate to be seriously considered for either major party’s presidential nomination next year, he or she will necessarily be badly educated, uninformed, poorly spoken, crass, oblivious to the rest of the world, unattractive and preferably fat, unsolicitous of advice from the more experienced, suspicious of expertise, inclined to violate constitutional due process if only from perfect ignorance of the Constitution, self-regarding without justification, and boastful about what once would have been perceived as his or her shortcomings. We blithely assume that whoever is elected president will surround him- or herself with mediocrities or worse and purposefully appoint a cabinet whose leading credentials are having no credentials.

Hmm. Does that ring any bells?

My ratings graphic only allows full and half stars; otherwise, I would have rated Mania at 3.25. It’s better than a 3-star read, which to me is a “meh”, but I can’t bring myself to go all the way to 3.5, which would imply that it succeeds much more than I feel is accurate. Despite the weirdness of so much of the story, Mania still pulled me in. Once I started, I didn’t want to put it down. I just can’t say that I loved it.

I recommend Mania as a thought experiment and as a very different sort of reading experience. There’s a lot to chew on, despite being so totally outside the scope of believability. Mania is commentary on all sorts of societal woes, dressed up as the story of a woman’s struggle to hold onto the truth even if it costs her everything.

Mania was my book group’s pick for March, and I’m looking forward to hearing what everyone else thought of it. Despite its strangeness, this book is probably a great one for kicking off a lively discussion!

Interested in learning more? Here’s a round-up of reviews:
New York Times
The Guardian
NPR
Kirkus
The Times (UK)

18Mar2026

Audiobook Review: One & Only by Maureen Goo

Posted in Book Reviews by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Title: One & Only
Author: Maureen Goo
Narrator: Jeena Yi
Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons
Publication date: February 3, 2026
Print length: 364 pages
Audio length: 10 hours 32 minutes
Genre: Contemporary romance
Source: Library
Rating:

In Five Years meets a millennial The Joy Luck Club in the adult debut from the author of YA Reese Pick Throwback— a funny and fresh love story of a woman thrown a curveball by fate, and the family secret that will make her question everything.

She’s seen what her happily ever after looks like. And it’s not him.

Cassia Park believes in soul mates. Fated love stories. It’s her family business, after all—for centuries, from Korea to Los Angeles, Park women have peered into clients’ past lives to find their one true love, their fated. This magical secret is why One & Only Matchmaking has a 100% guarantee…for everyone but Cassia.

For ten years, Cass has been searching for her fated, a man named Daniel Nam. But he’s still nowhere to be found.

And so, on the eve of her 40th birthday, Cass decides to do something for herself. She impulsively has a fling with Ellis. He’s twenty-eight, indecently handsome, and not destined to be the love of her life. But she’s surprised by their connection and their fling feels like something more—up to the moment he introduces her to his boss…Daniel Nam.

As she battles between fate and chance, head and heart, a family secret is revealed that will make her question everything she’s ever known. Cassia will have to decide if she’ll follow her fate…or make her own.

Before jumping into the review, can we just talk for a minute about how weird the blurb is? “In Five Years meets a millennial The Joy Luck Club“?? Is that the marketing team’s way of saying this book has some woo-woo elements plus it’s about a multi-generational Asian family and the main character is about to turn 40? I think these blurbs that try so hard to compare a book to other books have now stretched themselves to the breaking point. Anyway…

One & Only is a recent Read with Jenna pick, and since I’ve had good experiences with many of that book group’s picks (see my post about celebrity book clubs), I thought I’d give the audiobook a try.

In One & Only, the concept of meant-to-be is given quite a workout! Main character Cassia is about to turn 40, and has yet to meet her one and only… although she knows exactly who he is, or at least, she knows his name. Cassia works for the One & Only matchmaking company in LA, a family business run by her grandmother which carries out traditions that go back centuries within her Korean family.

