By Tessa Pulyer Posted on

Books I Am Reading This Week – September 28, 2022 | #wwwwednesday #readerscommunity #booktwitter

Welcome to WWW Wednesday! This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived on Taking on a World of Words. Just answer the three questions below and leave a link to your post in the comments for others to look at. No blog? No problem! Just leave a comment with your responses. Please, take some time to visit the other participants and see what others are reading. So, let’s get to it!

  • What am I currently reading?
  • What did I just finish?
  • What am I reading next?

I absolutely adored Book Lovers by Emily Henry. Thank you to all of you who recommended it! It’s the first non-arc I’ve read in a while. My spot on the library waitlist for Book Lovers came up, so I was able to do a mix of audio and print.

Genre: Rom Com

Pages: 398 pages

Publisher: Berkeley

Publication Date: May 3, 2022

One summer. Two rivals. A plot twist they didn’t see coming… Nora Stephens’ life is books—she’s read them all—and she is not that type of heroine. Not the plucky one, not the laidback dream girl, and especially not the sweetheart. In fact, the only people Nora is a heroine for are her clients, for whom she lands enormous deals as a cutthroat literary agent, and her beloved little sister Libby. Which is why she agrees to go to Sunshine Falls, North Carolina for the month of August when Libby begs her for a sisters’ trip away—with visions of a small town transformation for Nora, who she’s convinced needs to become the heroine in her own story. But instead of picnics in meadows, or run-ins with a handsome country doctor or bulging-forearmed bartender, Nora keeps bumping into Charlie Lastra, a bookish brooding editor from back in the city. It would be a meet-cute if not for the fact that they’ve met many times and it’s never been cute. If Nora knows she’s not an ideal heroine, Charlie knows he’s nobody’s hero, but as they are thrown together again and again—in a series of coincidences no editor worth their salt would allow—what they discover might just unravel the carefully crafted stories they’ve written about themselves.

I’ve been looking forward to Hester by Laurie Lico Albanese. It’s such a beautiful book and I have heard such good things about it.

  • Genre: Women’s Fiction
  • Pages: 336 pages
  • Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
  • Publication Date: October 4, 2022
A vivid reimagining of the woman who inspired Hester Prynne, the tragic heroine of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, and a journey into the enduring legacy of New England’s witchcraft trials. Isobel Gamble is a young seamstress carrying generations of secrets when she sets sail from Scotland in the early 1800s with her husband, Edward. An apothecary who has fallen under the spell of opium, his pile of debts have forced them to flee Glasgow for a fresh start in the New World. But only days after they’ve arrived in Salem, Edward abruptly joins a departing ship as a medic––leaving Isobel penniless and alone in a strange country, forced to make her way by any means possible. When she meets a young Nathaniel Hawthorne, the two are instantly drawn to each other: he is a man haunted by his ancestors, who sent innocent women to the gallows––while she is an unusually gifted needleworker, troubled by her own strange talents. As the weeks pass and Edward’s safe return grows increasingly unlikely, Nathaniel and Isobel grow closer and closer. Together, they are a muse and a dark storyteller; the enchanter and the enchanted. But which is which? In this sensuous and hypnotizing tale, a young immigrant woman grapples with our country’s complicated past, and learns that America’s ideas of freedom and liberty often fall short of their promise. Interwoven with Isobel and Nathaniel’s story is a vivid interrogation of who gets to be a “real” American in the first half of the 19th century, a depiction of the early days of the Underground Railroad in New England, and atmospheric interstitials that capture the long history of “unusual” women being accused of witchcraft. Meticulously researched yet evocatively imagined, Laurie Lico Albanese’s Hester is a timeless tale of art, ambition, and desire that examines the roots of female creative power and the men who try to shut it down.

The Empress of Time by Kylie Lee Baker is the 2nd book in a series that began with The Keeper of the Night, which I read and reviewed last year. Book 1 ended in quite a precarious situation, so I’m eager to continue with the story.

  • Genre: Fantasy (YA)
  • Pages: 416 pages
  • Publisher: Inkyard Press
  • Publication Date: October 4, 2022
Half British Reaper, half Japanese Shinigami Ren Scarborough is no longer the girl who was chased out of England—she is the Goddess of Death ruling Japan’s underworld. But her problems have never been greater. Her Shinigami see her as a foreigner on the throne. Her brother, Neven, is gone, lost in the deep darkness. And her fiancé, Hiro, has been killed by her own hand. Then Ren receives the most troubling news yet—Reapers have been spotted in Japan, and it’s only a matter of time before Ivy, now Britain’s Death Goddess, comes to claim her revenge. Ren’s last hope is to appeal to the god of storms and seas, who can turn the tides to send Ivy’s ship away from Japan’s shores. But he’ll help Ren only if she finds a sword lost thousands of years ago—an impossible demand. Together with the moon god Tsukuyomi, who shares an uncanny resemblance to his brother Hiro, Ren ventures across the country in a race against time. As her journey thrusts her into the middle of scheming gods and dangerous Yokai demons, Ren will have to learn who she can truly trust—and the fate of Japan hangs in the balance.

What are you reading? Do you love it?

27 Replies to “Books I Am Reading This Week – September 28, 2022 | #wwwwednesday #readerscommunity #booktwitter”

  3. Janette says:

    I enjoyed Book Lovers too. The Kylie Lee Baker books look like something I need to be reading. Hope you enjoy the second as much as the first.

    Liked by 1 person

  7. Staci Troilo says:

    The Scarlet Letter is one of my favorite novels. I don’t know how I feel about reimagining it. Part of me loves that the tale is worth retelling. Another part of me resists messing with perfection.

    Liked by 1 person

      1. Staci Troilo says:

        If there’s any time in history when Hester’s story could be retold, now would be the time, I suppose.

        I might be more interested in hearing from Pearl…

        Liked by 1 person

        1. Lady Tessa says:

          You know, it was actually the fictional story of the woman who inspired Hawthorn to write The Scarlet Letter. That was a very interesting take.

          Liked by 1 person

  10. Teri Polen says:

    I’ve seen some good reviews for Book Lovers – glad it didn’t disappoint, Tessa. The Empress of Time is also on my list, but I’m so behind. I still haven’t finished my September books yet!

    Liked by 1 person

  12. Louise H says:

    I bought Book Lovers a few months ago and still haven’t read it. I’m enjoying Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune at the moment and then I need to read an arc but I will definitely bump it up and read it asap.

    Liked by 1 person

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