Author: Openly Bookish

#bookblogger #hufflepuff #faith #writer Looking to truly connect and befriend.
Book Review · Books

The Lioness Of Leiden by Robert Loewen

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Step back in time to the 40’s in the Netherlands when World War II is in full swing. A young woman named Hetty didn’t want to merely stay on the sidelines. She wanted to help out the resistance in her county, but not all of her assignments are tame. This historical fiction novel takes you on a journey with Hetty on her different assignments and the assortment of characters that she meets along the way.

I found this novel to be slow going at first. Maybe I’m too old fashioned, but it seemed out of character for Hetty to have an assortment of lovers while her boyfriend could possibly be out there still alive. I get we all have needs. Another thing that stood out to me was something an eight year old character said that to me would be more along the lines of something an older teen might say, but not an eight year old. Over all the book does get better the further you get into the story.

I received a complimentary ARC copy of The Lioness of Leiden by Robert Loewen from Greenleaf Book Group, care of Smith Publicity in exchange for my honest feedback. The views expressed are my own and my own choice.

Book Review · Books

So Close by Sylvia Day

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Kane is a devilishly handsome man who has become a shell of who he once was after his wife, Lily comes up lost at sea when she decides to go out and sail her boat. He has numbed his grief by the occasional one nighters, but they just aren’t her. To comfort himself, Kane has paintings of her in his snazzy penthouse. In his bedroom there is one specially placed so that he can gaze on her when he goes to sleep and when he wakes up. His home is a mausoleum of sorts dedicated to her.

One day as he’s stuck in NY traffic he spies a woman who looks like the spitting image of Lily. He can’t help himself. Kane yells out her name and the woman in question turns to him in recognition and runs to get away from him. In the process of trying to get away from Kane, she gets hit by a car. In order to protect this possible Lily Kane has guards stand to keep an eye on who comes and goes to see who he hopes is his long lost wife.

When Lily recoups from her coma she insists that she is his Lily. Will Kane and Lily be able to rebuild their marriage and relationship? Where has she been since she was presumed dead? Not everyone in Kane’s life is thrilled his wife has come back from the dead.

This thriller is intense. If you enjoy psychological thrillers you just might enjoy this story. This is my first book I’ve read by Sylvia Day and I’m pleasantly surprised with her skill of storytelling. If you are a fan of Sarah Pinborough, then I think you will become a new fan. This novel had me hooked from the start.

I received a complimentary ARC copy of So Close by Sylvia Day from Ronin House, care of Smith Publicity for my honest feedback. The views expressed are my own and my choice.

Book Review · Books

The Answer To Anxiety by Joyce Meyer

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Anxiety is something we all face either in tiny increments or large portions that paralyze us in abject fear. One person who has dealt with this affliction throughout her life is Joyce Meyer. In The Answer To Anxiety, Joyce walks the reader through what can aid us in dealing with our anxiety. Joyce provides 5 keys to help us not be anxious: 1. Don’t be anxious. 2. Prayer 3. Thankfulness 4. Enjoy peace

Joyce walks through each key, how we can apply them to our life and what the Bible says about each one. I know I am not supposed to be anxious, but I also think we can start to make it our default setting. I know for me I think I tend to pray more than I do be thankful. As for trying to have peace with myself and others, that key can be challenging at times.

I found this book to be helpful. I know that I can get so wrapped up in whatever I’m anxious about I forget about all that I have and all that is going right in my life. If I work on shifting my focus to thankfulness then I’m turning it from it being about me through worrying to it being about Him, who has given me everything I have.

If you are looking for a short book on anxiety you might find this book helpful even if you aren’t a believer, though being a believer does make a difference. Disclaimer: myself or Joyce Meyers are not doctors, psychologists or therapists.

I received my complimentary copy of The Answer To Anxiety by Joyce Meyer from FaithWords, in exchange for my honest feedback. The views expressed are mine and my own choice to provide.