To their customers, One & Only is a hugely successful matchmaking business. They even offer a guarantee and boast of a 100% success rate! They use the ancient art of face-reading to understand who someone truly is and then find the perfect match for them — but what they never tell anyone is that the women of their family also have a gift: As they read their clients’ faces, they get visions of their past lives which show them their “fated” — the person they’re destined to be with, and whom they’ve loved throughout shared lives together. Cassia has the gift as well, and as the only woman of her generation in the family, she knows that the business’s future rests on her having children to carry on the gift… something that seems frustratingly out of reach.

Ten years earlier, Cassia finally agreed to have her grandmother read her face and reveal her fated, and Cassia has known his name — Daniel Nam — ever since. But after a decade of searching, she’s still unable to find him. Meanwhile, she’s had a string of short, uninvolved romances. Why bother giving her heart to anyone when she knows her future lies with someone else?

And then Cassia meets Ellis. He’s a younger man with a lovely energy and personality, and the two click right away. They spend a passionate weekend together, and their chemistry is obvious. But when Cassia runs into Ellis on a work retreat, their new relationship comes to a screeching halt, because Ellis’s boss is Daniel Nam. Yes, that Daniel Nam. Adopted as a child, Daniel grew up with a different last name, and only recently added his Korean surname to his public persona.

Cassia does feel a connection to Daniel right away… and he’s so much better a choice for her — at least, on paper. And he’s her fated! She owes it to herself and to Daniel to pursue this, so she dumps Ellis and begins dating Daniel. And it’s good… for a while. But every time she runs into Ellis, there’s a pang over what might have been, and a nagging sense that maybe her fated doesn’t quite fit her life after all.

As the story progresses, we see Cassia attempt to forget about Ellis and focus on her meant-to-be life with Daniel, but there’s an element of unease. If Daniel is her fated, why does she still have feelings for someone else? Also, Cassia discovers months into her relationship with Daniel that they’re not on the same page about a huge issue, which is confusing and distressing: If they’re perfect for each other, why doesn’t this critical piece match up?

There’s a lot to appreciate about One & Only, especially the dynamics between the women of the Park family. Cassia’s grandmother is a force to be reckoned with, and her great-aunt and aunt are entertaining and dynamic too. The love between the generations of women is fierce and protective. Cassia’s mother died when Cassia was eight years old, and she was raised by her grandparents, who showered her with love and did their best to nourish a broken-hearted little girl.

Cassia’s grief related to her mother’s loss is a dominant theme throughout the book, as are some of the mysteries surrounding her mother’s life. Yvette was a rebel, an artist who chose to pursue her own path and not follow her elders into a life in the matchmaking business. More crucially, Cassia has known all her life that Yvette chose to marry someone she met in college, who wasn’t her fated… and who left her and Cassia because he couldn’t handle fatherhood. Cassia’s core beliefs are tied to this family history. See what happens when you ignore your fated?

Of course, the truth is more nuanced. Late in the book, Cassia tracks down the father she’s never known, and learns more about his years with her mother. Starting to heal this broken part of her life is a major step that gives Cassia fresh perspectives on her own choices — including finally acknowledging that she has more options than she once believed.

Cassia’s actions related to Ellis and Daniel can be troubling at times. She handles neither relationship particularly well, and I wished she’d been more honest with both about her reasons for ending and starting things with each of them. Her behavior toward Ellis feels particularly problematic. He’s a cinnamon roll character, totally sweet and caring and giving. Cassia dumping him in order to immediately start dating his boss is cruel. The fact of Daniel being her fated is Cassia’s excuse to herself for her behavior, but it’s just all so painful and awkward, not helped by going with Daniel to company events where this uncomfortable love triangle is on full display.

In real life, Cassia definitely wouldn’t get the happy ending she gets here… but given that this is a romance, we know she’ll find her way to true love by the final pages. The book takes a bit of a hand-wavy approach to settling the issue of fateds and past lives and reconciling this with Cassia’s choices. Honestly, I didn’t quite buy the matchmaking company’s business model or their astonishing success rates, and felt it might have helped readers suspend disbelief if we got to spend more than a few minutes with other matched couples, to get a sense of how finding your fated translates into building a relationship and a life together.

