Where Am I Now? by Mara Wilson

There is a reason that the blogs I read are talking about how much they love this book. It's fantastic. Not just a retrospective into her film history, Mara Wilson talks about her life up until now. The fun sides (getting to work with Danny DeVito) but a lot of the darker sides as well (her mother dying, her issues with OCD). Her writing flows, jumping back and forth seamlessly along her timeline. I sat down to read a few pages and resurfaced in the world a couple hours later having devoured the whole thing. It's the kind of book that makes you want to sit down with the author and see if they're really like their writing because it's just... that... good.

Five stars
This book comes out September 13

The Short Con by Pete Toms and Aleks Sennwald

The book opens with a newly orphaned girl staring out a window and remarking on how much she hates life. We learn that her name is Mary Branwell and that she is being assigned as a partner to another girl "Pop" Popowski. The nun in charge of the orphanage says that Pops is a weird kid and needs socialization. Oh yeah, and they're kid detectives. Kid detectives that are going to solve the murder of Mary's parents.
This was an odd book. I liked the premise and the illustrations. The ending was just a bit too weird for me.

Three stars
This book comes out September 13

In Such Good Company by Carol Burnett

A wonderful look behind the scenes of "The Carol Burnett Show." Stories about the people (cast members, guests, friends, and those working behind the scenes), about the clothes, about the sketches... Carol includes them all. This isn't a strict biography, it's more of a stitching together of stories (some are repeated but told from different angles).
A feel-good book that is exactly what you want when reading Carol Burnett.

Five stars
This book comes out September 13

By Firelight by Janice Maynard

By Firelight
Grant Monroe is enjoying being by himself in his mountain cabin when, during a heavy snow storm, there's a sudden thunk at the door. And then Madison Tierney stumbles in. She was hiking the Appalachian Trail, got ditched by her two friends, then got lost, and only barely made it to Grant's cabin. Now the two are trapped together in a cabin.
This story has my least favorite trope of "we don't need condoms I'm on birth control" and was also just a bit too insta-lurv-twee for my tastes.

Two and a half stars

Hot Arctic Nights
Hallie lost her mother in January and he job the Monday after Thanksgiving. She's not really in a holiday frame of mind so she agrees to fly up to Alaska and fill in for her friend's parents for two weeks at their B&B. She doesn't expect to find semi-permanent guest, Daniel.
When they meet, Hallie is about to fall over exhausted from travel and Daniel is dressed as Santa. She takes him to the school and learns that he works for the navy as civilian law enforcement.
Hallie then discovers that she has a family of fifteen that she's going to be expected to host, including cooking for them. Of course, as this is a holiday story, she is immediately enveloped into their warm bosom. Or something.   Daniel helps her as often as he can and, as the two grow closer, Hallie starts to reclaim some of her holiday spirit. And she also starts to realize that maybe, as people kept telling her in the beginning of the book, Alaska is a place that she can fall in love with. Especially if she has a special someone to share it with.
Good use of condoms in this story.
Three stars

This book comes out October 11

The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by Mark Manson

Based on the title, you can probably tell that this book has a LOT of "language" in it, so if that offends you, this is not the book for you. Basically, the lays out the idea that we all care too much, especially in this age of social media. And he seems to present it as a new thought except that this is actually an ancient idea; I would liken it to Aparigraha or "nongreed," basically not wanting what other people have.
Is this a self-help book? Pretty much. Is it disguised by a bunch of fucks and a few shits thrown in? Pretty much. But it's actually not horribly written and has some good gems. If you have read a lot of books like this, there is nothing new. But if you're new to the self-help game, this would be a great starter book.

The Adventurer's Guide to Successful Escapes by Wade Albert White

I really enjoyed the world-building in this book, where orphans can't become adventurers if they have no last name (like Anvil, "Anne") or if their families are notorious (like her friend Penelope Shatterblade). But that doesn't stop Anne from applying to as many adventurer schools as possible. She's pretty much given up hope that she'll be taken before she's kicked out of the orphanage on her thirteenth birthday. Or will she? At the last moment, Anne is informed that the train will be leaving before midnight on the day before Anne's birthday rather than 10 minutes into it, which means that Anne has to stay at the orphanage for another year. But Anne has different plans. And the world has different plans for her as, while she is walking the matron's fire lizard "Dog," a woman appears and tells Anne she has been accepted into a school.
This book is all sorts of crazy sauce -- in the very best way. Just when you think you've figured out the zigs, the book zags. For instance, the headmistress of the Death Mountain Quest Academy is Her Royal Highness Princess Fluffington Whiskers of the Mousetrapper Clan. In short, a cat. There are dragons whose fireballs help aid travel, a book that becomes whatever it needs to be, and a main character who is not only female, she has dark brown skin. A fact that is only mentioned once and then briefly.

So Good by Darcy Burke

Cam Westcott kicks off a new series. This Westcott brother is well-known, and not just by his family, for being a major player. But he's been concentrating more on work lately and is starting to back off the merry-go-round of women. So when he meets Brooke Ellis, a wine distributor, he doesn't want to be interested. But (and even though she says she doesn't want to date him), he decides to trick her into a date. Which is SO romantic (Nope).
Brooke has her own issues. And she knows Cameron's reputation. So she doesn't want to get involved. But she is feeling more and more drawn to Cam.
I quite frankly didn't get the attraction between these two. No, I got the attraction, I just didn't get why they would have an HEA. It was an okay book most of the way through but the last Big Misunderstanding really dropped it a full star for me.

Three stars
This book comes out September 6