a beautiful terrible thing

Hello!

I hope you had a great weekend. Did you catch my post on Saturday?

We spent all of Saturday at the middle school state track meet. It was a hot and long day, but the kids ran great races. Sunday was more of a relaxing day, and we really needed the downtime. We had two major storms blow through, but thankfully we didn’t have any damage. Yesterday, we were back in Louisville for our niece’s college graduation party.

As the month wraps up, I’m sharing the books I’ve read in May.

This month I read three books that included two memoirs and one mystery.

{As always, book summaries are from Goodreads…}

A Beautiful, Terrible Thing:

Summary:

What do you do when you discover that the person you’ve built your life around never existed? When “it could never happen to me” does happen to you?

These are the questions facing Jen Waite when she begins to realize that her loving husband–the father of her infant daughter, her best friend, the love of her life–fits the textbook definition of psychopath. In a raw, first-person account, Waite recounts each heartbreaking discovery, every life-destroying lie, and reveals what happens once the dust finally settles on her demolished marriage.

After a disturbing email sparks Waite’s suspicion that her husband is having an affair, she tries to uncover the truth and rebuild trust in her marriage. Instead, she finds more lies, infidelity, and betrayal than she could have imagined. Waite obsessively analyzes her relationship, trying to find a single moment from the last five years that isn’t part of the long-con of lies and manipulation. With a dual-timeline narrative structure, we see Waite’s romance bud, bloom, and wither simultaneously, making the heartbreak and disbelief even more affecting.

Quick Thoughts:

A quick glance at the cover, and you might read the name as “Jen White” and not “Jen Waite!” haha

I read this book because a mom friend told me she was listening to the audio book, and I thought it sounded interesting.

Like who am I to be a book critic, but I didn’t enjoy this book at all. I think my biggest issue was how it was written. There were too many simple sentences, too much repetition, and many times where I thought details needed more explanation. I felt like I was reading a bad essay the whole time. Maybe the audiobook was better?

Rating:

2.5 stars!

The Many Lives of Mama Love:

Summary:

No one expects the police to knock on the million-dollar, two-story home of the perfect cul-de-sac housewife. But soccer mom Lara Love Hardin has been hiding a shady secret: She is funding her heroin addiction by stealing her neighbors’ credit cards.

Lara is convicted of thirty-two felonies and becomes inmate S32179. She learns jail is a class system with a power structure somewhere between an adolescent sleepover party and Lord of the Flies. Furniture is made from tampon boxes, and Snickers bars are currency. But Lara quickly finds the rules and brings love and healing to her fellow inmates as she climbs the social ladder to become the “shot caller,” showing that jailhouse politics aren’t that different from the PTA meetings she used to attend.

When she’s released, she reinvents herself as a ghostwriter. Now, she’s legally co-opting other people’s identities and getting to meet Oprah, meditate with The Dalai Lama, and have dinner with Archbishop Desmond Tutu. But the shadow of her past follows her. Shame is a poison worse than heroin—there is no way to detox. She must learn to forgive herself and others, navigate life as a felon on probation, prove to herself that she is more good than bad, and much more.

Quick Thoughts:

This was Shay’s April Book Club book, and I love a memoir, so I thought it would be a book I enjoyed. Since it’s an Oprah book, there was a long wait at the library. So, I didn’t read this book until May. Anyway, I really enjoyed it!

Obviously, since she’d written the book, I knew her life must have been turned around and gotten back on track, so I think that helped me as I read during the hard times that Lara went through.

Honestly, I think her story is amazing, and while she had many difficult years and a few hiccups along the way, her children were her motivation to get back on track and make something of herself. I thought her story was so interesting, and it’s a true testament to the fact that when others believe in you and give you a chance, it can truly be life changing.

Rating:

The Darling Girls:

Summary:

For as long as they can remember, Jessica, Norah, and Alicia have been told how lucky they are. As young girls they were rescued from family tragedies and raised by a loving foster mother, Miss Fairchild, on an idyllic farming estate and given an elusive second chance at a happy family life.

But their childhood wasn’t the fairy tale everyone thinks it was. Miss Fairchild had rules. Miss Fairchild could be unpredictable. And Miss Fairchild was never, ever to be crossed. In a moment of desperation, the three broke away from Miss Fairchild and thought they were free. Even though they never saw her again, she was always somewhere in the shadows of their minds. When a body is discovered under the home they grew up in, the foster sisters find themselves thrust into the spotlight as key witnesses. Or are they prime suspects?

Quick Thoughts:

This was another one of Shay’s Book Club books…but I would have read it anyway because I enjoy Sally Hepworth books. I was actually at my favorite book store a few weeks ago and bought the book.

This book was a good one! What I like about Hepworth’s books is that they are set in Australia, so I love those references. I loved how different the sisters were, but how they were united they were as adults. How the book was organized made it a quick read. It goes back and forth from “then” and “now” with each sister as well as Ms. Fairchild too. As the plot develops, more secrets are shared. There are some tough topics covered in this book. The plot is filled with mystery, laughter, serious and light moments. The ending has a few twists too.

This quote sums it up perfectly: “You really got more than bargained for when you came here. Dysfunctional sisters, criminal charges, a run-in with monster of a former foster mother.”

It’s definitely a great summer read.