Despite not entirely loving the entire matchmaking storyline and feeling really uncomfortable with some of the love triangle scenes (including one near the end where Cassia behaves very badly), I found the plot overall to be engaging and unusual. The generational aspect and the focus on the impact of Cassia’s mother’s death on her life add depth to the story and provide some of the deepest emotional impacts.

The audiobook narration by Jeena Yi is lovely. She brings a lot of spirit to the narrative, and lets us really feel what Cassia is going through. I also enjoyed her portrayal of the older women in the family — they truly sparkle.

One & Only held my interest and made me care about the characters. The storyline feels fresh, I really enjoyed the vivid depiction of the LA setting, and the family dynamics greatly enrich the romantic framework. This is a nice option to pick up for a mix of entertaining set pieces and deeper emotional experiences.

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15Mar2026

Book Review: Lady Tremaine by Rachel Hochhauser

Posted in Book Reviews by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Title: Lady Tremaine
Author: Rachel Hochhauser
Publisher: St. Martins Press
Publication date: March 3, 2026
Length: 341 pages
Genre: Fairy tale retelling
Source: Library
Rating:

Twice-widowed, Lady Etheldreda Verity Isolde Tremaine Bramley is solely responsible for her two children, a priggish stepdaughter, a razor-taloned peregrine falcon, and a crumbling manor. Fierce and determined, Ethel clings to the respectability her deceased husband’s title affords her, hoping it will secure her daughters’ future through marriage.

When a royal ball offers the chance to change everything, Ethel risks her pride in pursuit of an invitation for all three of her daughters—only to see her hopes fulfilled by the wrong one. As an engagement to the future king unfolds, Ethel discovers a sordid secret hidden in the depths of the royal family, forcing her to choose between the security she craves and the wellbeing of the stepdaughter who has rebuffed her at every turn.

As if Bridgerton met Circe, and exhilarating to its core, Lady Tremaine reimagines the myth of the evil stepmother at the heart of the world’s most famous fairy tale. It is a battle cry for a mother’s love for her daughters, and a celebration of women everywhere who make their own fortunes.

Lady Tremaine was not on my reading radar for this month — but I was curious after seeing that it was the newest pick for Reese’s Book Club, and then was lucky enough to have my library hold come in within a week. I love when the book gods put something unexpected in my path this way, and I end up reading a terrific book that I might otherwise have missed.

Lady Tremaine is a retelling of the Cinderella story, set in an unnamed kingdom with a prince in need of a bride. The story is told through the first-person narration of Lady Etheldreda (Ethel) Verity Isolde Tremaine Bramley — the “evil stepmother” of fairy tale infamy, who tells us a very different story than the one we think we know.

Note: Apparently, the Tremaine surname was a Disney invention! Before the 1950 film, the character and her daughters were basically just known as the evil stepmother and ugly stepsisters.

We first meet Ethel in the woods, muddy and disheveled, hunting with her trained falcon Lucy to put food on her family’s table. “Poaching” might actually be more accurate than “hunting” — she’s crossed over to the king’s land on the other side of the river where there’s more game to be found… but it’s that, or her girls will go hungry.

Ethel’s family is in dire straits. Twice widowed, her most recent husband, Lord Bramley, left her a crumbling estate and a step-daughter to care for. All of Bramley’s money has been left for his daughter Elin’s dowry, and is untouchable. Ethel and her daughters Rosamond (Rosie) and Mathilde slowly sell off all of the property’s valuables, desperately clinging to the bare essentials as the manor’s rooms empty and the roof develops leaks. They work hard to scrape by, while clinging to the surface necessities when in public so that no one knows just how low they’ve fallen.

All except Elin, who lives her life according to a book of maxims about virtue, all she has left of her own deceased mother. Rebuffing all attempts at kindness or maternal comfort from Ethel, Elin holds herself apart and trains herself on the accomplishments prized in marriageable girls — decorative skills that do nothing to help the struggling household. Still, Ethel makes sure Elin is safe and fed, despite the growing resentment over her unwillingness to work as the rest of them do.

The plot kicks off with the announcement of a royal ball. As the carriages of the royal messenger roll up to the Bramley estate, Ethel scrubs off the mud and hides the evidence of their decaying home, presenting three pretty girls to hear the messenger’s words. But the invitation that’s presented is only for Elin — Rosie and Mathilde are passed over.

When I’d first heard the rumors, I wasn’t afraid of not being invited to the royal ball; I was afraid of one existing. For if it existed, we must go. And if we went, we must succeed. And if we were successful, my daughters would be married and move away from me forever. My own desires contradicted each other.

The ball represents not just a party. In Ethel’s viewpoint, it’s key to their survival. Clinging desperately to their precarious social status, Ethel knows that good marriages — representing physical and financial safety — are only available to young girls of high enough social standing. The ball is an opportunity for her daughters to be seen in society and make connections, and may be their last hope. Ethel takes a gamble to secure invitations for her girls, but as the date of the ball approaches, a new opportunity arises: One of her daughters has caught the eye of the prince. Now, not just a noble marriage, but a royal one, may be within reach.

Opportunities came and they were small and unlikely and easy to overlook. You had to stick your fingers into them and pinch the edges and pull. You had to widen the aperture of possibility.

Lady Tremaine achieves startling results by making Ethel a strong, relatable, and sympathetic character. She doesn’t yearn for royalty or nobility for the sake of power or money. She simply wants her daughters to be safe and have better lives than the one she can provide for them. Over the course of the book, through scenes showing her backstory, we learn much more about Ethel’s struggles, as well as what she’s learned about women’s lack of power and agency in their society.

Driven by love for her daughters — even including Elin, despite their prickly relationship — Ethel is willing to do practically anything to protect them. Ethel’s reflections on motherhood and what it means to love one’s children are startling, powerful, and moving. The book’s plot becomes darker than I would have expected, and Ethel is forced to make drastic decisions that put the entire family’s future at risk, for the sake of making sure that all those that she loves are protected.

Lady Tremaine is a compelling story, dramatically told and utterly absorbing. I couldn’t put it down! We may think we know every last version of the Cinderella story, and yet, Lady Tremaine provides a fresh take with a thoughtful viewpoint and memorable characters. Highly recommended.

Of course, Lady Tremaine got me thinking about other Cinderella retellings, so I had to look back through my shelves to find other versions that I’ve read. There are a lot!

What Cinderella retellings have you read?

11Mar2026

Audiobook Review: This Book Made Me Think of You by Libby Page

Posted in Book Reviews by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Title: This Book Made Me Think of You
Author: Libby Page
Narrator: Zadeiah Campbell-Davies
Publisher: Berkley
Publication date: February 3, 2026
Print length: 411 pages
Audio length: 10 hours 26 minutes
Genre: Contemporary fiction
Source: Library
Rating:

A woman receives an unexpected gift from the man she loved and lost—a year of books, one for every month—launching a reading-inspired journey to live, dream, and love again in this glimmering and heart-stopping novel.

Twelve books. Twelve months. One chance to heal her heart…

When Tilly Nightingale receives a call telling her there’s a birthday gift from her husband waiting for her at her local bookshop, it couldn’t come as more of a shock. Partly because she can’t remember the last time she read a book for pleasure. But mainly because Joe died five months ago….

When she goes to pick up the present, Alfie, the bookshop owner with kind eyes, explains the gift—twelve carefully chosen books with handwritten letters from Joe, one for each month, to help her turn the page on her first year without him.

