By Tessa Pulyer Posted on

Books I Am Reading This Week and Weekly Book Haul- April 19, 2023 #wwwwednesday #ReadersCommunity #BookTwitter #BookLover

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?

When I read Panther Gap, it was part of a blog tour that Flatiron Press organized. I worked with an intern who sent me a list of thrillers coming out the rest of the year. It seemed like an email she probably sent out to a bunch of people but since I had a dialogue with her recently, I asked her about the new Alice Feeney book, Good Bad Girl (which was on that list) – specifically if it would be available on NetGalley. She said it would and she could let me know when it was. It became available over the weekend and she emailed me Monday. The link she sent me was an instant approval for it. You all know I did a happy dance. I’m thinking I might start it today. If I don’t, I will read The Daydreams by Laura Hankin which sounds very interesting. I don’t like the cover but the blurb draws me in every time I read it.

  • Genre: Psychological Thriller
  • Pages: 320 pages
  • Publisher: Flatiron
  • Publication Date: August 3, 2023
Sometimes bad things happen to good people, so good people have to do bad things. Our Queen of Twists, bestselling author of Daisy Darker and Rock Paper Scissors Alice Feeney, returns with another thrilling mystery filled with drama and her trademark surprises. Twenty years after a baby is stolen from a stroller, a woman is murdered in a care home. The two crimes are somehow linked, and a good bad girl may be the key to discovering the truth. Edith may have been tricked into a nursing home, but at eighty-years-young, she’s planning her escape. Patience works there, cleaning messes and bonding with Edith, a kindred spirit. But Patience is lying to Edith about almost everything. Edith’s own daughter, Clio, won’t speak to her. And someone new is about to knock on Clio’s door…and their intentions aren’t good. With every reason to distrust each other, the women must solve a mystery with three suspects, two murders, and one victim. If they do, they might just find out what happened to the baby who disappeared, the mother who lost her, and the connections that bind them. In the style of Daisy Darker and Rock Paper Scissors, Good Bad Girl is a thriller in which nobody can be trusted and the twists come fast and furious.
  • Genre: Contemporary / Women’s Fiction
  • Pages: 368 pages
  • Publisher: Berkley
  • Publication Date: May 2, 2023
A deliciously entertaining novel about the stars of a popular teen show from the early 2000s—and the reunion special, thirteen years after their scandalous flameout, that will either be their last chance at redemption, or destroy them all for good. Back in 2004, The Daydreams had it all: a cast of innocent-seeming teenagers acting and singing their hearts out, amazing ratings, and a will-they-or-won’t-they romance that steamed up fan fiction forums. Then, during the live season two finale, it all imploded, leaving everyone scrambling to understand why. Afterward, the four stars went down very different paths. Kat is now a lawyer in Washington, DC. Liana is the bored wife of a famous athlete. Noah, the show’s golden boy, emerged unscathed and is poised to become a household name. And Summer, the object of Noah’s fictional (and maybe real-life) affections, is the cautionary tale. But now the fans are demanding reunion special. The stars all have private reasons to come back: forgiveness, revenge, a second chance with a first love. But as they tentatively rediscover the magic of the original show, old secrets threaten to resurface—including the real reason behind their downfall. Will this reunion be a chance to make things right? Or will it be the biggest mess the world has ever seen? No matter what, the ratings will be wild.

Something about Fifth Avenue Glamour Girl by Renée Rosen called to me. It’s a fictional account of Estee Lauder’s rise in the makeup industry told through the eyes of a fictional friend. I really enjoyed this story. The characters are seriously compelling and the story took me through all the emotions. It’s not my usual kind of read but still I enjoyed this one.

  • Genre: Historical / Women’s Fiction
  • Pages: 432 pages
  • Publisher: Berkley
  • Publication Date: April 25, 2023
It’s 1938, and a young woman selling face cream out of a New York City beauty parlor is determined to prove she can have it all. Her name is Estée Lauder, and she’s about to take the world by storm, in this dazzling new novel from the USA Today bestselling author of The Social Graces and Park Avenue Summer. In New York City, you can disappear into the crowd. At least that’s what Gloria Downing desperately hopes as she tries to reinvent herself after a devastating family scandal. She’s ready for a total life makeover and a friend she can lean on—and into her path walks a young, idealistic woman named Estée. Their chance encounter will change Gloria’s life forever. Estée dreams of success and becoming a household name like Elizabeth Arden, Helena Rubinstein, and Revlon. Before Gloria knows it, she is swept up in her new friend’s mission and while Estée rolls up her sleeves, Gloria begins to discover her own talents. After landing a job at Saks Fifth Avenue, New York’s finest luxury department store, Gloria finds her voice, which proves instrumental in opening doors for Estée’s insatiable ambitions. But in a world unaccustomed to women with power, they’ll each have to pay the price that comes with daring to live life on their own terms and refusing to back down.

I’m reading Zora Books Her Happy Ever After by Taj McCoy as part of a blog tour. It sounds very good, so my fingers are crossed.

  • Genre: Romantic Comedy
  • Pages: 400 pages
  • Publisher: MIRA
  • Publication Date: April 25, 2023
A heart-pounding, curvy romance about an Indie bookstore owner who finds herself in a love triangle when she meets the author she’s had a crush on for years…and his best friend. Zora has committed every inch of her life to establishing her thriving DC bookstore, making it into a pillar of the community, and she just hasn’t had time for romance. But when a mystery author she’s been crushing on for years agrees to have an event at her store, she starts to rethink her priorities. Lawrence is every bit as charming as she imagined, even if his understanding of his own books seems just a bit shallow. When he asks her out after his reading, she’s almost elated enough to forget about the grumpy guy who sat next to her making snide comments all evening. Apparently the grouch is Lawrence’s best friend, Reid, but she can’t imagine what kind of friendship that must be. They couldn’t be more different. But as she starts seeing Lawrence, and spending more and more time with Reid, Zora finds first impressions can be deceiving. Reid is smart and thoughtful—he’s also interested. After years of avoiding dating, she suddenly has two handsome men competing for her affection. But even as she struggles to choose between them, she can’t shake the feeling that they’re both hiding something—a mystery she’s determined to solve before she can find her HEA.

My Berkley influencer’s email came out Friday, plus an got a few widgets from other publishers. There’s a little bit of everything in this haul. I didn’t link them but they all are available on NetGalley.

What are you reading? Do you love it?

28 Replies to “Books I Am Reading This Week and Weekly Book Haul- April 19, 2023 #wwwwednesday #ReadersCommunity #BookTwitter #BookLover”

  4. Dini @ dinipandareads says: Reply

    I still haven’t read anything by Alice Feeney but Good Bad Girl sounds great! I hope you love it 🙂 And that looks like a great haul! I’m looking forward to reading My Roommate is a Vampire cos it looks and sounds like so much fun. Happy reading, Tessa!

    Liked by 1 person

  6. Joanna @ TheGeekishBrunette says: Reply

    Can’t wait to read My Roommate is a Vampire! I hope we both enjoy it.

    Liked by 1 person

  7. Leslie says: Reply

    Well, that’s a treat!! Instant approval is something to get excited about! Good Bad Girl … that cover looks so good and like I need to read it. haha

    Liked by 1 person

  8. Janette says: Reply

    How exciting to get instant approval for a book that you really want to read. I enjoyed Daisy Darker so will look out for this one in the Summer

    Liked by 1 person

  9. Teri Polen says: Reply

    That’s awesome the intern sent you the widget, Tessa – especially for a book you wanted so much. Romcom isn’t one I read a lot of, but Zora grabbed me at indie bookstore owner.

    Liked by 1 person

  10. Mae Clair says: Reply

    I thought I’d be drawn by Alice Feeney’s newest, but for some reason the blurb isn’t calling to me. I loved Rock Paper Scissors and Daisy Darker, but I’m not all in on this one.
    The Daydreams sounds like it has a bit of Daisy Jones and the Six in it. That one might end up on my TBR!

    Liked by 1 person

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