~ Goodreads TBR Cleanup #9 ~

To aid my efforts to clean up my endless TBR, I decided to go with the Goodreads TBR Cleanup (created by @ Mega Bunny Reads). This challenge can be done bi-weekly or weekly (or any other timeframe that suits you). If you’re interest in the other Down the TBR Hole meme, then you can check it out following the links. The meme was created by Lia @ Lost in a Story — she has a new blog though called Sunflowers and Wonder!

How It Works:

• Go to your Goodreads want-to-read shelf.
• Ask Siri (or any other generator) to pick a number between 1 and however many books are on the list.
• Go to that book and look at it and the 4 after it, for a total of 5.
• Read the synopses of the books.
• Decide: keep it or should it go?

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For the number selection, I used an online random number generator.

TODAY’S RANDOM NUMBER: 962

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1. Been There, Married That

When he changes the locks, she changes the rules.

Agnes Murphy Nash is the perfect Hollywood wife – she has the right friends, the right clothes, and even a side career of her own as a writer. Her husband Trevor is a bigshot producer, and from the outside it looks like they’re living a picture-perfect celebrity life, complete with tennis tournaments and lavish parties.

But the job description of a Hollywood wife doesn’t cover divorce, which is the way Agnes’ life is headed after she comes home one day to find her credit cards cancelled and the security passwords to get into her enormous LA home changed. Oh, and there’s a guy there whose job it is to tase her if she tries to enter…which she does. Needless to say, Agnes’ husband is dead set on making sure she loses big time, but Agnes isn’t the type to just lie down and take it. In a world of fremenies and hot nannies, personal psychics and “skinny” jello shots, Agnes may be losing her husband, but could that mean getting her own life back?

Been There, Married That is a drop-dead hilarious battle of wills that will make you laugh out loud, cringe, and keep turning the pages to see what crazy disaster will happen to Agnes next…and how she’ll rise from the ashes. 

THOUGHTS:

This book’s synopsis sounds like a very fun read with a bickering couple as the backdrop. I went through the reviews for this novel to see why it was rated lower and one of the main reasons is the main characters. A lot of reviewers pointed out how Agnes does not take a lot seriously and I feel that could be very taxing on my patience for the story. At over 300 pages, I am not sure I could take an unlikable character from start to finish. It could be that maybe it was just those reviewers who felt that way, but with so many other novels on my TBR, unfortunately I do not have the time to take the chance.

2. Meet You in the Middle

What happens when the person you find MOST impossible becomes impossible to resist? Opposites distract in this hilarious romantic comedy about America’s least likely couple.

There’s just one thing standing between liberal Senate staffer Kate Adams and passage of the landmark legislation she’s been fighting for all year: Ben Mackenzie, intimidating gatekeeper for one of DC’s most powerful conservative senators. After Kate and Ben lock horns in a meet-not-so-cute, they vow to take each other down–by any means necessary.

She thinks he’s arrogant (and doesn’t deserve those gorgeous green eyes). He thinks she’s too quick to judge (and irresistibly distracting). But as their endless game of one-upmanship becomes Kate’s favorite part of the day, she starts to wonder if her feelings for Ben are closer to attraction than animosity…and maybe their sparring is flirting. And when Kate realizes there’s more to Ben than meets the eye, she’s forced her to confront her biggest fear: In her sworn enemy, she may have found her perfect match.

THOUGHTS:

On the surface, this seemed like a very fun read of how two opposing political sides come together to form a relationship. Originally, I was going to try to request and read an ARC of the novel, but I am beyond glad that I did not. I understand that it is tricky for a politically based novel would be almost impossible to come across as unbiased, but this one took the bias to extremes. Not only did tons of reviewers have the same thoughts, but a lot of friends thought the same, as well. For me, it would not matter if it was a more Democratic bias compared to the novel’s Republican. It is not the type of novel I would enjoy if there wasn’t some neutrality.

3. Faker

Emmie Echavarre is a professional faker. She has to be to survive as one of the few female employees at Nuts & Bolts, a power tool company staffed predominantly by gruff, burly men. From nine to five, Monday through Friday, she’s tough as nails–the complete opposite of her easy-going real self.

One thing she doesn’t have to fake? Her disdain for coworker Tate Rasmussen. Tate has been hostile to her since the day they met. Emmie’s friendly greetings and repeated attempts to get to know him failed to garner anything more than scowls and terse one-word answers. Too bad she can’t stop staring at his Thor-like biceps…

When Emmie and Tate are forced to work together on a charity construction project, things get…heated. Emmie’s beginning to see that beneath Tate’s chiseled exterior lies a soft heart, but it will take more than a few kind words to erase the past and convince her that what they have is real.

THOUGHTS:

This enemies-to-lovers story sounds very entertaining and is one reason it made my TBR list. This is the same author that wrote Simmer Down, which I just reviewed. Although the novel was good, it was not beyond amazing that it would make me anxious to read more from this author. Her concepts sound fantastic, but there were pieces that I did not enjoy in the other novel and fear it would be the same in this one.

4. Crown of Secrets (The Hidden Mage #1)

Verene is a disappointment to her entire kingdom–the first royal ever born without power, despite her mother being the most powerful mage in history. So when she’s sent to the Academy in neighboring Kallorway to forge ties with her people’s traditional enemies, she’s determined to succeed and prove she can still be of value to her kingdom.

Prince Darius of Kallorway is the strongest mage in his family–and the only reason his weak father is still clinging to his throne. Starting at the Academy at the same time as Verene, the crown prince is cold and distant and shows no desire to connect with her. Instead he seems suspicious of both her presence and her claimed lack of power.

Surrounded by unfamiliar politics and long-held enemies, Verene discovers that some at the Academy want her gone by whatever means necessary. As the threats grow ever more sinister, she starts to question all of her assumptions. The hardened prince might just be her best hope of survival and–even more shockingly–he might be right about her power. If Verene wants to survive Kallorway and the Academy, she must uncover her hidden powers and take her true place among the mages.

THOUGHTS:

This is a fantasy story with mages, which is among my top types of stories, so I feel like this one would be an automatic keep. I have a lot of other series and novels to get through, so for now, I think this novel can stay on my TBR, but if it comes up again during a clean-up and I have not gotten around to it yet, then it might be time to toss.

5. Not the Girl You Marry

Jack Nolan is a gentleman, a journalist, and unlucky in love. His viral success has pigeon-holed him as the how-to guy for a buzzy, internet media company instead of covering hard-hitting politics. Fed up with his fluffy articles and the app-based dating scene as well, he strikes a deal with his boss to write a final piece de resistance: How to Lose a Girl. Easier said than done when the girl he meets is Hannah Mayfield, and he’s not sure he wants her to dump him.

Hannah is an extremely successful event planner who’s focused on climbing the career ladder. Her firm is one of the most prestigious in the city, and she’s determined to secure her next promotion. But Hannah has a bit of an image problem. She needs to show her boss that she has range, including planning dreaded, romantic weddings. Enter Jack. He’s the perfect man to date for a couple weeks to prove to her boss that she’s not scared of feelings.

Before Jack and Hannah know it, their fake relationship starts to feel all too real—and neither of them can stand to lose each other.

THOUGHTS:

Fake relationships are always a delight to read in romance novels. This is a gender-swapped retelling of How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days. I read the reviews and nothing stood out to me originally to make me want to toss this novel. I, then, read a few reviews that said that the two characters have feelings very early on in the story and yet they continue to use each other like in the movie. For me, this would take a lot of the magic away from the story as there does not seem to be a point in faking a relationship if there were feelings before it started. Maybe one day I can circle back around to this novel, but for now, it is a firm toss.

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My ninth overall Clean-up and my first one for March is now complete! This was a good week for tossing novels as I managed to toss four of the five novels. Although all five are stories that I would normally read, I have a lot of novels to try and go through and I am starting to take other reviews into account. I still take the opinions of others with a grain of salt as I might end up liking something that others did not, I feel if there is a firm pattern, then maybe it is okay to listen to those opinions more. Slowly, but surely, my TBR is getting cleaned up with a combination of reading, these clean-ups, and the more recent addition of audiobooks. Eventually, I will have read my current TBR and I can start again with new novels. Happy Clean-ups to those that are doing these every week!