At first Tilly can’t imagine sinking into a fictional world, but Joe’s tender words convince her to try, and something remarkable happens—Tilly becomes immersed in the pages, and a new chapter begins to unfold in her own life. Monthly trips to the bookstore—and heartfelt conversations with Alfie—give Tilly the comfort she craves and the courage to set out on a series of reading-inspired adventures that take her around the world. But as she begins to share her journey with others, her story—like a book—becomes more than her own.

This heart-warming book is a story about grief, support, and healing. It’s also very much a love letter to the power of reading and a huge note of appreciation for independent booksellers.

I am the person I am because of the books I have read. My reading history is a map that shows the path of my life.

Tilly is a young widow, buried under the grief of losing her beloved husband Joe after a brief, intense battle with cancer. Immersing herself in her career as an editor of non-fiction books — specifically, ghost-written celebrity tell-alls — Tilly flounders in her personal life, living in the flat she and Joe shared, surrounded by his papers, clothing, and other belongings, and unable to return to her lifelong love of reading. In fact, Tilly can’t recall a single book she’s read since Joe’s terrible diagnosis.

Five months after his death, she’s shocked to receive a call from Book Lane, her neighborhood bookshop, asking her to come in to pick up a book on hold for her. Tilly thinks there must be a mistake — she didn’t order any books. But when she goes into the store, she’s handed a wrapped book and receives an explanation. Prior to his death, Joe ordered a year of books for Tilly. She’ll receive one book each month, each one specifically chosen by Joe. Tilly is floored, to say the least. After her months of pain and loneliness, here is Joe reaching out to her one final time.

As the year unfolds, the books from Joe and the letters he’s enclosed with each one open up a small window for Tilly to start seeing the world outside herself once more. The books are varied (and are delightful to discover each month, so I won’t name names). Each is chosen for a reason — and with each, Tilly is challenged to expand her horizons ever so slightly, to venture out of her flat, and to try to reengage with the people and experiences she’s shut herself away from.

Meanwhile, we also follow Alfie, the owner of Book Lane, who deals with his own challenges in maintaining the family bookstore after his father’s death years earlier, trying to live up to his legacy while also keeping the store afloat. Alfie is immediately drawn to Tilly, and becomes a friend and confidante over the months as they interact about Joe’s books, and then find other common ground to share.

Romance is a backburner plot in This Book Made Me Think of You, which feels appropriate. The story is really about Tilly’s personal growth. It’s clear that there are romantic feelings that will emerge over the course of the book, but this aspect is handled tastefully and in a way that feels true to Tilly’s process of grieving and honoring Joe’s memory.

The book is structured by month, as we (and Tilly) see Joe’s new book choices as the year goes by, and see Tilly’s reactions and experiences in relation to the book. As well, each month’s section opens with thematic book recommendations from Book Lane. Between these and Tilly’s memories of important books in her life, reading This Book Made Me Think of You feels like a delicious feast for book lovers.

Start to finish, This Book Made Me Think of You is a beautiful reading experience. It made me tear up quite a few times (always a bit embarrassing while listening to an audiobook in public!), and made me laugh too. I loved hearing about all the books in Tilly’s life, loved seeing her adventures and how she reconnects with so many people in her life, and loved how delicately and realistically the book portrays the idea of living with grief, rather than seeing grief as something to be gotten over.

The audiobook is very well done. The narrator conveys Tilly’s inner thoughts well, and provides variation for the various characters with whom Tilly interacts. She even does a convincing American accent for Joe!

Overall, I really loved this book — both the plot and the way the books expresses all the ways in which books enhance lives. Highly recommended.

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1Mar2026

Audiobook Review: Is She Really Going Out With Him? by Sophie Cousens

Posted in Book Reviews by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Title: Is She Really Going Out With Him?
Author: Sophie Cousens
Narrator: Kerry Gilbert
Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons
Publication date: November 19, 2024
Print length: 368 pages
Audio length: 11 hours 42 minutes
Genre: Contemporary romance
Source: Library
Rating:

A hilarious love story about a disillusioned divorcée who agrees to let her children play matchmaker.

