AFTER THE LAST PAGE

Latest Episodes:

We're Back!! What I've Been Reading, Book Slumps, and Reading Wrap-Ups Oct 06, 2022

Show notes

After my unforeseen hiatus from technology (due to my favorite laptop going ka-put), I have so many books to share. I've read 54 books already this year, and with nearly three more months left to this year, I still have some big goals to reach.

So, let's talk about talk the books I've read lately and what I would recommend (and those I wouldn't, too).

SUPRISE EPISODE! The Bodyguard by Katherine Center--Book Review Aug 09, 2022

Show notes

In Katherine Center’s new release, The Bodyguard, Hannah Brooks meets Jack Stapleton, a household name actor who’s just moved into town. Hannah might look like a kindergarten teacher, but she’s far from it—she’s actually a Executive Protection Agent, aka bodyguard and Jack is her newest client.

After her mom dies, her boyfriend/co-worker breaks up with her, and her best friend is found sleeping with said boyfriend/co-worker, Hannah is ready to jet off to literally anywhere else. When her boss gives her a new job protecting an A-list celebrity from a middle-aged corgi-breeding stalker in their hometown, she isn’t exactly thrilled–but, it’s just a few weeks and then she can jump onto the next plane to escape…right?

Except, when Hannah meets Jack, she’s pleasantly surprised. He’s nothing like she expected and his only goal isn’t movies, but to stick around while his sick mom gets better. Hannah’s job is to protect the family (and Jack), but Jack doesn’t want to worry his mom, so they come up with a plan—Hannah will secretly be his bodyguard while pretending to be his girlfriend.

The Bodyguard is an adorably romantic, laugh-out-loud funny comedy with perfect summer vibes.

Moonlight and The Pearler's Daughter by Lizzie Pook--Book Review Aug 07, 2022

Show notes

Eliza Brightwell's family is from London, but when word on the street is that Australia is the place to be, the entire family moves in the hopes of making a fortune from the pearl trade. Taking place in the Industrial Era, Moonlight and The Pearler's Daughter follows Eliza as she steps foot in a new place--a place that just might make or break her family.

As the story progresses, we're taken 10 years forward, when Eliza goes to meet her father's pearling boat at the dock. Except, as the crew starts to disembark, it becomes clear that her father isn't on the boat and no one knows what happened to him. Determined to find her father, with nothing more than an inkling that he's still alive, Eliza sets sail on a new adventure. With the help of her friend Min, and her new male friend, Axel, Eliza searches for the truth of what really happened to her father.

Moonlight and the Pearler's Daughter is a story of adventure, romance, corruption, and secrets.

The Maidens by Alex Michaelides—Book Review Jul 30, 2022

Show notes

The Maidens takes place at St. Christopher’s in Cambridge where a dark murder has just taken place. Main character, and protagonist, Mariana is a group-therapist in London. When she gets a call from her niece, Zoe, that her friend, Tara, is missing and the police are all over it, Mariana is quick to jump to the rescue. She’s going to bring Zoe home, where she’ll be safe. Except, Zoe doesn’t want to come home and Mariana doesn’t want to leave Zoe in the middle of a crime scene. Not knowing what to do next, Mariana decides to stay at her alma-mater until things quiet down. Yet, things don’t exactly quiet down when another murder is on the horizon

SURPRISE EPISODE!! Wish You Were Here By Jodi Picoult—Book Review Jul 27, 2022

Show notes

TW: TALK OF DEMENTIA AND COVID PANDEMIC. Wish You Were Here takes place at the beginning of the COVID pandemic. Diana O’Toole has her life all planned out—and she’s perfectly on track. At 29, she’s soon going to be promoted to Art Specialist at Sotheby’s in NYC and she can’t be more excited. Soon, she’ll be working her dream job, which is just another step in her plan. The next step? Going to the Galapagos Islands with her perfect NYC surgeon boyfriend, Finn, where he’ll propose on a beautiful beach.

It Happened One Summer by Tessa Bailey—Book Review Jul 25, 2022

Show notes

Inspired by the television show, Schitt's Creek, Tessa Bailey's It Happened One Summer is the story of Piper Bellinger, party girl from LA. Piper's the next Paris Hilton, gracing the covers of all the popular tabloids--and Instagram, of course. That is, until her 3-week-old relationship ends, and she spirals by throwing the biggest party of the year without permission from the venue. When the party lands Piper in jail, her stepfather decides enough is enough--he's sending her to Westport, Washington, where Piper and her sister, Hannah, will learn some responsibility by staying in their deceased father's dive bar (or what's left of it, anyway).

The Power by Naomi Alderman—Book Review Jul 16, 2022

Show notes

TW: The content of this review includes mentions of rape, religion, and politics. Four characters in a changing world, The Power follows the stories of Allie, Roxy, Tunde, and Margot. Allie’s a foster kid with a difficult set of foster parents. Roxy comes from a mafia-based family that is surrounded in danger. Tunde is a Nigerian boy with a penchant for YouTube videos. Margot is a local mayor and aspiring politician. What do they all have in common? They were all there when it started. The Power is the story of a changing world—one where women have great physical power, and men don’t. When girls begin to be born with an electrical pulse that can bring a grown man flat to the ground, a patriarchal society shifts. The story follows the four characters as they experience the power for themselves, in different areas of the world—from the United States, to Lagos, to a brand new country. In this unique dystopian sci-fi novel, a small twist of nature changes the world’s entire future.

The Kindred Spirits Supper Club by Amy E. Reichert—Book Review Jul 09, 2022

Show notes

Sabrina Monroe prefers her life in the city, far from her family and the family secret. Yet, when she loses her journalism job and has a credit card bill that’s reaching closer and closer to its limit, she has no choice but to return to the Wisconsin Dells. For Sabrina, returning home means more than just her family—it means returning to the place where she was continually bullied throughout her childhood, and the place of her family’s secret: The Monroe family women can see ghosts.

The Lifestyle by Taylor Hahn—Book Review Jul 02, 2022

Show notes

TW: TALK OF INFIDELITY AND MIXED PARTNERSHIPS

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus--Book Review Jun 25, 2022

Show notes

TW: THIS REVIEW MENTIONS SEXUAL ASSAULT, RAPE, AND GENDER INEQUALITIES

Reviewed by The Guardian, The New York Times, and The Washington Post, Lessons in Chemistry is certainly a book that has gained speed quickly.

Set in California in the 1960s, Lessons in Chemistry is the story of Elizabeth Zott. Zott is a female scientist on an all-male research team in a time where women were more often housewives than chemists. Zott is working on an important project when she meets Calvin Evans, an infamous scientist also working for the same research company. While the two seem like an unlikely pair, their time together is much more than romantic chemistry—that is, until Evans suffers from a tragic accident.

Left alone with a dog and an unborn child, Elizabeth has to learn to handle motherhood as an unwed mother. Struggling with inequality, the difficulties of her field, and her role to her child, Zott finds herself reluctantly leaving the research facility and starting a cooking show with a fellow parent. Her unusual approach to cooking proves revolutionary and gains her a large following. Yet, as her following grows, so does the implication that women don’t just belong in the kitchen.

Compared to Where’d You Go, Bernadette and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Lessons in Chemistry is described as witty, laugh-out-loud funny, and must-read debut.

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected