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becca's next chapter

04.04.26 | leave a comment

March 2026 Reads

I read 18 total books in March! I knocked out a lot of eARCs this month, kept up with my audiobook Libby holds, and continued my very long journey through the Outlander series.

It was a slower month for physical books, but I finished out the Beasts of Prey trilogy with Beasts of Ruin and Beasts of War. I rated all three books in this series 4 stars. I also picked up And Now, Back to You after loving First-Time Caller last month. Both were 5-star reads! I read the sixth book in the Outlander series, a solid four-star read (much, much better than the fifth book). And finally, I read Time-Tripping Over You, which was an enthusiastic five stars.

I wanted to read all of the Castle Knoll Files before reading the eARC of the third. This was an all-three-star series! I read Dungeons and Drama a couple of years ago, so I read Dating and Dragons before moving on to the third in the series, Rolls and Rivalry. Solid 4-star series. I also read the advanced copies of Obstetrix and Dolly All the Time.

People We Meet on Vacation on audiobook surprised me — 5 star rating for sure (and it’s far better than the movie, but that’s another post for another time). I listened to First Lie Wins for local book club. I’m in the process of listening to the Crescent City graphic audiobooks (as a re-read) to prep for ACOTAR 6. The Three Lives of Cate Kay was SO good! A little hard to keep up with, but so good.

03.31.26 | 1 Comment

Review: Dolly All the Time by Annabel Monaghan

4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Dolly Brick is a single mom who has moved back to her hometown for the summer to help her family. The wealthy, well-known Stewart Whitfield needs a fake girlfriend after his very public breakup, and strikes a deal with Dolly. Of course, this fake dating turns into something more.

Fake dating isn’t my most favorite trope of all, but it was cute in this story. Dolly had a lot of baggage, and that made her somewhat relatable. 

The story felt a little slow in parts, and I wasn’t invested by the third-act breakup. It didn’t feel very resolved in the end, and I wasn’t rooting for Stewart.

Overall, it’s a sweet, charming, and readable summer romance!

Thank you Putnam and Netgalley for the eARC! Dolly All the Time will be out May 26.

03.30.26 | leave a comment

Review: Obstetrix by Naomi Kritzer

4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Sci-fi but it doesn’t feel very sci-fi.

Liz, an OB/GYN is kidnapped by a fundamentalist cult after being acquitted for providing the last abortion in North Dakota. She is forced to care for the girls and women on the compound while trying to find a way out. It’s a fast, intense novella with a premise that feels (is) terrifyingly realistic.

This story was fast-paced and still has some important themes and moral quandaries. Liz is an obvious hero to root for, and the writing made the situation feel urgent and dire.

It would have been interesting to have more backstory on some of the cult characters, as well as some history on the cult and the compound itself. The story ends fairly abruptly and uneventfully, so it would have been nice to have a little more closure.

Overall, this was a gripping and quick read that packed a lot in!

Thank you Tor and Netgalley for the eARC!
Obstetrix will be published on June 9.

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