Columnist Anna Appleby has left her love life behind after a painful divorce. Who needs a man when she has two kids, a cat, and uncontested control of the TV remote? Besides, she’d rather be single than subject herself to the hell of online dating. But her office rival is vying for her column, and no column means no stable source of income. In a desperate attempt to keep her job, Anna finds herself pitching a unique angle: seven dates, all found offline, chosen by her children.

From awkward encounters to unexpected connections, Anna gamely begins to put herself out there, asking out waiters, the mailman, and even her celebrity crush. But when a romantic connection appears where she least expected it, will she be brave enough to take another chance on love?

In this feel-good romance, 37-year-old Anna is trying to bounce back from divorce — which is especially hard now that her ex has moved his much younger girlfriend into his home, yet can’t be bothered to do the kids’ laundry or make sure their homework is done when they’re with him. What’s more, Anna’s career as a columnist is at risk when Bath Living is acquired by someone more focused on profits than on great writing. Anna’s new publisher wants her column to be edgier and more personal, and she just doesn’t know if she has it in her. But, her annoying (and attractive) coworker seems to be angling for her column space, and she’s determined not to let him win… so she pitches one last desperate idea for a new dating-themed column.

After trying online dating, with the expected awful results, Anna wonders if it’s possible to find romance in real life anymore. Her kids are eager to set her up, and a concept is born: Anna will go on seven dates, with people selected by the kiddos. What could possibly go wrong?

From a fishing trip with a painful ending to a Regency encounter to a setup with the grumpy widower next door, Anna goes on a series of dates — some ending with awkwardness, one proving that you should never meet your idols, and one that results in an ill-advised tattoo. None are exactly successful, but they do make for entertaining column material.

Meanwhile, the office rivalry with Will goes from barely tolerating each other as coworkers to something much more NSFW… but Anna doesn’t see a future with Will, who seems to be destined for jetsetting career success while she is firmly tied to her roots in Bath. But they do have undeniable chemistry, so even as she continues to date according to her kids’ whims, she can’t help but wonder if there’s any possible scenario where she and Will could actually have more than casual hook-ups.

Is She Really Going Out With Him? is a charming look at the ups and downs of reentering the dating scene after marriage, with an engaging, bright main character who’s a delight to get to know. A devoted mother, Anna struggles to balance her home and work commitments, and can’t imagine ever putting herself first… but through the dating experiment, she’s reminded of experiences that bring her joy, such a rediscovering her creative, artistic side and finding an upbeat, life-affirming new friend when she least expects it.

One of the many pleasures of this book is seeing Anna coming out of her dates with new connections — not in terms of romantic partners, but finding people to engage with outside of her worlds of home and office, and finding ways to break out of her routine in a way that benefits all the people in her life.

Of course, the romantic storyline is important too, and while I was initially skeptical about reading yet another enemies-to-lovers story arc, this is a good one! There are plenty of reasons why Will and Anna shouldn’t work, and while it’s clear from the start that their pairing is the book’s endgame, it’s quite fun to see the ups and downs along their path to figuring it all out.

The less said about the 3rd act break up, the better: It’s one of my least favorite tropes — the old “breaking up with you for your own good”, with a smattering of “pretending never to have cared so it’ll be easier for you to walk away”. Fortunately, this part flies by pretty quickly and honesty prevails, but still… this was the only part of the book that annoyed me.

The audiobook narration by Kerry Gilbert is light and whimsical, with the humor very well captured by her character voices and delivery. I enjoyed the listening experience very much — it kept me engaged and entertained.

All in all, Is She Really Going Out With Him? is a lot of fun, and I look forward to trying more by this author.

Any favorites to recommend?

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1Feb2026

Book Review: The Names by Florence Knapp

Posted in Book Reviews by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Title: The Names
Author: Florence Knapp
Publisher: Pamela Dorman Books
Publication date: May 6, 2025
Length: 328 pages
Genre: Contemporary fiction
Source: Purchased
Rating:

The extraordinary novel that asks: Can a name change the course of a life?

