You would think that my state's stay-at-home order would mean lots more reading time for me, but that just hasn't been the case. If anything, I've had less reading time because I have fewer breaks throughout the day to sneak in a chapter or two, and have really only been reading at night. Also, after reading the All Souls Trilogy, I found myself in a book hangover and started and stopped at least five books before I found something that held my interest. In my search for my next great read, my 'to be read' list has grown tremendously, so much so that I fear I will never make it through all of them.


All Souls Trilogy: A Discovery of Witches, Shadow of Night, The Book of Life
Author: Deborah Harkness

As I wrote in my post about 4 magical series to read if you liked Harry Potter, this series jumped into my favorite books of all time list with ease. It's the story of a witch and a vampire who fall in love and defy the laws that govern supernatural creatures. The author blends together the past and present beautifully, and I enjoyed the way she blended actual historical events into the story. I found that the first book was a little slow to get going, but if you'll just hang in there you'll be hooked. The second (my fave of the trio) and third books, make it worth it.


Matchmaking for Beginners
Author: Maddie Dawson

I downloaded this book as a sample and almost didn't keep reading it. The writing style was very quirky and took me several chapters to get used to. Also, one of the main characters was pretty out there, but overall I found the story to be charming. After getting divorced on her honeymoon and having to move back in with her parents, Marnie learns she's inherited a Brooklyn brownstone from her ex-husband's aunt, but before she can truly call herself the home's owner she has to live in the house for three months. Those three months are filled with adventures and zany characters and along the way, Marnie finally shakes free of the expectations other people have for her life.


Esther: Royal Beauty
Author: Angela Hunt

Growing up, the tale of Esther was always my favorite Bible story, so when I found this retelling I couldn't pass it up. The author used the story from the Bible along with the historical records of Herodotus to weave a story that tells what could have happened between the lines of my favorite Bible verses. She draws conclusions and makes assumptions and some characters are 100 percent invented, but overall I feel like the author's retelling is fairly accurate. At any rate, I liked reading the story from Esther's perspective as well as the chief chamberlain of King Xerxes.