Book Club: January Review

In October of 2021, I suffered my first loss of adult friendship. Although it might sound dramatic, it felt much more like a loss of a significant other. I am sure that I am not the first, nor last to feel that way.

With both time and perspective, I realize that although this friend and I were the best of friends for a time, we were not meant to be best friends forever. Our friendship was a seasonal. We were there for one another in a special period of our lives, inlcuding pre and post motherhood. I thank her for all the special moments we shared and the guidance she imparted on me as I became a mom. It was a God-sent to have a new mom to give me insight when I began my own motherhood. During this time, we bonded and I was able to share both my pregnancy and motherhood struggles without fear or hesitation. And although our friendship ended in a moment notice, I choose to cherish the good times.

But it was at the time of loss that I realized I needed to widen my group and put the work in with my other friendships here in San Antonio. I focused on planning periodic dinners with several of our best couple friends, to both get out the house and talk to other likeminded adults. I began running with a dear friend, and prioritizing one night out of the home per week to either work later or excercise (with a heavy dose of girl talk). And then, I decided to go one step further, create a book club with my favorite ladies.

Although I had never been a part of a book club, I have long been an voracious reader. In my first summer of college, I moved back home to help my parents with my brother for the summer (we are ten years apart), as my parents worked. As a weekly activity, I drove myself and my brother to the public library. With an excess of free time, I inhaled a book a day. That is the same summer I read every single Nicholas Sparks novels (Do you remember the Notebook?? The nostalgia right??). And although I stopped reading for a time as I finished college and started my career, I dove back into it several years ago. With the help of Libby App, and the creation of both Jenna Bush Hager and Reece Witherspoon book clubs, I was off to the reading races again. My reading ebbs and flows depending on work load and time constraints, but it has always been a hobby of comfort and relaxation. So with that in mind, I made my biggest pitch yet, asking my favorite girls to join me.

Thankfully, almost everyone I asked to join the club obliged. As everyone in the club works and all but one are moms, we opted for a 6 week frequency switching the host each time. The host picks the book and provides dinner for the group. And as a very happy surprise, I unintentionally started a trend of providing food based on the book. For our first book written as a woman's perspective of New York Italian mafia, I had pizza and canolis (both store bought, mind you). You might say I created monsters as our hosts have gone to the nines for our book club. As we recently marked our 9th book club, each time we meet continues to be special to me. We drink, we eat, and then we discuss the book typically with either found or created questions to provoke our thoughts. Each time, I get new perspectives on the book from a friend who caught something that I missed. It is always fun to hear other people comment on the same subject, as we are all so different. And my favorite part is the conversation always lends itself to stories about each of our lives. Doesn't hurt that each lady ends up bringing a bottle of wine.

Phew, maybe that was a tangent. Yet, if you are here, you signed up for this.

So here we are as I begin sharing my review of the latest book club pick. Our January book selected by my dear friend Katie, was Hotel Nantucket by Elin Hildebrand.

First, I must preface this review with the fact that I've read at least six of the author's books prior to this book club selection. Clearly, I am a fan. I find Elin is extremely gifted at character development. Each of her books that I've read follow various individuals as the story develops. As to not spoil too much, the last two books that I have read by her included some type of supernatural element. The jury is still out if this new theme will continue to reign true.

Although I enjoyed the book, it is currently my least favorite of the 6 that I have read. That is not say, I didn't like it, as it did. But Elin has books that have some big shoes to follow. There was nothing wrong with the story, but I felt there were too many characters. I did not get confused between the characters, simply I thought many were unnecessary to tell the overarching story. Next, I felt the supernatural element did not necessarily contribute to the story, as I felt it either could have been taken out or developed more. To be honest, I was hoping for more with said supernatural element. Unlike her previous novel, Golden Girl, I thought this supernatural piece fell flat, when I wish it would have soared. As for the good part, I liked that the main ( and more developed) characters were so easy to love and root for. And finally, I love that the ending was tied up in a bow. In the previous book that I picked, the ending left you wondering, whereas, this gave finality and closure. As an overall, I recommend it when you are in the mood for something lighter, best served in a lounger on the beach, perhaps even with a margarita in hand.

Overall Rating:4/5