Book Review · Books

The Love You Save by Goldie Taylor

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Life in East Saint Louis in the 70’s and early 80’s was rough for Goldie. One day at just 11 years old she is violated by an older neighborhood boy. Instead of her mom wanting to help Goldie get through such a traumatic event, she pawns her off on her Aunt Gerald after getting Goldie cleaned up herself. Life at her aunt’s isn’t much of an improvement from living with her mom. Along with a host of cousins, Goldie tries as best she can to adjust to living with her relatives. She always hopes in the back of her mind that her mother will one day swoop back into her life and bring her back home.

In school it is discovered that Goldie is gifted. When she gets placed in the gifted class she excels in memorizing poetry and works on writing her own pieces. Her talent is all thanks to her teaching herself to read at age 3. Books were and are her solace.

This book had me throughout reminding myself that I was reading a memoir and not historical fiction. Goldie’s life story is one of tough love, forgiveness, resilience, hope and love. If you are looking for a book on what inner city life is like then I recommend this upcoming memoir.

I didn’t expect to care about all the real life characters in this book. They weren’t all likable, but by the end I felt like I had been to one of Goldie’s family BBQ’s. Even though there was chaos at times there was in fact unspoken love given in the moments you weren’t always expecting it.

I received a complimentary advanced copy of The Love You Save by Goldie Taylor from Hanover Square Press, care of TLC Book Tours in exchange for my honest feedback. Views expressed are strictly my own.

Book Review · Books

Day By Day: A Guided Journal by Jess Conte

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A new year means you just might be hunting for a new journal. Some journals offer plain blank pages to write whatever you want, but this upcoming journal by Jess Conte offers something better. She provides a wide range of different writing prompts from writing about your childhood, to filling out a never have I ever page, to narrowing down which foods you can’t stand, etc. Sprinkled throughout this journal Jess also offers both heart and health check in pages to gauge how you might be holding up on a particular day.

This journal I feel gives a wide range of different writing prompts. Some were fairly traditional and others were a nice surprise. The one thing that was missing, in my opinion, is more Christian faith content. Jess does have micro spots of a sentence here or there, but there are no Bible verses, prayers, etc. Maybe this journal is more for a general audience rather than a faith based one. Either audience I think would appreciate this journal. I believe Jess captures a writer’s full portrait so to speak with covering so many different topics within this journal.

I received my complimentary copy of Day By Day: A Guided Journal by Jess Conte from EllieClaire.com, a division of Hachette Book Group, Inc to provide my honest feedback. Thoughts expressed are my own and of my own choice. Keep an eye out for this pretty soon to be released journal.

Book Review · Books

The 50/50 Friendship Flow by Shari Leid

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Shari went on a year long journey of asking 50 of her friends to meet her for a friendship date so that she could share with them how they’ve impacted, inspired and changed her life. Each chapter is of each friend she met with whether it was for bunch, lunch, dinner or drinks. Most of the chapters showcase a picture of that particular friend at the beginning of the chapter. One theme I noticed is that each of Shari’s friends glow through their photos.

This idea intrigues me. It’s a neat way to show your friends how much they mean to you and how they have impacted your life. How often do we truly take the time to express how much a friendship means to us?

Do you have 50, 25, 15, 10, or 5 friends that you would ask to do this flow challenge with? I know for me personally I have a fairly decent number of friends. Who would you pick?

For 2023 I want to do this friendship flow challenge. All I have to do is choose how many friends I want to include and start scheduling my virtual friendship dates.

I received my complimentary copy of The 50/50 Friendship Flow by Shari Leid from Capucia, LLC, care of Pacific And Court in exchange for my honest review. Views expressed are my own and of my own will. This book would make a wonderful gift to give a Bestie, a sibling, a parent or family member. Let’s keep the friendship flow going.

Book Review · Books

Missing by Cornelia Spelman

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Memoirs are my favorite. They are a sneak peek into someone’s life. Missing is a short memoir of the author, Cornelia’s journey to understand her family’s dynamics, both her mother and father’s lives, as well as her eldest brother’s.

Family dynamics can be and get messy. Cornelia decides to investigate further after her elderly mother has passed, of her past claim that her son had attempted to do her in. Was it paranoia talking or was there some truth? Through researching her mother’s health history Cornelia starts to unearth more about her mother and her mother’s life.

There’s something that draws me to the Great Depression era. The author graciously included family photos and documents throughout her memoir. Getting to see old pictures of her parents lounging in their classic chairs felt like I got to step back in time for just a moment; to get to join them in their living room to curl up and read along side them. The photo exhibits warmth and coziness which is something in today’s society I believe is a lost art form.

This memoir made think of how much we truly don’t know our parents or extended family. Not everyone feels comfortable talking about their childhood or young adult years. Sometimes life is too painful. How many of us can say we know what our parent’s favorite color was as a child or what they wanted to be when they grew up? I know I sure don’t know either of those answers personally and that is sad. Our family history is aging moment by moment and if we don’t listen to those old stories and jot them down or record them then all that history goes to the grave.

I received a complimentary digital copy of Missing by Cornelia Spelman from Laura Marie PR in exchange for my honest feedback. All views expressed are my own and of my own choice. If you enjoy memoirs and family histories I think you will thoughtfully enjoy this book.

Book Review · Books

Lessons From A Book Blogger

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I’m almost at my 6 year book blogging anniversary. This year I have slacked BIG time. Having only read 11 books so far is disgraceful for me. By now I’m at least past 50 read, but this year I’ve been in a super reading funk.

This funk has taught me some things: Don’t over splurge requesting on Net Galley! I’m loosing my love of reading. I’m over my YA phase. I’ve stopped caring.

I decided to get rid of my NetGalley account. I’ve been reviewing with them over 5 years. They are wonderful. It’s not them. It’s me. I over did my requests. They do warn you to not over request. It was too easy to go on a request binge like a gambling addict. Maybe the next request will get approved. It was an addiction and compulsion. When I began to not want to read that was a major red flag to me. I want to love reading again.

Will I still review? Sure. Just not through NetGalley. Do I recommend going through them? Yes. Just don’t go down my road of binging.

I’m determined to love reading again.

Books

Crazy Joy

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The cover is a patchwork of letters in bright colors. The topic of joy is an appealing one, especially in the times we are in. We do need more joy. I was excited to get to read this new title by MK.

I’ll be honest. I was in the headspace for a more in depth theological book on the subject. The category Christian Living does not equate to that. If you want Christianity light then this is the book for you.

MK shares some great stories from her life that show how she has found and implemented joy into her life. She makes some great points on what joy is and what it is not. MK also shares how happiness and joy are two different things.

I was hoping for some Biblical wisdom on the subject of joy. There was a tiny bit of it, but to be blunt I think you could easily share this book with a nonbeliever and they wouldn’t run. In plain language this book isn’t preachy or filled with Christianese verbiage. Actually there are a few swear words inside. Certainly I’m not innocent in that regard, but it did surprise me a bit.

I received a copy of Crazy Joy by Mary Katherine Backstrom from Worthy Publishing and NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. Thoughts expressed are strictly my own and my own choice. If you are looking for a somewhat lighthearted read on the topic of joy with a variety of life stories interspersed then I recommend this upcoming book, Crazy Joy.

Behind the mask · Celebrity · Documentary Review · Hollywood · Pris Hilton

Behind The Glamour & Makeup

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I don’t know squat about Paris Hilton. All I’ve observed about her is what’s been broadcasted on the TV and media: glamour, parties, drama and those classic burger commercials for Carl’s Jr. Needless to say all that didn’t endear me to know more about her.

Her recent documentary: The Real Story of Paris Hilton on YouTube was recommended in my feed. I figured I would try it. I finished watching it this morning. I’m humbled and floored. Paris is so much more than what is shown through social media and media in general. I don’t want to give spoilers, except to recommend watching it.

I’m proud of you Paris for speaking up and out. You have been through so much. You have been under a social microscope coming from a high society family. There is so much expected of you that’s not necessarily spoken, but assumed. I applaud you for standing up. Be you. Don’t be afraid to take off your social glamour mask.