Five Thrillers for Your Beach Bag
Well, HAPPY SUMMER, my loves!!! From my world to yours. This spring was nothing short of a whirlwind around here, between finishing book #3, wrapping up the school year, signing with a literary agent (I die!!!), and stepping into the sunshine. So, I skipped my intended spring book review. My apologies!
Winter Rave Reads
Marching into #March and I guess it’s finally time for my first official blog post of 2024!!!! Welcome, you guys! I am so happy you’re here! I’ve been reading up a storm per usual but haven’t yet organized my thoughts or reviews into anything cohesive or pretty. Until now! This year, I’ll be sharing my standout reads on Instagram once again, but also here on the blog occasionally, plus… are you ready for it… in two brand new places!
My Top 10 Books of 2023
‘Twas three days before Christmas; the holiday tizzy! Not one mom was reading, ‘cuz she was too busy! But stacked by her bed with immaculate care was the stack of great books that did lead her RIGHT HERE!!!!
November Book Review
Well, look at that advent calendar, friends! We’re here! We made it to the last month of 2023! Sliding into December with this slightly tardy recap, I debated just waiting for my annual Best Books of the Year post, coming later this month! But then I figured… why not?! Can you ever say too much about books?!
October Book Review
The most wonderful time of the year has officially dropped, y’all!!! Starbucks cups are merry and bright. Skeletons are back in the closet (though I miss them already). We are still embracing the pumpkins for a bit longer, but gosh, do I love this season!
August & September Book Review
Happy FALL to you all!!! My favorite season has officially descended upon us. It’s spooky and cozy. The football’s on and so is the chili! Regretfully my August book review just never made it to the light of day—(back-to-school, marathon training, and prepping to launch my second book (!!!)—but don’t you worry. I’m back with a bang and some serious treats for you guys!
July Book Review
Are we really in the last month of summer?! I’m so thrilled to (finally) share this totally all-over-the place, surprising, and honest book review with you all! For real, I just flew by the seat of my shorts on what-to-read-next this month, and, well, it shows. I consider myself a “mood” reader, but not even sure what to make of the mood here! Eclectic? Vast? Intergalatic? Still, it was a really good reading month. Great, even. In fact, more than one of these books was so deeply thought-provoking and/or emotional that I remain in recovery!
June Book Review
Is it just me or is summer already flying?! Happy book review day!!! My stack from June makes me laugh, you guys, because I genuinely intended to read solely beach reads. I suppose you can read anything on the beach—murder, high drama, business—but I really thought this month’s summery (see what I did there) would involve more neon and sand. That said, these books are all beachy in their own way, I’ve decided!
May Book Review
What surprised and wowed me in May? I know! I know! My four reads! I’m swooping in to share the handful of books I popped like Skittles last month. I’m only now realizing that each one is from an entirely different genre—and I really love that! We have nonfiction/self-help, memoir, thriller, and romance. Something for everyone, hopefully!
April Book Review
IT’S FRIDAY!!!! And Cinco de Mayo, at that! On this lovely 5/5, I’m reviewing my FIVE April reads for you, friends! Once again, last month proved that 2023 will far outshine the last couple years of my reading life. I’m crying, I’m laughing, I’m teetering on the edge of my airplane seat! The book bar is creeping higher with each passing week, and I’m giddy about it!
March Book Review
Happy spring, everybody!!! Not that it *feels* like spring here in Southern California, where it’s suddenly decided to pretend it’s Seattle nonstop, but #itscool. I don’t ever need a good hair day again! JK. While wildly outside our sunshiney norm, these rainy days have provided some super-cozy afternoons just perfect for, duh, great reading!
February Book Review
February was a month marked by love—of travel, of people, of BOOKS! So far, friends, I am making super-good on my commitment to ensure this is my ultimate reading year. Already in 2023, I have felt that feeling again. That spark. That passion! For reading, for pages, for storytelling. I am on a voracious hunt for only the top-shelf gold—so pretty-please, readers, keep me posted on what blows you away! Obvs I will do the same.
January Book Review
They’re baaaaaaack!!! Welcome to my first monthly book review of 2023! I have to say, I’m so glad you guys seem to enjoy reading these as much as I enjoy writing them. I blogged these monthly for a full year back in 2019, and, on and off, have continued to share my roundups and reviews in this way. I truly love devouring book reviews in all forms, from IG posts to sophisticated publications. But there’s something extra-special to me about a longer, aesthetically pleasing wrap-up to savor and revisit anytime.
My Top 12 Books of 2022
Happy 2023, my dear loves!!! We’re one week into the year! And oh, how I love the crisp dawn of another January. My girls don’t return to school until Monday, so I haven’t quite felt the full force of the New Year yet. In fact, we’ve been kind of hibernating and LOVING it! Holding on tightly to slow lazy mornings, long rainy days, and breaking in our jacuzzi. Yes, it is just purely magical to finally BE in our brand-new home. I cry tears of joy almost daily! We’ve been soaking in every moment of “in-between” break bliss over here.
10 Rave-Worthy Reads
Happy springtime, you guys!!! Even though summer is still technically one month away, I am embracing it early! The days are long, the weather is dreamy, and I can see the end of the school year. And what on earth pairs just perfectly with afternoons by the pool, long lazy evenings, and sunny, swoontastic getaways?
Obviously: GREAT BOOKS!!!!
My Top 12 Books of 2021
Happy New Year’s Eve, friends!!!! Straight from my Covid cave. Yep, it finally happened to me! Six days ago, on December 26, I officially tested positive. I resigned to a holiday week of quarantine, body aches, and more vitamins and green juice than I’ve consumed in the past three years! Gratefully my case overall is mild compared to those faced by others, and I’m very much on the up. Thank you, Lord!
My Summer Reading Round-Up 2021
Happy July, my friends, and welcome to my first official brand-new blog post here at StephanieMack.com! What a pretty place to sit down and let the creativity flow, thanks to my designer-turned-dear-friend, the lovely Natalie Lauren Design. This fresh, gorgeous site is everything I could have dreamed up and more. Plus, what a perfect way to kick off the new blog portion, with my top summer reads for this year!
My Favorite Books of 2020
My books of the year always tell me something. What did I reach for? What did I need? What did I seek in the quiet? As I peer back on twenty-twenty, one thing is abundantly clear: I read to enjoy, to escape, to be entertained. In plenty of previous seasons, I have devoured self-help, true stories, and/or deep, serious fiction. That wasn’t this year, for me. I read what I wanted, whenever I wanted or needed! And it’s beautiful to me that books met me where I was at. Needing hope. Needing light. Quite honestly, needing a whole other world in the magic of written pages.