Christmas in July

Hey guys, welcome back! I know, I know, I’ve been MIA again. The days are getting away from me lately and while I’ve been super productive in some ways, I’ve been neglectful in others. And for that…I apologize.

So let’s get right to it, shall we?

It’s Christmas in July week and yes, I am one of those people who loves to celebrate it. I read holiday themed books, have some cocoa and of course wear Christmas pjs. (Although, I live in those year round but I still think they are ‘special’ during times such as this.)

I have a huge pile of Christmas themed books that I’ve both read and are on my TBR list. The ones I’ve read, I recommend and a couple have stuck with me, long after I’ve read them. I have them up in my Amazon storefront and will post the link below this post if you’d like to check any out. Just note, some have spice, some don’t. You have been warned. 🙂

As for my TBR list, (‘to be read’ for those who don’t know the acronym) I’ve been saving a couple for just such an occasion. One in particular, I’ve seen everywhere. It’s big on #booktok and I’ll admit, I jumped on the bandwagon to buy it and it’s sequel for last Christmas season. I never got to them though so I thought I’d save them for July. While I’m not usually one to be so highly influenced by trends, I have found some great reads through #booktok as well as my Facebook algorithm. Go figure, right?

So there I am, pulling out the Christmas books for the week and ready to dive on in. I couldn’t wait for this first one and yet, within the first two pages, I wanted to scream. This book lost me in the prologue! I have never had that happen before.

So I push through. Deciding to at least get to know the main characters, right? Well, I hated them instantly. Not one redeeming quality among them all. Just an example, the matriarch of the family needs help after hurting herself. Part of the family won’t come because they have a timeshare in the Caribbean and are in the canasta tournament. So they call their daughters to drop everything, including their careers, fly to another part of the country to take care of their relative. That is where the whining, um, complaining from the daughters begins and lasts through several chapters. I gave it my all for five chapters before throwing in the towel. I’ve never read a book that tries so hard to be something and failed so miserably. I also found myself yelling at the editors in my head.

While I normally don’t read reviews, (movies and tv included) because I like to be my own judge of something, I just had to go in and see if others caught what I did. Thankfully, I was not alone in any of my thoughts on this book. The first five chapters could have been two. Literally. Every detail of every aspect of life was described here and there was no reason for it. I don’t need to know how a reindeer feeder keeps the feed fresh. Just say, “I filled up their trough and was on my way.’ Instead, we get step by step details of the thing that took up an entire paragraph.

Also, I was quite put off at the ageism in this book. They made a woman in her fifties seem feeble and a woman in her eighties like she should be put out to pasture. Now, that could just be me as I was already hating on this book, but I still didn’t appreciate it. The fact that I’m in my 50’s may have played a role in that as well. Just sayin’.

Now, if you’ve been following along with my own writing journey here, you know that I am in the process of editing my own manuscript. That my own writing has been more than wordy, (like this post) and that I’m in the process of cutting down thousands of words to get my book to where I can submit it to a publisher. If anything, this book I just tried to read was a freaking wake up call of what NOT to do. How I can rework some things in my own book to cut even more words from it and keep my future readers from thinking what I did with this one, “what the hell were they thinking letting this get published?”

The ultimate irony of all of this is? The publisher in question here, is the one I’m hoping upon hope to submit my book to. I’ve read so many others from them and have honestly loved each one. Not every book is for every person and this current one is just not for me. However, that will not stop me from reading more from them. It may stop me from reading more from this particular author though.

I don’t relish talking about another writer this way. After all, I certainly wouldn’t like these things being said about me. But this is why I don’t leave bad reviews, post something about it on TikTok and mention the title or author by name. Just because I don’t like something doesn’t mean others won’t as well. Plus, I know the hard work it takes to get their work out there and I fully respect the process.

This is the second time in a year I’ve tried to read a popular author and just did not like the work. I know I’m in the minority here on both. Hell, one is being turned into a streaming series and I couldn’t get past chapter two of that one!

I think the point here is that we are all influenced in some ways about things in our lives. Be it clothes, decor, cars, hell even food. I mean, here in my area we have pizza wars…it’s quite a time to be alive. I am always up for suggestions for books to read and have found a lot of great authors by listening to those suggestions. Like anything, it’s hit and miss. Not everything is going to be a winner. The main thing is, I tried, right? I mean, this particular author is famous for a reason. Maybe I shouldn’t judge by this one book and maybe in the future I’ll try one of her works again. In the meantime, I have a lot more in my TBR pile to get through and I’m ready to move on to the next one…a little sooner than expected.

Again, I do have lots of fun holiday book recommendations (ironic I know) in my storefront and while I’m not trying to influence you, I’m just sharing what I’ve enjoyed reading in the past.

And that is where I’ll leave you for today. Until next time folks…cheers!

–

To follow me on social, including #booktok as well as see my other links, click: HERE

–

Link to my Amazon storefront below and if you’ve made it this far, I thank you for it.