I’m bringing back my Buy, Borrow, Bypass book reviews! March was a stellar month for reading! In fact, I have no bypass recommendations at all. Of the six books I read, I recommend two buys and four borrows.
Borrow: The Family Game, Catherine Steadman ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
You may think your family is weird and has secrets, but they are nothing like the Holbeck family. This super suspenseful story of Harriet, who thinks she’s marrying into the family she doesn’t have turns into a game of trusting no one and trying to discover the truth of a series of murders before Harriet’s own secret can be revealed. Just when you think you know where this story is going, you get upended. A great book to use your Book of the Month credit on, but also a great borrow for a friend or the library.
Buy: All My Knotted Up Life, Beth Moore ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Buy it now. And get the audiobook. Beth Moore is a storyteller extraordinaire, and the delicate telling of her own story doesn’t disappoint. From weathering childhood abuse at the hands of a loved one to her very difficult decision to leave the denomination she loved, Beth shares the story of her life with candidness, transparency and humor. The memoir left me wanting to be her sister.
Borrow: Lies and Other Acts of Love, Kristy Woodson Harvey ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Kristy Woodson Harvey can tell a multi-generational story better than any author I read. She develops her characters with such depth, which makes falling into the story of Lovey and Annabelle White easy. Following along as Lovey and Annabelle both learn about love in all its forms, and the sacrifices it requires, will make you reconsider who you love and how you express it. A great read for the porch or the beach. Borrow a copy from your local library!
Borrow: Triptych (Will Trent, Book #1), Karin Slaughter ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
I first met Will Trent as Sara Linton’s love interest in the Grant County series by Karin Slaughter. Karin is an expert at police procedural thrillers on paper, and I have gobbled up several of her books. When I heard ABC would be producing a Will Trent TV series, I was excited and decided I needed to know his origin story. Triptych is the first book in the Will Trent series and brings the reader into the dirtier side of Atlanta, law enforcement and toxic relationships. Borrowing this series would be a great addition to your spring and summer reading.
Buy: Daisy Jones and the Six, Taylor Jenkins Reid ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
If you’ve followed me for long, you already know how this review is going to go. This was my favorite book of 2019, and this was my second time reading it. I absolutely adore this story of the fictional rise and fall of the 70’s rock band Daisy Jones and the Six. I flew through the miniseries on Prime Video and immediately wanted to read the book again to see how closely the show followed its origin. This book is a must-buy, and just like the Beth Moore book above, you have to get the audio version. The book is written like a long-form article, so the audiobook is a full, nearly theatrical production with different voices for each character. It’s just so good!
Borrow: Free to Focus, Michael Hyatt ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Michael Hyatt is a go-to for me when it comes to productivity and leadership. In Free to Focus, Hyatt gives easy takeaways and practical applications to achieve more while doing less (and even empowering others along the way). The book is full of strategies for working at your highest level, but it’s worth it just to learn his Ideal Week process. If you need to write and highlight in a book like this, it’s definitely worth the buy. I borrowed it for my Kindle, and it still worked out great because you can still access his resources at the website given throughout the book.
What did you read in March?