fun & cool SIL reviews her BOTM picks

this post is not sponsored :(

I’m back to bestow upon you my stream-of-consciousness book reviews once more. This time, my selections come from Book of the Month! Haley gifted me a subscription for Christmas — was this a thinly veiled plot to produce more guest content for Fun & Cool Books? You be the judge!

I love how BOTM gamifies the book selection process and makes new releases more accessible. This post is not sponsored, but it could be if BOTM would return my calls! (Kidding.) (Sort of?) Here are my picks from the last few months.

January: The Favorites by Layne Fargo

It’s an Olympics off-year, but you don’t have to take a break from the drama! This novel follows the rise (and fall? :O) of ice dancing duo, Katarina and Heath. It’s structured like a juicy docuseries but sprinkled with the snarky commentary of reality TV. Like any great ice dancing routine, the story starts a bit slow and quickens as intensity builds. I read the final 100 pages in one sitting! The author did a ton of research to build this story, and I give her a standing ovation for that.

For me, this book was a delightful dose of nostalgia. Figure skating was all the rage in the late 90s/early 2000s — popularity points abound if you ditched comparatively basic ballet classes in favor of pricy skating lessons at the local mall — and I chased the blades of glory. I enrolled in ice skating summer camp, hosted a birthday party at the rink, and religiously watched televised competitions with my mom (hi, mom! I’ve already loaned you my copy of this one). This was the age of gorgeous Olympians Tara Lipinski, Michelle Kwan, and Sasha Cohen, the latter of whom exactly one person thought I bore resemblance and I’ve clearly never let that go.

If skating is your favorite Olympic competitions to watch, don’t miss this one! And for more sports-centric reads, check out Haley’s round up here.

February: First-Time Caller by B.K. Borison

Sleepless in Seattle re-watchers, unite! This book borrows the premise of one of Nora Ephron’s biggest hits and opens with a child calling a late-night radio hotline on their single parent’s behalf. The plot takes a modern twist when the parent, Lucie, joins the radio host, Aiden, in a new segment focused on finding love. I think you can already tell how this one ends, but isn’t that nice sometimes? The release around Valentine’s Day was masterfully timed.

As a former Bachelor franchise loyalist, I couldn’t help but picture Aiden as Wells Adams. I was thrilled to see that the author plans to turn this into a series. More radio show content, please!

March: Liquid: A Love Story by Mariam Rahmani

Fed up with academia, an adjunct professor embarks on a mission to complete 100 dates — wealthy candidates only! — in one summer. But was her perfect match posing quietly as her wingman the entire time? Deliciously witty and full of five-dollar vocabulary words! I was initially intimidated by BOTM’s “highbrow” tag before I remembered my AP English test scores (tosses 2010 braid-crimped hair). This novel is an entertaining commentary on the challenges of modern feminism, classism, and The American Dream. There are so many delectable morsels that resonate if you’ve ever interacted with a man with any ounce of privilege. Exhibit A:

“I half expected the barman to correct his order, before remembering that a man is seldom corrected, even less so in public and never when paying.” Oooooof.

Folks are ripping this to shreds on GoodReads, a tragedy that befalls many a LitFic with deceptively bright cover art. The structure of this one wasn’t my favorite either, but come on gen pop, dig deeper!

April: Passion Project by London Sperry

This book is set in New YOOOOrK, concrete jungle where dreams are MADE OF there’s nothing you CAN’T do (sorry). I’m a sucker for the 20-something struggling in the city trope!

If you love Shrinking on Apple TV+ as much as I do, try this one. Bennet is struggling to find meaning following the tragic death of her college boyfriend. She meets Henry, who forces her to try new things — tattoo art, volunteering, repelling off buildings, the usual! — in pursuit of her life’s passion. Unlike Jason Segel’s character in Shrinking, Henry is not a licensed therapist, but he does reveal baggage of his own. This book is full of feelings, chaotic adventures, and life-affirming connections. What more can you ask for?

If you have a favorite BOTM pick, let us know in the comments! And use code FUNANDCOOLSIL at checkout for 10% off your subscription!!!*

*for legal purposes, this is a joke.