Framed Florals Reads // Winter 2021
At the end of 2020 I rounded up my favorite books I read through the year, and narrowing down 45 books was hard! So this year I’m going to do a seasonal recap of everything I read! I hope it inspires you to pick up a new book, revisit a book you love, or just continue growing your “to be read” list! (Mine is currently out of control but I’m slowly chipping away at it!) This winter I read 11 books, and I’m going to share them with you now!
TW: I want to mention each of these books comes with it’s own sensitive subjects, so if you have any triggering topics you’d like to avoid, please google reviews for specific trigger warnings!♡
Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi
I was SO excited for this one! Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi is one of my favorite books, ever, so I was beyond excited to read more of her words. As suspected, Yaa Gyasi’s words were more beautiful than ever. This story is nothing like Homegoing, it’s a contemporary story about a daughter, mom, and their relationship. The story weaves seamlessly with the main characters medical world and research, and I loved how the two were so intertwined. Such a good one!
Pretty Girls by Karin Slaughter
Okay wow. After reading this one, no other true crime compares. It’s literally the holy grail of thrillers to me now! It has everything, murder, deception, a twist at every turn. BUT it’s wildly descriptive and horribly disturbing. So if this isn’t your genre I wouldn’t start off with this one, it’s WILD, and graphic. I think every trigger warning applies to this book. Without giving away anything, this one is about a wife who’s husband is murdered in front of her, and her journey discovering the secret life he led up until then. That’s all I’ll say!
Hidden Sins by Selena Montgomery
Want to know who really wrote this book?! Stacey Abrams. YEAH, that Stacey!! When she’s not advocating for voting rights, turning Georgia blue, or being a lawyer, she’s writing sexy romance novels!! This one wasn’t exactly a romance in the typical way, but I still loved it! The synopsis surrounds hidden gold more than any love story to be honest. So if you’re looking for a steamy read, this one won’t totally fit the bill. But it was a really fun and interesting read. A little slow paced considering the plot lines, but I love how it was almost more a mystery to find the gold than anything!
The Comeback by Ella Berman
A former child actor turned young adult actor resurfaces in the spotlight after abruptly taking a year out of the industry. This story was a nod to the Me Too movement, using the characters as a metaphor for what goes on in the industry. I was rooting for the main character the whole time, I wanted to see her get revenge! But it was way more slow moving and melodic than I was anticipating. Loved the themes and the light it shone on a huge issue in our modern world.
The Guest List by Lucy Foley
If I ever made a list of “perfect thrillers” this one is at the top of the list! It kept me guessing, the cadence of the book was so quick, and I equally loved and hated all the characters. A b-list celebrity couple gets married on a remote island off the coast of Ireland, and the wedding night is when it ALL GOES DOWN. So many plots and storylines overlap in the best way. Highly recommend this one!!
This Is What I Know About Art (Pocket Change Collective) by Kimberly Drew
This tiny little novella of a book packs SUCH a punch! Known on IG as @museummammy, Kimberly Drew chronicles her relationship with art, museums, and access (not just the privileged and elite) to both of those things in this short book. I highlighted about 75% of this book as her words were so passionately beautiful about the art world. I also highlighted so many (new-to-me) artists and have loved researching them and learning more about their work!
The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins
Such a fun thriller!! It’s supposed to be a modern / thriller retelling of Jane Eyre. So the main character is obviously Jane. She moves to a new town, is a dog walker in the fancy part of town where she meets a wealthy and charming widow. They have a fast love story with her moving in quickly, and as the title says, someone’s upstairs. Such a quick and fun read. I was able to guess some of the twists before they happened but I still really liked this one!
Born a Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood by Trevor Noah
This booK!! I listened to the audiobook in which Trevor Noah narrates it, and I highly recommend reading it that way if you are reading for the first time or want to re-read in audiobook form! I loved being able to hear his expressions and accents! Like the title says, Trevor Noah was literally born a crime, as his mom was Black and his dad was White during apartheid. Some chapters are heartbreaking, and delve into really hard topics, and others are simply hilarious. It was an eye opening read and makes me love him 3,000x more!
The One by John Marrs
This book was nothing like what I was expecting, in the best way. The premise is there is a company that matches “soulmates” based on DNA, and this book follows 5 couples who get matched. It is not a romance story, def more a triller / suspense for some of the storylines. It kept me guessing and I loved the twists & turns the characters stories took. An easy read, the chapters are all short & switch from character to character so it reads really quick. Def a fun one if you don’t know what to read next! AND it’s a Netflix show! So read before you watch!!
The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena
Such a good creepy thriller. While at a dinner party at the couple next doors house, the parents of an infant take turns checking on their baby next door every half hour. In between one of their check ins their daughter goes missing, and the book follows the investigation and many twists and turns that ensue. I felt like (because I read so many thrillers) that there were some story lines and subplots that went no where and left me confused why they were added in, but regardless I really loved this one!
Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid
This book had so much hype last year, and for good reason! Easily one of my favorite books I’ve read. Such a Fun Age follows the main character, a young Black woman who is accused of kidnapping the little white girl she’s babysitting one night. That night sparked something in the mom of the girl she babysits to become her new wanna be bff, she meets her boyfriend, and she starts to figure out what she wants to do with her career after that one night. Things come to a head once everything intersects down the line. I loved the main character so much, really appreciated how privilege/ color blindness / tokenism was explored and discussed. Such a quick read, highly recommend this one!