In the wake of a catastrophic storm, Cora sets off with her nine-year-old daughter, Maia, to register the birth of her son. Her husband, Gordon, respected in the community but a controlling presence at home, intends for her to follow a long-standing family tradition and name the baby after him. But when faced with the decision, Cora hesitates….

Spanning thirty-five years, what follows are three alternate and alternating versions of their lives, shaped by Cora’s last-minute choice of name. In richly layered prose, The Names explores the painful ripple effects of domestic abuse, the messy ties of family, and the possibilities for autonomy and healing.

Through a prism of what-ifs, Florence Knapp invites us to consider the “one … precious life” we are given. Full of hope, this is the story of three names, three versions of a life, and the infinite possibilities that a single decision can spark. It is the story of one family and love’s endless capacity to endure, no matter what fate has in store.

The Names is a fascinating look at decisions and possibilities:

Yes, people’s lives bump and collide and we send one another spinning off in different directions. But that’s life. It’s not unique to you. We each make our own choices.

Before going further:

Content warning: While I don’t typically read or provide content warnings, I do feel it’s important to make clear that this book deals very heavily with domestic violence and abuse.

I had no idea what to expect when I picked up The Names. I knew it made a lot of “best of” lists for 2025 and had been a Goodreads Choice nominee. I vaguely knew that the plot had to do with deciding what to name a baby. Not much to go on! So I was both surprised and pleased to find myself completely immersed in this unusual, moving story.

As the book opens, Cora is on the way to the registrar’s office to officially register the birth and name of her newborn son, accompanied by her nine-year-old daughter Maia. Cora and her husband have already picked a name — he’ll be called Gordon, just like his father and grandfather before him. But as mother and daughter walk, they start to talk. Cora shares that she likes the name Julian, which means “sky father” — and the “father” element could be a nod to her husband while not passing on the actual traditional name. And Maia, full of creativity and whimsy, says that if she could pick, she’d name him Bear — because “it sounds all soft and cuddly and kind […] but also, brave and strong.”

From there, the story splits in three, providing three chapters in the immediate aftermath of the registrar’s office — Bear, Julian, and Gordon. In each, we see the consequences and fallout of Cora’s naming decision. How does her life — and Maia’s, and the baby’s — change depending on what she named him? The structure of the book follows this three-branched approach, moving forward in seven-year increments, each one showing this new period with Bear, Julian, and Gordon versions of their lives.

I’m not providing details, as it would spoil much too much to go into the specifics of the variations, how very different each version of their lives is, and why their lives develop as they do. This is a book that should be allowed to unfold for the reader, without foreknowledge or expectations. There are beautiful moments as well as pain, sorrow, and regrets. The characters are complex, and the ramifications of their choices are shown through the textures of the lives they live.

As I stated in the content warning, domestic abuse is the driving force — the origin story, in a way — for much of what happens, as well as the secret weight behind Cora’s naming choice. The violence isn’t gratuitous in any way, but it is painful to read, making certain sections of the book feel practically overwhelming.

Still, at its core, The Names is a story about love and family, finding beauty in life and in the people who we care about. It’s fascinating, powerful, and deeply emotional. I’ll be thinking about this book long after closing the cover. Highly recommended.

31Jan2026

Audiobook Review: Anne of a Different Island by Virginia Kantra

Posted in Book Reviews by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Title: Anne of a Different Island
Author: Virginia Kantra
Narrators: Kathleen McInerney and Will Collyer
Publisher: Berkley
Publication date: January 20, 2026
Print length: 368 pages
Audio length: 10 hours 54 minutes
Genre: Contemporary romance
Source: Library (audiobook); ARC via NetGalley (ebook)
Rating:

A woman learns to be the heroine of her own life in this heartfelt novel inspired by Anne of Green Gables by New York Times bestselling author Virginia Kantra.

She believed life could follow a plotline—until the story she was living unraveled.

Anne Gallagher has always lived by the book. Anne of Green Gables, that is. Growing up on Mackinac Island, she saw herself as her namesake; the same impulsive charm, the same wild imagination, even the same red hair (dyed, but still). She followed in Anne Shirley’s fictional footsteps, chasing dreams of teaching and writing, and falling for her very own storybook hero.

But when a string of real-life plot twists—a failing romance, a fight with the administration, and the sudden death of her beloved father—pulls her back to the island she once couldn’t wait to leave, Anne is forced to face a truth no story ever prepared her for. Sometimes, life doesn’t follow a script.

Back in the house she grew up in, Anne must confront her past and the people she left behind, including Joe Miller, the boy who once called her “The Pest.” It’s time to figure out what she wants and rewrite her story to create her own happy ending. Not the book version. The real one.

Anne (with an E!) is a 24-year-old high school teacher who enjoys inspiring her students by making sure they find the books that might change their lives. She lives alone, waiting for the day when her doctor boyfriend Chris is ready for them to move in together. Anne dreams of being a writer, but meanwhile, everything is fine, and her happy ending seems within reach.

And then, her life more or less implodes. Anne’s beloved father dies — the man who was always her greatest source of love and support, the man who first put a copy of Anne of Green Gables into her hands, the man who always seemed to appreciate Anne’s nonstop chatter and big dreams. Going back home to Mackinac Island for the funeral, she is wracked by guilt over not visiting more, and has to deal with the sense of abandonment she feels when Chris chooses to stay behind to take care of a patient rather than going with her.

Back on the island, Anne at first is reminded of her own isolation. Her mother isn’t emotionally accessible. Anne has never quite repaired the distant relationship with her childhood best friend. Her father’s former apprentice and business partner — who nicknamed her the Pest when she was a child — seems to always be around, apparently closer to her parents than she herself was. By the end of the funeral, Anne can’t wait to get back to her “real” life in Chicago.

But when a parent complaint leads to a temporary leave from work, and Chris makes a unilateral decision about their future, Anne retreats back to Mackinac for the summer to take a break, recharge, and take stock of what she really wants. And the longer she spends on the island, the more she starts to see the potential of a good life back where she started from, especially as she reforges relationships with the people who matter most to her.

Anne of a Different Island is, obviously, filled with references to and inspiration from Anne of Green Gables, but it’s not a retelling. Anne Gallagher holds up Anne Shirley as her idol (she even has a tattoo of a favorite Anne quote, “tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes in it yet”). The Anne of this book shares Anne Shirley’s optimism and imagination, and uses the Anne books as a point of reference when she feels lost in her own thoughts and quandaries.

Seeing Anne find her place on the island is heart-warming, and while we may figure out long before Anne does that (a) Chris sucks, (b) her old school sucks too, and (c) she really can have a future on Mackinac, it’s still sweet to see how Anne finally realizes all this too. The romance with Joe is mostly a slow-burn, as each deals with the baggage of former relationships, but there’s really no doubt that they’ll work it all out eventually.

The story is mainly told through Anne’s point of view, with a scattering of Joe chapters mixed in. The narrators do a nice job of voicing the characters and their friends and neighbors; Kathleen McInerney is particularly charming as she brings out Anne’s quirkiness, self-doubt, and irrepressible brightness.

One thing I really loved about this book is the emphasis on how reading can change lives. We get the sense that Anne is an amazing teacher. She reaches her students through books, and makes sure that they have access to books that can open their eyes or speak to their inner fears and needs. I was pleased that teaching remains a focus for Anne throughout; even though she finds more time and commitment for writing, she never views teaching as just a fallback until she makes it as an author.

Anne of a Different Island is a sweet, lovely story that made me yearn for a little island community of my own… and reminded me that it’s about time for me to revisit the world of Anne of Green Gables.