Happy Monday, ladies!

Who else wishes they were at home in bed today reading? I 100% wish that’s where I was!

Sorry it took me such a long time to get you another What’s On My Nightstand installment—I read American Wife and it is quite the long read, and because I’ve been so busy, I haven’t had has much time to crush a book cover to cover as I usually do. Fear not—I have lots of vacation over the next two months, which means lots of time to read!

Also, I feel like I do this PSA a lot, but I went out to happy hour with a great friend from high school on Friday and told her about it, so I thought I’d share it again for all my newer readers.

You ready for this life changing piece of information?

You can get free library books on your Kindle. That’s right, most public libraries—I get mine through the county my parents live in since that’s where I have my library card—have free Kindle books for rent. All you do is request to instantly download the book if it’s available or put a hold on it to be notified when it’s available. Then, it downloads to your Kindle just like a normal book you purchase—except you pay zero dollars! My library lets you borrow the books for three weeks, and if there’s no one behind you on the waitlist, you can easily extend your rental. So, if you’re looking for a way to save money, I can’t recommend looking into your public library’s Kindle book option enough.

Now that that important PSA is out of the way, here’s what’s been on my nightstand as of late:

THE ASSISTANTS // CAMILLE PERRI

I’m about 90% done with this book, but it took me a while to get this far, and I think that says something about how much I like it. However, there’s a good chance you’d like this read as the plot intriguing—Tina Fontana works as a personal assistant for the head honcho of a media conglomerate. He asks to get on the next American Airlines flight and buy out first class. To top it off, the he wants the airline to comp his trip. Tina dutifully calls and asks. She’s able to get the seats, but the airline isn’t willing to comp his trip, so she puts the $20,000 expense on her personal credit card to be reimbursed later. A few days pass, and the airline decides to comp his travel, only her reimbursement check has already gone through. Despite knowing it’s wrong, she cashes the check to pay off her student loans. Only problem? Someone in accounting notices, and asks to get on her scheme. Before she knows it, the whole thing has spiraled out of control.

Would I recommend it? Maybe—but I’d read the other books on this round up first.

EIGHT HUNDRED GRAPES // LAURA DAVE

If you love wine like me, you’ll love this book! It follows the protagonist, Georgia, who sees her fiancé walking down the street with his ex, a famous movie star, while she is at her last wedding dress fitting. So, she decides to return home to her family’s vineyard—coincidentally where she’s getting married the following weekend—to get away from it all. Only, she finds her family in disarray—her mom is dating someone else, her father sold their beloved vineyard to a big company they all hate, and her one brother is in love with the other brother’s wife. A comedy of error ensues, and once I got into the storyline, I couldn’t put it down.

Would I recommend it? Yes! This would be the perfect vacation read.

AMERICAN WIFE // CURTIS SITTENFIELD 

Loosely based on Laura Bush’s life, I absolutely loved this fictional tale. It follows the protagonist, Alice, from the time she is a young girl in Wisconsin growing up as a only child with her two working class parents to when she finds herself in the White House as First Lady. As a young working librarian, she meets her future husband, Charlie, at a barbecue, and is quickly inducted into and has to navigate his political dynasty family. It was a great inside look at what Laura’s life might have looked like—though I will say, I liked the beginning of the book more than the end of the book, where the protagonist pontificates a bit too much for my taste.

Would I recommend it? Yes—but be wary if you are sensitive to car accidents or abortions.

THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY // LEIGH HIMES

Abbey falls and hits her head at Nordstrom and wakes up to the life that could have been. Instead of finding her middle class family and loving husband, Jimmy, she wakes up to find her husband—someone she initially doesn’t recognize—in the middle of a Congressional run and her beloved children liking to the nanny more than her. She quickly realizes the man she is married to is a well-to-do guy she met at the copy machine at her first job, but doesn’t know anything else about this new life she finds herself thrust into—and if she will ever find a way home. I loved this book because you really empathized with the character since you as the reader didn’t know anything about her new life, either, and I love that it reminds you that you should always appreciate what you have.

Would I recommend it? Yes! Especially if you liked What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty.