04.27.2017

3 Books To Read This Summer

Because (in full disclosure) my friends wrote these books, but I swear all three are AMAZING…

Yeah sure…I’m a little bias, but I did this summer reading list post back in 2015 and it got a TON of traffic.  And you know what that means? You guys think books are cool (same!) and you think I have good taste in books (same again! lol).  In all seriousness, yes, my friends who wrote these books are insanely talented writers, but what made me want to round up these three books together more than anything is really just the fact that all three are so different. Different in genre, different in tone…you can read all three and get a little bit of everything.

3 Books To Read This Summer

Romancing The Throne:

So this is a little preview since Nadine’s book isn’t out until May 30th! I got an advanced copy (so VIP), and once I got about half a chapter in I was hooked. Truth be told, I’m not usually into the whole royalty thing (Kate Middleton who? just kidding), but I do love me some young romance drama, and Nadine is just such an incredibly talented writer that you actually feel like you’re part of their inner circle. I vote a big YES to the Weston sisters and hope there is a sequel!

Follow Me Into The Dark:

First thing’s first. This book is dark…but dark in that way where you can’t stop staring at a car wreck on the side of the highway.  I’m the first to admit that I’m freakishly interested in how the mind of psychopath really works and Kate, the main character, is complex and yes, totally a clinical psychopath.  The first few times I read a chapter or two I had a hard time falling asleep, fair warning, but it’s just SO SO SO GOOD that you won’t be able to put it down (and hence, who needs sleep anyway?!). “What is this bitch gonna do next?!” was pretty much a constant reaction I had while reading this twisted tale that, honestly, still haunts me…in the best way possible.

How To Murder Your Life:

After working in the beauty world for more than 12 years, I’ve obviously been anticipating this memoir from Cat Marnell. One of the industry’s most infamous women. People have a lot to say about Cat. The internet is a mean, ridiculous world full of judge-y people, right? However, here’s the thing. I love Cat/this memoir, and for many reasons. One, say what you will about Cat as a person, but you can’t deny that her writing is vivid and entrapping.

She writes her story as a drug addicted, smart, beautiful woman. You just want to shake throughout the whole book being like “nooooo stop! Don’t do that!” Impeccable. Also, in a way where you just want to hug her and tell her everything is going to be OK. Two, Cat continues to bring attention to the massive drug problem we have in this country. More specifically, the prescription pill epidemic.

I’m definitely bias after losing my sister to a prescription opioid overdose, but that’s exactly why we need Cat to keep talking about her problem.  From a personal perspective, there are many things I never got to say to my sister before she passed away and reading Cat’s book oddly made me feel closer to her and how she must’ve felt. I know she had a lot of similar pain to Cat as far as feeling like an outcast, being lonely, making bad decisions about people, etc. and, as weird as it sounds, I got an odd sense of closure from reading Cat’s stories…so thank you for that, Cat.

I think the biggest criticism people had when the news broke about Cat’s book deal was that it was going to “glamorize” the life of a drug addict and, thankfully, I think Cat did a really good job of proving all the haters wrong.

The cat showed a glamorous world that she never felt like she was truly a part of.  She showed addiction in an honest and in-your-face way. And, most importantly, she showed that there were always consequences for the bad decisions she made because of her addiction.  Side note: she also doesn’t really change anyone’s name so if you work in the industry, there will be a lot of familiar stories!

SHOP